Congratulations on finishing all 15 Things! The accounts you've created are yours to do with as you please. Hopefully, you've discovered some really great tools that you'll use at work and in your personal life. Some of them that you've learned about you'll be seeing used in the future at LGPL. Remember downloadable audiobooks? Well, they're coming to LGPL this summer so you'll be ready to use them! We also already offer RSS Feeds from our Events Calendar, instant messaging in YA, and pictures in Flickr. And you can't forget about podcasts, wikis, tagging, and Library Thing!
For those accounts that you do not wish to keep, here are some instructions on how to delete them. Please be aware that deleting any of these accounts will delete any information that you have saved in them such as bookmarks, blog entries, and documents. We didn't require you to create accounts for tagging (you just used your library card), downloadable audiobooks, podcasts, youtube, flickr, meebo, shelfari, or twitter. If you did set up an account for any of these and need help deleting it, please do not hesitate to ask Brooke in Tech services for help!
To Delete all Google Services (Blogger, Google Reader, Google Docs, and Google Talk):
If you don't want to delete all of these accounts, you can delete the information stored in each one. See the individual instructions below.
1. Go to www.google.com and sign in using your Google Account.
2. Click on "My Account." A list of your Google Products will appear.
3. Click on "Edit" next to My Products.
4. Select "Close account and delete all services and info associated with it". This is a permanent deletion of all your Google-associated accounts and stored information.
To Delete Your Blogger Blog:
1. Sign in to Blogger.
2. Be sure you are in the Dashboard.
3. Select "Settings" just below your blog title.
4. To the right of Blog Tools, select "Delete This Blog." This will permanently delete your blog and all posts contained within.
To Delete Your Google Reader Feeds:
This will only delete your feeds, not the account. Deleting your Google account is the only to remove your Google Reader account (see above).
1. Go to www.google.com and sign in using your Google Account.
2. Click on "My Account." A list of Google Products will appear.
3. Click on "Settings" next to Reader.
4. Select "Subscriptions".
5. Check the box to the left of each feed name and then select "Unsubscribe".
To Delete Your Google Docs Documents:
1. Go to www.google.com and sign in using your Google Account.
2. Under the More dropdown, select "Documents".
3. Check the box to the left of each document and the select "Delete".
To Delete Your Google Talk Account:
1. This only deletes your icon in the task bar.
2. Right click on the Google Talk icon (it looks like a cartoon talk bubble) in the lower-right hand corner of your desktop. You may have to click the arrow to make it appear.
3. Click "Exit". The icon should no longer appear.
To Delete Your TaDaLists Account:
1. Go to www.tadalists.com and login to your account.
2. To the right, select "cancel account".
To Delete Your RememberTheMilk Account (not everyone set one up):
1. Login at www.rememberthemilk.com
2. Select "Settings" at the tp of the page.
3. At the bottom of the page, select "close your account".
To Delete Your MySpace Account (not everyone set one up):
1. Enter your login at www.myspace.com
2. Select "My Account" on the top-right of the screen.
3. Select "Account Cancellation"
4. Scroll to the bottom of the page and select "Cancel Account". MySpace will send you a confirmation email with a link to follow and confirm the cancellation request.
To Delete Your Facebook Account (not everyone set one up):
1. Go to www.facebook.com and login.
2. Under Deactivate Account, select "deactivate".
To Delete Your del.icio.us Account:
1. Login at http://delicious.com
2. Select "Settings" in the top-right corner
3. Under Account, select "Delete Account".
To Delete Your LibraryThing Account:
1. Send your Username and Password to info@librarything.com, and write something like "please delete my account" in the subject line of your email.
2. You may also include in the body of the email why you are deleting the account.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Thing 15: Twitter (Week of 3/23)
This week's topic is Twitter.
This last Thing will introduce you to the social networking source Twitter (but you won't be required to set up a Twitter account). Twitter is a way to send a brief, informational e-mail, or "tweet," to all of your contacts at once. Though extremely popular as a tool for mobile devices, Twitter is not meant to be a two-way conversation. It simply answers the question, "What are you doing?" Responses must be 140 characters or fewer. Twitter is being used by businesses, news sources and political campaigns (including Barack Obama's and Ralph Nader's) to provide information updates to their users, who have signed up to receive the tweets.
This week's Tech Play Exercise:
That's it! If you feel inspired, you can set up Twitter accounts with your friends and family so you can share...what you're doing.
This last Thing will introduce you to the social networking source Twitter (but you won't be required to set up a Twitter account). Twitter is a way to send a brief, informational e-mail, or "tweet," to all of your contacts at once. Though extremely popular as a tool for mobile devices, Twitter is not meant to be a two-way conversation. It simply answers the question, "What are you doing?" Responses must be 140 characters or fewer. Twitter is being used by businesses, news sources and political campaigns (including Barack Obama's and Ralph Nader's) to provide information updates to their users, who have signed up to receive the tweets.
This week's Tech Play Exercise:
- Start at http://www.twitter.com/.
- View the "Twitter in Plain English" video by clicking on the red box in the upper right corner.
- Go to the La Grange Public Library homepage. Scroll down the menu bar on the left. Let your mouse hover over "Young Adult Services" and select "YA Services Home." Note that Noël has added a Tweeter widget to the page. This allows Noël to provide brief, timely updates to teens who view the page.
- Post a message to blog. Do you Twitter, or do you know anyone who does? Can you think of a useful application for Twitter?
That's it! If you feel inspired, you can set up Twitter accounts with your friends and family so you can share...what you're doing.
Thing 14: Instant Messaging / Meebo (Week of 3/16)
This week's topic is Instant Messaging.
Instant Messaging (IM) is a brief, real-time tool which allows you to send short messages via the Internet--similar to texting, but on your computer. Of course, IM is only really "instant" if the person you are contacting is available at that moment--but you can determine that before you send a message.
Some libraries are using IM as another way to make contact with their patrons. For example, visit http://www.orlandparklibrary.org/ask.htm to see how Orland Park Public Library invites patrons to IM staff on their "Ask a Librarian" page, in addition to offering the more conventional methods of phone and e-mail. Here at La Grange Noël uses IM to keep in touch with her teen patrons. Take a look at http://www.lagrangelibrary.org/lagrange/yaservices.asp and scroll down the page to see her IM widget.
This week's Tech Play Exercise:
Note: Remember, with this account you can only IM other people who have set up G-mail
accounts through Google.
Challenge:
If you want to IM friends who don't have Google IM accounts, you can use an aggregator such as Meebo. Wikipedia calls Meebo "an...instant messaging program which supports multiple IM services." Go to http://www.meebo.com/ and click on "Sign Up Now." Enter a Meebo ID (the name you want your friends to see). Choose a password and confirm it. Keep in mind that you need to set up accounts with Yahoo, AIM, etc. (by clicking on those buttons and following their directions) if you want to IM with friends who have those accounts. Try this with a friend who has a non-Google account. You can IM Jeannie at her Yahoo account: dilgerh.
Instant Messaging (IM) is a brief, real-time tool which allows you to send short messages via the Internet--similar to texting, but on your computer. Of course, IM is only really "instant" if the person you are contacting is available at that moment--but you can determine that before you send a message.
Some libraries are using IM as another way to make contact with their patrons. For example, visit http://www.orlandparklibrary.org/ask.htm to see how Orland Park Public Library invites patrons to IM staff on their "Ask a Librarian" page, in addition to offering the more conventional methods of phone and e-mail. Here at La Grange Noël uses IM to keep in touch with her teen patrons. Take a look at http://www.lagrangelibrary.org/lagrange/yaservices.asp and scroll down the page to see her IM widget.
This week's Tech Play Exercise:
In this exercise you will set up an IM account and practice sending a message.
- Set up a Google Talk IM account. Go to http://talk.google.com/. Click on the blue Download Google Talk button. (If you have trouble, you may have to allow pop-ups by clicking on the pop-up toggle button on your tool bar.) Follow the steps on the Download Wizard. At the sign-in box, click on "Don't have an account." Fill in the required information for a user account. Create your "desired username." This is what your friends will see when you send them an IM. It's a good idea to scroll through the user agreement.
- Click on the Accept button.
- Read the information page if you want. Then Launch Google Talk. Look for the grey "word bubble" icon to appear on your task bar (in the lower right corner of your screen). The words "Google Talk" should appear when you let your mouse hover over the icon. (Hint: If you don't see the icon, click on the white arrow to see more options.)
- Now you're ready to add a Friend so you can begin IM-ing. Click on the "Add" button in the lower left corner. Type over the highlighted Sample Friend in the box by replacing it with lgpublib@gmail.com. This will invite Noël to be your Google Talk Friend. When she opens her IM account and finds your invitation, she will accept and write back.
- Post a message to your blog. Were you able to IM in real time to Noël, or someone else on staff? (Real-time messages, faster than e-mail, are the real point of IM.) Did you find it handy?
Note: Remember, with this account you can only IM other people who have set up G-mail
accounts through Google.
Challenge:
If you want to IM friends who don't have Google IM accounts, you can use an aggregator such as Meebo. Wikipedia calls Meebo "an...instant messaging program which supports multiple IM services." Go to http://www.meebo.com/ and click on "Sign Up Now." Enter a Meebo ID (the name you want your friends to see). Choose a password and confirm it. Keep in mind that you need to set up accounts with Yahoo, AIM, etc. (by clicking on those buttons and following their directions) if you want to IM with friends who have those accounts. Try this with a friend who has a non-Google account. You can IM Jeannie at her Yahoo account: dilgerh.
Thing 13: LibraryThing (Week of 3/9)
This week's topic is LibraryThing. (To complete this lesson, you will need to bring in 5 books from your home library collection.)
LibraryThing, the “site for book lovers,” enables you to catalog your personal book collection, rate and review your books—online. In addition, you can connect with others who have similar taste in reading and find local book-related events, such as author book signings. You can add up to 200 books for free or pay a small fee to add unlimited amounts of books.
This week's TechPlay exercise is:
Step 1. Go to www.librarything.com and take the tour.
Step 2. Set up an account.
Step 3. Click on the tab “add books” to create your library. One easy way to do this is by using each book’s International Standard Book Number, or ISBN. This is usually found on the back of the book. Type the ISBN in the white search box. The title will appear in the box on the right. Click on the title, and your book is added to your library! Do this for 3 more of your books.
Step 4. Another way to add a book is by title. Enter your last book by typing the title in the white search box. You’ll probably see more than one edition of the book in the box on the right. Scroll down through the titles until you see the edition you’re holding (cover and publication date are your clues). When you find your edition, click on it. Now it’s been added to your library. To delete any titles, simply hit the “delete book” icon next to your added title. You’ll be asked again in a pop-up box; just click “yes.”
Step 5. Click on the tab “Your library.” Scroll down to see the books you’ve entered. This is the beginning of your library – congratulations! Post an entry on your blog explaining how LibraryThing might (or might not not) be useful to you.
*Challenge Step: Click on one of the titles. This leads to a ton of information about your book. On the left side of the screen, click on “member reviews.” Here you’ll find many reviews of this book. To add your own review, click “edit book” on the left side of the screen, and scroll down to the “your review” box. Click on the box and start typing. Remember to click on the green “save” button when you have finished. Also, be sure to click the “sign out” button at the end of your session, particularly if you are doing this exercise at work.
FYI – Another book cataloging and social networking site is found at www.shelfari.com. Run by Amazon.com, it seems to focus more on popular fiction works and also seems to attract a younger, less discerning crowd.
LibraryThing, the “site for book lovers,” enables you to catalog your personal book collection, rate and review your books—online. In addition, you can connect with others who have similar taste in reading and find local book-related events, such as author book signings. You can add up to 200 books for free or pay a small fee to add unlimited amounts of books.
This week's TechPlay exercise is:
Step 1. Go to www.librarything.com and take the tour.
Step 2. Set up an account.
Step 3. Click on the tab “add books” to create your library. One easy way to do this is by using each book’s International Standard Book Number, or ISBN. This is usually found on the back of the book. Type the ISBN in the white search box. The title will appear in the box on the right. Click on the title, and your book is added to your library! Do this for 3 more of your books.
Step 4. Another way to add a book is by title. Enter your last book by typing the title in the white search box. You’ll probably see more than one edition of the book in the box on the right. Scroll down through the titles until you see the edition you’re holding (cover and publication date are your clues). When you find your edition, click on it. Now it’s been added to your library. To delete any titles, simply hit the “delete book” icon next to your added title. You’ll be asked again in a pop-up box; just click “yes.”
Step 5. Click on the tab “Your library.” Scroll down to see the books you’ve entered. This is the beginning of your library – congratulations! Post an entry on your blog explaining how LibraryThing might (or might not not) be useful to you.
*Challenge Step: Click on one of the titles. This leads to a ton of information about your book. On the left side of the screen, click on “member reviews.” Here you’ll find many reviews of this book. To add your own review, click “edit book” on the left side of the screen, and scroll down to the “your review” box. Click on the box and start typing. Remember to click on the green “save” button when you have finished. Also, be sure to click the “sign out” button at the end of your session, particularly if you are doing this exercise at work.
FYI – Another book cataloging and social networking site is found at www.shelfari.com. Run by Amazon.com, it seems to focus more on popular fiction works and also seems to attract a younger, less discerning crowd.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Thing 12: Social Bookmarking (Week of 3/2)
This week's topic is Social Bookmarking.
Social bookmarking allows Internet users to save web addresses to an account where they can organize, search, and share their bookmarks. This is different than just saving it to Favorites because it is accessible on any computer with any Internet browser. Users can tag bookmarks with descriptive words to help themselves and others find the web addresses. Some of the social bookmarking sites even recommend other sites people have bookmarked based on the web addresses and tags in your account. You can see how many times a tag has been used and look at all of the bookmarks to which that tag has been assigned to. Watch this video for a visual explanation:
Social Bookmarking in Plain English
Social bookmarking has been around for over 10 years, but didn't gain much popularity until del.icio.us popped up. Del.icio.us was the first site that allowed users to tag their web addresses. You may have heard of some of these other social bookmarking sites: Digg, Diigo, Furl, Ma.gnolia, Newsvine, Reddit, and StumbleUpon. Most of these sites allow you to make the bookmarks public or private. When they are made public, other users can see who created the bookmark. This can help your network of online friends grow. They may have bookmarks that would interest you. For this week's exercise, we'll use del.icio.us.
This Week's TechPlay Exercise : del.icio.us
Challenge 1:
Try using the network feature. Find a coworker who has done the previous exercise. Trade usernames with them and add the username to your network. You will be able to share bookmarks. You could use this when planning a family vacation. Bookmark a bunch of websites for ideas on where to go, share the bookmarks with family, and then everyone will have an easy way to access the list. You can also add notes like which time of year it is best to visit each location.
Challenge 2:
If you have websites already bookmarked at home or on a specific computer that you want to add to Del.icio.us, under settings in Del.icio.us learn how to import them. Now you'll be able to log into you Del.icio.us account and view your favorite websites no matter which computer or internet browser you're using.
Social bookmarking allows Internet users to save web addresses to an account where they can organize, search, and share their bookmarks. This is different than just saving it to Favorites because it is accessible on any computer with any Internet browser. Users can tag bookmarks with descriptive words to help themselves and others find the web addresses. Some of the social bookmarking sites even recommend other sites people have bookmarked based on the web addresses and tags in your account. You can see how many times a tag has been used and look at all of the bookmarks to which that tag has been assigned to. Watch this video for a visual explanation:
Social Bookmarking in Plain English
Social bookmarking has been around for over 10 years, but didn't gain much popularity until del.icio.us popped up. Del.icio.us was the first site that allowed users to tag their web addresses. You may have heard of some of these other social bookmarking sites: Digg, Diigo, Furl, Ma.gnolia, Newsvine, Reddit, and StumbleUpon. Most of these sites allow you to make the bookmarks public or private. When they are made public, other users can see who created the bookmark. This can help your network of online friends grow. They may have bookmarks that would interest you. For this week's exercise, we'll use del.icio.us.
This Week's TechPlay Exercise : del.icio.us
- Go to www.delicious.com
- Click the green box in the top, right hand corner labeled "Join Now."
- Fill out all of the boxes. For username and passwords, you may want to try using the same ones as you have used for previous logins.
- When you get to the next screen, click "Skip Step 2".
- Skip the next screen as well so click "Skip Step 3".
- Enter a web address (also known as a URL) in the box you wish to add to your saved bookmarks. If you can't thing of any to add, use www.lagrangelibrary.org, www.mls.lib.il.us (MLS), or www.loc.gov (Library of Congress). Click "Next".
- Now you can add more information. You can make notes that you may want to remember about what on that particular website is useful to you. You can also add tags (remember those from Thing 11?). The tags will help you search for the bookmark. For www.mls.lib.il.us, you could add MLS, libraries, SWAN, meetings, workshops.
- You can make the bookmark unsearchable by other users by checking the box "Do Not Share". You can also leave it searchable to help out other users.
- Click "Save".
- Note that at the bottom of the screen, you can add these bookmarks into your RSS Feeds!
- You can keep adding bookmarks as you find new websites worth remembering!
- Blog about social bookmarking. How do you feel about others being able to see what you've bookmarked? Do you have concerns about privacy issues?
Challenge 1:
Try using the network feature. Find a coworker who has done the previous exercise. Trade usernames with them and add the username to your network. You will be able to share bookmarks. You could use this when planning a family vacation. Bookmark a bunch of websites for ideas on where to go, share the bookmarks with family, and then everyone will have an easy way to access the list. You can also add notes like which time of year it is best to visit each location.
Challenge 2:
If you have websites already bookmarked at home or on a specific computer that you want to add to Del.icio.us, under settings in Del.icio.us learn how to import them. Now you'll be able to log into you Del.icio.us account and view your favorite websites no matter which computer or internet browser you're using.
Thing 11: Tagging (Week of 2/23)
This week's topic is Tagging.
You may have heard of a tag before... and not the kind you look at when you're shopping. A tag in the Web 2.0 world is a description attached to a piece of information. Librarians have been tagging pieces of information for years. We call them subject headings. Assigning a tag to a piece of digital information is just like assigning a subject heading to a book. There are two big differences between a librarian assigning a subject heading and a person assigning a tag. The first is that there are no rules for tagging to follow like the Library of Congress Subject Headings. You can tag whatever word you think is the most appropriate for the information. It may be the date and place a picture was taken or it may be keywords to describe the plot of a book. The second difference is that anyone can tag. You usually just have to log into an account whereas library catalogs do not allow patrons to add subject headings.
You've probably seen tags before. Amazon.com was one of the first websites to use tagging. Why pay someone to add descriptions when the users can add keywords and enjoy doing it? Last week you looked at pictures in Flickr. Users of Flickr will tag their pictures so other users can find them. This is how you are able to search for the term "flower". Flickr searches the tags of the pictures to find the ones using "flower" to provide search results.
Hopefully you have all had a chance to try Encore, SWAN's new catalog. You can tag in Encore which allows other users to see your descriptions. It provides more information on materials and gives patrons a collaborative environment to do it in. Have fun checking it out in this week's exercise!
This Week's TechPlay Exercise: You'll need your library card number and your pin. Your pin is the same as it was in the old catalog. If this is your first time signing into your account online, it will ask you to create a pin.
You may have heard of a tag before... and not the kind you look at when you're shopping. A tag in the Web 2.0 world is a description attached to a piece of information. Librarians have been tagging pieces of information for years. We call them subject headings. Assigning a tag to a piece of digital information is just like assigning a subject heading to a book. There are two big differences between a librarian assigning a subject heading and a person assigning a tag. The first is that there are no rules for tagging to follow like the Library of Congress Subject Headings. You can tag whatever word you think is the most appropriate for the information. It may be the date and place a picture was taken or it may be keywords to describe the plot of a book. The second difference is that anyone can tag. You usually just have to log into an account whereas library catalogs do not allow patrons to add subject headings.
You've probably seen tags before. Amazon.com was one of the first websites to use tagging. Why pay someone to add descriptions when the users can add keywords and enjoy doing it? Last week you looked at pictures in Flickr. Users of Flickr will tag their pictures so other users can find them. This is how you are able to search for the term "flower". Flickr searches the tags of the pictures to find the ones using "flower" to provide search results.
Hopefully you have all had a chance to try Encore, SWAN's new catalog. You can tag in Encore which allows other users to see your descriptions. It provides more information on materials and gives patrons a collaborative environment to do it in. Have fun checking it out in this week's exercise!
This Week's TechPlay Exercise: You'll need your library card number and your pin. Your pin is the same as it was in the old catalog. If this is your first time signing into your account online, it will ask you to create a pin.
- First, go to http://swanencore.mls.lib.il.us/iii/encore/app
- Click "Login" in the upper-right hand corner. Use your library card number and pin to login.
- After you are logged in, you will be automatically returned to the search page. In the upper-right hand corner, it will say "Welcome, Doe, Jane M."
- Search for any book or other material that you have already read/enjoyed.
- Click on the title you have selected to tag.
- Towards the bottom under Community Tags will be a box labeled "Add a Tag".
- Type in your tag and click "Submit".
- Your tag should appear under "Community Tags" and "My Tags". You can delete your tag by clicking the red "x" next to the tag if you have made a spelling error or simply wish to delete it.
- Blog about your experience. Do you think this is something you will use? Where else have you seen tagging used?
Monday, January 12, 2009
Thing 10: Flickr (Week of 2/9)
This week's topic is Flickr.
Digital cameras have made it much easier for us to take lots and lots of photos! But many of us are bad at remembering to download them to a computer or share them with friends. New photo sharing sites make it easier to do both.
Here's a video on Online Photo Sharing in Plain English:
Flickr is the most popular of the photo sharing sites. As you can see, Flickr gives you a way to back up your photos, organize them, and share them.
This week's TechPlay Exercise:
1. Go to http://www.flickr.com and search "LaGrange Library" Try it both with and without a space in the city name. Can you find our Flickr photos?
2. See how various libraries are using Flickr by checking out some of our neighbors:
4. Post to your blog about today's exercise. Any suggestions for photos we should put on our Flickr account? Do you have digital photos of the library that you'd like to share?
Digital cameras have made it much easier for us to take lots and lots of photos! But many of us are bad at remembering to download them to a computer or share them with friends. New photo sharing sites make it easier to do both.
Here's a video on Online Photo Sharing in Plain English:
Flickr is the most popular of the photo sharing sites. As you can see, Flickr gives you a way to back up your photos, organize them, and share them.
This week's TechPlay Exercise:
1. Go to http://www.flickr.com and search "LaGrange Library" Try it both with and without a space in the city name. Can you find our Flickr photos?
2. See how various libraries are using Flickr by checking out some of our neighbors:
- Brookfield Public Library has some Flickr photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/36819620@N00/.
- See Thomas Ford's recent remodel at http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomasfordmemoriallibrary/.
- La Grange Park has put some photos on Flickr, then put them on their website at http://www.lplibrary.org/about/photos.php.
- And from further afield, here's a whole group of libraries and librarians using Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/librariesandlibrarians/.
4. Post to your blog about today's exercise. Any suggestions for photos we should put on our Flickr account? Do you have digital photos of the library that you'd like to share?
Thing 9: YouTube.com (Week of 2/2)
This week's topic is YouTube.
YouTube.com is a host site for viral videos – that is, video clips that can be easily dispersed around the web. The sheer number of clips is staggering, but they are catalogued in various ways and it’s easy to browse by keyword. Users can post clips to the site, view them, and share them with others; it’s not necessary to have an account in order to view video clips. Warning: While this site is highly addictive, it does require high-speed Internet access.
This week's TechPlay exercise:
Step 1. Go to www.youtube.com. In the white search box below the word “home,” type “noel zethmayr” and hit your keyboard’s “enter” key. Scroll down and click on “Book Talks – Blackthorn Winter.” View the video.
Step 2. Return to the white search box, which is above the video you just watched. Now type in “gertie the dinosaur” and hit “enter.” On the task bar below the video, find the volume icon. To the right of the volume, find the “full screen mode” icon and click on it. View the video. (This is an excellent example of YouTube’s archival function; many old and obscure video clips can be found here.)
Step 3. When the video is over, click the red "share" button on the upper left side of the screen. This should present you with two options. Click on "email this video" and send the video to ya@lagrangelibrary.org.
Step 4. Return to the white search box and type in any keyword you like (e.g. Sarah Palin, Disney, Marilyn Monroe, knitting). You'll find there are videos on almost every subject! Choose a video and watch it. (Hint -- if a video keeps "buffering," or stopping and starting, hit the "pause" key on the lower left side of the video screen. You'll see the red timer bar turn to pink as it crawls from left to right, loading the video. Wait until the video is loaded, then hit the "pause" key to resume playing.)
Step 5. Post an entry on your blog describing the video you chose, as well as your reaction. Have fun!
YouTube.com is a host site for viral videos – that is, video clips that can be easily dispersed around the web. The sheer number of clips is staggering, but they are catalogued in various ways and it’s easy to browse by keyword. Users can post clips to the site, view them, and share them with others; it’s not necessary to have an account in order to view video clips. Warning: While this site is highly addictive, it does require high-speed Internet access.
This week's TechPlay exercise:
Step 1. Go to www.youtube.com. In the white search box below the word “home,” type “noel zethmayr” and hit your keyboard’s “enter” key. Scroll down and click on “Book Talks – Blackthorn Winter.” View the video.
Step 2. Return to the white search box, which is above the video you just watched. Now type in “gertie the dinosaur” and hit “enter.” On the task bar below the video, find the volume icon. To the right of the volume, find the “full screen mode” icon and click on it. View the video. (This is an excellent example of YouTube’s archival function; many old and obscure video clips can be found here.)
Step 3. When the video is over, click the red "share" button on the upper left side of the screen. This should present you with two options. Click on "email this video" and send the video to ya@lagrangelibrary.org.
Step 4. Return to the white search box and type in any keyword you like (e.g. Sarah Palin, Disney, Marilyn Monroe, knitting). You'll find there are videos on almost every subject! Choose a video and watch it. (Hint -- if a video keeps "buffering," or stopping and starting, hit the "pause" key on the lower left side of the video screen. You'll see the red timer bar turn to pink as it crawls from left to right, loading the video. Wait until the video is loaded, then hit the "pause" key to resume playing.)
Step 5. Post an entry on your blog describing the video you chose, as well as your reaction. Have fun!
Thing 8: Social Networking Sites (Week of 1/19)
This week’s topic is Social Networking Sites.
Social networking sites are online communication tools used by millions of people all over the world. Three of the most popular sites in the United States are MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn. People use social networking sites to share information about themselves and their interests, as well as music, videos, and pictures. All require users to sign up for an account, and in most cases users must be over the age of thirteen to use the site legally. This, however, does not stop the under thirteen crowd from using the sites, as age verification is nearly impossible.
While these sites are immensely popular among teens and adults, some are not as wary as they should be about putting personal information out there in cyberspace for anyone who is at all tech-savvy to read. There have been recent reports of colleges and employers checking the major social networking sites before accepting or hiring individuals, not to mention kids being suspended from schools and other activities for appearing on their sites with pictures of them engaging in some underage drinking.
Still, these sites offer great opportunities to keep in touch with friends and family who may be widely scattered, or to find people with similar interests. Through the network, it is also possible to get back in touch with long-lost friends or classmates. Here is a little bit about how the most popular sites work:
Social Networking in Plain English
This Week's TechPlay Exercise – My Space
The original and most popular site until April 2008, when it came in #2 to Facebook.
Challenge Exercise One - Facebook
Facebook began as a networking tool for college students, but it has grown and expanded to include people of all ages.
Optional Exercise Two - LinkedIn
LinkedIn is aimed at a slighter older, more educated crowd than MySpace and Facebook, and promotes itself as a “Professional” network. To obtain access, go to http://www.linkedin.com/ and create an account. It will ask you to set up a profile which includes your educational background and place of employment. You will then be able to search people, jobs, or groups.
Social networking sites are online communication tools used by millions of people all over the world. Three of the most popular sites in the United States are MySpace, Facebook, and LinkedIn. People use social networking sites to share information about themselves and their interests, as well as music, videos, and pictures. All require users to sign up for an account, and in most cases users must be over the age of thirteen to use the site legally. This, however, does not stop the under thirteen crowd from using the sites, as age verification is nearly impossible.
While these sites are immensely popular among teens and adults, some are not as wary as they should be about putting personal information out there in cyberspace for anyone who is at all tech-savvy to read. There have been recent reports of colleges and employers checking the major social networking sites before accepting or hiring individuals, not to mention kids being suspended from schools and other activities for appearing on their sites with pictures of them engaging in some underage drinking.
Still, these sites offer great opportunities to keep in touch with friends and family who may be widely scattered, or to find people with similar interests. Through the network, it is also possible to get back in touch with long-lost friends or classmates. Here is a little bit about how the most popular sites work:
Social Networking in Plain English
This Week's TechPlay Exercise – My Space
The original and most popular site until April 2008, when it came in #2 to Facebook.
- You can access MySpace by going to http://www.myspace.com/ .
- Once there, you can set up an account, or log in if you already have an account. Without having an account or logging in, you will already have access to many people’s information.
- Try clicking on “Find People” on the task bar on top, and type in the name of someone or someplace you know, such as LaGrange Public Library. When you find it, find out if it is listed as "male" or "female", and its age.
- See how many people have your name!
- You can also search for people by school name, or look for people with similar interest in books, music, or movies. I do note that librarian is not one of the searchable careers. You can also “Browse People” and go looking for love, based on age, sex, and marital status. There are forums set up to put in your two cents on many topics from automotive to sports to television, as well as a place to post music and videos.
- Post a message to your blog about privacy. How would you feel about posting this kind of private information to the web?
Challenge Exercise One - Facebook
Facebook began as a networking tool for college students, but it has grown and expanded to include people of all ages.
- Access the website at http://www.facebook.com/ , where you will have to set up an account if you would like to be able to see anyone else’s information. You need only enter the bare minimum of information, if you like.
- Once you have created an account, you may log in with your e-mail address and chosen password.
- Once logged in, you have the opportunity to create your profile and go looking for friends. Clicking on “Friends”, then on “Find Friends” brings up a screen that will walk you through finding people you may know. It will first suggest people who are in your e-mail address book. The more you have in your profile, the more suggestions it will make. For example, if you specified your elementary school, high school, and/or college, it will search for others who also put those schools in their personal profiles. For others to be able to access your whole page, you must agree to “friend” them. If you don’t agree, they can only see your thumbnail picture if you have one, and your name.
Optional Exercise Two - LinkedIn
LinkedIn is aimed at a slighter older, more educated crowd than MySpace and Facebook, and promotes itself as a “Professional” network. To obtain access, go to http://www.linkedin.com/ and create an account. It will ask you to set up a profile which includes your educational background and place of employment. You will then be able to search people, jobs, or groups.
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