# 23 Summary

My learning experience ranged from sheer torture to great interest. The most difficult were the more technical subjects like tagging and productivity applications. Some were just boring, like the creepy avatars. But I really enjoyed Librarything and Biblio. The most fascinating was Project Gutenberg. How exciting that they are trying to preserve literature in many languages, such as Yiddish. And I hope that is an important part of this new technology: how to make information and literature available now and to future generations. I was very encouraged by Dr. Wendy Schultz's article on the future of libraries, when she describes libraries as not just collections of documents and books but "they are conversations, they are convocations of people, ideas, and artifacts in dynamic exchange. Libraries are not merely in communities: they are communities: they preserve and promote community memories; they provide mentors not only for the exploration of stored memory, but also for the creation of new artifacts of memory..."

# 22 Audiobooks

I'm a big fan of audiobooks and always have one to listen to in my car. I think it's great to have more access to them through Overdrive and Netlibrary. I especially enjoyed learning about Project Gutenberg.

# 21 Podcasts

Podcasting is like do-it-yourself radio that you can tailor to your own taste and schedule. I can see applications for libraries with booktalks and children's stories. I like the fact that you can use an MP3 player for portability and you are not tied to a computer. I just don't enjoy sitting still for very long at a computer and prefer to be moving around.

# 20 YouTube

It was interesting to see videos of hurricane Dean from the Carribean. It sure takes up a lot of time and seems kind of random as to what you find. Some of the comments about the videos are pretty harsh and mean-spirited. The safety tips about protecting your privacy are good to know, but also a concern.

#14 Technorati

I explored Technorati, could not find what I was looking for. I still do not get tagging.

#13 Del.icio.us

Now I'm getting really confused. This tagging is way too much technical jargon for me.

#9 News Feeds

Interesting to see, but I get more than enough news from other sources.

# 12 Rollyo

A list of favorites seems to work quite well for me and I don't think I need Rollyo now.

# 11 Library Thing

#11 Library Thing looks very interesting and is something I could use personally to keep track of what I've read.

# 16 Learn about wikis

I like the idea of wikis as a coversation, but unless you know the participants, it is open to mischief. They can be useful to groups collaborating on a project and sharing ideas.

# 17 Learning 2.0 SandBox wiki

After signing on the wiki, I was surprised the next day to have 80 e-mails from my new best friends. I had not noticed to uncheck the box about being notified of any changes on the site. I just don't use the internet for recreation like many others do. It is a useful tool for certain tasks.

# 18 Web-based productivity applications

I looked at Zoho Writer and Google Docs and they seemed useful for folks who do spreadsheets, etc. Those are not tasks I normally do, but it's good to know they are there if needed.

# 19 Web 2.0 Awards List

I tried out Biblio.com and found some out-of-print books I was looking for. It could be useful when trying to determine the value of a book donated to the library. It works as well as other similar sites I have used. Also, I tried Librarything.com, and found it useful for cataloging books I have read. This could help with reader's advisory when I'm trying to remember what I've read. I am not interested in the social part of this network and prefer to be private.

Among the articles on the future of libraries, the one by Dr. Wendy Schultz, "To a temporary place in time...", was the one that resonated with me, because it highlighted the human element connected with libraries. "Libraries are not just collections of documents and books, they are conversations, they are convocations of people, ideas, and artifacts in dynamic exchange. Libraries are not merely in communities: they are communities: they preserve and promote community memories; they provide mentors not only for the exploration of stored memory, but also for the creation of new artifacts of memory...Librarians today are not just inventory management biobots: they are people with a unique understanding of the documents they compile and catalog and the relationships among those documents."
This is a hopeful sign to me that perhaps in the midst of all the razzle-dazzle of WEB 2.0 this human connection will not be lost.

I did not want to sign up with MEEZ because it required too much personal information. I've noticed since I started 23 Things, I've been getting a lot more spam. Is it because my e-mail adddress is out there more?
Playing with avatars reminds me of playing with my Barbie doll when I was young, and I'm not really into that anymore. It just seems like a big waste of time to me. I have other things I need to do.

Adding RSS feeds to bloglines seems very similar to having favorites lists to link to. I'm still unsure of the advantage of having another account to go to, but perhaps the advantage will become apparent as I get used to it.

The number of images available on Flickr is amazing and overwhelming. When I focused on one area, Alaska, I enjoyed the photos of icebergs and glaciers. Makes me want to go back there.

Week One, 7 1/2 Habits

Habit 1 is most difficult, as I am not goal oriented and would rather smell the roses along the way and enjoy the trip.
Habit 3 is easiest as I'm naturally optimistic and have had a lot of pratice overcoming challenges.