Thing 22: Staying Current

I just went back and reviewed old blog posts to remember what I’ve learned during the course of this project.  While I thought some things were pretty useless, there were plenty more that I thought were great.  Some of them I’ll even use again.  I love Google Reader and Facebook!  Both are things that I use daily now and will continue to do so.  I also think I’ll use some of the photo sharing tools again.  I would like to use Library Thing more, but I just can’t find the time.  Maybe when I’m retired I can.

Keeping up...RSS feeds and Google Reader will certainly help with the ability to keep up.  I also liked Lifehacker, and I’ll make an effort to take a look at it every now and then to see what’s new.  I read library literature on a regular basis, so that will help keep up with new trends relating specifically to libraries.  It’s hard to find the time, but I’ll make an effort.  And I’ll continue to post to my blog when I learn new and interesting things.

Thanks to NEFLIN for the experience.  I certainly know more now than when I started, and that’s a good thing.  And now that I’m starting to sound like Martha Stewart, I’ll take this opportunity to end!

Thing 13: Library Thing

I had heard of Library Thing and thought it sounded cool, but I never imagined exactly how cool it really is!  I created an account and added some books from my personal library.  Now (with quite a bit more work ahead of me) I have the capability to create a searchable catalog of my private library...for FREE!  What I really love, though, is how Library Thing links you to others with similar reading interests.

Over the weekend, I showed Library Thing to a friend of mine who works part-time for a small special library with virtually no budget.  My friend looked at it and went away thinking that Library Thing was something they could use to catalog their collection (for no cost) and make it more accessible to their patrons.  What a great Thing!

I can also see how libraries could use Library Thing and their widgets to feature books from the library collection on their web page.  That’s another really nice use. 

I added a widget/gadget (look to your left) to my blog that will link you to my Library Thing catalog.  I hope to find the time at home to add more of my personal books to my catalog, but I don’t know how realistic that is.  My limited free time is spent actually reading books rather than cataloging them, napping, watching American Idol, and playing Facebook Scrabble.  Yes, I know, it’s a full and rich life.  Just thinking about it makes me want to go take a nap!