Thanks for the good news, Bizzaro! By the way, when did the url change from .gov to www.usps.COM?
Friday, April 10, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Week 8: Gaming
An unexpected benefit of this week's exploration: experiencing the confusion and apprehension of a first-time user.
Treating a frustrated computer-user with patience becomes rote. I remember only vaguely a time when I didn't know how to double-click or where to type the website address. When I say sweetly, "it just takes practice" or "you'll get the hang of it," it's because I know I should, not because of an outpouring of empathy (ain't I a stinker?).
I signed up for RuneScape, created a character with pink hair, went to the orientation place, and immediately thought, Well durn, now what? I completely failed to follow Louise's always-appropriate "RATS" advice and so clicked randomly around and felt frustrated. Then I remembered "Read All The Screen"! and scrolled down a little to see the text directions. "Yuck, I have to talk to people?" Well, it seemed that I only had to "listen," and I exited before I found myself having to talk to someone.
I play word games on Facebook and on Merriam-Webster's website. I can (usually) hook up CHPL's Playstation 2 and play a slightly-awful session of Dance Dance Revolution. I get that gaming involves text, critical thinking, following a story, esteem-building, etc. I uphold the right of 11-year-olds to "waste time" on our PCs and prevent Conspiracy Theory Guy from doing his "important research." I don't see myself closing NP's lab to do an event that's just online gaming, though.
And don't look for me in any MMORPGs -- I'm a little too timid for those, I think. Or, who knows, maybe I will "get the hang of it."
Treating a frustrated computer-user with patience becomes rote. I remember only vaguely a time when I didn't know how to double-click or where to type the website address. When I say sweetly, "it just takes practice" or "you'll get the hang of it," it's because I know I should, not because of an outpouring of empathy (ain't I a stinker?).
I signed up for RuneScape, created a character with pink hair, went to the orientation place, and immediately thought, Well durn, now what? I completely failed to follow Louise's always-appropriate "RATS" advice and so clicked randomly around and felt frustrated. Then I remembered "Read All The Screen"! and scrolled down a little to see the text directions. "Yuck, I have to talk to people?" Well, it seemed that I only had to "listen," and I exited before I found myself having to talk to someone.
I play word games on Facebook and on Merriam-Webster's website. I can (usually) hook up CHPL's Playstation 2 and play a slightly-awful session of Dance Dance Revolution. I get that gaming involves text, critical thinking, following a story, esteem-building, etc. I uphold the right of 11-year-olds to "waste time" on our PCs and prevent Conspiracy Theory Guy from doing his "important research." I don't see myself closing NP's lab to do an event that's just online gaming, though.
And don't look for me in any MMORPGs -- I'm a little too timid for those, I think. Or, who knows, maybe I will "get the hang of it."
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
![\Shelf Check 335\](http://static.toondoo.com/public/p/o/e/poesygalore/toons/cool-cartoon-692992.png "\Shelf Check 335\")
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Week 6: Wide World of Wikis
What is it about the word "wiki" that makes you want to play with it? WikiWikiWIKI. See also comments on this post.
Anyway. I've been reading wikis since the dawn of Wikipedia. I didn't contribute to one until CHPL launched its YA programing one. Mostly, we put common documents there such as volunteer forms and the list of which branch has which "permanent set" of graphic novels. The YA librarians did use it as a collaborative work space to brainstorm and vote for which paperback series we wanted cataloging to approve as ones to catalog with the series title.
YALSA uses wikis -- I'm guessing when a group produces the page/product, so everyone can contribute easily. Sample: Teen Read Week. As the consumer of this info, I don't care about the format. Similarly, what's cool about St. Joseph County's subject guide wiki is the content more than the form. We already post subject guides on our homepage; if we like the way that works now, there's no need to change. If, however, many reference staff folks said they would update guides on the fly, then we might want to change to a wiki and keep our guides up-to-the-minute.
For this lesson, I enjoyed contributing to the CHPLearning wiki -- I like pbwiki's interface and tools much better than the one we use for YA Programming! I easily created new pages and edited my work. I had been working away for several minutes before I realized I was still in Firefox, my preferred browser, something our current wiki can't tolerate.
I like to work collaboratively, and whether we use a wiki or some other cool tool, I'll be on board.
Anyway. I've been reading wikis since the dawn of Wikipedia. I didn't contribute to one until CHPL launched its YA programing one. Mostly, we put common documents there such as volunteer forms and the list of which branch has which "permanent set" of graphic novels. The YA librarians did use it as a collaborative work space to brainstorm and vote for which paperback series we wanted cataloging to approve as ones to catalog with the series title.
YALSA uses wikis -- I'm guessing when a group produces the page/product, so everyone can contribute easily. Sample: Teen Read Week. As the consumer of this info, I don't care about the format. Similarly, what's cool about St. Joseph County's subject guide wiki is the content more than the form. We already post subject guides on our homepage; if we like the way that works now, there's no need to change. If, however, many reference staff folks said they would update guides on the fly, then we might want to change to a wiki and keep our guides up-to-the-minute.
For this lesson, I enjoyed contributing to the CHPLearning wiki -- I like pbwiki's interface and tools much better than the one we use for YA Programming! I easily created new pages and edited my work. I had been working away for several minutes before I realized I was still in Firefox, my preferred browser, something our current wiki can't tolerate.
I like to work collaboratively, and whether we use a wiki or some other cool tool, I'll be on board.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Results In
Last week's poll asked what question you answered the most. It looks like most of us spent time clicking into SAM or WorkFlows because here's the breakdown:
80% looked up PINs most often
20% helped people find books
80% looked up PINs most often
20% helped people find books
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