10 Things: Step 10!!!!

Vince is now done with 10 Things!

So I followed the link to the digital book collection and just tried downloading the first book that appeared, which was Blue Water by A. Manette Ansay. All I had to do was enter my library card number and I was all ready for download. Since I already have Adobe Reader on my home computer, there was no need to download any unnecessary software. The download time took a little over a second and there it was, my first downloaded ebook. All I can say is that it looks like a book, it reads like a book, and it is a book! But when it's on a computer, I feel like I'm missing something. It just doesn't feel the same, I miss turning the pages and the whiffing sound it makes. Personally, I would rather stick to a real book. I find them more convenient to carry around since they can fit easily into compact spaces. In conclusion, I just like books better although I think ebooks are somewhat cool as well.

I think the SPL website is really well organized. I have never downloaded an ebook in my life and I was able to do so without any problem. All I had to do was read the instructions and follow the link on the SPL website. All I can say is that the SPL website is well structured and very user friendly. Really good stuff.

Hopefully I remember the new things I've learned during this experience and maybe I'll run into them in the future and know exactly what I'm doing. I'm Done!!!


-Vincent

10 Things: Step 9

Wow! I am somewhat surprised about how similar Google Docs and Microsoft Office is. The word document, spreadsheet, and presentation are like mini clones of their Microsoft counter parts. I really had no idea that the presentation you can make would be like a Power Point presentation. Really cool stuff.

The tools are pretty much like their Microsoft counter parts, but one tool really stood out. I found the Revisions tool really cool since it creates a list of revisions that you have made every time you click the Revisions tab.

10 Things: Step 8

I have contributed my list of favorite restaurants to the 10 Things Wiki, you should all check it out though I don't recommend eating at my favorite restaurants on a daily basis.

About the term "radical trust", I think everything should be alright as long as the majority of the community is serious about keeping facts on wiki sites accurate. Generally I do trust Wikipedia and I do use it for some of my research for school though my professors always tell me not to. They argue that anyone can put facts on Wikipedia and it may not be accurate. But the truth is that there are a large number of people who will correct incorrect information. Some Wikipedia articles are extremely detailed while some have just the general idea out. I use Wikipedia to get a general idea of what I am researching, then I will look for a more professional source, such as books. Though the facts on Wikipedia are not official, in my experience it has been very accurate and it gave me a very good idea of what I was researching. As long as the majority of the community aren't pranksters, I see Wikipedia as a reliable source.

10 Things: Step 7

I have finished subscribing to my new podcasts!!! Judging by the exclamation usage in my opening sentence, you may think that I find podcasting really cool. But the truth is that I don't really find a use for it, at least for now during my college years. I subscribed to two library podcasts: The Thomas Ford Memorial Library and The Library Channel. I listened to part of an interview with some guy named William Sage and I also came across a video source in which I attempted to view but resulted in an error.

Although I have no interest in podcasting, I can see some uses for it at the SPL. Patrons may find it interesting to listen to a podcast of an interview given by their favorite author or even watch a clip of an interview.

In conclusion, I have never had any experience creating or listening to a podcast and I can't say I'm really into to it.

10 Things: Step 3

I finally found a friend to do Step 3 with. It was a very simple task since I am already so pro and instant messaging. I have been using AOL Instant Messenger since my high school days, which explains why it was nothing new to me.

10 Things: Step 6

Social Bookmarking is a whole new thing to me. I had no idea what the purpose of it was. However, the instructions were again really easy to follow and I had no trouble finishing this task. When I first followed the link to the social bookmarking site (del.icio.us), I saw a variety of different websites other people have posted. The first thing I noticed were the tags. I found this really helpful because tagging makes it real useful for finding related websites bookmarked by other people. Overall, it was a good learning experience for me.

10 Things: Step 5

I have never used Flickr before, but I found it to be really user friendly. I just followed the steps and I was done before I knew it. Some basic tags that would be useful for the SPL in my opinion would be 'youth', 'teens', 'adults'.

My new best friend

My new best friend
Originally uploaded by theskokieten

This is a picture of my new guitar that I bought from Guitar Center. It looks black in the picture but it is actually a shade of dark blue. It sounds so much louder than my old guitar, I can't stop admiring its beauty.

10 Things: Step 4

Ok, I already have a Myspace account and a Facebook account. According to the rules I have to create another account on a different social networking site. I was going to make a fake account anyway, so I decided to bring my creativity to a whole new level by signing up for Eons, a social networking site designed for people ages 50+ (yes I lied about my age). I wrote an about me section and I made two new friends; one of them being Hilary Clinton. I suspected that Eons would be totally different than Myspace, and it sort of is. But it really reminds me of Facebook. Initially, I signed up so I can spy on what 50+ year olds do for fun, and I have concluded that they are from this planet, although I don't consider many of their hobbies 'fun' (Native American Art, Indians, Writing books, watching sunsets, etc). Sorry to disappoint any of you who thought I was going to reveal how 50+ year olds live their lives because they all seem pretty normal to me.

Vince has no friends

I am looking to complete Step 3, but I can't seem to find anyone's email to add to my buddy list. Actually I have one friend (10 Things Team) but they are off-line right now. Anybody who is interested in adding me, my email is xhidelarcshade@gmail.com. Don't worry, I'm pro at this. Just do it.




Vincent

10 Things: Step 2

Alright, I just got finished with Step 2 of 10 Things. I have to say that the RSS/Feed Reader technology is pretty interesting. This was the first time I've ever used it so I didn't really know what to expect. Now I can just go to Google Reader and get the latest news/updates on my subscribed websites instead of going through my bookmarks and looking for updates individually.

This can be useful for SPL purposes if patrons know how to use the RSS/Feed Readers because they can subscribe to the SPL website and get posted on the many updates we have during the week.

I have to admit, using the RSS/Feed Readers will take some time to get used to for me. My first instincts are to go to my bookmarks to check out whats new on my favorite sites. Great, now I have another habit to break............maybe.

Vincent

10 Things: Step 1

Hi, this is Vincent reporting my progress with Step 1 of 10 Things.

I had no problem making this blog even though it was the first one I've ever made. The instructions were straight forward......yep.

I've looked at a couple blogs from the SPL Staff and they have a lot of stuff written on it. I can see a SPL Blog being used for online interaction between patrons and staff alike. It might not gain momentum at first, but once people are aware of blogging at its function, I think the SPL Blog will be a huge success. The SPL can make use of blogging by posting future events and having patrons express their feelings towards it; before and after. Having a SPL Blog will make it easier for everyone to communicate quickly and expand on ideas.

Personally, I'm not much of a blogging person and I don't see myself spending too much time updating my own blog. However, I do occasionally take time to read through some of my friend's blogs. All in all, I do think having a SPL Blog would be a good idea and maybe someone will give it a shot in the future.

Please take care of yourselves and have a wonderful week.


Vincent