Whirlwind Tour of The New Catalog!

So, this will pretty much finish up the NetTrek purpose of this blog. Do I feel I've learned a lot? Sure! Even stuff I was sorta familiar with, like wiki and social sites, I feel I have a better idea of how to use, modify for my own preferences, and enjoy.

And it all comes together in the new DBRL catalog. It's really nice looking, makes me think of Amazon's website, and I feel everyone will get to like it eventually. As it is, I've found some of the Help topics, but I seriously doubt I'm using it efficiently.

Several patrons have remarked to me that it is not user-friendly. I've got to explore it more so I can help them from across the desk. Until I know it better, I'm just sending them to the Info or Media desks. Maybe classes would be in order, especially for seniors.

I've got plans for lists to make. Stuff I Own, Stuff I've Borrowed from Other People, Pattern Books I've Actually Used, Books I Read Over and Over... you get the idea.

And rating books? Yes oh yes, I love to give my opinion. Now, maybe it'll do good beyond just the patron across the desk from me!

In conclusion, the new catalog may make us all feel some growing pains. Change isn't always easy, but it's necessary else we become stagnant. And that's something a library should never be!

RSS reluctance

So, I must admit, I've heard about RSS feeds long before this. And completely dismissed them as not worth my time (who knows, someday there might be hope for Twitter.... naaah.). But the NetTrek unit on them really has made me see it might save my time online! And maybe I won't have a gazillion tabs open as I check for new stuff.

From what I know about websites, it probably helps the site owners too. Rather than hitting their server full-force twice (or more) a day, I just check my feeds and only click there if there's new content. Sure, I'm still figuring out where to read the feed, but hey, it's a start.

What did I choose? Well, it's not all entirely library-related, that's for sure. I've been reading Giant In The Playground's webcomic "Order of the Stick" for years. It shouldn't surprise anyone that it's a Dungeons & Dragons-related comic, spoofing the players through their characters. Definitely in the Me category. Then there's the Yarn Harlot's blog! Knitting and fiber-related, obviously. She's also an author, though! If you really want to understand my new obsession (and probably laugh a lot even if you're not a knitter), check out one of her books called "Stephanie Pearl-McPhee Casts Off". It's just a riot, especially if you are/know a knitter.

The more focused feeds I chose are some suggested on the NetTrek Outpost. Awful Library Books sounds fun, and Information Wants to be Free seems relevant. I think Librarian in Blackmight be a mix of that. It's always good to mix useful with humorous.

On the knitting front, I have until tomorrow night to finish my mittens in the time frame I set for myself. Warrrrm mittens...

Web 2.0 Facebook, the Giant ! (?)

As part of NetTrek training, I took a good look at the Web 2.0 Awards. Wow, what a variety! I thought about looking at Cocktail Builder from the Fun Stuff category, but then remembered... I have no liquor cabinet. What else is on this list?

Twitter... oh save me. I will not tweet. Or be a tweet. Or however the Twitter lingo goes. Can I just call them all birdbrains?
Yahoo Answers... I used to spend a lot of time there, before I realized you could really make a job of just trying to correct the idiotic things people say. It just shows that some Web 2.0 things, like wikipedia, aren't always reliable no matter how many people participate.

Oh, there, look in Social Networking Mainstays! It's Facebook! Wow, it's only in one category? What's happening to the website I visit for at least an hour each day? I do believe it may have jumped the shark. Really, you say? But, it has so many users, so much to do! I've got some reasons, and I'm not happy about all of them.

1. Too big for its own good. Facebook was cool when it was focused on connecting college students. But when everybody piles on the bandwagon, it loses some of the draw for the fringe folks that make it so cool.
2. So much to do, it loses focus. Wow, look, I can play games! Okay, so they're called apps, but still they're just games. Hmm, my cousin wants to chat, I suppose I could do that for a while. Ooh, my friends want to see pictures and videos! But, couldn't I just send them to YouTube or Flickr for that? News articles! Great, I can read up on today's events! Right after I play yet another app...
3. Removal of regional groups. The Internet is anonymous enough as it is. You feel isolated because of distance. You like Facebook because it tells you who is close to you! And now they've sort of taken that away. It makes the site just more like so many other places on the Internet. Sure, it may be what people ask for, but maybe it's not best for them (or Facebook) in the long run. It was the logical extension of the school groups which got the site going, and is another example of the loss of focus.
4. Other options popping up. Facebook gave us Status Updates, Twitter does it better (so some say). Facebook lets you search by job category, but perhaps the fact that the Web 2.0 Awards has a category called "Professional Networking" shows us that a more focused site could do better anyway.

I'll still go on Facebook, until I burn out on it. But that may be sooner than later, since I'm pretty sure this networking giant is on the wane.

The Moebius

A Moebius strip is a curious topological construction. It has a single edge and surface. Yes, it seems odd, but just try taking a long narrow strip of paper, giving it a half-twist, and taping the ends together. There's your moebius. To see how the "single surface, single edge" thing works, take a pen and start writing on one edge of it. Keep going and going and going, and you will eventually meet the beginning of your writing! Curiouser and curiouser, right?

Now, what I want to know is, who really first thought of doing this with knitting? And not just knitting a strip, twisting it, and grafting the ends together as we did with the paper strip. No, someone came up with a way to knit on either side of a circle of stitches, so that the Moebius grows out from the center, wider and wider! What a thing. Cat Bordhi, a knitter and mathematician, if I have heard correctly, did a fabulous book on this. I took one pattern, and came up with this fabulous short scarf.

So what does this have to do with NetTrek, Web 2.0, or anything like that? Well, you can find Ms. Bordhi's book at our lovely library, if it's not checked out all the time. Also, don't you think it's a fine example of lifelong learning? Take something as simple as a scarf, as mundane as knitting. Apply verrrry interesting mathematics. Result, a cuddly lesson in Euclidean geometry.

I can't wait to try one of these with stripes!

Trying out Google Docs with a Knitting List!

So, with Christmas coming up, as well as my birthday, I'm of course freaking out over getting gifts made. Then on top of it is NetTrek 2.0! I should have known work would be crazy too, what with so many people tackling classes and finals as well as the holiday chaos.

I shall try to be caaaaalm, peaceful, and think about how much Web 2.0 has done for me and my hobbies. I use Wikipedia a lot, and sometimes enjoy laughing at the antics on YouTube. I just never called it "Web 2.0." I think it'll be such a part of people's lives that they don't really think of the days before the internet was so interactive. It just really seems like a natural progression.

I'm actually going to participate in some "social media" once I get a pattern done and put it up on http://www.ravelry.com . It's such a good website for knitters and crocheters. Sure, there's that whole registration wait, but it's well worth it. I really need to put project pictures up there (and here, right?)

So here's my Google Doc, all ready to mess with anywhere, anytime.
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dhm43265_0ckxqp8fr

I expect it to have tons of changes as I learn new skills!

Old Hobbies and New...

It's hard for me to believe, but it's been over ten months since I put down my Sims 2 notebook and picked up knitting needles. I really did switch from one obsession to the other. I was pretty good at making up stories for TS2! This picture is from a Victorian dream sequence that I had in one of my storylines. Yeah, that's me as a Sim. Cute, huh? I really should pick up the mouse again sometime. Really, it was more than playing a game, it was definitely a creative outlet, what with building a virtual town, imagining the characters and then seeing how their lives played out.

So why did knitting take over so much? Well, it's sorta hard to say. I view both as productive creative processes, but not everyone thinks electronic stories are truly worthwhile products. Knitting won out because it's not just the product, it is the process as well. I'm learning so much about fiber, garment construction and shaping, lace, the history of the craft... you just don't quite get that with a game you've pretty much mastered. Knitting, I feel like I'll never master it, but I'll sure as heck learn a lot doing it. Plus it's hard to argue with a warm scarf as a worthwhile product, since it's gotten cold.

If you look closely at my profile picture, it's from the Missourian. They came to our knitting group, and got that lovely picture which shows my Alien scarf, Moebius scarf (which I wear almost every day) and a knitted reuseable grocery bag that I got in a swap. Ah, yes, the lovely lovely products. Now, I better get busy on this Christmas stocking I'm working on...

Poste The Firste

So, for now, this is not a knitting blog. Don't worry, that'll change, I'm sure. For now, it is a NetTrek 2.0 Learning Blog! Goody! The 7 1/2 Habits slideshow was okay, but a bit slow-paced.

Easiest habit for me? Having confidence in myself as a competent and effective learner! That shouldn't come as any surprise, considering the title I chose for this blog.

Hardest? Teaching/mentoring others. I just don't always communicate what I know to others particularly well. I get too easily frustrated when other people just don't get it. But I still try, sometimes.