Library 2.0? What does it mean to me? I envision a future, if it is not here already, where patrons no longer visit an actual library to get the information they crave, they just power on their computer. I know this is already a reality since at CML one of the core group of patrons we focus on it the Power Users. These patrons have grown accustomed, rather quickly, to working in their pajamas, at any time of the day or night, and from practically anywhere. While I find this very exciting, I also have some reservations. I notice that the people around me are not actually communicating face-to-face. Everything is done virtually, chatting, making reservations, school, work, romance, breaking up. We are becoming a race who is in danger of losing the nuances of facial expressions and body language. I fear this will be to our detriment, but the train is rolling, so we can only get on or jump off and face a lonely future.

My word today is possibilities. That is what I think of when I think of Delicious. This is the first thing in Play and Learn that I think I will continue in the future. It is a real find. I am sure I am not alone in having a list of many, many, bookmarks which I have to search through each and every time I want to revisit a site. I am very excited about starting my own account and having a easier more cohesive way to access and share those sites and blogs which are most important to me. I also believe that the possibilities for using Delicious for research are endless. I believe that this will enable many researchers to bypass the months and years it takes to collect data and shape it into a cohesive format. Just think how much quicker advances and research will be conducted? The mind boggles.

Today we are exploring Twitter. I would like to recommend that anyone interested in learning more about Twitter check out this site: http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6573999.html
as a Twitter virgin I found it extremely useful and full of helpful tips.

I visited the Learn and Play twitter site and was happy to see that there seems to be so much cooperation happening between employees to help each other through this process.

I can see the library using Twitter to inform patrons that thier reserves are in. It would be pretty much instantaneous and possibly not as expensive as using the phone system or e-mail?

Twitter seems fun but I am sure it can suck hours of productive time right out from under you!

My Twitter name is cmlblogger and I could see myself using this like a cell phone to let people know I am running late or where to meet for dinner etc.

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/playandlearn

I have created my own library. My current faves are Stephenie Meyer's vampire sage and "old" Stephen King novels. Cell especially creeped me out. It is entirely plausible to me that the human race could be infected by a virus sent through cell phone waves.

This week's exercises include using an image generator to make your own individual art. I choose to us BigHugeLabs.com to make a Warhol inspired homage to my daughter's rowing team who won a Bronze medal at the Head of the Cuyahoga regatta last weekend. Hope you like the finished product; try it yourself, it's fun once you get the hang of it.

Exercise 9 of Play and Learn deals with finding feeds that you might like to subscribe to. There were several search engines provided for us to browse through. I choose to search for rowing;

definition: 1 : the propelling of a boat by means of oars : the action of one that rows
2 : the sport of racing in shells

My daughter participates in high-school rowing and I simply do not know enough about it yet.

The first engine I checked out was Bloglines which I did not find too helpful.

I like the layout and design of Topix, Syndic8 and Technorati. They will all very neat and easy to follow.

I found it extremely interesting that Syndic8 offers fresh news in six different languages!

The engine with the most useful information about rowing proved to be Technorati, including this extremely helpful video. Enjoy

http://youtube.com/watch?v=UXnKyJdA01w

Ah, Play and Learn. It's an exercise all about teaching us how to use the internet. The latest exercise has been to teach us about bloglines, which is this nifty little site which helps us to collect RSS feeds so we can keep up with the world.

Back to favorite words, how about futile, definition:

1. incapable of producing any result; ineffective; useless; not successful: Attempting to force-feed the sick horse was futile.
2. trifling; frivolous; unimportant.

I don't even have the time to read all the magazines I subscribe to so I am positive I will never have time to read feeds on the internet. When, and if, I get the chance to read, I like to do it old school, with a book in my hand.