Podcasts and Philip Adams

Finally, I have got to Podcasts. Ever since Late night live went to Podcasting I have been interested in the technology. Hence my RSS feed. Podcasting has been a great innovation particularly as it allows for people to catch up on programmes they have missed without having to rely on transcripts. Its future in libraries? I can see their use as an instructional aid although I have doubts about whether people would choose to use them. I could, however, see a future for cataloguing links to Podcasts which could have a research or public interest aspect.
As for e audio books while I envisage them replacing the traditional Talking Books they will still, I believe, only appeal to a limited market.

So there we have it. The end of Web 2.0. How much will I remember? As much as I use. Technology is like that.

Podcasts etc.

Well, I have finally got to Week Nine. I can see the finish line but I feel a little like those marathon runners who have become dehydrated and are zig-zagging all over the place wasting the precious little remaining energy. Anyway YouTube - yes I found it sort of interesting or at least parts of it but to be quite honest I found it a little worrying looking at what people are supposedly looking at RIGHT NOW. I mean why do they bother??? As to the video I have added to my blog - well I chose it because how some people choose to use their creative talents fascinates me. Besides I am hoping someone who reads Japanese will be able to tell me the punchline.

Zoho and Odeo

I have had another look at Zoho having had an earlier attempt to use it frustrated by IT problems. The theory behind Zoho is great and I can see the potential for those undertaking collaborative writing tasks or those library patrons or students who often have to use a number of computers. I am sure we have all had experience with people trying to access their work in the library only to find that they cannot access it because of software incompatibility. One of my reservations with Zoho is that it seems to have a very cluttered interface and there is probably a need for less of a sales pitch and more "Help" advice.

I then decided to try using Odeo one of the Web 2.0 winners. Although Odeo boasts a large number of free podcasts I found this site difficult to navigate because of the large amount of advertising and subscription requests. The methods for searching was also not particularly useful. This seems to be mainly aimed at the youth market with an emphasis on music and entertainment.

Wikis

Well it's the day before Christmas and I've managed to get some time to look at Wikis. I was familiar with them before Web 2.0 and had been curious about the editing process given that there are many out there who are tempted to create havoc with online information. Of course, Wikipedia has people policing its site now but I noticed that other wikis have had to become stricter about allowing access.

I must say that I was impressed with the SJCPL subject guides and can see a great deal of potential for libraries wishing to offer their patrons 'one stop shopping' on a range of subjects. I wasn't quite sure, however, why this site had to be a wiki as opposed to a web page which could be updated periodically. I have been told, however, that the process of changing content is generally less time consuming if the site is set up as a wiki.

The Book Lovers' Wiki is a way of providing an online forum for those wishing to review, or discuss books, but I wonder if sustaining an interest in it over a period of time could become an issue.

Rolling on with Rollyo

Well, this is great. Everyone else seems to have finished Web 2.0 but I'll soldier on because there are a few more offerings I would like to investigate. Had a look at Rollyo and created a couple of search rolls and was pleased with the result. The interface, however, is a little busy for my liking and one would need to compile a comprehensive number of search rolls and continually update them if the aim was to use it in a library reference setting.

LibraryThing

Finally found time to look at LibraryThing. What a great site especially for people with large home libraries. This is one I would recommend to friends and associates and appeals to that desire for order which is in many of us. Done anyone know if there are copyright issues with downloading catalogue details from the Library of Congress catalogue?

Play isn't exactly the word I would use to describe my experience with image generators. I had an attempt at making a customised neon sign but had no luck. But then I thought who needs a bar sign anyway. So I moved on and decided on the reflection generator. It was only after I had made that decision that I noticed the first couple of comments from those whose attempts had been unsuccessful. "do (sic) not work for me " and "Yeah I couldn't get it work for me either." Still I decided to persevere and was finally rewarded.