Post Number Three. As I began this blog, I was having trouble getting started first of all I couldn't locate my blog and once I did and got to the new post page the caps lock was on and in trying to get that off I posted a blank blog!
I have managed to get to this point and have kept both my religion and my sanity while continuing this journey into cyberspace. This is not an easy trip for this ol' dawg. HOWEVER! In the few days I have had to leave the comfort of my word processor and power point I have in my explorations come across some things that have caught my attention.
I have subscribed to some RSS feeds from the major news sources, some library related blogs, as well as some sites that keep tabs of technology development.
While attending a grand-daughter's birthday party, sons-in-law with iPhones began comparing. One had an older iPhone the other the new iPhone 4. As son-in law number one put the iPhone 4 through it's paces he demonstrated the software that not only located our position on a map, he could zoom into the map until we were seeing images of his house and neighborhood. While I have viewed satellite images of my home on the computer, I was impressed to see crisp, sharp images on such a small handheld device. There were noticeable differences in form and function between the older version and the newer version of the iPhone. I must admit that I was impressed with all it's capabilities.
Handheld communications devices make communication possible in a variety of ways. It will take a little time for me to develop some new habits (not to mention attitudes) regarding these new forms of communications. I just realized that my hesitation in adopting such functional mobile technology is not just the new ways of communicating but the fact that it's public. I would be rather embarrassed to lose a skirmish with technology in a public place and have to have some really, really, young person show me how to undo my predicament. (Where's spell check here?)
I have managed to get to this point and have kept both my religion and my sanity while continuing this journey into cyberspace. This is not an easy trip for this ol' dawg. HOWEVER! In the few days I have had to leave the comfort of my word processor and power point I have in my explorations come across some things that have caught my attention.
I have subscribed to some RSS feeds from the major news sources, some library related blogs, as well as some sites that keep tabs of technology development.
While attending a grand-daughter's birthday party, sons-in-law with iPhones began comparing. One had an older iPhone the other the new iPhone 4. As son-in law number one put the iPhone 4 through it's paces he demonstrated the software that not only located our position on a map, he could zoom into the map until we were seeing images of his house and neighborhood. While I have viewed satellite images of my home on the computer, I was impressed to see crisp, sharp images on such a small handheld device. There were noticeable differences in form and function between the older version and the newer version of the iPhone. I must admit that I was impressed with all it's capabilities.
Handheld communications devices make communication possible in a variety of ways. It will take a little time for me to develop some new habits (not to mention attitudes) regarding these new forms of communications. I just realized that my hesitation in adopting such functional mobile technology is not just the new ways of communicating but the fact that it's public. I would be rather embarrassed to lose a skirmish with technology in a public place and have to have some really, really, young person show me how to undo my predicament. (Where's spell check here?)
I have found that since I let Google give me a personal page when I open my browser that it's nice not to mention convenient to be able to scan news headlines, see technology topics and blog topics in one place available to open at my inclination. It's rather like having the morning paper to read with my coffee.
I recently had a need for reference service. Since I had some items to return to my local rural library, I decided I would make my inquiry there. Now the point I am about to make is from a librarian's blog that resonated with me. A few months ago, I used reference service at another library, much larger and further away. Both inquiries were answered with resources found on the Internet. In both cases the librarian sat behind a counter at a computer and I stood in front. As each librarian showed me the results of their search they turned the screen in my direction but not nearly far enough so I had to lean over the counter to get an awkward glimpse of the monitor that displayed the information.
The blog post that got my attention was a librarian's desire to make some changes in a library that had a significant and honored history. This was making some logical changes difficult because of tradition. The change she desired to make was to remake the reference desk so that a patron could "drive the computer" if they wanted and the patron and the librarian could sit together facing the monitor with out the patron having to lean over a counter, or the librarian having to reposition the monitor for shared viewing. Since a reference librarian has a function to instruct in search methods, it makes sense to me that where a reference librarian is going to use the Internet as a source of information for a patron's inquiry, the computer should be positioned to accommodate both the patron and the librarian comfortably. What if reference librarians began to rove the library with a wireless Netbook so they might be able to meet inquiries where ever they occur? What could be done with space that is now taken up by the reference desk that acts as a moat about the castle of knowledge?
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