You Oughta Be In Pictures #89: Basic Photo Editing

1. Post Edited Photo from Picnik on Blog



2. Editing features I use the most: cropping, framing, captions, resizing, red eye correction. I found Picnik very easy to use and I use Microsoft Office Picture often.

The Web According to Google #88: Wave, Buzz, and Mobile

1) If Google Wave and Buzz catch on, I will probably participate in them at some level. It was very interesting to learn about, especially Google Wave.

The only thing similar to a collaboration tool I use currently is Facebook. It isn't as integrated as Google Wave and that was the main thing that impressed me.

2) I would probably mainly use the same applications with Google Mobile that I normally use when I am online: Google Search, Google Maps, and Google Earth. Those applications would be handy, for example, when I am in Houston and need the phone number for a store or a map to get somewhere. I could also use them when I am stuck in a traffic jam; more than once I've called my sister in Austin to ask her to check online to see how long the line of traffic reaches and if there is hope for it to be cleared soon.

The Web According to Google #87: Google Reader

1) The only feed reader I use is Bloglines, which I used to check regularly, but now only once in awhile. I probably would not switch to Google Reader at this time since I hardly ever use my gmail account. It seems easy to use, however.

2) I subscribed to the feed of a new blog that I found by searching on the word Carmelite. I liked it very much.

The Web According to Google #86: Calendar and Documents

1. I created a calendar of my work schedule. For my own purposes, my paper calendar is fine, but Google calendar would be a good way to share my work schedule with my family, as they are never able to keep up with when I am working. But I don’t foresee that I will be updating the calendar regularly and sending it to them.

Google Calendar would be useful for people with busier schedules than mine who need to share their schedules via emails.

2. I uploaded a file from my desktop to Google Docs. I probably would not use Google Docs at this time since both my home and work computer have adequate software. However, the next time I get a new home computer, I might use Google Docs instead of buying software for home that didn't come loaded on the computer.

The Web According to Google #85: Resistance is Futile

1) I use Google maps on a regular basis. I love the feature that allows you to see the satellite view and the street view. On more than one occasion it has been helpful to have actually seen the area before I arrived at my destination. I also use Google Images a lot and Google News. I don't know that they are superior to other Images and News sites, but they serve my purposes well most of the time.

2) I looked at Google Labs and the only one that grabbed my attention was Google Mars. Those pictures look cool. Now for a street view. ;-)

3) I found some books on Carmelite spirituality on Google books that looked interesting. It could be used in a library to help students with reports and adults as well. The magazines could be useful with some projects on history.

Publishing Evolution #84: Writer Communities & Author Websites

1) I haven’t contacted any favorite authors, but I have gone to authors’ websites, especially when helping customers. I like knowing more about authors. I visited the website for Elizabeth Berg, an author I used to read a lot. Her website is warm and interesting. She does have a blog and a podcast, and you can reach her by email. I didn’t see opportunities to interact with her via the web outside of email and blogs, but she is new to the web; her website gives a 2010 date for creation.

2) The idea of a book being published by popular vote gives me less faith in the material.

Publishing Evolution #83: Paper to Pixels (or e-ink)

1) I prefer paper to pixels in most cases. Getting the material in paper form is worth waiting for in terms of books I want to read; when it comes to things like newspapers, however, I’m just as happy reading it online. The reason I like paper better in books is simply because I like the feel of a book in my hand.

2) Yes, price definitely affects what books I buy. I do not buy many books since I use the library for most of my reading material. I do buy books on topics that we do not have in our system and that I want to keep (i.e., not get on interlibrary loan). I would probably not pay the same price for a digital book as a paper copy unless it were only available in digital format and I really wanted the book.

3) I think the idea of preview and then pay is great for those who are interested. It seems like a good way for a new author to get a following without going through a publisher.

Publishing Evolution #82: Print on Demand

1. I do not know enough about the cost of traditionally published books to be able to say if these online self-publisher packages are higher in cost than traditionally published books or about the same. I will say that these prices seem expensive to me. The cheapest package I saw was $299, but most ran for more.

I did look at some of their published books. I didn't see any that I had read, but I did see some that interested me. I wouldn't be opposed to reading self-published books; I would be very careful before I ordered one, however, as there were many that looked like poor quality.

2. I think self publishing is an exciting venue for people who have little hope of getting a book published the traditional way.

As a reader, I am more inclined to read authors that have gone through established publishers, or small, independent publishers, rather than an author who has self-published. But in time this may change if the future moves more toward "publish on demand" books.

The Future of Media #81: Get Out Your Crystal Ball

1. I think the technology that will have the biggest impact will be Internet-based TV and movies. Everything seems to be going to the computer.

I do not know of another technology that will have more effect.

2. I am definitely not an early adopter of every gadget. As far as fond memories of techologies from the past, I was very excited when I got my first cassette tape recorder with a real microphone when I was a kid. I went around the house recording sounds like the toilet flushing and sophisticated things like that.

I don't presently have a favorite media gadget. My mp3 player is currently missing and I have no idea where it is. I guess since dvds are discussed in this module I can name my dvd player.

The only outdated technology that I really miss is having a cassette player in my car...I have some music on cassette that I would still like to play.

The Future of Media #80: Movies

1. I tried to find a movie on Auteurs first, but the one I wanted to watch (a filmed concert of Louis Armstrong and other jazz singers in 1958), could not be watched for some reason. I didn't find another movie on Auteurs that I wanted to watch that didn't have a fee attached, so I switched to Hulu. I started watching Shades of Ray. It was cute and I wouldn't mind watching it at home. I would still prefer to watch films on the television rather than the computer, but it is good to know about these free movies.

2. I watched a trailer for a documentary called 'Prodigal Sons' on Apple Trailers. It looks like a very good film and I want to look for it when it is at theaters starting on February 26. I would like to use this site in the future to keep up with current films.

3. At this time, I wouldn't consider using the fee-based services to get movies that I want at home, because I don't have that much time to watch movies and I can get some of what I want through HCPL. Netflex sounds interesting and I would probably look into it if I had more time to watch movies.

The Future of Media #79: Television

1) I browsed the tv sites, but finally settled on CastTV and looked for an old show I liked, 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show'. You can watch full episodes online: Seasons 1 & 3 are almost all available free; seasons 2, 4-6 are all for a fee.

2) No, I have never watched a tv show on a cell phone. I am not interested at this time because my cell phone doesn't include many extras and I'd have to pay for it, which I don't want to do.

3) I've only watched bits of a few streaming programs or user "channels" that my niece or someone else has sent me. I've never posted a video to a site.

Searching #78: Video

1) Try Truveo and Blinkx and compare results.
I tried 'vinyl tile floor installation' in each of these because that is a project I am going to do. They both brought up similar results, though Blinkx brought up videos more relevant to my needs on the first page of results. However, I liked Truveo a lot better. There is a menu on the left that allows searches to be limited to certain sources. Also, when the results are returned, they are arranged on the page in a cleaner way than Blinkx, and Truveo gives "suggestions" as you type in the search terms, much as Google does. I found this helpful.

I also used both to search for St. John of the Cross. I liked the results I got in Truveo better on that search. Both websites, however, are very good tools to find videos.

2) HCPL's You Tube Channel. The exercise says to "discuss in your blog ideas for how your own branch video could add to the mix of searchable video content on the Internet." The only thing that comes to my mind is that perhaps David and Mandy could post a video to show the steps that are taken to make the SRP video each year. But I would think that would be a time-consuming task, and they are already stretched thin.

Seaching #77 Images, part II

3) I searched on Valentine for the clip art program for hcpl use and found this picture.

Image copyright Jupiterimages.

Searching #77: Images

1) I searched in AllFreeClipArt and it took 4 clicks to get to a color Santa that didn't look like a troll.

2) For the two sites that have images to download, I first tried FreePhotosBank. It was very easy to use and clear as to what your options were regarding the photos. I looked for waterfalls, mountains, lakes and rivers, and cairn terrier (there were no free ones for that last search).

For the second search, I used Picsearch.com. I like it because it brings back so many images...thousands! The downside is that you have to be sure to check the liscensing agreement or copyright information for each photo to find the usage terms.

Searching #76: Sound Effects

1) This morning, I let my dog out as usual. "Don't bark!" I told her. She went outside and for ten seconds, she obeyed my instructions, and then she barked. The cat next door let out a growl. The growling of the cat prompted the elephant that lives behind us to react. My dog came back inside, quiet and thoughtful.

2) I used to play the drums. I also took lessons playing the piano, but my playing didn't sound so great. I made my teacher want to yell.

Searching #75 Google and Beyond

Exercises

1. 3 searches with Blindsearch. I did three searches...one on Order of Discalced Carmelite Seculars, one on kayaking in Houston, and one on wine in Texas. I was surprised that Yahoo did the best job with the Carmelite question. I chose Google for the other two questions, and that is my favorite search engine, but the results were very similar. Because the results were so similar, it probably won't prompt me to change my habits of searching very much. However, it would be fun to try Blindsearch when I get some really detailed reference questions and see what the results are then.

2. Hitwise. Which search engine is number one this week? Google wins by a landslide...71.61% to the second best Yahoo 14.76%. Yes, the results match my favorite search engine.

3. Since I use Google most often, I looked into the extra features for it, in case I am missing something I can use. There are many useful extras. The trick will be remembering to use the shortcuts...because really that is what most of them are....like definitions, weather for a certain place, the local time for a certain place, sports scores, calculator, synonyms, etc. It's all stuff I look for often, but don't use the Google features to find the information. I often use Google to find out how to spell something, and Google Earth is lots of fun. Google books can be useful, too.