BOOKMARKING AND TECHNORATI

I have again explored the bookmarking in del.icio.us and found it could really be a help to research. Type in the subject you want to research on, you will be able to access other people's bookmarks that have this as their favourites. You will be able to see how many people have bookmarked this subject. By entering bookmarks of all these people, you will be able to identify a lot of bookmarks related to your subject. Of course, the next step is popping into each of these sites to look for required information. It may take a lot of time in pursuing the links and sometimes you may get lost.

Using Technorati Advance search seems more straight forward. I have used Keyword search in blog for Rangitoto island and I got 95 results. Using URL search, I got 16 results and 15 results in using tag search.

I feel both del.icio.us and Technorati search can be used as research assistance for doing research. I am glad that I have mastered the basic technique of using them.

LIBRARY 2.0 AND WEB 2.0

Having read the perspectives on Library 2.0 of OCLC, I have now some basic understanding of the Library 2.0 and Web 2.0. Library 2.0 is a concept encouraging user particicpation and feedback in the development and maintenance of library services. Library users are expected to become a significant component of Library 2.0 with information flowing from the library to useres and from users to the library. Library 2.0 has made use of the technology of Web 2.0 which is the changing trends in the use of world wide web technlogy and web design. Web 2.0 enhances creativity, communications, information sharing, collaboration and functionality of the web. It embraces onling application tools such as Google Docs and Spreadsheet, Flickr, RSS ( Really Simple Syndication), Technorati, Wikipedia, del.icio.us, YouTube, Myspace, Facebook, Podcasts, ebooks and many other web applications.

In short, Library 2.0 is now a term that describes both physical and mindset changes to make spaces and services of library more user-friendly, inviting and welcoming.

PODCASTING

I have again explored various aspects of the podcasting. I visited Podcastalley.com and Podcast.com. They all have Podcast collection comprising more thatn 20 categories for one to choose. There are serveral to thousand topics under each category. In Podcastalley.com, there is a podcast on "Economist" giving account of the lastest terrorist attack in Mumbai, India; I have RSS feed "Discovery health Channel" to my blog.

Manukau libraries invite speakers to hold talks on various different subjects every month. If these talks can be uploaded to internet in the form of podcasts, there will soon be a library of podcasts for the interested readers who have either missed or unable to attend the talk at the time. This could be another way to enhance library's information service to the public.


To support podcasting, I have added the Podcast Alley badge below:




You can click on it and enter the world of podcasting.

Ramsay Hunt Syndrome

I feel sorry for a friend who has developed Ramsay Hunt Syndrome. What is Ramsay Hunt syndrome? It is a form of "herpes zoster" virus affecting the facial nerve associated with facial paralysis and loss of taste.

In fact, everyone could possibly develop this kind of illness. Following an attack of chikenpox in the early stage of life, the virus lays dormant in the dorsal root ganglia of the spinal cord. When one grows old with weaker immune system, the virus migrates down the sensory nerve and may affect the Parotid gland which controls the facial nerves. the person affected cannot close one of his eyes and his mouth dangles.

I have found the video below " I can't smile" making fun of this illness.

eBook

Following the instructions of the excercise, I went to www.gutenberg.org for ebook. It is a great site for free ebook downloading. However, I don't think its collection is wide enough. I have downloaded "The People's Common Sense Medical Adviser in Plain English" and " Amusement in Mathematics" from the top 100 downloads. It is just like downloading an article or a document from any site in the internet. it is easy and convenient. The problem is we don't have a eBook reading device like "Kindle" which is sold for US$399 by Amazon. This digital book reader is rather too expensive.

I imagine if all the books are digitised in future, the library in future generations will have no books on the shelve. What customer will do is bringing a book reader to the library to download a book or books. The ebooks will automatically be erased after the due date to protect the copyright. It is fascinating, isn't it?

Web 2.0 Awards site list

I have gone through the list and found serveral sites interesting. First of all, it is the maps catagory. I have found them ( Google maps, Yahoo maps etc.) useful in locating an address. However, they are all very outdated. My house was built more than 3 years ago and it is still shown as bare land on the map. The good point is it really gives you a visual idea of the location that you are after.

The next catagory that interests me is the "Questions and Answers". I visited both Yahoo Answers and Fixya. It seems Yahoo answers is general in nature and Fixya is more specialised in fixing things. The answers are from specialists or from someone who had the same problem before. I think they are great resources that one can make use of.

I would like to finish the my learn 2.0 before end of this year. There will be more posting coming soon!

LUMBER SPRAIN

Happy Valley did not have a good time last week because of relapse of my old problem - Lumber sprain. It happed to me one or twice a year. However, it was quite severe this time. I almost could not get out bed and walk. After consulting my GP, I was referred to physiotherapist for following up. This is the first time I get physiotherapy and also the first time to claim ACC.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my wife for helping me through. She helped me get out of bed, supported me while I tried to walk and sent me to physiotherapist. " Thank you, Fandy, you have done a great thing to me"

I have come across a few websites on Lumber sprain. A particular website is quite good and I would like to recommed it to people having the same problem:

http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/sprainsstrains/a/lowback.htm

My Police Pup

My Police Pup
Originally uploaded by HAPPY VALLEY2008

How do you like this photo? I like it.

You can see this Police Pup when you come to Howick Police Station. It is just sitting on the top of a file cabinet! .

PODCASTING

We actually learned a lot from doing excerise on podcasting. We had to download some software applications either to create or edit our audio file. After this has been done, we posted it to "Ourmedia" for storage. You will now find New Zealand National Anthem now podcasted in my blog. You can find the Anthem link on the left of my blog. Click on it and you will go to "ourmedia". Click the play button and there comes the New Zealand Anthem.

Next come to the vidio podcasting. I have copied a video file embedded link from U-tube and pasted it to my blog. The subject of the vidio is Podcasting. Play it if you like.

Psalms 23 (imported from Zoho Writer)

Psalms 23, Iraq, Christian

Listen to Psalm 23? please click:

www.biblegateway.com/resources/audio/play.php?aid=3&book=23&chapter=23

I have accidentally come across this photo in Flickr.com. It is a shock to me.

When we read Psalms 23, what we figure is transquility - a green pasture, a valley, a quiet stream, a herd of sheep feeding on grasses. We shall never associate it with war which is happening these days.

I am so moved that I want to cry. I don't know why. If you have any feelings or comments on this photo, please share with me.

BLOGLINES & RSS

I found I have not blogged about the bloglines and RSS which is the 2nd week excercise of Web 2.0. In fact, I set up my bloglines account and rss feed my bloglines with a list of sites in that week but somehow I forgot to blog about it. I think it is not too late to blog about it this week.

I have rss fed my bloglines with a number of sites such as U-tube, BBC, CNN, Reuter and some of my co-workers' blogs. Among those sites, I like my feeds to National Geographic news and scientific Amercian the most. I can get updated and broader knowledge from these sites. I have linked the bloglines site to my blog so that I can go direct to my bloglines once I enter my blog.

THING 7

Bebo, myspace and face book are somethings far away. I came to know facebook when one of my friends invited me one or two years ago. I came to know Bebo after I started working in library. In fact, I have no desire to be involved in anyone of them. Because of the Web 2.0 excercise, I had to look into them. I spent hours to get familiar with them and I registered with all of these sites. It became clear to me that these social networking sites allow you to write blogs, upload your own photos, slide shows(using http://www.slide.com/), videos; find and create friends and there are libraries of music and videos that one can access. Unfortunately, I am not interested in this kind of social networking as I feel privacy is more important and I do not need so-called friends in the virtual world. If I want my friends to know what's up to me, they can visit my blog and send me mail. Anyway, I have sent request to ACL to be added as a fan and put a link to ACL as part of the excercise.

I visited Hennipin County library facebook. They are having a great site that allows people to search their catalog, register as a fan, chat with a librarian and post something on the "wall". This kind of social networking works well to organisations like libraries, clubs and illness support groups. These organisations are facing public and certainly like to have as many members as possible.

Although I am conservative about social networking of this kind, the work this week has updated me with the most popular social networking sites, which are probably unknown to peers of my age.

BOOKMARKING

I have visited http//del.icio.us this week. This awesome website allows one to save book marks on it, so that they are accessable from anywhere with a browser. The bookmarks in it are synchronious to the bookmarks stored in the Window Internet explorer. That means when you add your bookmarks to del.icio.us, it will appear at the same time in the bookmarks stored in Internet explorer, and the vice versa. The benefit is if your computer is corrupted, say affeted by virus, and everthing in the harddisk is to be formatted, you will not lose your bookmarks as you will still be able to retrieve them from del.icio.us. del.icio.us also allows us to manage our bookmarks by tagging. By the social networking function of this website, we are able to access other people's bookmarks and other people can also access ours.

WIKIS

It is nice to know what is Wiki ; not Kiwi :). It means quick in Hawaiian, was developed to allow for easy and fast collaborative development and editing of a website. Anyone in the community can add to or edit anyone else's writting. Theorically, the final content should represent some sort of consensus within the community. This is cool, but the problem is there is no guarantee that the final version is true and correct. The user may also get wrong information at a particular point of time when the correct information is edited and replaced by a wrong one.

Wiki has many applications for library. I think what benefit readers most is the possibility of annotating the catalog. If there are reader's comments or book reviews attached to the catalog, it will certainly help readers to choose the right book.

I have also come across some information on RFID that we are going to use very soon. It will surely bring a lot of convinences to library staff and customers.

LIBRARY

Wrong return?
Originally uploaded by HAPPY VALLEY2008

"Hey, Ma'am, you have returned the wrong stuff!"
Happy Valley is working at a public library. Happly valley thinks the library job is cool. You have the oppourtunity to serve the community and also the chance to browse all sorts of books.

Manukau libraries are going to shift from barcode system to RFID soon. The library layout might be very different from now. Perhaps, our role too.

For photos of the library where Happy Valley is working, please click the link below:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/happy__valley/sets/72157606389609946

FACELIFT

I believe John Key will be our next PM. I have therefore chosen him as the subject of my facelift excercise by using Magiclift.com. Yea!, he really looks much younger and more handsome than he is. Well done!

Hey, any lady wants me to do a facelift for her? just send me your photo and I guarantee you will look 10 years younger.

I have also done something to change a beauty to a Chimpanzee. Please see the link below:http://www.youwild.org/personal/n4q0DAZochp6WWkMaY_GknAtMzIwMDk-

KAITAIA

I uploaded my photos of Kaitaia to my computer today and also sent some photos of Kaitai to a friend of mine in the U.S.A.. My family visited Kaitaia more than a month ago but I was so lazy that I have not uploaded my photos to date. Kaitaia is a small town located at the far north of New Zealand. It has two main attractions: Cape Reinga and Ninety Mile Beach.

I was told Cape Reinga is the northest tip of New Zealand, but later on I have found this to be untrue. The northest tip of New Zealand is Kerr Point near North Cape. However, Cape Reinga is the most popular as far as the tourist is concerned and from the Maori point of view. The translation of Reinga is "Place of leaping". Marori legends say that deceased spirits leap from this point when they depart to their traditional homeland in Polynesia.

90 Mile beach is probably shorter than 90 miles, it however takes more than an hour to go from one end to the other. The waves along the beach are huge and so it is a good place for surfing. There are some sand dunes along the beach, where people can come for sand dune surfing.

I LOVE NEW ZEALAND

I love New Zealand. People in New Zealand are friendly and it has a lot of beautifully landscapes. People in the world always think of New Zealand as the last "Eden" with very few crimes. However, the fact is the crime rate in New Zealand has been climbing up in the past 5 years. New Zealanders are not feeling safe anymore. What a shame that we have to tell overseas visitors that they have to watch out their property every minute and not to walk around after dark.

A new government will be coming and hopefully it will do something to reverse the course. I would like New Zealand to be thought of as a place of safe, peaceful, clean and green.