#23 I did it Harriet's Way....

And now, the end is near...
I planned each charted course;
Each careful step along the byway,
But more, much more than this,
I did it my way
- Paul Anka, 1969

My thoughts on web 2.0? I did enjoy the program and yes, I will probably miss it. It did open my eyes to new resources and some fantastic websites I didn't know about. I was not aware of how big blog land is, and suspect I just have an inkling of an idea of what is out there. It has been a lot of fun and I have learned a lot - at least 23 things anyway! It is a lot to keep up with. I may keep this blog going. It would be fantastic to implement some of the things we have explored, like wiki's and rss feeds into our daily work somehow so we can keep and improve upon the skills we have acquired.

#22 Faux books

Well, I must say, I found this exercise a bit frustrating! I couldn't find, or rather wait around long enough to find titles I was interested in. They may or may not have Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy, I wouldn't know, because it took so long to find out I gave up! I downloaded a word doc of it once, but found it difficult to read off the computer. I thought listening to it would be easier, but alas....t'was not to be...

I did find Walt Whitman and Edgar Allen Poe, of which we only have one book in our library of one author, and none of the other - disgraceful! No Poe?!#$%^&*.

Story time just wouldn't be the same on an mp3 player now would it?

#21 It's a pod pod world...

Harriet has been pod surfing and almost drowned in her own excitement in the first few minutes. There's a tsunami of pod casts out there. Some faves; It's a mod mod world, This is SKA cast, Miz Kitty's Parlour, BRC Radio... the list is endless.

Once again, be mindful of how how much time you spend in the big pond or you'll end up looking like a shriveled pickle. This girl is impatient! It's just not Harriet's style to sit around waiting for podcasts to download. Anything more than two minutes is an age and should be enough to remind you that there is real surf to be surfed, sand to walk on, gardens to be admired, dancing to be had, hotake to be consumed...

As for uses in the library, pod casts can be used for staff training, patron training, classes, tours, how to use library facilities and more and more and more...

#20 Harriet grooves with You Tube

#19 Web 2.0 awards & groovy sites...

Wow! Harriet was web 2.0 savvy before she even knew it! I have been exploring some of the winners of the Web 2.0 awards only to discover that I use some of them on a regular basis.

I was an absolute devotee of Pandora.com, an excellent music resource. Sadly they have encountered licensing issues and are now restricted to only being accessible in the United States. I LOVED Pandora. What an awesome concept! You basically told Pandora what your favourite style of music is, and it created a play list or 'radio station' just for you. You could even give it just one song that you really like, for example a James Brown song, and it would play it for you along with other soul or funk songs in the same style. Or you type in the name of a group, say Bob Marley and the Wailers, and you would get a selection of reggae bands and songs. It is brilliant. And it was free! Pandora would remember your preferences and create 'stations' for you that you could visit again. They are hoping to go global again sometime soon; not soon enough for me - I MISS PANDORA!

Harriet is also a regular etsy.com shopper. Looking for something a little bit different and unique? Everything on Etsy is hand crafted by talented artists and crafty folk. Unlike ebay, you don't need to bid; the prices are set, and in some cases, you can custom order from the creators themselves. Aahh! The magic of web 2.0...

#18 My Zoho and Fred

Hello... I have just been having a play with Zoho. It is a very useful resource, especially if you are away from your computer. All you need is an Internet connection and you access your files from anywhere in the world. This is great if you are OS and want to travel light. Just pop into an Internet cafe or library and away you go. It does make USB sticks obsolete doesn't it? Here's an excerpt from Harriet's diary (I keep this on Zoho so no-one can ever discover my secrets!)...ta ta.

Dear diary,
I had the most wonderful afternoon with my pals from the dance troupe! We're rehearsing a new show and it's going to be fabuluos! We have a new member, goes by the name of Fred; he is such a sweetie! Not bad for an old fella. Here's a picture of me out the front showing Fred the ropes. He's very good; took to it like a fish to water! Can't wait for our next rehearsal; it's shaping up quite well! Stay tuned...H.

#17 Go see!

...Harriet joins the sandbox! And the best part? Anyone can play! Although, I must say; there are some cheeky buggers loitering around in there, getting up close and personal 'n all. My word...some of the propositions this girl's been getting! Cheeky or what?

#16 Wiki Wiki Nudge Nudge Wink Wink

Wiki's - what can I say? Brilliant if you want to believe everything you read and couldn't be bothered researching your topic. I LOVE Wikipedia, in any language. I've made many contributions to wiki's - you can trust me, I have a degree! If it's on the net, it's gospel.

Seriously (for once), they are a good idea as long as they are not abused. Like most things on the information super highway it is open to abuse. I think it is a good idea in the work environment where new ideas need to be communicated to a large number of people; then feedback can be given and everyone's views can be known and considered. A better way to go than emails that are ignored and deleted. As long as people are constructive and have a valid point of view, I mean, I wouldn't encourage anyone to do a Harriet or anything..... except maybe Harriet, of course...as if she could resist......

#15 On web 2.0 and other stuff (of course)

Well if you think Harriet has been deliberately avoiding this next post, you are quite right. It's all a little onerous for this party gal. What does it all mean to me? Here's one perspective....Web 2.0, yes yes it's wonderful, amazing technology. I am truly amazed.... at the stupidity of people! Put yourself out there folks; get a blog, let psychos work out where you live, who you live with, where you work, where you socialise (on myspace and facebook because I don't actually have a social life, just a virtual one!!), what you do (they don't need to work this one out because you get on there everyday and tell them), even what kind of mood you're in; sad, happy, goofy, IRRITATED. For goodness sake, help, "does my bum look big in this?" It does provide humor however. Did you know the feds are now finding criminals on facebook and other social network sites? Yes it's true. Obviously they haven't learned about mashups and incognito yet!

Meanwhile, Harriet is living her life in the real world. Harriet went round the corner and caught up with the crew to see the fantastic Mr. Bo from nawlins. Yes folks, the dance floor beckoned once more. Shaking it with the the strange and lovely Dice Man, the sexy, sultry Ms. Caviar, Mr. Melbourne shakin' them maracas; what a night! Harriet even scored some bling from the man hisself!

Gosh!

Goodness! It's a whole new month and I haven't even noticed. Yes folks, Harriet has been partying again! The girl can't help herself. She's been all over town these past few weeks being entertained by all sorts. A couple of strapping Texans are in town, and well, someone has to entertain them.

Harriet's been shimmy-ing at the Koko, pogo-ing at Chez Cindy, sipping absinthe on the 35th Floor, jazzing it up at the Top End, shakin' it at Off the Hip and tearing up the sticky carpet with all sorts of Exotic types. And it doesn't stop there! The festive season has started and there's barely enough time to fit work in. Harriet needs a holiday - partying is such hard work. H

ps - I WILL get on to #15. Right now it's enough that I get out of bed in the morning... ta ta.