Far too long

It's been a long time since I've written in here, with Thanksgiving and then having to do my presentation, somehow I forgot all about blogging. And it's always such a welcome break from normal schoolwork. I was definitely frazzled during my presentation, and looking back I know I didn't cover all that I wanted to do. I thought I had at least 5 more minutes to conjure my thoughts, but somehow Dr Mon got our order mixed up and I had to go and it was like a train on the tracks and it just kept steamrolling. I hope it came off better than I think it did. I did get some good feedback, and made some extreme errors on my page that I had no clue how they occurred. I'm usually super fact checker but dropped the ball. Oh well. I'm certainly open to the suggestions....

I knew I would have to spend a good portion of my time justifying my choices in adding Friends on MySpace, and this is a fight I was planned to fight. But like I said I got caught off guard and didn't do as good a job explaining myself as I wanted. Oh well. It was my first time speaking in a chat room and I guess I didn't do too badly. I've listened to it...I don' t know. Frustrating. But at least I didn't have the technical difficulties that some had. I really like looking through everyones slides and pathfinders, they have such good resources! It must have been so fun looking for quality resources on something you're really interested in. Such good work. It's always nice to be able to see what others, in the same program, are doing. It's such an impersonal program, but refreshing when you do get to touch base. When I hand in my papers I have no clue if they're even setup the same as anyone elses. Oh WELL. My frustration with the semester will be done in a week. I hope I feel better when the week is done.

What to do what to do...

So I've created my group, but in hindsight it became more of a group that I want to see on MySpace rather than a group that the IPL would benefit from. And. we now have 14 members in the group. I'm not sure what to do about this. If I should keep it and find a way so that my own MySpace is the moderator and not the IPL or what. I'm starting to fall behind in my work, and creating another group might add on to my struggle, but it would surely be more beneficial. But maybe the IPL doesn't need to host a group anyways, seeing as nobody knows who'll be moderating the group next semester....So much to think about.

A lot to get done this week. Plus the weather has finally changed, so it's nice and cold and all I feel like doing is snuggling under one of my mother's afghans and reading my latest books from the library. Hopefully schoolwork wins over relaxation. I'll have to let you know.

MYSPACE and the IPL are getting along fabulously, if only in my mind. We're up to 64 friends, some who have added us. I'm in the process of creating a group for libraries with myspace pages, but I'm sure they're probably a little leery of joining the group since it's is still so elemental.

I've been struggling, but have ultimately settled on only adding libraries to the friend section. Except for some class members and Dr. Mon. I don't even have myself added as a friend, because I'm a 25 year old who blogs on her myspace, and everything that is said is not always a good representation of myself and I don't want my negative qualities associated with the IPL. And that's because, in looking at some of the 'librarians' who have attempted to add us, I have come across some objectional content. If I am supposed to be creating this site as a method of promoting the IPL, I don't want anyone to click on any of our friends and find things that are inappropriate. I am curious though, if other members of the class or the IPL feel the same way as I do. I know Glynis is doing hers more as an outreach to people who work with the IPL, but I think Facebook is set up differently. As far as i know, in order to see someones page on facebook you have to be their friend, but this is not the case with myspace. Anyone can look at our page and see who our friends are. It's something I'm not completely sure on, and I haven't deleted and friend requests we've received. But.....I think I'm gonna stick with this decision so far.

On another note, I'm sitting in the practice eluminate session, realizing I have no clue how I wish to present. So there's no point in me being in it. ..

We talked in class this week a lot about virtual environments like Second Life. These areas fascinate but scare me at the same time. It's seems like an amazing way to meet up with people around the world. But what happened to real life interactions? Where are they? I succeed way more in face to face interactions than I do in online environments, and I'm in the age bracket that is supposed to succeed at this stuff. I can only imagine how lost people of older generations might feel...

Happy Halloween!!!

So this Halloween, even though class was cancelled, I'm firmly ensconced in schoolwork. Thank goodness I live in the boondocks of Western NY, and there is not a trick-or-treater to be fed. I got my grade back on my Flickr paper, and I couldn't be happier. Sometimes it's good to get the feedback that you really can write a decent paper, and that maybe you are doing this for a reason. I would like to point out that the IPL now has 14 friends on MySpace!!! A few were added and I'm not sure they will be kept, as friends. And that's only because I want the page to be used as a Reference tool more than a method to make cutesy friends. I do have to say that the majority are libraries that have pages geared towards teens. Which are exactly what I want. Other than that, I've emailed Dr. Mon my date to present, which will give me plenty of time to get that ready (especially since it's only 5 minutes of torture :)) and I'm all caught up with this class. I am, however, fast and furiously writing a paper on Dublin Core, which is another torture all on its own....
Melanie the future madame librarian

A hectic week

So I haven't focused too much on this class since handing in the paper last week, but only because I had a paper due yesterday for another class, I will be flying to Savannah to visit my family on Thursday, and I have a big paper due next Friday on Dublin Core.

I managed to send out a few friend requests last night on MySpace for the IPL, and we officially have one friend. The Denver Public Library has a MySpace page that is geared towards teenagers, and is a great example of what I want our MySpace page to be. I'm going to attempt to send out more requests shortly, as I don't have much time to edit this week.

Class was interesting this week, talking about how technology is changing the environments in which we all hope to work. I know I'm not what people imagine when they think of librarian, and maybe it's time to start breaking predetermined notions wherever we can. That reminds me, I have to renew a library book before I get charged for it.


Ohhhh and if anyone out there watches The Office, Dwight is going to be spending some time in SecondLife this week, I'll be on a plane to Georgia so I'll miss it, but I'm still super excited!!!

Melanie

Web 2.0 and an interesting experience

So far, for our web 2.0 paper, I've started writing papers on about 5 different topics. But by the end of the day, one of those will be done. I think I've narrowed in on writing about Flickr and all that it has to offer. I was going to do a paper on MySpace, but I feel like that's all I do, but that it's not all that I'm interested in. So I'm reaching outside of my box, or comfort zone, and exploring a new aspect of the all that is web 2.o. Hopefully it works out for me.

I did want to write about a positive experience that I had for the IPL recently. My best friend teaches 7th grade in a city school in Rochester NY. We were talking about how hard it is to find quality resources for kids that made them do the work to find the source but helped teach them how to search in a meaningful way. I told her to have them give the IPL a shot, and that if they couldn't find answers to their questions that they had a service which would help them answer their questions or get started searching. Friday night, she told me her kids loved the IPL. They really enjoyed how Kidspace was set up and had even asked a question and gotten a response right away. Score one for the IPL :) I'm helping with Outreach in methods I apparently had forgotten about----word of mouth. How old fashioned of me.

The MySpace page is coming along, for the IPL. I really want to get together with Glynis to figure out how we should write the About Me section. I don't want it to come across too Librarianesque, but I don't want it to seem so casual that people don't think that it is really sanctioned by the IPL. So I'll have to work on that as soon as I get the paper done...Wish me lucK!!!!
Melanie

IPL on MySpace

In lieu of class tonite, I'm attempting to work on my MySpace page for the IPL. Visit www.myspace.com/internetpubliclibrary to see how it's coming along. It's a tedious process, getting it to look right, let alone to get started on the print for the page. And then I will start attempting to add friends. I don't want to get to that stage until the page looks professional. Otherwise people might think I'm pranking them.

Rachelville

The story of Rachelville and all that the 'worker's' of Rachelville do amazes me. After class on Wednesday, I've become officially hooked on Second Life and all that it offers. Second Life brings together people of all walks of life, in ways that can't be done without the internet. It's a great education tool, as long as it is used as a method to further good things in society then I am a firm believer that Second Life should be used to educate and interest. When I went in Rachelville earlier today, they've decorated for Halloween. Go on take a look. I love the pumpkins.

For my Outreach project, I'm going to be creating a MySpace page as a promotional tool for the IPL. I have to iron out a lot of the behind the scenes riff raff, i.e. what email address to use when I sign up, password, what kind of information the IPL wants on the page. I don't want to step on any toes or do anything that the IPL doesn't deem as important or necessary. I want this to turn into something that helps them out and I can't wait to get started. I've spent lots of time locating as many of the libraries on MySpace that I can, and I have plans of creating a Group for the IPL and inviting people to join. So I have to email Dr. Mon to see if she knows who I should contact about logistics, and then time to have fun :)

I wanted to write that normal chat lectures irritate me because I find myself not being...well me. I don't speak up in chat classes, where in a normal lecture, I'm usually the one to answer all the questions. I have afear that all these people will see what I'm typing and deem me unimportant or unworthy of their attention. Which, of course, logically would not be the case. But, in Second Life I felt a little more comfortable being me, or mellyrosie. Even when I wasn't looking at what other people where looking at (which is totally me in real life as well, I have a huge problem focusing) I still felt more, well, more a part of things than I do in the BlackBoard chat rooms. I dont feel involved enough, even throughout the whole degree program, and for learners like me I dont know that I would recommend the online route. I try to make a conscious effort, at least in group discussions to not be the silent member. I attempt to make my voice heard. But it is frustrating for someone who is usually so vocal to feel almost as though they have lost their voice. Lost all means to communicate what they are feeling. I hope other professors try to explore other options, like Second Life, because it is certainly a valid form of communication.

I want a simple life like that

We met this week in Second Life. It was such fun. Well, except for the fact that I couldn't seem to stop running into people no matter what I did. I guess, just like in real life, I need to learn to hang back until I'm sure of what I'm doing, so I don't hurt anyone :) It was fun too, to be able to take a class picture of all of our avatars ... I hope I'll have more of a chance to explore Second Life in the future. I'm hoping to bring my mom into the world of Second life....I think she'll really like talking and hanging out with me on the Internet....

I was reading some articles this week on Second Life and other online social network/gaming type sources of entertainment. And it was mentioned in class that there are people who look at SecondLife as a form of their real life, which seems slightly disturbing. I've always been slightly disturbed that people can take the Internet and use it to substitute normal human interaction. Don't get me wrong, I think the Internet is an amazing and wonderful thing, but it is almost like a drug. And drugs form addictions. They need to be used in moderation. Drugs kill Brain Cells :)

So....


So many things to talk about float about care about, that I don't know where to start. This class is fast becoming the only one I seem to care about!!! Hurray for Dr. Mon. Boo for me and my GPA. There are so many things that I want to do for my project, so many directions. I can't focus.

But...Team Outreach
Patricia and I met last night. We're such a small team (hopefully one more strong member) so we must keep ourselves to projects that are attainable. And not take off more than we can chew or however the adage goes. The two ideas we're trying to narrow down are

1.) Creating pages on social networking sites to promote the IPL. Sites such as MySpace, Face Book etc that can appeal to YA's and perhaps get them more interested into what the IPL has to offer. This idea might be more realistic due to the size of our group. But, having MySpace and Facebook, I realize that these might not be too difficult to set up. I might be able to do a solid job in a couple rainy afternoons.

2.) Creating either a little search window, or a link, that public libraries can put on their websites that will swoosh their users right on over to the IPL and all its fabulousness. This, alas, seems very daunting. I know next to nothing about html ( I can edit a wiki and that's it) and then all the contact we'd have to have with librarians. We'd never get this all the way done. Maybe we could just concentrate on a set number of libraries---maybe links in major libraries in major cities? What does the IPL think about this? Do they want us to do this?


WE had questions about the parameters. Where we're allowed to go exactly. Hopefully, we can get going though. It's going to be lots of work :)

love in reading,
melanie

It is what it is

So I've been attempting to get back into the IPL's graces so that I can help them out and answer questions. It's been a little slower than I thought, I think probably because they are so busy with new trainee ordeals and all, but I really just needed to know if I need to answer a training question again or if my account can be reactivated. Hopefully before class next Wednesday I'll be able to get back into it. We had a really good and interactive presentation on archiving for the IPL in class last week. It got me thinking about all the behind the scenes stuff that naive users like me never realize has to go on. I always get annoyed when I click on a link and it doesn't go anywhere, it must take so much work to keep these sites active and valid. Maybe from now on, if I come across a link that doesn't work, I'll take the time to email someone and let them know, instead of getting frustrated with it.

After the presentation on Wednesday, class was just .... done. I always like a reminder of what needs to be done before next class (I guess I'm used to being babysat). Welcome to the real world Melanie!!! I'm having such a hard time getting back into the swing of things this semester, I knew taking the summer off was a bad idea. Seriously, I've managed to procrastinate on all the work I need to do by doing anything else possible. Anyone else having this issue? Or am I the only slacker out there?

Anyways.....


Community outreach for the IPL. Where do I want to see this going? Someone in our group had a great idea and I've been mulling it around. Is there someway we could get libraries nationwide to provide a link to the IPL on their homepages? Maybe a pretty little box that says, having trouble finding the answer to your questions.....ask the IPL? Ok so obviously that's not what it would say, but somewhere along those lines. What if we could get all the libraries to put this somewhere, maybe even link to it from their search engines? I also want to work on helping the IPL appeal to YA's (young adults). But how????

So many questions, still so easy to procrastinate. I'll get on it, I promise.

IPL

I was so indecisive this semester in choosing the last class I wanted to take. But the second I saw that LIS 5916 (Virtual Reference Environments) was going to be working with the IPL and Second Life, I knew that this course was going to be a good one for me. I worked with the IPL last semester in Dr. Gross' LIS 5603, and while I got off to a rocky start, I ended up wishing I'd get to work further with the organization. I think the concept of the IPL is fantastic, I just wish more people knew how valuable a reference tool it can be!!!


Which....... is why I volunteered to help out the Community Outreach Team. The IPL needs excited people working on its behalf! Already within the group, I think we'll be able to vibe and come up with great ideas to benefit the IPL. I'm especially interested in the concept of using social networking sites (such as Facebook, MySpace etc) to promote the IPL to users who might not have been aware of the tools that the IPL is offering. I created a Wiki last semester on libraries using MySpace to promote their offerings to young adults and learned how much success these libraries are having at least at getting young adults interested and using the tools that are available. Ask any young adult today what reference tools they use on the Internet....I wonder how many will say that their local libraries home page are useful? How about if we got them thinking that the IPL's website should be their jumping off point.

I hope our group can work cohesively (once we figure out who's going to stay on it)..... I'm excited to be working for the IPL...


Melanie

a glimpse

Blogging. Hmmmm. Okay. I'm Melanie and I'm 25 years old. I'm currently enrolled in an Online program through Florida State to obtain my Masters in Information Studies (aka I want to work in a Library someday). I have my Bachelor of Arts from Mansfield University (in Pennsylvania) in Vocal Music and English Literature. All that proves is that I like to sing and read. A lot. I've lived in upstate New York all my life, and most recently moved to the Rochester area, but I'm not tied to the area anymore. My parents, who've turned out miraculously despite my horrid teen years to be some of my favorite people, just relocated to Savannah Georgia. I have a pretty miserable job where I've met some amazing people. I work 40+ hours a week in a call center training people how to talk to people like 'you' when you're at your angriest and most miserable. I swear, sometimes I don't understand how people can honestly talk to another person in the way that I'm spoken to. Just something to take to heart when you're completely frustrated with a Company, but you could be talking to me. And I swear I didn't do anything to you to deserve it. I'm just paying my bills so that someday I can do something better with my life (oh and they pay for most of my grad school so I can't complain too much.)

I love animals. I have a beautiful lab/bordie collie mix named Delilah, and a calico kitten named Lizzie B (after the famous alleged parent murderers because she was slightly insane as a kitten). I have an insanely eclectic music collection--- I'm sure that Beethoven secretly would be proud to be next to Justin Timberlake and Ella Fitzgerald hundreds of years after his death. I read a lot, although during the semester it tends to be more textbooks than pleasure books.

I have a great family. As a matter of fact, I live with one of my brothers. And it strangely works better than any other living arrangements I've had previously. I miss my Mom and Dad more each day, but realize that sometimes life isn't always what I wish it was. And that I need to grow up at some point. My friends keep me sane, especially when it seems life would be so much easier if I just dropped all the hard stuff and walked the line.

As far as introductions go, I think I'm done. Although I could probably go on forever babbling away.