Tuesday, April 28, 2009

YouTube Tuesday: Hide and Seek

Google and Privacy
A brief introduction on what information Google collects, how it is used, and how it relates to privacy.



Peek a Book
Hide and Seek in the Library

Friday, April 24, 2009

Impress Your Professor: I'm in love...with viewzi

I went to a presentation at Computers in Libraries that talked about how our users are really getting into visualization when it comes to search engines. One of the search engines the speaker talked about was Viewzi. I was finally able this week to play around with it a bit and I think I'm falling in love!

I'm not sure exactly when Cupid shot me with the love arrow but I'm thinking it has something to do with how fresh viewzi seems to me. It's just a different way to look at results from a web search. I would highly recommend people play around with the Google timeline feature. Instead of me writing more about the search engine I'll just give you all some videos to watch. ENJOY!







Tuesday, April 21, 2009

YouTube Tuesday: Go Global

World Digital Library
A teaser trailer for the World Digital Library



X Marks the Spot
The library is a treasure

Monday, April 20, 2009

EVENT: Registration Ends Soon!

Join the Potomac Valley Chapter and CUA Student Chapter of ASIST for our next program!

As social media technologies continue to advance, how will the effects of these innovations be experienced by musicians, their audiences, and the information professionals who organize music? While websites ranging from iTunes to MySpace to last.fm and Pandora abound, how can you best navigate these spaces ethically while discovering new talent or learning more about favorite genres? What's now, and what's next?

The Potomac Valley Chapter of ASIS&T is pleased to bring you local musicians, information professionals, and music experts on a lively panel discussion about the many fascinating issues that the Information Age brings to music and its analysis.

Panelists (Invited):
  • Brent Burton
  • Raul DeLeon
  • Ben Licciardi
  • Michael Pahn
  • Ginger Richards

WHEN: Tuesday, April 28, 2009

TIME: Dinner 6:30 - 7:00pm; Panel Discussion 7:00 - 8:30pm

LOCATION: Catholic University of America, May Gallery

For registration and more information, click here
https://www.asis.org/Chapters/asispvc/pvcregform_04282009.html

See you there,

Jeff Prater
Chair, PVC-ASIST

Tiffany Smith
Vice-Chair, PVC-ASIST

Kathleen Mahoney
Chair, CUA-ASIST

Friday, April 17, 2009

Impress Your Professor: Map This!

In his article for May's ASIST bulletin, Alan Oxley discusses how Web 2.0 can be applied to geospatial relationships and geography. He states, "items can be geotagged, giving their physical location. Individuals can also make maps for their own use."

While Oxley goes into more technical aspects of how Web 2.0 and geography work together, the first thing I thought of was RFID technology. Wouldn't be cool if you could, one day, log on to Google Books and see exactly where in the world a specific text was. Not just the library, but the exact shelf.

Then again, this same technology could turn BookCrossing into a stalker's paradise.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

EVENT: Beats and Bytes: Music and Creativity in the Information Age

Join the Potomac Valley Chapter and CUA Student Chapter of ASIST for our next program!

As social media technologies continue to advance, how will the effects of these innovations be experienced by musicians, their audiences, and the information professionals who organize music? While websites ranging from iTunes to MySpace to last.fm and Pandora abound, how can you best navigate these spaces ethically while discovering new talent or learning more about favorite genres? What's now, and what's next?

The Potomac Valley Chapter of ASIS&T is pleased to bring you local musicians, information professionals, and music experts on a lively panel discussion about the many fascinating issues that the Information Age brings to music and its analysis.

Panelists (Invited):
  • Brent Burton
  • Raul DeLeon
  • Ben Licciardi
  • Michael Pahn
  • Ginger Richards

WHEN: Tuesday, April 28, 2009

TIME: Dinner 6:30 - 7:00pm; Panel Discussion 7:00 - 8:30pm

LOCATION: Catholic University of America, May Gallery

For registration and more information, click here
https://www.asis.org/Chapters/asispvc/pvcregform_04282009.html

See you there,

Jeff Prater
Chair, PVC-ASIST

Tiffany Smith
Vice-Chair, PVC-ASIST

Kathleen Mahoney
Chair, CUA-ASIST

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

YouTube Tuesday: Government and Libraries

The GPO and Libraries
A brief introduction



Need to Escape!
Even the Agents don't mess with the librarian.


Thursday, April 9, 2009

EVENT: Beats and Bytes: Music and Creativity in the Information Age

Join the Potomac Valley Chapter and CUA Student Chapter of ASIST for our next program!

As social media technologies continue to advance, how will the effects of these innovations be experienced by musicians, their audiences, and the information professionals who organize music? While websites ranging from iTunes to MySpace to last.fm and Pandora abound, how can you best navigate these spaces ethically while discovering new talent or learning more about favorite genres? What's now, and what's next?

The Potomac Valley Chapter of ASIS&T is pleased to bring you local musicians, information professionals, and music experts on a lively panel discussion about the many fascinating issues that the Information Age brings to music and its analysis.

Panelists (Invited):

* Brent Burton
* Raul DeLeon
* Ben Licciardi
* Michael Pahn
* Ginger Richards


WHEN: Tuesday, April 28, 2009

TIME: Dinner 6:30 - 7:00pm; Panel Discussion 7:00 - 8:30pm

LOCATION: Catholic University of America, May Gallery

For registration and more information, click here
https://www.asis.org/Chapters/asispvc/pvcregform_04282009.html

See you there,

Jeff Prater
Chair, PVC-ASIST

Tiffany Smith
Vice-Chair, PVC-ASIST

Kathleen Mahoney
Chair, CUA-ASIST

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

YouTube Tuesday: Spacey

Start to Finish
See the creation of a book



Books Are The Law
Because technology fails

Friday, April 3, 2009

Impress Your Professor... Mobile Trends.

This has been a crazy week... seriously crazy. I was fortunate enough to be sent to Computers in Libraries again this year but I feel like I'm suffering from information overload. As I begin to digest the load of information that is currently overloading my brain I'll let you in on something I noticed this year... Mobile Trends. People are moving their searches to their phones. And I want to ask the obvious question... Why the heck not?

So late last year I caved and joined the hordes of people that have become iPhone users. Yeah yeah, sit there and roll your eyes about how awful Apple is blah blah blah... but this thing has CHANGED MY LIFE! You can do anything and everything with it. Now I don't want this post to become an Apple love fest so I will add that I have several friends that have other variations on the smartphone - Blackberry, Palm, etc. They all say the same thing - "How did I do anything before I got my (insert smartphone here)?". Now I'm not stuipd, I know some of you are sitting there reading this saying that you don't own a smartphone. Guess what - you will someday. Whether you like it or not, you will. They're becoming cheaper and easier to acquire. I was you, I told myself that I'd never get a smartphone but I did. It'll happen.

Obviously the point of this post was to direct you all to the fact that our users are not only online but they're also online everywhere they can get some bars on their phones. Can you hear me now? Yep I can hear you now, I can see your reference text message, I can see you checking our catalog from your phone, I can see you requesting a book from us, I can see you using the library from your phone. Awesome! Anyway, check out cnet's coverage of CTIA Wireless. Look what's coming out and be amazed people. These are the phones of the near future: CTIA Wireless Coverage.