Linked Librarian

Winifred Stephenson artist

2012-01-09T05:03:00.000-08:00

There are 3 generations of artists in my family. I am relying on oral history from family members and the newspaper searches available in the National Library Trove database.

I am currently researching the life of Winifred B Stephenson, born at Petersham in 1890, to Arthur A and Annie Stephenson. Arthur came to Australia from Yorkshire, and Annie was born at Sheerness, Isle of Sheppey, Kent.

Winifred was an art teacher at New England Girls School Armidale, worked in leatherwork and woodwork, was a commercial artist in Brisbane,and a member of the Royal Queensland Arts Society during the 1920s and 1930s, alongside Vida Lahey and Daphne Mayo, and C H Lancaster who was related to her by marriage.

Winifred became a member of the Qld Authors and Artists Association in 1924

Apart from stories handed down by relatives, I have one photo, a copy of one pastel portrait.

A Trove search of newspapers has yielded some information. The Stanthorpe Border Post of 16th May 1913 says Miss Winnie Stephenson won major prizes for paintings entered in the Roma Show.

The one painting for which I have a title is described by a reviewer of a Royal Qld Arts Society exhibition in the Brisbane Courier 24 Jul 1929:

"A delightful phantasy is Winifred Stephenson's "The Wattlemen Discover Australia"; it is simple, and conjures up visions of fairy tales."

I wonder can artistic influences such as an interest in children's book illustration and fantasy be handed down the generations?

She sold many paintings at Finneys Department Store in the Valley, Brisbane.

Her mother was admitted to the Mater Hospital and died in 1931 having suffered from Hidaties prevalent at the time and transmitted from eating the meat of diseased sheep.

Winifred suffered ill health due to the strain of supporting herself and her mother as a single woman artist. She lived alone at Spring Hill or Paddington and became quite deaf. After suffering some damage at the hands of an eminent Brisbane psychiatrist who experimented on her at a private hospital, she was nursed back to partial health in hospital in Toowoomba, where she did portraits of the nurses, and was moved to Dalby during WW2. Her brother Edgar kept her in pocket money until she received a pension in about 1955. She came to Brisbane General Hospital for cancer treatment and died in1968.

I would like to find some existing works by this artist who has disappeared almost unremembered from Queensland art history and from our family history. Please feel free to contact me if you know any more about this artist.

Drawing Room at Matisse Art exhibition at GOMA Brisbane

2012-01-07T18:57:00.000-08:00

Matisse was master of the simplified drawing showing the essential elements of his subjects.
The Drawing Room at the Matisse exhibition at GOMA in Brisbane used live models and still life objects to allow the public to try to draw with conventional drawing materials of paper and pencil, or on a digital drawing tablet. http://blog.qag.qld.gov.au/category/qagoma/matisse/
Those who drew on a digital tablet could then email their drawing which was saved as a stroke by stroke animation. This gives a fascinating glimpse into how people draw as well as using the email to further promote visits to the exhibition...Animation of a drawing

The Top 25 Librarian Blogs

2011-09-05T16:00:00.000-07:00

And as Forrest Gump would say, that's all I have to say about that.

Seniors in libraries

2011-09-05T15:55:00.000-07:00

Let's face it we have an ageing population that have more time than ever to be loyal library devotees.
Some like Westerns, some like Romance, some like more highbrow reading, but most like to park nearby and not walk too far. They like Large Print books, mags about caravan holidays, fishing, and the local seniors newsletter for free events. But this may be a generalisation. Seniors like us cannot be easily categorised. Some like to learn about new techologies, while others are happy to go with those they know.
In order to keep these loyal customers, libraries need to have good lighting, clear signage and comfy chairs in a quiet area. Some hearing loss is made worse by loud competing noises such as the wonderful Children's section activites.Those who no longer drive may need a Home Delivery service.

Please feel free to comment with your own library findings on this topic.

Canadian Guidelines on Library and Information Services for Older Adults can be found on the internet
at the Canadian Library Association site.

Articles about seniors in libraries can be found at
http://www.fracas.com/articles-robertson/ww2-seniors-canada-public-libraries.html
Another article with bibliography and further links can be found here

Useful book slideshows for teachers writers and librarians

2011-09-04T18:39:00.000-07:00

Books To Begin On

View more presentations from Talia Mendez

http://www.slideshare.net/jonbard/get-started-writing-picture-books
http://www.slideshare.net/ProfessorNana/picture-books-are-not-dead
http://www.slideshare.net/amybirdwell/picture-books-8724697
http://www.slideshare.net/guest63bc06/checklist-for-evaluating-picture-books-presentation
http://www.slideshare.net/tulikabooks/picture-books
http://www.slideshare.net/digitalbookworld/engaging-readers-in-the-digital-age

How to write your own picturebook

2011-09-04T17:46:00.000-07:00

Recently I was asked to talk to a class of students who were writing a children's picturebook for an English assignment. This got me thinking - it may seem simple but getting a picturebook that is a) deemed worth the cost of publishing and b) popular with children, is harder than it seems.

You cannot write any simple story - it has to engage the child reader/listener and be exciting enough to tug at their emotions and imaginations.The design and layout of the illustrations does an awful lot to bring the words to life. I recently judged a picturebook competition and it was fairly easy to tell which books a child would love. Some adults were really writing for themselves, which is another genre altogether..

If you wish to avoid the hassle of finding a publisher and want to publish your own picturebook, there are many POD publishers out there - you will then need to cover your own costs and sell your own books, or simply give them away as presents to friends and relatives. Try local printers, and places that sell photobooks,
and online printers such as lulu.

So here's a slideshow that covers some of the tips needed when writing a picturebook. Happy writing! Happy illustrating too if you can do your own - otherwise please pay that artist friend you are thinking of asking to help you! Creative people are often asked for freebies - surely their work is worth paying for!

How to write your own picturebook

View more presentations from Anna Casey

Library promotional products

2011-09-04T17:31:00.005-07:00

See more personalized gifts from Zazzle.

Blog for creative artists

2011-09-04T17:26:00.000-07:00

Creative artists can benefit from tips, interviews and features on blogs.
The blog listed above, Creative Artists Blog, does this and more.
The blog creator regularly features designs found on Print on Demand (POD)
sites such as Cafepress, zazzle, and Redbubble.
The blog also includes links to reviews of these POD sites, and other sites with tips for creative artists.
Art lovers and shoppers also come across this blog, so having an image or interview there may well bring you benefits.

Another tip is whenever possible, embed a slideshow of your work in your sites, as if you earn referrals with your POD seller, you can earn money from people buying after you refer them to products, even if that product is not your own. This is possible at zazzle, for instance, and it may be that blog owners who are in this program are earning money from featuring other people's products on their blog, often working by shopper themes to generate customer interest. This benefits them as well as the owner of the image.
An example of a zazzle flash panel appears below:

Canvas Prints

Make a personalized gift at Zazzle.

Blogs for librarians

2011-08-04T16:20:00.000-07:00

Ok, if you are a librarian, you may be looking for ways to network with other librarians and view their blogs.
Blog central for Australian library blogs is here.
You can quickly access blogs that you may want to follow, and list your own library blog as well.
Worth a look! Link, follow and embed Powerpoints, and share ideas.

Good Powerpoint presentation design

2011-08-04T16:05:00.000-07:00

More and more people use Powerpoints these days, to educate, to sell things, to entertain, or to be a personal portfolio. Here's a great slideshow on good Powerpoint design that keeps your viewer interested and sells your message.

Good PowerPoint Design - for business presenters

View more presentations from Alexander Osterwalder

Music online

2011-03-03T16:13:00.000-08:00

Library clients who are musicians often search high and low for music information, including scores.

Music students often want information about composers and periods of music
Other music lovers are interested in getting access to audio playlists and videos to watch and listen to.

State Library of Queensland offers a number of online databases, including an excellent music resource called Music Online, which any member of a public library in Queensland can use.

http://www.slq.qld.gov.au/find/articles/music

Onsite access at your public library or State Library Onsite access is easy - visit your local Queensland public library or the State Library of Queensland and connect using one of the onsite computers.

Offsite accessTo access these databases away from the library - from any computer connected to the internet (eg home or office) - you must be a Queensland resident and:

own a State Library e-services card (apply for an e-services card allowing 5 days to receive your card);
OR
be a member of a Queensland public library with a QPL account (register for a QPL account - immediate access after email verification)

Music Online database covers all periods and styles of music from Medieval to new composers, jazz to opera to folk songs to classical to world music, with audio playlists you can create or listen to playlists created by others.

You can search the database for recordings, scores, clips or song titles, music of a time period, musical instrument, composer and by keywords. Keep searches simple and specific. For example, to find a Washboard band, you only need to enter: washboard.

Some examples? How about these albums:
Live at the Monterey Festival performed by JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
or Night in Tunisia performed by Charlie Parker (Alto Saxophone)
or Lord of the Rings by Johan de Meij (Composer). Performed by United States Marine Band
or La Vie en Rose by Edith Piaf
or Japan - Ugetsufu - Shakuhachi , Koto (Japan- "Music of Rain and of the Moon") performed by Sagawara, Kuniyoshi; Izumiyama et al.

Discover Music Online's free classical music downloads and free world music downloads!

Full music scores are available for download and printing off for personal use and study purposes.
You can print any score once you have viewed the score. The PDF will open up in Adobe in your browser window. To print all or sections of the score, click on the `print' icon, where you can select how many pages of the score to print.

Can I perform from these scores?

Scores printed from Classical Scores Library are to be used for individual use only (study, notation, etc). You are not allowed to perform from the printed version of the PDF.

Can I project the scores for classroom study?

Yes, you are allowed to project any of the PDFs for classroom instruction.

RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is a popular way to keep updated on what is new with a web site without having to continually visit the site. RSS feeds contain headlines and links to web pages which contain additional information. In the case of Alexander Street Press databases, the RSS feed will deliver new and featured titles recently added to the product. If you are waiting for a specific author to be added to the product, for example, the RSS feed will deliver that alert to you.

A What's New page on the database also lists the newest additions.

Google art project

2011-02-18T16:33:00.000-08:00

Last week’s launch of the Google Art Project offers an alternative way to view some of the world’s most famous artworks, in greater detail and with a better view than you would often achieve when viewing these works in person.

The Google Art Project allows you to virtually visit 17 of the world’s top galleries and museums and view 7,000 megapixel versions of 1061 artworks. Galleries and museums include The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC, Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid, The National Gallery in London, The Palace of Versailles in France, The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, The State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg and The Uffizi Gallery in Florence. This video shows some of the preparation that went into the project.
Two videos that tell you more about the project can be found here .

Of course, no matter how impressive, technology can never replace the experience of viewing a work in the flesh and some commentators wonder what sort of implications this kind of project will have on people’s need to visit galleries or museums in future. These articles feature some interesting views on the project:

QR codes - find the code, follow the link, and find out

2010-12-23T17:09:00.000-08:00

QR code stickers direct mobile phone users to content that may interest them.
Libraries are starting to use them to provide information, link to the library catalogue, book reviews, maps, event notifications etc.
QR codes can be quickly generated using goo.gl
Put in a link, click shorten link, add qr to the link then hit enter to generate your own QR code.

If these directions are a little unclear, see the explanation video here.

Here's 2 codes to try out....

2CoolTools: Typing Tutorial

2010-12-23T16:22:00.000-08:00

Having never formally learnt typing, I am sometimes a bit dyslexic and hit the keys in the wrong order or my hands wander so I hit the key next to the one I wanted. Perhaps you would be interested like me in a free typing tutorial?

2CoolTools: Typing Tutorial

Firesheep, Blacksheep and botnets

2010-11-23T18:53:00.000-08:00

Firesheep became a problem recently for people who use wireless internet in cafes, libraries etc. because it meant someone else nearby could download this free software to snoop on your activities.
This was quickly followed by another application called Blacksheep, which says it can detect snooping to alert you to the fact.
To understand how BlackSheep works, we first need to understand the details of FireSheep. FireSheep listens to the HTTP traffic on port 80. When it identifies a transaction to a known site (Facebook, Google, Yahoo!, etc.), it looks for specific cookie values which are then used to identify a specific user.

When FireSheep identifies a user session, it then makes a request to the same site using the user's cookie values in order to retrieve user information such as their name, picture, etc. This active network activity is however visible to others on the local network.

BlackSheep detects the active connection made by Firesheep. It does this by making HTTP requests to random sites handled by FireSheep every 5 minutes (configurable) with fake values. BlackSheep then listens to all HTTP requests on the network to detect if somebody else is using the same fake values.
Zscaler has recommended users logout of the social service they are using as soon as an alert is raised and stop using the network.

All this should make the average user wary of doing confidential things in wireless internet situations. There are smarter hackers out there than the person who downloads Firesheep.

As for the idea that your computer may have been captured and be secretly used as part of a zombie computer army or botnet, please follow this link to McAfee to find out more.....

Here are some tips to help keep you bot-free:

Never click on a link or download in a spam email or instant message from someone you don’t know
Use comprehensive security software, like McAfee Total Protection™ software, to protect you from viruses, spam, and other Internet threats, and keep the software up-to-date
Set your operating system and browser to automatically apply updates
Turn your computer off when you are not using it—when you are disconnected from the Internet cybercriminals can't access your machine

Are you already part of a botnet?? Well, there is advice at the above link about that too.
Some major ISPs have already begun malware disinfection programs. Australia's recently launched voluntary anti-zombie code for ISPs was held up as a good model for achieving relatively low levels of infections. General levels of education were also an important factor.
Don't get paranoid, just get SAFE!

Cbyer safety

2010-11-23T18:32:00.000-08:00

Libraries play an important role in providing internet access and advice to children, their parents, and other library users. To help library staff in this role, the Australian Government ACMA has developed a range of resources about how to manage risks so that library users have safe and positive experiences online.

Developed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, Cybersmart is part of the Australian Government’s cybersafety program.
Developed in conjunction with the Australian Library and Information Association and Australian public libraries these resources aim to complement existing policies in libraries and provide additional resources and support to library staff.
The Cybersmart Guide for Library Staff provides information, support and tools to effectively promote internet safety in Australian public libraries—especially for children.
This guide is complemented by a cyber rules poster for young internet users and a series of online cybersafety videos. Information for families, including the Cybersmart Guide for Families is also available.
Safer Internet Day, an international event marked on 8 February 2011, will focus on the theme ‘It’s more than a game, it’s your life’. The event aims to help children and young people learn essential skills about safe social networking.
To help raise awareness of cybersafety issues with library users, library staff may like to use some of the free Cybersmart resources, including the issue-specific downloadable brochures, below, which are designed for parents and their children. These can also be ordered as hard copies. You can order these free resources online or by telephoning the Cybersafety Contact Centre on 1800 880 176.
Please allow 10 working days for delivery.
The following valuable resources may be useful for raising Cybersafety issues with your library users.

Animation sites and story book sites

2010-11-19T21:10:00.000-08:00

Making your own mini animations is getting much easier these days, thanks to sites like www.voki.com which do all the hard work for you, making it quick, easy and fun.

Here's an example of a cartoon character that you can personalise with a supplied or uploaded background, add your own voice or type text which is turned into voice, and then publish.

Another site which allows you to make an extended dialogue between 2 characters is xtranormal.com which adds your text to a movie, complete with characters that gesture and different camera angles.

Then there are quick ways to produce digital story books.

Batalugu [http://batalugu.com/] is a new free (beta) site that is great for creating digital books. The easy to use on-line tools will take you on a step by step journey as you write, rhyme, illustrate, design and print your book. This user friendly site has lots of options to choose from such as: themes, page layout, and is ideal for digital storytelling. The book you create can be shared online with everyone.

Another one is Storyjumper, which will print and sell you the resulting picturebook.

Virtual art exhibition

2010-11-04T02:03:00.000-07:00

Another use for Powerpoint presentations is to produce a virtual walkthrough.
This could be a tour of the various features of your local library,
you could promote virtual family history research and local tourism via a cemetery tour or local history walk,
or invite art lover visitors to a virtual art exhibition.

Here is a peek into an art exhibition held by Rockhampton's
Central Queensland Contemporary artists, held at Gallery 6 of the Walter Reid Cultural Centre.

As you like it art exhibition

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

Simply irresistabull

2010-10-13T19:44:00.000-07:00

Could't resist as an artist, having a look at our city's Beef Capital theme - the urge to create
art featuring bulls and cows was simply irresistabull!
Let alone the current aim to make our region the most liveable in the world... so here's a few vignettes of life in the Beef Capital.
It's a bull town sure, but it's a cow town too ;-)

Enjoyabull livabull Rockhampton

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

* Nubia_group Powerpoint Collection *: La Mouton - Photo artist

2010-10-06T05:44:00.000-07:00

* Nubia_group Powerpoint Collection *: La Mouton - Photo artist: "Enjoy the fantasy world of the Russian artist Anna Rastorgueva nicknamed « La Mouton » talented photographer and retoucher, based in Moscow"

Aussie Christmas cards

2010-10-06T05:42:00.001-07:00

Aussie Christmas cards

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

Powerpoint and slideshare and Scribed

2010-10-06T00:33:00.000-07:00

Maybe you have a business and want to send a slide presentation out to the world.
Or you are an artist wanting to share some images with a potential buyer.

Or you have learnt something clever and want to make an instructional presentation to share your newfound skill.

Microsoft Office Powerpoint is easy to pick up and use.
If you need a hand, ask a primary school child - they probably know how to assemble a slide presentation, having used Powerpoint for school assignments.

You can save the finished presentation to your blog or http://www.slideshare.net or
http://www.scribd.com

Slideshare accept presentations in these formats:
Presentations: pdf, ppt, pps, pptx, ppsx, pot, potx (Powerpoint); odp (OpenOffice); key, zip (Apple Keynote).
Documents: pdf, doc, docx, rtf, xls (MSOffice); odt, ods(OpenOffice); Apple iWork Pages.

Max file size: 100MB for presentations & documents.

Scribd
As their blurb explains, "On Scribd, you can easily turn any file—such as PDF, Word and PowerPoint—into a web document and immediately connect with passionate readers and information-seekers on our thriving community, through connected sites such as Facebook or Twitter and search engines such as Google. Scribd users have shared tens of millions of free and for-purchase documents and books ranging from vampire fan fiction to research reports and business presentations.
There's something for everyone—students and teachers, business professionals, companies and organizations, writers and artists. Millions of people contribute to the conversations happening on the site through comments (scribbles), ratings and other sharing features. They also read in whatever way they choose, including on Scribd.com, mobile devices, through downloads or even in print."

You can then embed your presentation in your blog or other social networking sites that support that format.
Voila! You are now sharing with the world, or just the friends you nominate.

Family reunions

2010-09-15T07:23:00.000-07:00

There comes a time when people need to gather to celebrate being family, and to ask questions of older members while they are still able to remember family facts and stories. People don't stay in the one town all their lives anymore, and it is easy to lose touch with all your cousins and aunties and uncles.

Family reunions are a perfect chance to catch up with all those relations you haven't seen for years.

Once again, social networking and the internet are there to help.

In order to to invite your relations, why not send out a group email to multiple recipients? Any email addresses you don't know can be added by those relations who have kept in touch. Ask everyone to hit "reply all" on emails as the suggestions and plans roll in, as using that same group emailling can save a lot of phone calls.

If you are lucky, someone in the clan will have already developed an interest in family history, and may have a family tree that they can bring along. Before the day, if you are able to email the family tree to all your guests (using a spreadsheet or Word document or pdf file) you can ask them to check the family tree and make any corrections before the day. That way any new babies or new partners will not feel left out.

Be sure to use name tags if you are thinking that you will hardly recognize some guests, due to the fact it has been years since you saw them last.

Have a time where clan members can talk about their memories of grandparents and fun times they shared as children. Perhaps you can ask each guest to bring a photocopied baby photo and shuffle these up and hand them a different photo to go find the person whose photo it is - a handy icebreaker that will get shy relatives mixing and asking questions.

Afterwards, why not set up a blog where any photos taken on the day can be posted for all to see and comment on?

Picasaweb is one photo host that allows multiple people to add their photos to the one album. Just have one person set up the album so that any others from your set of email addresses can contribute.

Anna Casey ~ Art is....~

2010-08-31T22:00:00.001-07:00

Musings on the nature of art and what it is to me

Anna Casey ~ Art is....~

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

Teaching about blogs

2010-08-31T17:29:00.000-07:00

In my job, I have opportunities to hand on the skills I learn, and this is one of the best parts about being a librarian. Not only can I find people books they might like to read and specific information they are asking for, either in books or on the internet, but I can show them how to use the internet for self-expression and communication with others.

Because I will soon be teaching a group about blogging, I decided to set up my own training materials as a Powerpoint slideshow with links to the sites I want to use to demonstrate.

Having published this slideshow at slideshare.com, it can now be viewed by a lot more people than are coming to my class.

Then I decided to post it here as well for you to see....

Blogs and blogging

2010-08-31T17:28:00.001-07:00

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Blogs and blogging

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

Looking@ 2.0

2010-08-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

If Facebook fills you with fear, Twitter sounds like twaddle and Flickr seems as though it is spelt incorrectly, this is the course for you. Jump online, register here, have a go and learn a bit about web 2.0.
Looking @2.0 is a free, online course presented by the State Library of Queensland, supported by OPAL funding.

Queensland Public libraries are joining forces with the State Library of Queensland to offer an online introduction to many popular forms of social networking. Participants can learn in their own homes at their computers, at a time and pace that suits them. Or they can go to the public library to attend sessions and ask the librarians questions about the course. There are great prizes to be won such as digital cameras and iPod shuffles.

Many people are interested in learning more about skype, or starting a blog, or sharing photos on the internet.

I've even found a site where you can make your own animated cartoon style movies with all sets and characters already supplied - you just add your own script and imagination.
It is called xtranormal.com. as with many other sites, there are some free characters and settings and you can pay a fee to access more characters and advanced features. However the free option gives enough features for you to have lots of fun.
For example there's a great comment on the life of a dentist for those who don't mind a bit of tension and swearing ;-)

The great thing about a lot of these sites is that they provide all the computer expertise, and there is no software to buy for the results you can quickly achieve.
You can learn anything like how to knit or how to make pasta carbonara from short videos on sites like commoncraft. Or upload your own videos to youtube and see if they are popular with those who visit and view them.
Heaps of fun and very addictive, that's for sure. You'll gain some internet friends with common interests as well.

Happy Easter everyone

2010-04-04T05:32:00.000-07:00

Problems librarians may face with blogs and Web 2.0

2010-03-23T18:39:00.000-07:00

Web 2.0 holds many possibilities for libraries to put information and publicity online.
This possibility relies on their manager/employer to put in place the ability to do so.
Some employers may think maintaining a blog or webpresence is too time consuming and not worth the trouble. They may think core business is all they have time for, given the few already busy staff they have.
This is not true.

Many libraries already produce library newsletters, fliers and media releases in order to promote their monthly activities. Cutting and pasting that already written content into a blog will really take very little extra time and yet have the potential to reach a much wider client audience, even reaching people who have not come into the library recently. These customers can subscribe to the blog and get regular updates on free workshops, reviews of new books, author visits, booktalks and children's activities that they can attend, boosting numbers and so making them more successful. This is turn justifies the funds spent in organising these events in the hope someone will attend.

Short speeches, films and photos can be posted that promote collections and local history information that the library holds. A local cemetry tour could become a slideshow that can be downloaded to an Iphone and used as a virtual guided tour by someone walking through the cemetry. Someone overseas researching family history can find a keyword indicating that there is a photo of their ancestor's grave included in that tour, and be able to make a virtual visit to the grave.

Libraries are all about reaching a wider audience with knowledge.
Trove has made a start with putting old newspapers online, and the response has been very enthusiastic.
The ability for readers to correct the text they see on screen or put a comment with more information under a photo is very interactive and builds on the knowledge presented without costing the site extra money.

What is the use of having valuable old records and photos locked away where few can access them?
Digitisation projects get these same items out on the web and being accessed, as well as providing a copy that cannot be ruined by fingers. A poster for a display takes time to produce and is taken down after a short time, but a poster and photos scanned and uploaded to the internet makes a display available worldwide for a long long time.

Other blocks to using Web 2.0 functions include library web filters that stop even the librarian accessing them; the inability to place widgets eg. for delicious on the top browser bar; and not having backroom or offdesk time to perform these tasks. Managers may see publicity as the job of a personal assistant and not see the need to produce a more attractive professional-looking product that librarians with layout or Indesign skills could supply. If other Council departments produce branded well-marketed fliers, then simple old style library fliers may start to look second rate. Public library computers need to have access to programs such as Adobe and Flash for customers to access interactive functions such as movies or online forms on sites. These require an IT department that is able to keep these updated and working. The library may need to buy a digital camera or scanner or send staff to training, but in the long run there is not a lot of extra money or time involved in getting an exciting web presence. The greatest obstacle is the permission to do so.

Trove and family history searching

2010-01-27T06:46:00.000-08:00

Losing a loved one is an impetus to go poring over and sorting through old family photos.

Researching family history can be done in a number of online sites these days, such as ancestry.com and cyndislist.com.

I am no expert on this sort of research, and so was pleasantly surprised to find the National Library Trove search page http://trove.nla.gov.au

which allowed me to access photos that have been stored by the John Oxley library and newspaper accounts of family members going back to the 1870s from the Sydney Morning Herald and the Brisbane Courier Mail.

The ability to edit and correct the newspaper transcript as we read the scanned pages is a great interactive tool to allow users to help with the digitisation project, as is the ability to leave comments and information about the photos I had ties to. This is a great way to add to the store of knowledge being presented. I sincerely hope that regional papers such as the Rockhampton Morning Bulletin, a full archive already held on microfilm, may come to be added in to this resource. What a boon for researchers to have it all online!

So if you have done any family research and have old photos of pioneering days, consider sending copies to the John Oxley Library in Brisbane to have them added to this resource. Booklets, diaries, letters, photos and the like are encouraged for their insight into our history.

The State Library of Queensland's John Oxley Library, opened in 1934 and now in its 75th year, is responsible for collecting, managing and providing access to material which documents Queensland's history, development and cultural life.

The John Oxley Library collects widely, assisted by the State Library’s legal deposit role whereby publishers and others are required to deposit a copy of their works with the library. It also acquires the works of Queensland authors.

The collection falls into the following broad categories and access points:

Manuscripts Queensland, providing online access to the library’s extensive collection of manuscript and archival material as well as works of art relating to Queensland.
Picture Queensland, providing access to those images from the pictorial collection that have been digitised for on line access. In addition to these online pictorial resources the remainder of the library’s pictorial resources are available on site at the John Oxley Library.
Published materials, accessible through the State Library’s One Search. This collection includes books, serials and newspapers. Significant printed collections include Rare Books and Ephemera.
Maps collection, with particular strengths in historic, land exploration, pastoral and commercial or real estate maps.

Back to the National Library and Trove.

Trove describes itself as "a new discovery experience focused on Australia and Australians. It supplements what search engines provide with reliable information from Australia's memory institutions.

If you are researching in the fields of the social sciences, literature, local or family history, or need inspiration for your school assignment, then this is the tool for you.

Trove was designed to:

provide a single point of access to the resources of the deep web
facilitate access to a significantly greater range of resources from major sources, including selected digitised material freely available online
support searching of, and access to, full-text content
enhance ease of discovery by providing improved relevance ranking, refinement by facets, FRBR-like grouping of related items (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records) and exploitation of thesauri
engage with communities and individuals through annotation services
ensure that relevant information is not missed in a search by reducing the need to search material-specific discovery services separately
provide a platform for niche services to query a vast resource of Australian metadata and adapt if for their own needs.

For example if researching images relating to Edmund Barton, our first Prime Minister, results will include descriptions such as people, book, manuscript, map and newspaper articles. A researcher searching for information on Nellie Melba will be presented with a range of results including biographies, pictures, music, newspapers, books etc."

Well worth a look.

Peter Stephenson newspaper illustrator and artist

2010-01-25T17:16:00.000-08:00

This is my Father's obituary in the Courier Mail. Sadly, he died on the 14th January 2010.

Artists view life with careful eyes and imagination. They frame life and present it to our eyes. My father loved the Australian landscape, horses and birds, and these are well reflected in his art. Some artists never become famous in the eyes of the world, and few readers would have noticed the signature under his many illustrations in the Courier Mail, but they were the work of a talented artist. His work in the Art Room of the Courier Mail enabled him to support us as a family.
Given time, I may be able to assemble some of them from newspaper microfilm archives. The scanned images I assembled as a Powerpoint for his 80th birthday party can be found at slideshare and below.
As a family we hope to compile a booklet of his life and art.

He left his family paintings, poetry, jazz cds and an illustrated story of his childhood. Most of all he left us an inherited creative streak, a love of playfulness and nonsense, many rambling conversations on all sorts of topics, and a lot of quiet love.
Googling his name I find there are two Australian artists named Peter Stephenson, but to my mind Dad is the original and the best.

Sliding in just in time with last testdrive

2009-12-07T01:02:00.000-08:00

Videos online: well I knew about youtube pretty quickly from having teenagers, and my favourite video from youtube is a morphing video which features the faces of lovely women in art.
And of course a lot of the short training videos for this course came from youtube. The commoncraft videos were very simple but effective.

Given a video camera, library staff could also record simple instructional videos or tours of our libraries and services. Longer multimedia presentations could be uploaded to slideshow. Now to wish for a camera and time to do these things.
Our local history cemetry tour which was so popular could become in time a webbased tour that anyone could do from their internet or use Iphone for commentary while actually walking the cemetry.

google there's more

2009-12-07T00:09:00.001-08:00

So now I've covered google applications which help with language translation, perhaps this will come in handy with clients at the library or to add greetings in other languages in my online store.
Then I created a personal i-google homepage with daily updates of my favourite topics and a themed leunig banner.

I added a staff meeting to my google calendar and sent a reminder email to myself at work. We could remind clients with their permission of course by sending them emails about events they have booked into, so that they don't forget to come along.
So far we use software to send a reminder email when their books are nearly due back, but as this is part of the Sirsi software, it is easier to administer.

I've located an online copy of Dante's Inferno for my son through google books. And reminded him where his nearest library is to borrow a copy.

I've made a tourists and residents places to see and go google map of Rockhampton. I think the map is already here embedded in an earlier post, but on revisiting the map I found some details needed updating so I've added and deleted some details.

zazzle shirts cards aprons and other fun gifts

2009-11-07T21:18:00.000-08:00

make custom gifts at Zazzle

Kavanagh's Queensland

2009-10-25T00:34:00.000-07:00

I'm just home from a literary lunch featuring Courier Mail journalist Lawrie Kavanagh.As my dad Peter Stephenson also worked for the Courier Mail in the art room starting in the 50s,they would have crossed paths there for some years. Interesting too that they both were born in Rockhampton. So I bought dad "Outback", Lawrie's Book which has illustrations by Hugh Sawrey in the same quick messy illustrator style that my dad used to do to go with articles in the Courier Mail all those years ago before computers and photographs came to dominate newspapers.

In those days being a press artist involved illustrations, some in color but most in ink line drawing, touch up work for photos and maps, and page layout - gluing the articles in place on a paper page not on a computer - before it was sent to the setup room for the presses.
Dad has fond memories of the Courier Mail, and it was nice to meet one of the men he talked a lot about.

For anyone else who remembers' "Kavanagh's Queensland" columns, he also has been persuaded to start up a blog for his memories and musings

Podcasts

2009-10-13T05:22:00.001-07:00

Some interesting podcasts I found among the many thousands available include those ABC National Book Reviews that are on the radio while I am at work, and the Powerhouse Museum podcasts on design of new products and ideas that spark them.

I found the hardest part even with search engines for podcasts was narrowing the many offerings down to something I would be tempted to subscribe to. There are just too many out there on any topic. Tag clouds and ways to search by subject and other parameters are most useful and badly needed in some cases.

Question: what do podcasters get out of their work other than the hope someone sees the podcast? Any way they can make money from this activity?

On libraries in an internet age I've been able to embed and so promote further to you the following offering from Christine Mackenzie (Yarra Plenty Regional Library) at the 'Broadband, libraries and the creation of Australia’s digital culture' seminar at NLA, 18 Nov 2008. Public libraries are reinventing themselves to ensure their relevance in a digital world. This presentation will describe how libraries in Finland, Sweden and the Netherlands are strategically positioning themselves as places with content for information, learning, culture and as meeting places. It will also describe how Yarra Plenty Regional Library is integrating web 2.0 tools to encourage content creation as well as introducing training programs for staff, the profession and the community. such as A Taste of Web 2.0

This example shows how a conference speech or Uni lecture saved as a podcast could be shared with more than the immediate audience and opens up added online learning opportunities in a very democratic way for internet users.

Google maps

2009-10-10T20:38:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I made this local map for tourists some time back, which could have photos added, but not at this stage.
Rockhampton recently became a finalist in the "Most liveable place in the world" awards, so check the map out to see why tourists would like it here.

View Larger Map

Mashups

2009-10-10T19:05:00.001-07:00

Browsing the Mashups awards, which gives a quick overview of some popular mashyups, I am tempted by search options Triplify and search-cube. I have not used bing before, and it is interesting to use an engine other than google.

Question - which is the top metasearch engine at this time?

Search cube requires a (free download) flashplayer to work. Where most search engines provide a list onscreen and you need to scroll down, maybe only seeing 10 at a time, Searchcube gives 16 at a glance, on 6 sides of the cube, 96 results across all media including individual images and slideshows.The results are quickly browsed using a mouseover to see popup details.

Some of the older mashups sites seem to have already become dead sites, which is perhaps the way of the internet world - something either gets traffic or not.

I wanted a site to find mp3 songs by obscure artists such as Railroad Gin or Jeannie Lewis, but have not found a great mashup to do this so far, as many seem to focus on the more recent and popular artists. I wanted to find a track of "Les blouses blanc" by Jeannie Lewis to add it to a slide animation. Still searching on that project.

On the other hand, zoomii.com seems a great way to browse Amazon books, just like shelves in a real bookstore, sorted by category.I like looking at the covers of books I buy, and there is a shelf look option or a thumbnail cover picture with details of the books listed beside them , which avoids the need to click to a further screen to view title details.

I really liked suburbview.com and will use it to check realestate prices, value of our house, and rental figures by suburb.

SearchBay could save some site hopping when online shopping. I would use this combined with biblioz and alibris to search for out of print titles, but use the latter to get a more sure idea of the valuation price of such titles. Alibris now allows private sellers to sell books online. Maybe there could be a mashup which combines the two, showing you what a title is worth at online booksellers and then including the SearchBay sites.

Hmm, this is turning into a 'where would I buy books' discussion. Despite the fact the Australian dollar is catching up to the US dollar, I would still try Fishpond which guarantees to beat Amazon's price every time, or TheNile which says it is Australia's largest bookstore to find current titles.

Not sure if it is a mashup - I think so because it is an application that I created online- but I have also created a store for my zazzle products (and some other zazzle artists I like) at my facebook site, so linking the two functions and making it easier for people to find the products and so build customers using the principle of the more links, the better chance people will find you.

Promotional panel previews and link to my zazzle art products

2009-10-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

make custom gifts at Zazzle

Just a few of my library promotional images available for sale internationally.
Including bookmark templates, library bags, stickers, Dewey guide and Tshirts for book lovers

Promotion And Presentation Of The Arts Through Public libraries

2009-10-07T23:26:00.001-07:00

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Promotion And Presentation Of The Arts Through Public1

View more presentations from G.

The Art of Last Resort

2009-10-07T23:16:00.001-07:00

Check out this SlideShare Presentation: it shows young aspiring artists how to draw a chibi!

The Art of Last Resort

View more presentations from lastres0rt.

Peter Stephenson artist and illustrator

2009-10-07T22:35:00.001-07:00

Even better, I find that I can embed this presentation right here or on my facebook page!
Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

Peter Stephenson artist and illustrator

View more presentations from Anna Casey.

Google docs

2009-09-26T16:58:00.000-07:00

Google docs is like using word collaboratively.
Working on a library brochure or newsletter together would save a lot of email drafts going back and forward.
I typed up a document on the site and sent a sharing link to the course trainers.
They can then add comments and so on.
This is good for teamwork especially when there is not time to meet and librarians are working across large amalgamated council areas.
There is a size limit on files uploaded eg.

Presentations

Presentations in both .ppt and .pps file formats from your local computer can be up to 10MB in size or 200 slides.
By entering the URL of a file on the Web, you can upload presentations up to 2MB.
By emailing in your files, you can upload presentations up to 500K.
You have a combined limit of 5000 documents and presentations and 5000 images.

So my dad's 70 Mb Powerpoint presentation cannot be uploaded to Googledocs.
So I'm going to take another look as slideshare:
Check out some popular content at http://www.slideshare.net/most-favorited.

You can upload your own presentations and documents. SlideShare hosts them for free. You can make it private or make it public and get lots of traffic.
Yes, it uploaded my powerpoint about my dad! I can share this or further develop it using uploaded mp3 Music as a background, to make a slidecast. I think I'll stick with no music for now.
So, how to share a Powerpoint presentation - as I'm fairly new at all this, I use one of slideshare's own explanations to learn how. http://www.slideshare.net/dswaters/how-to-share-a-powerpoint-presentation-using-slideshare
Now to sit back and learn.
Hmm, i made an animation some years ago, that I'd love to add music to - that will be my next learning experience.
PS. And my dad? Well I'll post the link as soon as slideshare has processed it for public viewing.
PPS. And here's the link all ready to view - how quick was that?http://www.slideshare.net/goannagoanna08/peter-stephenson-artist-and-illustrator-2160732

File conversion and online tools

2009-09-26T06:45:00.000-07:00

Recently I made a slideshow for my father's 80th birthday, celebrating his life as an artist working for the Courier Mail in the days when press artists did page composition, retouched photos and maps, did pen and ink illustration and colour illustrations for the cover of the Sunday Mail colour magazine. This was just before the days of digital photography and Photoshop. My dad retired as computers began to make inroads into the work of a commercial artist.

Anyway, on the day of the party, my brother brought his laptop along, but he had a different program for slideshows, he uses Ubuntu software as an alternative to Microsoft. My slideshow wouldn't work on the day.

Uploading it to Google Docs also seems to need a change of format, so I apply my SLQ Licence 2 Testdrive part B lesson one - I use Zamzar, an online tool to change a file format. It's a big file, but Zamzar will take up to a 1Gb file so stay tuned for the result, which will be emailed to me - stay tuned.
PS. I'm doing this at nearly midnight, showing how people can learn with this sort of online training, at their own pace, and in the timeslot that suits them best.
PPS.

Success- I had a 79 MbPowerpoint presentation changed from pptx to ppt promptly and accurately.The zamzar site only stores and allows downloading/sharing of the file for 24 hours, so you need to pay for their advanced service, but for what I want it is an excellent service.McAfee siteadviser doesn't like the popup ads but I can live with them just fine.

October 7, 2009 12:41 AM

Library Thing

2009-06-06T05:56:00.000-07:00

LibraryThing sounds interesting but it would take me ages to add all the books in my house, and I wonder what real use it would be in the long run.
Would it be proof for insurance purposes in the event that my house burnt down??
Could I use it as a sort of informal list of rare or out of print books I have that others might like to buy?
Can anyone tell me what they use this site for?

delicious links

2009-06-06T05:22:00.000-07:00

Well, this final lesson of the Licence 2 Test Drive series is the most familiar to me, having done a course in social bookmarking through OPAL a year ago.

The immediate advantage came from the fact I could access my bookmarks on any computer. At work and home I use several different computers and it would take ages to save the same set of favourite and useful sites on all of them.
The second advantage came when I was doing research for library policy and procedures, and on workplace health and safety in libraries. I could store the links on my delicious account, and share these with colleagues by directing them to my bookmarking page. If you click on the title of this blog post, "delicious links", you will find the link to my delicious bookmarks embedded in it.
The tags are a handy way of organising the growing list of sites bookmarked
Others can benefit from my research which saves them time
Rather than printing out a list of links, or several copies of the articles found, the others who would like to read these researched articles can do so by following the bookmarked links
I can benefit from the links saved on similar subjects by others. When following the links and seeing what others have bookmarked, I came across a link to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and this reminded me that having seen the recent exhibition from the Met at the Qld Art Gallery, I should add this link to my own bookmarks, which is quickly and easily done.
The ability to add a button to my Firefox page means I can quickly add bookmarks from my internet browser as I discover new sites.

RSS feeds yay

2009-05-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

RSS feeds? Now this I can see an immediate use for. When I think of all the sites I bookmark and regularly visit, this takes up a lot of time to check them all.

If I can add the RSS feeds to my google homepage or to my Gmail, then I need only check them to find recent updates that I may then choose to read or ignore. In fact, I've decided to add my gmail inbox to my google homepage. I also ask for google alerts from blogs or other places when researching a topic, and google sends me the results.

It's like having a personal research secretary collect new information in my interest areas. So I've added feeds to book review sites, art sites and the like to gather it all quickly in one place.

Now say I was covering Religion, Literature and the Arts as subject areas for collection development and library programming, I could subscribe to relevant RSS feeds and collect data easily to support my area of work. This would save me a lot of time at work.

While our library does some programming, it is mostly not promoted online at this stage.
As our library doesn't have a blog or an online newsletter,
I wonder can library related feeds be added to a library site webpage dedicated to RSS feeds?

Of course, not all useful sites offer feeds - it seems they are from blogs and news sites mostly. So when I checked for RSS feeds from Flying Arts and Dept of Creative Industries, neither site currently offer RSS feeds and not all blogs offer feeds - I decided not to offer feeds from my own blog for instance until I am committed to updating it past the SLQ Licence to Test Drive program.

My google homepage now recieves feeds from our local paper with emphasis on local news, entertainment and the arts, and the ABC's blog Articulate which sends out a daily take on arts news and events. This is information I may not have seen in the past, or missed checking for lack of time.

Thanks, RSS!

Twittering

2009-05-07T05:28:00.000-07:00

I read in the Courier Mail recently that the retention rate for Twitter is low - I imagine that Twittering would be quick but also require persistence on the part of both writer and reader.
Do people who follow blogs lose interest?
How do libraries ensure that where they post is useful and followed?

I guess promotion of the blog itself as well as the library service.
And time for the staff to develop great informative content.

Programs that are already being developed can be marketed in a number of ways - word of mouth, paper flyers, newspaper and internet site. Once you have one flyer, the content is easily transferable to another media. So the work done is spread in several directions to make sure the public get to know what is being offered.

I found an interesting blog on colour print production recently and left a question about a problem I have printing digital art. I am eagerly hoping the blog owner will be kind enough to help me.......Hmm, a live reference service that is available over the internet - have any of us got one up and running and how is it best run?

Social networking

2009-04-27T04:26:00.000-07:00

Ok, so we could all use some more friends, but I must admit now to a bit of site overload.

How many different sorts of sites can a library keep up given limited time for staff to spend on these tasks?

And which is the most effective tool to spread publicity? Say if you put out an online email opt-in newsletter? And one on paper. Then this same content could be added to the library blog as well.

So as I said how many ways should we spread ourselves out the on the web?
We have to decide which is the best way to share digital resources?
And which is the best way to allow client reviews of books and other interactions?

Are there any privacy concerns of putting information out there even from a corporate point of view? What should you make sure you don't say online? It looks safe enough for Libraries to share on an impersonal library social networking site whereas many library staff would not share their own personal details on Facebook or anywhere else online. I remember being shocked once googling my own name (as you do) and finding that my home phone number popped up from a school online newsletter.

Also there is that little problem that some library filters filter out access to social networking sites from its staff and public internet computers...

Sorry to confused ....the main keywords here are myriad choices and time poor... I'm very open to the best way to embrace new technology but which one? I'm open to comments on this one... Come on, convince me with your preferences!

I know that Gen Y can be socialising with friends and interacting on their Iphone on the internet at the same time, sharing photos and videos and games on them with their friends around the restaurant table.

Whereas I am a bit zen in that being in the moment sense and a bit time poor at work due to real life enquiries from the public and public on the phone. The reference enquiry can be 'virtual' or 'in person' but during that time that one person is the most important person to be listening to and finding the information for. I cannot have a cuppa with one friend and be texting another at the same time. I must admit to being the sort of person who often deliberately leaves the mobile phone at home. :-))

Wikis

2009-04-17T23:28:00.000-07:00

After the video explanation I thought yes wikis are useful for collaboration when you cannot physically meet. Email traffic with "reply all" is the current norm but can become a bit tedious if there is a lot to discuss.

I imagine wikis very work well with factual entries rather than opinions.

Question 1. Are wiki entries trackable or given the same legal staus as emails?
Question 2. Do organisations allow their staff to use wikis as an alternative to email?
Question 3. How do you ensure that content that you want to stay 'as is' is not edited away by someone else?

I would be happy to hear your answers to these.

After looking at the wikis, I chose to bookmark Library Success and Book Lovers and Blogging Libraries Wikis for a closer look later.

Say if a librarian was interested in finding out what works and doesn't work with layout floor plan when a library is in a shopping centre, I guess that a wiki of librarians would be very helpful to garner feedback on their own experiences with layout successes and failures. This might forestall some otherwise unforeseen problems.

Informal friendly professional sharing is always welcome, and tapping into a large wiki community may be very helpful when needing advice.

Blogging

2009-04-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

Hmm, so who reads other people's blogs?
And more specifically, now that there are so many bloggers, how do you find blogs that would interest you?
This is where a specialist search engine such as technorati comes in.

I know google also have an advanced blog search, but using technorati I quickly came across a blog of interest to me as an artist. After submitting the rather general term 'art', technorati suggested I try the Lifestyle channel tab in the top bar for better results.
Using the keyword 'artist' I came across a blog called booooooom which serves up a daily dose of creativity. (I guess the 7 Os are for 7 days a week?)

I also found lines and colors , a blog about drawing, sketching, painting, comics, cartoons, webcomics, illustration, digital art, concept art, gallery art, artist tools and techniques, motion graphics, animation, sci-fi and fantasy illustration, paleo art, storyboards, matte painting, and 3d graphics.

Using the term 'digital painting', I then found at the top of the results list a bar of suggested tags that others use, and zeroed in on 'Photoshop painting'. The listed included videos about digital painting as well as blogs. The "Authority" rating helped sort out the more professional blogs, which led me to graphicmania's blog, featuring stunning digital paintings and links to walkthrough tutorials and free resources for digital artists.

Tip: Bookmark your discoveries, or subscribe to the blog, as the internet is truly a huge place to navigate, and it took a while to find these gems.

At this stage my teenagers are dancing around behind the computer desk in a vain effort to attract attention back onto them, so it must be time to sign off and cook.

While I think a library blog would be useful, and attract a lot of library customers wanting to keep up with library offerings, I wonder would a personal blog suit me for long. As a mother I suspect I'm not even going to be a Twitterer. ;-))

Past and present - computers, internet, libraries

2009-04-16T19:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, a little reminescing:

Typing up each catalogue entry according to a careful format and layout
Filing catalogue cards above the rod for someone else to doublecheck before the drawer is put back into the card catalogue

First job as a librarian
Having no computer on my desk, just the Dewey numbers in my brain and the catalogue folders of computer printout paper updated each month
Slideshows were produced by taping a cassette with music and commentary, making own slides, and feeding them into a circular dispenser on top of a carousel slide projector.

Computers were for the circulation staff and the program was verry simple - little more than a flashing cursor and a blank screen to which you would type in data
Book orders written up in carbon paper order books
The booksellers showed you boxes of books in the back room or even better took you to the warehouse and out to lunch as well.

Photocopiers arrive and out goes the old inky press

Son longs for a home computer
We discover the Internet
We get one, 2, 3, laptop

Library catalogue online
Librarians use computers to fetch online content as well as books
Learn how to write a website and publish it to the internet
Digital cameras and scanners expand ways to use photos
Computers make library tasks easier, such as copy cataloguing and ordering books online

Web 2.0 expands the things individuals can share online
Libraries catch on, using scanning and publishing tools to share via the official library blog their local studies or genealogy research information, historical photos, online library newsletters, book reviews, and publicity for coming events
Library sites allow customers to add content such as feedback, book reviews, and comments on what they like about the library
Displays and presentations can be recorded for viewing on the internet
Staff can be trained using online training presentations and produce their own slideshows or film to share the same way

See how far we've come since the 70s?
And most of it in the last 10 years.
Thankyou computers and internet!
I miss the thrill of handling the books before buying them though....even the smell of the new paper ... an online bookseller's catalogue is not quite the same.

Image uploading

2009-04-16T19:05:00.001-07:00

I'ts easy to share your images on blogs and photo sharing sites. But what about a little dabble in online business?

It's possible to sell your photos and art online, by uploading it to sites like deviantart, cafepress, Redbubble and zazzle. Your art can be sold as prints or appear on greeting cards, Tshirts, mugs, stickers, magnets, buttons, mousepads, aprons, bags, caps and even US stamps.

The site owners collect the money, print the product and mail it out to customers anywhere in the world, and then send you an agreed percentage of the sale price as your earnings using money services such as Paypal.

Instead of trying to sell locally and make a living, with the help of these sites anyone online becomes your potential customer. You also have a lot of fun being part of an online community of artists who can comment, follow, favourite your work, and share the joys of being an artist.

That really good photo you took with your digital camera could end up making you money. Worth a try....

Web 2.0

2009-04-16T17:54:00.001-07:00

So, what is this Web 2.0?
A fancy new term for the latest internet fad?
Well, yes and no....like all terms the definition has grown from practical usage.

My understanding is that it is web-based program sites that allow anyone to interact with others over the internet. You don't have to buy or download the program for the delicious link sharing site, and flickr similarly allows you to share photos quickly and easily with others. You can upload to the site, and view what others have contributed and then add your comments to their contributions, and save your favourites to a place where you can view them again later.

So, in essence, it provides web-based social networking and sharing for members and viewers of those sites, with viewing privacy/permissions set by the authors of the content or by the moderators of the site.

The purpose of the site may be dating or informal training, advertising coming events for an organisation or sharing history and photos. It may be sharing of films or Powerpoint slideshows or photos or opinions. You may find that the comments shared do not agree and sometimes have to be deleted as inflammatory, but in essence it is democracy at work.

I found another coverage of 2.0 at Wikipedia (another instance of user - supplied shared information) and at http://www.paulgraham.com/web20.html which makes the points
that Web 2.0 began as a vague term about web-based applications but has become defined in practice also by

web based software applications all can use without needing to be an IT guru eg. Javascript
democracy
all can view for free, uploaders need to register but usually it is still free of charges
people can describe and find content using tags which can be searched for by the users interested in a subject, much as they can google (try looking for library on Youtube)
sites can offer business options such as printing your photos in a variety of formats or selling them to others

If you have heard of and tried using googlemaps, then you will have used an excellent example of Web 2.0 in action. You can use the site to create your own maps to advertise your business or create tourist information with uploaded photos of your travels.

Tip 1. : when faced with slow download speed (blame the teenagers who have used up our broadband for the month) I opted to see the text version(look for the icon under the film window) of Stephen Fry's explanation of web 2.0
Of course, http://www.videojug.com/ the site this film is on, is itself a web 2.0 site like Youtube in that anyone can upload short films to explain anything from 'how to make a lemon tart' to 'what is respiratory failure'.

Tip 2. : It took me a while to find out how to add hyperlinks to this blog, but if you look to the top of the window when typing a post, you will see the icon to the right of the text colouring option. Just highlight the words you want to add a link to, then click on the link icon, and a new pop-up window will allow you to add the website address.

Tip3. : When adding text to your blog, the icons at the top of the creation window also contain options which allow you to add images, video and very importantly, spellcheck before you publish your post.

Tip 4 : Edit means just that, and if you open your blog in a new window, you can view and proofread the result and then change, fix typos, add more words, or even hit delete post!

Sharing a photo

2009-04-15T06:06:00.000-07:00

It's great to be able to share photos on email.
I remember the first photos people sent me tended to be huge, and took forever to download. In one I could see every fleck on the baby's nappy!

An easy way to share photos with friends and family, colleagues or even the whole internet world is to use a photosharing site such as flickr.com

When our new library was about to open, I used this site to share a sneak peek with colleagues.
I can share family photos privately with other family members who join this site.
I can share an interesting fantasy holiday location photo with the world.

The first 200 photos are free with a standard membership, but you can upload more for $2 a month.

It's worth checking this site out if you like sharing photos but don't want to have fiddle with them to resize them for email.

Here's a recent snap which I took of our new library to give you an idea of what you can find about libraries on this site.

There are library photo sharing groups on the site worth a look.

Why not try looking up your town and see what you can find?

You can also upload photos and film to this blog, as I have done above.

Linking in for lifelong learning

2009-04-15T05:15:00.000-07:00

So many websites, so little time!
Getting around the internet can be a case of information overload.
Remembering where you have been can lead to a swagload of bookmarks which are only stored on one computer.

Thanks to a SLQ Social Bookmarks training course in Gladstone last year, I was introduced to a tool that has come in very handy for me as a librarian. -http ://delicious.com/ - a site which will store my bookmarks online so that I can access them from home or work or any other computer as needed.

Any research I do can be linked to from there, and the useful links I gather can also be shared with others.
If you would like to check my links, try this link http://delicious.com/goannagoanna

Never keen to have my brain stagnate, I am now embarking on an online training package Licence 2 Test Drive which is great for librarians to upgrade their skills in their own time and at their own pace. Great idea, SLQ!