RSS Feeds

Wow!! How obscure was this for the baby boomer...I bravely thought that I could understand this but it is like jumping off the precipice...shades of reading Peter Straub's novels come back to haunt me again!

Anyway...I have subcribed to the food and art bloglines and got an instant gratification. However...I couldn't find the OPAL training blog to subscribe to it in time to complete this exercise adequately.

So now, whenever I am in need of comfort food I will find recipes to devour and images of art to stimulate my love of the visual. The alerts will be of interest I am sure, but I probably should have searched for new job postings and RSS feeds in Scotland, which is one of my dreams for the future. Ooops! Did I say that!

The use of RSS feeds in a library setting would be particularly useful. Especially where there is a need to monitor digital collection use and feedback. A simpler way to link to updates on subject content instead of having to troll through endless web sites for relevant content. A great tool for studying too I would think! That is another thing I should be doing...

Social Networking

For several reasons I have found myself totally out of time to really explore all the aspects of social networking services that are freely available, but I will attempt to respond in short.
The advantage in using this medium in real time is clearly visible...

• there is the global ability to share written content and visual content immediately,
• discussion can happen universally, bringing links and new networks to the table in a blink of course,
• the ability for libraries to market their best wares and advertise their services can have a profound affect on the way we continue to provide service and respond to client feedback via social networking products on-line,
• the digital possiblities means that there a fewer boundaries on a libraries content and adds enhancement to the relevance of specific collections and content to a world- wide audience.

I personally preferred the "quietness" of the ning site a great portal to join in a social network world. The content was neatly arranged and easy to navigate without all the fuss and imagery that goes with the earlier favoured social networking sites.

I can see the real benefits of joining twitter in order to get an abbreviated update of events, news and social content quickly. I love the fact that I can listen to the ABC radio daily on the drive to and from work and tune in to twitter comments posted on the ABC site each day. YES...with limited uploads on my personal home computer, I still rely on the old fashioned delivery of information via radio as well. Being a baby boomer means that I am a little slow to move towards the new information delivery systems, except where they are important to me in my work place of course! Needless to say it is a problem for me to record and remember all my passwords. But SKYPE is great isn't it...