Project update

Armed with a hacksaw, x-acto knife, sheet plywood, and a glue gun, I have achieved a box-shaped object on my desk which might (if you squint) bear a slight resemblance to the branch in which I work. See for yourself.







The small piece of wood is a temporary prop. I hope that my supporting walls will appear more polished than that. I need to cut out the workrooms, offices and partitions. The ramps are being cut and sanded as we speak. Okay, not literally, because I'm actually typing this at the desk, and we're not strictly speaking anyway, but work with me here.



Ignore the mess please -- I'm doing too many projects at once. The second floor WILL be flush with the outside wall also once I perform surgery


I'll post pictures of the tables I'm gluing together later. Now, where's my Sculpey? I need to model the computers...

Still here

Beyond 23 Things, I'm going to use this as a staging area for LATI project(s) and whatever else I have the urge to post.

I'm slightly behind in LATI assignments at the moment because of general business and the assignments on the list this month are the type I like to devote a solid block of quiet time to complete -- and that just hasn't happened in the past couple weeks.

Luckily, the due dates for LATI are semi-fluid -- "milestones" is the description if I remember correctly -- and so I'm not panicking yet. However, it is irksome to look at the calendar and realize that in an ideal world you would be done with the Basic Reference Sources module.

I just had a Pirate of the Caribbean flashback while writing the above paragraph. "And thirdly, the Code is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules. Welcome aboard the Black Pearl, Miss Turner."

Heheheh.

Because although I'm done with 23 Things...

I am not done with the blog. Specifically I would like to post this pretty little bit of code that I received, which seems appropriate in light of a certain event of last month.



be sorted @ nimbo.net

# 23: Summing it all up

23 hops, skips, and jumps later, here I am with a lot more usernames and passwords (well ok, really just one of the former, but a lot of replicas in any case) and spaces to play (and work) in online.

I have to say, the most memorable 'thing' I learned about had to be RSS feeds. It goes a long way towards solving my tendency to happen across something nifty and frequently updated on the InterWeb, bookmark it with every intention of going back to it later, and promptly forgetting either that I had bookmarked something or where it was exactly in that jumbled pile of miscellaneous saved links. Now there's one spot to go to to look for updates. Ok, two, because I have Google Reader account also. And I still have to remember to log in. But still -- simplification! ::happy dance::

I'm a lot more internet savvy now and have new knowledge on Web 2.0. Really, it was kind of pleasant and instructive to have some structure and deliberateness imposed on my internet addiction. I tried a few things I wouldn't have on my own and found or rediscovered a few useful tools.

I have nefarious podcast plans for the future and Bloglines and its kin will stay with me for a while yet.

One quibble I did have with the 23 Things was that so many of the tutorials were audiovisual based. I do realize that these may have been better for others who prefer that learning style, but I personally find the written word much easier to grok. Also, it would made it more possible to work on 23 Things when in a situation where speakers and/or appropriate software were not readily available. A minor thing really , but I felt it worth mentioning at least.

I would definitely like to participate in another such program in the future though, so clearly it did not bother me too much.

Overall, it was an enjoyable, illuminating, and unexpectedly playful experience and I'm glad I signed up. And hey, new blog space to tinker with.

TTFN!

# 22: Downloadable audiobooks

Conveniently, the PGCMLS website allows people with an account to check out OverDrive audiobooks through the site here.

I poked around and did find a few titles I would like to hear in audio format. If I spent more time near a convenient place to listen to them I would definitely try it.

# 21: Podcasting

Podcast.net has a wide variety of podcasts. I liked how they included podcasts recorded in different languages.

I subscribed to a science fiction and fantasy podcast called Escape Pod.

I also subscribed to Librivox, which is a collection of audiobooks in the public domain. That could be very useful/fun.

# 20: YouTube

Only with YouTube could I show you a 'Wild Parrot Pizza Party!' D'awwwww...



I chose this video
because I happen to own a parrot of this type in the clip above. She is
not wild -- she's lived a caged existence with me since she was 9 weeks
out of the egg and we've been housemates for 9 years. However, she is
every bit as cute as those rogue Quakers flying about the park
pilfering pizza. Not that I'm, y'know, biased or anything.

As for the use of YouTube in a library setting...

Well, it's certainly handy, but the audio part of the audio-visual might
present a problem in certain situations. I see it more as fun than
useful really. Not that those are mutually exclusive but it's hard to
imagine a specific use in the library of today at least.

EDIT 8/18/07:

Why, oh WHY does the text formatting go to hoolies (apologies to Jennifer Roberson) in a handbasket whenever I post a fancy bit of code or embedded thingamajig? Grrr...