Pushing Myself Along (Oh, and Transforming Our Image, too)

I typically get turned on to books through written reviews (especially on GoodReads) more than anything else, including tv or ads or book trailers or whatever. Usually, only if a book trailer is SUPER cool and/or innovative do I end up seeing it (and that's because it makes it onto several of my favorite, often non-library-related blogs). Sometimes I think they're neat publicity tools and then sometimes I wonder if they're not...I don't know...I don't like the ones which use an iTunes feel or a lot of animation or too much wackiness to sell a book because...well, books are great for letting kids make pictures in their head, decide characters' voices on their own, fill in the gaps with their imaginations.

That last sentence was definitely one of my worst ever. Anyway, are any of us gonna take Shelley up on her dare to make our own book trailer? Could we do a better one for Pete the Cat than the one on Mr. Schu's site? Surely one of us owns and can play a guitar, right?

OH GEEZ, Anne, that Questions of the Heart post made me cry. At my desk. Thanks a lot. (P.S. I'm also a "Digital Collaborator.")

I'm also a bit dubious about webinars--I always think they're just going to be PowerPoint-like, and impersonal--but I'm trying one out later this month: "Transforming Our Image." ALA is producing it, so here's hoping it will be quality. And useful. Just checked out Library Webinars (I love a good index) and Firefox crashed when I tried to open a webcast from Mt. Everest.

I mentioned this in a recent department meeting, but the only thing I would change about our Tech Adventure wouldn't be a change--just an addition: I'd love to talk more about the units face-to-face!

Finito!

My favorite library related video is on Vimeo. It is called Questions of the Heart. My nephews love any Chad Vader or Lego clips on YouTube. They also like the OK Go’s Rube Goldberg Machine Music Video. My boyfriend finds Eliijah Wood’s guest appearance on Yo Gabba Gabba funny where he is doing the Puppet Master. He also likes Auto-Tune the News and The Viral Video Film School.

I took the quiz and I’m a Digital Collaborator, meaning I am confident in my ability to manage digital devices and information. I’m glad I took the opportunity to learn about these new technologies, many of them I had only heard about and had not taken the time to try myself. Now, I feel like I could teach people how to use these tech tools. It was beneficial reading other people’s posts and getting a sense of their usefulness (pros and cons).

I’d like to go back and check out some of the CCBC’s shorts in order to be able to recommend more books this summer. I’m also leaning towards buying a Kindle if all goes well with the negotiations between Amazon and Overdrive.

Shelley - Thanks for all of your hard work! Additionally, you have been great about offering assistance when it has been needed.

Tech Adventures: Final Week!

There is a light at the end of the tunnel, you guys! We are finally in the last week of Tech Adventures.

We got behind with the extra week for eReaders and I'd hate to have this run into May and SRP busy season. So this week, make note of the different things here to explore at your leisure (or spare moments) in the future. Use your blog post to discuss any of these you've looked at, anything you missed talking about in past units, and/or to sum up your thoughts of the entire program.

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Webinar: A webinar is a presentation, lecture, workshop or seminar shown online - often a cheap alternative, and easy to attend from your desk. Publishers offer webinars to show off upcoming books, ALA recently had a graphics tutorial, and Syracuse offered gaming class on YouTube – free to anyone, or pay to get credit and additional lecture/discussion. Some are live, others archived for downloading whenever you have time.

Here are some webinar archives:
CCBC Shorts
Downloadable from Nebraska
TechSoup Archive

You can also see what is coming up for library topic webinars. Find something interesting and listen to some of it. Would you attend another?

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Video hosting: YouTube is obviously the most popular platform, but there are other options. You can browse around at Vimeo and Veoh to see how they all compare, and share others that you’ve used.

The Library has an account with YouTube and Rebecca wants to start uploading program highlights. There are a few up right now. Other libraries upload tours, storytimes, collection highlights, etc. How can we use it?

St Paul tour
YouMedia ad
RCPL Storytime
Addison Public Library Children's Dept Tour

These can also be done as audio only podcasts.

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Book Trailer: These can be basic or these can rival what you see in movie theaters, but they all try to drum up interest in a book. Sort of a book talk on steroids. Here are some cool ones:
Shiver
Mockingjay
Hush Hush
100 Cupboards
Mr. Schu finds and makes good ones, as well.

Are there others you like? Link ‘em.

Try to make your own book trailer or podcast. We have the software you need on the iMac: iMovie or GarageBand. Use stock photos and videos, and royalty free music. Or use the Flip camera from the IT Tool Kit to make your own visuals. Or use XtraNormal - that’s what ATS used to make their printing adventures video for staff day. There are many options, so have fun! This is also something that JVs might like to do. We can upload them to the Library's YouTube site and also display them on our site.

Public Domain Images and Media, for teachers, librarians and students
Wikimedia Commons
Royalty Free Sound Effects
Open Music Archive

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Don’t forget to do your final blog. What are some of your favorite videos? (Professional development or just plain fun.) What did you like learning about the most over this whole project? What do you think you’ll want to use in the future? Here's a quiz for you: What kind of digital user are you?

Thanks for participating!