Exercise One – 3 Stores near Freeman Branch Library
Half Price Books: Clearlake: 961 NASA Parkway. They have an online presence that is user friendly but no title, author searching is available which is important to me.
Barnes & Noble: 1029 W Bay Area Blvd Webster, TX 77598. They have an online presence that is user friendly and searchable by author, title, format and ISBN number.
Borders: 19419 Gulf Fwy. Webster, TX 77598. They also have an online presence that is user friendly and searchable by author, title, format and ISBN number.
Exercise Two
I searched for “At Bertram’s Hotel” by Agatha Christie. It is available online from Borders for $6.99 paperback and $12.00 hardcover. From Barnes & Noble for $9.60 or $6.99 paperback. If I want to use Half Price Books I could call them or go to the store and search for myself.
Exercise Three
I chose to download “The Woman in White” by Willkie Collins. It is an adobe file digitized by Google. I had to continually scroll down to read the book and found it similar to reading from a microfilm. It might be easier on laptop where I could adjust my posture a little more than sitting at the desk in front of the monitor. I still prefer to use traditional print material, it is easier to move around and relax while reading.
The electronic books are good because of the access allowed by everyone with internet access. The traditional print is easier to carry with you when traveling or waiting in for appointments etc. The down side of the electronic access is that unless you have it downloaded on a handheld machine you can’t take it with you unless you take your pc and then not every place allows you to plug in so the battery will die. The downside of the traditional material is that it might be difficult to carry in a bag or get lost if you get distracted during your appointment or while traveling.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
#52 - Book Readers and Beyond -What to Read
One of the reasons I became a librarian was my lifelong love of books. I love the way new books smell, I love being able to carry them with me whether I’m on the beach, in the mountains or my back yard. If I have a book I am immediately transported to wherever the character in my book is. On top of all of that is the pleasure I get when I help someone find a new book, series or help them with material for their research paper when they had given up hope of finding anything.
After looking at the eight websites I have to admit that I prefer Novelist Plus and Fiction_L Booklists over the others.
#1 For Read Alikes -Using Novelist and the author Agatha Christie I found John Dickson Carr’s Gideon Fell Stories, Margery Allinghams’ Albert Campion Series, M.C. Beatons’s “Agatha Raisin Series, Carolyn Hart’s Henrie O. Series, and Michael Piearce’s Mamur Zapt Series. In my opinion this one provided the best resources.
When I used Fiction-L I went to Genre listings-Cosy mysteries and found Agatha Christie along with many other authors of the same genre but without links to titles or series. I did not see a way to search by specific author or title you had to go with what they offered. It seemed very limited in what I could do in my searching.
Using “What Should I Read Next” I found that it requires a title before you can search and lists read alike titles without an author listing. The link to Amazon is nice since you can read the reviews before deciding whether or not to look for the title.
#2a Find two books suitable for a fourth grade girl interested in animals:
Using Novelist Plus and Advanced Search I found “Newbery Zoo: A Dozen Stories By Award Winning Authors” with a reading level of ‘older kids’ and “Tough Beginnings How Baby Animals Survive” by Marilyn Singer with a reading level of older kids.
#2b Find two ghost stories for a 14 year old boy: Using Novelist Plus I found “Ghost Hunt” volume 1 by Fuyumi Ono reading level – teen and “Island of Ghosts” by Ellis Dillon for grades 5-8.
3. Find Dean Koonz Read a-likes:
Using Novelist Plus
Greg Bear- ‘Darwin’s Bear’
Dan Simmons – ‘Summer of Night’
John Saul – ‘Manhattan Hunt Club’
Using What Should I Read Next?
Stuart Woods - Heat
Carol Saunders - The Grim Shadow: A Modern-Day Fable
Madeleine Brent- The Long Masquerade
#4. Series For title Alanna - Using NoveList Plus
#1 Alanna: The First Adventure
#2 Hand of the Goddess
#3 Woman Who Rides Like A Man
#4 Lioness Rampant
After looking at the eight websites I have to admit that I prefer Novelist Plus and Fiction_L Booklists over the others.
#1 For Read Alikes -Using Novelist and the author Agatha Christie I found John Dickson Carr’s Gideon Fell Stories, Margery Allinghams’ Albert Campion Series, M.C. Beatons’s “Agatha Raisin Series, Carolyn Hart’s Henrie O. Series, and Michael Piearce’s Mamur Zapt Series. In my opinion this one provided the best resources.
When I used Fiction-L I went to Genre listings-Cosy mysteries and found Agatha Christie along with many other authors of the same genre but without links to titles or series. I did not see a way to search by specific author or title you had to go with what they offered. It seemed very limited in what I could do in my searching.
Using “What Should I Read Next” I found that it requires a title before you can search and lists read alike titles without an author listing. The link to Amazon is nice since you can read the reviews before deciding whether or not to look for the title.
#2a Find two books suitable for a fourth grade girl interested in animals:
Using Novelist Plus and Advanced Search I found “Newbery Zoo: A Dozen Stories By Award Winning Authors” with a reading level of ‘older kids’ and “Tough Beginnings How Baby Animals Survive” by Marilyn Singer with a reading level of older kids.
#2b Find two ghost stories for a 14 year old boy: Using Novelist Plus I found “Ghost Hunt” volume 1 by Fuyumi Ono reading level – teen and “Island of Ghosts” by Ellis Dillon for grades 5-8.
3. Find Dean Koonz Read a-likes:
Using Novelist Plus
Greg Bear- ‘Darwin’s Bear’
Dan Simmons – ‘Summer of Night’
John Saul – ‘Manhattan Hunt Club’
Using What Should I Read Next?
Stuart Woods - Heat
Carol Saunders - The Grim Shadow: A Modern-Day Fable
Madeleine Brent- The Long Masquerade
#4. Series For title Alanna - Using NoveList Plus
#1 Alanna: The First Adventure
#2 Hand of the Goddess
#3 Woman Who Rides Like A Man
#4 Lioness Rampant
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Almost November
This year has zipped right by. I did not get to do as much with HCPL next generation as I hoped. Oh, Well, next year I will work on some more and continue to expand.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Games and Gaming #37
I know I'm late starting but am doing this to expand my horizons. Gaming is not my favorite part of the "new"library but then again I work in adult services and facilitate adult programing. The New York Times article was intresting but I haven't seen our teens moving from gaming to books, magazines or other materials. It is hoped that they will eventually. We are providing a social service and are exceptionally lucky to have a great YA staff to provide and direct game days and other programs for our youth. I know that many libraries are stretched to plan and facilitate youth programing. Gaming is here to stay whether it is someone playing solitaire online or runescape or one of the newer games the young people are playing.
I enjoyed the Carnegie Mellon Libraries "I'll Get it Game" but couldn't figure out how to move the books in the other game. Yes, I am one of those who only like to play games they can win and my hand eye coordination is lousy. Next week another staff member and I will be demonstrating wii bowling and encouraging the adults at our 50+ program to join us in a game. I looked at a retro game site and would enjoy trying pacman again although I was never very good at that either.
I enjoyed the Carnegie Mellon Libraries "I'll Get it Game" but couldn't figure out how to move the books in the other game. Yes, I am one of those who only like to play games they can win and my hand eye coordination is lousy. Next week another staff member and I will be demonstrating wii bowling and encouraging the adults at our 50+ program to join us in a game. I looked at a retro game site and would enjoy trying pacman again although I was never very good at that either.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
IHCPL # 30- Take a Load Off Our Drives
I use the S-drive to hold flyer and poster requests until Marketing and Programming can send us the requested copies. These are deleted within a short time. I keep the original on the FM drive since Luchiann creates them and we often repeat good programs.
On the FM p-drive I reviewed, combined and deleted the files and folders that I am responsible for that were out of date or obsolete. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be. I have a Flickr account for holding photos that I might want at work. All my personal photos are in my Picasa Google account that is limited to invitation only.
My e-mail and personal folders are up to date using the information acquired at the File Management Workshop presented by Harris County I attended a couple of years ago. My oldest files are flyers that I use in Adult Programming and I don’t think anything is really older than 2006 because we update and reuse them.
On the FM p-drive I reviewed, combined and deleted the files and folders that I am responsible for that were out of date or obsolete. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be. I have a Flickr account for holding photos that I might want at work. All my personal photos are in my Picasa Google account that is limited to invitation only.
My e-mail and personal folders are up to date using the information acquired at the File Management Workshop presented by Harris County I attended a couple of years ago. My oldest files are flyers that I use in Adult Programming and I don’t think anything is really older than 2006 because we update and reuse them.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Spring Cleaning #29
1. I have used g-mail for my personal mail for about a year now and found it is perfect for me. I use it to filter all mail before I move the important mail to my personal outlook account, it is a good place to hold current mail and photos I am working with.
A couple of years ago I attended a file management seminar presented by the Harris County Clerks office at the Harris County Training at Reliant. They did an excellent job of helping me know which electronic file to keep, and which ones to throw away. Although I have a tendency to throw things out and need them later I can often find a staff member that kept the necessary file.
My address book is fairly current, here at Freeman I have a little trouble keeping up with staff not in my department but overall, my address book is good. I put all my contacts for adult programming into an excel file on the p-drive and took my empty rolodex down to the supply room. Now everyone has access to the programs, names and numbers even if I am not available and my desk is cleaner.
A couple of years ago I attended a file management seminar presented by the Harris County Clerks office at the Harris County Training at Reliant. They did an excellent job of helping me know which electronic file to keep, and which ones to throw away. Although I have a tendency to throw things out and need them later I can often find a staff member that kept the necessary file.
My address book is fairly current, here at Freeman I have a little trouble keeping up with staff not in my department but overall, my address book is good. I put all my contacts for adult programming into an excel file on the p-drive and took my empty rolodex down to the supply room. Now everyone has access to the programs, names and numbers even if I am not available and my desk is cleaner.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Free Yourself from Clutter and Worry
This was a very interesting project. "Getting Things Done" was fun, especially the 'Hipster PDA'. I am considering purchasing the 'moleskine paperpad' or it's counterpart to keep in our camper for all those things we need to do or purchase while traveling and don't have my PDA handy to input into.
the "Zen of Tech" was encouraging since I already use the Google Calender for my work projects, when to call and remind speakers and about upcoming programs and deadlines. Google documents is my favorite place to keep a spreadsheet of names and addresses. I am currently adding to this and plan on doing away with my Rolodex as soon as I get them all moved. Picasa web albums is where I put all photos scanned from family albums and now my family across the U.S. can access them from home. I also learned that I already have 'Google Reader' and will plan to do away with blog lines and just use this one for all my rss feeds when I have time. 'Remember the Milk' was fun to look at but think it would just duplicate what I already have.
Twitter was new to me and being constantly "in touch" with other people is not something that I am interested in.
Technology has been helpful in many ways but too much technology such as being "connected" all the time is not for me. I need space and times without music, voices, beeps and other sounds. That is why I love to go to the beach and state parks to listen to nature. Even the sound of city traffic can be restful after hearing people talk, work phones ringing, cell phones going off, and children coming in and out all day long.
the "Zen of Tech" was encouraging since I already use the Google Calender for my work projects, when to call and remind speakers and about upcoming programs and deadlines. Google documents is my favorite place to keep a spreadsheet of names and addresses. I am currently adding to this and plan on doing away with my Rolodex as soon as I get them all moved. Picasa web albums is where I put all photos scanned from family albums and now my family across the U.S. can access them from home. I also learned that I already have 'Google Reader' and will plan to do away with blog lines and just use this one for all my rss feeds when I have time. 'Remember the Milk' was fun to look at but think it would just duplicate what I already have.
Twitter was new to me and being constantly "in touch" with other people is not something that I am interested in.
Technology has been helpful in many ways but too much technology such as being "connected" all the time is not for me. I need space and times without music, voices, beeps and other sounds. That is why I love to go to the beach and state parks to listen to nature. Even the sound of city traffic can be restful after hearing people talk, work phones ringing, cell phones going off, and children coming in and out all day long.
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