#49b Musigy.com

Musigy is basically an online music conferencing platform (think teleconferencing or videoconferencing) where musicians can jam with other - in the next room or halfway across the world.

As stated in previous posts I am not in the slightest bit musical (I wish I was but that's another story).

So I asked my friend Benj (who's a sound engineer & muso) to give it a go.

He thought it sounded pretty cool so he has installed it on his pc and is trying to arrange to play a duet next week with a friend of his who lives in France.

(They're busy IM'ing each other trying to decide on a song now.)

In Libraryland it would make a good activity, perhaps as part of Battle of the Bands or similar, for teenagers and younger library members.

#49 Soundsnap

Okay, I can see the YSL's having fun with this.

Soundsnap is basically a website containing a collection of sounds - I looked in sports and listened to a basketball being dribbled, a pinpong ball bouncing, a baseball bat making contact with a baseball etc.

Each 'sound' was 1-20 seconds long. So ideal as a background for a link on a website.

Under film & comic fx there was a 2 second 'splat' or a 1 second 'squelch'.

Some of the stab/swish/weapons sounds would be fun if we were having a crime fiction discussion on the website.

You could string some of these sounds together and have a Batman like (1966 tv version) Kapow, splat, holy gatorade Batman' type soundtrack running beside parts of your website.!

Holy soundtrack Batman!

#48 music.download.com

Once again this is a site I would probably use more at home than at work.

It is extremely easy to use, although I couldn't find many (free to download) songs that I wanted to download.

There was some ELO under rock and pop as well as a sub-genre of glam rock. They have a function that makes it easy for you to download stuff to you ipod (you nominate a genre and they stream the songs for you).

If you only look for music online then there's heaps here, but if, like me, you have racks & racks of cds you may not get as much use out of this.

#47 Jamstudio

I am not in the least bit musical (more's the pity) so Jamstudio was not that exciting for me.

Basically you choose a style for each of a number of instruments, choose a key (if you want to) and press play. Voila instant song.

I 'created' a song called (creatively) yukk!

If you have some vague idea about music then you would probably find this to be great fun as you can be as original and/or creative as you like.

In a library sense you could use it to create background music for events or podcasts etc I guess.

#46 Groundhog Day

Learning 2.0 (the first 23 things) was, for me, a chance to play and experiment with some new, and not so new, applications.

During the program I was focussed on finishing the program, now that I have finished I'm focussing more on how those apps can be used at/for work.

So much so that, in tandem with this blog, I am redoing the first 23 things (partly as a training aid), mainly thinking more about how they can be used at work and less about how I would use them.

The real eye opener for me was how many American Public Libraries are using these tools as part of everyday library life, not as an added extra sort of thing but as an integral part of the library's presence - a sort of not so much thinking about web 2.0 as doing web 2.0.

I'm surprised by the number of people at CoBLS that haven't 'embraced' 2.0 - some people I thought would be all over it are just not interested (can't understand it myself)

Some staff seem to thing it will bring about the end of libraries and librarianship as we know it. To those people I say "that is what people said 25 - 30 years ago when OPACs were being introduced"

The use of Web 2.0 will not replace Desk shifts, or booktalks, or storytimes, itwill complement and enhance them.

It gives patrons extra options for using the library and allows us to expand our services into the community and to the public.

I'm tempted to setup a mini learning 2.0 program, using just a few of the 23 things, to give those who haven't tried it a taste of the 2.0 experience.

You never know you might just enjoy it...

#45 (d) Mindmeister

Well I think this is the one. Once I worked it out (I may have been paying too much attention to the tennis) I was hooked!

It's very easy to use and suits my style of working extremely well. It automatically saves the mind map as whatever is written in the main box (nominally a good idea, but at one stage I had 7 mindmaps called Ian Rankin. Exit Music.)

I like the linear style far more than the flowchart/cloud style but I realise the more creative may prefer bubbl.us.

This one very much comes down to personal choice. Whichever mindmap style suits you - they are both equally as good, it's just a matter of personal preference.

#45 (c) Bubbl.us

Seeing as flow chart still hasn't sent me an invite I've moved onto the mind map portion of this week's entertainment.

Bubbl.us was surprisingly easy to use (once I'd stopped hitting enter and making many unneeded little boxes.)

I came slightly unstuck when I tried to upload my mindmap to Blogger. However I *quickly* worked it out. (hint: click on menu at the bottom of the page and you get several different choices.)

I was going to embed the code but the left hand column is looking a bit cluttered so instead I exported the mind map as a jpeg and uploaded it as an image.

Will now finish playing with mindmeister and post a comparison.

#45 (a) Going with the flow (chart)

Given how excited I was about flowcharting Gliffy was a bit of a disappointment.

When I first signed up I found it very unresponsive to my typing. For example typing in a login name - press t wait for letter to appear on the screen, press next letter, wait for it to appear on screen and so on.

Now I'm no touch typist but I found it unbelievably slow, and therefore frustrating.

I had the same problem when I finally got to create my flow chart. Perhaps It's my computer but I haven't had the problem with any other site. Gliffy looks like it should be easy to use.

In flowchart mode there is a range of shapes that you click and drag into position.

Likewise in floorplan mode there is a range of popular shapes (door, stairs, wall, window etc) that you drag into position.

#44 Jott

Jott is not available in Australia so, instead of playing with Jott tonight with a view to blogging about it tomorrow or Tuesday, I can tick thing 44 off my list.

I have a vague recollection of reading something about an australian equivalent so if I can remember what it was I'll blog about it later. If not I'll probably replace #44 in the CoBLS learning 2.1 with another application (probably shelfari)

Besides #45 is flow charts and I've been hanging out to get to it...

#43 Midi Files

Clicking on the link in the Midis post takes you to a site called midimart.net which allows you to download midi files for free. The rub is that to be able to access these free downloads you must first join midimart (which costs 15.50 GBP).

You can join the forum for free which gives you access to midifiles before they're posted on the main board (I think). However my application to join the forum is awaiting approval from an administrator (still) since Friday. So far it seems like a lot of palaver for an application that I'm not that interested in and may never use.

#42 Google groups/usenet

I did as instructed and had a look at the society.libraries.talk group. It was classifed as low usage although usage from year to year seemed to be increasing.

Interstingly the previous ten posts on the this group about libraries all seemed to be spam type postings. There was an earn $50-$100 online job posting; a posting about how to win a free i-phone; and 8 postings about persecution and MI5.

I then searched google groups for tap dancing (well, why not). The first hit was a tapdancer come motivational speaker; the next half dozen were all linked to a religion discussion group (it had picked up on the phrase 'tap dancing' as in 'tap dancing round the issue'). A salutary lesson on search terms there.

I even searched for a couple of groups I belonged to when the service was called Dejanews but nothing leapt out at me so I'll probably stick with the few Yahoo Groups I belong to.

#41 Live mocha (Ca plane pour moi)

Ever made the New Years resolution that this year you are going to learn a language? Then Live Mocha could be for you.

It bills itself as a social networking site for learning languages. When you sign up you nominate a language that you wish to learn and specify your level (beginner through to native). Ichose Italian - no problems there - however a bit further on, when I went to enrol in a course, Italian was not an option - I could only choose from English, German, French, Hindi, Spanish, or Mandarin Chinese.

I chose German, (thanks to my CS reading I figure I already know a few key german words about food!) and enrolled in German 101. Most of the '101' level courses appear to be 50 hours, and it is self paced learning. It is divided into units (the idea is one unit per week) and you can pause and resume the units as often as you like.

Within 30 seconds of signing up I was being IM'd by a guy from Afghanistan who was learning Spanish - not sure what we had in common as it certainly didn't appear to be languages.

If Italian was an option I'd probably be using this site quite regularly, as it stands I'll check back occasionally to see if italian's been added but that's about it.

#40 Retroland (stars on 45)

Okay this was a real walk down memory lane.

Retroland describes itself as a social networking site where you can connect with others who have the same (embarassing!) memories about their past.

The site is very american - almost all the foods in the food tabs were unknown to me or known only to me via (bad) american tv sitcoms.

The music tab brought back some 70s memories - Bay City Rollers (long stripey sox, tartan trews, platform shoes), The Sweet, Abba, T-Rex, and so on.

Couldn't find much australian music (unless you count the bee gees) apart from ac/dc; no Sherbet or Skyhooks for example.

Not sure how we'd use retroland in a library sense, unless we were having a themed 70s (or 60s, or 80's) activity and wanted to capture the era.

#39 Animoto (Video killed the radio star)

This was waaaaay cool. (and very easy to use).

You select some photos, upload them to animoto, choose some music, and voila - video clip.

A 3o second video clip has about 15 photos in it - ample for a trial run.

If you choose from animoto's music, the genres are indie rock, hip hop, latin, singer/songwriter, electronica, (no 70s glitter rock, or show tunes) from up-and-coming bands.

You can upload your own music but I couldn't be bothered.

It occurs to me that if you can upload music you could upload voice - say for a virtual tour of a libraries on the website.

Might experiment with that when I'm in better voice.

ETA. The resolution on the photos was surprisingly average - will look for some higher res. piccies and edit.

#38 Comic relief (toondoo)

I may have to leap ahead to Thing 45 as everytime I log in to explorediscoverplay I am tantalised by #45 - Flow charts. (uber-nerd/geek alert obviously).

Anyway #38 Toondoo is a diy comic strip creator. Many talented people have created comics on it; many untalented people have created comics on it.

I gotta admit this thing did nothing for me. I have absolutely no creativity in this area.

Objectively I can see that this could be useful in the library as a promotional tool if you have the talented people to exploit it. Alternatively it would make a good school holiday program type activity for kids/teens.

#37 Last. fm (76 trombones)

Unfortunately Pandora is no longer able to be accessed from Australia (it's based in the U.S.) so that left Last.fm

It allows to create your own playlist and embed it on your blog. I first searched by genre/tag for musical theatre. Among the results it returned was the cast album of Spamalot and Phillip Quast's Donmar album.

Last.fm gives you the code to add to your blog and you can also link directly to Amazon to buy then music you're listening to.

Useful for home, perhaps not so much for work.

#36 Picnik (Do-re-mi)

Before. Me at Cadbury World a few days before Christmas 2003.
After. Me in Christmas mode.

I decided to try Picnik and found it to be a lot of fun and potentially very useful.

From the red eye correction mode (when I forget to use the setting on my camera) to the ability to manipulate the photos I can see quite a few uses in a library setting especially to promote events and booktalks.

For some reason I'm envisaging promo type ideas along the lines of the free postcards used to advertise many different events and organisations, something a bit different from our usual fliers/flyers.

#35 Twitter (I taut I taw a puddy tat)

Twitter - think miniblog (140 words).

I tried to enlist in jaiku but it is in the throes of joining the google empire so I must wait for an invitation (when an account becomes available).

I'm not really sure what I would use twitter for - it seems like an online version of sms (although you can access it on your mobile phone as well). Between my 'normal' blogs and sms on my phone.

I must say I love how mashable describes the evolution of blogging (and the need for twitter)

"To some, it really feels like Twitter has stumbled upon a new blogging paradigm - short, to-the-point messages that let your friends, family and the world know exactly where you are and what you’re doing, every second of the day.
But others are asking: what’s the point? Those people just don’t get it. Clearly, Twitter is an amazing new way to blog about your cat."

I'm guessing I'm one of the 'what's the point' people.

#34 A fridge full of leftovers and nothing to eat

Fitday and Nutridiary - scary tools to be looking at on New Years Day with the Xmas leftovers and chocolates still filling the fridge.

Both work in similar ways. You enter your height, weight, age, type of job, and you use them as a personal weight loss diary, calorie counter, diet planner etc.

I preferred Fitday mainly because it has a cleaner, less cluttered look; and because it accepted that I knew my weight in kgs (metric) and my height in ft & inches (imperial). This, however, caused nutridiary to have conniptions as it assumed I would use the same measuring form (metric or imperial) for both -doh, and it couldn't cope with the concept that I was 5 metres tall...

I tried the learning exercises on both of them and the results were unsurprisingly similar (once I worked out what my height in metres was).

BTW those results will NEVER be published...

#33 String spin (Fun, fun, fun)

I chose to play with string spin (v2).

I started with v.1 and that was fun but a bit tame, so in v.2 I opted for my name then watched as what started out as a rather passable version of my signature suddenly was spun into "art".

You could spend hours playing with this stuff and I'll be introducing my neice to Mr Picassohead as I think she'll have fun creating with it.

Word of warning though stringspin can, and will, crash your browser if you get too carried away with your spinning!

#32 Omnidrive

I've been using omnidrive for a while now. When I was studying I'd keep a copy of my notes stored on omnidrive so that If I forgot my usb drive (or was using one of the many pcs at uni with dodgy usb ports) I could still work on my notes or essays or whatever.

The free account offers 1gb of storage which was more than enough for me for study purposes.

It was also useful for group assignments - we could all access the most up to date changes to the assignment rather than having to email the others when we changed our part.

Since the demise of my PDA (pause to mourn briefly) I've uploaded the files that I kept on my PDA to omnidrive so that I can access them from any computer anywhere. (Drawback is that I need computer/web access - not always available in 2ndhand bookshops...)

I would have liked to explore box.net more, however it can't be accessed on the work computers (it's classified as peer to peer so is a no-no) and if I can only access it at home and 'on the road' it becomes 33% less attractive.

Having said that I've played at home and like the look of it and will probably use it as a backup drive at home.

From a library point of view both programs could prove useful for patrons to save documents they're not finished with, or if they just want to print something they've created at home (but don't have a printer); staff wise given the network setup it would probably only be used if we wanted to work on a document from home.

#31A Get organised with Jotlet

Loving Jotlet.

After playing with it for an hour or so I'm liking it's style. It's basically a calendar program with options for tasks and notes to be added in. It (so far) has good clean lines and display options that suit the way I (allegedly) work.

I've set up desk shifts and meetings in it and will trial it over the next few weeks as I think it is more what I want than plaxo. We shall see.

#31 Get organised with Plaxo (now pulse)

I love organising tools but have yet to find the perfect online one. I've toyed with google calendar, yahoo calendar, remember the milk and tada lists - they all have their good points but none is exactly what I want.

Back in April 2007, Plaxo was mainly an online address book/calendar type setup; you could import contacts from a range of email programs (outlook, yahoo, gmail etc.), now it seems to almost more of a social networking tool.

Like linkedin and facebook you can invite people to become contacts (friends) and you can get plaxo to cross reference your existing email address book with the list of plaxo members.

Plaxo has tabs across the top for calendar, tasks, notes, address book which could be useful. I've set up some recurring tasks, and put in my desk shifts and some meetings and set notifications, so I'll see how it goes. (It is currently counting down to my desk shift tomorrow)

Ideally I would have all this stuff set up in LotusNotes but as that is work access only I need something that I can access from home and from work so may be Plaxo is the answer.

#30 LOLCats (jellicle cats)

At the risk of incurring the wrath of all those above me - what is it with library staff and cats?(the miaowing kind, not the singing kind).

This 'thing' is all to do with cats being cute, adorable and funny. Not that I have anything against cats I'm just curious as to the correlation between books and cats.

I liked this Pirates of the Caribbean lolcat. (Like I said, nothing againts cats, just curious..)

#29 Scrapblog

Hmmmmm, I thought scrapblog looked like a lot of fun as I created my three pages using a mixture of photos and stickers.

However, I am now on my third attempt at publishing my scrapblog and, after 20 minutes, it is still publishing page 2 - this seems like rather a long time and is rapidly decreasing my enjoyment of scrapblog...

I will post my scrapbook pages when and if they finish saving. Well 4th time was the charm, I was able tos ave my scrapblog and post it as a page element on my blog.

Or you can see it by clicking here

#28 Well we're big rock singers...

I'm possibly less enamoured of this thing - I can see it's uses as a publicity tool, making promotional posters etc. but I think I preferred the earlier one where we could create 'for dummies' book covers.

I s'pose with Time and Rolling Stone we could have a bit of fun promoting the periodicals collection.