Wednesday, June 11, 2014

THING 23

What a wonderful experience for me!  I learned so much, and I grew both personally and professionally.  There are so many devices and apps out there - I had no idea. It was most interesting for me to compare notes with co-workers on which devices and apps they were using.

My favorite Things were 12 - Books, Books & More Books,  13 - Presentations, and. 16 - Audio.  My favorite app was "Haiku Deck."  By far, I did my best work with this app.  But, I was most surprised by my reading on "Audioboo."  I discovered I have a really nice reading voice.  I also loved "Instgram."  It was such fun to play with my pictures.

When I started with 23Things,  I needed a lot of help, but I kept going, and with each new challenge, I gained new skills and got better and better.  I learned so much by sharing my experiences, and maybe they learned a thing or two from me.

I would suggest a Thing devoted to Safety & Security.  This seems to be a topic becoming  more important as devices are becoming more widely used.  A Thing about apps devoted to this subject is something to consider.

Finally:  With each Thing, I learned something new.
               With each new Thing, I gained experience.
               With experience, I gained confidence.
               With confidence, I became better at accomplishing my goals.

Thank you, thank you.

Sarah R


Monday, June 9, 2014

THING 22

For this "thing," I used "Quixey."  I thought it was just wonderful!  I searched numerous apps.  Very easy to use.  Thank you for the recommdation.  I will indeed share this web site with patrons.

Sunday, June 8, 2014

THING 21

I found a wonderful app that I would highly recommend - "WebMD ."  The mobile app is easily downloaded directly from the Homepage of their web site.  When you sign-in, you are asked for a PIN, which I thought was a good idea for security and privacy.  It is an easy site to navigate, with both a search window and alphabetical listings in a variety of categories.  It also offers a map to local health facilities.  You can also post questions and comments.  I will use this app personally and recommend it to patrons.

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

THING 20

For this "thing," I found a game called "What's The Saying" in the Apple App Store.  It is a game based on rebus puzzles.  I'm not much of a gamer, but  I found this absolutely addicting!  Even though there were pop-up adds every few puzzles, I just had to keep going.  I made it to level 8 before I just had to quit.  I now have a better appreciation for the value of computer games.

THING 19

My hobby is my Fairy garden.  "MyGarden.com" was a perfect fit for me.  I posted a comment, and received an answer shortly - that was a first for me!  I will continue to visit this site.  I will recommend this app to patrons who want an interactive site to share their enthusiasm for gardening.

Monday, June 2, 2014

THING 18

For this "thing," I looked at "Duolingo,"  "Quizlet," and "Today's Document."  I decided to install "Today's Document National Archives."  I would highly recommend this site to anyone interested in history or genealogy.  It is very user-friendly, with so many links.  I especially liked the calendar where I could choose a date, and see what happened on that day with articles on that event.  I also liked the link to archives in cities across the country - perfect for a mobile app!


Friday, May 30, 2014

THING 17

This "thing" I found a bit tedious.  After three tries, I found one that I really liked - "UpNorthExplorer.com."  This site is just full of information; very well organized and easy to navigate.  The calendar of events is up to date, and each event has its own link with information on where to go, how to get there, and contact info.  You can also search by keyword and alphabetically.  I'm sure this will be a useful tool for patrons who are planning a vacation in that part of the state.

I also added "CityofMound.com" to my apps.  This is my  neck of the woods.  I especially liked the calendar on this site.  One could tap on a particular date to see events for that day.  This is a site I have used and will recommend to patrons.

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

THING 16

For this "thing," I had to produce a recording.  Originally, I chose "SoundCloud." as my download.  The streaming part of the app was easy to use.  I listened to a number of jazz songs, and a podcast about garden flowers.  However, when it came time to make a recording, I was completely stymied.  I was lost.  When I asked for help, I was told that perhaps that part of the app was unavailable.  Could that be the case?  For my second attempt, I chose "Audioboo."  This time, I succeeded.  Originally, my "boo" was to be only 3 minutes long.  That has been changed to 10 minutes.  I read a passage from a book, and my recording lasted about 6 - 7 minutes.  I really appreciated the "pause " feature.  When I played it back, I think I sounded OK!  With so many sites out there just like this, I found very little value to keep this one.



THING 15

For this "thing," I downloaded "Infographics."  I truly enjoyed this site!  I spent over an hour exploring it.  Three very useful entries I found were "Cracking The Code," "Wearable Technology in the Classroom," and "Workskills for 2020."  Especially, "Cracking The Code" which dealt with making sense of medical records.  This could be very useful for me and for patrons.  Just for fun, I viewed "Celebrities Turned Politicians" and "20 Movies Snacks from Around the World."                  
          In using this site, I found  the Menu option was very slow; the Search box was faster and easier to use.  It was also easy to use the "Share" box.

Monday, May 26, 2014

THING 14

For this "thing," I chose "Vine."  I learned one very valuable lesson from using this site - in order to log-in, I had to change my settings directly on my Ipad, not on the app, as I had expected.  This was new to me.  It will indeed help me in the future.  Once I was in, it was very easy to use.  I really liked the prompts to touch the screen and then to release and then to continue.  Six seconds is a vert short amount of time; I had to know exactly what to do.  All in all, this was a fun exercise.  I will recommend it to patrons at the library.

Friday, May 23, 2014

THING 13

I do believe this is my best work so far.  For "Thing 13" I created a slide show using "Haiku Deck."  It is titled "Fairies In Search of a Home."  I used one gallery picture; the rest were pictures I imported from my photo album of my own fairy garden "in progress" at home.  I found the app easy and fun to use.  The instructions were clear and easy to follow.  My presentation is only six slides long, but it tells my story just fine.  I would like to add to it at a later date as the summer flowers and plants grow and more fairies move in.  The only concern I had was the slowness of the app.  It seemed like it took a while for my photos to download.  But all in all, I found this to be a most worthwhile exercise.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

THING 12

Thing 12 - Books, Books, & More Books - was quite the challenge for me.  It was so hard to choose which app to download!  After looking at all 5 choices, I finally decided on "iStoryBooks."  I have always liked picture books, and this site looked really nice.  It did take me a minute or two to figure out where to tap; the instructions could have been made more clear. Also, there is no way to choose a book by title. That would be a nice addition to the site.  I have already read or listened to at least 5 books.  I can see myself going back time and time again for myself and to share with children.  I do believe this site is a keeper!

Sunday, May 18, 2014

THING 11

I really enjoyed doing this "thing."  I began with ELM.  I spent almost an hour exploring the various sites, including CAMIO and Britannica Library among others.  I'm sure I will return to explore some more!  I even added the address to my contacts list.  I already had the HCL mobile app on my IPad, so I spent just a few minutes there.  Over time, it has become easier to use.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

THING 10

For this "thing," I used Instgram.  I posted a photo from my albumn of my daughters and me after a fund-raising race. I then tried out some of the editing techniques.  That was very interesting, but I finally decided to post my picture in it,s original form.  I then explored other sites and their photos.  Instagram is very easy to navigate; very user friendly.

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

THING 9

Wow!  This was fun.  I downloaded "ColorSplurge."  I took a picture and colored it in.  I found the color wheel a little tricky, but once I got the hang of it, I was "off and running."  My picture may look  amateurish, but I did have fun doing it.  I even posted it to my Facebook page.

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

THING 2

I found the videos very useful.  I am trying them out.  I especially liked the ability to scroll my apps and organize them.  I began with an iPad 1.  The new upgrades are a real advancement.  I do wish there were an easier way to control the volume.

Monday, April 28, 2014

THING 9

Wow what fun!  I used "Color Splurge."  I found the color wheel just a little tricky, but I finally got the hang of it.

Sunday, April 20, 2014

THING 8

I downloaded "Facebook."  I was not so sure I wanted to do it, but after a couple of weeks of  playing with it, I'm beginning to have fun with it.  I have posted pictures of me and my family; have searched for friends, and news from schools I attended.  I also downloaded"FaceFinder."  I didn't find it very useful.  Perhaps with a little more practice, that will change.

Friday, April 11, 2014

THING 7

This looked very interesting, but not something I think I will use.

Sunday, March 30, 2014

THING 6

I downloaded CloudOn and DropBox.  I created a very simple document, and I put in a "header" and played with adding borders.  I decided not to keep them. This was challenging for me, but I learned a few new things.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

THING 5

For Thing 5, I downloaded SPRINGPAD.  I found this very useful for note taking; in fact, I did just that at a meeting at church.  I have also begun to collect some of my recipes.  Thank you.

Friday, March 14, 2014

THING 4

I chose ZITE for this "thing."  I really do like it.  I chose my 4 favorites with ease.  I navigated the site with ease.  I'm anxious to see my daily updates.  The menu at the right was easy to use and update.  I'm sure I will use this often.  I did find the brightness a little low for me, but that was easy to fix.  I can think of no improvements I would make.

Sunday, March 9, 2014

THING 3

I tried the wifi finder. I search all over the world - it was a lot of fun.  I also downloaded the option for the off-line option.  Doing the searches were easy, but returning to the home page was not so easy.