When faced with uncertainty I hit the books. I went back and read the article, The wonderful world of wikis: applications for libraries by Chad F. Boeninger. I went to the wikis he mentioned in his article. I looked them over and tried a few of the links. It gave me a better understanding of how a wiki should be designed and how it can be used. The pieces of the puzzle in my head are starting to form a picture!
I also read through the tutorial offered at Wikia. I took notes. I was able to answer my own question from last week, “how do I format text on the wiki?” After the tutorial I had an idea of how to set up different pages on the wiki. I went back to the request from Butler and mapped out on paper the headings and subheadings.
On a quick side note, I have to comment on the tutorial by Wikia. Ever since I took the class, Education of Information Users, I take note of materials developed to teach online users. In class we looked at several online tutorials. From a developers stand point, the challenge is to produce a tutorial that is clear, simple, and concise. Think about how you would tell someone to open email…….in short simple steps……..now you see the challenge. It is a challenge that interests me, because buried deep inside me is an educator.
Back to wikis…..at this point I am very interested in meeting with my team members. I am curious to hear their ideas and their struggles. I am anxious to share my thoughts on design. I am hoping that by talking together we all get a better picture of how to work on this project together. In our schedule for this week we are supposed to develop prototypes. I don’t know how this is going to work? It is true we need to experiment with design, but I don’t know how to make the web page look the way it looks in my head?
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Friday, September 21, 2007
Uncertainty
What it is like to be trying something new? How technology makes me feel? When working with a team, how does it feel not knowing what you should be doing?
The truth is I don’t know what I should be doing. It became apparent during the meeting that the design of the wiki is very important. The only “design” rules I remember are from web design in 401. Sure I can look at other wiki’s to determine styles and fonts and colors to use, but I am not sure how to “plug” those features into a wiki that we are designing. Does any of this make sense? I am beginning to question my ideas about wikis….I am beginning to question myself. I am wondering if it is just me….maybe I just don’t understand. I am feeling uncertain. I am grappling with the technology. Of course, I have to learn how to do it and I want to figure it out. How will I learn? In my experience, it is best if someone can sit down with me and show me how to do it on the computer. Or at the very least, I can follow a helpful manual with pictures. When I just sit down at the computer to fiddle around with the program I usually end up frustrated.
I feel uncertain. I keep telling myself, “I committed to this class when I signed up. I have faith that I will learn what I need to know to complete the project.” I must tell you, I would not be using this technology if I was not signed up in this class. So I have put myself in this uncomfortable position of not knowing what I should be doing. This is a challenge and a struggle for me. For the moment I am trying to be positive, but I foresee shaky waters ahead.
The truth is I don’t know what I should be doing. It became apparent during the meeting that the design of the wiki is very important. The only “design” rules I remember are from web design in 401. Sure I can look at other wiki’s to determine styles and fonts and colors to use, but I am not sure how to “plug” those features into a wiki that we are designing. Does any of this make sense? I am beginning to question my ideas about wikis….I am beginning to question myself. I am wondering if it is just me….maybe I just don’t understand. I am feeling uncertain. I am grappling with the technology. Of course, I have to learn how to do it and I want to figure it out. How will I learn? In my experience, it is best if someone can sit down with me and show me how to do it on the computer. Or at the very least, I can follow a helpful manual with pictures. When I just sit down at the computer to fiddle around with the program I usually end up frustrated.
I feel uncertain. I keep telling myself, “I committed to this class when I signed up. I have faith that I will learn what I need to know to complete the project.” I must tell you, I would not be using this technology if I was not signed up in this class. So I have put myself in this uncomfortable position of not knowing what I should be doing. This is a challenge and a struggle for me. For the moment I am trying to be positive, but I foresee shaky waters ahead.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Grief at the speed of Broadband!
In recent months I have suffered terrible loss in my family. In June my 26 year old cousin died in a boating accident. At the end of August my uncle 50 years old died in his sleep. Both were from the same family. And now on September 11, 2007 I find out my 19 year old cousin died in a car accident in Texas. He had just started college. I don’t know what to say…….I feel so numb…….It seems totally unreal to me to lose 3 young people in my family so suddenly. I have never heard such a thing. I feel deep sadness. It is my nature to “therapy” myself. That is what I call it when I try to work through challenging circumstances in my life. I do have a BS in Psychology after all.
One book that has helped me tremendously recently is called Awakening from Grief by John E. Welshons. He says, “We may notice that our cultural training, which has been to ignore, deny, and avoid whatever is unpleasant, leads us deeper into confusion and numbness by offering only distraction as a solution.” This is Welshons view of our culture; “our entire culture is built on maximizing pleasure through the systematic avoidance of grief. We worship youth, beauty, strength, energy, vitality, health, prosperity, and power. We have confined illness, aging, and death to hospitals, nursing homes, funeral homes, and cemeteries. At every stage of our lives we are desperately trying to overcome the ways in which our bodies and our world disappoint us.”
I appreciated Welshons view of our culture. “Distraction as a solution.” I go back to work and I use it to distract me. I go to class and I use it to distract me. My external environment is the same therefore I must act the same. If I am acting the same then I must be fine. This leaves me feeling frustrated.
I wonder if the speed of the Internet has contributed to the speed of our lives? Do we expect people to recover from loss in the time it would take to do a Google search?
One book that has helped me tremendously recently is called Awakening from Grief by John E. Welshons. He says, “We may notice that our cultural training, which has been to ignore, deny, and avoid whatever is unpleasant, leads us deeper into confusion and numbness by offering only distraction as a solution.” This is Welshons view of our culture; “our entire culture is built on maximizing pleasure through the systematic avoidance of grief. We worship youth, beauty, strength, energy, vitality, health, prosperity, and power. We have confined illness, aging, and death to hospitals, nursing homes, funeral homes, and cemeteries. At every stage of our lives we are desperately trying to overcome the ways in which our bodies and our world disappoint us.”
I appreciated Welshons view of our culture. “Distraction as a solution.” I go back to work and I use it to distract me. I go to class and I use it to distract me. My external environment is the same therefore I must act the same. If I am acting the same then I must be fine. This leaves me feeling frustrated.
I wonder if the speed of the Internet has contributed to the speed of our lives? Do we expect people to recover from loss in the time it would take to do a Google search?
Saturday, September 8, 2007
My choices....and blogging
What it is like trying something new with technology? Issues I am having about beginning a blog. How technology makes me feel?
It feel frozen just trying to get this damn blog started. To begin, I did not want to create my blogger account at the same time I am expected to submit entries. Because I am a reflective person by nature, I decided to begin my blog entries in a WORD format. It would give me the chance to save my first draft and continue to edit until I am ready to put it online. However, I seem to be having difficulty getting my thoughts formed into complete sentences.
On a personal note, I thought I would share my thoughts on choices I make when it comes to using the computer. On a daily basis I am only on the computer if my work or school calls for it. One exception is my music. I use my Itunes library almost everyday. When I sit at the computer I am either on the Internet or typing a Word document. Certain school projects require other software applications, but you get the idea. I do not spend any extra time on the computer, because I would rather spend my time alone or with people or animals. I did not take classes over the summer, and used the computer only at work. I was in a miserable relationship years ago where time on the computer was chosen over time with me. It left me disenchanted and forced me to think consciously about my computer use. Allow me to digress even further, in the September 10th issue of Newsweek is a story of Theresa Duncan and Jeremy Blake. “Duncan and Blake built their lives around computers and the Internet, using them to create innovative art, prize-winning videogames and visionary stories.” In the end, this couple withdrew from friends and colleagues, communicated only via email, and were convinced her career was being sabotaged. She committed suicide and a short time later he committed suicide. This reinforces my belief that there is a correlation between the amount of time spent on the computer and higher risks for depression, anxiety, and loneliness.
Getting back to my blog…………I am following the steps…….I am learning something new on the computer! I can’t tell if I am excited or disappointed. What I mean is that I could be outside right now or I could be with my fiancée planting a tree, but I am inside sitting at this blasted computer.
It feel frozen just trying to get this damn blog started. To begin, I did not want to create my blogger account at the same time I am expected to submit entries. Because I am a reflective person by nature, I decided to begin my blog entries in a WORD format. It would give me the chance to save my first draft and continue to edit until I am ready to put it online. However, I seem to be having difficulty getting my thoughts formed into complete sentences.
On a personal note, I thought I would share my thoughts on choices I make when it comes to using the computer. On a daily basis I am only on the computer if my work or school calls for it. One exception is my music. I use my Itunes library almost everyday. When I sit at the computer I am either on the Internet or typing a Word document. Certain school projects require other software applications, but you get the idea. I do not spend any extra time on the computer, because I would rather spend my time alone or with people or animals. I did not take classes over the summer, and used the computer only at work. I was in a miserable relationship years ago where time on the computer was chosen over time with me. It left me disenchanted and forced me to think consciously about my computer use. Allow me to digress even further, in the September 10th issue of Newsweek is a story of Theresa Duncan and Jeremy Blake. “Duncan and Blake built their lives around computers and the Internet, using them to create innovative art, prize-winning videogames and visionary stories.” In the end, this couple withdrew from friends and colleagues, communicated only via email, and were convinced her career was being sabotaged. She committed suicide and a short time later he committed suicide. This reinforces my belief that there is a correlation between the amount of time spent on the computer and higher risks for depression, anxiety, and loneliness.
Getting back to my blog…………I am following the steps…….I am learning something new on the computer! I can’t tell if I am excited or disappointed. What I mean is that I could be outside right now or I could be with my fiancée planting a tree, but I am inside sitting at this blasted computer.
Rant over generational stereotypes
In August Robin & I took a trip to Mukwonago, Wisconsin. We went there to see the Dave Matthews Band at the Alpine Valley Music Center. It was the largest venue I have ever been to. It made the Verizon Wireless Music Center in Noblesville seem like a better place to see a show. I was camping with my younger sister and her friends. Their ages range from 20-21. When I told them about our class project involving a wiki, they did not know what I was talking about. Oh, they had heard of Wikipedia but do not regularly use wikis of any kind.
What a surprise! Here I am talking to a Generation Y person who presumably does not know more about technology than me. I recalled all the articles and books I have read in library school over the last 2 years telling me characteristics about this generation. I give them credit for their comfort using a computer and miniature electronic devises, as well as their ability to multitask on the computer. But the experience left me speculating the average users computer needs.
I opened to the idea of moving away from what I had read and coming up with my own conclusion. I think it matters what kind of work you do or what you do everyday that determines your need to use technology. My fiancée works in the nursery/landscaping business. He uses the Internet to a small degree, but not as much as I do working in a law library. In this mindset I reached two conclusions. One, librarians create all the talk around these issues to make ourselves feel more important. Two, we are given grant money for our cause.
What a surprise! Here I am talking to a Generation Y person who presumably does not know more about technology than me. I recalled all the articles and books I have read in library school over the last 2 years telling me characteristics about this generation. I give them credit for their comfort using a computer and miniature electronic devises, as well as their ability to multitask on the computer. But the experience left me speculating the average users computer needs.
I opened to the idea of moving away from what I had read and coming up with my own conclusion. I think it matters what kind of work you do or what you do everyday that determines your need to use technology. My fiancée works in the nursery/landscaping business. He uses the Internet to a small degree, but not as much as I do working in a law library. In this mindset I reached two conclusions. One, librarians create all the talk around these issues to make ourselves feel more important. Two, we are given grant money for our cause.
Introduction
Introduction
I started this blog for a class assignment. I am a graduate student working on a Masters in Library Science. This fall I am enrolled in Library Systems. The assignment is to start a blog and submit weekly postings sharing my thoughts on using technology. The class ends December 2007.
The purpose of keeping this blog is to discuss my feelings about working with technology. What is it like to try something new? How does technology make me feel? How does it make me feel to not know what I should be doing? Share my experience working with a team. The goal is to have me develop a better understanding of how library patrons or staff may feel when encountering new technologies.
I started this blog for a class assignment. I am a graduate student working on a Masters in Library Science. This fall I am enrolled in Library Systems. The assignment is to start a blog and submit weekly postings sharing my thoughts on using technology. The class ends December 2007.
The purpose of keeping this blog is to discuss my feelings about working with technology. What is it like to try something new? How does technology make me feel? How does it make me feel to not know what I should be doing? Share my experience working with a team. The goal is to have me develop a better understanding of how library patrons or staff may feel when encountering new technologies.
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