15. Infographics

 

Infographics Hub  was fun. I searched a few subjects and was amazed at the variety and creativity of the subjects. While there were a great number of subjects, I was not able to search for a defined interest. The search bar did not work for me. I had to scroll through all of the graphics to find out if there was one of interest. Still, it was a whole new world for me and I was inspired to try to create one.

Visualize Free, although limited because I only used the free app was fun and very easy. I made a couple of  infographs just to try it out. I could see many uses for this in the library. It would be great for anything from promoting library resources to steps for using resources to "if you liked this title" infographs. For those of us that are visual, pictures tell the story.

14. Videos

I tried out Vine and took a short video of my daffodils in the garden. It was very simple and fun. I was not interested in most of the clips shared. I know I sound like an old crank but even six seconds is enough of someone doing the hula hoop. I am bewildered at the number of people who want to share every little moment with others. First Twitter with every ill considered thought, then Instagram with "selfies" and now videos of  performances, guess everyone will have their 15 minutes of fame.

Magistro was easy to use. I used the free version, so the length and tools were limited. I was not that impressed with the functions. But maybe, if I used the full version I would have liked it more. 

I can think of some uses of both apps in the library, especially with teens. Videos of teen activities or promotional videos of books or programs could appeal to patrons. I still wonder if the library is followed by teens (or anyone) on Facebook, but I could be wrong and perhaps it is a matter of  advertising and promotion.

13. Presentations

I tried out Haiku Deck. I read several of the other participants' blogs and decided that Haiku Deck seemed the easiest. It was very simple and pretty intuitive. I made a simple slide show of pictures of my gardens of the past.  I kept thinking of how I would have used it when I was teaching technology in an elementary school. To date myself, it was a simpler Hyperstudio. I am not sure how I would use it now. I do not have the opportunities to do presentations. The only use that I can think of is to bore coworkers with pictures of my gardens.

Thing 12. Books, Books & More Books

I tried out the app Free Books. It is simple to use and has an amazing number of free books to download. I already had on my iPad the Jane Austen collection, so I really have all that is needed. But, I was pleased to see a number of books that I would like to read. Of course, they are "old" classics.  It is very nice to have the ability to have a good book to read at anytime. That is true peace of mind.

I also downloaded Audiobooks. I rarely listen to books. I only recently tried out books on cd for a long trip. I did love listening while traveling in a car.  For this Thing, I tried out Audiobooks while crocheting and really enjoyed the experience. The quality was great.

Thing 11. Library and Reference

I am a great fan of  ELM. When I was working at a school, I encouraged the students to use it in school and at home. It is a wonderful resource. At the public library, when parents and students are looking for information for projects and papers I show them the site and explain how to find what they need.

My library does not have an App, but I looked at several and can see how easy and useful they are for a mobile device. I do use Overdrive and it is wonderful to use. I love reading books on my iPad, Overdrive makes it simple to download and organize the books.

Thing 10 Sharing Photos

I decided to try Instagram, after my daughters laughed at me for considering Snapchat. Actually, they were torned between laughter and horror.  Obviously, there were connotations that I was not aware of.

Even after read about Instagram and downloading the app, I did not get the purpose of the app. It seemed no easier or  faster than emailing a picture.  Part of the problem was that so few people that I knew used the app. Only after a kind friend agreed to join and follow me, did I finally "get" the app. It is a picture tweet to anyone who follows you.  I am not sure that I will often use it personally, but I can see how a library could use it. 

If the library could get teens to follow it on Instagram then the teens would get library info instantly. A picture of a event, or  a picture of a flyer of a coming event  could spark interest and attendance.

I thought our library's teen poem program was a great idea, but few teens participated. A Instagram of a flyer might have intrigued them.

Thing 9 Taking and Editing Photos

I tried out the app Line Camera. At first I was a bit confused but after watching the video and reading instructions, I realized that it is quite simple to use. I am not a photo editing expert. For me, editing photos is like going to the eye doctor for glasses. I can't really tell the differences between the choices. I played around added frames and captions to photos. My efforts in the beauty selection were less successful. Most of my pictures turned out worst. 

I do plan to experiment with the app more and I can see how labels and frames can be useful.