23 Things Kansas

Introduction

You’ve heard of RSS.

You’ve seen those small orange icons on web sites.

You’ve heard co-workers and acquaintances swear by it, but still have no idea what RSS is.

Well, you’re not alone.

RSS is not only revolutionizing the way news and content creators share information, but it is swiftly changing the way everyday users consume information.

RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is written in XML that works behind the scenes for sharing web content. It allows users to view updated web content with a “reader” (also called an aggregator), without visiting every web site looking for the new content. The RSS reader checks Web sites to which you have subscribed, and then displays new or updated content in your reader.

RSS feed readers come in four basic forms.

1. Web-based sites (Bloglines or Google Reader).
2. Delivered to your email inbox (With email software such as Microsoft Outlook, Thunderbird, or through Web sites like Feed My Inbox.)
3. Built into Web browsers (Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer)
4. As standalone programs downloaded to your computer (SharpReader or RSSOwl)

This module teaches Bloglines at http://www.bloglines.com/, Google Reader at http://tinyurl.com/yfnrwmu and Feed My Inbox at http://www.feedmyinbox.com/ .

Sharing and Productivity

RSS feed saves your time:

• In keeping up with the news by collecting headlines for you to scan, with links to the full articles.
• Broadcasting to others headlines of articles you post on your Web sites or blogs.

RSS in plain English (3:45 minutes) is an amusing explanation of the value of RSS feeds.

Tools for your consideration

Tool instructions
Bloglines
Videos

• Bloglines tutorial (8:03 minutes) starts with signing up and continuing basic use features.
• Setting up a Bloglines account goes step-by-step through the sign up and use of Bloglines
• Subscribing to RSS feeds using Bloglines takes you step-by-step through the process.
• RSS Reader how to (6:09 minutes) is another explanation on how to use Bloglines.
• Add RSS feeds to Bloglines (1:16 minutes) focuses on just subscribing to RSS feeds.

Written directions

• Using Bloglines is an illustrated guide: sign-up, subscribing to feeds of various sorts.
• Using Bloglines Tutorial gives step-by-step instructions: creating an account, logging in, finding RSS feeds, adding feeds, uploading an OPML file to Bloglines.

Google reader
Videos

• Google Reader series: Interface overview, subscribing to feeds, viewing feeds, organizing feeds, using tags, searching, changing settings, bookmarks, offline, on cell phone, etc.
• How to create a feed with Google Reader (1:23 minutes)
• How to use Google Reader (3 minutes) is a large clear demonstration of subscribing and reading the New York Times.
• How to read RSS feeds (9:24 minutes) demonstrates free downloaded software called RSS Bandit and Google Reader.

Written documents

• What is RSS? A Step-by-step guide to Google Reader covers setting up, subscriptions to feeds, reading and managing subscriptions, scanning options.

Feed My Inbox
Videos

• Verbal explanation of “Feed My Inbox”
• “Feed My Inbox Bookmarklet” demonstrating a bookmarklet which speeds the process of creating RSS feeds with Feed My Inbox. Bookmarklets are buttons you can add to your bookmarks toolbar. Bookmarklets can do really cool things.

Written directions

• Feed my inbox – How does this work? explains how Feed My Inbox gets RSS feed links emailed to you.

Action Activities Do one on the following activities.

Activity #1 (Receiving RSS feeds)

1. Decide which RSS feed method you want to try.
2. Follow the videos and read the written documents to subscribe to 2 RSS feeds.
3. Post on your 23 Things Blog a paragraph explaining how you chose a RSS feed reader and listing the feeds you subscribed to.

Activity #2 (Telling others how to get the RSS feeds from your Web site that has an RSS feed link.)

1. If your Web site or blog has an RSS feed link on the home page, create a bookmark with instructions telling patrons how to use Bloglines, Google Reader or Feed My Inbox to subscribe to the RSS feed.
2. Pass the bookmark out to your patrons.
3. Post on your 23 Things Blog the instructions on the bookmark.

Activity #3 (Putting a FeedMyInbox form on your Web site for people to receive feeds by email.)

1. If your Web site or blog has an RSS feed link on the home page, right click that link and left click “Copy link.”
2. Go to http://www.feedmyinbox.com/feeds/formCode/
3. Paste the copied link into the box and click “submit.”
4. Highlight and copy the code.
5. Paste the code on the side bar of your Web site or blog. This displays a form. People type in their email address and receive your RSS feeds in their email.
6. Tell people about it on your blog.
7. Post the story on your 23 Things Kansas blog.

Welcome to Week 4 – PhotoSharing! We are Royce Kitts and Patti Butcher. We’re going to have fun this week – we hope you will too! Please ask questions and we’ll do our best to guide you along the way.

Introduction

Remember photo albums? How your mom kept everything organized – all your school events, family vacations, long-lost relatives? Well, photo-sharing websites do that-and MORE! You can upload pics, tag, organize, and share with just family and friends, or with the world. If you’re older (like Patti) you recall print photos, giant flash bulbs, “instant” cameras, and 16mm film. If you’re younger (like Royce) you are more familiar with digital photos and video, and online sharing.

In this week’s module we are going to focus on Flickr, but the basics of photosharing will be the same regardless of which tool you choose. To get started, click on the triangle in the middle of the video below to watch a short explanation about PhotoSharing from Common Craft.

Sharing/ Productivity/ Community

Individuals and institutions (like libraries!) share their photos for different reasons: to keep family members updated, to encourage interest in their library, so their photos are backed up, or because they enjoy getting comments on their photography.

For 23 Things, your photosharing project provides experience with digital photos, uploading, tagging, organizing – and an opportunity to create an account for your personal use OR an account for your library.

PhotoSharing Tools

All of these products work in much the same way – some offer more tools and options than others. If you already have an account with one of these photosharing sites, feel free to use your existing account for your project.

If you don’t have an account, we recommend Flickr to get started. Royce and Patti use several of these for different purposes. Your cell phone account may already be “connected” to one of these tools; you might check to see what options there are if you have a camera phone. We don’t want this to be too complicated!

Flickr – part of Yahoo! One of the largest and most popular photo sharing sites, you can tag your photos, comment on the photos of others, search by tag or user, create (or use) RSS feeds, download images in multiple sizes, form sets, establish groups for sharing among colleagues, use geotags (location information), and much more. Many other web-based applications have been developed for Flickr.

Picasa - from Google. Upload and manage your photos. Public albums are searchable through Google image searching.

Snapfish – from HP. Photo storage with the ability to organize, edit, and add borders, tints and other creative touches. with the additional ability to create “group rooms” where staff can add photos to one collection.

Shutterfly – In addition to being able to pick up your prints at your local Target, shutterfly offers an online community where you can share your work and see projects created by others as well as a blog full of ideas. Includes a section on digital storytelling. Shutterfly Share offers free webpage space and templates for showing and sharing your photos.

Kodak Gallery – Photo storage with the ability to organize, edit, and add borders, tints and other creative touches.

PhotoBucket – Another free site that includes photo editing, album sharing AND creating your own slide show. PhotoBucket is included in the Additional Tools section below if you want to create a slide show.

Instructions

1. Watch our slideshow. Then proceed to the Activity of the Week.

ACTIVITY OF THE WEEK

Now it’s time to choose your project! Option A or Option B:
Option A.
1. Take a good look around Flickr and find an interesting image that you want to blog about. You can explore Flickr photos, search the tags, view various groups, and more without a Flickr account.

2. Use any keyword(s) (baseball, cats, library cats, library signs, Kansas library, whatever…) to find photos with those tags. When you find an interesting image or group, comment on your experience finding images, using Flickr, and anything else related to the exercise. Upload the image to your blog (be sure to credit the photographer). Don’t forget to include a link to the image in the post.

–OR– the more fun option

Option B.
1. Create a Free Account in Flickr (note that Flickr is now part of Yahoo! If you have a Yahoo! account for email or MyYahoo!, log in with that).
2. Then use a digital camera to capture a few pictures of something in your library, or begin to create a “virtual” library tour.
3. Upload these to your new Flickr account and tag at least one of the images with 23 Things Kansas. Be sure to mark the photo public.
4. Add one or more of your images to your blog. You can add the image in one of two ways:

Flickr’s blogging tool (need a Flickr account to see the button) lets you click the Blog This button (right above the picture) and add any public photo on Flickr to your blog. Be sure to give credit to the photographer, if it is not your photo.   *Flickr Blogging FAQ*

Watch HeatherBraum walk you through how to set up this handy little tool on Flickr:

For blogger blogs http://www.screencast.com/users/hbraum/folders/Jing/media/8c2ae685-2960-4bb4-89e5-8dfbcea2bdfc

WordPress blog – Use the Upload/Insert tool above the Tool Bar, choose the Image icon (square in a square), and follow the steps to locate the file on your computer and insert the image into your post.

5. Once you have the photo uploaded and tagged, create a post in your blog about your photo and Flickr experience. Will you use Flickr for the library or media center, for your personal photos, or in another way?

Spend some time exploring the site and have some Flickr photo fun. Check out the Flickr App Garden. If you’re interested in looking at some other photo hosting and sharing sites, check out the EXAMPLE links below.

Keep in mind that when posting identifiable photos of other people (especially minors) get the person’s permission before posting their photo in a publicly accessible place like Flickr. Never upload pictures to your Flickr account that weren’t taken by you (unless you have the photographer’s consent) and always give credit when you include photos taken by someone else in your blog.

MORE FUN STUFF

Photo Editing Tools

IrfanView

Photo Shop

Picnik

Picasa

Other Tools

PhotoBucket

Animoto – create your own slide show from photos, add text and music, remix, and post.

Creative Commons – Images on Flickr

Flickr Badges

EXAMPLES

SLK Photos (Flickr)

NEKLS Photos (Flickr)

Tonganoxie Public Library Festival of Trees (Flickr)

Library of Congress (Flickr)

In September, the Brooklyn Museum hosted Common Ground 2009: A Flickr Meetup with NYPL and the Brooklyn Museum

Welcome to Week Two! We hope all of you enjoyed creating your blogs as much as we have reading them.

If you still haven’t completed the first lesson and set up your blog yet, you’re not too late! Follow the lesson from week 1, set up your blog, register the website address of it, and you’re still going to be fine. We’re all busy, and the great part about 23 Things Kansas is that the “deadlines” are very loose. Don’t forget to check out the blog listing to discover more people’s blogs to read and comment on.

This week you will be led by two mentors, Janelle Mercer and Heather Braum. Janelle is the Assistant Technology Consultant/Trainer at SWKLS and Heather is the Technology Librarian at NEKLS. If you get stuck please leave a comment at the end of this post by pressing the “comment” link at the top of this post.  Please don’t be shy! One of us, another participant, or a mentor will come to your aid as soon as we can.

Introduction

This week we will focus on Online Communities which have revolutionized how people communicate with one another. Instead of calling all of your friends one-by-one to share some news (remember Telephone Hour in Bye Bye Birdie?) or emailing colleagues one-by-one or on a listserv to ask for help, you can now post a status update and update or ask all of your friends at once. You can share all kinds of information, including links, polls, quizzes, farms, pictures, and videos. There are lots of different Online Communities out there, including Facebook, WebJunction, LinkedIn, Ning, and Classroom 2.0.

The folks at Common Craft have provided a great introduction video to Online Communities and Social Networking, displayed below. It is hosted on YouTube; if you have problems accessing it, please view it directly at the Common Craft Social Networking page.

Helpful Terminology

• Friending/Connecting/Adding: finding people you want to connect with on your network. You ask to be someone’s friend and that person chooses to accept the request or not.
• Status Updates: Where you describe what you’re doing, thinking, reading, feeling, or anything else you want to share with your network.
• Applications: These are from websites outside online communities and add richer experiences to online communities.
• Networks: different groups you join (towns, interests, schools, employers)
• Pages: On Facebook, businesses and organizations create a profile & share events and information.
• News Feed: A listing of your friends information, displayed in a running list. As people update their statuses, play a new game, share new pictures or videos you’ll see that information displayed in your news feed. The information comes to you. You don’t have to go to it.
• Privacy Settings: The settings and preferences that you configure to determine how much information gets shared with others.
• Chat/Messages/Comments: The power of online communities comes in the interaction your friends can have with you and your other friends through chatting, messages (like e-mail), and commenting.
• Wall: The Wall is the center of your profile for adding new things, like photos, videos, notes and other application content. The Publisher at the top of your Wall allows you to update your status and share content through many different kinds of Wall posts. You can also add content to your friends’ Walls by using the Publisher box that appears at the top of their profiles.

Online communities are not without their risks and problems. Privacy is a very real concern to many people as they decide whether or not to join an online community. Facebook, especially, has been in the news lately because of changes in their privacy settings. One of the steps in this week’s lesson is to check out your privacy settings and become aware of what they mean.

Sharing – Productivity – Community

Online Communities help you connect and share with the people in your life, whether they are family, coworkers, or colleagues. Online communities are generally open to everyone and are used for both personal and professional networking. Retired from your library or move away? Through online communities, you can continue to be connected to your colleagues. Also, conference or workshop connections are no longer renewed once or twice a year; locate your conference friends on Facebook and stay in touch throughout the year, even if you’re on opposite sides of the state, the country, or the world.

Online communities also can increase productivity, as people share information, links, and resources. Information is quickly disseminated to you as people connect their online community accounts to their blogs, social bookmarking accounts, and RSS feeds. No longer do you have to search for useful resources. It comes directly to you. You can also ask questions of your online community, and people will respond back with helpful answers. You no longer are an island of one.

As Facebook is one of the largest online communities, we’ll be focusing most of this lesson on Facebook. If you are new to Online Communities, Facebook as a great place to start since it’s so popular and customizable.

Janelle and Heather have provided quick posts about how we each use Facebook. You are welcome to read them if you’d like more ideas/reasons for why we use Facebook. For a little bit more “visual” information on why Facebook, the great folks at Topeka-Shawnee County Public Library have developed a video on Why do Librarians Use Facebook? Thanks David Lee King! Check it out below (it is only hosted on YouTube; let us know in the comments if you can’t view it, and we’ll get creative to help you see it).

Online Communities Choices

What kinds of online community choices are available? Don’t worry, like we have said, you don’t have to belong to all of the Online Communities listed below. It’s all about what is comfortable for you and what you can get out of the communities. Here’s the list of different online communities we recommend you at least be aware of:

• Want to connect with librarians as well as friends and family? Facebook may be the Online Community for you. Check out the 23ThingsKansas Facebook page.
• Are you looking for a place for professional networking? LinkedIn may be what you are looking for. Here is a little bit more information about LinkedIn. The video in the middle of that page is definitely worth watching.
• Interested in connecting with others with similar passions and interests? Ning may be the Online Community for you. While you are there, check out the 23ThingsKansas Ning, the Teacher Librarian Ning, or the Library 2.0 Ning.
• Want to connect with librarians and find professional resources at the same time? WebJunction may be for you. For those in the Kansas library community, the State Library of Kansas has provided free access to most of the WebJunction resources. Kansans, access WebJunction this way. If you are outside of Kansas, please access WebJunction this way.
• Are you interested in Web 2.0 and collaborative technology in education? If so, Classroom 2.0 may be for you.

Instructions

1. Sign up for your Online Community of choice or just use one you already have joined. For those of you new to Online Communities, we again recommend you try Facebook. Here’s a helpful step-by-step guide to setting up your Facebook account the first time. There are more beginning Facebook guides, including instructions for where to update your settings and a brief overview of Friends and Groups. Complete your profile by adding a picture and filling in your profile information. Update February 4: The Facebook Homepage has been redesigned. Here’s an image that is a helpful guide to the changes. Click on the image again to increase the size after bringing it up.
2. Review the privacy settings on your chosen Online Community and make sure the settings meet what you prefer. Check out this guide to privacy on Facebook.
3. Find at least two other participants from the 23ThingsKansas community to connect to on your social network who you have not already “friended” on an Online Community. If you don’t know anyone yet, try finding people’s names that are on the Blog Listing.
4. Explore your online community: write on friends’ walls, share links, update your status, etc.
5. Write a new blog post on your blog reflecting on what you have learned this week, answering these questions:
   
   • What Online Community did you choose? What do you like most about it?
   • How have you used this Community? How do you see yourself using it in the future?
   • Can you see your library using this Online Community? How?
   • Add a link to your blog to your Online Community profile so others can find you.

Bonus Activities (not required)

• Explore Mashable’s Facebook Guide to find out more about Facebook.
• Find a Kansas library (public, school, academic, special) page on Facebook and become a fan. This is a great way to see how libraries are using Facebook to help promote their library.
• Become a fan of 23ThingsKansas on Facebook and/or join the 23ThingsKansas Ning.
• Join a Group on Facebook. Kansas Library Association is one group you should be able to find. See this resource for the difference between a Group and a Page.

Additional Resources

• Facebook Help
• Why do Librarians Use Facebook? (from David Lee King)
• An Updated Guide to Privacy on Facebook
• The Facebook Guide Book (from Mashable)
• Why You’ll ♥ Ning
• Create Your Perfect Ning Network
• Facebook 101 (from Nicole Engard)
• Social Media Revolution video
• Did You Know v4.0 (Shift Happens, September 2009) video
• Protecting Online Reputations in Plain English (video from Common Craft)