Completion!

This has been a great series of exercises. They've been very useful in my work with customers here at Sno-Isle and in my career development. I got a late start because I was scheduled for a medical leave right at the launch of the project. When I got back to work, I was already behind. Because of that, I can't say I looked forward to every moment of the project, but it has been worthwhile.

One of the hardest parts of the project for me was just getting to publish my blog initially. When I finally got past the Google filters, it worked OK. I'm glad to know that it really isn't difficult to launch a blog, and I think I might use one for some of the volunteer work I do. Other favorite discoveries: Pandora and streaming music, streaming video, and Google Earth. I told several friends about these. I thought that using Flickr was great fun, but I don't think I'm likely to post to it myself. Of course I had heard of delicious before but wasn't really convinced of its value. I do plan to use it outside of these exercises, and I think it will be helpful both personally and professionally. I had some difficulty with the OverDrive downloads, so now I can feel our customers' pain, and, I hope, help them troubleshoot to make it work for them.

Yes, I would choose to participate in Sno-Isle's next technology initiative--I want to be ready for Web 3.0, if it's not already here! Thanks for this opportunity to learn and grow.

Podcasting

I listened to podcasts recommended through Learn Out Loud, including career advice from Seth Godin and Liz Cornish. I thought these were very professionally presented and useful. I also listened to an OPAL (Online Programming for Libraries) podcast featuring Meredith Farkas. The OPAL podcasts were recommended by a fellow Sno-Isle staff member. I listened to several of Nancy Keane's "Booktalks Quick and Simple" and found that her model of very brief talks inspired me to offer more talks of my own. Finally, I listened to some of the Killer Innovation podcasts by Phil McKinney. I believe that listening to podcasts is one way to promote my own lifelong learning goals, and I would recommend podcast subscriptions to some of our more tech-savvy customers as well.

Sno-Isle is already offering podcasts to our customers. An example is the children's stories recorded by staff and available through the kids' website. I'm sure there would be an audience for podcasting some of our adult programming too--book discussion groups, author appearances, practical seminars on gardening, children's nutrition, home organization, and similar topics. Brief booktalks similar to the ones presented by Nancy Keane would also fill a great niche in our readers' advisory services. I'm glad I could explore this area and will look for additional ways to apply podcasts to my work life.