Join me on the Milltown Public Schools ning

Sorry to disappoint, but I'm only inviting you all to take a peek, not "join".
I created this project, which I hope will take our two schools by storm, to be a private site for Milltown teachers and aides and I guess administrators. I hope it will allow teachers to view and explore some web2.0 tools while learning more about educational topics
Iif you would like to visit, you can use my fake name/id that I used to create a second account for the how-to video. Sign in with the name bwscils and the password bwscils.
You will see that a ning site is basically a social networking site for a specific interest. Like a google or yahoo group, but on a pretty website on which you can throw a lot of tricks .
The site: milltownps.ning.com
also check out the school library blog that I just created:parkviewlibrary.blogspot.com
Click the links to see my school library site I made for multimedia.

Well, that's all, folks!
This email will self destruct in five, four, three, two

Youch! Mixed TV metaphors. Sorry about that Chief.
Can you tell I'm a little giddy to have finished the project?

Video Games Live concert from YouTube

Just in time for our game class this video shows what I spent about 10 years of my life doing.
And bravo Steven Berlin Johnson! The chapter on games from your book Everything Bad Is Good For You is great.

Click here to see this video on the YouTube page.

DailyStrength.org

Just to let you all know that social networking has spread beyond the library and education realms, my friend has told me about a site that she has really become excited about. From their own welcome message:

DailyStrength.org is the largest, most comprehensive health network of people sharing their advice, treatment experiences, and support. Keep a wellness journal, read members’ stories, and chat with new friends. Come in and explore!

Users can join any of 500 different groups that offer mutual support for different illnesses and conditions. Members send each other cute animated hugs and virtual bouquets. Dealing with an illness or a serious diagnosis is hard, and ignorance of the condition is frightening. Support groups have always been a way to improve patients mood, attitude, and even health, but are usually only held about once a month.
Yes, Internet discussion lists have been around for more than 10 years, but check out this site. it is a more integrated, easy to use and spiffy looking Web2.o application.

Social Networking on myspace.com

We used our lab tonight to create and join yahoo and google groups, and to create our own myspace account, since it is a new thing that some libraries are getting into. (trying to meet the teen users in the place where they will be)

If you want to discuss libraries in Web2.0, and have any suggestions of using new technologies in libraries or schools, leave a comment here on on my MySpace.

Jacob's big break on youtube

click here if the above link doesn't work.

You may want to learn this!

Watch my son Jacob teach how to tie a sheet bend

Click To Play

Posting the Tehya video from Blip.tv

Click To Play

Clicking the picture or the link will play the video of my young great-niece. If that doesn't work, you should be able to right click and download the file to play it.
Right Click to Save

Meet my great- niece Tehya

or click here

Click To Play

Right Click to Save

Le Sites de Paris

Make an origami wallet

This is the video I made for our multimedia class. If you look quick, you can see my dog Pepper.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXaiX70hZCo

Social Networking

Next week our class will be discussing and exploring social networks. Having three kids in the high school to college age range, I am a witness to the use of these sites (myspace and facebook) rather than a user. I do have a xanga account(that I don't update often), but to me its more like a straight blog than a social network. Everyone else in the family migrated to the other sites, and they told me that I'm too old to be there. I can respect their wishes for- can you call it privacy?
Xanga was great when we were all active, though, so I can see why the kids all like being in a social network. It made me feel more connected to all of my nieces and nephews, and I could send them little messages of love or congratulations by responding to their posts. When they bragged about drinking, or loving songs with explicit lyrics, the elders among us would offer some gentle advice. Teens never appreciate that advice, and since their friends were all getting new myspace accounts, they stopped posting in xanga.
There's an interesting young researcher, Danah Boyd, who has been studying teens' use of social network sites, and my real reason for this whole blog post is to recommend that you check out her website, blog and presentations.

Pine tree shadows on SCILS building
Originally uploaded by bwscils598s07

SCILS from College Ave.
Originally uploaded by bwscils598s07

Scenes from SCILS

Last night we took a few minutes to shoot some photos around SCILS, so we could get practice using all the features of flickr.com. The students in our class formed a "group" within flickr, and we posted some of our favorite shots here. (group scils598s07-scils snaps)
Within my own flickr collection, I used the organize tools to create a set of my own SCILS pictures.
If you want to use flickr for free, you cannot upload more than 100MB of images per calendar month, have more than three sets of photos, nor display more than 200 images at any time. The Pro account costs $24.95, but allows unlilimited uploads, photos displayed, and sets. My son Tom has the pro account, and it has helped him develop his talents as a photographer and a blogging journalist