Dinogal’s Weblog

I don’t know why I procrastinated doing this write up.  I jumped right in to the project and I had great fun exploring Google.  I had used some of the special Google features in the past.   I’m addicted to real estate searches in warm climates and I usually hop between the MLS and maps to see how close to the ocean the houses really are situated!  For the purposes of this exercise I looked up the address of my childhood house.  I could not only explore the old neighborhhood remotely, but there was actually a picture of  the house.  (Somewhere along the line a foolish owner chopped down the mountain laurel.)  The day I chose the search news was the day Governor Blagojevich was arrested.  Needless to say there was a multitude of sites available.  I decided later to search  a less prominent event.  There was a small earthquake in SC near where my son is stationed.  The search led to two news videos and hundreds of print reports.  This was a very easy and specific search.  Product searching was entertaining, but there were too many commercial/item sale sites.  I much prefer our traditional library tools for product evaluations.  The book search similarly led to many book sale sites, but happily also included online versions.  I searched for Hilaire Belloc’s Cautionary Tales for Children and happily the University of Virginia’s copy has been digitized.  So when I have a late night yen for some of this delicious poetry I don’t have to wait till the library opens!  There are so many things to explore on Google.  I also recommend a trial of Google Scholar when you are looking for more “sophisticated” results.

I’ve been a fan of wikipedia for some time but I never gave any thought to setting up one myself.  I was also largely unaware of how libraries were incorporating wiki’s into their work.   I have really enjoyed exploring the world of wikis in libraries, though of course it’s a bit depressing to realize the layers of protection and control that need to be employed.   I can see many uses both professional and personal that are ideal for wikis.  My sisters and I are planning a trip early next year and a wiki page will be much easier to use than our traditional chain of phone calls.  I also wish that Wikis were available when I was more involved in planning professional meetings and training sessions.  Coordination would have been much easier.