InfoLINKS from the Plano Public Library

GoodReads.com: Social Media for Book Lovers

bibliosk8 — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 16:43:03 +0000

With social media being all the rage these days, it was only a matter of time before someone created a social media site for us literary types.

While it is easy to share reviews of books and keep up with your reading on Amazon.com, that site can give you a case of information overload. Sure, you can review your book, but do you want to see advertisements for a toaster or a new camcorder while you’re at it?

GoodReads.com has created a social networking site aimed at readers.

Before I get into this, let me state right up front that yes, there is an e-commerce component to Goodreads.com. You can buy books through them. So I’m not advocating that you buy your books here. I’d suggest that you get your books through Plano Public Library (or your local library — give ‘em your support and love!).

OK — GoodReads.com is kind of a Facebook for book lovers. It allows you to create find books, put them on your reading list, mark them “reading now”, or mark them as “read”. You can also post reviews.

Like other social media, Goodreads.com allows you to “friend” other readers, and includes the ability to search your own email contact lists for folks already on the site.

To give you a quick idea, here’s my profile.

The site can connect to your Facebook account, so your Goodreads updates show up there.

It also includes Groups, for readers with similar interests, and lots of other cool functions.

Check it out.

Turmoil in the Middle East

kakmet — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 19:21:45 +0000

The following Internet resources have been gathered to provide information about the latest developments in the Middle East. Find out more about the Egyptian Revolution and the uprisings in Libya, Algeria, Iran, Yemen, Bahrain, and Iraq.

News & Analysis

Aljazeera
International news network covering Arabic news and current events.

Associated Press
Reliable and unbiased global newsgathering network.

Hoover Institution – Middle East articles
Direct link to articles from Hoover Institution fellows on current events in the Middle East.

Ikhwan Web
Official site for the Muslim Brotherhood in English.

IPL2
Blog from the Internet Public Library website about the role social media is playing in the Middle East.

Reuters
International multimedia news agency with articles on current events.

General Region Information

CIA World Factbook – Middle East
General information on countries in the Middle East.

Gale Biography in Context
Plano Public Library database that features biographical information on Middle Eastern leaders including Muammar Qaddafi, Hosni Mubarak, and others.

Government & World Response

United Nations

U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs

The White House

Other Resources

Middle East Studies Internet Resources
List of Internet resources about the Middle East from Columbia University Libraries.

Twitter Tips

bibliosk8 — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 20:38:32 +0000

Over the last few years the micro-blogging service Twitter.com has continued to increase in popularity. TV News shows, politicians, celebrities, corporations, your friends, and yes, public libraries are all using Twitter to communicate with the public.

If you aren’t familiar with Twitter, here is a short blurb from their “About” page:

Twitter is a real-time information network that connects you to the latest information about what you find interesting. Simply find the public streams you find most compelling and follow the conversations.

At the heart of Twitter are small bursts of information called Tweets. Each Tweet is 140 characters in length, but don’t let the small size fool you—you can share a lot with a little space.

For such a simple format, however, there is a lot to know about proper use of Twitter. Various features of the system allow you to tag concepts within your tweets and search for similar tweets, officially “mention” specific Twitter users within a post, respond to other users, block users from your account, etc.

One of the best articles I’ve come across on using Twitter is this one from Red Sweater Blog, Elements of Twitter Style. The author of this blog, Daniel Jalkut, is a Mac developer, and he’s really provided a nice resource for new Twitter users.

If you are more of a visual learner, I’d recommend this excellent video “How to Use Twitter” (see video below). With the limitation on message length, Twitter is particularly suited to use with mobile devices. This video addresses the use of mobile devices, privacy settings, and other operational details. If you think Twitter isn’t that useful, check out this story about this American journalism student who was wrongly arrested in Egypt, and quickly used Twitter to let friends know what had happened.

Happy Tweeting!

Advice for beginning a blog!

bibliosk8 — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 18:52:21 +0000

Welcome to the first post in the our new Tech Tips blog.

What better way to start the new year than to start your own blog?!

For those who are new to the subject, the word “blog” is short for “web log”. A blog is a personal website here you can post pictures, writes articles, opinions, share video clips, or post other information. It can be as personal as a diary, or it can be very subject-specific (like this one).

Blogging is a lot of fun. There are many systems for getting started in blogging, and this video from Fast Company contains some really great advice.

Click the image to watch the video, from Fast Company.

Some of the blogging sytems mentioned in the video are tumblr, posterous, WordPress, squarespace, and typepad.

The Plano Public Library has these helpful books on blogging too, but the best way to start is to sign up on one of the websites above and give it a try. Most of the systems are fairly easy to use, and since they are free there is very little risk!

OK — start blogging!

Thanks for reading! Remember, you can subscribe to this blog and get automatic updates using the RSS Feed link drop down menu, at the top of the right-hand column, which allows you to subscribe via Google Reader and other services. You can also subscribe via email, using the Email Subscription “Sign me up” button, also in the right-hand column.

2010 Holiday Links

bibliosk8 — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 19:55:57 +0000

Here’s a list of fun things to do during the 2010 holiday season!

Thanks to Jayne Gulbrand for the snowman picture! Click to see the full sized image!

Lights of Interlochen, Arlington, TX
Dec. 17 – 25

Dallas Symphony – Christmas Celebration
Dec. 9 – 19
Manheim Steamroller
Dec. 26 – 27

Plano Symphony’s “ Home for the Holidays – Family Traditions”

Texas Ballet Theater – The Nutcracker
November 27 – December 5, 2010 at the Winspear Opera House
December 10 – 24, 2010 at Bass Performance Hall

Tuna Christmas – Eiseman Center
Dec. 28 – Jan. 2

Holiday Trail of Lights
Heard Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary (in McKinney)
Friday, Dec 17; Saturday, Dec 18; Sunday, Dec 19
6:30-9:00PM

Holiday at the Arboretum
Dallas Arboretum
admission charged

Holiday Sing Along
University of Texas at Dallas
December 11, 8pm.

Merry Christmas with Love
Prestonwood Baptist Church
Friday, Dec 17
5:30pm to 8:00pm

Six Flags Holiday in the Park
Holiday themed events at Six Flags. Runs through December.

Grapevine Texas North Pole Express
Children can wear their pajamas and experience holiday fun on the 30 minute train ride.

Winter SolstiCelebration

City of Richardson’s Santa’s Village

Prairie Lights – City of Grand Prairie
Thanksgiving – December 31

Candlelight at Dallas Heritage Village
“Bring the family and experience Dallas holidays from 1840 to 1910.”
Dec. 11 and Dec. 12, 3 pm-9 pm
Tickets:Adults $8.00Children 4-12 $4.00Seniors $6.00

Thanksgiving Links !

bibliosk8 — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 16:15:31 +0000

Here are a few links about everyone’s favorite holiday for eating…Thanksgiving!

Do you have a great Thanksgiving link to share? If you do, please use the “Reply” area below to let Plano know about it!

History of Thanksgiving — on wikipedia.

American as Pumpking Pie: a History of Thanksgiving — a podcast to listen to from BackStory.

Thanksgiving Recipes – from allrecipes.com

Thanksgiving books in our library!

Thanksgiving Square — in Dallas.

Thanksgiving – from History.com

Dallas Morning News story on Thanksgiving dinner charities - where to help or donate.

Dallas YMCA Turkey Trot – Race and Run that benefits YMCA programs that help the YMCA to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities.

Vegetarian Thanksgiving : from about.com

Thanksgiving Host/Hostess Gift Ideas: from kitchendaily.com

Let’s Talk Turkey—A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey

Butterball.com: Tips on cooking and carving.

Voter Information

Plano Librarian — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 22:42:05 +0000

Plano Links

Plano Librarian — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:42:34 +0000

News and Weather

Plano Librarian — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:28:33 +0000

News and Weather

Texas
National
International
Weather

TEXAS

Houston Chronicle: http://www.chron.com/

San Antonio Express-News: http://www.mysanantonio.com/

Texas Monthly: http://www.texasmonthly.com/

Texas Observer: http://texasobserver.org/

NATIONAL

ABCNews.com: http://www.abcnews.com

American Journalism Review’s Newslink : http://newslink.org
Links to over 9,000 newspapers,magazines, broadcasters, and news services worldwide.

CNN: http://www.cnn.com

C-Span: http://www.c-span.org

Chicago Tribune: http://www.chicago.tribune.com

Christian Science Monitor: http://www.csmonitor.com

Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com

Google News: http://news.google.com/nwshp?tab=un&ie=UTF-8&ned=us

Los Angeles Times: http://www.latimes.com

MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.com

National Public Radio: http://www.npr.org

Newspapers on the Web: http://www.newsvoyager.com
Gateway to newspapers and other related organizations’ websites.

Newsweek: http://www.newsweek.com

The Paperboy: http://www.thepaperboy.com
Links to over 2,600 national and international newpapers and live audio news from worldwide news sources.

Reuters News Service: http://today.reuters.com/news/default.aspx

Slate: http://www.slate.com/

Time Magazine: http://www.time.com

US News & World Report: http://www.usnews.com

USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com

Yahoo News: http://news.yahoo.com

Satire

The Onion: http://www.theonion.com/content/index

Other sources:

The Wall Street Journal is available through EBSCOhost.
The New York Times is available through Galenet InfoTrac Newspapers.

INTERNATIONAL

Al Jazeera: http://english.aljazeera.net/HomePage

BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk

BigProject.com: http://www.thebigproject.co.uk/news/
Links to hundreds of international news sources.

China Daily: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/home/index.html

Economist: http://www.economist.com

France Daily: http://www.francedaily.com/

German Times: http://www.germantimes.com/

The Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/

International Herald Tribune: http://www.iht.com/

Japan Times: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/

Jerusalem Post: http://www.jpost.com/

Middle East Times: http://www.metimes.com/
Registration required

Pravda: http://english.pravda.ru/

South America Daily: http://www.southamericadaily.com/

South China Morning Post: http://www.scmp.com/

The Australian: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/

The Hindu: http://www.hinduonnet.com/

The Times & Sunday Times (London): http://www.the-times.co.uk

The Times of India: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

Voice of America: http://www.voanews.com/english/portal.cfm

WEATHER

Dallas/Fort Worth & Texas

Intellicast Forecast for Dallas area: http://www.intellicast.com/Local/USLocalStd.asp?loc=kdfw&seg=LocalWeather&prodgrp=Forecasts&product=Forecast&prodnav=none&pid=none

National Weather Service – Dallas http://www.srh.noaa.gov/data/forecasts/TXZ119.php?warncounty=TXC113&city=Dallas

Texas Weather: http://web2.airmail.net/danb1/texweathe.htm

WFAA Dallas Weather Forecast and Pollen count: http://www.wfaa.com/weather

National and International
National Drought Information: http://www.drought.gov/portal/server.pt
The U.S. Drought Portal was created to provide comprehensive information on emerging and ongoing droughts, and to enhance the nation’s drought preparedness. The site will provide information on past droughts for comparison and to aid in understanding current conditions.

National Weather Service: http://www.nws.noaa.gov

UM Weather: http://cirrus.sprl.umich.edu/wxnet
University of Michigan’s comprehensive source of weather information including thousands of forecasts, images, and the largest collection of Internet weather links.

Unisys Weather/Surface Data: http://weather.unisys.com/surface/index.html

Weather Channel: http://www.weather.com

Weather Underground: http://www.wunderground.com

Learning Express Library

Plano Librarian — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:53:27 +0000

Learn job search and career skills. Practice exams for many careers and college entrance exams. Practice computer skill for Microsoft Office 2007 and 2003.