Technology hype:

There's been a bit of a kerfluffle on one of the library blogs, discussing the problem of hype. The blogger mentioned how sometimes, we get so excited about something new, that others feel it's difficult to voice the problems they have with it.

So here's a hint: Don't get caught up in the hype. Don't be afraid to get excited either. New toys are always worth getting excited about. They make our lives easier, and make us better at what we do (or what we need to be doing). They allow us to do things we never thought of doing, and that makes them exciting. However, not everything is going to work for everyone. Try new things, and if it doesn't work out, put it aside. Don't be afraid to decide that something isn't for you. Don't feel pressured because "everyone else is using it". It isn't worth stressing over.

Librarian Trading Cards

Task 6 - Holy Cow, I'm white & nerdy.

Weird Al Yankovic does it again. Check out his new video, "White and Nerdy".



Comics fan? Check.
Memorized "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"? Check.
Know HTML? Check.
Spend every weekend at the Renaissance Faire? I'm on cast.

...Oh my god. I'm a nerd.

argh.

Rule #1 to running a technology program: Don't misplace the USB drive your files are on. Retyping everything the night before it goes up isn't fun.

PS: I probably left it on somebody's desk. If you find a USB drive floating around, would you please throw it at me?

the "techie" speaks...

Several weeks ago, I got a new position at the library. Since I started work there over a year ago, I've always sort of filled in where the gaps were, doing a little bit of bindery/processing work, YA programming (since I have a saintly amount of patience with kids who are, oh, only about eight years younger than I am...), and anything else that needed doing. Weeding? Yeah, I could do that. Set up the library staff mailing list? I could do that too. But now, I've got a real, honest to bob, job title. I am the technology coordinator.

I described it, jokingly, to people at IL2006 as being the Techie "by default", by virtue of the fact that I am 23, and my coworkers are not. This is true to an extent, because despite the fact that I have never taken a computer science class (something I should probably do something to change) I -am- the person on the staff with the most technological knowledge, and the youngest staff member as well. (Of course, you do not have to be one to be the other.) I can troubleshoot a PC, work a scanner, and most importantly, I know when to say "Hey, I don't know how to do this, we need to call Gary." Gary is our computer-fixing guy, who comes in when we can't figure it out. He's certainly more familiar with things like our network and server than me right now, but I plan to pick his brain mercilessly every chance I get.

However, my library's attitude has been far from anti-tech. I came back with ideas about recreating PLCMC's Learning 2.0 program, and to be honest I worried that it wouldn't take off. I worried that people would be too overwhelmed by the idea of completing 23 unknown tasks to even consider the carrot at the end of the stick. No prize in the world is going to make you participate if you're sure that the program is impossible to complete. (For example: NANOWRIMO. They could offer me a free laptop for winning, and I still probably wouldn't do it.) But then I started talking to the rest of the staff about it. The response so far has been overwhelmingly positive, and I haven't even officially announced the program yet. I look forward to seeing how this pans out, and hopefully I'll be recruiting some more techie librarians soon. :)