Pot Luck #55: Getting the Most Out of Facebook

I have had a Facebook account for years. Mostly, I have preferred it to the competition. At this time, I use it stay connected with friends that live all around the world. I can easily say the majority of people I know use Facebook.

I am in a few networks, including Harris County Public Library. This links me to coworkers past and present. Also, I'm in a couple of alumni networks and I can easily connect to others.

Several of my friends on Facebook are people I knew from childhood. If not for such social networking, I would have no clue about some of these folks. Also, the "People you may know" tool shows me friends of friends and people I might remember from college.

I try to be careful with the applications. I certainly like the "Flair Board" as it allows me to put virtual buttons representing favorite TV shows, art, schools, etc. The genealogist in me loves the MyHeritage Application. I can proudly show my roots here. . . lol.

PS: If you're on Facebook, look me up!

Sound: #26: Making (or listening to) Music Together

I looked at the music networking sites. Since all I could play very well was the radio, I was impressed with the melodious sounds I could make with JamStudio. I truly enjoyed all the instrumentations I could put into a piece. Lately, I've liked guitar music best. So, I played with the sounds of the acoustic guitar. I even recommended this to my friend's much more music savvy son. Bottom line, JamStudio was free and fun!

Sound: #25: Am I a music pirate? It's hard to know...

Now, I have burned a song onto a CD. Actually, it was a whole CD. One of my friends wanted a CD with a "Fire" theme. So, I went online and found numerous songs such as "Light my fire," "Fire," "Ring of Fire," etc. I downloaded the music to my computer from Yahoo and then I put the music onto the CD. Other than the amount of time it took and the fact you can only burn 7 Yahoo Music songs to a CD, I found the process quite simple. I like the ability to download songs which I picked instead of having to take everything on an expensive CD. After all, it's quite unusual for me to like everything on one CD.

I love music. While I can't play much more than the radio, I spend a lot of time listening and trying to find songs I like. I still use CDs and I enjoy the ones I make more often than those that are done by one artist. In that sense, iPods or MP3s are more cost effective. Maybe I'll get something more than a CD player. I do believe musicians deserve some money, I think the prices of CDs are ridiculous. I believe a $1/song is reasonable but I can sympathize with musicians trying to sell a whole album. In the end, it's a tough decision.

Sound: #24: The sound of music!

I have used Yahoo Music to download songs. Between my home computer and this program, I felt it took an extraordinary length of time to do anything with it. Still, it did save me a trip to the store and the price wasn't too bad ($0.79 a song). Still, since it takes so long for me, at least, to work with it, I don't really enjoy downloading music from this site. Many of my friends love iTunes, though. Songs cost $0.99 with iTunes.

Using Download.com, I went about finding a song I would enjoy. I borrowed one of my branch's MP3 players. I wouldn't say I found the downloading especially fun but it was good to learn how to do it. I would've appreciated more musical variety yet I liked the price. After all, being able to carry your music with you is very nice.

I am quite fond of online radio. One of my classmates from grad school first told me about Pandora. It's a free "radio" in which the user creates. Say, if I'm a big fan of Stevie Wonder (which I am), then I can go to Pandora and type in Stevie Wonder. Pandora will retrieve and play a Stevie Wonder song. Next, Pandora finds artists who sound similar to Stevie Wonder. This introduces me to artists which I might like. When my classmate mentioned it, he said it was a "music genome" project. Pretty awesome, huh?

A friend and former coworker told me about Project Playlist. Free of charge, a user can create an account and build a list of songs he/she likes. Now, a user can put up to 100 songs on one list. Then, the user can post a working music player to a blog or profile easily. I truly like Project Playlist because I can go to a place where I've posted my play list and listen to my music. In fact, I have the beginnings of a play list at the bottom of the Brownie Points blog. Look for the green player.

Of local stations, I really do like 103.7 Jack FM. This station "Plays What We Want." So, one minute, they play 1960s surfer music, next it's 1980s rock, then it's blues. It is not repetitive, either. Jack has a free online station. At this moment, they're following up Stevie Ray Vaughan with Steve Miller Band. Before Jack, I listened to 107.5 K-Hits a lot. Their station has free online access, too.

Games and Gaming #38: Console Gaming

I visited the "nostalgic" game site and signed up for a free account. Then, I played Pacman. It amused me because my dad was awesome at playing this game. As a child, I had the old-school Nintendo (gray box, red letters saying "NES"). Mom and I bought the Nintendo version of Pacman. Dad said it wasn't the same without the joystick. Then, we bought a joystick for him. So, the online version of Pacman left me wondering, "How much would my dad enjoy this without the joystick?" Yet, I found it simple. It was like riding the proverbial bike. I already knew to avoid the ghosts and to eat the crums and fruit to stay alive. While I drew on my memory to play, I think it would still take very little for a player new to game to have fun with it.

Talking with one of my coworkers, I think the Wii system is awesome. Many of us at our library branch have been talking about the Wii aerobics. While I haven't tried it . . . yet, I find it fascinating. However, the Wii would be a great draw to the library. It is not sedentary and I think that is very important. I have done some stuff with the DDR and I have liked it. I do believe, though, a Wii would address more than physical coordination. Thus, the Wii receives my vote.

Games and Gaming #37: Get Your Game On @ The Library

I read the New York Times article: "Taking Play Seriously at the Public Library With Young Video Gamers." When I was in school, teachers would often set up review sessions in the form of "Jeopardy." Games can help players develop strategies and reinforce knowledge and memory.

Having worked in libraries for a few years during the twenty-first century, I've seen that game playing in libraries is inevitable. Also, many libraries have in-house use board games. Online gaming isn't much of a leap from this. If offering games systems such as Wii and DDR will better orient the public with its very own libraries, then I'm all for it. However, some things still must be determined. Otherwise, why not?

I tried my hand at Carnegie Mellon University Libraries' library-related games. I tested both the "Within Range" and "I'll Get It." I found both of these games to be realistic and easy. While I understand why "Within Range" (the place the books in collection code order) used Library of Congress, a version implementing Dewey would have been great. The "I'll Get It" game where a library worker pulls books to fill customers' requests was very realistic.

Library professionals can really do a lot with games. Already teachers understand how much students benefit from review games. Imagine how much this can assist library users in life? Games will grow along with their users.

Games and Gaming #36: The Wide World of Online Role Playing Games

As requested, I gave Runescape a try. After I created the character BrowniePts, I learned how to move around, chop wood, build fires, and cook. This was pretty simple for me. The screen shot here shows me asking Master Chef, Lev (as in levened?) how to bake bread. At the bottom is a close up of BrowniePts' face. The figure in green talking to the guy sporting the chef's hat is a full shot of BrowniePts. She's wearing a skirt and blouse and sensible shoes. BrowniePts wears green, my favorite color. Like me, she asks questions until she understands what she needs to do. Eventually, BrowniePts learns not to burn the shrimp. It's a good thing BrowniePts likes shrimp!