Recently in LSTA Category
I've been reporting on the status of the 'Casting @ OWLS grant, "Enhancing Library Services via Podcasts, Screencasts, and Vodcasts," for some time now. But I'm really excited about this post, because I can now tell you that the 'Casting Kit is ready to circulate to your library!
You can see what equipment is available, check our online calendar to see what's available when, then reserve the equipment you'd like to try out via our online form. All of this information is available on the new 'Casting Kit page on OWLSweb. (Thanks much to Evan for designing the calendar and reservation forms!!!)
I also have a few Come & Play dates set up for you to come and try out the equipment at OWLS. Check the Computer Lab Classes page for dates and times. These sessions will take place in The Nest at OWLS rather than in the APL computer lab. I hope you'll sign up, as these sessions will not only let you play with help on hand - we'll also take a look at some great examples of what libraries have done with 'casting out there in Libraryland. If you can't come to a session, I'm happy to do one-on-one training with you for specific projects, as needed.
If you have any questions about the 'Casting Kit, classes, or anything else related to this grant, please don't hesitate to contact me!
> contributed by Beth
You can see what equipment is available, check our online calendar to see what's available when, then reserve the equipment you'd like to try out via our online form. All of this information is available on the new 'Casting Kit page on OWLSweb. (Thanks much to Evan for designing the calendar and reservation forms!!!)
I also have a few Come & Play dates set up for you to come and try out the equipment at OWLS. Check the Computer Lab Classes page for dates and times. These sessions will take place in The Nest at OWLS rather than in the APL computer lab. I hope you'll sign up, as these sessions will not only let you play with help on hand - we'll also take a look at some great examples of what libraries have done with 'casting out there in Libraryland. If you can't come to a session, I'm happy to do one-on-one training with you for specific projects, as needed.
If you have any questions about the 'Casting Kit, classes, or anything else related to this grant, please don't hesitate to contact me!
> contributed by Beth
The OWLS LSTA grant project "Enhancing Library Services via Podcasts, Screencasts, and Vodcasts" is coming right along! I continue to post progress on the 'Casting @ OWLS blog, along with links to resources I'm finding along the way.
Some of the projects completed so far include the CCBC workshops and InfoSoup screencasts, but even more exciting than those are member library projects that are starting to be completed. I had the honor of attending a poster unveiling at the Muehl Public Library in Seymour last week (good job, Elizabeth!), and we'll be putting together a video of the presentation and interviews with the poster models (stay tuned!). In addition, Elizabeth Eisen tried out our portable voice recorder to create an mp3 of Lesley Kagen's recent author visit to the Appleton Public Library (good job to another Elizabeth!). You can listen to that on their website. All of the projects that result from the LSTA grant will be linked to from the Results page on the 'casting blog, so check there for future updates.
I'm hoping to complete the instructional materials for all of the equipment in August, along with a reservation calendar so you can reserve the equipment and try it out at your library. If you have any questions about the grant or the equipment and software available, please contact me. I'd also love to hear from anyone with ideas for projects we could do for your library!
> contributed by Beth
Some of the projects completed so far include the CCBC workshops and InfoSoup screencasts, but even more exciting than those are member library projects that are starting to be completed. I had the honor of attending a poster unveiling at the Muehl Public Library in Seymour last week (good job, Elizabeth!), and we'll be putting together a video of the presentation and interviews with the poster models (stay tuned!). In addition, Elizabeth Eisen tried out our portable voice recorder to create an mp3 of Lesley Kagen's recent author visit to the Appleton Public Library (good job to another Elizabeth!). You can listen to that on their website. All of the projects that result from the LSTA grant will be linked to from the Results page on the 'casting blog, so check there for future updates.
I'm hoping to complete the instructional materials for all of the equipment in August, along with a reservation calendar so you can reserve the equipment and try it out at your library. If you have any questions about the grant or the equipment and software available, please contact me. I'd also love to hear from anyone with ideas for projects we could do for your library!
> contributed by Beth
Laura Milligan has posted links to 100 Awesome YouTube Vids for Librarians at Accredited Degrees. Here's the intro to the post:
The list includes inspiring and hillarious examples - do they get you thinking about what your library could do with the 'casting equipment available through OWLS? I hope so!
> contributed by Beth (spotted on LibrarianInBlack.net)
Librarians should no longer be thought of as fuddy duddy types with long dusty cardigans or pince-nez dangling around their necks. These days, public librarians and academic librarians are on the cutting edge, dedicated to bringing their resources and their patrons into the 21st century with technology. Librarians are also bloggers, IT professionals, database managers, technology mavens; and these YouTube videos and tutorials are just for them. Watch these vodcasts and recordings to learn about new library tools, interesting literacy campaigns and outreach programs, and even hysterical videos about library stereotypes that are circulating on the Internet.
The list includes inspiring and hillarious examples - do they get you thinking about what your library could do with the 'casting equipment available through OWLS? I hope so!
> contributed by Beth (spotted on LibrarianInBlack.net)
Part of the 2008 OWLS LSTA grant, Enhancing Library Services via Podcasts, Screencasts, and Vodcasts, includes the creation of "online instructional materials for patrons on the use of InfoSoup, its patron features, and online databases and research tools." I'm happy to report that we have posted our first 3 screencasts on blip.tv, and they have collectively been viewed over 120 times in just one week! The screencasts have also been highlighted on the InfoSoup homepage and in What's Simmering, the InfoSoup blog.
If you haven't had a chance yet, take a look at the screencasts we have so far:
I'm planning on creating more on several different topics, including Saved Searches and Reading History.
Keep in mind that any of the screencasts can be embedded in your web sites to highlight help available to your patrons. If you'd like help doing that, please contact Evan.
If you have comments or constructive criticism about the screencasts or ideas for additional InfoSoup help we could provide, please post your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!
> contributed by Beth
If you haven't had a chance yet, take a look at the screencasts we have so far:
I'm planning on creating more on several different topics, including Saved Searches and Reading History.
Keep in mind that any of the screencasts can be embedded in your web sites to highlight help available to your patrons. If you'd like help doing that, please contact Evan.
If you have comments or constructive criticism about the screencasts or ideas for additional InfoSoup help we could provide, please post your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!
> contributed by Beth
So far I have had two calls from patrons having problems with popup
blockers. They followed the instructions for turning off the Internet
Explorer popup blocker, but still had a Google toolbar popup blocker on.
I have added information about this on the TELL ME MORE page and have created a page
showing how to disable popups in the Google toolbar. Other toolbars
also have popup blockers, but Google is probably the most popular one.
Please feel free to have patrons call or email me if they need help
getting started with the program. So far we have had very few problems
reported. Thanks!
> contributed by Evan
> contributed by Evan
Try out our new online language learning program, TELL ME MORE! This comprehensive program is suitable for both beginning and advanced language learners and includes Spanish, English, French, German, Italian, and Dutch courses for every day language and business language. Go to the TELL ME MORE page on InfoSoup for more information on how to get started, and contact me if you have any questions.
>> contributed by Evan
We had our first training session last week for the Online language
program TELL ME MORE. The program is available for staff to use. We
are waiting for a Vista compatibility upgrade (due out this month we
are told) before launching the program for the public. Before giving it
a try please read the getting started information on the TELL ME MORE
page. For now, where it says Windows Operating System (any version) please
read any version but Vista. If you have any questions about getting
started or using the program please contact Holly or Evan. We hope to
to go live on InfoSoup later this month. Until then, adiós, tot ziens,
arrivederci, wiedersehen, au revoir.
>> contributed by Evan
>> contributed by Evan
I've been busy working on our "Enhancing Library Services via Podcasts, Screencasts, and Vodcasts" LSTA grant this week. I decided to start a blog to track the progress that I make, so I don't have to reconstruct everything I've done for the 6-month and year-end grant reports. It will be a nice resource to point grant reviewers to, and I also needed a place to collect all of the information I'll be gathering to support the use of the 'Casting Kit once it's ready to go. In addition, I thought it might come in handy for other systems who might like to provide a similar service to their libraries in the future. So anyway, if you're interested in what's going on with this grant, feel free to visit the new blog 'Casting @ OWLS and let me know if you have any questions. I'll continue to post new info there as I work on the project.
Do you have ideas for podcasts, screencasts, or vodcasts your library might like to produce? Share your ideas or questions in the comments.
>> contributed by Beth
