This is just a short little update with a link relative to the prior post. I was just talking about Facebook and how useful it is, and now Penn State has added a library application where you can search Penn State Libraries from facebook.
Here is the official news release that talks about the application. And here is the link to the application.
This is a pretty neat idea, of course if you're looking for a book or article, and you're already on campus, it would be kind of out of the way to log into facebook to search. On the other hand, if you're completely addicted to facebook and like to multitask, this is a perfect way to get some research done AND write on a friend's wall.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Chapter 2
I had a plan for this blog, to talk about communication on the internet in kind of an order, but since technology is ever-changing, and even though some things fade out, they are always relevant. Someone, somewhere is chatting in a chat room. So, my main topic for this post is a jump ahead of what I wanted to talk about, but its relevant to me right now.
Facebook.
Facebook is a networking site that is popular among college students. It used to be that only college students or alumni could sign up, but then high schools were able, and now I think everyone can use it. You set up a profile within your school's network. From there you can add friends, create or join groups, create or respond to events and event invites, there are tons of different applications you can put onto your profile page for other fun ways to interact with your facebook friends. Not to mention the message feature, the wall posting feature, and pictures, those are among the most common uses.
Why is that relevant now? Well, I hear other people, as well as myself, referring to facebook all the time. At club meetings, for example, lion ambassadors have a group on facebook and does my publicity committee . Blue and White Society created an Event on facebook to advertise, and there was some time used at the beginning of the meeting to get email addys so that the secretary could "friend" those not on her list already and invite them. Lion Ambassadors use the Event feature to advertise certain events as well.
Personally, I use it to keep in touch with friends, and keep up with my clubs and events, and share pictures. When I first joined I was pretty sure it would sit there mostly unvisited, like my MySpace profile which gets visitors every couple months, of course thats probably about how often I remember to put something in my blog there or put up some pictures. But I actually find myself using it, and not just sitting there playing some of the games or quizzes, but for useful posts on my club groups, or something. Friends from high school, or before that, have contacted me through facebook. Its one of those things that surprised me with how useful it really is.
Face to face communication is still important, although, its probably something that happens less often because of being able to cyber-socially-network with other people within in your college (or other any other network) online. The thing that I find funny about this is that everyone on my friends list is either related, goes to penn state and I have been in a club with them at some point in time, or is someone I went to school with at some point in time. These are people I actually know, and a good majority that I could find on campus if I had a question for them. But its easier for all involved to drop a message on the group wall, the friend's wall or inbox, to ask something. It takes me 5 minutes to do that, and they have the convenience of getting back to me when they log on. Because of class and work schedule (even though I work on campus) it would take me longer to actually track someone down. I think this is true for a lot of people who use facebook, their friends are their roomates, club members, friends from other campuses, other schools, relatives, old friends, people they actually know and not some random person who wants to be added because they "liked your profile" or some other such nonesense that happens on other network/profile type sites like Myspace.
Any facebookers out there? Anti-facebookers?
Facebook.
Facebook is a networking site that is popular among college students. It used to be that only college students or alumni could sign up, but then high schools were able, and now I think everyone can use it. You set up a profile within your school's network. From there you can add friends, create or join groups, create or respond to events and event invites, there are tons of different applications you can put onto your profile page for other fun ways to interact with your facebook friends. Not to mention the message feature, the wall posting feature, and pictures, those are among the most common uses.
Why is that relevant now? Well, I hear other people, as well as myself, referring to facebook all the time. At club meetings, for example, lion ambassadors have a group on facebook and does my publicity committee . Blue and White Society created an Event on facebook to advertise, and there was some time used at the beginning of the meeting to get email addys so that the secretary could "friend" those not on her list already and invite them. Lion Ambassadors use the Event feature to advertise certain events as well.
Personally, I use it to keep in touch with friends, and keep up with my clubs and events, and share pictures. When I first joined I was pretty sure it would sit there mostly unvisited, like my MySpace profile which gets visitors every couple months, of course thats probably about how often I remember to put something in my blog there or put up some pictures. But I actually find myself using it, and not just sitting there playing some of the games or quizzes, but for useful posts on my club groups, or something. Friends from high school, or before that, have contacted me through facebook. Its one of those things that surprised me with how useful it really is.
Face to face communication is still important, although, its probably something that happens less often because of being able to cyber-socially-network with other people within in your college (or other any other network) online. The thing that I find funny about this is that everyone on my friends list is either related, goes to penn state and I have been in a club with them at some point in time, or is someone I went to school with at some point in time. These are people I actually know, and a good majority that I could find on campus if I had a question for them. But its easier for all involved to drop a message on the group wall, the friend's wall or inbox, to ask something. It takes me 5 minutes to do that, and they have the convenience of getting back to me when they log on. Because of class and work schedule (even though I work on campus) it would take me longer to actually track someone down. I think this is true for a lot of people who use facebook, their friends are their roomates, club members, friends from other campuses, other schools, relatives, old friends, people they actually know and not some random person who wants to be added because they "liked your profile" or some other such nonesense that happens on other network/profile type sites like Myspace.
Any facebookers out there? Anti-facebookers?
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Chapter 1
This past week I got a message from a friend of mine that I met in 1994 or so, in one of the chat rooms I use to chat it. This is where I am going to start with how I use the internet to connect with people.
When my family first got on the internet, the first thing I did was look for chat rooms. I had pen pals, the pen and paper kind, but the internet was a new way to talk to people. This is before instant messages were big, chat rooms were the place to go. It was actually a pen pal that told me about Wrestlingman's Chatbox, which was a chat room on a website dedicated to wrestling. The beginning of my being able to chat with people from all over the world (as the group progressed, through different chat sites and chat areas - such as IRC (Internet Relay Chat), we had some people from Austrailia and Korea chatting with us) over a common interest.
This common ground, wrestling, was just the foundation for friendships that have lasted over years. I don't talk to those people every night anymore, we kind of grew apart years ago, but with instant messengers (a topic for another post) and email, I've stayed in touch with a few of the friends I made.
Chat rooms are still popular, even though I haven't been in one in a very long time. Sites like MSN and AOL have them, and a quick google search could find a couple thousand more.
Any chat experience you'd like to talk about?
When my family first got on the internet, the first thing I did was look for chat rooms. I had pen pals, the pen and paper kind, but the internet was a new way to talk to people. This is before instant messages were big, chat rooms were the place to go. It was actually a pen pal that told me about Wrestlingman's Chatbox, which was a chat room on a website dedicated to wrestling. The beginning of my being able to chat with people from all over the world (as the group progressed, through different chat sites and chat areas - such as IRC (Internet Relay Chat), we had some people from Austrailia and Korea chatting with us) over a common interest.
This common ground, wrestling, was just the foundation for friendships that have lasted over years. I don't talk to those people every night anymore, we kind of grew apart years ago, but with instant messengers (a topic for another post) and email, I've stayed in touch with a few of the friends I made.
Chat rooms are still popular, even though I haven't been in one in a very long time. Sites like MSN and AOL have them, and a quick google search could find a couple thousand more.
Any chat experience you'd like to talk about?
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Welcome to the Enchanted Bookshelf
In this first post, I'd like to expand a little on the description of this blog and give a bit more detail about the things I'll be talking about.
The World Wide Web is a huge place, with a bunch of things posted, interlinked together. Making it a great resource for people looking for just about anything OR looking to connect with other people. Blog sites, message boards, interactive websites, all of these things bring people from all over the world together over a common interest.
I am going to start with how I use the internet to connect with people with my interests. I'll be talking about websites related to books, authors and reading, but I'll also be talking about game sites, message board sites, other blogs, and various other ways that the Web helps us find information and connect with others.
I am open to discussion on how others use the Web, blogs, and other websites. I'd love to hear from anyone that stops by to read my rambles. :)
The World Wide Web is a huge place, with a bunch of things posted, interlinked together. Making it a great resource for people looking for just about anything OR looking to connect with other people. Blog sites, message boards, interactive websites, all of these things bring people from all over the world together over a common interest.
I am going to start with how I use the internet to connect with people with my interests. I'll be talking about websites related to books, authors and reading, but I'll also be talking about game sites, message board sites, other blogs, and various other ways that the Web helps us find information and connect with others.
I am open to discussion on how others use the Web, blogs, and other websites. I'd love to hear from anyone that stops by to read my rambles. :)
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