Blogging and other tools

Here I am again trying to think about something interesting to blog about and coming up blank. So, I thought I would reflect on blogging itself and technology tools.

I would describe blogging as a way for individuals to share their thoughts and experiences with others. They can be used as a way for someone to deliver and/or receive information to selective individuals or large audiences. In this class, we are required to post a blog every week about something relative to our class and to reply to two other classmates’ blogs. The idea is that we (likely the instructor too) will gain more knowledge by this group sharing. In theory, this is true. Yet, I find the assignment to be tedious. I have wondered if I would find it to be as tedious if we were required to turn in a one page paper every week in place of the blog. I believe I would still find the assignment to be a heavy work load (welcome to grad school) but I am not convinced I would have such difficulties in finding topics to write about. There is no rhyme or reason to it other than the technology aspect of it and my having difficulties adapting to it.

I also had the same feeling about podcasting. While my group was trying to create our podcast, we had major difficulties getting the program to work on the computers. I was at a loss as to why anyone would like this technology. However, once we got the basic recordings finished and began manipulating them I saw the potential they had. Once they were all played during class, I was blown away by what heard from my other classmates’ podcasts. They were amazing. I still cannot see myself creating podcasts in the future, but at least I have a better understanding of the potential they have.

As I was finishing typing this blog I noticed that Blogger automatically saves my work like most Google tools. This is a feature that I have really begun to appreciate, especially in Google Docs. I am fairly new at using Google Docs but have become a fan of the tool. My favorite feature is my ability to access my work from any computer that has internet access; I also really like how it automatically saves your work. This has gotten me to thinking a little bit more about technology and my future usage of it. I would like to think that by my embracing and using a lot of the technology that is out there, and familiarizing myself, at least to some degree, with the common technology used by the rest of the community, that this would be enough. In most professions I believe this would be true; but, is it true for librarians? I wonder if it is actually enough to only familiarize yourself with the technology that your patron’s are using.