The RSS Experience

I noticed that after you open your feeds, they disappear. That's convenient, so you are only seeing new things, and you don't have to spend time managing each item. Perhaps there's a way to save ones you want to keep -- I'll have to look into that. Its ease of use and speed adds to its appeal. I don't feel I have time for adding new routines, but this one seems like it may be worth the time if I carefully restrict my feeds.

It seems that Bloglines was originally intended to connect you to your friends' blogs, hence the name. It's interesting that this use isn't being talked up as much anymore. Instead, it is being touted for subscribing to RSS Feeds from various websites and organizations.

But it seems passive -- just receiving information. It's not a true 2.0 experience where you would create content for others to see, unless you count publishing your Bloglines site, but that just seems like not the point.

What I want to do with technology

My vision for technology is to be able to totally control whatever technology I'm using. To be able to place a picture in a word document wherever I want. To keep it sharp while enlarging it. To zoom in or out as desired, to crop, to rotate to my heart's content. To have the intuitive insight that unlocks the potential of each technology no matter how poorly designed and difficult it is. To be able to accomplish my tasks efficiently and calmly. In the end, I hope (and fear) that technology might be able to break down the personal isolation that we each experience within ourselves, and finally connect with the outside world in a direct and immediate way as if it were inside us and was us.

Adding a picture from Flickr

copyright free dover graphics
Originally uploaded by k hurst

A chandelier or a visual representation of connectedness?

A tricky thing. I wonder how many ways there are to add a picture from Flickr. It wasn't as though you could just copy/paste. The Help screen in Blogger didn't help because it only covered two situations (pictures from your computer or if you knew the URL). But Flickr has a button that says "Blog this" so I tried that, which then made me get permission from Google to copy the picture. So does that override the copyright issues, if there are any? Anyway, the picture appeared on my blog but in a location that was not very attractive. I realized that since this is public and people may see what you did, you can't be too sloppy. This is just practice, but people are looking! So I selected a different template and it looked better -- all by itself, luckily!

How blogging can be used in libraries

1. Staff updates at each branch. Every morning can begin with a staff update on what's going on that day at the branch.
2. A suggestion box from the public. Downside: library staff would need to respond to every comment.
3. Book discussion groups. Someone could post her feelings about a book, and others could post their reactions to what she posted or add their own thoughts.

Post #1

If I understand something already, I don't take much note of it. This is the case with the 7 1/2 lessons. It all seemed so obvious. I do pay attention to information that propels me forward toward my personal goals. I focus on that information until I have somehow internalized it. When it becomes a part of me, it automatically begins to guide my actions. At that point, I stop focusing on it and begin to forget it, knowing that it will continue to inform me at a subconscious level. Such is the case with the 7 1/2 steps, so remembering them becomes the challenge.