June, Moon, Spoon....

The full moon has always been a favorite subject of poets, writers and romantics. Read all about it...here.

Until next time...

Live and in person...

I went to a bridal shower today, and one of the bride's sisters had her new iPhone! Her husband stood in line for 7 hours yesterday and bought one for himself and one for her. I offered to phone-sit for her while she goes on vacation this week, but she was not really interested. In fact, I don't think she's put it down the entire time she's had it. I don't know what I would stand in line for 7 hours for.....

Until later...

Both Sides Now

Well, as Joni Mitchell says, "I really don't know clouds, at all." My ZoomCloud appears once again. The only time it actually appears in the specially formatted design and colors I chose is for the first millisecond, then it reverts to the template, which means that part of it is hidden. I did choose a text wrap width, but alas, ... I really don't know clouds...

Rows and floes of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
I've looked at clouds that way

But now they only block the sun
They rain and snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way
I've looked at clouds from both sides now
From up and down, and still somehow
Its cloud illusions I recall
I really don't know clouds at all

Moons and Junes and ferris wheels
The dizzy dancing way you feel
As every fairy tale comes real
I've looked at love that way

But now it's just another show
You leave em laughing when you go
And if you care, don't let them know
Don't give yourself away

I've looked at love from both sides now
From give and take, and still somehow
It's loves' illusions I recall
I really don't know love at all

Tears and fears and feeling proud
To say I love you right out loud
Dreams and schemes and circus crowds
I've looked at life that way

But now old friends are acting strange
They shake their heads, they say I've changed
Well something's lost, but something's gained
In living every day

I've looked at life from both sides now
From win and lose and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all
I've looked at life from both sides now
From up and down, and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all

Well, today is the day of the iPhone. Big day for stockholders.... I say, let them work out the kinks and the price will come down, then maybe, just maybe, I'll consider thinking about buying one.

Meanwhile, my classmate sent me a word document in the new Office Windows, and I am having a challenge downloading the compatibility file...

Until later...

Ahhh, summer...

I thought I had escaped the unbearable heat and humidity, but I guess I would have to move for that to happen. It's here, in all its glory. I'll just make the best of it.

I have a pen pal who lives in Botswana. She is a professor at a technical institute and teaches library information and technology courses to adults. She was working on her PhD. but had to put it on hold for a bit. It is an interesting topic, how cell phones influence the lives of women in Botswana. They have some unique applications; for instance, if a person takes medication on a regular basis, the cell phone can be programmed to remind her. Leonardo's Laptop is not just a dream...

She originally comes from Zimbabwe, but left because of the political turmoil. It is now necessary for her to return to get her mother, and bring her to Gabarone.

It is winter there, now, so I try to think of cooler breezes...

Until later,

Virtual Bookshelf...

Here is my virtual bookshelf on Koha.

However... I really do think you have to be logged into Koha in order to access this.

The Pater...

out there tying up the tomatoes in their cages. He is moving pretty well for a guy who had a pacemaker installed less than two weeks ago. The tomatoes are doing great, too. They seem to enjoy growing wherever they please... so we have to train them a bit. Can't wait for the fresh, juicy fruit of the vine.

Later....

Those clouds...

It seems as though ZoomClouds will not make clouds on my computer. The air is just too clear. Don't be deceived by the one you see on my blog, it doesn't look anything like the one it makes in Del.icio.us. Ahhh, technology... sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Ta ta...

Tragedy it seems....

is not being confused about your assignments, it is picking out a coffin for your 15 year old son. This week we had a fatal accident in our area, and two of my former students died in an automobile accident probably caused by another former student playing "switch lanes" on the bypass. He veered to the right, causing his minivan to force another car off of the road into an embankment, rolling three times. One girl was killed immediately, one boy was on life support until yesterday. Now the family is down the street at the funeral home making arrangements.

How I wish we would care more about them when they are desperately crying out for attention, giving them the discipline, love, and guidelines they crave, instead of feeding them more toys, violent television, and "student rights" within a school system.

It seems to happen in our school district every summer, useless death and tragedy. Who has learned a lesson from this...? It is bound to happen again.

I digress from 2600...

Ta,

Technology 301

Well, I told my kids I'd be dancing around them with this technology course, and now my husband calls me the "Digital Goddess." Cool. Yes, we have the Skype and we have the Logitech camera to go with it, and our daughter has been calling us from Germany via Skype. She is with a family who has a computer, and Skype, and now, guess what?... the same Logitech camera we have, so... today we got to meet the parents. Their son stayed with us in March, so we knew him, but today was parent introduction day.

So, I have the Koha finished, have accounts on Grazr and ZoomClouds, and am now waiting for the muse to tell me what to do with them. All in good time....

The garden is doing great, lots of sun and lots of rain. Speaking of rain, we had a lightening storm last night and I kept leaving and returning the chat, I felt like I had a revolving door because I got disconnected so often. Yes, technology is amazing... when it works.

Have a great day...

Happy Father's Day

This is a first. My husband is having father's day with no children, they are both away. So, we spent some time with my dad, who was weeding the garden, along with my sister, who was helping.

Earlier today I listened to Jimmy Wales talk about Wikipedia. I had no idea there was WikiQuotes, WikiDictionary, WikiNews, and WikiMediaCommons. The entire operation is just amazing, and just in time for this information explosion, because it is far more than a revolution. Change is upon us minute by minute and one better get on the moving train, or stay away from the third rail.

Have your passport ready, you can go anywhere....

Earth Science Search Engine

Here is my Google Search Engine:

http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=009158893661350690435%3Aj8p0k-chivu&hl=en

I really enjoy Earth Science, so that is what it is about.

Everything is Miscellaneous

Well, I sure enjoyed David Weinberger's assessment of digital information. His way of looking at sorting sheds new light on household tasks and computer searches. Silverware is sorted in the silverware drawer as it is stored away according to type. Don't look for a spoon with the forks, it just won't be there. Never mind that you can eat pie ala mode with either a spoon or a fork, you won't find the two mixed up in the drawer. Not so with digital information. The more places you can find it, the better.

I also like his comparison of a clothing store. Just try putting everything that is your size into your cart, then deciding if you want to try it on or not. Rodeo drive, here I come....

OK, I finally weeded the garden, but only for about 15 minutes. Then my arms and my patience gave way and I said, "I shall return..."

Dad is doing great with his new electronic device.

Our daughter is in Munich for the next three weeks, our son is leaving for the Florida Keys for a sailing venture.... it is good to miss them and enjoy the quiet.

Other Technology

Speaking of technology, my Dad had a pacemaker inserted this morning. I was there with him in recovery, and he looked great, actually much better than he has been looking lately. Well, if your heart wasn't pumping enough blood to oxygenate your cells, you would be tired all of the time too. So, hopefully he will be up and about and weeding that garden soon.

No, I didn't take my laptop to the hospital.... I could barely get a cell phone signal, let alone wireless internet.

Until tomorrow...

Anyone Need a Ride?

I just finished watching Ricardo Baeza-Yates in his discussion entitled "Social Media or The Impact of Us." He wows us with some astonishing statistics, such as over 4 billion web pages are viewed each day. The most visited pages are 1. Yahoo 2. Google 3. Microsoft. We have progressed from using the web for searching, discovering, & learning, to staying in touch, and needing my data NOW. It has gone from "The Web," to "My Web," to "Our Web," and is indeed making an impact on our society and how we connect.

I was intrigued by the fact that the most valuable questions are not serviceable on the web. Decades ago, when I was in college, I used to think it would be helpful to find and provide car rides for people going home for weekends and vacations. My invention (never patented, mind you) was to have a central place to telephone to register the fact that you are going in a certain direction and could provide a ride, or register that you needed a ride.

We have come a long way since then, we have blogs, info hotlines, and virtual bulletin boards for posting this data. But, you still cannot pose this question to a search engine, "Does anyone need a ride to Pittsburgh this weekend?" Just as you cannot ask it, "What is the best Indian restaurant in West London?" Ricardo's example was "Where can I go on holiday for a week that costs 1,000 Euros?"

Hence, he postulates that Web 3.0 will replace Web 2.0, and empower us to find answers to life's persistent questions.

Technology issues have been resolved and I downloaded all of my Foxfire extensions all over again.

The garden is doing well, and desperately needs to be weeded. Any volunteers???

TTFN...

First Technical Frustration...

Today I experienced a major technical frustration. As I was downloading ENW, ready to restart Firefox, it would not start. We tried everything.... we are still working on this.

I finally received my textbook for LIS 2600. One thing at a time...

Later...

Kellog's Cracklin' Oat Bran Cereal

Part 2 of Marc Smith's interview on Social Networking is again, loaded with the implications of our digital age.

Not only will your palm pilot and cell phone be able to tell you more about the people you have walked by, interacted with, and spent time in the same room as, it will share information with you. Just by adding a lense to your cell phone, it will be able to give you more information about a book or label on a product than you can get by reading it.

His example is his favorite Kellog's cereal. When he scanned the bar code with his cell phone in a nearby grocery store, he discovered that the cereal had been recalled, and should not be on the shelf. The reason? The ingredients label neglected to include milk, eggs, and almonds, poisen to anyone allergic to them.

I was also struck by his observation that over 90% of undergraduates in this country have a FaceBook or MySpace account, sharing with anyone at all, their most personal secrets. If we were required, by law, to share this information, we would protest, yet millions of Americans willingly create space that "tells all." What does this say about protecting privacy?

He identifies these blogs as "a new form of clothing" telling more than one could fit on a T-shirt.

Ahhh, life in the information age, it just keeps getting more and more interesting.

Now for your favorite part of this blog, the garden. Well, the rabbits obviously didn't get enough clover from the yard, so they ate the parsley in the garden. What next?

Until later...

Playing with the toys...

Well, I had my first conversation over the Skype network. I didn't have my web-cam, she did. It was quite novel, talking into my headset, watching her picture on the screen.

This morning we became the proud new owners of a brand new Logitech QuickCam Ultra Vision HD Special Edition Video Photo Webcam. Whew! Say that 10 times...

The family tried it out, I will do my test run tomorrow.

Regarding the NY Times article "Copyrights That No One Knows About Don’t Help Anyone" .... this poses some interesting questions. For instance, it states that, "a work is automatically copyrighted the moment it is “fixed in tangible form.” Does this mean that digital information is not copyrighted, because it is not tangible, or is it copyrighted because it can be reproduced on paper, and is then tangible?? Hmm, I need to do some research on this one.

I guess you are wondering how the garden is doing. Well, all of the sunshine and rain we have had lately has just been doing amazing things to the artichokes, the vegetation I do not want to do well at this point in time. I have this theory... my dad's name is Arthur, so I am thinking he is secretly starting a business called "Artie's Chokes" and harvesting them to pickle and spice and sell in mass quantities. He just has me there pretending to nurture the tomato plants, the eggplant, and the herbs so the other weeds can be kept at bay. Keep an eye out for this new organic food product at your local co-op. (Also, let me know, because I am completely in the dark on this one.)

More later...