Oh, do I love my MP3 player!!!!! I take it with me to excercise at the Wellness Center and can listen to my own music regardless of what someone has on the TV. I took it with when I visited my friend, Norma, out at Assisted Living and she was amazed. She asked how something that small can hold so much. I told her I don't know...but it does. She is 85. Her first car was a Model A...and now technology has literally changed the world.

Some thoughts on State Auditor Mike Foley's criticism of the NE Library Commission's use of public funds for "gaming":

I was angry....no, make that "livid", when I read the Lincoln Journal Star article that Mike Foley criticized the NLC for getting into games like Guitar Hero, Rock Band, etc. He claims that libraries do not need to be involved in those kinds of things....that kids already have and know how to play those games, etc. HE DOESN'T HAVE A CLUE! HE DOESN'T GET IT!!!!!!

I am almost 64 years old and have just learned about all these technology tools in order to better serve our library patrons! We just bought Guitar Hero and other Wii games for our library. We had the Youth Advisory Board come in to open the boxes...and they set it all up! Kids come in to play games on the computers, they want to check out books that give clues for gaming, they check out Electronic Gaming Magazine all the time. While some of these kids have computers and Wii's at home; many do not. Diana and I have to keep up with these kids and learn from them how to use and set up the equipment.

The thing is, the kids are not always there who know how to set up and use this equipment. We need to know more about these games ourselves. I am so glad the NLC has been on top of this brave new world and had workshops, NE Learns 2.0, and other classes to help librarians navigate this mysterious landscape. Our local nursing home had a Wii long before we did!

Libraries today are community centers where people of all ages gather to learn, share, exchange, and collaborate on a wide variety of issues and topics. Programming is essential to our library's good health. We have speakers, movies, displays, book clubs, and now great games for our patrons. And we are planning to use the gaming equipment for all ages....families, senior citizens, as well as the youth of our community.

I was glad to see the Lincoln paper publish a letter from the librarian from the Republican Valley Library System as well as the editorial cartoon. I also appreciated the NLC posting the accusations and the well written response on its website! We need to drag Mike Foley and his staff kicking and screaming into the 21st Century.

OH MY WORD!!!! I now have some of my own music on my MP3 player! I did need some help from my husband....but I was able to put some of my favorite CDs on! Another technology task performed!

YIPPEE!!!!!!!!! Sarah responded and now I know how to "hyper-link"!!!!! I am getting ready for our One Book One NE brown bag lunch tomorrow so downloading music to my MP3 player will have to wait until later in the week. But I continue to be amazed at how much technology I am learning...and able to learn....at my age!!!

If my hyperlink worked...which I think it did....

HELLO SARAH!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please leave a comment on this blog if you connected through the link I sent you.

WhooHoo!!!!!!!! I e-mailed Sarah, my daughter, in NC and hyperlinked this blogsite to her. When I highlighted the URL it came up in purple so I think I was successful!

Thanks to Michael Sauers for teaching me how to do that!

After returning home from the library winter workshop in Norfolk I decided to explore my new MP3 player. I was able to autoscan a few fm stations in....Froggy 98, KZ100, and KLIR. It worked really well here at home...even in the basement. However, today I took it up to Osceola to the Wellness Center and I couldn't get good reception. Now I will "need" to know how to upload and download my own music, etc. for my personal use.

Another note on technology....yesterday Michael Sauers told me how to do hyperlinks...I am going to see if I can do it.

This morning I put the Zen software on my computer. Step #1 accomplished! I plugged in my new MP3 player and started charging it. Went up to the Wellness Center for some exercise, got the mail, ate lunch, read, visited a friend....and later this afternoon my player was all charged and ready to go. Step #2 accomplished! I'm pleased with my progress. The next step involves familiarizing myself with the player, its menu, features, etc. That will probably have to be Saturday because tomorrow I have workshops in Norfolk. So, enough for one day.