#18 Office 2007

I like the new Microsoft 2007 with its new features. A little more practice with the new features will help it make it alot easier and faster to use. Once you are more familiar with the ribbon, the different command buttons and tabs it will take less clicking with the mouse. Excel looks more interesting with colour scales added and will make it better visually to look at the page with all the numbers on it.

#17 Shared Calendars

The New Year is coming and it is a good time to think about making new plans. It is simple to schedule meetings in Microsoft Office Online. Yes, I would use the calendars in future. The shared calendar concept should make life easier.

#16 Best E-mail Practices

Anyone can experience identity theft even famous bears like Winnie the Pooh. One must be extremely careful when opening e-mails, and it is important to check if they are legimate or known sources. Always remember not to surrender valuable private information over the web unnessecarily. I find e-mails that are short and precise are best when communicating information because the main or important points can get lost or missed in longer e-mails. In this exercise, I learned to look for legimate e-mails quickly. I really dislike spam, and the best rule of thumb is not to register your e-mail with any website unless you need to.

All work and no play makes the library staff pretty dull,therefore the NVDPl is the perfect place to explore and play. The Sandbox is a great place to communicate and share all our different interests. It is very simple to add to the list of favourite movies, favourite restaurants , our travels, cute library stories or anarchy on the web. It is a great place to discover & experience the Wonderful Life everyone is enjoying in and outside the library.

#14 Wiki

The pro and cons of wikis are interesting. You can communicate faster and easier with larger groups of people but you can lose control over the information. Wikis can be a great time saver and used for organizing within the library or with the community. It is a great organizing tool. Wikis are flexible and available for everyone but the problem is it can be too open.

It is great fun to read the information in our NVDPL Sandbox Wiki and find out the staff in the library. We get to participate and learn all about the travellers and the gourmet lovers.

We have come a long way from the ancient libraries. Web 2.0 is providing new services that appeal to patrons of all ages. Serving the patron means keeping up with the speed of constant change in technology. User centred libraries keep patrons returning for more services whether it is new or old. With limited time, patrons need access to quick and reliable information in today's world. The nostalgia of spending long hours relaxing in the library are a luxury for fewer people who now have busier lives. In order to keep them interested in coming back, we have to continually creat new and exciting ideas. The idea of the library being "The Knowledge Spa" which provides a meditative space, relaxation, immersion of luxury,ideas and thoughts is definitely helpful for everyone.

#12 Social Networking

The internet is the place most people use to make contact or meet new friends. Social networking can be a highly personal choice for each individual. You don't have to be lonely on this planet, all you have to do is register with Friendster, MySpace or Facebook. You can register with Linkedln for business or professional contacts. Desk Set is a great place to exchange ideas or interests with other people working at various libraries. You can have some fun or start a new business by meeting new people.