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23 Mobile Things, Thing 23: Evaluate 23 Mobile Things

I'm very glad that I did this. I completed the original 23 things, and that was a real turning point for me in embracing Library 2.0 and technology. It was something I mentioned and included on my resume when I applied for (and got) a promotion. I had gotten a little lazy in my learning and was using my mobile devices (tablet and smartphone, a fairly new acquisition) in pretty pedestrian ways.

It was hard for me to get going, overcoming inertia and procrastination. I found some of the early things both challenging and also rewarding. I really liked learning such basic things as screenshots. I also enjoyed the photo apps.

I ran into some apps featured that I couldn't find in Google Play Store and a couple of android apps that didn't work on my device. I think that is probably inevitable. I appreciate the flexibility of the learning. In many things, we could explore other options if one of the multiple choices didn't work for us.

With conference dollars tight, I encouraged both our professional and paraprofessional staff to take the opportunity to explore 23 Mobile Things. There's so much we can learn at our desks and at home. It also helps us relate to our tech savvy patrons. I would definitely sign up for another 23 things.

I'm struggling to limit my evaluation to one word. Some possibilities: empowering, awesome, stimulating. I think I'll go with empowering. Thanks!!!

23 Mobile Things, Thing 22: Discovering Apps

I like the sample searches on Quixey. If I'm not sure what in all of the world of apps I want to find, Quixey suggests some searches. One of the searches was for finding reading material, which is always useful. If I wasn't happy with those sample searches I could select shuffle and get more choices. I decided to install Droid of the Day. It requires no permissions, which I love. I did a search for best library apps and got some good suggestions, including some apps I already have: Evernote and Dropbox.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 21: Free-for-all

This may sound a bit nerdy, but who cares. I really like the Bloomberg app. I can track the markets, look at articles, and even track my individual stocks and see how they are doing. I use the menu to look at my stocks and at a glance I can see how they fared in the market today. It was a red (down) day for all ten stocks I track. I can click on an individual stock and see the daily and 52-week highs and lows as well as the price/earning ratio and annual return.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 20: Games

Who thinks librarians don't have fun? Having a thing on games is almost as delicious as my chocolates in the desk drawer. Shhhhh! Candy Crush Saga is a very addicting game. It starts out fairly easy, and I hit some tough levels that I thought I would never leave. There are some hints on the internet which suggest strategy. I hate having to wait for a chance to try again, but I refuse to pay to play this game or others. I'm now on Level 33. I felt accomplished until I talked with a young colleague who was on 200. I'm still just enjoying the play and the challenge.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 19: Hobbies

I chose RoadNinja. I really wish that I had known about it for my May trip to Memphis. When you're on the road it's nice to know about gas stations and eating places. I had to turn on location, which I often leave off. At first it didn't seem very responsive.on a local highway and crashed a couple of times. Then I got on 694 to 35W and RoadNinja went to work showing me restaurants, gas stations, motels, etc. One gas station included the price of unleaded, also very useful. This one's a keeper. I'll use it on the way to the lake resort in July.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 18: Education

This is another great thing with many good resources. I downloaded Advanced English Dictionary and Thesaurus first. I enjoy looking up words I read or hear on the radio. I might also use this app when struggling with a crossword puzzle. I also downloaded TED. I have it on my iPod Touch, but didn't have it on my phone. My favorite TED talk is Brene Brown's Listening to Shame. I know that I'll discover many more. I am trying to eat less processed food and more veggies. I'll come back to this thing later to explore more educational resources.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 17: Connecting to Community

I think this is my favorite thing so far. There are so many great and useful apps in this thing. I downloaded several. I started with Enjoy Red Wing. It was loading so slowly that I just cancelled it and moved on. I decided to go with another app which has many more users: Explore Minnesota. It loaded quickly, but when I entered my zip code to find festivals near me it was slow -- perhaps because there are many. I could see using it to find fun things to do on week-ends and while on the road. I also grabbed 511, the MnDOT app. Who doesn't need to know about traffic conditions and road construction these days? Finally, I added the MPR Radio app. I love listening to MPR news in the car and will enjoy this app. I'll wait until August to get the State Fair app.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 16: Audio

My audio experience was much more successful than the video one. I installed iPadio and almost immediately was able to make a voice recording. At first I couldn't hear it and then I remembered to pull out my headphones. I was pleasantly surprised at the audio quality. This app is a keeper. I could use it for many things -- recording an idea while out and about, capturing my cat or granddaughter, recording neighborhood noises. The list is endless. I like the simplicity of the editing tool, also.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 15: Infographics

I could not find either Infographics Hub in Google Play Store. I decided to install Infoto Free, an android photo infographic generator. I clicked on the generate new infographic option, but it failed and I got a graphic of world photo locations before the app gave me a forced close message -- 3 times. Time to look at infographics created by others. There are many beautiful, interesting, simple, and complex infographics in Google Images.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 14: Videos

Since I have an android device I installed Vine, only to discover that my device doesn't support creating video. My Samsung SII is becoming an aged device, even though it does a lot of what I need and like. I did search for videos in several categories and was somewhat surprised at how many didn't interest me (but they might have meant something to the creator and their friends and followers). I could see using Vine to share brief videos with friends and family. At the library we do more with screencasts than video.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 13: Presentations

I installed Deck on my phone and enjoyed creating a presentation about reading dogs, a new interest of mine. I used the zipper theme, which was quite fun. I inserted a photo but didn't figure out how to change the orientation. When I opened Deck today my presentation was gone -- somehow I forgot to save it. I liked the design choices of Deck and the emphasis on brevity. I see too many wordy Powerpoints. I could see using this in a library instruction class or to communicate an idea to a community or hobby group. Deck is a keeper!

23 Mobile Things, Thing 12: Books, Books, and More Books

I wanted to try the Free Books app, but I couldn't find it in the Play Store. It did offer Wattpad, which I installed. Being a bit lazy and weary of more accounts and passwords, I decided just to explore and browse. Searching under some familiar and recently visited places, St. Paul and Memphis, I got a lot of stories, some of them not so interesting or well written. Then I tried searching for the word "gardening" and found many more stories, including The Secret Garden, which is a classic available through the Guttenberg Project. At last I found something I might want to read. I'm glad that new and perhaps not-so-new writers have an outlet for putting their material out there where people can discover them. I just found myself empathizing with editors suffering through piles of unsolicited manuscripts hoping for that gem. I also find some classic, free books on sites like Amazon and Nook, which primarily sell books.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 11: Library & Reference

I tried ELM mobile on my Samsung Galaxy S2 phone and was very impressed with how easy it was to use and even read abstracts of articles. I liked the main page with the options including: research now, view help videos, ask a librarian, or find a library. I searched Academic Search Premier and ERIC for articles.

While my library doesn't have a mobile site, our web team is working on mobile compatibility. I do frequently use the RCL Reads app for Ramsey County Library for requesting materials and checking on the status of my items checked out and on hold.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 10: Sharing Photos

I'm a big fan of Snapchat, despite recent publicity about security concerns. I both love and sometimes regret how quickly they fade away. I think they're a great way to stay in touch with family. I enjoy frequent Snaps from my daughter. A picture with some words often is worth the proverbial 1,000 words. I was unable to find either Snap Capture or Snapchat Save Pic in Google Play, but I did find some other apps that allow capturing Snapchats. I can't think of a lot of ways I would use Snapchat in my library, but I'll continue sending and receiving them from a few close friends and family.

23 Mobile Things, Thing 9: Taking and Editing Photos

I enjoy taking photos, but I'm not very organized about my labeling, storage, and editing. I selected Line Camera. To test some of its capabilities I took a photo of my bookshelf. I selected the clear filter, which really improved the look of the photo. There were several filters like baby, beauty, and white cat that seemed pretty useless to me. I enjoyed sepia, b/w, negative, and grunge. I could imaging using them for photos on Facebook or for sending to friends. I really liked the frames, preferring the simpler ones that outlined the image over the cartoonish ones. I'm not big on the stamps, but they could be fun with kids.

23 Mobile Things: Thing 8

I'm somewhere between a Luddite and a social media person. I have Facebook, Google+, and LinkedIn accounts but don't use them very often or skillfully. I admire those who have the ability to post occasional and timely witty comments and images on Facebook or who are skillful but not boastful self-promoters on LinkedIn. I don't have a desire to combine multiple social media platforms. I decided to explore Friendcaster. It does seem easier to use than Facebook. I'll just have to decide if I want to engage with it.

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