Week 3: #7 Photo Editing Tools

Well Pixer and Snipshot are ok but not much more than what typical computer photo editing can do but Picnik is cool!
I made this photo with Picnik in less than 5 minutes!

Flickr Mashups - Week 3 #6

I used FD Toys to create these trading cards of my favorite libraries!

My New Flickr Badge - Week 3 #5(a)

A Flash Flickr badge - pretty neat!

Late Night Reference Questions? They have answers!

Flickr Photo - Week 3 #5

My Flickr photo album! I've created my Flickr account and uploaded my first photo.

Hey Sara!

The internet safety video was a mother's worst nightmare and something I worry about with two daughters who are, like most teens their age, very computer/internet savy. I am concerned about what gets posted however I am most concerned about what gets posted unbeknowst to me rather than what I post myself. A great deal of information is already public and accessible via the internet, more than I think most people realize. For an eye opening lesson on cyber safety check out:
Forensic Problem Solving and Einstein - This lesson addresses a wide range of U.S. core curriculum standards as well as the International Society of Technology Education's National Educational Technology Standards and the American Library Association's Information Literacy Standards. Students will use fifteen seemingly meaningless clues to track down a hacker who has broken into a movie studio computer and stolen three unreleased movies. Based on a puzzle created by Einstein, students will get a clear understanding of the the term "proof" and how to organize and synthesize information. Students will use three different problem solving techniques and solve a puzzle that Einstein predicted could only be solved by 2% of the world's population. This lesson has been used successfully with grades three through college. The powerful cyber safety message of this lesson is delivered to students through the realization that they created complex profiles of all the suspects with seemingly useless fragments of information, and that Internet predators can do exactly the same thing with useless bits of information that children supply.

Stranger Than Fiction

Last night tried to wind down from a busy weekend by watching Stranger Than Fiction. It was an entertaining two hours. Amazon has this to say about the movie: "IRS auditor, Harold Crick, begins hearing a voice narrating his life. Ferrell --like Jim Carrey before him in The Truman Show-- handles a toned-down character with genuineness and affection. Crick leads a lonely life filled with numbers and routines. While at first he considers the voice a nuisance, Crick decides more action is needed when it speaks of 'his demise.' Enter Professor Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman), who takes on the absurd notion with revelry, trying to find out what kind of book Crick's life is leading. It turns out that the voice Crick is hearing belongs to Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson), a very real--and troubled--author who is writing a book in which Crick is a fictional character. As usual with these things, the stuffed shirt learns to live a better life--Crick even falls for one of his audits, a brash baker named Ana (Maggie Gyllenhaal). Marc Foster (Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland) has the right tone for the film, using great urban scenes (the unnamed city is Chicago) with interesting visualizations of Crick's world of numbers. He also directs Ferrell, Hoffman, and Gyllenhaal to their most charming performances (plus Linda Hunt and Tom Hulce pop up in two funny scenes). Ferrell succeeds in being a romantic lead you can root for; a scene where he eats Ana's freshly baked cookies is totally delightful without a hint of sarcasm. Screenwriter Zach Helm has two personal traits with his story: like Crick he followed his heart (he stopped rewriting scripts and only worked on his own) and like Eiffel, the final results are not a masterpiece, but good, and entertaining enough. Britt Daniel of the band Spoon worked on the dynamite soundtrack.--Doug Thomas

Bravo Tavo

Just read a picture book called Bravo Tavo

"Tavo, named for his father Gustavo, plays basketball so much that his sneakers are worn out. His father is too worried about the drought afflicting their small village to focus on replacing them. Gustavo thinks he can solve the water shortage, but the other villagers say he’s crazy. Tavo puts aside basketball to help prove his father right. In return, something miraculous happens to his sneakers, and he’s the hero of the next game. Did the magic come from his shoes, or was it in his heart all along? Brian Meunier’s outstanding storytelling makes this a captivating read-aloud, while Perky Edgerton’s extraordinary paintings make it a visual treat"

School Libraries Count Survey

The Bookinist

The Bookinist is a mobile reading chair, created by Bavarian designer Nils Holger Moormann, that you can wheel to your favorite study spots—even dark ones, since it has its own reading lamp. Some 80 paperbacks can be stowed in the arms, back, and sides, and the arms also contain compartments for your magnifying glass, writing notebook, pencils, pencil sharpener, and bookmarks. As Moormann says, “The Bookinist is equipped for both light and heavy reading.” Check out the website at Big Cozy Books As seen in American Libraries Direct 9/12/2007