cpd23 reflections #cpd23

Ah, time out for a breather and some reflecting (but not too long a breather with the deadline fast approaching!) So, here are some quick reflections...

What have I learnt from the programme so far?

• I benefitted from thing 3 branding, as I have now given some thought to my online identity.
• I've gained from exploring new networks, meeting some new people and discovering new blogs, where it is great to see other people's views on the cpd23 things (as well as the other things they are blogging about).
• It has also been useful to reflect on things such as mentoring, and actually put something in writing about them. In the future, looking back at this sort of thing can be a reminder of what I was thinking at the time, and it might be helpful when it comes to putting together my portfolio.
• This programme and the Cam23 things programme have both given me things to blog about, which has helped me get over my initial nervousness about blogging. I doubt that I would have a blog if I hadn't undertaken these programmes. However, now that I do have a blog, I hope to carry it on after the end of the programme.

What will I integrate into my working routine?
Some things I just have no need for at the moment, but others are useful right now.

• I use Twitter for current awareness, but still don't engage in conversations with others as much as I could.
• I now make more use of RSS feeds as I follow more blogs than before, although I still look at my blogger dashboard more regularly than my feed reader.
• Zotero is the reference management tool that I have started using for possible chartership references.
• Lightshot is now my tool of choice for screenshots.

Here comes the obligatory reflection photo - any excuse to pretend it's still summer!

  by  Anderson Mancini 

Reaching Cam23 Nirvana #cam23

So, here's to the end of Cam23 2.0. I have enjoyed the programme and along the way I've learned lots of new things. I haven't had as much time as I would have liked to read other people's Cam23 things blogs, but look forward to catching up with them at my leisure. Here's my overall summary of the Cam23 2.0 journey...

Things which made you smile

• Prezi was fun and although my first prezi was nothing special, the end result made me smile. I only did a very simple one, but found it easy to use (apart from some difficulties figuring out the path).
• Lightshot - so quick and simple to use!
• Flickr and creative commons licensing can go in this category as using creative commons licensed pictures from flickr can really liven up a blog post and they have so many other library-related uses!

Things which have become a part of the way you live and work

• I still don't engage in that many conversations, but I regularly use Twitter to see what people are talking about and for current awareness.
• Blogging has become much easier (although I still don't consider myself an experienced blogger!) and I will continue with this throughout the chartership process and hopefully beyond. I am finding it a very useful way of putting my reflections down in writing. 
• It's too early to tell right now, but here's hoping that Zotero will become part of the way I deal with references.

Things which you'll never go near again

I won't say never, but at the moment I don't have a need for Evernote. I'm also still holding off on LinkedIn and LibraryThing, although maybe one day I will change my mind about these.

Web 2.0 and social media more generally - what role do they really play within libraries and information services?

This sounds like an essay question from my library masters course! For a start, a lot of librarians and information professionals use web 2.0 and social media for their own development, current awareness, networking, sharing information and so on. This is why I think it's great to see people getting involved in 23 things to learn about the technologies and tools that are out there, and decide which ones they like and which ones will be useful for them. I have found social media to be really helpful for my personal development and I have learnt so many new things through them. Some of these things help me to be more effective in my work (even in small ways such as lightshot screenshots saving me time).

Then of course there are library users, who really come first in libraries. I would say that social media increases the number of ways we can engage with users, find out what they want and help them. If library users are on facebook and twitter etc, then it is great that libraries and information services are there if users want to access information or start conversations there. Of course a lot of these web 2.0 tools are directly useful for library users, such as RSS feeds for new books, bookmarking and reference management tools. It's all about providing a better service to library users, and web 2.0 and social media can help with this in many ways.

I'll stop here before this turns into an essay-length post, but will just add that I am looking forward to the party this evening and seeing all the other Cam23 participants! Wordle is currently have technical difficulties, so a wordle of this post will follow...

Reflecting again #cam23

A short post this time, just to jot down answers to a few questions:

What have I gained from this programme so far?
I feel I have updated my knowledge of web 2.0 tools, learnt about some new ones and met some new people - good all round then. Also the discipline to make time to go and explore and reflect on these things (even I haven't been quite keeping up with the programme!)

Which thing did I particularly like or dislike?
I particularly like imagecodr and flickr - fun and easy to use and makes the blog posts much more interesting, not to mention all the potential uses in library posters etc.

Which of the forthcoming things can I really not wait to try?
Data visualisation and QR codes look fun and both involve new things for me.

So that's all for this post, apart from the necessary picture (just to practice using creative commons and imagecodr of course!)

  by  lrargerich 

Reflecting - #cpd23 and #cam23

Now I've started on the Chartership journey, I need to work on my reflecting skills. The reflective writing chapter in Margaret Chapman's Building your portfolio book was a good starting point and kept me busy on a recent train journey! I found Random musings of a librarian, almost's post on reflective writing really helpful. I have been thinking about attending a reflective writing workshop but couldn't make the recent one in my area, so it is useful to read a summary of one, and how participants found it.

So, how have cpd23 and cam23 things been going so far? Well, I'm still behind and playing catch up, mostly due to generally being busy and doing both 23 things programmes at the same time. There is some overlap with the things, which is always a nice surprise - it feels like getting to tick off two thngs in one (and I'm a big fan of ticking things off to-do lists!) Sometimes it's hard to fit reflection in, so thanks 23 things for making sure I do this.

Networking
I attended both cam23 and cpd23 networking events in Cambridge and enjoyed putting names and faces to blogs, and meeting people whose blogs I hadn't read but now follow. For me, this is one of the key benefits of 23 things.

Cam23
Things I like (or These are a few of my favourite things):
Twitter, but mostly to follow people and tweet my blog posts. I don't log in regularly enough to really join in conversations, so this is something I might work on.
Screencasting - both useful and fun!
Doodle
Google calendar
What I have learnt: Cambridge Libraries widget is really useful! Also that Google documents can generate forms that can be embedded in websites, and that there are some creative bloggers out there!
What will I use most in my working life? Hard to say at the moment, but perhaps Twitter. Currently many of the things are more useful for my general professional development than directly relevant to my day to day job, but this of course may change.

Cpd23
What have I learnt and how can I apply it? So far, the most useful thing for me has been finding time to think about my online presence so it's not just accidental but has a little more thought to it, even if more work is needed on it! I'm looking forward to a lot of catching up and many new things to explore over the next few weeks.

This was actually quite a hard post to write, so I must need some more practise at reflecting - roll on cpd23 things 19 and 23, and cam23 things 18 and 23!