Thing 9 Evernote

This is the type of app I have been thinking of using  for some time now so thanks to CPD 23 Things I am now motivated to try it out.  I'm not sure how effective it would be for my work as I use the public PC's a lot and I would need to download the app every time I logon to a public PC as each time our PC's are restarted it reverts back to it's original state wiping anything downloaded during the session. 

I also use an iTouch and have wifi access within various libraries this could help with the problems of using public PC's.  I like the fact I can sync all my devices to update automatically as I often need to update diaries or calendar events in duplicate.

I really like the fact using this app will let me do things on the go which means I'm not tied to my desk and gives me more time to catch up on workloads or personal tasks while away form my desk. 

I have looked at a few blogs relating to Thing 9 and have read some conflicting advice on this type of app therefore I will research other cloud powered tools Diigo-Zetero and Dropbox before I decide which one to go with.

Thing 8 Google calendar

I have known about Google calendar for some time and have used it in the past.  I added CPD 23 Things to my Google calendar early into CPD 23.  I still use it for personal use but no longer use it at work as we use Outlook within the service.  

When our team first came together we tried to use it but found it easier to use Outlook which is what we use for e-mail.  It just saved everyone from having to use two different calendars which could have caused problems.

I think Google calendar is a very useful tool which I would be using in a work environment if Outlook was not used internally.   

Thing 7 Face to face networks and professional networks

I am presently a member of CILIP which is the only professional group I am currently involved in.  This is mainly down to doing Certification and now onto Chartership. Being a member keeps me up to date with career development opportunities and courses although most of them seem to be in England which is no use to me.  There are face to face networking opportunities within CILIP but again mostly in England.  I am however keen to get involved when the right opportunities arise.

I signed up to a couple of CILIP special interest groups to help with my career development but haven't fully explored them probably because I thought signing up to their mailing list would get me involved.

I have recently found out that being a member of CILIP automatically makes me eligible for membership of IFLA which I have now had the chance to look at.  I looked at some of the groups which seem interesting but noticed some of the pages were last updated as far back as May 2009 so I will have to investigate it further.

I would have to say CPD 23 is the best opportunity I have had for networking out with my own organisation.  There are some groups I mentioned in Thing 6 which I will be exploring further.  

Thing 6 Online networks

LinkedIn
LinkedIn was something I knew was there but was never really interested in.  I did go in and sign up only to get more access.  At a glance it looks to be for the executive type of professional and I did not think I belonged here however I had a look around.  The links for jobs and companies group membership looked good for networking opportunities but personally looked like the place you would use to head hunt or be head hunted.  I spoke to a couple of colleagues who have their profiles in LinkedIn and their main purpose is for career prospects.  It did cover all the points for networking, better known, better connected and better equipped but for me it may be something I could use in the future but not now.

Facebook
I mainly use Facebook for fun and contact with friends and family.  Due to Thing 6 I have now connected with CPD 23 Things for professional development and also another couple of organisations but in the past mainly using it for contact with friends, family and colleagues. Facebook is straight forward and easy to use even following organisations or community groups is simple enough just click the like button.    All of my friends on Facebook are people I have contact with or have met I don't just add someone to make up the numbers.  This could be because I heard a story (don't know if it is true or not) that a fasts food chain in America was offering a free burger to anyone who would delete a friend in there social media site proving the fact that they weren’t really a friend in the first instance.

It was however very interesting reading Andrew Brown's blog.  It is a very informative article but what alarmed me is the fact that even when you close or deactivate your account your details are not deleted therefore could in future be accessed by undesirables. 

LISNPN
This site was more suited to me.  This site made me feel more comfortable than LinkedIn and I have not even signed up yet.  I read some of the discussions within the forums and liked what I saw.  I was particularly interested in the career development discussions and see this as a helpful networking tool I will definitely be using whilst chartering.  The advice was explained in plain English and I even picked up some useful advice while reading the posts.  There is even a forum for 23 Things for professional development in there.  I would advise anyone who is looking for help with their development to join this site and any professional out there willing to give advice to also join.


LAT
Librarians as teachers-the title put me off right away.  Although I teach IT within libraries I do not see myself as a teacher but as a tutor.  This may sound silly but I believe there is a difference which I won't go into. 

This site looked more for teachers than librarians but as I looked at a few of the discussions I was pleasantly surprised a lot of the information was indeed for librarians, I even filled in one of the online surveys.  I will give this site a try in the near future and hope it will be useful for my personal development.

CILIP Communities
I already use this for e-bulletins for my areas of interest.  It is also a good way of keeping up to date with training and development opportunities.  I have recently started to look at the blogs and forums and find them very useful towards Chartership and this has now prompted me to make a point of getting more involved with CILIP Communities with a view of creating some useful networking contacts.

I can understand why Reid Hoffman made the comment about Facebook being the BBQ and LinkedIn being the office.  I see Facebook as more of a leisurely form of networking and LinkedIn being more networking for professionals related to their individual professions.

Google+
I would have to admit I am still a novice blogger and do not have enough experience to be giving an educated opinion on "is there room for more networks", so I will give you an opinion from an apprentice blogger. 

Yes i think there will always be room for new networks because the market is open to other types of networks.  With social networks we have the option to have multiple profiles for particular activities and friends for this reason I think there is plenty of room out there and we will see new networks being created.

I came across http://www.zenergo.com/ which is a new social network that allows people to connect and interact with others that share similar interests by focusing on real-world activities.  One of Zergo's social network’s goals was to get people away from their computers and involved in offline activities.

Thing 5 Reflective Practice

Reflective practice is one of the key areas of my development.  I have completed CILIP Certification which involves using this practice.  I see this as a method of evaluation in which I can learn and develop from my own experiences.   This can be done while doing the task or looking back at it after completion.  The key point for me is critical analysis, what I'm doing, why I'm doing it and what areas could be improved.  

Using reflective practise over Things 1-4 I would have to admit because I started late I was keen in getting up to date therefore have not spent enough time doing my research especially looking at other blogs.  This is an area I know I will improve on over the course.  I have done some research it is just that there is a vast amount of information I can learn from especially form the other participants of cpd23 but I need to get some sort of order otherwise it can be information overload. I have learned from past experiences doing your homework at the beginning can save a lot of time.  I will now put my research before my getting up to date as I can see it will be more productive. 

I will over the coming weeks look at more blogs related to cpd23 and subscribe to some in order to learn from.  This will include using RSS feeds, Twitter and Facebook more efficiently.   I am now thinking more about my personal branding and ways to improve it although at present I think I prefer the anonymity.

What I have learned so far is not the introduction of social media as I was already aware of most of it, but I am now looking more at utilising the resources available. 

I am glad I have signed up to Things 23 as I am already improving and looking more closely in some areas.  I see the potential for my personal development which I will use towards Chartership.  I am aware of the amount of information available which I plan to use in my current working position.   

       

Thing 4: Current awareness - Twitter, RSS and Pushnote

I have had a twitter account for some time now and mainly use it to keep up to date with what’s going on in libraries in general and for CILIP. Although I am aware of Twitter I could use it more.  I personally think I started to follow too many groups at once which proved to be information overload.  I should have started off with following something of interest then added more followings as I became more aware.  I am presently using it more and more therefore developing my awareness.

I use RSS feeds to keep up to date with personal interests and have been aware of this service for some time now.  To put RSS feeds into a simple description would be to say that rather than me having to access individual sites for information, the information is now brought to me and I can access it at my leisure.  This for me is a great time saver.

I have signed up with Pushnote and had a prowl but still do not get it.  I read what Stephen Fry had to say about it and it sound very positive but it looks to me as if it is early days yet.  It could be this is going to be the next big site for social media users but just now it looks very plain, obviously due to the fact there is no advertising as yet.   I did like the fact you could also publish your comments from Pushnote to Facebook and Twitter.  I will however try to keep an eye on what’s happening with the site.  I personally think I have enough contact through social media sites and I don’t really need another one to deal with.  If however this site becomes more popular with Web 2.0 users I would probably move over. 

Thing 3 Consider your personal brand

My personal brand is something I have not really considered but aware of .  I have tried searching for my personal brand and found a couple of results related to myself.  This has now brought to my attention the more involved I get with social media my personal brand is something I will need to consider more.  Again this is something which I will be aware of and consider more throughout this course. 

I read on another blog that the anonymity helped the blogger to be more honest, I would be of the same opinion.  This may change however in due course or even by the end of this course but as I am new to posting my thoughts I prefer to keep a low profile.  

Thing 2 Investigate other bloggs

I have investigated some other bloggs and enjoyed the diferent types of creative writing.  As I am new to blogging one of my points for development is in creative writing.  I go between different PC's at work therefore have not subscribed to any bloggs as yet but will when I decide what PC would be best suited for my feeds.  Thing 2 is now something I will make a point of doing throughoutt this course as I will be looking to learn from this social group.

Thing 1 Create your own blog

Thing 1
Eventually found my way around and got to grips with creating a blog and subscribing to cpd23. 

So off and running here goes.

I am starting CPD 23 today to help me with my professional development and as a way to find out about blogging.  I have been working in the public libraries sector for the past 15 years developing in different positions within my career path.  I have taken the CILIP Certification route to Chartership and will be using 23 Things towards my personal development.  I see 23 Things as a useful tool especially for Web 2.0.  I use Twitter and Facebook at present but not to the full potential.  I am interested in using social media tools in my Chartership journey and looking forward to learning more about these areas.