Downloading success, finally!

Trying to download a book from Netlibrary gave me a terrible time last weekend, as I described earlier. I'd done it before, successfully, a year or 2 ago, but this time I wasted most of 2 days, updating my iPhone, doing updates for my computer, updating Windows Media player, downloading Netlibrary Media Center several times -- not one upgrade/download worked the first time! And then the book I had checked out would not download through NL Media Center. Frustration. I came back to it today armed with determination. I still got error messages from NLMC, then directions on how to get to their systems alerts and request customer assistance (which I will at some point). It looked like it should have been so easy to use their download "to computer" or "to portable media" buttons. I tried a different book, in case it had a problem with my first title. No better. So I thought what the heck and used the manual download. It went so smoothly! And when it was downloaded and saved to my desktop, it plays beautifully in Windows Media Player! Works for me. Wonder why they insisted on having NLMC? I can listen to both books from my computer, or another day figure how to get them on my portable devices. Hurray!

Social Networking - Facebook and Twitter

I've had a Facebook account for several months, and am just beginning to get comfortable with it. I've found friends, one I'd lost touch with for several years. I don't share with many people. I'm enjoying keeping in touch, but don't find time to log in more than 2-3 times a week. It's the pictures I enjoy most! I'm looking for County Libraries - is there was an easier way to locate them all instead of searching each name? Northland's is way out of date and not much content!

Just got a Twitter account, really have a ways to go before I see the use for it. Couldn't find anyone I really cared about following for awhile - finally came up with Walt Mossberg (computer stuff), that was interesting but haven't checked back with Twitter for a few days. -- Just checked, fortunately he doesn't tweet often. Removed one other person I was following. And I have a follower I've never heard of??? This takes time!! Maybe when some 'event' happens I'll get interested. Couldn't find Northland - I must be missing something with the search or find friends. We do tweet, occasionally, but searching Northland Library, Northland Public Library, user name 'northlandlibrar' or the director's name don't bring up any results. I can get to our tweets from the library's home page.... More questions to ask.

Question one - how do I get rid of tweets I've read???

YouTube and Flickr

YouTube and Flickr have been fun, quite a relief from the aggravation of downloadables yesterday. I chose to look at 'relaxing' sites this morning on both of them, but can see that they could both be useful for libraries, especially if we can get patrons used to checking/looking at them. I was disappointed to find only CLP videos on YouTube - did not see any other county libraries in the first 6 or so pages of 258 results for "library" "Pittsburgh". (Got bored looking after that.) ACLA has lots of pics on Flickr, are they publicized so the public knows to look for them? Redid my YouTube search to 'Public library Pittsburgh' - got many fewer results (18), lots less CLP hits, did get 2 ACLA service announcements.

(I've helped my daughter with YouTube for quite a while. It's amazing what you can find there. She loves the oldie music videos!)

Beautiful video of hummingbirds

Kayak On North Park Lake

Kayak On North Park Lake
Originally uploaded by Marc_714

My way to get away from it all....

Bogged down in downloadables

Trying to download an audio book from Netlibrary has so far taken me 9 hours, and the end is not in sight. Not all Netlibrary's fault, but getting all the equipment working. First wanted to upgrade to the new iPhone operating system, which required syncing the phone, then downloading. installing, and updating the apps. When that ended with and error and the need to restore the phone, then resync, well - 4 hours gone there. And of course I needed to be near the computer to say "OK" to many things. Then off to NetLibrary. Chose my book (1 minute), needed to download NLMedia Center. Whoops - had to have Windows Media Center 11 (which I hadn't gotten 'cause my Zen mp3 player needs a software update to work with 11). Well that was over an hour. Fast internet, old computer. Back to NL Media Center - had to download and install Microsoft updates - another 1 1/2 hours. I'm bad about doing updates - do updates every go smoothly? Not in my experience.... So by Friday night all of the above was done. Sat AM started into NLMC - needed Windows.net Frame (?) - started that, 3 hours later it was still installing (not responding). I think I also downloaded NLMC several times, but can't find it on my computer. By 1:00 Saturday I gave up for the day. I'll try again this morning. Maybe.

(Did get a lot of wash folded while I watched my computer. And I have an updated computer. Guess it's not a total waste of time. Still don't have the book I want. Yet.)

I work with computers everyday. I wonder how many patrons would jump through 1/2 these hoops to check out an e-audio book. With time so scarce, this experience is very frustrating.

Sunday night update: all software downloaded, NLMC opens, two tries to download a book - resulted in two error messages and directions to get in touch with OCLC support center. I'm out of time. May get to try again Tuesday morning. sigh. Some things aren't meant to be. I'm guessing there's some kind of conflict with my iPhone, will pursue that idea sometime. Soon.

Return to RSS

Well, I found the Wiki lesson easy and fun, so have gone back to RSS to see if it got any better. And I think it did, just a bit. The key for me seems to be sticking to one reader (Google is my choice) and finding things I really want to read. I seldom go to the same site on a regular basis - made me wonder if RSS was for me. I've picked 2 new feeds (and learned how to unsubscribe to the first 2 I had chosen, which really were not that interesting). One new one is NPR's All Tech Considered, (a blog) which I think will be fun, useful - and mostly short articles! The other is a gardening feed, but I'm skeptical about it. If I don't like it, I can dump it. I'm going to be more particular about choosing future feeds.

I subscribed to several blogs from other 23 things people, and can't decide which I like better - following them on blogspot or getting the feeds .