A Book Is a Book Is a Book?

Fascinating discussion on See Also about the definition of "book" which really makes one think about the notion and how it's (might be) changing.
I do agree that a book as a physical object is very different from any electronic or digital version. As the article and comments imply, we're nowhere near the perfect e-book reader/format.
It also raises the issue of how we teach kids about the beauty and value of the printed word. I'm afraid I don't take a lot of time doing that and get distracted by the need for information over the need to interact with the physical thing which is the book. Maybe this year I can figure out better ways to help my students and staff really appreciate books for their own sake as well as for the information and entertainment they contain.

New Blog

I haven't posted here in a while because I've been working on my library news blog, the Bessie Chin Library Leaves. I've been adding postings to that blog from my hotel room in Taipei, Taiwan. I also have a web album going with many pictures taken while in Taiwan. One technical detail I needed to find a solution for was that at first when I brought my blog up the links, tabs, etc. used for editing the blog were all in Chinese. I had to remember (or use trial and error!) to discover what each link lead to. Eventually I was able to ask one of the student volunteers which link to use to change the language back to English. Once I found that and changed it the going has been much simpler.
Please check out my new blog. I plan on using it to disseminate information about the Bessie Chin Library to the school community ... and the entire world!

Webware 100

The results of a poll about the best Web 2.0 sites are in and you can see the list at Webware.com. Here is the announcement for the Webware polling:

"We're kicking off the first user-generated Web 2.0 awards program: The Webware 100.

Why? Because there are more new sites and services than any mortal can possibly process, much less evaluate. And because the community of Webware users, in the aggregate, has a very good idea of what works and what's worth your time. This awards program will collate and organize that wisdom."

In the end almost 500,000 votes were cast. A lot!

The ten top vote getters in each category are listed in alpha order. Categories include: Browsing, Communications, Community, Data, Entertainment, Media, Mobile, Productivity and Commerce, Publishing, and Reference.

Certainly worth taking a look at and maybe adding to SLL 2.0 as a link.

Bong Hits 4 Jesus

The most recent post on the Britannica blog (worth pursuing if you haven't) talks about ten ways to test facts. It seems to me that the list would make a wonderful curriculum on the high school level and lower, as well as in the higher ed field.
It was more than a bit scary to read in Debra J. Saunders' column today this quote from Justice Thomas from his concurring opinion in the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" case: "'the Constitution does not afford students a right to free speech in public schools.' Thomas cited Justice Hugo Black's dissent in the 1969 Tinker armband decision: 'Taxpayers send children to school on the premise, that at their age[!], they need to learn, not teach.'"
Without double checking the quotes (which may get me in some trouble) I think there is only one response to such Neanderthal thinking.
It seems to me that in this day and age students need to learn AND teach. And teachers need to learn AND teach as well. Certainly the premise which we are currently following in education seems to be heading in this direction. That's not to say that teachers and students don't have different roles in this dynamic but to baldly say students "need to learn, not teach" flies in the face of what is happening in education today. And to base Supreme Court freedom of speech decisions on such a premise is treading on very thin ice indeed.
I really can't believe that the principal and school district prevailed in this case given the fact that whatever the student did was off campus and was only done to attract attention. I definitely think we're going backwards here, folks, and Debra (not known as a raving liberal) seems to agree. At least California provides some protection from such an outcome here.

Camels in Kenya!?

Here's another, more serious, video from a site called Rocketboom about a camel-transported book delivery system in Kenya. Camels carry books to remote schools which can't be reached by motor transport.
Also from ALA Direct.

Dexter: The Anti-Librarian

Hilarious! I found this referred on ALA Direct (one of my favorite sources for professional info). Since I already use SpongeBob SquarePants in my orientation for 9th graders I'm going to come up with a way of sharing this video with the kids. I think I'll refer to myself as the "anti-Dexter!"-- at least that's what I hope I am!!??

How to Add a Label Cloud

I'd seen some "tag clouds" on various blogs and wondered how I could add one to "Continuing Education!" After some searching using the help button on the Blogger edit page I found a site with complete (and fairly complex) instructions. I tried it and it works. Be patient when attempting this edit but the instructions are clear if followed carefully. Instructions are found at
http://phy3blog.googlepages.com/Beta-Blogger-Label-Cloud.html. Give it a try if you're willing to experiment like I am.
One thing--you do have to have some posts with "labels" already in place to make it work.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
While I was at it I deleted my Flickr slide show and replaced it with a Picasa slide show. I have lots more pictures on Picasa and found another widget on Phydeau's blog (see above) which sets up a slide show using Picasa. You'd have thought Google would already have done this and I guess they did but evidently it's not quite as good as this one. Take a look--it's toward the bottom of the page and shows photos I took in 2003 in a trip to South Africa.
I can see how this would be useful on a website as well for a collection of photos of the library, school, etc.
Have fun!