Self issue for kids

Self checkout for kids

Originally uploaded by Andrea Mercado

I love this idea! Children are always intrigued by what we do when we issue (checkout) books at the library and I imagine they’d be delighted to be able to do it themselves. It’s such a simple idea but so effective.

Moving to WordPress

If you’re reading this then you have successfully found me on WordPress!  I’ve been considering moving from Blogger for a while but was pushed by a problem with the widgets (not allowing me to add new content) which was really annoying me.  I also noticed that most of the blogs that looked visually appealing were using WordPress.

Having made the switch I have to say it’s very easy and I’m glad I did it.  Importing my posts from Blogger took about 30 seconds and I’ve been able to put a pretty header up already.  I’ve also found the widgets much easier to add.

At the moment I’ve added a feed button, my del.icio.us feeds, the ‘categories’ list, recent comments, my Flickr stream and a hit counter.  I’m happy with all of these except for the categories list as it made me realise that I need to work on tidying up my categories (formerly known as tags) and be a little more consistent when tagging posts.

In other news… I bought an Asus eee PC yesterday and it’s lovely!  I’m planning to take it to work tomorrow to see if I can use it to surf in the staff room with a 3G modem…

Promoting Online Resources

025.04: Michael's blog: Full of BS

Head over to 025.04 Michael’s blog for a great practical idea – using a video loop of online resources on a projector in the reference library to promote the resources.

Public libraries in the UK have a fantastic range of online resources available – Encyclopaedia Britannica, Oxford Dictionary of Natinal Biography, Grove Dictionary of Art and a whole lot more. I recently discovered that many of these ‘general reference’ tools aren’t available in academic libraries so they’re a great resource for students and the general public alike! I particularly like the Oxford Reference collection which includes gems like The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations – where I found the perfect quote for my mum…

A hardened and shameless tea-drinker, who has for twenty years diluted his meals with only the infusion of this fascinating plant; whose kettle has scarcely time to cool; who with tea amuses the evening, with tea solaces the midnight, and with tea welcomes the morning.

“Johnson, Samuel” The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. Ed. Elizabeth Knowles. Oxford University Press, 2004. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Southampton Libraries. 25 April 2008