Tech Scout

A “good” cell phone number!

Judy — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 14:16:10 +0000

I was in a Sprint store last week because some apps were not successfully installing on my Evo. The young Sprint guy asked if I had tried pulling the battery and I had. He looked something up on the computer and then asked if I had tried pulling the battery and the SD disk and then powering down the Evo. I had not. This worked!

The interesting thing about being at the Sprint store – besides the fact that I can, once again, play Angry Birds thanks to the fix on my Evo – is that when asked my cell phone number both the Sprint guy and young guy #2 who was a customer waiting for a phone repair both responded that it was a really good number. I agreed and indicated that I hoped to have it forever.

I got a kick when two young guys into technology got geeked out over a good string of numbers. I can relate but it was still kind of funny.

Michigan Bookstores Participating in Google Ebooks!

Judy — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 19:17:12 +0000

The following Michigan bookstores are selling ebooks through Google Ebooks:
Bestsellers Books & Coffee Co Mason, MI
Brilliant Books Suttons Bay, MI
McLean & Eakin Booksellers Petoskey, MI
Saturn Booksellers Gaylord, MI
Schulerbooks.com Grand Rapids, MI

This is exciting news for indie bookstores. They may now sell books in different formats to their customers and won’t miss out on the ebook sales.

E-Reader Comparison Chart

Judy — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 18:42:54 +0000

I created an e-reader comparison chart to help people when e-reader shopping. There are many features to consider but you may want a device with few bells and whistles. My disclaimer is on the chart so please remember to check with a salesperson when purchasing any e-reader in case my information is incorrect or has changed.

A QR Code in the Wild!

Judy — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 19:10:17 +0000

My family and I had Thanksgiving dinner in Frankenmuth, MI. It was a very nice day and a lot of people had the same idea. Plus no grocery shopping, baking or cooking. While in Frankenmuth I saw a sign with a huge QR code on it in front of the tourism office. I scanned it and it give the town URL. Pretty nice Frankenmuth!

Moshi Voice Control Bluetooth Handsfree Car Kit

Judy — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 20:52:43 +0000

I just read about the Moshi Voice Control Bluetooth Handsfree Car Kit over on the Gadgeteer blog. It is $79.99 and sounds like a great alternative to a device for your ear. If you don’t have built in Bluetooth in your car check it out.

Farewell Bloglines!

Judy — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 19:08:59 +0000

I just saw the message that Bloglines is officially shutting down October 1. I have used this RSS newsreader for a very long time because it is easy to use. Even in my technology workshops I have always used Bloglines as my RSS newsreader example. It will be sorely missed!

My Summer

Judy — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 02:20:11 +0000

It has been too long since I posted on my blog. The summer zoomed by and the school year is about to start. Here is the news since the last time I posted: Since July 1 I am now the only staff member of the Information Center. It has gone amazingly well. I will get a part-time person for 10 or so hours a week starting next week. This will be a great help because I need someone to take care of the clerical work. The books and videos to be shelved are adding up fast. It has been interesting working more face-to-face with patrons in the Information Center. The past few weeks saw some frantic requests for videos for professional development. Of course, a few videos in particular have been perpetually checked out and have waiting lists. Quite a lot of books and videos checked out during the summer. I’m adding new books to the collection a little at a time because I don’t have a huge book budget.

I took this past week off since I don’t know when I will be able to take time off again in the near future. Friday was a furlough day and with Labor Day coming up it made for a nice long vacay. Next week will be a day short but jam-packed: a staff meeting Tuesday afternoon, an all day workshop I’m presenting with a colleague Thursday and a few meetings in between. I will bet that September will go by as fast as July and August!

Technology-wise I bought a new smart phone, the HTC Evo. I love this thing! I finally have a true smart phone and it is very wise! When I’m home watching tv I have to play games on it. I only have free games but my favorites are Darts, Clink and Word Drop. Action Potato is fun for a short time and I’ve just downloaded the beta version of Angry Birds and it is driving me crazy! I’m on level 8 and I can’t beat it. Dang!

I have the HTC Evo and I lurve it!

Judy — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 17:39:10 +0000

I finally got the HTC Evo 4G on Sunday. I went to a Sprint store and they were out and told me that the other two Sprint stores in the area were out. I went to the non-company Sprint store in Rochester and they had two left. I slapped some money down so that they would hold one for a day. Officially, I can upgrade my phone in August but I was told that sometimes Sprint allows you to upgrade on the 18th of the month prior. My guy was good because he did sweet-talk Sprint so that I could get my phone on the 18th. And, to boot, I was the only customer in the store at 12:30 on a Sunday so I had his undivided attention. After a call, money changing hands, a data transfer and a few quick lessons I was on my way.

I went to Bravo for lunch and my eggplant parmesan got cold while I played with the Evo. The apps are abundant and I’ve only added freebies so far. The email, Twitter, Facebook, etc. all work fast and easy-peasy.

The voice search is f-u-n! I had to turn the music down on my computer to get a spelling in FreeDictionary but then it worked beautifully. I’ve tested the voice memo too.

Love, Love, LURVE all of it! I may go into a real tizzy when we get 4G in the area!

Librarians and Technology

Judy — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:25:07 +0000

Last week I attended the American Library Association annual conference in Washington D.C. Let me get my weather complaint out of the way now… it was too hot and humid. I melted each day. Ok, back to the conference. I was so happy to see more technology being used and sold. I predict the QR codes will get more and more popular even though they have been around for a while. They are so very cool and with all of the smartphones out there people will be using them to convey and receive information. Of course, apps were mentioned all over the place. Besides the obvious e-book reader apps there are other mobile library apps coming down the road. The ALA also offered their great Ambassador service in which you could TM an “ambassador” with a question about the conference and then receive a TM back with the answer. Anything from “where is such in such session being held?” to “what time does Amy Sedaris speak?” A great, rejuvenating conference.

Michigan Center for the Book

Judy — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 18:07:27 +0000

From the Michigan Center for the Book:

” The MIchigan Center for the Book has published a new Michigan book list, Take a Reading Road Trip to Michigan! The list is a selection of Michigan related children’s books. Each summer, we create a new brochure that focuses on some aspect of Michigan literature for use at the National Book Festival and for libraries in Michigan to use. You can find the new brochure at www.michigan.gov/mcfb <http://www.michigan.gov/mcfb> in the Michigan Book Lists section or directly at http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/lm_2010_MCFB_MI_Childrens_Books_325325_7.pdf. “