cookies

And here's what I didn't know about cookies before my tech test:

Internet cookies are little bits of information in text format that may be downloaded to your computer when you visit a web site. They might be from the web site itself, or they might be from an advertising banner or other graphic on the web site. Because they are text files, not executable programs, they do not harm your computer. They allow an internet site to “remember” that you’ve visited it. They are manageable, meaning that you can delete them from your machine if you want to.

The term “cookie” originally described “a piece of data held by an intermediary.”

Most of this information came from the easy-to understand web site surfthenetsafely.com.

The cookies feature must be enabled for a patron to access ALD wifi.

internet browsers

I didn't know this before taking the tech test:

On patron PCs there’s only Internet Explorer now, and on the patron Mac there’s only Safari. To employ a different browser, a user may simply download it, as long as the download doesn’t require a reboot (which of course erases it).

Why should someone use a different browser? Personal preference, mainly, but also ease of use, security, customer service, speed--in reality all of those are ultimately personal preferences.

To read reviews of some common browsers and help you decide which one YOU prefer, go to this web site: http://internet-browser-review.toptenreviews.com/ .

FINDING DIFFERENT FONTS ON THE COMPUTER

A patron was in the process of making a flyer for a business advertisement and called me over to ask how to find and use diffeerent FONTS to make his flyer more attractive.  I showed him how to find the different FONTS so he could pick out the one he liked.  I think he tried almost every FONT there was before making a decision.  About a week later he was in again to update the flyer he had made and told me that he had found a web site called "FONT COMPARER".  What "FONT COMPARER" does is show you diferent fonts side by side so you can get an idea what each one looks like without having to go back and forth to try each one out.  He said it saves him a lot of time and he uses it all the time now.  I have not tried this FONT COMPARER yet but will remember it if I need a different FONT setting or if I am making a flyer.

Use iCloud to access your information anywhere from all your devices

If you have a iphone , then you can easily access your photos, applications, documents, safari bookmarks, contacts and iBooks from anywhere and on any device. The iCloud will allow you access to 5GB of storage for free.
All you need to do is register with the iCloud and allow your phone to sync at least once a month. ICloud will sync all your devices, so that if you created a document at home and forgot your laptop, then you can still access that document. Other cloud technologies , like creating the document in google docs, would offer access as well, but the iCloud is simple and comprehensive.

How do you tell if a webpage is secure?

Basically there are 2 answers to the question of how to tell if a webpage is secure: first, the prefix in the webaddress will be https (as differentiated from the usual "http), and there will be an authentic lock icon displayed usually in the status bar of your browser.
The lock icon is the one bit of information that is really more interesting than I realized before I started investigating. The lock icon is not just a picture. When you hover over it with your mouse or double click on it, security information will be displayed. Fradulent websites may try to display a picture of a lock, but it will not have the functionality of displaying any information about security. An secure authentication, which is expressed by these lock icons, is provided by an independent, trusted third party who vouches by use of issuing these certificates that the site is secure. The most common of these third party vendors are Verisign, GeoTrust, and SSL.com.
For more information go to http://faq.ssl.com/article.aspx?id=10068 and http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/cicsts/v3r1/index.jsp?topic=%2Fcom.ibm.cics.ts31.doc%2Fdfht5%2Ftopics%2Fdfht50g.htm

Different Programs, Different Terms, Same Topic

When it comes to downloading music to a computer or a device the process is generally the same, but if you are using different programs (Windows Media Player vs. iTunes) they have different names for the process.
Windows Media Player:
Once the CD is in the computer, in order to put it on a device or save it to the music library the term is RIP.
Once all the files have been RIPPED to the computer and you want to put them on your device that is SYNC.

iTunes:
Once the CD is in the Computer, in order to put it on a device or save it to the music library the term is IMPORT.
Once all the files have been IMPORTED to the computer and you wanted to put them on your device that is SYNC.

SYNCING allows the computer and device to communicate, making sure that all files on the computer are on the device and vice-versa.

It can get confusing because people can use different terms (transfer/download/load) to describe what they want to do in each program, but RIP(Windows Media Player) and IMPORT(iTunes) are the program's terms for saving music into the library.

LANGUAGE APP FOR SMART PHONE

Thinking about travelling to a foreigh country and don't know the language?   I found a free APP titled TRANSLATOR where you type in what you want to say in English and the translator will say the phrase in whatever language you requested.. If you have a smart phone with a microphone you can just say the word or phrase into the phone and the translator will respond in the requested language.  Pretrty neat!!

Resume Templates

When a patron is creating a resume, a great place to get them started would be the resume templates in Word. Here is how to find them: Click the circular Office button in the upper left corner-click on new-there is a template list on the left side of the screen-scroll down and click on resumes and cvs. There are options for basic, job specific, and situation specific. The patron can select the resume that will work best for them and fill in the appropriate information. There are also templates for calendars, letterhead, business cards, flyers, etc...

Free Ebooks

Your patrons may find use for this list...and you may as well. This site lists the top 15 free downloadable ebook sites. There are many genres to choose from and there is a picture of each website. Happy downloading.

15 Best Websites To Find And Download eBooks
www.designerterminal.com/.../best-websites-download-ebooks.html

Another source of info

I came across an informative and fun blog, www.pcmike.com full of interesting, trendy and up to the minute tech info. What I like about it are his quick links to sites for further info. Right now he's helping get our gadgets ready for the Super Bowl. Recently he blogged about getting help with tech gadget Christmas gifts. A great resource he mentioned is www.techguy.org. The sight is totally free and run by volunteers. Ask a question and help is on the way. You can review previously asked questions or troubleshooting articles. I found both sights to be very user friendly.

Mygofer.com Teams Up with Kmart

With the ever increasing busyness of our lives and demands on our time a new service from www.mygofer.com in conjunction with Kmart offers a solution. Shop online and get your order the same day. Food and Grocery, Prescriptions, Health & Wellness Products, Pet Food & Supplies, Baby & Nursery Items and a host of other products and services are available with this service. You can pick up your items free of charge at a nearby Kmart store with in store or curbside pickup or have them delivered to your home at a nominal charge. Interested in being a recurring customer for this lifestyle assistance? Another service offered through mygofer is GoPass. With the payment of one flat delivery rate up front you are able to get a year's worth of orders delivered right to your door for the cost of a tank of gas. Take mygofer with you everywhere with the iPhone app and mobile website.

Headers & Footers in Word

With students going back to school, you might get questions for term papers using Headers & Footers. You can find this tool under Insert on Word. Click Return until you get to second page of Word Document and click on Header. Click on First Option 'Blank' and then under Design check 'Different First Page'. Go back to first page which is usually Title Page and type in Running Head Title you want for the Title Page. Continue to second page and type in Running Head that you want on every page after the title page.
With cursor still flashing to the right of the last letter, click on Insert, choose Page Number, choose Current Position. The number 2 will appear at the end of your running head after your last letter. Space over to move the number 2 to the right of the paper. Now go back to the first page and start again with Insert, Page Number, Current Position to put in number 1 for the first page.
This allows for a Running Head for the Title Page and then Running Head throughout the term paper on top of each page with the page numbers continuing on throughout the term paper.

VIBER: Free Phone Calls and Text

Viber is an application available for iPhones and Android phones that allows you to call and text other people with the application. With the application you can call and text both domestically and internationally for free. The most important part is that your phone is connected to 3G or Wi-Fi for the calls to take place. It's similar to Whatsapp with the texting but has the calling option and it's similar to Skype but you don't have to buy minutes. For more information or to download the app go to http://www.viber.com/.

Delete Facebook nasties

Emily, Andrea and I worked with a patron who needed to delete some offensive and unwanted postings on a FB page. For those of you who may be like me and don't use FB much, this may be helpful.
If you are on your own account page, hover the mouse over the posting you want to delete. An X shows up. Click on that and you can delete the posting. If you are on your elderly mom's page and you try to delete for her, you cannot. She has to do it herself. But you can report the posting as abusive.

Downloading to iPads and Kindles in the library

Hello - Yes, ebooks can be downloaded to iPads and Kindles IN THE LIBRARY!

I've had more and more patrons bring in their eReaders, and want to learn how to download right now... Which they can do on Kindles and iPads, assuming their device will connect to our wireless hotspot. Here are the steps for these two devices:

iPad:
- Have them connect to our web site on their iPad, and then go to "On Demand"
- download the Overdrive Media software, which probably will also require them to register with Adobe along the way
- find a book - audio or ebook - checkout, and download - voila! There it is on their iPad.
- this process is the same for Android smart phones.
I've helped patrons with this process several times now, and it has worked well. iPads seem to have an easier time connecting to our wirelss hotspot than some other devices, especially -

Kindles:
- find a Kindle version book from our web site on any computer - I've done it from our WebPacs and patron PC's
- checkout and select download, which will open up an Amazon window
- have the patron log into their Amazon account
- the next screen will say something like, "Download your library book now?"
- click yes or download, and it should appear on the Kindle within moments IF it is connected to our wireless
- make sure the Kindle setting shows "wireless on". On some Kindles a message may pop up to "Sync to wireless network" and you should do that. BUT, I've found that some Kindles never connect to our wireless, others take several attempts. If it won't connect, the next time the Kindle is connected to a wireless network - at their home, Starbucks, etc. - the library book will download.

To return books early from Kindles: sign in to your Amazon account, click on "your account" and then "Manage your Kindle" (low down on the right side). A list of all books appears, both purchased and library, with a button for each on the right side, "Actions". Click on the Action button next to the book you wish to return and it is one of the options.

Hope this helps with some of the many eReader questions!

The 10 Best Search Engines of 2012

I found this article while preparing for my tech interview with Daisy:

Search tools for the everyperson, by Paul Gil, About.com Guide.
January, 2012
http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/navigatingthenet/tp/top_10_search_engines_for_beginners.htm

The sites in this link are in random order, and are updated regularly to reflect changes and user suggestions.

MORE GOOGLE THAN YOU CAN SWALLOW

Wow! Check out Galina's posting on the Professional Development Blog on Staffnet. She posted a link on Jan 13 to an online Google search FAQ document which will be updated. I'm taking her recommendation and saving this link because it has a ton of information that will help us provide outstanding patron service.

WIMP.COM

Tired of youtube? Check out http://www.wimp.com/ for interesting, creative, well done videos. These include current news and clever ideas.

But if you do just love youtube, enjoy this one about books:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKVcQnyEIT8&feature=youtu.be

YouTube programming

YouTube will soon be more than videos of cute babies and crazy pets. They are investing 100 million dollars in professional programming, some of which premieres Monday. Some big names associated with this project is Anthony Zuiker (CSI) who is working on horror short stories with a Twilight Zone feel, scheduled to debut in April and Depak Chopra who is working on spirituality and health programming. Look for entertainment, sports and interactive programming to name a few genres. These shows are made to be like tv programs, and be attractive to the growing audience of people who watch online videos.

Jildy Sorts Facebook Friends For You

A new free app, Jildy, will sort your Facebook friends into lists of those who interact with one another so that you can read or post to just those people quickly. Jildy was recently released for the iPhone and is now under development for Android phones. The 1st time it is used flick the switch to turn Facebook access from Off to On. If you already have Facebook's app on your phone you won't even need to log in. You are presented with a prompt for you to grant permission for Jildy to retrieve some of your Facebook information just like any other Facebook app. Click Allow and you're on your way to sorted lists. Jildy also has a feature termed "personal social intelligence" that creates interesting charts of the statistical distribution of your Facebook friends by age, gender, relationship status and (last but not least) astrological sign.

IBM says you will soon be able to control you computer with ...just your mind. Is this cat performing an elaborate form of advanced computer control via its mind...or just warming its belly? Maybe..one day it could do both.
Kevin Brown, an IBM guru has been using a headset to move cubes around a computer screen. IBM plans to use a brain-machine interface (BMI) that can detect different kinds of brain waves to give a computer a command. Simple versions are already in use by toy companies. The military also is currently using this technology to drive tanks. This technology is heralded to be the next big thing in the next five years.
Would you want to be able to control your computer with your brain waves? I'd settle for just keeping my cat off my computer.

Putting Library Books on Your Nook-A Visual Guide!

Check out this blog I found, written by a young librarian who created a VISUAL GUIDE to downloading library books through Overdrive and transferring them to a Nook. YAY!!!! This should help all of our patrons who are visual learners to navigate the confusing world of online library books. It helped me to see it rather than just read the FAQ's!

Sync me!

A patron had successfully downloaded an e-book onto her brand new Kindle Fire, but could not find it in her library. She tried multiple times, and in her downloads, it showed multiple files of the e-book downloaded, but they couldn't be opened. Why? Because you must sync the Fire each time you download something, which refreshes the device, similar to when you refresh a webpage. To Sync a Kindle Fire, tap the little gear wheel in the upper right corner of the Fire, where the wireless access is also located, then tap "sync," which looks is an icon of two arrows going in a circle. After the Kindle has synced, the e-book should show up in the library. It's an easy fix!

Can Facebook Friends Sink Your Credit Score?

According to this BetaBeat article, banks are slowly-but-surely adopting the Facebook philosophy (i.e. "privacy is dead") by increasingly looking into social networking sites as a means to determine creditworthiness. The assumption that "birds of a feather flock together" translates into people who are financially responsible will know others who are as well-- which means that banks would be willing to deal with those customers. What about friends or family members running into financial trouble or notorious for overdrafting? It turns out that they could negatively impact the way banks view you. One bank already determines your credit standing via social networking sites and it will share information, such as being late on a payment, with your family and friends. Meep! Since this technology is quoted about being three-to-five years away, will that determine who you decide to socially acknowledge online?

Create shortcut for statistics

Now that 2012 is here, I made shortcuts for 2012 for my desktop for the End of Day count and also Community Room Numbers. Go to your Desktop and Right Click on a blank spot. Click New, then Shortcut, and Browse. Click the + on the following: My Computer, Collaboration, Library Services, & Statistics. You will then see End of Day Door Count and Community Room. You click on them and then say "OK" then 'Next' and 'Finish'. You must repeat each of the previous steps to find End of Day and then again for Community Room statistics. Also you can change the icon by Right clicking on each and going to Properties and there it will say 'Change Icon'. Just choose which icon you like and click OK. This has been very helpful for me so far in 2012.

Downloading ALD E-book to a MAC.

While downloading an e-book from ALD I have made a few notes on what worked for me on my Mac, no WIFI, at home. After installing Adobe Digital Editions the icon was on my desktop.

Some of these tips may work for other computers.


I went to "On Demand" on ALD website, connected to Ebooks and signed in. Select genre from list on left. Check "only show titles with copies available" if you want. Click submit. Select title you want, add to cart. Proceed to checkout and choose lending period. Confirm checkout. Go to "my bookshelf". Download--the title goes to downloads on my Mac at home--not to ADE. (This seems odd but it works for me).

On a MAC go to Finder, then to your downloads and find title you downloaded.

Plug in Nook BEFORE opening ADE. Turn on and unlock Nook. (This is different than the instructions that Barnes and Noble gave me). Nook icon will appear on desktop. Open ADE from icon on the desktop. Another ADE icon will now be on the dock. Drag the title from your downloads to the ADE on the dock. See message that file will open in ADE. Click "open". Wait for title to download to ADE. Picture of title will fill ADE screen.

Click "Library View" (icon of 3 books in upper left corner). All of the titles you have in ADE will appear.

"Nook" is in list on left side of ADE screen. If it is not, close ADE and re-open it.

Drag title to the Nook. A green symbol appears as you drag.

Safely eject Nook by double clicking on Nook icon on the desk top. Nook will appear in left hand column. Click arrow to safely eject Nook.
Check to see that title is on the Nook and can be opened and read.

Please comment with other ideas or shortcuts.

Free E-books

Now that many of us have taken advantage of the reimbursement offer to buy E-readers, here are a few sites for free downloadable books. Project Gutenberg is listed on ALD website under "On Demand". As well as having books that are in the public domain, Project Gutenberg has a help section for downloading to various E-readers: Nook, Kindle, Android and more. Big digital booksellers such as Amazon Kindle Store and Apple iBookstore have free sections. Wikibooks has a site dedicated to free textbooks. Free-Ebooks.net, Ambling Books, Books Should be Free, and Libri Vox are more sites for free E-books. Each Friday Barnes and Nobel highlights a free Nook book.

Is Your Identity Protected?

This blog post on AttackVector.org came to my attention through my husband who is studying for a degree in IT Security. Despite the blogger's use of cussing, I thought I'd share it because it really places you into the mindset of a hacker who is looking to find personal information and just how easy your information can be looked up and stolen online (in this particular case with nothing but an e-mail address). The lessons learned through this post: 1) Never ever post your phone number on the internet; 2) Make sure no personal information is associated with your e-mail address; 3) Double check your privacy settings on social networking sites, and 4) Always use complex passwords/pin numbers. Good things to keep in mind to help prevent identity theft.

CAN FLASH DRIVES WEAR OUT?

A patron could not open his flash drive on one of our desktops. He moved to another computer and was successful in opening it. I tried a flash drive in the original computer and it worked. The patron asked "Can flash drives wear out?"
While technology continues to improve, the fact is that flash memory has limited number of times it can be written to. It can, in fact , wear out. Flash memory, the type of memory used in USB thumb-drives and other devices is very cool, but the dark side is that it does wear out. The problem is that memory can be flashed only so many times. When that limit is approached, some portion of the memory may not properly remember what was written to it, go wrong, and cause corruption. It may only take a single bit of information to be wrong or "wear out", for the entire contents of a flash memory chip (including all those photos), to be lost.
Scary, huh?

Can you return an eBook early?

Conscientious patrons and staff have asked whether there is a way to return downloads after they have finished them, before the lending period is up, so other patrons can get their virtual hands on the book sooner. Here's what I've learned:
- Audiobook downloads cannot be returned early
- Items downloaded to Kindles: go to Amazon.com, log into your account, "your account" and "manage your kindle". A list of all the items (paid or free) you have downloaded to your device opens. Find the one you want to return, and click on "actions" on the right side. One of the options is "delete from my library". There you go!
- For Nook items: Open Adobe Digital Editions on your computer, and bring up the list of books - you will see the covers of each book you have downloaded. Hover the cursor over the book you want to return, an arrow appears, leading you to choices including a "return now" option.
It might be helpful to remind patrons that they can choose the lending period (7, 14 or 21 days) at the time of checkout, too.