Writing website for children

While I was surfing the web for interesting sites for children I came across Kidscom a site for children to write and publisher their short stories. Each week children from two age groups (11 and younger as well as 12 and older) are randomly selected and their stories are featured.

MP3 Adapter

Recently, I wanted to listen to the music on my MP3 player while I was doing things around the house. I didn't really want to carry it around or use ear buds. I have a basic model surround sound system in my house but didn't know how to connect the two. With a little research, I found an MP3 Adapter that allows me to connect a typical MP3 player to a surround sound system. The one I found is produced by General Electric. It is easy to hookup and comes with a 7 foot cord.

My children discovered the extra wire and now listen to their devices as well. (I'm not so sure if my neighbors like it as much.) Nonetheless, now my surround system can play any gaming device, DVD player, CD player, portable listening devices, TVs, oh and of course, the radio.

The Nook

As in last post, I explained that I was researching e-readers. I had worked on the Sony models and now am working on the Nook.
This particular model has 3g or Internet access anywhere there is an ATT connection. It is a product of Barns & Nobles and has access for easy download of e-books from the Barns & Noble online store. This model is also, as is the Sony, compatible with the Ohio E-book Project a source for free e-books. Where the Sony has buttons, the Nook has a touch pad for accessing the downloaded materials and additional information or materials such as periodicals or audio books.
The Nook can hold more than 1000 books and has additional storage through a memory card. The screen is easy to ready and does not reflect sunlight like a typical computer screen. I consider accessing the Barns & Noble Online Bookstore and downloading from other site to be easy. I just need to remember to keep the e-reader charged. The Nook can be charged using a computer and USB cable or plug into a electrical plug (cords provided) There are many more features that may interest people in the market for an e-reader. I would recommend additional research in local Internet options, computer requirements and providers of free e-books or the local library's participation in e-resources such as e-books.

Sony- E-reader 300

I have been working with the Sony E-reader 300. I'm not here to sell a specific product so I've tried the Nook (Barns & Noble), Kindle (Amazon), and additional Sony models. All models operate with the same premise. Some have more bells and whistles than others and are supported by the different companies.

The 300 is Sony's base model in the e-reader series. It is a handheld unit that allows you to read electronic formatted information such as e-books from a 5 inch digital screen. This particular model requires a computer that has Internet access for downloading e-books in the PDF or EPUB format.

At first, the entire process seemed a bit daunting. I had to register the reader, set up my computer which included downloading additional applications, and then had to learn how to use the online store and how to use our local library's e-book site. Just for a book!

Why go to all extra steps to load a book onto a piece of equipment? Why not just pick up the book? I had even more questions. Can I borrow a library book for a reader? What happens when I'm done with them? I had many questions. These are just a few questions I had.

Determined to make this a good experience, I dove into the process. I completed the registration of the reader and the downloading of all additional software (Adobe Digital Edition) that was required. From there I visited the Ohio E-book Project web site and downloaded my first book and then my second. Not that difficult!
From there I traveled around the county with my reader knowing I had the equivalent to two books. Was I impressed when I could sit and read my books without issue, yes.
What I think would make the process easier would be simple step by step instructions from start to finish. So that is what I'm working on as we blog.
Dee

Photo Editing

Need to edit photos? Check out these free downloads for photo editing.
GIMP
"GIMP features a great fullscreen mode allowing you to not only preview your artwork but also do editing work while using the most of your screen estate." Features include: Photo Enhancement, Barrel Distortion, Digital Retouching, Hardware Support, File Formats, Tutorials, and Supported Platforms.

Paint.NET
"ImageForge provides you with a set of powerful tools for painting and editing images, photos or other graphics. Create and edit images, acquire pictures from your scanner, digital camera or other Twain-compliant device, apply special effect filters, produce your own photo albums and simple slide shows, and much more. Upgrade your ability to edit images with this free paint program.""Paint.NET is free image and photo editing software for computers that run Windows. It features an intuitive and innovative user interface with support for layers, unlimited undo, special effects, and a wide variety of useful and powerful tools. An active and growing online community provides friendly help, tutorials, and plugins."

PhotoFiltre
"While Photofiltre is miles away from the professional oriented Adobe Photoshop it’s an excellent free alternative. The program contains all the essential tools and options to edit and optimize pictures. It loads up very quickly and changes can be instantly previewed. Novice photographers or graphic designers can use it to cut their teeth on image editing before going on to more complex applications."

PhotoPlus 6
"With PhotoPlus 6 you can enhance your photos for the best possible results, adjust brightness and color and even remove red-eye - and all for free!. Put your creative abilities on display for all to see and impress your family and friends! Packed full of fantastic features normally reserved for high-end, high-priced applications, PhotoPlus 6 is ideal for complete beginners and professionals alike."

Picasa
"Picasa is free photo editing software from Google that makes your pictures look great. Sharing your best photos with friends and family is as easy as pressing a button!"

Sorting in Outlook

Color categories user in Microsoft Outlook? Did you know that you can sort by those categories. Click on the Arranged by option on the Inbox. Select Categories.

The categories are grouped by color. You can arrange them from newest to oldest or oldest to newest.

Stark County District Library winner of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service

Computers In Libraries Conference

I will be speaking at the Computers in Libraries 2010 conference on April 13th. My subjects of conversation will include the growth of our mobile training lab, purchasing, maintenance, policies regarding training and developing an effective class curriculum for the community. I will keep you up-to-date on the things I discover.
Dee R

Music on the Internet

Are you listening to your favorite songs, those golden oldies, classics, or today’s modern tunes while on the internet? You can. There are many sites out there that provide just that. Create a free account; add songs; and access your music for easy listening. Internet connection, speakers, and email address required. Visit: Playlist, Songza, Jango, We7 and many more sites. Then start listening today to your favorite songs today.

Electronic Books Where to Find Them

As the eletronic readers gain popularity, finding bargin priced e-books or better yet free e-books to download on your reader is a great find. A few that I have found include: Free-ebooks.net, Google Books, Kobo.com, Manybooks.net and specifically for Ohio, the Ohio e-Book Project. All require some type of registration while others require special downloads. But all sites have a fair amount of free titles.

Sitting in silence at your computer? Want to listen to music that you select rather than what someone else selects for you? Create your own playlist using Playlist.com. Begin by creating your Playlist account then search, save and listen to the music you enjoy most. (Internet Required)

Stark County District Library Mobile Web Application

Try out our new Mobile web applications. View our website or search our catalog from your mobile device.

Picasa

Now that you have all of your holiday photos what are you going to do with them? Some need resized for your website. Others you would like to put in a photo album and share them with others. Picasa is a free photo editing software from Google. Learn more about Picasa using their online tutorials and help section.