Wire me up....er....wirelessly, please.

This concerns week three's lesson.

This is the first time I've ever signed up for any RSS feeds. When I discovered that you can get them for some NPR programs, I was suddenly interested. I miss a lot of their programming and RSS is one way to stay connected. I signed up for a feed for the Writer's Almanac.

My other favorite find was Grokker. I liked the way it mapped the search results kind of like a pie chart, but better. It's surprising all the ways that exist to stay in tune with one's interests. I love the internet!!

And I heard, as it were, thunder rolling

I found this week’s lesson to be one of my favorites. I love NPR and discovered I can get podcasts of some of their shows. When I get my mp3 player, I will most likely use it to store and play music, but now I have a whole other avenue to pursue with it as well.

At this point, I’m too excited about having another "gadget" to learn about and play with to know all the uses I will find for it. Be assured it will be used often and will most likely become my new best friend. :)

I can’t wait to have the player in my hot, little hands. I would like to thank Tom and all his co-workers for making that moment possible. You’re all so special to me now.

"If music be the fruit of love....play on"

I love music. It can clear my mind, pick me up or calm me down. My doctor assures me that it is a safe yet powerful tool for me....er....but that's another story. :)

This week's lesson concerns digital rights, media and the internet. I do feel that the artist's and all the other people involved with music and other media should get their just profits from it. At the same time I can see sharing media on the internet. It helps promote it by allowing users to hear new music and share new finds.

I enjoyed the article written by Steve Jobs and I share his views on the subject.

Flickr, Flickr burning bright...

Once again, Tom and his merry team have given us a healthy dose of internet fare to chew on. In this case, I already knew about Flickr. I've found some pretty cool pix on this site. I think it's a great way to share with others. The idea of using Creative Commons, to offer a measure of protection for one's work, makes it even better. But, meeting other users in Hawaii to have a cook-out, kibitz and what-not.....no. Sharing some pix is probably all I'd be interested in doing.

In any case, it's one more way of sharing, learning and.....and stuff. Sometimes, it makes me feel like Maria in the Sound of Music....sharing what I know with anyone who's willing to learn. I'm so happy!

Play Time at the Apollo

This week's lesson was a lot of fun...running amuck playing games as well as playing on various websites. There is something (and some website) for almost any pastime, hobby or interest. My favorites were Bottletalk and PuzzlePlayer. I usually go to Yahoo's website for games, but this gives me yet another avenue to pursue.

This has been so easy I almost feel guilty....almost, that is. :)

I've played on the internet for a number of years now and I'm still surprised by what can be found there. The many links offered in this week's (or should I say last week's) course were amazing such as virtual house hunting, etc. but Library Thing was one of my favorites. A website that allows you to catalog your books and music so one can have their own little library online....I love it! What a great idea.

And, if I may share, another site that I have used is craigslist.com. It's a great site where you list any items you want to "kick to the curb". You let others know what will be at the side of the road so it has the chance of going to a new, loving home. That was another good idea.

For me, it reaffirms that fact that almost anything can be found on the net.

The New & Improved Me

I created an avatar and thought I'd share it. I've always found them to be a little creepy, but this one I like. Guess it's kind of like women who don't care much for children, but after they give birth they love everybody's kids. Go figure.

I'd like to meet my friend George.

This week's lesson was a bit overwhelming. Not only was there a host of new sites to explore and new info to digest, there's the realization of what the internet is becoming.

Here is this area, space...er....cyberspace where all this information, ideas, videos, etc. are accumulating. One can interact with it, add to it, edit it, make it work for you, share it, and manipulate it. Interactive, virtual, video characters? Did you see that video on YouTube?

Yeah, I have it on my phone.

Sure, I got it in my e-mail.

Wait, yes, here it is on my Ipod.

I have that stored on the micro-chip in my brain.

Ok, so maybe that last one is a little over the top, but for how long? All those sci-fi movies I've seen where our hero plugs into a console and downloads the days news or what-have-you is becoming more believable every moment. I do find it fascinating and exciting that I can witness and be a part of this explosion of information, yet I still have a little, nagging thought a the back of my mind. A part of me that we'll refer to as....oh...let's call him George Orwell, who is walking around warning me that we might be getting a tad carried away with ourselves.

In spite of that and that fact that my age starts to show at such moments, I did enjoy the lesson. I must confess that I have been on the net for over 14 years and I still am only aware of a fraction of what can be found there. I liked the site MailEmotion and Guess the Google. Both were fun and interesting. FlickR though, is my current favorite. I can find pix of anything there! It's great. I also found the Web 2.0 video to be very cool. I had the sense of being carried away. Of course, George was a part of that experience too, speaking softly in my ear...remember what I said earlier...you might want to read my book again...you know the one...1984.....are you gonna eat the rest of that?

In the tradition of Bilbo Baggins...

This is a test. This is only a test. Had this been an actual post to my blog, it would be oh so much more entertaining. I'd had a few problems with posts, etc. So, this is a kind of experiment.

Here is a riddle to be solved. It's one of my favorites. Post your answers in the comment section, if you like. Here goes.


The shadow by my finger cast
Divides the future from the past.
Behind its unreturning line
The vanished hour, no longer thine.
Before it lies the unknown hour
In darkness and beyond thy power.
One hour alone is in thy hands
The now on which the shadow stands.

What am I?

Color me surprised!

I feel like such the sponge, lately. Learning about RSS feeds and Wikis is proving to be most interesting. I was surprised by how easy it was to find and organize information from the internet.

Then I discovered Grokker. I did a search for the New York World's Fair from 1964. The search returned all kinds of info, including over 60 photos from just one URL! The Map View made it easier to locate the various kinds of data available and it even sorted it for me. I could identify which sites had the most info and I could zoom in and out of the map. It was like an "E-Ticket" ride at Disney. ;)

Ennui anyone?

Seriously, I think there is enough of that, settling here and there to trip us up during our daily wanderings. To avoid such trappings, I will will turn to this blog. Here, on this very spot, I can share my thoughts and opinions. Hopefully, on the rare occasion, I may even inspire, stimulate, or possibly provoke some response from my readers.

Be sure to tune in regularly. You never know what you might read. If nothing else, it may be entertaining. For now let me just say "I'm poor, middle-aged, I may even be ugly, but dear God I'm here, I'm here!