this week i nuked my zotero library.*

that library was created in 2006 when i was starting my MLIS – and all the zigzagging that involves, and then it went on to follow me through my first year as a liaison librarian (and the ZOMG WHAT AM I DOING I DON’T KNOW ANYTHINGness), and now my current gig (and the OHAI ROADMAP-LESS JOB).

basically, it was out of control.

• i would use it to track items that i needed for both personal (home-buying information, health information for friends n’family, the awesome exploits of friends, etc), and professional reasons (research, professional development, future-thinking things that get my bass thumping).
• the “to read” folder was filled with 100+ items that i, ummm, was never going to read.
• the folders were a disaster and i didn’t use tags to it was 39 kinds of chaotic.

so now i am rebuilding it from scratch. and i am relieved. i’m sure it will again get bloated and out of control, but for now, i feel more efficient with it. and i have vowed to use the notes feature to scribble things to myself, and to make better use of folders and tags.

and to always be a fan of zotero, because it really has made oh-so-much of my life easier.

*errrr, i backed it up first, then nuked it. i ain’t no dummy.

well done BYU!

so facebook wants to put like buttons all over my intarwebz.
boo.
i agree with sarah.

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Sarah_G

this is the blog badge they created:

that may, or may not, be Trust Agents booty

the lovely Cecily Walker has proposed a panel at SXSWi and i think you should vote for it.
not just because i’m part of it and really want to visit Austin.
and not just because i’m part of it and really want to geek out in Austin.
you should vote for it because Cecily and i want to talk about tech in libraries to techies, and to tell techies how awesome it is to work in a library and maybe, just maybe, they might like to give it a go.
the panel is called “can i reserve this book with my iphone” and you have to create a free account to vote for it. once you’ve created the account, there are tons of other cool panels which you can vote on – touching on a bajillion different aspects of technology. get your vote on!

so facebook has begun offering vanity URLs to folks (’bout time, i know). though i hadn’t planned on staying up ’til 12:01am EST, it turns out that i like air conditioning, beer, and television, and the triumvirate were available tonight in DC.
so once i had decided to get a URL with facebook, i had to decide on the name. amy.buckland? amybuckland? amyb?
in the end i picked “jambina” which has been my online identity for a number of years (except on youtube – dunno who that is).
now it’s never been hard to find out who jambina is, but it’s still a bit jarring that i have now associated that name with my facebook identity.
but i see this as a good thing.
i’m proud of my online identity. i participate in much of the conversation out there, and think that on most occasions, i have something of value to say. [this is the point in the post when i realize that someone out there will find something horrible i have said/done online and post it in the comments. such is life.] so i have no reason to be wary of this jambina/amy link.
i think.
do i?

i am addicted to modifying photos using picnik – especially since every social network requires you to have some kind of avatar for you profile.

picnik is free and doesn’t require you to register (though there are some perks if you do). you can crop and rotate and fix colours (you can even use curves), as usual, but picnik also allows you to add filters to your photos, text, funny pix, and frame things in a bunch of different ways.

so you can make a boring picture like this:

look like this:

(there’s lots more you can do – i just wanted to give you a rough idea. this was cropped, rotated, had the Orton-ish effect applied, speech bubble and text added, and i gave myself a loverly ‘stache.)

i’m not sure how i feel about dell’s foray into lady laptops – Della.

i mean, i really like pretty things, and i am always attached to an internet-enabled device, so i am not averse to lappys that come in something other than ibm-black or apple-silver. (and yes, the Vivienne Tam HP Mini would make me giddy.)

i think what really got to me were the photos on the site.


exhibit a

who doesn’t bring their lappy to the beach? with their BFFs?
and make sure their lappy matches their sarong.
also, vacation FAIL.

exhibit b

oh puhleese, there’s no way you’re getting a wifi connection out there.


so women with laptops are all havin’ fun with their sistahs or communing with nature.
got it, i think.
wait, huh?

i’m playing with new wordpress templates so you might see a few changes over the next little while (unless you are just getting the feed from this site, in which case, welcome to same-old, same-old).

lemme know if you love/hate any of the changes.

i’m very excited to be giving my first Click U workshop at the upcoming SLA conference in Washington, DC.

Click University — Informing Avatars: Exploring the Possibilities of Virtual Worlds
Through a hands-on workshop, participants will have the opportunity to learn about the possibilities of virtual worlds, enter Second Life to create an avatar, and explore possibilities for their organizations. Discussions will revolve around the possibilities for organizations in virtual worlds, the pros and cons of developing a VW presence, and the importance of being aware of this technology.
Sunday, 14 June 2009 8:00AM – 12:00PM
Price: US $229 member / US $349 non-member / US $229 student member

it’s going to be a basic introduction to Second Life, and i expect it to be lots of fun (except for the start time – i hope there’s coffee!)

i hope to see you there!

(note: early bird registration closes April 3, 2009.)