ListenNJ - downloading to an IPod or MP3

If you want to download from ListenNJ at the library,

you must use a PC Plus computer!!

ListenNJ was one of the first but it won't be the last of the subscription services offered by OCL to our customers that allow downloading of audiovisual material. A new service with animated picture books and audiobooks for children will be premiering soon. Downloadable music and feature film services are under consideration as well. Now it is the time to get comfortable with downloading files and transferring (syncing) the files to portable devices.

Rather than repeat all the details and instructions from the ListenNJ activity on the original OCL Web Challenge, this is the link to the post on the OCL Web Challenge blog.
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For the Branch Managers Challenge, you must do everything asked in the original discovery exercise plus actually transferring an audiobook to an IPod or MP3 device. There are 14 MP3 players available through the challenge for your use if you don't have one.
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If you are the sort of learner who doesn't like to read instructions and would rather just figure it out on your own, please don't try that with ListenNJ. They have a well designed Getting Started Guide, a Guided Tour, FAQ's and all sorts of help and troubleshooting hints. Investing a little time in reading the instructions, will save you much frustration and time later.

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Finally, blog about your experience.

Borrowed MP3 players are due back to the Coordinator at the next Branch Managers meeting, November 14, 2008 in TR. The blog post about ListenNJ is also due by then.
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and because so many participants in the original Web Challenge had problems because they didn't pay attention to this instruction, forgive me for repeating:
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If you want to download from ListenNJ at the library,

you must use a PC Plus computer!!

Steps Two & Three - starting your blog on Blogger and emailing the info

There are many blogging services available but for the OCL Branch Manager Challenge, you must have a blog created using Blogger. This is easy to do with your Gmail account. You will be using your Gmail account and password to sign in and create your blog.
Creating a blog using Blogger takes just three steps:

1. Create an account
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2. Name your blog
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3. Select your template.

Once you’ve created your blog site, here are some important things to know:

To add posts about your progress in the challenge:

You'll will go to http://www.blogger.com/ to log in and enter your posts.

To view your blog: Your blog address is http://(xxxx).blogspot.com/,

(xxxx)=the unique name you entered in Step 2.

Be sure to also write down your blog address (and email the address information to your work Outlook as a backup!).

For more step by step instructions, try

Blogger's Quick Tutorial

Finally, email your Gmail address and the address of your blog to the challenge's email. To avoid spam that address will not be posted on this blog. The address was given out at the October Branch Managers meeting and will be emailed to every Branch Manager directly.

Getting Started - Step One Gmail

Before you can really start with the challenge, there are three steps:

1. Signing up for a Gmail account.

2. Creating a Blog on Blogger

3. Emailing the challenge's Gmail account with your Gmail Address and your blog's address.
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To do step one:

Visit http://www.gmail.com/ and click on Sign Up for Gmail. The instructions are easy to follow.

Don't forget to remember your new Gmail address and password. One tip: If you email the address and password to your work address from your Gmail account, you'll have the information in your Outlook mailbox if you forget the information later.

Technology for Branch Managers: Awareness, Performance, Teaching

Ocean County Library Branch Managers Challenge

Goal:

All branch managers will progress from awareness of certain technological features and tasks, to performance of those features and tasks and finally to the level of competency sufficient to teach other staff and customers how to use the technologies.

Some of the proposed topics for this training include:

Digital camera

Wi-fi
Digital projector/laptop/DVD

PC Plus
Scanners

MS Office suite
Flash drives

Wikis

Blogs
Shortcuts for popular programs

Computer 101: terminology and basic file management

ListenNJ
Google: beyond the basics

Google docs
High Priority Databases

QandANJ

Activities:

At least once a month, a learning goal will be set on the blog, OCLmanages.blogspot.com. Depending on what is being taught, some months there will be self motivated learning, reading and practice while other months there will be a training given as part of the Branch Managers meeting or small group trainings. This is an opportunity to suit the training to the lesson and experimentation in how to train each technology is part of the effort. Chat and instant messaging could easily become part of the mix.
Instructors will primarily come from TR Adult -Informations Services and the Technology Department but aren’t necessarily limited to those sources.

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Duration:
The challenge begins October 10, 2008. The duration is indefinite. As new technologies develop and as expectations arise among customers and staff, this will be an ongoing effort.

Tracking:
Progress will be recorded on a Google docs spreadsheet shared with the Assistant Director, Chief Librarian for Branch Services, and the Supervising Librarians of Branch Services.

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Program manager: Coordinator of Information Services