Task 23 Summary!

this is such a cleverly designed program - the information in each task builds on that in the previous task, and while I found some of the material in weeks 1-7 (up to the rss feeds bit) to be really very time consuming indeed, after that it became easier and I think the functions / tools featured in the last half of the program are definitely more 'high end' and useful to me personally & professionally than some of those in the earlier part of the program.
In my own case, i don't have up to date pc equipment at home, so it was quite a task fitting it in at work. I also don't have a digital camera or lots of the other technological gizmo's that would enable greater access to some of these products. That got me thinking about how there is really becoming a divide between the 'haves' and 'havenots' in technology terms, and how libraries traditionally try hard to place themselves as a provider to those who may not have great technology access. It seems that these days (in my experience) there are also greater expectations from people who actually 'have' got good technology access at home - they also expect that we will be able to provide them with the latest and greatest materials that will complement their own equipment - such as downloads and mp3's for loan and the like. I think this also places an extra demand on library staff - on a typical day we could work with a customer who had not even used a mouse much, right through to someone who had high expectations of technology access and provision - and they do expect us to know the answers to all their questions! it may be that in 12 months time (or less) we will all need a '23 things' update! congratulations to all those responsible for this program.