Extra Credit #2: The Key to Enslaving the Human Race

A Google a Day = tons of fun. I would have to agree with Cinephile Femme about the Paul Revere question, though. It was kind of ridiculous--seriously, seriously ridiculous. The first question I encountered, however, was the one about the painting done by the inventor--first off, I knew (or was reasonably sure) that "What hath God wrought!" was the first message sent on the telegraph, so I searched Samuel Morse and read about him and his paintings--i.e., I only had to do one search to find the correct answer and was very proud of myself. Also, I knew that name of the colony from which the residents mysteriously disappeared was Roanoke--so I got to skip a step on that one as well. Yay! Since I'm not in school any more, I need these small affirmations. I tried several other of these Google "puzzles" (while I was working at the Orchard Mesa branch) and had great success with the exception of the cursed Paul Revere query.

In addition to being great fun, A Google a Day was very informative. For instance, I learned that "Popcorn smell has an unusually attractive quality for human beings" (I got this quote from where else but wikipedia, where it seems most of the solutions can ultimately be found--except the Paul Revere one, of course). I've never thought that much about popcorn's smell before, but wikipedia is right--our (the human race as a whole) affinity for the aroma of popcorn is kind of extreme. Think about it, we go where that smell is, we follow it--even if it were to lead us over a cliff, we would still follow it. If our senses tell us that our beloved popcorn has been burnt by some negligent microwave operator, we become incredibly offended and insulted and that person is never allowed the sacred job of tending to the popcorn again. It has a hold over us. If life forms from another planet wanted to enslave the human race, the key would be in the scent of popcorn--it has power. They would seriously just need giant microwaves with giant packages of microwave popcorn and giant theatre popcorn-makers and giant stove-tops with giant aluminum pans of Jiffy Pop and that would be the end of what is commonly known as the human race.

I would like my extra entry to go towards the down town gift card, please. Maybe I could buy popcorn with it.

Task #5: Paint Leprosy

Chilton library on-line is way awesome--if you're into that sort of thing. It has incredible ease of use. I was able to easily find a record of my Accord's recalled ignition switch (9/24/2002)--and verify that it was indeed the only recall on my vehicle! It didn't say anything about the temperature knobs breaking and falling off all the time, though--hmm. I don't think it's just me because I'm not that abusive towards my vehicle. It also didn't say anything about the faulty paint. Every other Accord like mine has the same paint-leprosy problem, so I know it's not me. I understand that it's a problem with the top coat. Kind of lame, but then again, if that's the only manufacturing fault with my vehicle, then I'm in pretty good shape. And, in a way, it's kind of liberating not having a perfect coat of paint--if I did, then I would feel obligated to regularly spend eight dollars on a car wash. This way I don't feel guilty when I don't wash my car! Plus, it rained really hard last night, so you know it's clean, right?

After looking up my car, I looked up my husband's truck. It has had no recalls of any kind. That's nice.

As for the Repair stuff, it's beyond me (for obvious reasons--I majored in English, I work in a library--need I go on?), but it's definitely useful for patrons coming in who know what they're doing. It's very detailed--for instance, it lists what questions you need to ask a customer when you're trying to diagnose a particular problem--and what tools you'll need, too. Then there are the diagrams--like I said, they are meaningless to me, but for those who know what they're doing, that's usually exactly what they need--and they can be found under Repair.

I've pointed patrons towards this resource many a time over the phone or when the hard copy for a particular vehicle was not available--there is no doubt that it is a valuable resource, and it's great that we are able to offer it to our patrons.

Task # 4 Really?

I just read a very fun article from the Dec. 2000 issue of "Consumer Reports" entitled "the new e-books." It's very entertaining reading--for instance, one model has a built-in modem so you can download reading material over the phone--no PC needed. Awesome!!! And both eReaders reviewed can hold at least 10 books at a time--Incredible! How do they do it?! Not to mention, they were crazy expensive. I think the basic rule of technology is never buy the first of anything--it will only get better and less expensive. . .

. . . Which is basically what the article "E-book readers," published exactly one decade later (also by CR) says: "They've never been better or cheaper." I just want to take a moment to say that I don't think Master File premier is very intuitive. I had so much trouble finding articles on eReaders. Typing in eReader or e-reader didn't bring up any CR articles. Typing in "e-Book Reader" was the key. Really, Master File Premier? Really?

Anyway, it seems like Kindle continues to be the best of the eReaders--unless of course you take in to account Amazon's insatiable greed which prevents library rentals. Really, Amazon? Really?

Now it's time for a fun story. A lady who was at the check out desk with a friend a couple of months back (she was not checking anything out herself) told me that she now owns a Kindle and no longer needs the library: "I can just buy popular books right from my Kindle and I don't have to wait like I did with library books." I don't think this lady realized what she was saying--if she likes to pay for books, then she never really needed the library to begin with--her acquisition of a Kindle really has nothing to do with it. There's this thing called a bookstore--it's been around for a while--and it, not unlike the Kindle, allows you to pay for new books rather than borrowing them at no charge. Really, Lady? Really?

Now, back to the CR article from December of 2010: First off, I feel like that's a little old for a review on anything electronic, but I'll go with it. Like I said, Kindle came out on top, but I wouldn't get a Kindle because of the lending issue. Nook is in second place, but Sony isn't even reviewed in this article. But then again, this is from an article that's a half a year old--and I've seen resent news suggesting that CR is now rating the Nook higher than the Kindle. Hmm. Then, of course, there are alternative options--for instance, you could use an iPad as an eReader. I think if I was really in the market for an eReader, I would get a dedicated eReader--the ideas of a long battery life and "e-ink" (not to mention a more reasonable price tag) are appealing. Of course, I would enjoy an iPad, but I don't think I'd be that happy using if for an eReader if I were into that sort of thing. Back to dedicated eReaders--since Sony was not reviewed, I peeked at their website to get an idea of the pricing--a little too pricey for my taste. And even a stylus is not going to get me to pay more (as much as I'd love to pretend like I'm going back in time--re: Palm Pilot). A stylus? Really, Sony? Really?

My decision, if I were hypothetically in the market for an eReader, which I'm not (see previous blog entries, most notably "Free eBooks and the Destruction of the Future"), would be to go with the WiFi-only Nook (I don't require 3G because I am not addicted to instant gratification). It's reasonably priced, it allows you to check out e-Books from the library, and it's got a way cool name--unlike, for instance, the Kobo--probably the reason we no longer have a Borders in this town (you can't just give your products stupid names and expect to stay in business). Kobo? Really, Borders? Really?

If I have sold you on the Nook, I just want to let you know some of the beginning steps to downloading an eBook to it from Overdrive. It would seem that the very first thing you will need to do is download Adobe Digital Editions. This is a one time deal, so once you have downloaded it, you should be able to check-out eBooks with ease. Choose which eBook you would like to check
out. Once you have done that, add it to the book bag, and proceed to check-out. Then you will need to type in your library card number and choose a check-out period. I hope this helps!

In the end, I have to say that I am still partial to book-books (the paper ones with ink-ink). The guy who did the presentation on the Sony eReaders sold me on real books. He talked about all the things people like about real books, and then failed to prove to me that an eReader could capture those attributes--I would like to see them make an eReader smell like a book.

Task # 3 Intelligent Telephones

In Jan. 2011, Consumer Reports published an article entitled "Best Phones & Plans." This article isn't necessarily about smartphones specifically, but it is about cell phones in general, and cell phones in general are becoming increasingly smart. That is why I think this is the answer to your query. Also, there is an article in the same issue entitled "Find the Best Fit"--also about cell phones, also has the word "Best" in it. Hmm . . .

Something I did notice is that I didn't get these results when I typed smartphones as two separate words. So that was kind of tricky. Hmm . . .

Extra Credit: This one was even more tricky than making smart phones into one word. How about "Izzy Quits Guns 'n Roses" for an article title from the first page of results for the 1/9/92 edition of "Rolling Stone"? That's right. Yay!!!!!

I would like another entry into the downtown gift card drawing. By now, you should already know my reasons.

Oh, and in other news, they really are making "The Hobbit" into a movie!!!!!!!!!!! (I wrote my high school senior thesis on Tolkien--I guess I'm kind of a nerd.)

This One's for David, or, Sad Day

It's a sad day MCPLD. I echo the sentiment of the little dog in check-out: Don't go, David. I find it strange that right after Borders has closed, David is moving away--coincidence? I leave that for you to decide.

Well, this one's for you, David.

#2 and 80's Day

I'm graduating this Sunday. Well, actually, I graduated in December, but commencement is this Sunday--kind of anti-climatic. Anyway, I am now a BA just like Anne of Green Gables. I'm really happy to be done with school. I do not miss the homework or the papers or the late nights writing the papers. One thing that I do miss, however, is being graded. Good grades are pretty validating. That is why I enjoyed this task so much. I got a 100% on the website scavenger hunt!!! Yay! I knew right where to go for the grocery bag question, too.

As excited as I am about graduation, I think I may actually be more excited about 80's day tomorrow.

Here's a little music to help get you in the mood.

Task #1: Create a Blog, check

Hello, one and all! I would like to start out by saying that I would like to be put into the drawing for the down town gift certificate. If you have read my blog in the past (most notably my post from June entitled Free e-Books and the Destruction of the Future) you will no doubt understand my reasons for not particularly wanting a Sony e-reader.

Note the awesome books shown on the left (Penguin Classics is publishing these amazing linen hardbacks--I want them all). How could you not prefer real books to e-Books when real books are so wonderful? In addition to reading real books, you can actually place them on a bookshelf and bask in their stately beauty and excellence. You cannot do that with e-Books. These fabulous hardbacks are one of the reasons I have no interest whatsoever in an e-reader and wish to be placed in the drawing for the gift certificate. Not that it really matters--I never win drawings anyway.