Odyssey Online

Friday Blogging, Trees

pdoty — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:58:20 +0000

…the last three days confirm that spring has sprung, and what is more spring-like than the return of the green leaves to the trees! Yippee! While spending a perhaps drowsy Saturday afternoon on down time, perhaps some books about trees to further get into the spirit of the season?

Trees, Truffles, and Beasts: How Forests Function by Chris Maser, Andrew W. Claridge, and James M. Trappe
Trees: A Visual Guide by Tony Rodd and Jennifer Stackhouse
The Wild Trees: A Story of Passion and Daring by Richard Preston
Teaching the Trees: Lessons from the Forest by Joan Maloof
The Complete Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs Edited by Ernie Wasson

The last one is a reference book , of course, but if it rains Sunday you can consult that in either ODY or Launders…we have two copies!

Google Wave and Google Buzz, in Harmoy or Opposition?

pdoty — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:11:24 +0000

…CNN.com has an interesting piece on whether Google Wave and Google Buzz are destined to merge into one product, or whether they represent cross purposes with Google’s corporate structure…

Sundry Literary Web Snippets

pdoty — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:04:40 +0000

…break week web surfing (who still says web surfing other than me?) lead to two interesting and eclectic literary posts. First, Flavorwire their 30 Favorite Opening Lines in Literature, and it’s a good list…my only Flavorwire excluded inclusion might be Byron’s I want a hero, an uncommon want from Book One of Don Juan. Also, writing for the Guardian’s Book Blog Toby Lichtig detailed how he has to finish any book he starts, quitting on them is not in his make up. A fine chronicle of one man’s confessions of themselves as reader, compulsive habits and all. Pondering who one is as a reader is never a waste of time, web-read or otherwise!

Friday Blogging, New Books on Books

pdoty — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:40:12 +0000

…okay, it’s Thursday, but with Spring Break upon us (yah!) what better time to get in the recreational reading that so often goes by the wayside during the semester. And what better reading, than contemplating the very medium through which so much of university work is still done: books. Collected here is a sampling of books about books in our happening Browsing Collection–our recreational reading collection shelved just outside Special Collections, near the Word Studio and computer labs. I haven’t read all of these, but they constitute the newest titles we have on stuff bibliographical:

Built of Books: How Reading Defined the Life of Oscar Wilde by Thomas Wright
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett
Books for Sale: The Advertising and Promotion of Print Since the Fifteenth Century Eds. Robin Myers, Michael Harris, and Giles Mandelbrote
The Case for Books: Past, Present, and Future by Robert Danton
Books as History: The Importance of Books Beyond Their Texts by David Pearson
Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them by Francine Prose
Theories of Reading: Books, Bodies, and Bibliomania by Karin Littau

All very new, and, having read the Danton, that text is excellent. With these books in hand Odyssey Online is going to take a week or so break, be back in Middle-March!

Google’s Algorithm, Google Ribbed

pdoty — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:20:21 +0000

…Charles Arthur has published a very interesting piece in The Guardian on Google’s algorithm. He argues that Google is its algorithm, and makes an interesting argument about what this means for the company at this point in time…

…today’s Onion is also featuring a brilliant parody on Google and that word which must not be uttered in Google’s presence (ergo, privacy…the Onion does feature adult language and themes…)

An Angry Google is a Fearful Google

pdoty — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:43:55 +0000

…AtlanticWire has gathered a number of articles about the gloves coming off and the lawyers coming out in Google v. Microsoft. Just as intense as Canada v. U.S.A. Sunday (…okay the hockey game was a lot more fun…)

…also a short interesting piece from the Washington Post that makes a case for what Google had in mind with Google Buzz, and why they put it out before it was ready…

Friday Blogging, Country Life

pdoty — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:26:59 +0000

…Odyssey Online’s editorial team (me) is having a day devoted to shot transmissions, pulled teeth (literally), and stranded spring break college students. Amidst the chaos, there is the blustery just- slightly-evocative-of-spring day all around us, which, in an effort to calm myself, brings me to the thought of books about country life in cold places, places like St. Lawrence County. Spring nearby?

Living North Country: Essays on Life and Landscapes in Northern New York Edited by Natalia Singer and Neal Burdick
The Road Washes Out in Spring: A Poet’s Memoir Of Living Off the Grid by Baron Wormser
Here at Eagle Pond by Donald Hall
A Stone Bridge North: Reflections in a New Life by Kate Maloy
Epicurean Simplicity by Stephanie Mills
Rural Renaissance: Renewing the Quest for the Good Life by John Ivanko and Lisa Kirvist

Why Not To Put iTablets in Schools

pdoty — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 20:43:34 +0000

…Daniel Indiviglio makes the case at Atlantic.com, note in particular reason number two. For years people with a vested interest in networked information technology have made the case that not providing students with digital technologies will mean they are left out or left behind (or suffer both fates). The case has also been made that extensive use of digital technologies can mean less costly education as it will mean you need fewer people to teach. The problem is networked information technology requires an infrastructure and this infrastructure costs money. The problem is, networked information technology has a short shelf life (or cycle as technologists would say), and expensive computers must be replaced. While Sergey Brin may opine that books are as transient as the rising tide, the fact of the matter is even paperback books last longer than e-book readers of any ilk. Digital technology has a built in obsolescence which manifests in upgrades–in short, Indiviglio is right that an education immersed in digital technologies is going to be considerably more expensive than one that has at least one foot firmly on the print, one hand holding a piece of chalk…

…I know, I know, I’m blogging this…

Chrome and Firefox in February

pdoty — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:44:26 +0000

…while this article from PC World is largely about Microsoft, it does give current browser share numbers. In a word, more good news for Firefox and Chrome.

One of the real joys of Firefox are the add-ons. Recent news on new Youtube add-ons for Firefox has just come down the pipe…for an overview of Firefox add-ons see the notes for a presentation back a year or two ago, but still current in terms of the add-ons as concept, and the add-ons it covers.

For information on what Chrome is and how Google is positioning it to be a web-based operating system, see these powerpoint notes for a presentation I did last December. Even though it’s a powerpoint it will still provide commentary on what Google is up to (warning, some sardonic comments about Google along the way…)

Friday Blogging, Bad Day for Google

pdoty — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 19:16:32 +0000

…they might be going straight to the Bloody Mary’s in Mountain View. Firstly there is the continued negative reaction and bad press surrounding Google Buzz (this is CNN’s version of the poison), and the Washington Post is reporting that the Google book settlement, amidst criticism from just about everyone, is back in limbo…

Karen Coyle has insightful commentary on the DOJ’s latest assessment of the Google Book Settlement…