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Using Google Sites

Google Sites is quite an old CMS platform, not having been ‘updated’ for several years now. I think that even Google aren’t thinking much of it, as it’s logo hasn’t even been changed to the new Google logo that they introduced recently.

We looked at it in class today in order to create and become familiar with a site’s hierarchy. Even for someone like me, who is familiar with many web-design tools and even HTML coding, I found it to be very un-user friendly and not intuitive at all. Even from the initial sign up page, you had to click elsewhere.

Here is the site I created. Nothing fancy, as we aren’t required to add any text to the pages.

https://sites.google.com/a/compilationdesign.com/library-tardis/

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WordPress Pitfalls – Template Limitiations

While helping a fellow classmate, Rob to set up his sidebars, I came across an issue with the particular template he was using.

We were trying to add a list of the blogs that he follows and no matter what we did, they would just not show up.

By default, this widget displays the blog list as a “list”. But there is also an option to display them as a “grid”. Out of interest, I tried changing the display option to “grid”. And voila! The list of blogs he was following displayed.

So from this we can learn that in SOME cases, you might not be doing anything wrong, but particular templates may have limitations to them. The problem is that there was no mention that the “list” view wasn’t supported, so we actually had to find this out for ourselves.

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What I’m Reading: Worm

I’m currently reading a web-serial called Worm. I’ve been reading it for quite a while, as it’s long! Really long … apparently it’s supposed to be around the length of 26 regular novels – or 11 really thick novels.

What is a web-serial you might ask? It’s an online story that is released one-chapter-at-a-time. Although it has now been finished, when it was being released the author would release a chapter every week. So people who were reading it at the time would have to wait the following week for the next chapter … much like you wait for the next episode of a TV show that you watch.

I actually would have found it quite frustrating to be reading this as it was released, as to me, it’s the kind of story that makes me want to read more. So much so that sometimes when I read (I usually read in bed), it’s a struggle between wanting to continue and getting sleep!

The story itself is set in a world where people have super-human powers with the central character being a teenage girl named Skitter who ends up becoming a villain. It’s a dark and gritty story, which doesn’t hold back. I’ve never read any books based around superheroes before, as it’s not generally something I’d read (I like superhero movies, but translating them into text format sounds a bit boring to me). But this story has a lot of depth to it, and even some thing like fight scenes (which I thought would be boring) are written in a way that keeps you hooked.

I was initially a bit hesitant to begin reading after my friend Sophie recommended the story to me at the start of the year. I really don’t like reading on the computer, and much prefer the traditional medium for books – paper! But I gave it a shot, realizing I could read on my phone instead of on a screen.

I’m currently about 3/4 through I think and still love it as much as I did in the beginning. I can’t recommend this enough. 🙂

If you want to see what I’m talking about, it’s actually hosted on WordPress too: http://parahumans.wordpress.com.

[image taken from the Worm page]

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Article Link: Why Doctor Who appeals to Librarians

I came across this awesome article the other day about why Doctor Who appeals to many librarians and book lovers. See you should all be watching Doctor Who! 🙂

5 Reasons and Some Quotes Explain why I think Doctor Who Appeals to Book Lovers and Librarians

… and that’s one REALLY long title!

Although I know not all of you are Doctor Who fans in class, one of the things I noticed when I first started the course at the start of the year, was that there are quite a few of us. So it’s interesting to read a librarian’s perspective.

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Copyright and Websites

There are a lot of legal implications surrounding copyright and creating/running a website. One may think that material on the internet is ‘free for all’, but this is not actually the case. Of course we are free to look at anything on the internet, and most people aren’t going to care if you save an image to your computer for personal use (i.e. such as keeping a collection of your favourite cat photos). But once in a more professional environment,  copyright implications begin to become important and must be followed. If not, your organisation, could potentially be sued for breach or copyright.

Images or text are the most common material that copyright extends to. In most cases permission must be obtained for the copyright owner to use these on your own website. Or alternatively, one could purchase royalty-free images online to use on their own sites and social media posts. But copyright does not just apply for images and text. Website layouts, coding, audio and video are also important. If it’s online, it’s very likely it is covered by copyright laws in some way.

Even linking to other websites may be in breach of copyright laws. Most websites like others to link to them, because it gives exposure to their site and generates more traffic for them. But some sites are very specific about who can link to their site, so one should always check for a copyright notice before linking. Also what is linked on a website can have copyright implications. If you are linking to illegal material (i.e. illegal downloads), this could also make you liable in the eyes of the copyright owner.

When I used to run my own website, I had a run-in with copyright laws myself. My website was a fan-site for a movie (non-profit) and we uploaded to a trailer promoting the film. But because we weren’t a registered media outlet, we actually didn’t have permission to directly have the trailer on the site. The company actually sent me an email asking to remove the trailer and link to a media site instead or they would take legal action. I of course promptly removed the trailer not wanting to be sued! The following year, I attended a video game convention/conference and was given the media/press kit for the movie by the same company. As I had been given this by the company themselves, I was allowed to use the trailer on my site without any legal ramifications. 🙂

On the other side of things, if you are uploading content to social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, you are actually giving these companies permission to use your own images in any way they like. Uploaded a pic of your family? Your pet? Your car? If Facebook liked it enough, they could potentially use it in a marketing campaign. And although it’s very unlikely that they would do this, you are legally giving them rights to do so when you join.

Some links to copyright websites:

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My First Blog Post…

Hello everyone, and welcome to my Library Studies Blog. Without stating the obvious … this is my first blog post where you can find out about … me!

I’m currently studying Diploma of Library and Information Services. After having previously had careers in website design and IT support, I am looking for a career change and would love to become either a library technician or archivist at the completion of this course. Although I have been an avid reader all of my life, I have discovered that I have a passion for this industry and for the first time am choosing a career path because of the industry and not just the job position. I have had a lot of experience with technology, so am hoping to be able to bring this to any role.

I’m quite a WordPress pro, having used it as a content management system for client’s websites in the past. Although this version is somewhat of a step backwards for me as I’m used to the WordPress.org version (server install) and many of the features I’m used to aren’t included in the free online version. So I’ll just have to adapt to missing out on all my gadgets and extras! I can’t even change the layout HTML. *sobs* Although it is good to learn about what this version can and cannot do for future reference.

As you can probably tell from my blog layout, I’m a huge Doctor Who fan – kind of the class resident TARDIS! So will probably be on the lookout for some articles that bring Doctor Who and libraries or literature together. Although I’ll try not to bore you all too much. Other than my love for Doctor Who, I enjoy reading mostly science fiction, fantasy, thriller, occult, supernatural and dramatic novels.