YouTube, podcast searches

I can't remember how long I've used and loved YouTube. To use it is to love it. That's where I go to find all of the commercials and cartoons from my childhood. If you miss a great clip from TV, you can find it on YouTube. I especially love checking out music, and you can always find shows posted in installments. (Hulu has definitely improved that type of service.) But sometimes it's also fun to just find the cute, everyday situations that appeal to all. I think libraries could benefit from YouTube by posting videos from the library on their Web sites. They could just give a tour of the library, feature clips from programs, or maybe even have patrons give video book reviews. But this way, community members who aren't really sure if they want to visit their library can see what it has to offer. The clip that I'm posting was a huge YouTube sensation a couple of years ago, but I didn't learn about it until this year. I think is hilarious.



As for the podcast searches, the first one was a broken link. The second one worked, but I wasn't a huge fan of the web site. I didn't like how it was set up, and I felt like the podcasts should have been more easily accessible. On the other hand, I liked that you could browse by popular podcasts, which is a helpful tool. I actually prefer just searching for podcasts via Google searches because they can lead you directly to their sites. I have recently become somewhat obsessed with podcasts. I especially enjoy listening to various NPR programs (Wait, wait, Don't Tell Me, and their Music shows are excellent), BBC News, and the Bugle. And I am used to iTunes, so I'm familiar with how to search it.

Zoho and Web 2.0 awards

I just signed up for my Zoho account, and I've just been messing around with a new document. I was just introduced to Google Docs last fall in grad school, and I was absolutely blown away by the idea that you could create a regular document and have different group members make changes at any time. So I've been familiar with the idea for a while, but I am a huge fan of this technology. I think Google Docs has made some major strides in the past year, and it further along, but both programs are great. They are so useful. And I love how these programs are able to supply similar tools as programs such as Microsoft Word for free. It's amazing, and I totally plan to spread the word. It's fantastic!

As for the Web 2.0 awards list, there were so many awesome sites to explore. I was intrigued by the cocktail builder and hair mixer. I will definitely be going back to those. But there were so many options, which was great.

The site I chose to really explore was Farecast, which actually ended up being Bing.com/travel, when I clicked on the link. I have been a huge fan of Kayak for a long time, so when I saw that Farecast was ranked higher, I had to check it out. It predicts fares and let's customers book tickets, and if the predictions are wrong they provide refunds. So I've just been looking around at this site, checking flight prices for potential days. I've heard about Bing recently, so it's been interesting to look at their services.