Thing #7 Google

Google was always somewhat one dimensional to me until I discovered Google Earth, but now I am seeing more and more resources that are available. There were some interesting ideas to learn about today.
I did end up registering for a Google Alert. I am hanging my head as I write that I signed up to be alerted about a summertime upcoming reality show that I have gotten sucked into over the years. I know I could be doing better things with my time, but it's just too entertaining to pass up. So now I will be alerted when some juicy piece of gossip comes up or they announce who the contestants are so I can figure out who I will be spending time with this season.
On to a more serious way to use this, I can keep up with the Bluebonnet and Texas 2x2 authors. I can find out if they will be touring in our area this year or what they are currently writing or some other news that I can pass on to my patrons. The best part is that it will be sent to me, I won't have to go searching for info about every single author.
I also explored Google Calendar. I like this feature because I can let my kids and my parents know what my schedule looks like without me having to call them or have my dad call me to find out if I am still alive or not. I can also have another calendar for school to let teachers know what is going on during the month and when I will be out of the building or at a regularly scheduled meeting. For patrons and their parents, I can attach a link to the library webpage and have a calendar that lines out the author visits, special events, book fair, or if the library is closed for voting, etc. This seems like a lot of work to keep up with so it is something that I will have to check out a little more and try using for a while to see if I can make it work for me. The concept is great though.