TechBits

Windows title bar slacker

Did you know that you can lazily maximize and resize any windows application without needing to head over to click on that tiny little middle icon on the right of the title bar?

Instead if clicking on maximize/resize button, double click anywhere on the title bar.  Voila!  Want to undo that?  Double click again.

More on Pinterest & libraries

Before Pinterest offered business accounts, many libraries signed up with personal accounts. If you did, you can convert your personal library account to a business account.

1. Log in to your existing personal account
2. Go to http://business.pinterest.com/
3. Click on "Convert your existing account"
4. Follow the steps and complete the process

Warning: Once you convert your personal account to a business account, you will not be able to switch it back to a personal account.

If you're thinking about using Pinterest Web analytics, make sure your account is converted to a business account before you do the verification. Otherwise, you may end up doing the verification twice!

Why convert your library's account to a business account?

• To comply with Pinterest's Terms of Service
• You can use your library's whole name as it should be (no more needing to split it between the "first" and "last" name fields)
• Within its business site, Pinterest is adding educational materials specifically for businesses to learn how to market themselves.
• Pinterest is working on a whole new set of features exclusively for businesses to help them expand their reach and understand their Pinterest audience

Source: Social Media Examiner - "Pinterest Business Accounts: The Definitive Guide to Getting Started"

Interested in more information about using Pinterest for your library? Check out the February "Know More" webinar with special guest Joy Schwarz talking about "Pinterest and Libraries"  (30-min archived program). It was a great overview of Pinterest and had lots of ideas about how you can use Pinterest for your library. For example, did you know there's a Pinterest widget builder for business accounts that you can embed on your library's website to invite people to follow your boards? I didn't!

Already using Pinterest for library-related purposes?  Please take a few minutes to fill out a short survey about how you're using it!

Replacing Obsolete Printers

The current Dell OptiPlex 7010 PC configuration that we are going with does not include a parallel port.   If you are replacing a PC that has a parallel cable-connected printer, you will no longer be able to use that printer.  Another problem with these older paralell printers is that they often do not have Windows 7 compatible print drivers.  The Epson TM-u200 receipt printers are one example. 

If you are replacing a PC that uses a parallel connected printer, you have a few options.  You can order a new printer that connects to the PC by USB cable.  You can also print to a network-attached printer or a shared printer if you have one.

Notes on OverDrive: The Next Generation

We're over two weeks and five training sessions into the Next Generation of OverDrive and here's what I've learned so far:

• OverDrive is still fixing and tweaking the site and App so little things may change from day to day
• The OverDrive Apps have all been updated - Yay!
• I've started referring to transferring titles from the computer to a device as the "traditional" or "old way" (it's still my way for my NOOK Tablet)
• Patrons can now cancel holds during the 3-day period it's available to borrow
• Able to tell at a glance if a title is available
  Or not
  
  
• Someone at your library should be subscribed to the WPLC Email List as OverDrive tips and news are shared here

Librarians are awesome! Jim Ramsey from Middleton Public Library graciously offered to share the instructions they created for use with patrons and gave me permission to post them here. They're in Word format so feel free to customize for your library. Thanks Jim!

1. Kindle Step-by-Step 
2. Kindle Fire with OverDrive App
3. NOOK Color/Tablet with OverDrive App
4. Android Tablet with OverDrive App
5. iPad and other IOS Devices with OverDrive App

Guest Post: Using BatchGeo to Make Google Maps

Kerri's test data above, resulting map below.

What is BatchGeo? It's an easy way to convert spreadsheet data into a Google Map.

Guest post by Andy Barnett, Assistant Director at McMillan Memorial Library in Wisconsin Rapids.
------------------------

1. First, start with some an excel spreadsheet that includes address information, such as a list of patrons. McMillan used a list of patrons residing in a township.
2. Decide what you want to display on the map. Address, city, state, zip are essential to creating the map. Depending upon your data, this might include a number of things. We included patron barcode, but not anything else. This allowed us to identify and check any questionable addresses.
3. Copy the relevant data. If you copy entire columns, the first row will serve as headers and will not be mapped. If you copy a selection, the first row will be treated as headers and will not be mapped. We copied a selection and the row above, which gave us confusing headers, but accurate mapping.
4. Go to http://batchgeo.com/. Paste the data where it says Copy and then paste your location data below.
5. Click on Validate & Set Options. Match address, city and zip to your fields.
6. Finally, choose Map Now. A link to the map will be emailed to you. Maps can be public or private.

There is a limit of 2,000 items per map in the free version and the fee version creates maps faster.

Some addresses do not map correctly. CTY TRK doesn’t work, but CO RD does. Some state highways also confuse the mapping, especially when they use South or North in the address. BatchGeo is not as smart or forgiving as the USPS.

The resulting maps are zoomable and can be shared. When zoomed out, patron are aggregated and shown as numbers. City/village edges are easy to see, but county and township boundaries are not displayed. They can be used to check PSTATs, show where patrons live, or just for funsies.

Serious Storage

In tech news this last week, I saw an article on how the Vatican’s library digitization project received 2.8 petabytes of storage for the first phase of the project.  And that’s just the first phase.  With 80,000 manuscripts and a rough estimate of 40 million pages to digitize, the project is expected to take 10 years and an estimated 45 petabytes of storage total. 

For a better idea of just how much storage that is, using the standard size hard drive we currently order, it would be 180,000 hard drives.  If we took that many standard 3.5 in drives and laid them side by side, the line would stretch nearly 10 miles.  Even using the largest individual drive I’ve seen for retail sale at 4 terabytes, that’s still 11,250 drives.  That’s a lot of data to store and back up. 

As of January, 256 digitized manuscripts have been made available to the public.  Though you’re going to have to dust off your Latin: http://www.vaticanlibrary.va/home.php?pag=mss_digitalizzati

Header and footer fun (aka "where does that document live?")

I wanted to add a footer to my Word document that would automatically display the name of the document and the path to the document. I knew how to add a footer, but couldn't figure out how to make the file and path information appear without me typing it... so I looked it up. Here's the answer:

Click on images to view full-size

1. Insert tab -> Footer 
   (I chose the "Blank" option)
2. Insert tab -> Quick Parts -> Field...
3. Select "FileName" and check the box to "Add path to filename"
4. Click on the Design tab and click "Close Header and Footer" to finish

Easy peasy. And it's the same basic idea when working with headers.

Another helpful option might be to add the "SaveDate" and "LastSavedBy" fields to easily know when and by whom the document was last updated.

Which of the "Quick Parts" fields do you use in your documents?

Scrolling Through Web Pages

While using control button and scroll wheel to resize an image in Firefox I accidently discovered I can scroll through web pages I’ve been to by holding down the shift key instead of the control key and turning the wheel on my mouse.