Link O'Day: Not Even Past

So far the links I have shared have been ones that I had in my bookmarks for a very long time. Today I am STOKED to share a link to a great site that is brand new! I learned about it via LM_NET and it was launched this very day. The name of the site is Not Even Past, and is a wonderful history resource put up by The University of Texas at Austin's History Department. Because it is so new I am just now exploring. My first question was scope...is it limited to American History? Here is a bit of the site's self-description:

'Not Even Past provides dynamic, accessible, short articles on every field of History. Founded in 2010 and developed by the Department of History at the University of Texas at Austin, Not Even Past speaks to everyone interested in the past and in the ways the past lives on in the present.'

So the scope is...well...all encompassing. No doubt that means it will grow exponentially in the future. There are options for video, text, and audio content, and a special tab just for TEXAS.  Clearly this site has lots to offer to teachers, students, and researchers, but I hope the most enthusiastic audience will be the great unwashed masses. Everybody can benefit from this engaging and informative resource. I submit that you will want to visit again and again and watch it grow. So Feliz Navidad, Not Even Past!

Link O'Day: RefDesk.com

Step right up folks! No need to stand in line! Just click on the link above and behold. You will be taken to a one-stop shop for EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED OR WILL IN THE FUTURE WILL WANT to know! OK...maybe that is a bit of hyperbole, but click on the title and take a look at Refdesk. I happen to love sites that are densely packed with tons of information. This one is considered one of the most comprehensive on the Internet. Here is an interesting fact about this site: It is hosted by Bob Drudge. Name sound familiar? He is the father of Matt Drudge of The Drudge Report. The sites are not connected but Bob brags a bit about Matt on his "About" page. Me, I like Dad's site best, because there is no hint of bias or sensationalism. Instead you get the the facts, just the facts. Facts about what? Well pretty much everything under the sun! Give it a try and see if there is anything missing that you want. If there is, let Bob know. He'll likely put it in!

Link O'Day: Great organizational site..TaDa List!

I have probably mentioned this link at some point already in my blog, because it is a big part of my life. I have always been a list-maker.  I am not blessed with photographic memory--far from it. The biggest tool I have to combat my forgetfulness is writing things down, and the best online list-keeper for me has been TaDa List. It is a simple process to set up the lists you want to keep. Each item shows up with a little box next to it. When you complete a task, you check the box. The item does not go away. Instead it moves down below to join other completed tasks. Thus you get to see all your completed tasks. For me, checking the boxes and seeing the tasks demoted to "done" is a great feeling. First thing this morning I set up a list called "Things I Don't Want to Think About Because I Am Too Lazy to Do Them." I listed seven things that have been nagging at me but that I have continually been postponing, because they involve some thinking through how to successfully complete them. One by one I ticked them off today. By mid-afternoon they were all done. It is a great feeling!

Link O'Day: Abbreviations.com

This link does not come from my bookmark bank. Instead it is one shared today by Sybel Finemel via LM_NET listserv for school librarians. She has been sharing links for years, including contributions to Librarians' Internet Index and Virtual Reference Desk. These days you can find her at Question Point: http://wiki.questionpoint.org/w/page/13839450/Global-Knowledge-Base-Editors
While you are at this location, take time to peruse the many resources at this information-filled wiki.

Abbreviation Index is just what it says, a repository of abbreviations and what they stand for. It also has a section for social network lingo, which they call "Wannas." You can search for a given abbreviation or browse by subject. Of course you can! It's an index, right? Here is my favorite section...check it out!

INTERNET

Chat, Emoticons, Domain Names, Wannas, HTTP, MIME, ASCII »

Link O'Day: Just for fun...library circulation desk made out of books

Link O'Day: Phil Bradley's Website

I went to my very oldest link tagged REVISIT to see what was there. I started using this tag back in April, 2007. Mr. Bradley bills himself as an "electronic publishing consultant." When I saw that he was a consultant, I was not sure I wanted to feature him because, frankly, there a lot of great consultants out there and we as librarians are consultants ourselves. BUT he has some great information, available FOR FREE. His list of search engines alone, linked from his main page, is worth a visit. He lists over 150 and has brief annotations for each. He also writes about Twitter,  and Web 2.0 applications. I am very glad I revisited his site, and highly recommend it to anyone interested in Internet searching and/or Web 2.0. Here is the address: http://www.philb.com/
Give Phil a visit! You can say I sent you.

Kicking Off Site O'Day (Sorta): Internet Archive!!!

Here goes my first short Site O'Day entry, which is in fulfillment of my 2011 New Year Resolution to blog "almost" every day. As I mentioned in a previous entry, I have a ton of unruly and disorganized bookmarks at my Delicious site:

One of my tags is SHARE and another is REVISIT. I use these when I come across a site I want to share with students or return to for a closer look. Alas, I seldom if ever have been revisiting, and my sharing is not much better though I do recommend to my MLS students. So I thought it would be fun to go back and visit my very first site to be tagged with SHARE. I wondered if it would be something that still had value, or for that matter if it would still be up and going. Well, I am patting myself on the back. My first site to share is Internet Archive (http://www.archive.org/)!

I could not have picked a better choice! Here is the self description offered at the site, which explains it better than I am able:

"The Internet Archive is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that was founded to build an Internet library. Its purposes include offering permanent access for researchers, historians, scholars, people with disabilities, and the general public to historical collections that exist in digital format. Founded in 1996 and located in San Francisco, the Archive has been receiving data donations from Alexa Internet and others. In late 1999, the organization started to grow to include more well-rounded collections. Now the Internet Archive includes texts, audio, moving images, and software as well as archived web pages in our collections, and provides specialized services for adaptive reading and information access for the blind and other persons with disabilities."

How would I describe it? As a huge repository of....wonderful stuff! I gave it a whirl but trying several searches:

• I searched the Music Archives for "Luckenbach" since I have been having a great time hanging out there recently. Yep, there were performances, including one by Corb Lund. I am a fan so this was a nice treat. There were 15 songs recorded on my last birthday! I am presently enjoying "Big Butch Bass Bull Fiddle." I cannot wait to hear "Devil's Best Dress" and others.
• Next I went over to Video Archives and was struck by the title "The Days of Sexy Cigarettes." Since I am old enough to remember the TV commercials for cigarettes, I went to the link and viewed a funny/sad ad featuring Luci and Desi plugging Philip Morris.
• Next I was drawn to a link called which led me to The Beat Within which features creations by youngsters in the system who are or have been behind bars. Compelling stuff that could well be shared with other teens. 
•  Below you will see listings of all the links at this large and important collection. Click on any one to go to that section!
• Animation & Cartoons | Arts & Music | Community Video | Computers & Technology | Cultural & Academic Films | Ephemeral Films | Movies | News & Public Affairs | Prelinger Archives | Spirituality & Religion | Sports Videos | Videogame Videos | Vlogs | Youth Media

I could go on but I promised to keep entries short. Don't miss this site! Here is the link again: http://www.archive.org/ I cannot think of a better way to start my ambitious project for the coming year!