Just learn one new thing.

I often get asked, "how do you learn all this stuff?" (usually in much stronger language) Obviously I love to learn all this crazy new technology, however, that curiosity does not apply to everything. So for things that I HAVE to learn, like how to maximize my e-mail software, I take ten minutes to learn one new trick every day. (Go to the "help" fun menu for tutorials. And, yes, sometimes "help" is not helpful, but you can find web sites online that teach new software skills for free.)

Here are some suggestions of cool tricks to learn in ten minutes, or less. Organize notes, links, images all in one place!
Sign up for Google Notebook: this handy little tool (see above) installs right into your browser and pops up when you want to write a note, clip a link or save an image. It even stays open while you shift from page to page! Notebook saves you the time of hopping back and forth from a text document to the browser. After you are done you can copy the information to an off-line document.

Share your photos!
Sign up for a photo sharing site like Picasa, photobucket or Flickr, take a picture of your colleague slumped over their desk, those pretty Denver Daisies outside your building or the tops of your shoes and upload for practice. Extra credit: send the link to a friend to share your masterpiece. (note the executive assistant hard at work!)

Chill with a cool video .
Check out Charles R. Carpenter's lovely, soothing Denver videos on his vlog (video log) at Denvergence. (One of my favorites is the piece on Centennial Garden) Forward the link to a friend who could use a break.

What's a meme?

Memes traditionally are cultural ideas or practices that get passed on from person to person through conversation, action and other forms of communication. In the current sense they are concepts and internet slang that travel quickly through e-mail, blogs, chats, message boards and other media. Popular memes include: lonelygirl15, twitter, vanity sites, Web 2.0 and video remixes.

Up-and-coming Memes
Some of these are kind of off-the-wall, but they are representative of the diversity of concepts/web sites in cyberspace.

Funny interactive site: icanhascheezburger.com (Webby Award Winner)
Bokardo posts on a concept: niche social network sites
Website for the comfortably single person: Quirkyalone
Blog Carnivals: groups of bloggers post on a central theme. Travelers take a look at Perceptive Travel Blog's Carnival of Cities.

Going Local: DPL Teens Take Road Trip

Image Credit: Denver Public Library

I know I slather the DPL web team with tons of love, but they have cranked out another awesome project! The 2008 Teen Summer of Reading web site: Reading Road Trip.

Image Credit: Jay, Age 17, Thomas Jefferson High School

In addition to providing a chance to read, cool events & prizes, there is also an art competition for teens to design a bookmark, like the one above. Take a look at their cool web site and sign your teen up today!
-I Can't Keep Up

Think Globally, Blog Locally

Mack Collier from The Viral Garden made my day today when I read his post on the recent history of social media and where it is headed. Why? These few words:

One thing that I really think drives social media, is the ability it gives us to connect with each other. I think that moving forward, the focus will turn to doing this on a local level.

I recently posted on my interview with DenverInfill and Riverfront Park and how their efforts have made our community stronger. In the past we have heard a lot of great stories about chat room buddies, matchmaking sites, social networks, etc. These connections formed relationships from around the world and you can't complain about that. Who would think that taking it to the next level would mean bringing cyberspace home? A connection to local community gives everyone an immediate point of reference that is hard to beat. (OK, maybe it is second to food, but that is another post!)

What have bloggers done for Denver lately?
Bloggers bring Denverites together by sharing information about events, art, Colfax, green architecture and design, fashion on the street and all things Denver. Want to learn about the local hip & cool? Check out these sites:

Cupcakes & Culture: The Shoppe
Creative Denver: The Denver Egotist
Downtown Denver: Live Downtown Denver
Fashion: Cat's Pajamas
Food: Culinary Colorado
News Analysis: Wash Park Prophet
Politics: Colorado Confidential
Veggie Food: Ginger Beat
Vlog: Denvergence

Got a local blog you love? Send it my way!
-I Can't Keep Up

What is RSS? A huge time saver.

It took me a long time to understand this tool because I usually associate the word "feed" with "food." So you can imagine my disappointment when I learned it was something more like a "news" feed. RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication." In other words if a web site is posted and linked to RSS, it is automatically "syndicated" for (or fed to) online users through the myriad of RSS feed readers available.

An RSS "reader" aggregates favorite blogs, web sites and even podcasts so that users are alerted each time a site is updated. It is simply a catchall organizer of these sites or "feeds" which you can read at your leisure.

Imagine taking your favorite news columnists/commentators/types of stories and putting them all in one place. An RSS reader helps you cut out the chatter of wading through a whole publication and focus on specific interests.

Instead of frequently checking favorite web sites, their news is delivered to you - saving valuable time!

What is that orange thing anyway?
Ever wonder about the mysterious orange icon in your browser/on websites? This is the RSS icon. After setting up an RSS reader, any time you are on a page with this icon, click it and this source (web site, blog, etc.) will be added to your reader.

Set Up an RSS Reader
So many to choose from, so little time! Google Reader, NewsGator, Yahoo News and Bloglines are all easy to install and maintain. While most are available for online use, it is also possible to configure the reader so that updates are delivered through e-mail software like Microsoft Outlook.

Subscribe
Once you sign up for a RSS reader, follow the instructions to add your favorite news sources by subscribing. Users can copy and paste links into a "subscribe" box in the reader, click on the orange icon to add a site to your list, or select a drop down button that lists RSS readers (ex. see the button under "Keep Up" in the column to the right of my posts.). Readers also allow you to organize your favorites with folders and tags.

Where is the "Social" part?
Ah, how is this social if you are sitting alone reading your personal news? Easy you can share stories with your friends and colleagues by forwarding the link via e-mail. (Just below this posts along with the "comments" button is a button titled "e-mail" you can share my post this way as well!)

Is RSS stil a little confusing? Check out Common Craft's fun video on RSS.

Happy reading! -I Can't Keep Up