More posts later … but for now, here’s a quick little video of the navigation system that came with this Ford Flex. I’m sure some of you already have satellite mapping sytems, so it’s not new to you! But for me, it’s pretty cool stuff.
This Flex has a Sirius Navigation system, and it’s nice. I was actually quite impressed that it even knew when I was on the on/off ramps of a highway – I’m used to Google Maps or even MapQuest types things, so having a seemingly much more accurate map that knows where I am … well, that’s just cool.
A warning for my regular readers – I don’t usually stray very far from professional topics on this blog (well, unless you’ve seen my videos or pics). For the most part, I’m all about social media, technology, and libraries. However, for the next few days, I’m also turning into a car reviewer. Huh? Let me explain …
Rachel from Social Media Group recently emailed, asking if I was interested in test driving a Ford Flex! Here’s the deal – I get to drive the car for about 5 days, and blog/twitter/video my experience driving and using the car. Which works quite well with my family, since we’re headed on a small road trip to visit my parents this weekend.
Seriously.
OK. So why am I doing this? A couple reasons come to mind:
Book promotion. It’s quite possible that my posts will be linked and/or mentioned elsewhere. So I’m hoping people click through to my blog, see the link to my book … etc. More book sales is always a good thing.
I write about emerging technology … and this car purportedly HAS emerging technology… we’ll see.
They want my “authentic voice” or “experience” – if you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you’ll know I’m all about the experience! That felt right to me.
Hoping that other librarian bloggers get noticed more in the general blogosphere. We’re smart! We’ve been doing SEO/search/IA/Usability/etc for much longer than most. And we NEED to have a bigger voice in that arena. Maybe this will help us get noticed a bit more? (ok, that one’s a bit of a stretch).
And of course, there’s the “OhMyGoodnessGraciousTheyOfferedMeACarToTestDrive” reason, too. I admit, this is probably reason #1… so shoot me.
So there you have it! Enjoy … or just mark it “read” and move along…
What do you do in Lincoln, Nebraska after you give a presentation at the library’s staff day? You have dinner with Michael Sauers and family! Thanks, Michael, Mary, kids, cats, and dogs for a fun time!
Tyler, from the 344pounds.com blog, was kind enough to take this snapshot of Designing the Digital Experience sitting on the shelf at the Richland County Public Library and email it to me! Here’s what Tyler said about the book:
Hey David,
I bought your book off of Amazon yesterday, but also went down to the
Richland County Public library to check it out until it gets here.
Attached are the pics from that visit!
I found about you and your site a little while ago by searching for
something about designing a better blog for users (can’t remember exact term). I started a personal blog, 344pounds.com, about 3 months ago — I
don’t have a huge technical background, but I’m learning as much as I can
so I can make sure my blog is “good” for my customers, aka readers.
While your book is *marketed* towards designers and business owners, I
think that anybody who has any type of website can benefit from the book,
even a small “not for profit” personal blog like mine. I’ve already found
quite a few things from reading your book that I can apply to my blog.
Feel free to post this on your blog or testimonials page or whatnot — I’d
love to help sell the book, it’s great!
Tyler
Thanks Tyler for buying the book, taking the pics, and the kind words! You rock!
Just saw the 2009 list of Library Journal Movers & Shakers. Can I just say there are a LOT of very awesome people in that list this year! FYI – check out Bobbi Newman’s list - it’s handy.
Also, there are lots of cool people I know in that list, including Michael, Sarah, Chad, Eric, Jaap, Geert, Karen, Jason, Joe, Lauren, Lori, Jenica, etc, etc etc – awesome (if I forgot you, please kick me later – I’m tired!). Congratulations to every single Mover & Shaker – each of you has earned this – way to go!
And an interesting aside – Bobbi’s list links both to the LJ write-ups on each person, and to their blogs if they have one. Did you notice? There are more bloggers than non-bloggers in the list. Just sayin.
