Games & Gaming #38: Console Gaming

A problem with the old arcade games is that I couldn't remember how to play them, and not all of them had instructions. I never enjoyed them very much because of my afore-mentioned lack of speed. I think they are even harder now on my laptop because I don't have the same joystick-type controllers. Using the keyboard or my thumbpad just doesn't cut it. Plus the music playing in the background caused my husband to yell, "What are you doing there? PLAYING GAMES??? I thought you were supposed to be doing library training."



Those old games did attract me to the power of computers, however, and probably helped me develop what little hand-eye coordination I do have. My favorites were later-generation games like the early King's Quest or Seventh Guest that were less about agility and killing and more about problem solving and strategy.

Boy, do those historic consoles look old!!! I guess someday the Wii's and SuperNintendo systems will look like that, too. We used to own a Mattel Intellivision console, and had lots of games for bowling, football, golf, and so on. My brother and sister and I spent a lot of time playing, and really did enjoy it because of the interactive aspect. That still seems to be a huge part of the attraction of such games.

Of the consoles available for the library today, I would like to purchase a Wii because, as their ads say, "Wii is not just a gaming console. It's a reason to get together with your friends and family and play today's hottest games." I think it has appeal for kids, teens, and intergenerational programming.

Libraries are great because they don't force people into one way of thinking or being. Some people may come for the games, and that's all. Some people come for the games and get into books. Some people come for the books and find out about the games. Some people come to pay bills over the Internet, and read the newspaper. Some people come because they like to talk to the staff. Some people come because we have great AC. Hey -- everybody is welcome!

Games & Gaming #37: Game On @ The Library

Last night at a board meeting, I failed to convince the Friends to buy a Nintendo Wii system for our library. I was hoping that I could use one of these articles to help them understand that games can have a place at the library. I am not sure that either article makes a strong enough case. The NYT article might help, but it is about more than just games for programming. It is about big bucks to buy games to circulate, and I am not in favor of spending ever scarcer resources for that. The Shifted Librarian article is a mixed bag, too. The pro-game message is diluted by phrases like "Others browse the library for comic books ..." or "He talks smack and teases gamers ... or "The council plans tournaments and develops rules (such as no cussing)."

Personally, I don't think that offering games as programming to attract teens to the library is any different that what we do now by having puppet shows for kids or domino tournaments for seniors. We want to bring people to the library to enjoy themselves and feel welcome. While they are here, we can introduce them to our materials and other services. I am sure that a teen who came to the library for a gaming program and had a good time with friends is much more likely to come back with friends to work on a school project.

American Library Association President Loriene Roy has commented that “Gaming is a magnet that attracts library users of all types and, beyond its entertainment value, has proven to be a powerful tool for literacy and learning.”

ALA has announced a $1 million study into the impact of gaming on literacy skills. The ALA will build a model for library gaming that can be deployed nationally. The Librarians’ Guide to Gaming will be developed in collaboration with leading gaming experts in order to create a comprehensive online literacy and gaming toolbox. It will then be tested in selected libraries before being rolled out across the US.

At PLA in Minneapolis this year, a session on intergenerational programs at the library included some excellent family competitions based on the Nintendo Wii concept. I am determined to gather more information and go back to the Friends' group to gain their support for this proposal.

Regarding the Carnegie Mellon games, I could not get through the highest level. Speed is not my strong point, and that is a big part of a lot of games. I am thinking that since so many of our paid shelvers and volunteer shelvers are young, developing our own Dewey-based "Shelve This!" type of game might be a good teaching tool.

Games & Gaming #36: Online Role Playing Games

I appreciated the opportunity to get acquainted with Runescape. We have had several online tournaments/scavenger hunts at the library, and it is good to be familiar with what those young customers (mostly young teen and pre-teen boys) are so interested in. Here are some things I learned:

1) The numbers are amazing! As of today, 130 million accounts had been created, and 130,092 people were currently playing. That is a VERY MULTI-player game.

2) The game MUST be educational. After all, its is headquartered in Cambridge, England.

3) The tutorial is helpful, but tedious. It would take me a lot of playing hours to know what I was doing, especially since I am very slow at moving around. The game would teach me some orientation skills, I'm sure. Probably many of the skills used here are similar to those used in other games (picking up objects, arming yourself, running, attacking, etc.), so most of the kids would not have as big a learning curve as I do.

4) My character is standing in the middle of Lumbridge in the clip above. I have finally found the Range Tutor, gotten the bows and arrows, taken them back to Sir Vant, killed the druid who was helping the dragon, climbed back up the ladder, and am now looking for the Fishing Tutor. All in only two hours!

5) I could not figure out how to capture a close-up picture of my character. I chose a strong gray-haired, olive-skinned woman with a great figure and purple clothes to match. If only wishing could make it so!

Games & Gaming #35: Games? In the Library?

Fifteen minutes! Are you kidding? Nobody can play just 15 minutes! Not with so many games, such tempting games, such addicting games. I have dark circles under my eyes this week, staying up until midnight just fooling around. Then I passed some sites on to my husband, with the same result for him. I am sure we fed quite a few people with our donated rice.

FreeRice and WordSplay/WEBoggle can certainly improve your vocabulary. Sudoku is good for strategy building and observation. The web-based jigsaw puzzles are actually easier than the real thing because all the pieces are oriented in the right way.

Supposedly wasting time with these trivialities will make my dinosaur brain stay sharp. Hey -- it beats medication!

Maps #34: Geocoding and Geocaching

GEOCODING

The link to Mapquest's geocoding process doesn't work any more, and I was unable to find an alternative one.

I decided to find the geocode for the Texas Repertory Theatre, which seemed to work just as entered, even though the instructions lead you to think you need to enter a physical address. Its coordinates came back as: N31°10.13934, W100°4.6074.

Then I checked these coordinates in Google Maps. Oops! Guess that physical address is important. These coordinates come out somewhere in the boonies SE of San Angelo, TX.

I will try again using the exact address (14243 Stuebner Airline, Houston TX 77069). This time I got these coordinates: N29°59.42868, W095°30.03054.

Checking these coordinates in Google Maps got me right where I needed to go! Guess I will steer clear of using names.

The marker is a bit off from the exact location. It is probably closer to the red-roofed building. However, getting this close to the Stuebner-Airline/FM 1960 location, plus the theater's own sign, would get you there. And the trip would be worth it! They have done some great productions this year. Check it out the current schedule at http://www.texreptheatre.org/.

GEOCACHING

I looked for geocaches within 10 miles of zip code 77379. There were lots! I chose to see the details of one called "Friedhof Klein." This was a perfect choice, as I am very interested in the local history of the Klein area. Its coordinates are N 30° 02.803, W 095° 31.335. The URL is http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?pf=&guid=48c960c5-9677-46fb-a966-18d502764ac1&decrypt=&log=y&numlogs

Here is the description: "Site rich in local history. Visiting hours are 8am - 6pm daily, but residents need not be consulted to find this cache. High traffic area, be discreet. Site founded in 1872, during diptheria epidemic that swept throught the community. Some of the oldest markers, bearing inscriptions in German, are near the back of the site. You'll notice some names familiar to the area. Take some time to pause and reflect. "

This sounded to me like one of the old cemeteries in the area. When I checked the coordinates on the map, I found that indeed it was the old Klein Cemetery. I used to travel regularly down the Klein Cemetery Road when boarding my dog. I visited the cemetery on occasion, but never looking for a geocache. Reading the logs showed that hundreds of people had visited this site since it was first hidden in 2004.

Zooming out on the map, I realized that there are HUNDREDS of sites all around this area, many in places I often walk. Now I am really excited about going out to try this!

Thanks so much to the Barbara Bush Team who helped put these mapping exercises together!

Maps #33: Relocating With Online Maps

Activity 1 (Houses): I used the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) site to identify a nice down-sized eventual retirement house: in my price range, in the northwest part of Houston, one story, easy maintenance, new construction not yet lived in, fenced yard for the dog. It sounded perfect. Then I decided to see it in larger view on the map. A birds-eye view revealed to me that the surroundings for this house were not quite what I had in mind!! This method of house-hunting can save a lot of gasoline!

Activity 2 (What's Nearby?):

For this exercise, I decided to check out my son's newly purchased house, about 5 miles from my house. The "Walk Score" for this property was 37 out of 100 -- still car-dependent, but probably pretty good for most northwest Houston subdivisions. The elementary school is only about two blocks away. There is a grocery store, a restaurant, a park, and a drug store all within half a mile. Granted, it is about a mile and a half to the nearest Starbucks and the nearest bar, but that is probably good news! Worst news -- it is almost 3.5 miles to the nearest branch library, and it is not even mine!

"Discover Our Town" was not very helpful, since you could not narrow a search enough to be close to a specific locality. The HAR site lets you see the average property values in your neighborhood, as well as "Nearby Places", although it didn't seem to find much. The worst drawback is that you can search only for properties currently for sale.

Maps #32: Current Events

Google Maps Mashups was fun to explore. Here is what I tried this time:
1) Earth Tools (#80)lets you see the exact latitude and longitude for any location on the map. You can also use it to find elevation. My house is 141' above sea level (higher than I thought). This site would help those folks who want to know the elevation of a home site they are considering for purchase.
2) The map of 2008 presidential campaign contributions (#10) was interesting, but did not change my vote.
3)Exploring and Mapping the Bible (#25) would add depth to any Bible study. It goes through the Bible chapter by chapter and maps all the locations mentioned. Here is a sample showing Nehemiah Chapter 1, with the verses in the box on the left and the sites on the right side of the map.

In the past, I have monitored my son's plane flight as he flew to Colorado during a bad winter storm. It helped me stay relaxed instead of worrying, as I knew exactly where he was at all times. I knew that the plane would be late arriving because it had to detour south a bit because of the storm.

The map to the right is an overview of the University of Illinois in Urbana/Champaign. The huge libraries here are some of the few academic institutions that use the Dewey Decimal classification instead of Library of Congress classification. This is the campus where I got my degrees in biology and entomology, and practically memorized the 595.7's.
I was disappointed that you could not use the Terra Server site in much depth without a paid subscription.

Maps #31: Have Map, Will Travel

View Larger Map

This map created in Google Maps shows many of the places important to me as I was growing up in Blue Island, Illinois. This type of map could be very helpful in putting together genealogy materials for a family history.

Google Maps is incredibly powerful. It is hard to imagine being able to see satellite views of almost everywhere and being able to collaboratively edit maps. The street view blows me away.

I wish it was a little easier to use. I got stuck in quite a few places, and kept generating errors in ways I couldn't understand. I expect this will improve in time.