Technology for Friday

Happy Friday! I’m so glad it is almost the weekend, mainly because I’ve gone through the last couple of days thinking it was Friday only to be rudely shocked by the fact that it wasn’t yet Friday. But that is neither here nor there, so let’s get into the fun technology stuff for today. Today’s technology links are a bit of this and a bit of that, some just for fun, some that you can use, and others that would be good to pass on to your library users.

First up, because I linked to Lifehacker’s guide to the best iPhone apps a few weeks ago, I thought I should link to the Lifehacker pack for Android for all those readers with Android phones. It really is a fantastic list of apps; I found a couple new ones to add to my phone that are very helpful (and I should probably add a couple more, but I need to do something other than play with the phone).

Speaking of technology and libraries, if you somehow forgot about it, registration is open for Internet Librarian 2010 being held October 25-27 in Monterey, California. If you work in the library field and love technology (I mean, really love to experiment with all the latest technology and are completely fine with being geeky), this is the library conference on the West Coast for you.

For a super helpful search tool, check out CloudMagic, a Gmail browser extension that improves searching for contacts and emails in Gmail. This is a definite must for those who have massive amounts of saved email or really anyone who wants to save time when they search.

For those who are fans of the show Bones (thanks Anna, for the reminder that this is totally something Angela would have in the lab!) or James Bond-like gadgets, check out this video on the Virtual Autopsy Table video. How amazing is that technology? The image quality and ability to work through different layers is great. I wonder if medical schools in the United States will adopt this technology.

Now step back from the computer and smell the delicious scent of fresh brewed tea after you read an article that says you should home brew your tea to reap the most polyphenols. Just another great reason to break out the kettle and brew a lovely pot of tea. Oh, and if you are ever in the Boston/Cambridge area, you must check out my favorite tea shop, Tealuxe in Harvard Square (the Newbury Street Location unfortunately is closed). Check out the creme de la Earl Grey–fantastic!

Now that you have your cup of tea (not too close to the computer of course, don’t want to spill it on the keyboard!), relax and take a peak at this example of using QR codes for marketing. (I thought I’d re-share this video because it explained to me how to use QR Codes and The Litbrarian’s post about QR Codes reminded me I need to use this video when I teach information literacy classes in the fall). Enjoy.

QR Codes in a Living Book

Have a fantastic weekend full of relaxation, soaking up the last bits of summer, and reading great books (but if you finish Mockingjay please don’t spoiler it for me!).

P.S. Anyone in Cambridge area see the Doctor around MIT?