Back it up! July 30, 2009
Posted by Michael in : Uncategorized , 4comments
There are few things worse than working hard on a paper or a project, spending hours researching and writing only to lose that work and not be able to retrieve it. This can be just as frustrating when all your past work is lost because of a computer crash, lost flash drive, etc. Backing up your files is increasingly important, but often it’s something you don’t consider until it’s too late. Here are some strategies to make backing up easy. Take a look. Your future self will thank you.
Lifehacker did a feature on the various methods for recovering deleted files. This is for those moments when you’ve deleted a file and you realize it right away. Won’t work for every situtation, but when this happens, here are some helpful tips.
It’s now also possible to store your data and files “in the cloud.” This allows you to keep all your important items on a remote server that really helps if you delete something on your own machine or if your laptop is stolen or otherwise damaged. Some of these options allow you to schedule backups automatically, so your data is backed up without requiring you to remember to do so. Mozy and Carbonite are two of the leaders in this area, but there are many providers, all with their own storage limits, features, strengths, weaknesses and pricing models. Look to the comments about various providers in this blog post to get a sense of some of your options.
Lifehacker gives you step-by-step instructions for setting up automatic backups to an external hard drive.
Finally, Wired magazine provides a feature with several backup options for Windows PC users and Mac Users.
Have you found any backup strategies that are easy and effective?
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/swanksalot/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
Want the Library Everywhere? There’s an App for That July 22, 2009
Posted by Michael in : Cool tools, Database Tip, Research Help, Tips for students , 6commentsThere are iPhone apps for just about anything. They’ve got you covered if you need to get Danish handball scores, calculate alimony, keep track of your pet’s vet records, or create and test palindromes. There is more than just fun in the world of apps, though. Here are some great research tools for mobile devices.
At Duke, there are a number of great ways to work in the library wherever you are. You can use the library’s mobile website to find library hours, available computers, directions, contact info and more. If you’re doing medical research, take a look at Duke’s Medical Center Library mobile site. It’s full of features enabling you to do PICO analysis, browse e-journals, and link to many helpful mobile resources.
On the Digital Collections blog, it was recently announced that you can search, browse and view our Digital Collections on your mobile device. Be sure to watch the short video demonstrating the ease of this feature in their post announcing this new tool. Just announced this week, you can now watch vintage ads from Duke Libraries Hartman Center from Duke iTunes U.
There are other nice mobile tools outside of Duke as well. This is just a partial list and some of these are third-party apps, but this will give you an idea of the possibilities out there. Some useful apps include those for WorldCat.org, the arXiv pre-print server for physics, math, computer science, etc, or the Papers PDF organizer software in mobile form.
I’m sure I’ve missed some helpful mobile resources. What others are out there?
Can’t get enough Library Hacks? July 14, 2009
Posted by Sarah in : Cool tools, Librarians, Life in the library , add a commentDo you find yourself waiting longingly for the next post of Library Hacks? Is there just nothing that will satisfy your thirst for research, technology and library related news?? If so, LibWorm is the tool for you! LibWorm, a search engine that searches over 1500 library related or librarian maintained blogs, can help you find research tips, tools and strategies from librarians of all types from all over the world. Just type in a topic of interest and – PRESTO! - Hundreds of librarians are at your fingertips.
Tree-saving Sticky Notes July 7, 2009
Posted by Michael in : Cool tools, Research Help, Tips for students , 1 comment so far
Sticky notes are great for jotting down quick thoughts to act on later. On the negative side, they have serious shortcomings when it comes to organizing all these ideas and sharing them with others. Here are a few web tools which expand the utility of sticky notes and bring them to your electronic environment.
Here is beefed-up, electronic version of your paper sticky note. Here you can create sticky boards and cover them notes, photos, to-do lists and documents and mark them up as you want. Then you can share them with group members and they can make and see edits and updates too.
This tool is a great way to organize your thoughts and is very easy to use. The interface is very appealing and is really fun to use. Plus, you can share your maps and collaborate with others with Twitter, Skype, iGoogle gadgets, Firefox add-ons and various export options. You can get a basic account (read: free) with up to six maps and premium accounts for a little more than free. Check out a completed map.
This is a similar tool to MindMeister. It’s not as feature-rich, but for what it does, it’s simple and easy. It has great keyboard shortcuts that allow for quick brainstorming and notetaking. Again, it keeps things organized and related in a way that you can make sense of all the notes you’re taking.
What you get here is basically a clean slate. It approximates a clean white board and you are free to doodle, add text, change colors, etc. It also has browser buttons that, when clicked, bring that web page into Twiddla where you can mark on them and share with others. This could be a helpful way to comment on the design or content of a web page and let others see your ideas.
What web tools do you like for keeping track of your thoughts and collaborating?
*Thanks to Lisa R. Johnston for her SciTech News column which inspired this post.
