MP3 Players @WPL

Patrons are regularly plugging their MP3 players into Waterloo Public Library public access computers and attempting to download tunes or books for later enjoyment. It appears that many of our users are getting along just fine, but others run into troubles. A problem I encountered today, and its resolution, might be of interest to those who can't quite figure out how to get the latest Andy Williams or Petula Clark hit onto their player.

The patrons had repeatedly downloaded their files from Rhapsody, had their MP3 device plugged into a USB port, but couldn't figure out how to get the blasted songs onto the player! They requested assistance from the librarian who figured it might be a good way to stump me, or at least get me out of my chair for a few minutes.

As I surveyed the situation, I could see that they and the librarian had been doing several things right. They were on a Teen computer (Teen computers run with local administrator rights and have no security other than a utility that restores the original state of the hard drive on restart), had the device plugged in, and were clearly downloading files. But where were the files landing and how could they get them onto the MP3 player so that grandma, mom, and their teen princess could get on their way?

As usual, I was pretty much clueless about what to do. So, I used my normal strategy: see what works, what doesn't work, and poke around. I had them do another download from the Rhapsody site. So far as I could tell, Rhapsody didn't give them an option to "save as" which would determine the file location. Apparently, Rhapsody uses a default--but "what" default?!?

When their download was complete, I had them browse to My Computer, and saw that their MP3 player appeared as a device with an assigned drive letter, e:. I had them browse around (the mom was extremely patient, meanwhile, the teen princess wandered off to ignore some boys) the folders on the MP3 player, found some odd files and folders, but nothing downloaded from Rhapsody.

Next step: Browse around in My Documents, Microsoft's default (does that word ring a bell?) folder for files. We browsed to My Documents > My Music, saw a folder labeled "Rhapsody," browsed (when I say "browsed," think "click it!") it, and voila! We had found the location of the downloaded music.

But how do we get the music onto the MP3 player? We decided to act as if there were not DRM (Digital Rights Management) issues to vex us, copied the entire Rhapsody folder from My Documents > My Music to the E: drive (the MP3 player), and were stumped. How would we get the files to play. Mom waved over the teen princess, she took the wheel, and within about 30 seconds she was rockin' and rollin' (or whatever they call that darned noise that passes for music nowadays) and carefully ignoring her grandma, mom, and me (some things never change).

The moral of this story? If you're having trouble getting your music transferred to your MP3 player, try to persuade a librarian to put you on one of our Teen computers. When you download your music, watch to see if you are prompted to save to a particular location; if so, choose your MP3 player. If not, poke around in My Documents and My Documents > My Music for likely files. If you find them, copy them to the root of your device and then fork it over to someone under age 14 to get it running!

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Why won't my *.odt or *.ods file open?

At about 2:oo this afternoon, a distraught young lady asked a librarian why her resume wouldn't open on a library Public Access Computer. When Tim noticed that the resume's file extension was .odt rather than the expected .doc of a Microsoft Word document, he brought the problem to my desk.

I immediately agreed with him that this resume had been created with a non-Microsoft word processor that uses XML to generate "Open Document Format" files. In this case, Open Office Writer which saves, by default, using the .0dt extension. My experience has been that Microsoft applications do not open their .odf counter parts.

However, this problem can be dealt with in at least two ways: Avoid the problem by always saving files created within the Open Office suite as .rtf (Rich Text Format) or by saving using the format denoted by the Microsoft counter part. For example, save files created by the OO Writer as .doc, by OO Calc as .xls (Microsoft Excel), and so on.

The other way to solve the problem is a bit more cumbersome and not always available: Install the current Open Office suite, open the problem file, and save it to the appropriate format. The library likes to help people in trouble, so we installed Open Office on a staff computer, opened the troubled job-seeker's resume, printed it, and off she went to her interview.

We're happy to have helped this woman in the pursuit of her job, but we'd much rather see her avoid the problem in the first place. If you're going to use Open Office, and it's a fine product, and you think you might want to open the files elsewhere, save a copy in the corresponding Microsoft format, or play it safe and save in Rich Text Format!

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Brickwork in Front of the Library

Access to the Waterloo Public Library parking lot has been difficult over the past few days as workers install decorative brickwork crosswalks at the intersection of 3rd and Commercial Streets. The work has closed Commercial, but the good news is that Jefferson Street is finally open. Building the Riverfront Loop has been a long and difficult process. However, it's now coming together nicely and will be a great place for festivals.

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

MWD Sunday Carnival

My Waterloo Days continues Sunday with a carnival on the plaza; 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.  The plaza is a great festival venue and MWD 2009 might be the best ever!

(Doubleclick the slideshow to see full-screen.)

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

MWD Fireworks!

The first My Waterloo Days festival on the plaza is a great success.  Lots of food, music, people, and best of all fireworks!

Join us at the library courtyard, 9-3:00 p.m., for hot dogs and pop for a buck!

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Party on the Plaza!

My Waterloo Days got off to a good start today with great weather and and a new venue, the River Loop Expo Plaza. I'm looking forward to the fireworks Friday night at 10:00 and hope to make it to the parade Saturday morning at 9:30.

Visit the festival's web site for a full schedule and description of events.

The library will be open Saturday; stop in if you need a break from the festivities.

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Join Us on Facebook!

The Waterloo Public Library now has a Facebook "fans" page.  If you're on Facebook, and are interested in what's happening at the WPL, become a fan.  If you're not on Facebook, it's easy to join.  

Once you're a WPL Facebook fan, you'll receive regular notices of what's happening in the Waterloo library world!  

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Einstein Speaks

Albert Einstein lived once more at the Waterloo Public Library this evening.  Actor, writer, director, Duffy Hudson, who brought us Edgar Allan Poe last October, fascinated a crowd of 37 with his portrayal of the German genius who gave us E=MxC2.

During his 45 minute monologue, Einstein explained not only the concepts of space, time, and relativity, but also how he "imagined" complex mathematical concepts.  After the show, Duffy doffed his wig and answered questions from the audience:  for another 45 minutes!

It's obvious that Hudson enjoys acting as much as the audience enjoys watching and interacting with him afterwards.  He'll probably come up with a new act next spring, and we'll probably have him back!

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

Duffy Hudson as Albert Einstein!

Duffy Hudson, actor, director, and motivational speaker, brings his "Duffy Hudson as Albert Einstein," one-man-show to the Waterloo Public Library, Wednesday, May 6, at 7:00 p.m.  Those of you who caught his "Edgar Allen Poe" show last spring know that we're in for a special treat!  

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Work on Downtown Exposition Site Advances

Work continues on the Exposition port of the River Renaissance Project. Note the tarps protecting the newly poured concrete from cold weather.

c 2009 Waterloo Public Library

External Floppy Drive Available

The Waterloo Public Library hasn't supported floppy drives for a couple of years now. Maintenance of the drives on our public access computers has become uneconomical and most people have moved on to other types of portable media. However, for those who still have floppy diskettes, if your computer's drive doesn't work, ask a librarian for help. We now keep an external floppy drive at the Reference Island and the librarian may be able to help you.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Recovery.Gov

Information about the recently passed Economic Stimulus Bill may be found on line at www.recovery.gov. Stay tuned for details.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

External SD Card Reader

Did you get a digital camera or digital video device for Christmas? If so, it's possible that it stores data on SD (Secure Digital) cards.

Until recently, WPL patrons with such devices had to download the data directly from their devices using a USB cable as our computers lacked SD card capability.

We now have an external "All-in-one Ultra" SD card reader at the desk. If you need to move data from an SD card to the computer, and wish to use a card reader, ask a librarian for assistance.

If you have questions or suggestions about the configuration or equipment of the Public Access Computers, please post them to this blog as comments, or send an email to me at dargan@wplwloo.lib.ia.us.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Free Income Tax Help!

The UNI Vita Club offers free income tax help Mondays and Wednesdays, February 9-April 15, with the exclusion of spring break, March 16-20.

VITA, the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, was established by the IRS to provide future tax professionals with experience while offering free tax preparation help to low-income people.

For more information, call the UNI Department of Accounting at 319 273 2394 or check out their website.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

On Line Tutoring

The Waterloo Public Library Learning Center has yet another service for patrons: Online tutoring from TutorVista.com!

Library patrons with questions about Math, Science, and English, may receive one-to-one attention from experts in the particular field.

Assistance, directed primarily at grade levels 2-12, if available 360 days a year from 3:00-11:00 p.m.

Users will be asked to log on using their library card number. TutorVista will want to know the users grade-level and the topic for which advice is needed.

When you or your friends and family are need of schoolwork help, log on to the the Waterloo Public Library's TutorVista service and talk to an expert!

Thanks to the Friends of the Waterloo Public Library for subsidizing our TutorVista subscription!

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Teen Advisory Meeting

Calling all teens: Have a voice at your library. Attend the Teen Advisory Group Meeting, 5:00 p.m., Thursday, January 15, 2009 in the Teen area on the second floor.

Join Kristi the Teen Librarian for fun, pizza, and discussion of the future of teen services at the Waterloo Public Library. If you have questions, please call Kristi at 291 4496.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

IRS Tax Forms Online!

The tax season is upon us and once again demand for forms and instruction booklets is high.

The Waterloo Public Library tries hard to keep commonly used tax materials on hand, but we're not a comprehensive repository. For unusual forms or instructions, please visit the Internal Revenue website: www.irs.gov.

The library has does not provide advice to tax filers, but does provide access to IRS services. Our 30+ public access computers may be used to file taxes on line. We can't guarantee complete data security, but we're confident that when you finish a session and restart your computer, your personally identifiable information is cleared from the computer.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

WiFi at the WPL

Free high speed WiFi access is one of the Waterloo Public Library's many services to patron. The second floor has two Linksys 802.11a/b/g access points serving some 250-300 sessions each month.

Usually, if you start up your computer, wait a few seconds, then start your browser, you'll automatically attach to an access point. If you're unsuccessful the first time, wait a minute or two (yes, 60-120 seconds!) and try again. If you're still not connecting, use your computer's network utility to search for available networks.

The two access points will show up as "linksys" and "TrainingCenter" when you scan (your computer should have done this automatically) for available network services. If your computer finds reference01 and reference02, select the one with the strongest signal.

Once you're connected, wait a few seconds, then launch your browser (e.g., Internet Explorer or FireFox). If you've successfully attached to an access point, you should be prompted to login. Agree to our acceptable use policy, then either login with a user name and password, or click the "skip" button and off you go.

Once you're connected and browsing, you have 8 hours of 4mbs/256 access to the Internet. You may also download up to 2gb/day. Most of the commonly available ports are accessible, but if you have difficulty using a resource, give a detailed report to a librarian who will forward the problem to our technical staff.

While the AP signal is strongest on the second floor in the vincinity of either the stairwell or the Tranining Center, some computers are sensitive enough to connect and work well on the first floor; especially in the area west of the large type collection. At some point we'll be improving service on the first floor and will also upgrade to 802.11n service.

Meanwhile, enjoy the WiFi access, report any problems to staff members, understand that staff members have been asked to NOT configure patron WiFi devices, and try to be careful with your drop cords! If someone were to trip over a dangling cord they could be injured or your expensive computer might be damaged.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Color printing returns!

Thanks to the team at ASI the our Kyocera Color printing is back online.

If you ever get a printout that's streaked, blurred, or is otherwise a poor result, please report the problem to a staff member. We expect only the best quality from our printers.

c 2008 Waterloo Public Library

Color Printer Out-of-order

The color printer has been performing erratically since last week. Monochrome prints still look good, but until our vendor, Advanced Systems of Iowa, acquires and installs repair parts, color prints may not turn out well.

Please contact a staff member if you have questions or need assistance with your printing.


c 2008 Waterloo Public Library