CIL2008: Widgets, Tools & Doodads for Library Webmasters
Posted on April 7th, 2008 by ruth
Darlene Fichter, Data Library Coordinator, University of Saskatchewan Library
Frank Cervone, Director of Library, Information, and Media Studies @ Chicago State University
Program description on the CIL2008 website.
Presentation slides on SlideShare. PDF version on cervone.com.
- Darlene Fichter blogs on her USASK home page and Blog on the Side.
- Frank Cervone blogs at cervone.com
Firefox tools
- SafeCache
- protects privacy
- defends against cache-based tracking techniques
- embedded content is cached
- SafeHistory
- protects privacy
- defends against “links-visited” tracking
- FoxMarks
- automatically synchronizes bookmarks
- accesses bookmarks online at my.foxmarks.com
- works in the background to keep bookmarks up-to-date on across computers
- downside: nag notice if bookmarks haven’t been updated
- FEBE (Firefox Environment Backup Extension)
- quickly and easily backs up Firefox extensions
- primarily designed for Firefox extensions, but can also backup themes, bookmarks, preferences, cookies
Other web tools for collaboration
- meebo chat widget
- LinkBunch
- bunches multiple links into one small link
- Firefox extension creates a bunch from all open tabs
- Twitterbot in the works
- DocSyncer
- automatically finds and syncs document files to Google Docs
- this means everything: all docs with no option to confirm or deny sync
- Twhirl
- desktop client for twitter
- discreet: fades to background when not in use
- “makes the Twitter experience way way better”
- what’s Twitter? see Lee LeFever’s video
- PollDaddy
- fast and easy poll creation for web
- offers interaction and instant feedback
- free!
Webtools for Web development
- Vischeck
- computer simulation of the entire process of human vision
- shows what things look like to someone who is color blind
- Feng-GUI
- automatic alternative to eye-tracking
- creates heatmaps based page elements such as color, density, placement
- “feng shui for graphic user interfaces”
- Browsershots
- creates screenshots to test how web design will look in different browsers
- open source, online service
- a slow process, but everyone should run their website through this app to see how it renders on the most popular browsers1
- Flickr Photo Badge
- photo highlights from programs
- great tool for library websites, most of which are not visual enough in comparison to where our users are2
- Photoshop Express
- online image editing
- an upsell for other Photoshop products
- AddThis
- create coded buttons for placement on website
- requires friendly URLs, as session IDs won’t work
- note to vendors: WE NEED BOOKMARKABLE PAGES!
- provides bookmark button stats
- top bookmarks
- which bookmarking tools are being used
Gadgets
- Google Countdown
- AltaVista Babelfish site translator
- Google Translate
- site translators are not perfect, but they give a general idea of what’s on a site
Utilities
- ProcessTamer3
- monitors CPU usage of processes
- reduces the priority of apps that hog the CPU
- FileHamster
- real time backup and archiving of files while you work
- monitors files or directories
- automatically creates incremental backups
- allows user to store notes about the changes that have been made
- “version tracking application for content creators”
- SyncBack Freeware (scroll to the bottom of the developer’s page for the “freeware” version)
- backs up all files anytime
- scheduler to automate backups
- versioning
- synchronization
- incremental backups
- machine-to-machine backup via FTP
- encryption
- compression
File Movers
- MailBigFile
- zUpload
- MediaFire
- YouSendIt
- all of the above offer free service, but questionable security/privacy
- Pando
- peer-to-peer file sharing
- all users must have it installed locally in order to send/receive files
Etc.
- reCaptcha
- helps eliminate spam generated from autofills of webforms
- use of reCaptcha helps with digitizing books from the Internet Archive
- Anonymouse
- for privacy/erasing tracks to IP
- good for checking whether authenticated resources are accessible from outside the library’s IP range
- Prism
- allows users to run web applications from their browser as if they were running on the desktop
- essentially creates a stripped down version of the original app for local use
More widgets and gadgets
- Widgetbox
- Google Gadgets
- Previous “cool tools” presentations
And just for fun…
- LOLinator
- the LOLinated “utopian library“
Filed under: CIL2008, conference notes, libraries, library 2.0, plugins and widgets, social software, web resources
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