More musical merriment all week

Mercy, Music, Mango, and Munchies continue at Ruidoso Public Library this week.

Waynta Wirth presents a singing concert of her private voice students, Wednesday, December 18, at 3pm.  These girls were very popular last year, as can be seen in these photos.

Then, Friday, December 20th, at noon, Fred Kinnan and Debbie Myers play guitar and flute, respectively.

Ruidoso Public Library's gift to our community continues for the next three weeks:  We are waiving lost book charges when you can present the item in good condition.  Call or email if you have any questions.  We mailed notices in November, but appreciate any updates to mailing addresses, emails, or phone numbers to reach you, too.

We had a great turn out at the Tech Petting Zoo, November 22, with excellent questions, curious novices, and friendly participants sharing their devices and experience.  At the library, Sharon has experience with Android touch-screen devices, Kindles, and downloading ebooks and audiobooks to mobile devices.  If you open a new gadget, or are giving one, this year, check with the library for free materials and a little assistance.  Your library card and PIN can open copies of several "For Dummies" or "Missing Manuals" online.

Do you run a business? Or think about it?

[Edit note: on January 30, 2013, I edited all the class links in the bottom list to open inside the Ruidoso Public Library's subscription so you can get the free access with your library card number now. My apologies.]

Ruidoso Public Library is full of resources specifically selected for a community like Ruidoso or Lincoln County, where new businesses, small business, home-based or online businesses are the heart of our economy.  Whether you are an employee, the manager, or an owner, the library has *Free* classes that you can take at your convenience.  The next several posts will explore different sets of courses, including health, homeschooling or GED preparation, New Age/Spiritual/Religious Studies, Writing, Law/Legal, and many different hobbies.  Over 500 courses are available, and I won't describe them all, but if something takes your fancy, feel free to stop by the library for assistance, if the links don't work, or to let us know about a subject that is missing.

Before I list courses, I will try to explain how this works.  The library subscribes to Universal Class so you may log in with your library card number, for free, anytime, day or night, any day of the week.  If you have not done much online, one of the first things to do is learn how to take an online class.  These courses have videos to watch and listen to, or just read the text articles/lectures.  Each section may take from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on how new the material is for you, and how many of the supplemental links you explore.  There are assignments, quizzes, and exams, which are graded.  At the end, there is a document you may print or email as proof of the time you spent.

What does this mean for you?  As an employee, it might help you feel more confident making phone calls or facing difficult customer situations.  As a manager, assigning a course might help you provide employee development or address a specific safety concern.  Maybe you are desperate for a pay raise, but need some strong evidence to prove how you are applying yourself in ways to help the company.  These courses require the self-discipline to apply yourself, but you can do all the segments at once, or spread out over days and weeks (up to six months).  Outside of your time, they are free.  And if you don't have the home computer/internet thing yet, you are welcome to use the public stations at the library.  This is a slow time of year and we can help you get started on the computers, though you do need an email address to create your Universal Class account.  If enough people comment below, or call the library, I can look into a class on creating your first email account, too.




For employees looking to improve their resumé or support a request for an increase in pay:
Interview Skills
Customer Service
Personal Protective Equipment
Work Place Safety
Waiter or Waitress Training
Telephone Skills and Quality Customer Service

For managers' skill sets:
Payroll Fundamentals
Marketing for Small Business
Employment Law Fundamentals
Personal Protective Equipment
Work Place Safety
Worker's Compensation
Understanding Business Administration 101

For business starters/owners:
Small Business Guide
Pet Sitting
Home Business Guide
Daycare
Start a Concierge Service

Of interest to all types:
Sexual Harrassment Compliance
Bookkeeping and Accounting for all
Accounts Payable Management
Accounts Receivable Management
Anger Management
Assertiveness Training
Confidence Building
Negotiation Skills
Dealing with Difficult People
Retail Business 101
Creating an Effective Sales Team

It's here! One-Click Digital e-audiobooks

Wednesday, from 3-5pm, meet Mark Haley, of Recorded Books, during our One-Click Digital Bonanza!  We will have swag and demonstration videos, a tech-petting zoo (handle these new-fangled devices yourself), and a chance to meet people who enjoy audiobooks.

If you are already scheduled elsewhere for that time, here are the steps to setting up your own account (or skip to the bottom for the video links).

From Ruidoso Public Library's homepage, www.youseemore.com/ruidosopl, find the e-branch tab near the top right corner. Don't click that, but as your mouse moves over it, a drop-down menu appears.  Select "e-audio downloads" (the second item).

This takes you to One-Click Digital's page for our library.  In the top right corner, select "Create New Account".  This will ask for your Ruidoso Public Library barcode number, among other questions.

You will need to install their Download Manager.  You may do that now, or will be prompted to when you download your first audiobook title.

One-Click Digital is still in development, so this is not a panacea to our digital audiobook troubles of the summer. Their homepage has a button (on the right) that reads, "Our service is currently in a testing phase" and "Click here to comment."  Please email them at support@oneclickdigital.com with screenshots and every step leading up to that situation.  Remember to include your operating system, browser, and which type of mp3 player you were using.

I have had problems I reported to them.  For example, I had to stop the install process and restart my computer because it hung up on the Microsoft .NET 4 framework.  Upon restart, I could find the file in my browser downloads and continue the installation without further hitches.  I also found that I had to log out of the Download Manager (DM) and log in again between downloading a book and transferring it to my player.  I was told to change the preferences within the DM (top left menu, Global) to NO for "Automatically transfer to device."

I do not know when One-Click Digital will leave testing.  Many online services exist in "perpetual beta," which is a nice way to say, they are responsive to any requests you have for improvements.  We also carry MP3 formatted discs at Ruidoso Public Library.  These can be saved to your computer to transfer to a player.

One-Click Digital has the steps and screenshots for creating an account and installing the DM at
http://ruidosonm.oneclickdigital.com/Help/Player%20Tutorial.aspx
and videos at
20-minute Tutorial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hQ5B9-65Yc
Windows 7 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlvsVyrrUzI
Windows XP http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th5QguOoSSE
Create New Account http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cEOji_S95E

Please comment away below on your successes or questions.  Thank you!

e-Audio headaches

Ruidoso Public Library's e-audiobook provider, NetLibrary, terminated last Tuesday.  EBSCO-host picked up the service, but Ruidoso Public Library will be switching to One-Click Audio by September.  The audiobook titles you are used to are still available through our catalog; however, EBSCO-host requires that you "create an account" with them first.  This should be possible from home, or feel free to visit the library in person.

From your home computer, visit youseemore.com/ruidosopl.  Look for the e-branch tab on the far right, above the search bar.  As your mouse moves on that tab, click the second row, "e-audio downloads."

This should redirect you to a page requesting your library barcode number.  After entering that there, the next screen will have a 'sign in' option in the top right corner.  Click there.

Now look for a "create a new account" option slightly lower in the top right.  Enter a username, password, and security question/answer.

You will need to download EBSCO-hosts download manager before you may download an audiobook.  The site guides you through the process.  Over the weekend, I noticed the EBSCO-host site was not as easy to search, browse, or generally move around on.

This is only a stop-gap measure while we wait for One-Click Digital to come online. If you can wait until September to download your next audiobooks from One-Click Digital, that company will require their own username/password registration and download manager software installation.

This has been awkward, and I greatly appreciate your patience as we migrate our digital audiobook service.