How many ways shall I count the days? (Thing 8)

The first cpd23 task this week is to look at Google calendar – apparently I have a problem…

“You need a calendar, which can be accessed from any computer and can be shared with other people.”

Er, do I?  Actually, I already have one at work.  Part of our Lotus email system includes a calendar, all my work appointments automatically go in to it; my colleagues can check when I am available or on leave, and can send me invites for meetings.  At the moment I can’t imagine anyone outside of work really wanting to access my calendar – sure we might have a bit of too-ing and fro-ing if trying to set up a meeting (or a meet up in a Yurt!).  Although in some cases that problem has been overcome with the use of Meet-O-Matic a very simple tool that combines the possible free dates of all participants and suggests the best time to meet.

I’m also fairly oldfashioned in that I still use a real life, paper copy, diary  – well a couple of diaries actually – one at home, one at work, oh and one in my bag.  Ooh I can hear you cry, combine all your paper diaries into one easy online calendar!  Er, no thanks.  I much prefer to scrawl everything in my diary (I use the one at work the most), it has my friend’s birthdays as well as my meetings, my dental appointments and dance weekends, and seeing as I buy an ‘interesting’ diary, there are lots of bit and pieces to read each week to entertain and inform me.  I try and remember to take my diary to meetings for forward planning (don’t always remember!), having a Google calendar would be no use for these occasions as I don’t have any technology with me that would allow me to access it.

I read the blog about how libraries are using Google calendar, and it all sounded very interesting, several ideas there, but just not for me…I guess I’m showing my age but I’m the kind of person who doesn’t need a text message to remind me when my library books are due.

I feel I am letting the side down by not setting up a Google calendar, even though it is one of the tasks for the week, but on reflection I really don’t think I will use it, and I will just spend lots of time today faffing around setting it up, and then probably not looking at it ever again.  I am grateful for being made aware of it (as with all the tools that are being highlighted with cpd23), and maybe at some point in the future it will enter my life.  Professionally, as a cataloguer Ialso don’t need to be thinking about how to display library opening hours etc, its not within my current remit – although maybe I should be trying to think of ways that it could be of benefit to my job/cataloguing team. 

However, for now I will cling to trusty pen and paper.