Lesson 10: Online Mapping

I think I’ve visited just about every branch in SAPL, some more than others, but I always seem to get lost going to Igo and Carver. Several of our branches are located near highways or major intersections, both those two always seem to give me headaches. Maybe I should visit more often? 🙂

Google Maps is a wonderful resource, especially for people like me who don’t always know which way is North. I often use it on my phone, with the Bluetooth headphones on, so it can tell me how to get where I’m going.

I have a long commute to work from home, with many variations in how I get to one place from the other. Because of this, I use Google Maps to show me the best route. It will recommend one way over another, avoiding traffic pile-ups and construction. It has saved me many, many headaches!

Getting to McDonald’s from my branch would cost $1.30 and would involve walking quite a bit of the way. I would recommend the patron leave the library and walk to the McDonald’s. It wouldn’t take much longer than the bus, and would save the patron some money to buy a refreshing drink once he arrived.

 

Lesson 9: Coding

Part of me does not like that Google is targeting Girls, with pink hearts and diamonds on their Made with Code site, but the other part recognizes that girls may need more encouragement in the STEM fields.

I made an emoji at MwC, but I don’t feel that I learned any actual code, since it was just a drag and drop construction. 

I like how these programs make it fun for kids, using Disney characters and easy drag and drop commands, but I’m not sure how these fun exercises will graduate students to actual code writing.