Always continuing my education
And this time I mean in a literal "I'm taking classes" sense. I've made a few dabbles into trying the MOOC (Massive Online Open Course) model, and neither went so well. The material started with concepts I was grasping at and then quickly went beyond my ken. One was in Networking and the other was in Programming, both subjects that I really do need a more local support for. Fortunately the worst thing that happens generally with a MOOC is that you just don't get a 'certificate of completion' and in fact can likely take the class again at a future time.
I found two courses that start a week apart that I'm pretty excited to be taking part in. Lets just hope that I didn't bite off more than I can chew in terms of time requirements.
The one that just started is Surviving Disruptive Technologies. While I haven't found anything mentioning libraries in the course syllabus, it is about meeting and adapting changes. A library may not be a business like Kodak or Blockbuster, but in its own way, a library does operate on its own business model. Libraries have to reinvent themselves, and I've already noticed a good handful of librarians in the class.
The other course I'm taking is because I'm interested in the subject matter, and unlike the other MOOCs I've been in, does require the purchase of materials (though I'm borrowing some from the library and via ILL). Gender Through Comic Books is the type of course I'm more than happy to purchase materials for, and to be honest a few of the comics that I am borrowing are ones that I've considered buying in the past (such as Strangers in Paradise). Probably the only downside to me is I'm ambivalent about buying digital comics, though I have yet to explore the DRM to see if they're locked to account access only. My comic tastes do tend to veer to the side of standard superhero comic books, but the overall cost is still under that of a textbook and it should be an engaging class.
Hopefully I can balance taking two at the same time, I tend to have way too much going on in my life so time does require consideration.
I found two courses that start a week apart that I'm pretty excited to be taking part in. Lets just hope that I didn't bite off more than I can chew in terms of time requirements.
The one that just started is Surviving Disruptive Technologies. While I haven't found anything mentioning libraries in the course syllabus, it is about meeting and adapting changes. A library may not be a business like Kodak or Blockbuster, but in its own way, a library does operate on its own business model. Libraries have to reinvent themselves, and I've already noticed a good handful of librarians in the class.
The other course I'm taking is because I'm interested in the subject matter, and unlike the other MOOCs I've been in, does require the purchase of materials (though I'm borrowing some from the library and via ILL). Gender Through Comic Books is the type of course I'm more than happy to purchase materials for, and to be honest a few of the comics that I am borrowing are ones that I've considered buying in the past (such as Strangers in Paradise). Probably the only downside to me is I'm ambivalent about buying digital comics, though I have yet to explore the DRM to see if they're locked to account access only. My comic tastes do tend to veer to the side of standard superhero comic books, but the overall cost is still under that of a textbook and it should be an engaging class.
Hopefully I can balance taking two at the same time, I tend to have way too much going on in my life so time does require consideration.
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