Keeber;s Kolumn

Library News, by Carla Felsted for David W. Keeber
Red Rock News
Date: December 21, 2007


Searchin,’ I been searchin’ every whi-i-ich a way… since I wrote an earlier column on Google, a favorite tool for navigating the Internet. If you spend time with another media tool, television, you probably know by now that you no longer AskJeeves, you just Ask.com for information. Or shout Yahoo! when that search engine finds what you want. And like Northwest Mounties, we’ll help you bring that information in with more searching tools and tips in this and future columns.

Yahoo claims to be the most visited web site of all and wants to knock Google off its top perch. (Because I don’t like to “shout” with exclamation marks I will leave off the ! that punctuates its brand name.) Yahoo has a number of strengths, from entertainment to shopping and traveling. And its free email service is very popular worldwide.

A library colleague recently tipped me off to Yahoo ’s Movies search, which is quite impressive. It allows you to watch trailers (formerly called “previews”), get reviews from critics such as Roger Ebert, check local show times, and even link to a site where to purchase advance tickets, If your ideal “theatre” environment is your own living room, you can add films currently in release to a Netflix account for rental when they are released on DVD.

Music lovers will find what’s at the top of the charts and clips of performances such as Celine Dion’s farewell Las Vegas concert. For $6 month you can legally download music (over 2 million choices) and listen guilt-free from Yahoo’s Music Unlimited site. You can even create your own “radio station,” with a favorite genre, including a feature that allows you to ban certain artists and songs that grate on your nerves. Although pre- and baby-boomers may find material of value, the site is definitely oriented to youthful tastes. One has to search for any evidence of Jazz, Classical, Opera or Big Band music, but it is there.

Be sure to turn your speakers down before venturing to Yahoo’s Games section, where you will likely be subjected to whatever video game is being currently promoted such as Grand Auto Theft IV. If nothing else, you can educate yourself on what games your children or grandchildren have been clamoring for. There are less violent ones, such as Cake Mania, with “45 levels of baking fun.” You will find board, card and word games, and even escape into alternate reality with Sims. Or into our unfortunate cultural reality with another section of Yahoo Entertainment labeled “omg” for its news of “pop tart” celebrities like Britney Spears. I think I’ll skip that one.

In the Sports section you can follow your favorite teams, check out the stats, find out how highly paid players and coaches are, and try your hand at “fantasy” football and other sports. If you missed the Davis Cup earlier this month, there are video clips. Track your golf game and calculate your handicap.

There is a serious side to Yahoo, not that sports aren’t for many of us. Its Finance section is not just for stock market watching, although there is plenty of that. You can read articles about when to start taking Social Security payments, get advice about workplace issues, find current mortgage rates, and view calculators on college costs, household budgets, and saving for retirement.

Now that you’ve figured out your budget or retirement income, it’s time to go shopping. If you are pondering New Year resolutions, you may look into fitness and sports equipment. There’s a new type of bicycle called the “comfort bike,” for those who no longer need mountain bikes for rugged terrains or touring bikes for long road trips. Prices from well-established high-end retailers to discounters are displayed, with prices from $99-999. Some look like the bicycles of our youth, with medium width tires and comfortable seats for riding in an upright position.

Yahoo helps you do online shopping as well as find local retailers (if you live in a larger city). It sent me to Flagstaff for bicycles and accessories although we have local stores with both. Their link to ShopLocal.com only yielded a total of 5 retailers of all types in Sedona and the VOC. I also noted that some product review links led to articles from Consumer Reports for which you have to pay, Please note you can get these articles for free from the Library, and not just from our shelves, but our online databases, which you can access from the comfort of your own home. You’ll hear more about our databases in a future article.

As for resources on traveling, there are many on Yahoo and Google as well as other places. As a former travel writer, I’ll have lots to say about these later, too. In the meantime watch this column for news of library exhibits—the quilts are coming at the end of the month—and programs, one-time and ongoing, as well as new library services and products.

Carla Felsted works as Reference Librarian at Sedona Public Library.





This column is also presented on: Gateway to Sedona and Sedona Biz