Pamela D. Lloyd's Blog, page 5

Transferring Your Dreamwidth or LiveJournal Skills to Google+

Last night, I shared a shorter, simpler version of the following information in the comments to a friend's post on Google+. However, I think this may be of help to others who are still trying to figure Google+ out, especially those who are on LiveJournal or Dreamwidth, so I'm posting it on those services, as well as sharing it on Google+.

Most descriptions of Google+ compare it to Facebook, but when it comes to posting and how your posts are shared, I think G+ has more in common with services such as LiveJournal and Dreamwidth, than with Facebook. So, for those of you who are familiar with LJ or Dw, here's a short overview of who will see your posts.


To share your post with the world, leave the green Public button in the list of those who can see your post (or, if it's not visible, select it from the list of options). This is the equivalent of selecting "Everyone (Public)" from the Show this entry to: list when posting on LJ or Dw.

To the right of the Public button, you'll also see +Add more people. This is an option that is not available on LJ, Dw, or Facebook. You can use this option to specify one or more of your circles, but since they will already see your post, that would be a bit redundant, unless there's something I'm missing. The real power of this option is that you can add the email addresses of people who are not yet on G+ and they will receive an email with your user pic, the full text of your post, and a link to your post on Google+. Note that during the Beta period, the recipient(s) may, or may not, recieve an invitation to join G+; once G+ goes live, they should recieve an invite.

To limit your post, click the x on the right side of the Public button. Now, you'll see the text, +Add circles or people to share with.... When you select +Add circles or people to share with..., you will see a list of options that include a list of your circles (e.g. "Friends", "Family", etc.), "Your circles", and "Extended circles". Note that, depending on how many circles you've got, some of your circles may be hidden and you'll have an option to see more.

To share your post with everyone who is in any of your circles, select the "Your circles" option. This is the equivalent of selecting "Friends" on LJ, or "Access List" on Dw.

To share your post with everyone in your circles and everyone in their circles, select the "Extended circles" option. This option is more like the "Friends of friends" privacy setting in Facebook and, to the best of my knowledge, has no direct equivalent on LJ or Dw.

To share your post with a more limited selection of people, click the x on the right side of the Public button (and any other visible buttons for circles or people you don't want to see the post), click +Add circles or people to share with..., then specify those with whom you want to share by selecting the circle or circles for those people already in your circles, typing the names of people already on G+ (you'll see a list of people from which you can choose) and adding the email addresses for those not yet on G+ (emails for your Google contacts will be listed, so, if you are a Gmail user, you probably won't have to type the entire address). This is the equivalent of selecting "Custom..." on LJ, or "Custom" on Dw, and actually offers you more flexibility than either of those services.

To create a post that only you can see, simply remove all circles from the +Add circles or people to share with... box by clicking the x on each button, then enter your G+ user name. This is the equivalent of selecting "Just Me (Private)" on LJ or Dw. (For those of you on G+ who saw the original comment that spurred this post, this is a correction to the information I gave there.)

I hope this rather long-winded explanation will be helpful to people who are still trying to figure out G+. So far, I've been very pleased with my experience at Google+, which encourages me to Follow ("Friend" on LJ, "Read" on Dw) anyone I find interesting, to share tidbits with my followers as I might on Facebook or Twitter, and to create the deeper sense of connection that the LiveJournal and Dreamwidth services foster. Of course, there's more going on here, with the addition of Sparks, which act similarly to RSS feeds, the impending integration of other Google services, and the evolution of Google+ in response to our feedback.

If you think you might be interested in participating during the Beta, let me know and make sure I've got your email address, and I'll try to send you an invite. No promises, since Google is the gatekeeper, but I can certainly put in the request and this will automatically put us in each other's circles. This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

Virtual Exhibit of Historic Postcards from Tacoma, Washinton

A friend of mine, mmegaera , just announced that her first curated virtual museum exhibits are now available on the Tacoma Historical Society website. These are historic postcards in four categories: Schools of Old Tacoma, People...Virtually, Parks of Tacoma, and Commerce in Tacoma. The links to each exhibit are on the left side of the page.

This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

To Rein, or to Reign

Ever since my last post, I've been saddled with the nagging feeling that I'd not only made a misspelling in my entry, but that the misspelling was in my title.

This is not exactly a comfortable feeling for someone who tutors writing.

So, I finally looked it up. It turns out that this is a term in transition and I'm in, if not good company, at least, numerous company, as 46% of people will use the spelling I did. Even the folks at Oxford Press now see this as a variant, although the New Oxford American Dictionary flags it as a nonstandard variant. You can read more about this lexicographic issue on the OUPblog.

This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

When We Allow Our Curiosity Free Reign, We Learn More

Hello, Everybody!

Recently, I signed up with SoulNeeds, which describes itself as "the conscious social network." I'm not particularly active on there (no surprise, there, huh?), but I do enjoy receiving their email newsletter, "The Daily SoulFeed."

Today's newsletter started with the following:

To be the best in anything you have to be curious about everything and take nothing for granted.

Einstein, one of the greatest minds of the last century described himself as "neither especially clever nor especially gifted." Then he added, "I am only very, very curious."

Be eager to learn. Be fascinated by the strange passions of human beings. Always ask questions. Be in pursuit of the strange and unusual. Discover and explore always!

As someone who has always enjoyed learning—even when I didn't enjoy school, which was the usual case while I was in elementary school, and all too often in high school—I can really appreciate this sentiment. My curiosity has even been noticed by my coworkers, here at the Learning Center. When I shared today's message with them, one of the other tutors commented on my willingness to find out more about anything that comes up that is new to me. As a tutor, it's really great to know that I am modeling this behavior for the students I work with.

I believe this is also a quality usually found in good writers. Certainly, many of my writer-friends have discussed the lure of research, which may, if not held in check, take them on paths that wander far from the intended goal. When time is precious, and when isn't it, we may feel that we are being self-indulgent in taking wandering research trips. Perhaps this is so, in the short term, but over the length of our lives, I believe that much of what we gain from these unplanned journeys into knowledge will prove to be serendipitous in ways we might never guess, beforehand.

This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

Useful Tidbit

I'm at the Learning Center and researching publishers in connection with a project here. In my researches, I discovered the Bookjobs website, which offers an overview of publishers. While directed at job seekers, the information about the publishers may be a useful resource for people seeking publication.

My other research topic (or, more correctly, my primary research topic) is learning styles. Along with one of the other tutors, I will be putting together resource materials on learning styles for tutors and students, as well as a training session on this subject for the tutorial staff.

I've also been given a leadership role with respect to a wiki we are developing, designed to help college students find educational resources that will help them to succeed in school.

Quote of the Day

I'm at the Learning Center, between students, and getting ready to brush up on my algebra skills (I've started helping students with math, as well as writing), and I came across the following quote in an algebra text:

Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.

I love the quote, but must acknowledge that there's a bit of irony in my use today, since I'm attempting to remaster something I had previously mastered, but have since forgotten.

This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

First Practical Artificial "Leaf"

This is very cool! I want to power my home with artificial "leaves!"

Debut of the first practical 'artificial leaf'

Scientists today claimed one of the milestones in the drive for sustainable energy — development of the first practical artificial leaf. Speaking here at the 241st National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, they described an advanced solar cell the size of a poker card that mimics the process, called photosynthesis, that green plants use to convert sunlight and water into energy.

This entry was originally posted on Dreamwidth at pameladlloyd. Feel free to respond at either location.

Spammers Beware

Over the past couple of weeks multiple spam comments have been left on this blog. Every single one of them has been deleted and reported to LiveJournal as spam.

Since I haven't been posting much recently, perhaps spammers are hoping that I'm not paying attention. Well, I am.

Best-Selling Indie Ebook Author, Amanda Hocking, On Self-Publishing

As have many of my writer friends, I've examined the pros and cons of self-publishing. The publishing industry is in flux, and this means that there are new challenges and opportunities for writers. I think that many of us struggle with the idea that, if we could just figure it out, we could determine the "best" way to get our work published.

But the reality is that there is no more one best way to publication than there is one best way to write.

All that said, Amanda Hocking, USA Today best-selling author, who has achieved her success through self-publishing, shares her thoughts on the subject in her blog post, "Some Things That Need to Be Said ". It's well worth reading.

Hungry Cats

My work at the West Campus Learning Center at our local community college has me finishing up each day at 7 p.m. Since I usually feed our cats in the evenings, they've started congregating at the front door around then, greeting me with vociferous demands that they be fed immediately. I resist following orders, especially from the non-human members of our household, partly out of principle and partly out of the certainty that if I ever start there will never be an end to it. In fact, having arrived home less than an hour ago, I have cats sitting outside my bedroom door at this moment, wailing their dismay at my decision to write this post before feeding them.

The cats' impassioned pleas for food have become something of a joke in our house, so tonight I was greeted not only by them, but by an email from my husband, containing only a JPEG created by one of our boys: