Hi All,
I thought that I would throw out todays topic and see if there would be any interest in it. I'll keep it short and sweet.
Chainsaws.
Yep - the type that cut limbs of trees - or the trees themselves - made by a variety of manufacturers (like
I bet you never thought about it, but there is whole website dedicated to 'things chainsaw related'. Click here for the site (appropriately names Chainsaws.com) The site lets users compare and purchase chainsaws as well as do research to help decide which chainsaw to purchase. There are sections on the various types of chainsaws (electric, gas, pole) and a section of top chainsaw brands. Interesting and very helpful site - well organized to boot.
Click here for a link to About.com's entry on the history of chainsaws.
Some folks use chainsaws to not only cut down trees, but, believe it or not, to do carving. Click on this link to get the history of chainsaws, chainsaw carving events since 2005, links to chainsaw carver website and past chainsaw carving news.
Finally, click here to learn about chainsaw safety. The link is from the North Dakota State University Agriculture and University Extension. Click on this link for more on chainsaw safety from About.com's resident forestry/chainsaw expert.
Enjoy these tips and links!
Stu
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Lego - One of the Best Children's Games Around
Hi All,
Fun. Isn't that what we all need more of? And for kids its a great thing. They should have fun - that's what helps make for a healthy child, young adult and adolescent. And eventually it can possibly help make for happier adults. And that is a good thing.
So, how can we have children have more fun and at the same time learn? One of the best ways to get kids to have fun while at the same to learn is to use Lego. Click here for the official 'Lego' website.
So, a brief primer about Lego might be in order. Bascially Lego is an interactive toy that enables children to build 'things' (think shapes and things) using colorful blocks that stick together.
I just checked the Lego website and clicked on the products link and what I found is definitely not just your 'parent's' Lego. Click here for the link to the product page. With Lego sets as diverse as ' Prince of Persia: Sands of Time', Harry Potter, Star Wars, Toy Story (a natural fit), Design By Me and Creator...Lego has definitely moved into the 21st century.
Click here for the page that will lead you to Lego galleries to see what other kids are building. Click here to see the Lego message board so you can participate in conversations with other kids who are Lego users.
Click here to see an article about students that use Lego robots and sensors to solve real world problems. If the link doesn't work you an visit the library website and click on Reference. Scroll down the page to the Magazine link and then choose OneFile. The name of the article is 'Students Use LEGO NXT Robots, Sensors to Solve Real-World Problems by Jennifer Roy. Said article was in Design News from 9/1/2009.
Finally, click here to see some seriously cool designs that people (not just children and kids by the way) building 'things Lego'. Click here for the YouTube link that links to the fantastic Lego videos - very cool to look at!
Enjoy the Lego links! Happy building.
Stu
Fun. Isn't that what we all need more of? And for kids its a great thing. They should have fun - that's what helps make for a healthy child, young adult and adolescent. And eventually it can possibly help make for happier adults. And that is a good thing.
So, how can we have children have more fun and at the same time learn? One of the best ways to get kids to have fun while at the same to learn is to use Lego. Click here for the official 'Lego' website.
So, a brief primer about Lego might be in order. Bascially Lego is an interactive toy that enables children to build 'things' (think shapes and things) using colorful blocks that stick together.
I just checked the Lego website and clicked on the products link and what I found is definitely not just your 'parent's' Lego. Click here for the link to the product page. With Lego sets as diverse as ' Prince of Persia: Sands of Time', Harry Potter, Star Wars, Toy Story (a natural fit), Design By Me and Creator...Lego has definitely moved into the 21st century.
Click here for the page that will lead you to Lego galleries to see what other kids are building. Click here to see the Lego message board so you can participate in conversations with other kids who are Lego users.
Click here to see an article about students that use Lego robots and sensors to solve real world problems. If the link doesn't work you an visit the library website and click on Reference. Scroll down the page to the Magazine link and then choose OneFile. The name of the article is 'Students Use LEGO NXT Robots, Sensors to Solve Real-World Problems by Jennifer Roy. Said article was in Design News from 9/1/2009.
Finally, click here to see some seriously cool designs that people (not just children and kids by the way) building 'things Lego'. Click here for the YouTube link that links to the fantastic Lego videos - very cool to look at!
Enjoy the Lego links! Happy building.
Stu
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Television Show Lyrics - Fun Stuff
Hi All,
I was going to write up an entry about things to do during a snowy day in the winter...but then I got somewhat inspired and thought about this topic.
Hmmm, television show lyrics. Come on now, admit, you are now thinking of either the theme song from Gilligan's Island (The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed...) or the them from I Dream of Jeannie; right? Well, now you are at least.
So I might be dating myself a big by talking about these shows but who can forget about theme songs and lyrics (if any) from Dynasty or The Mickey Mouse Show or Dallas? Ah yes...shows from the 70's and 80's. Sanford and Sun, Maude, The Rockford Files...we can go on and on but that won't help us with the blog entry at hand....
Click here for the Classic-TV database. Cool info about tv shows, cartoons, theme songs (we have a winner!) and more. Easy navigation and a lot of help from Youtube.com make this a pretty interesting site. The TV show link has a submenu of tv shows by decade (1950's to the 2000's). TV show summary, broadcast history, episode guide and tv schedule are included in each tv show entry.
This link - called Television Show Lyrics - has exactly what we're looking for...just the lyrics of lots of interesting shows. Note that the site seems a bit dated - no flashy java script or anything else that is super sophisticated. Definitely a home made site - but that makes the site that much more useful!
Finally, Fox has a tv show called, 'Don't Forget the Lyrics'. Go figure. Imagine how well you can do now that you have these two website links? Click here to visit Don't Forget the Lyrics!
Okay, okay, I'm enjoying this entry so I'll throw another site out for you!
Click here to visit STLyrics.com. Users who visit this site can find lyrics alphabetically. There is a clearly marked list at the top of the first page of the site. Clicking on the letter A for example leads you to the lyrics of the chosen television show. Simple enough.
I hope this nostalgic entry makes readers smile a bit...that's always a plus.
Regards and enjoy the songs and lyrics.
Stu
I was going to write up an entry about things to do during a snowy day in the winter...but then I got somewhat inspired and thought about this topic.
Hmmm, television show lyrics. Come on now, admit, you are now thinking of either the theme song from Gilligan's Island (The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed...) or the them from I Dream of Jeannie; right? Well, now you are at least.
So I might be dating myself a big by talking about these shows but who can forget about theme songs and lyrics (if any) from Dynasty or The Mickey Mouse Show or Dallas? Ah yes...shows from the 70's and 80's. Sanford and Sun, Maude, The Rockford Files...we can go on and on but that won't help us with the blog entry at hand....
Click here for the Classic-TV database. Cool info about tv shows, cartoons, theme songs (we have a winner!) and more. Easy navigation and a lot of help from Youtube.com make this a pretty interesting site. The TV show link has a submenu of tv shows by decade (1950's to the 2000's). TV show summary, broadcast history, episode guide and tv schedule are included in each tv show entry.
This link - called Television Show Lyrics - has exactly what we're looking for...just the lyrics of lots of interesting shows. Note that the site seems a bit dated - no flashy java script or anything else that is super sophisticated. Definitely a home made site - but that makes the site that much more useful!
Finally, Fox has a tv show called, 'Don't Forget the Lyrics'. Go figure. Imagine how well you can do now that you have these two website links? Click here to visit Don't Forget the Lyrics!
Okay, okay, I'm enjoying this entry so I'll throw another site out for you!
Click here to visit STLyrics.com. Users who visit this site can find lyrics alphabetically. There is a clearly marked list at the top of the first page of the site. Clicking on the letter A for example leads you to the lyrics of the chosen television show. Simple enough.
I hope this nostalgic entry makes readers smile a bit...that's always a plus.
Regards and enjoy the songs and lyrics.
Stu
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Cupcakes and You!
Hi All,
It happens three times per day (well, usually at least) and doctors and scientists recommend that you do it a bit more than that...they (the doctors and other authorities) recommend that you do this more like 5 or 6 times per day...
What am I talking about? Eating of course. It is something we all do and today I wanted to blog about something that is cute, fun to make and well, it is just darn fun to say the word, 'cupcake'. Too cute, eh?
So, what can we do with cupcakes? Well, we make them of course - and even more obviously we eat them! So, on to the cupcake websites!
Believe it or not there is a website called Cupcake Recipes. Click here to link to the site. The site says exactly what it purports to: there are lots of cupcakes recipes. As a matter of fact the site breaks out some recipes by Wedding Cupcakes, Christmas Cupcake Recipes, Frostings and (how timely is this...) Halloween Cupcakes. Finally, if you click here you'll find lots of Cupcake Recipes.
Clicking on this link will take you to AllRecipes.com's cupcakes page. How's that for a specialized link? On the AllRecipes site the recipes have info regarding calories, fat content, carbs, protein, cholesterol and sodium in each recipe. Information about preparation time, cooking time and how long the total recipe takes from start to finish (ready in time) is included in recipe as well. Users can also limit recipes to those that just have photos as well. A neat feature that I haven't seen on any other recipe websites.
So there you have it - two of the many, many cupcake website that readers can use to make cupcakes. Finally, click here for a funny addition to this cupcake entry.
Enjoy and remember, cupcakes are a great way to spend quality time with your kids during Halloween, the Holiday season, for birthdays, anniversaries or just during a rainy day.
Enjoy.
Stu
It happens three times per day (well, usually at least) and doctors and scientists recommend that you do it a bit more than that...they (the doctors and other authorities) recommend that you do this more like 5 or 6 times per day...
What am I talking about? Eating of course. It is something we all do and today I wanted to blog about something that is cute, fun to make and well, it is just darn fun to say the word, 'cupcake'. Too cute, eh?
So, what can we do with cupcakes? Well, we make them of course - and even more obviously we eat them! So, on to the cupcake websites!
Believe it or not there is a website called Cupcake Recipes. Click here to link to the site. The site says exactly what it purports to: there are lots of cupcakes recipes. As a matter of fact the site breaks out some recipes by Wedding Cupcakes, Christmas Cupcake Recipes, Frostings and (how timely is this...) Halloween Cupcakes. Finally, if you click here you'll find lots of Cupcake Recipes.
Clicking on this link will take you to AllRecipes.com's cupcakes page. How's that for a specialized link? On the AllRecipes site the recipes have info regarding calories, fat content, carbs, protein, cholesterol and sodium in each recipe. Information about preparation time, cooking time and how long the total recipe takes from start to finish (ready in time) is included in recipe as well. Users can also limit recipes to those that just have photos as well. A neat feature that I haven't seen on any other recipe websites.
So there you have it - two of the many, many cupcake website that readers can use to make cupcakes. Finally, click here for a funny addition to this cupcake entry.
Enjoy and remember, cupcakes are a great way to spend quality time with your kids during Halloween, the Holiday season, for birthdays, anniversaries or just during a rainy day.
Enjoy.
Stu
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Fall Home Care Preventative Measures
Hi All,
Well, in my last post I wrote a bit about car care maintenance for the upcoming fall season...I figured a nice book end entry to that would be an entry on home care for the fall/winter season.
Clicking on this first link will get you to a site from ServiceMagic.com - which helps homeowners find contractors for various home improvement jobs. The page the link goes to has a checklist of items for homeowners to check before the fall. Examples of these items are gutters/downspouts, windows/doors, heating system, plumbing system, attic ventilation, and landscape and yardwork. Interesting site but I suspect the real reason for the site is to get users to use their contractors. Just be aware of this fact and use the site accordingly.
On the right side of the page is abox for users to find additional, related content - which is useful because there are additional checklists waiting for the curious reader!
Another interesting site comes from Danny Lipford.com Click here to see the link. The site talks a lot about caulking and saving money - two issues close to any homeowners heart. He also talks about weather stripping, roof inspection, gutter maintenance (it must be important if two home improvement sites mention it!) and lawn maintenance.
Finally, About.com has a good earticle on 'Easy Home Winterizing Checklist' by clicking on this link. The site is not actually a link - there is one item per page on the site -then the user has to click on the 'Next Page' button to get to the next checklist item. Good advice from a well-known site since it is thorough and well thought out,.
Other good sites for general home improvement information (since this entry really is a subtopic of 'home improvement') include:
Ron Hazelton.com
DIY Network.com
Regards and here's to a mild winter with little snow and even less rain.
Stu
Well, in my last post I wrote a bit about car care maintenance for the upcoming fall season...I figured a nice book end entry to that would be an entry on home care for the fall/winter season.
Clicking on this first link will get you to a site from ServiceMagic.com - which helps homeowners find contractors for various home improvement jobs. The page the link goes to has a checklist of items for homeowners to check before the fall. Examples of these items are gutters/downspouts, windows/doors, heating system, plumbing system, attic ventilation, and landscape and yardwork. Interesting site but I suspect the real reason for the site is to get users to use their contractors. Just be aware of this fact and use the site accordingly.
On the right side of the page is abox for users to find additional, related content - which is useful because there are additional checklists waiting for the curious reader!
Another interesting site comes from Danny Lipford.com Click here to see the link. The site talks a lot about caulking and saving money - two issues close to any homeowners heart. He also talks about weather stripping, roof inspection, gutter maintenance (it must be important if two home improvement sites mention it!) and lawn maintenance.
Finally, About.com has a good earticle on 'Easy Home Winterizing Checklist' by clicking on this link. The site is not actually a link - there is one item per page on the site -then the user has to click on the 'Next Page' button to get to the next checklist item. Good advice from a well-known site since it is thorough and well thought out,.
Other good sites for general home improvement information (since this entry really is a subtopic of 'home improvement') include:
Ron Hazelton.com
DIY Network.com
Regards and here's to a mild winter with little snow and even less rain.
Stu
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Fall and Winter Car Care
Hi All,
Well, judging from the weather over the last few weeks or so, it looks like we're going to be in for a dark, dreary, long, wet (snowy?) fall and winter season. Click on this link to see the 2 month long range forecast from the Old Farmers Almanac.
Click on this link to get info on car care from DoItYourself.com - which is pretty much the topic of today's post.
So, fall is here and winter is on its way. What are some of the preventative measures to take so your car serves you well in these times of 'extreme weather'? I am certainly no expert in car care but you might think about the following issues with the car: engine performanance, fuel, oil changes, cooling systems, windshielf wipers, heaters/defrosters, car battery, lights, exhaust system and the car tires. Finally, it might be a good idea to take a look-see at the actual car manual to see when the recommended service schedules are for your cars' make/model.
You might want to click here for a link from AutoEducation.com which discusses Fall car care maintenance. Interesting stuff since the recommendations are easy to perform and won't take much time to complete.
Another site for fall car care maintenance can be found by clicking here - interestingly enough the link is from Bankrate.com; which is a site more commonly thought of as being a financial education website. Go figure - but the advice is accurate and pretty much spot on.
Finally, you might want to visit the library website and click on the Reference tab at the top right side of the screen. Scroll down to the Auto Repair link and then you'll need to put in your library card number to access the Auto Repair Reference Center. This is an auto repair database which helps users get info about a particular make and model of car. Users can find cars by year, then by narrowing down by make and then by car model.
Wiring diagrams, repair procedures, maintenance schedules and more can be found on the site. It is free and easy to use!
Regards and hopefully the winter won't be too cold or snowy and rainy.
Stu
Well, judging from the weather over the last few weeks or so, it looks like we're going to be in for a dark, dreary, long, wet (snowy?) fall and winter season. Click on this link to see the 2 month long range forecast from the Old Farmers Almanac.
Click on this link to get info on car care from DoItYourself.com - which is pretty much the topic of today's post.
So, fall is here and winter is on its way. What are some of the preventative measures to take so your car serves you well in these times of 'extreme weather'? I am certainly no expert in car care but you might think about the following issues with the car: engine performanance, fuel, oil changes, cooling systems, windshielf wipers, heaters/defrosters, car battery, lights, exhaust system and the car tires. Finally, it might be a good idea to take a look-see at the actual car manual to see when the recommended service schedules are for your cars' make/model.
You might want to click here for a link from AutoEducation.com which discusses Fall car care maintenance. Interesting stuff since the recommendations are easy to perform and won't take much time to complete.
Another site for fall car care maintenance can be found by clicking here - interestingly enough the link is from Bankrate.com; which is a site more commonly thought of as being a financial education website. Go figure - but the advice is accurate and pretty much spot on.
Finally, you might want to visit the library website and click on the Reference tab at the top right side of the screen. Scroll down to the Auto Repair link and then you'll need to put in your library card number to access the Auto Repair Reference Center. This is an auto repair database which helps users get info about a particular make and model of car. Users can find cars by year, then by narrowing down by make and then by car model.
Wiring diagrams, repair procedures, maintenance schedules and more can be found on the site. It is free and easy to use!
Regards and hopefully the winter won't be too cold or snowy and rainy.
Stu
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Political Cartoons
Hi All,
Well, I've been gone for a bit, but I'm back - posting on the blog and hopefully posting entries that are at least a bit interesting, educational and maybe just a bit amusing.
Here's a topic I haven't talked about much - if at all - in the blog...politics. No, I'm not going to delve into the pros and/or cons of any controversial issues. I am certainly not going to discuss specific policies (local, state or federal), or individual politicians. So what am I going to talk about?
Political cartoons - actually the site I'm going to mention is just a bunch of links to political cartoons...that way no one can say that I'm favoring a particular political party, agenda or anything like that...
The site is called Daryl Cagle's Political Cartoonists Index Home Page and can be found by clicking on this link.
So, what's so interesting about the site? It has a political cartoon search feature, a daily cartoon listing and a place where readers can buy cartoons...
Users can search by topic, by cartoonists and there is a link to regular political columnists.
Note that some of the cartoons are wonderfully biting and sarcastic - others are just well, sort of funny. Note that I am NOT endorsing any political candidate or party or agenda....
This just might be the place to look for your daily fill of politics mixed with cartoons and humor! Check the site out.
Stu
Well, I've been gone for a bit, but I'm back - posting on the blog and hopefully posting entries that are at least a bit interesting, educational and maybe just a bit amusing.
Here's a topic I haven't talked about much - if at all - in the blog...politics. No, I'm not going to delve into the pros and/or cons of any controversial issues. I am certainly not going to discuss specific policies (local, state or federal), or individual politicians. So what am I going to talk about?
Political cartoons - actually the site I'm going to mention is just a bunch of links to political cartoons...that way no one can say that I'm favoring a particular political party, agenda or anything like that...
The site is called Daryl Cagle's Political Cartoonists Index Home Page and can be found by clicking on this link.
So, what's so interesting about the site? It has a political cartoon search feature, a daily cartoon listing and a place where readers can buy cartoons...
Users can search by topic, by cartoonists and there is a link to regular political columnists.
Note that some of the cartoons are wonderfully biting and sarcastic - others are just well, sort of funny. Note that I am NOT endorsing any political candidate or party or agenda....
This just might be the place to look for your daily fill of politics mixed with cartoons and humor! Check the site out.
Stu
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Surgery Videos - Way Cool! and Educational!
Hi All,
Today we have a topic we've never discussed before. If you like 'things' medical and anatomical or if you like tv shows like 'Cold Case' or CSI this might be the post for you.
I'm talking about surgery videos from a very, very reputable website - the National Institute of Health via a website (which I have mentioned before) called Medlineplus. Click here for the MedlinePlus link to surgery videos.
So, types of videos can you see here? Surgery topics vary from coronary angioplasty and stent replacement to automatic implantable cardiac defibrillators to knee replacment to pituitary surgery to stereotactic radiation therapy and much, much more.
Folks might want to pair this site up with WebMD to get more information on a procedure or a particular condition. Click here for WebMD.
Other quality, unbiased, comprehensive medical websites include the Mayo Clinic and Harvard Medical School (scroll down and find the Health Resources box on the left side - click on the link below that to find the topic you are interested in).
If you are squeamish you might want to skip this post...but if you aren't, there is a veritable goldmine of videos available online for the budding surgeon or biologist or medical professional !
Regards,
Stu
Today we have a topic we've never discussed before. If you like 'things' medical and anatomical or if you like tv shows like 'Cold Case' or CSI this might be the post for you.
I'm talking about surgery videos from a very, very reputable website - the National Institute of Health via a website (which I have mentioned before) called Medlineplus. Click here for the MedlinePlus link to surgery videos.
So, types of videos can you see here? Surgery topics vary from coronary angioplasty and stent replacement to automatic implantable cardiac defibrillators to knee replacment to pituitary surgery to stereotactic radiation therapy and much, much more.
Folks might want to pair this site up with WebMD to get more information on a procedure or a particular condition. Click here for WebMD.
Other quality, unbiased, comprehensive medical websites include the Mayo Clinic and Harvard Medical School (scroll down and find the Health Resources box on the left side - click on the link below that to find the topic you are interested in).
If you are squeamish you might want to skip this post...but if you aren't, there is a veritable goldmine of videos available online for the budding surgeon or biologist or medical professional !
Regards,
Stu
Sunday, October 10, 2010
All the News...At Your Fingertips
Hi All,
Just a quickie post for this Sunday afternoon. If you like the news and enjoy being constantly updated you should visit Newseum. Click here to visit the site: Newseum.
In typical reporter fashion I'll discuss the site in the 'Who, What, When, Where, Why and How' format (method) that many reporters use to write articles.
Who: 800+ newspapers from around the world submit their front pages to Newseum.
What: Many newspapers front pages submitted - great for different points of view and opinion. Current events, news, politics, business, finance, science & technology, people, places, etc all posted on the site!
When: Every morning - free on the internet and always available.
Where: Newseum.com - or click here.
Why: Current events and news is important for citizens to know what is happening in the town, county, state, country and the world!
How: Via the internet at Newseum.com.
Hope you enjoy the news and the information!
Regards,
Stu
Just a quickie post for this Sunday afternoon. If you like the news and enjoy being constantly updated you should visit Newseum. Click here to visit the site: Newseum.
In typical reporter fashion I'll discuss the site in the 'Who, What, When, Where, Why and How' format (method) that many reporters use to write articles.
Who: 800+ newspapers from around the world submit their front pages to Newseum.
What: Many newspapers front pages submitted - great for different points of view and opinion. Current events, news, politics, business, finance, science & technology, people, places, etc all posted on the site!
When: Every morning - free on the internet and always available.
Where: Newseum.com - or click here.
Why: Current events and news is important for citizens to know what is happening in the town, county, state, country and the world!
How: Via the internet at Newseum.com.
Hope you enjoy the news and the information!
Regards,
Stu
Friday, October 8, 2010
Who Do You Think You Are? !!!!
Hi Again,
We're back and we're talking about Genealogy research and websites today. It is definitely a blast from the past and I'm hoping that you learn something about your family history by using these online databases!
The first online database I'll discuss is called HeritageQuest and can be accessed by clicking this link. Alternatively you can go to the library homepage and click on Reference and then click on Online Resources. Boilerplate info first: the database is accessible to all Farmingdale PL patrons with a library card. Database is accessible from home and is FREE. I can't emphasize this enough - so I will doubly emphasize it. Use of the database is FREE, FREE, FREE, FREE. Okay, you get the idea now.
So, what does HeritageQuest do for the genealogist in all of us? Users can check actual census records from 1790-1930. This is a complete set of the US Federal census images during these years - and thereis name index for other years. There is also a search function so users can find people and places that are discussed in over 28,000 family histories. There is also a section in the database for users who need to search selected US Revolutionary War Era files...neat stuff.
I'm betting that users will use the census images - that is valuable info because it gives the names, address and age of the person at the time the census was taken.
Okay, if you are a genealogist you might have heard of CyndisList.com. Click here for the site. So what exactly is CyndisList? It is a huge, mega genealogy site that purports to link to over 282,000 family history links in over 180 categories.
Starting from the homepage users can access genealogy topics like Adoption, Names, Newspapers, Obituaries, Beginners, Occupations, Biographies, Organizing Your Research (a good place for beginners to start), Photographs & Memories, City Directories, Religion & Churches and much, much more. Note that if you want to go directly to any of these categories you can click the link - I've connected the phrases and words directly to the site.
Just to use an example, I clicked on the term 'Biographies' and found links to sites as varied as 'Beyond the Index-Michael John Neill-Your Ancestor's Biography', Bio-Bingers Mailing List, Center for Autobiographic Studies, Infinite Humanity and Life Profiles. These links go directly to the site that you are interested in.
Finally, if you try a Google search for 'Long Island Genealogy' you will come to a site called 'Long Island Genealogy and History' which can be found by clicking on this link. The site almost acts like a mini-Cyndi's List in the sense that it links to many Long Island Resources, Surname Databases, and has Long Island Family and Local History Reference Books.
The site is comprehensive and has good links to other local genealogy sites...it is a good place for exploring the highways and byways of internet genealogy.
Finally, other places to start genealogy research include, town/county records and marriage records.
Hope this post starts you out on the world of genealogy research.
Stu
We're back and we're talking about Genealogy research and websites today. It is definitely a blast from the past and I'm hoping that you learn something about your family history by using these online databases!
The first online database I'll discuss is called HeritageQuest and can be accessed by clicking this link. Alternatively you can go to the library homepage and click on Reference and then click on Online Resources. Boilerplate info first: the database is accessible to all Farmingdale PL patrons with a library card. Database is accessible from home and is FREE. I can't emphasize this enough - so I will doubly emphasize it. Use of the database is FREE, FREE, FREE, FREE. Okay, you get the idea now.
So, what does HeritageQuest do for the genealogist in all of us? Users can check actual census records from 1790-1930. This is a complete set of the US Federal census images during these years - and thereis name index for other years. There is also a search function so users can find people and places that are discussed in over 28,000 family histories. There is also a section in the database for users who need to search selected US Revolutionary War Era files...neat stuff.
I'm betting that users will use the census images - that is valuable info because it gives the names, address and age of the person at the time the census was taken.
Okay, if you are a genealogist you might have heard of CyndisList.com. Click here for the site. So what exactly is CyndisList? It is a huge, mega genealogy site that purports to link to over 282,000 family history links in over 180 categories.
Starting from the homepage users can access genealogy topics like Adoption, Names, Newspapers, Obituaries, Beginners, Occupations, Biographies, Organizing Your Research (a good place for beginners to start), Photographs & Memories, City Directories, Religion & Churches and much, much more. Note that if you want to go directly to any of these categories you can click the link - I've connected the phrases and words directly to the site.
Just to use an example, I clicked on the term 'Biographies' and found links to sites as varied as 'Beyond the Index-Michael John Neill-Your Ancestor's Biography', Bio-Bingers Mailing List, Center for Autobiographic Studies, Infinite Humanity and Life Profiles. These links go directly to the site that you are interested in.
Finally, if you try a Google search for 'Long Island Genealogy' you will come to a site called 'Long Island Genealogy and History' which can be found by clicking on this link. The site almost acts like a mini-Cyndi's List in the sense that it links to many Long Island Resources, Surname Databases, and has Long Island Family and Local History Reference Books.
The site is comprehensive and has good links to other local genealogy sites...it is a good place for exploring the highways and byways of internet genealogy.
Finally, other places to start genealogy research include, town/county records and marriage records.
Hope this post starts you out on the world of genealogy research.
Stu
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
That Ball Is....Out of Here! Baseball Playoffs 2010
Hi All,
Well, we're not just football fans here at the Reference Department blog. We like baseball also! And isn't that coincidental now that the baseball playoffs are starting today?
Today is Wednesday and that means there are 4 playoff series to be played: Rangers vs. Tampa Bay, Yankees vs. Minnesota, Cincinnati vs. Philadelphia, and Texas vs. Tampa Bay. Who will win? We don't know, but we have a few websites that might help you enjoy the playoffs even more.
Forthwith some baseball sites:
1. Yahoo Sports - MLB
All the news, commentary, updates, scores and boxscores for the playoffs. Check out the stats and player profiles section. Plain vanilla sport stuff but it does get the point across.
2. Baseball Reference.com
Player stats, offensive stats, defensive stats, team stats, manager stats, club stats, historical records, for position players, pitchers and much, much more. Sortable and has coverage of 2010 playoffs. Intense stats site - for the serious numbers crunchers but it seems like lurkers are more than welcome. If you like numbers this is the place for you baseball fans!
3. Bottom9 Baseball Blog
Can you say current - no I mean current - as in to the minute - posts about the playoffs! Lots of discussion on various players, teams and the games.
4. MLB Baseball Blogs
More current blogs by team and of course, analysis of the playoffs. Note that there are 'pro blogs' by stars like Torrii Hunger, Benji Molina, Scot Drucker and Marlon Byrd...check the site out!
Enjoy the games and the stats and may the best team win.
Regards,
Stu
Well, we're not just football fans here at the Reference Department blog. We like baseball also! And isn't that coincidental now that the baseball playoffs are starting today?
Today is Wednesday and that means there are 4 playoff series to be played: Rangers vs. Tampa Bay, Yankees vs. Minnesota, Cincinnati vs. Philadelphia, and Texas vs. Tampa Bay. Who will win? We don't know, but we have a few websites that might help you enjoy the playoffs even more.
Forthwith some baseball sites:
1. Yahoo Sports - MLB
All the news, commentary, updates, scores and boxscores for the playoffs. Check out the stats and player profiles section. Plain vanilla sport stuff but it does get the point across.
2. Baseball Reference.com
Player stats, offensive stats, defensive stats, team stats, manager stats, club stats, historical records, for position players, pitchers and much, much more. Sortable and has coverage of 2010 playoffs. Intense stats site - for the serious numbers crunchers but it seems like lurkers are more than welcome. If you like numbers this is the place for you baseball fans!
3. Bottom9 Baseball Blog
Can you say current - no I mean current - as in to the minute - posts about the playoffs! Lots of discussion on various players, teams and the games.
4. MLB Baseball Blogs
More current blogs by team and of course, analysis of the playoffs. Note that there are 'pro blogs' by stars like Torrii Hunger, Benji Molina, Scot Drucker and Marlon Byrd...check the site out!
Enjoy the games and the stats and may the best team win.
Regards,
Stu
Monday, October 4, 2010
The Great Outdoors
Hi All,
Welcome back from the weekend. Hope you had a nice one - boy they do go quickly don't they?
On to another week of reference, questions, blogging and more...
Today we are going to dive back in with 2 nature type sites so that you can enjoy the great outdoors once this crummy, rainy, cloudy weather passes on Wednesday or Thursday.
Have you ever visited Enature.com? I didn't think so, but if you do want to visit the site click here. So you ask, 'what Mr. Blogger is Enature about? What does the site do for me?' Indeed, a good question since the site claims to 'Bring nature to life.'
All well and good - and the site has fairly comprehensive Wildlife Guides, users can use the 'Ask an Expert' feature to have questions answered and there is a helpful Blog. Only issue with the site is that there is a bit too much advertising. For example the site has a Ringtones link and there are some advertisements on the top of the many pages. Interesting section on the site is the ParkGuide link that has information on over 300 National Parks and Wildlife Refuges.
Now, I didn't want to have this as the only site mentioned today; so I figured I would pair it with
a site called Gorp.com. GORP is an acronym for the 'Great Outdoors Recreation Pages' and is a part of the Away Network which helps travelers plan and choose future vacations. I am not soliciting, selling for GORP - I'm just mentioning it because it is an interesting travel/outdoors website.
In any event, Gorp is one stop shopping for 'things outdoors. For example, there are links (and guides) to Parks, Weekender Guides (organized by state - very easy and intuitive to use), Hiking Guides and Camping Guides. There is a Gear link also on the site - click here. I suspect now you realize why I wanted to pair up Gorp with Enature now? They kind of go hand-in-hand with each other and complement one another...
Upon your first visit to the site, you might want to look on the right side of the screen for the Park Finder feature. This helps you find a park using various criteria (for example you can find Parks by state or region, and by activity like campling, climbing, biking, backpacking, sailing, paddling and scenic drives among others) and more. Results are easily read and have direct links to the particular park/forest/monument that fits the criteria you searched for. Users can then click on the park name and link to an article that discusses the event searched for.
Interesting site - nothing earth shaking, but definitely worth a look-see for travelers who like the outdoors.
I want to mention one other good site for the 'great outdoors'. Trails.com claims to be 'Your guide to the outdoors'. Indeed it is. On Trails.com users can find Topo Maps, Forums (Q&A type bulletin boards with long running discussions on a great variety of outdoorsy topics). Click here to visit Trails.com. Click here to visit a hike on the Connetquot River in Suffolk - just to see what the site shows when you find a hike. Users can also find a Trail Guide, Photos, User Reviews of the hike and GPS info (in beta currently) on the site.
Neat stuff for those who like the outdoors. So now that you have the maps, directions, information about the hike or the national park that you want to visit...all we need is some good weather. I can't wait for the end of the week.
Regards and I hope you make it outdoors before the winter comes along!
Stu
Welcome back from the weekend. Hope you had a nice one - boy they do go quickly don't they?
On to another week of reference, questions, blogging and more...
Today we are going to dive back in with 2 nature type sites so that you can enjoy the great outdoors once this crummy, rainy, cloudy weather passes on Wednesday or Thursday.
Have you ever visited Enature.com? I didn't think so, but if you do want to visit the site click here. So you ask, 'what Mr. Blogger is Enature about? What does the site do for me?' Indeed, a good question since the site claims to 'Bring nature to life.'
All well and good - and the site has fairly comprehensive Wildlife Guides, users can use the 'Ask an Expert' feature to have questions answered and there is a helpful Blog. Only issue with the site is that there is a bit too much advertising. For example the site has a Ringtones link and there are some advertisements on the top of the many pages. Interesting section on the site is the ParkGuide link that has information on over 300 National Parks and Wildlife Refuges.
Now, I didn't want to have this as the only site mentioned today; so I figured I would pair it with
a site called Gorp.com. GORP is an acronym for the 'Great Outdoors Recreation Pages' and is a part of the Away Network which helps travelers plan and choose future vacations. I am not soliciting, selling for GORP - I'm just mentioning it because it is an interesting travel/outdoors website.
In any event, Gorp is one stop shopping for 'things outdoors. For example, there are links (and guides) to Parks, Weekender Guides (organized by state - very easy and intuitive to use), Hiking Guides and Camping Guides. There is a Gear link also on the site - click here. I suspect now you realize why I wanted to pair up Gorp with Enature now? They kind of go hand-in-hand with each other and complement one another...
Upon your first visit to the site, you might want to look on the right side of the screen for the Park Finder feature. This helps you find a park using various criteria (for example you can find Parks by state or region, and by activity like campling, climbing, biking, backpacking, sailing, paddling and scenic drives among others) and more. Results are easily read and have direct links to the particular park/forest/monument that fits the criteria you searched for. Users can then click on the park name and link to an article that discusses the event searched for.
Interesting site - nothing earth shaking, but definitely worth a look-see for travelers who like the outdoors.
I want to mention one other good site for the 'great outdoors'. Trails.com claims to be 'Your guide to the outdoors'. Indeed it is. On Trails.com users can find Topo Maps, Forums (Q&A type bulletin boards with long running discussions on a great variety of outdoorsy topics). Click here to visit Trails.com. Click here to visit a hike on the Connetquot River in Suffolk - just to see what the site shows when you find a hike. Users can also find a Trail Guide, Photos, User Reviews of the hike and GPS info (in beta currently) on the site.
Neat stuff for those who like the outdoors. So now that you have the maps, directions, information about the hike or the national park that you want to visit...all we need is some good weather. I can't wait for the end of the week.
Regards and I hope you make it outdoors before the winter comes along!
Stu
Friday, October 1, 2010
Tech, Tech, Tech....
Hi All,
Just wanted to put up a quick and dirty technology type post today. Being that it is a Friday afternoon I didn't want a somber, serious subject matter for this entry.
And while 'technology' isn't as much fun as a circus (click here for a link to the Ringling Brothers Circus) or a chocolate chip cookie (click here for the history of the chocolate chip cookie) it is still a somewhat lighter and less serious topic than taxes (click here for a link to the IRS) or the environmental affects of pollution (click here for a link to the affects of pollution).
Without further ado a bunch of tech related websites for your perusing and reading...
www.techcrunch.com - computer, technology news for individuals and for busineses
www.pcworld.com - geared towards individuals and home computing, but still has info for businesses and computer professionals. Downloads, advice, forums available.
www.majorgeeks.com - software downloads for computers, reviews of games and software and much more. Check out the various forums!!!
www.tucows.com - more software downloads (freeware and shareware) than you can shake a stick at...incredible!
www.popsci.com - the venerable technology enthusiasts magazine online version. Be sure to check out the galleries, videos and the columns online. Neat tech info that is presented in a sophisticated professional manner.
www.sciencedaily.com - latest research news online. Topics are as varied as health, medicine, mind/brain, plants/animals, earth/climate, space/time, matter/energy, computers/math, fossils/ruins. Site has bibliographic format for term papers if needed. Great feature.
www.scientificamerican.com - I don't know if ScienceDaily copied the web format of ScientificAmerican or if it was the other way around, but the topics listed at the top of the page look eerily similar. In any event SA has science topics like energy/sustainability, evolution, health, mind/brain, space, technology, more science, and blog/columns. Similar idea, different flavor - end result is most excellent for your fill of science news
www.nationalgeographic.com - the well known monthly magazine has an online presence! Subtitled, 'Inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888' the site is eco friendly and remarkably interesting. Topics at the top of the page include photography, animals, environment, travel, adventure, natgeotv (national geographic television), kids.
Topic headings seem broader than either Scientific American or Science Daily. Interesting take on this by National Geographic. Of particular note, users might want to click on the photograhy link (click here for the photography link) to see some absolutely fabulous photos of the natural world by National Geographic's photographers. Breathtaking! Remember, you can download them and make them your tabletop photo if you want!
Regards and have a fun weekend.
Stu
Just wanted to put up a quick and dirty technology type post today. Being that it is a Friday afternoon I didn't want a somber, serious subject matter for this entry.
And while 'technology' isn't as much fun as a circus (click here for a link to the Ringling Brothers Circus) or a chocolate chip cookie (click here for the history of the chocolate chip cookie) it is still a somewhat lighter and less serious topic than taxes (click here for a link to the IRS) or the environmental affects of pollution (click here for a link to the affects of pollution).
Without further ado a bunch of tech related websites for your perusing and reading...
www.techcrunch.com - computer, technology news for individuals and for busineses
www.pcworld.com - geared towards individuals and home computing, but still has info for businesses and computer professionals. Downloads, advice, forums available.
www.majorgeeks.com - software downloads for computers, reviews of games and software and much more. Check out the various forums!!!
www.tucows.com - more software downloads (freeware and shareware) than you can shake a stick at...incredible!
www.popsci.com - the venerable technology enthusiasts magazine online version. Be sure to check out the galleries, videos and the columns online. Neat tech info that is presented in a sophisticated professional manner.
www.sciencedaily.com - latest research news online. Topics are as varied as health, medicine, mind/brain, plants/animals, earth/climate, space/time, matter/energy, computers/math, fossils/ruins. Site has bibliographic format for term papers if needed. Great feature.
www.scientificamerican.com - I don't know if ScienceDaily copied the web format of ScientificAmerican or if it was the other way around, but the topics listed at the top of the page look eerily similar. In any event SA has science topics like energy/sustainability, evolution, health, mind/brain, space, technology, more science, and blog/columns. Similar idea, different flavor - end result is most excellent for your fill of science news
www.nationalgeographic.com - the well known monthly magazine has an online presence! Subtitled, 'Inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888' the site is eco friendly and remarkably interesting. Topics at the top of the page include photography, animals, environment, travel, adventure, natgeotv (national geographic television), kids.
Topic headings seem broader than either Scientific American or Science Daily. Interesting take on this by National Geographic. Of particular note, users might want to click on the photograhy link (click here for the photography link) to see some absolutely fabulous photos of the natural world by National Geographic's photographers. Breathtaking! Remember, you can download them and make them your tabletop photo if you want!
Regards and have a fun weekend.
Stu
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