Happy 2012! If you got an eReader over the holidays and want to know how to get eBooks from the library, please come by one of these Zoo programs. Or, drop by to learn more about our various e-collections!

Here's the schedule for January:

 More dates are coming in February!

Enjoy a new collection of online eBooks – Books24x7 IT and Wellness titles. The “For Dummies” computer books are all included! These titles are read ONLINE ONLY. They cannot be downloaded to any devices. Here's the link to the collections:

http://0-library.books24x7.com.catalog.sjlibrary.org/library.asp?site=ITL3F

There are some doom-sayers who are claiming that the world is coming to an end on December 21, 2012.  Whether or not they are right, there are some other people who are taking it to heart in a joking way and creating a "bucket list" for 2012.  There's a facebook group if you'd like to join and I thought I'd share my own "bucket list" for 2012.

1.  Go to Alcatraz.  I've lived in the Bay area for 10 years now and I still haven't done the boat ride and tour of Alcatraz.  And before I go I need to read: Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko.  It is the story of a boy whose family moves to Alcatraz Island when his father gets a job as a guard there in 1935.

2.  Go to Disneyland.  I went when I was 2 years old and I hear I had a good time, but I frankly don't recall!  I have a lot of friends who still love to go to Disneyland as adults.  And before I go, I need to read: Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom by Cory Doctorow.  This one is a free ebook download so I can use my ereader...

3.  Eat Cioppino.  This is apparently the most famous San Francisco Fish Dish.  I don't know what they're talking about because I've never tried it.  Bobby Flay did a Throwdown against Phil DiGirolamo from Phil's in Moss Landing for this dish and includes a recipe in his book: Bobby Flay's Throwdown.  There are a lot of restaurants who carry this dish so I don't think I'll have a problem here!

4.  Bike the Coyote Creek Trail.  This trail is 18.7 miles in total so I might take it easy and do it in a couple of sessions.  But I'd be able to get a scenic view of a lot of San Jose!  But first, I need to fix my bike up - I think I'll need to check out the Complete Bike Book by Chris Sidwells. 

5.  Wow!  I'm running out of good ideas for my bucket list!  Time to check out Newcomer's Handbook for Moving to and Living in the San Francisco Bay Area by Scott Van Velsor! 

Maybe you'd like to join me in creating a "bucket list" this year instead of a resolution.  Come up with some fun activities and give yourself a reading list too!  Let me know how it goes and Happy New Year!

There's something new in social networking and if you are a visual learner or just love browsing the web, this one might be for you. Pinterest is a site which allows you to "pin" an image from a website that you like and sort it into any number of "boards" that you choose. You then share those images with the world, and in particular with friends who have also signed up and decided to follow your "pins."

My pinterest name is Gothmom and you are welcome to check out my boards. That photo is my school photo from the first grade and my pinterest icon. You'll see the images of things I'd like to craft, things I'd like to cook and ideas for home and garden that intrigue me. If you see something on my board that you think is cool, you can "repin" it onto your own board and share the neat idea that way.

It does connect to Facebook and Twitter if you like, but I don't link between social networks very much and Pinterest allows me to decide how much I'm sharing.

Another social networking site that seems to get better and better is Yelp.  The Yelp App is a really great smartphone tool for determining where the closest restaurant or movie theater is to you in real time and then it even can show you a map of where it is so you can get there easily. The other important feature that Yelp is all about is the crowdsourcing.  Because so many people have written reviews of businesses, you can get a fairly reliable idea of what the experience will be like when you walk through the doors of a business you've never been to before.

Want to learn more about social networking? Take a look at Social Networking for Career Success by Miriam Salpeter. More and more people are using social networks such as LinkedIn to do business networking and look for jobs.

All a Twitter by Tee Morris is an ebook that goes into detail on the pros and cons of networking on Twitter. Some people love it, but remember the trouble it has gotten Charlie Sheen into! All in 160 characters or less!

Speaking of all this social networking, be sure to "Like" San José Public Library on Facebook and follow us on Twitter too.