Google is the biggest search engine in the world, but offers much more. Want to learn more about Google and how its [generally-free] technologies can increase your productivity?

Register now for our Google Apps class, to be held on Tuesday, September 14, from 7:00-8:30PM. We'll cover search, docs, Gmail, and many lesser-known tools that work well for you or your business.

On November 20 from 1:00-5:00PM, Canton Public Library will host some of the most creative hackers in the Metro Detroit Area. Our Community Room will be full of demonstrations and presentations of hacks ranging from robotics to web apps to personal productivity hacks to modded IKEA furniture to crafts.

If you or someone you know is a 'hacker' in a special field; if you have ingenious and/or unconventional workarounds and solutions, then consider doing a presentation or having a demo table at Hack Day. Time slots and planning discussion can be found at the Hack Day CantonWiki page.

Believe it or not, the school year starts in less than a month. Many students and parents will be looking at technology as part of their back to school shopping list. Notebooks, Netbooks, and iPads may all be items of interest this school year, but it can be hard choosing the right device. Check out this article by David A. Milman to get tips on making the right choice!

Bundles are lists of RSS Feeds that you can subscribe to in Google Reader with one click. You can find our bundle listing on the Books & More page.

To subscribe to a bundle, just click on the [Bundle] link on the Books & More page under "Genre Blogs." If you are not already signed in to Google (or you do not have an account), click the "Sign in to subscribe" link and either sign in or create a new account. If you are signed in, the link will instead be a button with a blue plus sign — just click the button to subscribe to all the feeds at once.

Facebook has created a new Safety Page which has already become popular with many fans. This page has advice, articles, videos and much more to keep Facebook users protected. For more information, check out this article from School Library Journal or go straight to the Safety Page.
[Photo courtesy of Andrew Feinberg on Flickr]

At today's Google Business Center program, we went over many mostly-free products offered by Google that provide value to your business. All of them are listed at google.com/options and google.com/services (if only I remembered that a few hours ago!). Below is a brief listing of products highlighted today and what they do:

• AdWords — Run search-based ads for your business and increase traffic to your products
• AdSense — Get paid to place ads for other businesses on your website
• Google Places — Claim you business's listing in Google search and maps
• Google Analytics — Detailed website statistics with minimal effort
• Google Merchant Center — Make your products appear in Google's shopping results
• Google Apps — Affordable, custom online productivity tools for your business
• Gmail — Free email with great productivity features
• Google Docs — Documents, Spreadsheets, Presentations, and more from any browser, collaborative, available anywhere, and free. Awesome

You hear it all the time, "Internet identity theft on the rise." If you have been searching for a resource on identity theft protection and more, look no further. OnGuard Online is a website from the Federal Government in collaboration with businesses in the technology industry, which provides tips to help you be on guard against internet fraud, secure your computer, and protect your personal information. OnGuard Online's Net Cetera provides information on how to keep children safe and secure online. These websites provide information and tutorials on spyware, online shopping, and much more. A Spanish version of this site is also available.

Kids, do you want to be a scientist, game designer, sportscaster, or chef when you grow up? How about an engineer, meteorologist, or inventor? If you have ever thought about any of these careers, check out Math Apprentice to see why math is the basis for so many careers. Play any of these cool games, and let math help you become anything you want to be!

Look in the right-hand corner of this window. Do you see a search bar up there? Do you use it? If you do — and you use Internet Explorer 7+ or Firefox 2+ — you can Add the CPL Catalog to your search providers.

Here's why you should:

• It saves time — one-click search wherever you are
• It saves money — search CPL instead of Amazon
• It's cool — get suggestions as you type (with jacket images in IE8!)

Check out our other search tools for more time-saving widgets.

Our new, automated phone system will quickly direct you to whomever you want to speak — if you take a few seconds to listen to the prompts, that is:

• Want to know when we're open or how to get here? Press 2
• Need to talk to someone at Checkout about your account or to renew? Press 3
• Have a question for an Adult Department librarian or about an Adult Department program? Press 4
• Same thing, only for the Children's Department? Press 5
• Want to book the library's Community Room or get information from our Business Office? Press 6
• Need to get information about the Friends of the Library or their used book shop, Secondhand Prose? Press 7
• Want to speak to that certain someone whose extension you've forgotten? Press # for the staff directory

Save yourself time and aggravation and endless transfers from the wrong extension. Listen to the prompts. Follow the prompts. You'll be glad you did.

The Boys Scouts of America have introduced a new ability badge for Tiger Cubs, Cub Scouts and Webelos Scouts to earn for displaying an understanding and ability with computer and videogames.

Earning the full badge includes selecting a game with a suitable rating, comparing two different systems, planning and participating in a family games tournament and teaching a friend or adult how to play a new game.

Have you wondered about all the hoopla surrounding Facebook and Twitter? If you are curious and want to learn the basics of these social networking tools, sign up and join me on Friday, April 30th at 10:00AM for CPL's Get Connected Class.

Did you know you can use our copiers to digitally scan documents for free? There are two main options:

• Scan to email - get a file sent to your email address
• Scan to flash drive - plug in and go

Below are some quick videos to get you started.

Scan to Email

Scan to Flash Drive

Ubisoft is starting a new environmental initiative by no longer including paper game manuals in XBox 360 or PS3 games, instead these manuals will be available online. Ubisoft said, "internal data shows that producing one ton of paper used in its game manuals consumes around two tons of wood from 13 trees, with a net energy of 28 million BTUs — the average heating and energy for one home per year." But that isn't all they are doing to be more 'green'. Ubisoft is also partnering with Technimark to make new games cases that are made of 100% recycled materials.

In a recent article by Donna Gordon Blankenship of the Associated Press, a third of Americans 14 and older — about 77 million people — use public library computers to look for jobs, connect with friends, do their homework and improve their lives, according to a new study released Thursday, March 25. The study was paid for by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and conducted by the University of Washington Information School. Study researchers were intrigued to find that people across all age and ethnic groups used library computers, said Michael Crandall, one of the principal authors of the study, from the University of Washington Information School.

Sony has unveiled a motion controller for the Playstation 3, an answer to the Wiimote. The "Move" is a rectangular controller made to be comfortable in the hand with a glowing plastic ball on the top that tracks the player's motion. Sony is promising big things for the new controller, including a whole new gaming experience. Not to be outdone, Microsoft is expected to come out with a motion controller in time for this years holiday shopping season.

CantonWiki is having a meetup at the library on Wednesday, March 10 at 7:00PM. The goal is to meet CantonWiki people and to figure out ways to make the site better. Come to the Purple Room (in the Children's Library). You can see the agenda and RSVP on the wiki.

Photo by katielips used by Creative Commons license.

It looks like all the buzz about the next generation Wii console and new Nintendo hand held systems is just talk at this point. In an interview with Gamespot, Nintendo of America marketing head Cammie Dunaway denies any notion of new console hardware coming in the next year. However, she did say, "Part of Nintendo’s heritage is to always be looking at innovation, and to always start working on the next hardware every time we launch a platform, so we’ll have it ready when the time is right."

On Tuesday, Google announced Buzz, a new product that performs functions similar to twitter, friendfeed, facebook, and foursquare, all rolled into Gmail and integrated into many other Google products. To catch up on the hubbub, check out this video:

And these blog posts:

Learn how technology can save you money by using the Internet, Twitter, Facebook and even your cell phone to find and track online coupons and offers. Registration is open now for the class offered Saturday, January 9 at 9:30AM