Computers in Libraries 2013 - Day 0 - Gadgets and Gaming Session

I started out this year's Computers in Libraries conference by attending the Gadgets and Gaming Session which was a nice relaxed demonstration of a variety of technologies and then an opportunity to experiment with them.

Probably the most fun of the items was a kind of laser tag set that uses a centralized wireless device connected to a computer to run the game, so it can count how many times someone has been shot and which people have been the most successful.  Apparently you can run multiple different kinds of games where people can only be shot so many times before they are "killed" or that they have to locate some kind of objective (it seemed to be a kind of RFID tagged brick that could be tapped with a gun).

The best (and at least to my initial thinking, only) real library-related program that you could (and was mentioned has been) done with these is a kind of after-hours Hunger Games program which has some obvious tie-ins to the trilogy and film.  It looked fun (and the high school kids that came by to play seemed to be having a blast) although I'm not sure that a program of this sort would quite justify the expense unless it could be done as more than a one-off type thing.

I preferred some of the smaller, more creative items they had there.

LittleBits

LittleBits is a cool kind of simplified electronics experimentation kit that allows kids to build simple circuits that do things without needing to solder or worry about frying out the electronics.  A small simple kit is kind of expensive (compared to just buying electronic components), but it seems to be quite robust and much more conducive to playing

I also liked the Lego Education computer programming/robotics set that allows kids to learn how to do basic programming/robotics in a familiar Lego setting and using a simplified programming language.  As Winnetka-Northfield has an existing Lego program I could see something like this being a logical spin off of it.

SoundEgg

I finally couldn't but help like the concept of the the SoundEgg.  It's a single person, heavily insulated movie viewing pod that keeps most of the sound out providing the person in it with a lovely movie watching experience.  I'm not sure what they cost and I doubt we'd ever get one, but it seems like the perfect thing for patrons who want to watch a movie.