How I Spent My Summer Vacation
I wish I had kept track of the time I spent on this course. It was time well spent. I knew something about the 23 Things before starting this class, but I had never used most of them. The best part of RAW for me was actually using the tools to create stuff. Reading is no substitute for doing, and this class gave us the chance to do things.
The interconnectedness of Web 2.0 really needs to be experienced. Moving information between applications is usually simple and seamless. I love the fact that all you need is internet access and a browser to take part in Web 2.0--no costly or extra software.
I thought that the class was well organized and sequential. The Discovery exercises and resources were a good way to learn about our topic. And I learned a lot from reading the blogs of other people in the class--and being able to leave comments for them. I read a lot of good ideas in our blogs for incorporating these new tools in our classrooms and libraries.
The class also emphasized having fun as we explored, and the fun factor is certainly part of Web 2.0. Comments and feedback from other students and instructors were helpful too.
I discovered tools that I will use in the library, and tools that I can share with teachers and students. I am concerned about students using some of these tools in my library because we went to a thin-client server last year, and it doesn't handle video applications very well.
I found the textbook to be useful. It gave us a good overview of the subject with plenty of examples. The articles and the appendix also listed many great sites and organizations we can go to for further information.
The tools that I am most excited about are VoiceThread and del.ici.ous. These will be the first two tools that I present to our staff, and I can hardly wait to see if teachers like them as much as I do.
I am glad that I took the time to complete the 23 Things this summer. Thank you instructors and fellow students.
Sonic Shade/robert
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Chapters from Web 2.0 new tools, new schools
I read chapters 1, 7, 9, and 5. In fact, I took the book to Las Vegas in June and thought I would accomplish something there. My only accomplishment was to lose some money playing Blackjack. So I came back home to read and this is what I discovered.
Chapter 1
The scariest thing about this chapter is the first sentence: “Think back to when you were in school; consider how different everything was then”. I believe that we only have to look back 5 years and see how different everything is, especially in Education. Chapter 1 points out how our online world has changed our work and our educational environments. The main skill that we need these days is adaptability. These web 2.0 tools are part of that adaptability and we will need to know when to use these tools and when to adopt new technologies that will replace our 2.0 tools.
Our text authors say “…the Web is now a participatory, interactive place where we create information collaboratively and share the results”. Collaboration is the key to web 2.0, both at work and at school. As teachers, we should be able to provide our students with these tools.
The authors point out that web 2.0 is a transition from isolation to interconnectedness, and that end users now can do many things that once had to be done by programmers. We are moving from just presenting information and then testing, to a collaborative project-based type of learning that these new tools allow.
The new tools only require a browser and Internet access, and I think the chart on p. 23 is a good comparison of web 1.0 and web 2.0 ways of working. As the authors say, these new tools offer “interconnectedness, immediacy, interactivity, communications, and community”.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 involves online safety and security. This topic gets more complex as we move to Web 2.0. These topics include security, filtering, copyright, security, and ethics.
This chapter takes a closer look at all of these areas and offers information and solutions to these problems.
I had not considered the fact that our AUP’s would need to be updated to cover Web publishing. The authors list 4 good ways to rework AUP’s on p. 144. In fact, the whole chapter offers suggestions and further resources for ways to look at all of these online security problems.
Copyright laws seem to be more confusing than ever with music and video downloading. The Creative Commons system seems like it can do a great deal to make copyright easier to understand and use. I am going to explore Creative Commons further.
One thing that our school lacks is an online awareness and safety program. At the very least, we should do a survey of student awareness. I also liked the online safety guide wiki created by Vicki Davis in her classroom, and it could be replicated as a project in any school.
My favorite quote from this chapter was “Teenagers too might come to the conclusion that availability equals permission”. This brings us to ethics and I liked the “Student and Teacher Information Code of Ethics” that is included in our book.
The section on parental involvement was especially interesting to me. The suggestions and resources listed in this section offer a wealth of information that we can get to parents.
Online safety and security are more important than ever, and this chapter offers ideas, solutions, and resources that can help us deal with our problems in a thoughtful way.
Chapter 9
This chapter takes a look at the future and some promising ideas for schools. One of the main things I got from this chapter is that we need to have students using the same tools in the classroom that students use at home. This was meaningful to me because I have avoided some of the new technology like cell phones and instant messaging. Perhaps it is time for me to take another look at this mobile technology.
Another sentence that made me think was “Everything anyone could want is someplace online”. That used to mean information, but now it really means everything.
“There is a gap between what is and what should be”. David Jakes wants us to close that gap, and that is where professional development can help. Our school district is certainly trying to create useful professional development opportunities for teachers that will increase their technology skills.
I was interested in the organization School 2.0, so I visited their website. There is a lot of great information and tools that schools, districts, and communities can use to “develop a common educational vision and explore how that vision can be supported by technology”. The toolkit and resources on this site are important.
The future is almost here.
Chapter 5
Professional development is the topic of this chapter. The authors look at old models of professional development involving technology, and then discuss some new models. The chapter talks a lot about creating a “community of practice” approach.
One of the major problems with new technology is that often the hardware and software is provided without adequate training. Everyone knows that this is a problem and there are many plans out there addressing technology integration. Even Congress recommended 7 steps to implement technology in our schools (p.100).
Even good training will not create real change unless there is also ongoing support. Our school district is making progress in providing both the training and the support. If workshops don’t change classroom behavior, they are not successful.
Much of the chapter concerned community of practice. This involves 3 dimensions, joint enterprise, mutual engagement, and shared repertoire. Further reading reveals that this is a culture of learning involving a collective effort of understanding. The culture of learning must include: “a diversity of expertise among its members, a shared objective of continually advancing the collective knowledge and skills, an emphasis on learning how to learn, and mechanisms for sharing what is learned. There are many suggestions here on ways to implement and improve these communities of practice.
The chapter ends by listing some professional development ideas for using blogs, podcasts, and wikis. And once again, there are good organizations listed with URL’s, so that further exploration is encouraged.
Chapter 1
The scariest thing about this chapter is the first sentence: “Think back to when you were in school; consider how different everything was then”. I believe that we only have to look back 5 years and see how different everything is, especially in Education. Chapter 1 points out how our online world has changed our work and our educational environments. The main skill that we need these days is adaptability. These web 2.0 tools are part of that adaptability and we will need to know when to use these tools and when to adopt new technologies that will replace our 2.0 tools.
Our text authors say “…the Web is now a participatory, interactive place where we create information collaboratively and share the results”. Collaboration is the key to web 2.0, both at work and at school. As teachers, we should be able to provide our students with these tools.
The authors point out that web 2.0 is a transition from isolation to interconnectedness, and that end users now can do many things that once had to be done by programmers. We are moving from just presenting information and then testing, to a collaborative project-based type of learning that these new tools allow.
The new tools only require a browser and Internet access, and I think the chart on p. 23 is a good comparison of web 1.0 and web 2.0 ways of working. As the authors say, these new tools offer “interconnectedness, immediacy, interactivity, communications, and community”.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 involves online safety and security. This topic gets more complex as we move to Web 2.0. These topics include security, filtering, copyright, security, and ethics.
This chapter takes a closer look at all of these areas and offers information and solutions to these problems.
I had not considered the fact that our AUP’s would need to be updated to cover Web publishing. The authors list 4 good ways to rework AUP’s on p. 144. In fact, the whole chapter offers suggestions and further resources for ways to look at all of these online security problems.
Copyright laws seem to be more confusing than ever with music and video downloading. The Creative Commons system seems like it can do a great deal to make copyright easier to understand and use. I am going to explore Creative Commons further.
One thing that our school lacks is an online awareness and safety program. At the very least, we should do a survey of student awareness. I also liked the online safety guide wiki created by Vicki Davis in her classroom, and it could be replicated as a project in any school.
My favorite quote from this chapter was “Teenagers too might come to the conclusion that availability equals permission”. This brings us to ethics and I liked the “Student and Teacher Information Code of Ethics” that is included in our book.
The section on parental involvement was especially interesting to me. The suggestions and resources listed in this section offer a wealth of information that we can get to parents.
Online safety and security are more important than ever, and this chapter offers ideas, solutions, and resources that can help us deal with our problems in a thoughtful way.
Chapter 9
This chapter takes a look at the future and some promising ideas for schools. One of the main things I got from this chapter is that we need to have students using the same tools in the classroom that students use at home. This was meaningful to me because I have avoided some of the new technology like cell phones and instant messaging. Perhaps it is time for me to take another look at this mobile technology.
Another sentence that made me think was “Everything anyone could want is someplace online”. That used to mean information, but now it really means everything.
“There is a gap between what is and what should be”. David Jakes wants us to close that gap, and that is where professional development can help. Our school district is certainly trying to create useful professional development opportunities for teachers that will increase their technology skills.
I was interested in the organization School 2.0, so I visited their website. There is a lot of great information and tools that schools, districts, and communities can use to “develop a common educational vision and explore how that vision can be supported by technology”. The toolkit and resources on this site are important.
The future is almost here.
Chapter 5
Professional development is the topic of this chapter. The authors look at old models of professional development involving technology, and then discuss some new models. The chapter talks a lot about creating a “community of practice” approach.
One of the major problems with new technology is that often the hardware and software is provided without adequate training. Everyone knows that this is a problem and there are many plans out there addressing technology integration. Even Congress recommended 7 steps to implement technology in our schools (p.100).
Even good training will not create real change unless there is also ongoing support. Our school district is making progress in providing both the training and the support. If workshops don’t change classroom behavior, they are not successful.
Much of the chapter concerned community of practice. This involves 3 dimensions, joint enterprise, mutual engagement, and shared repertoire. Further reading reveals that this is a culture of learning involving a collective effort of understanding. The culture of learning must include: “a diversity of expertise among its members, a shared objective of continually advancing the collective knowledge and skills, an emphasis on learning how to learn, and mechanisms for sharing what is learned. There are many suggestions here on ways to implement and improve these communities of practice.
The chapter ends by listing some professional development ideas for using blogs, podcasts, and wikis. And once again, there are good organizations listed with URL’s, so that further exploration is encouraged.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Week 9, Thing #22: ebooks/audio books
My first stop was the World eBook Fair. It was nice that we hit it during a free trial period. I used all of the searches available on this page: World eBook Fair, Internet Archive, eBooks about Everything, Project Gutenberg, and IMSLP. I searched by author, title, subject and had no trouble printing and saving books.. I looked at the "Browse Collections" button to see an A to Z list of collections available. I am a big fan of Project Gutenberg and I always enjoy checking out their Top 100 lists. I was surprised to be able to search for music on the IMSLP database.
I was most impressed by the LibriVox site. I loved being able to hear books read aloud by volunteers. I was able to download the etext of "Little Men" from the Gutenberg site and then go to LibriVox and have the text read to me as I followed along. I like the way you can subscribe to hear a chapter a day in iTunes for LibriVox books. LibriVox is a great site and I am tempted to volunteer my voice to them.
I also looked at "Best Places to Get Free Books". This is a large list of ways to get ebooks and to exchange real books. Several sites also do serialized daily downloads of books. This might be a good way to get in a little pleasure reading every day.
The last place I visited was the Noel Wien Public Library catalog to look at their list of audiobooks that are available for download. This collection has grown since last year and I am sure its popularity will continue.
I am still struggling to enjoy reading literature on a computer screen. The words are the same but something is different. Maybe a Kindle will change my mind. I do love the free access to materials that these sites are providing.
I was most impressed by the LibriVox site. I loved being able to hear books read aloud by volunteers. I was able to download the etext of "Little Men" from the Gutenberg site and then go to LibriVox and have the text read to me as I followed along. I like the way you can subscribe to hear a chapter a day in iTunes for LibriVox books. LibriVox is a great site and I am tempted to volunteer my voice to them.
I also looked at "Best Places to Get Free Books". This is a large list of ways to get ebooks and to exchange real books. Several sites also do serialized daily downloads of books. This might be a good way to get in a little pleasure reading every day.
The last place I visited was the Noel Wien Public Library catalog to look at their list of audiobooks that are available for download. This collection has grown since last year and I am sure its popularity will continue.
I am still struggling to enjoy reading literature on a computer screen. The words are the same but something is different. Maybe a Kindle will change my mind. I do love the free access to materials that these sites are providing.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Week 9, Thing #21: Podcasts
For this Thing I looked at some podcasting tutorials and then examined the podcast directories listed in our Discovery Resources. I used iTunes to subscribe to the NovaScienceNow podcast. Podcast.net doesn't seem to exist any more, or at least I could not find it. Using the Educational Podcast Directory I also subscribed to One Big Head, which is a podcast by Jeff Moore-- (Observations, philosophy, opinions, unsubstantiated rumors, flotsam and jetsam--the desk of a typical educational technology specialist). You can check this podcast out at One Big Head.
I found a wide variety of podcasts available from these directories, including author podcasts and podcasts on podcasting. I discovered lots of good podcasts for science subjects and quite a few podcasts for book reviews. When I searched for 'library news' I found lots of podcasts from libraries around the country.
Podcasting seems like a good activity for students. Last year I worked with a teacher at our school to record and post some book review podcasts on our school website. We kept it very basic and parents and students enjoyed listening to the podcasts.
I am sure that we will try to refine things this year.
And I am including a picture of Chitina with this post because I just got back from there.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Week 9, Thing #20: Teacher Tube
I hope that I have embedded a TeacherTube video about banned books in this post. I chose a banned books video because I am interested in the subject and enjoy talking to students about censorship and banned books each year.
Since YouTube is blocked from our school district, I had never bothered to look at it. For this class, I did spend some time with YouTube and I have been happy and disappointed at the videos I have found. There are many useful videos on a variety of school subjects (and lots of tutorials), but there are also a lot of useless and violent things like girl fights. I have learned that YouTube has an incredible number of music videos and concerts--in fact, I have been unable to think of a group that is not listed in YouTube.
I set up a TeacherTube account and selected a couple of videos to add to my "Favorites". I was sorry to see that I could not post directly to my Blogger account, from TeacherTube, but it should be fairly simple to embed the video. I will find out in a minute.
I looked at all of the suggested videos on the RAW page, and then spent more time than I meant to looking at topics of interest to me. The buffering times were slow for most of my videos (Sunday a.m.). Many of the TeacherTube videos are by students or classes and that should make our students more attentive.
I emailed a good video on the periodic table to one of our Science teachers, and I expect to send more videos to teachers when the school year starts.
The "related videos and tags" button is useful and led me to some good information.
I also spent some time with Jumpcut, although I did not sign up for an account. I hope to try it later.
I have also tried to download a video from TeacherTube and convert it using Zamzar. I am currently waiting for an email from them telling me that my video has been converted from the flv format.
I cetainly see TeacherTube as a good source for video on a variety of school related topics.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Week 8, Thing #19.1: Digital Pipeline
Well, it looks like the statewide databases are going 2.0.
For this assignment I looked at all of the tutorials on the Digital Pipeline homepage (Introduction, Narrowing, Advanced, Viewing, Using, and 2 Accounts and Advanced features). I thought the tutorials were useful for users, but I found the male voice in these tutorials to be annoying. There is no excitement or interest in this voice, just a monotone that puts me to sleep. I did like the tutorial idea of searching for information on the gas pipeline.
I already had an Ebsco account so I signed in and did a little research about Wikipedia and saved the articles to a folder. I also used journal alerts and search alerts for the first time. I believe that I should spend some time with teachers showing them these features that can be useful for special searches and journals over the course of a year.
I really like "Consumer Health Complete". I searched for "skin cancer" since I visited the dermatologist last week. I found articles, pamphlets, diagrams, animations and videos on the subject. The tabs at the top of the Results screen made it easy to find drug information and alternative sources of information on my topic. Our Health teacher will really like this site. I know I will be using it for myself (next up for me, migrane headaches).
I found that School Library Journal is available for viewing on Ebsco, and I looked at the databases under "More". I did not know that LISTA was there (even though I was unable to log on to it from home).
And now, Ebsco 2.0. I watched the flash movie for the new features that are coming this month (?). The movie was so slow it was hard to watch, but the features are great. This is really a useful upgrade. Features I am looking forward to include: the simplified search screen with search options on a pulldown menu; the relevancy bar; the date slider will be fun for students to use; breadcrumb search capability; images, with preview and quick view; the preview article icon and the ability to add to folders from preview; cite button for citation help; and the similar article button. All of these features are improvements and should make student research easier.
I don't know what we would do at school without the statewide databases.
For this assignment I looked at all of the tutorials on the Digital Pipeline homepage (Introduction, Narrowing, Advanced, Viewing, Using, and 2 Accounts and Advanced features). I thought the tutorials were useful for users, but I found the male voice in these tutorials to be annoying. There is no excitement or interest in this voice, just a monotone that puts me to sleep. I did like the tutorial idea of searching for information on the gas pipeline.
I already had an Ebsco account so I signed in and did a little research about Wikipedia and saved the articles to a folder. I also used journal alerts and search alerts for the first time. I believe that I should spend some time with teachers showing them these features that can be useful for special searches and journals over the course of a year.
I really like "Consumer Health Complete". I searched for "skin cancer" since I visited the dermatologist last week. I found articles, pamphlets, diagrams, animations and videos on the subject. The tabs at the top of the Results screen made it easy to find drug information and alternative sources of information on my topic. Our Health teacher will really like this site. I know I will be using it for myself (next up for me, migrane headaches).
I found that School Library Journal is available for viewing on Ebsco, and I looked at the databases under "More". I did not know that LISTA was there (even though I was unable to log on to it from home).
And now, Ebsco 2.0. I watched the flash movie for the new features that are coming this month (?). The movie was so slow it was hard to watch, but the features are great. This is really a useful upgrade. Features I am looking forward to include: the simplified search screen with search options on a pulldown menu; the relevancy bar; the date slider will be fun for students to use; breadcrumb search capability; images, with preview and quick view; the preview article icon and the ability to add to folders from preview; cite button for citation help; and the similar article button. All of these features are improvements and should make student research easier.
I don't know what we would do at school without the statewide databases.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Week 8, Thing #19: Library Thing
Library Thing has lots of information about books, and lots of opportunities to write and talk to others about books. I set up an account and added a few books. I used my avatar in my profile. This site had the easiest registration that I have run across. Now I can list and make notes about books that I have read. I can discuss these titles with others who have the books in their library. I can join in discussions about "Talk Topics" and can join groups such as "Librarians Who LibraryThing". My "local" tab lists bookstores in Fairbanks. It was easy to tag books, rate them, and comment on them. I can use this site at work to list books that I am booktalking, ordering, or thinking about ordering. I can also discuss purchases with other librarians who have a particular title, or I can pose a question for others to respond to. I like LibraryThing and expect to use it and tell others about it.
I added a Library Thing widget to my blog and also have added it to this post. For some reason the widget is only showing covers for 3 of the 5 books that I entered.
I noticed that my ratings were in line with other reviewers.
The "Zeitgeist" tab has some interesting information. I am sure that I will be using Library Thing at school and at home.
I added a Library Thing widget to my blog and also have added it to this post. For some reason the widget is only showing covers for 3 of the 5 books that I entered.
I noticed that my ratings were in line with other reviewers.
The "Zeitgeist" tab has some interesting information. I am sure that I will be using Library Thing at school and at home.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Week 8, Thing #18: Online Applications and Tools
I examined Zoho Writer and found it easy to use. I was able to create documents, add photos, export items as pdf files, share them with other editors, and post them to my blog without any trouble.
I like the "history" button and the ability to revert quickly to previous drafts. This is another good tool for collaborative editing of documents, and you don't have to have your personal laptop with you to work on documents. These online productivity tools could signal the end of the stick drive.
I also imported previously created documents from my computer and was able to share, edit, and save them in Zoho.
The "comment" button is very useful for group editing of a document.
I did not make my documents public for this project.
I can see school committees and teams using ZohoWriter to communicate and work together on documents and presentations.
I also spent some time looking at ZohoShow, ZohoWiki, and ZohoShow.
I like the "history" button and the ability to revert quickly to previous drafts. This is another good tool for collaborative editing of documents, and you don't have to have your personal laptop with you to work on documents. These online productivity tools could signal the end of the stick drive.
I also imported previously created documents from my computer and was able to share, edit, and save them in Zoho.
The "comment" button is very useful for group editing of a document.
I did not make my documents public for this project.
I can see school committees and teams using ZohoWriter to communicate and work together on documents and presentations.
I also spent some time looking at ZohoShow, ZohoWiki, and ZohoShow.
My Test Document
I am going to create a test document on Zoho. I see that the word processing program is very much like Word. I am using different colors for the font and also some background color.Here is a picture that I have imported:
Now to save and add to my blog later. I also exported this document as a pdf, shared it with myself at a different email address, and exported it to my blog.
Now to save and add to my blog later. I also exported this document as a pdf, shared it with myself at a different email address, and exported it to my blog.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Week 7, Thing #17, Sandbox Wiki
I added an entry to the RAW Sandbox Wiki. The process was simple, I did not have any problems, and I saw some great ideas from other students.
When school starts, I will suggest that wikis are a great way for various committees at our school to work on creating documents together.
My previous post contained some ideas that I have for using wikis at school and in the library.
When school starts, I will suggest that wikis are a great way for various committees at our school to work on creating documents together.
My previous post contained some ideas that I have for using wikis at school and in the library.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Week 7, Thing #16: Wikis
First of all, I love the name. Wiki. It just sounds like something fun. And it turns out that wikis are fun. Like most folks, I believe that Wikipedia was the first wiki that I heard of. There has certainly been lots of discussion at our school about whether or not Wikipedia is a valid research source for students. Our staff seems to be divided on the question.
One interesting aspect of wikis to me is that the main benefit of a wiki seems to also be its main weakness. All wiki users are potential authors, which makes a wiki great for collaboration. But since all wiki users are potential authors, it is possible for opinions to replace facts or for an entry to be edited to emphasize a particular point of view.
I like the fact that wikis allow anyone to take part in creating a collaborative website without any prior knowledge of HTML or programming. All you need is a web browser. And I like the fact that prior drafts of documents are available for users.
Our examples allowed us to examine wikis created for many different purposes, from a special event wiki to a subject guide wikis. The wikis I liked most included the "Library Instruction Resources" wiki and the teacherlibrarian wiki by Joyce Valenza (does she never sleep?) The Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County wiki on core competencies was interesting, especially since PLCMC is where I got my start in the library world as a page.
I noticed that a lot of the school wikis that I looked at had no entries from anyone other than the librarian or teacher who created the wiki. I guess that advertising is important when creating a wiki so that it does encourage collaboration.
The main uses I see right now for wikis at school are in collaborative writing and as subject guides for research projects. I hope to set up a wiki for our school so that teachers in various subject areas can add their favorite sites, tips, and documents to a central location that everyone can utilize. I also hope to encourage teachers to use wikis with their classes when appropriate. In the library, I may move our procedures notebook to a wiki, and I also want to set up a wiki for students to comment on books. I want our library to be the center of the wiki world at our school.
One interesting aspect of wikis to me is that the main benefit of a wiki seems to also be its main weakness. All wiki users are potential authors, which makes a wiki great for collaboration. But since all wiki users are potential authors, it is possible for opinions to replace facts or for an entry to be edited to emphasize a particular point of view.
I like the fact that wikis allow anyone to take part in creating a collaborative website without any prior knowledge of HTML or programming. All you need is a web browser. And I like the fact that prior drafts of documents are available for users.
Our examples allowed us to examine wikis created for many different purposes, from a special event wiki to a subject guide wikis. The wikis I liked most included the "Library Instruction Resources" wiki and the teacherlibrarian wiki by Joyce Valenza (does she never sleep?) The Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County wiki on core competencies was interesting, especially since PLCMC is where I got my start in the library world as a page.
I noticed that a lot of the school wikis that I looked at had no entries from anyone other than the librarian or teacher who created the wiki. I guess that advertising is important when creating a wiki so that it does encourage collaboration.
The main uses I see right now for wikis at school are in collaborative writing and as subject guides for research projects. I hope to set up a wiki for our school so that teachers in various subject areas can add their favorite sites, tips, and documents to a central location that everyone can utilize. I also hope to encourage teachers to use wikis with their classes when appropriate. In the library, I may move our procedures notebook to a wiki, and I also want to set up a wiki for students to comment on books. I want our library to be the center of the wiki world at our school.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Week 6, Thing #15: Web 2.0 and the Future of Libraries
After reading the Discovery Resources for this Thing, I feel like my head is spinning.
Here are some of the ideas that seem important to me:
Rick Anderson's caution about "responding to every change in the zeitgeist" vs. "failure to adapt to fundamental change in the marketplace". It is often hard to discern which area a new concept falls into. I think this happens frequently in education as we try the latest educational theories.
Michael Stevens' observation that "content is a conversation". This is why we want user participation and feedback and why tagging is becoming so important. This conversation is an important part of Library 2.0.
Michael Carey (LibraryCrunch) notes that "constant change is replacing the older models of upgrade cycles". I have enjoyed Mr. Carey's thoughts on Library 2.0. He believes a big part of Library 2.0 is "harvesting ideas and products from peripheral fields that can then be integrated into library service models to improve existing services and create new services, and then continuing to examine and improve these services without being afraid to replace them at any time with newer and hopefully better services". That is certainly quite a challenge.
LibraryCrunch has also started an OPAC Wishlist that takes Web2.0 concepts and applies them to library catalogs. Here is the current list:
FEATURE (GOOD EXAMPLE OF SERVICE)
More information is available from the Horizon Report 2008, which examines emerging technologies and education and provides links to examples.
Here are some of the ideas that seem important to me:
Rick Anderson's caution about "responding to every change in the zeitgeist" vs. "failure to adapt to fundamental change in the marketplace". It is often hard to discern which area a new concept falls into. I think this happens frequently in education as we try the latest educational theories.
Michael Stevens' observation that "content is a conversation". This is why we want user participation and feedback and why tagging is becoming so important. This conversation is an important part of Library 2.0.
Michael Carey (LibraryCrunch) notes that "constant change is replacing the older models of upgrade cycles". I have enjoyed Mr. Carey's thoughts on Library 2.0. He believes a big part of Library 2.0 is "harvesting ideas and products from peripheral fields that can then be integrated into library service models to improve existing services and create new services, and then continuing to examine and improve these services without being afraid to replace them at any time with newer and hopefully better services". That is certainly quite a challenge.
LibraryCrunch has also started an OPAC Wishlist that takes Web2.0 concepts and applies them to library catalogs. Here is the current list:
FEATURE (GOOD EXAMPLE OF SERVICE)
- Saved Bookmarks (Delicious)
- Starred (user) ratings (Amazon)
- User Reputations (iKarma)
- User recommendations -- narrative (Amazon)
- User tagging -- keywording (Flickr)
- Saved titles (Netflix)
- Search history (Google Toolbar)
- Suggest to friends (Amazon)
- Wish List (Amazon)
- RSS Aggregator (Netvibes)
- Contacts, Friends and Family Network (Flickr)
- To-Do list (Backpack)
- Note-taker / word-processor and collaborator (Writely)
- Email with large storage capacity (Gmail)
- Live search suggestions (Google Suggest)
- User-modifiable web pages (GreaseMonkey scripting)
More information is available from the Horizon Report 2008, which examines emerging technologies and education and provides links to examples.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Week 6, Thing #14: Technorati
I was surprised to learn how many people are now blogging and how many new blogs are appearing each day. It is a little overwhelming. I can now see how it happens. I currently have this blog and I am just starting another one for my family. I am sure that in families with kids, everyone would want their own blog. And it is so easy that there is no reason not to inflict your life on the rest of the world.
This site certainly is an excellent way to keep up with the blogosphere (first time I have used that word), because, as the statistics show, there is a lot going on. I liked the way the site was set up with links to subject categories (politics, entertainment, sports). I liked exploring the Top 100 blogs list and the most popular blogs list.
After exploring a while, I joined and added some blogs to my favorites list (2 library and 2 politics) and tagged them. I spent quite a bit of time on political blogs and found that people are not shy about their likes and dislikes in this presidential election. I looked at blogs by popularity and by authority and saw several that I had heard about before, but hadn't seen before (Huffington Post and Media Matters).
It was also handy to have videos and photos listed as separate tabs.
I was unable to add my picture (avatar) to my profile--the help section told me that there is currently a problem with this. Searching in general went well.
I also noticed that my search screen was not the same as the one in the turorial I watched about new features, but I could do the searches I needed to do.
Technorati is a neat site with lots if interesting information, but is not one of my favorites so far.
I decided not to claim my blog at this time, but I will claim my family blog when it is ready for publication.
I see how important tagging is in Web 2.0 and it is starting to become a habit.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Week 6, Thing #13, Tagging and Del.icio.us
I signed up for a Del.icio.us account and started tagging and exploring sites. This is a real improvement over just using bookmarks on a computer. This site should simplify bookmarking all over the district. I watched the tutorial, registered, added my buttons, and started my social bookmarking experience.
It is nice to see what other people have to say about a site before adding it. I also like having the ability to add tags that are useful to me. Del.icio.us is easy to use, and although I haven't used all the features yet, like networks, I can see that this will be a great site to let teachers know about.
I have already created a del.icio.us account for our school so that teachers can add their favorite and best sites throughout the year (rsmsbookmarks).
I can see that the more useful tags you add, the more you will get out of your account. I believe that I will now be more diligent in adding tags to everything that I post on the internet.
I can see many uses for del.icio.us at school. A school wide page for staff, a student created list of sites for class projects, the availability to find information from any computer, and more.
Reading some of the articles in the SJLibraryLearning2 bookmarks made me realize how many of these social bookmarking sites are out there, in fact one article talked about 50 different social bookmarking sites.
I have enjoyed learning about and using del.icio.us
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Week 5, Thing #11: Web 2.0 Award Winners/Ning
I looked at several of the award winning sites and liked the ones I tried. I used Revolution Health and found articles, discussions, and polls on medical topics. With Pandora Radio, I was able to find music that sounded like groups and songs that I really like. Etsy was a great site to find handmade jewelry and crafts and supplies. Since I can't use YouTube at school, I looked at it and was surprised to find serious information as well as funny cat and dog videos. I have normally used YouTube for entertainment only, and was somewhat surprised to find good video of the Phoenix Mars Lander and the war in Iraq.
The site I spent the most time on was Library Thing. I chose this site because I had heard of it, but hadn't visited the site. It certainly has lots of information about books, and lots of opportunities to write and talk to others about books. I set up an account and added a few books. I used my avatar in my profile. This site had the easiest registration that I have run across. Now I can list and make notes about books that I have read. I can discuss these titles with others who have the books in their library. I can join in discussions about "Talk Topics" and can join groups such as "Librarians Who LibraryThing". My "local" tab lists bookstores in Fairbanks. It was easy to tag books, rate them, and comment on them. I can use this site at work to list books that I am booktalking, ordering, or thinking about ordering. I can also discuss purchases with other librarians who have a particular title, or I can pose a question for others to respond to. I like LibraryThing and expect to use it and tell others about it.
I also went to Ning and set up a page for the Randy Smith Middle School Library Book Club. I hope to use this page to correspond with club members.
And finally, I took the Traveler IQ and discovered good news and bad news. I don't know much about Europe, but I did OK on the rest of the world. I know some teachers who will want to use this site with their students.
The site I spent the most time on was Library Thing. I chose this site because I had heard of it, but hadn't visited the site. It certainly has lots of information about books, and lots of opportunities to write and talk to others about books. I set up an account and added a few books. I used my avatar in my profile. This site had the easiest registration that I have run across. Now I can list and make notes about books that I have read. I can discuss these titles with others who have the books in their library. I can join in discussions about "Talk Topics" and can join groups such as "Librarians Who LibraryThing". My "local" tab lists bookstores in Fairbanks. It was easy to tag books, rate them, and comment on them. I can use this site at work to list books that I am booktalking, ordering, or thinking about ordering. I can also discuss purchases with other librarians who have a particular title, or I can pose a question for others to respond to. I like LibraryThing and expect to use it and tell others about it.
I also went to Ning and set up a page for the Randy Smith Middle School Library Book Club. I hope to use this page to correspond with club members.
And finally, I took the Traveler IQ and discovered good news and bad news. I don't know much about Europe, but I did OK on the rest of the world. I know some teachers who will want to use this site with their students.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Thing #10, Image Generators
I have had fun checking out some of the different image and text generators that are available. I spent a lthe most time with FD Toys.
From here I was able to try lots of things like jigsaw; magazine cover; mosaic maker; warholizer; trading cards; cd covers, and more.
I also spent time with the Comic Strip generator and Image Chef.
All of these sites were fun and easy to use. I have a large folder of images I created during this investigation, and I am proud to say they are all tasteful.
I uploaded some of the images to Flickr and put the rest of them into iPhoto.
I know that kids will have fun on these sites and I think that teachers will enjoy them too. This is the perfect thing to do on a rainy day.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thing #9, Library Blogs and Newsfeeds
I learned that people sure are blogging a lot about libraries. As I worked through the tools listed for this exercise, I found lots of feeds and blogs that were interesting. Some of my subscriptions now include: Joyce Valenza's NeverEndingSearch, the Shifted Librarian, Library Link of the Day, LibraryPlanet.com, School Library Journal, Unshelved, Blue Skunk Blog, and a few others.
I found Topix.net to be the least useful of the tools that I tried-even though I liked the fact that their "Advanced Search" allowed me to restrict by zip code. I had much better success using Blogdigger and Syndic8. I also found lots of stuff by using the Search screen in Google Reader, and also by typing in "RSS Feeds" into a basic Google Search. Although I stuck to library blogs and feeds for this post, I also found lots of good sites/blogs on topics of interest to middle school students and teachers.
It was easy to add subscriptions from all the sites, in fact it was so easy that it is hard not to oversubscribe.
Now that I know a little about RSS feeds, I see that although my fears of being swamped with information were unfounded, it would certainly be easy to get involved in more information than I have time to digest each day. I just hate it when moderation is the key.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Thing #8, RSS Feeds
I have heard several people talk about RSS feeds and how useful they are. It seemed to me that this was just another way to add way too much information to my inbox when it takes enough time just getting through email every day. For Thing #8, I subscribed to some feeds including the following subjects: cartoons, politics, my hometown newspaper, news, graphic novels, and School Library Journal. I used Google Reader since I had set up an account last year, but had seldom used it.I have learned that some feeds can be slightly overwhelming, like the news sites, but that other sites don't update as frequently or as much as the news sites and can be used without fear of hundreds of new items popping up every hour. And the information is from sites that I am interested in. There are a lot of sites that can be useful to teachers and students (I am currently following the Phoenix Mars Lander) who are studying specific subjects or current events and I will mention RSS to several teachers at school. It was interesting to see some Feed Directories as well learning how simple it is to add feeds from the Google Reader page.
After experimenting with RSS feeds, I believe I will continue to use this service. Google Reader is easy to set up, and can be managed without investing too much time. And I do like the fact that information on subjects that I am interested in can come to me rather than me having to search for it every day.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Thing #7, Technology-Digital Pens
I have been hearing about digital pens for a while. I haven't had the chance to try one, but I think the idea is interesting.
Digital pens are available now, but they still require a special sheets of paper or pads to work. It is possible to upload handwritten notes from a digital pen to your computer, but there aren't programs yet that will automatically convert the notes to text. Well, there are handwriting recognition systems, but they don't seem to be quite up to user's expectations.
I am looking forward to further developments in this technology.
Digital pens are available now, but they still require a special sheets of paper or pads to work. It is possible to upload handwritten notes from a digital pen to your computer, but there aren't programs yet that will automatically convert the notes to text. Well, there are handwriting recognition systems, but they don't seem to be quite up to user's expectations.
I am looking forward to further developments in this technology.
Thing #6, Flickrfun, Mashups, 3rd party sites
All of these API sites are creative and fun to explore. And it sure is easy to lose track of time while you are experimenting.
I was fascinated with CoverPop and how he creates them. When I used Montagr, I was happy to see that pictures I had uploaded to Flickr earlier showed up at the top of the montage for "fairbanks alaska" tags.
I also created a trading card and have posted it here. I know that students would love creating cards about themselves or books that they have read. I am looking forward to sharing these sites with several teachers at school.
I was fascinated with CoverPop and how he creates them. When I used Montagr, I was happy to see that pictures I had uploaded to Flickr earlier showed up at the top of the montage for "fairbanks alaska" tags.
I also created a trading card and have posted it here. I know that students would love creating cards about themselves or books that they have read. I am looking forward to sharing these sites with several teachers at school.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Thing #5, Flickr
Sham is our oldest pet. He is 14.
I uploaded this photo from Flickr.
I am enjoying playing with Flickr but I am having trouble finding my photos by tag when I search "everyone's pictures". I will continue to work on tags.
My Flickr address: www.flickr.com/photos/robertmichalove
I uploaded this photo from Flickr.
I am enjoying playing with Flickr but I am having trouble finding my photos by tag when I search "everyone's pictures". I will continue to work on tags.
My Flickr address: www.flickr.com/photos/robertmichalove
Sonic Shade Band
Here is a picture from the first public appearance of the Sonic Shade Band. The Tanana Valley Sportsmens Club burned last year.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Thing#4, Registration
OK, I am registered and ready to move on to learning more about photos and images.
Next stop is Flickr
Next stop is Flickr
Thing#3, Blog and Avatar
The blog is up and running. It was easy to set up and I moved the elements around and inserted a picture and my avatar. I like the way the blog autosaves my posts as I work on them so I don't have to remember to do that. I haven't been using labels for my posts, but I will when I use a blog at school. I want to try to add some video to one of my next posts. I think that I could use a blog with my Book Club next year to get comments as we read our books.
The avatar was fun to create and I made a few of them. I was unable to add a moustache to my avatar but it is nice to finally have a screen representation of myself.
I did have a slight problem exporting, because on my screen I did not have an export option on the Avatar/Yahoo home screen. Has that changed, or did I just miss something?
The avatar was fun to create and I made a few of them. I was unable to add a moustache to my avatar but it is nice to finally have a screen representation of myself.
I did have a slight problem exporting, because on my screen I did not have an export option on the Avatar/Yahoo home screen. Has that changed, or did I just miss something?
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Thing#2
The 7.5 Habits of Lifelong Learners:
Let's start with the hardest habit for me. That would definitely be #3--Viewing Problems as Challenges. During the workday at school, I often feel like I do not have enough time to troubleshoot every problem that comes my way (and many of them need to be dealt with immediately). So, during the day, I often look at problems as roadblocks rather than challenges. When I get home, I am able to focus on the "challenge" and take the time I need to find a workable solution.
The easiest habit for me is #4--Having confidence in myself as a competent, effective learner. I know that if I put in time and thought, I can learn things effectively. I can learn from books, online tutorials, and from talking to others. I expect I will be sending some questions to the Raven About the Web 2.0 team before this class is over.
Let's start with the hardest habit for me. That would definitely be #3--Viewing Problems as Challenges. During the workday at school, I often feel like I do not have enough time to troubleshoot every problem that comes my way (and many of them need to be dealt with immediately). So, during the day, I often look at problems as roadblocks rather than challenges. When I get home, I am able to focus on the "challenge" and take the time I need to find a workable solution.
The easiest habit for me is #4--Having confidence in myself as a competent, effective learner. I know that if I put in time and thought, I can learn things effectively. I can learn from books, online tutorials, and from talking to others. I expect I will be sending some questions to the Raven About the Web 2.0 team before this class is over.
Thing#1
I am ready to start using the tools that I have been reading about for the past year. I suspect that it will be hard to sit down at the computer during these nice sunny days of summer, but I am happy to be able to work through this course at my own pace. Here we go.
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