Ning
Although I don't plan on signing up for Ning, (I have enough passwords and user names to remember as it is!) I found it interesting to look through the different networks available. I was able to find the ALA's network and look through that a little. I search for networks in Denton, Texas and found one called "Best of Denton!" It definetly wasn't the "best" site, but it was a good idea. I searched for a University of North Texas network but didn't find one. I found a lot of good vegetarian networks with recipes; Veggie Girls has a lot of content on it. I found the "Off the Mat Into the World" network, which is a yoga-based activist organization. Overall, I thought Ning was fun to look at, but it really depends on what network you find to determine its usefulness. If it's a well-kept site it's a great resource, otherwise, websites and social networking sites such as Facebook are more useful. However, it is a good place to discover blogs and discussion forums to follow.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Things 8 and 9
Facebook
I've had a facebook account for a few years now, and created it when it was only available to college students. I rarely used it for a long time, but when friends started signing up, I started using it more. Now I use it quite often to keep in touch with my friends and family, to find out what's happening in my community, and just for fun. It's a good way to share photos with people, too. It's also much better than Myspace, if anyone still uses that anymore. I definitely recommend looking at the privacy settings and making sure that you're only sharing what you want to share with others. You can become a "fan" of someone or organization or join groups, all of which I've done. I'd rather not share what groups I've joined, who my friends are, or who I am a fan of.
I've had a facebook account for a few years now, and created it when it was only available to college students. I rarely used it for a long time, but when friends started signing up, I started using it more. Now I use it quite often to keep in touch with my friends and family, to find out what's happening in my community, and just for fun. It's a good way to share photos with people, too. It's also much better than Myspace, if anyone still uses that anymore. I definitely recommend looking at the privacy settings and making sure that you're only sharing what you want to share with others. You can become a "fan" of someone or organization or join groups, all of which I've done. I'd rather not share what groups I've joined, who my friends are, or who I am a fan of.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Things 6 and 7
Blog Readers and RSS Feeds
Since both of these use Google Reader I'm lumping things 6 and 7 together.
I added the North Texas 23 blog to my reader and created its own folder. I also added the North Texas Regional Library System blog. I tried adding the UNT RIS blog but it would not let me. I don't know if this is because it's a private blog.
The video helped to explain how RSS feeds work. I added an RSS Feed a year or so ago for The Writer's Almanac but never remember to read it. I've added a lot of the recommended RSS Feeds and will hopefully remember to read them!
Google Reader is a good way to keep up with blogs and RSS Feeds, but remember to check them can be the problem. I like that it's possible to organize them into folders as well.
Since both of these use Google Reader I'm lumping things 6 and 7 together.
I added the North Texas 23 blog to my reader and created its own folder. I also added the North Texas Regional Library System blog. I tried adding the UNT RIS blog but it would not let me. I don't know if this is because it's a private blog.
The video helped to explain how RSS feeds work. I added an RSS Feed a year or so ago for The Writer's Almanac but never remember to read it. I've added a lot of the recommended RSS Feeds and will hopefully remember to read them!
Google Reader is a good way to keep up with blogs and RSS Feeds, but remember to check them can be the problem. I like that it's possible to organize them into folders as well.
Thing 4
Flickr mashups
I didn't realize there was so much you could do with this! I looked around the various sites that allow you to create your own images, etc. I really liked the Colr Pickr. I decided to use the Spell with Flickr for this blog using my first name. I could have gone on for hours looking for the perfect combination of letters!
The Big Huge Labs site offers quite a few fun options as well. I could see this coming in handy to create a personal or professional blog or website. It would also be useful in the library to create websites or handouts or for students to use for personal reasons or for classwork.
I didn't realize there was so much you could do with this! I looked around the various sites that allow you to create your own images, etc. I really liked the Colr Pickr. I decided to use the Spell with Flickr for this blog using my first name. I could have gone on for hours looking for the perfect combination of letters!
The Big Huge Labs site offers quite a few fun options as well. I could see this coming in handy to create a personal or professional blog or website. It would also be useful in the library to create websites or handouts or for students to use for personal reasons or for classwork.
Thing 3
Flickr
I am only now beginning to work on my blog again, after being out of town and on vacation for the past 2-3 weeks. It's back to the real world now and back to business!
Choice 1
I chose to browse Flickr but I will create my own account in the future. It's a great way to share photos with people, especially because it seems to take me forever to send pictures via e-mail. I don't know if this is because the photos are too large or what, but Flickr should solve this problem anyway. It looks like Flickr allows you to do some cool things, such as create personalized greeting cards. I also noticed that it allows you to edit, store, and organize your photos. I have been meaning to organize the digital photos I've taken over the past few years, in fear that if my computer crashes, I will lose all of my pictures.
I conducted a search on Fort Collins, Colorado since this is one of the places I travelled to recently where I was visiting family. I narrowed the search to Lory State Park which is a beautiful place to do some great hiking. Here is an image I found taken at Arthur's Rock at Lory State Park http://www.flickr.com/photos/f-stop/619827616/
When I have some free time I will definitely begin uploading some photos!
I am only now beginning to work on my blog again, after being out of town and on vacation for the past 2-3 weeks. It's back to the real world now and back to business!
Choice 1
I chose to browse Flickr but I will create my own account in the future. It's a great way to share photos with people, especially because it seems to take me forever to send pictures via e-mail. I don't know if this is because the photos are too large or what, but Flickr should solve this problem anyway. It looks like Flickr allows you to do some cool things, such as create personalized greeting cards. I also noticed that it allows you to edit, store, and organize your photos. I have been meaning to organize the digital photos I've taken over the past few years, in fear that if my computer crashes, I will lose all of my pictures.
I conducted a search on Fort Collins, Colorado since this is one of the places I travelled to recently where I was visiting family. I narrowed the search to Lory State Park which is a beautiful place to do some great hiking. Here is an image I found taken at Arthur's Rock at Lory State Park http://www.flickr.com/photos/f-stop/619827616/
When I have some free time I will definitely begin uploading some photos!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thing 2
Learning about Learning 2.0
2. 11 Reasons Why Library 2.0 Exists and Matters by John Blyberg
"Library 2.0 is actually happening" - I agree with this statement, at least concerning UNT. UNT's Research and Instructional Services has a facebook page now, we have Ask-Us, the online chat feature, etc. Today's students are so tech-savvy that we have to keep up and I think if we don't, we risk fading away into oblivion. Well, not really, but keeping up with Web 2.0 or Library 2.0 will attract students to our libraries' services.
3. What is Web 2.0? Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software by Tim O'Reilly
This blog is an example of Web 2.0. I think of it as the web that you can interact with. It's not just something to read or look at anymore, but to participate in. This may not be the technical definition but "Web 2.0 doesn't have a hard boundary, but rather, a gravitational core." It seems that this article is suggesting that Web 2.0, or the interactive Internet, adds immense value to a site. If users can continually add to a site, such as Craigslist or Ebay, the site "organically" grows. This makes sense because you can think about it as "two heads are better than one," and potentially a site can have millions of users. The author states that "users must be treated as co-developers," which is a perfect explanation for those sites like Craigslist and Ebay. Web 2.0 is definitely changing the way the web works, the way people use the web, and the way that we all share information with each other.
2. 11 Reasons Why Library 2.0 Exists and Matters by John Blyberg
"Library 2.0 is actually happening" - I agree with this statement, at least concerning UNT. UNT's Research and Instructional Services has a facebook page now, we have Ask-Us, the online chat feature, etc. Today's students are so tech-savvy that we have to keep up and I think if we don't, we risk fading away into oblivion. Well, not really, but keeping up with Web 2.0 or Library 2.0 will attract students to our libraries' services.
3. What is Web 2.0? Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software by Tim O'Reilly
This blog is an example of Web 2.0. I think of it as the web that you can interact with. It's not just something to read or look at anymore, but to participate in. This may not be the technical definition but "Web 2.0 doesn't have a hard boundary, but rather, a gravitational core." It seems that this article is suggesting that Web 2.0, or the interactive Internet, adds immense value to a site. If users can continually add to a site, such as Craigslist or Ebay, the site "organically" grows. This makes sense because you can think about it as "two heads are better than one," and potentially a site can have millions of users. The author states that "users must be treated as co-developers," which is a perfect explanation for those sites like Craigslist and Ebay. Web 2.0 is definitely changing the way the web works, the way people use the web, and the way that we all share information with each other.
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