Week 4 -- RSS and Newsreaders

RSS feeds were discussed at quite a few sessions at a conference I just attended so I was anxious to explore this section of Web 2.0 It was extremely easy to set up my Bloglines newsreader account. However, when it came to selecting ones in which I was interested, it became a little more involved. After going through the 200 "Most Popular" ones, I wondered where/how I would find others. I then saw the "1000" Most Popular and went through some of those and then to Merlin to see the Library News Blogs it listed...then went through the various lists of feeds and then decided to set out on my own to see if I could locate others. What I ended up doing was to basically go to the main site of something in which I was interested and then look around through the site to see if there was anything that resembled a blog, etc. and/or looked for the little orange icon. I did find one that had something but I found that method to be pretty time consuming so not sure if there's a better way or not. I do like the idea of getting all the new info sent to me instead of me going out to find it. I attempted to put the link in for my bloglines but it did not allow people to go to the listing.

Week 3 -- Photos and Images

I had explored Flickr a little bit when I received emails from people who had posted pictures on it but had not used it for posting pictures myself. It is quite extensive and some of the editing techniques were really good (some people are either really good or have a lot of time on their hand ;-) For instance, this pic http://www.flickr.com/photos/chase20/3215372745/ utilized some interesting editing techniques...shows you how easily some of the pictures you see can be changed into whatever the people want them to be. One thing that interested me was the collection of maps for particular reasons...couldn't believe the first one that came up was for the location of stores that are stocking Wii's...interesting what some people find as crucial!

Week 2 -- Thing #4 Register Your Blog and Track Your Progress

My blog is now registered and it becomes easier and easier each time you post. I'm interested in exploring some of the options as far as linking, adding photos or videos, etc.

Week 2 -- Thing #3 Set Up Your Own Blog

I absolutely love to play with new technology so this was really a fun experience for me. I'd done a little with blogging but had not created my own before and it was neat to do it 'from scratch'. Wish there had been more templates but blogger is free so beggars can't be chosers! Myself, I prefer blogging to pen/paper writing because the typing goes so much more quickly but you don't have a permanent copy unless you continually print out the pages. I felt Blogger was very user-friendly and like the options of choosing my fonts, colors, etc.

Week 1--Thing #2 Pointers from Lifelong Learners

The Habits of Lifelong Learning was quite interesting. I especially related to the statement about 'attitude being everything' because I think, as an adult, if you go into something new with an "I can't do it" attitude, you're defeated before you even start. When working with teachers who are attempting something new, it's so apparent when they come in with a closed mind/poor attitude because it could be the neatest, most easy-to-learn skill there is and they will fail...not because they can't do it but because they've chosen to not be able to do it. I sometimes have trouble with #3--Viewing Problems as Challenges. I tend to view problems as just that--problems. I need to work on seeing them as a little hurdle that I can either get over or go around but it doesn't need to stop me in mid-track.

Week 1--Thing #1 About the Program

I look forward to this online course very much. I like being able to work at my own pace and during the most convenient times for me. Web 2.0 has so many applications that have great educational potential.