Thing 17: It's Delicious!!!

I have to say that Delicious is by far my favorite "thing" we have been required to join. It's content and diversity drew me in and I will use this site in the future. Most of the comments I read were of the general commentary variety; nothing out of the ordinary. Students and teachers can benefit from Delicious as it allows a variety of resources to be accessed from a single location and it assists in overall organization of data and information. I am beginning to appreciate the capabilities of sites such as Diigo and Delicious, which allow access from any computer. No longer does someone have to say, "It's on my computer at home."

Thing 16: Getting Organized Using Web Tools.

After checking out several online calendars and to-do lists, I chose to set one up on 30 Boxes. As with many online tools that are currently available, this was very easy to use and figure out. I was able to quickly set up my fall class schedule and important birthdays using this site. There is also a feature in which you can share and upload your calendar to other sites. Integration between social media and personal organization tools is a key component to consider when deciding which one to use. I'm not a fan of the to-do list sites as I'm still "old school" when it comes to those, preferring the old pen and paper method. There are so many sites that offer a calendar that I'll not be using 30 Boxes as a home page. I, for one,wish to keep my personal activities and schedule private so I am apprehensive about putting too much of my life and daily activities on the web. In a professional or business setting however, a calendar which could be shared and posted would be of importance, as it could easily eliminate scheduling conflicts. I also checked out some of the file sharing/conversion sites such as Zamzar and believe they can be useful when the original format or size of a file or document to be shared is an issue.

Thing 15: Wiki, Wiki, No Tavi.

I've used Wikipedia in the past so I'm familiar with the concept of a wiki site. I like the idea of a user created/edited site although the content and legitimacy of the uploaded data must be continuously verified for accuracy. They offer a great way to obtain a great deal of information on a topic using only one website as opposed to engaging in a litany of searches. As for my contribution to the APSU 23 Things Sandbox Wiki, I created a new page and uploaded my avatar into an existing folder titled "Avatar". My Sandbox Contribution. I chose to add to the content rather than edit.

Thing 14: Mind Maps & Flow Charts

As I had never used a flow chart or mind map before, I was a bit unsure of what I was getting into. What I discovered were two great tools for organizing and sharing ideas with others. Flowcharts and mind maps present an easy to understand illustration for their target audiences. I chose to use Gliffy for the flow chart and Bubbl.us for the mind map. The tools on both sites were very intuitive and were user-friendly. The mind map was geared more toward gathering ideas and brainstorming as where I found the flowchart to be great for organizing items and presenting different choices and outcomes. Using a flowchart in conjunction with an interactive power point would be effective as they share many of the same characteristics.

Thing 13: Let's Get Ready to Rumble: Zoho Writer vs. Google Docs.

Upon delving into Zoho Writer, it seemed remarkably similar to a Word document. It had all of the ease of the Microsoft program without having to purchase and download it to my computer. Hmmm, could this be the word processing wave of the future? After checking out a few of the features Zoho had to offer, I was off to Google Docs. I was really impressed with Google Docs' capability to share documents with many other people and the collaborative possibilities that exist. You could easily and quickly gain input from several collaborators on a project or idea and this is made possible without an expensive add-on program. Teachers can use something like this to work on grade level lesson plans in such cases where uniformity is required or in helping to mentor new teachers. I didn't really have prefer one over the other (Zoho vs. Google) and would probably need to spend a few hours with each to make that determination. Below is a drawing I created using Google Docs:  

https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1MtoeUCf8X8B1y3VSP-PIWpJjTLo9TdLQq4RyMLxGo_U/edit

Thing 12: Google. It's What's For Dinner! (Not really)

The term and name "Google" has become an important part of the lexicon and it's presence keeps growing and growing. It can be used as various parts of speech from verb to noun. I had a good time playing around with Google Translator. For instance, I learned that in German, the phrase, "Who used the last of the toilet paper?" translates as, "Wer benutzt die letzte der WC-Papier?" I also made a rudimentary slide show using Picasa Web Albums, https://picasaweb.google.com/117241043249108122888/PeepsAndAPainting#slideshow/5768564520245174146. It was sort of overwhelming when considering all the possibilities that are available through Google. Students could put together an entire portfolio, calendar, etc... using Google alone. I am glad to have chosen to work in the field of education, where I will be utilizing the latest technology rather than it passing me by.

Thing 11: Finding Good Feeds

So, I checked out some the feed-finding search tools and I've got to say I like Google Blog Search the best. I also found the search function on my Google Reader page worked well. I didn't really like Topix or Technorati, although I'm sure they have their advantages. My preference is not be spoon fed and shown a plethora of blog suggestions as I'd rather search on my own. I was able to find blogs about cooking, bass equipment, dog breeding, and pretty much any other topic I thought of.  You don't even need a specific site to look for blog feeds as pretty much any available search engine can fulfill that function. From what I have read, the number of active blogs are growing exponentially on a daily basis. For example, several new blogs popped up in one day from our class alone. Think back to the year 1999. Did you imagine, back then, the rapid advancement in technology and how the Internet would come to consume our lives?  Just think, there are people out there that have never known life without cell phones and social networking.