Hoop.La

This semester I used my blog to really search out and research tools! For my last blog entry for this class it only seems right to review and explore a tool.

I was intrigued by the professional look to Joel and Erin's Produsage 2 assignments which I saw were both used creating Hoop.la (something I had only heard briefly about in the Webinar, I think by Erin).

Thus I explored the tool.....

Benefits!!!
No software download (I hate when I have to download software before I even know if I will like the application so this is definitely a plus!)

Connect Forums, Calendars, Blogs, Videos (all in one space)

Connected to most social media sites

Excellent Reviews for Customer Support

Downfalls!!!
Wish I seen this earlier, no complaints yet!

Now time to stop "playing" and get up to wrapping up my semester work! Great semester!

Week 6 Prompt

Week 6

Reflect on what you have learned in the class and how you will use it professionally as both a lifelong learner and an instructional systems professional (or whatever field you’re in).

This class was extremely challenging for me because my technology skills are not advanced so I feel I have really learned and benefits from the tools exposure in this course.

Here is the list of tools I knew little about or completely under utilized prior to this class that I am now excited to use in my personal and professional life:

YouTube EDU: I used to think this site was just for humor and funny videos now I am excited to use the EDU resource and other tutorials this site provides.

Facebook Communities: Prior to this class the only community I was a member of was the West Palm Beach Florida Seminole club and to be honest I thought it was just a FB page. I am excited to expand my groups and maybe even make one as they are get tools for networking and information sharing.

Google+: Previous to class I had experience with the Google Drive and Hangout feature from group projects and my internship. I did not realize that I could combine the functions within Google+ nor was I aware of communities within this tool.

LinkedIn: As my career path has always been dictated within the Coast Guard I underestimated the value of professional networking. Additionally, I underestimated how easy it could be and am excited to keep building this network past the course.

My biggest takeaway from this class is the large variety of tools available on the Internet, making it possible to accomplish almost any task. With exploration and practice I can become tech savvy but I still have a long way to go!

Another PLN Resource to Share!!!

This article discusses the basics of building a PLN, I figure it will help as we continue to build our own PLN's this week! It gave me a lot of good ideas and reminded me of aspects I originally wanted to include but hadn't looked at lately!

http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/06/simple-comprehensive-guide-on-use-of.html

Blog Controversy!!!

This week, the reading from my Trends and Issues Course covered Professional Ethics and one of the application questions dealt with controversial blog postings and associated responsibility. This scenario had me consider my own blog, how could I have not considered what would happen if I wrote something other's viewed as inappropriate or how I would manage if my followers replies were.

My rationale:
The primary purpose of this blog was exploration, knowledge seeking, and learning. I was still learning my opinions on the topic and not sharing as an expert in the field. Although, as we more forward and continue to blog after this class we may post something that others don't agree with or that sparks a controversial conversation on our blog.

I found this article on posting a blog entry knowing that it will be controversial and found it very interesting. It is not centered on offensive/inappropriate entries like the scenario that sparked my interest  but rather discusses dealing with others that may not share your opinion.

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2013/07/12/how-to-deal-with-a-firestorm-of-controversy-on-your-blog-before-it-suffocates-you/

Experienced bloggers share your experiences...

How to Keep your Blog Going!!!

This week, as we are looking for new ways to move forward with the new technologies I found these articles for maintaining the life of a blog!

At the root, fresh content!!!

Article 1: “7 Ways to Keep Fresh Content Flowing on your Blog” by Darren Rowse

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2009/02/26/7-ways-to-keep-fresh-content-flowing-on-your-blog/

I think this article will speak to everyone a little differently about how to keep his or her blog going. Two ideas that I found most valuable are using different voices and guest writers. Previously, I thought that maintaining a similar style and tone would be a preferred method.

Article 2: “How to Keep Fresh Content on your Business Blog”

http://www.wikihow.com/Keep-Fresh-Content-on-Your-Business-Blog

This article suggests the use of quest bloggers as well and it speaks of a different approach to using different voices. Suggesting “did you know” posts to mix up the formal blog posting, I think this idea could be used for informal blogs as well but have a weekly formal post to mix up the tone.

Wiki or Forum???

As I developed and planned out my Prod 2 Forum, I reviewed some of the Prod 2 from 2009 on the course wiki and wondered if a wiki would be a better format for my creation. After a little exploring I found this article that discusses 15 Productive Uses for Wikis....

http://gigaom.com/2007/07/13/15-productive-uses-for-a-wiki/

Do you agree with these 15? Are there any uses that would be more appropriate??? I found it interest that even though this was knowledge was written and available in 2007 I never used a Wiki in undergraduate studies (Graduated 2008).  

Interesting Article on Informal Learning!

Although I debated a lot on the topic for my Prod 2, I was very interested in creating a forum with several discussion items on a topic (an informal how to with solutions created from participates). While researching informal learning in the context of forums, I came across this interesting article by Mark Harrison (2006) called "13 Ways of Managing Informal Learning" (follow link to view). 

http://www.kineo.com/shop/reports/kineo_informal_learning.pdf

This article highlighted traditional informal learning platforms and explores new methods created through technology advancements including email, network, skype, podcast and online forums. I found it interesting that in 2006 these tools were already being explored as learning tools but curriculum to include these tools is still developing. I also thought the growth in the mediums available from seven years ago was a significant take away from this article. Skype and imessage are listed specifically whereas I think if the article was written it would be listed as a category, such as video/web conferencing, due to the number of competitors for the service.