Thing #17

Using the sandbox was cool. I can see how it might be useful on a Wiki. A Wiki could be created for book reviews for a reading program and the sandbox can be there for fun (hopefully clean)comments from the students.

Thing #16

I just happened to use a Wiki in my Web 2.0 collaborative lesson plan for my
Media & Technology class. Our group showed how we could have a 2nd grade class use a Wiki to facilitate and organize learning for Science. I found that it was a novel and fascinating way to do this. With technology becoming central to the schema our students come to us with, using technology such as this can only enhance learning and make it more authentic and fun.

Thing #15

Library 2.0 is an interesting concept. With technology moving at an incredible rate, access to information will come in many forms. Successful libraries in the future will have to adapt to this and morph into a place that incorporates all the new technology with the old. Library collections and information will become more interactive. The patron will be more involved in the library’s collective design. I liked how the OCLC Next Space Newsletter predicted a Library 3D and 4.0. It won’t be too long before the library will feel like the Holodeck on the Starship Enterprise.

Thing #14

Technorati is a very good place in which to search blogs. Currently, I do not read blogs much but I can see myself in the future using Technorati to search other people’s comments on specific subjects. I searched School Library Learning 2.0 under Blogs and the top one is a Word Press blog from a British librarian and the rest are 23 thing blogs. A search under Posts gives a more varied choice but they all come from educators around the world. I love having the computer and the Internet. I am truly amazed at how much immediate information is now at our fingertips. The Internet really enhances my quality of life as an intellectual. That being said, I am not nearly the information junkie that others seem to be and I would much rather not spend the amount of time on the computer to be one. I do have some sort of “life.” It’s nice to know about all of these different interactive web sites and web tools but they can be a bit overwhelming for me.

Thing #13

I can see how del.icio.us can be useful. I am always wanting to save ideas and other things to my computer but always end up with folders all over the place. Using del.icio.us can help organize an eclectic mix of saved things in one easy place. Tagging definitely helps finding those favorite things again. It will take some gettung used to though. I've never been that organized or been that fixated with it.

Thing #12

I found using Rollyo easy to use. I typically don't search the internet for information other than the top stories in the news, sports and weather. I do find myself wondering who someone is when I'm watching a film or like to look up fiction authors so I created a short search engine for looking up people who are in film or write fiction books. Sometimes I like to find out about real people of note. My lookitup1 search engine has a couple of databases that give me this information.

Thing#11

I found Library Thing quite interesting. I can see how it can be a great place to spend some time. I may not be in the 50 largest library category but I do have several hundred books at home that I've read. I never have had the urge to sell them to Half Priced Books although that's where I do a lot of my shopping. I can't seem to part with my books. I guess I just like to look back at them as trophies or maybe have a more physical representation of how many I have read. Library Thing can also be a neat supplement to this idea. I was a bit overwhelmed by the idea of cataloging all of my books. I do not have that much free time, except maybe in the summer. I did see the CueCat tool for scanning books. I would very likely get this as it would make this job much easier and it costs surprisingly little. I can see this as a tool in the school library. One could start a book club or a peer book review in the library. Library Thing could facilitate this idea. I have not found any groups that interest me yet but I am still looking.