I found it interesting to look at what other people thought about a certain subject and the way they interpret the way you do the assignment. But I found that most of the time I WAS scanning through post, or reading them without leaving a comment. I also find that sometimes it's really hard to find something you want to comment about or there is just some tiny thought that you have but it doesn't require a comment. I don't know if I will get a reply but I guess sometimes it's just nice to receive a "hi" or a thought because you know for sure your post is being read or looked at for sure. Maybe from now on I should try to make more of an effort to leave a comment?
One thing I never realized was that the way you leave a comment on someone else's blog is supposed to reflect on how you want someone to comment on your blog. But I find that it just makes my comment more awkward so next time maybe I'll just try commenting like how I would tell it to a person in real life, but positively!
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Google Docs
But I found it really useful and easy to keep track of without actually having to find a time with all the collaborators' timetable to actually get together and work on the document or presentation from my own personal experience. The best part is, you can do it whenever you want without having to find a time to travel to a meeting place and work on it. Less distractions, no travel time, no finding people, and no getting off topic which makes the whole project more effective. Don't you just love technology these days?
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Using Google Docs to edit a presentation isn't bad. It has all the basic functions you would have in any regular program such as the size, colour and font of the text. You can resize images, insert images as well as text. The only think is that if you want to add all the fancy stuff you would have to do it with a presentation program.
What I found is that it lags a bit for my computer anyways but otherwise I think it's a really awesome thing to use. If this kind of thing doesn't exsist, then a presentation such as this wouldn't be created since we don't know one another and yet we are still creating something together from different places at different times.
What I found is that it lags a bit for my computer anyways but otherwise I think it's a really awesome thing to use. If this kind of thing doesn't exsist, then a presentation such as this wouldn't be created since we don't know one another and yet we are still creating something together from different places at different times.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Social Networking
I have a Facebook account because most of my other friends have it and that there isn't as much fuss as with Myspace.
I find that using Facebook is a really convient way to share pictures and have discussions about them online as if all of us are actually gathered around a photo album and discussing our memories and how it turned out. I also like all the different ways you can leave someone a message. You can write on their wall, leave them a post it, or draw them a picture. It is also a way for you to see if you have any friends in common. This is useful because I had some friends and I never realized that we also both know another person and that brings up more topics of discussion or whatever. Another application I really like on Facebook is where you have a map and you pinpoint all the cities you've been to and they tally up the cities and the country. It was really useful for me to keep track of where I've been and where others had gone before. Before I used that application, I never realized I've been to more than 64 cities in 6 countries. With this application, we can talk about our different experiences there and such.
In my work and personal life, I find Facebook as an alternative to using e-mail or instant messaging since it's like a combination of both. I've once done an entire presentation with my partner with just communicating through the Facebook Wall. Also more recently, I was sent a message about about the meeting time for our off timetable Yearbook class. Facebook helped because the editor didn't have our e-mails but found me through Facebook book and our Network so I now know when we have Yearbook classes. Also, clubs can create groups in Facebook like our Global Cities Club did. By doing so, we set up a common place for discussions and events for us to participate in. By having this group it helps us know the people who are in this club better.
There is just so much you can do with a social networking site that even in the cold modern world of technology as it is today, it becomes a way to, well socialize.
I find that using Facebook is a really convient way to share pictures and have discussions about them online as if all of us are actually gathered around a photo album and discussing our memories and how it turned out. I also like all the different ways you can leave someone a message. You can write on their wall, leave them a post it, or draw them a picture. It is also a way for you to see if you have any friends in common. This is useful because I had some friends and I never realized that we also both know another person and that brings up more topics of discussion or whatever. Another application I really like on Facebook is where you have a map and you pinpoint all the cities you've been to and they tally up the cities and the country. It was really useful for me to keep track of where I've been and where others had gone before. Before I used that application, I never realized I've been to more than 64 cities in 6 countries. With this application, we can talk about our different experiences there and such.
In my work and personal life, I find Facebook as an alternative to using e-mail or instant messaging since it's like a combination of both. I've once done an entire presentation with my partner with just communicating through the Facebook Wall. Also more recently, I was sent a message about about the meeting time for our off timetable Yearbook class. Facebook helped because the editor didn't have our e-mails but found me through Facebook book and our Network so I now know when we have Yearbook classes. Also, clubs can create groups in Facebook like our Global Cities Club did. By doing so, we set up a common place for discussions and events for us to participate in. By having this group it helps us know the people who are in this club better.
There is just so much you can do with a social networking site that even in the cold modern world of technology as it is today, it becomes a way to, well socialize.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Image Generator
http://interactimage.com/
At first, this was kind of confusing to use, but after a while I really got the hang of it and found out there is actually quite a lot you can do with it. At least more than all the other image generators I tired. I also felt that this one generates an image and you can customize it to fit what you want. But it takes time so using another image generator might be better if I'm short on time.
I find that JellyMuffin has really easy and fast generators that also give you a preview which is really useful. And also they give you a html coding for you to put right on your blog or website. I also really like some of the stuff they have on there and the images they produce. They have animation which adds interest which is unique from the other generators.
http://www.jellymuffin.com/generators/grungeheart/
Cute Myspace Generators
At first, this was kind of confusing to use, but after a while I really got the hang of it and found out there is actually quite a lot you can do with it. At least more than all the other image generators I tired. I also felt that this one generates an image and you can customize it to fit what you want. But it takes time so using another image generator might be better if I'm short on time.
I find that JellyMuffin has really easy and fast generators that also give you a preview which is really useful. And also they give you a html coding for you to put right on your blog or website. I also really like some of the stuff they have on there and the images they produce. They have animation which adds interest which is unique from the other generators.
http://www.jellymuffin.com/generators/grungeheart/
Cute Myspace Generators
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
RSS Feeds
What I really like about RSS and news feeds is the fact that they take all the updates on a site or blog and organize it for you and show you all the updates in one place. This saves time because then you don't have to type in the url and follow links etc. but it helps me because sometimes I forgot what the url or site is or which was the last update. With RSS I can also know that i am getting all the updates and I am not missing anything from when I was last there.
I can definitely see myself using RSS in the future when I want to skim through headlines in a newspaper, keep articles that I want to read later and such. It would also be useful for me when I go to a site to looks at some of the updates. An example would be that since I read mangas, I don't have to continually checking all the different sites for an update on whatever it is I want. Instead I can look through my feeds and see if it's out yet or I might find something else I would be interested in that I never knew about before.
Students and teachers can take advantage of this technology because teaching is no longer just limited to a classroom. A teacher can set up a website and post assignments or links and students can just use RSS to know when it's been updated rather than continuously checking. Teachers can also post links and such to further enrich a student's learning experience.
I can definitely see myself using RSS in the future when I want to skim through headlines in a newspaper, keep articles that I want to read later and such. It would also be useful for me when I go to a site to looks at some of the updates. An example would be that since I read mangas, I don't have to continually checking all the different sites for an update on whatever it is I want. Instead I can look through my feeds and see if it's out yet or I might find something else I would be interested in that I never knew about before.
Students and teachers can take advantage of this technology because teaching is no longer just limited to a classroom. A teacher can set up a website and post assignments or links and students can just use RSS to know when it's been updated rather than continuously checking. Teachers can also post links and such to further enrich a student's learning experience.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Flickr: Services
There are quite a few that I though was pretty awesome. The majority of these 3rd party tools would be a nice way to kill time since there are some great photos that turn up when you randomly play with some of these services.
I really liked the idea of "Mappr" by Stamen Design since I travel a lot and so I tend to end up with pictures where I'm not sure where it was taken. Unfortunately I couldn't get it to open and explore it further.
I also like how the "Flickr Color Picker" by JBum has images that reflect the colour chosen really well. It would be handy when looking for inspiration with colour, or if you're just looking for an image with certain colours. I spent more time than I probably should've playing around with the colour picker, the textures and everything and looking at the images that turn up.
But I think the thing that I personally though would be really useful for things outside of Flickr is "fd's Flickr Toys." John Watson didn't just limit these 'toys' to just Flickr. Instead the stuff you can find on there can be used just for fun, or on a design/school work/presentation based area. On the site, I especially though that the "Palette Generator" and the "Photo Wall." I though the Palette Generator would be helpful when designing because it picks out the major colours and gives you the hex colour code too. The "Photo Wall" just left me sitting there staring at the ever changing wall of pictures until my screen saver came on. I wish the wall could be my screen saver instead. All the rest, with the frames, the layouts and everything makes it easier and faster to make say a magazine cover than on Photoshop (of course this is debatable). But in the end, these tools are fun to play with and are great for killing time.
I really liked the idea of "Mappr" by Stamen Design since I travel a lot and so I tend to end up with pictures where I'm not sure where it was taken. Unfortunately I couldn't get it to open and explore it further.
I also like how the "Flickr Color Picker" by JBum has images that reflect the colour chosen really well. It would be handy when looking for inspiration with colour, or if you're just looking for an image with certain colours. I spent more time than I probably should've playing around with the colour picker, the textures and everything and looking at the images that turn up.
But I think the thing that I personally though would be really useful for things outside of Flickr is "fd's Flickr Toys." John Watson didn't just limit these 'toys' to just Flickr. Instead the stuff you can find on there can be used just for fun, or on a design/school work/presentation based area. On the site, I especially though that the "Palette Generator" and the "Photo Wall." I though the Palette Generator would be helpful when designing because it picks out the major colours and gives you the hex colour code too. The "Photo Wall" just left me sitting there staring at the ever changing wall of pictures until my screen saver came on. I wish the wall could be my screen saver instead. All the rest, with the frames, the layouts and everything makes it easier and faster to make say a magazine cover than on Photoshop (of course this is debatable). But in the end, these tools are fun to play with and are great for killing time.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Flickr
school and skywalk
Taken during class time when walking back to class on this gorgeous sunny day
Entrance past the community centre. Empty for once. No strikers either.
Wikis
Things i found interesting in wikis that I never knew about before was the history tab and all the small things i overlooked in the articles and layout. I also never realized how much vandalism is going on in Wikipedia. When I saw that there was an article about my school on there, it turns out that most of the people at my school, especially the staff, wasn't aware of the vandalism that was on there. But I found it interesting how some people devoted themselves to stopping the vandalism.
In a school environment, I think that a wiki would be useful for classes as a way of sharing the information that you find to help each other with assignments. This could be like a smaller version of Wikipedia but it's much more simple because it would only contain information that we need to know instead of all the technical stuff that would come up in a normal Wikipedia article. And with individual projects, it could be a way to check up on another group's project if they miss the presentation in class or if they want to check up on something they weren't sure of. In this way everyone can learn from each other.
In a school environment, I think that a wiki would be useful for classes as a way of sharing the information that you find to help each other with assignments. This could be like a smaller version of Wikipedia but it's much more simple because it would only contain information that we need to know instead of all the technical stuff that would come up in a normal Wikipedia article. And with individual projects, it could be a way to check up on another group's project if they miss the presentation in class or if they want to check up on something they weren't sure of. In this way everyone can learn from each other.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
7 1/2 Habits of Lifelong Learners
If I was to list those habits from easiest to hardest, it would go something like this:
But the thing is, the list differs for every thing I learn.
This list was always there, but I never realized it until someone went and listed all of it out. It made me realize what it was that made my learning successful. It also shows you what you can do to learn more efficiently. Learning is something you will do all your life. You may not learn something new everyday, but there will be days when you learn lots, even if you don't realize it.
And these habits were always there without you realizing it. These habits also gave me the impression that I will be learning for the rest of my life unless I shut myself away in a small hole and left to die because there will always be challenges, and you will learn and gain experience from them. You will always have fun playing around, it's something you do and makes life more enjoyable. Setting goals, jumping onto opportunities to try new things, using what you have to your advantage and learning from each other, these are all things that already comes naturally because I want to learn. And I will be learning for the rest of my life no matter what.
- Play
- Using technology to my advantage
- Accepting responsibility for my own learning
- Begin with end in mind
- Creating my own learning toolbox
- Viewing problems as challenges
- Teaching/Mentoring others
- Having confidence in myself as a competent, effective learner
But the thing is, the list differs for every thing I learn.
This list was always there, but I never realized it until someone went and listed all of it out. It made me realize what it was that made my learning successful. It also shows you what you can do to learn more efficiently. Learning is something you will do all your life. You may not learn something new everyday, but there will be days when you learn lots, even if you don't realize it.
And these habits were always there without you realizing it. These habits also gave me the impression that I will be learning for the rest of my life unless I shut myself away in a small hole and left to die because there will always be challenges, and you will learn and gain experience from them. You will always have fun playing around, it's something you do and makes life more enjoyable. Setting goals, jumping onto opportunities to try new things, using what you have to your advantage and learning from each other, these are all things that already comes naturally because I want to learn. And I will be learning for the rest of my life no matter what.
My Definition of Web 2.0
When I hear Web 2.0, i think of it as basically any website that allows almost anyone to go in and edit, modify, maintain and enhance the website. It is like a place where basically anyone can go and add to the site to share with the rest of the world. It is a site build out of collaboration between complete total strangers whom they would never meet. And because everyone who wants to build on these sites, it is free for anyone to use. Such sites are like Youtube, Wikipedia, and Flickr. It is a way of sharing and communicating.
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