Me, Myself and I once again....

So, here Me is talking to Myself. I walks in. I wants to talk out the Web 2.0 course. What did Me think about it? Me thinks the course got off to a rocky start. Not organized enough for Me. Me need structure. Myself like that too. Me like to know what Me will be getting into. I want to know about the assignments!

Me liked that Myself was exposed to a lot of different apps. Me thinks that Myself needed some more exposure to the Web 2.0 world. And that he did get. But with all that exposure, Me should have made sure that Myself was ready for all them accounts. Man was Me and Myself surprised. So I, make you a list of accounts and try to use a common user name and password for all. I can change that later if I decide to maintain the account.

While I is making a list, I should make a list of his classmates and assignments. This way I can keep tract of who I have looked at while "rating".

Me remember the overall confused and frustrated feelings in the beginning of the course, but I feel better prepared.

The Rebel Alliance.....

Being totally lost and wandering around not knowing which direction to take regarding the group project, the rebel in me surfaced. Yes, it is a natural part of me, so you all just have to deal with it.

THe group started with one and then escalated in size. We now were a group of two. Perfect for me. I could bounce things off of someone verses talking to myself. Yep, still did that but let's keep that to ourselves. Kelly was now a full fledged member.

Kelly and I discussed topics and it seemed natural to come up with our concept. She did a great job coming up with a name and a logo that perfectly matched the name. I won't tell any more of our project- you will have to wait until everything comes out over the course of 3 days. That's life. And besides, we are the rebel group. We play by our own rules.

The Final Project....

So, I like working on things that I can use in the future. That's kinda why I did a final project that relates to a topic I cover in Orofacial Anatomy. True, it's a fasinating topic, but aren't they all?

These are the things I used to do this project:

Dreamweaver with template being one downloaded from Dreamtemplates
Wordle
Blogspot.com
mac version of iQuizmaker, loaded onto iquizshare.com
Sony Vegas for the video
images from google search
slide.com for the slideshow
google docs for the nerve "dictionary"
You tube for video upload
Various sources for the additional infroamtion area

I am still so new to using Dreamweaver, but I used it over CMS or anything else because it's actually what I am more comfortable with using. True, I didn't have to come up with the basic design of the template, but that's okay with me. I had signed up for access to the templates on Dreamtemplates a while ago, so that works well for me. It's fun to modify a template to get to what you want to look like. And besides, I didn't have to work with CMSimple! Even sweeter.

And yet..... finally decided on a Second Life Event

OK, so it was really tough for me to find one event that I wanted to attend. Yes, I did not want to learn about being someone's boy toy or attending the Deranged - No Pants Allowed function. I mean, after all, I really haven't learned how to get my Avatar JUST RIGHT......

So, I found a Newcomers Event - "Newbies Questions and Answers". Sweet. Maybe I can learn how to get my shoe back that I lost the first time I was on SL. I mean, I have been walking around with only one shoe. I am starting to limp.

So, I teleport to the function. Hmmm..... Don't see a group sitting and talking. No group of Newbies asking questions about life in SL. Sure there are people hanging out here and there. Sure there are some people walking around. Sure there is a dominatrix walking around. Yes, I go up to a few and ask.... are you here for the Newbie thing? Nope. Then what are they doing here!!! And no, I decided not to even go up to the dominatrix. After all, I was here for something else.

So, I did not find a group talking. Instead, I found a board - kinda like a Newbie Board. So, my event ends up being read the board posts and learn from there. Not too bad for me. I did not have to talk or ask questions. I could read and learn on my own. Problem is - I still only have one shoe.

Mapping via Google....

What? Ask for directions or help when lost? No way, not me. Being male, I just drive...... and drive and drive.....

I do know about mapquest, yahoo and google maps. I do use them from time to time. I do find myself using my Droid phone / google maps to pinpoint where I am trying to find. Maybe because it allows me to use my new toy.

So I routed a trip the wife and I took via the motorcycle to our camper in Glendale Springs, NC. Since we were going by bike, I wanted to go the long way. Naturally we went north to the Blue Ridge Parkway and then West.


View Larger Map

Working with Google maps was okay. Putting in the destination points was easy and most modifications to the route were too. As for uploading photos of sites that were on the way, this was not as smooth as I was hoping it would be. It was easy to upload a picture on a given area if the area already had a picture "folder" already there. If there wasn't any pictures of a given area, then I couldn't get to the point where I could upload one. Maybe it was just me, naturally not wanting to "ask" for directions on how to do it.

With my Droid phone (Verizon wireless commercial goes here....), GPS coordinates are already incorporated into the Google maps. Perfect because it allows you to find anything you want or need. Using an exact location pinpointed by GPS, I can locate "toy" stores, banks so I can get money to pay for the toy or a specific place to eat. What a perfect life.

Hyped up....

I now have a Flickr account. Sweet. When I did my photo sharing account setup, I used photobucket. Seems it can't do the geotagging thing. Dang. Another account. I wonder if I really even know of all my accounts. Most likely not.

OK, so as I watched the TED video, I thought the speaker needing to decrease his caffeine intake. When he said "I don't know if I have time to show you any other environments...", I really think that he could have easily and quickly gone through a few more. LOL Just watching the video was spooky to realize what someone can do or develop.

I did a google search on Photosynth to figure out what it actually is and does. Photosythn takes your photos and mashes them together to make a 3D scene out of them. Viewers can then rotate, move around and explore the minute details of the work. Pretty cool.

As for the EXIF data, I have known for a while that my clinical cameras have incorporated some aspect of this. Not as much with my Canon D60, but my Canon 40D does incorporate a lot of information regarding the image settings. Depth of field, exposure settings, time and dates are to name a few of the data incorporated into any given image. I went online to see if the 40D touched on the use of GPS coordinates and actually found out that if the camera is connected to a portable GPS device, it will record the location and time into the image. Double dang. Am I needing another toy to play with?

I uploaded some photos into Flickr and did the geotagging. For an example of a geotagged photo, click here. Now I need to just figure out how to get them into the asuweb20 area..... I think I was able to finally do this, but they are still not showing up. Takes a few days to get them tagged. This is the internet- go figure.

Return of the Jedi.....

So, we are now back. Back to doing things in the class. Not that I won't admit that I used the time to work on so many other things. It's just that for a minute I was not sure if it had disappeared.

So I am currently taking a look at my original course objectives and developing a gap analysis. In the beginning, I wrote objectives that were basic in nature. That was fine with me. I figured it would give me a progressive understanding as to what the class should or would cover. It would give me a step into the web 2.0 arena. One area that I could include into my course objectives would be to include a short user description on why or how each is used by users. This would at least give a potential user I brief overview as to some of the things that are out there.

In my original course objectives, I didn't address the term Social Media. Not even sure as to why I didn't, but I don't think I even saw the term in the first place. In any case, I have learned that social media is one of the many aspects of web 2.0.

Couch Surfing....

Seems that most of my students were once on Myspace. Now they seem to have migrated to Facebook. Now I hear about something called Couch Surfing. The name brings up a different picture than what I now know.

The whole concept of Couch Surfing is interesting and I can see how meeting people and hosting can have it's benefits. I am not really sure if it is actually something I would "use", but it really would depend on the situation and person.

Looked around the site, looked at other profiles, photos, links, etc... The statistics are interesting- how many Couch Surfers there are, how many Countries are represented and how many positive experiences are documented. I can only imagine the statistics associated with Myspace and / or Facebook.

Couch Surfing is definitely different than Facebook. It seems to have more open-minded, artistic influence than that seen on FB. Maybe even an Earthy aura to it. FB on the other hand.... has everything you can imagine. And then some.

Since I am such a visual person, I had to take a look at the photos I saw posted on the profiles I looked at. Well, in CS, they were less, hmmmm, "talk worthy". I did not see the pictures of the person drunk and passed out on the floor or the person doing things that their mother would not really approve of. Wonder why that is?

The picture thing seems to be a big difference between the two applications, but then again, you would think that it should be. How would you like to be asked to host the town's drunkin, idiot. Yes, they are coming to your town and want to stay at your place for 3 days. Naturally, it's a Thursday (since weekends start here), Friday and Saturday night. Facebook on the other hand can and does have everything for profile pictures. Maybe it's due to originally being a student thing. Mind you everyone and their mother can now have a FB profile.

Let Me Introduce Myself....

OK, so I am not the most social thing. I tend to stay to myself and really don't feel the need to socialize with others and just hang with myself. It's not that I don't play well with others or it's not that I don't like to meet new and exciting people. It's just me and it's the way that I have always been.

Maybe it's due to the fact that I see a lot of people each and every day. I have so much interaction at work or school, whether it's with one of my patients or one of my faculty. Or it could be with one of my 80+ students..... Sensory overload? Naw, it's just me. I like to keep to myself and have always been this way. Gee, maybe I was socialized when I was a pup or child? Who knows.

Anyway, I signed up for meetup.com. Seems they have a photography group that meets each month and the meetings are right down the road from the house. I can't wait until April 8th when I get to attend my first meeting. How exciting! OK, maybe not, but the topic should be good. I am not sure how I will take a picture of someone at the meeting..... excuse me, but this may sound odd, but I want to get a picture of you..... Gee, Ii wonder if they revoke memberships on the first meeting?

As the World Turns in Education....

It was interesting to read the discussion on how the seasons are created and the phases of the moon. It did make me wonder if we really don't "know" things because they are felt that they don't have any bearing on "my" life. Now don't get me wrong, they actually do, but they don't because life goes on without having to think about these facts of life.

Education can have a wonderful impact of what we remember. The way that things are presented and what is used to get the material across will help with the explanation, as well as how well it is remembered by the listeners. Through the use of new media that has become available over time, concepts such as the seasons or phases of the moon, can be made to be more visual for the watcher. So much of what we do is visually related. Listening works, that's if the person is actually listening.....

New media such as gaming, the You Tube thing and the internet, have opened the eyes of the listeners. They can listen, but they can now watch and see. They can visualize how and why these wonderful things occur.

As I am typing this, I just realized that the things I do, the things I teach and the things I understand the most are so much easier to do because of new media. Then I come to the fact that this is also a bad thing for me as well. I hate seeing new media presented to me. It gives me too many ideas of how I want to do things, how I want to change some to the things, and how to obtain the tools to do it as well.

So many media, so little time.....

As the World Turns.....

It has been a loooong time since I even thought about the Sun, Moon and Earth and how they relate to one another and create changes in appearance and/or seasons. I definitely did not feel smarter than a ninth grader.

It was hard to explain the topic at hand. It would have been easier for me and less tormenting to those having to try and understand me to allow me to research it and then TRY to explain it to "Granny".

It was still a fun assignment. Trying to scrape the inside of my brain to come up with something that I was taught many years ago was interesting. I am glad that we did not have to try and explain the concept of balancing the budget.

Rate Me.... you know you want to

Alrighty now..... not that it is high on my list of things, but we are able to see some sort of grade for the assignments that we are doing.  My own students would love this, but for me, it's not anything that I have dreams about.  I do the assignments, some of my results are better than other results that I do, but that's okay with me.

I did take a look at it, since it is only human that one does.  And it seems that I am missed "grades" for several of my assignments.  Go figure.  All assignments have been done and posted as to where they can be found, but maybe if at least one classmate does not "rate" it, there will be no "grade" given or listed.  Super.  I am hoping that I don't have to send out a mass email with a list of areas that I need a "rating".  

I did post a question on this, so I will wait and see.

Wikimedia Commons...

OK, the next wiki-adventure I went on was Wikimedia Commons. the site was just as easy and fun to go on as the Wikiquote site. Wikimedia Commons is a file repository the houses images, video clips and sounds for public use. Just down right sweet. Free things and in an area of free that I like too.

Naturally, the first area that I went to was the image area. There were old and new photos, animations, diagrams, maps and paintings. From here, the list goes on and on and on.

I did take a quick look in the sound area and did see that some classical music was available. Pronunciations were too.

I can see myself re-visiting this site and will also see about "donating" some images as well. Educational material in the dental field is somewhat limited, so it may help with their collection of images.

Think of the Web as a big bathroom wall. And everyone has a marker.

Looking at the projects of the Wikimedia Foundation, I found my first spark of interest - Wikiquote. Wikiquote is a collection of quotes from notable people. And of course, non-notable people as I soon found out. I'm definitely not a quoter, but I do know people that are. Maybe this is where they get some of their quotes from, but who knows. I guess I figured I'd take a look and see.

Initially looking at the site, it was pretty easy to navigate around. Sure I could look up quotes from highly respected people.... but that is so not me. I went into the anonymous area. After all, I prefer to see the odd ones that unknowns will have said.

OK, so there were a lot of really good, funny quotes to be able to pick a favorite one. Besides the title quote, here are two more:

• Better a smartass, than a dumbass.


• It's not cheating, it's creative sportsmanship.

The Commons......

I love images. They can be used to convey feelings, provide visual memories in your audience and even give subliminal messaging. Trying to locate something that I liked visually while following the rules of the game (no restrictions) was a little time consuming and tough to do. I did run across The Commons early in my search, but finding a picture that I wanted to use was the tough thing.

The Commons is a pilot project that involves the partnership of Flickr with The Library of Congress. From the enormous collection of photographs, The Library choose approximately 1,500 from each of two collections to show on Flickr.

According to the The Commons site, the program has two objectives. The first is to increase access to publicly-held photography collections. The second is to provide a way for the public to contribute information and knowledge. If you want more information on the Rights and Copyrights, then please visit this site.

So, the real question is whether I would contribute something wonderful to anyone and everyone. To allow them to use it as they choose, when they choose and how they choose?

Sure I would. Over the years, I have given orofacial anatomy tutorials that I have created, to any one that wanted them. They are publicly available online on both GTCC's dental websites and The Toothful Exchange. I have also given many clinical images to anyone that needed them. This includes students, faculty, other schools and to be used in textbooks. I think half the fun of making tutorials or taking clinical photographs is to share them with others.

The Thrill of the Embed.....

OK, so I actually had to look up the term embed just to make sure as to what I was to do. Once I got that straight, I realized I had done that yesterday with a video embedded into the Audio Sharing page in CMSimple.

Since the video embed was done, I started with the picture embed. Not too much issue with this one. Was easier to do it via the HTML code aspect of CMSimple. Since I was already in Photobucket, I played with the slide show thing and got that part done too.

And yes, I saved the best for last- the audio embedding. I didn't like ZShare yesterday and still have ill feelings towards it today. It will not let you embed audio files. Only videos. Odd application. And just think, I was the one that choose to use it..... hmmm..... I am starting to wonder about myself.

OK, this one is just odd.....

Coming up with an audio sharing application was interesting. The original one that I wanted to use was having issues with my Norton. So I decided on ZShare.

I really am not sure if I like this application at all. And yes, it worse than what I feel for CMSimple.

ZShare is bland, confusing to use, does not allow or at least I could not figure out how to link to other sites and it allows you to earn $ (this is typically a good thing) by downloaded your file to some sort of Yaboe account. I did not even want to go into that area if i was feeling so good about the ZShare. I have no idea as to how you invite friends, that's if you can, I have no idea who any other members are. As a matter of fact, I am not even sure where you go when you link to my ZShare profile.

The best thing is that I can delete my files once I am done with using it in this class.

This is really the first time that I have used Photobucket and moving around was quite easy. Uploading pictures and moving them into folders went well. Guess it would be a good site if I really wanted to share my disgusting dental photos with everyone or anyone.

I did like the fact that I can upload photos from so many different areas - from email, the cell phone, the web, etc.... Just never know when I will capture that web acclaimed photo that will be shown to the world.

It's not a site that I would use to share photos, but I can see that it would be an interesting site to look at the ones that everyone else in the world has placed there.

You Tubin....

I really don't have much experience with the You Tube thing. I have uploaded a few things, but mainly for this course. I do have a strange video or two on there as well.

Things I liked with regards to You Tube include being able to alter the theme and font colors, allowing for some degree of customization. I guess it's nice that you can give some profile information as well. I just need to copy paste from all my other profiles. Uploading videos is easy to do too.

The linking to my other accounts was not happening on my end or using my brain. Maybe someone else can figure that one out.

Cups of Stuff.....

OK, so I am "making" some more accounts. I have a cup full of them now. I think I really need to move each to it's own cup and label it so I can keep all of them straight.

I took the short road to the video sharing account- I will use You Tube, since we have already have used it in this class.

The picture sharing thing is new to me. I tend to just email a picture if I want someone to see one. Who wants to see my photos anyway?

The audio sharing thing is just down right odd. I created an account with SoundBoard. No problem there. Problem does come up when all of a sudden my Norton Security says the site has issues. Sweet. I will not return to the site and you will notice that I did not give you a link to the site......

Next I tried ZShare- seems to be really bland in appearance. Probably nicer if you upgrade to the Premium account. And I don't have any earthly idea on how "Friends" are added or see my files. At least Norton did not pick up any issues with the site.

I did upload one file into each of the newer accounts, just to have something in the "cups". As for the linking to the other accounts....... hmm.....

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

As I sit and think about this semester’s course I can say that it’s easier to classify things into the good, the bad and the ugly. Some of the classifications are note as clear, since as time has gone on, adjustments within the course have occurred.

Not following the lead of the title, I’ll start with the ugly… not saying that things in the course have been ugly, I think that I will first define the term ugly. Ugly refers to those things that I consider not being high on my list of favorite. I am so accustomed to providing a detailed syllabus to my own students; I like being given guidance as to where the course will take me as the semester continues. This has improved within the early weeks of the course and it helped me see where the journey will take me. The other ugly deals with the number of emails that were circulating in the beginning of the course. Let’s just say that it was, hmmm….. Shocking. The battery on the Blackberry was draining so fast that it had to be charged every day. I’m just glad that the number is now more manageable. I now need to figure out an easy method of keeping track of which classmate’s assignment I have looked at and which I have rated.

Moving into the bad, I will look at those things that I consider okay about the course. Yep, neutral for me - I can take them or leave them. They did give me exposure to something that I may not have done before and allowed me additional knowledge that I would not have had without exposure from taking this class. I’m just not sure if I will use them in the future.

The first is using CMSimple. I am just not a fan of the application and I will leave it at that. I am not a writer either – blogging is not for me. With this in mind, the wiki-things are okay. I have used them before; I am just not a writer / author to desire to provide any input into the writings. With all this in mind, I have now more accounts that it is becoming fun trying to keep them all straight.

Like everything in life, talking about the good, things I have enjoyed, is the easiest to write about. Most likely, everyone will say that they have enjoyed exposure to using Wordle. Great application. I also enjoyed having to re-do my logo as well. Since the logo was not considered to instill a feeling of Web 2.0, it allowed me to find another software application that I will continue to use in the future (Logo Maker).

Second Life was a totally new application for me. Yes, it can be a little confusing trying to figure out “the rules”, but it provides a world / application that I have never been exposed to.

One of my favorite “assignments” of the course was the Introduction Video and the Web 2.0 Talk with Granny. This is where I am the most comfortable, since it allows my little brain to run free.

Overall, the course is going well. I feel better now than the first week and do look forward to see where we go from here.

Digg Account.....

Just finished setting up my Digg account. Had heard of the site, but never actually been on it.

Set up my profile, added a little about myself (can't add to much, so that's actually nice), uploaded a photo and "added" one friend.

Part of the assignment was to add 10 links including tags (of which I have no idea how to do the tag thing). Adding the links was an easy process. Just was not sure as to what to add, so I added some of the profiles that I have recently created as a result of this course. Naturally, I will have to find out about the tag thing.

I did spend a little time looking around on Digg. Was great to see that I could customize the topics so that I could avoid having to look through things I really don't want to read about. I did find an interesting article on a psychiatrist that charges an hourly rate to have sex with a patient..... he en billed BCBS for the "therapy". Just odd. Now I wonder if BCBS paid the submission or if the patient paid her co-pay or has meet her deductible.

Anyways, my Digg name is rjfoster03 and you can "friend-me" via my Gmail acoount - rickfoster03@gmail.com

Wikipedia profiling.....

I started and finished my profile page on Wikipedia. To make it easier on what to put in there, I used some of the information that I have on my Introduction page in the Web 2.0 course.

Formatting was not too bad. It did get a little confusing when I was indenting, but once I actually figured out that I don't have to use
between each indent, i was free to go and play some more.

Actually, the hardest point is coming up with 10 formatting items in the editing. I am not even sure as to how many I actually did. Ten different formatting changes is tough, unless you are trying to beat the small amount of text to death.

Hmmm.... I wonder how many I actually did?

1. Bold


2. Heading size


3. Italics


4. Spacing


5. Indent


6. Indent in again


7. "Triple indent


8. Link to jpeg file


9. Internal link


10. External links

Sweet. That's 10.

Wikipedia profile

Second Life.....

So, I got to explore Second Life for the first time.... the initial landing in the program put me in an area that did not have anyone else walking around. After learning to walk, run and fly, I decided to attempt to modify my appearance. Was able to change the shirt, hair and eyes, but could not do much with my hair. It could get longer and spiky, but not able to make it less or change the color. I did end up losing a shoe and had to walk around with only one on. Good thing I had the sock still.

Finally figured out how to get to Paris and did see people hanging out. Did meet up with a classmate and then got teleported to the classes meeting place.

Good to learn some of the basics of SL at the class meeting. Will help if and when I return to SL.

I can see some use of SL with regards to education, but I can see that I will not be able to use it in my situation. The hardware required will limit the number of students that can participate in it's use. Some still have only dial-up connections, some only with older units and some with no computer at all.

I had never heard of SL, but the overall exposure to SL was interesting to say the least. I will probably visit a little more in the future, but I don't think the SL thing is for me.

Web 2.0 with Granny

Ok, so I did things a little different with my explanation of Web 2.0 to Granny.  Since I was off of school today, I figured I wanted to play a little.  Longer route to get the assignment done, but more like me than writing.....

Weekly Blog...

Anyone on this site

Not being in or from a business world, the concept of crowd sources would have never come to mind. After reading the article and seeing how the term and process works, I realize that I had used this technique in my own little world. If I could have only thought of the term before the rightful owner did. I could have been in Wikipedia.......

A few years ago, I needed to come up with name for a website that I was in the process of developing. Coming up with the name was the tough thing - I needed something that would capture the feel of the site that I was trying to obtain.

So, what better way to get some help- I had 90ish students that could be used as a somewhat known crowd. I listed the sites description, the overall objective of the site and more importantly, the feel or look that I was trying to obtain.

The submissions were listed as they were submitted and had to be submitted within a given time frame. The top three choices would be selected by another crowd and then the overall crowd would choose the site's name.

Naturally, students love being rewarded for their effort. The top three names would receive a unique wood tooth. The name that would be selected as the site's name would get another unique wood tooth and be given credit on the website.

The benefits of crowdsourcing for me included little cost, fast resolution, unlimited talent and no issue with employee contracts, etc....

In reality, it worked perfectly in my situation.

As for the educational setting that I am in and having people doing work on a massive scale, there are some issues that can arise from this. One is that some students will not get involved with the work. And there are always those that want to do the least amount of work for the best possible grade, trying to come up with something that will "pay" equally will be an issue. Yes, grades are something that has to be given in my world. And although everyone thinks they deserve the highest grade for the amount of work / time they put in, they don't because in reality, they did not put in anything.

End of the Week....

So, it is Saturday and the snow is everywhere. Actually my favorite time of the year- cold is great, but the snow makes it perfect.

Have enjoyed this week better than the first week. More structured for me with a travel plan given.

The video work is something I really liked since it allowed me to show some creativity in it. True, i tend to like to make videos look better, but with different guidelines, it was good to do.

Also enjoyed the youtube videos that we critiqued. I am not a writer, editor or deep in nature, but I did find both of them to be inspiring and thought provoking.

The first Week....

So, this is the first entry of my blog..... and since I should look at the first week of this course, I will get right to it.

Go to my CMSimple site - http://www.tropicalteachers.com/web2.0/2010sp/r2f/

Have a look around. It will give you a general idea of what I thought about the first week of class.

I am usually a laid back, low key, odd individual. But the number of emails that went through the BlackBerry actually got on my nerves enough to stress me. Shocking since I am such an email orientated person. I tend to over email my own students to keep them abreast of things that are coming up, etc. Maybe it was the fact that all the replies were coming through the BB. Now that I think about it, I realize that I don't hear back from most of my students, so I am the emailer and not the emailee.

I am also a syllabus person, whether I am this way naturally or not. It is what I have been raised to be. I have become used to giving guidance as to what will be expected, what will be done over time and how everyone will get there. Having no syllabus, no schedule of topics was a little unnerving for me.

I like puzzles, but I really like knowing what I will be doing to get the puzzle completed.