I Need a Google Doctor!!

I was so excited when I read the info about GoogleDocs - WOW - a "place" for everything and everything in its place. That's how I function the best - and now I could have it all!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, but wait - all is not as it seems........

Here's my dilemma: I have a laptop and an older desk top, with one older, but perfectly functioning laser printer. My new laptop does not have the ability to hook-up to my printer. Bummer. They have a cord/usb thing-y that will work, but of course, they don't have any left. That was May 5th, it's now July 12th, and still no cord/usb connection. Why did I just type all of that?? Well, here's where the GoogleDocs seemed revolutionary - I did not need to continue to transfer my data to be printed from my laptop to the older computer (with outdated software) to print - I would have my document on-line and then just pull it up from a website on my older computer to print - NO MORE USB STICK!! No more guessing as to which version I was actually printing!!!!!!!! Yahoooooooooo!!!!!!!!

All giggly this morning to try this out, I bring up my syllabi for Biol 3715 on the laptop - save it to GoogleDocs, then....use my older computer to print!! But it was not to be............The formatting was ALL wrong :( Now - I am sure there is a way I can fix that..........I'll keep looking!!!!

Twittle-de-de

Ahh – the sweet smell of summer……!!

Twittering is interesting – like all of the activities in this course. I can see what Bono, Oprah, Sue, and my sister are up to (or thinking) daily and what's the breaking news on CNN.

So - who should my students follow…..there is much to choose from!!

The accessiblity to great ideas and techniques out there is getting easier. Being “armed” with as many as possible is a great asset. This newest technique is again giving us such opportunity to expand our teaching-related experiences. A big "Hurray" for Twitter!!

This is 'licous!!

So, I am trying my best to catch up on the weekly activities because I am DYING to twitter ASAP - I am one of those "people" who has to go "step by step" without jumping ahead.

Today - Social Bookmarking. I must say, I had to re-watch the common craft video a few times to "get" everything as I worked through the activities. I felt like my mind was completely cluttered. But I managed to clean things up, as my hubby took the kids out to the playground - thank you Steve! - arrgh, I wrote too soon, he's back with the rascals!!

So, a quick rundown of my take on social bookmarking, aka Delicious:

CONS:

1. Realizing that you have to press "Tag" instead of the "Bookmark" button to bookmark?

2. It was not as easy as I thought to maneuver about the webpages, (being at the desired webpage and then back to delicious) but I think I will get the hang of it.

3. I have not yet figured out how to make the tags public, or how to do the "social aspect" of the bookmarking.

PROS:

1. Subscribing to the feeds of the website for updates (I hope it will work the way I think it will), because I may never think to go back to the site, especially since I am in the infancy stage of learning to tag!

2. When I figure out the social part of bookmarking!

3. The bookmarking being accessible on any computer......seriously, that is a great, great thing!

TEACHABILITY:

It will be a useful feature for a course - to be able to put up the bookmarks and get the students to add their finds as well. Sharing/collaboration - that makes it fun.

The STAR WARS world is just awesome :)

Oh my - just in case any of you enjoy Star Wars - here is a neat Discovery Channel version I found earlier....

A way to use this as a teaching tool, there is, hmmmm?

You are very welcome :)

The world is just awesome!

Wow – now my technological inabilities are becoming painfully apparent. It has taken me all day to figure out how to get this video downloaded and “put” anywhere. My computer won’t read a mp4 or flv…..arghhhhh. Just when I think I’ve made a major breakthrough with the “how-to” in a list in front of me……there goes three hours of tinkering around to get it to work. Could I stop after 1 hour perhaps….no, just a little more tinkering. Could I stop after two hours…….no, no, no, just one more try. Please, no one say I’m not persistent. I wonder will this video work? Why this old video to post you ask – because it is the one my kids like for me to play nonstop – and - ‘cause the world IS just awesome :)

Podcasting – Apparently it’s what I’ve been missing!!

I always seem to begin my blogs with something to the effect of “wow…..” Podcasting did not let me down either: Wow – this stuff is great!!! I feel like a kid in a free candy store!! What has really helped me enjoy all of this new-found web technology is my new IPod Touch…………………ahhhhh - a very sweet “thank you” to my PDA, Chair and Dean. I have new “lingo” to catch up on, like my “apps” – sometimes I think my head will explode if I …try..to…squeeze…anything…else…new…into…it….but I will keep on trucking anyway!!

After a week of movers…moving….packing and unpacking…I think I will settle down now with my boys on the couch with my ity-bity IPod screen and we can all watch some discovery shows they crave….they know how to download from the iTunes store, too – cause Daddy showed them first! The technological competition is fierce in this house!!

Wiki Me!!

Sometimes I feel like I am 5 years old – excitedly trying to do something new but not really knowing the ramifications of what I’m doing. Will I get a time-out???? Yikes!

Wiki vs Blogging. I think blogging is great – wish I had more time to do it, actually. Wiki seems to be a spot where a lot gets accomplished quickly with various sources of input and you don’t have to get off your chair!! Holy Toledo!! How fantastic is that!!

Personally, I think that Wiki is not a great spot for sourcing. Primary literature will hold that niche for a long time to come. I do not think I would accept a source from Wiki in a paper from a student at all – I’d have them re-do it or take marks off. Obviously I would now let my students know beforehand that a wiki source is not acceptable. BUT they could use a wiki site to share information sources for their papers!!!

I’m sure as I get more comfortable with Web 2.0, I may feel differently about much of this - I still feel so very technologically challenged.