Web 2.0 WordPress Wordle

Since I couldn’t decide what to write about for my final course post, I decided to make a Wordle of the top 50 fifty words I used in this blog during the semester. Its been a great experience and I wish the best to all of you 🙂

Collecting Tools for My Trip to Germany

In less than a week I’ll be in Germany visiting my fiancé. I’m really excited, but there’s so much to do before then: laundry, packing, exchanging money, and downloading a few apps. Less than a year ago it would’ve been my first instinct to run down the street to Barnes and Noble and pick up a phrase book. However, with so many helpful free resources that can be downloaded to your phone it just seems to make more sense.

Even though I won’t be making calls, sending texts, or using data while I’m in Germany, my phone is still a critical tool. I downloaded a German vocabulary app and an English/German translator app, both of which are free, and neither requires an internet connection. Sometimes I really appreciate how technology has shaped our lives and made things easier.

Is Web 2.0 Making Web 1.0 Obsolete?

Oddly enough, one of the first people to like a post on my wedding planning blog is man who runs a business selling ladders. Rather than using a typical website to sells his products, he posts amusing anecdotes and historical facts about ladders on a blog. From the blog people can link to specific products to purchase them. I just thought it was so unique that this person is turning the sale of commonplace items into an entertaining experience.

I started to realize that I’ve come across quite a few blogs lately rather than static webpages through which people are selling items or offering services. By blogging about the products, it personalizes the experience more, and in some cases I think the hype surrounding some products actually helps them sell better. So that leads me to my post title: Is Web 2.0 making static Web 1.0 websites obsolete?

Week 6 Journal

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, just like mobile learning, introduced me to so many tools that I never would have known existed otherwise. It’s great, because what Instructional Designer can’t use a few more tools in their toolbox? But more importantly it opened me up to the idea of actively seeking out new ways to accomplish common tasks. For instance, I never would have thought to see if there was a digital brainstorming technology rather than just using pencil and paper before this class. But now I find myself asking “is there a better way to do this?” about everything.

What I’ve learned in this class will assist me as an instructional systems professional in a number of ways:

• I will easily collaborate. I’ve absorbed countless ideas about how web 2.0 technologies can aid collaboration regardless of what it’s within the walls of a single office building or if its people from around the globe working together.
• I will save money when possible. While there are many amazing programs and apps available today, there are usually free or inexpensive alternatives just waiting to be discovered. I found so many while exploring for this class.

This class has been quite the eye opener and it also introduced me to a new hobby. I really love blogging now, and I plan on keeping my wedding planning blog going after this class. 🙂

Livemocha

Last week I discovered Livemocha when Dr. Dennen put it on her list of tools to try. I’m loving it so far.

With Livemocha, you can be a learner, a teacher, or both. I entered the community to start learning basic German vocabulary to prepare for my move to Germany next April. However, I’ve been enjoying my role as a teacher. By that I mean that I’ve been editing and providing feedback on the work submitted by English language learners.

Even though I’m intrinsically motivated to offer help to the English learners, Livemocha also offers extrinsic incentives in the form of coins that can be exchanged for downloads and lessons with native speakers. It’s a great set up so that Livemocha can offer language lessons 24/7/365 without having to staff language teachers full time.

If you haven’t tried out Livemocha yet, give it a chance! If after reading this you decide to try it out, let me know what you think. 🙂

Is Social Media Killing Social Etiquette?

I’m going to apologize in advance for once again blogging about weddings. But hey, I’m making the study of Web 2.0 relevant to my current life.

I recently came across an interesting piece called “5 Ways Facebook Can Ruin Your Wedding” and I just had to share it.

5 Ways Facebook Can Ruin Your Wedding:

1. Someone in your family found out [about your engagement] on Facebook.
2. A so-called friend left a snarky comment on your Facebook wall about your ring photos.
3. People assume they’re invited to your wedding because you’re Facebook friends.
4. Some think that Facebook is the new RSVP card.
5. Facebook has made prewedding party privacy a thing of the past.

While those things to me don’t seem like a huge deal (besides for #1), it got me thinking about how some people throw out the etiquette rule book once they log in to a social media website. Is social media killing social etiquette?

Pinterest, How I Love Thee

I know that I already posted about Pinterest in week two… but when I saw it on the list of tools to try this week, I got really excited. I love Pinterest! In my last post I discussed how I’ve been using the website the past few months to find inspiration for my wedding, and it’s been an extremely successful endeavor. 

In the past week I’ve spent a lot of time on Pinterest, because I’ve been trying to work with my bridesmaids to choose a dress that they can all agree on. I’ve been pinning images of potential dresses from the different designer websites with the style number, color I like, and the price quoted from local bridal shops. It basically gives us one main place that we can look at dresses and compare prices while allowing us to leave comments about them (since we’re spread out all over the country).

Week 5 Journal

How do you judge the value of expertise on the Web?

How I judge the value of expertise completely depends on whether I’m seeking the information for academic use or for personal use, but there are a few basic necessities for either case:

• The website must look professional.
• The website must be well organized.
• The website must have a logical site map.
• The website must be virtually free of grammatical errors.
• Pictures are also usually appealing to me. It’s not a necessity, but I enjoy a nice photo or graphic amidst a few long pages of plain text.

If its for academic use, then the value of expertise is based on the person’s level of education and amount of experience with the subject. For instance, I’ll probably pay more attention to a webpage produced by Dr. Jane Doe than by Mrs. Jane Doe, especially if they are affiliated with a reputable university. Experts should identify themselves as such, and at the very least identify themselves as the authors of the websites.

If it’s for personal use, then the value of expertise is based on how they present themselves and how other followers feel towards them. Do they seem to care about the knowledge they’re sharing? Do they respond to comments and answer questions? Do they receive positive feedback from followers?

Does it differ from your notion of expertise in face-to-face settings? – Yes

In face-to-face settings, I value the expertise of educated, experienced people who are respected by others and who professionally and logically present themselves and their information. In a formal setting, experts should be professionally dressed and speak eloquently. If they have presentation materials, they should be ascetically pleasing, logically organized, and free of grammatical errors.

There is a Time and Place for Everything

I really enjoy the ability to use Web 2.0 tools virtually anywhere I want. I think that most people do. However, you have to use judgement about when and where to use certain tools.

There was an awkward experience at work yesterday, because a woman who I work with didn’t think about what was appropriate for the workplace. For the sake of privacy we’ll call her Jane Doe. Jane Doe likes to listen to podcasts at work. It’s always been innocent, but yesterday she decided to listen to a podcast of a romance novel; a very risqué romance novel. Since I work near her office, I unfortunately heard the entire seven chapters she got through. It was completely inappropriate and made me feel extremely uncomfortable, but I was too embarrassed to ask her to turn it down.

So this leads me back to my original statement. Think about what you’re doing before you do it! Does anyone else have a story about an awkward experience caused by technology and/or web 2.0 tools?

Technology Dependency

While following my online communities about wedding planning, I stumbled upon an idea that had never occurred to me before: an unplugged wedding ceremony. What that entails is asking your wedding guests to turn off their cameras and cell phones throughout the ceremony to encourage them to be fully present in the moment and take it all in without the distraction of technology.

However, when I brought the idea up to my family their reaction stunned me: shock, apprehension, and a touch of distress. All of this dismay over thirty to forty five minutes without their smart phones. As a technology junkie myself, who spends the majority of my days glued to my smart phone and laptop, even I understand the importance of unplugging every once. So what’s the problem? It’s not the picture taking, because as I’ve explained to them a couple of times, I’ve hired two amazing professional photographers who will be sharing all of their high quality edited images with everyone for free just a few weeks after the wedding.

I’m assuming that the issue is that our society has become so overly dependent on technology in recent years that sometimes it actually causes anxiety to go without for any length of time.

This probably isn’t what brides typically envision for their wedding day: Sneaking a glance at their guests only to see them staring into their LCD screens. (Photo by Jeff Seltzer Photography)

A sea of view finders. (Photo by Aurora Photography)

Even some brides can’t handle unplugging. This bride is reading her vows from her cell phone. (Photo by 12-1 Photography)