A little about me…
I live in Lincoln, NE. This summer has flown by for me, unfortunately accompanied by the uncertainty and anxiety of being unemployed, but I find plenty to do when I’m not looking for a job – homework! Yes, I saw Inception, and if you know where I can get me one of those dream machines, please let me know. I think they’d be a loads of fun at parties!
A long time ago, back when my family’s first computer was a Tandy and the only fun thing to do on it was play Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?*, I collected bookmarks. I hardly used them all, but since their primary purpose was forever tied with books, and since most books were treasure troves of knowledge, imagination, and adventure, there was no point in throwing them all away.
Flash forward to the day before tomorrow: The last time I checked bookmarks weren’t quite a thing of the past – not just yet. While I hardly collect them anymore, the convenience and necessity of bookmarks and their use hasn’t faded for readers and Web users alike. Whether you’re surfing the Net for potluck recipes, poker tournaments, tour dates for your favorite band, or (my favorite) peer-reviewed articles for the next research paper, bookmarks have become an integrated way of how we use the Internet and manage the information we find in the vast pools of knowledge available at our fingertips.
In most major browsers, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Google Chrome, drop-down menus have been replaced with single-click features within the browser bar that instantly allow you to bookmark any page you happen across. The ability to manage these bookmarks is just as easy, if not moreso.
The advent of social networking (Myspace, Facebook, etc.) in the last decade has presented Web-heads with new plateaus of usage and organization. We’re not merely connecting with people in a sea of faceless minions, but we’re connecting to people with similar interests (“likes”), hobbies, and ideas. In essence, we’re networking in ways that were once relegated to ice cream socials and conventions in big cities.
The rate at which any individual is able to parse through the minutia of information that comprises the Internet, find a specific page, feature, or article that arouses their interest, and share it with complete strangers, friends, or family is also increasing. Internet connections are much faster than they were, and if the latest promotional gimmicks from providers are to be believed, connections speeds are only getting faster.
In this din of traffic and casual browsing comes Delicious – a free social bookmarking website that allows registered users to access bookmarks from anywhere. Up to this point, your bookmarks have lived with your favorite browser. Gathered and stored, they await your next click! But what if you’re away from your home computer – at the office, school, or at a friends – and can’t remember a particularly complicated web address or simply want the convenience of having your favorite links at your disposal? The simple beauty of Delicious is that it stores your bookmarks online for your use anywhere.
In addition to this, what distinguishes Delicious as a unique online tool is that it allows you to share them with other users by “tagging” your bookmark categorically or with a flourish of descriptive language. A favorite recipe could be tagged “Italian” or “spicy. Delicious will monitor your tags as well as categorize your bookmarks for your own use or, if you chose to the share them, the public’s use. It’s a great way to organize your bookmarks online in the same way you might organize your bookmarks in your browser – by category!
For teachers, Delicious could not be more perfect. Let’s say you’ve assigned your class a group project that will require them to do some research online. The students could easily go to Google, type in their search, and off they go! However, anyone familiar with a Google search knows that it can get cluttered. Unless you’re not specific, digging through search results can be a waste of time just to find a scrap of pertinent, let alone worthwhile, information.
With a Delicious account, teachers can tag and share bookmarks with students that will provide intent and focus for research projects. Bookmarks might also include interesting article or websites that extend the learning and go beyond the lesson plans by providing content rich, Web-savy multimedia experiences for students. Delicious is, like most web-based applications, what you make it. But there’s no limit to how practical and accessible you can make a site as deceptively simple as Delicious.
Here's my personal Delicious account. Not the most thorough Delicious account (I keep most of my bookmarks in my browser), but this ought to give you an idea of how a Delicious account could be used.
Delicious is not the only social bookmarking website. Other popular sites include:
Twitter – See Kevin’s post on Twitter!
Digg – Allows users to “digg” articles and sites, much like tagging but with a more “most voted” or “most dugg” feel to it.
Reddit – Not as flashy as the other bookmarking sites, but much of the same. Allows users to gather and share links.
Stumbleupon – Like channel surfing, only with websites. Determines recommendations based on your interests.
*A classic, in my opinion. I nearly caught that she-devil once! Who could forget Rockapella on the PBS game show? That show was awesome!
Another social bookmarking site that many researchers use is Diigo
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RvAkTuL02A
With this site you can annotate, highlight passages for further reference and share documents.
Diigo may have taken over Furl which was a site similar to Delicious, but it doesn't seem to have its own URL anymore and is redirected to Diigo.
Linkedin http://www.linkedin.com/nhome/ is more of a relationship and professional networking site.
When you join, you create a profile that summarizes your professional expertise and accomplishments. You can then form enduring connections by inviting trusted contacts to join LinkedIn and connect to you.
Your network consists of your connections, your connections’ connections, and the people they know, linking you to a vast number of qualified professionals and experts.
Here is a video that explains Linkedin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzT3JVUGUzM
You would post something about carman san diego. I loved that show and playing the game! We also had a puzzle that you put together and through clues in a master book solved the thefts.
ReplyDeleteRight, back on task. This is another for of technology that I hadn't really thought about the broader use of. I always relegated bookmarking sites as something that was very useful for me, personally. I had not considered it as something that could help my students weed through the plethora of sites online.
I think it becomes a great filter system, particularly if you follow other teachers --see barbs comment on Kevin's post--. As I keep reading these posts I start thinking about the students I've met that do not have a computer at home. What about them? I can see how these bookmarking sites could be used on classroom computers, but I wonder about some of the other options we've discussed. All of these types of communication relies on the students having it at their home or living close enough to a library to use it. Maybe these students are so much in the majority that it isn't something to stress too much about.
I've read a bit about the problem you identify in your last paragraph Rebekah - it's usually called "the digital divide." I do think it's something not to stress about but be cognizant of - perhaps that's something to bring up on parent-teacher night and ask if everyone house has a computer or not?
ReplyDeleteI've read about how some schools are starting to issue students laptops which would make that point moot.