Raven About Web 2.0

23 Things Plus 1 Alaska Style

2008-04-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

Hello! Welcome to Raven About Web 2.0
This tutorial is brought to you by the Alaska Association of School Libraries 2.0 Team in partnership with the California School Library Association's School Library Learning 2.0 Team. On the following pages, you will encounter the tools of the new Internet: Web 2.0 tools that are bringing our kids in touch with the entire world through social networking, video, audio, and gaming sites. The Raven About Web 2.0 team encourages you to take time to explore and enjoy all the tools of this new Internet. Read on! Registration occurs after you have completed the first three "Things."

23 Things
For this tutorial, there are 23 + 1 Things for you to do. Each Thing will show you one more web tool. There are many places for you to explore, experiment with, and think about creative ways to use this in your library or to collaborate with classroom teachers. There will be a credit class available between June 9 and August 1, 2008. Credit will be offered through the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Otherwise, there is no deadline and this course will remain online through the 2008-2009 school year. If you are not yet a member of the Alaska Assoc. of School Librarians, we invite you to join. [Note: Are you a classroom teacher? Check out Classroom Learning 2.0.]

Tutorial Format:
Each week begins with a brief explanation of a new web 2.0 topic, followed by Discovery Exercises. These exercises give you the background you need to understand the tools you're learning about. Don't skip them! After the Discovery Exercises, you'll find a Thing -- activity -- to complete. Then you comment or "post" to your online log (Blog.) You will learn how to set up a blog in week two. This is a tool to communicate your feelings, new found skills, ideas, questions, and favorite websites. You'll receive feedback from the CSLA 2.0 Team and from other participants. It's your space!

The links below will take you to each week's specific lesson.
Week 1:
1. Please begin by reading this blog & find out about the program.
2. Discover a few pointers from lifelong learners and learn how to nurture your own learning process.

Week 2: Blogging
3. Set up your own blog , add your first post, add an avatar.
4. Register your blog and begin your Learning 2.0 journey.

Week 3: Photos & Images
5. Explore Flickr and learn about this popular image hosting site.
6. Have some Flickr fun and discover some Flickr mashups & 3rd party sites.
7. Create a blog post about anything technology related that interests you this week.

Week 4: RSS & Newsreaders
8. Learn about RSS feeds and set up your own Bloglines newsreader account.
9. Locate a few useful library related blogs and/or news feeds.

Week 5: Play Week
10. Play around with with an online image generator.
11. Explore any site from the Web 2.0 awards list, play with it and write a blog post about your findings.
12. Explore VoiceThread A collaborative tool with many educational uses

Week 6: Tagging, Folksonomies & Technorati
13. Learn about tagging and discover Del.icio.us (a social bookmarking site)
14. Explore Technorati and learn how tags work with blog posts.
15. Read a few perspectives on Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and the future of libraries and blog your thoughts.

Week 7: Wikis
16. Learn about wikis and discover some innovative ways that libraries are using them.
17. Add an entry to the Learning 2.0 SandBox wiki.

Week 8: Online Applications & Tools
18. Take a look at some online productivity (word processing, spreadsheet) tools.
19. Take a look at LibraryThing and catalog some of your favorite books.

19.1 Alaska's Digital Pipeline

Week 9: Podcasts, Video & Downloadable Audio
20. Discover TeacherTube and a few sites that allow users to upload and share videos.
21. Podcasts (You don’t need an iPod!)
22. Presentations: Glogster, Animoto and Prezi
23. Summarize your thoughts about this program.
Copyright, Creative Commons, and CONGRATULATIONS!

Extra 3

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Use for extra page

Comment Form

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Complete this form every time you comment on another participant's blog.

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#19.1 (WEEK 8) Alaska's Digital Pipeline

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Please note that Alaska's Digital Pipeline and other electronic resources in this activity are available only to Alaska residents through this access. If you are not an Alaska resident, the activities may be completed with other databases specific to your state or school or with databases such as the National Institute of Health.

Access the Digital Pipeline and if you have not accessed the databases before, check out the tutorials.

Discovery Exercises:
There are many things that you have access to through the Digital Pipeline. Find some of the following:

Create a folder for yourself and save some articles on library topics into the folder
Find the directions for creating a journal alert and a search alert (EBSCO Support)
Find out if your favorite professional journal is available
Explore the difference between the Kids interface and the Middle School and High School Interfaces.
Explore the Consumer Health Database and find 1 of each of the following: Pamphlet, Images/Diagrams, Videos/Animations
Check out the Flash Movie explaining the upcoming changes to the EBSCO Host interface.
And finally, be sure to check out MORE from the categories list. Note the small engine and automotive repair offerings.

Blog about at least 3 new things you discovered in your exploration and how you plan to introduce your students and staff to these resources.

Resources:
EBSCO Support

#12 (Week 3) VoiceThread

2008-04-23T11:13:00.000-07:00

A VoiceThread is an online media album that can hold essentially any type of media (images, documents and videos) and allows people to make comments in 5 different ways - using voice (with a microphone or telephone), text, audio file, or video (with a webcam) - and share them with anyone they wish. They can even be exported to an Archival Movie for off-line use on a DVD or video-enabled MP3 player. A VoiceThread allows group conversations to be collected and shared in one place, from anywhere in the world.

Discovery Exercises:
1: Create an account in VoiceThread and watch the What's a VoiceThread demonstration.
2: Use the browse feature to look for ways that VoiceThread can be used in education. A good search to do is on Darth Tater (one of the frequent contributors to VoiceThread).
3: Explore the VoiceThread Tutorials.

Discovery Resources:
TeacherTube:
Introduction to VoiceThread
Art Criticism Process in VoiceThread
VoiceThread movie for Problem Based Learning

#23 (WEEK 9) Copyright, Creative Commons, and Congratulations!

2008-04-21T10:32:00.000-07:00

Putting the ‘social’ into social networks allows us to freely exchange information. But with the free exchange of information comes the responsibility of how we share it, and how we give credit to the author of that information. Check out this video, “A Fair(y) Use Tale” and learn some history of copyright.

Creative Commons: Share, Remix, Reuse — Legally

Creative Commons provides free tools that let authors, scientists, artists, and educators easily mark their creative work with the freedoms they want it to carry. You can use CC to change your copyright terms from "All Rights Reserved" to "Some Rights Reserved."

"We're a nonprofit organization. Everything we do — including the software we create — is free."

Congratulations on Completing the Raven About Web 2.0 Tutorial. The team hopes that this journey has been one of exploration and fun. You have one more blog entry to write. We would like your feedback on the experience. What worked, what didn't and things that would help the next group be more successful. We appreciate your spending time with us and welcome your feedback.

Remember that if you are doing this program for credit, you need to notify your instructor when you are finished with all the assignments.

#22 (WEEK 9) Glogster, Animoto, Prezi and more

2008-04-21T10:30:00.000-07:00

For this thing, you will explore more ways for students to publish their work.

Glogster, Prezi and Animoto are the antidote for the dreaded poster project. These services are interactive, easy to use and promote 21st century learning and communication. Glogster can be used as an interactive home page, Prezi is a non-linear presentation program that can be used like a powerpoint and Animoto allows students to create short videos with text and music by simply uploading some pictures. Be sure to review the terms and conditions before using these with students and if you work for the Anchorage School District, be sure to turn in the Web 2.0 forms to your principal.

Something to be aware of is that Glogster is often used as a social networking site. Some of the Glogs on the main site can be inappropriate for school so check out Glogster for Education.

Discovery Exercises:
1. Explore Glogster, Prezi, and Animoto - Consider how each could be used with students. What concerns might arise in using these tools with students.
2. Create a blog post about your findings.

Discovery Resources:

Tutorials for Prezi
Check out the Animoto in 60 Seconds video on the Animoto home page
Why use Glogster video from SchoolTube.com

#21 (WEEK 9) Podcasts (No iPod Needed)

2008-04-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

The word podcast is used to refer to a non-musical audio or video broadcast that is distributed over the Internet. What differentiates a podcast from regular streaming audio or video is that the delivery method for podcasts is often done automatically through RSS.

In 2005, "podcast" was named the "word of the year" by New Oxford American Dictionary and with the growth of podcasting over the last year and a half; it’s easy to see why. Podcasts take many forms, from short 1-10 minutes commentaries (like the ones used in this Learning 2.0 program) to much longer in person interviews or panel group discussions. There’s a podcast out there for just about every interest area and the best part about this technology is that you don’t have to have an iPod or a MP3 player to access them. Since podcasts use the MP3 file format, a popular compressed format for audio files, you really just need a PC (or portal device) with headphones or a speaker.

iTunes, the free downloadable application created by Apple is the directory finding service most associated with podcasts, but if you don’t have iTunes installed there are still plenty of options.

For this discovery exercise participants are asked to take a look at some popular podcast directory tools. Do some exploring on your own and locate a podcast that is of interest to you. Once found, you can easily pull the RSS feed into your blog reader (i.e., Bloglines or Google Reader) account as well, so that when new casts become available you’ll be automatically notified of their existence.

Discovery Exercise:
Take a look at one or two of the podcast directories listed and see if you can find a podcast that interests you. See if you can find some interesting library related podcasts here like book review podcasts or library news.

Add the RSS feed for a podcast to your blog reader account.

Create a blog post about your discovery process. Did you find anything useful here?

Discovery Resources:
· To find out more about podcasts start with Podcasting in Plain English tutorial
· There are many, many podcast directory and finding tools out there. Here are just three of the more popular ones that don’t, like iTunes, require a software download:
o Podcast.net
o Podcastalley.com
. See also Educational Podcast Directory
or Teacher Created Materials: Podcasts
TechSavvyGirlz Podcasts

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Interview candidates for local office, or town officials about top issues in your community.

Idea #2: Create a daily school news podcast, including an issue of the day such as copyright/music downloading/file sharing, Internet safety tips, or newest web 2.0 applications.

Do you want to learn how to be a podcaster ? (Here are optional Resources for those who want to learn to create podcasts)
Yahoo: Publish a podcast
Odeo’s Studio – online recording studio.
Beginners guide to Podcasts & Creating Podcasts
How to podcast tutorial

#20 (WEEK 9) Discover TeacherTube and a few sites that allow users to upload and share videos

2008-04-21T10:21:00.000-07:00

Within the past year online video hosting sites have exploded allowing users to easily upload and share videos on the web. Among all the web 2.0 players in this area, YouTube is currently top dog serving up over 1 million video views a day and allowing users not only to upload their own video content easily, but also embed clips into their own sites easily. However, many school district block YouTube, so check out TeacherTube, a site that says "Our goal is to provide an online community for sharing instructional videos. We seek to fill a need for a more educationally focused, safe venue for teachers, schools, and home learners." The site is self policing, and not blocked by as many districts.

Do some searching around TeacherTube or YouTube yourself and see what the sites have to offer. You'll find everything from Using Boolean Operators and GoogleDocs to library dominos and a video on how NOT to use PowerPoint. There's also the cult classic Conan the Librarian. CLA 2006 conference Library Cheer was fun, too. See also:

Of course, like any free site you’ll also find a lot stuff not worth watching too. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t explore and see for yourself what the site has too offer. :)

Discovery Exercise:

Explore TeacherTube & find a video worth adding as an entry in your blog.
Create a blog post about your experience. What did you like or dislike about the site and why did you choose the video that you did? Can you see any features or componets of the site that might be interesting if they were applied to library websites?

OPTIONAL: Try placing the video inside your blog using the copy and paste code for the for "Embeddable Player.” Note: you'll need to use Blogger's Edit HTML tab when pasting this code.

Discovery Resources:

#19 (WEEK 8) Check out LibraryThing

2008-04-21T10:20:00.000-07:00

Are you a booklover or cataloger at heart?
Do you enjoy finding lost and forgotten gems on the shelf to read?
Then LibraryThing may be just the tool for you. Developed for booklovers, this online tool not only allows you to easily create an online catalog of your own, it also connects you to other people who have similar libraries and reading tastes. Add a book to your catalog by just entering the title (it’s so easy that you don’t even need to know MARC format) or connect with other users through your similar reading tastes. There are lots of ways to use LibraryThing. You can even view your books on a virtual shelf, add a widget to display titles that are in your catalog (see sidebar for sample), or install a LT Search box on your blog.

Not just for personal collections, libraries have started using LibraryThing as well. “Small libraries are using LibraryThing to catalog their collections. Libraries are using the LibraryThing widget on their web pages to recomend books and list new titles.” (via http://wlaweb.blogspot.com/). Being a non-commercial site makes LibraryThing a good option for libraries. According to their website, LibraryThing "is exploring relationships with libraries, to offer non-commercially motivated recommendations and other social data." See also a blog comment by the Librarian-in-Black.

So why not join the ranks and create your own library online. With over 95,000 registered users (LibraryThing also has group forum for librarians) and 6.7 million books cataloged, you’re bound to discover something new.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Take a look around LibraryThing and create an account.
2. Add a least 5 books to your library.
3. Blog about your findings and be sure to link to your LibraryThing catalog. How popular were your books? Did you find any discussions about your favorites?

Discovery Resources:
· About LibraryThing
· Library Thing tour
· MoBuzzTV Review (3rd story in the 5 min broadcast)
· LibraryThing blog (updates & news)
· Thingology blog (“LibraryThing's ideas blog, on the philosophy and methods of tags, libraries and suchnot.”)
How libraries are using LibraryThing

Some Libraries using LibraryThing:
Shenandoah Public Library
Creston Public Library
Southwestern Community College LRC
Washington State Library (RSS feed also on their blog; Note - They chose to use Wordpress as their preferred blogging software).

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Have your students count all the books in their house (see Curriculum Connection idea for THING #18), then create a LibraryThing catalog of at least 25 books. [Or, some students could make a LibraryThing catalog of the classroom book collection.]

#18 (WEEK 8) Take a look at online productivity tools (word processing, spreadsheets, and more)

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One major benefit to web-based applications is that they eliminate the need to worry about different software versions or file types as you email documents or move from PC to PC. Another bonus is that they easily accommodate collaboration by allowing multiple users to edit the same file (with versioning) and provide users the ability to easily save and convert documents as multiple file types (including HTML and pdf). And, you can even use many of these tools, such as Zoho Writer and Google Docs (Formerly known as Writely) to author and publish posts to your blog.

It’s this type of integration with other Web 2.0 tools that also makes web-based apps so appealing. For this discovery exercise, you are asked to take a look at a web-based word processing tool called Zoho Writer, create a simple document and then document your discoveries in your blog. If you are up to the challenge, you might even export your document as an HTML file or publish it through Zoho to your blog. With Zoho and web-based applications, the possibilities are endless.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Create a free account for yourself in Zoho Writer
2. Explore the site and create a test document or two.
3. Try out Zoho Writer’s features and create a blog post about your discoveries.

Optional: If you’re up for the challenge, try using Zoho’s publish options to post to your blog.
* Note: You can also explore Google Docs (formerly known as Writely), Google's online word processing, as an option for this exercise. FYI: On Oct 11th, 2006, Google re-launched Writely (which it acquired in Spring 2006) as Google Docs.

BTW: Here’s a Zoho-created document (viewable as a webpage) about some of the beneficial features of Zoho.

Discovery Resources:
A short list of web-based productivity applications – Note: This list was authored in ZohoWriter and exported as HTML.

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Have your students count all the books in their house (not including cook books.) Have them sort them by type (fiction/nonfiction, mystery, sports, subject, size, color -- their choice) and list these on a spreadsheet. [Note: you may want to limit the books to 200.]

[Note: Remember to include WEEK# and THING# in your heading posts.]

#17 (Week 7) Add an entry to "Sandbox" Wiki

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A sandbox is a term that wikis often use to describe the area of the website that should be used for pure play so for this discovery and exploration exercise, go Raven About Web 2.0 Curriculum Wiki -- go ahead and play!

Discovery Exercise:
1. Visit the Raven About Web 2.0 Curriculum Wiki and go to the section devoted to one or more of the topics covered in the 9 weeks of the Raven About Web 2.0 course.

2. Create a post in your blog about the experience. How might you use wikis?

Discovery Resources:

WikiSpaces Teacher Tube Tutorial Part 1 - Find out how easy it is to start a wiki using Wikispaces and compare it to the PB Wiki Teacher Tube Tutorial below.

· PB Wiki Teacher Tube Part 1 - Find out how easy it is to start one of these collaborative tools.

· PBWiki Video Gallery - Short videos of PBwiki features

· PB Wiki Tips

Curriculum Connection:

Idea #1: Select one of your favorite curriculum ideas from your own blog. "Copy and paste" it to the Raven About Web2.0 Curriculum Wiki.

*NOTE: The Raven About Web 2.0 wiki was created using the free version of Wikispaces.com a tool that lets you create webpages that anyone can edit.

#16 (WEEK 7) Learn about wikis and discover some innovative ways that libraries are using them

2008-04-21T10:14:00.000-07:00

A wiki is a collaborative website and authoring tool that allows users to easily add, remove and edit content. Wikipedia, the online open-community encyclopedia, is the largest and perhaps the most well known of these knowledge sharing tools, but with benefits that wikis provide the use and popularity of these tools is exploding.

Some of the benefits that make the use of wikis so attractive are:

Anyone (registered or unregistered, if unrestricted) can add, edit or delete content.
Tracking tools within wikis allow you to easily keep up on what been changed and by whom.
Earlier versions of a page can be rolled back and viewed when needed.
Users do not need to know HTML in order to apply styles to text or add and edit content. In most cases simple syntax structure is used.

As the use of wikis has grown over the last few years, libraries all over the country have begun to use them to collaborate and share knowledge. Among their applications are pathfinder or subject guide wikis, book review wikis, ALA conference wikis and even library best practices wikis.

Discovery Exercise:
1. For this discovery exercise, you are asked to take a look at some library wikis and blog about your findings.
Here are a few examples to get you started:

SJCPL Subject Guides – a pathfinder wiki developed by the St. Joseph County Public Library system.
Book Lovers Wiki - developed by the Princeton Public Library.
Library Success: A best practices wiki
CSLA Conference 2007 wiki – an example of a wiki created to support a specific event.
The Albany County Public Library Staff wiki – an example of a wiki created for library staff to document procedures.
Library Bloggers Wiki
Sample school wiki
Sample Literary Circle Wiki (10th Grade English)
Sample AP World History Wiki
http://teacherlibrarianwiki.pbwiki.com/
pbwiki for educators and librarians
Other library wiki examples such as library instruction.

2. Create a blog post about your findings. What did you find interesting? What types of applications within libraries and schools might work well with a wiki?

Discovery Resources:

Use these resources to learn more about wikis:

· Wiki, wiki, wiki - from the Core Compentency blog of the Public Library of Charlotte-Mecklenburg County.
· Wikis: A Beginner’s Look – an excellent short slide presentation that offers a short introduction and examples.
· What is a Wiki? – Library Success wiki presentation.
· Using Wikis to Create Online Communities – a good overview of what a wiki is and how it can be used in libraries.

Curriculum Connections:

Wikis can be made for any classroom!

Idea #1: Collaborative note-taking. Everyone pitches in and adds a fact or two about a topic. Teachers can encourage students to include opinions, challenges, and appropriate criticism. Students would then write essays using only these notes. Make sure that each addition includes a citation to website, book, or database, including page numbers so that it can be checked.
Idea #2: History. Students can compile a wiki of famous artists, architects, writers, and other key historical figures from a city, state, or country.
Idea #3: Create a "top 10" lists and supporting material. This could include scientists and their discoveries, top writers and their books, ... you get the idea.
Idea #4: Mission trading cards (see Week 3), once completed, could be added to a class wiki.

So what's in a wiki? Find out by doing some exploring on your own.

[Note: Please remember to include WEEK# and THING# in your heading posts.]

#15 (WEEK 6) Read some perspectives on Web 2.0. Future of Libraries

2008-04-21T10:12:00.000-07:00

Library 2.0 is term used to describe a new set of concepts for developing and delivering library services. The name, as you may guess, is an extension of Web 2.0 and shares many of its same philosophies and concepts including harnessing the user in both design and implementation of services, embracing constant change as a development cycle over the traditional notion of upgrades, and reworking library services to meet the users in their space, as opposed to ours (libraries.)

Many have argued that the notion of Library 2.0 is more than just a term used to describe concepts that merely revolve around the use of technology; it also a term that can be used to describe both physical and mindset changes that are occurring within libraries to make our spaces and services more user-centric and inviting. Others within the profession have asserted that libraries have always been 2.0: collaborative, customer friendly and welcoming. But no matter which side of the debate proponents fall, both sides agree that libraries of tomorrow, even five or ten years from now, will look substantially different from libraries today.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Read two or three of the perspectives on Library 2.0 from the list below. Create a blog post about your thoughts on any one of these.
2. Library 2.0 - It's many things to many people. What does it mean to you? What does it mean for school libraries?

Discovery Resources:
OCLC Next Space Newsletter – Web 2.0: Where will the next generation of the web it take libraries?

Five Perspectives:
Away from Icebergs
Into a new world of librarianship
To more powerful ways to cooperate
To better bibliographic services
To a temporary place in time
Wikipedia – Library 2.0
Library 2.0 Discussions (list of great references from Wikipedia)
The Horizons Report - 2008 Applications of emerging technologies to teaching, learning, and creative expression.

We hope you're enjoying all the exercises you've done so far. Keep having fun exploring and thinking about Web 2.0/Library 2.0/School Library 2.0

#14 (WEEK 6) Explore Technorati and learn how tags work with blog posts

2008-04-21T10:11:00.000-07:00

So now that you’ve been blogging for awhile, you might be wondering just how big is the blogosphere? Well according to San Francisco based Technorati, the leading search tool and authority for blogs, there are “over 175,000 new blogs (that’s just blogs) every day. Bloggers update their blogs regularly to the tune of over 1.6 million posts per day, or over 18 updates a second.” Technorati currently tracks 62.5 million blogs. If the blogging trend continues, it is estimated that Technorati will have tracked its 100 millionth blog in just 5 months.

Yes, these numbers are astounding, but as you’ve already seen for yourselves, blogging is so easy that these publishing tools are being taken advantage of by almost every industry, including libraries.

So how do you get your blog listed as part of the blogosphere and how can you tag your posts with keywords to make them more findable through a Technorati search? The answer to the first question is that your blog is probably already being captured by Technorati due to the fact that you’re already using Blogger, the most popular blogging tool. But if you want to join the party and have your blog officially listed on Technorati and also take advantage of the watchlist and other features, you’ll need to claim your blog yourself. As for tagging posts with Technorati tags? This is easy too. All you need to do is add a little bit of HTML code to the bottom of your post (see example below) and Technorati will pick up these tags when it spiders (or web crawls) your site.

There are a lot of features in Technorati including the capability to search for keywords in blog posts, search for entire blog posts that have been tagged with a certain keyword, limit a search by language, or search for blogs that have been registered and tagged as whole blogs about a certain subject (like photography or libraries).

Discovery Exercise:

1. Take a look at Technorati and try doing a keyword search for “School Library Learning 2.0” in Blog posts, in tags and in the Blog Directory. Are the results different?

2. Explore popular blog, searches and tags. Is anything interesting or surprising in your results?

3. Create a blog post about your discoveries on this site.

4. Now that we’ve worked with tags in Flickr, Del.icio.us, and Technorati, what are your thoughts about tagging? What are its advantages? What are its disadvantages?

OPTIONAL: If you're up for a challenge, learn how to tag your posts with Technorati tags so they can become part of Technorati tag searches. Create a post about something. It can be anything you want and add the HTML code to the bottom to tag it as “SJLibrary2.0.” You may also want to consider claiming your blog and creating a watchlist.

NOTE: When adding HTML code, you'll want to make sure you're in Blogger's Edit HTML window. There's a lot to explore.

Discovery Resources:

Technorati Tour – videocast of new features & new look
Technorati Discover & Popular features

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Use these tools to locate blogs and other sites relating to election or other issues.

Posted by School Library Learning 2.0 Team at 8:36 PM

#13 (WEEK 6) Learn about tagging and discover Del.icio.us (a social bookmarking site)

2008-04-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

Tagging is an open and informal method of categorizing that allows users to associate keywords with online content (webpages, pictures & posts). Unlike traditional library subject cataloging, which follows a strict set of guidelines (e.g., Library of Congress subject headings), tagging is completely unstructured and freeform, allowing users to create connections between data in any way they want.

In the past few weeks, we’ve already explored one site – Flickr - that allows users to take advantage of tagging and in week 3 many of you even used a common tag to create an association between photos that we individually uploaded. This week, in addition to exploring Technorati and LibraryThing tagging, we also want to take a look at the popular social bookmarking site Del.icio.us (typed in as http://del.icio.us/).

Why social bookmarking? Well, have you checked your list of favorites or bookmarks on your internet browser lately? If you’re like me, your favorites list may need some pruning or organization. Or, if you don’t happen to be on your regular computer, how do you even remember all the sites you’ve bookmarked?

Del.icio.us is a social bookmarking manager which allows you to bookmark a web page and add tags to categorize your bookmarks.

Many users find that real power of Del.icio.us is in the social networking aspect, which allows you to see how other users have tagged similar links and also discover other websites that may be of interest to you. You can think of it as peering into another users’ filing cabinet, but with this powerful bookmarking tool each user's filing cabinet helps to build an expansive knowledge network.For this discovery exercise, you are asked to take a look at Del.icio.us and learn about this popular bookmarking tool.

Discovery Exercise:
1. View the Del.icio.us tutorial by Santa Cruz Public Library to get a good overview of its features. SCPL created several tutorials to support its 23 Things program.

2. Take a look around Del.icio.us using the SJLibraryLearning2 account that was created for this exercise. Note: In this account you will find lots of resources that have been highlighted or used throughout the course of the Learning 2.0 program. You can keep up to date with what's added by subscribing to the RSS feed.

3. Explore the site options and try clicking on a bookmark that has also been bookmarked by a lot of other users. Can you see the comments they added about this bookmark or the tags they used to catgorize this reference?

4. Create a blog post about your experience and thoughts about this tool. Can you see the potential of this tool for research assistance? Or just as an easy way to create bookmarks that can be accessed from anywhere? How can libraries take advantage of social bookmarking sites?
Would you like to read more about del.icio.us and other social bookmarking tools? Go to SJLibrary’s del.icio.us page and look for entries under the tag headings “del.icio.us” and “bookmarking.”

OPTIONAL: If you’re up to the challenge, create a Del.icio.us account for yourself and discover how this useful bookmarking tool can replace your traditional browser bookmark list. You might even want to explore Del.icio.us’ latest addition, a network badge. (Psst! see it over there at the end of the navigation sidebar.)

Note: If you do setup a Del.icio.us account, here’s a quick word about the Del.icio.us Buttons. On PC that have the toolbars locked down, these will install as options in your browser bookmarks. Use the “Post to my Del.icio.us” link to add the current webpage to your account (you may need to log in). Use the “My Del.icio.us” link to view your online account.

Discovery Resources:

-- Lee LeFever's Social Bookmarking in Plain English- Highly recommended!!! -- Us.ef.ul: A beginners guide to Del.icio.us -- Libraries that del.icio.us: (d=that library's del.icio.us page)
. Maui Community College Library (d)
. McMaster University Library (d)
. Menasha Public Library (d)
. San Mateo Public Library (d)
. Seldovia Public Library (d)
- Web 2.0 Library Website Recommendations Site.

[Note: Please remember to include WEEK# and THING# in your heading posts.]

#11 (WEEK 5) Explore Web 2.0 award-winning applications and Ning

2008-04-14T18:25:00.002-07:00

Throughout the course of this Learning 2.0 program we’ve explored just a small sampling of the new internet technologies and websites that are empowering users with the ability to create and share content. But given time there are so many more we could explore! A recent estimate placed the number of Web 2.0 tools at somewhere between 300 & 500 with only a handful emerging as market dominators. And although time will only tell which of these new collaborative, social networking and information tools will remain on top, one thing is for sure, they're not going to go away (at least anytime soon).

For this discovery exercise, participants are asked to select any site from this list of Web 2.0 Award Winners and explore it. With so many to choose from, it might be handy to first select a category that interests you (like Books or Personal Organization) and then select a tool/site to explore. Be careful to select a tool that is Free and that doesn't require a plug-in or download. The majority of these are free, so this shouldn’t be a problem. Another site that is gaining in popularity is the social networking site called Ning. With Ning, you can set up your own social network such as an after school or book club. To learn more about Ning, check out one of the librarian or school related groups such as: Library 2.0, ALA Members, Teacher-Librarian, or Teachers2.0.

Discovery Exercise:

Select any site/tool from the list of Web 2.0 Awards winners (If you prefer to select from just the winners, here’s a link to the short list.)
Explore the site you selected.
Create a post about your discovery. What did you like or dislike about the tool? What were the site’s useful features? Could you see any applications for its use in a library setting?
Join a Ning network.
Play -- check your Travel IQ.

Web 2.0 – with so much to explore, just start with ONE. :)
We hope you're having fun with the exercises.

#10 (WEEK 5) Play around with online image generators

2008-04-14T18:25:00.001-07:00

Generators? No, I’m not talking about those gas powered back-up things. The generators I’m talking about are websites that allow you to easily manipulate images. See examples:

For this discovery exercise, we want you to have even more fun than you're already having! Find a few fun image or text generators to play around with and write a post in your blog about one of your favorites and the display the result. Often adding the image you mocked up to your blog is as simple as copying and pasting code that the page provides. If not, you may just need to right click on the image and then save it to your hard drive before using Blogger’s image button to add it to your post. If you’re having difficulty getting your image added to a post in your blog, ask a colleague for help or your CSLA 2.0 Team.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Play around with some image generators and find one that you like.
2. Post the result of your discovery process in your blog.
Note: Be sure to include a link to the image generator itself, so other participants can discover it too. Take some time and have fun with this exercise. And remember to be tasteful too!
* Images created with FD Toys, Comic Strip Generator, Image Chef.

Discovery Resources:
.The Generator Blog FD Flickr Toys
.Also try searching for online generators, text generators or image generators such as Comic Strip Generator, Image Chef.

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Image generators: Show how to make an interesting image to use as interesting story starters. For example: using the star image on Hollywood Boulevard, a teacher or student could add the name of a character, a famous person, or any name. The students could make up a story about how that person got his/her very own star on the Hollywood walk of fame.
Idea #2: Use comic strip generator to make cartoon directions - students and fellow educators might follow THOSE directions!!
Idea #3: Generate an image for your library website, newsletter, or bulletin board.

[Note: Please remember to include WEEK# and THING# in your heading posts.]

#9 (WEEK 4) Locate a few useful School Library related blogs and/or news feeds

2008-04-14T18:14:00.001-07:00

Now that you have an RSS Reader (your Bloglines or Google Reader account), you can begin adding other feeds that interest you. There are several ways you can locate RSS feeds:

When visiting your favorite websites -- look for RSS feed icons that indicate the website provides it. Often a feed icon will be diplayed somewhere in the navigation of the site.
Use Blogline's Search tool - Bloglines recently expanded search tool lets you search for news feeds in addition to posts, citations and the web. Use the Search for Feeds option to locate RSS feeds you might be interested in.
Check out the top "Edublog" award-winning blogs and school library blogs.

Other Search tools that can help you find feeds:

Blogdigger.com : Fairly new to the blog searching world, allows you to use keyword searching and sort by date or relevance. Also allows you to search for blogs local to you.
Topix.net - This search tool allows you to locate recent newsfeed items based upon keyword or phrase searching. The tool focuses specifically on news and media outlets RSS feeds for information, not weblogs
Syndic8.com - Syndic8 is an open directory of RSS feeds that contains thousands of RSS feeds that users have submitted.
Technorati - Technorati is a popular blog finding tool that lets you search for blogs. Since RSS feeds are inherent to all blogging tools, Technorati Blog Search can help you find RSS feeds for topic specific blogs you may be interested in.

Google Blog Search - See what appears when you search "raven about web 2.0"

Blog Pulse - Tracks conversations (try putting CSLA 2.0 to see who is talking about us)
Additonal Resource: Technorati Tutorial on finding and adding your blog

Discovery Exercise:

Explore some of the search tools noted above that can help you locate some news feeds.
Create a blog post about your experience. Don't know what to blog about? Here some questions to think about ...Which method of finding feeds did you find easiest to use? Which Search tool was the easiest for you? Which was more confusing? What kind of unuseful feeds did you find in your travels? Or what kind of unusual ones did you find? What other tools or ways did you find to locate newsfeeds?

#8 (Week 4) Learn about RSS feeds and set up a blog reader account

2008-04-14T18:11:00.000-07:00

Make Life “really simple” with RSS & a news reader

powered by ODEO

You’ve heard of RSS? You’ve seen those small funny tags on websites? You’ve heard co-workers and acquaintances swear by it, but still have no idea what RSS is? Well don’t worry, according to a this survey you’re still in the majority, but this is changing rapidly. In the information world, RSS is not only revolutionalizing the way news, media and content creators share information, but it also is swiftly changing the way everyday users are consuming information.

RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is a file format for delivering regularly updated information over the web. Just think about the websites and news information sources you visit everyday. It takes time to visit those sites and scour the ad-filled and image-heavy pages for just the text you want to read, doesn’t it? Read more about RSS here or see this video at BlipTV.

Now imagine if you could visit all those information sources and web pages in just one place and all at the same time … without being bombarded with advertising… without having to search for new information on the page you’d already seen or read before… and without having to consume a lot of time visiting each site individually. Would that be valuable to you? Well, it’s available now through a newsreader and RSS. This week’s discovery exercises focus on learning about RSS news feeds and what free tools you can use to do this.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Follow these discovery exercises to set up your own, personalized RSS feed reader. Learn about the difference between RSS feed readers, Bloglines, and Google Reader.
2. Create a free "RSS aggregator" account from either Bloglines or Google Reader and subscribe to at least 5 newsfeeds to your reader. [BLOGLINES. Here are the steps for creating an account in BLOGLINES. See Using Bloglines Tutorial steps 1-3 for instructions. See also a short video on TeacherTube: RSS In Plain English ; GOOGLE READER. You may prefer to set up an RSS aggregator in Google Reader. Tutorials include: Google Reader Tour, video tutorial#1 or #2.]
3. Create a post in your blog about this exercise. Don’t know what to blog about? Think about these questions: What do you like about RSS and newsreaders? How do you think you might be able to use this technology in your school or personal life? How can libraries use RSS or take advantage of this new technology? Optional: If you're up to the challenge, you can provide the URL address to your public bloglines account (find where to find this below)

Newsfeeds to add to your reader:
San Jose Mercury News Feeds (pick at least one)

Reader’s Club new review feeds

Unshelved - Library cartoon feed

Maybry Middle School, Georgia - example RSS feed

Discovery Resources:

CNET Video: RSS – Feel the Need for Feeds (3:32) – a good over view of what RSS is and the benefits to users.
Feed Me: A gentle introduction to Internet feeds - a good tutorial from Palinet, a library cooperative
What is RSS? Video by Common Craft. See other similar videos.
How to Make your RSS Feeds Pop! Check your local newspaper and discover if they have an RSS feed you can subscribe to.
Additional Bloglines news feed subcription information · Your co-workers or members of the Virtual Services Task Group - tap into their knowledge and experience with RSS feeds and readers.
Post about usefulnesss of Google Gears

How to find your public Bloglines URL:

1. Click on the Share tab within your Bloglines account:
2. Scroll down the right screen pane and locate the public URL.
Why have a public account? To share blog rolls with others, of course. That's how we keep track of School Library Learning 2.0 participants

#7 (WEEK 3) Create a blog post about anything technology-related that interests you this week

2008-04-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

Simply blog about anything technology related. Yes, it can be anything that relates to technology! You just need to share a few thoughts. For example:

I like digital cameras because it's much easier to share photos with family and
friends now that I have a Flickr account. Skype lets me talk with friends through computers. Technology advancements for music and medical equipment are amazing! Video Games, iTunes, iPods, Flatscreen televisions, etc.

Curriculum Connections:

Idea #1: Never miss an opportunity to share and discuss issues related to technology such as Internet safety & ethics, censorship, plagiarism, copyright, and library collection development.

PS: Also be sure to add at least one comment to another participant's blog. That's what online communities are all about - connecting and communication. CHEER and otherwise encourage your RAW 2.0 colleagues :)

About

2008-04-14T14:21:00.000-07:00

This blog has been set-up as part of the Alaska Assoc. of School Librarians Professional Development using the CSLA School Library Learning 2.0 program to encourage all of us to experiment and learn about the new and emerging technologies that are reshaping the context of information on the Internet today. The Raven About Web 2.0 Team modified The CSLA School Library Learning 2.0 program which was modified from The Learning 2.0 program designed by Helene Blowers, Technology Director, Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County and is loosely based upon Stephen Abram's article, 43 Things I (or You) might want to do this year (Information Outlook - February 2006) and the website 43 Things. We also drew heavily from the jslibrarylearning2 program. The Raven About Web 2.0 program contains direct links and offers suggestions for ways to incorporate these tools into your classroom and teacher collaborations. We offer ideas to "jump start" your thinking and hope you will share your ideas as you learn how to use web 2.0 tools. The design of this online program was completely built on Web 2.0 technologies that are freely available on the Internet. These sites include: Blogger, Flickr, Odeo, YouTube, PBWiki & Bloglines.

Frequently Asked Questions:
1. How does this online learning program work? This is a self-discovery program which encourages participants to take control of their own learning and to utilize their lifelong learning skills through exploration and play. AKASL members are encouraged to work together and share with each other their discoveries, techniques, and "how to's" both in person and through their blogs. This course is web-based and not tied to any particular computer. In fact, you may want to work at home or at a public library if your school Internet filtering software blocks too many blog or multimedia sites.

2. Is this program open to all AKASL members or just some? This program is open to all AKASL Members. Participants who complete the entire course will receive special recognition. If you are not yet a member of AKASL, you are welcome to follow along or, better yet, join AKASL.

3. How long do I have to complete the program? If you are taking this course for credit, please plan your time according to the class schedule. You are expected to work on exercises each week. However, you may work ahead or take a week off here and there. It is up to you! This course is web based and not tied to your computer at work. We will keep the course online through the school year so you can invite your colleagues to take the course and you can cheer them along.

4. How do I track my progress for the 23 Things? You will be asked to make a blog of your own to track your progress. Please use your blog to write your reactions to the lessons and add any ideas you may have on how to use web 2.0 tools for yourself and your school. This is YOUR time to experiment, have fun, and learn at you own pace. Web 2.0 is here....and now, so are we! To the right, see a list of blogs of participants.

Recommended way to track: Include WEEK # and THING # in the heading of each post. It will help you and the Raven About Web 2.0 Team track your progress. It is also real helpful when you want to refer back or add something new on a specific topic or tool.

5. Can we get credits for the course? Yes. From June 9 to August 1, 2008 there will be a class run through the University of Alaska Fairbanks. For further information contact Katie Sanders ksanders@northstar.k12.ak.us or call 907-452-2000 x236.

6. What are "Curriculum connections"? Curriculum connections are the ideas that participants develop throughout the course. We are asking everyone to think of ways to use each of these 2.0 tools in their own library and classroom. We are especially looking for ways to create dynamic collaborations with teacher librarians and classroom teachers. We have created a curriculum wiki. At the end of the course, you will have a lot of ideas to use and share.

7. WEEK 7 is Wiki Week. We have created a Raven About Web 2.0 Curriculum wiki especially for you, so when you learn a new 2.0 application and use it in a special way for your school library or a classroom collaboration, you can add and share that "2.0 Best Practice." Participants are welcome to contribute to the wiki as they move through the 9-week course, or can wait until WEEK 7. It is your choice. Just "copy and paste" your applications into the wiki.

8. Will there be any training classes offered to show AKASL members how to do this? No, this is a self-directed learning program. We will provide helpful hints, encouraging words, and post comments from time to time. You are also encouraged to be resourceful and to find a co-worker or another staff member who can help. Be sure to share your knowledge and expertise too! The Raven About Web 2.0 Team will be available by e-mail (Ravenaboutweb20@gmail.com) to answer your questions.

9. Is there any tech support? What tech support do you have now? At work? At home? At your local coffee shop or library? If you run into difficulties, ask the Raven About Web 2.0. We can assist you with the course, but not your computer or Internet connection.

10. Why Do This? Web 2.0 is a phrase that was coined in 2004. It refers to the fact that the Internet is now an interactive medium rather than a ‘place’ to go to get information. Since it is the young who are flocking to these Web 2.0 sites, it is important that those of us who work in school libraries should be up-to-date with the latest trends in education and technology and learn how they can be utilized in or with our school libraries.

In April 2007, at the Computers in Libraries Conference the keynote speaker was Lee Rainie, Founding Director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project The title of his keynote was: “Web 2.0 and What it Means to Libraries.” In this presentation, he spoke about six “hallmarks” of the Web 2.0 world that matter to libraries. These hallmarks outline the important fact that more and more Internet users are using the Internet to make connections, contributing their ‘know-how’ and customizing their experiences on the web.

Hallmark #1: The Internet has become the computer;
Hallmark #2: Tens of millions of Americans, especially the young, are creating and sharing content online;
Hallmark #3: Even more Internet users are accessing the content created by others;
Hallmark #4: Many are sharing what they know and what they feel online and that is building conversations and communities;
Hallmark #5: Tens of thousands are contributing their know-how and/or their processing power to the online commons;
Hallmark #6: Online Americans are customizing their online experiences thanks to Web 2.0 tools.

It is because of these “hallmarks” that the CSLA 2.0 Team offers this fun professional development tutorial for you!

11. Who are members of the Raven About Web 2.0 Team? RAW 2.0 Team leaders are Katie Sanders and Ann Morgester. We initially ran a class in June-Aug of 2008 in order to "test drive" the program and recommend relevant school library web 2.0 sites and activities.

#2 (WEEK 1) Lifelong Learning Habits

2008-04-14T13:38:00.000-07:00

It makes sense that before we embark on this online learning and discovery journey that we review a few habits that can assist in creating lifelong learners. These habits, called the Seven and 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners, will provide you with a refresher on what it means to be a lifelong learner. The Seven and ½ Habits tutorial is a great introduction to Helene Blowers. [Please note that at the end, where she invited her staff to submit their comments and questions to the We Value Your Opinion! link, DO NOT use that link. Instead, send your comments to the RAW 2.0 Team at Ravenaboutweb20@gmail.com

Discovery Exercise:
1. Make sure you have headphones or speakers attached to your computer.
2. Open up the 7 & 1/2 Habits online tutorial and view the online tutorial. The tutorial was developed by the training specialists at the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.
3. As you watch and listen, write down which habit among the 7 & 1/2 that is easiest for you and which is hardest. You will use your personal blog (which you will set up next) to post your thoughts about lifelong learning. Have fun!

If you haven't jumped on board yet, it's never too late to become a lifelong learner.
Next Up: Creating your blog so you can begin tracking your journey.

#6 (WEEK 3) Flickr fun, mashups, and 3rd party sites

2008-04-14T13:31:00.002-07:00

Like many web 2.0 sites, Flickr has encouraged other people to build their own online applications using images found on the site. Through the use of APIs (application programming interfaces), many people have created third party tools and mashups* that use Flickr images. Here is just a sampling of a few …

· Mappr - takes Flickr images and allows you to paste them on a map
· Flickr Color Pickr - lets you find public photos in Flickr that match a specific color.
· Montagr – create a photo mosaics from photos found on Flickr.
Discover more mashups, web apps, and Flickr tools.

Discovery Exercise:
Your discovery exercise for this “thing” is to: Explore some of the fun Flickr mashups and 3rd party tools that are out there. Create a blog post about one that intrigues you. You might want to check out FD Toys’ Trading Card Maker. And there’s a ton of librarians out there that have created their own Librarian Trading Card. So have some fun discovering and exploring some neat little apps. If you are up to the challenge while you’re at it, create a trading card of your own. :) or a movie poster or magazine cover from this Flickr site.* Mashup Note: Wikipedia offers some great articles that explain mashups. Basically they are hybrid web applications that take features from one application (like Flickr) and mash it up with another (like a map) In this example, you get Mappr (http://mappr.com)

#6 (WEEK 3) Flickr fun, mashups, and 3rd party sites

2008-04-14T13:31:00.001-07:00

Like many web 2.0 sites, Flickr has encouraged other people to build their own online applications using images found on the site. Through the use of APIs (application programming interfaces), many people have created third party tools and mashups* that use Flickr images. Here is just a sampling of a few …

#5 (WEEK 3) Explore Flickr and learn about this popular image hosting site

2008-04-14T13:23:00.000-07:00

Photo sharing websites have been around since the 90s, but it took a small startup site called Flickr (now owned by Yahoo) to catapult the idea of “sharing” into a full blown online community. Flickr uses "tags" or what we would call keywords to help identify and search for photos.

For this discovery exercise, you are asked to take a good look at Flickr and discover what this site has to offer. Find out how tags work, what groups are, and all the neat things that people and other libraries (list also here) are creating thanks to Flickr.

Discovery Exercise:
In this discovery exercise, you have two options…
a. Take a good look around Flickr and discover an interesting image that you want to blog about. Be sure to include either a link to the image or if you create a Flickr account, you can use Flickr's blogging tool to add the image in your post. Another option you have for including images in your post is to use Blogger's photo upload tool.
--OR--
b. If you are up to an easy challenge ... create a Free account in Flickr and use your location's digital camera to capture a few pictures of something in your school library. Upload these to your Flickr account and tag at least one of the images “Raven About Web 2.0” and mark it public. Then create a post in your blog about your photo and experience. Be sure to include the image in your post. Once you have a Flickr account, you have two options for doing this; through Flickr's blogging tool or using Blogger's photo upload feature. So go ahead, explore the site and have some Flickr photo fun and if you're interested in looking at some photo hosting sites, then check out Picasa Web Albums from Google and another service called Smugmug.
PS: A quick word about photo posting etiquette - When posting identifiable photos of other people (especially minors) get the person's permission before posting their photo in a publicly accessible place like Flickr. Never upload pictures that weren't taken by you (unless you have the photographer's consent) and always give credit when you include photos taken by someone else in your blog.

Discovery Resources:
· Flickr Learn More tour (6 steps)
· Mediamazine Flickr Tutorials
· Flickr: Popular tags Interesting- Last 7 days
· Flickr Services (3rd party applications & mashups) and here's another Flickr site that lets you create movie posters, CD covers, magazine covers and so on.
· libraries that Flickr or 365 Days of Library Pictures in Flickr.
FlickrStorm: Streamline searching on Flickr
TeacherTube Instruction video: There are 3 parts to this instructional series.Using Flickrstorm Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

#4 (WEEK 2) Register your blog with ... Raven About Web 2.0

2008-04-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

If you’ve made it this far, you already have three items or “things” completed of the ’23 Things.’ We hope you are enjoying the adventure so far and having fun. Remember to share with colleagues knowledge or experience that may help them out if they get stuck or vice versa!

But how do you qualify for the special recognition? Good question! You need to do two things. You have to register your blog with the CSLA 2.0 Team, plus you have to record your progress on each of the ‘23 things’ on your blog. Reminder: Clearly identify each WEEK and each exercise (THING) in your entries. The CSLA 2.0 Team will track and verify your progress in a log that they will maintain. So, here’s Thing #4 –Send an email to Ravenaboutweb20@gmail.com with your blog address right away. You will then be officially registered.

Remember … your blog address is in the format http://insertname.blogspot.com/
It’s really that easy and just think, now there’s only 19 more things (plus 2) to go. :)

#3 (WEEK 2) Create your own blog & avatar, then post about it

2008-04-03T14:52:00.000-07:00

Now that you’ve done some exploring around this website and understand how this program will work, it’s time to set up your very own personal blog to begin recording your thoughts, discoveries, and exercises. For this program, you may use any one of several free online blog hosting services including Blogger, Wordpress, or Typepad. (Although we are recommending Blogger, you may find that your school district may block websites with the name "blog" in them or your district may have a preferred blog service.) http://avatars.yahoo.com/

Grab yourself a blog in 3 steps:
1. Create an account
Google asks you for an email address - this becomes your username.

Note:
->You do not need a Gmail account.
->Remember to write down your Username and Password.

2. Name your blog
Remember that the whole web world can see your blog title and blog address. You probably don’t want to use your real name. Consider creating a blog name that’s anonymous, yet uniquely you. The URL for your blog will look like these examples - http://librarywriting.blogspot.com/ or http://preilly.wordpress.com/ or http://librarianinblack.typepad.com/ (these are real blogs so of course you need to give your own blog its own unique name.) The format is name.blogspot.com when you use blogger.com software. Note: There are no www in the address when using Blogger.com software. Please remember your URL address and/or bookmark it.

The Raven About Web 2.0 Team recommends: Participants are urged to use a name or "handle" as follows: [FIRST NAME or NICKNAME]LMT2 or [FIRST NAME or NICKNAME]Library2 -- for example, http://barbaralmt2.blogspot.com/ or http://hiphoplibrary2.blogspot.com/

3. Select your template.
Blogger has several templates - have fun choosing one for you! If you run into problems, check out Blogger's Help file and Tutorial or ask your Raven About Web 2.0 Team.

Discovery Exercise:
1. Set up a blog for yourself through Blogger.
2. Play around and add a test post or two.
3. You will create a discovery post for each of the ’23 Things.’
Please clearly label each entry in your blog in the following way: Week 1, Exercise or Thing #1, subject. Each of your posts should provide insights into what you’ve discovered and learned. Feel free to share what worked for you … and what didn’t … what surprised you … what frustrated you … what amazed you. For example: Your ‘Thing 2’ post will talk about which habit among the 7 and 1/2 lifelong learning habits is easiest and which is hardest for you & why. TIP: This is a good time to "bookmark" your blog for easy access throughout the course.

4. Create an avatar -- a representation of yourself. Go to http://avatars.yahoo.com/ , design an avatar with a library or classroom background. (You will have to set up an account if you don't use Yahoo!) Save your avatar and export to your blog.

[HINT: Here's how to export your avatar to your blog. When you on your Avatars.Yahoo.com page, go to "home" tab and look to the right column. One of the options is: "EXPORT: Use your avatar in web pages and blogs and more." Click there. Then, in the Center of the page, 0ne option is your avatar's HTML code. Copy the code, go to your blog (Sign in. When you first sign in, there is an option to add a post OR manage posts, settings, or layout; Go to "LAYOUT." You will see various page elements.) Paste (Control V) the HTML code in the PAGE ELEMENT marked "HTML/Java Script." Then move that PAGE ELEMENT to wherever you want your avatar to appear on your blog.]

These exercises are all about discovery! Have fun … and happy blogging!!

IMPORTANT NOTE: How you choose to identity yourself on your blog is up to you. You can blog under a screen name, anonymously, or with your real name. Either way, in order to qualify for the special recognition, you will need to register your blog with the Raven About Web 20 Team. Send an email to us with your blog URL at ravenaboutweb20@gmail.com . Guest participants (non-AKASL members) are welcome to register but will not be eligible for prizes or special recognition.

Technorati tags: blogging, Blogger
[Note: Please remember to include Week# and Thing# in your heading posts.]