Web 2.0 23 Things- The End

Going through the Web 2.0 23 Things exercise has, of course, been a huge learning experience for me. I am grateful to have had this opportunity to 'catch up' on tools/technology that have been around for quite a little while now, but some of which are new to me having been out of the field for a couple years. I especially enjoyed learning about Lulu.com and podcasts, both of which I plan to use in the near future.

This introduction to these tools has ignited a desire to continue to keep up-to-date with "all things web". This is a surprising outcome of completing the exercises, because prior to this I felt that many of the 'new' web tools and technology cropping up every hour were overkill. Spending the time to use and learn about these tools makes me see that most of us will take what we will from the perpetual fresh crop of web tools, those most useful to us and our patrons, and shelve the rest. All in all, the simple experience of exposure is invaluable.

PodCasts

One of the first things I did when I got my Iphone a few months ago was to subscribe to a couple Podcasts. One was for a show on HBO that I can't view because I don't subscribe to cable, and the other was President Obama's weekly national address.

I somehow thought these podcasts would update automatically with each new 'cast', but that hasn't been the case. That said, I haven't been interested in finding other podcasts. It could be that the nature of the podcast, its brevity, is all to 'twitter-ish' for me!

YouTube

YouTube is an interesting push forward for the world of video. It allows internet users to replicate the experience of television watching. In fact it has all but allowed the internet to replace television for many people.

I chose the video entitled 'SuperLibrarian', for obvious reasons. It's humorous, relevant, and has a pretty good viewership/rating.

Still figuring out how to download the video, so I can then upload it to the blog. Hopefully there's another method for attaching the video to this blog post.

LuLu.com

LuLu.com is an innovative website which allows artists to design, create, publish and sell their work, all on their own. It is a global 'studio' and marketplace available to anyone with internet access and a web browser. Im not sure how popular it is and if it is well-known to the general public, or if it's just a 'meeting place' for artists. I also wonder how it is marketed, by the site owners or by individuals selling through it.

Web Application Tools

Zoho Writer is an interesting name for an application; inspires one to find out exactly what Zoho means!

Having used Google Docs, Zoho seems to have been left behind in terms of functionality, usability and popularity. Nonetheless, I created 3 simple test documents and will be uploading one to this blog, if I figure out how to do that.

PBWorks

I couldn't for the life of me figure out where to add my blog to the wiki sand box :(
Could it be the 'edit' feature? Though, I don't seem to have permission to edit anything. (?)

Wiki's

What's interesting about Wiki's is the collaborative aspect. Usually we think 'too many cooks spoil the broth' but somehow when it comes to creating, updating and sharing knowledge, it somehow works.

I liked the Bull Run wiki the best, it was attractive visually and in terms of the lay-out. I prefer this look to the plain, text-based wiki.