Week 6 Thing 14 Tag test

OK – I’ll try putting in some html code and see if the tag will be recognised on Technorati. Cross fingers and toes!

<a href="http://technorati.com/tag/test" rel="tag">test</a>

<a href="http://technorati.com/tag/week+6" rel="tag">week+6</a>

No success - I'm giving up now.

 

Week 6 Thing 14 Technorati & tagging

I really have to speed up and stop writing such long posts. Otherwise I’ll never finish this course. Problem is, there is so much interesting stuff out there. It’s a whole other world…

Technorati is another site full of interesting links. It’s blog searching capability is useful. As for tagging, I’m trying to get my head around the instructions before giving it a go. I might try tagging  an earlier post and see what happens…..

OK. I don’t understand how Technorati tags work. I can add tags to my posts and I’ve read the tagging instructions on Technorati…. I’ve even followed directions and “pinged” my blog to Technorati and got a messasge saying this was successful…..According to the Technorati tagging instructions, WordPress categories should automatically be read as tags and I don’t need to insert HTML code into my posts. (Just as well, because HTML makes no sense to me). Maybe the problem is that my posts are tagged by week # and I am searching Technorati Tags by the tags I created on my posts. I DON’T KNOW! I GIVE UP!!!!

Week 6 Del.icio.us revisited

I felt that I might have dismissed del.icio.us too quickly, as my initial reaction was pretty negative. So, I am intending to set up my own del.icio.us account to keep track of the growing list of links that I am dicovering during 23 Things. I think it will be a great tool for this purpose. Just have to find time to set it up!

I also went back to take another look at the SJ Library del.icio.us account (see Classroom Learning notes). Under their del.icio.us tag I found a really interesting link to creating online Library guides. http://demo.libguides.com/content.php?pid=231  This has heaps of potential! Even so, I doubt that I ever would have found the link had I actually been searching for something on creating Library Guides. It is tagged under “L2tools” (LIbrary 2.0?) and then listed under “del.icio.us”. Must everything be so obscure? I think the personal nature of tagging and the strange new language of Web 2.0 often make it very difficult for new users.

A final comment : when I tried to get into this site – Springvale Library Libguides, I encountered a  block informing me that the content was pornographic. I have become cynical about the truth of DET blocks, so I tried again a few minutes later, and got in. I’m mystified, as I can’t think of anything less offensive than a bunch of Librarians talking about how to create online Library guides. Mind you there are “videos” on the site. Nasty things videos, you can’t trust them…. I am starting to wonder if DEThas their own random block generator, designed to make us all stop trying to access the internet.

Week 6 Thing 13 Tagging, social bookmarking, Del.icio.us

OK – for starters, I hate the way Del.icio.us is spelt. Those dots are so irritating!!!

Apart from this, I guess this site might be useful. It would be handy to have all my bookmarks in one place that I could access anywhere. I do tend to go from computer to computer, so the “favourites” tool is fairly useless, unless I’m at home. Being able to share bookmarks with friends or colleagues would also be beneficial. It would save a lot of time emailing links to everyone.

Maybe it’s my library training, or the mood I’m in or something, but I’m not all that keen on everyone just making up their own tags all over the place. I have no objection to this for personal filing use (whatever helps you to remember!), but I have my doubts for educational or library use, unless you got everyone in the group to agree to use the same tags. If you try to search del.icio.us,  it’s just so messy. You could find things by serendipity, which is nice, but there is no consistency and a whole lot of rubbish in with the good stuff.

While I’m having a whinge – why is it that everything associated with technology takes so long to do! I’m longing for the simple days of paper and pens. So quick, so easy, no accounts and no passwords!!!!

Week 5 Thing 12 Roll Your Own Search Tool

This tool is great for librarians! 

I used Rollyo to create a customised search engine for Turf Management (big news at Kurri Kurri campus). The websites to be searched are drawn from the TAFE Studylinks Turf Management page.

 http://www.rollyo.com/index.html

Week 5 Thing 11 Web 2.0 Awards List 2007

After viewing the extensive list of sites that won awards, I’ve given in to my obsession with listmaking and created an account at 43 Things http://www.43things.com/. This site enables you to list your goals and write entries about each goal. Others viewing the site can cheer you on, and you can encourage them with their goals also.

Using an online list might stop me losing all my postit notes. The challenge for me now is to actually do the things on my list, not just keep making more lists! On a less positive note, it is so quick to write a list on paper and you don’t need a password!!

A number of the award winning sites looked like fun, but I didn’t see many that would be useful for work purposes. (I’ll play with some at home though!) Some that did appear useful, such as Google documents,  were blocked by DET. The use of others, such as online survey generators,  might also be breaching workplace policy. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d be a bit nervous about just launching in and using some of the tools I saw listed… Do we have any guidelines or policies for using Web 2.0 tools?

Week 5 Sidetracked by Slideshows 2

I prefer the look of this slideshow, but wanted it to play automatically. I think I should have done this when I created it in Powerpoint. There doesn’t seem to be a way to edit it using Slidehare.net once the images have been uploaded. Adding the slideshow to the blog is easy. You just copy the code and paste it into the post to “embed” it.

Week 5 Sidetracked by Slideshows 1

One thing I really want to know is how to add a slideshow to a blog., so I thought I’d try it.

It was fairly easy to create a slideshow and add it to my blog using slide.com, but I got really frustrated trying to edit the show. I just wanted a “standard” slide by slide transition. This is too flashy and fast, with images coming in form all directions! 

Week 5, Thing 10 Image Generator Tools

Lunchtime lion, originally uploaded by ksqvideo.

This took a bit of time, mainly due to technical hiccups with the uploading tool on Flickr. (It worked on the 5th attempt. )The captioner tool is easy to use and a lot of fun! http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/captioner.php
It would be useful for  the Library blog. I just need some willing victims to pose for photographs…

I would like to try a comic strip, but DET denies access to this tool. I’ll try it at home sometime.

Week 4, Thing 9 RSS Directories

Does anyone know of an RSS feed directory that is Australian or features Australian content? I’m getting sick of the American bias of most of the tools suggested. 

In summary:

•  Syndic8 has too many broken links
•  Topix.net does have Australian content, but it’s not worth reading!
• The search feature on Bloglines came up with some Australian listings of quite good quality
• Technorati is a useful tool
• Google blog search also good
• Visiting favourite sites is also a reasonable way of finding quality feeds with useful content, but it is a time consuming method.

Using Technorati, I tracked down the ALIA RSS feed that I could not find previously! I also found the blog of a librarian at Central TAFE in Perth who completed 23 Things in 2007 and who is now teaching others within her workplace, http://maeverest.blogspot.com/