Reflection

I have learned a lot in this course. I thought that six weeks would not be enough time for me to get my feet wet with all of the Web 2.0 technology, but I was wrong. The course was structured in a way that provided guidance to students, but allowed for the creative juices to flow.

I think that the reading was a little redundant- I found that the same topic was discussed in several chapters, when it could have been said in one chapter. Despite its flaws, the book provided insight into the complicated world of Web 2.0 technology, ideas I had never considered before this class. The text also gave me the idea for my second produsage project, so I am grateful for that.

The tools I used over this course will be helpful when communicating professionally and personally. While technology is constantly changing and might not be the same tools used in the future, the experiences I have had over the past six weeks have given me the confidence to try new things and branch out of my comfort zone. For this, I am extremely grateful.

Produsage Assignment 2 Complete

My second project is complete. I am happy that I was able to help out my brother while also completing a school assignment. I think purevolume.com is a cool website and I am glad that I chose this topic instead of the Facebook group. I might still make a Facebook group for moms in my area to share information on good outings, but I am glad that I did not choose this topic for my project. I can already see that my brother is working on the website and trying things that he might otherwise shy away from, such as embedding video from YouTube. I added the videos to his purevolume account, but he called me last night so that I could walk him through it. I guess he is planning on adding some more videos in the future.

I am really pleased with this course. I was intimidated at first because I thought that I would be in over my head and that 6 weeks was not nearly enough time to grasp some of these tools. I think that the course structure had enough guidance to steer us in the right direction, but allowed for enough freedom to inspire creativity. I am proud of what I have accomplished this semester and am very happy with the course.

Issues of authorship, copyright and open access

I am not as affected personally by issues of authorship, copyright and open access as I would be professionally. This is because I am more competitive in the professional world, and want recognition for my hard work. I don't mind sharing my ideas but I don't want someone taking credit for them. In my personal life, I am more relaxed because I don't weigh these issues as seriously.

Produsage Assignment 2

Well, I have finally narrowed down my topic for project 2. I am really excited about setting up a profile on purevolume.com for my brother's band. This task will present new challenges for me because I will be uploading music files onto the website, which is something I have not done before. I have already created the shell of the profile- the band's basic information, but I need to include a biography, photos, video and the music files. I also need to make sure that their site is interesting-looking and catches the attention of browsers. I am looking forward to the challenge!

StumbleUpon, Technorati & Citeulike

Tonight I visited the sites Dr. Dennen recommended this week. Maybe I should have paced myself, but now I feel like I have information overload. Has anyone seen the commercials for bing.com?

I think each of these sites has something to offer, but I couldn't get over how many links and ads were on each site. Citeulike seems like a good website, one that I will visit in the future when writing papers or doing other schoolwork. Technorati and StumbleUpon were a little more intimidating- I was amazed at how much information was available on each site. I would click on one link and would be taken to the video/picture/blog, only to see links for more information that had similar keywords. By the time I was done browsing on technorati, I had moved so far from the link I originally clicked on.

Expertise on the Web

I used to think that information on the Web was never as credible as information I receieved face-to-face because I could see the person in front of me. Now that I think about it, anyone can open their mouths and say something, just as easily as they can put bogus information on the Web. After reading the Bruns text, it seems that someone who takes the time to publish information on the web has motivation and therefore credibility in my eyes. I realize that there is still junk out there, and sometimes there will be people who repeatedly publish false posts, but in the grand scheme of things, I think that most people are legit.

Comments on my peers' produsage assignments

I have looked over the assignments of some of my classmates and I think they all did a great job. I have learned a lot from just reviewing their projects and I now have some ideas for my next produsage project. I liked the fact that my classmates chose a variety of topics- ranging from bbqs to traveling to ukeleles. I have more confidence about how to tackle the next project and I think I will be more creative this next time around.

Produsage Assignment 1 complete

I just submitted my first produsage project and I am feeling pretty good about my experience. I was intimidated at first, and found it hard to get started. Once I spoke to Dr. Dennen and looked at the Diigo and del.icio.us websites, I started to get some direction. I think it was good to start with the Web 2.0 tool that I did, because I think that Second Life would have been a little overwhelming.

I am also glad that I started reading ahead this weekend, because Chapter 7 had a lot of information on del.icio.us that I ended up using in my paper. I guess it is good that I was an over-achiever this week!

My contributions this week

This week so far I have been talking to my classmates about Diigo versus del.icio.us. I also commented on the post about the shift of using Web 2.0 tools in formal education. I think that in some cases, Web 2.o tools may be helpful, but should not replace traditional education.

I am starting to reconsider using del.icio.us for my first produsage project. I have already begun using this site, but many of my classmates seem to think that Diigo is more user-friendly. Did I miss something when I was on Diigo? I thought that it was loaded with information and did not seem very user-friendly to me. Maybe I will stick with del.icio.us for my first project, but then give Diigo another shot in my spare time.

The use of a wiki in my desired work environment

My only experiences with wikis have been in my course work here at FSU. Using these experiences in order to answer this week's journal question, I think that the wiki could have a positive effect in the work environment. As a newcomer, I would appreciate having a discussion board of sorts to bounce off ideas and questions that I might have about my job. I think more expereinced designers could act as mentors, without having to dedicate much time during the workday. I realize that there would still be a level of "office ettiquette" that would need to be maintained on the wiki, but I think that could be managed with a little guidance.

If management were to implement the wiki, there would need to be an understanding by adminstrators of the site that the wiki is not a heirarchy. Their roles would be to interefere are little as possible in order to keep a traditional wiki environment. As long as the posts were appropriate, they should be allowed to stay up on the site and neutrality is very important.

A user-initiated site would have similar obstacles, but I think that an additional hurdle would be the struggle of using authority when it is necessary. In the office, there might be an established hierarchy, but on the wiki there would not be one. However, if there were issues on the wiki, one or several people would need to make decisions about how to handle the problem. This could get tricky if co-workers are maintaining the site.

NPR program (was it Weekend Edition Sunday?) on Pro-Am journalism

I happened to tune in after the program began, but I managed to get the idea of what the program was about. Author Chris Anderson was being interviewed about his book Free. His book discussed the impact of amateur journalists on professional journalism, including the fact that the advertising world is struggling because of the conflict between the amateur and professional worlds. Advertisers are not sure where to place their money- in print newspapers or on websites.

Anderson also said that the professional world of journalism is getting smaller because it is being squeezed by the fact that anyone can be a journalists these days. He said that fewer journalists are being sent to cover conflicts around the world because amateurs can give an instant perspective by using Twitter, Facebook, etc. This gives amateurs an incredible advantage over professionals. I thought it was interesting that this program came on the radio right after reading Bruns' thoughts on Pro-Am produsage.

My discussion noard contributions this week focused on two topics: Pro Ams and produsage vs. producation and the 4 principles of produsage: K-12. I could relate to the topic of produsage in the K-12 environment because of my teaching experiences. I believe that I implemented several principles of produsage in the classroom, but I don't think I used them all of the time, nor could I have done so if I wanted to.

The Pro Ams topic was interesting to me because when reading the text, I thought of several people that I know who would fit into this category. I also hope that one day I will be technically savvy enough to be considered a Pro Am. I also like the fact that Bruns suggests that these people are leaders and that they have a sense of power in the technical world.

I like Twitter, but what is Diigo?

This week I did a little research on the Web 2.0 technology that Dr. Dennen mentioned: Twitter, Diigo, Flickr and youtube. I am familiar with youtube because my little brother posts his band's videos from recent shows on the website. I actually started an account on Twitter (I am Kendall1112, send me a message if you are interested!) and I am thining about starting an account with Flickr. My husband is a custom cabinet maker, and this website would be an easy was to display his portfolio.

The only tool I did not really get interested in was Diigo. I don't know if there was just too much information on the website, but I did not really see how this website could be of help to me right now. Maybe I will give it another try this week.

Produsage and my life

While I had never heard of the term produsage before reading this book, I think that it has played a part in my life for some time now. I am not crazy about this term- I can see why the concept is called produsage, but I think it still sounds like a maufactured term, which is what the concept is trying to steer clear of, I think.

When reading this week's journal question, I immediately thought of my experiences as an online student at FSU. Students are invloved in open participation and communal evaluation on the discussion boards. While we are guided by our professors, students are still given plenty of freedom, maybe not as much as an ad hoc meritocracy, but close. Blackboard creates a forum for students to contribute ideas to the course community, but we also receive recognition for our individual posts and ideas.

My experience at FSU is the best example I can think of that invloves produsage.

With all this technology, what is most important to know?

I am truly excited to learn about all of this new technology and how it applies to the business world. I would like to know how to approach my job search with all of this new information. I realize that new tools are introduced rapidly, and by the time I begin looking for a job, there will be new technology out in cyber space.

As a future Instructional Designer, I would like to know, what is being used currently in this profession? I would like to learn as much as possible about all tools, but I am most interested in what I will likely need to know when I enter the workforce. Is there a way to determine this, or are designers using all of the tools we will study?

I am a little overwhelmed by some of Shirky's ideas presented in the book. Prior to reading this book, I viewed many of the Web 2.0 tools as exciting and brilliant, but also isolating. To me, the amount of time a person spent online sucked the life out of their reality. I always viewed the time spent on the internet as leisure time, unless a person was using it for business or educational purposes.

After reading Shirky's book, I can see that there are many reasons people form online communities, and not all of them are for idly passing the time away. I was not aware of how powerful these communities can become- the cell phone example in Chapter 1 was mind-blowing. I can't believe that so many people were so helpful and interested in helping out.

I also found it interesting that so many groups are forming online and then actually meeting in person, too. Chapter 8 describes the fifteen most active Meetup groups the year afeter the site launched. These groups include Witches, Xena fans, ex-Jehovah's Witnesses- uncommon groups in today's scoiety. I like the fact that people with unusual interests can find eachother and assemble.

Shirky's book provided a lot of insight into the digital world and really opened my eyes to all the possibilities out there.

Week 1 Journal

I have had limited experiences with Web 2.0 technologies. I have a Facebook account, which I use infrequently. I am interested in Twitter, because it seems to be very popular and used in many different arenas. However, since I am currently a stay-at-home mom, my lifestyle does not allow much time to use these tools for fun. I have heard classmates say that they use Twitter for work-related purposes, which I think is really cool. I am curious to know how Twitter is generally received by the workforce.

I would definitely consider myself a follower more than a leader in this realm, but hopefully not for long. I would say that I am an intermediate follower- I have had some experience with these new technologies and I don't think it will take me long to learn how to use them.

I hope to gain a lot of valuable information from this class. As I mentioned before, I do not have a lot of free time to explore the new Web 2.0 technologies, but with this class I should be able to learn about these new tools. I expect that the assignments will require us to discover and use the new tools, which I am very eager to do.

My very first blog-testing 1,2,3

Hello classmates,

This is my first blog and I am just writing this to see how it looks after I submit it. Looking forward to this semester- good luck to everyone!