bp9_2010033_1minutemessage#2

Google Wave-The next big thing by Google and my Web 2.0 tool.

bp8_2010032_1MinuteMessage#1

Enjoy Web 2.0 tool...Crocodoc

Credits for this Movie:

This movie was created and narrated by Lorri Connor using iMovie.

The images were taken from Crocodoc.com to promote the Website for Educational purposes.

bp7_2010032_comment to Josh BP

I commented on Josh Morgans 2.0 tool- edmodo

http://joshmorganetc.blogspot.com/2010/03/bp42010314discoveryweb20toolsedmodo.html

bp6_2010032_comment to Colletes BP

I commented on Collettes Web 2.0 tool Storybird.

http://colishizaki.blogspot.com/2010/03/bp12010032storybird.html

BP5_2010032_Web2.0toolsFleck

The second Web 2.0 tool that I chose to review and could really enhance curriculum development in my company is fleck. Fleck is a bookmarking web-site similar to Delicious but has some tools that allow the users to share, add notes, stickies, and of course bookmark. During curriculum development because I work remotely from my co-workers, it is important to be able to share what we have done without having to constantly copy upload, or paste a document via e-mail. Fleck allows you to share with groups. It is really easy to create a group and then allow those groups to log on and see the Flecks you have saved in order to shard. The other thing that I like and found useful in fleck is that you can import your delicious bookmarks into fleck.

I can also see using this tool in a virtual learning environment. Uploading fleck to a document during training and being able to click and browse the saved bookmarks saves time and well as makes for a more smooth transition in the presentation. You can also broadcast your flecks through twitter. So therefore, anyone following you through this application can see what flecks you use and have added or updated.

Fleck is free but there is a membership fee for an upgraded membership. But it works in the same manner as delicious but is a little simpler in that in order to put fleck on your toolbar all you have to do is drag it. There is nothing to download or save.

Fleck is a really great tool. After researching it I think it will enhance my curriculum development with my co-workers allowing us to share without the cumbersome email messages and uploads.

bp4_2010038_web2.0tools

The Web 2.0 tool that I chose to test and review for me professionally was Crocodoc. I wanted an on-line collaborative tool that I could test against Google docs. GoogleDocs is an awesome application and is readily available for anyone to use. I wanted an application that could mirror the capabilities of Google docs that could help in the collaboration between myself and my co-workers when creating and developing curriculum. When developing curriculum, we have the hardest time with making corrections, and offering suggestions. When I found Crocodoc the first thing that appealed to me was the ability to automatically upload a document from the first page.

No login was needed. If the user wishes to create an account and use additional services such as tracking feedback then there is a fee of $36 a year, which is minimal for some companies looking into this and other programs for curriculum development purposes. My co-workers and I work from home and we all are remote living in various states so it is important for us to be able to collaborate on the material we present. It is as equally important to have feedback and suggestions because we do travel and present together in pairs so the information needs to be an effort from the team and not just one person. Crocodoc allows for that. The markup tools are easy to use and very self-explanatory. I uploaded a document in Crocodoc. I chose a PowerPoint presentation that I used as instructional materials for a church on some basic financial aid information for their college day.

With Crocodoc I can copy my URL and paste it in e-mail and have my co-workers go in and make changes and offer suggestions.

This is a really great tool and one of the positive characteristics of this tool is that it will enhance curriculum development, allowing for multiple users to make changes. It will also lessen the amount of e-mail attachments that go back and forth because the users updating the document can paste the URL in their web browser, go directly to the document and use the mark-ups available to update. Compared to GoogleDocs, I do think that Crododoc has some improvements that can be made. GoogleDocs has real time updates and multiple users can get on and make simultaneous changes. With Crocodoc it is a minimal charge for assessing this feature. That is the one feature that is intricate to my organization, but a simple e-mail will solve this problem. A final great feature to Crocodoc is that it is available and open for anyone to view and make changes. Therefore, if I wanted to share the document with someone other than my co-workers and ask for feedback Crocodoc allows for that.

The URL to my document is below. Feel free to review and markup and see the ease of Crocodoc as a great tool for your needs.

http://crocodoc.com/AvU7Q

All images were retrieved from the Crododoc web-site.

(2010). Crocodoc. Retrieved March 8, 2010, from http://crocodoc.com

BP3_2010037_GoogleReaderRSSFeeds

Having to get the daily news and updates can sometimes be a daunting task. With the emergence of the Internet years ago it has taken the method of being updated to new heights. There are many blogs, newsletters, daily news feeds, etc. available to anyone interested in obtaining information relevant to their life or situation. The list could go on and on about the many approaches that can be taken via the Internet to obtain professional and personal updates to ones life. As a trainer and training in a specialty area has encouraged me to read news form sources that keep me up to date within my profession. The importance of feeds is that instead of me going out to the Internet searching for the most updated news, the news comes straight to me via Google Reader. The major sources I read each day and have chosen to receive daily feeds from are

http://www.shrm.org

Society of Human Resource Management: This site is important for professional purposes because as a training is a big part of the human resources field and this site keeps up to date on changes within that field of work.

http://www.ifap.ed.gov

IFAP: Information for Financial Aid Professionals: This site is important for me to receive information from because I have worked dint he financial aid profession for 10+years and this is the site from the Department of Educations for financial aid professionals to keep them abreast of changes within the field.

http://www.elearnspace.org

eLearnSpace: This site is important for me to receive news from because it is a site geared towards technology and education. Many companies have made the move into on-line training and staying abreast of what is happening technologically in the field of education is importance.

http://www.rpg.net

RPGNet News and Updates: This site is important because I am doing my AR project on gaming and training in an on-line learning environment. It is important to keep up with what is going on in the gaming arena and feeds from this site will keep me abreast of things happening in the gaming area.

http://www.connectivism.ca

Connectivism: This site is important for me to receive feeds from because again, as a trainer who has stepped into on-line training the social experience of being on-line is very significant to understand.