Resistance is Feudal...

The One I've Been Waiting For - Lesson 3 - Twitter

Ok, here I am at Twitter.  Probably just like you, I've been racking my brain to figure out why Twitter is so popular - why do people love it so much?  It is strangely compelling, there's something about sending random thoughts out into cyber space that is lots of fun.  But really, what is it good for?  Does anyone out there, even my family or closest friends, really want to know what I had for breakfast or that I just walked from my office to the loo? 

Part of the requirements of this lesson are to list three things that Twitter could be useful for - and we can't be negative - so this is a hard one.  (inject humor here)  Here's what I've come up with so far:

1. It's good for wasting time in a fun way - and I mean that in the most positive way - I happen to LOVE wasting time.
2. If you had a group of friends or co-workers who were always plugged in it could be an effective way to communicate breaking news, events, etc.
3. Oh gee whiz Jay - does it have to be three things?  ...hear whining plea here...this is soooo hard!

I'm going to continue to think about it, I'm sure someone as intelligent as I (going for humor here) will be able to come up with one more positive aspect of Twitter.  Wish me luck, I'm going back inside my brain and hope to return with an enlightened thought for a third use.

This is not over...

Lesson 2 RSS Feeds - iGoogle

1. What is RSS and what is it for?

RSS is an acronym for Really Simple Syndication and it's a tool used for keeping track of sites one might be interested in reading on a continuing basis. A "one stop shopping center" for all feeds from sites you subscribe to.

2. Describe how to locate an RSS feed.

You simply find the icons that will be present on a site that offers feeds of it's content.

3. Talk about a feature you liked or disliked on Google Reader and/or your thoughts on the user interface in general.

Basically I like anything Google and the Reader is no exception. It's very straight forward and easy to use - even for a first timer like me.

4. Do you prefer Outlook or Google Reader? (Wait a few days to see how it works before you answer. You'll need to collect a few feeds before you can see how it works.)

The jury is still out on this one. I'm leaning toward Google but I'm trying to keep an open mind about Outlook.

5. Did you try out iGoogle? If so, what did you like or dislike about it?

Screen Shot of my iGoogle Page

Everyone knows I'm hopelessly addicted to technology so I'm sure it won't come as a shock to know that I love Google and just about anything from Google, so iGoogle was a slam dunk. Making my page was lots of fun. The hardest part was picking the "apps."  There were so many to choose from - I never did get all the way through the options for header pictures. The only problem is that I'm so used to using my Yahoo homepage when I tried to switch to iGoogle it drove me crazy. Not sure if I'll force myself to overcome or go back to Yahoo.


6. Talk about your experiences locating the feeds on the other sites mentioned and whether you have subscribed to any. Were you able to locate them all? Which ones did you have trouble with, if any?

Everything worked fine. Found the icons - subscribed to some - already subscribed to others so I have an extensive list. The hard part is remembering to go to Reader and check them all out. Keeping track of all this information takes on a life of its own. I might rethink all of my interests. :o)

Lesson 1 Post - What I Learned

Blogger was very easy to use - it's extremely user friendly.

I made lots of changes to my blog - picked the first template and after viewing it for awhile decided I didn't like it so went back and got a different one that I'm much happier with. Experimented with different fonts and colors. Discovered I could put an image behind the blog title so had to find an image and tweak it to fit in the box. I'm happy with the title image as it adds some color, texture and interest to the largely text only format.

Experimented with gadgets - added and subtracted until I came to the final configuration of things I think will be helpful to readers. Including a gadget that allows readers to easily subscribe to my blog using their email address. Also Googled to find a third-party provider and added a counter at the bottom of my page for my own amusement as I get warm feelings of intense satisfaction watching my hit count go up.

Checked all the privacy settings and decided to leave them open, again, to make my blog as friendly to readers as possible. If I start getting weird comments I may change my settings so I can view comments before they are posted.

Enjoyed visiting the blogs that were listed in the lesson. Signed up for Newsvine and enjoyed the sense of humor of the author of Be Hear Be Now, sort of an edgy Zen music blog. I'm going to go back and explore the InfoPeople's 23 Things blog in a lot more depth, there was a lot of information on interesting gadgets and blog accessories.

Bonus answer: I follow quite a few blogs on an almost daily basis. I'm very interested in art, writing, painting and photography so follow some of my favorite artists, writers and photographers. Found a group called the Daily Painters about two years ago and I get an update on their blog with new work/paintings everyday. I also follow individual painters like Carol Marine and Frank Gardner.

Following these blogs, especially Carol's and Frank's has been a wonderful experience. Because of Carol's blog I've not only taken a week long painting workshop which was lots of fun but have also increased her personal bank account from the paintings I've purchased. I've watched her become "known" in the art world and it all started through her blog.

Frank Gardner is an American artist who lives in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, with his wife and children. He's very talented as well as a very nice person and we've forged a "virtual" friendship through our blogs. The ability to network and make friends with people from afar is a special advantage to blogging.

Blog warning: don't stay up too late and write when you're tired. I re-read what I wrote last night and have had to do major edits today. :o)

Also, does anyone know the secret to getting only one line of blank space between paragraphs? I seem to only be able to get too much space or not enough. Help.

Thanks Jay, this lesson was fun and I look forward to the next one.

First Post for Web 2.0 Class - Lesson 1

Hi Jay and any classmates out there. Hope you're all having as much fun as I am with this class. I've only been able to squeeze in 15 minutes here and there since I heard about the class but I hope to spend more time soon and get this going.