Thing #16 So easy a sheep can do it!

     Organization is key to being on track and successful. Considering a great number of the population have access to or own a computer, it makes sense to have things to help you organize right in your web browser. I started with a customized start page with iGoogle. It claims you can make a new start page in under 30 seconds. With this you can keep track of news sites, Youtube, your bookmarks, and even the weather. Also, you can personalize it to meet any of your needs. Another way of keeping organize is using online calendar sites like Scrybe. I don't like using calendars or using online sources to keep me updated. I like to write things done on a piece of paper and keep in on me in my back pocket or write it on my dry erase board.

Thing #15 Wiki it!

     I really like the Wiki concept yet I have many problems with it. It is nice going online and looking up something you forgot or would like to read up on something, but when it comes to research for school it is not the best. I am in college and I have access to many respected databases and other sources. Even though middle school and high school students do no have access to these databases, but with more access to the Internet at schools it will only be a matter of time. Wikis are only useful for small bits of information not for whole research paper.

Thing #14 Watch me flow

     For today, I played around with flowcharts and mind maps. How exciting! I used Gliffy for the flowcharts and Bubbl.us for the mind maps. I choose these two since they both seem to be clean, simple to use, and plenty of options. At first, I felt that flowcharts and mind maps were the same thing or could be use in the same manner. After playing around with the two sites, I see the different charts in a new light. Personally, I prefer mind maps. It can be a real help when your mind is a mess. It can simplify what you are thinking in a visual way. I see a great deal of use in flowcharts, but more in a scientific fashion not an English one. If I had to use them, I would probably do a flowchart for helping students identify the different forms of poetry like free verse and blank verse.

     I used Bubbl.us for this chart of the great Romantic poets. I could have expanded this by have another bubble with each other's greatest work, but I was just sort of lazy. To be honest, I actually see some potential of me using such tools in the future. 

  

Thing # 13 Zoho, my bro.

     For Thing #13, I compared two web-based applications. The two are Zoho and Google Docs. The both have applications to make documents, presentations, spreadsheets, etc. Essentially it is Microsoft Office free and online. On Google Docs, I find it to be easier to share my documents with other people especially if you have a Gmail account. I feel that if teachers instruct the students wisely, they can really have a way for students to share documents and have them work together. On the other hand, it could lead to students doing other students homework. Despite this, I liked Google Docs better than Zoho. To me, Zoho was just the same as Google Docs except they had not mailing system like Gmail.

Thing # 12 Can I use Google to search Google?

     Good day, readers! Today we will be talking about that little search engine you might know called Google. Specifically, I will be discussing two of Google's tools: Google Translate and Picasa. I choose these two since I very familiar with both of them. I have received tons of experience during last semester. I took Technical Writing and the big project for that class was making a manual for Picasa. Picasa and Picasa Web Albums are very simple to use and bring a lot to the table. During the time of making the manual, I saw how easy it was to organize and edit your photos. Google Translate, on the other hand, is a tool I am only slightly familiar with. I am a fan of putting together plastic models and over time I have bookmarked many blogs and personal sites of modelers. The thing is not all of them are in English and that is where Google Translate steps in. It is able to translate site from most languages. I do not recommend using it to translate your foreign language homework. I would recommend actually studying and learning the language then using a secondary source.