Reflections on this and that

I have been on wikipedia the last few nights looking up things I wanted to know more about and in the process came back to a re-occurring realization.  I am thirsty for knowledge.  The catch is that I get into these information quests which just lead me further down the rabbit’s hole.  I acquire information and learn, but then sometimes I just get a glimpse of a concept and move on without fully digesting what it means.  For instance, all the available web 2.0 tools.  I don’t have unrealistic expectations such that I will be a professional using all of them or even that I will be able to cite all the available resources.  I don’t want to go that far with it, especially since they evolve and other resources are constantly being developed.  I want to have a general picture and experience using a few resources from each category.  There are people that I trust when it comes to suggestions and there are blogs that I read about with tool or approach is most effective to meet a given goal.  So I can choose from experience or others that have been there before me.  My goal is to be proficient in choosing and using the right tool for the right job.  From my experience in this course and others I feel confident in saying that I will have met that goal.  I have designed courses using open source software (moodle), designed art, collaborated with colleagues using several different web 2.0 tools to create documents, webpages, lesson plans, and digital media.  I have uploaded things I created and joined several different social networking sites. 

For me, that is my interpretation of what social networking and web 2.0 is.  Getting involved and trying to find the best resource available to interact, create, edit, and collaborate with others.  In some form or fashion I have done that on several occasions.  Individually, I have learned but the purpose in using each of those tools was for a course in graduate school.  What I really want is to be using these resources on a professional level.  Another goal is to be working in an academic environment applying what I have learned.  So, as far as my experiences in CI5530, I don’t feel cheated or jaded for not using a specific tool.  If I wanted to use something not specifically offered in this course then I would try it out on my own.  I like having some direction offered by my instructor and the flexibility in being involved in the general course design.  I believe that D.I has ideas of what he wants to cover and the applications or tools we are going to use.  Yet, there is also a degree of flexibility to allow for our own interpretation of what “web 2.0” is and how it should be defined or applied. 

The catch to it all is finding a way to balance all my responsibilities.  Which aren’t specifically related to this course alone.  Now, I hope it doesn’t sound like I am talking out of both sides of my mouth.  There is a lot of information and objectives to meet in this course.  It isn’t an overload by itself, since that is what social networking and web 2.0 is-it comes with the territory.  My challenges are access to the web and time management.  Right now I am not directly involved in a technology rich environment.  I have my job teaching biology, and then completely switching gears into instructional technology and new media for graduate school.  There is some overlap, but right now there isn’t much demand or usage, for what I am learning, in the school that I am teaching at.  Also, logging into all the different sites required has made it challenging to follow a linear sequence in how thoughts or “conversations” are shared amongst all of us.  I don’t think I am really reading them in order and it is hard to really comment on them.  There have been times when I was developing a comment and then noticed that another person already said it.

So, the pro’s are exposure and experience using different social networking sites and web 2.0 tools.  The con’s are having to log into several different sites and then piece together everything to understand what is going on.  In regards to CMSimple, it serves its purpose.  If I needed extra features that aren't offered then I can see how its limitations would be an issue.