When did I become my parents?!?! When did I lose the capacity to expand with and embrace new technologies? When did frustration replace excitement when working with new online tools? If I had to pinpoint a time, I would estimate it was about the time I checked my newly-created Twitter for the third or fourth time.
What's with ALL THE SYMBOLS (e.g., @ and #)??? What's with the RANDOM STINGS OF LETTERS that follow http:// in links? What's with the random EXCHANGES between users? I find it all distracting. I find it all annoying. I don't like deciphering symbols. If I did, I would study Cuneiform, ok?
I thought the point of Twitter was to share thoughts in brief posts. I thought the art of tweeting was to condense your thoughts into bite-sized statements that would engage readers. I was wrong. It appears to me, from my brief experience, that Twitter is just a platform to direct people to websites through links and allow users to spy on conversations (replies) between users. I'm struggling to see the value and will try to have an open mind as I continue to use this tool.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
My experiences with Google Reader
I set up my Google Reader account in hopes of streamlining my information consumption process. After our class discussion regarding RSS feeds, I realized I could save time by subscribing to feeds instead of navigating to each site of interest. I subscribed to feeds both professional (education-related) and personal (celebrity gossip-related). Below I outline some unforeseen benefits and pitfalls:
- I can quickly skip over duplicate information! Many of my "personal" feeds report on the same stories. I found the Google Reader format to be very helpful in allowing me to quickly scan headlines and skip over duplicates.
- I don't have to click down into deeper layers of sites. The Google Reader format does not require me to click on links to "read the entire entry" like the original website. This results in higher efficiency when skimming info!
- I miss the varied appearances of websites. The Google Reader format standardizes the format/appearance of text. In some cases, I found myself missing the varied "looks" of the individual websites. In particular, one of the blogs I follow in my "personal" category institutes a new masthead each month. The page headers are creative and visually stimulating. Using Google Reader, I miss seeing the masthead.
- I'm not distracted by ads. The Google Reader format eliminates the flashing ads from the margin. Many times, while viewing sites, I accidentally scroll over or inadvertently click on the stubborn ads that won't go away easily or provide countless pop-up windows. In the reader, I can avoid this hassle!
- I can quickly skip over duplicate information! Many of my "personal" feeds report on the same stories. I found the Google Reader format to be very helpful in allowing me to quickly scan headlines and skip over duplicates.
- I don't have to click down into deeper layers of sites. The Google Reader format does not require me to click on links to "read the entire entry" like the original website. This results in higher efficiency when skimming info!
- I miss the varied appearances of websites. The Google Reader format standardizes the format/appearance of text. In some cases, I found myself missing the varied "looks" of the individual websites. In particular, one of the blogs I follow in my "personal" category institutes a new masthead each month. The page headers are creative and visually stimulating. Using Google Reader, I miss seeing the masthead.
- I'm not distracted by ads. The Google Reader format eliminates the flashing ads from the margin. Many times, while viewing sites, I accidentally scroll over or inadvertently click on the stubborn ads that won't go away easily or provide countless pop-up windows. In the reader, I can avoid this hassle!
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