Web 2.0 Blogs, Pods and Wikis

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Web 2.0 Blogs, Pods and Wikis

• Ray Schroeder
• Office of Technology-Enhanced Learning
• University of Illinois at Springfield

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Heraclitus Prescient Philosopher

• Heraclitus by Flemish Painter Johannes Moreelse
• "The only thing constant is change itself."
• Heraclitus 500 B.C.

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Objectives

• Examine emergence of Web 2.0
• Contemplate the challenge of when to move to the
  next generation
• Consider some key 2.0 technologies
• Look at the syndication thread that ties these
  technologies together
• Gaze into the future
• Continuing discussion/collaboration

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Web 2.0

• What is the next BIG (or little) thing?
• Web 2.0 certainly is the context of what is
  coming!
• It is NOT static not the web page of the 90s
• It is a platform that is
• Dynamic
• Interactive
• Engaging
• Syndicated
• Origin of Web 2.0?

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Web 2.0 in Education

• Web 2.0 So, what are some examples in
  education?
• If you want to find out what 2.0 means to
  Education, you have to turn to a 2.0 tech Wiki!
• http//cpitwebtwoinfo.pbwiki.com/
• In common Dynamic, Interactive, Engaging,
  Syndicated and constantly changing!

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Choosing the Right Tools and Techniques at the
Right Time!

• Plethora of choices
• How does one make a commitment? How long is that
  commitment ?
• Licensing
• Retraining
• Bifurcation of delivery modes
• Supporting multiple analogous systems
• Need to conduct on-going review and aim for
  annual replacement/renewal cycle

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When Do We Move to the Next Generation?

• Driving forces
• Innovators and early adopters
• Both faculty and students
• Financial Considerations
• Example open source movement in CMS/LMS
• Competition what our peers are doing
• Mitigating factors
• Knowledge
• Licensing commitments
• Transition woes (the reluctant, hosting, support,
  training)

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Wiki What?

• Wikis
• http//cpitwebtwoinfo.pbwiki.com/Wikiplatforms
• http//rayschroeder.wikispaces.org
• http//rayschroeder.pbwiki.com
• Next stage in collaborative environments
• http//www.writely.com
• Evolution is the wrong word as Heraclitus would
  remind us - constant change

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Brief Reality Check

• Technology for technologys sake does not cut it.
• Exercise
• Recall your favorite class (f2f or online)
• What made it so special?
• The textbook?
• The classroom?
• The view out the window of the classroom?
• OR was it..

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Interaction - Engagement

• the interaction with the instructor and the
  other students in the class?
• Recall Web 2.0
• Dynamic
• Interactive
• Engaging
• Syndicated
• Podcasting is dynamic and syndicated, but where
  do we engage and interact?

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Blogs

• While podcasts grew out of blogs, they have not
  supplanted blogs as a teaching/learning tool!
• A blog created every second
• Comment modes encourage interaction
• Team blogs enable engagement
• The Blogosphere is an incredible network with
  massive worldwide reach

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Rays Blogs

• Techo-News begun in 2000
• Developed as a tool to share current research
  with students in graduate seminar
• Selected current readings for required critiques
• Ed Tech begun at request of state board of ed
• Online Learning Update
• Turned into something more
• Reach and Impact
• Reflections not just text

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iPods and Podcasting

• iPods
• First iPod released Oct 23, 2001 latest (?)
  generation is the fifth generation
• http//www.ipodreview.co.uk/1
• http//www.md3d.com/ (6th generation mock-up by
  md3d)
• Podcasting iPOD broadCASTING (using blogs)
• iTunes version 4.9 and more recent aggregates the
  podcasts (using RSS) and auto-transfers them to
  iPod

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Student Podcasting

• Students respond in kind via podcasts
• My colleague Burks Oakley uses a simplified
  podcast mode for student podcasts
• http//audioblogger.com 415-856-0205
• Posts up to a five minute podcast to your blog!
• Automatically hosted, RSS generated
• And students can also post text, image or videos

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Enhanced Podcasts

• Change comes to podcasting!
• Enhanced Podcasting
• Enables insertion of graphics, photos, video
• Enables chapters
• Example (open with quicktime)
• http//web.mac.com/margaretmaag/iWeb/Site/Podcast/
  Podcast.html
• http//web.mac.com/rayschroeder/iWeb/Site/Podcast/
  Podcast.html
• M-Learning arrives!
• Students no longer need to be connected

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RSS

• Really Simple Syndication RSS 2.0
• Xml format concisely describes a site
• Enables a variety of tools to access and
  manipulate the feed
• iTunes, Sharp Reader, Yahoo, Firefox all offer
  RSS aggregation
• Have already seen dynamic web sites
• The thread that links many Web 2.0 apps

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Where to from Here?

• We have dynamic, interactive, syndicated,
  engaging applications and sites
• Next steps commonly come from convergence
• Ubiquitous WiMax? xMax? BPL? Gigabeam?
• Motorola and Nokia announce cell/wifi phones
• Integration of devices
• Phone/PDA/iPod/Computer all in one
• Microsoft/Samsung Origami 1,099
• OQO tablet 2,000
• Projection Keyboards 199

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The Crystal Ball

• This second half of the first decade
• Access, access, access broadband via seamless
  mix
• Mobility via merged devices
• Computers shrink into enhanced cell phones
• Open source rules 3rd party support rises
• Distance learning becomes norm not exception
• Key will be to look beyond the newest deployments
  to those in the pipeline begin looking two
  steps ahead

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Contact

• We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall
  all hang separately. BF
• Ray Schroeder
• http//people.uis.edu/rschr1/onlinelearning/blogge
  r.html
• Schroeder.ray_at_uis.edu
• 217-206-7531
• http//onlinelearningupdate.com/csu06.ppt

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