Week 8 - October 11

Our Class 08   wiki page is now available.

Microblogs - A New Form of Communication

In this class we will learn about microblogs.  Microblogs, such as Twitter, are similar to a blog in that you post information, but the posts are limited to around 140 characters. Microblogs have been a very popular form of communication in both the business and personal world. 

Uses in Education

Microblogs, such as Twitter, are being used everywhere and have many uses in education.

You can keep up with what is going on in the class by "following us" at

http://www.twitter.com/csit70

Assignment: There is an assignment to accompany this class, which is available as a PDF on the Class_08  wiki page. You have 2 weeks to complete this assignment - due October 25.

Week 7 - October 4

Our  Class_07 wiki page is now available.

Blogs - A New Way of Publishing and Distributing Information

In this class we will learn about blogs. Blogs are probably the most prominent application that allows for the socialization and democratization of the Web, a characteristic of Web 2.0.

Blogs are a good way to get information out to readers fast. People read blogs, see things that interest them and write about it in their own blogs.  Blog posts can be "tagged" so informaiton can be easilly found. Because blogs automatically generate an RSS or Atom feed, it is easy to share this information.

Assignment: There is an assignment to accompany this class. You have 2 weeks to complete this assignment.

Week 6 - September 27

Our  Class_06 wiki page is now available.

Web feeds or "feeds"

In this class we will learn about Web feeds. A "feed" is a method for subscribing to frequently updated content, which is published by a website. If a website has a “feed”, it means that you can subscribe to it and receive the updates, whenever that content is updated. The phrase “syndication” refers to the fact that users can subscribe to it. Web feeds give us a new method of publishing and accessing content online. You need a feed reader to view the content.

RSS - Really Simple Syndication

The technical format that most Web feed use is a language called RSS. Although the term “feed” and “RSS” are commonly used interchangeably, a Web feed is not always RSS. A Web feed can be written in another language called “Atom”. Both feed formats use XML. Currently RSS 2.0 is the most popular format used.

Aggregator

You subscribe with the feed reader or aggregator. The aggregator is desktop software or a Web application which aggregates syndicated web content such as news headlines, blogs, and podcasts in a single location for easy viewing. Most browsers have built-in feed readers which makes it easy to subscribe to a feed. There are many popular Web aggregators such as "Bloglines" and "Google Reader".

Assignment: There is an assignment to accompany this class which should be completed in a week.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns!

teresa@wwwsights.com / 760-749-0107