Cool sites

Web 2.0 is definitely the future. It is overwhelming the number of sites that are "out there" which give us as users a way to contribute and become part of the discussion. I love contributing to my blogs, and I also love reading other people's blogs, facebook posts, product reviews, wiki posts, and other random online contributions.


Right now I am taking a class called "Integration of Educational Technology" which is really fun. Every week, we get several "gifts" of cool websites to check out. This week we were also challenged to check out some of the 2008 SEOmoz's Web 2.0 Award sites and or some of the 10 Web Sites That Will Matter in 2010. Here is what I looked at:


Boxee: This looks like it has some real potential! It is kind of a social tv/video/music/picture site that connects to both your home network accessing whatever media you have stored there) and also lots of online sites like Hulu. I downloaded it and played for awhile, and I can honestly say I'm tentatively impressed. The interface looks similar to on demand or a dvr/tivo. I like the idea of one-stop searching for online movies and tv shows, and if you an also access stuff you have stored on your home drive, that is a bonus. I could see possibly putting my music and movies and stuff on an external drive and accessing it from there, both to my tv and also to my computer. It's also cool that you can see other people's ratings and recommendations.


LiveMocha: I saw this at UCET and have wanted to spend more time exploring it. As a person with a lifelong interest in foreign languages, I have been looking for a way to both keep up with my German and also learn Dutch. This seems to fit the bill for both! You can take courses through the site (I think at some point you have to start paying for these), but the real beauty here is in the social networking. When you sign up, you specify which languages you speak and at what level. Then you can do written "work" in a language you are learning and ask native speakers to critique your work. But the best part is that you also have the opportunity to chat with people in your languages. I can really see using this site in my own language acquisition. I plan to spend more time this summer on this site.


Del.icio.us: I started a delicious account because I feel like I have way too many bookmarks! Between my 3 home computers and the 2 browsers I use interchangeably (depending on which icon I reach first) my bookmarks are arguably a mess! There are so many great sites online, and I would really, really like a way to organize them into some usable fashion. I like how delicious lets you separate your bookmarks in folders, so you can have professional and personal links on the same site. I also like the universal accessibility. Even if I'm at school, it should be easy to save and retrieve more bookmarks. The social aspect is interesting to me. I would like to spend some more time exploring my contacts and their bookmarks so I can see if this is a feature I will use. But for now, I just have to find time to organize those dozens hundreds of bookmarks. . .


This is, of course, only a very few of the awesome sites that are out there. It is truly the case that there is so much "out there" and our problem has become how to just use it all. As for use in an educational setting, I have to say that each of these sites has possibilities. Boxee is probably the least likely for me to use in a school, although now that I think about it, I did notice the 1970's "Electric Company" on the tv listings. My 8-year-old learned to read with that show, so it probably does have educational value. Live Mocha is certainly an educational site, but unfortunately, the chatting would prohibit it from being used in a school. Informally, though, this will be the basis of my personal "education" this summer. Finally, delicious definitely has educational possibilites. I can see having a folder of educational sites that I can then use when I need them (or share with students!)


Time for me to organize some more bookmarks!!