New working Blog...

Don't fear the title of this blog, but I thought I would share what my plans are. I will continue to post technology and new technology interactions to this blog. But I am going to begin a at least once a week post to my blog area on PSU. The main audience of that blog will be Penn State Faculty. I plan on sharing mostly PSU tools there, but will share more eventually. Or share ideas to use a combination of tools with current tools for a better distribution of ideas, information, & communication.

I posted two or so weeks ago. I skipped last week, but I was on vacation and out of the office, but I did go back in today and posted something new. There is a movement to post something of importance once a day. With my audience defined and an idea of the information I would like to share, I think a post once a week to my audience is more realistic. I do not have time to read everyone else's blogs and I do not expect them to have the time in return if they were to begin to blog also. So, I think realisticly once a week is more in line. I will probably skim through my posts in this blog for ideas to share in the other weekly adventure.

I guess I am applying some i.d. in this project. My audience is defined as those faculty I work with, so I chose the technology, and I think once a week for two minutes is the quality amount of time I have with them, so that is my plan. Every Monday to post a blog introducing a technology or a creative use of technology or various technologies in the future.

So, I hope if you are blogging, you know your audience and you maintain a momentum!

Tweet Deck

Just learned about TweetDeck (http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/), which is an adobe air product which allows you to install other dynamic programs to filter items. TweetDeck allows me to filter out or create groups of my friends or people I follow in Twitter. It is really making interaction so much easier and makes it less to filter myself. So, Kudos to Chicken And Stars for sharing this cool tool!

I am feeling a bit of overwhelming senses from all the the stuff that comes in. Too many lines. I think with the new communication like twitter, I get more from that, including announcements than I do from email. Too many folks are hitting reply to all. I wish folks would start interacting wiht blogs, wiki's, and twitter to share out community or team work. There is just too much stuff coming in and it really drives me nuts. I am noticing that I completely zone any more.

But the confusion may also be coming from... I have been listening and catching up with a lot of audio podcasts. So, I start to listen on way to work, then continue to listen at work. I think this is a bit too multi-sensory approach for me. I think I need to do one thing and concentrate a bit more. I think with so much going on it is really making a lot of things confusing. I have also noticed that as long as I am somewhere with internet, I am connected and tuned in. I need to start turning off and giving myself a bit of a break. Last night. I turned tv off, put music on and did some work for about an hour and a half. And I got a lot done.

So, I think I might start creating at least an hour of time during evening's I am home to just do this. Because even when I work out, I am using Nike + and excited to get home and sync up my workout.

digital disorder and chicken and stars

I am sitting here finishing listening to episode three of chicken and stars, http://chickenandstars.wordpress.com/, and am so psyched that I was mentioned. My digital identity was. Which is so cool I am so excited. But I was also feeling so understanding of the information overload. I was really feeling overloaded with my digital disorder, which was a stick I submitted for summer camp. Which will be so excited.

I am also very excited that there is movements like chicken and stars and others that are reaching out to keep us ID and technology folk connected to main campus. Which is so very cool!

I also began a new use of time, which is my running late time and am using that half hour of so to catch up with podcasts, which I am so behind in. So, I am getting to use my new ipod, very pretty pink, and filling in that void time that I feel so wasted because stuck in car. So, I no longer feel bad. I am populating my ipod with chicken and stars and also ets talks for commute and also my vacation time which is approaching and I will have a lack of internet connection and hoping this will keep me connected. If I stay at my brothers house, he has no tv, so I can listen to podcasts and watch movies on the computer. So, I will feel like I am going back in time during that trip.

chicken and stars

I've read twitter feeds on chicken and stars quite often lately. I finally googled it tonight. And discovered that it is a podcast and blog site created by colleagues. They use their twitter names and their names on the site. They talk about new technology and their uses and interactions and communications using new technologies.

It is very fun. Check them out. Sync their podcasts, read their blog at http://chickenandstars.wordpress.com/2008/06/

Oh and I created a wordpress user id, so I can interact more with this site in the future!

Political Jabs at Jib Jab for Presidential Campaign

Have to share this!!!

Send a JibJab Sendables® eCard Today!

Time Capsules

I just found a new tool at Photo Jojo ( http://www.photojojo.com ). It syncs up your flickr and creates a very cool time capsule for you.

You can check out my first time capsule here - http://www.photojojo.com/timecapsule/dancinjul/2008-7-15

Check them out!

July 8, 2008 - Quick Share - Up to Date

Quickly to get up to date on technologies I am looking at... (sorry this is a bit long winded.)

Might of Many a game in Facebook and other applications like the starbucks application and more. How can groups reach out to more folks and share information?


Shelfari - I am building a new bookshelf in there and figuring out which one I like, that compared to library thing, compared to iRead (facebook app.) to book swap or crossing. I am leaning toward Shelfari, most user friendly and I actually am connect with some folks I reached out to already.


Microblogging - checking out Plurk in comparison to Twitter, which I am using and heavily relying on to interact with folks and it has made me feel closer to my co-workers that are ids's at U.P.


Adobe Air - I am using twhirl to stay connect with my Twitter flock. Also, I just started using snackr. I was able to import my opml file from google reader, so I have just been still linking my links in google reader, so I can use google reader on the road and share out the feeds, if I have to. I am not sure if I like snackr, it makes my screen way busy. It is almost like the digital disorder sticker I created for Learning Design Summer Camp.


Stickers - made a few for Learning Design Summer Camp, but only uploaded my digital disorder sticker. I am looking forward to and have to finalize my travel to Learning Design Summer Camp. The group seems like it will become an active group. It is exciting. And the group is using the PSU wiki project to communicate and share things and also Twitter. I learned about it through a twitter feed.


I am maintaining my current pix in flickr. I am maintaining my links in del.icio.us, which was way hard to get into, now I love. And I used del.icio.us and feeds to build a links page for a faculty member, now all she needs to do is insert a link in del.icio.us with the right tags for it to show up in her links page. Yay!


Social Networks - Trying to stay up to date and active in some ning networks and in facebook, so I am actually using myspace way less. And I am still lost with Linked in.


Pandora Radio - is a music genome project. It is way cool and I can program in music which interests me and then it plays music similar or in the likeness of what I declare is my favorites. It is so way cool. I am really loving it!


FriendFeed, someone mentioned in twitter and I looked it up and I have created an account and went in and officially updated it and will try to play with it a bit more and more consciously.


I am also currently checking out and getting on track with my workouts using nike +, which I already uploaded information about in my previous post.


My cousin created a network in Reverbnation, so I am playing with that and keeping up to date on what they are doing and listened to their latest song there.


I also explored digital rodeo a bit a social networking site for folks like me who like country music.


Finally, I joined a reading group, that I discovered through Twitter with other psu co-workers and we will discuss Everything is Miscellaneous by David Weinberger.


Tomorrow I have a meeting with Matt from Digital Commons, so I am excited to hopefully begin the steps to get on board with that project. We have bought a lot of pieces of technology to begin moving in that direction.


Then I am off and training the library cms tomorrow at Berks and Thursday at Wilkes-Barre.


Then Back to go to Blob Ball on Friday night, which there is a scene in the original Blob movie that was filmed at the Colonial Theater in Phoenixville and each year they have a festival to celebrate that event. The Rivers of Rockabilly are playing and I will finally after about two weeks be able to dust off my jitterbug dance shoes and go and dance. And oh yeah they do have a blog and they do have several videos on youtube.

iFit!

I finally got my shoe pouch. I did my first walk/run. I am starting out slow and will mostly walk. My goal, if I stick to it and run for a two or so week period... I will get myself a better pair of sneakers to use.

Here is what nike + site looks like and how it shares my fitness.

New Pink Ipod (July 3, 2008)

New Pink Ipod (July 3, 2008)
Originally uploaded by kuljuls.

My new ipod has just come in. I did get the Nike + Air, but am waiting for the contraption to attatch it to my shoe laces before I test it out.

I think I have successfully moved my library over. I will soon find out. I am excited to use it and travel with it, because it is much smaller than my ipod photo. Plus, it has video, so before my next trip I plan on putting a movie on it. Yay!!!!

I am currently checking out the web episodes of The Motherhood, which features Chelsea Handler, perfect for a rainy Fourth of July!

Twine

We are now entering web 3.0. We need to start looking at the web and social internet in a different way. Twine.com is at beta invite only, but you can learn more about the new directions of the web by interacting with this site. It is very cool to get in on the ground floor, before it is fully released.

cyber bully

The woman from Missouri was indicted on federal conspiracy charges in the case where she and her daughter created a myspace page of a made up boy and connected with the girl who later hung herself.

I think any harassing behaviors or cyber-bullying should be taken seriously.

I believe there is a student from the institution I work at who is under charges because he emailed and harassed his professor for giving him a B-. The email was very threatening.

Posing threats to others through online sources is a crime and everyone should think before they speak and before the type. Words hurt as much as the sword in someones back.

wired???

wired???
Originally uploaded by kuljuls.

Are we too wired. I notice now that I have acquired another technology (gps) that I have additional wires to carry and make sure that I am fully charged with. There has to be a better solution when traveling to get everything charged and set to use on the road.

Cool project to participate in!!!

http://www.you-are-beautiful.com/

I just stumbled upon this collaborative project. I did post it to my del.icio.us site. I will have to figure something out to post and participate!!!

Flat Stanley Project

http://www.flatstanley.com/

I just thought I would share this project with you. It is an international project in communication & literacy. Flat Stanley is traveling around the world visiting folks.

Check out the site to learn more about flat stanley.

Another similar project is following morpheus fortuna, which is a stuffed animal traveling around and his travels are being recorded. Publish Post

Blog reading...

I read more and more blogs each day.

I read one the other day that actually payed for my lunch today. So, it does pay to read some blogs. I read the other day that today at McD's if you buy a 16 oz drink or larger you get a free country style chicken sandwich. It was not posted at my local McD's nor did I hear it, but I read it on a blog. In addition to that there are free iced coffees at DD and a free salad offer at wawa. It is really super cool to start seeing some benefits of reading blogs.

So, my advice is to look for blogs that share money saving advice or financial advice and you could benefit in the long run.

I read on the McD's special on the blog...
http://www.moneysavingmom.com/

Missing photos

I was just scared. I logged on to flickr to grab a photo url and most of my photos were gone. Then on the main page it said my flickr account has expired, so I renewed and my 2,879 photos are now back and available.

I did buy an external hard-drive and my photos are officially backed up, if anything were to ever happen to my home computer.

New Moon Club - a site where girls can ask girls for advice

http://newmoonclub.com/

I just wanted to share a site I stumbled upon today. There are so many sites out there for adults or male created. But today I found this site, which is a site for girls 8 - 12 to ask other girls questions and seek advice. This is back boned on a magazine for girls of this age group.

I think it is a wonderful way for girls to collaborate and help other girls and network out.

skitch.com

I found a cute new site to share images quickly and it works with your twitter, but only one problem with it. There is only a mac version available. I will have to pull out my mac and check it out. It seems like a great tool to quickly share some images with friends and family. It seems like it is being used in industry with clients to share images for graphic artists.

I will check it out and let you know more about what I think.

Stump the GPS

I am still learning and navigating with my new GPS. I shared it with my brother and he thought it was very amusing. But instead of using it to just navigate you to a place. He wanted to stump it. We changed cars, jumped into what was my old jeep and his new one and we had to venture up the bush (or up into the woods).

When we went off the alley and into the woods, it did not recalculate, rather just thought we were still on real roads. There are a few access roads off road behind Kulpmont, but it did not really do anything. It did not even "recalculate." I am sure in the future when I stop us, the willies will be brought out and a larger adventure planned out.

I did learn a few moves on approaching off-roading and am now under the impression that those I used to go with were just hot doggers. My brother carefully observed the paths and took his time in 4 low going on some of the paths. These paths I would thing were for 4 wheeler atv's, but we went on them in the Jeep Cherokee.

So, we stumped but did not stump the GPS and learned a little more about off-roading.

There is also something about geo-caching with the GPS, which we may check out and try to learn more about. You are able to plug in co ordinances and get to a location and that would be pretty cool to try and just follow Jill (Female English Woman Voice that comes out of the GPS.)

Track the Candidates via Twitter Feed

http://tweetwire.com/

Here is a site where you can go and check out and stay current with your favorite candidates in the presidential election. It is a mash-up of twitter feeds.