Capstone Project and Random Thoughts

As I was thinking about a Capstone project I have to do for a class, I was thinking really hard about how I can incorporate so many Web 2.0 tools into it and link them all together. With that thinking and planning I had an a-ha moment. For example, I could use Wordle in a different way. I could upload some text/paragraph about a topic and have students guess what it is about. Or with Twitter, it won't just be another boring "What I'm doing at the moment type of thing". I could relay pertinent information while we plan the trip such as tips, tools, things I found to look up, travel info, new information about trip, etc. Then while we are there we could use it to tell what we are doing, where we are, etc. to keep everyone at home informed.  I would love to use Ning so students can have a space online to share their experiences and knowledge. Before the trip it would be important that students know where they are going and to learn about the place more so using Google Earth and Google Sightseeing, YouTube videos, photos, etc. would help them become familiar. Listening to music of that region would also be helpful. Students could even take a virtual fieldtrip to Second Life and explore it there and then compare it to the real Maya Riviera or students who couldn't go on the field trip could still join us and learn about it online. We could even have virtual meetings online regarding the trip which can also be saved for future viewing. I never realized how well you can really stay connected with others through these Web 2.0 tools and how interralated they are. Talk about truly being connected to the world!

Audio Sharing

Audiofarm, an audio sharing website with music and sounds, was very easy to use. I successfully uploaded links to YouTube and to Flickr but I had to do it by typing in the HTML code. I uploaded three audio files that I created with Audacity, a free voice recording tool. One I created as a supplement to one of the YouTube videos. This is the video. Another audio file that I uploaded is a simple introduction in Spanish. The last one is another story in Spanish but it is a little more advanced. It was very easy to upload but the longer files took a while. What I like most about AudioFarm is that it contains Creative Commons music and audio files that users have created and uploaded. There is nothing like using original music and sounds to bring any classroom alive!

OK, so I liked AudioFarm at first but then I discovered that I can't embed AudioFarm sound clips into my blog so I had to find a new audio sharing website. I came across Soundboard and uploaded some audio files to it. I found that it was easier to upload larger audio files to AudioFarm and I was not successful in uploading larger files to Soundboard. Oh well. Anyway, here is my Soundboard profile. Below you will find my audio clips.

Video Sharing

My all time favorite video sharing tool is YouTube. I didn’t seem to have too much trouble uploading videos once I started using the correct format. I also noticed it took a while for them to be added once they were uploaded. As far as linking YouTube to the other two sites, I couldn’t figure out how to get active links for Flickr and AudioFarm so if anyone knows let me know. I tried HTML but it didn’t work so I just left the links where someone will have to cut and paste them. In the future, if I want to broadcast another website, I would include the name in the beginning and end of the video as well. I did include an active link to my blog at least. There was only one place where we would include a website so I decided to include my blog. The videos I uploaded are ones I created last semester in CI5200.

Mo Michael...YouTube Analysis

I am totally amazed at the popularity of YouTube and how so many people use it and rely on it. No one in a million years would ever have imagined that in 2005 when YouTube was first launched. What really blew me away is that Wesch’s video took the #1 spot, even over all the Super Bowl commercials. That is HUGE! It cracks me up when an Anthropologist in Kansas or a teenager from NJ can create a #1 video for free whereas people or companies spend a ton of money producing TV shows, movies, and commercials. In some ways the YouTube phenomenon is great like when the guy at the end of the video used it as a form of therapy after he lost his baby. On the other hand, if someone doesn’t like something you do and they have it on camera they could show the whole world and humiliate you. I’ve seen students do this to teachers, passengers do this to airline employees, kids do this to other kids, etc…Even still, what I love about YouTube is that it is real for the most part except for the fake people like actors who are pretending to be real and fool everyone. I love how you can get on there any be totally anonymous and just be yourself. However, one thing that scares me personally is that someone could get a hold of the video and twist it like they did to McCain.

Everyone watches YouTube it seems like. People go to it for information and entertainment. Heck, even major news websites have YouTube videos embedded on their websites. People upload family videos to stay connected. People upload videos of themselves to vent, rave, share their story, make us laugh, make us cry, make us dance…It is a revolution and I will be very curious to see how it affects TV viewing in the future and most of all how it will continue to affects our culture. It is a universal phenomenon and it would be interesting to see how it affects us all collectively and how it affects one particular culture versus another.

I would love to see more participation in YouTube in this class. One idea is for us to create a vlog ourselves. We could choose a theme related to our field or our interests or we could just be ourselves in the video and create whatever just like when we created the class introduction video. Talk about raw, unedited, and embarrassing but I figured the only ones who would be watching it would be classmates anyway. Then we could keep track of the views and comments, how to improve our ratings, analyze what we are doing is popular or not, target audience if possible, etc...It would be interesting to just be yourself and create a series of videos and see what happens…After watching Wesch’s video, it has made me want to experiment with YouTube just to see what happens…

This reminds me, I need to go sign up for Digg now. He mentioned it so much in the video that’s another Web 2.0 tool I need to check out.