Clif's Notes

Together We Learn More

I encourage new visitors to the website and blog to join our professional learning network (PLN) via Facebook and Google Friend Connect so that we can all engage in more active and collaborative ways. I hope you’ll join our educational community (click on the buttons below) and let’s have fun learning together. Please feel free to invite other educators, preservice teachers, homeschool families, and anyone with an interest in education and technology, too.

• Using Facebook Pages
• New Diigo Group: Mobile Technology and Education
• Ning for Teacher Educators
• New Diigo Group

Using Facebook Pages

I’ve recently setup a Facebook page for Clif Mims.com which includes my entire educational website and this blog. This provides us additional avenues for sharing resources and engaging with people that share an interest in education, technology, instructional design, curriculum, professional development, technology integration, Web 2.0 and social media, and more. I’ve added fan box widgets to my website and towards the bottom of the right-hand menu of this blog which show off a few random avatars of people that have already become fans.

Please click the gray “Become a Fan” button and join the learning and fun.

• Together We Learn More
• Tech Review: MyBlogLog
• This Afternoon at EBC
• It’s Good to Be Back

Happy Blogiversary

This blog turned 2 years old on February 4. I actually set it up while we watched the 2007 Super Bowl. Here’s a look back at some of the blog’s events, changes and friends that made this 2nd year really special.

• And So It Begins
• A New Year Begins…
• Happy Blogiversary
• Hi There, Ithaca…What Do You Want to Discuss?

Educational Resources and PLN

I’m redesigning the access of my list of educational resources. The list has just gotten too long to link each one from the blog’s menu. Instead, I’m moving them all to a (hopefully) better designed and more useful page, but that’s a work in progress. In the interim you can access them by clicking on the Ed. Resources & PLN link in the Navigation menu of this blog.

I’d enjoy it if you would connect/friend/follow me on any of these resources that you use. I truly believe that I’m a better teacher and scholar as a result of my interaction with you, the members of my personal learning netwrok (PLN).

Website: Clif Mims.com (Join, RSS)

Blog: Clif’s Notes (Join, RSS. Daily Email)

Wiki: Learning Telecollaboratively (Join, RSS)

eBook: Teaching and Learning with Web 2.0

SIG: Teaching and Learning with Web 2.0 Special Interest Group

Contact: Submit Message

Instant Messenger ID: clifmims (AIM, Jabber/Google, MSN/Windows Live, Oovoo, Skype, Yahoo!)

Retaggr: Profile

Educational Resources and Online Identities

• Workshops & Presentations (Friend, RSS)
• Ed Tech Newsletter (Subscribe)
• Twitter (Follow, RSS)
• Plurk (Friend, RSS)
• Identi.ca (Subscribe, RSS)
• Bookmarks (Friend, RSS)
• Diigo Resources (Friend, RSS)
• Diigo Groups
• Delicious (Add to Your Network, RSS)
• Tumblr (Follow, RSS)
• Podcast (RSS)
• VoiceThread
• FriendFeed (Subscribe, RSS)
• Shared Google Reader (Friend, RSS)
• My Google Library (Add to Favorites, RSS)
• Google Friend Connect
• Nings
• Webjam (Friend, RSS)
• LinkedIn Profile
• Apple Learning Interchange
• EduSpaces (Friend, RSS)
• MyBlogLog Profile
• PBS Teacher Connect
• Scribd (Friend, RSS)
• Issuu (Friend, RSS)
• SlideShare (Add As a Contact, RSS)
• SlideBoom (Join Teachers Group, RSS)
• My Plick (Subscribe, Friend, RSS)
• YouTube (Subscribe, Friend, RSS)
• TeacherTube (Friend, RSS)
• Vimeo (Friend, Video RSS, Album RSS)
• Blip.tv Subscribe via iTunes, Miro, or RSS
• GodTube (Friend, Subscribe, RSS)
• Ustream (RSS)
• Seesmic (Follow, RSS)
• Pageflakes
• Twine
• Squidoo (Join)
• Spring Widgets
• Widgetbox
• You Noodle
• Scoutle
• My ESPN

• Notes from Clif
• Tech Review: MyBlogLog
• Together We Learn More
• Welcome to UNCC Friends

Tech Review: MyBlogLog

As I mentioned earlier this week I am going to spend some of my vacation time on my personal professional development. I’m looking forward to catching up on some reading, working on a few things that I’ve been wanting to write, developing and revising some of the instruction and resources in my courses, and becoming more familiar with a bunch of Web 2.0 tools and services.

One thing that I have managed to do so far is setup MyBlogLog profile. Their tagline is “Discover who’s visiting your site, and connect with your readers.” I welcome the possibility of getting to know all of you better – that way we can learn together. I’ve had the account for a while and used it occasionaly, but I’ve never really setup my profile. I’ve noticed the MyBlogLog widgets on many of the blogs that I read and have been waiting for a window of free time (It’s been a long wait!) to become as familiar with the service as I wished. While playing with the service I noticed several useful ways that it can be used. MyBlogLog’s community features make it easy to find and connect with people that teach the same grades and courses as you, share your interests, and live all around the world. It also has a social aggregator feature similar to friendfeed.

I realize there’s been talk the last couple of weeks of Google Friend Connect and Facebook Connect possibly becoming the front-runners, so we’ll see how it all plays out. Anyway, I like MyBlogLog and I’ve added a link to my profile under the Clif’s Resources section in the right-hand menu of this blog. Please, please feel free to network and learn with me through this service.

• Educational Resources and PLN
• Listen to RSS Feeds
• Learn with Us (IDT7078)
• Diigo Buys Furl

Notes from Clif

I’ve made some additions to the blog. Take a look and let me know what you think, please.

• You can view the newly added photo album by clicking on the corresponding link in the Blog Navigation menu.
• I’m currently developing my consulting and contact pages (HELP!).
• Several new resources are available under the Clif’s Resources menu including: a free subscription to my educational technology email newsletter, access to my Google Reader Shared Items, and my Pageflakes and Twine profiles which are likely to become quite active during EduBloggerCon, NECC, and Teaching and Learning with Web 2.0.
• A lot is happening at Clif’s Wiki, too.
• Of course, the blog’s entire theme has been under development for about 3 weeks, now.

Wimbledon starts on Monday. I’ll post my predictions before it begins.

Suggested Reading

Diigo’s Psychotic No. 1 Fan – Miguel Ghulin

The Last Professors – Inside Higher Ed

• Using Facebook Pages
• Educational Resources and PLN
• My Second Blog
• Photos from Washington, D.C.

Gravatar Spices up Your ID

Several of you have inquired about using an icon/avatar with your comments on this blog. Clif’s Notes uses globally recognized avatars through Gravatar. All you need is an email address and your Gravatar will be be available at this and many other blogs on the Web. Setup takes about 60 seconds and is completely free. Get started here.

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Resources

Gravatars, Identicons, and You – Stack Overflow

Gravatar’s on AnotherGuy’s Weblog – AnotherGuy’s Weblog

• My Second Blog
• Notes from Clif
• Leave Audio and Video Comments
• Listen to RSS Feeds

Leave Audio and Video Comments

I meant to mention a few weeks back that Riffly.com is up and running again. That means that you may once again easily leave video and audio comments on Clif’s Notes. This is a free service and I welcome you to take advantage of this technology. Simply click on the corresponding links in the Comments section and follow the on-screen directions to leave your audio and video responses.

Here are examples of Riffly in action.

• Connecting the Classroom and Outside World (Feedback Requested)
• Video Resources
• Free Software: Camtasia and Snag It
• Reply to Miguel Guhlin

Firefox Is the Browser of Choice

This blog does not support Internet Explorer! Web developers have to add special coding to webpages and blogs to keep things from going wonky in Internet Explorer, although everything will look perfect in other browsers without the special code. I’m tired of fooling with it. There are several better and more secure browsers available and I don’t think anyone should be using IE anymore. Here’s the perfect opportunity to switch to Firefox (The browser I recommend using). Download today and help set a new world record.

• Free Open Source Software (FOSS)
• Tools I’m Currently Using
• Publishing to AudioBoo from a Web Browser
• Did You Change the World Today?

Listen to RSS Feeds

Jott has added another useful feature to its list of services. Jott feeds makes it possible for you to “listen to your favorite news & RSS feeds, like those from your favorite blogs, Twitter, Google Calendar, or Facebook, all from your phone.” Like everything else from Jott, this service is very simple to use and it works well.

I see positive potential for this free service to be used in education and by those that have visual impairments, have difficulty reading, spend time commuting, and more. It could also be useful to learners that learn best through audio, to help students “hear” their writing during the editing process, to practice pronunciation and for public speaking as well as many other examples. While this particular service may not make its way into many classrooms it is exciting to know that the technology has arrived and consider the possibilities such tools and services bring to teaching and learning.

I set the service up for this blog. It took about 30 seconds. Would any of you be interested in using it?

Additional Resources

• Introducing Jott Feeds – Jott
• Jott Reads Feeds to Your Cell Phone – LifeHacker

• Jott.com ROCKS!!!
• Jott Alternatives
• Elementary Teachers, I Need Your Advice
• Noteworthy from NECC