Thing 16: Geotagging

Flickr's geotagging feature is reeeeeeaaaally cool. it's neat if you want to view photos in a certain area using a map, or just let the world know where you're taking such sweet photos. it definitely adds a whole new level to the world of social networking and photography.

the geotagging on Flickr seems to be a lot more advanced and simple than the ones that exist on other sites.

geocaching seems like a HUGE waste of time, and I'm not really sure why anyone. anywhere. would ever. geocache.

anyway...

that does it.

Thing 15: Podcasts

podcasts are a great tool for gaining all kinds of information and/or entertainment, whenever you want! since the format for podcasts is .MP3, you can do just about anything with them. personally I haven't gotten that much into podcasts, but they seem like an extremely useful tool for learning information at your convenience.

just another great resource that the Internet offers us.

now last, but not least, Thing 16.

Thing 14: Research Project Calculator

the RPC and I were made for each other. it pretty much plans out what you need to do to complete your research assignment, and leaves the rest up to you. the fact that you can have email reminders for what you need to do is B-E-A-UTIFUL. why didn't I know about this before???

the Teacher Guide, however seems to be more useful to what I'll be spending most of my time on at the Ai. it's more of a learning guide, and this will be a lot more useful since I won't be writing THAT many more research papers.

well, at least I hope not.

let's take a look at Thing 15.

Thing 13: Online Productivity Tools

I chose to use an iGoogle home page, simply because I have absolutely loved every other Google product I have ever toyed with. it's great to have everything I'm interested in on one page...I find it to be very useful...although since I am on the go a lot I do have applications for my iPhone that serve about the same purpose as iGoogle does on a normal computer.

online calendars seem to be a great idea, simply because if you break your equipment (I go through about 1 phone per year), your information still exists online. no need to worry about forgotten appointments and reminders...it's a beautiful thing.

the to-do lists seem alright, but once again I already have an existing iPhone app and corresponding program for the Mac that is way more useful than anything I could find online for productivity. it's called OmniFocus, and it lists tasks by date due, and also by where and how you need to perform those tasks, depending on what is pressing at the time.

I find it interesting that the Web seems to be integrated more and more into our daily lives as time moves on.

Thing. 14.

Thing 12: Tagging and Del.icio.us

tagging has to be one of the most powerful tools that exists on the Internet...it allows for extremely easy searching, as well as useful grouping of items that can be changed at any time if need be. it makes finding what you need SUPER fast, and it also makes it easy to classify things such as photos online.

Del.icio.us seems to be a very useful tool as well. blending bookmarks with social networking allows you to find things in common with other people that you never would have discovered otherwise...although you can also do similar things on both Facebook and Twitter...just not to this extreme. it also seems very easy to use.

I definitely dig.

now for a look at the unlucky Thing 13.

Thing 11: Online Creations

these tools seem to have a lot of use for both personal and professional use...although they don't seem to be that much more useful than the tools I have already explored, such as Flickr, Facebook and Blogger. they are, like these other tools, for sharing information in the form of photos, albums and slideshows.

Zoho Show seemed to be the easiest, most useful tool out of those listed...it's basically like an online version of PowerPoint, which makes it easier to share presentations that you create.

yep. Thing 12...

Thing 10: More Flickring Around

these tools involving Flickr will help me professionally to integrate my photos online into other Web sites and online media sites. they will make my photos more easily accessible and available to those I am connected with on the Internet. again, it's another great tool to get my name out there as a graphic designer and photographer.

now I'mma take a gander at Thing 11...

Thing 9: Photosharing with Flickr

Flickr is a fantastic Web site for sharing photos. the tagging feature makes for a great seach tool on Flickr, and the fact that you can also browse a certain person's photos is also extremely useful.

I think that having your photos public is a great way for you to get your photos out there...and if people like your stuff, more people will be able to see it! it's just a great way to get your name out there as a photographer.

Flickr pretty much rocks...although I'm not sure how I feel about it being owned by Yahoo!

let's take a look at Thing 10...

Thing 8: Wikis

wikis seem to be an incredibly powerful tool...both the extreme danger and benefit of it, however, seems to be that anyone can edit the information on wikis. someone could easily put false information up on a wiki, and viewers will have no idea that the information posted is false. it seems like a good concept though. I think that generally wikis can be a good source of common knowledge, etc.

because anyone can edit wikis, it seems like a good idea for professors to ban Wikipedia as a source of information for papers and other projects. the information isn't always as reliable as it seems.

gotta love it though...as I recall I have learned a LOT of information from Wikipedia.

aaaaand on to Thing 9...

Thing 7: Online Collaboration Tools

Google Docs is a great tool. it's super simple to use and allows you to share documents with anyone on the Internet...not just anyone that has the correct software. I also prefer Google Docs because you can edit just about any type of file...the other tools take different products to use different types of documents.

the Founding Fathers would be blown away by the technology that exists today. they would also probably be appalled by the information that exists all over the internet...however, I don't think that they had imagined in their wildest dreams that someone could send an SMS text message to an online microblogging service and hundreds of thousands of other people would instantly be able to see what was contained in that SMS.

not in their wildest dreams.

heck, what would someone 15 years ago think of the technology that exists today? it's crazy!

now for Thing 8...

Thing 6: Digg & Reddit...[et al].

Digg seems to be a very powerful tool for research...what's really nice about it is that all the information is sorted by how many people "Digg" it...aka what information users seem to find the most useful or entertaining. this would be a useful trait for research because it will weed out the more useless information, thus making your searches much more productive!

connecting sites like Digg and Reddit to your Facebook and Twitter would both help you to have all of your information in fewer places as well as get your name further out into the world and be more connected.

the thing with open source sites like Reddit is...you can probably rely on the information that is on these sites if other people and other resources are saying the same thing.

more great (yet confusing at first) resources to improve your online experience.

now for Thing 7...

Thing 5: Beyond MyFaceSpaceBooking

for my microblogging account, I chose Twitter. mainly because I already have a Twitter account and a lot of people I know are on Twitter. it's a great way to stay connected with the little things in the lives of those close to you...the online journaling experience is an interesting one. the fact that anyone can see what you write has taking some getting used to, but overall I enjoy it. it's an easy way to stay connected.

online microblogging could be used for evil in a number of ways...one of the most common would be talking smack about people that may or may not be able to see what you're saying. this seems to be a common trend, and it's not exactly material I want to read everyday.

when used for good however, Twitter usually makes my day.

:)

now for Thing 6...

Thing 4: Social Media

social media...I have had a profile on Facebook for quite some time now, and I find it to be a FANTASTIC social networking tool. it's a great way to stay connected with old friends as well as get to know new ones. the fact that you can post photos, links, status updates, videos and everything in between makes Facebook a powerful tool. you can post a public message to any friend, and you can also send them a private message (much like email).

since I am a graphic designer and photographer, I think that posting my work on a site such as Facebook will help to build my reputation as a skilled graphic designer and photographer. people can easily check out my work at any time, and the more I post, the more exposure I get as a designer. this will be a great help for future employers, etc.

professional networking is different from social networking in that just about anything goes with social networking. you wouldn't post a status update for your professional colleagues to see that mentions what you had for breakfast or the idiot you saw at the bus stop. certain things you reserve for certain audiences.

social networking. I dig it.

ummmm. Thing 5?

Thing 3: Online Communication

I. definitely. dig. myaicampus.com...this is the third college I have attended, and this is by far the best Web site for a college that I have seen. everything is on one page. the layout is hella simple. there is a ton of useful resources on this page. particularly the email, grades, and register for classes pages. on Web sites for other colleges that I have seen these resources are spread out over a bunch of different locations. here it's all in one place.

consolidation is a beautiful thing.

let's take a look at Thing 4...

Thing 2: Set Up An RSS Account and Add Feeds

holy confusing Batman! RSS feeds are quite an experience. this one is going to take me a while to get used to, but I think once I do I'll love it. it will be fantastic to have all the information I want in one place. in one simple layout.

stretching myself on the Internet is something I haven't done in a very long time...I think it's good. my Google Reader account will take time to get used to though. I think I'll like it once I totally figure it out. I think there's a few RSS apps for the iPhone out there. I'll have to see what's up with that.

and now for Thing 3...

Thing 1: Setting Up Your Blog

setting up a Blogger account wasn't the easiest thing I have ever done. the menus and settings aren't incredibly easy to figure out, and the overall layout isn't the simplest format I have seen either. overall I would say I'm glad I got my feet wet in the blog world as a lot of people out there have blogs and update them on a regular basis. once I got everything figured out I was definitely pleased with the result, and I will definitely be starting my own personal blog very soon as a result.

I feel like I have the complete trifecta now...Blogger, Facebook and Twitter.

now for Thing 2...