Week 8 Thing 19.1 Digital Pipeline

Here I have added the Sled Search sites widget for direct searching from your website or blog. Which I added to the bottom here.
I compared the different searches for elementary, middle school and high school. Each level provides more opportunities for information as they advance in levels.
I also found exploring the Consumer Health Database an interesting adventure and found some good information here.
I think I learned much here more than I realized even after all the times I have used it and help students and teacher use it to find information.
I think the small engine and automotive repair section would be handy for many Alaskans out there who are trying to figure out how to fix something. That however is not me. I am not the fix it type.


I learned how to create a journal alert and a search alert. I found that using the Ebsco how to's is easy and handy. Here is the information from Ebsco directly from their how to information.

How do I create a Journal Alert?

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Set up a Journal Alert | Set up a Search Alert for a Journal Title

Not all databases support journal alerts. For a list of databases that support journal alerts from the Publication Details Screen, click here.

To set up a Journal Alert:

1. Click the Publications link. To locate the publication, enter the title in the Browse Publications field and click Browse, or use the A - Z links and left/right arrows to browse through the list of titles.

2. From the title's Publication Details Screen, click the Journal Alert link. If you have not already signed in to My EBSCOhost, you will be prompted to do so.

3. The Save Journal Alert Screen appears. The Journal Alert name, Date Created, and Database name are automatically filled in.

4. In the Run Alert for field, select how long the journal alert should run:

• One month (the default)
• Two months
• Six months
• One year

5. Select the Results content - indicate whether you want to include: Link to TOC page on EBSCOhost or Article links embedded within the results.

6. Select the Results format (if including Article links): Brief or Detailed.

7. To limit EBSCOhost access to only the articles in the alert (rather than the entire site), mark the checkbox to the left of this field.

8. In the E-mail Options section, indicate how you would like to be notified. Select one:

• E-mail all alerts and notices (the default)
• E-mail only creation notice
• No e-mail (RSS only)

9. E-mail Address - to be notified by e-mail when a new issue is available, enter your e-mail address. If you are entering multiple e-mail addresses, place a semicolon between each e-mail address.

10. Subject - enter a brief explanation that will appear in the subject line of the Journal Alert e-mail.

11. Title - you can optionally enter a title for the e-mail. The default value for the title field is: EBSCOhost Alert Notification.

12. E-mail [From] address - defaults to EPAlerts@EPNET.COM. You can enter a different "From" e-mail address if desired.

13. Select the E-mail format to use: Plain Text or HTML.

14. To have your search string included with your results, mark the Include query string in results checkbox.

15. When you have finished making changes, click Save. You will be returned to the Publication Details Screen. A message is displayed that indicates a journal alert has been set for the publication.

Not all databases offer the journal alert feature from the Publication Details Screen. In this situation, you can set up a Search Alert using the publication title as your search string.

To set up a Search Alert for a journal title:

1. From the Advanced Search Screen, click the Publications button.
2. Enter the publication name in the Browse for field.
3. Check the box in front of the resulting publication name and click the Search button.
4. Click the Search History/Alerts link below the Find field.
5. Click the Save Searches/Alerts link.
6. Sign in to My EBSCOhost. If you do not have a personal account, click the I'm a new user link to set one up.
7. On the resulting Saved Searches/Alert Screen, click the radio button in front of Alert. Fill in the required fields, then click Save.

See also: EBSCOhost Journal Alert Help Sheet

ID:	1216
Topic:	Linking Services
Services:	EBSCOhost Research Databases, Canadian Reference Centre, EBSCOhost Text Only, UK Reference Centre
Link:	http://support.ebsco.com/knowledge_base/detail.php?id=1216

Web 2.0 New Tools New Schools Chapter 10

Chapter 10 Tutorials is a great way to conclude the book with some specific tutorials from Web 2.0 tools that had been introduced in chapter 3. I like how they covered basic applications like word processing, presentations, spreadsheets and communication tools like blogs and wikis as well as some creative tools such as photo editing and audio editing and drawing. I think these tutorials are a great introduction to the tool and would get some people to try them that normally wouldn't by just seeing them online or something like that. I took a look at some of the ones I had not used before and checked them out. I even followed the tutorial on one of them which is always hard for me. I just like to try them out and see what they can do. I think this will be a helpful chapter for many who are new at these web 2.0 tools.

Web 2.0 New Tools New Schools Chapter 9

New Schools Chapter 9 wow we aren't kidding when we say that things are changing so fast, what is here today may be gone tomorrow. I have trouble seeing the vision presented in this chapter. I can see the positive impacts of utilizing Web 2.0 tools in the classroom to help bridge the gap in the students learning styles. Trying to use the same tools in the classroom that students use at home on a daily basis trying to utilize social networking in an educational setting.
This concept of "harnessing the collective intelligence of educational data" Solomon pg 178, is a good one and many of these tools could assist teachers and students to create educational tracks that would meet their needs. Web-based software used to provide feedback and suggest direction and resources based on what has worked with other students does make sense.
David Warlick vision of a middle school using blogs where they write everything from homework assignments to reflections on course topics posted each Monday, with the principal posting week at a glance and the district administrator viewing and posting as well. Students utilizing team wikis to communicate and post their work all seems like a good vision but logistics need some work.
Using open source software provides lots of opportunities and challenges but it seems like a viable option for many teachers to enhance their classrooms. Utilizing wikis for collaborative classroom writing provides another tool for teachers and students to communicate quickly and effectively and provide immediate feedback.
The idea of open-source educational applications is interesting, Bob Tinkier (2006) believes that we can change the paradigm used for software development to open-source. If this is going to work these applications need to be embedded in an educational platform that can deliver complete learning activities online and then assess student progress as the students work through these activities. With teachers and educators able to adjust the curriculum and customize activities and assessments. I don't know how this would work as an open-source broad based community application but it is interesting to think about. Having students work on projects that interest them and are available to other students and parents and teachers to view presents other interesting applications.
I think the weakness with all of the web 2.0 applications is the majority of our teachers fear technology and the loss of control of their direction of the education. We must continue to educated and train and communicate with each other to provide assistance to teachers technology needs. Another problem is access to the computer to be able to complete the assigned online work. Many students lack internet access at home or even a computer. Schools are also limited with computer access an availability for classroom use. I see this as a major obstacle in implementing more use of the web 2.0 tools in the classroom.
To increase the use of Web 2.0 in the classroom, communication is key here to communicate what works and what doesn't, share good lessons and good techniques and practices. Continue to move forward and help each other along the way.

Week 8 Thing 19

The LibraryThing is way too much fun. I think it would be a good addition to my library website. I like how easy it is to post the books and read the reviews and gather any information that might be interesting. I spent way too much time looking at books I have read and ones I want to read. I will definitely have to spend more time using it to figure out more of how it could be utilized. But I like it and plan on utilizing it. The book reviews were fun to look at and see how it had been rated.

Books Books Books!!!

Week 8 Thing 18

I used Zoho Writer and created a document which I posted to my blog: http://writer.zoho.com/ It was an interesting experience much like using a normal word document changing fonts colors adding things was pretty easy. It was also a breeze to post it to my blog. I have used googledocs before with some interactive writing which was interesting. I would have to spend more time with Zoho Writer to become proficient in all it can do.

Web 2.0

Welcome to the world of Web 2.0 where with the click of a button you can be famous on the web or infamous whatever the case may be! All you have to do is get out there and share. Here are a few places you can go to explore some Web 2.0 Tools:

• http://www.flickr.com
• http://www.biblio.com/
• http://del.icio.us/
• http://www.lulu.com/
• http://www.librarything.com/
• http://www.worldcat.org/
• http://www.vufind.org/
• http://docs.google.com/?pli=1
• http://www.writeboard.com/
• http://www.thinkfree.com/
• http://wufoo.com/
• http://www.mangolanguages.com/

There are many more exciting and challenging places to visit and things to do with Web 2.0. If you have lots of time and nothing else to do.