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We talked about web 2.0 in class on Wednesday. When I mentioned RSS and wikis, it appeared many people hadn’t heard of them before. Pick one and watch the corresponding video. Then comment on if you think the technology would be useful for you, or not, and why.
Wikis
RSS
17 Responses to “Discussion Post 4: New Tech”
I watched the video on wikis and in just a few minutes got a better understanding of what they actually are. I had no idea how simple it was to create your own web page that made life a lot easier with better organization. I believe using a wiki for coordination between people would be very useful over emailing. It allows everyone to access the same information so there is no miscommunication and everyone is able to edit it with their thoughts.
I had never heard of a WIKI before this class. I also didnt link WIKI with WIKIPEDIA either! I wonder how many other different sites are essentially WIKIs!!! I thought that Google Docs were really new and had no idea that you would be able to share documents with other people (so they could edit simultaneously). This saves so much time and I wish I would have known about it before. Also with RSS, it is the same thing. When they compared it to Netflix I really got an understanding of what they really were and it seems they have also been around for a while! These items really save so much time and I am really glad I know about these options.
I also watched the video on wikis. I think that it was really helpful, especially for the extra credit assignment because I had no idea how to actually edit wikipedia. I think it is crazy how much technology has advanced in such a short amount of time. I also really like Google Docs. Between all these new technologies, I think that e-mail will become outdated in years to come and be replaced with new technologies that are more collaborative. I liked the camping trip analogy in the film and now I feel more comfortable actually attempting to use a wiki website.
I enjoyed learning about these new additions to our internet-centered world. I feel like I have a much better grasp on the technology that is out there and I have a feeling I will probably use it now. I am definitely guilty of being caught up in the email mess with my sorority and a cappella group but with a Wiki, I feel like we could avoid a lot of junk. I am really glad I now know about all of these new tools.
I thought it was very interesting that wikis exist because I would have never thought about using them in such a way as creating a location for group discusion. I had never heard about wikis until class and did not understnad there complete function until I watched the video. I think that wikis can be very useful and can eliminate the bombardement of emails that seem to clutter our inboxes. it is truly amazing to think of all the new programs aviailable online that do not require you to save them to your computer.
I had never heard of a Wiki or if I had I never knew what it was. I liked how the video made it very easy to understand how the Wiki works. I can easily see how it could be useful to groups planning activities. I would be interested in seeing if a Wiki page would be useful in keeping track of informations for on campus organizations or other large groups. I definitely think that I will try to find out more about Wikis and try to apply them to some of the things I do.
After watching the wiki video, I’m not quite convinced that they are that much more efficient than email. I say this because I am a member of a listserve that is used quite frequently to make plans and to coordinate activities. It has proven to be effective for a long time now so I’m not sure if the video’s claim that emails are inefficient for coordination is valid. However, I admit that the wiki does seem like a good way to coordinate events too and in some cases, it may be more useful than email. The first scenario that comes to mind is our google docs pages that we have for our groups. I found it very useful to have all three group members editing at once instead of each member revising individually and then emailing the revisions to the other two members. Wikis also make it possible for people to contribute to sites such as Wikipedia which can be useful at times and can benefit from having a lot of different sources of input.
I watched both of the videos, and I think Wikis would be very useful for me in academic, work, and social settings. I had no idea what a Wiki was before this class, and after watching the video, I realized what a powerful organizational tool Wikis are. Many of my friends live in different parts of the country, and using a Wiki would be a great way to share information with them. Wikis also seem like they might help with group projects for classes at Wake. Everyone could access and edit the same information without having to clog everyone’s email inbox! My only concern about using a Wiki is how secure the information on it would be. How can I monitor who is accessing my information? If they are completely secure, then I think Wikis will continue to grow in popularity and usefulness.
I watched the first video on Wikis and I had a number of reactions. At first, I was a little hesitant to be as enthusiastic as the narrator of the YouTube video. For one, I thought about issues of privacy. Considering the fact that Wikis are general websites that can be accessed by the public (at least to my knowledge), they don’t offer the security and privacy that email might afford. At the same time, including multiple email addresses on the email ensures that email isn’t scattered in a variety of email inboxes but in everyone’s email inbox. In this case, I felt that the narrator wasn’t being completely honest about the advantages and disadvantages of a Wiki versus email.
That being the case, I also realized the main point of the video was not to debate whether email is an appropriate source for the spread of information, but instead, it focused on demonstrating the tremendous opportunities available through Wikis. In this, I certainly agree! As Wikipedia has proven consistently, by allowing users an easy-to-use and open forum, Wikis offer unprecedented opportunities to publish thoughts and ideas, and even use the internet for things as simple as day-to-day activities. This can be incredibly helpful and advantageous to even the most basic user!
In fact, by giving the power to the user, Wikis offer diversity to how we use the internet and in terms of what we can find; and, while Wikipedia is a great resource, this video was also incredibly effective in showing that Wikis can be used differently for every user! As a result, this video has demonstrated to me that Wikis can be far more useful than the average layperson, or I, probably ever thought.
The video on Wikis really made me think about my organizational strategies, especially concerning email. I tend to send quite a few daily to friends, classmates, and co-workers, and while I try to group all the emails I receive into folders and sub-folders, certain ones just become general dumping areas. I often have to use the search feature to find specific messages I need. Especially for work, where I’m a function as part of a team, a Wiki would be a wonderful tool for arranging and editing projects. One question I have, though, is if some Wikis have a track changes option to follow who made what alterations when.
I think the Wikis are cool, I was familiar with them but hadn’t used them. I don’t really foresee myself in too many positions where they would be too helpful. The RSS feed, on the other hand, is something that I use heavily. It enables me to track many of my favorite blogs and organizes them in a way that’s easy to cover all the sites but without having to click their links only to see they haven’t updated. A big time saver for sure.
I watched the video on wikis. I think the video was a bit restrictive in itself because it made it seem like creating a wiki was the only solution to coordinating between more than 2 people. At Wake Forest, there are massive uses of listservs; a way to email people in which everyone in a specified group receive the email. I feel using a listserv is more preferable to wikis for two main reasons. First, using a wiki requires a user to sign up for yet ANOTHER online service to remember more passwords and user names. With a listserv, you just use your email account and email a listserv account. Second, once information is edited on a wiki, the information sent out previously is lost. With listservs, even as new information is input, old information can be saved dependent on the user. Therefore, for those reasons, I feel using a wiki is not useful at all when compared to using a listserv.
I watched the first video on Wikis. In the camping example they gave, using the Wiki seemed to be the most efficient way to coordinate their information. Wikis do seem useful because everyone can access one site of information which reduces the need to send massive emails back and forth. The only downside I see is if someone edits something wrong. What if the first person puts down an item they need but the second person feels like it is not necessary and deletes it off the list before the other two people see the item? Maybe the second person is wrong and deleted an item that could prove to be useful because he is inexperienced with camping. Otherwise, I feel like this technology can be useful but it is not the only efficient way to communicate.
I watched the video on wikis. It was interesting. I sort of knew what they were, but after watching the short video I feel like I understand wikis a little bit better. I now even understand a little bit more on how easy it is to edit one. I think that they are good, when communicating a lot of information among a lot people, like wikipedia does. I also like the example of the letter sending in the beginning of the video.
I watched the video on the RRS to see if I would learn anything new. I have been using RRS reader since the beginning of last semester when I decided to get a google email. The video was right on in its presentation of the RRS technology: it really does save you time and make life a lot easier. I personally recommend using google’s RRS since you can add it to a toolbar that sits on the side of your desktop updating on its own every so often.
I thought both of these videos were really interesting. I had never heard of wikis of RSS before, and thought that they are both really great advances. Wikis seemed like a perfect idea for the situation in the video, but I find it difficult to think of daily reasons why it would be necessary. Also, because there is no possibility to see past revisions, someone else can get rid of your posts. The RSS was also something that seems like it would benefit my life. It would really cut down on the time I spend looking at different websites. Since I am not as technologically adept as I thought, these videos really helped inform me of some of the new technology on the internet.
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