Learning Curve

• EtherPad: 1NpNXJPweV

  From Linda Nitsche on Twitter, EtherPad lets you share a document collaboratively in real time, with color coding for each writer. Great for IP.

  tags: education, etherpad, web2.0, IP

• moourl.com

  Welcome to the web’s cutest URL shortening service. If you have a really loooong URL, just paste it in the text field below, and we’ll milk it, creating a moourl for you. It lasts forever, It’s automatically copied to your clipboard, and It’s really cute. Similar to tinyurl.com

  tags: education, url, moourl, webtools, bookmarklet, web2.0

• Fasterfox :: Firefox Add-ons

  This extension does one thing: It makes Firefox load pages faster. Speed of page loading can be increased by allowing simultaneous connections and prefetching. This extension is currently in the experimental stage because of the release of Firefox 3. To install it, you have to log into a Firefox account to download. The extension is worth the hassle. The speed increase is noticeable.

  tags: education, fasterfox, addon, firefox

• Last.fm – Discover new music with free internet radio and the largest music catalogue online

  The world’s largest social music platform. Show off your taste, see what your friends are listening to, hear new music, get personal radio, recommendations, and downloads, all for free. Great free resource for IP.

  tags: education, web2.0, mp3, streaming, music, radio, IP

• Fire.fm :: Firefox Add-ons

  Winner of the Extend Firefox 3 contest, Fire.fm is your direct access to the extensive music library on Last.fm. Listen to music related to your favorite artist, and discover new artists and music in the process. Listen to your friends’ favorite music. Find Last.fm users with musical taste similar to your own. Quickly access your favorite stations by just typing a few letters into the location bar. This is the ultimate add-on for the music junkie. For IP, this is a great add on for music searches.

  tags: education, last.fm, music, lastfm, fire.fm, firefox, plugin, IP

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

I found this video on Cliotech’s blog, which was nominated for Edublog Awards 2008 Best Individual Blog (and she really does deserve to win). She found it on Steve Dembo and Kathy Schrock’s blogs, and I wanted to share it with you. It is a timely Common Craft production, because it addresses the work you are currently creating.

Connectivism
Common Craft
Web 2.0
Network
Technology
Education
Turbo Tagger

• animoto – Spreading The Cheer

  Send a digital Christmas card like no other using Animoto.

  tags: Animoto, education, digital greeting card

• Ping.fm / Login

  Ping.fm is a simple service that makes updating your social networks a snap. You can send text, images, and soon video too through
  Mobile Phone / SMS / MMS, iPhone, iPod Touch or standard mobile phone text messages; Instant Message / E-mail, Yahoo! Messenger, Google Talk, AIM, Windows Live Messenger and standard e-mail;
  3rd Party Apps / Developer AP with Over 30 web and desktop apps from 3rd party developers.

  tags: ping.fm, education

• TweetDeck

  TweetDeck is an Adobe Air desktop application that is currently in public beta. It aims to evolve the existing functionality of Twitter by taking an abundance of information i.e twitter feeds, and breaking it down into more manageable bite sized pieces.

  tags: twitter, tweetdeck, microblogging, twittertools, adobeair, education

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

• Fashion Your Firefox

  I’ve been asked so often about my Firefox add ons. I’m listing my favorites that I simply cannot live without. This link allows you to view the different ways you can customize your browser, depending on the multiple ways you use your search engine. There are literally hundreds of add ons and extensions, so you need to choose wisely. This link will help you narrow your search.

  tags: Firefox, extensions, add-ons, fashion, browser, list, addons, education

• Forecastfox™ :: Firefox Add-ons

  Get international weather forecasts from AccuWeather.com, and display it in any toolbar or statusbar with this highly customizable and unobtrusive… There are several versions of Forecastfox, and the one I run is no longer available. What I love about this add on is that it allows me to keep track of weather (alerts) from the home location of my choice.

  tags: firefox, forecastfox, education

• SearchLoad Options :: Firefox Add-ons

  Tweaks the searchbar’s functionality.

  tags: education, searchload, firefox

• ReminderFox :: Firefox Add-ons

  ReminderFox displays and manages lists of date-based reminders and ToDo’s. ReminderFox does not seek to be a full-fledged calendar. In fact, the target audience is anybody that simply wants to remember important dates (birthdays, anniversaries, bills, etc) without having to run a whole calendar application. ReminderFox makes sure you remember all of your important dates via easy-to-use lists, alerts, and alarm notifications. I love how this feature continues to remind you; better than sticky notes.

  tags: education, reminderfox, addon

• Facebook Toolbar :: Firefox Add-ons

  Integrate your Facebook life into your browser…

  tags: education, facebook, firefox, socialnetworking, extension

• Adblock Plus :: Firefox Add-ons

  Ever been annoyed by all those ads and banners on the internet that often take longer to download than everything else on the page? Install Adblock Plus now and get rid of them. You will notice a difference immediately.

  tags: education, firefox, extensions, adblock, software, add-on, addon, advertising, extension

• Download Statusbar :: Firefox Add-ons

  View and manage downloads from a tidy statusbar – without the download window getting in the way of your web browsing. I absolutely love this add on; with the MacBook, this feature really simplifies my life, although I run it on my PCs as well.

  tags: education, firefox, addons, extension, extensions, statusbar

• Diigo: Web Highlighter and Sticky Notes :: Firefox Add-ons

  This official Diigo add-on seamlessly integrates your browser with Diigo.com, the next-generation social bookmarking and annotation service on the web. It provides the following enhancements that can make your browsing experience and research process on web much more productive.

  tags: education, diigo, firefox, bookmarking, highlighter, extension

• Tinywww Creator :: Firefox Add-ons

  Tool to create small url redirects from longer ones. Based on the popular tinyurl extension by Jeremy Gillick — Adapted by Brian Carnes and Ryan…

  tags: education, tinywww, firefox, add on, add ons

• WOT :: Firefox Add-ons

  WOT, Web of Trust, warns you about risky websites that try to scam visitors, deliver malware or send spam. Protect your computer against online threats by using WOT as your front-line layer of protection when browsing or searching in unfamiliar territory. WOT’s color-coded icons show you ratings for 20 million websites – green to go, yellow for caution and red to stop – helping you avoid the dangerous sites. Surf safer and add WOT to your Firefox now.

  tags: education, wot, firefox, web, add on, add, ons

• TwitterFox :: Firefox Add-ons

  TwitterFox is a Firefox extension that notifies you of your friends’ status on Twitter. Works even though Twitter is blocked at school.

  tags: education, twitter, firefox, twitterfox, social networking

• Tab History :: Firefox Add-ons

  New tabs retain the session history of the originating tab. Links opened in a new tab won’t have a blank history, but one that is populated from the "parent"… I absolutely love this feature.

  tags: education, firefox, add ons, add on, tabs

• ColorfulTabs :: Firefox Add-ons

  The most beautiful yet the simplest add-on that makes a strong colorful appeal. Flock version available at http://binaryturf.com/software/colorfultabs-for-flock/. Colors every tab in a different color and makes them easy to distinguish while beautifying the overall appearance of the interface. An essential… and my favorite. Found this feature from Steve Dembo, aka Teach42.

  tags: education, firefox, extension, colorfultabs

• Tab Mix Plus :: Firefox Add-ons

  Tab Mix Plus enhances Firefox’s tab browsing capabilities. It includes such features as duplicating tabs, controlling tab focus, tab clicking options, undo closed tabs and windows, plus much more. It also includes a full-featured session manager. This feature allows you to save your tabs before closing Firefox, and then restores them (in order) when you reopen Firefox.

  tags: education, firefox, extension, Extensions, addon, plugin, tabs, addons

• Shareaholic :: Firefox Add-ons

  Social networking and link-sharing addicts rejoice!\n\nShareaholic allows you to quickly share, bookmark, and e-mail web pages via a very wide array of your favorite web 2.0 social networking & bookmarking sites – such as Delicious, Digg, Facebook, Google Reader, MySpace, and StumbleUpon, without cluttering up your browser.\n\n* Shareaholic was the Grand Prize winner of Extend Firefox 2, a Mozilla sponsored contest for the best Firefox addons *

  tags: education, firefox, shareaholic, extension, extensions, delicious, plugin, addon, add-on

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

The link to the tech prompt is located on each period’s wiki (not wiki roster). Here is a link you can use to access the “how to” write a five-paragraph essay.
Remember:
1. You can work in your blog, then Save your work if you are not finished with your essay.
2. When you want to find your saved essay, log in to your blog, and on your dashboard, select Manage, then Posts, and then click Edit on your saved essay.
3. You CANNOT double space on a blog, and you CANNOT indent. You MUST put a SPACE BETWEEN YOUR PARAGRAPHS (so the reader knows where each new paragraph begins). You put a space between your paragraphs by hitting the Return key once.
4. Please do not put three supports in your thesis; your thesis is about ONE idea.
CORRECT: By far, the most important technological development to benefit society is the wheel.
Incorrect: By far, the most important technological development to benefit society is the wheel because of easier transportation, construction, and future developments from the wheel.
5. At the end of paragraphs 2, 3, and 4, your last sentence needs to summarize the paragraph you are leaving AND transition to the next paragraph.
Example: Although the wheel improved transportation, it also made construction of buildings or monuments easier as well.
6. Your last paragraph CANNOT summarize your essay. You need to cover new ground in the last paragraph, so you need to think about (for this essay) the benefits we enjoy today and what we might anticipate for the future.
7. In order to embed a video, you need the code for the video and YOU MUST WORK IN HTML for the code to work.
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Speaking of the future of technology, take a look at these 2 YouTube videos. You won’t believe your eyes. Thanks to Noah Sanders for bringing these videos to us. What the technology does is integrate touch screen capabilities of a computer with a BlueTooth connection. Lending new meaning to awesome, Microsoft Surface has been available since November, but only for restaurants and casinos right now.

If you want to take a look at an interesting post on technology of the future (already out in beta version), check this post from a year ago.