Thursday, May 22, 2008
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Second Life
Developed by Linden Research, Second Life is a 3D virtual world entirely built and owned by its users. Echoing the 'real world', in Second Life you can own land, trade goods and services, engage with the artistic community and participate in educational activities.Residents are represented in Second Life by avatars which are human in appearance but may be of either sex and have a wide variety of humanoid of other forms. Avatars communicate through two main methods of text communication: local chat and instant messaging.
Some interesting facts about Second Life
- There are over 9.1 million residents (as of August 2007).
- 9,195 islands were added during July 2007.
- The currency of Second Life, the Linden Dollar, can be converted to US dollars at several Linden Dollar exchanges (sparking the interest of various taxation departments around the world).
- The Maldives was the first country to open an embassy in Second Life.
For more information on Second Life, go to:
Demonstration of Second Life
Watch the following video demonstrations on YouTube:
Resources
- Economy in Second Life
- Business opportunities in Second Life
- Second Life Business Communicators Wiki
- Starting a Second Life business
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Online Applications: Google Docs
Everyone knows about the famous Google search engine, but did you know there is a complete suite of Google products that are available for the everyday user? These products include gmail (an online email application), Google docs and spreadsheets, Google maps, Google calendar and Google talk just to name a few. In the past few years Google has also bought out successful web companies such as youtube and picasa to add to their suite of products. Check out the full list of Google products and services.
Discovery Resources
- Tour of Google Docs and Spreadsheets - the official tour of Google Docs and Spreadsheets
Your Tasks
- Go to Google Docs, login and create a new document.
- Save the document and return to the homepage of Google Docs.
- Create a spreadsheet
Google Maps
Discovery Resources- Tour of Google Maps – the official tour of Google Maps
- Information on Google
Task
- your place of work
- your home
iGoogle
Google offers the ability to create a personalized iGoogle page that gives you at-a-glance access to key information from Google and across the web. On this self-designed page, you can choose and organize content such as:- Your latest Gmail messages
- Headlines from Google News and other top news sources
- Weather forecasts, stock quotes, and movie showtimes
- Bookmarks for quick access to your favorite sites from any computer
- Your own section with content you find from across the web
- Google Book Search
Discovery Resources
iGoogle
- Go to iGoogle and login if you have not logged in
- Add the following gadgets (check out the discovery resources to show you how to do this):
- Google Map Search gadget
- One of the facebook gadgets
- Google Docs and Spreadsheet gadget
RSS Feeds
Have you heard of RSS and seen those small funny orange tags on web sites?
You might have heard co-workers and acquaintances swear by it, but do you have any idea what RSS is?
In the information world, RSS is not only revolutionalizing the way news, media and content creators share information, but it also is swiftly changing the way everyday users are consuming information.
RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is a file format for delivering regular Internet feeds
- CNET Video: RSS – Feel the Need for Feeds (3:32) – a good overview of what RSS is and the benefits to users.
- Feed Me: A gentle introduction to Internet feeds - a good tutorial from Palinet, a library cooperative.
Task
Follow these discovery exercises to set up your own personalized RSS feed reader.
- Create a free "RSS aggregator" account at Bloglines and subscribe to at least 5 newsfeeds.
RSS Feeds you could add
General
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)