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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:

• What is Second Life?
• Wikipedia entry on Second Life

Demonstration of Second Life

Watch the following video demonstrations on YouTube:

• Business and Second Life

Resources

• Economy in Second Life
• Business opportunities in Second Life
• Second Life Business Communicators Wiki
• Starting a Second Life business

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

1. Go to Google Docs, login and create a new document.
2. Save the document and return to the homepage of Google Docs.
3. Create a spreadsheet

Google Maps

Discovery Resources

• Tour of Google Maps – the official tour of Google Maps
• Information on Google

Task

Go to Google Maps Australia and find the following:

1. • 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

• Personalise iGoogle
• iGoogle Instructions and Tips
• iGoogle Problem Solving

iGoogle

1. Go to iGoogle and login if you have not logged in
2. 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.

1. Create a free "RSS aggregator" account at Bloglines and subscribe to at least 5 newsfeeds.

RSS Feeds you could add

• Dion Hinchcliffe's Web 2.0 Blog
• Marketing Professionals Web 2.0
• E-Learn Magazine
  

General

• Your Favourite AFL team
• Quote of the Day
• ABC News

Blogging

'blog' is short for 'web log'. It evolved from a 'web journal', like an online diary. Blogs serve different purposes. They are promotional tools, communication tools, social tools, or tools for sharing or commenting on news.

Why blog?

People blog because they want to share with others. They may share their opinions, rants on particular topics, or they may have a professional blog where they share views on their industry. Many companies have an 'official' blog, where they release news about the company and its services. Some blogs are highly successful due to the personality of the blog's author. Some blogs have multiple authors but more commonly when there is collaboration in the creation of an online forum, a Wiki is used. A Wiki is basically an online forum that allows anyone reading to edit and add.

Today we'd like you to create your own blog. Have a look at Blogger.com and WordPress.com. You can get a free blog at either of these websites. Click the "Sign Up" or "Create a free blog" link to get started, and follow the directions.

We would like you to write your very first post on your blog. You may want to introduce yourself, or your persona, or explain what the blog is for. Simply go to your blog and click 'New Post'.

Have a look at the links below for ideas on what to blog about, and why people blog.

Resources

• Blogger.com Official Site
• How to write a famous blog
• How to write a popular blog
• Should bloggers unionize? Better question: Why do you blog?

Facebook

Facebook is a social networking web site that connects people with others.
People use Facebook to keep up with friends, upload an unlimited number of photos, share links and videos, and learn more about the people they meet.

Originally, the membership was restricted to students of Harvard University but since 2006 it has been open to all email addresses.
Users can select to join one or more participating networks, such as a place of employment, or geographic region.

In June 2007, Facebook was ranked in the top 10–20 web sites and was the number one site for photos in the United States, ahead of public sites such as Flickr, with over 8.5 million photos uploaded daily. It is also the seventh most visited site in the United States. Time magazine reported in its 3 September 2007 issue that Facebook's fastest growing demographic consists of people 35 years or over.

The name, Facebook, refers to the paper facebooks depicting members of the campus community that US colleges and preparatory schools give to incoming students, faculty, and staff.

7 things you should know about Facebook
Prediction: Facebook will be the largest social network in the world
Interesting article on how to improve your job prospects using Facebook

Tasks
Go to Facebook and register. Check out this tutorial for assistance on how to join.
Edit your Profile