Unit One - Technology Implementation
Analysis of the Technology Development environment
Blogger.com is a website that I have used in the past,
therefore I have chosen to use this blog environment for the Technology
Implementation assignments for the course.
- Edublogs
- https://edublogs.org/
- Edublogs appears to be a blogging environment set up directly for teachers. It seems to be very similar to Edmodo. As I am not looking for a blogging environment in which to set up and monitor student input, I did not feel this environment was the right choice for me at this time.
- SiteBuilder.com
- https://www.sitebuilder.com/start/blog
- I did not get very far into the SiteBuilder.com environment. The first thing it asks you to do is register your domain name, and it states that it is free to register your domain, however, the tab on the task bar stated that this was a secure payment site, and I was not comfortable creating a domain that I might possibly have to pay for as I moved forward. Since at this time I was merely exploring the choices, I moved on to the next choice.
- Website Builder
- https://www.websitebuilder.com/start/blog
- This a website builder and as I understood the assignment, we are creating a blog environment. I am using wix.com to create the final project website and do not want to use a website environment for the blog environment. Although, I do know that within wix.com I can add a blog into the website itself.
- Blog.com
- http://blog.com/
- This blogging environment seemed very similar to blogger.com. I did not chose this environment due to the fact that when I created my domain name, the information that is showed differentiating the differences between a paid account and the free account showed that if I used the free environment, my blog would have ads placed within my blog. I prefer not to deal with that.
- Wordpress.com
- https://wordpress.com/
- I do not recall ever signing up to use wordpress.com, however, my email address was already registered with them. Upon reviewing the actual site, it appears to be very complicated to use, and I did not feel that I would be comfortable within the environment.
- Tumblr
- https://www.tumblr.com/
- Upon reviewing this blog environment, it required me to “follow” five site before I could even start creating my own blog. It did have a button to skip this step, but since the blog I am going to create is a final project for school, I am not comfortable with anyone and everyone potentially having access to it. I would like something I can control the access to.
- Blogger.com
- https://www.blogger.com/home
- Blog instructions
http://bloginstructions.blogspot.com/ - I have used this blogging environment in a previous class, so while I am not 100% knowledgeable about this particular environment, I am comfortable enough to feel confident as I explore and create the blog for this course.
When I began this assignment I was
not comfortable with the ideal of blogging.
I did not understand what we needed to do. As I reviewed the instructions and began
creating the blog environment, everything began to clear up for me. In order to decide on the best blog
environment for me, I had review all of the options. I chose to use this particular environment
because I have used it in the past, and while I am not an expert, I am
comfortable enough to play around with it and see what happens.
Over the last few days, I have made changes
and I am sure I will continue to change it as I add posts to it over the next
few weeks. The additional component of
the “Collegial Community Analysis” threw me for a loop, I wasn’t sure how I was
going to accomplish this requirement. Again,
I sat down and thought about it, I realized I was thinking about too hard, making
it more difficult than it had to be. I
sent out links to my blog to several people who are in my life: friends, former
coworkers, former classmates, a few of my cousins (I somehow didn’t think my
parents would even know what a blog was, let alone explain to them how to
respond to one, so I left them off the list). I also sent asked a few current
classmates to review my blog and comment on it. I had a few responses already, so I am
thinking, maybe this won’t be so bad.
In the end, once I wrapped my head
around the concept, this whole experience has not been too bad. I am looking forward to adding to my blog and
making changes to it as I tweak it more and more to reflect who I am as a
person. Ultimately I came to the conclusion
that writing a blog is very similar to keeping a journal or a diary, just
digitally. I have never maintained
either one, which is why this whole concept was unfamiliar to me. We will see how it goes over the next few
weeks, who knows, maybe I’ll like this whole blogging experience and create a
personal blog (diary) to document my life.
Thank you for your time in reading
my thoughts, please feel free to leave a comment below.
Alice
Alice,
ReplyDeleteYou did a good job evaluating each blog website. It can be quite overwhelming to go through each site, but I feel that you gave a good, concise description of each site. I think that your information would very helpful for people to review when they are deciding with blog site to use.
Alice,
ReplyDeleteI love how you compared blogging to a journal or diary. This is my first time to ever blog and that is a great way to think of it. I was very intimidated as well when I started looking at all the different sites, but eventually became comfortable. I love your background and pictures you chose. It really lets the reader connect with you.
Alice,
ReplyDeleteYou have done a great job analyzing all the options posted on our syllabus. I began with blogspot but did not think it was as user friendly as I need. After creating a generic blog I expected to edit it later; I was unsuccessful at doing so, so I looked at another option.
Wordpress was next on my list. I like it. I was able to quickly set it up and it was easy to add a youtube video. I texted a few family members, friends, and colleagues to invite them to respond. Wordpress allows me to see the statistics of views, visitors, likes, and comments. I am also able to post the blog to Facebook; using wordpress kind of feels like responding to friends on Facebook. After I published the blog I was able to open the site and share it on Facebook without logging in. Another feature I like is having control to approve a comment so that it's posted for other viewers to read or like. Viewers can also reply to my approved comments, just like Facebook, and post my blog on their Facebook page.
I had lots of fun.
Adrian
Alice,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great job analyzing each blog site!
I went the simple route and if it took me too long to figure out then I did not choose it. I also wanted something that was easily accessible much like your blog is. I think if I made another blog then maybe I would consider Blogger as well.
I chose WordPress because it was similar to my Final Project Website. It's easy to share with a URL and anybody can comment or share.
It took me a while to get the hang of blogging. I see it as just posting thing such as you would on Facebook or Twitter. I think blogging is starting to be fun because you can post about anything you want. The only thing now is to create a following so you are sharing ideas to more people.
I am also currently thinking of ways to use blogging for my chemistry class. If you go to my blog you can see a post I shared from a teacher who has tried blogging in school.
Great blog,
Selene Reyes
selenereyes3.wordpress.com
Alice,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you that blogging can be a new experience. A few years ago I had a personal blog that I treated somewhat like a diary or journal like you said. The only reason I stopped using it was because I did not make time to use it. I have always liked to get my feelings out in writing and blogging is very helpful in this. This is the first time that I will be using a blog in a professional setting however and that is a different change to me. I look forward to seeing how it works!
Hi Alice,
ReplyDeleteI just made the comment, but it disappeared. Darn technology:( Well, I am very impressed with you in depth research of many other blog options. I agree with the unreality of the instructions or my lack of understanding is causing the stress because at the end I was able to create my site and blog at the same place on Wix.
I enjoyed reading your blog, Keep up the great work!
Hey Alice,
ReplyDeleteYou did a good job analyzing and comparing the blogs. I believe that your information will be valuable and helpful for others.
Keep up the good work!
Thank you for inviting me to review your blog. Found each one of your posts insightful. While reviewing the applications, I found that your assessment of them were fairly close to my experience. I look forward to following you throughout the rest of the course.
Delete