Reflections - Thing 23

My regret is that I haven't yet fully explored all the suggestions that were made throughout the programme.

Of all the new tools that were introduced, I am most appreciating RSS feeds and using Twitter more effectively.

Blogging has felt, well, rather odd and exposed but perhaps one gets used to that.  Will I keep it up? I'm not sure. I think that there will be a use for it as a research tool when I am further down the line.  Most of all, I'm grateful for being more aware now of the range of digital tools there are available - and more conscious of the big issue of open access.

Doodle, Dropbox and Evernote - Things 21 and 22

Doodle has been a great boon in helping to organise events and meetings.  Can remember the frustrations of the old way of waiting to hear of everyone's availability and then making the best fit, which didn't always work out.  Have used it quite a bit and give it thumbs up.

Dropbox has been something that has woven in and out of my consciousness but I hadn't really used it properly until quite recently.  For some reason, I felt a bit intimidated by it originally.  I've used it mainly for photographs, when trying to arrange a project with others and it seems the most practical method of transfer and accessibility of large files.  No more worrying about email attachment size.

Evernote is great.  I've had it for about a year and probably don't use it to its best advantage. I really  treat it like a card index - handy for notes, revision, summaries, separate topics, lists - all just there on phone and laptop for quick reference.

Zips at a market stall: a touch of colour for a grey Monday morning ...

Flikr - Thing 17

Oo, that was fun, uploading photos to Flikr, tagged with 23 Things, as required.  I have used Flikr before, but see that I should be more adventurous with creating and using tags

Prezi - Thing 16

I really like the look of Prezi.  I feel strongly about the importance of the quality of presentations.  Why wouldn’t I try to make them as effective as possible?  And if there is a tool out there that can help turn a flat presentation into a memorable one, I want to grab it.  Looks like Prezi may be the answer.  I just haven’t had the chance to play with it yet, but I watched the demos and felt excited by a new creative toy, I mean tool.

Wikipedia - Thing 14

Wikipedia is a real boon.  The caveat, of course, is needing to stay aware of possible flaws and downright errors.  But there is some reassurance in the democracy of public editing giving an element of control. A couple of years ago I did some editing on Wikipedia. It was an entry about a museum I am involved with - and part of the factual information was wrong.  Strange to think of someone (who was it?) having written an article that was incorrect, but it was so empowering to have the opportunity to amend it, which was quite straightforward to do.    e-democracy is wonderful.

LinkedIn and Academia.edu - Thing 11 and Thing 12

So, we are asked to blog about social networking sites. I’ve had a look at Academia.edu and explored the contacts and links to research.  But I am already a user of LinkedIn and I’m on ResearchGate, so I think I will leave it at that.  ResearchGate is very similar to Academia – a sort of mixture of Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn, with groups, comments and ‘follow’ buttons.   

I’ve been on LinkedIn for a few years and found it helpful as a way of presenting a professional profile.  In the last six months it has helped me to trace particular individuals for interviewing for my work and occasionally I have a search around for LinkedIn contacts with whom I’ve lost touch. And I’m not sure I would have been able to find them otherwise.  I confess I don’t know how to get the best from the ‘skills and expertise’ section of LinkedIn though.  I’m reluctant to tag my own and some of my contacts have randomly given me skills I question that I have!  That’s kind, but weird.

Twitter – Thing 7

I’m a Twitter rookie, but I think it’s great because –

1)   … it is proving to be a fantastic way to hear about what is going on in my Research World, ie conferences, book launches, book reviews, links to events.   I don’t follow personal friends and I am using it only for work - following groups, museums, institutions, associations, etc.

2)    … tweets are necessarily short and to the point; I like that.  

3)   … it provides the opportunity to ask questions and crowdsource.  Thanks for that suggestion on 23 Things.  Must experiment more.

As a fluttery, newly-fledged tweeter, I did have a question though: how to manage the number of ‘follows’?  (I mean, what is the realistic number of tweets that anyone can scroll down and actually read in a day - when one is, ahem, supposed to be absorbed and working in one’s real Research World?)  I like the idea of categorising them, so will try listing them with Tweetdeck in the way that blog ‘Technical Tattle’ has suggested. 

RSS – Thing 8

I tried Pulse for a bit, but then downloaded the RSS Notifier app.  It keeps the notification bar visible, beside the menu, and I like that.  Of course Twitter is also really providing a news feed in the way that I use it.  So, one way and another, I am now feeling incredibly well fed with information.  Like it.

Pinch me again – I need to wake to the realisation that I am not doing a PhD after all, but preparing for my 11+ , which I am obviously doomed to fail. On account of not reading instructions thoroughly. 

OK, OK, so now I see there is a tab that gives the schedule for the 23 Things.  Schedule?  I hadn’t taken that on board.  I thought it was a question of working through at one’s own pace. I did have a look at Things 9-12, honest I did.  I just didn’t seem to have anything to blog about them. So I skipped ahead.  

Will now go back, stick to the timetable and do the course properly and thoroughly, along with everyone else out there who reads instructions. Tail is between legs. 

Podcasts, Slideshare and TED – Thing 13

Podcasts are already an important part of my life.  They make my visits to the gym bearable for a start - there’s nothing like being podcast-distracted for the miles, floors and repeats to be achieved with less angst and more speed.   I can recommend the archives of BBC’s In Our Time to come away feeling stretched in every sense.  Slideshare – I’ve explored it a couple of times in the past, just to see if there is anything there that is relevant to my research or if there are presentations by people that I know.  But I am not quite convinced it will be of huge use.  But TED  - now that is something quite new and I am excited by the whole concept and tempted by the vast list of accessible talks on - well, I can’t believe the range of topics. 

In fact, after a day of writing, perhaps a video treat awaits right now.  Possibly No.151, “Hip hop dance and a touch of magic”?  Then I can try it out myself in the gym tomorrow.