Thing #13: Tagging and Discover Delicious
Well, I started a del.icio.us account. I've used this service before and, frankly, didn't see the benefit to it. It's very easy, after all, to use your web browser to sort bookmarks into folders as soon as you save them, so the whole thing seemed a bit redundant to me.
However, I was wrong. I overlooked two redeeming qualities. First, with del.icio.us you can access your bookmarks from any computer.
Second, and more importantly, I didn't see the social aspect of sites such as this. I like the way del.icio.us can be used as a community builder. It shows you the number of people who have tagged a particular website, and by clicking on that link you see the accounts of those who share your interests. For example, after tagging my school's website, I found the account of a parent from my class two years ago who also tagged the site.
It can be used with students as well. For example, parents from my classes are always asking me what websites I use with the kids. I could set up a classroom-friendly account and give them that URL, with all the sites listed and tagged for easy perusal.
Nick, GREAT idea to create a user friendly, kid appropriate website list for parents of your class! Thanks for suggesting this. -Marty
ReplyDeletePS - Your avatar shows a cute yellowish dog beside you. Is it yours? What kind of dog is it really? What's its name? -MM