Forget the Milk

Well some concepts just don't workout. Finally get back to "Remember the Milk". Well it just wasn't very good. I found the interface very hard to drive and after an hr or so of fruitless effort gave up.

Google calendar is great and I expect to use it as it has useful sync features and the add a friends calendar has interesting possibilities.
but Forget the Milk!

Benifits of following

Having followed all the blogs in the group (mainly so I knew I had done my homework). I received an added benefit. Under Google reader Settings there is a button that enables a feed from all my followed blogs.
Now, I automatically get all the changes the group makes - At last a valuable feature, and I can see other areas like this that are starting to show me the power of this capability.

Extra Bits

Interesting where a small enquiry can lead. I though I would check out remember the milk. This lead me to Google calendars. synchronization and multiple calendars, friends calendars and embedding calendars in your Blog.
Somewhere in there the milk got lost.
But I now have a calender on my site!
However, its not showing what I want so need to do some research into permissions sharing etc.

Currently its good for public holidays. Check it out.

Week 4 Progress

Okay, so here I go with RSS feeds. No problem adding a bunch of feeds but not really clear on the value yet. On first glance it looks just like another bunch of stuff I will get behind on reading!

Meanwhile have been distracted by a few discoveries as I trolled for Feeds. Have added a new way at looking at maps.
And also a link to PhotoSynth.
You have to try this if you are into images. for example a common need is to show people how to find the toilet (verbal instructions never work for some people)! Snap a few photos synth them together and they can see how it would look approached from all the different doors!!!! Check it out http://photosynth.net/

Have a feed from my Blog and that seems to load it all in. I still seem to be missing a factor on amalgamation?
Much searching later and back to the help files I am slowly learning how the pieces fit together. Found the Google help gave me information that assisted with this.
Now have a list of 30 or so components to test out all the little bits.

Okay I have set up a google calendar and synchronised it with my Outlook calendar and vis versa (watch out for this one as Unless you follow the instructions of setting 1 way snyc to start with you get everything duplicated!!! not nice). Can even set it up to SMS appointment changes; will see how this works out.
Discovered the link chicklet on the blog edit page and hypered some links.
Plus I have monetised my Blog to learn how this works. (think they are pretty safe as it takes 1000 viewings to get anywhere and even with a captive group I'm not getting many visits. So only 27 more components to test.

Buckminster Fuller Assemble Dymaxion Globe. 1987.

Buckminster Fuller Assemble Dymaxion Globe. 1987.
Originally uploaded by fantomaster

A different way of looking at everyday reality.

And for a really interesting World Map have a look at this site. http://teczno.com/faumaxion/

Its a similar concept and it allows you to move around the world and keep the continental relationships true to their actual dimensions (rather than the normal maps that make the areas closer to the poles look much bigger than they really are). Its also very interesting the way it handles the pieces as you Zoom in & out.

Nefertiti

Nefertiti
Originally uploaded by IBPservice

Nefertiti co-regent of Akhetaten. A different ruler & change manager.

Week 3 - Learning 2.0

Again the value of the course structure comes forward. I have been trying a lot of bits and pieces and found variable quality.
I created an Avatar figure but couldn't get it onto my site. Gave up on this as I wasn't all that amoured by the concept anyway.

Librarything is a dream come true.
Got my Librarything Gadget up and going but also wanted to add a Search Widget. Cannot get this to work and it seems that a widget is different to a gadget and cannot find a search gadget.
I could do with some help on this as I also want to add a cloud; clearly this is possible as I have seen several.

Added snapit with my own button, a connection button and a site linklist plus a quote generator to my site.
Also cleaned it up a bit by working out how to display my slideshow rather than individual slides (but its resolution is too low to really read it).
Realised that my site is a hodge-podge and lacks a theme, but I recon that is for the master class; this class is about learning the possibilities.

Overall just love the ease of all this and noticing how much more integrated the process of implementation is just a few years after I last looked at this stuff. Its magic.

Sunbringer Rose

Sunbringer Rose
Originally uploaded by Tirau Dan

Deep beauty connects straight to the Heart and lights a light that uplifts. I think this rose could have been called light bringer!
Real change is a change of heart. We can think about how to change what to change and when to change in great detail but it only reflects in new behaviour when we change our attitude.

don't believe me check it out!

2090320 IBP Tag Cloud

2090320 IBP Tag Cloud

My book subject Tags cloud

Learning 2.0 Comments

A useful week of learning. I have found just having a list of activities to follow and the awareness that my progress is being monitored has been a useful stimulus to overcome my past reluctance to explore the web 2.0 space.
Once started it is easy to continue as the excitement of uncovering the new possibilities becomes apparent. So my blog is up and running, have received comments and given some. As usual all the new terminology needs to be populated with personal context/experience so that it actually means something.
(In terms of my Blog I have not had a Paradigm for this "space"). Once started the capabilities, implications and boundaries start to flesh out. "following" is one of these terms and I am slowly learning what it is about.

I am also aware that I have other commitments that will take me right away from the Internet for most of next week so will need to do most of my next weeks work this weekend.

Generally, people (myself included) seem to suffer from having a personal blind spot. There are many things that in hindsight are obvious and still at the time we denied that it was so.

Currently, the "Western world" seems to be deep in a group of these. There are so many I don't know where to start.
I expect you have a list of your own -
the financial crisis
climate change
executive salaries
our pension services
my spelling
etc
etc.

So what is this and How does it happen?

An over view is that people are good at developing generalisations. These serve us well and make us more efficient. They are not quiet habits but more short cuts - we know the way things "work" so we can save a lot of time and energy by assuming that that is the way things actually are. Much of the time this is true. However, there are times when it isn't and there comes a time when it is dangerous to keep using it.

Unfortunately, this requires us to let go of the shortcut and expend time and effort creating a new one that works in the "new" world. AND when the pressure is on is the worst time to be testing and developing a new shortcut. This can result in disaster.

So why do we find this so hard to make these changes?