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Monday, February 7, 2011

Really Simple Syndication (RSS)

Really Simple Syndication or more commonly known as RSS FEEDS is probably the most useful part of this assignment. RSS basically gives you a summary of all that is new your favorite sites. Now there are 3 ways to get RSS feeds the first one is through desks top software’s like Microsoft office outlook. This give the same feeds and a little bit more security than web explorers, however it can’t be use just anywhere because it is based on your computer, so if you use any other it becomes difficult to transfer your saved sites. The second way of getting RSS feeds is through your web browser (i.e. Firefox). This once again gives you the same feeds but just like Microsoft Outlook it is based on your computer and it is also easily accessed by other people. The third and final way of getting RSS feeds is by a web-base generator (i.e. Google Reader). This is probably the best way to get RSS feeds, and there two main reasons for it. One it is web-based therefore you can access your account in any computer. Two it is via web-account so it is safe as long as you careful not to leave it online. Your account is well protected just like any account therefore it has more privacy option than the last two ways of getting it. Probably the most useful part of having RSS feeds is that you don’t have to visit each individual site anymore, which is time consuming. It just gives you a list and a corresponding number beside each name on how many updates the site has made. It is very useful in your everyday life when it is time to relax after a hard day’s work, to not visit each individual site looking if there is something new in your favorite comic, music, blog and other things. Just log in and scan, less time and effort doing it. As for convenience a web-based RSS feed generator is the best, because it is accessible to any computer and is protected by your own account user-name and password.

Twitter

For the past few days of viewing and observing my twitter account, I saw that it is a somewhat interesting activity. Giving a shout out to the world about what is going on in your life or just a small opinion about something. It can also used for commercial purposes, and to advertise new updates to a magazine, or website. However these advertisements are only links to their sites, because twitter only allows you to 140 characters. This makes it time consuming and hard to do if you are following many sites or people since you have to check is link to know its content. Twittering only seems useful for social and personal uses. There is very small window for actual academic research in it, except for asking people about the topic you wish to know about and hoping someone with a legitimate, reliable and accurate knowledge about the topic replies. As for following your favorite actor or band, then it does come in handy to follow them in such a way, because it is quick and easy to use and search for. Twitter is similar to blogging in which most people you get to follow is talking about their personal lives and opinion about the world and its contents. It is very different though in ways such as you are looking at posting that are 140 characters long and not reading a very long post and pictures that can span from a paragraph to as long 3 pages or even more. In total twitter is just like blogging it is a very poor source of verified, accurate and documented information, and it is only useful for personal and socialization. Although it is also useful for a communication web between people as a source for personal reference about different information sources, given that the people you talk to have legitimate knowledge about the topic.

Blogging!!!!

    Blogging is a fun and entertaining internet activity. It opens a new window in communication and publicity. With it you can show the world your own opinion and make a voice that can be heard by anyone who uses the web. Sites like Bloggers makes it available for everyone to make a page that lets you express yourself and make it known what you think about topics of your interest. It also allows you view a multitude of information about other people, forums and even market related topics, you just have to choose which one interest you. An example of which is www.macrumors.com, this site allows you to know what future gadgets, app and upgrade mac computers and iPhone might have. Which is very useful for people who are into such technology, however it is not a very reliable source of information as even the title suggest. It is the same with www.huffingtonpost.com, which post updates about news about sports, business and many others topics which is useful in its own way but not really a site to get academic sources from. On the other hand it is pretty useful in getting to know new people and what they think about the world and its content, in which the personal blogs come in. This type of blogs allows anyone to make a voice that anyone can hear, a chance to express yourself through creativity via web design or by word through blog posting. Blogging does have its advantages when compared to news papers and magazines such as it is eco-friendly, and readily available as soon as it is posted. However there are drawbacks when it comes to blogging, in ways such as too much blogs exist because anyone can make one, that good information and reliable information is hard to find in a vast pool of blog pages that exist. Therefore we must all be careful in which one we choose to follow and that have to make sure that the information we attain from that page is reliable and accurate.