I) Is this the future of all software products? I think collaborative office tools could be a very useful tool for group projects. Work on documents can be shared and with permission others can access a document and this saves a lot of time emailing back and forth to make edits. I like this idea and consider it a useful tool and yes I think we should have this software option in an academic setting. I think might be especially useful for Masters in Biosciences students that are working on their thesis. They could use office tools to collaborate with their project mentor. The mentor could go in and make suggestions, point them themes or ideas they should be considering and help them avoid potential errors with their project. Could be a real hands on approach for the mentor and the student. There is definitely a learning curve to overcome for these tools to catch on. But they are fun, easy, and most of all collaborative.
RSS feeds help us keep us with the latest content in any area of interest. Librarians could use to find about latest uses of technology for the library. You could use a feed to publish your library news or resources available. RSS saves time. Instead of remembering to visit a favorite Website, the news or information you want comes directly into your computer at whatever interval you want. In addition, most RSS feeds contain only links, headlines, or brief synopses of new information. That means that the small amount of data found in an RSS feed can be sent to any XML-compatible device, a cell phone, pager, or handheld computer, without a lengthy download process. This also provides a way for you to receive customized information without having to reveal personal information about yourself.
Step 1: created a blog in WordPress.com
http://jeanbean.wordpress.com/2008/03/14/mla-ce-week-1/
Step 2: Set up an RSS reader in Google Reader. http://www.google.com/reader/view/#overview-page
Step 3: Subscribed to 5 RSS feeds:
1- Teresa Hartman Education Resources http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/user%2F05640169993769544020%2Flabel%2FTeresa%20Hartman%20Educ%20Res
2- Alzheimers
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/user%2F05640169993769544020%2Flabel%2Falzheimers
3- Social Networking Taskforce
4- Connect Mark Funk
5- JMLA http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/user%2F05640169993769544020%2Flabel%2FJMLA
One journal table of contents: JAMA
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fjama.ama-assn.org%2Frss%2Fcurrent.xml
One PubMed Search: Using Google reader: Osteopathic Medicine and Primary Care RSS feed
http://www.google.com/reader/view/#stream/user%2F05640169993769544020%2Flabel%2Fosteopathic%20medicine%20and%20primary%20care
Step 4 MLA CE WEEK 1
When I first started this course I new very little about blogs and RSS feeds. The tutorial have been very helpful as well as the exercises. I have learned that librarians are using blogs to deliver information services to their users as well as to collaborate and communicate with other library professionals. They could use a blog to publish news about their library or information on a specialized subject such as Osteopathic Medicine.


