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by Stephen Downes
August 31, 2007

Blog Day

So happy Blog day everyone, and in the tradition of Blog Day, five blogs that might not make my usual fare. Well, almost certainly would not, as I read them more for interest than for grist for this mill. Well, and maybe not blogs either, because I'm really bad at following rules:

- Edge - because this is the site that features the writings of Francisco Varela, a man who would be a blogger today - or at least, a regular read - if he were still around

- Ideant, by Ulises Ali Mejias. I've read a good part of his dissertation, Networked Proximity, and I'm pleased to say, I disagree with almost all of it. If I were Wittgenstein I would lecture him paragraph by paragraph about why he is wrong. But I'm me and I'm not sure what to do.

- Rabble - I send Rabble money to keep publishing because I think it performs an important service as a forum for alternative and progressive voices in Canadian society. When the police infiltrate the ranks of peaceful protests and incite riots by throwing rocks, we need someone to publish the other side and keep it real.

- Architectures of Control in Design - by Dan Lockton - currently displaying a blank screen; I hope it's back by the time you get to this. Everything I write is in one way or another about power and control (which has a lot to do with knowledge and perception). This blog not only offers a physical-world analogy, but also typifies the sort of thinking you need to be doing to see design from that different (and more important) perspective.

- Paleo-Future, by Matt. I have read a lot of science fiction over the years - thousands of books - and have seen futures come and go. This blog captures the 'futures that never were' and, on the way, the absolutely coolest things ever - like, for example, these wind powered robots (now I want to go out and make one). Paleo-Future is my childhood speaking out to me and reminding me why I wanted to become a writer and scientist in the first place. Various Authors, Website August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Books, Networks, Canada, Cool, Web Logs] [Comment]

Plaxo Says Customers ARE in Charge of Their Data
I still remember the barrage of spam messages from Plaxo as the software urged me to send personal information to strangers who had me in their address books. So I'm a little bit sceptical of their new approach to social networking, trying to forge a single identity out of all those identities we have on our various social networks. "Plaxo helps you round up all that data you've been entering in your various social networks move it around as you wish." It's the 'open social graph' Brad Fitzpatrick and others have been writing about. Maybe. Or maybe it's just another way to try to get my personal data. Valeria Maltoni, Fast Company August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Privacy Issues, Networks, Spam] [Comment]

Innovate and Integrate: Embedding Innovative Practices Research
I sometimes despair of seeing innovation happen in the wider e-learning community and I sometimes try to simply forge ahead and let the community take care of itself. This report by Marie Jasinski explores the wider question, but one of her findings captures my dilemma nicely: "The skewed view of 'innovators' limits opportunities to embed innovative practice." Specifically, "Practitioners and managers nominated be their peers as 'innovators' tended to have one particular innovation style - Exploring." Anyhow, Jasinski looks at some case studies (Central Gippsland Institute of TAFE, Michael Coghlan and Carole McCulloch) to understand innovation in e-learning, and proposes a strategy for embedding innovation in vocational education and training (VET) by developing portfolios that include the four innovation styles: modifying, experimenting, visioning and exploring. Via Garry Putland. Marie Jasinski, Australian Flexible Learning Framework August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Online Learning, Vocational Education, Learning Communities, Online Learning Communities] [Comment]

Pedagogical Templates for E-Learning
Jane Hart links to this resource from the WLE Centre. "These 'pedagogical templates' are descriptions of models of how technology can be integrated into teaching and learning activities." I thought they were pretty basic - the most useful part of the document was the description of various 'pedagogical models in the literature' - and don't go beyond very simple blended and distance learning practices. Magdalena Jara and Fitri Mohamad, WLE August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Online Learning, Blended Learning] [Comment]

Adding Arrows to Our Communications Quiver
I don't know why it is that if you add a Japanese name to something you get, almost automatically, a fad, but here it is again with Pecha Kucha. This post is pretty good discussion and extension of the idea (though I think that writing a book about it is a bit ridiculous). And I think that Wayne Hodgins captures the most important element - Pecha Kucha is a game, a silly game. It's fun. There's nothing inherently valuable about the rules - they could be (almost) anything. As a game, everybody gets to play, everybody gets to laugh - and everyone learns. See also Richard Nantel on the same topic. Wayne Hodgins, Off Course-On Target August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Books] [Comment]

This Time Viacom Is Accused of Violating Copyright
You create a video and post it on your website. A big company - Viacom, say - copies your video without permission and uses it on a TV show. The big company then turns around and says your video violates copyright and must be taken down. Could it happen? Yes. In fact, it did. "I made a YouTube clip of what they did with my material," Knight wrote" and they charged me with copyright infringement." More. Greg Sandoval, CNet News.com August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Viacom, Video, Copyrights, Patents] [Comment]

The Flavors of Open Access
Pretty light paper that sketches some definitions of 'open access', describes some paths to open access (somehow missing the now well-known 'green and gold' routes) and divides commentators into three schools: proponents, opponents, and observers. More papers from the latest OCLC Systems and Services journal. Sha Li Zhang, OCLC Systems and Services August 31, 2007 [Link] [Tags: Schools, Online Learning, Open Access] [Comment]

 

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