Traditional methods of networking include face to face meetings, phone calls, and connecting through word of mouth. In today's world, networking seems to be happening more and more online than any other way. In this course, I have dabbled in networking strategies that I might not have otherwise tried such as LinkedIn, Facebook Fan Pages, and Twitter. In basketball, there is still value in making personal connections. The Final Four is an opportunity to network with other coaches across the country. I have also found that when players share their thoughts about you with others players they know, their word can be a powerful networking strategy as well.

Though I have heard of and used Wikipedia many times, I did not really know what the definition of a wiki was. I think the idea of people in different places being able to contribute to a project or body of knowledge is pretty interesting. Now that I think about it, I remember seeing a message on Wikipedia once that said the information needed to be verified. I would assume that a lot of that information should be double checked since anyone who believes that they have knowledge or expertise is able to edit the content. 

One of the articles mentioned people from across the world working on a project or presentation together using a wiki or students in a class building a wiki around a topic of study. I think these are great uses of this type of technology. Though convenient, I can certainly understand now why Wikipedia and other Wiki sites are not allowed as sources in research papers...

Because I do not teach, I looked for apps in coaching.  I was surprised to see the types of apps that are out there. iHoops.com had some pretty good options such as apps that allow you to keep track of real-time stats, shot charts, make scouting reports, an organization and logistics task manager, and networking (HoopCoach.org is referred to as the LinkedIn for basketball coaches). 

Though I am brand new to LinkedIn I can already tell that it is quite different from Facebook in a number of ways. Facebook, though used for networking, seems much more casual and personal. You see more personal pictures, bios, and comments. LinkedIn, on the other hand, displays much more formal information such as job titles/positions, degrees, skills, etc. The casual pictures on LinkedIn almost seem out of place in contrast to the professional pictures posted by most. LinkedIn also seems more appropriate for sharing formal resumes and making professional connections versus the more 

Web 2.0 has features that allow for more interaction between consumers and producers. I thought the example of Web 1.0 providing information about products  in contrast to Web 2.0 allowing consumers to give ratings and leave feedback and testimonials to be interesting. I notice that I pay a lot of attention to the seller's ratings and customer feedback before purchasing items online from places like Amazon and Ebay. 

When I initially looked at the list, I figured that I had not heard of those programs or products. However, I actually use two of them. I like Google Calendar because of the holidays  I add it to my Outlook calendar to have business and holidays in the same place. I use Pandora almost daily. The  products that would probably be of most benefit to me would be the to-do lists. I like to write things down to keep track of appointments and other things I need to do. I usually use the calendar and tasks apps in my iPhone for these things. Vital!st seems like a good option though.

 

The articles presented a compelling case for the use of iPods and podcasting in education. The articles we read were related to podcasts in higher education but I have heard of elementary students completing assignments involving iPods and creating their own podcasts (with assistance, of course). 

I think podcasts would be a great supplemental piece to course resources. I could see it's potential for supplanting face to face classes. I'm sure students would rather listen to a podcast at their convenience or leisure than attend class any day. I think that there is definite value in the face to face interaction that comes along with attending class with the added benefit of being able to hear or see the information again later on.

I used to have an iPod and I used it entirely for music. Until this course, I never really thought about podcasting as a method of communication. It was never truly applicable to anything I was involved in. I do see the possibilities for use in coaching though. I could envision short clips of basketball moves or new plays for players to study whenever and wherever they want. I think that is something that players would really like.

More-so than being surprised that I used a lot of the technologies for learning, I was quite surprised at how many of them I use on a regular basis. I use 30 of them pretty frequently. Some, such as my iPad, iPhone, and Moodle are used almost daily; while I've added others such as Twitter, Facebook, and Outlook for work and school.