Class #4 Assignment - 7/20/10

In reviewing many of the resources, postings, etc. given to us for Class #4, I have not yet decided whether or no I will use Twitter to set up a PLN. Reported advantages of PLNs include 1) A type of global "faculty lounge", 2) Can pick up some higher-ed "gossip", links to classroom resources, etc., 3) Users can "...dip into a rich soup of thought...", 4) Access to Chronicle of Higher Ed Twitter posts, and 5) Twitter can serve as a public forum, which stands in contrast to the "closed nature" of most emails.

Some noted disadvantages might include a) Prof. J. Rosen at NYU posts about 25 tweets a day - as is, it is time consuming already to keep up with the daily flow of email, Groupwise, voicemail, etc., so will a PLN be a distraction?, b) One reference noted that it was easy to waste time microblogging..., c) Concerns over how one's user profile, photo, hashtag searchers, etc., will be used to funnel to your Twitter account targeted ads for products and services, d) Twitter's Privacy Policy includes consenting "...to the collection and use of info, including the transfer of this info to the U.S. and/or other countries for storage, processing, and use by Twitter.", and e) Another reference noted: "If you think email and surfing can make time disappear, wait until you get a hold of Twitter, or more likely, it gets hold of you!".

Perhaps in class on Tuesday, if we have time, we can discuss some of the above, or perhaps there will be some blog postings detailing what other class members are thinking about when it comes to Twittering and PLNs...thanks...Carlos.

P.S. Still having trouble getting a Wordle embedded in my project draft...today the computer wouldn't process Java applets even after checking and resetting scripting, enabling, etc. under Internet Explorer's "tools"...