Thing #5 Microblogging: Face(book)ing the Truth

I joined Facebook about 8-9 months ago when the district opened it to track graduates and our department was asked to offer some introductory classes on it. It wasn't an easy thing for me to do ... no, it's not hard to get signed up and start...it's just hard for me because I am an anti-social social networker! I ABSOLUTELY see the value in all of these 2.0 tools for educational production, learning and interacting...I am not good at the social side of it.

I have been reading blogs seriously since about 2004 (and teenage angst since 2001), found the edubloggers very soon, and decided to throw my hat into the ring 3 years ago...NOT because I thought I had important things to say, but as a way of storing information I needed and wanted to share with my circle of influence. I would always know where links and directions to things would be if I put them in a blog...and I could share them with anyone who needed the info. Yes, EVERY once and a while I throw a little something into it that is more social/personal than normal. And yes, I have 3 blogs that I read regularly simply because they write the best little short stories I have read in a long time!

I didn't use my cell phone much until I learned to text...now I use it even less as a phone than before. I love being able to leave the info/message and let the other person get it when they want. There are about 5 people I will have a social phone call with...and 3 are family members so they don't count! You have to talk to family anytime!

So along comes Facebook...all these people wanting to be my friends. I added a few to have something to practice. I have ignored a lot. Not an easy thing to do...I would love to acknowledge all of them as friends, but I really don't want to know what they are doing every day...sometimes all day long...and as to what friends of friends are doing...well, you get the picture.

As I learned more, I was able to tighten things up and got it down to the basics...still not sure I have all the settings set correctly and every time I see a new article or posting about how to tighten it down, I look at it carefully for more help.

But you know what happened...I'd check in every once and awhile and a friend would have a thought up that deserved a comment...and then one weekend a fellow dinosaur and I happened to get on together and played around with those goofy little survey tests. Absolutely no redeeming qualities, but harmless fun. Remember, I was doing this in the name of research...how to help others with it.

A longtime friend that I don't get to see very often and I started mixing busniess and folksy news thru the message board instead of going to email...yes I know it is essentially the same thing, but it's all combined here.

And then I had a lightbulb moment...something I knew intrinsically, but an idea that bubbled up and explained why we must do what we do as we play with the 2.0 tools...why I must play around in Facebook and not feel silly about it.

I heard the statement

"These tools don’t get socially interesting until they get technologically boring." ( June 09, Clay Shirky)

Until we get comfortable using them, we can't see their true value. I thought about it a long time. I remember how years ago, when computers came on board, supervisors often gave time to play the games included so that everyone would gain keyboard and mouse skills...and then we could take up the business at hand.

I know that is why I have loved all the interactions that revolve around the L2P sessions. Non-threatening opportunities to learn how things work so, that in turn, I can make them work for me.

So I surrender...I'm still not the most consistent visitor, I still have not befriended everyone (PLEASE don't take it personally), I will one of these days, I play a few games, I have uploaded a few personal pictures.

And I definitely have been watching and listening to everyone's educational plans for Facebook ...and there are some great ideas and plans out there. Congratulations to all of you who made it work for you in the teaching/learning world. I am your biggest cheerleader and I will do my best to spread the word, I promise!

Points:

1. You can FB (a thing that has morphed into a verb into an acronym) from your phone. I still don't have all my settings correct there...I get the messages but can't respond from the phone. Need another trip to the AT&T store...AW now.

2. Have you discovered the Chat feature...lower right corner...watch for green circles. Discovered it about 2 weeks ago. Works just like IM (which I haven't done in about 4 years)

3. Have you joined the group that one of the L2P2 beachcombers created? Might be a way to keep the community of sharing going after the beach party ends?

4. Does anyone know how to fix the badge that you can add to your blog? It did not change my status. I tried throwing it away and starting over (3 times!) Shows the change on the badge in FB, but when I add to Blogger, the old status pops up...

See you around the virtual water cooler for some catch-up!

Image from Microsoft Clipart