Week 1 Assignments and Some Thoughts

We will not be in class for week 1 ... we'll be doing some virtual stuff instead.  It doesn't mean you get a pass for the first week, we're asking you to get familiar with some of the themes and with some of the technologies we'll be using throughout the semester.  It may feel like we're throwing a lot at you, but if you just go down the list and check each item off you'll be in good shape. The first thing you need to do is listen to our  introductory  podcast.  This should give you a good idea of what we are thinking about and how the general structure of the class will work.  Sticking with the media thing, we'd like you to watch this short video produced at Kansas State that gives a perspective on Web 2.0 ... it is an  interesting  perspective and one we'll be revisiting very soon.Now that you've gotten that out of the way we'd like you to dive into the Web 2.0 world and create your own blog.  We're asking you to use the Blogs at Penn State toolset.  This is a new service that should allow you to easily manage your online stuff.  Another thing we'll be spending a lot of time talking about is how what you do in an online environment shapes your overall identity.  So think critically about how you create this new piece to your persona.  If you run into trouble, go over to the PSU Blogger Community Support space.Once your blog is created we'd like you to make three distinct posts ... the first is a simple personal introduction (you can find what we are looking for here).  The other two are a little more in depth and require you to think a little more critically on your own.  We'd like you to create a post that answers "What do you think disruptive technology means."  Finally, take a minute and reflect on the Web 2.0 video and share some thoughts and your reactions.Another big component to this course will be the Pligg site -- Pligg is an open source social ratings tool (much like the commercial site, Digg.com).  We would like you to do a few things related to this technology this week.  First, please read the short white paper, "7 Things You Should Know About Social Ratings."  This will give you a little background.  Next get an account at our Pligg site.  While you are there, add your RSS feed to the site -- this will start automatically inserting your blog posts into the site.  Finally after posts begin appearing, vote on the posts that are of most interest to you.  The posts that get the most votes will rise to the top and form the basis for our discussion in week 2 when we meet face to face.So that's it for week 1 ... seems like a lot of stuff, but it shouldn't take you too long.  Enjoy and we will see you in week 2!