Thing #10 - Fun With Fotos: On-line Image Geneators

Thanks to Captioner!

(Actually, Brenda wanted to say a lot more

like, "I'm on deadline; don't bother me!" But Captioner can't accommodate this beautiful, sexy, intelligent woman's words.  Nor could her speech bubble be attached to her picture frame.  She also deserves some color in her caption, but that couldn't be managed either.)

Meanwhile, my all-star

jersey 

arrived.

California plates

in honor of my deceased cat. 

 

 Fancy font for fabulous fundamentals.

Now I can make Monopoly cards. 

The Tarot's Queen of Pentacles represents a solitary woman, who finds freedom associated with "prosperity and security", a caption added by me.  

 

P.S.  This week I attempted with three classes of seniors to have them prepare their presentations on Their Eyes on Google Docs.  Well, . . . what works at home, and what teachers say will work, runs into a multitude of road blocks at school.  Mostly, the firewalls prohibiting students from accessing their personal emails, and the schools' foot-dragging  to provide students with district emails, brought the G-Doc efforts to a grounding halt.  Hopefully, their efforts to set up accounts was successful and they will report to class on Monday, armed with passwords, ready to go again.  Those that made it through with g-mail accounts, shared with me, and I enjoyed viewing and commenting on their slides.  Fingers crossed for next week.  

Thing #9 - Blogs & More

I've been out "hunting" for a couple of hours (?), entering the world of blogs and searches.  I came across  Google Notebook.  Often, I find an idea and want to jot it down,  and then what to do with my note papers?  Google has the answer.  

Scanning the different blog search sites, I ended up bookmarking Technorati. When I tested whether it could find some of my esoteric interests, (gray is the new black) it responded adequately. 

One of the other sites I stumbled on, while examining the topic of Classroom Learning 2.0, was a sidebar U Tube video on why teens use social networking sites.  I was heartened to hear valid reasons, comforting me regarding LCGC's frequent visitations.  Different generations, different strokes.  One of my issues -- why put all this personal info out in the public domain -- must be oft voiced by other parents, as the young lady did a reasonable job of addressing that concern.

I'm hoping with Technorati's easy access, I will now return frequently to search out blogs for content and opinions, just as I have with my general Google searches.  

This week, I'm testing out Google docs with three classes of seniors, who are creating presentations on different topics related to Their Eyes are Watching God.  I searched for ideas on teachers' blogs, and witnessed a 5th grade's use of podcasts.  Note to self:  investigate how to maximize access to computers at our school.  

Thing #8 - RSS Feeds & Bloglines

I set up my Google Reader with my frequently checked blogs and sites listed.  I will give it a try to see if I continue to expand my list, now that I have a place to keep them together. Previously, I bookmarked the sites I regularly visited;  now I can just go to the Reader page.  

I will see if there is a way to change its appearance.  My eyes don't like the clutter and the assumptions the Reader conveys.  I want to eliminate unwanted categories and uninvited chatter.  I'm always trying to reduce clutter and simplify; this Reader seems to want to add more and more to my time spent at the computer.  

The lure of the computer -- everything I've always wanted to know and be aware of -- is there . . . but what about stepping away from the screen and focusing on the life, patterns, sounds around me.

Thing #7 - Tech Templates

Making the Flickr-sponsored magazine cover was fun. . . but.  I look forward to the day when:

• there is voice recognition for door locks.
• directions and how-to's make better sense
• products are truly "intuitive"
• templates have a quick-response feedback button

For me, I wanted to see the font size and color impacts on the magazine's layout, as I chose them. Going back and forward, was tedious.  I wanted:  Whatyouseeiswhatyouget.  

The magazine template would be fun for students, but I can see headlines and subheads covering the image like a garden badly in need of weeding.  

Nevertheless, I enjoyed creating a personal magazine.  Ophra's got nothing on me.  O-yeah.