Del.icio.us

When I first typed in the url https://del.icio.us/ I was met with a very basic page. I thought it was one of those 'this page wasn't right so here are a few suggestions that were similar'. If this wasn't for a school assignment I probably would have left, but I knew it was right so I kept digging. I created an account and was easily able to add my bookmarks. I also like that it tells you how many people saved that link.

It is nice because you can see what other sites people are interested in and if you ever forget a url you can go check what you have posted.

I would probably not use it because I feel like it is an extra step. I use Chrome so all the sites I visit are saved and I can easily get to them. If I visit something and I forget, I just got to history.

Flickr

This is my first time ever uploading pictures to Flickr. After I created a login, Flickr was very easy to use. I knew instantly where to click to upload a photo and they always have an upload icon on the top menu bar. I uploaded 3 photos and gave them a short description and 2 tags each. The tags are different from other tags I have done (they were separated by a space but youtube make you hit enter) but I caught on quick. If I was someone interested in using Flickr for all my photos I would definitely be happy with my experience and I would continue to use it and recommend it to others.

I posted a photo with the tag Twitter and it had 6,937,111 other photos with that tag.

I posted another photo with the tag Blogger and there were 1,221,632 other photos with that tag.

My final picture was YouTube and it had 4,336,026 other photos with that tag.

Chrome

The third open source software program I downloaded was Chrome. BUT, I downloaded this ages ago while I was working for DARPA. I use a PC and I love Chrome for it. I never use Internet Explorer. I own an iPhone and I downloaded Chrome for it.I do not use Safari on my phone. My favorite thing about Chrome; when I am out surfing the web and I find something interesting that I want to look at, I am logged in so my phone and laptop are connected and I can check it out when I get in my office.

I also use a lot of the extensions and I have certain settings setup through Chrome that make my life easier. I have downloaded it on my mother's laptop and phone as well and she has started making my father use it. I really like Chrome and I like how easy it is to use. I definitely suggest it to other people all the time.

Open Office

One of the other open source software programs I chose was Open Office at openoffice.org. I decided to try this one for someone else. My mother recently upgraded her laptop and operating system to Windows 10 at my insistence. After she made the upgrade I learned that she was using Microsoft Works this entire time!!!!! Well, when she upgraded to Windows 10 it no longer worked for her and she was very angry (some at me for making her do it) because now she has to PAY. I get her irritation and when I saw this I thought, HA, I have a solution to her problem and she won't be mad at me anymore. Win/win, right.

Open Office and Microsoft Office are almost exactly the same layout-wise. The one difference I noticed immediately was the format options were to the right of the page view as well as above. I think this is the perfect fix to my mother's problem. I am willing to say, when my subscription expires I will switch to this as well.

Gimpshop

One of the Open Source software programs I chose to download was Gimpshop at gimpshop.net. I decided to do this one because I will have to get a photo manipulation software for another class I am taking in the future and I thought, better to get it free, right. So far I have gone in and played with some of the features, I like how easy it is to undo something if you do it. This way, if you do not know what something is, you can still play with it and if you do not like it you can undo what you have done.

I will know more when I start working with it for the class but so far it is pretty easy. Easier than the adobe version (it came with Adobe Creative Cloud) I was paying for. I turned off my subscription until it was time to use, but I tried playing with it and it was a lot of stuff and I had no idea what I was doing so I was afraid to touch anything. The fact that this is free and I can do the same things makes me very happy.

Web 2.0 Explained in a Video

I was rolling around YouTube watching a bunch of Web 2.0 videos and I have to be honest, they were all trying not to be boring but seriously missing the mark. I am not sure what is worse trying to be funny and missing or straight out boring someone to tears. After watching multiple videos I went with What is Web 2.0? by WebSmart TV (you can watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVeICpFAB-s). In 1 minute and 21 seconds they were able to explain what it was and not completely bore you. Short, simple, and to the point.

Amber

Web 2.0

Not many people know what Web 2.0 is and I thought this was a perfect picture from http://docentesenextremadura.wikispaces.com/PALE.Web+2.0+applications that broke it down in the simplest way imaginable.

I was looking around and as soon as I saw this image I thought, "That is exactly what it looked like in my head." I hope this helps other people understand it a little more.

Amber