Thing#6 - Smashed Again!

Wow! Let me reiterate my earlier comments about image junkies: having spent nearly an hour playing around with the different applications, my theories were only confirmed! How much can you do with a simple photograph? Well, apparently you can do nearly anything your mind can conceptualize!

Some of the photography applications I had seen before on other sites, but the more elaborate smashups - like the map with the photographs that pop up to define and detail given locations - now that is just amazing! If you haven't checked out Mappr yet, do so immediately -- just make sure you have time to spend.

Smashups give life to our wildest ideas. It is as if someone said, "Wouldn't it be cool if there were a way to (fill in the blank)," and someone else said, "Hey, I think I can write code for that!"
What I really like is the way these applications bring together linear, analytical thinking and the need to create something of beauty. The left side of the brain and the right side of the brain work together instead of compete! Eureka!

Thing #5 - My Friend Flikr

To the list of words I like, I should add "image junkie." I think the term really captures something essential about modern appetites and thereby explains the proliferation of sites such as Flikr, Shutterfly, Google Images, etc.

I spent a good while just clicking through the different tagged collections, guided only by piques of interest or bouts of curiosity. I found the picture collections themselves overwhelming in size (9, 625 images!), and without some greater purpose, I could see myself getting lost in the labyrinth of images and losing a good deal of time... My case in point: it is now 6:05 a.m., and I wonder where the last hour has gone!

I haven't properly attributed this photo, and given the thoughtfulness of the Common Rules of Use, I want to make sure that I do so. I shall have to go back and read up on how to actually embed the copyright information. I am always after my students to credit their sources, aren't I?

After selecting a picture but not really feeling like I appreciated the value of Flikr beyond satiating our need for visual stimulation, I went back to the Learn2Play page for further instruction and guidance, and from there I ended up viewing the library groups.

Intrigued though I was by the 365 Library Project (imprecise title, if any of you go looking for it) and considered it a good way to promote, advertise, record, and even validate what organizations are doing, I wondered what applications it might have for the simple English teacher. I can certainly see its value in gathering and storing images, but I wonder how it could be used as a learning tool for students. I'll have to read around and see how other Learn2Play users are thinking...