Web 2.0/ Atomic Learning

I think we can all agree that our conference call with "Babycakes" (haha) was a unique experience. I felt we could cut the tension with a knife the first 5 minutes. I think we handled it pretty well and definitely got into the swing of things. I thought it was pretty cool that we had the opportunity to do that. You could tell that by taking the initiative, their company does want to grow and expand, and definitely wanted college students' opinions. I just felt like he wasn't confident or maybe wasn't sure about a college demographic. I was a little nervous at one point when Jeffrey told him straight up what the problems were with "Babycakes"! ( I literally held my breath). But, I did like the possibility of a Second Life. I think that suits a younger demographic, but if marketed correctly, could be useful and exciting for high school students. I know I hadn't heard of a Second Life and it seemed like the rest of the class didn't. I found that interesting that Ron was surprised that we weren't familar with the term. Maybe we could go over that in class this week? I know when I heard of it, I did get the feel that it was a MySpace or some sort of Simms game. I think the idea behind of it of being a "community for learning" is innovative and should really take off.
Some of the other ideas we discussed are definitely appropriate for college students or even high school classrooms. Podcasts are already widely used and I love it when a professor incorporates them into the classroom. I think Ron was a little hesitant about some of our ideas, like he didn't trust our opinion. Toward the end of the conference call, I felt like we were intruding on his time. But I felt like your idea about a contest would generate interest and elicit a positive response. Everyone loves a prize. Hopefully, "Babycakes" and other companies will consider using a trial run for colleges to test out their product. This is a great marketing strategy and would get the University involved.
Now onto Web 2.0. Where have I been?! I'm right in saying that certain Web 2.0 sites are the same as an RSS Feed? Right after class I went home and spent an hour tooling around on Pageflakes. I already showed my mother how to sign up for one and I'm considering publishing my page. How easy and convenient it is to pick and choose what sites you want all on one page. It took some time to grasp, but I've come to the conclusion that I like the idea of a "StudentPage" This way, it can be used in the classroom for organizational purposes and saving time. I wonder how many other sites will join ranks, because I think Pageflakes is a hot new product. I was also sold on Picnik. I'm not sure as to what a teacher would use it for other than developing projects. However, art history or art teachers would definitely benefit from Picnik. I would definitely use it, and would probably use it as a teacher after I spend more time with the site. Maybe an elementary teacher would get more use out of it for making collages and hanging students' work, etc.