The Convenience of Diigo

I am thoroughly enjoying using Diigo for educational purposes. I don't think I will really get into sharing my articles and comments until I have more friends on there, and figure out how to use it so that only they can see my comments. But I love setting it to private and using the highlight, bookmark and comments features to read online for my classes.

Recently, I found another very useful function for Diigo, and that is having it aid me in my study of the Spanish language. I am trying to brush up on my skills in time for a job interview, and am meeting with a friend each week to discuss an article (in Spanish) that we have both read. I am using the Diigo comment tool to translate any words in the passage I don't know. That way, when I reread the text, I don't have to rely on the translation, but can refer to it if needed. It is so convenient, and I can't wait to learn more Spanish using Diigo. Has anyone else found that Diigo has aided them in other ways? Are there other cool features I should know about?

Tweaked Alligators video

Ok, I couldn't resist.  This activity is just so much more appealing right now than writing a paper.  I synced up the pictures with the audio, filled in the blank spaces by adding some pics, etc.  Enjoy.

Alligators

I decided I didn't want to videotape myself explaining how to do something, so instead I used the iMovie application on my Mac to piece together a "how-to" using pictures saved on my computer.  I know from my blog it looks like I'm obsessed with water creatures, and I guess I kind of am, but honestly I just had so many pictures from this cajun swamp tour that this was the easiest thing to do. 

I'm hoping I will have time to rework this before Tuesday, so think of this as a preview or rough draft.

I would love suggestions, such as, do you think I should put cajun zydeco music in the background, or would that be inappropriate given the morbid nature of alligator attacks?  People from where I live are very used to the presence of alligators and sharks, and honestly make sort of a joke of it, but I wouldn't want to offend anyone who has lost a loved one to an animal attack.

I just think it is a little boring and needs something extra, but I can't think of what I could do to save time and headache.  I don't mind putting the extra time in for this project, but I am trying to learn about practical ways I can use technology like this in my classroom, and practical means it can't be that complicated or time-consuming.

I've had a lot of trouble uploading this video onto the page, but I don't know how to do it in format other than Quicktime.

Anyway, if you have comments, questions, or suggestions, let me know. Thanks for viewing!

Of Audacity and Time Capsules

I attended Bart's session on Audacity the other day, and as soon as I have half a second to play with it, I'm going to use it for a recording my friends and I made five years ago about where we saw ourselves in five years.  Being from the South, I'm pretty sure a couple of us said we'd be engaged or married, which is funny because none of us are, nor thinking that it would be such a good idea now!  I'm really looking forward to listening.  Has anyone else done a sort of "time capsule" or written a letter to yourself?  One of my professors my senior year of college always has her classes write letters to themselves, and then she sends them in five years.  I still have two years longer to wait for that one.  I'm sure it will be equally hilarious.  

Anyway, I guess I've gotten way off the topic of Audacity, but has anyone used it yet?  Can you think of any practical uses for it besides the one I named above?  (I'm having lots of fun making the artists in my iTunes sing like chipmunks, but this can hardly count as practical).