Teens are getting annoyed with Facebook!

because it's so competitive and commercial...

Teens are moving to other venues for sharing such as Twitter and Tumblr  are more likely to connect folks with similar interests.

Facebook is “the teenage version of email,” said danah boyd, an assistant researcher at New York University specializing in youth and social media. “What’s so interesting about Facebook is that it’s not interesting to [teens]. 

Read more and watch the video from the new Huffington Post live!  Much interesting programming happening here.

Given this state of cyberspace, it is more important than ever to help teens "curate" the web and create a positive digital footprint.

A Nice Bridge between Facebook and Twitter

Today's New York Times article "Media Companies Try Getting Social with Tumblr" explains how media outlets such as The New Yorker and the Huffington Post are using the Tumblr blogging service to push out content simply and effectively in ways that complement their Facebook and Twitter sites. If you examine these sites, they are almost like "trailers" to the larger content provided on the main website.

Why would they bother using a third type of social media? Folks are already following them on Facebook and Twitter.

For one thing, they can integrate their Facebook with Tumblr, offering their Tumblr blog readers the opportunity to post comments directly onto their Facebook site. This cross-fertilization can bring more readers on board. "Notes" are also added which reveal who liked the posts and who "re-blogged" them. Readers may be able to find those with similar interests more easily.

Comic by rivv

Secondly, they are not limited to such short posts, they can add video, bigger and better pictures!, and more enticing snippets connected to their longer stories from their main websites. Tumblr makes it really easy to share not only text, but also photos, quotes, links, dialogues, audio, video, and slideshows.  

Tumblr themes are available in 5 languages: English, German, Japanese, French, and Italian with the promise of more in the future. No Spanish?  No Chinese? I think this blogging platform would be great for our world language teachers.

Mobile apps are proliferating, but right now they are mostly for Apple products and Blackberry. I did not find Droid apps on their site.

I really like the look and feel of Tumblr.  Could it be that I'm getting bored with Blogger? Any support out there for switching our New Trier Library blog to Tumblr?

Students get engaged creating "Facebook" profiles

Educator/blogger Steve Anderson shares today how Tech teacher Suzanne Whitlow made a simple template to creatively engage students in creating Facebook profiles for a Civil War project where students were assigned to create a Facebook-like profile for Civil War generals. "Who would General Sherman’s friends be on a social network?"

She shares her Word and Pages templates for this project on her blog post.

Anderson shared this idea with a teacher at his school to use as an end of year reflection:  "I peaked in while the kids were working. I nearly came unglued. What I was seeing was amazing! The kids were so excited. They were rapidly making color changes, adding text, and inserting pictures. They were talking to each other about the best and worst parts of the year...".

The power of Twitter makes something like this go viral as teachers across the country think of creative ways to use the template. Be sure to read comments to Whitlow's post:

"I can’t tell you how perfect this is! I was thinking of having my seventh graders create a Facebook-style page for the main characters in their lit circle books, but wasn’t sure how to go about it."

"I have done a Myspace project with my students the last few years as a culminating project on the Ancient Romans. I was thinking about doing a Facebook version this year and you just made it possible! Thank you SO much for sharing!!!"

I love this idea because it can be so easily used across the curriculum. Teachers need to know that librarians can easily support the research aspects of projects like these. Steve Anderson is another educator to add to your PLN. Follow him on Twitter where he is "changing the world, one tweet at a time".

Anderson is currently working with staff at Clemmons Middle School in Winston-Salem, NC on a Personal Learning Network project where teachers, administrators, and other school leaders are beginning to build their PLN's through the use of Social Networking tools.

Facebook and Privacy: The Privacy War is Not Over

Pete Cashmore [Mashable CEO] now writes for CNN and tells us Why Facebook's Privacy War is Not Over.

Basically, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's vision is "somewhat utopian"; the Facebook argument is that more sharing creates a "better world."

While we are all connecting and trying to create this better world, Facebook is making money with advertisers.
A soon-to-launch feature will allow users to share their location, putting Facebook in competition with burgeoning services such as Foursquare and Gowalla.GPS location is telling everyone exactly WHERE you are RIGHT NOW.  Not exactly addressing privacy concerns.



For those not paying attention and for those not attending to their privacy settings, it's not a good situation.
As educators we need using social media and teaching students about the pitfalls as they increasingly share more information with the world.

Facebook is Redefining Privacy

Read this week's cover story on Time Magazine: “Facebook …and how it’s redefining privacy. With nearly 500 million users, Facebook is connecting us in new (and scary) ways.”

Mashable reporter Jennifer Van Grove writes:

"The feature article by Dan Fletcher delves inside Facebook and its methodologies for hooking new users and explores the historical events leading up to present-day privacy concerns around Open Graph and instant personalization."

The scary part is that Fletcher concludes by warning:
"Facebook is on the path to become “the Web’s sketchy Big Brother, sucking up our identities into a massive Borg brain to slice, dice and categorize for advertisers.”

Lots of interesting facts that are worth mentioning: Facebook houses the world's largest photo collection--48 billion unique images!




 

Facebook and Privacy

Mashable writer Ben Parr writes a very good argument defending Facebook:

 Is Facebook betraying its users? 

"I defend Facebook because it is the wrong target for our anger. It has done more to bring people together than any technology of the last five years, and the good it has brought far outweighs the bad. We made the decision to turn our personal information over to a private company, and for the most part Facebook made good use of it."

 Has Facebook compromised user privacy?

"Quitting Facebook won’t solve the privacy conundrum: common sense and better education about how privacy has changed will. This debate has once again exposed the gap between how the world has changed and our assumptions about how the world works or should work. Attacking Facebook won’t help us come to terms with our society’s struggle over the changing nature of privacy."

Pete Cashmore [Mashable CEO] believes: There is no such thing as privacy.

This points to the fact that we need to be teaching our students how the world works, and how even if we don't turn our information over to a private company, anyone can post information about us on the web. It's the world we live in and let's not stick our heads in the sand.  

Once again, I remember distinctly that about six months ago, Will Richardson asked: "When do we stop trying to fight the inevitable and start thinking about how to embrace it?"  Or, as Doug Johnson so eloquently suggests, when are we gonna saddle this horse and ride it?"  Today Will Richardson's blog article was simply entitled:  Teach. Facebook. Now.  Read his plea to get real with the students.  He sums it up by stating "I know Facebook isn’t on the test, but c’mon. It’s time it becomes a part of how we help kids live in this world." Are any administrators out there paying attention?

Engage Your Students With Facebook

Presentation for ISLMA October 30, 2009

Visit Prezi for a preview!

Learn how to use Prezi --great Flash CS3 presentation software.

It's starting to sound like a conversation around here

Thanks Deborah for informing us about: "Internet Neutrality" and the issue of loading information equitably across the web. Very interesting post.

Another post of interest:

I am so excited that we now have about 32 Facebook fans. A New Trier senior, Adam Gutman, posted to our New Trier Library Facebook page:

"This place rocks! It is where I get a lot of work done for school. Mrs. Gressel is always positive when I am working on a project. Often times, I find myself wanting to use wikipedia, though she shows me proper sources and how to cite them. Thanks NT Library!"

The interaction makes it all worthwhile.

Facebook Pages basics – a Screencast

David Lee King discusses how he uses Facebook for the Topeka, Kansas Library:

Slide Share presentation sent by Deborah Lazar

Although this is 2 years old, the ideas are still "fresh".

Facebook Apps and Libraries' Friendly Future

View more presentations from Cliff Landis.

Makes me want to get out there and explore Library Facebook pages. Argh...can't do it at school because Facebook is blocked.

Adding a Facebook Fan Page for New Trier Library

Experimenting with various applications in Facebook for the Library. The Wall tab is for updating the status with recent news or upcoming events. The ability to create photo albums or upload videos, post Notes or post Links for interesting content is useful. The idea is to "Be connected. Be discovered. Be on Facebook".

Who is managing your online identity?

Jenny Levine, librarian and writer of the blog Shifted Librarian wrote a very thoughtful post about privacy and ownership issues swirling about with Facebook recently.

She argues in her post: Who is managing your online identity?
that it's up to you to take responsibility for your identity and be thoughtful about it. Create it and shape it carefully so that no one else can "steal" it. Don't just opt out of the online world because identity theft can still occur without you knowing it. Apparently, she has no privacy worries as she does post her photostreams to her professional blog.