Week 9, Thing 23: Summarize Thoughts on 23 Things

1. What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

Well, best of all I think I liked discovering both the RSS feeds and Library thing. I've gotten to the point where I check my Bloglines on a daily basis, and those RSS feeds are fantastic for up-to-date news. I really feel like I'm even more tapped into "the know."

And LibraryThing, what a cool application. For a bibliophile, there are few greater joys than catergorizes and commenting upon the titles in your own personal library. What a great tool. I can really see using this in our book club.

2. How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?

23 Things has really opened the door to experience new technology. I had always seen that little "RSS" button on sites, but never thought to check it out. I new what a podcast was, but never thought I'd be interested in them. But this has helped me to slow down and experiment with new things. Since I do have a tendancy to jump to what I think is a goal or a potential solution, I sometimes miss the experiences of a process. This has helped me to take a step back and slow down, which is certainly a lifelong learning goal for me.

3. Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?

Yeah - Mash-ups. How fun! And the potential for creative projects. I always thought if I wasn't savy in PhotoShop or some such program, I'd have difficulty creating unique digital images. But it be proved so easy with the sites I visited. I can see using them in the future.

4. What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?

I really didn't have any complaints about the format or the concept of 23 Things. If I can think of something, I'll post it here, but for now - nothing.

5. If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you again chose to participate?

Yes, I would. Granted, I was initially motiviated by the prospect of an MP3 player. But given all that I've learning over the last nine weeks, I would participate in something similar.

6. How would you describe your learning experience in a few words or a few sentences, so we can share our successes and promote this program?

A worthwhile journey into the world of technology, and something you can walk away from honestly feeling that you know much more than when you started.