CEdO535 Week 4: Social Networking, Screen Casts

We investigated the uses and benefits of social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as revisited social bookmarking sites (Diigo.com, Delicious, etc.). While I've used Facebook for some time now, I have only recently realized the potential benefits of using it outside of pure socializing. Businesses use social networking sites to promote their goods and services, people with common interests and activities are linked together and a simple search could lead to information about something new. I am more often seeing links to articles being posted by my Facebook friends that lead me to learning about things I might not have thought about otherwise. Yes, it is still highly social and not necessarily the best fit for everyone, but it certainly does allow for users to practice communication in an online venue where people have differing opinions and somehow learn to get along. I think that even though most schools don't allow for tools like Facebook or Twitter to be used within their networks, most students do participate in these forums outside of school. My question then is how do we teach our students to behave responsibly online if we aren't able to access the tools when we are with them during the day?
Social Bookmarking is something I've used since we first visited the topic in our first class of this cohort. I've been using Diigo and have found it to be extremely valuable for me on many levels. I like that I am able to access my bookmarks on any computer with an Internet connection--this is huge when traveling or having to switch over to a new computer. Gone are the days of loosing all of my favorites that I've saved when my computer crashes! I've attempted to set up some groups within Diigo for my team at work, but it has not taken off. Just like anything new, you need to have buy-in from those you want to participate and if they aren't ready to give it a shot it probably won't succeed. I will continue to revisit and re-introduce the ideas because I believe these tools are a better alternative to communicating by email alone.
Screen casts are something I've had some experience with through trial and error. We use Mimio at our company and within the mimio studio software there is a recorder tool that allows for screen casting. I've used this tool to create several training videos for my staff, but it took me some time to figure out how to post them effectively. The files were huge and since I was working it through on my own, it took some time to learn how to post the videos. I did eventually work it out, but I am excited about some of the other online tools available. I'd like to learn more about privacy using these tools and whether or not there are ways to create private screen casts. I imagine there are those options, but those may come with a pricetag. Some of the tools we looked at include Screenr, Screen Jelly, JiingProject and ScreenToaster.
All of these tools are relevant to the work I do at my level within my company and I want to continue to learn how to use them effectively to improve communication and productivity. As far as using them within the school environment, I think they could be extremely powerful tools, but I'm not sure when they will be readily accessible.