Learning Styles

There are many methods by which we learn.
To enable us to identify our learning needs it is possible to complete one of the many online learning style questionairres that are available.

Below, I have listed two of learning such websites that can help you to define you're own learning needs:

BBC | Keys Kills - Learning Styles - Click Here

BrainBoxx | Discover Your Prefered Learning Style - Click Here

e-Bullying & Cyber Harassment

eBullying also known as Cyber-bullying or Cyber-harassment is the term used to refer to bullying and harassment by use of electronic devices such as PCs, PDAs, Mobile Phones - using e-mail, instant messaging, text messages and websites.

Below I will include some links to websites that can offer advice and support to anyone who is experiencing such troubles or is perhaps seeking advice to support a friend.

Name: ...................................... URL:
Bullying UK ...........................Website......... bullying.co.uk
eBullying.co.uk .....................Website......... ebullying.co.uk
Safe Social Networking ......PDF Doc....... safesocialnetworking.com
Wikipedia ............................ Website......... wikipedia.org

Ethical Blogging

This post is about ethical blogging, guidelines to creating a good healthy blog.
Whats the point it's just a blog you ask?

Well, if a blog is ethical, interesting and well maintained then you have a higher rate of returning viewers, in turn this will boost your traffic and search engine ranking and help to boost the overall performance of the blog itself.

A bit like having good manners really, not necessary but can leave a lasting impresson and give people a reason to remember you.

Here goes nothing, stick to the DO's & DONT's guidelines and see what happens...

1. DO write about what matters to you.

This is the first rule of blogging. The most successful blogs are written by people who are passionate about their subject matter. When you write about topics that excite you, your writing will communicate a sense of energy that will attract like-minded readers. You’ll also be more likely to keep on blogging, and won’t abandon your blog after a few days or weeks.

2. DON’T take a too-formal tone.

Blogging is a more informal than print, and your writing style should reflect that. Blogging allows you to write in a casual, face-to-face tone, as if you were sitting down for a cup of coffee with your readers. One way to begin to develop your blog ‘voice’ is to read blogs that resonate with you and study the ways in which those bloggers choose words that maintain a professional tone while still being warm and accessible.

3. DO edit yourself.

Hey, it’s your blog, right? You can write a 2,000-word essay on what you had for breakfast. Don’t do it. Once you draft your post, read through it for rubbish, irrelevant information or anything that isn’t vital. You might find that you have enough material for 2 or 3 unique posts.

4. DON’T use tired clichés.

A cliché is a phrase that has been coined for so long that it has become boring. An easy way to turn off readers and make them move on to another site is to pepper your posts with clichés like “right as rain” and “easy as pie.” Take a minute to prune those phrases out and replace them with something fresh and original.

5. DO spell check your posts before you publish.

Many blogs including this one offer a spell check function that makes it easy for you to have typo-free posts. Select your text and click on the spell check button. Whenever you see a red line beneath a word, double check the spelling.

6. DON’T forget basic principles of good text layout.

Readability is one of the most important aspects of good blog copy. Use line breaks between paragraphs. Use sub-heads, preferably in bold type. Use italics for emphasis. Your goal is to draw the eye and create a smooth sense of flow throughout your post. Make it easy to read!

7. DO use lists. Most blog readers skim copy rather than read it all the way through.

One way to maximize your copy impact is to use lists. Bullet lists or numbered lists call attention to important points, and ensure that readers who are skimming will catch the most vital part of your post.

8. DON’T use the same format in every post.

Mix it up a little! Some might incorporate lists, while others might be more narrative. Some posts might include a lot of images, while others will be more copy-heavy. Don’t do the same thing every time.

9. DO create descriptive headlines that let readers know what to expect from your posts.

One of the best things about blogging is that it allows you to be creative. Problem is, what is clever to you might be confusing to someone else. The best way to encourage more people to read your post is to write a compelling post title, and use subheads throughout your post.

10. DON’T sweat it.

Don’t let these guidelines keep you from blogging - the most important thing is to keep writing. If you write with passion and conviction, you’ll be able to connect with other people, and your writing will improve every time you post.

Resources:

Blogging Tips - Blogging Guidelines
(http://www.bloggingtips.com/)

Everybody's a Genius
(http://everybodysagenius.com/2008/06/04/how-to-be-a-good-blogger-blog-guidelines/)

Flokka - Blog Tips
(http://flokka.com/blog-tips-10-tips-for-writing-good-blog-posts/)

Use It - Blog Usability
(http://www.useit.com/alertbox/weblogz.html)

What's this BLOG thing then?

Everywhere you turn these days everyone is talking about BLOGGING!
What is it you may ask yourself? Well here's the answer...

Whats does it mean?
It's a shortened term derived from the original phrase "WEB LOG".

WEB LOG = weB LOG = BLOG

Well that doesn't exactly answer your question now does it!
What it does tell you is that once upon a time BLOG's were called WEB LOGS!
So now the question has changed... what is a WEB LOG ?

What does it do?
The simplest way to explain a Web Log would be to compare it to a diary. An online diary.
The main difference being that rather than keeping it stashed away under your pillow you take all the contents and publish them to the world with the assistance of the World Wide Web.

Contents of blogs are entirely dependent upon the author. Some people do infact keep blogs as accurate diaries, others use them to broadcast their opinions, some blogs may be maintained by more than one person perhaps to publish news for a club or society. Some companies even publish blogs online.

Whatever the topic of discussion it is universally agreed that blogs are an informal method of sharing opinions and information to others. It is necessary to include the term informal because it's exactly that. The formal equivalent would be an online journal which is a whole different ball park.

So where did blogs come from?
It has been noted that the recording of information for electronic publication goes back as far as a moderated newsgroup way back in 1983!

In January 1994, a student by the name of Justin Hall, began writing a blog (Justin's links) that to this date is still live and maintained! Many of the sources in my research recognise Justin and credit him as one of the earliest bloggers.

Nearly four years later at the end of 1997, Jorn Barger, an online diarist coined the name "Weblog" for "Logging on the Web". Approximately 18 months later Programmer Peter Merholz is recognised for shortening “Weblog” to “Blog”.

It is later in 1999 that marks the start of the blogging revolution, nearly sixteen years after that initial moderated newsgroup! A very slow start indeed, especially in the era of modern technology! This was the year that saw the beginning of free blog creation facilities being made publicly available on the web.

The first of which was Blogger.com - The very site you are reading this blog from now!

Today it would be virtually impossible to measure the number of online blogs. At a guess I would say there could be as many as a billion blogs floating around in cyberspace if not more!

Anyway, I hope you have enjoyed this "informal" blog into the world of blogging!

Please come back soon to see how I am progressing with the course!


Resources
Justin's Links
(http://www.links.net)

New York Times -
(http://nymag.com/news/media/15971/)

Wikipedia - Blog
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog)

Wikipedia - History of Blogging Timeline
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_blogging_timeline)