The subject line for this weeks blog refers to 2 aspects of "so many blogs"-- the first being that I have been exploring different blogging tools, and also that I am now so enjoying following the blogs of my doctoral students (which they are doing for our course Distance Education - Theory to Practice). Their blogs are a description of the "practice" part -- what they are learning as they try out all sorts of different online tools -- and also their reflections on the intersection between theory and practice.
So first: It is amazing how many different blogging tools there are out there! I still don't have one favorite, as there are pros and cons to each one, and also which is best depends on the context. So let me share some thoughts, and I would love it if others would jump in and add comments about the blog tool you use, why you chose that one, what you like about it and what you don't!
So first: It is amazing how many different blogging tools there are out there! I still don't have one favorite, as there are pros and cons to each one, and also which is best depends on the context. So let me share some thoughts, and I would love it if others would jump in and add comments about the blog tool you use, why you chose that one, what you like about it and what you don't!
- Blogger.com: that's what I am using here! What I like about this is that it is one of the tools that comes with the Google Suite, so it interacts easily with the rest. I use Google Reader to subscribe to blogs, and so being in one place is useful. I also find Blogger fairly intuitive to use.
Major downside: Because I also have an official education Google account through my university (Univ of MN), things can get confusing. The educational Google account does include a blog and Google Reader, BUT you can't follow other people's blogs (not quite the same as subscribing) using that account. Additionally, I began my blog and using Google reader long before our university moved to Google and gmail, so I don't want to move things over there. Thus I have to use a separate browser for my personal gmail (and my blog and Google Reader), otherwise when I am in my work email (UMD gmail), if I try to edit my blog or follow other blogs, I am told that I am already logged into Google under another account. Frustrating! But I do understand that the university has to have special authentication to login to Google because we can store and access confidential information through this account. - Posterous: I am enjoying Posterous (see Helen's Happenings) more and more as a blog tool because it is so easy to use! I started using it to replace my handwritten, paper phenology journal that I have kept for over 10 years. My paper journal filled up, so I decided that instead of staring a new one, I would just switch to Posterous because then I could add to the phenology journal any time I liked from anywhere, and easily include photos and even video. Before I had to have the physical journal in my hands to do this.
-- For one, it is very easy to post a blog entry to my Posterous blog merely by emailing my Posterous account. The subject line of my email becomes the blog heading, and if I attach a photo or video (or any other kind of file), it is embedded in the blog. Sweet!
-- Also, there is an app for Posterous, meaning that I can post from my iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch, and can also subscribe to and follow other Posterous users blogs on my iDevice using the app. - Weebly: Weebly is not a blog itself -- but rather a tool to create a website (free and cross wor). In addition to having different web pages as part of your site, you can also have a blog to go with it. I LOVE Weebly -- I strongly encourage my students to use it to create professional portfolios (but when they use Weebly for that purpose, then they don't usually have a blog as part of it). Example: I created a professional portfolio for my dog Peanut as a demonstration! I did set up a Weebly site with a blog just to show how it is done.
- Blog.com: I just learned about this tool this week from a colleague of mine who is teaching in England and having her students keep a blog as part of her course over there. So of course I had to jump in and try it right away, and it's really easy and intuitive to use -- I will add this to my list of suggested tools in the future.
- Tumblr.com: I tried this out a year ago and forgot about it -- but have a student using Tumblr this semester and his blog look great!
- Typepad.com: See http://www.typepad.com/ This looks like a good tool, but it is free only for a trial period -- thereafter it is $8.95 for the basic blog and then more expensive for more features. Since there are so many good free blogs out there, I don't see this as a viable option
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