A4.3: Reflection on Searching the WWW

Ashley Pence

September 13, 2007

After reading and browsing the articles and search engines that were given to us I came to the conclusion that the entire time I have been searching on the web I have been doing it with limited results.  The fact that the articles noted that Google was the number one search engine did not surprise me.  This is a search engine that I use everytime I am curious about something or need to find something.  That typically happens everytime I access the WWW or atleast once a day.  The search engines Yahoo and ask.com that came in second and third are search engines that I don’t even use.  I came to the realization that Google is the only search engine I use and after these articles and overviews of other search engines I will no longer let that be true. 

The first thing that surprised me is that search engines don’t even search the web, they search their databases.  These databases are selected and built by computer robot programs called spiders.  These spiders in turn only find pages with potential inclusion or something that is already in the search engines database.  I learned that less than half of the searchable web is fully searchable on Google.  This really hit me and made me realize that when I have done previous searches on Google before I was really cut short from the abundance of information that I could have found had I used other search engines.  Another surprising thing is that there are webpages that are invisible that the spiders can’t access.  These webpages can however be accessed through subscription to certain sites or organizations in which I have access to by being a library card holder.  Search engines such as Academic Search Premier and ERIC allow me to access those invisible pages.

When I was using the search engines on the Itools site I was surprised to see what all you could search.  I went from searching for information on my research topic to finding the address and phone number of several people I know.  That was actually pretty scary because it gives you a map and everything.  Luckily I wasn’t on there yet!  Keith Stanger’s surpluss of search engines left me somewhat confused, but I did happen to find the search engine, Educause, that is used to find the 7 things to know articles.

By accessing these search engines and gaining a background on search engines I have realized that for future searching I will not just use Google.  Although Google can be quick and typically turns back good results, it is not the only way to search.  I had already used search engines such as Academic Premier and ERIC for other projects, but now that I know how beneficial they are in helping me find invisible webpages I will use them more often.

A4.2: Chapter 5 Richardson

Ashley Pence

September 11, 2007

Richardson, W. (2006) Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms.  Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

 TAP:  The topic of this chapter was RSS and the fact that Richardson says it is the new killer app for educators.  This chapter was geared toward educators and focused it’s discussion on convincing educators of it’s helpfulness.

Claim:  Weblogs, wikis and other applications have created mass amounts of information on the worldwide web.  Since there is so much to be discovered it is hard to stay on top of all the information, even if you are only accessing sites that you like.  RSS is a way to simplify all the information that you receive.  RSS stands for real simple syndication and just like other syndications the information comes to you instead of you going to it. (2006) 

Evidence:  The RSS creates simple ways to access information that you have subscribed to.  An aggregator or feed collector, which is a type of software collects information from the feeds that you have subscribed to about every hour and when you open up your aggregator the information is there. (2006)  This cuts the time in half that you would normally spend checking those individual sites.  In many ways this allows you to gain more information in the sense that most people won’t take the time to search every site each time they access the web.  By taking a little time to subscribe to those feeds, you save tons of time later and gain a wealth of knowledge that may not have been gained before the RSS. 

I realized while reading this that I don’t know what types of things that I would be interested in exactly and for that matter where do I find these feeds to subscribe to?  This chapter explains that you can go to several sites such as bloglines.com and search for any topic you can think of.  This site also contains top blogs that other people have subscribed to as well to get you thinking of what you may be interested in.  (2006)  Richardson also expressed his reasoning for RSS being such a great resource for students.  The fact that RSS feeds can send current events or topic specific research can lead to helping the lack of media and information literacy skills students have. (2006)  He also states that an RSS is like doing research 24/7, only you don’t do any of the work, RSS does it all for you. 

Connections:  In my prior experience with the worldwide web I have found that I only access a few sites while I am on the internet unless asked to access others.  It is hard for me to think of sites that I might be interested in even though I know once I found them I would visit them on a regular basis.  I have tons of interest, but the internet is so overwhelming at times that I don’t even mess with it.  However, if I were to subscribe to certain feeds that interested me, then I would not have to be concerned with the overwhelming feeling of the mass of information the internet holds.  This chapter expanded on the article I read about 7 things you should know about RSS.  It gave me RSS’ background, how to create one and where to find information to get me started with the RSS.  In the future I could find the RSS a very helpful resource that could relieve some of the stress I have when it comes to researching.  Just like the Richardson said, “it’s like researching 24/7 except RSS does it for me.”

A4.2: 7 things you should know about RSS

Ashley Pence

September 11, 2007

7 things you should know about rss (2007, April).  Retrieved September 10, 2007, from http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/EL17024.pdf

TAP:  The topic of this article is to inform students and teachers about RSS.  Its purpose is to tell the readers how to use it and why.

Claim:  An RSS is a protocol that can be subscribed to by choice that collects online content from websites that you have subscribed to to receive information.  The point of an RSS is that after you choose certain sites that you want to obtain information from, this RSS will send it to you without you having to search every website for your desired information.  It is sent directly to you.

Evidence:  Since the RSS allows you to choose what you receive, it is much more efficacious to receive information this way, rather then from email.  Through email you will receive spam from those sites as well which is not desired and will clog up the already clogged space in your email.  RSS allows you to subscribe to any site where it is available.  Subscribing to blogs for instance is a huge relief for readers who must keep up with several blogs at one time.  This could be very helpful for teachers or students who use blogs as a resource for their classes.  By subscribing to blogs that are of interest you don’t have to access the site everytime you need to read it.  RSS sends you either a bit of the information and a way to access the rest of it or the whole thing.  By using the RSS you can filter and organize the huge amounts of information that is on the web.  This could also help you to find out more information because in my case, I don’t like to visit websites because of all the information to choose from and it takes way too long.  If I were to subscribe to an RSS I can pick and choose what I want, topics that interest me and the RSS can also inform me of topics they think may interest me based on the information I have given them.  The downside to RSS is that you have to find the sites you can trust and then identify whether or not they have an RSS that you can subscribe to.  RSS has great implications for teaching and learning.  The fact that you can subscribe to sites that obtain information of your interest can help you follow deveolpments in that area of interest which can be a helpful skill in our proffessional lives.  (2007)

Connections:  As a student I realize that the implications RSS has on my learning can be great.  By subscribing to sites that interest me and sites that contain information about what I am researching can help further my research and better inform me to make me more knowledgeble about these things. The fact that it is easy access is just a plus.  Other texts that deal with obtaining information relate to the RSS article in a way that shows us that there are multiple ways of performing research.  An RSS is just something that takes that information we find and makes it easier to access.  This type of protocol can be of great benefit in my future when more information is required for me to know and by having the RSS I can obtain it in a more organized and less stressful way. 

A4.2: 7 Things You Should Know About Wikipedia

Ashley Pence

September 11, 2007

7 things you should know about Wikipedia (2007, June). Retrieved September 10, 2007, from http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/EL17026.pdf

TAP:  The topic of this reading pertains to what wikipedia is, who’s using it, how it works, why it is significant, the downsides of it, where it is going and the what the implications are for teaching and learning.  The audience includes anyone who searches the world wide web for information and anyone who is interested in becoming more knowledgeble about how to use wikipedia.  The purpose of this reading is to persuade people to use wikipedia to its full advantage and they convince the reader of this by giving scenario’s and other examples of why wikipedia is such a great source.

Claim:  Wikipedia is a source where information can be obtained, edited and used by thousands of users worldwide.  Wikipedia allows us to become the editor and chief of any information we see interesting.  We can update and revise as we see necessary and others can access this same information and do the same thing.  This is a tool that is helpful for research, but we also must remember that it is something that is continuously edited and should not always be taken as the truth.  Wikipedia is a way to collaborate and learn to come to a point where the information provided is as accurate as possible.

Evidence:  Wikipedia has been listed as the eighth most visited site on the internet.  This is true because when most people begin research the first place they go to is a search engine such as google.  Most results show a link for wikipedia.  Quite often people take this information given at wikipedia for the truth and end up with incorrect information.  A situation occurred in the history department at Middlebury College and wikipedia was banned from citations in papers and on tests. (2007)  However steps to warn students against false information is provided on wikipedia sites.  Discussion boards are also provided to allow the editors to post what changes they have made and why.  This can be helpful when a student is researching and finds this information on wikipedia, but comes back to see that it has been changed.  Wikipedia is a good source to find information, but it should be further researched to obtain the best information.  Once research has been done, you can become the editor of that specific information page and provide accurate information.

Connections:  In my past I have often used wikipedia to obtain factual information.  At the time that I was using it I was not aware of the fact that some information I obtained could be false or biased. With a new outlook on wikipedia I can move forward in research rather than only basing my research on this site.  This can also help me further my research skills by obtaining accurate information and then sharing my information with others on wikipedia.  This text relates to the articles on wikis that explained the broader scope of wikipedia.  From that article I now know that wikis are not just from wikipedia and that they are from a wide range of topics.  With a future in Speech Language Pathology I am now aware that research should be intensive and that basing my information solely on one site, not  just wikipedia, is not the best idea.  To obtain accurate information for my field I should research many areas and sources and  collaborate using resources such as wikipedia.