This week in class we took a look at different search engines, the seven stupid search mistakes, and 20 different facts about web browsers and the Internet. I'd have to say that all of this intrigued me. Of course I knew that other search engines existed, but never took the plunge to explore them outside of Google and Yahoo!. I even tell my students that Google is the one to use because it has all the answers! Now, obviously that is not true, but Google is such a commonality in our everyday lives. I explored with Exalead, another search engine, and though I won't be switching anytime soon, I feel that it is beneficial in searching. When doing a simple search for dogs I got 70 million results on Exalead and 170 million on Google. A HUGE difference in results on both ends, but depending on your end result, you might prefer one over the other.
The one thing that I truly enjoyed was reading 20 Things I Learned About Browsers and the Web. Though I knew some of the 20 Things, but not exactly how they affected our daily use. The one thing that sticks out the most is how "old" browsers or not updating makes your old one vulnerable to attacks, slows down the innovation of the web and is keeping you from awesome new applications that are out there. I'm usually very good about updating my browser, but it's not something that I do as soon as a new update is available. That goes back to the old saying, "if it's not broke, don't fix it."
All in all, the tools that I've been exposed to in the last few class periods and the new knowledge about search engines and web browsers seem to be expanding my horizons in teaching. I recently suggested the use of typewith.me to our IT person in the hopes that we can find enough use in it that the district will unblock the site. I've been pushing for Google Docs, but feel there are too many people "against" it at this point. I'm excited to see what will discover with the world of spreadsheets next week. They are definitely something that I find extremely useful.
I also found the "little book" extremely helpful. There was a lot of information in there that made sense of some of my questions. I never thought much about other search engines or word processing sites. I wasn't impressed enough by any of them that I would probably switch from Google any time soon. But I did find a word processing site that I really liked. Zoho was very easy to use, and reminded me of a cross between Google Docs and Word.
ReplyDeleteThe spreadsheet thing next week worries me a little bit. Except for some very minor puttsing around I have never really used one. But I am also glad we are doing it because it is something that I should know, for myself and in case I have to teach it to the students.