Web 2.0 and Its Business Implications

Even in hyper-wired (or wireless) Finland, I'm surprised sometimes by my students' unfamiliarity with some of the web 2.0 tools we are discussing in this EVO session. The majority of my students study business here at the University of Vaasa and I use a lot of web 1.0 tools with them already, including radio segments downloaded as podcasts (ok, this is getting into 2.0) or streamed live into the classroom as listening texts. Two pieces I came across recently addressed the issue of web 2.0 from a business perspective. I thought I'd pass them on here. As I integrate web 2.0 tools into my classroom, I find it useful to discuss web 2.0 more generally with my students in terms of their area of studies.

Who is Grady Harp?: Amazon's Top Reviewers and the Fate of the Literary Amateur
by Garth Risk Hallberg
Posted Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008, at 7:33 AM ET
Slate is a daily online magazine (an ezine), which also has a daily podcast of one story being read aloud.

Second Life's Economy Slows Down, Too
aired Tuesday January 22, 2008
Marketplace is a daily half-hour business news radio program produced by Public Radio International in Los Angeles. It can be heard online, downloaded, and/or subscribed to as a podcast. Most segments have a full transcript available on the website.

For those of you who are brand new to blogging, do you see that I've inserted links into the text of my post here? Why don't you give that a try. Linking to other blogs and online resources is an important aspect of blogging as mentioned in one of this week's readings. In blogger, you can insert a link by highlighting the text you'd like the link to hide behind and then clicking on the small icon above (near the bold, italics, etc. icons) that looks like a small globe with a chain link above it. Don't hesitate to ask if you have questions!

Using Elluminate Live for Your Blended Classes!

This entry made particularly to answer a question, by Lori in New York, on using the vRoom by Elluminate live! Lori and everyone interested, I did use the virtual room by Elluminate for one of my ESP, Business English blended classes. I found it very helpful as it allows high quality of participation through audio, video, and text. It also has breakout rooms that made group-activities so easy to do online. Also, allowing power point files to be uploaded helped me prepare lessons on the fly. The Whiteboard tools are so useful and effective in terms of participation or adding information and questions quickly. So, my experience using Elluminate was very successful.

Hope this is helpful, Lori! Please let me know if you have other questions about the Elluminate vRoom.

All the best :)