Social+Networking+and+Bookmarking

**Social Networking**

"Social networks are really connections of Web 2.0 technologies combined in a way that help to build online communities." (http://www.infinitethinking.org/2008/01/social-networking-in education.html)

While Facebook is the first thing that comes to mind when social networking is mentioned, there are actually over 200 social networking sites worldwide. Some like Facebook appeal to everyone, there are also those that specialize to particular populations...including librarians and classroom teachers who integrate social networking into the curriculum and library programs.

Nings are social networks around central themes...think a Facebook for teachers, a Myspace for technology educators...a place to vent, share, connect, and LEARN! //[|Ning] is an online platform for users to create their own social websites and social networks, launched in October [|2004]. ([|Wikipedia])// Nings allow communities to create individual web pages, blog, engage in forum discussions. create interest groups, share photos and videos, present RSS feeds, and more. A [|Ning] is a site for creating your own social network for personal or professional use--or both! Or join one that already exists.
 * What is Ning?**

**What is [|Twitter]and other micro-blogging tools?** //[|Twitter] is a free [|social networking] and [|micro-blogging] service that allows its users to send and read other users' updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length. Updates are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have signed up to receive them. The sender can restrict delivery to those in his or her circle of friends (delivery to everyone being the default). Users can receive updates via the Twitter website, instant messaging, [|SMS], [|RSS], email or through an application such as [|Twitterrific] or [|Facebook]//. ([|Wikipedia])


 * Social Bookmarking**


 * A** method for [|Internet] users to share, organize, search, and manage [|bookmarks] of web resources. Unlike [|file sharing], the //resources// themselves aren't shared, merely bookmarks that //reference// them (Wikipedia). Not only can we bookmark sites but we can assign them descriptors or "tags"

Delicious is one example. Teachers and librarians can set up accounts for students related to a particular topic or project. The following is the tag cloud created from the internet sites I have "tagged." It is a wonderful way for visual learners to see the information.

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