Yesterday I was speaking to Jeanette Woods, Otter's newest Learning Director, about del.icio.us–what it is and why it is so important. I have been using delicious for the past three months. I added the “remember this” code to Safari, so if I come across something of interest. I click on the “remember this” bookmark in my browser bar and am taken to my delicious page, with the link ready for tagging. From there it is one step to add the tags and save the link.

I use delicious for a couple of different purposes: when I give a talk I tag all of the links that form the background material to the talk, along with my slides, and publish this link on the Otter weblog. That way anyone who has seen my talk can read all of the reference material behind it. (This is a great use of delicious for preparing a syllabus for a course.) Each tag in my delicious account has its own url. So I can share my collection of articles with someone who needs to get up to speed on a subject. I have tagged 24 items under “Libraries 2.0,” (this is for a new project we are starting up–a course on Library Futures delivered in the Learning 2.0 model–with the American Library Association. I can share the url that contains all of these links (http://del.icio.us/kgilroy/Libraries2.0)

to anyone who is interested in reading my list of background materials. I can also share the RSS feed for this page with anyone who is interested in aggregating my list. In his comments below, Stuart Maxwell talks about how he uses this feature to share materials with project collaborators.

Our recommended aggregator, Blogbridge, is also integrated with delicious. So if I see something in my aggregator that I want to add to my delicious accounts, all I need to do is click “tag” in the nav bar and I can post the link with tags to my delicious account from inside Blogbridge.

Here are some thoughts on the subject Stuart Maxwell (who is busy building The Louveture Project and running Seattle Real Estate Talk):

Delicious is, basically, a social bookmarking service. In a nutshell, that means that Delicious stores lists of bookmarks for me and tens of thousands of my closest friends, and we all get to see and search through each other's lists. Let me try to explain why this is so cool.

Delicious has several advantages over browser-based bookmarks. First, all my Delicious bookmarks are taggable, meaning that, rather than having to choose just one folder in which to store a bookmark, I can assign each bookmark with as many unique keywords as I like. I can also attach a short note to each bookmark, giving me more context and reminders for why I wanted to save that particular URL.

Second, Delicious bookmarks are searchable. A search for “rss” will turn up results from my tags, descriptions (notes), and titles. I can also view my bookmarks by tag, and I can chain multiple tags together to narrow my search. So, for example, if I enter the URL: http://del.icio.us/stumax/blog+tech, I get a list of all the tech-related blogs that I've saved on the site.

Third, Delicious bookmarks are easily accessed in multiple ways through any browser or RSS reader. I work on multiple OSes throughout my day, so having access to my bookmarks at any time through the Delicious website is a godsend for me.

RSS is also well implemented throughout the site, so my Delicious list becomes a handy way to communicate. For instance, I'm currently working on a project with a friend in another state, so when I come across an article or website that I think he should read, I bookmark it with Delicious, add a unique tag that we've agreed on, and the new URL will show up in his RSS reader. Likewise, I can tell whenever he's bookmarked something with the same tag. We could just email these links to each other, of course, but once we add more people to the project, email becomes more of a hassle.

So, all this gives me some pretty powerful tools for creating my own private web directory. And when you add in the social aspects of Delicious, you've really got an amazing alternative to a traditional search engine. Because not only can I search and subscribe to my bookmarks, I can search and subscribe to anyone else's bookmarks, either individually or en masse to the whole Delicious community.

So, for example, I might, as I did the other night, start poking around for good travel sites and find a Delicious user with a rich list of travel-related bookmarks. I get the benefit of that person's insight and knowledge. They've culled the web for me and and can point me to a vetted, high-quality list of URLs, thus saving me the effort of wading through a spam-filled Google search for the kind of information I really want.

…..

Stuart Maxwell:

Like all good web services, Delicious is elegantly simple, truly useful, and subtly powerful. It doesn't try to do too much, and it delivers its core service — bookmarking — reliably and well. The Delicious API has made possible dozens of tools for extending the service, adding even greater utility (here's a big list).

Delicious also gives me something of value that I can take with me. I can download my links and leave the service at any time. That kind of freedom is hard to find elsewhere, and it buys a considerable amount of loyalty from me.

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“Great website! It's so easy to navigate…clean, bright & inviting - it seems to reflect the very personality of the restaurant.”

- Anonymous comment on Rendezvous Central Square blog

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Apple is now promoting a podcasting server for educational applications:

Apple Podcasting Server

Publish your learning content to your students’ iPods.

From course content and supplemental materials for students to professional development offerings for educators, educational institutions are automatically adding content to iPods. Using podcasts to produce and distribute this content means students, parents and educators can experience learning everywhere. And the cornerstone of this podcasting system is the Apple Podcasting Server.

Dynamic Environment for Collaboration and Podcasting

The emergence of podcasts and blogs provides schools and departments with powerful new tools for classroom management, collaboration, discussions, portfolios, and content distribution. Recording and distributing podcasts, and writing and publishing in blogs, can create dynamic discussion and information flow that can continue outside of the classroom.

Podcasting and Blogs

From a server’s point of view, a podcast can be simply a file attached to a blog. The server makes the blog and podcast freely available for subscription using the RSS 2.0 protocol. Apple’s Podcasting Server makes publishing a podcast as easy as clicking a button and attaching a file.

Simple to Publish and Access from Macs or PC’s

The Apple Podcasting Server included in Mac OS X Server v10.4 makes it simple to publish and syndicate online content. Predefined blog themes and calendar navigation provide an intuitive interface for managing blogs and podcasts. Individuals using Macs, Windows, and Linux can publish and access blogs using only their web browsers—no additional tools or expertise are needed. Podcasts can be automatically opened in Apple’s iTunes software on a Macintosh or Windows machine. This simplicity of publishing and accessing digital content makes the Apple Podcast Server the perfect collaboration and content distribution tool.

Fits Securely in your Existing Environment

The Apple Podcast Server in Mac OS X Server v10.4 is based on the popular Blojsom open-source weblog server project. With Open Directory authentication and access controls, it fits into any environment.

Easy to Manage

Grant publishing access to individual users or groups on your network—in seconds. With Mac OS X Server, non-technical individuals can share information and syndicate text content and podcasts on the web using HTML, RSS, RSS2, RDF and ATOM protocols. The Podcast Server supports both user and group blogs, and calendar-based navigation.

Built-in, not bolted on.

The Apple Podcasting Server is an integrated service of Mac OS X Server v10.4, Apple’s Unix-based server operating system. Mac OS X Server is included with every Apple Xserve G5, and is also available for purchase separately. Click here to view your educational pricing options.

There are two documents attached to this page worth reading: Podcast Backbone Guide and Podcast Creation Guide.

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Our business has had an evolving set of mission statements over the years, but now we've landed on one that I think is going to stick. It is:

“Teaching people how to learn”

It is so simple and straightforward and resonant. And it fits with the work we have been doing.

In the past our work was really about bringing expert knowledge and ideas from places like Harvard and MIT to the “broadest number of people.” Through that work, we developed a well-honed understanding of how to be really good learners and how to use new technologies to be smart, productive and competitive. This is so important for individuals, but also for organizations and enterprises. In order to flourish in today's world, we need to re-learn how to learn.

When I give talks, I often say that I am not smarter than anybody else, but because I am a very good learner and because I have learned how to learn with the newest technologies, I often know things a bit earlier than others. That makes me appear smarter. In this world where knowledge is a commodity and the flow of new information is much bigger than any one person could possibly manage, being a good learner has become a critical skill. When we talk about Learning 2.0, what we are really talking about is how to be the best learner you can possibly be. And the best learners are  often the best collaborators. Being really good at learning is often about tapping into the collective wisdom of the right group of peers. And being a good peer is about informing the group with your own intangible, personal intelligence.

The focus of our work next year will be on bringing these ideas to our clients and peer networks. We will be working on building our own learning network so that we can incorporate as many people as possible into sharing this mission. There are many ways that you can join us: we have a couple of positions open for work here at the Otter Group. We are also building a network of experts who are using podcasting to share what they know. We currently have three podcasts going on negotiation, innovation, and learning 2.0. We are going to add three more in the New Year on personal productivity, “being green,” and “weenie nets.” We're open to including your expertise in our network, so if you have something to say, please let us know.

We are also launching a Learning 2.0 boot camp, where we will introduce your organization to the ideas and methods of Learning 2.0. In the boot camp you will have a chance to take what we are developing and apply it to how you work and learn. And we will be continuing our own Learning 2.0 podcast series to help disseminate these ideas as broadly as possible.

We will be forming an advisory board, as well as a Learning 2.0 network, where we regularly convene (virtually to start) to deepen our connections and shared learning. If you would like to be part of either of these groups, please write to me.

I'm very excited about what's coming. And I'm very proud of our employees and associates. This is a shared journey and we hope that you will find a way of joining us.

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“The course was a great experience.  In addition to learning about conflict resolution skills, what I found most useful was learning about my own conflict style and how to modify it for different situations.”

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“As a project manager at CDM for 20 years, CDM has us take many courses, some of which are very useful and some of which have no use.

“Reframing Conflict” was an excellent class; I've been involved in hundreds of conflicts over the years, but this is the first time I've actually sat down and thought about how I was handling myself, and whether or not I was looking out for the best interests of CDM (as opposed to myself).

Keep up the good work-it was 9 hours well spent.”

Thanks,

Thomas M. Casey
Senior Project Manager

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Blogbridge is cross-platform, free, and open source. Because it is
java-based, it works on both Windows and Macs.

You can download versions of Blogbridge from this
page.

Learning 2.0 feeds



After you download, you have a few options for getting the
list of feeds we recommend for staying on top of Learning 2.0.

During the Blogbridge setup, you'll have the option of selecting the
“Learning 2.0″ collection from the starter list.

If you do not load our feeds during set up, you'll be able to add them
when you add a new guide.

You give the guide a title and then select the Learning 2.0
feeds from the collection.

And you can add individual feeds to your own collections when you
select feeds from collections.

If you have any questions about how to add Learning 2.0 feeds to
blogbridge, please feel free to email us at help@ottergroup.com.

And give us your feedback about Blogbridge.

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I devoured this new book on Internet search and the history of Google by John Battelle. I think this is a very important book as it lays out what has now become a basic mode of living with the web. Search is the driver of the commercial internet. It is the main means by which we navigate, recover, and discover information. Search underlies aggregation, which I believe is the most important new means of learning for knowledge workers. Search is at the heart of social networking.

Battelle's book tells the very interesting story of how Google came to be Google. Battelle looks at Yahoo and examines how Yahoo's approach to search differs from Googles (primarily in the involvement of human editors). Yahoo has a search shortcut that tries to steer searchers to the most salient results. The last chapter, “Perfect Search,” is worth the price of the book if only for Battelle's peak into the future. Search will be everywhere. Search will be local and personal. Search will be the new interface for navigating the digital universe. Search is key to the “semantic web,” which is the web tagged with metadata. Search and blogs are intimately connected because of the linking properties of blogs:

“Together with the ecosystems of links, both inbound and outbound, which grow around a specific site, the blog becomes a very nuanced (and eminently indexable) statement of individual's social standing, relationships, interests, and history.” (page 267.)

Blogs can become a “proxy for thousands and thousands of professional taxonomists.”

Battelle predicts that search will become “federated and domain specific.” He references GlobSpec, an engineering specific search engine, as the best example of search. It is used by a million engineers to find and spec parts. GlobalSpec's editors identified “100,000 very specific sites they believed contained information related to the domain of engineering.”

I see very focused search coming in the near future through a combination of blog networks, aggregation “reading lists” and learning directors acting as human editors for searchable sets of information. These sets may be very narrow (only relevant to a particular group for a short period of time). At the same time they may be very valuable to this group.

Read this book.

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When I give talks on Learning 2.0, at the start of the talk I ask people how many of them are using aggregators. Typically about 10 percent of the hands in the audience go up. By the end of the talk, I ask people how many are planning to get and use an aggregator. Now all hands go up. I am convinced (and seemingly convincing) that aggregators are the most important new tool that knowledge workers need in their tool box.

People ask me two questions: what aggregator should I get and how do I start populating it with channels that will be useful for me?

Now I've got the right answer to both questions. I am strongly recommending Blogbridge, a java-based aggregator that is rich in features and very easy to use. Blogbridge is a desktop-based system that is designed to manage many feeds. It has a user-interface that allows you to easily categorize and share feeds. Here is why I like it:

• Blogbridge is cross-platform, free, and open source. Because it is java-based, it works on both Windows and Macs.
• It is designed by Pito Salas who was the founder and CTO at eRoom. Pito really understands collaborative learning, so we feel that he has built Blogbridge to work very well in that capacity.
• Blogbridge has some very nice features including:

Guides: The Blogbridge user interface is organized around “guides” or collections of feeds. When you download Blogbridge, you are offered a set of guides that you can then personalize and customize. In the screenshot below, you can see that I have constructed a set of Otter blogs. These are feeds from all of the blogs the company maintains. Building this set of guides was easily done by pasting the urls for these blogs into the “subscribe to feed” dialog box.

Feed Discovery: this is one of the best features of Blogbridge. Built into the aggregator is a very nice “starter” collection of feeds that you can check and have added to your personal blogbridge.

But here's where things really start to get interesting with Blogbridge. In the current “developer's version” (download here: Look for the link at the bottom of this post for download), you can start to build and share your own reading lists. So if you would like to add our recommended collection of feeds on the topic of Learning 2.0 you click on the “Add Guide” link and give the Reading List a title, “Otter Learning 2.0.”

Then you click on Reading Lists and the “+” button at the lower left of the next screen. All you need to do is paste the following url into the dialog box to add our collection to your aggregator: http://www.ottergroup.com/Otter%20OPML

Voila. You now have a collection of feeds that will stay up to date as we add new feeds to our list. As this feature is still in “developer mode,” it is a bit complicated to manage. But the next stable version of Blogbridge will make it simpler and easier to both create reading lists from Blogbridge and to add reading lists to Blogbridge. At the Otter Group we feel this is a “must-have” feature for making aggregators critical learning tools. So far Blogbridge does it best.

More features, we like:

SmartFeeds: Smart Feeds are feeds that you create using search terms and tags. I've built a couple of smart feeds that grab new information from Google blog search on terms like “Learning 2.0″ and “Enterprise RSS.” To further streamline my reading, I've added additional smart feeds that search for those terms within all of the channels/feeds inside the aggregator. This gives me a very quick way to scan topics that are of the greatest importance to me at the moment.

Synchronization across computers: you can synchronize your feeds accounts to and from any computer. This means that your feeds can be easily accessed even when you are not at your own computer.

Tagging integration with del.icio.us: you can tag articles inside your aggregator with Blogbridge and synch these tags with del.icio.us. We've just started to use del.icio.us and have not yet integrated into our learning programs. But it is nice to know that we can do this through Blogbridge.

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We started blogging on ottergroup.com a year ago and since then our monthly page views have grown from zero to more than 85,000 per month from more than 65,000 distinct visitors.*

One reason for the growth has to be podcasting. In April we started podcasting the Negotiation Tip of the Week and soon after, the number of page requests from podcatching clients started growing.

Browser statistics show the growth of podcasting listeners and also how iTunes so quickly came to dominate the podcatching market.

With three podcasts running we look forward to continued growth. Thanks for listening.

*In September we moved the Negotiation Tip of the Week to its own blog
and in October we started the Innovation Tip of the Week on its own
blog so the chart likely includes some duplication of visitors in the last couple
months.

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