Thing 29... Google Tools

Having been a google tool user for many years and each year I take on one or more Google aps. I am kind of a Google junkie. I don't jump into these sorts of programs lightly or willingly. It has taken a long time and I am now about to admit that I have drunk the Google Koolaid.

So, this is a bit of a numbing "Thing" to accomplish.

However, I did jump to GoogleHealth. I have been noting a series of stories about keeping track of your own medical records above and beyond your health care providor.

Note the articles:

Health Care Blog

NY Times

ABC News

etc. etc.

So GoogleHealth seemed like a logical place to look. It is totally therough and I did put in some cursery information.

I have to admit, the site was super detailed. It loged everything from symptoms, then you could date and time the symptoms, medications (again with date, time and pharmacy) it even lists side effects and what the meds are for.

You an upload images of EKG's, CATscans etc. Very impressive.

Then I got to thinking about this info is on another server? The big consperacy part of my brain became super active. Here is my debate:

1. I'll guarantee you that the Google server is 1000x more dificult to get into and get info off of the machine than mine at home.

2. Do I trust all the people at Google that have access to their servers?

Then I started to freak about the great conspiracy of Government involvemnt, or Synciates selling and/or using your health info in insidious ways every time you log in.

Then I calmed down and now I'm pretty sure that its a good idea... but I haven't swallowed the Koolaid on this one as hard as I thought.

Thing 28 custom home pages.

This seems strange to be on "More things". This, I would have thought, would have been on the original.

Although there are a lot of customizable homepages I (as are over 200 million others) are using iGoogle.

In fact, how did I get to this glorious blog of mine? A direct link though iGoogle.

You can set up your home page to do what ever you want and link to your most popular Blogs, web pages and even add widgets to help make your day go smoother.

Here is an example of my iGoogle page: (click to enlarge)

Note that on the left hand side I have two tabs. One for "Home" that has my daily tools and the other tab is for "Blogs" all of which I have RSS feed set up.

On my Home page I have my twitter widget, my Google Calendar that has multiple sub calendars (Claude, Claude and Sara [both Sara and I have full access] my game calendar my school calendar that syncs with my school outlook and Sara's calendar (that I can see but not change)

I also have a second category of Calendars for school, for checking out computer labs etc.

You will also note a task bar, weather, news and of course an IM chat window so you and your friends and colleagues can stay in touch.

I love custom home pages, but this is not very new. Perhaps the use of different widgets, but he concept has been around for 8 plus years.

Thing 27. Twitter, I have been twitterfied @heldring

If I were to post about Twitter a year ago, I would rant and rant about the stupidity of this medium. It had a ton of use for a few specific situations and/or people, but the common person? Come on.... What a stupid program. A waste. (see Thing 20 and Thing 21 )

However, in March Julie Magie (a teacher a Valley View) sent me an email wondering what my Twitter page was. I figured if Julie was Twittering than I need a page.

Well now its 5 months later 214 updates later, 37 followers later and being followed by 57 others.

Twitter can totally destroy your time, but because I have been very diligent about who I follow, I have been getting great info about cooking, teaching and technology. Finding out who other people follow is a great way to follow quality tweets.

Often tweets are basic updates to peoples lives. Public posts for the world to hear. Sort of like hearing a person talking on their cell phone when they are standing next to you... but if you also followed the person they are talking to on twitter it would be like a three way call.

I have recieved more quality links to news, technology and teaching pages than I ever thought possable. They key is to remember that Twitter is not a contest as to how many people can I get to follow or how many can I follow but choose wisly and you will not be disapointed.

Remember, if you follow someone and they turn out to be a dud (give them about 40 or so tweets) then "unfollow".

If you start Tweeting, and you want to know how to get more followers and to be more successful using twitter. Here is the ultimate guidbook for twitter: http://mashable.com/guidebook/twitter/

(ps, you can also follow mashable on twitter)

So, start tweeting and follow me @heldring

Thing 26... Ning is dingy

If I remember properly(and successfully reminded from reading Thing 26 instructions) . We played with Ning in the first 23 things on a stick and quite frankly I hate Ning. How is Ning different than any other Social network? The difference being:

1. You can't access it from our school (ding)

2. It has a terrible user interface (ding)

3. It is meant to be exclusive to people with shared ideas... hello, that's why social networking started inthe first place (ding)

4. How many social networks do you need to be a part of? I use Twitter, Linked in, instant message etc. Add in the facebook users/Myspace users ect. and what is the purpose of Ning? One more time suck.

I disliked Ning so much I Unregistered myself from Ning

so, no Ning for me. (ding)

Thing 25 tool kits....

The widgets are really getting me down. They used to work so well and now its like trying to push a washing machine through a mail slot to get the widget to stay and not error on you.

Additionally, I was playing with Google tools and there is an option that when you write in Google Docs that what you write will automatically update your Blog on Blogger. So I started playing with that. It worked great, if I wanted to update the wrong blog. I have multiple blogs on Blogger and even though I tell Docs to update "Sigmunds 23 Things" it doesn't :(

However, it does work well for my default blog and thus I can't complain too much. Makes things much easier that way.

I was able to imbed the google calendar into on of my other blogs.

Before I get off my rant... my one of my other pet peeves with Blogger is that that when you go to insert a vid or pic it always defaults to the top of the blog and not contained within the blog. So you have to manually drag the image to where you want it.

My immage to the left is case and point.

Anyway. My frustration has led me to playing with a website called. http://www.moonfruit.com/

got a heads up from Kathy Schrock on Twitter. So far I like it a lot, but I need to redo the page. I was waffling between a professional page or a personal page and the page looks just goofy. But soon, soon I will have a personal web page up. :)