Reflection

This semester’s assignment of Blogging was definitely a new experience for me. I have never before created a blog, let alone try to maintain one for an extended period of time. Personally, I tend not to even spend much time reading other people’s blogs as I find it difficult to find credible sources. It’s mainly developed from someone else’s opinion on a certain subject matter. To me, it makes more sense just to gather the information myself and form my own opinion. Even if I am reading many blogs that comment on a particular product that I am contemplating purchasing, and I want to learn about what other people feel about the product, I still take that information with a grain of salt.
Since this was my first time creating a blog, and I haven’t spent much time reading blogs in the past, I could probably improve the way I delivered my content. Simply by looking at other people’s blogs within the class, I notice that there is almost a certain script or blueprint that people seem to follow. I approached as if I just wanted to speak to anyone that was accessing my blog. My attempt was to make it very informal and make a few points, almost as if the reader was standing next to me and I wanted to tell him/her something.
I definitely could have maintained the blog a bit better as well. I do not think that I am a big fan of blogging, but I probably could have created some more interactivity within my blog so that the end users would have a richer experience while accessing my page. Outside of updating information more often, I probably should have added more links, videos, pictures, etc. that would entice people to return and spend more time on my page. My very basic format did not do much to enhance my readers’ experience.
Blogs could be a good learning tool for students if they do not have access to an on-line classroom type module similar to Blackboard. It will allow the students to share and discuss certain topics in an asynchronous environment while teaching the students how to get involved in discussions, as well as facilitate one. If the class does have access to Blackboard, or something similar, the discussions within that module are much more elaborate and beneficial in my opinion.
All in all it was a good learning experience for me. Having never taken part in this type of activity before, allows me to formulate my own opinion based on experience, rather than perception of what I may see/hear. Any time that you have an opportunity to try something new, whether it turns out positive or negative, it is beneficial simply from the learning experience.

DartFish TV

DartFish allows you to publish up to 600 hours of your video and grant different levels of access to certain users within your community. The videos can be classified as public, semi-public, private, free access, pay-per-view, downloadable, and even some that allow users to upload content to add.
Here is a link that explains more of the features this new tool within DartFish offers.
http://www.dartfish.com/en/videonetworksolutions/dartfishnet.htm

Dartfish Team Pro

Here are some of the many video features that this software has to offer. http://www.dartfish.com/en/media-gallery/videos/index.htm
These features really help you to breakdown the film in various ways that will assist the user in pinpointing the area that needs correction. The StroMotion, the SimulCam, and the Drawing allows you to study the technique of a performance and compare it to a similar performance. The analysis and the split screen, allow the user to see the peformance from many different angles, so that he/she can develop a better perception of everything that is occuring during the play.
These tools help our coaching staff greatly in focusing our players' attention on some small, yet important details.

Video Software Solutions

I have began researching and testing a new video analysis software with our Men's Soccer program. The program that I am trying to learn more about is called Darfish http://www.dartfish.com. This product seems to offer a wide range of features that will assist myself and the rest of the coaching staff to analyze our previous performances as well as those of our upcoming opponents.
As I learn more about this product and become more comfortable in using some of the features, I will elaborate more on how it is beneficial to educating my athletes. If anyone out there is familiar with this program, please feel free to comment or give suggestions. I am very interested in implementing this new technology into my coaching toolbox. Hopefully it will enhance the players' learning experience.

Free $oftware?

The term "free software" can refer to either the price of a software or the fact the the software is developed in open source and allows users to freely access it's data source and develop within their applications. Joomla! is a free, award-winning, content management system written in PHP which is allows users to easily publish their content on the world wide web and intranets. It is created as an open-source project where individuals and teams contribute their skills to its development as well as its supporting systems.
Joomla! was picked as the software's name as the phonetic spelling of the Swahili word "Jumla" which means "all together" or as a whole." A software with this type of name speaks to its sense of community and open collaboration. The key to Joomla! is the fact that it is a very easy application to use, while still offering many features and allowing for robust developments.

Open Source Offers Options

Have you ever been using an application that is installed on your computer and become unbelievably frustrated with it? Open source technology allows users to find an alternative application. Many of these are free and, if you do a little research, you can easily find one that fits your needs and won't cost you a thing but a little bit of your time.
Here is a link to a blog that introduces many open source applications that can be used in place of the typical Microsoft or Apple software.
http://www.complex.com/blogs/2008/10/02/open-source-alternatives-to-popular-software/

Open vs Closed

Here is a short and easy read about the difference between Open and Closed source technology. It gives a few basic characteristics of both and then discusses what purpose each one serves. http://www.extropia.com/aboutus/opensourcetech.html
To me, it seems as if open source is more of a community of programers learning from one another and attempting to develop quality software.