Thing # 13: Tagging and Delicious

This one took me a while. I will use delicious again, after all that work I have invested in learning to use it. It is a great tool for research assistance because it is like a database, but full of information other people have found to be useful, special or noteworthy. I think this is the best kind of information- that which has been judged already by others. I am a fan of Consumer Report. This is like a Consumer Report for any type of information one can think of. I love it! Of course, one has to look at the source of the information. Perry Castaneda has information on there that has been tagged by a ton of people. This, for me, says something. I think it is a great research tool that I will use again very often. Not only can one search oneself, one can choose a word and click on it for information sources, and one can have other people's tags to look at, too- people one knows and trusts. Then, there's strangers' tagged lists, which are good, too.

This is truly an easy way to create bookmarks that can be accessed from anywhere. I could be in a class at UHCL and remember I tagged something I wanted to mention in class. I get on the laptop, go to delicious, and sign in. Then, I go to my bookmarks and click on the source of information. I raise my hand and share it with the class. What a win-win situation for me and the class!

Librarians and teachers can take advantage of social bookmarking sites like this by having a list for their class every year. They can give their class their username. Ask them to find you on delicious and add you to the people you share your bookmarks with. All year long, the students can access particular sources of information that you want them to make use of in current projects in your class. The bookmarks list can change on a regular basis as your class progresses during the year. The librarian can do an inservice on how to set up a delicious account with all the teachers at her school. They can each incorporate the use of delicious into each of their individual classes. And the librarian can keep a delicious account for sharing with the teachers- things she thinks they might use with their students. The librarian can categorize them based on grade and subject to make it easier on the teachers.

If you all want to access my delicious bookmarks, simply add me to the people you share with. Go to the "people" tab at the top in grey. Add me when the box comes up. Type my username, which is "signorina". You will immediately go to my bookmarks. There are about 7 of them. If this does not work to share, I'll have to come back to this later.

I searched delicious with key words and with "popular tags". Each of these gave me subtags on the right to choose from also. At the end of each title on the left is a "Save" that can be clicked on to save to one's bookmarks. Whenever you sign in, the bookmarked list can be easily accessed from any computer. Amazing! It is such a great concept. It's like taking a library of knowledge with you anywhere you can access a computer.