Random Internet Diet

[Brian Cleary]

Sites that I use daily or almost daily.

I use a tablet for some things. I like the size and feel of a tablet when I'm reading the news.

I am not a classroom teacher. So I don't have a plethora of educational content to share. Many of the sites below could be used in teaching if the content objectives seeking to be achieved matched. I will share some of the places that I navigate to on a daily or regular basis.

NEWS

I have used news congregate programs in the past, Google Reader. Now I much prefer the app Flipboard. The interface is elegant and easy to navigate. You can customize the feeds into your own custom magazine that can be read or shared.

Try it out. The best way to start is to download the app from your tablets preferred app downloading site.

WEATHER

National Weather Service

REAL ESTATE

I found Redfin when I was recycling a house with my brother in San Diego. We have a business that purchases old homes in need of love and care. When it came time to sell the house I discovered Redfin. The program does a good job of sorting through all the public data relating to houses and presents it in a easy format to understand.

SPORTS

If you are a baseball fan then the best app you can purchase is the MLB Gameday Audio. For 20$ US you can listen via the internet, every baseball game played during the season. The best part is that you get the radio feed from the hometown. So if you have memories of growing up listening to baseball on the radio -- You are in luck.

RADIO

Pandora and Spotify are always playing on my computer. For less than 10 cents US a day you can listen to commerical free radio. Any genre is available. This is where I learn about many new artists.

SOCIAL CONNECTIONS

Facebook

Interesting enough, the school district that I have been working in "blocks" Facebook. I have had my philosophical discussions with the superintendent. He told me that it was a personnel issue not a student concern. 

I have three main uses of FB.

1. General voyeuring area.

2. Family group-My daughter started a group titled, "Descendants of Dick and Louise Cleary", my mother and father. There are close to 50 of us on that site. It is really cool.

3. Frontier Brothers-My brother Patrick and I use FB to stay in touch with folks that are interested in our house recycling business. Friend us!

Linkedin

I am starting to see the value of Linked In. It is a way to stay connected professionally. Mostly I keep up with my buddies from the Peace Corps here.

So there you have it. My consumption of online content varies. I tire of sitting in front of an electronic device and will walk away for various amounts of time. I can take it or leave it. I have been part of the internet since  it was first shown to me via modem dial up at Kodiak College in 1989. I love the many myriad of activities available. It is hard to imagine teaching without the resources available.