FOC08 : Online As Convenience

[ image : FOC08 ]

Paradoxical you must admit but who ever questioned whether a living conversation had occured between two persons on either phone………outwardly facing vehicles like many an educational organisation and it’s parralelled policy particulars.

Responsible for it’s own reference. Facilitating a need for a wall…..to climb over.

I have to hand it to Leigh Blackall who’s efforts to network an open and OER FOC course are very cool….in as much as I’m interested in what I can contribute rather than what transpires. That’s a certain.

It’s the only time in my living memory that I’ve been listed in the ‘A’ section of a list of bloggers;

1. Alexander Hayes http://www.alexanderhayes.com/
2. Amy Lenzo http://allislight.typepad.com/facilitating_online_commu/
3. Bernadette Harris http://www.harrisbromly.com.au/
4. Brian Shimelonis http://bcsfoc.blogspot.com
5. Bronwyn Collins http://brononline.blogspot.com/
6. Bronwyn Stuckey http://bronst.wordpress.com/
7. Bruna Ori http://curlygrl.blogspot.com/
8. Cathy Deckers http://cdeck77.wordpress.com/
9. Concetta http://edusnacks.edublogs.org/
10. Craig Hansen http://nzsetrust.org.nz/?q=blog
11. Cristina Costa http://knowmansland.com/learningpath
12. Daryl Cook http://darylcook.com/category/personal/foc08/
13. Deb Thompson http://mediateachspace.blogspot.com/
14. Derek Chirnside http://lits.gen.nz/
15. Diane Holmes http://dianez.wordpress.com
16. Dreig http://www.dreig.eu/caparazon/eng
17. Elaine Dittert http://elainedittert.blogspot.com
18. Gabriela Sellart http://foc08.tumblr.com/
19. Greg Barcelon http://servant02.wordpress.com/
20. Greg Szczotka http://onlinecommunites.wordpress.com/
21. Illya Arnet-Clark http://illyasoet.wordpress.com/
22. Jan Hunter http://janfoc08.blogspot.com/
23. Jeffrey Keefer http://silenceandvoice.com/
24. Jennifer Verschoor http://www.jenverschoor.wordpress.com/
25. Joao Alves http://joaocarlosalves.eu
26. Joy Zhao http://joyzw.blogspot.com
27. Kay Lewis http://906703fockaylewis.blogspot.com/
28. Kirsten Marais TBA 6-8-08
29. Leigh Blackall http://facilitatingonlinecommunities.blogspot.com/
30. Lynn MacEachern http://www.facilitate2yes.com/
31. Malik Richardson http://mrarrah.teacherlingo.com/default.aspx
32. Maria Pophristova http://mimonche.blogspot.com/
33. Marie Casas http://sxyshandy.vox.com/
34. Mary Loftus http://livnlern.blogspot.com/
35. Mike Bogle http://techticker.net/category/foc08/
36. Mike Taylor http://foc08.wordpress.com/
37. Minhaaj ur Rehman http://minhaaj.blogspot.com/
38. Naketa Ferguson http://blog.core-ed.net/naketa/
39. Nellie Deutsch http://nelliemuller.blogspot.com/
40. Octavio Lima http://education.ning.com/profile/OctavioLima
41. Olubodun Olufemi J http://tutoring-e-online.blogspot.com/
42. Peter Efland http://phefland.wordpress.com/
43. Robyn Honeman http://rhoneman.blogspot.com
44. Russell Thorp http://russtreflect.wordpress.com
45. Sarah Stewart http://sarah-stewart.blogspot.com/
46. Sean McKee http://www.seanpmckee.net/blog
47. Shane Roberts http://shane-tech-teach.blogspot.com/
48. Stian Håklev http://reganmian.net/blog
49. Sue Wolffe http://suewolff.com/Perspectance/
50. Sylvia Currie http://blog.webbedfeat.com/
51. Tim Davies http://www.timdavies.org.uk/
52. Tom Murray http://www.tommurray.us
53. Valerie Taylor http://valerie.posterous.com/
54. Vida Thompson http://VidaFOC.blogspot.com
55. Vishal Roopun http://www.v-roopun.blogspot.com/
56. Wayne http://www.waynethinks.com
57. Nancy Riffer http://www.nowpracticingcommunity.blogspot.com
58. Olaug (Ollie) Gardener http://olliegardener.blogspot.com/

Has the hive mind entered a new memory, where the collective distributes before the individual has had a chance to say a thing or is it possible that ICT’s now offer a new opportunity for spiritual enlightment to those individuals who contribute to it’s ethereal architecture ?

Back to business. ‘A’ is for …hole right ?

I dipped into the Google group last night and added my bit on Facebook however there is just a huge wealth of knowledge being dissected here and the Facebook thing is just a distraction.

2 minutes today saw me lost in the world of Joao’s Netvibes compilation….there’s a lot to be said about RSS readers that openly aggregate as opposed to Google reader that internalises ( ok it has an out section too with difficulty )

Leigh rightly posed in the Google group;

I think your challenge has something in it that could be used for this 2
week question however - what is an online community? Perhaps you could write
or point us to writing that explores the notion of commercial entities,
marketing initiatives and surveillance organisations taking advantage of a
sense online community for reasons other than the shared purpose and
understanding of those actually IN the community. I’m talking specifically
about Facebook and their data collection methods and terms of service, not
to mention darker conspiracy claims beyond that… I think the concerns that
FB raised in critics last year can be extended to a consideration of online
communities generally, and the platforms and technologies we use to
facilitate them.

Well, I could go on forever on what Facebook and like-minded companies do with private album-of-the-day information ……but, hmmm, maybe what’s at stake here is something richer which I’d rather spend time talking to, around, with.

The nature of networked and online communities in themselves are no more or less the individuals value in contributing information , engaging in the luxury of indulgently re-defining that which has been a steady composition over the development of time or as some would attest regression of human behaviour.

Somewhere I’ve read that a very small percentage of the internet is formed by those that create and contribute content and the proportion of those who use the internet to foster and support networked communities that require facilitation is miniscule in comparison to the greater proportion of those who simply seek, navigate and consume contribution only or partially. Does that matter ?

For me facilitating online communities might be re-defined as;

• a bridge into establishing connections with individuals
• an effort fraught with change and contentment in varying degrees
• governed only by the ability of others to contribute
• value laden or value driven ( rarely both )
• ostensibly NOT technology oriented rather mediated ( filtered is a closer portal descriptor)
• generationally permeated with re-orienting helplessness into positive possibility
• circumstantial ( more epitaphs are written online than off )
• largely influenced by populace nomenclature ie. group, networked, guild, Society, committee

But of course , getting back to this weeks topic I have occasionally been asked ..”WHAT”… is online facilitation and tried hard to avoid describing it as ;

a fleeting series of Wikipedia entires governed by superbly clever and rogue 19 year old Russian mods.

Out comes the butchers paper. Circles, arrows, fancy words. So perhaps ICT’s thwart our learned states and challenge the manner in which we have otherwise locked our cloistered cafe’ conversations and colloquims up into.

A convenience.

Maybe an online community is a convenience.