RKCS Learning Solutions

There is always something new, isn’t there? There is always a new toy, new app, something new to learn. The intent is that if you use all of these apps, you will be uber-productive, be ahead of the curve, on the cutting edge of tech and be raking in tons of dough. OK, so I may have been slightly tongue-in-cheek. But, two of the latest bits of tech that some have been buzzing about (awful pun) are the iPad and Google Buzz.

Now, Google Buzz, if you have not checked your gmail account recently, is a stripped down version of the GoogleWave that many have been patiently awaiting. This looks to be a competitor to Twitter. However, so far, although I’m sure that one can use anything productively if they try, I just have not gotten the Buzz as yet. The drawback for some is that you have to have a gmail account and the people you “buzz” and follow must also have a gmail account. Now, how is that different from Twitter, you say? On a basic level, it’s not…really. The winning assets for me currently are usability and availability. Many more folks are on Twitter it seems and it has become a social networking bear. Although, you can do the same things with Buzz, at the end of the day, on a business level, it becomes about reach. Right now, Twitter has the REACH that Buzz does not. Of course, humans are fickle and that could change at any minute.

Advantage for Buzz? It’s easier to use as a collaboration tool since its already built into your email. You can create groups and make conversations somewhat private (well, except the people at Google who are monitoring them, but that’s another conspiracy story). Virtual projects might find this an easy way to connect the members of the team. With the disposability of the gmail addresses, it might be easy to simply use this for a project and then get rid of it. For some level of confidentiality, I might see that as a plus, especially for business that already use Google Apps to run their email.

Now the iPad….ahhh the glorious iPad. My joke with my friends is that if you put a magnifying glass to the iPod Touch, you would essentially have the same device. As with every other device, there is a way to use this productively if you really wanted to. Now, the disclaimer here is that the thoughts about the iPad come strictly from reading specs and other reviews on the device. (Apple has not been so kind as to forward me a review device. I will keep working at that though.) I have some thoughts about the device that are not so great. However, I will share my positive thoughts. Upon learning about the device, I immediately saw it as a device that could be used brilliantly in a classroom setting. The integrated Wifi makes it easy to set up a network atmosphere that an innovative teacher could utilize for different purposes. Classwork, research, assessments, individualized questions (for the shy students) could essentially be pushed back and forth between the devices. Of course, that leaves room for other shenanigans by student, but that depends on how a teacher would manage that classroom atmosphere (again, a discussion for another day). I suppose, the same could be said of tablet pc’s as well and some of these things are already being done in a variety of ways.

So, (because I always end posts with a question or two) what is one way that you personally use Google Buzz? If you received an iPad today, how would you use it?