The following is the second in a semi-irregular series of posts on Internet tools and utilities.  Today's tool will help you both organize and communicate information:  Netvibes.

It's hoped that these tools will make your "screen time" hours more efficient and productive, rather than more numerous.  The posts in this series give info and background on a few common "open" Internet tools.  All these tools have the following in common:

• They are available "free" on the Internet (although an initial sign-up, also free, is usually required)
• They have some utility in the world of the Internet, education, and libraries
• I, personally, use each of these tools regularly

2: Netvibes:  http://www.netvibes.com

• Example of how I use it: http://bit.ly/8h24b
• My first use:  early 2008
• Purposes for which I use it:  Netvibes is free "portalling" software, that is, a utility to bring together resources and web pages and so on, and store and display them all in one spot.  Once you create an account, it has both a "public" and "private" side, so if you want to organize some private pages and resources and bookmarks, you use the "private" side (visible to only you), while the "public" pages can be used to easily share and showcase information with others. Netvibes is so versatile and easy to use, that, for the course linked above, I basically used it in lieu of a course management system!  Most of the student's work was posted there, although I couldn't, of course, post grades.  Also note, that I gave the students perhaps five to ten minutes of instruction on how to do the basics (click on "Add Content," then "Essential Widgets" gets the basics)
• Biggest drawback:  It IS one more thing to remember to check, but, if you have a specific Web communications purpose (such as creating a rudimentary personal e-portolio) you will remember...

Have other thoughts?  Other tools?  Post your comment below.

Previous tool:  Google Docs

Tool for next time:  bit.ly

E-BOOKS at Drake make up a large collection of full-text online-accessible content. They are found by searching our regular online catalog. They are mostly recently published non-fiction research-quality books. Most are navigable through their tables of contents and by page number.  All e-books are accessible off-campus. Ebrary and NetLibrary e-books support highlighting, note-taking, and bookshelf creation through their free accounts.

Ebrary - A large collection (more than 60,000 titles) of e-books.  Click on the “URL” in the book record to view the e-book. A small plug-in for your Internet browser is required; you will be prompted to download the correct plug-in if it is not in place. (Ebrary plug-in: You'll need to install a Windows plugin or the Mac plugin the first time you use it) Once you can display an ebrary e-book, you may read it as long as you like. Ebrary allows printing five pages at a time, with up to 30 pages per log-in.

Netlibrary – Another large collection of e-books. Click on the “URL” in the book record to view the e-book. No changes to your computer are required. After 15 minutes you will be asked to “check out” the e-book. To check it out, you must create a free netLibrary account.  Click on “Create A Free Account” in the upper right corner of the NetLibrary home page or book page to create your account. You must be on the Drake campus to create the account. Once you have an account, you may check out NetLibrary e-books for 3 days at a time, with the option to renew.  NetLibrary does not support printing or downloading of its e-books.
If you are off campus, your Drake ID and PIN will allow you to view NetLibrary and ebrary e-books.

EBL or E-Book Library. To see the book, click the “URL” on the short catalog record. Your Drake ID and PIN will be required whether you are on-campus or off. EBL books may be read online or downloaded for offline reading. Portions of EBL e-books may be printed.

Online Reference Books - Cowles Library has access to three large collections of online encyclopedias and several online Reference Books. The large collections are:
•CREDO Reference (244 titles)
•Gale Virtual Reference Library (100+ titles)
•Oxford Reference Online (100+ titles)

Other Online Reference Books are: Access Science, Access Pharmacy, African-American Studies Center, AMA Manual of Style, Black Studies Center, Britannica Online, Cambridge Histories Online, Consumer Lab, Eighteenth Century Collections Online, Encyclopedia of Associations, Facts & Comparisons, In the First Person, Mental Measurements Yearbook, Original Sources, Oxford Art Online, Oxford Islamic Studies Online, Oxford Music Online, and the United States Serials Set.     

Find the online Reference Books under "online databases" on the Cowles web page.  
               

The following is the fourth in a semi-irregular series of posts on Internet tools and utilities.  Today's tool takes the pain and mystery out of file sharing.  It will help you share information and comments; it has improved over time, and is amazingly versatile:  drop.io

It's hoped that these tools will make your "screen time" hours more efficient and productive, rather than more numerous.   All the tools featured in this series have the following in common:

• They are available "free" on the Internet (although an initial sign-up, also free, is usually required)
• They have some utility in the world of the Internet, education, and libraries
• I, personally, use each of these tools regularly

4: drop.io

• Example of how I use it: http://drop.io/cowlesdemo
• My first use: February 2008

• How and why I use it: If you have a large file and want to share it with a friend, colleague, or even a vendor, you'll want to know how to use drop.io   First, why not just use e-mail? Let me count the ways!  For one, e-mail is notoriously insecure.  Moreover, many email systems block files over a certain size, or of a certain type (files with a ".zip" or ".exe" extension (that is, the last three characters in the file name) are common files that get blocked).  Finally, if you care about the health of the Internet (or your email account!) at all, remember that email is an extremely inefficient way to share files; e-mail attachments, sent from one system to another, create copies all over the place, and then they pile up in your account, using up your quota!

• How:  Setting up a drop.io "drop" is very easy.  Once you go to the drop.io homepage, you simply choose a name for your "drop," select one or more files, and create it!  Then, you choose an "admin" password (so you'll be able to change options, such as the layout of files, or when the "drop" expires) and supply an email address.  That's it!  Is your total file size bigger than 100 MB?  No problem!  Create a second, third, or more additional "drops"!
• This "upfront" simplicity masks a lot of features, however!  Once you've shared the "drop" with whomever you wish, they may add their own files, add comments, re-arrange the files, etc.  (You control how much they can do, when you are logged in as "admin"; look for the "settings" link which is a little hard to find on the upper right-hand of the page)  Most file types (such as .pdf or .jpg or even video such as .avi) allow the user to "preview" the content; that is, they can see what the file consists of BEFORE they download it.  "Settings" mode has all kinds of different stuff, including how many times the drop has been accessed.  Drop.io is so potentially versatile, I have used it as a de facto course management system; way whippier than BlackBoard!

• Drawbacks:  The limitation of 100 MB for the "free" version is a potential issue, I suppose, but how often do you share individual files over 100 MB?  (Sure, you could get there pretty quick with video files, but that's what vimeo and YouTube are for!)  Another caveat:  Although you are getting a certain amount of privacy by using drop.io, it is NOT an excuse for copyright violation, so don't use it to share pirated mp3s!
• Also (and this may seem like an odd thing to complain about) for a simple tool, it really has a LOT of different options; when you're in "Admin" mode, as a result, you may overlook the "basic" stuff (such as how to change a password, or the name of the "drop") because of all these different options (is setting up a different flower-colored background REALLY that important for file sharing?) drop.io has recently added all kinds of "collaboration" tools, such as "chat" and so on (a la Google Docs) but that's not why I use it.  This is picking nits, I know, but it's a common issue:  A tool is "good enough" for a specific service, but then "creeping featurism" comes in, and after a while, you forget why it was useful in the first place! 

Previous tool:  bit.ly

Tool for next time:  picnik

The benefits of the social utility Facebook as a means of staying in touch with friends and making new social and professional connections have been widely touted by its users.

Despite these benefits however, Boston University sophomore Brendan Gauthier decided that he would take leave of Facebook, a process he details in this article in the Boston University campus publication BU Today.

We are interested in your reactions to his decision and whether you would consider taking similar action?