Brian Kelly : Weblog

The Open University’s Portfolio Of Web 2.0 Services

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 06:00:34 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/open-university-portfolio-of

I’ve commented recently on the Open University’s use of Facebook (they have more ‘fans’ than any other university).
And it seems the Open University is proactive in making corporate use of several other Web 2.0 services.
As can be seen from the accompanying screen shot the Open University are making use of iTunes University, YouTube and Twitter
Their [...]

WordPress has Gears (and my Glass is Half Full)

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:00:02 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/07/02/wordpress-has-gears-and-my-g

WordPress have just announced the availability of WordPress Gears:
Gears? It is a browser extension like Flash or QuickTime/Media Player. However Gears works with the browser to enhance web based applications. It can create local database and file storage, and run JavaScript in the background to update them without slowing down the browser.
Gears has been in the [...]

UK Web Focus Blog Shortlisted for Web 2.0 and Business Blogs Award

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 06:16:26 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/07/02/uk-web-focus-blog-shortliste

I’m pleased to report that the UK Web Focus blog has been shorlisted in the Web 2.0 and Business category of the Computer Weekly IT Blog Awards 08 competition.
The full list of the nominated blogs in this category are:

Brian Kelly’s UK Web Focus: Reflections on the Web and Web 2.0
Roo Reynolds - What’s Next?, “UK-based Metaverse Evangelist, [...]

We Can Be Right And Wrong!

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:03:30 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/we-can-be-right-and-wrong/

There has recently been a series of blog posts which have reflected on the differing views on and approaches to use of Web 2.0 within our institutions.
Initially I gave a talk on What If We’re Wrong? in which I described the legitimate concerns that have been raised related to Web 2.0 (privacy concerns, dangers that services may not [...]

The Mashed Museum Event

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 07:13:43 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/30/the-mashed-museum-event/

I recently attended the Mashed Museum event, organised by Mike Ellis (Eduserv) which was held on the day prior to the UK Museums and the Web 2008 conference. Further information on the event is available on the MashedMuseum wiki. Frankie Roberto has already written a blog post on his use of Freebase (for providing structured [...]

Come Into My Twitterverse

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:00:18 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/27/come-into-my-twitterverse/

Some time ago I published a post entitled “Come Into My World” in which I described a Facebook application which could be used to visualise the links between your Facebook contacts. Recently, via a post on the Twitter Apps blog, I discovered a similar application, TweetWheel, which can be used to visualise the relationships between [...]

When W3C Web Pages Break

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 08:33:14 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/26/when-w3c-web-pages-break/

I was looking at a page on the W3C Web site recently to update my knowledge of the SVG specification and SVG tools. I noticed a link at the bottom of the Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) page to an RSS feed for the page, and, as a fan of RSS syndication, thought it might be worth [...]

Government Web Sites MUST Be WCAG AA Compliant!

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 06:00:34 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/25/government-web-sites-must-be

I commented previously on the Public consultation on Delivering Inclusive Websites (TG102) which proposed that “all government websites must meet Level Double-A of the W3C guidelines by December 20082009“. It seems that this proposal has now been implemented. Some may feel that this is to be welcomed, but as I have argued previously, mandating use [...]

What If We’re Right?

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 06:47:41 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/23/what-if-were-right/

Back in April I gave an online presentation to the JISC-Emerge community entitled What If We’re Wrong? in which I described some of the concerns which have been expressed related to use of Web 2.0 servies (e.g. sustainability of the service, privacy issues, etc.) and suggested some approaches for dealing with concerns [...]

RSS Training For Remote Workers (And Remote Users)

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 07:00:22 GMT

http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2008/06/20/rss-training-for-remote-work

We have a number of remote workers at UKOLN, with staff based in the south west, south east and north of England and Scotland. We are making increasing use of networked technologies to support the remote workers - with a workshop session on “Embracing Web 2.0 Technologies to Grease the Wheels of Team Cohesion” [...]