Listen to a lively conversation about how to use Shelfari-- or how to get a similar site built -- to create a social networking site for students to share their book logs, reviews, and recommendations with each other.

Susan Ettenheim and Paul Allison (and Lee Baber in the chat room) welcomed:

• Amanda, the Community Manager at Shelfari
• Bill Fitzgerald, our open-source friend and web developer from Funny Monkey
• Wesley Fryer, who blogs and podcasts at Moving at the Speed of Creativity

Earlier this summer, Susan Ettenheim began to work with the folks at Shelfari to see about using their social reading site in her school. Wesley Fryer noticed her interest and detailed a quest he has to find or build a social networking site for young readers. He wrote that he
wants "Netflix functionality... the site should offer the following
features:

1. The website should be free for anyone to register for and use,
   but minors should be required to obtain parental consent to comply with
   COPPA and other relevant laws as described above.
2. The site should permit users to RATE books they've read, from one to five stars, just like NetFlix.
3. The
   site should let users write book reviews and recommendations that can
   be public and/or sent directly to friends, just like NetFlix.
4. The
   site should let users maintain lists of friends, and view what those
   friends report they are currently reading, as well as their friends'
   recommendations for books to read.
5. The site should use AI technologies
   (or whatever you call the technologies that can do this sort of thing)
   to dynamically generate book recommendations for an individual based on
   the books s/he has already rated in the system.

A Quest for NetFlix Plus Functionality for Books - for Young Readers!

Bill Fitgerald responded with "A Blueprint for a Site for Young Readers":

Here's how I'd go about building that site using Drupal.

The main functional requirements:

These requirements are pulled and paraphrased from Wes' post; any that I have added are italicized.

• COPPA compliant -- no personal data collected from minors without the prior consent of an adult;
• Readers can rate books they have read;
• Readers can create lists of friends; these "friendships" can be one way, or reciprocal;
• Readers can write reviews on books; these reviews can be shared publicly, or privately between friends;
• The site should recommend books to readers based on their likes and dislikes of other books;
• Readers should be able to see what their friends are reading, and any reviews/recommendations of their friends;
• Readers should be able to keep a reading log on the site; this reading log should have the ability to be public or private;
• Readers should be able to form public and private groups/communities.

There are other features that will need attention, of course; for
example, a site like this will require a detail-rich user profile page,
and pages for recent recommendations, featured books, featured readers,
etc.

That's where our conversation began!

Chat Log (Read more below)

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jefflebow: got all the 5.x drupals on server#2 updated to 5.10 (while streaming) Hope we get a break for a while before 5.11

jefflebow: @chrislehmann - I believe this will limit blocks to only a specific group page - http://tinyurl.com/24yohc

jefflebow: Streaming Anastasia Goodstein again - Tweens, social newtorking, and virtual worlds - Info Island in SL, http://edtechtalk.com/studio online

jefflebow: Ustreamed at http://edtechtalk.com/studio , In Word on Info Island

jefflebow: in 30 mins in SL, going to be streaming Anastasia Goodstein @ypulsestasia from 2008 Technology Summit: Digital Youth Wired for Action

Teacher interview.

Even if it's not perfect, it's the best I can do... At least, for now...

EdTechTalk Community Development
 August 11, 2008

Chat Log Below

Next Session: Monday, August 18 8pmEST (midnight GMT)

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jefflebow: Just listened to Minhaaj's first Interncast at Webcast Academy - now getting set for ETT Planning Session - http://edtechtalk.com/live

Maria Knee and Lisa Parisi conversed with Ben Hazzard, Lisa Thumann and Ginger Lewman about the use of interactive white boards in the classroom. They discussed the benefits of using IBW's in the classroom, using the without the environment be too teacher centered, the advantages of one brand over an other and best practice in using IBW's.

Chat Log

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EdTechWeekly #89

August 10, 2008

This Week's Del.icio.us Links

Chat Log Below

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Well, we just finished another trimester... It went really fast but we achieved a lot: We got a bunch of new friends at the International Collaboration Ning Social Network. We got a Facebook GroupWe had lots of fun... Soon, I will be posting all we did... lots of pictures, videos and excellent work.Now... the feedback... This is the link to our survey... Click Here to take survey Please, take the survey and keep in touch... I will see you next trimester...

jefflebow: Gearing up for Webcast Academy Session 3.1.4b - Ustream, ooVoo, Yugma, & who knows what else - http://webcastacademy.net/live

At the beginning of the summer, I set a personal and professional goal that I would learn how to be a webcaster like the experts on the ‘Women of WoW; or ‘Teachers Teaching Teachers’ shows. I enrolled in the webcast academy led by the wonderful leaders Jeff Lebow and Doug Symington. Initially, I had some difficulty with the first assignments but I eventually was successful after following the directions at the website. The second assignment was not so easy. The second assignment was to record

At the beginning of the summer, I set a personal and professional goal that I would learn how to be a webcaster like the experts on the ‘Women of WoW; or ‘Teachers Teaching Teachers’ shows. I enrolled in the webcast academy led by the wonderful leaders Jeff Lebow and Doug Symington. Initially, I had some difficulty with the first assignments but I eventually was successful after following the directions at the website. The second assignment was not so easy. The second assignment was to recor

Mamma Mia

Lee Baber reflected all the things that make the Edtechtalk community a fantastic place to live and learn. She was fearless, forgiving and giving. She would spend hours trying to help people get to the places they wanted to go, go far beyond what could be expected of any friend or teacher, and do it all with a smile. She was our friend... and we'll miss her. Please share memories or thoughts of Lee on VoiceThread or by commenting below.

Lee's Webcast Academy Introduction
Discussing her life path on TTT#58

Remembering Lee Webcast
August 1, 2008
Lee on the ETT Family Reunion Show 
September 23, 2007
Lee's Obituary Donate
A few parts of  Lee's vast online legacy  
About Lee  * Youthbridges * Musicbridge * Book of Audio *  P21 Island

Comments Below

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This is my first two-way skype call recording with Sheila. I am really thankful to her for this. Hope you'd like it.