ThOU shalt blog

Martin Weller & Tony Hirst

Overview

• Why blog?• Steps to blogging• What tools?

First a health warning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12yD8JyaVvY

Why blog:

There is a whole world out there

You need to establish a base camp

<http://xkcd.com/c256.html>

The economics of reputation

If you ain’t connected, you’re dead

Engagement with your subject area

<http://www.flickr.com/photos/54785872@N00/306718042/ peikko06>

Increased reflection

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pichl/420032874/ bohem2020

Personal status (and cash!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/storm_gal/256182095/ storm_gal

Organisational status

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbjsuEuSZb4

Link to teaching

Practise what we preach

It exposes the process

<http://www.flickr.com/photos/jess2712/348750797/ jess2712>

It provides a useful tool for engaging with other technologies

<http://www.eboy.com>

Time saving

• Direct people to your blog

• Provides means of recording

• Provides easy dissemination point

• Gives you good access to a community

Some new addictions

• Blogging • Checking Technorati• Checking stats• Adding widgets• Promoting• Talking about blogging

Getting the voice right

• Have a central focus• Add value• I don’t care about your cats• Post regularly• It’s for you as much as the

audience

A continuum of OUness

Do we need an OU blog code?• If you already have a personal blog or website which indicates in any way that you work at the OU you should tell your

manager. • If you want to start blogging, and your blog/website will say that you work for the OU you should tell your manager. • If your blog makes it clear that you work for the OU, it should include a simple and visible disclaimer such as “these

are my personal views and not those of the OU”. • Unless there are specific concerns about the nature of your job, you are free to talk about your Open

University work on your blog. Consult your manager if in any doubt. • Don’t reveal confidential information. This might include aspects of OU policy or details of internal OU discussions.

Again, consult your manager if you are unclear about what might be confidential. • It's easy to whinge on a blog, just like it is in email: think twice before doing so. Anything you might

regret putting on a postcard that might randomly get spotted by anyone in the world, including your departmental management and senior staff at the OU, is something you'll certainly regret putting on your blog.

• Blog posts never disappear. Even if you delete them, some 'crawler' or 'cache' software tool probably has them in a repository somewhere for later retrieval.

• You should not use your blogs to attack or abuse colleagues. You should respect the privacy and the feelings of others. Remember that if you break the law on your blog (for example by posting something defamatory), you will be personally responsible.

• Political commentary ought to be a legitimate blogging activity, just as a letter to a newspaper signed with your academic affiliation would be legitimate. In this case, you probably want to think a little more clearly before 'letting loose'.

• If you think something on your blog or website gives rise to concerns about a conflict of interest and in particular concerns about impartiality or confidentiality this must be discussed with your manager.

• If someone offers to pay you for blogging this could constitute a conflict of interest and you must consult your manager.

• Putting ads (like Google AdSense-supplied ads) on an Open University-hosted blog is probably not a great idea, and may even be illegal (it would be a little like Nike ads appearing on the BBC).

• If someone from the media or press contacts you about posts on your blog that relate to the OU you may want to consider talking to your manager before responding - and you should be aware that the press may 'overly simplify' what you have actually said. The Communications Group/Communications Manager for the project must be consulted.

• http://openlearn-wiki.open.ac.uk/index.php/Blog_guidelines"

7 steps to blogoheaven

1. Set up an account

2. Post regularly

3. Register with Technorati

4. Set up a blog reader

5. Subscribe to 20 blogs

6. Comment on a blog

7. Have fun

OU bloggers• Me – http://edtechie.net• Tony Hirst - http://ouseful.info• John Naughton - http://memex.naughtons.org/• Ray Corrigan - http://b2fxxx.blogspot.com/• Marc Eisenstadt http://kmi.open.ac.uk/people/marc/• James Aczel http://h809.blogspot.com/• Doug Clow http://dougclow.wordpress.com• Patrick McAndrew - http://ochre.wordpress.com• Laura Dewis and Stuart Brown - http://conclave.open.ac.uk/openair• Alex Little - http://kmi.open.ac.uk/people/alex• Steve Godwin - http://openlearn.blogspot.com/index.html• Niall Sclater - http://sclater.com/blog/• Juliette White - http://www.jvvw.com/index.php• Graphics blog - http://blogs.open.ac.uk/LTS/csn47/• Guy Carberry http://conclave.open.ac.uk/guycarberry/• Library - http://libraryissues.blogspot.com/index.html• Mikele Pasin - http://kmi.open.ac.uk/people/mikele/blog• Peter Scott - http://sixfields.open.ac.uk/peterblog/index.html• Andrew Brasher - http://conclave.open.ac.uk/brasherblog/

Some discussion pointsShould there be an OU

blogging code of practice?

“If you accept the premise that change, knowledge (and complexity) are accelerating, then it seems almost professionally neglectful not to be establishing a wide and deep network to help deal with it”(Scott Leslie)Should we be

recognising blogs as academic publications?Are blogs here to stay?

What should the OU be doing?