Wikis, Blogs, and Nings

Am I just super ignorant, or do other people wonder what the difference is? I'm learning more as I go through this program, so I'm starting to grasp it better... I think. It might help if all three names didn't sound like E.T.'s buddies. From what I gather, a blog is somewhat like an online journal, where you post your thoughts on stuff. At least that's what I'm doing with mine. Wikis, then, are basically online documents that a bunch of different people can add stuff to and change. Are Google docs considered wikis? SO, what are nings? Nings seem to be the same things as wikis, but that couldn't be possible. They wouldn't create two totally different names to refer to the same thing, right? Or is the universe just torturing me?

I think wikis are my favorite, because of the collaboration factor. They have proven very useful for the group projects I'm currently participating in, and are much more convenient than emailing attachments back and forth. Sure, they have bizarre quirks and gliches (I had to re-make the same flowchart 3 times last night because the stupid thing couldn't figure out how to insert it -- or could that have been me?) but they have so many uses in both the education and corporate worlds that they are definitely worth a try. Erin brought up some awesome corporate uses for wikis in her blog this week - http://techtechgoose.blogspot.com/. I love the idea of using a wiki for a company handbook. Everyone could add to it and share their ideas and advice. I wish the places I have worked would have adopted something like that.

I found a really awesome blog from McDaniel College that talked about the use of wikis in higher ed. I couldn't figure out who the author was, but it was at http://www2.mcdaniel.edu/InTech/blog/. The blog mentioned using wikis for research. I hadn't even thought about that one, but it's a great idea. I know for group projects, it would make finding and sharing sources so much easier. For me, the research phase is usually the most frustrating. It would be nice to have each group member find so many sources, and list some information about each one. This would probably be good for high school students, too (though I have very limited knowledge of what teenagers like - they scare me senseless). I know they are using wikis for the Flat Classroom Project, and I think it's a perfect use for them. On a side note, I just figured out how to make words link to a certain website (Flat Classroom Project). I'm smart! My education dollars weren't wasted! Woo hoo!!!!!

Oh yeah, this was insight blogging.