BP5_Discovering Web 2.0 Tools

Netvibes
I have mentioned Netvibes before in this blog but I thought it was absolutely worth going over in some more detail. The easiest way to describe Netvibes is to compare it to iGoogle. This web 2.0 tool allows you to gather blogs, sites, notes, calendars, and so much more. You can customize and organize all of your information into private and public pages. 

Private page with tabs at the top that I have used to organize all of my internet resources. From here I can check email, organize my day, check the weather, read tons of blogs, check Twitter and Facebook, and much much more.

Public page that I choose to share with anyone. You can turn any of your private tabs into public pages with a click of the mouse. I have put a sticky note on this page to welcome and explain what each tab has to offer my visitors. 

This is the reader view in Netvibes. For those of us that have used Google Reader or any of a number of RSS readers, it will look very familiar. All of the blogs you subscribe to are listed in date order. The tabs are now on the left side instead of across the top. 


Netvibes could not be easier to setup and customize. There are extensions and tools for most browsers so you can add blogs, websites, and gadgets with a click. One of the main reasons I have stuck with Netvibes over the years is because of it's layout and interface is much more professional looking and feeling than most other portal sites I have used. It has also kept up with the many advances with web 2.0 tools. The large green button at the top of the site, "add content", allows you to browse through content and tools that you can add to any of your tabs. As a teacher and trainer, I really enjoy the ease of sharing information and gathering resources for my students and teachers into such an elegant interface. Simple, powerful, and collaborative is what Netvibes means to me.


Some helpful Netvibes resources:
1. Netvibes Academy videos - helpful tutorials
2. Setup your account - great overview video on setting up your page
3. Netvibes Courses - become a master of your pages