Pocket-

When logging on to pocket, users will be presented with their recent saves, if they have any. When you scroll down the page, a few subheading appear. These include 'Recommended Reads' and 'Pocket Hits' are presented. In terms of managing information, Pocket has a number of useful features to facilitate it.

These features can be seen when you click the tab in the top left corner, which causes a list to appear. The second heading on the list is called 'saves'. This is where users can easily access any articles of interest that they would like to read at some stage. Another feature, which successfully manages information is the section on 'lists'. These allow for users to arrange their saved articles under specific heading, which allows users to become more organised.

Pinterest-

When you log onto Pinterest, a vast array of aesthetic pictures are presented in the home section. All users will have different pictures, depending on what topics they decided to choose. As I selected health and fitness and food, my home page represents that well.

Once a user clicks on an image and decides to 'save' it, the image saves into the users profile. Once there is enough images saved up, there is a feature which allows users to organise all their images into 'Boards'. These boards are like folders, and can have customised headings, which offers users a more systematic approach to managing their information.

Firstly, I wish to discuss the social media tool ‘Social Bookmarking’, and how I was able to engage with this tool using both Pinterest and Pocket. Prior to this e-portfolio, I was unfamiliar with this concept. Having conducted extensive research on social bookmarking, I found an abundance of information which had helped my understanding of this tool. I found that the website Livewire gave a coherent explanation of social bookmarking. They describe social bookmarking as ‘a way for users to search, manage, organise, and store useful web content’, which they can revisit and share with others. (Facebook et al., n.d.)

For me, the most significant aspect of using social bookmarking resulted from when I was able to easily obtain any of my saved posts in one folder, or in the case of Pocket ‘a list’. With regards to Pinterest, these folders helped me immensely with organising my large number of pins saved into specific groups. As I revisited Pinterest, I was able to gain all my content in an organised, coherent way.

From using both Pinterest and Pocket, I have sufficiently improved my knowledge of the concept of social bookmarking. From exploring both platforms, I believe I improved significantly as a digital citizen, especially with the concepts of curating, managing and sharing information. This newly gained knowledge will be valuable for future online engagement with not just these two platforms, but for new ones yet to emerge.

The next social media tool I got to explore was using a map mashup. Having previous experience using map mashup tools, with the online platform ARCGIS, I not only felt more confident completing this aspect of the e-portfolio, but was also interested in further developing my map mashup skills. Before I began creating my map, I wished to research more information about the concept of map mash-ups. I now know that the term was first used to describe the blending of musical tracks, but now refers to websites that interconnect data from multiple sources into a new Web service. (Batty M, 2010)

 There was a choice between using Datawrapper and Googlemaps. I decided to use Datawrapper, as I had never heard of this platform, and was intrigued to avail of it. As I began to investigate Datawrapper, I came across a useful definition. It is defined as a ‘powerful data visualization tool that allows users to create and share interactive charts and maps’. (Datawrapper - No-Code/ Low-Code Tool, n.d.).

During my experience creating a map embedded with data, I found the most enjoyable part to be adding colour to differentiate geographical areas, according to the inputted data. By adding colour, it not only creates an aesthetically pleasing map, but also allows for my map to be easily analysed. Having the combination of previous experience and new knowledge, I feel that I can efficiently operate a map mashup, which will not only help to facilitate future assignments, and even future work endeavours.

Finally, the last element of this e-portfolio involved creating, editing, and publishing a video using the online applications Screencasting and Youtube.

When I had initially read what I had to do for this component of the assignment, I felt sceptical. Having no prior experience of using either platform, I questioned myself as to whether I would be able to successfully edit and publish a video.

From my experience, I felt the most difficult part of the whole assignment was learning how to use Screencasting. A Screencast is a digital video recording of your computer screen, which often includes audio narration. It is an innovative and engaging way to create and share information. (The Ultimate Guide: What Is Screencasting and Why Use It? | TechSmith, 2019). When using ScreenPal, a Screencasting platform, I spend a long time testing out its features. Once I figured out how to begin recording, it took numerous outtakes in order to obtain the finished video. This video was then uploaded to Youtube, in which it had to undergo editing.

As editing is a process I have never learned before, I felt the need to research this topic to make myself feel more at ease. (Shrum & Scott, 2017) write a clear and concise piece about editing. They state that editing involves slicing video clips and audio files, and rearranging them in an orderly manner. The article further delves into the principles of editing, along with conceptual points to follow. Such points that I found helped my editing process included ‘be ruthless in assessing the clips’, and cut any clips that have no relevance to the video. Unlike the creating of the video, I felt I was quicker at grasping the techniques of editing my video.

Having completed this component, I have a greater understanding of the vast amount of work that goes into creating a short video. This experience has highlighted that I need to further develop my skills in regards to editing and the publication of videos, in order to become a more engaged member of the digital world.

Looking back at my experience completing this e-portfolio, I feel as though I have significantly developed my skills in various aspects of social media. All these tools combined have positively improved my online engagement as a digital citizen. I feel these skills will be essential as I continue my journey as a digital citizen.

Reference List

Batty, M., Crooks, A., Hudson-Smith, A., Milton, R., Anand, S., Jackson, M., & Morley, J. (2010). Data mash-ups and the future of mapping. JISC, Bristol.

Datawrapper - No-code/ Low-code Tool. (n.d.). https://www.lowcode.agency/nocodetools/datawrapper#:~:text=Datawrapper%20is%20a%20powerful%20data

Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn. (n.d.). Social Bookmarking? Here’s Why It’s so Useful. Lifewire. https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-social-bookmarking-3486501

Isman, A., & Canan Gungoren, O. (2014). Digital Citizenship. Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology - TOJET, 13(1), 73–77. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1018088

Shrum, W. M., & Scott, G. S. (2017). Video Ethnography in Practice: Planning, Shooting, and Editing for Social Analysis. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781506359700

The Ultimate Guide: What is Screencasting and Why Use it? | TechSmith. (2019, January 10). Welcome to the TechSmith Blog. https://www.techsmith.com/blog/what-is-screencasting/

https://youtu.be/P_j9magpVmI