Social bookmarking
Social bookmarking seems to be an increasingly important phenomenon on the Web. I have read some information about it and know that it holds the potential to allow users to create "folksonomies," which are distinguished from the kinds of taxonomies that are typically created by experts, and not by ordinary folks.
I have visited a major social bookmarking site: http://del.icio.us/
But I haven't been able to really understand how this site works or how it would benefit me. If anyone involved with the New Research Summit has information about this, and time to share it, I'd appreciate it.
Lisa Ede
OSU
posted by Lisa Ede @ 9:33 AM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Social bookmarking and this site in particular allow you to get a consensus perspective on what web sites people think are useful. Every time a user "saves/bookmarks" a site on del.ico.us, that user's vote is added to the counter of that site's popularity (most often you end up "saving" sites that are already on del.ico.us to add your vote to a site you find useful).
There is also a section of recently bookmarked items on del.ico.us . However, since these sometimes have not had time to be evaluated by a consensus, and could have been saved by anyone, their worth is yet to be conclusive in terms of del.ico.us's criteria.
The most useful section is organized by how many people found a site worth saving (popular). Then you have a consensus input to consider. Non-members and members alike can benefit from this.
These bookmarks can be searched by their "tags," roughly their headings, e.g. reference, photography, jobs. The size of the font a tag is printed in inside of a "tag cloud" reflects its breadth.
It is this collaboratively generated naming process of these tags and what they come to connote that is called "folksonomy."
I am not a heavy social bookmarking user but the format strikes me as possessing democratizing and subversive possibilities that I would like to interrogate.
Hi Kim,
Thanks very much for this explanation. It is very clear. I especially appreciate your explaining the relationship between tags and social bookmarking.
I think I'll try to get on the site again and see if I can find a tag cloud.
Thanks!
Lisa
PS I apologize for misspelling your name, Kom. I guess I should have had some tea before posting!
Lisa
No problem re: my name!
Best,
Kom
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