What is social bookmarking?
Social software allows users to share resources. Typically, social allows many to contribute and many to benefit.
A social bookmarking site allows a user to share bookmarks (i.e., favorite online sites). This implies they post their own favorites and view the bookmarks of others.
Why Scuttle?
There are many social bookmarking sites and most are provided through a major provider allowing potential access with many individuals.
Some popular products are:
del.icio.us
FURL
SPURL
Why I use Scuttle?
I can operate Scuttle on my own server allowing me to:
Why you might benefit from this site.
1) External Storage
External storage means your bookmarks do not reside on a specific machine. The resources are stored on a server and can be accessed from anywhere. This is valuable to those who work from many locations (home, office), own several computers, or own no computer and use equipment supplied by others.
External storage also provides a convenient way for multiple users to access the same content.
Note: External bookmarks can be stored so that the resources are open to anyone (public) or access can be limited by the individual storing the bookmarks.
2) Learn From Others
Anyone with an interest in instructional applications of technology is free to explore this site. I have organized the original set of bookmarks around the topics in a book I author with my wife (Integrating Technology for Meaningful Learning) and I will continue to add bookmarks based on these themes. You are welcome to search this site by key words or by the tags attached to existing bookmarks.
Exploring bookmarks is different from searching because you have the opportunity to discover what others think may be useful. On a small scale you discover the structure others use and examples of online resources associated with topics (e.g., tags) within this structure.
How you might contribute through this site.
You can share your knowledge and time with others in several ways.
1) Add new tags to existing an existing bookmark.
2) Add new bookmarks.
3) Evaluate the usefulness of the site accessed by a bookmark.
A core idea (perhaps ideal) in social bookmarking is that there are many relatively easy ways to provide a benefit to others.
I limit access to the opportunity to contribute. This may seem counterintuitive. I do this to reduce (there is no way to eliminate) spam.
Using Scuttle
A bookmark entry consists of multiple components:
1) Site name
2) Site description
3) Tags assigned to the site
4) The checkmark
5) Other stuff - date established, original author
What you do:
1) Click the site name to go to that site
2) Click the arrow to rate how valuable you find the site (must be registered user)
3) Click a tag to view bookmarks sharing the tag
Finding Resources:
A search box allows all text on site to be searched.
Lists of tags (related tags, popular tags) are provided. Selecting a tag from a list presents all bookmarks with that tag.
Contributing to the Resource:
You must register and then login to add a bookmark.
1) Add a bookmark
A new tab is added at the top of of the page. Selecting this tab opens a form allowing a new bookmark to be added.
Enter the address of the bookmark.
Click in the Title box and the title should appear if you are connected to the Internet.
Enter a description.
Add tags - separate tags with commas - try to use existing tags unless you intend to identify a new characteristic of the site.
Select privacy - public for general viewing.
2) Adding tags
When you log in, public bookmarks include a "Copy" link. The copy link adds that bookmark to "My Bookmarks". Allows bookmark to be edited by you (description, tags) - saved privately or publicly.
3) Evaluating a site
Select the checkmark to go to a form for rating site.
The form requires a simple three level response. You will be allowed to rate each site one time.
Cumulative ratings are used to order the presentation of bookmarks.