The following tools help bring users together to collaborate and share ideas and information.

Del.icio.us
A social bookmarking site. Create a free account and begin to post your own, recommended bookmarks. Add "tags" to them so they can be searched by other del.ico.us users. OR get creative...consider creating a del.icio.us account for one of your classes and have students share links with each other. If you have your students create individual blogs for your classes, consider creating a del.ico.us account for your students to post their blog urls. This approach transforms a del.ico.us account into a "blog gallery" and saves you time because the students make the posts themselves!

Ning
Well, if you've been waiting for a way to create your own social networking group about anything...Ning is the place for you. You could create a social networking group specifically for Biology majors at Sierra College or a group just for your own students. Each member of a group gets his/her own webpage that includes a blog and the capability to link to other web pages and upload videos, images, etc. And, yes, it's free.

Second Life is a 3-D virtual world entirely created by its Residents. Since opening to the public in 2003, it has grown explosively and today is inhabited by millions of Residents from around the globe. Second Life has numerous apllications to education. Log on, create an avatar and explore!

Wetpaint
Use Wetpaint to create your very own wiki for free! The site is very clearly organized and has a seamless interface. A wiki is a collaborate space for individuals with unique interests to share ideas and discuss topics...in fact, you are on a wiki right now that was made using Wetpaint! Wetpaint provides ad-free wikis when they are used for educational purposes.


Yugma is a web collaboration tool that allows you to share ideas and conduct virtual meetings. It differs from other web collaboration tools in that it allows fluid (nonstructured, non-prearranged, spontaneous) collaboration. Yugma is a Sanscrit word that describes thought sharing. (Afterall, we are in California - so let's share!)