TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPICS: BACK TO SCHOOL / TECH FIX / TWITTER

In today's TOURBUS, I've got Top Ten lists for Students, Teachers and Homeschoolers. You'll also find my advice for getting your tech fix - my favorite technology news sites. And finally, do you tweet? Get up to speed with Twitter and micro-blogging. Read on!

Back to School - Top Ten Lists

It’s back-to-school time again... parents breathe a sigh of relief and students groan under the load of spiffy new backpacks. Of course you want to help your child succeed in school, so here are some sites that will inspire K-12 kids to learn, help them with homework, and provide a little fun when the work is done.

http://askbobrankin.com/top_10_sites_for_students.html

Tteachers, we've got something for you as well. My top ten sites for teachers will help you with lesson plans, classroom activities, ideas to stimulate your students, and resources to make learning fun.

http://askbobrankin.com/top_ten_sites_for_teachers.html

And for those who are home schooling, or considering home education, we've got you covered. My top ten sites for homeschoolers has links to help you get started, and info on legal issues, books, supplies, curriculums, activities and support groups.

http://askbobrankin.com/top_ten_sites_for_homeschoolers.html

Tank Up on Technology

With the ever quickening pace of new technology and online trends, it can be an overwhelming task to stay current. Did you hear about the sunglasses with a built-in video recorder? How about that service that converts your incoming voicemails to text and forwards them to your email? What's the latest in the Blu-Ray versus HD saga? And how can you get automatic deliveries of toilet paper and dog food?

As you might imagine, there are quite a few websites devoted to technology, gadgets, and the future of computing. But I've found that by focusing on a select handful, I'm able to stay up to date and keep an eye on future trends. Here's my list of the top seven technology news sites... read on, get your tech fix, and let me know if you have a site to add to the list!

http://askbobrankin.com/get_your_tech_fix.html

What is Twitter?

Here's a question I got a few days ago: > "What's the deal with Twitter? Some of my friends are telling me
> how great it is, but when I checked out the site, it seems like
> just a stream of random personal comments from people who don't
> even know each other. Am I missing some part of Twitter that
> makes it useful or fun?"
Twitter is a new form of social networking that is sometimes referred to as micro-blogging. Twitter users can make short posts ("tweets") via the web, email, mobile phone text messages, or instant messaging. These comments are posted to a Twitter web page, and also broadcast to all of the poster's friends.

Some people see it as just another source of white noise adding to their information overload. Others find it addictive. And of course there are people using it for illicit purposes. Click the link below to learn more about Twitter, TwitterVision, and other players in the micro-blogging scene.

http://askbobrankin.com/what_is_twitter.html

That's all for now, see you next time! -- Bob Rankin