Into the 'Atmosphir'

Atmosphir.

Have I mentioned how much I love this amazing video game design platform?

I've been in on the beta testing of Atmosphir for a couple of months now, and I'm constantly amazed by the power of this application.

Atmosphir is available on all platforms (Mac, PC, & Linux).

Do yourself a favour and head over to the Atmosphir website to get yourself invited into the beta testing :-) Not only will you be able to quickly and easily design and play your own levels, but you can also play and edit the levels that have been designed by all other Atmosphir users...

While you're at their website, you'll also find many awesome walkthroughs that demonstrate many of the features found within this video game design platform, like the one below :-)

Alone in the Twitterverse?

The Twitterverse.

Just how quickly is this global community growing, and how many other communities has it replaced for you?

Twitter has become a mainstay within my online profile. I gain knowledge through the Twitterverse every day, and I try to give back to my 'tweeps as often as possible.

My Twitter network is NOT vast. I'm currently following the tweets of about 100 people on Twitter, mostly edubloggers and educators, and there are currently about 65 people following my tweets. As far as I'm concerned, the size of my network doesn't matter - followers come and followers go - it's the quality of my network that matters most.

For that reason, I find it necessary to undergo periodic grooming of my Twitter network - the odd 'twitticure', so to speak. In fact, it's almost time for another twitticure, to trim away some of the unwanted / unneeded parts of my Twitter network.

Twitter has become a very valuable tool for me, and I am constantly touting its' benefits to other educators who aren't already converted. But one thing that I've found is that it can be tough for those who aren't that 'connected' to begin forming their own Twitter network.

Thankfully, many blog posts and wikis are beginning to identify lists of people to follow on Twitter. These are great resources to develop for newbies and veterans alike, and I hope that many of these lists continue to grow and flourish.

What would you share with someone who's looking for a sure-fire way to grow their network?

What advice could you share to help a newbie get started with Twitter?

in 140 characters or less ;-)