Radio2 Get Connected.
In their own words:
Radio 2′s Get Connected campaign launches on Monday 1 March 2010. The aim of the campaign is to help more of our listeners get online and understand digital technology better. The campaign will run across the network for the entire month, with many shows involved including Weekend Wogan, The Chris Evans Breakfast Show, The Jeremy Vine Show, Steve Wright in the Afternoon, Simon Mayo’s Drivetime, Ken Bruce, Alex Lester, and Aled Jones’ Good Morning Sunday.
URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/events/get-connected/ .
YouTube.
YouTube is a ‘video sharing’ website — a place where anyone can place short videos that they have made themselves, to be watched by anyone else. It started in 2005, and is now huge (more than 6 billion videos viewed in January 2009). The best way to find something that might interest you is to use the site Search engine (at the top of each YouTube page).
URL: http://www.youtube.com/ .
Get Safe Online.
Detailed advice on how to protect your online security and privacy. Sections include
URL: http://www.getsafeonline.org/ .
Volunteering England.
In their own words …
“Volunteering England works to promote volunteering as a powerful force for change, both for those who volunteer and for the wider community. This web site offers a range of resources for anyone who works with or manages volunteers as well as to those who want to volunteer.”
URL: http://volunteering.org.uk/ .
Moving Here – 200 years of Migration to England.
In their own words …
“The vision of Moving Here is to explore, record and illustrate why people came to England over the last 200 years, and what their experiences were and continue to be. Offers free access, for personal and educational use, to online versions of original material related to migration, including photographs, personal papers, government documents, maps and art objects, as well as a collection of sound recordings and video clips.”
URL: http://movinghere.org.uk/ .
ALISON — free online learning.
ALISON (‘Advance Learning Interactive Systems Online’) is a free online learning resource for basic and essential workplace skills. Course categories include …
- Digital Literacy & IT Skills,
- Enterprise & Business Skills,
- Financial & Economic Literacy,
- Health & Safety & Compliance,
- Health Literacy,
- Language Skills,
- Personal Development & Soft Skills.
They all look worthwhile, and ‘Digital Literacy & IT Skills’ is precisely what we do at Hackney Silver Surfers. We have picked out 3 free courses from this category which seem particularly relevant to our learners …
- ‘ALISON Basic Computing (ABC) IT’ is for anyone who needs to learn basic computing skills, or has a need to demonstrate to an international standard that they are fully competent in the use of a personal computer and common computer applications.
- ‘How to use Gmail’ uses the Web-based e-mail service from Google called Gmail or GoogleMail, to introduce you to the basics of e-mail. Gmail is an e-mail service which is accessed directly via the Web, and is not dependent on your using software loaded on your own personal computer (though it can be used in that way too). Our own seniors.org.uk email is a branded version of Gmail.
- ‘Identity Theft’ is particularly relevant to consumers anxious to protect their confidential information. It is also important to professionals in the insurance, banking, education, law enforcement, retail and healthcare fields who have a legal responsibility to protect their clients personal data.
We are trying to encourage more online learning, and this looks like a good one. Online learners generally work independently, either at home or in a drop-in computer centre like Hackney Silver Surfers. Anyone who would like help in moving to a slightly more advanced level – working independently online – should contact us at workshops@lawns.org.uk .
URL: http://alison.com/ .
TimeLine Magazine.
In their own words …
“TimeLine is an exciting lifelong learning project, centred on Hackney — the area of London where we are based. Working together with local communities, ordinary people discover and present a kaleidoscope of information about the history of their own area. By looking up from our own individual concerns, at the people and places around us, TimeLine has itself become a part of the local landscape. It is a way that people of totally different ages, cultures and backgrounds can communicate with each other – through the one thing we have in common: Hackney’s inspirational history and heritage.”
URL: http://timeline.org.uk/ .
Digital Unite Learning Zone.
This is a place on the World-Wide Web for older people who are learning about computers and the Internet. They have tutorial sheets on about 60 topics. You can download these worksheets for free, print them, and work with them anywhere you have access to a computer. There is also a useful Question & Answer section. Signing up is easy — you just need an email address.
If you are not sure how to sign up or download the worksheets, please ask a helper at The Lawns how do it. By the way, The Lawns is a very good place to do these short beginner courses — you will always be with people who can help you.
URL: http://learning.digitalunite.com/ .
Transport for London Journey Planner.
Work out how to get from one place to another by public transport. You state where you are going to start from, where you want to go to, when you will travel, and how you want to do it. The journey planner tells you the most likely quickest route by bus, train, tram or river — with a few alternatives, and maps for starting and end points. It works surprisingly well.
URL: http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk/ .
Postcodes Project.
In their own words …
‘The Museum of London holds a wide range of objects from across the city. To highlight some of their fascinating local stories we have selected a single object for each London postcode area. You can add to the richness of the site by submitting your own local stories.’
URL: http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/postcodes/ .
Hackney Archives Images Database.
An online database of historic images (photos and engravings), categorised by subject and location in Hackney. A lot more interesting than it seems at first sight. Make sure you always check ‘Show Thumbnail Previews’.
URL: http://www.hackney.gov.uk/c-archives-images.htm .
Cute Overload.
In their own words:
We offer an overwhelming amount of cuteness to fill your daily visual allowance.
URL: http://cuteoverload.com/ .
