I met with one of my Digital History classes today. We spent some time talking about how the Internet and computers have changed the field of history. I relied heavily on Cohen and Rosenzweig’s on-line text Digital History: A Guide to Gathering, Preserving, and Presenting the Past on the Web, in particular its introduction, for help in guiding today’s discussion. The discussion went well, even though the students seemed a bit shell-shocked at times and surprised at things I said. For example, they seemed bemused when I mentioned that universities are using YouTube as a way to distribute educational videos. Several universities, such as USC and Berkeley, have set up YouTube channels for their videos. Some of these educational videos have attracted more than 100,000 viewers. I asked the class if they would want to watch a YouTube video of one of my lectures and the reaction was well….less than flattering. This discussion did encourage me to get back to work on the PKAP website and work on the video clip section. I am hoping to have a big (at least it seems big to me) about the site in about a week.
RSM
Ancient History Ramblings 