Every year, the inimitable Jane Hart collects what people say are their top 10 tools for learning. The results are always intriguing, for instance, last year AI really jumped up the list. You can vote using this form, or email your list to her via the address on that page. I’ve participated every year I’ve known about it, and do so again. Here’s my list. Realize this is for ‘learning’, not formal education per se. It’s whatever makes sense for you.
Writing
I write, a lot. It’s one way of my making sense of things. So…Microsoft Word remains my goto tool. Less and less so, of course. I’ve been using Google Docs to collaborate with others quite a bit, and am currently using Apple’s Pages for that purpose. Still, I think of Word as my ‘goto’ tool, at least for now. I don’t like Microsoft, and am trying to wean myself away, but I really really need industrial strength outlining, and no one else has measured up.
Apple’s Notes needs a mention. I use it, a lot. Several things are pinned to the top (including my SoMe canned responses, and shopping lists). I also share recipes with family members (on Apple devices), take notes on books and the like, keep a list of ‘to consume’ (books, movies). I also use Notability for biz notes, but it’s not as ubiquitous, and I may just shift everything to notes as there’ve been an increasing number of ‘offers’ to upgrade. Yuck.
And, of course, WordPress for this blog. Here’s where I share preliminary thoughts that end up appearing in articles, presentations, or books. It’s a way to share thinking and get feedback.
Diagramming
I’m still using OmniGraffle. I tried using Google’s Draw, and Apple’s Freeform, but… OmniGraffle’s positives are its user interface. It works the way I want to think about it. Sure, it’s probably changed my thinking to adapt to it too, but from the get go I found using it to be sweet. In fact, as I’ve recounted, I immediately redid some diagrams in it that I’d created in other ways previously just because it was so elegant. The downsides are not only that it’s Mac-only (I work with many other folks), but that it’s not collaborative. Diagramming is one of the ways I make sense of things.
Presentation
Apple’s Keynote remains my preferred presentation tool. I continue to use it to draft presentations. It defaults to my ‘Quinnovation’ theme, tho’ for reasons (working with others, handouts w/o color, builds, etc) I will use a plain white theme. I even have built a deck of diagram builds, so I can paste them into presos but have them to hand rather than having to remake them each time. It’s another way to share.
Connection
Apple Mail, for email, is an absolute necessity. I have to stay in touch with folks, and mail’s critical to coordinate and share.
I use Safari all the time as my browser, tho’ occasionally I have to have Chrome-compatibility, at which time I use Brave; Chrome-compatible but without Google’s intrusiveness. Takes me to Wikipedia, a regular trusted source for looking things up.
Zoom remains my ‘goto’ virtual meeting tool (all my meetings are virtual these days!). I of course use Microsoft’s Teams (but only through the browser now, was able to turf the app), and Google Meet, but only as others request. Of course, connecting with others is critical to learning.
Wow, I’m running out of time and space. Let’s see: Slack is a coordination tool I use a lot with the LDA, and Elevator 9. It’s also a way to share thinking, so it’s a learning tool too.
There’s more, so I guess I’ll use my last slot and aggregate my Social Media tools. That includes LInkedIn, Bluesky, and Mastodon. All three get notification of blog posts, but other than that each has its separate uses. LinkedIn is for biz connections, and reading what others are posting. Bluesky is mostly what Twitter used to be (before it became Xitter), fun, quantity. Mastodon’s more restrained in growth, but the underlying platform is really resistant to political/business corruption.
That’s all I can think of. I welcome hearing your thoughts and seeing the results.
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