Get the popcorn out!

Lots of articles in the 'news' about social networking sites, and yes I am bored of hearing about Facebook again. Lets not get carried away by the wave and have knee-jerk reactions - some will, some won't and its not there fault, their not experts on this stuff, - but seriously these are real issues and some of these (yes personal data) I think have always been there but not obvious to all, all the time! So as side-liners with our education swim hats on, lets stand at the shore (notepad and all or surfboard!) watch the wave and the manoeuvres that these 'surfers' and 'shakers' make - take stock, reflect, discuss, outline some guidance and above all be 'real' and clear about where we lead with some of this stuff. As a lecturer (well I lecture at home!) I'm not going to wipe anything from my wipeboard - the bottom line , I want to know what my 'options' are and what works for me and my students. These articles are coming left, right and centre - and we can't turn a blind eye to them, the problem for us is, we would like to advise once things 'settle' and may be a bit clearer - but with the current weather conditions we are in with these social networking sites, the tide is constantly changing and won't really settle at this stage. We may just have to get used to it as we are at a time where its peaking in popularity since their launch and now 'they' are worming out all sorts of issues...so, find your seats and munch!