Tagging 101Northern Voice InternetBootCampVancouver, BC • February 22, 2008

About Me

Gene Smith

Edmonton, AB

← My book... available now!

(But I’ll give one away!)

Book site: http://genesmith.ca

• Simple and quick way to add metadata [*] to stuff you’re interested in, like photos, videos, blog posts and bookmarks.

* keywords that help you search and find things again.

What is tagging?

Maybe a demo will help...

• Let’s look at Delicious

• Social bookmarks manager

• One of the first tagging applications

• http://delicious.com

• Just about every web application that deals with information management

• Gmail, Flickr, YouTube

• WordPress, MovableType, Blogger

• Operating Systems (Vista, Mac, OLPC)

Who Uses Tagging?

• Ease of Use

• Personal Information Management

• Collaboration and Sharing

• Fun

• Self Expression

Why We Tag

nptech, a tag community

• “nptech”

• Created by a group of blogger exploring linksharing through Del.icio.us

• “I think that the development of this tag is arguably the single largest reason for the current (thriving I think) state of what is commonly called the “nptech community.” - Chris Blow

Social Tagging

• Social Hum

• Object-centered sociality

• Lowered barriers to participation

Photo: http://flickr.com/photos/nicholasjon/105650196/

1 2

Reading web content

Creating ' broadcast' content (messageboards)

Article submission

Community

Current steps to participation

Article submission

Community

Reading web content, 'sending to a friend'

Votes/polls and tagging

Short commenting (eBay reviews; Friends Reunited)

Creating ' broadcast' content (messageboards)

Possible steps to participation© BBC 2005

• Tag your blog posts, photos, bookmarks

• Use your tags to find people with similar interests & connect with them

• Technorati

• Seed communities with your tags

• “nptech”

• Coordinate tags with others - “nv08”

Getting Started

“When the hype wears down... I think tagging will have altered the information landscape in a fundamental way”

- Jon Udell

Another demo...

Gene Smith

Principal, nForm User Experience

Email: gene.smith@nform.ca

Blog: http://atomiq.org

Twitter: http://twitter.com/gsmith

Slides: http://slideshare.net/gsmith