project management software
I've set up a number of blogs over the past few years; went from knowing nearly nothing about blogging to being the one in the group who always volunteers to set up the blog. I set up a travel blog for our group when we went to Mongolia and I recently set up a blog for purposes of reflection and project tracking for the service learning project I'm doing with a friend, and though the former didn't really get used much, and the latter may only be used by me, I really like doing it. Put a little too much time into it, perhaps.
I find the internet pretty fascinating, maybe that's why I like to do it. Or one reason. I mean, I'm not as into it as some people I know, like computer programmers, or engineers, or gamers, or...lots of other people. But I think it can be incredibly useful. I love when I make new functionality discoveries. Like, labels on Gmail? They're awesome. So much better than folders. Someone's always coming up with a new idea, a better way to do things. Web based project management? Absolutely. What a great way to share what we're doing with our advisor, the community center we're working with, other students who might potentially head up the same program next year if it's successful this year...
Of course, I like it better when things are free. I would rather mess around with a probably less functional, less flexible blog than pay for a domain name, or buy project management software, or get a paid account with some blog site even. You can do a lot for free on the internet and boy, is that sweet. I guess I pay for internet now that I live off campus but it's still really freaking sweet how much I can do.
There are also the perks of being a student. I get lots of stuff for free that way. We can get software through the labs (no fancy web design or image manipulation or project management software, but decent Microsoft Office packs and Mac OS X and Windows XP and all that stuff), and the labs themselves are equipped with things like DreamWeaver and Photoshop. And print quota. I know it all comes out of my activity fee, but it seems free. Money is mostly imaginary.