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Robbert Adrianus Veen

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Robbert about Robbert

It's about me. It took me a couple of years just to contemplate the idea to talk about myself on the Internet. I didn't even dare to fill in the bio-box on the right side of the Squidoo lens.
For some reason I found myself to be too 'naked', exposed, too visible.

But after working with and on the Internet for more than a decade, the medium feels different to me. So why not take up the advice of Squidoo and build a lens about...me?!

So, am I going to tell you all about 'me'?

Well, not quite. I will tell you all about what I am DOING on the internet.
Maybe there is someone who does the same or can relate to at least some of the things I'm interested in.

Let me tell you what I am not:
I am not an internet expert.
I am not a Squidoo expert.
I'm certainly not an e-marketeer.

I am someone who loves the Web and marvels at the opportunities for communication that it gives.
(I'm still in awe since the first time I realized that I was talking to a guy in Australia about some author we both cherished.)

So here we go:

Me, myself and I are proud to introduce you to:

WEBME!

#1 Chatting Away

My Skype: the ultimate chat for meThe very first thing I started doing on the Internet was chatting. Back then - in the eighties - it was a very clever small chat client that made one on one chats possible. I didn't know how to set it up, but the shop that sold me my first PC (XT, remember?) was experimenting with it.

Now of course one uses Skype for almost all communications...

Press the image to the right to get to the page

#2 Gaming

Red Alert Command& Conquer Help PageThe next thing was using the Internet to get some help for some of the games I played om the PC. Warcraft and Red Alert e.g. It was great to visit the forums and discover new strategies and find solutions when you got stuck.

Press the image to the right to get to the page

#3 Buying Books on the Internet

I was (and still am) a voracious reader. When I discovered internet bookshops like Barnews&Noble and Amazon I got hooked. There was much more on Amazon than in the bookshop round the corner. And it was much easier to order through a webstore than through my local store. Maybe I helped destroy the bookshop economy - sorry for that - but I couldn't help it. I buy 90% of my books now on the internet. Easy and - fairly - cheap.

My Recent Purchases on Amazon

So here you can see what I like to read...

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#4 Blogs

How the Internet Became A Conversation

One of my more personal blogsThis was the moment I really got hooked. I liked forums and chats, but the best thing was Blogs. At first I only read other people's blogs. I preferred blogs that were totally devoted to my topics of interest but I was also nice to browse away and look at everything people were making.
And then I started to make my own... I got fourteen of them now, living happily together.
And of course I use LiveWriter to help me organize them.

Press the image to the right to get to the page

My English Blogs

...some of which are still under construction...

Here is a list of my blogs in English
Hegel Courses Online
This is the site where I do my teaching on Hegel and philosophy.
Biblical Theology
On this blog I was about to write a lot about the Bible and my own type of commentary on it. But this one is difficult to maintain: not enough time in a day I guess. Still this one of the blogs that I really cherish.
(I will try again next week....!)
Mennonite Peace Theology
Originally I was a Mennonite. And I still am very much influenced by the Mennonite pacifism. On this site (a Blogger blog) I try to publish my thoughts on that topic as often as I can.
Pastor and Sermons
I have been a minister for the Mennonite Church in the Netherlands for may years. That's why I decided to publish my thoughts on the ministry and especially the value of sermons.
Spanish Courses Reviews
I am also very mucht interested in learning new languages. So this is the site I made to review Spanish sites and software that can teach you to speak and read Spanish quickly. It's an experiment...
My Personal Blogsite
This is the Wordpress Blog that I use whenever I feel poetical or want to publish a short story or just speak my mind. It's chaotic, disorganized, but it's...me!

#5 Teaching

How the Internet Became My Academy

A Wiziq Class pageI love teaching. I have been a teacher of philosophy for many years, and until recently I also was an associate professor at the Free University of Amsterdam. Not in philosophy but in theology: ethics and dogmatics.
On the internet I found many places where you can go and get an education - mostly for free or for a very low fee indeed.

So I started to teach at www.wiziq.com

Press the image to the right to get to the page

My Own Internet Teaching Facility

Hegel Courses Online ScreenshotThen I learned how to setup my own website and use a wordpress.org site to help me communicate with others. The most interesting one for me is still my HegelCourses.com site. Here I talk about Hegel and philosophy, and there is a special membersite connected to it, that I use to teach Hegelian Philosophy and Metaphysics.

Press the image to the right to get to the page

#6 Podcasting

How To Get Your Voice on the Internet

Podcasts on HegelPodcasts was the next thing I discovered. This year actually, however it was around for quite a while. You need a good microphone, and a good recording program - I use Camtazia now, but before that I used MyPodcastRecorder, a free program from www.podcasts.com - and a hosting site. But most of all, you need to have something to say and people who are willing to listen.

Press the image to the right to get to the page

#7 YouTube

The ultimate communication...

My YouTube ChannelAnd finally, I began to make video's as a part of my teaching. That is when I discovered I could use my own YouTube channel to display 10 minute video's and use that as a basis for my video's on the teaching sites.

I also discovered how easy it is to host a video on your own website by using Camtazia - but that was costly!

Press the image to the right to get to the page

Let Me Hear From You

Is Your Experience on the Web different From My Own?

I am curious: is this little journey of mine on the web very different from your own? I mean for me it was:

chat -
games -
books -
blogs -

and then becoming active and

writing blogs,
teaching,
podcasting
and finally making my own video's.

How did it work for you?

  • Senora_M Jan 12, 2011 @ 3:51 pm | delete
    Cool lens. Interesting that your name has 2 b's!
  • RinchenChodron Nov 6, 2010 @ 6:14 pm | delete
    I started out by teaching myself html and then creating a site on Tibetan Buddhism. Recently I have joined Facebook and YouTube and of course, Squidoo which I love!
  • Robbert_Veen Dec 8, 2010 @ 5:41 pm | delete
    I stand in awe. You taught yourself html? I tried learning a programming language like Visual basic -long time ago - and Pascal on my own, but it didn't work, I found the modular setup of sites like Yola.com easier. And Squidoo of course. You can focus on the content.
  • mukunda22 Oct 15, 2010 @ 10:19 am | delete
    The Internet University you refer to here is very interesting! I may set up my own school.
  • Robbert_Veen Dec 8, 2010 @ 5:41 pm | delete
    Let me know when you do. Love to take a look at it! Thanks for the comment.
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My Other Lenses

...because I love Squidoo too...

I'm active now on Squidoo for two years. Didn't do much compared to some of you. I mean, just 12 lenses in two years? I should be ashamed. Here are some of them.
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My You Tube Video's

...just to give you an idea...

I make video's for teaching, like the one that is called "Invitation to Metaphysics", but I also try to make some more fun video's about Art. Finally I tried to make promotional vids like the one called Study Philosophy at HegelCourses.com.
But...philosophers and theologians - like me - don't really know how to think in the proper way in order to sell anything. We're simply not commercially minded. And that's a pity, because without that mindset, nothing happens. Nobody hears you.
Can we learn?
We can try!
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YouTube in Dutch

Going dutch for a moment now....

Ik maak natuurlijk ook video's and teksten in mijn eigen taal, Nederlands. Hieronder een paar voorbeelden.

"I just told them, I said: I make video's in Dutch as well, of course. Here are a few examples."
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My Most Recent Blog:

Depression is the #1 killer of the world within the next few years

This is one blog I really care about, because this is what I saw as a minister and all around me: depression is going to be the number #1 killer in the world. People literally lose their reason to live. I am blogging about that too with the help of some friends...
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My Flickr Photos

This is not my number #1 thing, but I like the setup. It's fun to browse through other people's pictures as well.
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Still a couple of things to do before...

Well, it's about me,. right? So I do celebrate birthdays. And this is an important one. I am turning... 54.

(But on the internet I don't look a day over 9.)

Countdown to My Birthday!

My Birthday!: October 29, 2010

by

Robbert_Veen

I was born, raised and educated in Amsterdam. I studied theology, philosophy and Semitic Languages at the University of Amsterdam. I hold a doctorate... more »

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