It was sad to hear a few months ago that Google Reader was going to be retired. It got me thinking about how much we rely on technology and more importantly how much we put into one basket. Over the years I have had a number of technologies that I used pulled out from under me and I have learned the hard lesson that you can't rely on them always being around. If you are looking at your options for e-learning then it is important to make sure that you also have in place some alternative technologies just in case your find your primary options is going away.
In particular if you use free services then you need to have a plan not just for an alternative but also how you will get your data out of the service that is going to be shuttered. Not all services have options for getting your data out but it should be an important consideration when you are choosing technologies.
Google for example have Google Takeout which allows you to export your data. They also have a group of engineers called "The Data Liberation Front" which looks at how easy it is to get your data out of Google products. So just remember even your favourite technology can disappear so it's important to have your plans well and truly ready.
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