Monday, December 27, 2010

iPad Guide: 25+ Essential Resources for Your Apple Tablet

Mashable is a great source for tech info, and this article compiles a lot of their good stuff for iPads from this year

http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/fIXhROhFGn8/

-Reynaldo

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Increase Student Engagement by Getting Rid of Textbooks | Edutopia

Interesting article about textbooks. Although written from the perspective of high school, I think we can relate to some degree at the middle school level.

 - john

Increase Student Engagement by Getting Rid of Textbooks

By Betty Ray

8/5/10

Editor's Note: Today's guest blogger is Shelly Blake-Plock a high school classroom teacher from Maryland, who blogs at teachpaperless.com.


Drool in the textbook.

That's one of my most lasting impressions of high school. I can't tell you the number of times that I fell asleep -- face down in my textbook -- during various history and foreign language classes.

And these days -- as a history teacher and as a foreign language teacher -- that's one of the memories I'd rather not impart to my students.

It's not that textbooks in and of themselves are in toto 'bad' or 'good'. In fact there are great examples of both. And while I've chucked my share, I've kept a couple around. Case in point: Wheelock's Latin. I must have a dozen of my own copies of that textbook, and each year I've required incoming Latin I students to dutifully pick up a copy of their own.

But not this year.

In fact, I've spent the last three years shedding textbooks from my classes. West Civ? No textbook. Latin Lyric Poetry? No textbook. AP Modern Euro? No textbook.

And guess what? No drool.

Take that Latin text. Sure, it's a fine Latin grammar book and has been for decades; and it's full of great examples of "real Latin literature." That's what actually hooked me on it years ago. But I've had to realize that times have changed and that even in the short decade that I've been a teacher, many of the texts, tools, and devices I'd learned to see as "most effective" weren't necessarily the "most effective" now in 2010 when it came to holding my student's attention -- and more importantly, instigating the best benefits of their motivation and imagination.

Medium does matter. And the textbook is generally a medium that inspires neither motivation nor imagination. If textbooks were inspiring and everyone wanted to read them, they'd be at the top of the New York Times' bestseller list. But they're not. Because that's not what textbooks are meant to do. And that brings us to the philosophical part of this issue.

As a teacher, I'd say that the best things textbooks do are a) make my life easier by supplying me with reading passages, questions, and projects for the kids to do, b) organize the class material in such a way that we can stay on a steady course, and c) make it easy for colleagues and I teaching the same classes to "keep on the same page," so to speak. And in all three cases, the textbook serves the teacher quite well.

Unfortunately, the textbook does not serve the students quite as well.

The students do not learn "better" because my life as a teacher is "easier." Convenience is not a form of effective pedagogy. My students learn better when they take the active role in finding and choosing texts, asking their own questions, and creating their own projects. In my 9th grade West Civ class, this means students learn directly from primary sources (see the Internet History Sourcebook, the Perseus Project, the Library of Congress's 'Teaching with Primary Sources' project, and the Internet Archive) without the filter of a textbook middleman. It means that they keep daily blogs full of questions and reflections on our learning and that they engage with our crowdsourced Q&A wiki. It means that they propose projects based on their own individual learning strengths and that they make me assess them not by a "standard" but by a formative approach to personal development. And this does not even touch on the elements of project-based, performance-based, and gaming-based assessment that go well beyond the range a textbook allows.

As for organization, no static paper textbook can beat the timeline resources available on sites such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Helibrunn Timeline of Art History or the BBC's History, let alone what students can contribute to and create on their own via Dipity; and no proprietary encyclopedia can touch the resources of Wikimedia and it's various genre and topic specific portals. These resources are updateable in realtime to reflect the most current scholarship, thinking, argument, and debate as it happens, they are manageable through contemporary mobile modes of communication and organization such as Twitter and Delicious, and they reflect new media -- and thus the authentic modes of 21st century networked connectedness -- not as auxiliary to the classroom experience, but rather as fundamental to it.

As for "keeping on the same page"... One of the most exciting things to have come out of the textbookless experience among my West Civ social studies colleagues has been the way in which each of us have the opportunity to share what we know and what we really care about with one another in the active creation of our own courses of study -- and thus we depend on and appreciate even more each other's knowledge, wisdom, and professionalism both f2f and through our social networks. We're not dolts reading a textbook aloud, showing PowerPoint slides full of "notes," and giving bubble tests. We're professionals in the field of human development and we are learning, sharing, and growing as a result of not being force-fed. The students see this and know this because we are transparent in our endeavor whether talking about pedagogy in the classroom with our students or taking part publicly in the ongoing conversation on Twitter, on the Nings, and in the blogosphere. And by doing this, we are modeling qualities we want to see our students themselves hone.

Now, there will be those who say that schools without 1:1 resources just can't engage in this sort of way. And, actually, I'd agree. And I'd say to those schools: "So what are you doing to change things? What are you doing to bring 1:1 computing to your kids? Why aren't you letting students bring the technology they already own into the classroom? And how are you changing and reallocating your resources to take advantage of technologies that prove over the long-haul to be more cost effective and less redundant than textbooks and printing?" I'd ask the English Department: "Why are you buying novels and anthologies that by-and-large are available for free online at places like Project Gutenberg, Open Library, and Google Books?" I'd ask the Math Department: "Why are you beholden to a textbook company for math questions? Use your hard-earned knowledge and post your own questions on a class blog; let the kids formulate questions; shake things up a bit."

And then we get to the political issue.

Try as we like, none of us can get around the fact that textbooks are a political issue. It's not as though textbook manufacturers are maliciously trying to brainwash our kids with this or that. They're just watching their bottomline during a period of economic turmoil and big changes in the industry. The job of Big Textbook is to sell textbooks -- whether paper, digital, or whatever (as a side note, I personally have come to see the iPad and iBooks as the new face of Big Textbook just as the iPod and iTunes became the new face of the Big Music). Anyway, to sell textbooks, they have to edit content to best fit into whatever goals and guidelines certain, ahem, state boards of education set for their curriculum. The result is a relatively small number of political folks (not making a judgement here as to the politics, just saying what it is) having an enormous amount of influence on an industry that will then produce a product that will "necessarily" be picked up throughout the country.

That's pretty much how it works. Well, up until now.

Because now, if they take hold of the reins, teachers themselves have the power to free themselves of this system. Administrators have the power to change up how they do business and free themselves of this system. Parents and students have the power to petition gnarly districts to grant administrators and teachers this privilege to free themselves of this system.

And at the end of the day, we see that the point of schooling in this country isn't to keep the book industry afloat. The point of schooling in this country is to educate the next generation to have the courage and sensibility to make decisions that better our society.

And maybe clean up the drool.


Shelly Blake-Plock is a high school classroom teacher from Maryland. He runs the teachpaperless.com blog and some of his most interesting recent conversations have been with textbook publishers.


Monday, November 29, 2010

Welcome to the iPod & iPad User Group Wiki

From our friends in INTELA, a nice resource for iPads in Education...

>
> http://wiki.canby.k12.or.us/groups/ipodusergroup/
>

iPad keyboard

Hi all, is anyone interested in buying a wireless bluetooth keyboard for their iPad? I have an extra, brand new. 

Let me know. Product description below.



- john

Monday, November 22, 2010

iPad apps that offer video out...

Hi all, here's a collection that Digmo put together about iPad apps that can be used with a projector:

http://www.digmo.co.uk/apps/14-educational-apps-for-ipad-that-offer-video-out

I am pretty sure there are some more apps currently available, and more will come in the future.

- john

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Another example of iPad use in the business world...

TUAW interview: SAP CIO Oliver Bussmann on iPads in enterprise
TUAW | NOVEMBER 19, 2010
http://pulsene.ws/lsqG


A while ago SAP's CIO Oliver Bussmann made some waves in the Apple news-o-sphere by commenting that ...

--
Shared via Pulse, an awesome news reader for iPad, iPhone and Android. Check it out!


- John

Sent from my iPad

Friday, November 19, 2010

Good site for review of iPad apps for education

Hi everyone, this just came in from the CAIS listserv for technology. It is a well organized reference for iApps in education.

http://www.iear.org/iear/tag/shapes

iPad May Replace Computers and Textbooks In Schools, Expert Predicts [Apple in Education] | Cult of Mac


iPad May Replace Computers and Textbooks In Schools, Expert Predicts [Apple in Education]

Australia's State of Victoria is experimenting with an iPad pilot project; likely the first of many. Photo courtesy of Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

It's Education Week on CultofMac.com. How's Apple doing in schools these days? What are the best education apps? Is iTunes U worthwhile? Join us as we learn more about Apple in Education.

The iPad is going to be very big in schools, predicts Professor Mark Warschauer, one of the world's leading experts in technology and learning.

In an exclusive interview, Prof. Warschauer predicted that schools may soon start buying iPads in big numbers to replace not just desktops and laptops, but also textbooks and other reading materials.

"Until a couple of years ago, the majority of book reading — and a lot of magazine and newspaper reading — was done in print," he said in a phone interview. "I think we're going to see that change now."


Warschauer, a professor in the Department of Education at the University of California, Irvine, is acknowledged as one of the  leading academics studying technology's effect on education. Recently he's  been studying the effects of 1-to-1 laptop programs in education, like Maine's ambitious Learning Technology Initiative that gave iBooks and MacBooks to all middle-school students.

He said reading is likely to go digital very fast, and that many people will soon have two computing devices: a computer or laptop for writing, and a tablet for reading.

"For a lot of adults, they will have both a writing and a reading device," he said. "They will have a laptop or a desktop, and an iPad or a Kindle or something."

But schools can't afford to give kids two machines. They will likely opt for the cheapest machine that can do double duty: the iPad.

"The laptop is great, but the iPad is potentially better in a lot of ways," he said. "It's a lot better for reading. It's a lot more interactive with the touch screen. It's lighter. It's smaller. It's got a 10 hour battery life. It costs a lot less than the cheapest Mac laptop, at least. There are certain disadvantages as well, but this is the first generation."

Next year, when school districts free up some money in their budgets, we will see a lot of iPad pilot projects.

"There will be a lot of interest," Warschauer said. "You can do a lot of the stuff you can do on laptops, but they are great for reading, especially as textbooks go into the digital realm."

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Thursday, November 18, 2010

Check out ComicStrip - CS

Like Comic Life, for the iPad...


Check out this application on the App Store:

Cover Art

ComicStrip - CS

Sketch & Scotch

Category: Photography

Updated: Nov 05, 2010

17 Ratings



iTunes for Mac and Windows
Please note that you have not been added to any email lists.
Copyright © 2010 Apple Inc. All rights reserved


- John

Sent from my iPad

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

iPad owners' usage increasing over time

Interesting article,

http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/15/ipad-owners-usage-increasing-over-time/

There's a link at the end that shows some results graphically.

- john

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Aweditorium, for indie music lovers

This one is free, and provides a creative way to explore new music. You can also link to iTunes if you like the song.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Friday, November 5, 2010

Mayfield Junior School, iPad pilot program

Mayfield Junior School's blog regarding their pilot program

http://sites.mayfieldjs.org/ipadpilot/

- john

Real world application of iPads in industry

They are using a product called Box.net with the iPad:

http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/04/final-box-net-ipad-campaign-video/

- john

Discovery Ed for iPad link

Sorry, the last post didn't include the link. Here is the link for more information:

http://www.discoveryeducation.com/ipad/

The actual link to go to on the iPad is http://mobile.discoveryeducation.com/

- john

Discovery Education

Wow, with our United Streaming license, we have access to Discovery Ed mobile on the iPad. It's not an app, but rather a mobile website designed for the iPad.

I just tested this out briefly, there's access to a number of video resources by subject area.

- john

A ning site for iPads in Education

Hi all, came across this in a CAIS post. Nice resource for iPads in Education:

http://ipadeducators.ning.com/

And it's a ning site. ;-)

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

MacDVD ripper, free

Hi all, just wanted to let you know that this company is giving away it's DVD ripper software for free through October 31st. Can convert files to work on iPhone, iPod and iPad.

http://www.macxdvd.com/mac-iphone-dvd-ripper/

Includes a license code.

- john

Nice tips for iPad

So some of these are a little old, but good nonetheless. There are 75 here, 25 to a page. The navigation between pages was a bit clunky, so here are the three links separately:

http://www.interactyx.com/blog/75-really-useful-ipad-tips-and-tricks

http://www.interactyx.com/blog/75-really-useful-ipad-tips-and-tricks-a-part-ii

http://www.interactyx.com/blog/75-really-useful-ipad-tips-and-tricks-a-part-3

- john

Saturday, October 23, 2010

iPad Readers

Of the readers I've tried, I prefer iBooks. The layout, page count, page turning, etc. make it easier and more accessible than the kindle app.
But when I've read something I'm going to read again or reference often, nothing beats paper and ink that I have on the shelf.
Who knew?
-reynaldo

The Wisdom of John Wooden Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best you are capable of becoming.

PDF Expert: Much More Than a PDF Reader

In competition with other PDF readers for the iPad, this one is worth a look. I think it's up there with iAnnotate.

http://iphone.appstorm.net/reviews/utilities/pdf-expert-much-more-than-a-pdf-reader/


- John

Sent from my iPad

Monday, October 18, 2010

Turn the iPad into an eClicker

So just ran across this app. There is a free student version (eClicker) and a $10 teacher version (eClicker Host). Basically allows teachers to create forms/surveys/quizzes for students to respond to via their smart phone or iPad. Would be great in a 1:1 scenario.

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/eclicker/id329200145?mt=8#

- john

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Ushering iPad into the Classroom -- THE Journal


Ushering iPad into the Classroom

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

A number of built-in features, tools, and add-ons are helping to propel Apple's iPad into the classroom. Technology analyst Denise Harrison looks at the benefits of iPad in education and predicts some unanticipated applications

Tablet devices are hardly new; Apple's own Newton, introduced in 1987, could fairly be called an ancestor to the iPad with its tablet form, tethered pen touch interface, and easy portability. Even though other manufacturers marketed tablets based on the Newton operating system, for a variety of reasons unrelated to the quality of the technology, the Newton never made it past the left side of the adoption bell curve.

Apple iPad is smoothly and quickly gliding that slope. In fact, according to analysts, iPads will soon bring in more revenue to Apple than its traditional computers, coming in second only to the iPhone.

What the iPad has that the Newton didn't is an existing user base and familiar user interface. For the first time, it is possible that the child who learns to play cartoons on a device (iPhone, iPod touch, and now, iPad) could be using the same touchscreen interface a decade hence to create a high school report. Uses for higher education and business could make the iPad, and iPad II, iPad III, etc., constant companions long into adulthood.

iPad's adoption is aided by the fact that iPods and iPhones are plenty past "The Chasm," and users are comfortable with and supportive of the interface. Buying the iPad is viewed as a simple, logical step up to the latest model of iAnything. In addition, the developer community is perhaps more vibrant than any software community ever, owing to accessible development tools and the ready-made marketing channel that is the App store.

The prognosis for iPad's use in the classroom is good, said Sandra Sutton Andrews, research director in the Applied Learning Technologies Institute at Arizona State University. "The concept is perfect for education--a lightweight computer, relatively inexpensive, capable of being used almost anywhere: in your hands, on a table, attached to a wall, built into a tabletop," she said.

Andrews's job involves investigating uses of technology in education--especially emerging technologies. She designs and conducts research, teaches university courses, and works with K-12 teachers to help assess and satisfy technology needs. One of her next anticipated projects is setting up an iPad laboratory for a deeper examination of features and benefits.

"Add to this the fact that creating apps [for iPad] is not difficult, and at that point everything changes in terms of possibilities," she said. "Educators are already finding new uses for the available free or inexpensive commercial apps and are creating new apps that teach, engage, and even collect data. What's more, the educators behind these apps are making their resources available at no cost to other educators."

Other features on the plus side for education include:

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

Page 2 of 6

  • 10/13/10
  • Good, some would call it excellent, color reproduction;
  • Natural platform for e-textbooks;
  • Large, 9.7-inch screen with 1,024 x 768-pixel resolution;
  • 3G and WiFi for "always on" Internet access;
  • Accessibility (support for closed captioning, voice over screen reader, full-screen zoom magnification, and support for nine languages, for example).

"Accessibility to [students] with disabilities is possible to a surprising degree, given that accessibility once lagged behind when new technologies emerged," said Andrews. "Apps for children with cognitive disabilities have already been created by your fellow educators. There are built-in accessibility tools such as zoom and high contrast display. The built-in VoiceOver screen reader works as well on the iPad as on the iPhone, and Dragon Dictation is also available."

While iPad looks, on the whole, good for teachers, students, and classrooms, on the down side, iPad doesn't yet support Flash (an omission familiar to owners of other Apple iOS devices), and some complain about the dearth of physical connectors, such as dedicated USB ports and SD card slots.

Sam Farsaii agreed the lack of Flash support is a negative. Farsaii, chair of ISTE's SIG1to1 special interest group for 1:1 technology in K-16 education, said he hopes the Flash player support problem will be addressed with HTML 5. Farsaii has a long list of what he likes about the iPad for education, including its portability and lightness, flexibility, and ease of use. He also cited long battery life, instant on, ease of software download, screen resolution quality, innovative software at reasonable price, and wide availability of freeware as advantages. His only other suggestion, besides adding Flash support, is adding a camera.

Another complaint by some early reviewers is the iPad does not support full Mac OS X applications. This may not be such a bad thing, as we explore below, in a look at built-in features, optional accessories, and creative-yet-unadvertised possibilities of iPads in schools.

1. Built-in Benefits That Ease Content Creation

Easy positioning for comfortable use
The iPad provides ease of use in two ways laptops do not. The form factor of a single light-weight (1.5 pounds with WiFi, 1.6 pounds with 3G) panel and touch technology facilitate class content creation from nearly anywhere--the beach, the subway, and the diner. One doesn't need to fuss with the cumbersome folding laptop screen (which, despite the nomenclature, users have had problems positioning comfortably on laps anyway). Users also don't need to concern themselves with setting the screen at just the right angle to avoid glare from lights or the sun. While the laptop's light weight provides portability, physical placement for use is still limited. iPad can actually sit on a lap, and is light enough to hold at an angle with one hand and work with the other, thereby leaving users unconcerned with the right surface at the right angle.

Always-on Internet
The second ease-of-use benefit of the iPad is availability of 3G and WiFi. Typically, an instructor working in, say, a coffee shop would begin a lesson and inevitably arrive at a point requiring Internet research. Lesson creation is put on hold until he or she has access to a hotspot or returns to the office or home for an Internet connection. The combination of 3G and WiFi means there is no need to pause work until an Internet hot spot is near in order to complete a project; an iPad user can seamlessly go back and forth between creating content and researching information on the Internet. (Notebooks and netbooks, of course, have the option of connecting via 3G, though this option is generally available through an add-on and is not an integrated feature of the device itself.)

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

Page 3 of 6

  • 10/13/10

Long battery life
The iPad's battery life is impressive: nine hours of battery on 3G and up to 10 hours on WiFi. Long battery life is convenient for content creation and playback; the iPad offers long periods of time between charges even when playing videos on full-color screens, which is a big drain on batteries.

The combination of ease of creation, flexible positioning, large color screen, long battery life, and the always-on Internet connection present advantages over notebooks and mobile devices that aid instructors in creating content with more fluidity and fewer interruptions--a relief for those who prefer the satisfaction and time-savings of being able to focus, when possible, on one project at a time.

2. Optional Accessories

iPad Dock
The iPad Dock could benefit from a different name since, unlike most docking systems for handhelds, the iPad Dock offers more than just charging and syncing.

One of the more education-friendly features offered by the iPad Dock is audio, namely, support for external speakers. The built-in speaker is considered by most to provide better quality and greater volume than the iPhone internal speaker, making the iPad audio adequate for workgroup listening, but the iPad Dock's audio line out allows connection to external speakers, giving sound a boost and enabling the iPad to be used the same way as any audio source device.

Next on the iPad Dock's plus list is the design. The iPad Dock doubles as a stand. When in the dock, the iPad sits upright at a slight tilt, comfortable for video viewing, and when paired with an external keyboard, the docked iPad can look and feel much like the screen for a desktop computer.

VGA connection
The VGA cable, which connects to the optional iPad Dock, is designed specifically for connecting the iPad to a TV or a front projector. Any visual on the iPad can be shown on a larger screen. Yes, notebook computers can do this too, but just as the iPad infused elegance into the creation process, the iPad does so for presentation delivery as well. Because of the form factor, which allows the iPad to be used with one hand, the instructor can actually walk around the room while continuing to control the projected images. He or she isn't stuck at the table or lectern where a laptop would normally reside.

The iPad Camera Connection Kit
In this age when students are taught to present content in visual formats, the digital camera and digital video camera are increasing in importance as classroom tools, yet sharing those productions with groups has not been easy. For the most part, photos are shared via phone or e-mail, and videos are shared via Internet sites such as YouTube. The iPad Camera Connection Kit, an optional connection to the iPad Dock, provides an easier, faster path from individual shoots to sharing with the class. Students connect the camera to the iPad, download images and videos, then using the optional VGA connector, students and instructors may display photos and play videos from the iPad on large screen TVs or projectors.

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

Page 4 of 6

  • 10/13/10

Long power cord
The peripheral 6 foot power cord is one of the most popular accessories so far. Anyone who has tried to power a mobile device with a short power cord appreciates the convenience of a long one. The popularity should hold true for educators as well, since most power outlets are located on classroom walls, and most classrooms are not equipped with table pop-up connection panels.

iWork optional apps
Apple offers several productivity applications that are tailored for the iPad and sold at the iTunes store. These three applications provide productivity capabilities similar to traditional Windows applications at fractions of the price ($9.99 each). Keynote, for example, is a drag-and-drop presentation creation app, and its presentations can be exported into PowerPoint. Pages is for word processing and supports Microsoft Word -supported file formats, including Office Open XML (.docx) and Office 97 or later (.doc). And Numbers allows users to create spreadsheets that can be exported into Microsoft Excel.

Apps for that
iPad application development for education will, no doubt, be hot. The ease of application development and the general affordability of the applications will be great news for instructors, whose toughest job could be deciding among them.

3. Unintended-Yet-Beneficial Uses of iPad Features and Accessories

iWork
Educators are discovering that students are not always fluent in traditional office-type applications the way the average employee is today. iWork, Apple's productivity software suite, could be the great equalizer and could even make knowing other productivity software irrelevant for many day-to-day tasks. iWork may not have it all, but it has enough, especially when one considers the price: Mail, maps, note pad app, and Web browser Safari are included; the presentation, word processing, and spreadsheet apps are just $9.99 each.

Calendar
The built-in calendar affords instructors the same features most computer calendars provide. Instructors can create events (such as test dates, presentation dates and times, and activities). We had a theory about how the iPad calendar might be used to keep students and teachers informed of lesson plans and important dates. We checked with Apple, and the company told us, indeed, the instructor can invite all students to an event, such as a due date, and, as students respond by confirming participation, the instructor will be able to know the student has been advised of dates he or she needs to keep in mind. In the case of K-12, parents can be invited to events as well to keep them informed of homework assignments, test dates, and due dates for special projects. As dates change, all parties are notified. Even if all students don't have possession of an iPad, they can obtain this information by accessing a shared iPad in the class (more below).

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

Page 5 of 6

  • 10/13/10

If all students have iPads or access to iPads or other iOS devices, instructors can communicate with them as a group using Calendar or using individual or group e-mail, with all involved parties benefiting from uniform interfaces and functionality. These methods of receiving data, appointment requests, and messages might just help prepare young students for the work environment of their adulthood.

iPad mounts
Mounts designed for the iPad are hitting the market, and while a mount is a simple solution, this functionality will begin to encourage creative uses of iPads not found in the marketing materials. For example, iPad displays on inside or outside walls of the classroom can, at a glance, provide students and parents with curricula; assignments by week, day or month; test dates, and student presentation dates and times. By checking a mounted iPad daily, students and parents without their own iPads can access the same information about lessons and assignments as those who do.

A table-top mounted iPad sits upright and might be used for calendar information, and also for on-demand videos related to current lessons or to facilitate group collaboration, for just two additional examples. Wall- or table-mounted, the iPad can show fun videos of class activities, list spelling bee results, display sports scores and team videos outside team rooms, and deliver a slide show of science fair projects. Any school-wide or group/class-focused information can be displayed on a mounted iPad.

Using Calendar, an iPad mounted on a wall outside a meeting room could display room reservations, providing a rather affordable room reservation solution. Apple confirmed that, with shared calendars, a group of teachers and administrators who have been granted access to designated calendars will be able to remotely reserve a conference room. Other teachers will be able to see the times already booked and reserve their own times for using the room as well.

Mounted iPads bring a number of potential uses for the classroom. Considering the affordability and the uniformity and ease of the iPad interface, we can expect K-12 and higher education educational technologists to use mounted iPads to bring many new applications to Apple's latest innovation.

MobileMe
MobileMe software syncs between devices automatically, without having to physically connect those devices. This means that updating contacts, e-mail, and calendars can be done from anywhere to anywhere. Any update an instructor makes on a home computer, or an iPad, can update any other iPad or computer. A teacher, therefore, could change the lesson plan at home in the evening, and the updates will automatically appear on a mounted iPad or computer in the classroom set up for public, or class-wide, use and display. (Due dates of assignments, test dates, and other calendar invitations updated remotely will change for individual students as per usual e-mail functionality.)

Mobile Computing | Spotlight

Page 6 of 6

  • 10/13/10

Another feature of MobileMe useful to the classroom is the cloud-based iDisk, which enables file storage and sharing online. This allows teachers or students to upload and share files that can later be accessed by students via computer, iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.

USB support on the Camera Connection Kit
The iPad Camera Connection Kit has two ways that users can import photos and videos from a digital camera: the camera's USB cable or directly from an SD card. The camera kit's USB capability has unintended, and beneficial, consequences not lost on fervent iOS users.

Many fault the iPad for its omission of a USB port, but a number of clever people are finding ways to use that port in ways other than advertised. Chris Foresman, writing for Ars Technica, collected stories of successful experiments including the camera kit USB port to power USB speakers, headsets, microphones, and keyboards. As Foresman mentioned, it does bode well for expanded USB support in later versions of Apple iPads.

Will It Float?
Is iPad the killer app? For the general public, probably so, at least for a few years. For education, we won't learn pros versus cons until a few pioneers weigh in. Multi-touch has for some time been present in kiosks, Smart interactive whiteboards, and futuristic movies. The real killer app is touch technology, which is (finally) here to stay.

About the Author

Denise Harrison is a freelance writer and editor specializing in technology, specifically in audiovisual and presentation. She also works as a consultant for Second Life projects and is involved with nonprofits and education within the 3D realm. She can be reached here.


Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Netflix and video out

While we are on the subject of iPhone, note that netflix just released their new version of the app for iPhone that allows for video out (iPhone 4 users only). The iPad version has done this since the beginning.

Great tool if you want to show a film via the projector in your classroom.

- john

Sent from my iPhone
(310) 261-4030

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Google Goggles Lands on the iPhone

I know we are iPadding this blog, but this app for the iPhone is particularly awesome!
It's called Google Goggles.

Article from Mashable

http://mashable.com/2010/10/05/google-goggles-iphone/


Characters live to be noticed. People with character notice how they live. ~ Nancy Moser

Monday, September 20, 2010

Fwd: Apple offers refurbished Wi-Fi iPads at 50 bucks off

Hi all,

Not sure if this interests you or not, thought I would pass along

Begin forwarded message:

> From: John Umekubo <johnumekubo@me.com>
> Date: September 18, 2010 8:56:11 AM PDT
> To: John Umekubo <jumekubo@stmatthewsschool.com>
> Subject: Apple offers refurbished Wi-Fi iPads at 50 bucks off
>
> http://feeds.smokingapples.com/~r/Smoking-Apples/~3/LsC0opN_Glw/
>
>
> - John
>
> Sent from my iPad
>

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Maclife magazine app

It just takes time and the creative juices start flowing. We are now beginning to see some digital magazines that are starting to advantage of the new medium that is provided by the iPad.

MacLife just came out with a free digital version of its paper magazine, but it includes video segments, Twitter, facebook and email tools, as well as live ratings of articles, so you can see what others think about the same articles you are reading. The navigation is also well done, and the tutorial at the beginning will help you get started.

Currently, prices are still high for most of these interactive magazines. Over time, however, I think we will see prices drop. I still like zinio, which is a magazine reader, and has some great subscription prices. The interactivity still needs work though.

Things will only get better...

- John

Sent from my iPad

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Here's the email you send to

Hi all, when submitting an entry to the blog, please use this address:

support1563.ipad@blogger.com

And, sign your name.

- john

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Inkling - McGraw-Hill - Raven Biology 9th Edition

So the direct link to that biology book in the last article has a nice video intro here. I'm going to download the free version just to get a feel for the concept.

http://www.inkling.com/mh_raven_biology


- John

Sent from my iPad

Fwd: Inkling Says the iPad is the Textbook of the Future «

Just a follow up on the discussion about text books. 

- john 



Re: The School That Gives Kids Their Own iPads - Parmy Olson - London Calling - Forbes

I think we're still a ways off in that regard but I do know publishers are actively developing for the iPad. They see the profit potential. And cost savings, since some of their largest expense is in shipping and storage. 

- john 

Sent from my iPhone
(310) 261-4030

On Sep 2, 2010, at 5:02 PM, Les Frost <lfrost@stmatthewsschool.com> wrote:

I agree.  Are there textbooks available for all subjects and grade levels to make this feasible?  Les
Les W. Frost
Head of School

St. Matthew's Parish School
P.O. Box 1710
Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
310.454.1350 (ext. 146)
310.573.7423 (fax)
Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail


On Sep 2, 2010, at 4:41 PM, John Umekubo wrote:

Rachel, thank you for sharing this. Very interesting!

I am going to forward it on to our ipad blog.

- john

On Sep 2, 2010, at 11:54 AM, Rachel Davis wrote:

fyi...

http://blogs.forbes.com/parmyolson/2010/09/02/the-school-that-gives-kids-their-own-ipads/



Rachel Davis
Associate Librarian
St. Matthew's Parish School
rdavis@stmatthewsschool.com








Re: The School That Gives Kids Their Own iPads - Parmy Olson - London Calling - Forbes

I agree.  Are there textbooks available for all subjects and grade levels to make this feasible?  Les
Les W. Frost
Head of School

St. Matthew's Parish School
P.O. Box 1710
Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
310.454.1350 (ext. 146)
310.573.7423 (fax)
Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail


On Sep 2, 2010, at 4:41 PM, John Umekubo wrote:

Rachel, thank you for sharing this. Very interesting!

I am going to forward it on to our ipad blog.

- john

On Sep 2, 2010, at 11:54 AM, Rachel Davis wrote:

fyi...

http://blogs.forbes.com/parmyolson/2010/09/02/the-school-that-gives-kids-their-own-ipads/



Rachel Davis
Associate Librarian
St. Matthew's Parish School
rdavis@stmatthewsschool.com








Re: The School That Gives Kids Their Own iPads - Parmy Olson - London Calling - Forbes

Rachel, thank you for sharing this. Very interesting!

I am going to forward it on to our ipad blog.

- john

On Sep 2, 2010, at 11:54 AM, Rachel Davis wrote:

> fyi...
>
> http://blogs.forbes.com/parmyolson/2010/09/02/the-school-that-gives-kids-their-own-ipads/
>
>
>
> Rachel Davis
> Associate Librarian
> St. Matthew's Parish School
> rdavis@stmatthewsschool.com
>
>
>
>
>

Monday, August 30, 2010

iPad: Traveling Cold Turkey - ProfHacker - The Chronicle of Higher Education

She was braver than I've been (so far!)
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/iPad-Traveling-Cold/26089/


Characters live to be noticed. People with character notice how they live. ~Nancy Moser

Friday, August 27, 2010

Incredible...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OLP4nbAVA4

Portrait painting from the iPad in high speed.

- john

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

15+ Incredibly Useful iPhone Tips and Tricks

Ok these work on iPad too, except the iOS 4 ones. Those will have to wait for the next upgrade.

http://iphone.appstorm.net/how-to/utilities-how-to/15-incredibly-useful-iphone-tips-and-tricks/


- John

Sent from my iPad

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

iAnnotate PDF

Elaine found this program that I've started playing with which lets me edit, markup and manipulate pdf documents. iAnnotate PDF is $9.99, so I'll let you know how it works...

Check out this beautiful World Heritage Site photo!

Okay gang, discovered this cool, free photography app that I thought I would share. Not just photos, but links to maps, articles, and more...



Amazing photo of Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu.


I discovered it on Fotopedia Heritage, a free iPhone and iPad app, and I thought you'd like it. Get ready for an endless visual journey across all the UNESCO World Heritage Sites!


- John

Sent from my iPad

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Wikipedia

Hi all, I have been using WikiPanion Plus for awhile now, and I may have even written an entry about this already. In any case, it seems to be the best iPad app out there for access to WikiPedia. Allows you to quickly search any topic in the Wikipedia database, and presents it in a very readable, newspaper like format. There is the main text, as well as links to related articles. In addition, photos can be viewed full screen and can lead to slide shows.

It also gives you the ability to save pages to your iPad, so that you can read them offline later, in case you will be at a location without WiFi.

You can read up more about WikiPanion Plus here: http://www.wikipanion.net/index.html?ipad

Or just go to the App Store. I think it's $2.99 or $4.99.

The second wikipedia-type app that I just downloaded (FREE) is called Discover, by Cooliris. Cooliris are the folks that created the slick way of viewing photos on a web page. In any case, they created this nice app that connects to Wikipedia in a creative way. The app presents a new topic as the front page each day, so if you are just wanting to have something to read, with no particular topic in mind, this is a great resource. You can choose to read that topic for the day, or you can swipe the screen from top to bottom and get a search bar. From there, you can search wikipedia for any existing topic.

As you can tell, Discover is designed differently. Not quite as encyclopedic in presentation, more artistic and creative.

Happy reading.

- john

Monday, August 2, 2010

Jane has joined the ranks!

Whoohoo! Faiysal and Thirza just gave me an iPad. I love it and am trying to figure it all out!
Sent from my iPad

BookARC

For thos who want a good way to prop their iPads in portrait or landscape... You have to take it out of the case, though.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

A new app

This app Flipboard lays out your social accounts (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) in magazine style, and lets you flip thru your content. It also pulls in any links/videos/photos that are included, like the picture below.
It also gives you the option to pull in articles from The Onion, TED and news or politics sights. There's a wait to sign up, though. It's a nice way to get a lot of the content you're interested in in one place.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Fwd: iPad article in L.A. Times

Subject: iPad article in L.A. Times

Hi all,

The enclosed article appeared on the front page of last Sunday's Times.  Apple could not have created a stronger ad for the iPads use in schools.  


Enjoy,

Les

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Fwd: iPad goes under the gauntlet at universities this fall

Hi all. Just sharing an article. 

- john 

Sent from my iPhone
(310) 261-4030


Nice web site

Hi all, sorry for the last post. I was trying to share the blog site with Jillian, and inadvertently sent the email to the blog site as well. ;-)

Wanted to make sure you all knew about The iPad Guide. Although they are no longer running any raffles, it's still a nice site for reviews of apps and peripherals, as well as news on iOS updates, and more.

You can view it at http://www.theipadguide.com/

Happy padding.

- john

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Kayak

If you aren't already familiar with the web site, this is a great resource for finding available flights from a variety of sources (expedia, travelocity, cheap tickets, regular airlines) all at the same time.

The iPad and iPhone apps are very well designed small versions of the web site. They allow you to quickly type in dates, and destination, and find all available flights that match your criteria. You can also use the explore tool, which will show a number of different flights to different destinations based on your starting point.

There are other options too, like hotel and car rental info. Kayak has both a free and paid version.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Filemaker

Filemaker announced iPhone and iPad apps today. Downloaded and installed the iPad version ($40) then created some custom screens for our school database to view from iPad.

Awesome.

- john

Sent from my iPhone
(310) 261-4030

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

ipad as entertainment center

Hello All,

I just flew across the country with the kids. Callie was driving me insane - wouldn't do any of the 1,000 activities I had brought along. Handed her the ipad and did not hear a peep for 3 hours. Insane! I will get some more apps for her soon. Any good recs?

Friday, July 2, 2010

Coveroo

The best covers ever!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Link for the case

Sorry, this didn't come through:

http://www.theipadguide.com/reviews/review-hard-candy-squish-skin-ipad-case/7174735

Talk soon all

- john

Gel case for iPad

Hi all, as we suspected would happen, a case has arrived that looks like it's built for the younger set. Here's a pic, and see the link for the review below...

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

2 cool apps

This past week I came across 2 cool pictures apps. Frame Wiz, which is 0.99 and it allows you to add a frame to any picture in your library. Also, Color Splash, $1.99, which allows you to gray out a picture and splash some color to specific items on the picture. Here is an example of Frame Wiz.

Photo transfer app

Hi all. So while I was at the conference i needed an app to be able to send my iPhone photos to my iPad without the use of the computer, and syncing.

The photo transfer app did the trick. For $2.99, i was able to download this app on both the iPhone and iPad. Very easy to use. Launch it on both devices, set one as sender, the other as receiver, and you can send up to 50 photos at once from phone to iPad. You can also sent to and from the computer if you want.

The only requirement is that you must be on a wifi network. It asks you to input the iphone's ip address in order to make the connection.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Monday, June 28, 2010

Lee and Ipad Class

Today, I made a reservation to take an "Ipad Tour" class at the Apple Store. Probably should have research it more carefully because when I there you didn't need an appointment and could just drop in.

Having said that, it was good for me. The presenter did a pretty quick overview of many of the tricks of the Pad, some of which I somewhat already knew and a number of things that I didn't. One neat one is that when you scroll down a number of pages in a document or such, you don't need to scroll all the way back to the beginning. You just tap the clock numbers at the top of the page and it takes you all the way back to the top.

So, is it worth it for others to attend, I doubt it because I think most are beyond me, already. But, it was worth it for me. Actually, once there becomes a more critical mass of Ipads at school, John could do an intermediate class that would be very helpful.

As an aside, I decided to only bring my Pad home tonight and leave my computer at school as an experiment. I have only been home a little while but I can already see why the Pad is not a computer. I have limited access to ICal, I can't charge my IPhone with the Pad so have to find other sources, I can't synch my phone, well, you get my drift. I can see that the computer serves as the Mother Ship for a lot of things that the Pad can't replicate.

Sent from my iPad

Thursday, June 24, 2010

The advantage of battery life

So i have been in workshop sessions all week, and have had my macbook ready to go at all times. And on occasion, i have needed to break it out in order to try things out in final site, which does not behave with safari, and thus does not work with the iPad (for admin purposes).

However, for the majority of my work, I have taken notes using Penultimate with my stylus on the iPad. I have also had it available to read news, rss feeds, create and respond to emails, get on the web, etc. I think the key point is that while my Mac would need to plug in after a couple of hours, the iPad lasts all day, literally.

Speaking of battery life, it's nice to be able to watch a movie on the plane!

On the downside there are still certain functions that need work. Would love to be able to download from within safari. There are other ways around this, like good reader, which can download a pdf file from the internet using the URL. But I would like it all to take place within one app. I think we'll get there, just a matter of time.

Oh, just a note about final site. iPhone and iPad app are in development, which will allow parents/students/teachers to have access to the school website in a format built for the mobile platform. Looks very cool in beta so far.

See you all soon.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Monday, June 7, 2010

Calibre

So, aside from all the hoopla over iPhone 4, there is actually something else to report. Thank you to Rachel D. for discovering an article on the web about 10 cool ways to make your iPad more productive. All the apps in there were things we have already mentioned in this blog except one. The application is called Calibre, it is a free download for Mac, Windows and Linux. 

It is designed to convert e-book file types from one kind to another, including PDF files. I downloaded it and tried it out today. It's a little quirky (would recommend you watch the video tutorial) but once up and running, is a very handy tool.

I uploaded some PDF files, as well as some news feeds (built into the application, such as Time Magazine, Newsweek, and much much more). I converted these to iBooks format, then did a sync with the iPad. 

Voila! All of these files converted neatly into iBooks and were instantly available in my iBooks library. And if you saw Apple's announcement today, the new iBooks app will allow us to annotate, highlight, etc. and see our collections of notes and highlights. In combination with Calibre, we have just opened up a whole new potential library for students to be able to access, annotate, highlight etc.

Calibre is free, and can be dowloaded at http://calibre-ebook.com/


- john

Today's announcements from WWDC

Wow, the Worldwide Developer's Conference is going on right now. Read the live blog at:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/07/steve-jobs-live-from-wwdc-2010/?sort=newest&refresh=0

Highlights so far?

Iphone 4
High resolution screen
Two cameras
Camera flash
Gyroscope!

iMovie for iPhone!

Much more to come

- john

Sunday, June 6, 2010

RE: running into limits

Yes that makes sense about Twitter and other web sites not seeing where photos and other files are located. I think this is something that will be resolved in the new OS. At least I hope so. The iPad has been designed without a real hierarchical file structure, in the same way wikis and blogs are designed. However, the new OS seems to hint at returning to some folder like ways to organize, so we'll see.

As for 3G v. Wifi, i guess that will depend on users. However, i would say that for the most part, home and work, we all seem to have wifi access. That being said, i use my little mifi device to get access to the internet on my iPad on a number of occasions.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Running Into Limits

Downloading from camera is NICE. Able to manipulate in lots of ways.
Not able to upload to iWeb or Flickr, though. Uploader for Flickr
doesn't see where files are.
Also have had some wireless connectivity issues ... is 3G the faculty
answer, with WiFi the student solution?

Characters live to be noticed. People with character notice how they
live. ~Nancy Moser

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Sharing with Chaperones


Maya and Catherine both are using it to remote checkin at school.
Catherine walked back over and said, "I love this. I never should have
picked it up!"

a1 Perfect Browser for iPad

I have been somewhat frustrated with the lack of features in the safari browser for iPad. Most particularly, the inability to have tabs, which i use all the time on the desktop.

Just recently found this new browser, A1 Perfect Browser, which has the ability to create tabs, and has other features as well, like a simple elevator scroll bar on the right that makes scrolling a simple flick of the thumb. Also has the ability to save open tabs, has as Find feature for finding text on a page, and more. These are things I expect in a browser so they are welcome features on the iPad.

this is not a free app but worth the money in my opinion. I suspect the next version of safari will have some of these features though.

Interestingly, with custom apps like Mashable, Early Edition, and other news readers, i am "browsing" less and less anyway.

- John

Sent from my iPad

Friday, June 4, 2010

ModulR Case and accessories

Hi all! Well, this is probably more than I would need, but thought I would share. They have a variety of options, like a wall mount, a car rack (to place on the back of a head support for the kids to see the iPad, etc. Pretty innovative design.

http://modulrcase.com/accessories.php

- john