The New Letter to Santa

In the spirit of the holiday, I found the most interesting article on Mashable.com entitled “Barcode Hero Lets Kids Send Wish Lists to Santa.”  I can remember how creative I thought my daughter was when she poured over the Christmas catalog; as she did that, she would tear out pictures and photocopy (in color, of course) items on the back of the page.  Then, she would compile her list for Santa.  At the time, it was genius—it made the shopping easy for all of those elves helping Santa.  Now, it can be even easier.  There is an app called Barcode Hero which allows children to create a mobile wish list by scanning barcodes and then sending the list directly to Santa.  Additionally, a copy of the list is sent to the parents/guardians via e-mail complete with pictures.  Children can also add a digital photo and a letter to Santa.  How cool is this?

 I know personally how convenient (and dangerous) the barcode scanner when I am shopping on Amazon.com or Sephora.com, now, for children, this will be amazing.  And it will be idiot-proof for those of us who stumble around during the holidays finding the exact gift on the list. 

Changes to Google Docs

This fall is the first time I have used Google Docs, mostly because I was not completely aware of what was available.  In fact, the concept of Cloud computing is still something that I am trying to internalize.  I certainly can see the benefits; I am not so sure how many times I have started to set up my classroom for lecture only to realize the flash drive with my presentation was at home beside my laptop.  What I did not consider was the need for offline support, which would allow retention of work if Internet connection is lost.  In April, Google removed the offline support, Google Gears, with the promise that it would reappear but new and improved; however, this new-and-improved support will not be available until sometime early in 2011. 

E-Readers are Here to Stay

As I have stated in multiple blogs in so many different ways, I am an old-fashioned girl—I love books.  I love the types of books which can be found on shelves.  My daughter has had a Kindle for years; I just could not understand the purpose.  Then, just this week, I started shopping around the App store for my iPhone, and found two things of interest:  a Kindle app and an iBook app.  I was skeptical, but since they were both free, I thought I would give them a try.  I think I am hooked.  Of course, with course work and the daily duties of a single mother, I truly do not have a lot of time to read, but Steve Harvey released a new book, and he is my favorite “I-can-just-enjoy-this-book author.”  I bought his book and downloaded it, and I must say, I LOVE IT!  Because it is just an iPhone, the text is a little small, but it is so wonderful to always have a book with me to read whether I am waiting for an appointment or waiting for my daughter to be dismissed from school.  Now, I am thinking there is an iPad in my future.  And I am not alone, according to Kathleen Hall from ComputerWeekly.com, e-reader sales are to jump 79.8 % this year.  Of course, this statistic refers to devices such as the Kindle and the Nook; tools like the iPad (media tablets) are the competition since they offer more than the e-books; however, Ms. Hall stated that e-readers will be priced to seduce those who are only looking for a reader.  I, on the other hand, want all the bells and whistles; so, I will hold out for an iPad.

Focusing on Our Privacy

There are times when it frightens me to think that my every move on the Internet is monitored; then, I think of the alternative.  Although my Internet use is rather boring (shopping, researching), I realize that there are those with less than pure motives.  According to an article presented in The New York Times by Edward Wyatt entitled “Legislators Support Internet Privacy, but Question How to Achieve it,” legislators support a “do-not-track” method to restrict what is known about online activity; however, this comes with a balancing act—how to limit information released without impacting the advertisers who rely on such information.  Thus far, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has not found any indication that advertisers have been impacted by some of the initial attempts.  Susan Grant, director of consumer protection at the Consumer Federation of America, equated a lack of privacy focus to being physically followed by someone recording our every action.  Now, it is up to Congress to decided if “Internet privacy policies really mean anything, and if necessary, how to make them stick.”  Let’s hope a solution is found soon to give us some privacy while maintaining the necessary security. 

Yikes! Another Way to Communicate!

Every day, in so many possible ways, we can reach out and talk to just about anyone we want.  For some of us, it is a face-to-face encounter; it can be a telephone conversation; maybe it is a voice mail message or text message or an instant message; it might even be an email.  With all of these modes of communication, what could be the problem—communication overload.  Now, there is yet one more to consider; in fact, Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook CEO) just announced a new form of email.

According to Richard Harper in “Facebook’s email gives us a new way to chat—but are we reaching overload” in The Observer,  this new email system will not interfere with free services such as Gmail or Hotmail; it is going to offer something totally different.  This system will allow us to be constantly aware of the communication from others.  In some cases, this could be a wonderful thing, but I can certainly think of times when I would not appreciate such access.  More concerning than the immediacy of access, perhaps is the possibly of yet another mode of communication to be misused. Each of the different technologies provide us with a different way to reach others.  The question will remain—are we using the most appropriate method for the message we have to relay.  And now, we have another choice.

Will we use this new technology to create a new version of a Dear John letter?

You Mean There is More to the Life of a Presentation Than PowerPoint!

Let’s face it, in today’s world, whether it is for educational or for business, visual presentations are a large part of what we need to know.  Admittedly, I am a huge fan of PowerPoint; in fact, I went so far as to become Microsoft certified with the program.  However, now, it is not the only multimedia game in town.  According to John Paul Titlow in “Hate PowerPoint? Here are 5 Web-based Alternatives” on the Read/WriteWeb, there are many Web-based options for those who are not such huge fans of the software.  These options function similarly to the program we know so well, and they have the benefit of cloud storage.  Seems like the best of all worlds.

So, the drum roll please, what are these amazing new programs:

1)            Prezi

               This application works like a huge whiteboard allowing viewers to zoom in and out of various  sections as needed.

2)            Slide Rocket

               This one is a visual clone for PowerPoint (For me, this may make the transition a little easier.).  In addition, users will be able to comment on the presentation and complete polls in real time.

3)            280 Slides

               This program is similar to Keynote (Apple’s presentation program), and it gives the impression  that it is running on your own desktop.

4)            Google Docs Presentations

               This one is labeled as the simplified clone to PowerPoint. 

5)            Zoho Show

               This option has all of the standard functions you are so used to working with, and it also  integrates a live audio chat.  Another perk with this program is that you can import from                PowerPoint.

Without trying each of them personally, it is hard for me to determine which one mill be the most effective for me, but the benefit of cloud storage definitely makes any sort of transition to a new program worthwhile. 

              

My How Technology has Changed

In high school, I had one computer class.  I remember using the Apple IIe with the black screen and the green letters.  In college, I also only had one computer class, “Apple for Teachers.”  My first cell phone was in a bag, and it was larger than my current handbag.  I remember cassette tapes and VHS.  Some times when I stop and think, I am simply amazed with how much has changed in such a relatively short period of time.  David Pouge, for The New York Times in “The Lessons of 10 Years of Talking Tech,” wrote in amazement of the addition of things such as HDTV, Blu-ray, GPS, WiFi, iPods to our vocabulary.  However, most individuals tend to think of the advancements as something negative (replacing) instead of something more positive (branching).  In reality, all of these changes are just an “add on” to what we already know and love.  Why fight it?  Mr. Pogue suggested embracing change by understanding that the object we are purchasing can and will be outdated soon.