Posts tagged edtech
Birds-of-a-Feather Sessions Meet Web2.0 at Xpanity
Jul 28th
I have NO idea what the origin of the name may be, but Xpanity.com offers an interesting new browser add-on. It’s currently in Beta and issuing delayed invites to those who submit their email address. Once I receive my invite, am able to install and experiment with it, I’ll add more details to this blog post.
What is it?
The Xpanity Suite currently contains two applications: LiveChat and SharedBoard. In short, I think it’s “birds-of-a-feather-sessions meet Web2.0.” According to the website . . .
Xpanity LiveChat, “allows you to see the other browsers currently on the same web page as you are viewing. It provides you with the opportunity to interact with them on all levels. You can do all this anonymously. There is no need to register or provide any of your private information.”
Xpanity SharedBoard, “for each web page on the Internet . . . provides a Shared board for permanent comments that can be viewed by all Xpanity users.”
How does it work?
More on this once I’m able to install and use the application. Generally, clicking on an Xpanity button on your toolbar activates the Xpanity browser extension which enables participation in LiveChat with other users or on the persistent SharedBoard
What’s cool about it?
With Xpanity installed, every website seems to have an interactive component. It’s no longer incumbent upon a website to offer a chat tool; users with Xpanity visiting the same website can chat with one another regardless of the sites capabilities or available tools.
Of course, it’s dependent upon a broad volume of users actually adopting the technology, but assuming that requirement is met, Xpanity dramatically increases my ability to network and communicate with others of similar interests. What used to be invisible – other users accessing the same website at the same time as I am – now becomes visible and interactive.
I’m wondering if this may not be an influential Web2.0 application; consider the characteristics of it. It provides a contextualized browsing and micro-blogging experience. Rather than posting a link to Twitter or sharing it via Facebook to engage a social network regarding a specific site, Xpanity constructs a social network around a specific page or site.
How can it be used in the classroom?
Just off the top of my head, without having yet been able to install or use the application, I can imagine several applications.
Shared browsing. If not familiar with it, shared browsing is a tool which enables a group of users to view the actual browser on a facilitator’s desktop – ostensibly as the topic of a discussion or part of a training session. Although not as cohesive a solution, Xpanity may offer a substitute for shared browsing tools seen in other collaboration tools that support group discussion. As long as a user has Xpanity installed and knows which site to visit at a given time, it serves the same function.
Contextualized discussions. Rather than visiting a website and documenting thoughts in a course discussion board, learners can post their thoughts on a particular website to the Xpanity SharedBoard for the URL. Those comments are persistent which means there’s a lasting record of discussions by which participation can be measured, and the learners and the class as a whole engage the larger web-browsing community regarding that site. That leverages the community and encourages participation by others – much like public blogs and wikis do.
I originally stumbled across Xpanity at Jane’s e-Learning Pick of the Day
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...Twitter, Finally
Jul 27th
When I first looked at Twitter, I didn’t really “get it.” I think that’s because it wasn’t integrated into my regular browsing experience. The more I’m required to visit a separate unique site, the less likely I’m going to keep up with it consistently. My news and tools, like many other users, come to me; I spend more time in Google Reader than any other site and work to minimize how much time I spend just “browsing around.” So, when I discovered several tools that integrated Twitter directly into Firefox, I had renewed interest in it. That interest has led to 61 updates in the last three days; some people should never be given a PA system, particularly one that spans the globe (grin).
Rather than re-hashing what others have written and explaining what Twitter is and how it may be used in the classroom, take a look at Educause Learning Initiative’s 7 Things You Need to Know About Twitter.
With the Firefox add-ons I’ll describe below, Twitter provides a social network fully integrated in the browser which makes it easier to engage. The micro-blogging element is enjoyable, and the, in essence, “persistent, always on, group IM session” provides a great opportunity for networking with colleagues. And, as Jeff Utecht noted through Twitter yesterday, his Twitter network is “by far the largest community [he] belong[s] to.”
The Firefox add-ons I’m using currently are . . . (if there are some I’m missing, please note them in a comment!)
TwitBin vs TwitterFox. Both tools make it possible to review network posts and to post updates to personal accounts. I discovered TwitBin a week or so ago, and Nick Noakes (twitter: nnoakes) highlighted TwitterFox in an update yesterday. TwitBin resides in the browser sidebar with an update entry form on top and automatically refreshing network updates extending the length of the screen. TwitterFox resides in the lower right status bar and pops up with updates; the form for entering an update works better than Twitbin. On first impression, I believe I prefer TwitBin; the larger interface and persistent sidebar are important to my personal browsing habits.
TwitterBar and TinyURL Creator. TwitterBar adds a small green plus sign to the URL address bar; a simple click posts the current URL to Twitter as a note that the page is currently being browsed. I often want to add a short note other than the URL; TwitterBar doesn’t allow that functionality AND it copies the full URL which takes up most of the allowed characters. Instead, I’ve taken to using TinyURL Creator to right-click and paste the TinyURL for the current page into TwitBin with the note I’d like to add.
Others have also written about Twitter-Bots which provide additional functionality for Twitter which I’ll be exploring in more detail as well. This Lifehacker blog entry describes Twitter Timer and Remember the Milk.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...All I’m Reading & Writing via PageFlakes
Jul 27th
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Update: This same task can be accomplished by aggregating a number of RSS feeds using RSSMixer.com. RSS Feed: Chris Duke Reads/Writes the Web
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As an educational technologist working with a large number of faculty and staff, a significant challenge has been to find a way to share with others in a relatively simple manner the worthwhile information I find while sifting through a ton of useless information, posts, news items, journal articles etc. I mentioned the range of reading and writing I do on the web in a previous post, “Sites of Interest (AKA I read & blog too much).”
I know other educational technologists have written about PageFlakes previously, including usability critiques, but I realized I can very easily publish all of my shared news feeds I tag in Google Reader, my bookmarks, my blog posts, and my twitter entries to a single PageCast. That publicly available PageCast shares, in one fell swoop, everything that I’m publishing and reading on the web.
Actually, as I’m thinking about PageFlakes, the PageCast can address an issue I’ve experienced in the Intro to Computers class I teach plus the need for classroom blog aggregators to make the blogging experience more useful in the classroom. See: Blogs vs Discussion Boards, and similar post/comment thread in the EduBlogger Ning Community.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...My Browsing Experience
Jul 26th
Taking a step back, I wanted to share the tools I use to enhance my browsing experience.
I start with Firefox. It’s all about the extensions, add-ons, and plug-ins. IE will never see the light of day on my machine again.
The image above highlights alot of these tools; I’m going to list them in order of preference and personal importance.
delicious Bookmarks fully integrates my delicious bookmarks with Firefox. If not familiar with it, this add-on is different from the browser buttons that delicious provides. Essentially, the Firefox bookmark tool is replaced entirely by delicious; when I click “Bookmarks” in Firefox, a sidebar comes up with my delicious bookmarks – cached and updated direclty from my delicious account.
Zotero Research Manager. An indispensable tool for anyone doing research of any sort – from grade school to graduate student.
Better Gmail combines a number of smaller extensions to enhance Gmail including: new skins, showing disk usage as a progress bar, attachment icons, built-in TinyURL support, adding a Google Reader “Feeds” link to the sidebar (very important for me!), and a number of others. Now includes support for Google’s domain applications.
Twitbin. A tool I should have found much earlier; an extension that adds a sidebar window within the browser. The sidebar displays the most recent tweets from friends and allows you to post an update. With this tool, I finally see the functionality and usefulness of Twitter. I wish I could post tweets for a specific group though.
Twitterbar. The small green plus sign in the address bar shown in the image above is the twitterbar; it posts the current URL as a “currently browsing . . .” update to twitter account.
Favicon Picker enables the toolbar of small icons; it’s the normal links toolbar with the text removed. Plus, rather than the standard default icon, I can add a favicon to identify the shortuct. Using Favicon from Pics, a free online tool, I can create my own favicons for this toolbar.
Add to VodPod. Not an extension per se; it’s a shortcut on my links toolbar. See the previous VodPod post for details. The shortcut allows quick capture of online video to my various Pods.
Better GReader doesn’t have a ton of features, but it does have “Smart Subscribe” which automatically detects an RSS feed on a page and displays a link in the upper right corner of the browser content window which allows quick subscriptions to feeds; if I’m already subscribed to the feed on the page, a checkmark appears over the link.
Facebook Toolbar adds a toolbar to better integrate Facebook usage into the browser. It provides quick links to all areas of Facebook, a share link, and a search bar.
coComment tracks comments submitted to other websites; can be tracked as a separate blog and inserted into existing blog as a widget.
Greasemonkey enables a variety of javascript based enhancements for Firefox. The one I use most frequently is GPE; it adds a preview link to each item in Google Reader. Clicking on the link opens a frame which displays the original site for the item without having to open a new tab.
There’s a few others I have installed and enabled but have not, as of yet, used extensively: Firebug, Firefox Universal Uploader, GButts, Google Gears, and UnPlug.
There’s a number of extensions I’ve experimented with but disabled simply because I don’t use them frequently enough: AddThis, ChatZilla, Clipmarks (I use Zotero), Cooliris Previews, original deli.icio.us, Diigo Toolbar, DOM Inspector, FireFTP, Google Notebook, Googlepedia, Me.dium, Notefish, Sage, ScribeFire, StumbleUpon, Web Developer, and Wizz RSS News Reader.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Microsoft vs. Blackboard?
Jul 23rd
Several days ago (7/19), Exduco: Best Graduate School Guide published an article titled, “Microsoft picks new UW center to develop distance learning technologies.” The article notes:
ConferenceXP, the videoconferencing system developed at Microsoft Research, . . . is less expensive and more flexible than commercial videoconferencing tools. The current version delivers high-quality video content almost instantly, using standard computer hardware and university campuses’ high-bandwidth Internet connections. In the test last year, standard computers relayed high-quality audio and video among four classrooms with virtually no delay.and
The ConferenceXP software is a shared source project, allowing any researcher to tinker with the code and create new add-ons. Conference Presenter and ConferenceXP are both available free for download; the programs require the Windows operating system.
A quick Google of “Conference XP” revealed the application’s home page at Microsoft Research and the Microsoft hosted support forums.
I believe there are several implications.
First, the ConferenceXP software is currently licensed for non-commercial use with the education community generally encouraged to participate in collaborative efforts to further develop the tool. It seems as though it may present, at least in the interim, an opportunity for inexpensive desktop videoconferencing. It’s certainly worth exploring for higher education institutions.
Second, this fans the flames suggesting Microsoft may begin competing with Blackboard/WebCT at some point in the next 1.5-2 years. I’ve not yet encountered any official news or press releases that suggest Microsoft has a comprehensive software solution that provides typical LMS functionality in a single package (discussion boards, content management, grade/records management, etc). However, looking at some of the products being released and refined (MS Live @ EDU and business intelligence, CRM, and application integration for education, plus MS Groove), the Microsoft Learning Gateway for K-12 and several other pages that turn up in searches (see a reference to MS hardware serving an LMS) – it seems that Microsoft may not be very far from having a complete package to compete with Blackboard’s Learning Management System. Microsoft appears to have the tools in place to compete with the community system (collaborative tools) and content system (sharepoint). If you combine those tools with the advantage Microsoft would have over Blackboard/WebCT regarding videoconferencing, wireless network integration, and mobile convergence, MS’s full entry into the LMS market with a comprehensive, package solution could be interesting.
It may not be all that revelatory a thought, but it’s a thought at least. Certainly, the open source market competes to some extent with Blackboard/WebCT, but I’m sure the market would welcome a competitor to Blackboard/WebCT.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...VodPod
Jul 16th
What is it?
The VodPod website uses phrases like:
- It’s your video network.
- Simply the best way to collect, share & watch videos.
- Let people watch your favorite videos from your favorite sites, right on your blog.
In short, it’s a personal repository for storing collections of online videos from popular video sites like YouTube, Google, Yahoo!, Daily Motion, MySpace, MetaCafe and others.
How does it work?
After creating an account, users have a default Pod and may add others. VodPod has a shortcut button to be added to browser toolbars. Adding items to your Pod only requires browsing video sites as you normally would and using the “Add to VodPod” button when needed. Using that button adds/embeds the video to your personal Pod.
What’s cool about it?
- Users can create different collections, each has their own URL; for example, I created this Web2.0 collection about 10 minutes.
- Each Pod has it’s own page where participants can add additional videos, rate and comment on existing videos, and message back and forth.
- Widgets. The VodPod player for a particular Pod can be embedded in another website which allows dynamic sharing of personally relevant videos. This is the widget for the aforementioned Web2.0 collection:
How can it be used in the classroom?
At the very least, VodPod provides a cleaner way to build and view a collection of online videos relevant to a specific topic. Rather than a list of simple links which branch out to a variety of pages, VodPod embeds all of the videos into the PodPage. This makes it easier to refer to and use online videos in a classroom (barring any bandwidth and access restrictions for YouTube imposed by your institution, of course ;-)
Also, VodPod has built in features to facilitate collaborative, community discussion regarding the videos. Learners can rate, comment on, and leave messages about the different videos. The possibilities for compare/contrast and critical review type activities are intriguing. A VodPod of two videos covering the same international event – one from Eurpoean news and one from US news source – could afford learners the opportunity to collaboratively discuss the two videos. Certainly, that’s a task possible with a bookmarking tool and a discussion board, but I do believe VodPod’s ease of use and available tools warrants its use.
Finally, Pod’ders can join a Pod and add additional videos. This creates opportunities for collaborative group work requiring the collection and critique of videos on a particular topic. Learners, in groups of four in a US History course, are asked to identify and collect images and videos focused on the end of World War II. VodPod provides the tool by which that collection can be accumulated and stored on the web, not to mention the other tools VodPod offers.
I first noticed VodPod via Alan Levine’s CogDogBlog.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Sites of Interest (AKA, I read & blog too much)
Jul 14th
Like every other edublogger in the world, I read many (okay, perhaps a number beyond my own comprehension ;-) more sites, stories, news, items, and issues than the ones on which I have time to comment in this space. However, as I encounter those other items, I do often tag the ones I find particularly interesting and believe may be of interest to others. The webpages and RSS feeds created from that activity may be useful. Thus, if you ever notice a lull on this blog, these other feeds are likely active and perhaps useful.
Sites of Interest. This is a del.icio.us link roll of sites I’ve tagged specifically to appear on this site. The 7 or so most recent sites tagged appear in the sidebar.
Tech Tools. These items focus on tools I find useful or interesting; they aren’t all necessarily educationally related, but the tools can enhance and make more efficient the user experience. For example, I’m a avid Firefox user, so you’ll probably find quite a few Firefox extensions in this feed. All of the items in this feed are ones I’ve encountered from other feeds: a best of type feed for the things I read.
EdTech News & Items. These items focus more on news stories and issues related to the intersection of education and technology that do not fall into one of the other categories, and you’ll occassionally notice some crossposting from the other feeds mentioned here. All of the items in this feed are ones I’ve encountered from other feeds.
Learning Media. To use a technical term, this is stuff that can be used in a classroom. These are often references to educationally related videos or sites that teach particular content from a good cross-section of disciplines. Essentially, if I think, “Oh, I need to share that with a chemistry teacher” – I mark the article in this group. These aren’t necessarily the sites or media proper; these are items I’ve encountered from other feeds. If you’re interested in actual learning content . . .
Learning Xchange. This is the same as Learning Media except items in this feed will be actual sites or content rather than an article referencing the site. This is a del.icio.us link roll.
For a few other miscellaneous items less related to this site, I’m only going to provide the link . . .
Second Life Education News. News, events, tools, items, content etc related to educational uses of the multi-user virtual environment of Second Life. If you ‘re not familiar with it, I also blog on this topic specifically at MUVE Forward: Real Education in Second Life by Topher Zwiers.
Second Life General News. General news and issues related to Second Life; it provides the larger context in which real education occurs in SL.
Online Learning. News, issues, tools, events, items and content related to distance learning. I’ve spent 5+ years supporting faculty use of distance learning technologies in a College environment; while my role at work has changed slightly, my interest in distance learning has not, so I continue to read and tag relevant items.
Learning Research. I’m also a graduate student, still (as my wife would say), and reading research is a much different experience and has a much different purpose than reading blogs and news sites. This is the container for learning research I encounter.
General Technology. The big picture for everything we do in educational technology. These are general news, issues, tools, events, items and content related to the technology industry. I read more gadgety type news in this space, but I also catch a lot of trend type articles in this space.
And now… I *think* I read and blog WAY more than I perhaps should. No wonder I’m *still* a graduate student. LOL.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...What constitutes an "expert?"
Jul 13th
Consistent with the them of this blog I guess, a few articles I read recently have been stewing and simmering. I’ve been giving more thought to Sarah Robbins’ comments about the movie Ratatouille as an allegory for Web 2.0 along with Jakob Nielsen’s Write Articles, Not Blog Postings article (which Alan Levine’s CogDogBlog highlighted for me). What constitutes an expert? As Ratatouille perhaps suggests, despite Nielsen’s article and comments to the contrary on Sarah’s blog, can “anyone” be an expert?
I think “Yes” for two reasons.
From the most recent Technology & Learning, CEO Anshul Samar runs Elementeo, “an online, interactive board game that teaches chemistry to students” which Samar hopes will reach $1 million in revenue for 2008.
And, from around the web, Katharine Berry created a web-based viewer for Second Life using AJAX. What has required the Second Life client in the past, may now be viewed in a standard web browser. While she admits the code is messy and features need to be added, it is under continued development.
Now, why do those two stories suggest that “anyone” can be an expert?
CEO Anshul Samar? He’s 13.
Ms. Katharine Berry? She spends her Second Life on the TEEN grid.
Those two individuals are definitely, from all outward appearances and expectations, what one might consider to be an expert. Admittedly, Mr. Samar and Ms. Berry accomplished tasks much more difficult than writing a blog, but it is still the open, writeable web that offered them the opportunity to exhibit expertise.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...Visual Depiction of Internet Evolution & The Semantic Web
Jul 13th
I encountered the image to the left in the most recent edition of Technology and Learning and located it on the web. As T&L commented, the image is “being touted as one of the best visual depictions of the Internet’s evolution.”
The image is worth a look for an idea of several ways in which the web may evolve over the next several years. Image is attributed to RadarNetworks and Nova Spivack.
More importantly, quick web research identified this July 3rd CNN article which provides an overview of the semantic web concept.
(No Ratings Yet) Loading ...VoiceThread
Jul 9th
What is it?
VoiceThread allows users to upload and then orally comment on photos. The site tour: “What’s a VoiceThread anyway?” provides a decent overview and demo of the application.
How does it work?
Users upload pictures that are added to the flash media player; different permissions can be set to allow the VoiceThread to be public or private and the opportunity to add audio can be limited to specific users. Once created, users may add audio to narrate/annotate each individual picture. The VoiceThread can be linked to on the VoiceThread site or downloaded for inclusion in a different site.
What’s cool about it?
– VoiceThreads may be left open for other users and friends to comment on the image; this enables interesting collaborative and learning community applications of the technology.
– VoiceThreads may be saved and shared, in Flash video format, on any website. This allows portability to personal websites.
How can it be used in the classroom?
Nearly every discipline can benefit from this technology by simply soliciting learner reactions to digital images and photographs.
In an American History course, what instructional and learning value could come of having each learner in the course record their personal reactions to the images in this VoiceThread? What if learners were asked to record their thoughts once prior to in-class discussion or reading assignments and then again after learning more about how World War II ended? How many learners knew of Japan’s interest in surrender; does awareness of that not-widely covered historical fact have a significant impact on learner reactions?
In a literature course, would learner’s recording impromptu reactions to poetry-related imagery add value to their understanding of a poem? Could a group of learners potentially collaboratively create an artistic oral performance describing that imagery?
—— Additional Thought 4/10/2007 ——
How did I not describe the potential for language instruction? Using instructor-specified graphics, learners could create personal VoiceThreads in which they tell a story about each image. Alternatively, an instructor could create a VoiceThread of 2-3 images; for each image, the instructor begins a story. Learners then follow suit by each adding several thoughts or ideas to collaboratively develop a longer story about each image; individuals could be assessed on their speaking skills and whether their contribution fits within the context of the story already created by classmates.
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I first noticed VoiceThread via Dean Shareski’s blog, Ideas & Thoughts from an EdTech
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