The Potential of Personal Publishing in Education I: What’s doing & who’s doing it?
Having spent most of the last three columns whinging (well, what do you expect of a pom downunder ;o) I thought for this one I’d kick along with something constructive, well, try to… Continue reading ‘Incorporated Subversion’
Most Mac users are well aware that Apple offers them an Internet-based service called .Mac. While many users have used this service for personal purposes, there are many practical uses for education.
The .Mac service offers users a suite of tools, mostly Internet-based, that help them make the most of both their Mac and the Internet. The service offers: Email, data synchronization, Web-based access to Address Book contacts and Bookmarks, Web space and file storage. In addition to these services, .Mac members enjoy other benefits such as free training and free software. Reading through the list of services, many can see the advantages for personal use. But, the uses of .Mac in education may not be so clear.
Before we begin to look at these features, and their uses in education, it is important to note, that despite the plethora of services offered, .Mac is not an Internet Service Provider (ISP). To use .Mac you must already have an ISP. Continue reading ‘.Mac for Educators’
The reality of synchronous communication
OK… here’s why all your synchronous communication facilities, chat rooms, shared whiteboards, MOOs etc. have never really taken off. They just don’t push it. Continue reading ‘Incorporated Subversion’
What’s a supercomputer? It’s one of the biggest, fastest computers around, typically more than a hundred times as big and as fast as the PC on your desktop.
Since computers are constantly getting bigger (in memory and disk capacity) and faster, today’s PCs would have been supercomputers a decade ago. In fact, according to the list of the world’s Top 500 fastest supercomputers (www.top500.org), today’s fastest PC, with dual 3.2 GHz Pentium4 CPUs, would have ranked among the top 25 supercomputers in the world just 10 years ago — and would probably have outstripped the world’s fastest supercomputer 15 years ago. Continue reading ‘Supercomputing in Plain English’
I love what James Farmer has to say about the Discussion Board. I mean, how many of us have started out feeling fairly enthusiastic about participation and posting, just to watch the dog roll over and play dead. All the factors he mentions – rigid format, inflexible interface, blah graphics, counterproductive semiotic content – just absolutely eviscerate good, creative, spontaneous writing energy. It’s definitely sad to see.
Continue reading ‘Discussion Board Revitalization Kit: Wooden Stake? Weird Costumes? Magic Pansy Juice?’
Subverting the Discussion Board
I like things that I can use in a whole ton of ways. I don’t like things that tell me exactly how I should use them. Take, for example, your average discussion board… really the key learning tool in most major online learning environments (BTW I’m not counting content distribution and presentation as learning ;o), how many different ways can I, as a teacher or learner, use it??? Continue reading ‘Incorporated Subversion’
As a technology trainer, I am often presented with the age-old question “I need a new computer… what should I get?” Most educators expect the traditional answers of Dell, Gateway, HP, etc. But not being one for the obvious, I always reply “Mac!” Of course, this is followed by a rather long period of uncomfortable silence. So, I ask the individual to take a little walk down to my office (so they can see my Mac).
As soon as the unsuspecting convert sees my Mac, they are attracted to the design. They soon realize that this is not the average black or beige box. Although Apple has stunning designs, looks alone are note enough to make a user switch. Continue reading ‘Not Your Ordinary Switch Ad’
I object, it’s good to subvert…
The first time I heard about the idea of ‘incorporated subversion’ I thought it sounded pretty cool, then I started relating it to what I was doing (teaching English to overseas learners in Melbourne, Australia) and it really made a heck of a lot of sense. Next I started looking at it in the context of teaching and learning online (which is what I now work with everyday) and started using it in just about every conversation I had 
) and now, well, it just about pervades everything I say and do… and my colleagues are getting pretty bored! Continue reading ‘Incorporated Subversion’
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