Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Apple Tablet Anyone?

The other day I was lamenting the fact that Apple did not yet give the ability to connect a keyboard to an iPhone or iPod Touch. In I suppose that would be like putting the chicken before the egg. You need strong office style tools to get full use from a keyboard.

This got me to thinking - why has Apple not released a Macbook tablet? For those who do not understand what a tablet is simply take your existing laptop and add the ability to draw and write on the screen with a pen. It allows for a more natural means of inputting information and allows for changes in current software that makes data entry more natural. I currently own a HP TC1100 Tablet PC. I remember the first day that I used it (4 years ago..!) and my students didn't even realize that I had a computer in my hands. They thought it was a binder. That's nice because the technology was not forming a barrier between the students and myself.

At my school we use Apple computers exclusively. It has taken awhile to get used to them but the Macbooks really are nice to have. I never seem to worry about spyware or viruses - my school network catches incoming bad stuff and at home I just haven't experienced any problems. While I like Office 2007 on the PC better, the Office 2004 version that I use on the Mac works just fine. The iLife suite of applications is absolutely awesome and easy to use as well.

So, Apple, how about combining the best of my worlds? Let's come out with an Apple tablet! Oh, and if you're thinking of a giant size "Macbook Touch" let's just make sure you have an active digitizer in there as well.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

What's On My Devices? - Part I

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I use two different devices - an HTC S640 Windows Mobile 6 Classic phone and a Mio 550 Pocket PC/GPS device. While both devices are Windows Mobile Devices they are also different in what software they can run.

Today, I look at the Mio. The Mio features a 3.5 inch screen (the same as an iPhone/iPod Touch) and gives me more screen real estate when working with student data. With built in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS (SIRF, none of that cell tower stuff!) it allows me to do 95% of my computing right from this device. It is a joy to work with! Here is the software that is installed:

Pocket Informant - This is a replacement for the built-in calendar, task manager, and contact manager. What really draws me to this program is the ability to filter (to see only what I want to see) and that all of the above programs are linked to each other. For example, I can have a calendar item that is linked to certain contacts (students) and then tasks that are linked to each student. It gives me a very simple and yet powerful contact management system. You can try it for 30 days for free. DO read the manual so that you get the most out of your trial.

OneNote Mobile - If as a teacher you have not discovered OneNote then you must! It's a part of the Microsoft Office Suite of applications. Essentially, think of it as a virtual binder that allows you to add different binders, with different sections, with tabs and sub-tabs in each section. Amazing! OneNote Mobile allows me to capture notes, voice notes, and web-links on the fly and when I sync my device to my PC it will place it into OneNote where you can then move your notes into the appropriate section.

MobiPocket Reader - I needed a quick and simple solution to allow me to put large Word documents into ebooks. Yes, each Windows Mobile device comes with a version of Word but it's slow when reading large documents. An ebook reader allows you to purchase actual books and make your own. I have my curriculum in an ebook that I can then add annotations to. Very cool! I also purchase most of my books electronically rather than going and buying a paper based book. I know what you're thinking! Try it and give yourself time to get used to it.

Pocket EGP - For the last few years I've used Easy Grade Pro which is a super gradebook and allows you to track standards. The Windows Mobile version is awesome and more flexible than the Palm OS version. I keep my class data file on an SD card in my Mio. When I need to use a regular computer (either my PC or Apple - there is a version of EGP for both) I simply insert the card into a card reader and am able to read the file. No fancy conversion is needed. On my Mio I can add assignments, add students, add anecdotal notes, assignment notes, etc. It's really an amazing program.

Opera Mobile 9.5 (beta) - This browser makes Pocket Internet Explorer look absolutely terrible! Think of Opera Mobile to be much like a desktop browser and much like Safari on the iPhone. I love how I can tap on a section and it expands to fill my screen. It's easy to read! Because it's in beta the program is still free. I picked it up because my school district is moving toward web-based grading systems. As more applications move onto the Internet (Web 2.0) it will be important to have a good browser.

Intellisync - This is a must for me. Because I have wi-fi on the device I can actually update my e-mail, tasks, and calendar and make sure it's in sync with my Groupwise calendar. All of my data is always up to date. I also use this program on my smartphone so that I always have my e-mail pushed down to me. I can tap out a quick reply and then be on my way. Intellisync allows all changes to my calendar, e-mail, tasks, and contacts to appear on all of my devices. Sweet.

SplashShopper - Yes, it's great for making a shopping list but it also is a great list feature. I often like to keep track of which students have turned in money and which have not. I have done lists like this in Excel Mobile but SplashShopper gives me a simple check or no check.

That's currently what is on the Mio. In a future post I will discuss a "day in the life" of teaching with the device and then go into further explanation as to how I use each program.

iPhone Mania Hits The Streets!

You would think it was the "second coming" (I suppose it is in a way!). The buzz surrounding the new iPhone is incredible. It's been out for a week and a half and people are still going out of their minds trying to get this gadget. It's just a phone!

Of course I have thought about getting one. There's just this cool factor about having something so slim and, yet, so powerful in your pocket at all time. I currently carry a HTC S640 (Telus) smartphone which, compared to my old UTStarcom 6700 (a brick at best), feels thin. My students, of course, would tell me to dive on in a get an iPhone. Why not? I do own an 80GB iPod and I do have over 30GB in music and I do have many of my movies converted to Quicktime so that I can watch them.

The problem is that I would miss applications on my Windows Smartphone.

Yes, the iPhone now has the highly touted "App Store" for buying applications. But you have to admit that Windows Mobile has a good 3-5 years of solid applications on its side. That's not to mention that Windows Mobile has the one driver that I need that the iPhone does not yet have - the ability to tether a Bluetooth keyboard to it. The iPhone does have Bluetooth, but not the ability to let a keyboard work off it it - yet.

I'm also tied in directly to my school division's e-mail service. We use Groupwise and for that we need Intellisync in order to have it pushed to a smartphone. Currently there are clients for Windows Mobile (Professional and Standard) and Palm OS. No iPhone - yet. I rely heavily on the ability to get my e-mail when I need it. If a parent is to e-mail me with a question, I want to be able to reply immediately. Sure, I could do that on the iPhone by using Safari to login to my mobile mail site but I still don't have the notification unless I want a pricey text message plan. I also want all e-mail to pass in and out of my division's server, not be pushed around the internet to different services. That's security, folks, and it's important.

I also rely on the ability to view and edit Word and Excel documents on my phone. If I have a few spare moments I can pull it out and edit a document. I've actually been known to begin composing assignment for my students while waiting for meetings to start or just waiting in line at a store. The iPhone could allow me to do this by using an online "Cloud" application but that would then require me using my data plan. Currently in Canada, Rogers is your only choice and that data plan IS NOT unlimited. My data plan at Telus is. Telus iPhone anyone?

So there we have it. As much as I want that ultimate cool iPhone it's probably a year or so away from having what I need in order to do my daily business. If you can add Bluetooth keyboard support, an Intellisync client, ability to edit Word and Excel documents on the iPhone, and a reasonable unlimited data plan then we have a winner! Do I think it will come to pass that all of these things will be added? Absolutely! However, I'll watch from the sidelines during the growing pain months.

Friday, July 18, 2008

Where Does He Get Those WONDERFUL Toys??

It is the opening weekend of "The Dark Knight" and with all of the fuss being made over The Joker in this edition it brings me back to the first series of Batman films when the original Joker (played by Jack Nicholson) watches Batman in awe and exclaims "Where DOES he get those wonderful toys?" I remember the whole movie theatre being cut up over that statement.

We are often told in our pursuit of education that keeping information in a journal or diary is a great way to view your progression as you uncover new information. For me it has always been about how to use mobile technology in the field of education. We often see how technology can benefit students but what about their teachers? How can technology help the teacher in the classroom so that there is more time to spend with students and concentrate on the learning.

There actually is an abundance of technology out there - some free and some expensive - that can help with making one's life easier. I have often been frustrated when looking for information that would make my job easier (yes, I am a teacher) only to find that no one has really documented how to do that. Hopefully, this blog will begin to fill in that hole.

I am what one would call an "early adopter". I've always been fascinated by different technologies. I find that even when sitting in the offices of different professionals (doctors, lawyers, etc.) I am always looking at what software or gadgets that they are using and how that would apply to my profession. Geek? Absolutely!

I became a very early adopter of Personal Digital Assistants, tablet PCs, web 2.0 programs, and the list goes on. In each case it has saved me time and it has also taken up so much time because as with anything new you have to spend the time learning to make it work for you.

Over the next few posts I will begin to document how I have used this modern technology in my teaching practice. Again, for now, it is more of a "what can technology do for YOU" rather than your students. However, there will be the inevitable cross-over as what is good for the teacher usually benefits the student.