Well, I am getting ready to wrap up this semester. I would say that it has been as productive as it's been busy!
Professionally, I taught one college-level course during this semester in addition to my day-to-day duties. Our staff of six has been reduced to four this semester due to some colleagues taking positions elsewhere. So we've been running a skeleton crew the past few months. We hired replacements that start next week and I'll sure be glad to be at full capacity again.
Personally, my wife and I are expecting our first baby in July. So we've been busy getting things ready for our new addition. We started child birth classes this week, so the semester here is ending at just the right time. On the other side of the spectrum, my grandmother, who helped raise me, had to be put in a nursing home this past month. This was a very difficult decision for her and our family. But I think it's the right choice. I've been having some mixed emotions over the past few months—I guess that's why they call it the circle of life.
Academically, I've done a ton of research and writing about e-books this semester. But the irony is that I haven't really had time to read any. So, I'm looking forward to get some reading done this summer. Does anyone have any recommendations related to education or technology?
Well, I think I am signing off for the semester (unless something really catches my eye in the next week or so). Best of luck to everyone!
Friday, April 29, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Followup on Second Life Synchronous Discussion
I facilitated an online discussion about using e-books for my Instructional Applications of the Internet class last week. The technology we used to meet was Second Life (SL).
Initially, I was prepared to conduct this discussion using the voice chat feature. But as we were waiting on the Kent State island to all meet up as a group, I noticed that music was piping into where we were meeting. After asking some people in the class, you can turn off this music using your individual preferences. I turned it off on my client. But I wasn't sure if everyone else in the class had turned their background off, though. So, I decided to hold my chat via text.
I am a pretty slow typist, so the discussion didn't do as smooth as I think it would have using DimDim. When I would start typing a comment or question, it seemed as though we were already discussing another point by the time I finished my point. This was kind of frustrating.
I really don't think the avatars added anything to the chat either. They were more distracting than anything.
There were also two people in the class posting on the Vista discussion board asking where to meet in SL. I had to read their posts, get their SL handles, and invite them to teleport to where we were holding our discussion. Finding a place to meet in SL is much, much more difficult than just providing a link like we did with DimDim.
While I think SL has its purpose and applications, I felt as though it detracted from my discussion rather than enhanced it.
If we would have spent significant time as class learning the ins and out of everything that SL can do, perhaps we could used the discussion to leverage some of the more advanced features of SL. I fully understand that there is some value in using SL for discussion so that we are at least exposed to SL. If it wasn't for this class, I wouldn't have any real understanding of SL.
I think the overhead to getting SL to work is not worth the benefit for a synchronous, text discussion. I think that using SL for just a text chat is equivalent to only using car to listen to the radio (and not driving it). While your car certainly has a fully-functioning radio, it's main purpose is to be driven. And while SL has a working text chat feature, it is really designed to do something so, so much more than just text chat.
Initially, I was prepared to conduct this discussion using the voice chat feature. But as we were waiting on the Kent State island to all meet up as a group, I noticed that music was piping into where we were meeting. After asking some people in the class, you can turn off this music using your individual preferences. I turned it off on my client. But I wasn't sure if everyone else in the class had turned their background off, though. So, I decided to hold my chat via text.
I am a pretty slow typist, so the discussion didn't do as smooth as I think it would have using DimDim. When I would start typing a comment or question, it seemed as though we were already discussing another point by the time I finished my point. This was kind of frustrating.
I really don't think the avatars added anything to the chat either. They were more distracting than anything.
There were also two people in the class posting on the Vista discussion board asking where to meet in SL. I had to read their posts, get their SL handles, and invite them to teleport to where we were holding our discussion. Finding a place to meet in SL is much, much more difficult than just providing a link like we did with DimDim.
While I think SL has its purpose and applications, I felt as though it detracted from my discussion rather than enhanced it.
If we would have spent significant time as class learning the ins and out of everything that SL can do, perhaps we could used the discussion to leverage some of the more advanced features of SL. I fully understand that there is some value in using SL for discussion so that we are at least exposed to SL. If it wasn't for this class, I wouldn't have any real understanding of SL.
I think the overhead to getting SL to work is not worth the benefit for a synchronous, text discussion. I think that using SL for just a text chat is equivalent to only using car to listen to the radio (and not driving it). While your car certainly has a fully-functioning radio, it's main purpose is to be driven. And while SL has a working text chat feature, it is really designed to do something so, so much more than just text chat.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
My So-Called Second Life
I am leading an online, synchronous discussion in Second Life tomorrow evening. The topic of the discussion is electronic text books, which really don't have anything directly to do with Second Life.
I've never used Second Life before, though I have seen it demoed at workshops. I know I am late to the party, but I am pretty impressed with it. I have spent a few hours figuring out how to navigate, chat, fly, and even speak with my own voice.
I can see why Second Life seems to have peeked in its popularity a few years back—it really takes a lot of time to get yourself acquainted. This is definitely not for the casual user. It really takes practice to get good at figuring your way around. I do have to say that the Caledon Oxbridge University Community Gateway provides an excellent tutorial on how to get started in Second Life.
After a few hours of use, I do find that the experience is really unparalleled to any other service I've used before. Only time will tell if the extensive learning curve will be worth it for my needs.
Hopefully my discussion goes well tomorrow. Either way, I'll blog about my experience facilitating a discussion in Second Life. Wish me luck!
I've never used Second Life before, though I have seen it demoed at workshops. I know I am late to the party, but I am pretty impressed with it. I have spent a few hours figuring out how to navigate, chat, fly, and even speak with my own voice.
I can see why Second Life seems to have peeked in its popularity a few years back—it really takes a lot of time to get yourself acquainted. This is definitely not for the casual user. It really takes practice to get good at figuring your way around. I do have to say that the Caledon Oxbridge University Community Gateway provides an excellent tutorial on how to get started in Second Life.
After a few hours of use, I do find that the experience is really unparalleled to any other service I've used before. Only time will tell if the extensive learning curve will be worth it for my needs.
Hopefully my discussion goes well tomorrow. Either way, I'll blog about my experience facilitating a discussion in Second Life. Wish me luck!
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Perils of Pocasting on the Road
Well, I spent the past four days in Las Vegas (which is about too and half days too long to be in Vegas if you ask me) attending the NAB 2011 show. I was there to evaluate new equipment that Oberlin College will be purchasing for the Art and Cinema programs for the next year.
While I was there, our class podcast was due. So I had the bright idea of creating my podcast in my hotel room. In my podcast I would share products I saw at the show for the Oberlin faculty. I thought a podcast would be a good venue for this. I looked at the podcast like I was doing a radio piece just for the Oberlin faculty. While I thought it turned out OK, recording on the road presented some challenges:
While I was there, our class podcast was due. So I had the bright idea of creating my podcast in my hotel room. In my podcast I would share products I saw at the show for the Oberlin faculty. I thought a podcast would be a good venue for this. I looked at the podcast like I was doing a radio piece just for the Oberlin faculty. While I thought it turned out OK, recording on the road presented some challenges:
- Hotel Internet: For $11.99 per 24 hours, one would think the internet connection would be a little more stable.
- Air Conditioning: I broke my podcast into little segments (one segment per product). It seemed as soon as I was close to being done completing a segment, the AC in room would start blowing and I would have to start all over again.
- Paper-thin walls. In the time I was recording I was interrupted by the following: housekeeping, the vacuum in the hallway, someone sliding a menu of a pizza place under my door, and loud, drunk people (of course) screaming the hallway.
- Podcasting is a lot harder than it looks or sounds.
- If you are going to create a podcast in a hotel room, place the "Do Not Disturb" sign on your door.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
E-book readers are everywhere!
18 months ago, I was flying from New York City home to Cleveland. The woman next to me on the airplane had an Amazon Kindle. While my office had one first-generation Kindle that we lent to faculty (not very popular, I might add), I remember taking a mental note about the woman's Kindle since it was one of the first times that I had really seen an e-book reader in the "wild".
Fast-forward to last week. On a flight from Florida to Ohio, I counted no less than 4 iPads and 6 Kindles on the airplane. While on vacation in Florida, I noticed people from all age ranges (from young adult to grandmothers) reading various e-book readers at the beach or the pool. Some even kept their e-book readers in one-gallon, clear plastic baggies so the reader would get sandy or waterlogged.
It seems that the "beach book" has been replaced by the "beach e-book reader". It doesn't have the same ring to it—but have you ever tried turning a page of an actual book while inside of a Ziplock bag?
Advantage e-book reader.
Fast-forward to last week. On a flight from Florida to Ohio, I counted no less than 4 iPads and 6 Kindles on the airplane. While on vacation in Florida, I noticed people from all age ranges (from young adult to grandmothers) reading various e-book readers at the beach or the pool. Some even kept their e-book readers in one-gallon, clear plastic baggies so the reader would get sandy or waterlogged.
It seems that the "beach book" has been replaced by the "beach e-book reader". It doesn't have the same ring to it—but have you ever tried turning a page of an actual book while inside of a Ziplock bag?
Advantage e-book reader.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Changing Education Paradigms
My boss shared this video with me today. I found it to be insightful as well as thought provoking, yet it does not provide any concrete solutions.
What does everyone else think about Sir Ken Robinson's thoughts on Changing Education Paradigms?
What does everyone else think about Sir Ken Robinson's thoughts on Changing Education Paradigms?
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
iPad as Media Creation Tool
There's no doubt that in the last year that the popularity of iPads and other tablet computing devices has soared.
For the most part, the iPad and other tablets have excelled as media consumption devices. They are wonderful devices to watch movies and videos, listen to music, and read web sites and electronic books. But as media creation tools, these tablets really lack. Sure, you can compose text in many apps including Apple's Pages, but the lack of a physical keyboard really makes typing more difficult than on a desktop or laptop. Even drawing on an actual computer is much easier if you have access to a graphics tablet and pen.
Creating and recording audio on tablets is easier than drawing or writing, but I wouldn't say that the iPad is a better audio creation tool than an actual computer—until now.
At the iPad 2 launch a few weeks ago, most people (myself included) were most excited about the new device. But the launch of GarageBand for is equally exciting. It makes working with and creating audio easier than on a computer. The ability to press the screen and make a drumbeat, to glide your finger across the glass and strum guitar strings, and playing piano keys is no much more natural using the touchscreen than using the QWERTY keyboard on your laptop.
There are really dozens of apps that truly impress me for the iPod/iPad, but these apps usually do not have a Mac/PC counterpart—they exist only on a mobile computing platform. But GarageBand for iPad is a perfect supplement for GarageBand for Mac. It is not quite a fully-fledged replacement for the Mac version, but it is a great place to start on an audio composition and then send it over to your Mac, especially is you are experimenting with virtual instruments.
Most of the shortfalls of creating media on a tablet occur when looking through the lens of how this would work on a desktop. Maybe we need to re-imagine how we create and communicate using a tablet— utilizing the device's strengths instead of looking at it as a touchscreen laptop.
For the most part, the iPad and other tablets have excelled as media consumption devices. They are wonderful devices to watch movies and videos, listen to music, and read web sites and electronic books. But as media creation tools, these tablets really lack. Sure, you can compose text in many apps including Apple's Pages, but the lack of a physical keyboard really makes typing more difficult than on a desktop or laptop. Even drawing on an actual computer is much easier if you have access to a graphics tablet and pen.
Creating and recording audio on tablets is easier than drawing or writing, but I wouldn't say that the iPad is a better audio creation tool than an actual computer—until now.
At the iPad 2 launch a few weeks ago, most people (myself included) were most excited about the new device. But the launch of GarageBand for is equally exciting. It makes working with and creating audio easier than on a computer. The ability to press the screen and make a drumbeat, to glide your finger across the glass and strum guitar strings, and playing piano keys is no much more natural using the touchscreen than using the QWERTY keyboard on your laptop.
There are really dozens of apps that truly impress me for the iPod/iPad, but these apps usually do not have a Mac/PC counterpart—they exist only on a mobile computing platform. But GarageBand for iPad is a perfect supplement for GarageBand for Mac. It is not quite a fully-fledged replacement for the Mac version, but it is a great place to start on an audio composition and then send it over to your Mac, especially is you are experimenting with virtual instruments.
Most of the shortfalls of creating media on a tablet occur when looking through the lens of how this would work on a desktop. Maybe we need to re-imagine how we create and communicate using a tablet— utilizing the device's strengths instead of looking at it as a touchscreen laptop.
Monday, March 7, 2011
Editing Others' Wiki Entries
It's been a bit of time since I have last blogged. My apologies. I think that this time of the year where everything comes to a head.
Take one part other school assignments, one part day job, two parts time for family, one part a bad cold and you have a few weeks of silence from me in the blogosphere.
In these past few weeks our class blog has really gained traction and a lot of entries have been added. It seems about half of the class has started editing the wiki. Now there are enough entries that I think we can start editing others' posts instead of just adding new entries.
My goal from this week on is to spend half my time editing and adding to others' posts and the other half adding new content in new content areas. In addition to just editing, I think that our wiki is missing some multimedia elements, so I think that I will also work on augmenting entries with images and videos.
Like I mentioned in my previous post, I am a little worried about stepping on other people's toes. I am still a little worried about this, but I guess stepping on toes may be a part of any collaborative process.
What does everyone else think about what a good ratio for adding new content and editing others' entries?
Take one part other school assignments, one part day job, two parts time for family, one part a bad cold and you have a few weeks of silence from me in the blogosphere.
In these past few weeks our class blog has really gained traction and a lot of entries have been added. It seems about half of the class has started editing the wiki. Now there are enough entries that I think we can start editing others' posts instead of just adding new entries.
My goal from this week on is to spend half my time editing and adding to others' posts and the other half adding new content in new content areas. In addition to just editing, I think that our wiki is missing some multimedia elements, so I think that I will also work on augmenting entries with images and videos.
Like I mentioned in my previous post, I am a little worried about stepping on other people's toes. I am still a little worried about this, but I guess stepping on toes may be a part of any collaborative process.
What does everyone else think about what a good ratio for adding new content and editing others' entries?
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
The Wiki Prayer
Please grant me the serenity to accept the pages I cannot edit,
The courage to edit the pages I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference
— The Wiki Prayer
I saw this in "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms" by Will Richardson (3rd Edition, 2010) and chuckled.
As we start our class wiki, I think many of us, myself included, are a little apprehensive on where to start. I think that we don't want to be stepping on anyone's toes. But at the same time we have to start somewhere. I have a feeling that this is going to be a little like a snowball. It's going to start off small, but after a little we'll get the ball rolling and it will turn into something substantial (my hope at least).
I think wikis are a little bit scattered and messy by their nature, so there's no way we can effectively organize and assign the collaboration of 20 people. So I think we need to just jump in head first and get started, which may be the most difficult step.
As we start our class wiki, I think many of us, myself included, are a little apprehensive on where to start. I think that we don't want to be stepping on anyone's toes. But at the same time we have to start somewhere. I have a feeling that this is going to be a little like a snowball. It's going to start off small, but after a little we'll get the ball rolling and it will turn into something substantial (my hope at least).
I think wikis are a little bit scattered and messy by their nature, so there's no way we can effectively organize and assign the collaboration of 20 people. So I think we need to just jump in head first and get started, which may be the most difficult step.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
-Lao-tzu
...And the creation of our class wiki begins with a single entry. Here goes nothing.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Lynda.com: A Supplement For Instruction
Working in education and the digital media fields, it is important to stay on top of the latest software and technologies.
There are a variety of ways keep up:
There are a variety of ways keep up:
- Simply tinkering with new software with no guide or manual (one of my favorite ways)
- Reading the software manual or visiting the developer's website
- Reading third-party books (either online or physical books)
- Searching the web for instructions on how to perform specific tasks
- Watching tutorial videos
While all of these methods have their merits, I would like to recommend a service called Lynda.com, which provides high-quality video tutorials.
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| Courtesy of Channels.com |
The three big advantages of using Lynda.com are:
- The instructors are excellent. Most of the instructors work as professionals in the fields where they are providing instruction. They really know the software inside and out.
- The quality of the videos is superb. Have you ever tried to watch a video tutorial on YouTube where the camera is shaking and the audio is either too loud or too soft? I think it makes the video unwatchable. The production value with Lynda.com doesn't distract from the content.
- It's (almost) always up-to-date. Upon the release of new versions of software, Lynda.com usually has a tutorial posted shortly thereafter. And it's much better than having a bookshelf full of books for old software.
If you are in need of any software training, checkout Lynda.com. Their testimonials speak for themselves. Access to the online training library costs about $25/month. You can view some training modules before you decide to sign-up.
I've used it for several months and it's virtually replaced buying any more software books, which will probably be out-of-date as soon as I bring them home.
Has anyone tried Lynda.com or any other video training service? What is your favorite method of learning new software and tech tools?
Friday, February 11, 2011
Homework: 20 Minutes of Twittering
This week we are starting a class wiki about "Using Online tools to increase connectivity and communication with students". Upon thinking about this wiki, I remembered an episode of The Simpsons from last year where they get new, tech-savvy teacher who assigns "20 minutes of twittering" for homework.
Thought I'd share something mildy amusing since it's a Friday.
(note: all text on the video is flipped)
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Real Page Numbers For Kindle Books
Amazon recently announced that they will be assigning real page numbers to their Kindle books.
One of the great features of the Kindle is the ability to change font and text size in their e-books. But for scholarly types, this makes citations difficult when using electronic books. Hopefully this make citations easier for those using e-books.
While this is an improvement for those needing to make citations, David Pogue, NY Times tech writer, calls this an imperfect solution.
I think adding real page numbers is an improvement because it provides an absolute location that is the same whether you are using dead-tree media or electronic media. Before this change, the "location numbers" didn't easily translate to those reading physical books.
What are your thoughts?
One of the great features of the Kindle is the ability to change font and text size in their e-books. But for scholarly types, this makes citations difficult when using electronic books. Hopefully this make citations easier for those using e-books.
While this is an improvement for those needing to make citations, David Pogue, NY Times tech writer, calls this an imperfect solution.
I think adding real page numbers is an improvement because it provides an absolute location that is the same whether you are using dead-tree media or electronic media. Before this change, the "location numbers" didn't easily translate to those reading physical books.
What are your thoughts?
Sunday, January 30, 2011
iPad: Not Just for Hipsters—It's for Grandparents Too!
In the Spring of 2010, weeks after the Apple iPad hit store shelves, my wife and I were enjoying dinner with my grandparents when the subject of email arose. "I'm the only person in my golf foursome who doesn't have an email address," my 86 year-old grandfather submitted. "I think it's time to get a computer." After years of pleading from his children and grandchildren to get a computer and email address, the final straw for Grandpa to get digital was that he wasn't getting his tee times.
He then proceeded to pull out an ad from Reader's Digest for some all-in-one PC that was definitely marketed to the 55+ crowd. "I'm thinking of buying one of these. What do you think?"
Looking at that computer ad, I was having flashbacks from 10 years earlier when I set my grandparents up with an old Mac desktop and dial-up internet. Between Grandpa having trouble with the mouse and both grandparents not really understanding that they couldn't use the phone when they were on the internet, I was in 24/7 tech support purgatory. Barely a day went by when I didn't receive a tech support request. After two months, Grandma called me and asked me to remove the Mac from their kitchen. They were breaking up with their computer. And if the computer had feelings, I'd bet that the split was mutual.
There was no way that I was going to recommend another desktop to my grandparents. "We just got a new iPad from work. It's basically a like a big iPhone," I suggested as I pulled my iPhone out to show them. "I think something like this will suit you guys well. Let me bring it over next week and you can see if you like it." Intrigued, but unimpressed with the iPhone, they agreed.
I brought the loaner iPad to their condo the next week and Grandpa immediately fell in love with it. Being in their eighties, neither Grandma's or Grandpa's eyesight is what it used to be, and the ability to zoom in on text by pinching the screen was amazing to them. The touchscreen was so intuitive. If you wanted to select something on the screen, you just touched it. There was no fussy computer mouse and cursor. It was so simple, so user-friendly, and, most importantly, it was so grandparent-friendly. I left their condo with Grandpa's Visa card in hand and instructions to return with an iPad.
They opted for the iPad with 3G, so we wouldn't have to worry about ordering DSL and then installing a wireless router. With 3G, the iPad just gets internet access from the cell tower. There was only piece of equipment for me to support: the iPad.
Within one hour, they had a new Gmail account, had an app where they could play the card game Bridge, had other family members' email addresses in their address book, and some interesting websites bookmarked. They were all set.
I could really tell that Grandpa loved his iPad when he arrived at a family BBQ with it tucked under his arm. This was definitely going much better than the Mac desktop experiment from a decade ago. But outside of an occasional email from Grandpa, I didn't know how much he used his iPad. But one day he called me and asked, "How do I get on facebook?" It was right then that I knew that I would not be getting a request to return the iPad. It was here to stay.
We live so much of our lives online. This is how we share pictures, videos, and stories. For so long, my grandparents were not a part of this digital community. Now they can follow the lives of their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren scattered around the Midwest. And they can share their lives, too.
For all the criticism people have for the iPad (underpowered, overpriced, doesn't support Flash), it has been a transformative product. The iPad has opened the digital world to many people that wouldn't be online using a traditional computer. It has made my life richer by being able to share my digital life with my grandparents.
Now I'm just waiting for Grandpa to ask me to set him up with a twitter account.
He then proceeded to pull out an ad from Reader's Digest for some all-in-one PC that was definitely marketed to the 55+ crowd. "I'm thinking of buying one of these. What do you think?"
A video I sent my Grandpa of my nephew, Henry, using an iPad
There was no way that I was going to recommend another desktop to my grandparents. "We just got a new iPad from work. It's basically a like a big iPhone," I suggested as I pulled my iPhone out to show them. "I think something like this will suit you guys well. Let me bring it over next week and you can see if you like it." Intrigued, but unimpressed with the iPhone, they agreed.
They opted for the iPad with 3G, so we wouldn't have to worry about ordering DSL and then installing a wireless router. With 3G, the iPad just gets internet access from the cell tower. There was only piece of equipment for me to support: the iPad.
Within one hour, they had a new Gmail account, had an app where they could play the card game Bridge, had other family members' email addresses in their address book, and some interesting websites bookmarked. They were all set.
I could really tell that Grandpa loved his iPad when he arrived at a family BBQ with it tucked under his arm. This was definitely going much better than the Mac desktop experiment from a decade ago. But outside of an occasional email from Grandpa, I didn't know how much he used his iPad. But one day he called me and asked, "How do I get on facebook?" It was right then that I knew that I would not be getting a request to return the iPad. It was here to stay.
We live so much of our lives online. This is how we share pictures, videos, and stories. For so long, my grandparents were not a part of this digital community. Now they can follow the lives of their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren scattered around the Midwest. And they can share their lives, too.
For all the criticism people have for the iPad (underpowered, overpriced, doesn't support Flash), it has been a transformative product. The iPad has opened the digital world to many people that wouldn't be online using a traditional computer. It has made my life richer by being able to share my digital life with my grandparents.
Now I'm just waiting for Grandpa to ask me to set him up with a twitter account.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
The Day The Textbook Died?
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| Image from Amazon.com |
Part of me credits this to wide availability of paperbacks to public libraries (where I usually get my paperbacks) and the relatively unavailability of Kindle books from lending resources such as libraries. In addition, this is another indication that we want things instantly and maybe $9.00 is worth the cost to read the new best-seller now opposed to waiting three weeks to get the hard copy at your library.
The other big factor is that you can read Kindle books on many different devices. And the whispersync technology is pretty slick.
The much lower prices on Kindle books doesn't hurt either.
From an educator's perspective, what does everyone think of this sea change in the publishing industry? What does this mean for you, your classroom, and the courses you teach? I'd love to hear you thoughts.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
The Problem with the Kindle Store and eBook Adoption
The textbook for my Instructional Applications of the Internet course is "Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms" by Will Richardson (3rd Edition, 2010). So, like any good Kindle owner, I purchased this book for the Kindle instead of purchasing the physical book. Not only did this save me a few bucks and a few days in shipping, but it also lets me use some of the advanced technological features of my new Kindle.
To my chagrin, the digital version of the book that I received is from 2006 (still the 3rd Edition, though). If I was reading "Jane Eyre", "The Catcher in the Rye", or "Animal Farm" this wouldn't be a problem at all. But five year-old book written on Web 2.0 technologies isn't worth the e-ink and e-paper used to print it.
As you can see on the image on the left, which was taken from the Amazon page for the physical book (2010), the link to the Kindle book is a bit deceiving—leading me to believe that I am purchasing the exact same product in a digital format. To be fair to Amazon, if you dig deep enough on the webpage for the digital version, it does list the publish date as March 6, 2006. But to make matters worse (or more confusing) for the consumer, Amazon displays the customer reviews for the paperback version of the book on the webpage for the digital version.
So far, I absolutely love my Kindle and I've alerted Amazon about this issue. I'm hoping to receive a refund or a credit for this purchase. My past dealings with Amazon support have been positive, so I'm thinking this won't be a big issue with Amazon.
But this scenario brings up a larger issue with adopting new technology, especially in terms of digital media.
Are we sacrificing convenience and lower prices for quality? I would say we are, even if just a little bit. But I would argue that sacrificing a little quality is worth it.
Does a Kindle version of a book have same feel as a physical book? Not really. But I can read for hours on a Kindle with no strain on my eyes.
And these types of issues have been discussed ad naseum in terms of digital music. Does an MP3 from iTunes have the same fidelity as a physical CD? Not quite. But it's close enough to the point where most consumers don't care or can't tell the difference.
But this issue I am experiencing with Amazon is not a quality issue, it is an accuracy issue. How many songs would iTunes sell if they sold an album like "Led Zeppelin IV" without Stairway to Heaven? I'm confident that it wouldn't be even close to the well over 6 billion iTunes songs sold as of 2009.
So we've been hearing so much buzz about the widespread adoption of eBooks and eReaders, but for these to become as commonplace as MP3s and iPods, the onus is on the content creators (authors, publishers) and distributors (Amazon, B&N, Apple, etc) to provide the same content in the digital version as they do in their tangible counterparts.
I'm hoping this isn't too much to ask. If it is, I guess I'll just stick to reading the classics on my Kindle and read my technology books in paperback. Sounds a little ironic, doesn't it?
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As you can see on the image on the left, which was taken from the Amazon page for the physical book (2010), the link to the Kindle book is a bit deceiving—leading me to believe that I am purchasing the exact same product in a digital format. To be fair to Amazon, if you dig deep enough on the webpage for the digital version, it does list the publish date as March 6, 2006. But to make matters worse (or more confusing) for the consumer, Amazon displays the customer reviews for the paperback version of the book on the webpage for the digital version.
So far, I absolutely love my Kindle and I've alerted Amazon about this issue. I'm hoping to receive a refund or a credit for this purchase. My past dealings with Amazon support have been positive, so I'm thinking this won't be a big issue with Amazon.
But this scenario brings up a larger issue with adopting new technology, especially in terms of digital media.
Are we sacrificing convenience and lower prices for quality? I would say we are, even if just a little bit. But I would argue that sacrificing a little quality is worth it.
Does a Kindle version of a book have same feel as a physical book? Not really. But I can read for hours on a Kindle with no strain on my eyes.
And these types of issues have been discussed ad naseum in terms of digital music. Does an MP3 from iTunes have the same fidelity as a physical CD? Not quite. But it's close enough to the point where most consumers don't care or can't tell the difference.
But this issue I am experiencing with Amazon is not a quality issue, it is an accuracy issue. How many songs would iTunes sell if they sold an album like "Led Zeppelin IV" without Stairway to Heaven? I'm confident that it wouldn't be even close to the well over 6 billion iTunes songs sold as of 2009.
So we've been hearing so much buzz about the widespread adoption of eBooks and eReaders, but for these to become as commonplace as MP3s and iPods, the onus is on the content creators (authors, publishers) and distributors (Amazon, B&N, Apple, etc) to provide the same content in the digital version as they do in their tangible counterparts.
I'm hoping this isn't too much to ask. If it is, I guess I'll just stick to reading the classics on my Kindle and read my technology books in paperback. Sounds a little ironic, doesn't it?
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Running and Technology
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| courtesy of Apple.com |
One of my goals for 2011 is to increase the number of days out of the week that I run. I hope to run five days a week. In order to track my mileage (since I run indoors in the Winter), I purchased a Nike+ sensor that tracks my speed and distance and sends this info to my iPhone (also works with some iPods).
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| Screenshot of my Nike Running web page |
While my intention was really just to have a relatively accurate way to track my mileage indoors (which this does pretty well), I have been pleasantly surprised by the rich web experience on Nike Running's website. Not only does the website track my speed and distance, it provides detailed graphs of my speed throughout the run (which allows me to pinpoint what points in a when I get fatigued, etc), allows me to add additional information (weather, road conditions, etc) about particular runs, and even allows you to create an avatar called a Mini (think Mii for Nintendo Wii) that acts as a virtual cheerleader.
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| My Nike Mini |
There are other features of the Nike Running website I am not yet using. There are different training programs (virtual coaches) and a social media component to the site that I have yet to try. I am using a training program independent of Nike and don't have many friends that are also using the Nike+ system.
I would highly recommend this system to anyone looking to get more serious about tracking their runs. I am, by no means, a fast or competitive runner, but this site helps me stay motivated and accountable—especially on the Winter mornings that I don't feel like running at all.
Sometimes I think it's funny that while running is viewed as a sport where the only thing to you need is the open road and a pair of shoes (and sometimes you don't even need shoes!), that I am connecting a sensor in my shoe to my iPhone, which is also connected to a pair of bluetooth headphones playing a customized running playlist. And when the run is over my iPhone uploads all of the data to Nike's server, where all of the data is tabulated and analyzed while a mini, digital version of myself cheers the real me on.
Fitness in 2011, isn't it great?
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
My New Kindle
I received an Amazon Kindle from my wonderful wife for my birthday this past weekend. I received the 6" Wi-Fi Kindle.
So far, it is great! I was able to download the textbook for my Instructional Applications of the Internet course and start reading within minutes.
I been pleasantly surprised with the quality and contrast of the e-ink, the battery life, and just how small and light the device is. Unlike the Apple iPad, I could read the Kindle for hours without it getting to heavy or getting eye strain.
Using the Kindle store was a breeze also. While many of Kindle books are less-expensive than buying hard copies, I am a bit concerned that Amazon's DRM is not conducive to public libraries and that I may be buying more digital books instead of checking them out from my local library.
After a few months of use, I'll post a comprehensive review of all of the pros and cons of the Kindle.
So far, it is great! I was able to download the textbook for my Instructional Applications of the Internet course and start reading within minutes.
I been pleasantly surprised with the quality and contrast of the e-ink, the battery life, and just how small and light the device is. Unlike the Apple iPad, I could read the Kindle for hours without it getting to heavy or getting eye strain.
Using the Kindle store was a breeze also. While many of Kindle books are less-expensive than buying hard copies, I am a bit concerned that Amazon's DRM is not conducive to public libraries and that I may be buying more digital books instead of checking them out from my local library.
After a few months of use, I'll post a comprehensive review of all of the pros and cons of the Kindle.
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