Ryan Collins

Flowchart: Should you buy an iPad?

// April 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Hardware, Humor, Mobile Computing

I worked up a little flowchart in Pages on my iPad to help you make your decision on whether you should buy one. This post and the graphic were totally created on my iPad.

iPad initial impressions

// April 7th, 2010 // No Comments » // Hardware, Mobile Computing

There are enough other reviews on the web about the iPad, so I’m going to focus on my experiences and how I’ve begun to use the iPad in my home life and how it may be used in education.

The purchase:
I reserved my ipad the day they opened reservations on line so I would be guaranteed to pick one up on April 3rd. I didn’t trust Saturday delivery, so I headed to Columbus to the Easton Apple Store to stand in the “privileged line”, the one which had the others who had also reserved their iPad. When we arrived at 7:30am, there were approximately 40 people in the reserved line and about twice that many in the “unreserved” line, those that were hoping to still pick one up.

Anyway, I bought mine and while my brother and sister played with iPads in the store, I pulled out my Macbook and setup my iPad. Some reviews talk about the iPad ready for use right out of the box, but mine popped up the “connect to iTunes” symbol. The initial sync didn’t take long, but I really wasn’t syncing up too much.

Initial Impressions:
Fast! It is probably the fastest browsing experience that I’ve ever experienced. For the first time it was the speed of the network and not the hardware slowing me down. The onscreen keyboard isn’t that bad, I’m typing this article on it, but it does take some getting used to. The biggest problem is keeping your fingers up off the glass so it doesn’t register additional “key” presses. The other issue is that it is practically impossible to type without looking at the keyboard, so if you are typing in information that is on paper, it will be a lot slower. Im debating whether to buy the bluetooth keyboard. I paired it with my old Think Outside keyboard, which was a piece of cake, but that keyboard is getting old and the k and l keys do not work the best. I also bought the Apple case for it, which helps put the iPad at a good angle to use or type on.

Longer term impressions:
There are more situations where a tablet can be used than a laptop, and the additional screen space makes the iPad a lot more useful than the iPod Touch. For example, at a meeting I can have the iPad in my lap or on the table. Where the iPad shines is when I want to show others information or something on the screen. I can just hold up the iPad or hand it to them without the awkwardness one would experience with a laptop. Maybe it’s just the websites I visit, but lack of Flash has not really been an issue. A lot of the video sites already support HTML 5, which works flawlessly on the iPad.

I’ve been impressed with the number of iPad ready apps already in the app store. Some of my favorite apps, such as Evernote, WordPress, and iSSH are already available.

Educational implications:
That being said about Flash above, students would notice the inability to use some of there favorite sites. Sites such as Starfall, which would be amazing on the iPad, fail from lack of Flash. The availability of Pages and Keynote bring some productivity to the iPad, but the clumsy method of using iTunes to transfer files would hinder their use in the classroom.

Closing thoughts:
I’m going to be posting more as I work with the device longer. I’m excited to use it to teach a lesson in a kindergarten class to see how well it will work as a teacher device. Some accessories will probably end of purchasing include the camera connection kit and the Bluetooth keyboard. The big unanswered question is “who is the iPad for?”, and, unfortunately I can’t answer that yet.

The iPad has landed

// April 3rd, 2010 // No Comments » // Hardware, Mobile Computing

Braving almost 70° weather I arrived at the Easton Apple store at 7:40 am to pick up my reserved 32gb iPad. I’ll have a longer review later, but I’m currently typing this blog post while using the Wordpress app and sitting in Cosí.

So far, So cool.

Organize your email with a Flagged folder

// May 12th, 2009 // No Comments » // Featured, Mobile Computing, Software, Time Management

I have multiple email accounts, and read it from various devices. It’s all based on IMAP, so folders, messages read, etc. stay the same from device to device. The problem I was having was when I’d read a message on my iPod Touch or Samsung Omnia (a Windows Mobile cellphone). Sometimes it would be a message that I would need to act on, but can’t right at that moment. A lot of email clients allow you to flag a message so you can remember to go back to it, but that’s not an option on my iPod Touch or the Omnia. At first I’d just mark the messages unread, but that also gets messy (not knowing if I have new messages because of the unread indicator).

What I’ve done now is to create a folder called Flagged for each one of my email accounts. Now when I get a message I need to act upon it later, I’ll move it to this Flagged folder.

Sometimes I will just forward the message to my Remember the Milk account, but that’s a post for another day.

The Kindle DX is available for pre-order, does anyone care?

// May 6th, 2009 // 6 Comments » // Hardware, Mobile Computing, Op Ed

Today’s announcement of the Kindle DX, a 9.7″ version of the Kindle is being hailed as some sort of savior of the newspaper industry and a breakthrough for the college textbook market.

At almost $500 I don’t see it as either. The biggest negative about the Kindle will also be the last thing fixed, if it is ever addressed, and that is the ability to re-sell your content (or at least lend it to others). I’m sure the textbook companies are falling over themselves to support the Kindle. Here is the ability to sell a text book, with no production/delivery costs, and then know that the book will not be resold at the end of the semester.

The newspaper subscription idea has merit, but then again, they need to lower their subscription rates. I’ve looked at transferring my USA Today subscription to digital, but it costs almost the same as getting a paper copy! At least with the paper copy I can lend/give it to someone else, or cut out an article to save.

Is anyone looking at using the Kindle in a school? What would be the advantages of it over something like a netbook?

The $99 mobile Internet Device

// February 17th, 2009 // No Comments » // Hardware, Mobile Computing

Nvidia Plans To Power $99 Mobile Internet Devices

Nvidia has announced that it plans to power $99 mobile internet devices with its Tegra 600 series chips, perhaps as early as this summer.

If they can get an Android version released at $99 that is something that could be a game changer in education. Although I’m a big fan of the iPod Touch being an option for a 1-to-1 program, a $99 device with keyboard and more openness would easily make one-to-one programs a reality.

It seems like I’m always waiting…

Portable blogging

// November 11th, 2008 // No Comments » // Mobile Computing, Security

I’m testing out a mobile blogging client for my Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone, MoBlog. It appears to work ok, including allowing me to insert an image from my phone. I’ll post a longer review once I’ve had more time to play with it.

Interactive response systems

// April 4th, 2008 // 4 Comments » // 21st Century Skills, Classroom Management, Hardware, Mobile Computing, Software

photo credit: swpermanAs we investigate ways to use mobile Internet devices in our classrooms, it hit me that they could be used as an interactive student response system (ISRS). Since current ISRSs are around $100 per person, why not invest in a more useful device such as the iPod Touch, Sony PSP, or Nintendo DS (with Opera)?

I found one company that already is thinking this way, Pocket Mobility with their Quizzler Pro product. Me on the other hand, loves the challenge of coding something up myself.

Has anyone worked with ISRSs? What did you like? What didn’t you like? Is this something I should look at as a summer project?

Your assignment: 20 minutes on your DS before school

// March 31st, 2008 // No Comments » // 21st Century Skills, Hardware, Mobile Computing

Scottish authorities have begun other trials of ‘More Brain Training with Dr Kawashima’ on the Nintendo DS in 16 schools:

A 20-minute burst of the ‘brain training’ exercises on Nintendo’s DS console at the start of the day apparently improves performance in maths tests by as much as 10 per cent, according to a Scottish study.

The results of the completed 10 week study certainly are fascinating:

In a maths test at the end of the trial, their performance improved by an average 10 per cent, and the time to complete the test also dropped from 17 minutes to 13 minutes and nine seconds.

Pretty impressive results, although I don’t know what game they’re talking about, unless it happens to be Brain Age 2. Checking Amazon UK shows a DS game called More Brain Traing, which may just be a relabel Brain Age 2. I guess I’ll have to do some more checking. What a solid return on your investment though. It would cost a class of 25 $3,750 to outfit the entire class with a DS. Throw in the DS Browser and you have even more ways to integrate it into your classroom.

How long until a company comes out with a mobile version of Brain Age 2 that you can play from any mobile computing device?

The iPod Touch Trial

// March 13th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // 21st Century Skills, Hardware, Mobile Computing

I’ve ordered three iPod Touches to be used in a trial at the high school, middle school, and elementary level. Stealing some ideas from John Schinker, I’m putting forth the following questions for the participants to answer:

Does this device work well enough to have a place in our schools?

How could this be used effectively with students?

What limitations are there that would affect its usefulness?

Are there solutions to overcome those limitations?

What technical hurdles would have to be overcome to make the use of these devices successful?

If we were to start using these computers, what could they replace? What could we buy fewer of to make this cost effective?

Are these durable enough for student use?

Is the iPod Touch too complicated / different / cumbersome / annoying to be used in this environment?

I’ve started to come up with some ideas on how they can be used. My main goal to start is to focus mainly on communication. I’ve setup the Prologue theme for Wordpress, and am currently recruiting teachers to try it out. I’ve also installed the Elgg.org Open Source social network software at the HS and am investigating ways that it can be used in the classroom.

What are some of the important aspects that you can see implementing with a 1-to-1 program?

p.s. I’m trying out publishing from Google Docs, let’s see how well that works!