Ryan Collins

🕹️ Do Something Great! 😄

Author: ryan

  • Using RSS like it’s 1990

    I’m a big console fan, preferring to do as much work as possible from the command line. So it shouldn’t be surprised that I also use RSS even as others have abandoned it for things like Twitter. I prefer to supplement my news feeds with Twitter and not replace it.

    Since the demise of Google Reader, I’ve settled on Feedly as my RSS reader. It’s web interface has keyboard shortcuts, and the Reeder app works very well on my iPhone and iPad. But I think it could be faster

    Back to 1990

    Before web forums were all the rage, there was Usenet News. It was international, and distributed, which made it very resilient. It was also, for the most part, limited to text interfaces. There were several GUI interfaces for accessing Usenet, but for me, the command line application tin was all I needed. With it I could navigate an alarming amount of posts, selecting the ones I wanted to read while ignore the rest. It was pretty amazing how fast the whole process was. Alas, speed is something we lost on the transition to graphically interfaces.

    Enter Newsbeuter

    Newsbeuter is an open source command line RSS reader that can run on most UNIX based operating systems. A simple sudo apt-get install newsbeuter installed it on my Ubuntu host, and I was good to go. I’m still in the honeymoon phase, so we’ll see how long it lasts. To see it in action you can check out the screenshots on the Newsbeuter site.

  • Publishing using Sphinx to Github

    I’ve been playing around with Sphinx as a digital publishing tool. It can take multiple files written in reStructuredText (similar to Markdown, which is plain text with minimal markup) and create not only a website, but also PDFs and ePubs (and more, list is on the website). An example is the Sublime Text Unofficial Documentation. If you click on the Read the Docs link in the bottom left of the window, you can see the documentation in other formats.

    Read the Docs will automatically create a website and other files from a Github repository, but you can also publish yourself to Github without using another service. My problem came from an issue with Github ignoring the folder _static, which is where Sphinx puts assets for the website. The solution is simple enough, have a .nojekyll file in the root of the website. The question was how to do that automatically. What I did was add a new target to the Makefile[1]:

    github:
    $(SPHINXBUILD) -b html $(ALLSPHINXOPTS) $(BUILDDIR)/html
    touch $(BUILDDIR)/html/.nojekyll
    ghp-import $(BUILDDIR)/html/
    git push -u origin gh-pages
    @echo
    @echo "Published to Github"

    Now when I type make github, the website will be rebuilt, a .nojekyll file will be created, the website will be imported into the gh-pages branch and that branch will be pushed to Github.

    [1]: This assumes you have already set up authentication to push a branch to Github and have installed ghp-import.

  • There is no easy

    I love how technologists love to brandish the term “ease of use” like it’s some sort of badge of honor. Here’s what I’ve found out, most people dislike being told “this is easy” when they are learning new technology. The irony is not lost on me, since if it was so easy, why am I teaching it.

    This leads into something that I’ve begun to realize. There is no easy. Life is hard, difficult, and the lessons can be harsh. Technology is no different. Take the iPhone for example. Seven years ago it was hailed as an easy to use smartphone. Part of that ease of use came from the fact that it didn’t do much. You didn’t have to know how to copy and paste, since it couldn’t do that. There was no app store, so you didn’t have to learn how to install and remove apps. No notifications to learn how to control. No multitasking of apps to learn how to switch between. No privacy controls. Etc. All of these have now been added to iOS, making it more complicated but more useful device.

    Unfortunately, this makes it even more difficult to learn how to use technology effectively. There will always be something new to learn tomorrow. When I’m working with teachers I’m often asked why I don’t have all of this “how to use” tips written down. The problem is that I could talk for a day on just all the features that Google GMail has, and still not hit everything you can do with it. Teach Like a Hacker started as a way to demonstrate alternative uses of the technology teachers already know, and use that as a stepping stone.

  • Attending a conference? Here’s my conference checklist #iPadSymposiumUA

    This Saturday I will be presenting at the University of Akron’s iPad Symposium. As I’ve attended numerous conferences throughout my professional career, I’ve started to realize I should create a to do list so I don’t forget anything before a conference.

    1. Charge my devices and battery packs

    My usual compliment of devices I take to a conference consists of my laptop, iPad, and iPhone. Along with charging them, I also have a battery case for my iPhone and a Jackery Giant USB battery pack that needs to be charged. Multi-day conferences are not a problem.

    2. Set up IFTTT to capture my notes and tweets

    I’ve started to use Twitter to write my notes during a conference and If This Then That to capture them. The recipe I use looks for any of my tweets with the conference hashtag, and if found, it appends that tweet to a text file in Dropbox. At the end of the conference I’ll have an entire text file with everything I want to save from the conference.

    IFTTT Hashtag Recipe

    3. Set up a keyboard shortcut for the conference hashtag

    The hashtag for the conference Saturday is #iPadSymposiumUA. What I did on my iPhone and iPad is create a keyboard shortcut (Settings -> General -> Keyboard -> Shortcuts). The shortcut is iii which expands to #iPadSymposiumUA.

    4. Charge my name tag

    The name tag I’ve started to use is a 4 generation iPod Touch running Keynote. I have a lanyard that connects to the dock connector, and I created a 3 slide presentation that continually loops. Keynote keeps the display on while showing a presentation. If I shut it off during sessions, the battery lasts an entire day.

    5. Gas up the car, get some cash and Ho Hos

    Oh, how frustrating it can be to get in your car for a multi-hour trip and realize you have to stop for gas. Even though I hardly use cash anymore, it’s a good idea to have a few bucks on you, just in case. The Ho Hos? They’re self explanatory.

  • Teach like a hacker – Atari version from #neotech2014

    I forgot to upload my presentation from the Neotech 2014 conference!

  • My notes from #neotech2014

    Cooking Up Creative Student Presentations

    • Using stop motion video to show DNA replication. http://t.co/PiYgYNVTie
    • Instead of the book report, use Prezi for Book Talks
    • Google Sketchup – Map out the island from Lord of the Flies.
    • Aurasma – Augmented reality connected to the physical world.
    • Student TED Talks. Student as the expert, demonstrate passion.
    • YouTube channel for TED youth videos. All presenters under 21.
    • Using Minecraft to model places from their studies.
    • @StacyHaw: @mr_rcollins @hammanmath had her #blendedlearning Ss do TED or Ignite talks for their capstone. It was AMAZING!
    • Symbaloo – next generation webquests. Students curate resources.
    • @StacyHaw: Just subscribed to TEDxYouth http://t.co/OjSlk4DvrO Over 4000 videos
    • Create a website for the portfolio. They’re using Google Sites, I like WordPress. 🙂
    • Animoto for presentations. Limited to 30 seconds for free. @sixthKMS this could be something for your commercials.
    • Screencasting. Screencast-o-matic for 15 mins. TechSmith Snagit for Chrome. (There is also Screencastify for Chromebooks)
    • wideo.co – Video comics
    • Lucid Press – Desktop Publishing for the 21st century. Create online and offline documents.
    • Socrative and Kahoot for exit slips, formative assessments, etc.
    • Bonus resources: Common Craft Videos, BitStrips, Magisto (like Animoto)

    Quotes

    • @daniellebezik: Teach out of your comfort zone, Ss learn more when T is also learning
    • @StacyHaw: Having a trust relationship is at the center of authentic collaboration

    Other sites

    Creating 21st century assignments: autonomous, mas tery learning

    • At the heart of everything is empathy.
    • Spends 1st ~4 weeks on building legacy, very little content. Build relationships.
    • Students move at their own pace toward mastery through autonomy. “Change your philosophy first”
    • “We strive to inspire, not motivate. What is your legacy?”
    • Presentation link
    • “The world you grew up in does not exist and will never again exist” – @ProfessorMike1 @GarthHolman
    • Require a blog for students. They must publish.
    • “Blogs aren’t graded. Once you start grading creative writing, students write what they think you want to read.”
    • “Totally differentiated classroom everyday for every student.”
    • Team taught 30 miles away. Posted Skype conversations. 20% students in Chardon don’t have Internet access.
    • Sites to check out Diigo and Quizstar.
    • “Teach kids how to differentiate for themselves. Technology makes it possible.”
    • Instagrok – search tool for students.
    • “High school students share resources with 7th graders”
    • “We’re killing kids with worksheets. They’re capable of so much more.”

    Tech skills 4 the next generation of assessments”

    • Started with a Google Doc, going through the standards.
    • ELA Common Core code Pulled out anchor standards with technology. Tech may apply to only some grade levels.
    • Technology Skills Checklist for Online Assessments
    • Once they broke down the standards, looked at tools to support. Most of the statements don’t reference technology.
    • Geography used specific technologies the most.
    • PARCC is only the assessment, Common Core is the standards.

    Using iBooks Author To Write & Publish Student Work

    • Kids don’t see the value in writing for one.
    • No sense of contribution to society
    • They are not leaving behind a legacy
    • Developed the idea, all students wrote a chapter one, then collaborated on which parts will be included in the final book.
    • Let Ss write about what the Ss are struggling with
    • Math Our Way, math textbook written by 6th graders.
    • Other books
      • It was a dark and stormy classroom
      • Canterbury Remixed
      • May we suggest…?
    • Worked with the speed pathologist and some autistic students to write Social Skills Volume I Became the stars.
    • 19 books published in the last two years. ~22,000 downloads.
    • In 48+ countries
    • It’s more than the downloads, motivation
    • Get permission slips/media release form/etc
    • Wants more student and teacher created ebooks
    • http://t.co/rECj5DQsSr
    • Final Thoughts
      • Kids need to be creating
      • Share!
      • Sense of community
      • Rushton Hurley

  • Life is something that you do, not something that is done to you

    For an English paper I’m supposed to have written by now, I read the book Ethan Frome. The tale of a man who let life be done to him instead of him doing life.

  • Kingsoft Office Suite Free – includes IOS and Android

    Tags: office

    I don’t know why I’ve never heard of this before, Kingsoft Office Suite: Free Office 2013, Professional Office Suite looks like it could be very handy for schools running Windows, but that isn’t even the best part. The requirements listed on the website show that it supports iOS 5, which means all of those iPad 1s that are out there can use it. Unfortunately, the App Store lists iOS 6 as an requirement, so I’m going to have to wait until I get home to try it.

    Via: Kingsoft Office 2013: The best free Microsoft Office alternative? – CNET

  • The so-called Doppler effect

    Satellite tracked Malaysia plane in ‘unprecedented’ way writes:

    In its further detective work, Inmarsat studied the so-called Doppler effect, the name for what makes the noise from an approaching vehicle sound different from one speeding away from a listener.

    Right up there with the so-called gravity effect and so-called wind resistance effect that ultimately brought the plane down.

  • My notes from Beaver Local #bltlap and Learn 21 Conference #l21conf

    Here is a list of links and sites I have collected from the Beaver
    Local Teach Like a Pirate Waiver Day and the Learn 21 Conference. In the
    near future I’m hoping to have time to elaborate on these resources and
    how they may be used.

    Personalized Yearbooks

    TreeRing | Create Personalized Yearbooks

    This is what the 21st century is all about. Students order their
    yearbooks, but can also customize their yearbook with their own
    pictures.

    Student created eBooks

    Class eBooks

    Face it. You’ll never be as entertaining as a video game. Now what? #L21Conf

    • Video games follow Dan Pink’s Drive (what motivates us). Master, autonomy, and purpose
    • Richard Bartle, Bartle’s player types 1996
    • Achiever (grades, extra credit, points) easiest to teach to. Dangle the carrot. ♦️
    • Explorer (what to learn, first to discover, know something others don’t know) Don’t care about grades. ♣️
    • Socializer (want to be everybody’s friend, organizer, interaction) ♥️
    • Renamed to Dominator (wants to win, beat everyone around them. Grades aren’t important. Competitive). ♣️
    • Candy Crush Education
    • Gamification in Khan Academy. More than just videos.
    • Kahoot polling with any device.
    • mathtrain.tv Student created math tutorials.
    • Bartle’s test (need to watch out in school because of the name of the Dominator type.
    • “The gamification of Learning and Instruction” and “Don’t bother me mom — I’m learning!”
    • Presentation link
    • Similar to Khan, higher quality videos

    l21conf Keynote

    • Maturana’s school, half the grade was based in the quality of questions he asked.
    • Brittany Wenger
    • “The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out…” Randy Pausch
    • “No consequences, being an enabler. Take ownership of your learning.”
    • Eesha Khare creates super capacitor

    Infohio coding event on April 5th.

    Web apps & Extensions for Schools with @ericcurts

    Yes, you can blend

    Show me the evidence: Applying web based resources to the OTES model

    Follow Saturday from #l21conf