Edutech Adventures with Gary

Activsoftware Inspire Edition is now ActivInspire

2009-03-02T18:35:00.000-08:00

This just in from Promethean:

http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=076f8d94466c9d39d5bc

FETC 2009 Keynote Speaker

2009-01-20T10:33:00.000-08:00

FETC jumps off tomorrow in Orlando, Florida. Those in attendance are in store for a feast of treats during the conference and it all begins with one very interesting keynote speaker.

Philippe Cousteau, of the great environmentalist and exploring Cousteaus and president of EarthEcho International, will be addressing the audience about his family's legacy in regards to environmentalism and education. He is also creating a documentary series for Animal Planet about our water systems and how we can support the earth under the water.

What an interesting pick for an opening keynote. You would expect one of the many leaders in education technology, or perhaps a teacher or educator from Florida. This is a welcomed surprise as Mr. Cousteau has valuable insight on the education world from a different angle. This is a time for new ideas and you have to broaden your spectrum to attract the best.

Promethean <3 DK

2009-01-14T14:05:00.000-08:00

So, Promethean (my fave company that makes the white boards all of us teachers are using) and Dorling Kindersley (my fave book publisher that makes those great illustrated books that adults borrow from their children) just announced that they are releasing some products together! Details are kind of scant right now, but check out these pics from the Promethean booth at BETT.

The products will be in a new premium section of Promethean Planet. No word on availability, but it's neat to see Promethean reaching out to other industry leaders. Wish I was there... Great stuff from BETT!

Activsoftware blogging

2009-01-14T03:26:00.001-08:00

I was hoping to be the first in the USA to blog into the contest for the new software, but my connection keeps bleeping on wireless. But here is my first notation after reading the announcement at http://www.activblogging.com/:

5 Reasons For Me to Cover FETC

2009-01-10T08:41:00.000-08:00

Ms. Jennifer Greene from FETC shot me an email this week reminding me, that FETC was just around the corner. I'm making plans to attend, but you never know what will happen between now an the 21st. This year should be all about new technology and education software, so you know I'll be psyched to get in. Here are her five reason we bloggers should cover the even this year...like we needed any more inspiration.
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Top Five Reasons to Cover FETC 2009:
1. Many great stories about classroom challenges and ed-tech under one roof
2. Discover innovative ways to improve teaching during a tight economy
3. Secure informative quotes from inspiring speakers
4. Report on the latest ed-tech tools, tactics and trends
5. Gather unique anecdotes from local educators and the nation’s top ed-tech professionals

One of the largest conferences in the nation devoted entirely to educational technology is fast approaching. FETC 2009, The Educational Technology Conference in Florida, will take place Jan. 21-24, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. Register for press credentials now and allow your audience to live (and learn) the experience through you!
Media representatives and bloggers are encouraged to attend and see the latest in educational technology. There is no cost for media registration; those interested can register online at www.fetc.org (click on Press and then go to Credentials). Please note that media representatives and bloggers are required to register and will not be admitted into any FETC venues without a press badge.
We hope you will consider attending and/or covering this important conference.
If you have any questions, please contact Rick Oppenheim at (850) 386

Watching BETT

2009-01-06T08:22:00.000-08:00

Every year it drives me nuts. The biggest show in the world for edtech happens in London and nobody in the USA seems to care or notice. We marvel at our fabulous NECC as the biggest but BETT doubles our largest show in size and audience. There are almost 800 booths at BETT! I wish I could afford the jump, but I can barely afford a toy airplane right now, but I'll be watching the blogs and hopefully report. Which brings me to BETT goers... why dont you blog more images and reviews?

Sigh...

Blogging Roundup on Promethean Activsoftware, Inspire Edition, V4, Activarena, etc, etc, etc...

2008-12-22T10:08:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to track the skinny on a few of Promethean's "in-development" apps, noting a great deal of confusion about software for understandable reasons I'll itemize.

Around the time of NECC 2007, Promethean announced that it was "PREVIEWING" something called Activarena. It's on their British website: http://www.mypromethean.com/uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.3841 or via press release at http://www.emediawire.com/releases/2007/6/emw535155.htm.
I have been to 3 tradeshows where they were showing off some features: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m98fWEYA0EU
Then they came out with a darling little device called ACTIVEXPRESSION - by far the mother of all student response devices and a complete redefinition of what many call a "clicker". http://theroyaltreatment.wordpress.com/2008/02/10/prometheans-activexpression-adds-text/
But there was a problem... Promethean launched Expression too early, so those who use it have to constantly toggle back and forth from Activstudio (Promethean's flagship curriculum software) and the Expression stand-alone software. This doesnt go over very well b/c the whole idea with these IWBs and their software is full integration under one platform.
This all culminates into worrisome waiting.
Which brings us to the present: Promethean is (hopefully) rolling out ONE software platform this year which promises to incorporate Activstudio, Activprimary, Activexpression, Activarena in one. It also has been designed "for use with any Interactive Whiteboard" which means they are about to blow crusty old SMART out of the water and you are going to see a lot of people buying Mimio and using Promethean software.
The catch: it is not free and it is not out yet. Europeans can get it at the BETT conference. Americans can get it at the FETC conference. After those two tradeshows, it is available for web download but like I say, I dont know what it costs.

I think that multiple-input is going to blow up - HUGE in ICT. Promethean announced it, now they need to show it. Anybody have any informacion I am leaving out?

2008-10-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

Microsoft is a favorite punching bag in the geek community, but they were right about one important thing; the personal computer live at the center of your digital life, with other devices requiring them. This seems nearly obvious now, but it wasn't always. Similarly, I see interactive white boards as the center point of technology in the classroom. For now there are some competing ideas, like one laptop per student, but I think we've already seen their apogee. IWBs are future, so I'm going to feature some reviews that I've found online here. First up; Mimio.

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Review from ZDNet.

The bottom line: The Mimio Xi is a good choice for professionals who want to store whiteboard information directly to the capture device.

[ Entire review, with video ]

Direct 3D Manipulation on IWB

2008-06-25T13:38:00.000-07:00

This is a great use of an Activboard. Kudos!

http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=5e7c04fc6cbde68d0214

A whole new Promethean world

2008-06-24T09:54:00.000-07:00

Thought this was a fun example of what you could do with an Activboard. Speed limit: Your imagination.

Smart v. Promethean

2008-06-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

This is an excellent discussion of the long-running Smart vs. Promethean debate.

http://ideasandthoughts.org/2008/04/23/smartboards-vs-prometheanthe-research-starts-and-maybe-ends-here/

I really like how this guy has asked his 'network' instead of dumb searching. Gathering opinions that you trust is a crucial skill that the web can help you leverage.

Camera tool how-to

2008-04-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

http://www.techlearning.com/quickflicks/showArticle.php?articleID=173601229

Great video explanation of how to use the Camera tool in ACTIVstudio 2.

Blogs invade classrooms

2008-04-03T11:38:00.000-07:00

This is a great overview of the power of a blog in the classroom. Kudos to the teachers that are at the frontier of using this medium. What about you? What ways have you harnessed the power and flexibility of a blog to transform your classroom?