100 Incredible Open Courses for the Ultimate Tech Geek.
Posted by Celia Walter | 2 Nov, 2009
OnlineCourses.org has compiled a mega-list of 100 Incredible Open Courses for the Ultimate Tech Geek.
This comprehensive guide presents 100 free resources to develop your
tech skill set. The courses are divided into the following categories:
- Computer Science and Engineering
- Computer Security
- Programming
- The Web
- Software
- Information Technology
- Communication Technology
- Technology in Education
- Tech Math
- Technology and Society
Effective Practice in a Digital Age
Posted by Celia Walter | 1 Jul, 2009JISC Podcast/Press Release: Effective Practice in a Digital Age
"In a world where we are surrounded by technology, where boundaries between our personal and professional lives merge, JISC's e-Learning team have been looking at how to support teachers, researchers and academics with best practice advice and guidance for working in a 'digital age'. In this podcast with Rebecca O'Brien, Sarah Knight, a JISC e-Learning programme manager, shares the success of the team's Effective Best Practice guide series and launches a new publication 'Effective Practice in a Digital Age'. This new guide puts the teacher and learning at its centre and takes those new and experienced in using Web 2.0 technologies on a journey to enhance their practices and illustrates through case studies how practitioners are opening up their practice and enhancing the learner experience as well as their own"
Typing Chinese Online
Posted by Celia Walter | 16 Apr, 2009
Typing Chinese online
Typing Chinese Online is a simple, useful web-based tool that allows users to imput Chinese in pinyin romanisation, for them to be translated into simplified characters. The main website instructions can be read in English, Chinese, French and German. Users type pinyin into a text box, and can select the corresponding character from a list that appears below. It is then possible to copy and paste the text into other documents. The possibility of characters which appear can be narrowed down by using the keyboard to indicate the tone of the character that you would like to type (for example, typing in capitals indicates that the character has the third of four tones).
Typing Chinese Online is a simple, useful web-based tool that allows users to imput Chinese in pinyin romanisation, for them to be translated into simplified characters. The main website instructions can be read in English, Chinese, French and German. Users type pinyin into a text box, and can select the corresponding character from a list that appears below. It is then possible to copy and paste the text into other documents. The possibility of characters which appear can be narrowed down by using the keyboard to indicate the tone of the character that you would like to type (for example, typing in capitals indicates that the character has the third of four tones).
The website would be of use to anyone who wishes to type a small amount
of Chinese, especially undergraduate students or beginners (who need to
know some Chinese words). Although the tool does not include
complicated characters, it is a simple tool that can be used without
the need to purchase a complicated software programme. Although it may
seem difficult to use at first, all users need to do is to type pinyin
into the text box.
From Intute.ac.uk
http://www.typingchinese.com/
e-Revolution and Post-Compulsory Education, A JISC e-book
Posted by Celia Walter | 2 Mar, 2009
"JISC has just launched its first e-book. The e-Revolution and Post-Compulsory Education: Using e-business models to deliver quality education offers senior managers in further and higher education best-practice guidance for applying e-business approaches to their institutions.
TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design)
Posted by Celia Walter | 23 Feb, 2009TED: ideas worth spreading
TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) was originally started in 1984
as an annual conference which brought together thought provoking
thinkers to talk about new developments in the fields of technology,
culture and design. Since then its website has expanded to provide free
access to several hundred talks and presentations from TED events.
These are centred around themes such as the future of technology,
evolution, future predictions, new media and innovative solutions to
global problems such as poverty, and conservation. Most presentations
are 18 minutes in length and are known for featuring witty and
innovative speakers. These include Bill Gates and Al Gore. Technical
and copyright information is displayed on the website.
From Intute.ac.uk
http://www.ted.com/
From Celia: Some TED programmes are broadcast on CTV
2009 Horizon Report: emerging technology impact on higher education
Posted by Celia Walter | 22 Jan, 2009
The
annual Horizon Report is a collaborative effort between the New Media
Consortium (NMC) and the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI). Each year, the
report identifies and describes six areas of emerging technology likely to have
a significant impact on teaching, learning, or creative expression in higher
education within three adoption horizons: a year or less, two to three years,
and four to five years.
The areas of emerging technology cited for 2009 are:
• Mobiles (i.e., mobile devices)
• Cloud computing
• Geo-everything (i.e., geo-tagging)
• The personal web
• Semantic-aware applications
• Smart objects
Each section of the report provides live Web links to examples and additional
readings.
Libraries: Ten Trends & Technologies for 2009
Posted by Celia Walter | 13 Jan, 2009Ten Trends & Technologies for 2009/ by Michael Stephens
Welcome to the 2009 version of TTW’s [Tame The Web: Libraries, Technology and People] annual look at the trends and technologies that I believe will impact what we do in libraries and information centers. This post ties in with several presentations I will be giving this spring. I was remiss last year - prepping to take “The Hyperlinked Library” to Australia, I just couldn’t get the 2008 post going. Another reason was many of the same discussions and trends from 2007 had carried over into 2008.
If you’re curious, here are the previous posts:
2007: http://tametheweb.com/2007/03/09/ten-tech-trends-for-librarians-2007/
2006: http://tametheweb.com/2006/02/ten_techie_things_for_libraria_1.html
2005: http://tametheweb.com/2005/01/twelve_techie_things_for_libra.html
This year, I’m focusing on some ideas and technologies that I believe will impact everyone. These things will surely influence library users and nonusers alike. My biggest concern is how can libraries respond in turbulent economic times. So, here goes. In 2009, librarians, information professionals and libraries will be touched by:...[more]
A library of human imagination by Jay Walls
Posted by Celia Walter | 7 Jan, 2009Jay Walker, curator of the Library of Human Imagination, conducts a surprising show-and-tell session highlighting a few of the intriguing artifacts that backdropped the 2008 TED stage.
From the Comments:
I love the glass bridge and the beautiful, color changing, mural in SO
many languages. From Kanji to Binary... great!. I wish he had shown the
odd Whitminstatin (sp?) patern meteorites often have. Great history!. I
do believe that contact and surrounding youself with original and
inspirational objects can inspire and lead people to new thoughts,
inspiration, and actual motivation. I don't think there are many
sources for motivation.
Thank you TED for once again giving me hope.
Interesting thought... how would you make a message if you wanted to
see it at multiple scales, directions, angles, and durable enough to
percieve at different time frames?
I'm thinking a repeating fractal, like a crystal stored in iron, strong
enough to withstand the heat and pressure of reentry on an extra
terrestrial surface. (like the oddly beautiful pattern found in
meteorites.)
How to Digitize an LP (for dummies). Internet Archive
Posted by Celia Walter | 23 Dec, 20087 Things You Should Know About Lecture Capture
Posted by Celia Walter | 23 Dec, 2008Educause has published another of its 7 Things guides, this time focusing on the tech which enables instructors to record their lessons for students to access digitally. In 7 Things You Should Know About Lecture Capture, the folks at Educause answer the following questions:
- What is it?
- Who’s doing it?
- How does it work?
- Why is it significant?
- What are the downsides?
- Where is it going?
- What are the implications for teaching and learning?
Don't be 404, know the tech slang
Posted by Celia Walter | 11 Dec, 2008A study of new slang terms entering English finds that technology is driving and perpetuating them.
For instance, "404" - the error message given when a browser cannot find a webpage - has come to mean "clueless".
Slang lexicographer Jonathon Green says that some such terms and abbreviations come about because of the limited speed and space afforded by text messaging.
However, an Australian study found that reading "textese" takes more time and results in more mistakes...[more]
When Technology fails. Pew Internet & American Life Project Report
Posted by Celia Walter | 18 Nov, 2008
Pew Internet & American Life Project published a new report yesterday about what technology users do when their devices fail. A key finding from this study showed that 48% of technology users need help from others with new devices and many tech users encounter problems with their internet connections, home computers or cell phones.
From iLibrarian blog
EDUCAUSE Quarterly [pdf]
Posted by Celia Walter | 10 Nov, 2008EDUCAUSE Quarterly [pdf]
http://connect.educause.edu/eq
EDUCAUSE is an online education quarterly journal for those involved in information technology services in university and college settings. The journal can be received by members in print or online, until 2009, when it will only be available online. On the right hand side of the page are links to recent comments made by members about the journal's articles and features, allowing a visitor to be privy to the current practices and daunting problems that information technology staff are grappling with on university campuses. By clicking on "Browse Archives" at the top of the page, visitors will be directed to the complete past issues of EDUCAUSE from 2000 to the present. Clicking on "Contribute" at the top of the page, visitors can read the guidelines for contributions, including what to avoid writing about, as well as suggestions for what to address to help their chances for acceptance. Visitors shouldn't miss reading the current issue of EDUCAUSE, which is available for free on their homepage. [KMG] Scout Report
The Tower and The Cloud, an Educause e-book
Posted by Celia Walter | 3 Nov, 2008The emergence of the networked information economy is unleashing two powerful forces. On one hand, easy access to high-speed networks is empowering individuals. People can now discover and consume information resources and services globally from their homes. Further, new social computing approaches are inviting people to share in the creation and edification of information on the Internet. Empowerment of the individual -- or consumerization -- is reducing the individual's reliance on traditional brick-and-mortar institutions in favor of new and emerging virtual ones. Second, ubiquitous access to high-speed networks along with network standards, open standards and content, and techniques for virtualizing hardware, software, and services is making it possible to leverage scale economies in unprecedented ways. What appears to be emerging is industrial-scale computing -- a standardized infrastructure for delivering computing power, network bandwidth, data storage and protection, and services. Comsumerization and industrialization beg the question "Is this the end of the middle?"; that is, what will be the role of "enterprise" IT in the future? Indeed, the bigger question is what will become of all of our intermediating institutions? This volume examines the impact of IT on higher education and on the IT organization in higher education. iLibrarian blog
©2008 EDUCAUSE ISBN 978-0-9672853-9-9
Foreword
View: PDF
Preface
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About the Authors
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Higher Education and Information Technology
The Gathering Cloud: Is This the End of the Middle
View: PDF
A Matter of Mission: Information Technology and the Future of Higher Education
View: PDF
The University in the Networked Economy and Society: Challenges and Opportunities
View: PDF
The Globalization of Higher Education
Growing in Esteem: Positioning the University of Melbourne in the Global Knowledge Economy
View: PDF
Higher Education and the Future of U.S. Competitiveness
View: PDF
Accountability
The Social Compact of Higher Education and Its Public
View: PDF
Accountability, Demands for Information, and the Role of the Campus IT Organization
View: PDF
IT Governance
E-Research Is a Fad: Scholarship 2.0, Cyberinfrastructure, and IT Governance
View: PDF
Beyond the False Dichotomy of Centralized and Decentralized IT Deployment
View: PDF
From Users to Choosers: The Cloud and the Changing Shape of Enterprise Authority
View: PDF
Open Information, Open Content, Open Source
Cultural and Organizational Drivers of Open Educational Content
View: PDF
Challenges and Opportunities of Open Source in Higher Education
View: PDF
Who Puts the Education into Open Educational Content?
View: PDF
Scholarship in a Cloudy World
The Tower, the Cloud, and Posterity
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From the Library to the Laboratory: A New Future for the Science Librarian
View: PDF
Social Networking in Higher Education
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Scholarship: The Wave of the Future in the Digital Age
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Where Is the New Learning?
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Teaching and Learning Unleashed with Web 2.0 and Open Educational Resources
View: PDF
University 2.0
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The Tower, the Cloud, and the IT Leader and Workforce
View: PDF
Afterword
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Index
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