Blog 7 - October 29, 2012

Howdy! Thanks for logging in!

This week I would like to explore some new ideas for transportation.

Obviously the transportation industry has been working on getting away from fossil fuels for a very long time. Are you buying your own gas for your car? $3.30 a gallon hurts, a lot. Following are some new ideas that might help us move away from petroleum products.

As always, read today. Blog Thursday. As always, READ MY WORDS so that you know what I'm asking and you can answer the question intelligently and not lose credit.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/15/cardboard-bicycle-izhar-gafni-inventor_n_1966166.html?utm_hp_ref=green 
(You may watch the video. You don't really need headphones, it's pretty boring to listen in.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_i-REAL 
I have a Top Gear video for this one and I'll play it at the end of class if someone will remind me.

http://www.gizmag.com/gyroscopic-personal-transportation/22060/

http://www.gizmag.com/another-honda-bombshell-3r-c-single-person-electric-concept/14312/

For blog credit this week, you will choose one of the above personal transportation devices, tell us which one, and give us at least one drawback that you can see to that vehicle. Your drawback cannot be "nobody can ride with you." That's obvious, as they are PERSONAL tranports.

Talk to me . . .

Blog 6 - October 22, 2012

Hiya! Thanks for logging in!

Switching gears this week, lets spend a little time on transportation. Get it? "Switching gears?" Come on guys, that was funny . . .

Anyway, I found this cool link that shows some current concept cars with facts about each car. I want you to look through them on Tuesday and wait until Thursday to blog.

For credit this week you will need to pick one of the following concept cars and tell us which car you picked and one fact about that car to receive credit. Please don't forget to sign your post.

WARNING: Many people didn't receive their blog credit last week because they didn't follow the instructions. Don't let that be you. You must always READ MY WORDS and ANSWER THE APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS to receive credit. Don't ever just follow the link and think you know what I'm asking.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/industry/12-concept-cars-headed-for-the-dealership-cadillac-ats#slide-1

Blog 5 - October 15, 2012

Howdy Folks!

Thank you for your discussions regarding cell phone technology. We are moving towards the transportation topic.

In preparation for switching topics this week we will visit one of my favorite sites:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/

I love, LOVE this website. It's chock full of stuff for geeky people.

So for credit this week, pick a product and GIVE US THE LINK and then tell us why you love it or think it's abundantly stupid. You MUST PROVIDE THE LINK so that the rest of us can go and look at it.

Your blog should look a little something like this:

http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/991e/

I want this WiFi dectector shirt so badly. I've been threatening to get it for two years now and my family swears they will disown me if I wear it around.

Lanham, 1st period

You must give us the link.
You must give an opinion.
You must sign and put your class period.

This is one of the RARE times when you can go ahead and blog on Tuesday. Be sure to check back on Thursday during blog time if you do that so you can see what everybody else is shopping for.

Talk to me . . .

Blog 4 - October 8, 2012

Howdy!

For blog credit this week I would like you to open up your mind and think about where cell phone technology might be going. Post one feature you'd like to see in the near future on your cell phone.

Read Tuesday. Comment Thursday. Don't forget to sign and give your class number.

ALWAYS go and double-check immediately that your post has updated.

Talk to me . . .

Blog 3 - Week of October 1

Howdy!

The iPhone5 has been out a hot minute. Let's talk about some of the new features.

Contrary to popular belief, I am NOT an early technology adopter. I spent 16 years in the real world doing Graphic Design at a shop that was an Adobe Authorized Service Provider. That meant that every time Adobe had an update I got the programs several months early and I got to help figure out what was wrong and make suggestions to Adobe.

Translation: I got buggy, janky programs and I spent hours on the phone with software developers (technical nerds) explaining to them why certain features weren't working in the real world.

This experience led me to my current thinking: If I'm going to PAY for a piece of technology I want it to work correctly. The first time. I don't want to be the person on the phone with technical support.

Therefore, when new stuff emerges I have a tendency to hang back. I am not the person waiting in line at the Apple store at midnight. *coughcoughCaymoncoughcough*

So for blog credit this week you will need to pick a glitch and tell why it would irritate you. Alternatively, if you HAVE the new iPhone5 you can tell us which one of the new features is your favorite, or anything else you'd like to share about it.

Read Tuesday. Comment Thursday. Don't forget to sign and give your class number.

ALWAYS go and double-check immediately that your post has updated.

Talk to me . . .

http://www.product-reviews.net/2012/09/30/ios-6-problems-kill-iphone-5-features/

http://www.t3.com/reviews/iphone-5-review

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505124_162-57520538/more-iphone-5-problems-scuffed-out-of-the-box/

http://www.itproportal.com/2012/10/01/the-iphone-5--apples-history-of-launch-problems/

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/iphone-glitches-secrets-scratches-discovered-launch/story?id=17313745

Blog 2 - Week of September 24

Hola! Welcome back!

So I want to kick everything off with some cell phone talk. We'll probably be on this subject for a few weeks as we explore coming technology and how to effectively integrate it into the classroom.

I found this website that's got some pretty cool concept ideas. First let me explain what a concept is. Designers envision the coolest possible stuff that we can't even imagine yet, and then they jam it all into their design. Eventually SOME of the cool stuff will make it to the market.

Dictionary.com defines concept as an idea. So these phones are in the idea stage.

For this weeks credit you will need to visit the website below. Pick one of the concepts and tell us which one. Tell us about a concept feature on that particular phone that you would use and you find cool. OR pick one of the concepts and tell us which one and then tell us about a feature that you think is ridiculous and goofy.

As always, you'll need to sign your last name and class period to get credit.

I want you to go look at all the phones today. On Thursday I will want you to give your opinion. I like for you to let stuff marinade for a day or two so that your opinion is an informed one that you've had a chance to be able to explain. You can also disagree with someone else's opinion to advance the discussion.

It should look a little something like this:

I chose phone #4: HTC Magnesium Unibody. I dig the fact that it carries an extra battery that charges while I'm using the phone. I think it would also be helpful that the body of the phone is pretty hard to destroy.

Lanham, 1st period

Talk to me . . .

http://www.t3.com/features/concept-phones-we-wish-were-real-2

Blog 1 - Week of September 17

Hola Peeps! Thanks for logging in.


Let me 'splain how this will work:

Every Monday morning I will post a discussion question relevant to technology. You will have the entire week to post a short blog answering the question. It's very simple . . . you either advance the discussion or you don't. It's either a 100 or a 0. You can also respond to a thought posted by another user to advance the discussion. Every Sunday evening I will check off names. So you have from Monday AM to Sunday PM. Grading closes at 6pm Sunday. The first ten minutes of class on Tuesday will be devoted to reading the blog, and the first ten minutes of class Thursday will be devoted to answering the blog question.

Here are the things that this discussion is NOT:

This is not a social forum. All you guys have Facebook / Twitter for that stuff. Holla at your friends on those sites.

This is not a place for you to ask me questions about your grade. Please remember that EVERYBODY will see all of your communication on this site. If you have questions about grading policies, etc. please see me before or after school, before class or on my conference period (6th). Barring that, please email me at rlanham@nacogdoches.k12.tx.us.

This is not a place for you to air grievances of any kind. Bad language, derogatory comments and intolerance of any kind will not be accepted. These will result in blocked usage for you, and zeros on weekly discussions for the remainder of the year.

What this discussion IS:

This is a place for us to explore how technology is affecting our daily lives. You guys are digital natives (meaning you were practically born with a cell phone in your hand) and you are not accustomed to thinking about life before this technology came along. I would also bet that most of you haven't given a lot of thought to where this technology is going either. Well, that's what I want to do here.

Also, almost every college classroom has some online portion as well. In other words, when you get to college even though you're sitting in a traditional classroom your professor will expect you to go online and participate in some sort of ongoing discussion on something like Blackboard.

One more thing:

To the best of my knowledge we are still the only classroom in the district to use blogging as part of the classroom learning. Occasionally our Principal, Superintendent, and others from the district will be blogging with us. All eyes will be watching as this district prepares to incorporate more technology into everyday learning. Please keep that in mind. Let's have fun, but please be responsible.

Here's what you need to do now:

Make sure you ALWAYS leave your name and period in your comment. By posting this first time you are agreeing to:

1. ALWAYS read my words. You should never just log in and click links. Doing that will cause you to miss the questions that I want addressed.

2. Comment in the correct section for the week.

3. Understand that you get one (1) makeup blog for the YEAR. Because this blog is available 24/7/365 from any computer in the world, I don't allow more than one makeup. Go home and bookmark it. Go to the library and bookmark it. Bookmark it on your smart phone. Always remember that if you're absent on Thursday when we comment, you'll need to get it taken care of before Sunday at 6pm.

OK, questions?

Talk to me . . .