Learning Solutions

Ever wonder what the world would look like if Garfield was not around? Dan Walsh did, and turned it into a rather interesting blog, Garfield Minus Garfield:

Garfield Minus Garfield is a site dedicated to removing Garfield from the Garfield comic strips in order to reveal the existential angst of a certain young Mr. Jon Arbuckle. It is a journey deep into the mind of an isolated young everyman as he fights a losing battle against loneliness and depression in a quiet American suburb.

Dan admits he was not the first to think up this concept, but he did champion and popularize it.  He even accepts strips from the public:

Q. Can I submit a strip?
A. Of course you can! Send your strips or your ideas for a good candidate for a strip to garfieldminusgarfield (at) gmail.com
Please note that while I really appreciate submitted strips, I can’t publish individual credit for them as I don’t have the resources or time to record each submission.

Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield, seems to be okay with the idea, as documented in his interview in the Washington Post

This would be a great activity to foster the idea of differing perspectives, and strengthen Photoshop skills.  Students take a comic strip, scan it, and then use Photoshop to take out a particular element, creating an entirely new meaning.  Peanuts minus Charlie Brown?…LuAnn minus LuAnn?…Blondie minus Dagwood?…

About Wix:

Wix is a drag and drop tool for creating high quality Flash websites, with no need for any Flash expertise.  A large catalog of  graphic-rich templates are provided, ready to be edited.  You simply click on an area of the page and a context specific editor appears.  Depending on the type of content, you make your changes in the browser, preview, and save.  Wix has a free service, and premium, depending on your website needs.  Wix recently received $10 million in Series C funding to continue their development.

About Yola:

Yola, rebranded from Synthasite, markets to small-businesses and non-profits looking for a quick way to publish a website.  Yola provides customizable templates to get started, and a multitude of add-ons to spice up your site.  They provide a free and premium service.

Who needs Dreamweaver?

Knoodle is a service that provides online lesson modules created by people from around the world.  The lessons are video-based, with supplemental materials available for download. It is free to sign up, and many of the lessons are free.

Subjects range from Arts and Entertainment to Travel, covering such topics as foreign language, mathematics, golf tips, and photography.

If you have some expertise you would like to share, Knoodle has a user-friendly interface for you to post your lessons on their site.  You can also charge for users to view your lessons, and make a little money in the process.

Visit the center at: http://www.thearmyexperience.com/

The U.S. Army needed an innovative way to communicate its mission, values, resources and career opportunities to a new generation of Americans on a local level. The Army Experience Center (AEC) now serves as a twenty-first century destination for people to get accurate information about the Army directly from the source.

Conceived and built over a ten-month period in the Franklin Mills Mall in Philadelphia, the 14,500-square-foot technology and education center is fast becoming a model for Army recruiting nationwide. Touch screen kiosks, state-of-the-art presentation facilities, community events and high-action simulators are just a few of the AEC features helping to shatter outdated stereotypes and start new career conversations.

CNN reports:

As the U.S. wages wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army has been looking at new approaches to attracting soldiers since a dismal recruiting year in 2005. Other steps have included increasing bonuses, hiring more recruiters and easing some standards.

Some people are not too excited:

Over the past year, as part of the United for Peace & Justice—Delaware Valley Network’s campaign to close the Army Experience Center (AEC) located in the Franklin Mills Mall in Northeast Philadelphia, there have been regular protests and a monthly vigil (3rd Saturday of the month) at Knights & Woodhaven Roads, urging people not to shop the mall until the AEC is closed.

Thoughts?

Here are the top ten ed-tech stories of 2009, as reported by eSchoolNews:

10 - Internet safety becomes an integral part of the K-12 school curriculum (link)

 9 - “Sexting” becomes a huge problem for educators and parents  (link)

 8 -  Microsoft vs. Google: Two technology heavyweights square off in a battle for student loyalty (link)

 7 - Google’s ambitious book-scanning project draws antitrust concerns  (link)

 6 - Online learning becomes a true “disruptive innovation” … (link)

 5 - …while also preventing the disruption of class during the swine-flu scare  (link)

 4 - Billions of dollars in federal stimulus funding helps rescue ed-tech budgets–but schools are still hurting, despite the increase  (link)

 3 - Federal officials seek a national strategy for getting broadband to every American  (link)

 2 - Technology is a key part of the Obama administration’s school-reform efforts  (link)

 1 - Digital textbooks open a new chapter in the history of U.S. education  (link)

Some think of digital signage as just eye candy, little more than glorified billboards with some video and sound.  Scala, Troades, and House of Media Experience has taken this to the next level with their immersive experience that combines audio, video, AROMA, and interactive technologies.

“We wanted the visitor to have a 360-degree experience. Digital signage is not only about sound and vision, but is enhanced by adding other human sense triggers. Their recollection of their experience and of Miele will be individual to them and as long as the experience was meaningful, helpful, timely and relevant. I’m convinced that this will build brand loyalty and that over time, that recollection and loyalty will be evidenced through referrals and purchases,” said Luc Heijnen of concept design, Multisensory Experience at Troades.

The customer experience is designed to be as personalised as possible. Customers are requested to register prior to or on arrival to provide Miele with basic visitor/shopper information including gender, demographics, lifestyle, historic Miele purchase information, etc.

Visitors are provided with an Apple iPod Touch which contains the visitor’s name, preferences and profile. The iPod Touch can be used to retrieve information on the store (such as a floor plan), provide detailed information on Miele products and services, and enable customers to request advice and recommendations from the iPod Touch system.

The response of the system is based on the user’s unique preferences and profile. Additional information can be printed out in-store or emailed to a customer’s email address direct from the iPod Touch.

The store is equipped with indoor GPS technology which links to each iPod Touch each of which is equipped with its own GPS transmitter. This means Miele know which iPod Touch (and therefore which customer) is in which area of the store to the precision of 50 centiments the size of each square floor tile, each of which also has its own unique GPS address. This technology enables Miele to plot customer progress through the store and map shopping routes, hotspots and dwell times to help develop the digital experience.

Implications for educational institutions are endless…

Read more about it…

“How to Become an Executive in Information Technology in 400 Words or Less“.

Uses 63 commonly used IT buzzwords.

Ideally, change management begins at a 50000-foot level, so first and foremost you want make sure you are talking apples to apples with the right people in the right seat on the bus that is on the right street in the right city and state. When the time comes to bridge the gap, best practices dictate you put a stake in the ground and mind meld with the solution architect. Be tactical, taking baby steps, staying off the bunny trail, even if it is a moving target. In this initial phase of information gathering, understanding time to value will help you avoid vendor rage.

It’s like building a house, taking a cool concept and through many iterations, minimizing disconnect while managing cost of service. If you find yourself in the critical path, revisit the action items to get traction, even it you take a vanilla approach.

Don’t drop the ball when you encounter showstoppers, and feel like you are pushing a string, that is healthy friction. To get your ducks in a row, think out of the box, and try playing the customer, without reinventing the wheel. This is not just a stopgap measure, but rather an interface to peel the onion and get the low hanging fruit. Lessons learned say you will experience push back, like you are drinking from a fire hose. Next steps would be telling the story to connect the dots, using a phased approach that increases synergy, and well, warm fuzzies!!

When you are about to operationalize, it’s like building a car, so don’t be afraid to eat your own dog food, though it may feel like herding cats. This is when your passion for databases and capacity planning will allow you to leverage those resource buckets, and move past the proof of concept stage. This may sound like a chicken and the egg approach, and make you go from hero to zero. But, you should play devil’s advocate, and focus on a dashboard of KPI metrics, not onesy-twosy objectives, which would increase fuzziness. Avoid building buggy whips, and your triangle will take you from hide and seek to show and tell, thus creating GOODNESS!!

OR

Just outsource it!!

An Aggie Mom is a special person. She has to suffer through countless Aggie jokes when she tells her friends where her child is going to college. She has to drive the endless road to College Station—for there is no short cut. She prays silently when her child leaves to make the long trip to school each time after a visit home. An Aggie Mom has to endure the comment, “That’s just like an Aggie,” every time her child does something less than perfect—sometimes a lot less than perfect.

But the Spirit of Aggieland is alive and well in the heart of each Aggie Mom. She cheers the athletic teams even when she knows none of the rules and none of the players. Her heart swells with pride when the scholarly accomplishments of faculty and students are related in the media— even when she has never heard of the individuals or of what they have studied. Sounds of the “Aggie War Hymn,” “Silver Taps,” Reveille barking—sights of the Twelfth Man towels, the Aggie Senior Ring: All these things make an Aggie Mom proud. But nothing can compete with the pride shining in her eyes as her Aggie crosses the stage with diploma in hand— and looks up into the crowd searching for Mom’s face. Being an Aggie Mom does not end at graduation, because once an Aggie Mom, always an Aggie Mom!

(Composed by Binnie Dierschke, mother of Patrick Dierschke ‘91, and past president of the San Angelo A&M Mothers’ Club)

The 5th Annual Region XV Regional Robotics Competition will be held on January 26, 2009, at the Education Service Center Region XV.

There is no entry fee to compete at the regional contest. There is no limit to the number of teams that can be entered. No more than four students per team, please.

Please complete and fax the Arena and Inventions entry forms before December 15, 2008. Parent Release forms can be faxed or mailed to Region XV. Fax number is 325-655-4823.

First Ever ESC Region XV Area Robotics Contest

For the first time the TCEA State Robotics Contest will require an area contest to be held to determine participants at the state contest. ESC Region XV Area Robotics Contest will be February 16, 2009, and be held at Angelo State University.

Teams will pay $40 entry fees to be considered contenders for state. Teams not interested in competing for state are welcome to attend and do not have to pay an entry fee.

Teams will need to register with Region XV (forms are posted) and also register with TCEA (details coming).

Please complete and fax the Region XV Area Arena and Inventions entry forms before February 2, 2009. Parent Release forms can be faxed or mailed to Region XV. Fax number is 325-655-4823.

More information and entry forms at: http://www.netxv.net/pm-view.php?page=437

TCEA Robotics State Competition 2009

Sandy Sawyer our Area 15 TCEA rep has sent the following information regarding Area and State Robotics Contest.

1. problem statement will be on the website (From Angela Crowder- We are currently working on the redesign of the contests portion of the website. We were slightly delayed this week but are working on getting that done ASAP)
2. If they do not want to go on to state there will not be a fee to participate in the Area Robotics contest Feb. 16, 2009
3. I (Sandy Sawyer) will sponsor the teams from our area to go on to state.  (2 Teams from each division + 2 Wildcards) Arena and Inventions
4. They are looking at the calendar to see if they can change the date from May 2 to another date. (will know more information on this in a few weeks)

Having Granny in my life has made me a better person. She is my last grandparent. I am fortunate to have had many years with all four of my grandparents. The unfortunate consequence is having to say goodbye to each of them. When I lost my first grandparent, I could not understand why he was taken away. Being younger, I was selfish and wanted him to be with me forever. I was not interested in the bigger picture and the true glory of everlasting life that awaits each of us.

Now, as I say goodbye to Granny, I feel blessed to have been a witness to her example of love, loyalty, and honor, calmed by the thought of her continuing to watch over me and my family. I know she is with Papa and is already getting on him about the clothes he found at the angels flea market. One of my greatest treasures from her is the quilt she made for me.

She gave me a quilt

It began as five pieces stitched together with hands worn from hard work, but determined by love

It has given consolation in times of grief, and absorbed the tears of joy

It is a cocoon of warmth when it’s cold and rainy, a place to relax and bask in sunshine of calm summer day

It has swaddled the newborn and comforted the elderly.

It has been shared with others to praise and criticize

It has endured the wear and tear of life, but with gentle love and care, has remained in one piece

It has traveled many roads, but has always found its way back home

It confounds the ignorant as to how those five pieces have stayed together to form an unbreakable bond

It beholds a sense of wonder to those that understand the true difficulty of crafting something so delicate yet durable

It is a testament to the work ethic and faith-filled legacy of our German Catholic heritage

She gave me a quilt?

No, she gave me a family

A family that knew if you left her house hungry, it was your own fault, whether for food or love, she provided an abundance of both

A family that celebrates the triumphs as well as defeats with equal passion

A family that remains loyal to each other through the toughest of times

A family that plays hard and prays harder

A family that will always be the Norman and Cora Dierschke Family 58 strong and growing.