These are my links for October 29th through October 30th:

• Statistics Show Social Media Is Bigger Than You Think « Socialnomics – Social Media Blog –
• The Future of WPMu –
• ScholarPress –

A list of other papers, videos and podcasts I have been consuming…

A Guide to task analysis?
by Barry Kirwan, Les K. Ainsworth – Technology & Engineering – 1992 – 417 pages – Limited preview
This work shows readers how to target task analysis TA resources effectively over the life cycle of a project from conceptual design Through To Systems Operation, Noting The Role Of TA InSafety And Quality assurance, minimizing operator error,

Web site usability handbook?
by Mark Pearrow – Computers – 2000 – 350 pages – No preview available
With the hands-on guidance and examples provided in this book, readers will find practical tools to make certain that their site is as effective and user-friendly as possible.

Designing Web Usability?
by Jakob Nielsen – Computers – 2004 – 394 pages

User-centered web design?
by John Cato – Computers – 2001 – 320 pages – No preview available
In a concise, readable text it presents an overview of user-centred interactive website project management and design, providing practical advice and proven methodology, as well as ideasand tips for ensuring that the final design meets the needs of …

Contextual design: defining customer-centered systems?
by Hugh Beyer, Karen Holtzblatt – Computers – 1998 – 472 pages – Limited preview
This book introduces a customer-centered approach to business by showing how data gathered from people while they work can drive the definition of a product or process while supporting theneeds of teams and their organizations.
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Observing the user experience: a practitioner’s guide to user research?
by Mike Kuniavsky – Computers – 2003 – 560 pages – Limited preview
Filled with real-world experience and a wealth of practical information, this book presents a complete toolbox of techniques to help designers and developers see through the eyes of theirusers.

The elements of user experience: user-centered design for the web?
by Jesse James Garrett – Computers – 2003 – 189 pages – Snippet view

1. “elements.pdf,” http://www.jjg.net/elements/pdf/elements.pdf.

The handbook of experiential learning and management education?
by Michael Reynolds, Russ Vince – Business & Economics – 2007 – 451 pages – Limited preview
This Handbook offers the reader a comprehensive picture of current thinking on experiential learning; ideas and examples of experiential learning in practice; and it emphasises theimportance of experiential learning to the future of management …

Sat the Final Cut Pro 7 and Motion 4 exams this month and successfully passed for another year or two. Hoping the developers at Apple don’t rush out another update for a while. It’s only been 7 months since I first took the ACT exam and I don’t really want to go through the stress again. No worries it’s done and passed.

These are my links for May 17th through September 3rd:

• Transnational teaching resources for UniSA staff who teach offshore –
• Enhancing frameworks for assuring quality in university offshore education programs –
• Augmented Reality: 5 Barriers to a Web That’s Everywhere –
• The Shape of Alpha – Flickr Developer Blog –
• RFID and wine racks –
• OffMaps – Offline maps for the iPhone and iPod Touch –
• You R Here –
• Web Squared: Web 2.0 Five Years On: Web 2.0 Summit 2009 – Co-produced … –
• smart.fm –
• Social Media Seminar –
• Harvard Business Online –
• SwarmSketch and collective visualization –
• Examples of data visualization –
• Pomegranate | NS08 –
• Social Media Plan for CityU of Seattle –

After two weeks of intensive training, presentations and 3 exams. I can now call myself an Apple Certified Trainer, (ACT). It’s only been 23 years since I began using Apple computers and 15 years that I have been teaching people how to design with them. So well done me…

Now let’s see if we can get the Authorized Training Center, (AACTe) established at the university.

A view into the studio where I am slowly taking over Mel’s wall space. I don’t think this will be for long with the project deadline fast approaching.

A list of other papers, videos and podcasts I have been consuming…

• BBC NEWS | UK | Education | Pupils get revision help by text. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/5064204.stm
• Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age. Available at: http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm
• History of virtual learning environments – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_virtual_learning_environments
• Internet Activities. Available at: http://www.pewinternet.org/trends/Internet_Activities_7.22.08.htm
• KPMG in Canada | The Impact of Digitalization – a generation apart. Available at: http://www.kpmg.ca/en/industries/ice/digitization.html
• Malcolm Gladwell on spaghetti sauce | Video on TED.com. Available at: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/malcolm_gladwell_on_spaghetti_sauce.html
• Moodle: Welcome to Moodle! Available at: http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=1
• NationMaster – Encyclopedia: CourseInfo LLC. Available at: http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/CourseInfo-LLC#References
• Online Learning History – MoodleDocs. Available at: http://docs.moodle.org/en/Online_Learning_History#1997_-_CourseInfo_releases_ILN
• René Magritte. La Trahison des images (Ceci n’est pas une pipe). Available at: http://collectionsonline.lacma.org/mwebcgi/mweb.exe?request=record;id=34438;type=101
• SEC Info – Blackboard Inc – S-1/A – On 4/7/04. Available at: http://www.secinfo.com/dsvRq.1199.htm
• Senior’s company helps create Web pages. Available at: http://www.news.cornell.edu/chronicle/97/10.16.97/Web_company.html
• Seth Godin on sliced bread | Video on TED.com. Available at: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/seth_godin_on_sliced_bread.html
• Sinclair ZX81 – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinclair_ZX81
• Technology Enhanced Learning » Home: TLRP-TEL. Available at: http://www.tlrp.org/tel
• Time’s Person of the Year: You – TIME. Available at: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1569514,00.html
• TL Forum 2000: Dougiamas – improving tools for Internet based education. Available at: http://lsn.curtin.edu.au/tlf/tlf2000/dougiamas.html
• United States Patent: 6988138. Available at: http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6,988,138.PN.&OS=PN/6,988,138&RS=PN/6,988,138
• Who is Who: Interview with Mike Wesch. Available at: http://blog.whoiswho.de/stories/33325
• anonymous, Visual history of company consolidation in the LMS space. Available at: http://photos1.blogger.com/photoInclude/blogger/4681/76/1600/Consolidation5.jpg
• Bauerlein, M., Turned On, Plugged In, Online, & Dumb: Student Failure Despite the Techno Revolution | Britannica Blog. Available at: http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2008/10/turned-on-plugged-in-online-dumb-student-failure-despite-the-techno-revolution
• Brown, J.S., GROWING UP DIGITAL – How the Web Changes Work, Education, and the Ways People Learn. Available at: http://www.usdla.org/html/journal/FEB02_Issue/article01.html
• Dasgupta, P., Digitalization. Available at: http://cactus.eas.asu.edu/partha/Columns/12-24-digital.htm
• Green, H. & Celia, H., 2007. Their Space – Education for a digital generation . Available at: http://www.demos.co.uk/publications/theirspace
• Green, H. & Hannon, C., Their Space Podcast. Available at: http://www.demos.co.uk/projects/digitalcurriculumproject/blog/theirspacepodcast
• Hargreaves, D., Schools need ‘education epidemic’ to change. Available at: http://www.demos.co.uk/media/pressreleases/educationepidemic
• Mestrum, H., What are Millenials and how do they learn? (Hans on Experience). Available at: http://www.hansonexperience.com/my_weblog/2005/10/what_are_millen.html
• Puttnam, D., Children’s experiences of technology outside the classroom way ahead. The Guardian. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2007/may/08/elearning.schools
• Wenhart, G.V.N., 2008. >> Joseph Kyselak. prehysteries of new media. Available at: http://prehysteries.blogspot.com/2008/12/joseph-kyselak.html
• Wesch, M., A Vision of Students Today (& What Teachers Must Do). Available at: http://www.britannica.com/blogs/2008/10/a-vision-of-students-today-what-teachers-must-do

I finally got around to thinking through my digital photo workflow. For over 18months I have been taking photos with a Nikon D80 in RAW format and storing them in iPhoto. It’s quick and dirty, keeps the original RAW files and spits out the jpeg’s I need for most jobs. I know it’s not 16bit and there is no lens correction, but it was all I needed at the time.

So the choices for software seem to fall between Adobe Light Room, Aperture from Apple and DXO Optic Pro. They are all in the $200-300 range and have trial version for evaluation.

Some reviews:
Aperture vs. Lightroom: The new digital darkroom
Aperture vs. Lightroom: What do the pros use?
Aperture 2 Review (Lightroom vs. Aperture 2.0 on Presets)
Review: Lens correction plug-in Kekus LensFix for Aperture 2

For a week I bounced back and forth between all three applications and made some observations:

• DXO processes RAW with the best color matching & lens correction is very accurate
• Lightroom is amazingly fast and has simple navigation
• Aperture has great metadata tools and mac integration

I had problems with DXO crashing all the time, which is well documented online. It was the latest version and promised much more stability but not for me. Shame as it was the real winner for natural RAW processing and lens correction. Although the file management was quirky.

Lightroom lacked the lens correction features, which was one of my main requirements. But I love the speed and simplicty.

Aperture was a simple migration from iPhoto, it does most of what I want in processing RAW and moving back and forth to Photoshop CS4 in 16bit. It does lack the lens correction of DXO, but this can be fixed with kekus lensfix, ($30 plugin). None of the offerings have any geotagging features, but ovloab’s Geophoto is great for the job, ($24).

So the winner was  Aperture & Kekus Lensfix & GeoPhoto

I have been re-visiting some books from the past for the first assignment. It’s been a good period of reflection, always a good thing to do.

• Abercrombie, N., Hill, S. & Turner, B.S., 2006. The Penguin Dictionary of Sociology,
• Bloom, B.S., Krathwohl, D.R. & Masia, B.B., 1964. Taxonomy of Educational Objectives,
• Coupland, D., 1991. Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture, St. Martin’s Press.
• Dougiamas, M., 1999. Developing tools to foster online educational dialogue. Teaching in the Disciplines/ Learning in Context, 119-123.
• Gladwell, M., 2002. The Tipping Point,
• Gunn, M.A., The Societal Consequences of Digitalization.
• Jenkins, H., 2006. Convergence Culture,
• Rogers, E., Diffusion of Innovations, The Free Press.
• Strauss, W. & Howe, N., Generations,

My full list is available at the Google Library

Have been looking at solutions for creating timelines, initially I was thinking offline but how primitive would that be… I want my timeline to be social and very open… What I’m looking for is something like the stock tracker at Google. It’s so much more than a timeline, the way it handles market data over time is simple and elegant, unfolding the more you explore it and linking all the page elements dynamically. (my expectations might be a little high).

There is an open solution from the SIMILE project at MIT called Timeline, (actually most the software is called timeline). This project is now freely available here. It’s good but lacks an interface to input data, although it reads XML which is certainly the right way to be doing business these days. It’s also missing a zoom function for the selected time range. Kind of essential unless you view history in chunks.

I tried some other solutions including: timeline creator, timeline maker, read/think/write timeline, our timelines amongst others… They were very…. mediocre.  All offering the ability to add/edit points in time, some allow linked images and media but few let you scale and none are social. The flex2 based Timeline Creator was very close but unfortunately only available in French. Hopefully a translation will follow soon.

Looking at the online solutions it appears to be a booming area, I have to keep returning to this post and adding more solutions to the list below. I have tried to create an example in each of them to demonstrate the differences. I can see a timeline matrix forming along the lines of wikimatrix and cmsmatrix.

• circavie
• dipity
• xtimeline
• allofme
• lifesnapz

The timeline below is created at dipity.com, it takes feeds from your social sites to create the embeddable iframe below. Nicely done..

Below is a timeline created at xtimeline.com. There is no time range zoom, but social editing is encouraged and there is a discussion attached to each timeline at the website. You can also share and search timelines. This timeline looks much better on the site itself -