$100 Laptop Roundup April 25, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Articles/Videos, Hardware, OLPC.add a comment
Liliputing has put together a fairly comprehensive list of low-cost ultraportable laptops. There are several on the list I’ve never heard of, but for some reason doesn’t include the XO although it is mentioned in the reviews of other laptops. The whole site is a terrific resource for anyone looking for more information about small inexpensive laptops.
http://www.liliputing.com/2008/04/over-past-six-months-or-so-asus-everex_24.html
YATL or Yet Another Tiny Laptop March 20, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Hardware, OLPC.add a comment
These things are cropping up all over. CNET’s News Blog is reporting about a new tiny laptop from Elitegroup that includes a built-in webcam. No word on pricing yet, but I think the more options in the mini-mobile computing, the better.
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9899364-7.html
Voiceless Speech March 13, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Articles/Videos, Hardware, Opinion.add a comment
Techcrunch has posted a video about a new technology called voiceless communication. This is a fascinating technology that has the ability to do both great good and potentially a great deal of harm. On the positive side, those who are not able to produce recognizable speech would no longer be excluded from any voice-related activities. Imagine a world where no one knows what the word ‘mute’ means except in the context of a cell phone or TV.
One potential use for the technology that is demonstrated in the video is the ability to carry on phone conversations without anyone else hearing your end of the conversation. I can see the positive in that as well.
On the other hand (there is always an other hand) the ability to conduct conversations undetected means that students would be able to communicate with each other without any restrictions. Just imagine the cheating possibilities! We’ll have to install jamming devices in schools in order to prevent students from talking to each other.
Turn that around, and you have the ability to listen in on anyone who might be subvocalizing. This seems just one step away from reading someone’s mind. Once we are all fitted with an RFID chip to keep track of where we are, that same chip, or another one, might also be tracking our words, both internal and spoken.
Don’t get me wrong, I applaud the voiceless communication effort and think it should continue. There is much more to be gained in terms of removing barriers for a marginalized segment of society than there is a theoretical danger of the loss of privacy. Still, I think this is a good example of the normal development of technology. There is a problem, and someone provides a technical solution. That solution necessarily comes with its own set of problems, and very little thought is given to those new problems because in most cases we don’t know what they are until the solution is in place.
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/03/13/the-future-of-voice-may-be-voiceless/
$100 Laptop - $50 Teachermate March 13, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Hardware, OLPC.1 comment so far
Innovations for learning has a new ‘laptop’ called the Teachermate. It is intended for the kindergarten through 2nd grade set. I don’t know much of what it can do, but there is a CNET News article about it. According to the article, it will show up in Chicago Public Schools first, with New York, Detroit, New Orleans, San Antonio, Phoenix, and Denver set to get the little ‘laptops’. I’d like to know where in Denver these will be appearing, since I work for the Denver Public Schools, and this is the first I’ve heard of it. If you know anything more about the Teachermate, let us all know about them.
http://www.innovationsforlearning.org/Teachermate.html
Paper 2.0 January 13, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Articles/Videos, Hardware.3 comments
I’ve been interested in e-paper, or paper 2.0 to bring the phrase up to date, for many years now. For example, Xerox has been working on digital ink for a while now. Below is a link to a post by Vicki Davis on the Cool Cat Teacher Blog that summarizes some of the current efforts to bring digital ink to market, or at least to bring content to very small portable devices. The post includes some cool pictures of Polymer Vision’s Readius Handheld, as well as information about Amazon’s Kindle and other devices.
http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2008/01/paper-is-in-your-hand-hard-proof-of.html
Disruptive Technology January 11, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Hardware, Humor, Opinion.add a comment
If you ever needed an example of how disruptive technology can be, take a look at this example from the Consumer Electronics Show. No, I’m not talking about cool new stuff, I’m talking about what happens when people choose for themselves what happens to the technology used to show off all of the cool new stuff. This is one video worth watching. It definitely reminds me of what happens in the classroom when students decide for themselves what learning is going to take place.
http://gizmodo.com/343348/confessions-the-meanest-thing-gizmodo-did-at-ces
OLPC 2.0 January 10, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Hardware, OLPC.add a comment
Okay, here we go again. This time, the starting point is $75. We’ll see how far this can go, but the New York Times is reporting that a spin-out group from OLPC is proposing a $75 laptop. Specs and details in the link below. Pretty soon they’ll be giving these things away!
OLPC from Everex, or Maybe Packard Bell January 8, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in Hardware, OLPC.add a comment
CES, the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, is often a good predictor of future trends in technology. Take for example this $399 laptop from Everex. At least according to this CrunchGear article it will be manufactured by Everex when it hits the market in the US. While it isn’e a touch screen, and the battery life leaves something to be desired, the processor is faster than others in this price range, there is a full gigabyte of memory, and it inlcudes a 30 GB hard drive.
http://www.crunchgear.com/2008/01/08/look-out-eee-a-399-tiny-laptop-from-everex-is-afoot/
Hack This Device January 6, 2008
Posted by Matthew Woolums in 21st-Century, Hardware, Tools.add a comment
The New York Times has published an article about a new product from Neuros Technology International that invites people to extend the functionality of the device. It is an example of open source hardware, similar to the Chumby I mentioned a few posts ago. The Neuros OSD is a device to archive, organize, playback, and transfer your video content to other devices. It will be interesting to see what happens if there is a market for hackable devices. Imagine customers deciding what capabilities are included in the products they purchase instead of the manufacturer. To provide an educational spin, imagine a classroom where students are empowered to decide what they are going to learn instead of the curriculum. Sounds very disruptive.
