Microsoft's Windows 7 Operating System has made its grand debut offering new features and faster performance....
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For anyone who has kept an eye on Microsoft's recent deluge of product releases, from Window Mobile 6.5, Security Essentials and all the way to the upcoming OS - Windows 7, it would just leave a person wondering.. "what do I need all this stuff for?!" The truth of the matter is Microsoft is fighting the good fight against every hotshot tech company that's out there. The never-ending battle for technological domination of the world market falls on the shoulders of just a handful of powerhouses... Unfortunately, Microsoft's multi-directional battle is leaving them with little recourse but to retaliate to the bitter end.
Microsoft's dream, has been to close-loop and integrate multiple technological platforms to make it easier for people to deal with all the constant advancements of technology. Their ambitions have been met with economic downturn, fierce competition, and legal backlash e.g. The European Union forced Microsoft to let users choose which internet browser they would like to use when they activate their own copy of Windows 7.
This all makes for a tense and exciting situation for the prospects of global change..., but whoever ends up being victorious at the end of the turf war, whether that be, microsoft, google, mozilla, or apple, would have changed the world in a way we never could have imagined...
As the internet expands and gives us up to the second information for pretty much anything we desire, there are also more bits of undesirable information we collect from time to time which makes the experience sometimes less than desirable. Those bits are not necessarily bad news headlines or inappropriate/offensive material, but rather the viruses/spyware/malicious attacks that many of us have been made familiar with at sometime or another. As depressing as that may make the internet sound, there has almost always been a defender to circumvent these problems, such as Symantec or Mcafee, for a price...
But, in the financially crunching situation we find ourselves in, Microsoft has decided what once was considered an extra expense for many should now be a free necessity for all. So by that introduction I would like to make note of Microsoft's newest addition in their arsenal of software, Microsoft Security Essentials... which, even though is currently in Beta release, is proving to be a worthy contender.
For anyone looking to save a bit on their new computer purchase or alleviate the financial burdens of their current Anti-Virus subcription services, I do implore you to look towards the horizon at the upcoming release, coming out hand-in-hand with Microsoft's latest OS - Windows 7
Who wouldn't want a freebee in times like this?!?
Since IBM's handed control of its PC division over to Lenovo 4 years ago, the subsequent question on everyone's minds was what was IBM planning to do next. They have a hand in nearly all of the world's computer-related activities, so why give up one of their powerhouse divisions? The answer may be in their recent acquisition of SPSS for the cool sum of $1.2 billion dollars. SPSS has been a leader in statistical analysis for decades and is now in the posession of a company who main goal is to optimitize the business world.
Click Here to Read More -> Techspot News
"Web 2.0 is the rebirth of teaching and learning that fits what we are as a species." - Trent Batson, Director of The Association for Authentic, Experiential and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL)
Yesterday, an interesting article was published in Campus Technology which addresses the benefits of Web 2.0 and what it offers higher education. The comments at the bottom include both positive and negative responses to the article.
I agree for the most part with Dr. Batson although I can understand some of the limitations that are represented in the comments section. How about you? What do you think?
I haven't seen this much excitement over an Operating System since Windows 3.1...! The speculation of Windows 7 being everything that everyone wants it to be seems to be coming to fruition. The sheer scope and design of the new OS seems to have accomodated to past, present, and future hardware standards so as to give everyone a chance for technological possibilites.
My intention was for everyone to be let in on my experiences with the Windows 7 beta that was released in January; however, a few websites have beat me to the punch and developed almost full-scale guides to what everyone will be experiencing soon. I will then just give my perceptions as to what this will mean for the technological communities at large...
First and foremost, interfacing with techonology will be one of the most interesting experiences for anyone. The expanded utilization of touchscreen technology will allow for more of a creative approach to simple tasks, such as deleting files or sifting through data. Furthermore, this technologies implementation creates another path to the doors of deeper sensory immersion techniques such as holographic imagery and interaction.
I will continue on with this story until I have exhausted what Windows 7 has to offer. In the meantime here is a link to one of the developed guides for the OS made possible by Gizmodo -> Windows 7 Guide
Google Latitude is a new application introduced recently by Google that allows individuals using laptops and smartphones to track the location of their friends/family through their phone or online through Google Maps. The program uses GPS technology to allow you to view a general location of your friends/family that you have invited to share information.
There are very detailed privacy options that you can customize with this program, including the option not to accept a friend's invitation to join Latitude, hide your status from your friends temporarily, etc. To view more information about Latitude and ideas for its use in educational settings, click here.
As everyone has just started getting familiar with Vista/Office 2007 and all of its quirks we have so come to understand, Microsoft is steaming ahead with there next latest and greatest Operating System/Office Suite, Windows 7 and Office 14, respectively. This has come as quite a shock to those uninitiated in the tech community as many people are trying to come to grips as to WHY is there another one coming out?!?
The truth is behind how Microsoft likes to give people a taste of whats going to change the face of computing world. Just look back 7-9 years ago when Windows Me/XP came out roughly a year apart. That short timespan between Me and XP was so that Windows could be made to exactly what people needed Operating Systems to be at the time, and so, we are reliving those memories once again.
Windows 7/Office 14 offers a full array of necessities that indivuals will come to enjoy and appreciate. The most influential of these being that it requires less computer resources without comprising enhanced useability or performance, thereby making a computer purchase much lighter to bear.
Microsoft has just released a beta version of Windows 7 for trial users to make use of and I have procurred a copy. So, for the next few entries I will keep you apprised of my finding and the potential benefits to you.
Here is a link to see it for yourself-> Windows 7
Have you read the TLT Center's ePirate Newsletter? The newsletter is dedicated to highlighting the events, projects, and workshops at the Teaching, Learning, and Technology Center. The ePirate is published three times a year at the end of each semester: Fall, Spring and Summer. If you have feedback or suggestions for future stories that you would like to see covered in the ePirate, please contact Melissa McDowell, Senior Instructional Designer at mcdoweme@shu.edu
Read the current issue of the ePirate: TLTC Newsletter Winter 2008 (PDF).pdf
Enjoy!
Rick Aristotle Munarriz at Motley Fool takes a look at the new eReader offered by Plastic Logic. He is not sure about its potential for success given the devices offered by Amazon and Sony.
Do we really need another e-book reader? Well, Plastic Logic's device differs in that it offers a bigger display than its more compact rivals-to-be. With essentially the same dimensions as a notepad, the new gadget offers a letter-sized screen, which may make it more suitable to read newspapers and magazines that are delivered wirelessly.
The chances of it changing the world and slaying the Kindle? Unlikely.
Sony has been at it for a couple of years now. Amazon has the online-store ecosystem that encourages self-publishing and is already selling digital subscriptions of popular dailies like New York Times (NYSE: NYT), Washington Post (NYSE: WPO), and News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) The Wall Street Journal. There are also smaller players like Franklin, Etaco, and iRex in this market.
A rookie is going to have to offer more, especially because Amazon is already admittedly working on new and improved versions of Kindle, which it started selling last year. With Amazon's dreams of entering the education market likely requiring a larger display to render textbook graphics accurately, you can't butt heads with the country's leading online retailer unless you're at least two steps ahead of it.
You can find an earlier NYTs review of the device here. And, of course, you can check it out by taking a look at this demo video provided by Plastic Logic.
Enjoy and GO PIRATES!!!
In a June 9, 2008 Star Ledger article Tony Loviscek's use of Echo360, a lecture capture system. Instead of using the taped lectures to skip class, students take advantage of the technology by utlizing different note taking strategies.
At Seton Hall, graduate student Rahul Dang has changed his note-taking habits in his class that uses the new technology. While sitting in class, he breaks his notes into half-hour segments, jotting down the exact time the professor mentions key topics.Then, Dang, 26, goes home and fast-forwards the online video to those times to review.
"It's really easy," said Dang, of Woodbridge. "You select from this list of lectures ... You can fast-forward it, rewind."
The system also allows students to miss a class or two without falling too far behind. If you are interested in finding out more about Echo360 at Seton Hall please contact your Instructional Designer.
