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    Will the iPad change things (2.0)?
    blog entry posted August 30, 2011 by Julie Smith David, last edited May 5, 2012 
    7250 Views, 24 Comments
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    Will the iPad change things (2.0)?
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    inkling 2.0 One of the most viewed posts on the AAACommons is an earlier blog entry on whether the iPad will change anything... there have been over 1,100 views of the post, and over 50 comments (with huge thanks to Bob Jensen for continuing to update the conversation!).

    Today I saw a new blog post on Inkling 2.0 that I thought I should share - and that will take us to a new round of discussions on this topic.  Inkling is a digital publications organization that has taken a very serious and creative approach to designing college textbooks to capitalize on the power of the iPad.  

    Click "more..." below to learn about the new addition and to post your thoughts on how the iPad and other tablets are changing what YOU do!

    more:

    Their new edition not only supports 3-d graphics (imagine economics graphs, break even analysis, and sophisticated statistical analysis for fraud detection... I could go on and on), video (need your students to understand manufacturing for ABC costing?  Done!) and modules of content, but it also supports "social."  Much like Kindle books, now other students notes and highlights are being aggregated and made available to content consumers.  I can imagine a market for great note takers that I could follow to provide a "cliff notes" view of the text.

    So, if you have 5 minutes, take a look at the video in this article, and then let us know what you think... Could we, as a community, create a great body of accounting materials for our students, learning from these techniques?  What about the AAA journal collection - what might that look like in the future?

    web link:
    gigaom post on Inkling 2.0

    Comment

    • Robert E Jensen

      "3 Reasons You'll Buy Google's Nexus 7 Tablet," by Eliot Weisberg, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/video-3-reasons-youll-buy-googles-nexus-7-tablet.php

      "Google Nexus 7 Makes Amazon Kindle Fire Irrelevant," by Dan Rowinski, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2012/06/google-nexus-7-makes-amazon-kindle-fire-irrelevant.php

      "Will Google’s New Nexus Q Kill Google TV?" by Mark Hachman, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/will-googles-new-nexus-q-kill-google-tv.php

      Bob Jensen's technology bookmarks ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Bookbob4.htm

      Bob Jensen's threads on Tools and Tricks of the Trade ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/000aaa/thetools.htm

    • Robert E Jensen

      Nexus 7 --- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nexus_7

      "From Google, the Toughest Challenger to the iPad," by Walter S. Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal, July 10, 2012 ---
      http://professional.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303343404577518871956122982.html

      Tired of watching in frustration as its popular Android mobile operating system failed to make much of a dent in the tablet market, Google GOOG -1.81% is stepping in next week with an Android tablet it helped design. It's the Nexus 7, a $199 model with a 7-inch screen. And in my view, it's a winner.

      After testing the Nexus 7 for a couple of weeks, I consider it the best Android tablet I've used. It's a serious alternative to both Apple's AAPL -0.62% larger $499 iPad and to a more direct rival: Amazon's $199, Android-based, 7-inch Kindle Fire. I prefer the Nexus 7 to 7-inch models from Google partners like Samsung, 005930.SE -0.80% whose comparable product costs $250. [image] Google

      The Google Nexus 7's My Library home screen displays a user's recent media content.

      The new Google tablet doesn't have all the features of the iPad. For instance, it lacks a cellular connectivity option, a rear camera and the iPad's dazzling screen resolution. Its base model has half the memory of the iPad's. It offers fewer content choices—music, movies, TV shows—than either the Apple or Amazon devices do. It also has very few apps designed for a tablet, as opposed to a phone, while the iPad boasts over 200,000 apps for tablet use. And its screen area is less than half the size of the iPad's.

      But Google's tablet is a better choice than the iPad for people on a budget; for those who prefer a lighter, more compact tablet that's easier to carry and operate with one hand; and for those who prefer Google's ecosystem of apps, services and content to Apple's.

      Despite some drawbacks, I found it a pleasure to use.

      . . .

      Google's voice-controlled question-and-answer feature, like Apple's Siri, didn't understand me or get it right a lot of the time. And it didn't understand some questions Siri does, like "Will I need an umbrella today?"

      And Google Now requires you to compromise some privacy, by allowing the service to track your location and search history. It tries to figure out your home address by detecting where the device is during most nights.

      Overall, however, Google and Asus have produced a very good tablet in the Nexus 7, one I can recommend.

       

      Bob Jensen's threads on Tablet Computing ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/000aaa/thetools.htm#Tablets

    • Robert E Jensen

      "5 Reasons Why I Ditched My iPad for a Google Nexus 7," by Taylor Hatmaker, ReadWriteWeb, August 1, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/5-reasons-why-i-ditched-my-ipad-for-a-google-nexus-7.php

      Apple does not have a corner on the market for innovations in textbook authoring
      "2 New Platforms Offer Alternative to Apple’s Textbook-Authoring Software," by Nick DeSantis, Chronicle of Higher Education, February 17. 2012 ---
      Click Here
      http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/2-new-platforms-offer-alternative-to-apples-textbook-authoring-software/35495?sid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en

      January 19 Comment by Alex at the end of the article at
      http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/apple-reinvents-textbooks

      There is indeed a lot to like except one major objection: Apple has once again opted not to support open standards and instead chosen to implement interactive iBooks via a proprietary format that could only be consumed on Apple-only devices.

      Clearly, Apple is most interested in locking the education market into a closed system where iBooks textbooks can only be produced, sold, distributed and consumed by Apple-only technology.

      Also, the iBooks Author app capability to export interactive multimedia-rich books as plain-text or PDF is a lame face-saving gimmic.

      Shame on Apple for not fully supporting open standards like HTML5 and ePub3, and for undermining the open Web and Web browsers in favor of a closed proprietary system.

      January 20, 2012 reply from Richard Campbell

      One concern I have with Apple's iBooks Author program is in respect to the EULA

      http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/01/20/apple_ibooks/ 

      I would prefer that Apple would charge for this authoring program and allow the standard file format (epub) be sold wherever the author wanted. Under the current conditions, Apple gets 30% of anything created with this program.

      On a brighter note, it means that individual entrepreneurs who create their own works will be at a competive advantage vis-a-vis the major publishers.

      Richard

       

      Jensen Comment
      These days, many people will still prefer the iPad for a number of reasons, including their favorite apps.

      Many of the comments following this article are very favorable.

      I still think Apple's decision to be a monopoly manufacturer of the iPad and not live by open standards is a bummer even though there is a work around for the open standard. Apple just did not seem to learn from its massive loss of PC market share to Windows. Now it may eventually lose market share to Android or Suirfac or whatever. Consumers really do tend to hate monopoly dictators.

      "3 Reasons You'll Buy Google's Nexus 7 Tablet," by Eliot Weisberg, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/video-3-reasons-youll-buy-googles-nexus-7-tablet.php

      "Google Nexus 7 Makes Amazon Kindle Fire Irrelevant," by Dan Rowinski, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/mobile/2012/06/google-nexus-7-makes-amazon-kindle-fire-irrelevant.php

      "Will Google’s New Nexus Q Kill Google TV?" by Mark Hachman, ReadWriteWeb, June 28, 2012 ---
      http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/will-googles-new-nexus-q-kill-google-tv.php

      Bob Jensen's technology bookmarks ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Bookbob4.htm

      Bob Jensen's threads on Tools and Tricks of the Trade ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/000aaa/thetools.htm

    • Robert E Jensen

      "Amazon Heats Up Gadget Wars," by Greg Bensinger, The Wall Street Journal, August 31, 2012 ---
      http://professional.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444914904577623690307576820.html?mg=reno64-wsj

      Amazon.com Inc. AMZN +0.83% is ratcheting up pricing pressure in the gadget wars with an advertising-supported tablet that will be priced lower than similar models, according to people involved in the discussions.

      The tablet will be part of a parade of new devices expected to hit the market with hopes of appealing to consumers in a tight economy during the crucial holiday season.

      On Wednesday, Nokia Corp. NOK1V.HE +1.07% is set to give a peek at the first line of smartphones powered by Microsoft Corp.'s MSFT +1.65% new Windows 8 operating system in New York. Across town that day, Motorola Mobility is expected to unveil its first major phone since it was acquired by Google Inc. GOOG +0.50%

      And Amazon on Thursday is holding a media event in Santa Monica, Calif., where it is expected to introduce a new version of its Kindle Fire tablet.

      Those companies are trying to get ahead of rival Apple Inc., AAPL +0.21% which on Sept. 12 is expected to unveil a new iPhone.

      Apple has also been working with suppliers on a smaller version of its iPad tablet that will be similar in size to the current Kindle Fire, people familiar with the matter have said, while Microsoft said it would start selling its new Surface tablet in the coming months.

      "You've got a flood of competitors in tablets," said Jeff Kagan, an independent analyst. "Marketers have to figure out how to differentiate theirs, whether on price or capabilities. That's probably going to be a few years before we get there."

      The cheaper, ad-supported offering from Amazon, along with other upcoming gadgets from electronics makers, could put pressure on Apple, which has become the world's most valuable company in part by pricing its devices at a premium.

      An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.

      Amazon initially got into the device market in 2007, when it launched a line of Kindle e-readers.

      The Seattle company has since dropped the price of its Kindle e-reader significantly. The device originally was priced at $399, and soon dropped to $359, then fell to $299 for a later version.

      Last year, Amazon launched a slate of Kindle e-readers that were priced between $109 and $189, with models offered for $30 to $50 less to readers willing to have advertisements appear on screen savers and at the bottom of certain screens.

      In the tablet arena, Amazon dove in last November when it released its $199 Kindle Fire. The seven-inch-screen device is priced aggressively compared with Apple's iPad, which starts at $499.

      On Thursday, Amazon said it had sold out of the Kindle Fire, while promising "an exciting road map ahead."

      It is unclear how well Amazon's Kindle Fire has sold. The company doesn't disclose sales.

      Amazon's new ad-supported tablet would come at a discount to tablets without the advertising subsidy, said the people involved in the product discussions. Exact pricing and which advertisers are involved is unclear.

      The new tablet would display an ad after the user "wakes" the gadget, said one person briefed on the matter.

      Amazon has discussed how some versions of the new tablet would connect to the Internet only through Wi-Fi networks, said the person briefed on the product.

      Additionally, Amazon is testing its own smartphone to take on Apple's iPhone and could release it as soon as the end of this year, officials at Amazon's parts providers who declined to be named said in July.

      Continued in article

      Bob Jensen's threads on gadgets ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Bookbob4.htm#Technology

       

    • Robert E Jensen

      "Google Glass and the Future of Technology," by David A. Pogue, The New York Times, September 13, 2012 ---
      http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/13/google-glass-and-the-future-of-technology/

      New gadgets — I mean whole new gadget categories — don’t come along very often. The iPhone was one recent example. You could argue that the iPad was another. But if there’s anything at all as different and bold on the horizon, surely it’s Google Glass.

      That, of course, is Google’s prototype of a device you wear on your face. Google doesn’t like the term “glasses,” because there aren’t any lenses. (The Glass team, part of Google’s experimental labs, also doesn’t like terms like “augmented reality” or “wearable computer,” which both have certain baggage.)

      ¶Instead, Glass looks like only the headband of a pair of glasses — the part that hooks on your ears and lies along your eyebrow line — with a small, transparent block positioned above and to the right of your right eye. That, of course, is a screen, and the Google Glass is actually a fairly full-blown computer. Or maybe like a smartphone that you never have to take out of your pocket.

      ¶This idea got a lot of people excited when Nick Bilton of The New York Times broke the story of the glasses in February. Google first demonstrated it April in a video. In May, at Google’s I/O conference, Glass got some more play as attendees watched a live video feed from the Glass as a sky diver leapt from a plane and parachuted onto the roof of the conference building. But so far, very few non-Googlers have been allowed to try them on.

      ¶Last week, I got a chance to put one on. I’m hosting a PBS series called “Nova ScienceNow” (it premieres Oct. 10), and one of the episodes is about the future of tech. Of course, projecting what’s yet to come in consumer tech is nearly impossible, but Google Glass seemed like a perfect example of a breakthrough on the verge. So last week the Nova crew and I met with Babak Parviz, head of the Glass project, to discuss and try out the prototypes.

      ¶Now, Google emphasized — and so do I — that Google Glass is still at a very, very early stage. Lots of factors still haven’t been finalized, including what Glass will do, what the interface will look like, how it will work, and so on. Google doesn’t want to get the public excited about some feature that may not materialize in the final version. (At the moment, Google is planning to offer the prototypes to developers next year — for $1,500 — in anticipation of selling Glass to the public in, perhaps, 2014.)

      ¶When you actually handle these things, you can’t believe how little they weigh. Less than a pair of sunglasses, in my estimation. Glass is an absolutely astonishing feat of miniaturization and integration.

      ¶Inside the right earpiece — that is, the horizontal support that goes over your ear — Google has packed memory, a processor, a camera, speaker and microphone, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi antennas, accelerometer, gyroscope, compass and a battery. All inside the earpiece.

      ¶Google has said that eventually, Glass will have a cellular radio, so it can get online; at this point, it hooks up wirelessly with your phone for an online connection. And the mind-blowing thing is, this slim thing is the prototype. It’s only going to get smaller in future generations. “This is the bulkiest version of Glass we’ll ever make,” Babak told me.

      ¶The biggest triumph — and to me, the biggest surprise — is that the tiny screen is completely invisible when you’re talking or driving or reading. You just forget about it completely. There’s nothing at all between your eyes and whatever, or whomever, you’re looking at.

      ¶And yet when you do focus on the screen, shifting your gaze up and to the right, that tiny half-inch display is surprisingly immersive. It’s as though you’re looking at a big laptop screen or something.

      ¶(Even though I usually need reading glasses for close-up material, this very close-up display seemed to float far enough away that I didn’t need them. Because, yeah — wearing glasses under Glass might look weird.)

      ¶The hardware breakthrough, in other words, is there. Google is proceeding carefully to make sure it gets the rest of it as right as possible on the first try.

      ¶But the potential is already amazing. Mr. Pariz stressed that Glass is designed for two primary purposes — sharing and instant access to information — hands-free, without having to pull anything out of your pocket.

      ¶You can control the software by swiping a finger on that right earpiece in different directions; it’s a touchpad. Your swipes could guide you through simple menus. In various presentations, Google has proposed icons for things like taking a picture, recording video, making a phone call, navigating on Google Maps, checking your calendar and so on. A tap selects the option you want.

      ¶In recent demonstrations, Google has also shown that you can use speech recognition to control Glass. You say “O.K., Glass” to call up the menu.

      ¶To illustrate how Glass might change the game for sharing your life with others, I tried a demo in which a photo appeared — a jungly scene with a wooden footbridge just in front of me. The theme from “Jurassic Park” played crisply in my right ear. (Cute, real cute.)

      Continued in article

      Bob Jensen's threads on gadgets ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Bookbob4.htm#Technology

       

    • Robert E Jensen

      "200 Million Workers Want Windows 8 Tablets, Not iPads," by Mark Hachman, ReadWriteWeb, February 4, 2013 ---
      http://readwrite.com/2013/02/04/200-million-workers-want-windows-8-tablets-not-ipads

      Jensen Comment
      Note the large sample size.

    • Robert E Jensen

      "Google Launches $1,299 Chromebook Pixel With 2560×1700 3:2 12.85″ Touchscreen, Core i5 CPU, 1TB Of Google Drive Storage & Optional LTE,," by Frederic Lardinois, TechCrunch, February 21, 2013 --- Click Here
      http://techcrunch.com/2013/02/21/google-announces-1299-chromebook-pixel-with-2560x1700-32-12-85-touchscreen-core-i5-cpu-1tb-of-google-drive-storage-optional-lte/

      Google's PR Page --- Click Here
      http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromebook-pixel/#utm_campaign=en&utm_source=en-ha-na-us-bkws&utm_medium=ha
      Full Specs ---
      http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromebook-pixel/#pixel-specs

      Two, read that 2, USB Ports!!!!!!
      iPad owners can weep over this.

      Chromebook Pixel Video --- http://www.youtube.com/user/googlechrome?v=S95J5BowMmk

      "A Quick Tour of Windows 8:  An overview of the user experience design of Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system," MIT's Technology Review, February 8, 2013 --- Click Here
      http://www.technologyreview.com/video/511611/a-quick-tour-of-windows-8/?utm_campaign=newsletters&utm_source=newsletter-daily-all&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20130222

       

    • Robert E Jensen

      "Belkin Ultimate Keyboard Case for iPad: A Review," by Erin E. Templeton, Chronicle of Higher Education, April 25, 2013 ---
      http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/belkin-ultimate-keyboard-case-for-ipad-a-review/48851?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en

      Bob Jensen's threads on gadgets ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/Bookbob4.htm#Technology

    • Robert E Jensen

      "iPad Apps for the Classroom," by George Williams, Chronicle of Higher Education, February 4, 2014 ---
      http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/ipad-apps-classroom/55185?cid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en

      Bob Jensen's threads on tools and tricks of the trade ---
      http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/000aaa/thetools.htm