Hi there, welcome to the Mobile Learning blog by David Sugden. As one of the MoleNET project 'mentors' I am charged to support projects in a variety of different ways. One way I thought useful was to separate my normal blog ramblings away from this more specific collection of news and views from the world of mobile and wireless learning devices. It will be created ad hoc and you will be able to subscribe to an RSS feed for regular updates. Please send any comments to David@village-e-learning.co.uk or visit http://davidsugden.jaiku.com/. I will then cut and paste comments as needed (please state how you wish to be referred to - if at all)

See 'm' video clips

July 20th 2008

The joy of text. See Times Online Article

Txtng: The Gr8 Db8.  David Crystal Amazon

This book is reviewed in today's Sunday Times and it was a comment from the author that drew me into it. "Texting doesn't erode literacy: it actually challenges literacy skills". Brilliant! That's the sort of message, Di, Lils, James and I (amongst others) have been pushing for this last year. Crystal is honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales, Bangor and uses the book to answer charges by others that texting is ruining the language: "..doing to our language what Genghis Khan did to his neighbours 800 years ago" - John Humphrys (BBC). One such detractor suggests that texting masks dyslexia - which may be true, but on the other hands texting allows dyslexics to contribute and communicate without fear of ridicule or embarrassment. Some mobile phone tools actually help dyslexics tremendously - see Captura Talk software which is supplied and installed with the HTC TyTN on a micro SD card.

25th May 2008

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/education/article3998970.ece

I've not written much here for a while because I've not had much to add to the various debates about mobile learning (and I've been too busy - blush!). But now the article above, seen on today's Sunday Times front page (article by Jonathan Leake) prompts me to give up a little time to blog - in agreement with the main sentiments of the article.

Apparently, "Professor David Crystal believes that sending frequent texts helps children’s reading and writing because of the imaginative abbreviations needed". And I wholeheartedly subscribe to this view. But it's not just children that can benefit from this usage - most learners (traditional or non-traditional) can too. Many of the people I meet during my travels bemoan the 'deterioration' of the English language - "John Humphrys, the BBC presenter, has described text messagers as “vandals who are doing to our language what Genghis Khan did to his neighbours 800 years ago - ibid" but I think that they have a blinkered view. The language itself changes over time and even the use of text must contribute to this ongoing change. However, my main contention (and agreement with the article) is that, as Professor Crystal suggests - texting can benefit literacy - and understanding.

Several workshops I've done (and am doing) this year as part of the MoleNET project have been based around the sound pedagogical use of mobile and handheld devices, the most popular activity of which is texting. We find that many colleges and institutions are using text in a very administrative way - to send reminders, to find out why absence has taken place etc. but that there is little use of two-way texting, where learners are required to 'respond' in a meaningful way. The most successful activities we (Di Dawson, Lilian Soon and me) have implemented amongst those attending our workshops have been based around Bloom's Taxonomy. Even when our colleagues can see the point of two-way texting, they very often only require responses around the bottom two levels of Blooms. What is this? .. Why is that? .. etc. However, we have learned that our audiences find the Macbeth exercise is quite enlightening!

A Word file - Macbeth - is presented and the delegates are given a set time to read it through and then a further set time to read it through again, with a colleague - and then more time to devise a text (160 characters) that 'synthesises' and 'evaluates' the content.  The idea here is not to create a text of perfect English (and given the prose - what is perfect English?) but to set about creating cognitive activity. The idea for this use came from a colleague who was trying to get 20 motor vehicle students to 'evaluate' a 300 word piece of text (the other sense of text) as part of their key skills work. She was fighting hard to keep them on track when she decided to ask them to text (SMS) her with ideas of what the text might mean. The following week's discussion of the replies led to far greater understanding of what was required than my colleague had been able to instigate in other ways and the higher levels of Blooms (desirable) were achieved.

When we give the Macbeth exercise to teachers, they do moan about how hard it is, how unintelligible the prose is - but actually, to a learner who is just being introduced to a subject, the lack of understanding is just the same - so the teachers get to experience some of the feelings their learners experience when faced with a hand out containing new learning.

Someone has been looking at my Busbi video. And someone has 'sampled' it! See  it here (tee hee)

Using the ASUS web cam

I've been doing some rough and ready video recording and editing recently as part of the L4LW programme in Yorkshire and Humberside. Because I've got the Busbi - I used that for a couple of recordings. Whilst the quality is not the best, it's still better than a mobile phone and its ease of use is the killer! Just record something, transfer the file via SD Card to the laptop for any required editing (not usually needed because it's so fuss-free) and hey presto.

However, buoyed up by my Busbi success - I thought I'd do some video work using the ASUS EEE. The Asus has a nice web cam on the lid which looks superb on screen - so I thought I'd use it to record a couple of clips. Having recorded one yesterday at Craven College, I was disappointed to note that there was no sound! So, I had to fall back on my trusty Sanyo digi-cam (complete with £5 tri-pod from Maplins - now available in a £1 shop near you!!). At Bradford later, I was keen enough to try again and this time (just in case) I made sure that my Olympus digital voice recorder was also switched on. Fingers crossed - I made the recording, packed my bags and left. I was determined that it would work.

Tonight I sat down to edit the file. First of all - the file could not be read by anything on my laptop. It is saved by the Asus as a .ogg file. Now, I thought this was just audio - but the video was saved with that extension and to use it any way, I had to convert it to something laptop readable. To do the conversion, I downloaded an update to Super and converted it to windows movie video (WMV). I originally tried .avi but couldn't answer the questions the 'new' Super asked me! Having done the conversion, I could now hear the audio (which had been inaudible on the Asus) - but it didn't lip-synch very well! In fact the whole thing was rather shoddy. Because I am not an Apple man (yet) and very much enslaved by Microsoft I used the wonderful Windows Movie Maker (WMM) to re-edit the clip.

First of all, I muted the video-sound track. The video itself wasn't too bad. Separately, I edited the Olympus soundtrack (I use Sound Forge - but Audacity would do just as well) and cut out all the audio I didn't need, before placing the finished product onto the WMM audio track. This story gets longer but the short version is that I managed to re-synch and improve the sound and ended up with a credible video clip. But ---- why bother? I won't use my Asus for video recording again!

ASUS EEE 4G

Those of you that read my regular blog will have noted that late last month I bought a Busbi digital camera. At £30 - I was robbed - as the following week I bought a Disgo version (exactly the same, except the name is different) for £25 at Curry's! http://tinyurl.com/3c2qbh - The video above was taken with my K850i camera phone and shows the camera itself. The video alongside is taken with the camera itself. Both extol its virtues.

I  was disappointed with my ASUS last Saturday. I'd taken it with me to the University but it lasted no more than an hour and a half! I'd been working on my previous assumptions that the battery lasted for 3.5 - 4 hours, so was very upset at the quick drain. I'd been on the 'net and writing up notes - no more. I suspect that it hadn't charged up properly, it seems to have been ok all week but it was a lesson to me, to make sure that the power cable is properly plugged in and that the unit is charging.

My MP3 recordings

Asus eee - 1st
Red Halo - 1st

ASUS EEE 4G

The Asus cost me around £230. That's cheap! So what doesn't it do? Well, the list grows shorter every day. For example, until this morning, I couldn't connect to the internet with my Vodafone 3G modem. It  just wouldn't work. However, with some guidance from friends on Jaiku, I visited http://forum.eeeuser.com/viewtopic.php?id=824 and fixed it - simple when you know how. So now I can access WiFi wherever I am (in Pizza Hut yesterday) and 3G wherever this isn't possible.

The screen is small. To overcome the text size on screen, I have learned to set the word-processor to 'web view' and then increase the zoom level to 150%. This allows me to type without scrolling sideways and without squinting. Many reviews suggest that the keyboard is a little small but for a two finger typist like me – it's not a problem.

I've also spent time, using the notebook with my Gyro Suite and a 19" monitor. Works brilliantly. Web cam works ok! Sound recorder also ok! Still needs video and audio editor - but I understand that that has been cracked! I'll check that out when I get more time.

I've uninstalled Red Halo today. Lots of reasons. More later.

On Tuesday last, I went to see a demonstration of Red Halo at Wakefield College. Red Halo works on mobile and handheld devices - they offer a free trial download. Many readers will have come across LAMS before and this (Red Halo) could possibly be described as a mobile version of that. I have still to play with it properly, but was much impressed by what I saw. Watch this space.

Some readers may have seen Lilian's recent blog about the numbers we are often asked to 'reply' to. If you haven't - do make point of reading it as she raises some really interesting issues. She suggests that you check out the ofcom site which details the cost YOU and your students pay to 'reply' to some of those, often commercial - but not always, numbers. Lilian very kindly gave me access to her own SMS service some time ago and this has worked very well - and costs no more than a normal text (depending on your contract).

To send texts I use BulkSMS - www.bulksms.co.uk - mainly because as an independent worker in the education industry, I do not have access to JANET txt - who say their messages cost 4.2p + VAT (4.94p) - which IS cheap. For what amounts to 200 messages they charge me £11.16 inc VAT (5.6p per message). I can reduce this to 5p by buying what amounts to 333 messages @ £16.71. The reason I say 'what amounts to ..' is that BulkSMS actually sell 'credits' rather than texts. The examples above would be for 300 and 500 credits respectively, and they also suggest that you can send one text per credit - BUT DON'T YOU BELIEVE IT!! I have yet to find that one of their '1 credit per text' messages actually arrives. However, if you tick the 'repliable' option button and 'pay' 1.5 credits - they get there EVERY TIME.

So two way texting can be a minefield - contact one of the MoleNET mentors for help.

See site for more.

I'm currently reading a book about the culture of mobile phones. 'Cell Phone Culture' by Gerard Goggin (Routledge) is a rather worthy tome with lots of long words and an academic flavour. I'd read a short preview on Amazon and ordered it on the strength of that preview. I was dismayed to find however, upon its arrival, that the publication date was 2006. Today, that puts it two years behind the times and arguably two years out of date. Mobile phones are (as GG is just about getting to, two thirds of the way through) ubiquitous personal tools, that we rarely leave home without.

Our mobile phones are rarely switched off and are always available to call friends (unless you're in Wales) and relatives or to take impromptu photographs or videos. We use them as alarm clocks, as time pieces (I don't wear a watch - my phone IS my watch). They remind us of appointments and can be used to carry presentations from one device to another (using their capacious memory cards). The business user need never be out of the office (unless they are on a speeding train!) and can always be contacted - if only by text.

Yet, we're only now beginning to realise that these devices can help learners to learn!

I'm really looking forward to seeing how the various MoleNET projects get to grips with this and to see how the learners themselves begin to respond to widespread use.

Well it's nearly Christmas. There will soon be an upsurge in mobile device ownership as phones, psp's, iPods and other gadgets are given and received as presents. Watch out for the announcement, probably late in January, that a record number of text messages were sent on New Year's Eve. Last year 214 million texts were sent in the UK on New Year's Day! With weekly texts reaching 1.3 billion in October of this year, I predict a total closer to 230 million texts being sent this N.Y.D. How many will you send?

Two Warnings!
 - Motorists caught driving dangerously while using a handheld mobile phone face jail
 - a major employer has banned the use of hands-free kits because research suggests they have no safety benefits.
Seen here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7153070.stm

There's a discussion in the New York Times that suggests: The Internet and the cellphone [quaint USA and Americas term for mobile phone] are on a collision course.
See http://tinyurl.com/2235yw
The discussion revolves around the future direction of Internet and Mobile phone synergies and the freedom that these will be allowed given market cultures. Interesting and worth a read.

The future of Mobile

"2008 will be a year where mobile customers benefit from a range of key service and technology developments. Social networks, flat rate charging, and products which are far easier to use will be the major themes in the mobile market, according to the Mobile Data Association."

of various products

Also - "the UK mobile industry is in good shape."

Resource

Quiz
Text

It was interesting the other day to meet someone who just would NOT consider the potential benefits that texting could bring to a learning situation. So I thought back to something Lilian had done a few weeks ago and came up with the linked resources. The Quiz link alongside goes to a Word file with fairly self explanatory rules and instructions. The Text link goes to the accompanying piece of Shakespeare. Give it a go and drop me a line to see the results. Like all my 'stuff' for e-Learning, you're welcome to use it as you wish with learners (although it would be nice if you gave credit to the original author). Not for commercial use.

For more information about the texting service contact lilian@xlearn.co.uk

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/11/11/technology/MOBILE12.php Giving consumers the ability to pay for everything from croissants and toothpaste to subway fare and wine with a wave of a handset. Catching up with the third world?

Nokia aims to produce better maps for pedestrians and after completing its $8.1 billion acquisition of map supplier Navteq, leaving the car-navigation market largely to others. http://www.news.com/2100-1039_3-6218821.html

This week's Computer Active (issue 254) spends quite a few pages discussing the benefits of PDAs and handheld computers (although I'm not sure what the difference might be) and although they are not discussing 'education' they do highlight some of the main benefits of PDA v Mobile phone. The first thing they ask us to consider is the screen size - quite often twice as big as any Smart phone screen. The 'tap' ability of PDA screens can make them far more usable too - although as time passes, the 'i' generation may prefer to slip and slide their fingers and thumbs about the interface.

I think that this bears of a couple of things that MoleNET project leaders should consider when they are choosing devices.

• What will the device be used for? (will the learner use it as a personal device, will they need to capture evidence, interact with learning materials, write to the device, will they need to access the internet, will they need to use telephone services - if so why?)

• Who will use it (is the device for tutors, for learners, for assessors)

• Where will it be used? (will the user keep it with them and use it at work or will the tutor bring it into a lesson/environment and take it away with him/her)

For me, PDAs can do most of the above. Even older devices can store and view video clips (many can record them too - although not at great quality), the same with images. Compared with current versions of phone photography PDAs fail to impress but when compared as viewers they are far more impressive. Then of course many PDAs have in-built versions of word processors, spreadsheets and PIM services which knock mobile phones into a cocked hat.

Most PDAs can be made to access the internet in one way or another - check out eBay for various add-ons for those that can't. Bluetooth features on many devices too - so it's well worth considering PDAs as a teaching tool.

A science article today in the New York Times, discusses army ant achievements, such as creating bridges from their own bodies, as being possible because of collective intelligence evolved over time. Humans, we are told, have not yet evolved the mob smarts to, for example, flow in mass traffic without jamming up—something ants do perfectly. Can it be that mobile phones in the hands of mobbing humans are catching us up? See this discussed on http://www.smartmobs.com/2007/11/13/ants-as-smart-mobs/

Well I don't know! What do you think? Send a comment

General News and views

Of course. today's (9th) big news is the release (in the UK) of Apple's iPhone. The BBC - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7085643.stm - reports huge queues outside O2 shops, waiting for the release shortly after 6.00pm tonight (how bizarre)

Also this week: Mass production of the so-called $100 laptop has begun, five years after the concept was first proposed: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7082701.stm.

Just a further note on my comments regarding Sony Erickson's k810i - after  being fully charged and after normal (moderate) use - it lasts no more than two days, occasionally less! That's not good is it?

"From the dhows of Kerala to the cities of China to the beaches of Cronulla, we’re all coming into contact with - and learning how to master - the subtle skills of spontaneous self-organization which are the essential fact of life on the network" -
see http://www.webdirections.org/resources/mark-pesce/

http://blog.mobiles.co.uk/category/coming-soon-handsets/  -- Coming soon

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XIaH0RuWG7M

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=m_IsK51P1vg&feature=related

http://dailymobile.se/2007/10/18/nokia-n81-8gb-unboxing-video/
Not that informative - but you do see the phone and get to judge its size.

http://mobile.brando.com.hk/prod_detail.php?prod_id=02944

07717 341 622