Innovating Pedagogy Report from Open University

The Open University has published a report, Innovating Pedagogy,  that addresses ePublishing at link below.  The report reminds me of the Educause Horizon report. 

http://www.open.ac.uk/personalpages/mike.sharples/Reports/Innovating_Pedagogy_report_July_2012.pdf

 

New iPhone Rumored for September

I read at 9 to 5 Mac that the new iPhone is expected to be released the middle of September.  It cannot be soon enough for me!!  My 3rd generation iPhone is not well.  It shut down unexpectedly about 6 times when I was at the Sloan C/MERLOT conference in Las Vegas last week.  There is no pattern for the shutdowns.

Now that I am home, it less stressful because I am use Messages for communication.  What is amazing to me is that I have had the phone for such a long time.  The potential problem with the next phone is that I may have to pay full price for the phone in order to keep my data plan.  Will have to do the ROI on that first.

MERLOT Mobile Apps to Search for Online Learning Resources

MERLOT (multimedia educational resources for learning and teaching online) now has mobile apps for the iOS (iPad, iPod Touch, & iPhone) as well as Android devices!!  Download the app from the mobile app store so that you can search for online learning resources.  It is a fantastic app!!  If you want to search from a laptop or desktop computer, go to http://www.merlot.org.  MERLOT is includes a translator so that all of the learning resources are available to the international community.

I am the Health Sciences Editorial Board editor.  If you are interested in learning more about MERLOT or if you are interested in assisting with the peer review process, please contact me at jeanne.sewell@gmail.com.

Blog Info for Mountain Lion OS on the Mac

Mountain Lion operating system (OS) for the Mac was released on the 24th of July.  So far it is getting rave reviews.  A colleague compiled all of the blogs about the OS into an epub document which can be downloaded from http://podcasting.usg.edu/4DCGI/Podcasting/GCSU/Episodes/882/95278436.epub

The table of contents is noted below.

Use Google Handwrite for Searches

Google recently added yet another way to search.  In addition to voice command and typing, users can also write on the tablet or smartphone.  The Google blog at http://googleblog.blogspot.com/ has the details.  It took me several tries to get the feature to work.  The feature did not work with Safari, so I had to download Chrome for the iPad (should work on the iPhone and Android devices, too).

The video below shows how it works.

Dictation on the New iPad

I was reading about Mountain Lion operating system (OS) when I discovered another feature that I have overlooked. The New iPad allows for dictation (as well as the 4th generation iPhone)! Check Settings > Keyboards > Dication > On to verify that it is turned on. Afterwards open an app such as Notes or Pages. Click on the microphone key on the iPad keyboard and talk. Click the microphone key once again when you are finished. Afterwards, the New iPad Dictation app iterprets what was said and types it out. You may be surprised to note the great accuracy!! This feature is a great work around for quick data entry without typing. Remember that dictation is only available on the New iPad, not the 1st or 2nd generations. Enjoy!

A demo of the feature is shown in the CNET YouTube video below (yes, dictation is misspelled) .

Using Technology in Education now in iBookstore

The iBook that Chris Greer edited and his students wrote during Maymester is now available in the Apple iBookstore. It was approved on Monday so I was able to share it in this morning's session on using iBooks Author with Russ White as a co-presenter. Our sincere thanks to the many people in the audience and the web who joined us at 8:30 AM.

Guide to Reducing Unintended Consequences of Electronic Health Records

I researched unintended consequences of implementing an EHR (electronic health record)  in the design process of courses for an HIT certificate.  There are some great sites.  AHRQ has an online guide at http://www.ucguide.org/

Unfortunately, many providers do not contact a REC (regional extension center) for advise when implementing an EHR.  You would think that they might seek advise before spending thousands of $$$$ to purchase an electronic system.

I am certain that one was at the HealthIT website, but I cannot locate it (I do not like their search engine).   

iBooks, Softchalk Cloud, and ePublishing

In preparation for a workshop on using iBooks Author this week in Las Vegas, I published five lessons on ePublishing created by members of the Georgia College faculty learning community to the Softchalk Cloud website at http://softchalkcloud.com/.  You do not need to be a member to access the lessons.  In the search box on the top upper part of the Softchalk Cloud window, type iBooks Author.  You should see the five lessons. 

CG, a member of the learning community edited an eBook created by students in his Maymester course.  He submitted it to the iBookstore for publication, but has not been notified that it has been reviewed.  Apple has been criticized because of the slow review process.  I had hoped that the eBook would be available for the workshop participants.  At any rate, CG uploaded it to my Dropbox.  I transferred it to the iPad last evening.  The eBooks is so awesome!! 

How to Implement EHRs from HealthIT

Linda and I just returned from the 2012 SINI meeting.  We heard several presentations on implementing EHRs and meaningful use. You can expect updates to the website that we maintain to support Informatics and Nursing textbook over the next few weeks.  One example is the resource below added to Chapter 18 under the Implementation section.  The update is at http://dlthede.net/Informatics/Chap18BasicEHR/chap18.html 

How to Implement EHRs. A helpful site describing 6 steps from assessing readiness to continued quality improvement with links to a little more information about each step. The FAQs in the links may prove the best source of detail information. Use the links from tabs on the top of the page too!
http://www.healthit.gov/providers-professionals/ehr-implementation-steps

Less Spam - Hopefully After Botnet Take Down

Have you noticed any decrease in your spam mail?  We should see some changes this week because of of the world's largest spam producing botnet, Grum, was taken out of commission last week. According to CNN MoneyTech, Grum and Lethnic botnets are responsible for about 50% of the spam.  Grum was creating 18 BILLION emails every day.  The spam was advertising pharmaceutical cheap drugs. The operators of Lethnic, another botnet, went "underground" after Grum was disabled.  The effort to disable Grum was an international coordinated effort. You can read more about the Grum take down (reads like a mystery novel) at http://money.cnn.com/2012/07/19/technology/grum-spam-botnet/index.htm

Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botnet has a very good explanation on botnets. 

The topic of botnets is discussed in an earlier blog and also in the 4th edition of the textbook.  Interestingly enough, I picked up my first malware ever when I was researching the topic of botnets for the textbook.  I now keep Malwarebytes operating on my Windows PC.  Malwarebytes detection is free from http://pchelpcenter.org/Malware-Download-Repair/repair/ .  You have to register to remove any found malware (don't remember having to do that earlier).  The fee for Malwarebytes Pro is $24.95.

App for Home Med Administration

Reviewed a very interesting app, Pillboxie, (http://pillboxie.tumblr.com/) that was designed by a nurse. It serves as a reminder for us to take our pills. The person setting the app up (may be the caregiver) enters the pill name, shape, color, days & times for administration. Med alerts can be given different sounds. The cost is $0.99. I have not downloaded it yet but interested in hearing from others who have. The app is available for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod.

Adding a Signature to a PDF File with Preview Software

It is interesting, having used a Mac for a few years now, that I still am overlooking some of the apps and features.  I discovered the app, Preview, this morning.  Preview allows you to add a signature to a PDF file in less than a minute. Note, Preview is software for the Apple iOS and works on a MacBook or iMac, not a Window PC.

• First sign your name with a black pen on a piece of white paper
• Use Spotlight or open the Applications folder if Preview is not on the desktop menu.
• Open Preview > Preferences > Signatures
• Click Add Signature
• Hold the piece of paper with the signature up in front of the camera
• With the signature on the blue signature line, click Accept
• Open a PDF file (signature only works with PDF files)
• Open Annotations menu in Preview
• Click on the signatures icon
• Click on the place in the PDF file where you want to add the signature

That is all there is to it.  If you had not already created a signature with Preferences, you could create one using the Signature icon in Preview.  The video below from the website at http://revision3.com/tzdaily/sign-pdf-with-preview  reviews the process.

Creating Videos - Lessons Learned

I created some short videos showing how to write formulas in Excel and how to import Excel files into FileMaker Pro.  The student feedback was not good!  One told me to SLOW down!  Others said that the audio was of poor quality.  It isn't that I did not try or that they did not appreciate my attempt!

I even had a colleague review the files prior to uploading them to YouTube.  I could hear the audio clearly.  That said, I obviously need to slow down and to attempt to make the audio loud so that others can turn it down.  Have not received feedback from one of the students who is a video pro -- OMG not looking forward to it either.

Implementing an Electronic Health Record System

Am still working on developing courses for a Health Information Certificate.  HealthIT has a great site, How to Implement EHRs at http://www.healthit.gov/providers-professionals/ehr-implementation-steps 

It does not use technical terminology, such as the Systems Life Cycle and that is a good thing.  I believe that healthcare providers will find the site easy to understand and use.

There are some phenomenal resources at the HealthIt website, but they are not easy to find.  

Website Design and Usability

I guide students to learn about website design in a couple of courses I teach.  When exploring the topic of usability to incorporate into the design of a new course, I stumbled upon a very nice website at http://www.usability.gov/index.html 

The site exemplifies excellent design and provides tools to assist with the design process.  Have bookmarked the site because it will be very helpful for a couple of courses I am teaching fall semester.  We will have to add the site to Chapter 13 on the textbook website that Linda and I maintain.

Sending an Attachment from the iPad

Somehow, I thought (wrong) that I could not send an attachment from the iPad.  It was the left-brain linear thought process that was confusing me.  Sending an attachment is very easy to do and I probably have done so without thinking about it.  It just happens to be the opposite of email where you first create an email and then select the file you want to attach.

To send an attachment, first open the document that you want to send.  Click on the tools menu and then select Share and Print.  So easy to do!

iGoogle's Replacement - Symbaloo

Sometimes good things happen when they are least expected.  In this case, the fact that iGoogle is going away made me consider finding a replacement.  Symbaloo (http://www.symbaloo.com) is a great replacement!  It uses tiles instead of having the newspaper appearance that iGoogle provides.  Instead of seeing a snapshot of my calendar, my son's Flickr photos updates, I have to click on a tile to view the content.  In other words, the appearance is more like my iPhone or the new upcoming Windows 8,

Symbaloo is preconfigured with tiles but easily modified.  I added tiles for Google Calendar, Dropbox, and Blogger.  The video from YouTube below provides a brief overview.

Angry Birds Free for a Few Days

If you don't have the game Angry Birds Season or Space for the iPad or iPhone - you might want to download the apps this week.  They are both free until Thursday.  Angry Birds is a game where you try to get rid of all of the pigs.  You see - the pigs were stealing the birds eggs.  Okay - it is silly, but fun for kid of all ages (even gray haired wrinkled kids).  The game is a nice way to take a 5- minute mental vacation.  Enjoy!

Cybercriminals Malware Tactics

According to CNN Money - thousands of computers will not have access to the Internet beginning Monday  -http://money.cnn.com/2012/07/06/technology/dnschanger/index.htm

The computers are affected with a nasty malware called DNSChanger.  Read the story to understand how the malware works. 

The good news is that the cybercriminals responsible were arrested in November of last year.  The FBI has been working to notify those with infected computers to assist them with removal of the virus. 

The End of iGoogle

Read an article that summarizes my feelings about the end of iGoogle at http://www.macworld.com/article/1167572/lamenting_the_end_of_igoogle.html this morning.  iGoogle is equivalent to my personalized newspaper.  It has my calendar, email, Flickr photos, and more.  It is my homepage.  Of course, Google wants me to use the Chrome web browser while I generally use Firefox.  Firefox is used by 44% of the readers of this blog, but Chrome is used by only 10%.  Maybe that is Google's strategy - to get more people using their web browser.

Hmmm.... going to have to rethink my preferences for a homepage on the laptop.  It really is not an issue for the iPad or iPhone but it is for a desktop or laptop computer.  Google is nudging me out of my comfort zone. 

Dropbox or Google Drive?

Just read a nice review comparing Dropbox and Google Drive at http://www.macworld.com/article/1167461/online_storage_face_off_google_drive_vs_dropbox.html

The bottom line is that they are very comparable.  I have been a Dropbox user for several years. 

My brother shared a folder so that our extended families (cousins) can share family pictures from the past years.  I plan to select several for use when I create a new genealogy file for my mother's side of the family.

I have lost touch with my cousin in Finland.  Wish I had thought of sharing family pictures when we were emailing each other.