Author: jamesclay

Posted on

Seesmic on the Nokia N95

If you use Seesmic, you can now get an application for Seesmic for your Nokia N95.

We are announcing today the release of a new application for Nokia N95 cell phones that allows users to participate in video conversations from anywhere and at any time.

What is really new with our client is you can not only send your videos directly to Seesmic from your phone but you can also participate in conversations and follow the entire thread of videos, a space Seesmic has created anywhere you are.

Read more.

Could be useful if you use Seesmic a lot.

Posted on

Podcasts on the Nokia N95

Generally if I want to listen to a podcast, I use iTunes and sync with the iPod.

The other day I realised that I had forgotten to sync the iPod and therefore the latest version of MacBreak Weekly was not on my iPod.

Problem was, I was in my car and away from the computer.

So I stopped the car, and using my phone, a Nokia N95 I browsed to twit.tv and clicked the relevant link for MacBreak Weekly.

The phone then started to download the podcast over the 3G data connection. So I drove off…

Unfortunately the first attempt failed for some reason, though I guess I may have lost the 3G signal.

So I tried again and this time it worked fine.

Now what I liked was that the operating system on the N95 knew it was a podcast and added it to the podcast area and started to play it.

I liked the way the phone downloaded the podcast really really fast and then knew what to do with it.

Posted on

Renting from iTunes, hmmmm

I have finally got round to not just renting a movie from iTunes, but also taking the time to watch it as well.

Basically I wanted a film I could watch on an ipod on the train and it was one of those 99p films, “A Guy Thing“.

Not sure how I feel about renting movies, it’s not as though I have never rented a movie (as in a physical DVD) from Blockbuster before, but felt more pressure to watch a rented film from iTunes.

The terms are quite generous, you have thirty days to watch and once you start watching you have two days to watch and finish (or even watch it again).

I just felt that I had to watch it (having watched half) even though I wasn’t in the mood for it.

Will I rent again, possibly.

Posted on

Mail.app believes iTunes receipt from Apple is junk

You might have thought that the Mail.app included with OS X might have a hunch that e-mails from Apple (specifically from apple.com) probably isn’t going to be a spammer.

True you as a user may mark e-mails from Apple as junk manually, but the automated process, nah!

Or so you would think!

A few days ago I “purchased” a fair few apps from the iTunes store and as per usual Apple sent me a receipt outlining my purchases. I have received many of these not just because of the stuff I buy, but also as I more often then not download the free single of the week as well.

So you can imagine my surprise when Mail.app marked my latest receipt as junk!

Mail.app believes iTunes receipt from Apple is junk

No idea why.

Posted on

Hood 2.0 – It lives!

Hood 2.0: it’s a Web 2.0 world out there

This workshop will explore how using Web 2.0 can rethink the digital divide.

Gloucestershire College has been using Web 2.0 to enhance and enrich the learning process for a wide variety of learners across the breadth and depth of the curriculum. They have developed a range of learning scenarios and activities that are integrated into the learning process and support a diverse range of learners.

This workshop will demonstrate how Web 2.0 can be used to solve some of the issues facing diverse learners in this era of Facebook. YouTube, Twitter and then some…

The concept of Web 2.0 services in addressing the tensions between formal and informal learning, and empowering learners to take responsibility for their own learning will be examined. Then, how we need to address the pedagogical needs to drive the use of Web 2.0 services and not be blinded or awed by the technology of Web 2.0, will be explored.

During the workshop participants will be able to discuss and debate different learning scenarios and activities which utilise Web 2.0 services. Web 2.0 services will be used to demonstrate these scenarios.

Participants will discuss and debate these scenarios in small groups, covering how they could be utilised within their own institutions, examining the potential conflict between formal learning scenarios and the informal learning scenarios that Web 2.0 offers.

The groups will also discuss how the pedagogy needs to drive the scenarios and not the technology and address how Web 2.0 can empower learners to take responsibility for their own learning. Each group will provide feedback through either a blog entry, an audio podcast or a video presentation. These will then be made available online to allow participants to comment and continue the discussion beyond the workshop, and also allow other conference delegates to participate in the discussion.

After the workshop, the participants will have a greater understanding of the role of Web 2.0 in addressing the digital divide.

They will have considered how Web 2.0 can help resolve the tensions between formal and informal learning; discussed how Web 2.0 technologies in themselves mustn’t drive the learning, but support the pedagogy; and debated how Web 2.0 can empower learners to take responsibility for their learning.

The participants will have presented the results of their discussion and debate, through the use of a variety of learning technologies, to other participants and to other conference delegates.

I ran the workshop at ALT-.

Session seemed to go well though I did have about sixty people in a long narrow room.

Hood 2.0 - It lives!

The feedback from the session can be found here:

http://altcworkshop.blogspot.com/

Please feel free to add comments to people’s blog posts.

Other stuff from the workshop can be found on

Flickr

http://flickr.com/photos/jamesclay

Qik

http://qik.com/video/285383

Seesmic

http://seesmic.com/jamesclay

Jaiku
http://molenet.jaiku.com/

Recorded Gabcast podcasts from my sessions at #altc2008 today. They are online now at http://tinyurl.com/hood2feedback

A few comments from other people’s blogs and links mentioned as part of feedback.

http://www.projectwhite.com/tag/altc2008/

http://www.scribd.com/doc/2286799/Can-we-use-Twitter-for-educational-activities

http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2008/04/04/live-reviewing-a-book-on-twitter-here-comes-everybody-by-clay-shirky/
and here’s a reflection
http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2008/04/07/twitter-reviewing-some-reflections/

http://ashleywright.org/2008/09/09/hood-20-its-a-web-20-world/

http://www.projectwhite.com/tag/altc2008/ – loads of stuff , excellent

Thanks everyone, some great feedback and ideas.

Posted on

Oh dear VAIO problems!

VAIO TZ

Sony have had an issue with a few, well more than a few, of their VAIO laptops according to a BBC report.

Sony is recalling 440,000 Vaio laptop computers worldwide because of wiring faults that could cause overheating.

The recall concerns 19 Vaio models in the TZ series manufactured between May 2007 and July 2008 – but does not include models sold in the UK.

Luckily doesn’t personally affect me, nor any other VAIO laptops in the UK.

Posted on

Serving media through the home

I really like my EyeHome device. I’ve had it a few years now and even had it fixed in Germany one time when the power supply failed. Changing to 802.11n made it much better and more capable of showing content from my Mac on my television.

It’s such a great concept I did wonder if I would be able to serve media to other devices and not just the EyeHome.

This came up recently when I put a Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3) under my television which can act as a uPnP device and serve content from an appropriate media server. Not only that, but you can pair a PlayStation Portable (PSP) with the PS3 to be able to access the PS3 remotely.

A plan was starting to form…

If I could get the PS3 to access content from the Mac, I could then watch it remotely on the PSP. The PSP didn’t like accessing content direct from the Mac, so this could work, couldn’t it?

The first issue was getting some media server software running on the Mac, the EyeHome software didn’t work; and though Elgato make a uPnP software product, EyeConnect, it appeared from the Elgato website that the PS3 as a media extender was not in the list of supported extenders, and there were a few reports in the Elgato forums which kind of put me off. There is a 30 day trial, so I might give it a go later.

What did come out in my research was Twonkymedia.

The PacketVideo MediaServer enables you to share your multimedia throughout your home. It is available for many different platforms and interworks with a large variety of client devices including XBox 360™, Sony PS3™ and Sony PSP™. TwonkyMedia requires fewer resources and is faster than other UPnP media servers, and provides more features that help users enjoy large media collections.

Installed and ran it…

Worked very well.

The PS3 picked up the iMac which I was running the software on.

The PSP picked up the PS3 – though I believe that the PSP can access the media direct, but I was trying to be clever!

I tried a few other devices.

The iPod touch through the web interface could access the media.

My Nokia N95 could access the server, and the media.

A Nokia N810 could access the media, it just couldn’t play it!

Overall I was impressed, very likely to pay the €30 it costs.

Posted on

Google Chrome

Google have gone and released a browser of their own, Chrome.

Google Chrome

Windows only at the moment, so I have not yet installed it.

Looks interesting.