Running with Scissors

I was just talking with Gardner and Andy about how programmers are taking content and services that web sites are putting out there and reformatting it to do new things that the original designers may have never thought of. Here is a website that does just that – TagCloud.com. It uses the Content Analysis Web Service from Yahoo! to create a TagCloud – a ranked list of keywords that are created automatically from any group of RSS feeds that you enter.

Here is an example: Want a quick idea on what all the DTLT folks are blogging about? Check out the DTLT TagCloud. The TagCloud web site lets you enter the RSS feed for whatever sites you want, then it scans the content of the feeds to create the TagCloud. The cloud is a list of links that rank the information by making some of the tags a larger font size – an easy graphical way to see what the hot topics are.

How do they do it? From the TagCloud.com web site: http://www.tagcloud.com/About.php

“By tapping into the Yahoo! web services, we have access to all kinds of content and search functionality. What used to be accomplished through dirty screen scraping hacks can now be done easier, quicker, and legitimately though a REST interface that can be implemented in most any programming language. The end effect is that people can mash web content into interesting ways that the original authors never intended. With the addition of cool tools like Greasemonkey, folks are bending the web into exciting new chimeras of hyperlinked goodness.”

As a person that often gets asked my opinion on what kind of computer to buy for the home, this story really opened my eyes ( Gateway Won’t Honor Its Published Specs – from Ed Foster’s Gripelog). Basically, in this story, a customer made an informed decision to buy a specific laptop computer at BestBuy using the published specs on Gateway’s web site. Gateway published specs for RAM in a laptop that stated it could be upgraded up to 1,256 MB maximum, but in reality the maximum RAM the laptop would handle was 768 MB. Unfortunately, the customer did not find this out until he tried to upgrade to 1,256. When the customer tried to get some answers and resolution from Gateway, he was told (after hours on the phone and 2 weeks worth of discussion) that a “disclaimer” on the web site concerning protected Gateway. Worse, they told the customer that they would be doing nothing in response to his complaint, not even changing the bad specs published on the web site.

I have never owned a Gateway computer, or really had to deal with them in any way. I have known some people in the past that had Gateway computers, and they seemed fine. And every major computer maker has at least some customers that have bad experiences for one reason or another. But Gateway seems to be crossing a line in this case – is this any way to treat customers? What about Best Buy? Don’t they also have some responsibility here?

It seems that the old rules still apply – Buyer Beware.

Imagine a video projector that fits in your hand, runs on batteries for 2+ hours, has a lamp that lasts 20,000 hours and costs $799 street. Mitsubushi is working on one that should be out soon.

The secret? It uses LED lamps instead of traditional bulbs. This means it uses much less power, generates less heat, and can have very long bulb life.

The Problem? Not yet practical for classroom use. The LED technology lamps are not very bright – you have to be in a dark room for it to work effectively. Of course, I don’t have to look back too far in my own memory banks to recall sitting in dark rooms with traditional bulb video projectors, but I don’t want to go back there.

Hopefully, the brightness of the LED technology will improve soon. Regardless, this is quite an interesting development.

Dr. Rycroft has been working with the Turning Point clicker system this term, and in talking with him today, he is very pleased with the results so far. We talked a bit about how the system allows him to find out rather quickly if students are grasping new concepts as they are presented. Students seem to like the system too – no one has yet forgotten to bring their clicker to class.
As with any new technology, the mastering of the technology itself is the first hurdle, but optimizing its use in the teaching and learning environment is the real challenge. With clickers, it all comes down to asking the right questions at the right time in the right way. Dr. Rycroft has the tech down, and I believe he is well on his way tacking the “art” of using clickers effectively.

I’ve found another great podcast – De-Fi Radio. The show is produced by Brian DeWitt and it contains all kinds of new music – rock and roll. Reminds me of what radio used to be like before every station was owned by the same conglomerate and they all stated to sound the same… Lots of good new bands to explore here.
This kind of show is exactly why commercial radio should be scared to death of the potential of podcasting! It serves a market that they are not. But I can also see where it is just a matter of time until “sponsorships” of podcasts cash in on this market. Oh well – enjoy these days while they last.
The most interesting thing is that I had begin to think that music had changed and just left me behind (my Tears for Fears obsession doesn’t help in this area). But the reality of the situation is that I wasn’t hearing the right things.