The New iPad Initial Impressions

I purchased the new iPad March 16, 2012 at the nearest Apple store. It was the first time I have purchased a product on the first day it was available. The waiting line was short and a salesperson came to me within a minute of getting to the line. The store had prepared for the day with many employees helping customers, so the delay I thought might await me was negligible. The purchase experience was straightforward and pleasant. The model I wanted (Wi-Fi 4G 32GB Black) was in stock as was my choice of smart cover. I was out of the store in a few minutes.

Back at the home office, I set up and checked out the new iPad. The screen is bright and clear and colorful. The home screen looks like you’re at the end of a boat dock looking out over a body of water with fog in the distance. Yes, the app dock looks like the end of a boat dock. Other apps look like they are floating over the water.

Open Safari and you’ll see web pages clearer and crisper than ever. My old iPad was a convenient way to see web pages. The new iPad is the best way to experience web pages because the screen is so good.

Electronic books shine. Text looks as clear as on paper. Images remind me of beautiful pictures from National Geographic magazine. But, you can get animations and videos on the iPad that are not available on paper. And the newest versions of my favorite textbooks are available in electronic form. Maybe we are now seeing the technology that will replace printed textbooks because it is better than print. We will see.

Another aspect I look forward to checking out is how the new iPad will work out in the classroom, especially with a data projector.

The iPad is a computer. It is different than a laptop or a desktop computer, but it is a computer. The few hours it took to organize apps and transfer content reminded me of setting up any new computer, although the iPad took less time. Coming is the time it will take to adjust settings and content for the older iPad’s new user.

So, what are my overall initial impressions? The visual experience was like seeing a quality high definition television for the first time. In a word, wow!

March 17th, 2012 | Tags: , | Category: Uncategorized | Comments are closed

Servant Leadership, a Refreshing Idea

Leaders being servants is an idea both old and refreshingly new. I was introduced to the term servant leadership while talking about characteristics of good leadership with Ben Lichtenwalner last week at a South Haven bed and breakfast. Ben knows what he’s talking about. He has led in a variety of businesses and organizations and is currently the Senior Manager of Internet and eCommerce at Whirlpool. He has his own website at modernservantleader.com.

Ben has found that sustainability is the difference between leadership styles he supports and those he does not. Non-serving leaders use fear, which can obtain success in the near term but often results in low morale and high turnover so success becomes unsustainable. Leaders who serve their stakeholders are servant leaders. He says to determine whether an action is that of a servant leader, just ask how it will impact all relevant stakeholders. “If it is not helping them, it is not serving them. If you’re not serving others, you’re not leading, you’re self serving.“

My personal experience matches Ben’s observations. I believe servant leadership makes sense and try to use the principles in leading. I have experienced different types of leaders and know that good leaders help me contribute much more to the organization. Get ideas from his website, including a tool you can use to assess yourself or your boss. You might like “Cleaning Baby Poop Makes Great Leaders.”

Another servant leader site worth visiting is greenleaf.org, started by Robert Greenleaf, a father of servant leadership. What kind of leader to you want to be?


March 4th, 2012 | Tags: | Category: Uncategorized | Comments are closed

Mobile Computing in Education

Mobile computing devices are popular and will become more popular. By mobile devices, I mean smart phones (such as the iPhone) and tablets (such as the iPad). Discussions about whether and how they should be used are going on in schools and businesses across the country.

Just this week, the topic came up Monday at the Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) leadership retreat in Grand Rapids. There, I suggested that MACUL should consider as one of it’s goals over the next five years to help schools develop strategies to best use these devices for educational purposes in educational settings.

Tuesday, I suggested to my Upper School Department Chair colleagues that we develop plans for incorporating mobile devices into our educational program. We already have seen how laptops have transformed our educational setting. Newer, smaller devices are developing into powerful competitors to laptops that can further increase human interaction and knowledge development. Developing and teaching with their advantages will give us educational and competitive advancement.

Many of our students already have smart phones and use them for social and gaming purposes. Students won’t necessarily use mobile devices for educational purposes until we start using them for educational applications in our classrooms. The numbers of mobile devices will continue to increase in our classrooms. The sooner and the more we use them educationally, the better.

The question of how to respond to people bringing their own device (BYOD) is important to information technology (IT) departments, too. Also on Tuesday, Galen Gruman wrote in InfoWorld “Mobile BYOD strategy reveals if your CIO is good or bad: How the CIO handles a bring-your-own-device effort is a good proxy on whether that executive should lead IT in the emerging empowered-user world.” If the CIO (Chief Information Officer) views BYOD as an unauthorized invasion that threatens compliance and security, the CIO is very likely the wrong person to lead IT. On the other hand, if the CIO views BYOD as a positive development that IT can support to benefit users and the organization, this is the best answer. The article details why this is the best answer. It is true for educational organizations as well as purely business organizations.

Making mobile computing devices work in education is one of the best choices we can make.

May 22nd, 2011 | Tags: , , | Category: Technology | Comments are closed

KalamazooX Xtra

The KalamazooX Conference, for advancing the “soft” skills of programmer-developers, was held Saturday, April 30, 2011, in downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan. This was the third year for the conference; I attended this year and the first year. Although I am not directly in the target group, I am a developer of developers as a computer science teacher. The conference helps me be current with the happenings in the developer community.

Joe O’Brien from EdgeCase spoke first on the constant change going on in the industry. Education, he says, is set up to push information, but frameworks keep changing. The best technology for one project may not be the best technology for the next one. His company keeps evolving. So, he looks to hire somebody that knows how to learn.

Dave Giard spoke next on Data Visualization. He included examples of excellence in data visualization as well as examples  where the visualization was misleading or false. He suggested improvements to graphics based on the work of David Tufte. I noted that it is not easy to produce the best graphs with current software like Microsoft’s Excel. His slides are on his website, but are imbedded in Flash.

Jeff Blankenburg, developer evangelist for Microsoft, had the unusual title “It’s Only Aweso Without Me.” He provided techniques of making yourself awesome online. Give back to the community. It is job insurance. Make good stuff show up on Google, so you can get to the job interview when you need it.

Jeff McWherter, of Gravity Works Design, on (Web) Design for Developers, talked on the basics of design using CSS and various tools. JavaScript is awesome. Good ideas. If the audience found the information helpful, I could help with my website CSS design skills.

Tim Ford presented experiences as an SQL DBA (Data Base Administrator). He is active in the SQL server community. See links. His best advice: don’t be afraid. Step outside your comfort zone. There can be payoff.

Jim Holmes conveyed the importance of working with great teams and how to make your teams better. He has posted good notes on his FrazzledDad blog.

Leon Gersing is an actor as well as programmer, so his animated presentation was a good fit for after lunch. His message was to know yourself, develop yourself, and really develop interpersonal relationships. I liked his quote from Yoda “Do or do not. There is no try.” Leon works at EdgeCase. Find out more about him by clicking on his hame on their about page. Or, see his nospoonsoftware site.

Executable Requirements is the title of Dan Neumann’s presentation that included the importance of automated testing to save time, lower total costs, and produce better results. Good testing is in layers of unit tests, automated functional tests, manual tests, and user acceptance tests. A lot of information. His website is NeuManagement.

Laura Bergells gave an excellent presentation, How to Rock your Body Language when making presentations in meetings. Practice self awareness and aim for confidence, not perfection. She is an adjunct instructor at the Seidman College of Business at Grand Valley State University.

Jim Holmes got up again. This time to speak on Performance Evals. What to do. What not to do. How to keep them constructive. There should never be any surprises. Understand the review process and timeline. Understand that goals on which you are being measured. Keep the feedback cycle going.

The KalamazooX feature packed conference ended with a panel discussion on interviewing. Their companies are looking for spark and passion. Realize the interview is both directions. Find out if the company is a good fit for you. Remember not to go negative in an interview.

More information is available at the KalamazooX website and at on Dave Francher’s blog. Good conference. I had only one indirect criticism. And that is directed to the parking structure on North Rose near Michigan Avenue. Their rates were not posted and it cost me $13.50 to park on Saturday. That seems very high.

 

May 4th, 2011 | Tags: , | Category: Technology | Comments are closed

Have An Enjoyable Weekend in South Haven and Saugatuck

Barb and I enjoyed our weekend stay at the Seymour House Bed and Breakfast near South Haven, Michigan. We like traveling around southwestern Michigan and the Seymour House is comfortable lodging near places we like to visit. We had stayed at the house before, but not with the current owners. We checked in Friday evening and asked for dinner recommendations.

We chose fish and chips at the Thirsty Perch in South Haven. Barb ordered sweet potato fries, while I ordered “regular” fries. Both were excellent and unique. My meal came with pan-fried perch, though, so we talked with our waiter. He offered several options. I tried and liked the fish, so I accepted the meal at the same (lower) price as the fish and chips. We were both very pleased with our meals and the restaurant.

Our drive to and from the restaurant was punctuated with occasional sounds from under the car that varied with the car’s speed. The faster speeds sometimes produced a sound like driving over road that had been made bumpy by heavy machinery driving over it with tractor treads, or like when driving over a rumble strip, but softer. Slower speeds sometimes produced a grinding or rubbing sound.

Saturday morning at Seymour House, I asked co-owner Mike whether he knew of any car repair garages open on Saturday, so we could get the car checked for safety. He called several places for me. The local dealer could check the car, but could not repair it Saturday. A repair shop about 20 miles away in Bangor was open, so I asked Dan’s Automotive to check the car. Dan put the car on a hoist and found nothing wrong with transmission or brakes, so the car should be safe to drive. The rest of our vacation weekend driving was uneventful, so he was probably right. The people there were very nice and the charge was fair; I would likely go back to Dan’s again if I were in the area and needed car repairs.

While Mike checked our car repair options, we enjoyed a Seymour House breakfast of locally roasted coffee (from Uncommon Grounds), juice, pastries and breads and jams and shirred eggs made by Patty from locally grown products. The eggs were her own recipe that included cream and cheeses. The breakfast was outstanding; one of the best I have had. Sunday’s breakfast featured an additional bread, different pastry, different homemade jams, and a special recipe french toast. Also yummy.

Saturday after Dan gave our car the go-ahead, I phoned my Uncle Fred to see if he was available. He had nothing scheduled, so we had a good lunch at the Pump House Grille in St. Joseph, a favorite eatery of his. We chatted and let him look at recent family and events photos on my iPad. We both enjoy spending time with Uncle Fred and consider him a friend. He even put up his flag for us.

Later Saturday, we took pleasant walks around downtown areas in South Haven and Saugatuck. We made a few purchases and had a good dinner in Saugatuck. It was nice getting away for a couple of days to a pleasant area that has very nice people.

 

April 4th, 2011 | Tags: , | Category: Travel | Comments are closed
« Newer Entries  
  Older Entries »