I *heart* xkcd
The guy from xkcd is, once again, inside my head.
Friday, November 13, 2009
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Some misinformation in the Pendulum re: Kindles
For those who read the November 3, 2009 story in the Pendulum (I'm reading it online, so not sure of the print date) called "Elon continues to favor paper to digital", there is some misinformation about the Kindle that I'd like to correct.
The article is about student adoption of Kindles and E-books over paper. Keep in mind I write these items as a Kindle skeptic and a book lover.... but facts are facts. Here's what I noticed about this article:
1. Here is a quote about price payback.
Here is a posting I made about EXACTLY when the Kindle "pays off" as a textbook device. There have been many economic analyses of the Kindle and when it would pay off.
2. Here is a quote about the limitations of the Kindle.
The Kindle has a two-week battery life. The Kindle does allow for highlights, annotations, and access to the Web currently. These are not hacks or extra features, they come built-in.
3. No one mentioned the REAL problems with the Kindle for academia, which I've outlined in several places.[1][2]
If anyone wants to play with a Kindle and find out about these things for yourself, let me know. I'm happy to talk!
The article is about student adoption of Kindles and E-books over paper. Keep in mind I write these items as a Kindle skeptic and a book lover.... but facts are facts. Here's what I noticed about this article:
1. Here is a quote about price payback.
Senior Melanie Johnson recommends the Kindle for students who enjoy technology and who also read a lot.
"The cost of books are $10 each, which is cheaper than in bookstores, but the cost of the Kindle itself is pricey ($300-400)," she said. "So you would have to read a ton of books to ever offset the cost of the Kindle."
Here is a posting I made about EXACTLY when the Kindle "pays off" as a textbook device. There have been many economic analyses of the Kindle and when it would pay off.
2. Here is a quote about the limitations of the Kindle.
"I can foresee the point where a Kindle is light enough, has a long enough battery life, has a color display, allows for highlights and annotation and has the ability to access the Web," he said. "Think of having all your textbooks and reference books, as well as access to the Web, in a lightweight device that you can take notes on."
The Kindle has a two-week battery life. The Kindle does allow for highlights, annotations, and access to the Web currently. These are not hacks or extra features, they come built-in.
3. No one mentioned the REAL problems with the Kindle for academia, which I've outlined in several places.[1][2]
If anyone wants to play with a Kindle and find out about these things for yourself, let me know. I'm happy to talk!
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Another academic reviews the Kindle
He makes some of the same recommendations/comments about the Kindle for academia as I did [1][2]. Here are the parts I agree with most heartily:
This is true. He goes on to discuss the size of the device, etc. But I found that the real problem is the lack of page number references, the difficulty in getting to and using the index, and the spotty support for linked references are detriments to the Kindle. (He discusses some of these later on, as well as some aesthetic differences.)
Agreed. Preach it brother.
Let’s face it: at heart, the Kindle is designed to let you read mystery novels, not academic books.
This is true. He goes on to discuss the size of the device, etc. But I found that the real problem is the lack of page number references, the difficulty in getting to and using the index, and the spotty support for linked references are detriments to the Kindle. (He discusses some of these later on, as well as some aesthetic differences.)
I have to admit I am scared silly by the idea of a generation of students so alienated from material they are supposed to be immersed in that they rent digital textbooks that they do not intend to keep, cannot dog ear and underline, and otherwise feel totally alienated from. Even the current trend of students not underlining in books so as to preserve their resale value strikes me as appalling. Taking ownership of your education -- and indeed, just learning how to read closely -- means making your books part of your physical environment. In an era when you thought criminally overpriced textbooks full of uselessly pretty pictures and pre-chewed content was the absolute nadir of education, the Campus Full Of Kindles demonstrates we still have lower to sink. If, that is, the Kindles alienate students from their libraries rather than empowering them to immerse themselves in them.
Agreed. Preach it brother.
Apps for iPhone and Android
Probably no huge surprises here, but I'll link you to some charts showing the top apps for mobile markets:
O'Reilly: Games top the charts
O'Reilly: Games top the charts
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
hardware paradigms
On a CSC111 (comp sci for non-majors) midterm, 88% of students can identify a picture of "flash memory", whereas only 63% were able to correctly identify a picture of a hard disk, a paltry 43% were able to correctly identify RAM modules, and very surprisingly only 17% were able to recognize a picture of a CPU chip (well at least I got them to quit calling the case the CPU!)
The kicker is this: I showed NOTHING in class that had to do with flash memory, no pictures of it, nothing other than a brief description of how it works in theory and a comparison to related/older technologies. Yet I spent 200 minutes on the OTHER hardware concepts, recognizing the pieces, passing them around the room, taking them apart, watching videos of how they were developed, etc.
They were able to recognize the flash memory based on having bought this themselves and probably installed it in a phone or camera.
I am embarrassed to admit this since it shows the ineffectiveness of the teaching method I chose for hardware components, but I guess it's illustrative of how widespread the mobile paradigm is, and how it has utterly eclipsed the desktop paradigm, at least with this particular batch of students.
I bet nearly every student in this class has a cell phone and knows where the memory goes in it and how to upgrade the memory, but they haven't the first clue what's inside a desktop computer. (They also don't know how flash memory works, or why it's called "flash", but at least they can identify it when shown a picture.)
And even if they do own a computer, it's probably a laptop, and we don't really teach about what hardware inside the laptop looks like because what's the point? The only thing you can change about a laptop is MAYBE the memory, MAYBE the battery, and MAYBE swap out a hard drive. But who does that? The last time I upgraded memory in a laptop was 1997. (Of course, with desktop components now all "onboard" it's getting less and less likely to upgrade or tinker with an actual desktop either. Couple this with the throw-away mentality and planned obsolescence, and I ask you: When was the last time you actually bought something new that required that you open the case?)
The smaller the device, the more difficult it is to take apart, the less likely you are to be able to modify it or fix it yourself, the less likely it is that you can upgrade the hardware. Frankly, it's really interesting to create these small devices, but they're boring as hell to teach because you can't take them apart and it's all solid-state.
So old-school hardware is more interesting to teach but new mobile devices are ubiquitous and relevant.
What about a grant to have enough hardware for each student to build their own PC which they then use in class? It doesn't solve the mobility problem but it would be fun.
The kicker is this: I showed NOTHING in class that had to do with flash memory, no pictures of it, nothing other than a brief description of how it works in theory and a comparison to related/older technologies. Yet I spent 200 minutes on the OTHER hardware concepts, recognizing the pieces, passing them around the room, taking them apart, watching videos of how they were developed, etc.
They were able to recognize the flash memory based on having bought this themselves and probably installed it in a phone or camera.
I am embarrassed to admit this since it shows the ineffectiveness of the teaching method I chose for hardware components, but I guess it's illustrative of how widespread the mobile paradigm is, and how it has utterly eclipsed the desktop paradigm, at least with this particular batch of students.
I bet nearly every student in this class has a cell phone and knows where the memory goes in it and how to upgrade the memory, but they haven't the first clue what's inside a desktop computer. (They also don't know how flash memory works, or why it's called "flash", but at least they can identify it when shown a picture.)
And even if they do own a computer, it's probably a laptop, and we don't really teach about what hardware inside the laptop looks like because what's the point? The only thing you can change about a laptop is MAYBE the memory, MAYBE the battery, and MAYBE swap out a hard drive. But who does that? The last time I upgraded memory in a laptop was 1997. (Of course, with desktop components now all "onboard" it's getting less and less likely to upgrade or tinker with an actual desktop either. Couple this with the throw-away mentality and planned obsolescence, and I ask you: When was the last time you actually bought something new that required that you open the case?)
The smaller the device, the more difficult it is to take apart, the less likely you are to be able to modify it or fix it yourself, the less likely it is that you can upgrade the hardware. Frankly, it's really interesting to create these small devices, but they're boring as hell to teach because you can't take them apart and it's all solid-state.
So old-school hardware is more interesting to teach but new mobile devices are ubiquitous and relevant.
What about a grant to have enough hardware for each student to build their own PC which they then use in class? It doesn't solve the mobility problem but it would be fun.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Office hours Friday 10/2
On Friday Oct 2, I will not be able to have office hours at the usual time, as I have a meeting.
I will hold alternative office hours on that day from 1:30-2:30pm.
I will hold alternative office hours on that day from 1:30-2:30pm.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Explaining the mystery of Craigslist
Yes, it's ugly, annoying, and mysterious. Refreshing, disturbing, energizing. So of course, I have to love it. Wired delves in:
"Besides offering nearly all of its features for free, it scorns advertising, refuses investment, ignores design, and does not innovate. Ordinarily, a company that showed such complete disdain for the normal rules of business would be vulnerable to competition, but craigslist has no serious rivals. The glory of the site is its size and its price. But seen from another angle, craigslist is one of the strangest monopolies in history, where customers are locked in by fees set at zero and where the ambiance of neglect is not a way to extract more profit but the expression of a worldview."
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
data gathering on the self
A few links regarding the collection of personal data on yourself: video, audio, facts
--Exercise Guy, 1 year
--Noah, picture every day for a year
--Same thing, female, 3 years
--Guy who publishes an annual report of himself
--The quantified self (blog)
--Track Your Happiness (service)
Most of the mainstream media have focused on health-related data gathering, i.e. Nike Plus or just running web sites like Map My Run, Daily Burn, etc. Wired July 2009 has a series on this topic. The Cover Story is "Living by Numbers".
--Exercise Guy, 1 year
--Noah, picture every day for a year
--Same thing, female, 3 years
--Guy who publishes an annual report of himself
--The quantified self (blog)
--Track Your Happiness (service)
Most of the mainstream media have focused on health-related data gathering, i.e. Nike Plus or just running web sites like Map My Run, Daily Burn, etc. Wired July 2009 has a series on this topic. The Cover Story is "Living by Numbers".
