What Does Your LMS Look Like - - part 1

First off, LMS = Learning Management System.  It's a way for schools, companies, institutions to manage their online classes, courses, training materials.

This is a 2nd version of thoughts I've had for this post, because I just read this quick article:  Online Textbooks Aim to Make Science Leap From the Page.

My favorite quote from the article, besides the fact that it's a digital text book for only $49:

Still, this isn’t your usual technical tome. The pages have some pizazz: they are replete with punchy, interactive electronic features — from dynamic illustrations to short quizzes meant to involve students rather than letting them plod, glassy-eyed, from one section to the next. Audio and video clips are woven into the text.

To relate this directly to video right quick, this is what I mean when I say that video needs to be thought of as just another image rather than some special piece of media.  The technology is, and has been, there, and it's just going to keep getting easier and cheaper.

During 4th quarter I've been developing three clinical training modules for UW's LMS.  Each module consists of at least four "movies" seperated by quizzes.  I'm building the training with a combination of Final Cut Pro, Motion, After Effects, Photoshop, Illustrator, Camtasia, and Prezi.  

Gerald Grinter introduced me to Prezi a couple months ago.  Very basically, Prezi is a power point alternative that lets you lay out and display ideas as though you are working on a whiteboard.  I tried it out for 30 days, found it very intuitive and instantly incorporated it into my workflow, and I've bought a 1 year subscription to the software.

In any line of work it's about using the right tool for the job, then using the tool to craft the right product.  (I say this as Gerald's sites tab is up displaying "Getting the Right Tools for....")  Prezi instantly fit into my workflow because of the time it shaved off of building animated graphics in After Effects or Motion compositions.  

And getting back to the article I mentioned above, Prezi is one way to create pages that "have some pizazz."

“We want students to measure a chapter not by how much they read, but by how much they learn.”

“This is a world where students have many devices, and they expect to have whatever they need when they need it,” he said. “But no matter what device they go to, the browser is there, and therefore our textbook is there, too.” For offline use, students can download a digital edition to read on a desktop. They can also print copies if they prefer a paper version.

The point of Learning Management Systems is to make learning accessible; to promote learning.  

§  If a student learns best by reading a printed book, that method is available

§  If a student learns best by listening and taking notes, that method is available

§  If a student learns best by watching a concept or process become fulfilled before their eyes, that method is available

§  And if a student learns best by do, that method is available through interactivity.

The 2nd part of my LMS blog is going to be more about devices and structure, and it's a tougher writeup....drafting now, will post when it's ready.

Scott Bell - - MediaDesignSeattle.com

Mac or PC? non-question

I spent way too much time weighing the options today...PC or Mac?  Mac or PC?  Turns out it doesn't matter.  Get what does what you need it to do.

stuff	17" MacBook Pro	Dell / Alienware
Already have MS Office 2010 PC…$200 for Mac version		x
Already have Final Cut Studio 2007	x
Adobe CS 5.5 will run on both/either….$2600	x	x
Webcam standard	x	x
Standard backlit keyboard	x
Graphics Card	AMD Radeon	Supercharged
Price	$2,549	$2,699
Processor	2.4 quad i7	2.4 quad i7
hard drive	750	750

First, that's a high price to pay for convenience.

Second, Mac wins in my little charade.  I was really gunning for PC.  I honestly weighed so many options so many different times that the chart probably isn't a perfect representation.  My last attempt was just outfit a Dell PC with as close as possible to the same specs as the Mac.

Question I asked yesterday was, "Why would a video guy consider PC over Mac?"  

§  I do not feel that the Mac towers I've used since 2007 have performed as well as PC's that I have maintained.  Yet they cost a lot more and their specs are crazy high powered.

§  I bought into the concept that Mac is a closed off world.  According to my chart above, that is incorrect.

§  Apple's focus since the iPod has been gadgets; web appliances.  I'd love to run After Effects and Photoshop on an iPad, but as far as I know, I can't yet.

§  I have been locked into the idea that I can get a similar PC for a far lower price than a Mac.  Not the case.  Research today, chart above.

So, it looks like when I do consolidate, it will be a Mac.  I can plug ancient Final Cut Pro into a Mac, not a PC.  I can still run MS Office, Adobe CS 5.5, and all my other little software odds and ends on a Mac.

Now, there's the other question: What if I didn't have to travel with full video editing capabilities?  I could quite honestly get away with only using my iPhone.  Or my Windows Phone.  Or my Droid.

So for now, stickin' with what I gots.  Re-evalute when it comes time to make life convenient.

Scott Bell - - MediaDesignSeattle.com - - BLOG

Recipe for my all nighters http://ping.fm/aftNO

Recipe for an All Nighter

Food is just as important as caffeine.  And you might say, "Why is an all nighter necessary in the first place?  Plan your day better, Scottula."  I'd love to, but some days/weeks it just doesn't work.  The phone rings with a followup I've been waiting for.  An email comes in that moves a project to step 2 and that needs to be dealt with before someone else's schedule fills up.  The child gets home from school.  Things happen.  Days are rarely quiet when I need them to be - - and the flip side, deathly quiet when I don't want them to be.  So this is absolutely not complaining.  Just passing my recipe along.

All day caffeination is not a good thing.  It makes you shaky and it builds those little interruptions into more mountain than molehill.  Stick to your regular daily caffeine intake.  Then at 9 or 10 o'clock start upping the ante.

English Breakfast tea with a dash of milk and sugar is great for my work night.  Two or three of these between 10pm and 1am do a very good job.  Mix in any sweets and chips with cheese.  Tostitos Queso?  mmmmm, such good crack.  Fritos and melty cheese?  mmmmmm.   A health slice of pie and/or some ice cream.  An orange or an apple.  Those "Cutie" oranges are perfect.

Around 1am it's time for a sandwich or the leftovers from supper.  (Dogs will freak out.)  If the tea no longer tastes good, it's time to brew a pot of coffee.  At 2am a glass of wine is nice.  It balances out all the caffeine, and for me, it helps me chill the f out and get deeper into the groove of what needs to be done.  2 glasses of wine at this point will put you right to bed, so don't do it!

My next break tends to come around 4am.  This is close enough to breakfast time.  Two microwaved eggs, some toast.  At 5am or 6am the computer ought to be grinding away on its own business, so some exercise is a good idea.  And then?  The regular daily routine can kick in.  Breakfast #2, shower, coffee, onward.  Depending on how the days go, I'm anticipating one or two more of these by the 15th.  I've always been a night owl anyway, this is a relatively easy routine for me to slip into.  

It's all good.  Tis the season ;-)

How do you tackle an all nighter?  I know, yes, I KNOW, a lot of you are crunching on the things to get done before the year ends.


Scott Bell - - MediaDesignSeattle.com - - Tuesdays With Deborah