THE Journal — Display/Presentation
NEC Launches High-End 30-Inch Display
NEC last week debuted a new high-end model in its MultiSync 90 Series of professional LCD displays, expanding the lineup to include a 30-inch widescreen unit. The new MultiSync LCD3090WQXi widescreen display is targeted toward high-end graphics applications, including design, photography, print production, and 3D/CAD applications.
(1/23/2008)
Epson Debuts Short-Throw WXGA 3LCD Projector
Epson America has announced a new addition to its lineup of PowerLite 3LCD projectors, the PowerLite 400W. The new short-throw model sports a WXGA-native resolution (1,280x800) and is designed for classroom use with 16:10 interactive whiteboards.
(1/23/2008)
Renaissance, Pearson Partner for Classroom Response System
Education publisher Pearson Wednesday unveiled a new student response system for K-12 and higher ed at the FETC conference in Orlando, FL. The system, developed in partnership with technology provider Renaissance Learning, is designed to be integrated with Pearson's Prosper assessment system.
(1/23/2008)
FETC Brief: Bretford Launches 'Instructional Workstation'
Bretford has introduced a new classroom multimedia station targeted specifically for instructors in classroom settings. The UCS880 Instructor Workstation is being shown off this week at the FETC show in Orlando, FL.
(1/22/2008)
Smart Adds Leopard Support to Whiteboard Software
Smart Technologies has released an update to its whiteboard software, Smart Board 9.7. The update comes on the heels of a full-version upgrade for the company's Notebook software, announced last week at the Macworld expo in San Francisco. Smart Board software powers Smart's line of interactive whiteboards (Smart Boards), its Sympodium interactive pen display, and its AirLiner wireless slate.
(1/21/2008)
Podcasting from the Seashore in Cape Cod
Every year fifth graders in the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District in South Yarmouth, MA spend five days at the seashore. For some, according to Lory Stewart, director of instructional technology, it's their first trip to the beach, in spite of the fact that they live on Cape Cod. Likewise, many have never been away from home, let alone for four nights.
(1/16/2008)
New Free Platform Aims To Ease Sharing of Digital Collections
A new Web platform for publishing collections and exhibitions online got a nod of fame last week when it was referenced in The Washington Times profile of George Mason University's Center for History and New Media, which the paper called "at the forefront of the new wave of collecting history." The free, open-source platform is named Omeka, a Swahili word meaning "to display or lay out goods or wares; to speak out; to spread out; to unpack."
(1/15/2008)
Office 2008 for Mac Arrives
At the Macworld Conference & Expo, Microsoft has officially released Office 2008 for Mac, the latest version of the company's ubiquitous office productivity suite. Office 2008 was originally supposed to have shipped last summer but instead arrives today in three versions, including a new education edition. The company is providing guided tours of the latest edition at the Macworld convention through Thursday.
(1/15/2008)
Smart Debuts Notebook 10; New Whiteboards Also Launched
Smart Technologies this week debuted a new full-version update of its Notebook collaborative learning software and also launched new interactive whiteboard systems. The new Notebook 10, which will make its first public appearance at the Macworld Conference and Expo next week in San Francisco, adds 30 new features for lesson creation and delivery.
(1/9/2008)
Panopto Makes Lecture Capture System Free for Educators
Rich Media software developer Panopto is making its CourseCast lecture-capture technology available free to qualified educational institutions, including K-12 schools, colleges, and universities. The software is being distributed though the company's new Socrates Project to provide free access in exchange for participation in "ongoing beta and developer programs aimed at continually enhancing the technology...."
(1/8/2008)
Mitsubishi Debuts 1080p Projector for Education
Mitsubishi has launched a new high-definition projector targeted toward education, home theater, and corporate applications at the Consumer Electronics Show, happening this week in Las Vegas.
(1/7/2008)
Apple Updates Podcasting, Streaming Media Software
Apple has released updates to several of its applications, including its podcasting and audio production suite GarageBand and its streaming media suite QuickTime Broadcaster. Other updates released this week include QuickTime and Apple Java. All of the updates are relatively minor, adding security and bug fixes, although Broadcaster also includes performance improvements and support for additional formats and standards.
(12/14/2007)
ProfCast Lecture Capture Software Adds Logging to Podcast Manager
ProfCast has released a new version of its eponymous software designed for capturing and distributing classroom lectures as enhanced podcasts. ProfCast 2.2.0pb4, a public beta of the presentation capture software, includes fixes and enhancements to previous 2.2 releases and is available now for Mac OS X.
(12/12/2007)
Review: Wacom Cintiq 12WX
Whether you're participating in digital media instruction personally or merely supporting visual arts programs on your campuses, you no doubt have Wacom tablets up near the top of the equipment list. They're integral in the production of digital art, and they're ubiquitous in all realms of professional creative work--from animation studios to graphic arts shops to post-production houses. Economic realities may have limited your choices in the past, but that changed this month when Wacom launched its new entry-level Cintiq, the Cintiq 12WX, bringing a mid-range price tag to high-end graphics input.
(12/10/2007)
Wacom Revamps Flagship Tablet Line
Wacom today launched two additions to its flagship high-end tablet lineup, the Cintiq 12WX and the Cintiq 20 WSX. The new models expand the range of sizes available for the tablets, which integrate a display and pressure-sensitive interactive input for visual arts applications, delivering for the first time a Cintiq priced (barely) below $1,000.
(12/3/2007)
Students Cross Cultures Through Videoconferencing
Students in 30 K-12 schools around the United States will engage in a cross-cultural exchange beginning in December through a new International PULSE videoconferencing program dubbed "Arab World and the U.S." Sponsored by Global Nomads Group, the videoconferencing program will connect U.S. students to schools in Cairo, Egypt to engage in collaborative activities and exchange cultural perspectives.
(11/29/2007)
3 Schools Win $15,000 Classroom Makeovers
Three schools were named winners in Interwrite Learning's first "Classroom Makeover" contest, a competition that called on students and teachers to produce videos parodying a song while demonstrating technology used in the classroom. Each winner took back a $15,000 classroom makeover (consisting of various interactive technologies) and a $1,000 cash prize.
(11/28/2007)
eInstruction To Acquire Interwrite
Denton, TX-based eInstruction today signed a definitive agreement to acquire Interwrite Learning. Both companies develop classroom technologies for K-12 and higher education environments, including whiteboards and student response systems and software. The combined company will go by the name of eInstruction.
(11/26/2007)
LeapFrog To Give Away $35,000 in Classroom Technology
LeapFrog SchoolHouse this month launched a new sweepstakes for schools. Through Dec. 15, educators who register at the company's online education store are entered to win shopping sprees at the store ranging from $1,000 to $10,000.
(11/15/2007)
Interwrite Donates Pads for UNESCO Project
As part of a project launched by UNESCO Bangkok and Microsoft, called Next Generation of Teachers, Interwrite Learning this week donated 30 Interwrite Pads to support distance learning for teacher professional education. The donations were distributed through local reseller to a variety of countries participating in the project, including China, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
(11/8/2007)
Advanced Media Design Rolls Out WXGA Classroom Recorders
AV technology developer Advanced Media Design has started shipping a new model in its MediaPointe family of digital media recorders, the DMR210e, designed for capturing presentations and classroom lectures. The new model sports a DVD drive and updated design and supports up to 1,500 hours of recording time.
(11/6/2007)
Student/Teacher Video Competition Finalists Named
Fifteen finalists have been named in Interwrite Learning's first "Classroom Makeover" contest, a competition that will award winners in three grade categories technology makeovers for their classrooms, valued at abut $15,000 each. The finalists were chosen from more than 220 entries from the United States, New Zealand, and Australia.
(11/5/2007)
Districts Revamp Curricula for 21st Century Learning
School districts around the United States are taking an active approach to 21st century learning by retooling their curricula and changing the way they measure student achievement in STEM subjects. What's more, according to a survey released this month by the National School Boards Association, technology is playing a major role in facilitating change, from online learning to project-based learning to Web 2.0 applications like wikis and blogs.
(10/31/2007)
2008 Technology for Teaching Grants Open
HP has opened up its 2008 Technology for Teaching Grant program, offering $6 million to K-12 and higher education institutions in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The initiative is aimed at efforts to improve education through the use of innovative uses of technology in the classroom, increase the number of underrepresented students on a path toward high-tech careers, and enhance student success in math, science and engineering.
(10/30/2007)
Q&A: Smartening up the Classroom
The Clarke County School District's mission to install whiteboards in its classrooms dates back about seven years, but it wasn't until 2006 that more than 1,000 Smart Boards were installed in its 13 elementary, four middle and three high schools. "We had vendors come in, and we experimented with a few different options by installing four or five boards in one school to see how they worked," said Steve Piazza, technology integration support specialist for the Athens, GA-based school district, "but it was nothing like this."
(10/17/2007)
