T.H.E. News Update :: July 23, 2008

News & Issues

Is Desire2Learn in the Clear? Blackboard Says 'No'

Desire2Learn is reporting the first bit of (tentatively) good news to come out of Texas since Blackboard initiated its patent-infringement suit against it almost two years ago to the day. According to Desire2Learn, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Lufkin Division, has denied issuing sanctions in Blackboard's motion for contempt. But Blackboard told us Desire2Learn definitely is not in the clear.

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IBM Delivers Virtual Desktop Hosting to Pike County Schools

IBM and Pike County Schools have confirmed a five-year agreement that will provide the Kentucky school district with Virtual Infrastructure Access desktop hosting. The service will provide older PCs within the district Internet performance similar to newer machines.

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Studywiz Spark Partners with ePals, Takes Web 2.0 Around the World

"Dynamic LearnSpace" provider Studywiz Spark and social network provider ePals announced a partnership that will integrate the two companies' offerings to provide rich, dynamic learning experiences for K-12 students, teachers, and parents.

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Ubisoft, Princeton Review Bring the SATs to Nintendo DS

At the E3 conference last week, Ubisoft announced plans to release My SAT Coach with The Princeton Review for the Nintendo DS.

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Virginia, Texas Schools Deploy Firewall Solutions

Palo Alto Networks announced two large-scale deployments of its PA-4000 series firewall. The city of Staunton, VA (including its schools) and Garland Independent School District in Texas have implemented the company's firewall solution to protect their network infrastructure from a variety of security issues, including inappropriate content, malware, viruses, and unwanted applications, to name a few.

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AVST, Mirapoint Team Up To Provide Unified Messaging

Applied Voice & Speech Technologies (AVST) and Mirapoint announced they've formed a strategic partnership to deliver a unified messaging solution that addresses the needs of both the enterprise and education sectors.

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The Latin School Migrates to BakBone for Data Backup and Recovery

The Latin School of Chicago has signed on with BakBone Software to provide its VMware-based virtualized infrastructure and heterogeneous data protection. Under the agreement, the school will use BakBone's NetVault: Backup solution to protect information on more than 80 servers throughout the campus.

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ConnectEDU Acquires Prep HeadQuarters

College and career planning services provider ConnectEDU announced that it's acquired Prep Headquarters, an online college planning service currently used in more than 700 high schools in the United States.

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Coming Up

Find more events and calls for papers and presentations at THE Journal's online Conference Calendar.

THE Journal Opportunities

Share Your Best Practices

T.H.E. Journal is currently looking for the following types of articles for future issues and for our eNewsletter, T.H.E. SmartClassroom:

  • School Perspectives -- discuss a specific topic, trend, or concern about education technology.
  • Case Studies -- have you implemented technology and learned a lot from the experience? If so, share your efforts about what worked -- and what didn't.

If you have a potential article, or questions about the above topics, please e-mail [email protected]

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Featured

  • digital illustration of Estonia with glowing neural network-like connections spreading across the map

    Estonia to Roll Out ChatGPT Edu for all Secondary Schools

    In a nationwide artificial intelligence program dubbed "AI Leap 2025," the country of Estonia plans to provide free access to leading AI applications for all secondary school students and teachers. The initiative will launch with a rollout of ChatGPT Edu to 20,000 high school students in grades 10-11 and their 3,000 teachers, beginning Sept. 1.

  • A child surrounded by glowing, fluid virtual patterns and holographic shapes, illuminated in a dark gradient environment of blue, purple, and pink.

    ClassVR Gets Expanded VR/AR Content Library

    Avantis Education has announced a new content library for its ClassVR virtual and augmented reality platform. Dubbed Eduverse+, the library features four content suites — EduverseAI, WildWorld, STEAM3D, and CareerHub — that can be tailored to suit a variety of educational levels.

  • elementary school teacher with students

    Traditional Procurement Processes Stand in the Way of Progress

    K–12 schools and districts can streamline procurement and gain agility without having the rewrite purchasing requirements.

  • school building split in half, with one side collapsing into a dark hole

    Office of Educational Technology, National Center for Education Statistics Fall Victim to ED Cuts

    The U.S. Department of Education has announced cuts of nearly half of its staff, numbering more than 1,300 workers, according to AP reporting. While official details on the cuts are not available, early commentary on LinkedIn has revealed drastic cuts in the areas of educational technology and data.