Imagine voice commands to a computer. Not totally new. How about wearing this computer on your head? This new-to-me technology is very intriguing! I had never heard of it but it has been around for a few years. Even my son has heard of it. He came in while I was reading articles and watching some videos about it and said "Yeah, that's been around." Sometimes I feel so out of touch! I am talking about Google Glass. A very, and I mean very, basic description would be like having a whole computer in your eyeglasses.
While watching a video from the Future of Educational Technology Conference in 2015 I learned that this wearable technology can do many things. One of the many things that it can be used for is to take video. By voice command you can tell it to start recording and it will video whatever you see. Similar to GoPro. I could really use this for my class by videoing demonstrations and experiments. This would be very convenient because it is very hard to video something with one hand and conduct an experiment with the other. Because it records how you see it, the view angle would be much better than that of some device you would have to hold or rig up to capture what you are doing. The video can then be archived for future use by students who may not have been present during the lesson, distance learning students and classes that will be held in the future. I could also video different places of interest to create a virtual field trip where it may not be possible to take students.
But it does much more than just capture video. It can also be used as a class management tool. The speaker from the conference explained that he was able to set up full lessons including presentations, notes, videos, and assessments and put them together so he could voice command the progression of the lesson toggling from one type of program to the other without having to go to a computer during the lesson. This freedom from having to be close to the computer allowed him to move about the room to help students, pass out supplies, etc without having to stop the lesson. The program can also be used to grade assessments so he could know in real time if the students had learned the material.
Many other aspects that people use computers for could also be completed using the glasses including checking and sending email, calendar appointment's and much more.
This device does not come cheap. I found it online a multiple sources including Amazon, Walmart and UShopMall. Amazon had it for the cheapest price starting at $1489 for a new XE-C 2.0 which looked like the most recent model. Walmart and UShopMall had the same version starting at $2199. This device would be great to have in the classroom but is somewhat cost prohibitive. I would probably have to obtain a grant to purchase. Unless of course someone wanted to buy one for me (hint, hint, to all you readers of my blog out there!!!).
Saturday, January 21, 2017
Monday, January 16, 2017
Future of Cellphones
Technology is moving at such a fast rate sometimes it's hard to keep up. And even scary sometimes. In the article Future Smartphones Won't Need Cell Towers to Connect published by MIT Technology Review the author was informing the reader about new technology that many companies were testing that would allow cell phones to communicate with each other without using cell towers if they were withing about 500 meters of each other. They are calling this technology LTE Direct.
This new technology would have many benefits. It would allow people to talk using their cellphones without relying on the cell towers. It would allow business to automatically send out messages and specials to customers shopping in their stores. Other benefits such as helping you locate nearby points of interest or sending out important information in the local area were also noted. All of this can be done using almost no battery life of the device.
For some of the same reasons it's a benefit are also the same reason why I find it somewhat scary. To know that people or businesses may be tracking your every movement is somewhat disconcerting. The article said that your phone would constantly be searching for these LTE Direct devices. Does this mean a constant drain on your data? The article didn't say but I would assume it would have to.
I love technology. I love to use technology. It is very convenient and informative. However, I am old school enough to want some privacy. Devices such as this, although convenient, make me feel like "Big Brother" is watching and tracking everything I do. My personal jury is still out on whether I would welcome this feature!
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/530996/future-smartphones-wont-need-cell-towers-to-connect/
This new technology would have many benefits. It would allow people to talk using their cellphones without relying on the cell towers. It would allow business to automatically send out messages and specials to customers shopping in their stores. Other benefits such as helping you locate nearby points of interest or sending out important information in the local area were also noted. All of this can be done using almost no battery life of the device.
For some of the same reasons it's a benefit are also the same reason why I find it somewhat scary. To know that people or businesses may be tracking your every movement is somewhat disconcerting. The article said that your phone would constantly be searching for these LTE Direct devices. Does this mean a constant drain on your data? The article didn't say but I would assume it would have to.
I love technology. I love to use technology. It is very convenient and informative. However, I am old school enough to want some privacy. Devices such as this, although convenient, make me feel like "Big Brother" is watching and tracking everything I do. My personal jury is still out on whether I would welcome this feature!
https://www.technologyreview.com/s/530996/future-smartphones-wont-need-cell-towers-to-connect/
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