5/16/2008
Purdue University has selected Winnov's Cbox 3 to record classroom lectures and enhance its distance learning programs. The Cbox 3 lecture capture appliance is used at Purdue's School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
5/15/2008
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates announced new partnerships to extend accessibility and computer literacy in the Asia Pacific region during a speech in Jakarta at a government leader gathering earlier this week.
5/15/2008
Microsoft's Chairman Bill Gates spent a lot of time Wednesday talking about "empowering the workers" at the Microsoft's 12th annual CEO Summit 2008 in Redmond, WA, where he gave a keynote speech. However, Gates wasn't talking about political revolutions or even pay raises for office workers before the CEO crowd. Instead, he was referring to new software technologies that can better enable collaboration, social networking and decision-making on the job.
5/14/2008
College coaches are turning to webcams as a way to stay in touch with potential recruits to bypass new National Collegiate Athletic Association restrictions that forbid in-person visits to high school campuses during the spring evaluation period, according to a report from AP.
5/14/2008
Dartmouth College's recently completed McLaughlin Cluster residence halls have been recognized by the United States Green Building Council for its environmental sustainability, winning Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ( LEED ) gold certifications. The recognition makes the fifth LEED certification for Dartmouth buildings in four months. LEED certifications were recently awarded to two other residence halls as well as two academic facilities.
5/14/2008
Smart Technologies announced this week that it's dropping the price on its widescreen Smart Board 690 interactive whiteboard for educators. The 690, at 94 inches, is Smart's largest interactive whiteboard.
5/13/2008
Microsoft Tuesday released Service Pack 1 for Office 2008 for Mac, the first major update to what the company called its most successful Mac Office launch in 19 years (in terms of sales volume). In a surprise move, Microsoft's Mac Business Unit also announced that it plans to bring Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) back to the Mac platform with the next major release.
5/8/2008
The Graduate School, USDA has standardized on Acrobat Connect Pro, a Web conferencing and e-learning platform from Adobe Systems. The school is a self-sustaining government entity created 87 years ago by the United States Department of Agriculture to provide adult continuing education.
5/5/2008
Adobe has introduced a new version of Acrobat Connect Pro, the company's virtual meeting and eLearning tool. The new version includes enhanced integration with Blackboard, as well as several editing and management improvements.
4/30/2008
Classroom technology developer Turning Technologies has launched a new classroom response system that doesn't require computers or projectors. The new ResponseCard AnyWhere is a wireless, handheld system designed for standalone use to capture data from interactive classroom polls and other types of feedback.
4/22/2008
Sanyo has introduced two new models in its "T" series of high-brightness, portable multimedia LCD projectors, including the high-end SXGA+ PLC-ET30L and the entry-level XGA-resolution PLC-XT21/L. Both are shipping this month.
4/15/2008
At the convention of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) this week, Christie launched a new 3LCD projector boasting a brightness of 6,000 ANSI lumens and a contrast ratio of 2,000:1. The new widescreen (17:10) model, the LW600, is targeted toward auditoriums and large conference rooms.
4/14/2008
Sony last week debuted a new line of front LCD projectors, including the company's first compact widescreen model. The VPL-E series includes four new models, three of which are shipping this month, with the forth slated for a May launch.
4/10/2008
Audio manufacturer OWI reported to us that its planning to launch a new wireless system designed specifically for instructional settings at the InfoComm 2008 show in Las Vegas in June.
4/3/2008
Mitsubishi this month will release its new WL6700U, an LCD projector for the education market that boasts a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and a brightness of 5,000 ANSI lumens.
4/3/2008
Panasonic has launched two new projectors designed for fixed installations in classrooms: PT-F200NTU and PT-F200U, both upgrades to the previous PT-F100 series. The PT-F200NTU includes built-in wireless connectivity and support for streaming video.
4/2/2008
Ed tech developer Tegrity has released an update to Campus 2.0, the company's enterprise classroom capture and student achievement system. The new version adds a wide range of features, from new recording and editing tools to enhanced administrative and reporting functionality.
4/1/2008
Software developer Panopto reported to us this week that hundreds of educational institutions have applied for its Socrates Project, which allows K-12 schools, colleges, and universities to adopt the company's CourseCast system at no charge. The program, launched late last year, is aimed specifically at academic institutions.
3/26/2008
Introducing new technologies to faculty members can be a challenge--they are often simply too busy or don't see the point of mastering yet another tool.
3/19/2008
In search of an inexpensive solution to engage students in challenging courses like physics and astronomy, a semi-retired professor has created a popular interactive software tool that reportedly increases classroom participation and boosts grades and learning.
3/12/2008
What does it take to convert a soon-to-retire engineering professor enamored of the chalkboard into someone who loves a technology tool? For Virginia Tech Alumni Distinguished Professor Charles Bostian, it took a collaborative teaching tool that he is using in engineering classes as large as 180 students.
3/4/2008
At the inaugural Wimba Connect 2008 user conference Tuesday, Wimba unveiled its new Wimba Pronto, a collaborative instant messaging tool geared specifically toward education.
2/26/2008
Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada has deployed an online video portal that lets students view, index, annotate, remix, search, and share class lectures. Although the school has been offering streaming video for three years, the new portal, run on the Gotuit platform, implements more interactive features.
2/12/2008
Collaborative technology developer Elluminate has brought its Live! virtual classroom software to the Moodle platform. The company released a piece of software Tuesday called Elluminate Bridge for Moodle, which is designed to integrate Live! into the open-source learning management system.
2/12/2008
Education developer Smart Technologies has debuted a new document camera designed specifically for classroom settings. The new model, set to ship this spring, incorporates an adjustable head for scanning any kind of physical object from a wide range of angles and features integration with existing classroom presentation technologies.