Disruptive Technologies

Course site for Disruptive Technologies. Exploring identity, community, & design.

Category: Occupy Technology

Closing Remarks Chris W.

This class has been a great experience. Coming into this class I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Honestly, I enrolled in the class because I heard we’d get to use an iPad for a semester. While the iPad was nice, I’d say the best thing about this class were the excellent discussion we had in class and how fluid the syllabus was. This class has really opened my eyes to the subtle complexities of community development and really helped me define who I am as a person. The guest we had in class pushed me to do what I want in life (which is to work in the gaming industry). The last section, Design, helped me take a new approach to the creative process that I will definitely use later on in life.

This class has shown me a few apps that I really enjoyed using. In no particular order SwiftKey, Adaptxt, Evernote, and POP.

Adaptxt: If you want swept functionality on your iOS device I would definitely recommend this app. The user interface is clean and is very responsive.
SwiftKey: This is another third party keyboard that has the swipe functionality. From my experience sometimes the keyboard wouldn’t appear and you’d have to tap on the lobe icon more than once. Otherwise it is a great app to use.

Evernote: This app is a powerhouse! From presentations to website layouts Evernote can do it all!

POP: In the design section of the course both teams used this to make the layout of our apps which were our a part of our Final Synthesis.

Lastly, the iPad was really useful this entire semester. Slowly substituted paper with the iPad and it became an integral part of my day to day. This device is useful beyond belief and after this semester is over I will seriously consider buying one for myself.

Cheers to a great semester!

Weekly iPad Reflection Chris W

After almost a full semester of occupying the iPad, I don’t know how I am going to live without this thing.  All my assignments and a majority of my internet browsing are done using the iPad.

Stony brook University uses a website called Blackboard to distribute assignments, post grades and weekly reminders, and have the students interact with one another. I navigate blackboard exclusively form my iPad. The layout is nicer. The design is nicer. Everything is nicer on the app end of Blackboard.

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Web version of Blackboard

imageApp version of Blackboard

The main difference between the two is the active panel the app version has. It is easy to navigate the different tabs as well as see exactly where you are.

Weekly iPad Reflection Chris W.

 

One app that would interesting to see in higher education is an app that shows students how much of their tuition is being wasted if they skip a class or something similar to that. This app’s purpose is to show students the dangers and costs of procrastination. If the students want it could give tips on better ways to allocate their time. The content would be clever and humorous. I’d like to call it CrnchTime.

 

(Late post because I need CrnchTime too)

Weekly iPad Reflection Chris W.

About two weeks  ago Apple came to visit our humble class. Here is a short summary of what I learned.

 

Keynote

If you are anything like me you grew up using Microsoft Word and its cousins Excel and PowerPoint. While Keynote cannot replace word or Excel, it does a whole lot more for you than PowerPoint ever could. Adding links to your presentation and accessing links is both easy and smooth.  Creating a dynamic and professional presentation is all at your finger tips. You can even use Keynote to design a UI for apps or make a mock Web page. You can do what you want but if there is ever an option between Keynote and PowerPoint, I’m picking Keynote.

 

Quip

Quip is an app our visitors asked us to use. I did not fall in love with it, but other people seemed to like. Quip made it easier for us to follow along with the lesson plan Apple had for us. Perhaps I need more experience with it to truly appreciate what the app can do.

 

GarageBand

GarageBand  on the iPad is very easy to use. I can see myself spending countless hours making a song for a video using the drum pad interface. I also never realized how easy it was to include a song made on GarageBand in a movie or trailer made in iMovie. In my future YouTube videos I’ll be sure to check out GarageBand before searching the Web for royalty free music.

 

There were other great apps Apple showed us but these are the free that stood out to me. If you have an iOS device give Keynote a try, make a song in GarageBand, make use of Quip. There are so many tutorials online!

Weekly Create Chris W

I’ve learned a whole lot about Apple’s native apps. I suggest you check them out. For more on my reaction to Apple’s visit to CDT 450 two weeks ago, check out my weekly iPad Reflection here.

iPad Reflection – Chris Williams

SwiftKey

Earlier on in the semester I mentioned how the iPad native keyboard needed some kind of swipe function. After doing some research I found SwiftKey. SwiftKey is a nice keyboard. It functions how it’s supposed to. It connects with your facebook to learn the words you use and learns from there. There have been times where I needed to delete words and reswipe them. Some things this app could improve on is the insisting autocorreit.

Overall. 8/10

If you want a swipe I keyboard on your iOS device SwiftKey could be the app for you.

Weekly Create – Chris Williams

Sunny 3D
I decided to try it a 3D modeling software on my iPad called Sunny 3D. The interface is very minimalistic so it seems very easy. Actually creating shapes is a different matter. I think my model came out pretty good considering I’m a novice.

Thoughts On Identity – Chris

My name is Chris and these are my thoughts.

I made this video using only the iPad and iMovie. It took my a little longer then I’d like to admit to figure out how to split video clips but once I figured it out it was easy. I have used iMovie on my Macbook Pro, so the software is not foreign to me but as seen above creating what I consider great content is a challenge. In hindsight I should have used the case as a stand and recorded from a desk. It was a fun experience regardless.

Week 4 iPad Reflection – Chris W

The was a day this week we here I forgot to pack my laptop in my bag but remembered my iPad. With a little getting used to I was able to do all my tasks that day using only the iPad. Some of these tasks included taking notes for class, studying via ebook, sending and reading emails, and preparing a presentation. Earlier this semester I had mentioned a few qualms I had with the native keyboard and my “need” for an external keyboard. After 4 weeks of occupying the iPad I realize I may have been a bit to hasty to make a judgement. While there are some functions that would definitely improve the native iPad keyboard (arrow keys when working on cell based programs/apps), the native keyboard is functional enough for everyday use. Do not get me wrong. My iPad experience would definitely be better with an external keyboard. Cole shared a link to some third party keyboards for iOS 8. I’ll be checking out a few of them so expect a review in my next post.

iPad Reflection Week 3 Chris

I’ve been substituting the iPad where ever I can for all my classes. At first it was a bit difficult because there are some things that pen and paper do better than the iPad.

The majority of my classes this semester focus a lot on group work so using the iPad in conjunction with Google Docs has been extremely helpful.  Editing documents on Google Drive is as easy as 1-2-3 but when it comes to entering data for my psychology lab class, tasks can be a bit difficult. For this data entry assignment my group members had to input responses from surveys into a Google Sheet using the app Sheets. Sheets is a great app but I do not understand why Google split up its applications. The group members in our group with laptops finished input all their data 4 minutes before the rest of us using tablets.  Something. That might fix this minor annoyance would be arrow keys when using Sheets or any excel- esque app.

Overall the iPad has been a great addition to my backpack.

iPad Reflection: What’s In Your Bag – Chris

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Name: Chris

Place: New York

Occupation:  Student/Amateur Internet Connoisseur

At this moment It would be extremely difficult to live without my MacBook Pro, MacBook Pro charge, iPhone, keys, and wallet. As for things I can replace with the iPad, I don’t think I could replace anything. If I print something at the computing centers at my university I put them in the folder. The notebook is good for when I need to hand in loose leaf. Pens to write on said loose leaf. The most surprising thing I carry is the clicker because I have no immediate use for it.

Here’s what I have in my bag today (left to right, top to bottom):

  • VGA/HDMI to Lightning Bolt converter
  • Wallet
  • Pens (5)
  • Macbook Pro
  • iPad
  • Keys
  • Nametag for class
  • iPad charger
  • Blistex
  • iPhone
  • Wired mouse
  • Altoids (2)
  • Hand warmers
  • Macbook charger
  • Turning Technologies clicker
  • Moleskine notebook
  • Notebook
  • Folder

 

A Little Hint

We are still a couple of weeks away from the start of the semester, but I thought I’d share a little hint as to what awaits students this spring!

A hint as to what is coming to #CDT450 students @stonybrooku #SBUDoIT this spring?

A photo posted by Cole Camplese (@colecamplese) on

Post via Email

This is a really only a test of a post via an email from my iPad. We can easily use mobile Safari, but I would like to make posting as simple as possible, so this is an option. I will provide instructions on how to enable this once we get together face to face. Our implementation of WordPress uses Shibboleth as the authentication method which is not supported on the App Store based iOS WordPress apps. If you know of one that works, leave it in the comments.

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