Category Archives: apple

Apple iPad vs Microsoft Surface: A Comparison

The Technical Interns did a comparison review of the iPad and the Surface tablet by Microsoft. Here is what they found:

After playing around with both the iPad and the Surface, I have notice some key similarities. First off, both of these devices require an external adaptor in order to connect to a projector. Also both devices have roughly the same battery life and background display resolution. There are also some important key differences; I feel that the Surface is more similar to a computer than a tablet. When you first open the surface, you will notice that PowerPoint, Word Excel, and Windows 8 have already been installed. The Surface provides you with the option to leave the Windows 8 App Screen, and select the generic Windows PC Desktop. This change allows for PC users to feel comfortable using the devices as both a computer and tablet. The Surface will also allow its users to connect a USB device directly into the tablet for easy file storage.

On the other hand, the iPad feels less like a computer and more like a tablet. The iPad comes with FaceTime, iMessage installed when the device is delivered. These two applications allow for easy communication between fellow Apple products, without many problems similarly experienced by Skype. Not only does the iPad have a sleeker looking design, but its camera clarity is far superior to that of the surface. The application market for the iPad is also much larger than that of the Surface, which allows for a greater gaming and tablet experience. All in all both devices are great, and it comes down to how you desire to use your tablet. If you prefer to use it as a second computer, than I would suggest purchasing the Microsoft Surface. If you are looking for something to take quick notes on and use for presentations, I would suggest the Apple iPad

Spring 2013 Update

Leave a reply

A little more than a month into the 2013 spring semester, the Center is busy as ever supporting several programs and courses. The second semester of the iPad semester loan program is underway, with three courses participating, each from different disciplinary areas. I am looking forward to receiving faculty and student feedback on the value of using an iPad as part of their coursework and in some cases, in their school-based placements and clinical settings. Last semester, the feedback from the undergraduate students was, for the most part, positive and many found the iPad to be an important tool to complete their course work. Results of the end of the semester feedback survey showed that 70% of students agreed or strongly agreed that using an iPad in university-based coursework made the class sessions more interesting and 65% agreed or strongly agreed that the iPad was beneficial to their teaching and learning experience. What about the other 30 – 35% that did not respond favorably? The majority were neutral in their response and those that disagreed about the usefulness of the iPad represented under 10% of the responses to the survey. Classes participating in the loaner program this semester will also complete an end of semester survey and a complete report will be created from the results of all surveys. The report will also include some insight into using the Apple Volume Purchase Program to buy bulk apps, management of the apps and iPads using Apple’s Configurator, and some thoughts about Airwatch, the MDM (Mobile Device Management) that the Center is using to establish course profiles, enforce security measures on the iPads, and track iPad usage.

In addition to the iPad program, the Center will once again be host to the 5th Annual Faculty Technology Showcase on Friday, February 22nd from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in rooms 133D and 133E Erickson Hall. The event showcases instructional technology innovations and applications by faculty from across the MSU campus and brings together representatives from IT Services to address a specific hot topic in the MSU technology landscape. This year, the topic will be the shift from ANGEL to Desire2Learn and representatives from IT Services will be present to answer faculty questions about making the transition from one to the other and about additional features that will be added to Desire2Learn later this year. All presentations are set up as digital poster sessions so attendees can wander around at their leisure to speak to presenters about their topic. There is no need to pre-register for the event and lunch will be provided for the first 100 attendees.

Lastly, mini-workshops for CEP416 students will take place during the two weeks after spring break, covering the topics of SMART Boards, Jing, Weebly, Mobile Video, and Google Apps. Registration for the 30-minute workshops will be opened up to the college at large and a link to the sign up form will be posted after February 28h.

Spring 2013 iPad Program

Leave a reply

Applications are now being accepted for the spring semester 2013 iPad semester loan program. The application form will remain open until December 21st. Those that are chosen to participate in the program will be notified late in the day on the 21st or on December 26th. Faculty and instructors that would like to participate should apply at using the application form at this site.

The course loaner program provide faculty and each student in their class with the new iPad. The iPads can be delivered with no pre-loaded apps or with apps designated by the faculty member. CTT staff will work with the faculty member to identify apps that fit the pedagogical goals of the course and get the apps pre-loaded before delivery of the iPads takes place. CTT staff are available to provide an iPad tutorial for the students and faculty at the time of delivery of the iPads during the first 1 – 2 weeks of the semester. CTT staff will return to the class to pick up the iPads at the end of the semester.

To participate in the program, faculty are asked to apply for the iPads via an online form before the semester begins, including specific explanations of their intended use of the devices to support teaching and learning in their course, and their plans to assess the impact of the devices in their class. After the semester is done, students and faculty will be asked to fill out a short online survey to provide feedback on their experiences, and faculty will be asked to participate in a roundtable discussion with the College of Education community to discuss their experience with the iPad as a course tool.

Those with questions should send an email to: terrigus@msu.edu

Class semester iPad loaner program

Leave a reply

The Center for Teaching and Technology will launch a new program during the 2012 – 2013 academic year providing faculty the opportunity to explore the use of iPads in the classroom with their students for an entire semester. The course loaner program provide faculty and each student in their class with the new iPad. The iPads can be delivered with no pre-loaded apps or with apps designated by the faculty member. CTT staff will work with the faculty member to identify apps that fit the pedagogical goals of the course and get the apps pre-loaded before delivery of the iPads takes place. Each borrower signs a loaner agreement to take responsibility for the device, in the event of loss or theft. CTT staff are available to provide an iPad tutorial for the students and faculty at the time of delivery of the iPads during the first 1 – 2 weeks of the semester. CTT staff will return to the class to pick up the iPads at the end of the semester.

To participate in the program, faculty are asked to apply for the iPads via an online form up to 2 months before the semester begins, including specific explanations of their intended use of the devices to support teaching and learning in their course, and their plans to assess the impact of the devices in their class. After the semester is done, students and faculty will be asked to fill out a short online survey to provide feedback on their experiences, and faculty will be asked to participate in a roundtable discussion with the College of Education community to discuss their experience with the iPad.

This first offering of the class semester iPad loaner program will be available for courses with a student enrollment of 30 students or less. Initially, two courses will be chosen per semester for the 2012 – 2013 academic year.

Interested faculty members can fill out the online application for fall semester 2012 by the August 15, 2012 deadline. For further questions about the program, contact Terri Gustafson.

Productivity Apps for the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad and Android phones

Leave a reply

EVENT: There’s An App For That: Productivity Apps to Keep You Organized

DATE: Friday, April 22nd ****CHANGED

PLACE: 133F Erickson Hall

TIME: 10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

SIGN-UP: http://bit.ly/dTuRA4

OVERVIEW:
Chances are many of you have any one of the devices mentioned in the title of this blog post with you all the time, somewhere at home, or are considering purchasing one of them. Apple is dominant in that market, but phones built on the Android platform (and soon more tablets) are popping up in the hands of consumers. Productivity apps on both platforms make tasks like file sharing, group texting, to-do lists, document editing and collaboration, voice-to-text recording, and project management seamless and convenient. Many of the apps are linked to cloud based applications enabling users to access their folders, files, and to-do lists on their mobile device or any computer connected to the Internet. In this hour-long session, apps like Evernote, Dragon Dictation, DropBox, GroupMe, and Wunderlist will be demonstrated. In addition, I’ll touch on some PC/Mac applications that also help with productivity.

Coming soon – Getting to know Google Apps for Education, Vidyo, iPod/iPad and Android apps, and Moodle

Leave a reply

In December 2010, the Center for Teaching and Technology will begin hosting short brown bag sessions to introduce faculty and staff to several different technologies that can be used for everyday productivity, teaching, communication, and instructional design. A notice will go out with a sign up form to attend these sessions. Google Apps for Education will be broken down into Google Docs, Google Calendar, and iGoogle individual sessions. The other topics, Vidyo, iPod/iPad & Android apps, and Moodle will be single sessions. All sessions will be repeated in January and February of 2011.

To learn more about Google Apps for Education ahead of time, please refer to these resources provided by Michigan State University: http://techbase.msu.edu/article.asp?id=13275&service= . In addition, Google offers help for Google docs at: http://docs.google.com/support/?hl=en . iGoogle allows users to create a personal homepage that can include RSS feeds, news, photos, weather, calendars, and other items all in one web page using Google gadgets.

Vidyo is a new service acquired by the College of Education for telepresence conferencing for PCs, Macs, and HD video conferencing systems. This new technology enables multiple platforms to connect for video conferencing, reducing the need for each participant to travel to a dedicated Polycom (or other video conferencing system) location. Vidyo features multiple user screen sharing with HD quality video over converged IP networks.

Photo credit: CrunchBase

iPad resources and reviews

1 Reply

The Center has one iPad that the Technical Interns in Education have been busy exploring in the past few weeks for the best free Apps and even some paid Apps for education. This project will continue throughout the summer with the goal of having a Brown Bag presentation before fall semester or early into fall semester. While we’d love to have more iPads for College of Education faculty to check out and begin their own exploration, the iPad is in high demand across globe and they are currently on back-order along with the various accessories for the iPad. Hopefully by the time fall semester starts, we’ll have a couple more floating around for checkout.

In the meantime, we’ve put together some resource links for the iPad including app reviews, app recommendations, and reviews of the iPad. Also, TIES Andrea and Molly have created a video review of how to use the iPad and some of the apps, including the iBook reader. Lastly, Mashable.com has an article on Steve Job’s address at the D8 conference in Los Angeles this week addressing the phenomenal growth in the sales of iPad and if tablets (like the iPad) will someday replace the PC. In it, Jobs is quoted saying, “When we were an agrarian nation, all cars were trucks. But as people moved more towards urban centers, people started to get into cars. I think PCs are going to be like trucks. Less people will need them. And this is going to make some people uneasy.”

NY Times: David Pogue iPad Review

Engadget iPad Review

Mashable – 10 Must Have Apps

iPad Apps for Education from ISTE