Sharable Bits: The Mystery of Life, Firefox Cuteness, Winter Running

Discovery: Life built with toxic chemicals

Mono Lake Research area (source: NASA)

Why it's worth sharing: When NASA announced a press conference about a new discovery related to astrobiology, many were hoping for a confirmation of extraterrestrial life. The actual news wasn't as huge as expected - they found a bacteria living on arsenic right on our home planet - but it's still significant because it shows how little we actually know about life and how much we tend to assume. I certainly hope the discovery encourages us to keep looking further into space and deeper into our own planet.

More about the discovery:

• Arsenic and Old Space: A Key to Life on Other Planets? - TIME
• NASA-Funded Research Discovers Life Built With Toxic Chemical - NASA

News: Mozilla project protects the open web and endangered species with cuteness

Why it's worth sharing: Helping the open web and the insanely adorable red pandas all at once - what's not to like? :) Great initiative by the Mozilla Project that uses cuteness to remind us about the importance of preserving biodiversity on our planet. So, hop on to FirefoxLive.org for a good dose of cuteness and help spread the word about this awesome project!

Idea: Walking and running on snow made safer

Winter arrived early this year with a big bag of snow. Sure, it's a nice view from the window when you don't have to go out, but snow quickly turns into an issue if you're planning on running outdoors throughout the winter. Luckily I found the perfect solution: YakTrax Pro ice grips that help prevent slipping on packed snow and can be worn on any regular shoe.

Why it's worth sharing: The most simple ideas can sometimes make a big difference. Not as big of a news as the NASA discovery or endangered species preservation, but nonetheless a great tool that will help me stay fit and healthy during the dark, cold winter. Staying in and being cosy is so tempting that I welcome anything that makes going out a bit easier. I'm actually looking forward to all the snow runs now!


Sharable Bits is a series of weekly posts that will highlight some of the most interesting bits and bytes that I stumble upon. No bad news, just ideas that inspire, touch or entertain in a unique way.

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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Sharable Bits: Healthy Computer Use, Technology in Education, Magic iPad Fiddle

Blog post: Eye health in a digital world

5 Important Tips for Better Eye Health in a Digital World

Why it's worth sharing: A good reminder that there are several tools and approaches we can use to avoid health issues related to the use of digital devices. And as someone with several vision problems, I pay extra attention to what we can do to protect our vision. The blog post provides great starting tips, especially the one about taking regular breaks and remembering to blink (sounds obvious, but it isn't when you are engaged in an epic game battle or get caught in the flow). A tool I often like to use is Time Out, a simple break reminder app for Mac OS X.

Blog post: Technology in Education

 8 Ways Technology Is Improving Education

Why it's worth sharing: A great showcase of technology use in education that work and are simple to understand. Always handy to have such lists ready when talking to technology skeptics, who think of anything digital as pure evil. Especially with the media habit of presenting the digital risks before the benefits. The recent NYTimes article Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction does explore both sides, but the headline is still all about distraction. Isn't it time to challenge that perception?

Video: Fiddle Quartet on the iPad

Why it's worth sharing: Seeing phones and tablets turned into music instruments with the help of magical mobile apps never stops to amaze me. And I can't wait to get an iPad just to try Magic Fiddle, the latest app from Smule (developers of Ocarina), which turns your iPad into a fiddle. Isn't it great to have a single, affordable device that works as dozens of instruments? I sure do hope it brings the joys of playing musical instruments into the hands of more people.

Related posts:

• Smule adds Magic Fiddle to its Ocarina and Magic Piano apps (the story behind Smule's success)
• 10 Terrific iPhone and iPad Musical Performances (more iPad/iPhone music magic)

Sharable Bits is a series of weekly posts that will highlight some of the most interesting bits and bytes that I stumble upon. No bad news, just ideas that inspire, touch or entertain in a unique way.

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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Don't be afraid to break the "rules"

We often get caught in thinking about the right and wrong ways of using tools like presentations, blogs, Twitter, and what not. Sure, it helps to know what mistakes to avoid - death by PowerPoint anyone? - but that doesn't mean you have to limit yourself to the "10 rules of [insert sticky title]".

A great example: meet Travis Isaacs, user experience designer. He uses Keynote, a presentation software, to create wireframe prototypes for websites. Wait, what?

That's certainly not in any rulebook or manual, but it sure works. And Travis even figured out how to turn his approach into a product (more about that on Mashable: Essential Web Design Advice From a Wireframing Master).

Somehow that reminds me of a quote from the movie Pirates of The Caribbean:

Elizabeth: You have to take me to shore! According to the Code of the Order of the Brethren—

Barbossa: First, your return to shore was not part of our negotiations nor our agreement, so I 'must' do nothing. And secondly, you must be a pirate for the Pirate's Code to apply, and you're not. And thirdly, the code is more what you call "guidelines" than actual rules. Welcome aboard the Black Pearl, Miss Turner!

So, the next time you discover a fancy list of rules for using this and that, think about whether the rules apply to you (are you a pirate or are you a ninja?) and whether it would be helpful to improvise and invent new rules. Think of the usual ways of using a tool as guidelines, not rules. Sometimes a little hack goes a long way!

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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Sharable Bits: Rethinking Innovation, Attention and Social Games

Idea: Rethink the status quo by looking at the big picture

"Facebook to launch e-mail killer" - a popular headline on tech blogs before this week's Facebook special event dedicated to their Messages service. But luckily, Facebook didn't listen and didn't launch (yet another) e-mail service. They tried to think about the way we communicate in a different way. Let's take a look at the simple idea behind the new Messages with social inbox:

Why it's worth sharing: Revolutionary design of a new product or service usually happens when you look at everything you know with a fresh perspective. It's not about adding a long list of features, it's not about pleasing the tech crowd. It's about figuring out what works and what people need (not say they want). And while Facebook doesn't always get things right, they do have the guts to think outside the box and seem to have a real passion about enabling stronger connections among friends. Kudos for that!


Idea: What are you doing to deserve the attention?

Ewan McIntosh uses a dialog from the movie The Social Network to remind us that we often assume we have (or deserve) the attention of our students, colleagues, and other audiences. Let's take a look at this great clip from the movie:

Why it's worth sharing: Stop assuming people will listen or care about what you have to say just because you're talking. Be prepared to earn the attention, trust and respect from your listeners. And that means not just caring about what you're talking about, but being prepared to present your message in a way that is relevant to the listeners. Want a good case study? Head over to Danah Boyd's blog and read about why “Bullying” Has Little Resonance with Teenagers.

Blog post: Social Games are here to stay

Cracking the Mainstream: Why Social Gaming Is More Than Just a Fad | Mashable

Why it's worth sharing: It's popular to dismiss the success of social games like FarmVille as a fad. But, as Ravi Mehta points out in his Mashable post, social games fill an important niche in the social web and are evolving with new approaches to social fun. And here's my favorite quote from the post:

"Throughout the history of entertainment media, content has been developed in short and long formats. Five hundred page novels, full-length feature films and television mini-series coexist harmoniously with blogs, 30-minute sitcoms and two-minute YouTube videos. Why? Because each format serves a different purpose and, without subsuming the other formats, manages to engage users in unique ways and for different reasons."

Sharable Bits is a series of weekly posts that will highlight some of the most interesting bits and bytes that I stumble upon. No bad news, just ideas that inspire, touch or entertain in a unique way.

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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Sharable Bits: Living on Facebook, Buildings coming alive, Work smarter

On Sharable Bits: I decided to start a series of weekly posts that will highlight some of the most interesting bits and bytes that I stumble upon. No bad news, just ideas that inspire, touch or entertain.

Video: A life on Facebook

Why it's worth sharing: A life story told through Facebook status updates. Great music, great execution, the video makes you wonder about how our lives are seen through Facebook. On a related note, it's worth reading about why some teens deactivate their FB accounts every time they log out to keep total control of what their friends post about them. Facebook as a perfect, edited record of our lives?


Video: Buildings coming alive with 3D projections

Projection on Buildings from NuFormer Projection on Vimeo.

Why it's worth sharing: Though an article on Mashable I came across the amazing work by NuFormer, a company that does incredible life-like 3D projections on buildings. It's mostly commercial work for various corporate clients, but I think their approach to bringing buildings alive is just awesome. It's great how their technology fits right in with the architecture of various building and how it adds another layer of experience to familiar object. I really hope to see/experience one of their projections live someday.


Idea: Working smarter not harder

Clive Shepherd reminds us that working harder is not always better, what matters is working smarter. He also shares the quote by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson from ReWork:

"Not only is workaholism unnecessary, it’s stupid. Working more doesn’t mean you care more or get more done. It just means you work more." 

(... more exerpts from ReWork)

Why it's worth sharing: It's good to remember that recharging your batteries now and then is ok. Don't get caught into the state of super busy, in which never ending meetings, shuffling papers and e-mails keep you busy, but don't allow you to get any real work done. Stop for a minute, think, breath, and figure out how to work smarter.

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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7 things I love about Evernote

In the Web 2.0 era I don't really use a lot of desktop applications anymore - everything is on the web, right? But there is one application that I just can't imagine living without (even though you can also use it on the web): Evernote.

You might have heard of Evernote before - after all, it now has over 4 million (very happy) users. At its hearth, Evernote is a simple note taking app that works on almost every computer, phone and mobile device out there, and can instantly sync your notes across all your devices. You can use it as a repository for all your ideas - not just in shape of simple text notes, but also as webpages, photos, audio recordings and various files. For a nice overview of the service, check out the intro video below:

How can you not love a service that includes hard working cloud elephants? ;) If the video hasn't convinced you to give Evernote a try yet, here is my list of 7 things I love about Evernote:

1) Available anywhere

I love the fact that I always have access to Evernote, regardless of which computer or mobile device I'm using. And with the desktop version, I don't even have to be online to work with Evernote (very useful on train trips!). Most of the time, I use the Mac OS X desktop version, but I sometimes check notes on my Android phone or iPod Touch. And yes, there's also a Windows version, a web version and custom applications for major smartphone platforms (see the list of available downloads).

2) Free for basic use

Oh, did I mention it's free? You don't have to pay for basic use or any of the apps. But in case you need more space or want awesome features like Note history, you can go Premium for $5/month or $45/year. I'm still using the Free version, which has plenty of space for all my text notes, but I'm thinking of going Premium just because I find the service so useful.

3) Capture ideas, prepare them for publishing

With Evernote I finally have a single place to store all my ideas and little notes. No more sticky notes all over the desk, no more .txt files on the desktop, just one app. And I also find it great for transforming ideas I collect into drafts that I can move to blogs, text editing software etc. for final design and publishing. And yes, I also wrote the draft for this post in Evernote and only moved it to Blogger when it was nearly finished. I really prefer to write in the simple, clutter free Evernote window - I usually double click the note I'm working on and leave just that note window open.

4) Easy sync

I always use Evernote to take notes on my laptop during meetings. No more wasted paper and illegible hand written notes! And if you still need to draw something on paper or whiteboard, you can just take a picture of that and add it to your Evernote meeting note. The best part is getting home after meetings to find the latest notes already waiting for me on my desktop computer. In other words, no extra time needed to sort and read through notes, as I can start working right within Evernote.

5) Image recognition in the cloud

The cool part is that Evernote is not just a simple backup service for notes. In fact, the Evernote elephants in the cloud also do image recognition on any photos you add, so that it's easier for you to find your stuff. You can for instance use Evernote to scan and save images of business cards and Evernote makes sure all the text becomes searchable.

6) Different ways to search and sort

There are many different ways to sort notes in Evernote. I like to create new notebooks for major projects or areas of interests, and you can use tags to sort your notes even further. I must admit I'm pretty sloppy when it comes to using tags, but that's ok - Evernote doesn't mind that, and helps me find what I'm looking for through Search.

7) The magic Evernote Trunk

And if you're looking for ways to improve Evernote, look no further than into the Evernote Trunk! The Trunk, also accessible from the desktop applications, is basically a showcase of apps that work with Evernote and can enhance your Evernote experience. The Trunk has only been launched this summer, so I'm really looking forward to seeing more apps added in the future.

Nearly perfect for remembering everything

The only two feature requests I have for Evernote are better sharing/collaboration options within the desktop app and color coding for notes. But other than that, I really think Evernote is a great product that is simple, yet incredibly flexible and usable in all sorts of situations.

So, if you're not using Evernote yet, I suggest you give it a try and see how it works for you. Keep in mind that there is no right or wrong way to use it - be creative and start adding your ideas in any format into your digital notebooks. And if you're looking for new ideas on how to use Evernote, check out the Tips and Stories section on the Evernote blog.

If you've got any good Evernote tips, let me know in the comments!

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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Imagining a mobile Moodle

For this year's 4th International Slovenian MoodleMoot I decided to explore the efforts being made to bring Moodle to mobile devices. I found several interesting projects in this field, although I think we're just starting to explore all possibilities, and that more interesting developments will follow in the next few years, especially when teachers start experimenting with things like geolocation, augmented reality and resources that can interact with sensors on mobile devices.

The main goal of my paper and presentation was to invite teachers to think about possibilities that mobile devices can offer for education and the ways we could embed mobile learning in Moodle, a well established Learning Management System.

Here's the abstract from my paper Taking Moodle Out of the Classroom: Making Learning Mobile, Context-Aware and Fun:

"Mobile devices are becoming increasingly more powerful, better connected and are able to provide better user experience and new services based around location and context of users, which opens new possibilities for learning. The paper presents an overview of mobile learning and the efforts being made to provide better support for mobile devices and learning activities/resources in Moodle. In conclusion we also present some future trends in mobile computing that could also provide new ways of learning on the go."

You can see a video of my presentation at the conference on YouTube (total length 15 min):



And if you'd like to learn more about the topic, you can read my full paper on Scribd:

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Note: This is just an archive post. The blog has moved to a new home at blog.ialja.com, where you will also find a copy of the entire blog.

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