Not too sure how this crossed my path but in this sequence of short video clips the Blackboard LMS gets the Bollywood treatment.

http://metamedia.typepad.com/metamedia/2008/04/the-adventures.html

Enjoy.

Mark Pesce’s latest presentation. Thoroughly enjoyed the opening video. Useful. Excellent presentation. Mark is quite in touch.

the human network » Blog Archive » Only Connect (Live Version)

Mark’s blog.

Just one of those afternoons…

Tags: Photography

Today my classroom received an interesting visitor. A huntsman spider wandered into the classroom from the garden outside. Huntsman spiders visit quite regularly. Some of them happily live in the eaves while others inhabit the spaces behind the loose bark on the eucalyptus trees.

I think this huntsman is a Delena cancerides of the family Sparassidae. I have also seen the family referred to as Heteropodidae. There seems to be a conflict among the taxonomists.

Links:

Huntsman spiders at the Australian Museum
Wikipedia entry: Huntsman spiders
Huntsman
Huntsman spiders at home: Outside | Inside |

Well, Kevin Lim certainly created waves after he dropped this pebble in the pond yesterday. Myself and others picked up Seesmic following Kevin’s dramatic post and the initial conversation generated 40 plus replies. Kevin has subsequently blogged about the implications of the tool and that Seesmic event here.

Social cyborg and multimediamuse, Kevin Lim, goes Seesmic

Kevin writes about the initial reluctance of some users to adopt the tool, including himself. He goes on to write that, “Haven’t we said the same thing before we took to blogging or even twitter?” He reviews the use of the tool under the following headings.

• New medium, New resistance
• It’s full-on transparency…
• It’s about performancing…
• It’s meme formation at lightspeed…
• It’s a new aesthetic; a brash context…

Kevin also provides a set of links to some of the more interesting characters that appeared in the initial Seesmic thread yesterday. Well worth a look. The excerpts provide an insight into the immediacy, openness and fun of the tool.

I felt a little reluctant blogging about Kevin’s latest post because he blogs on about my Seesmic observations but he provides additional and valuable insights that are well worth your consideration.

I also received an informative comment from Dr Javed Alem where he pointed to a set of Seesmic threads where students recently provided course reflections via Seesmic. Javed writes that he was “…teaching a course titled “infotechtools for engineers” and I tried using different media. Student liked the video medium once they get a hang of it. It is more engaging and more natural when it comes to informal or semi informal conversations.” Javed has provided links to the threads as well as a Voicethread commentary…

http://seesmic.com/videos/XVKgMdijmq

and some student responses…

http://seesmic.com/v/jWStMJYGom

http://seesmic.com/videos/ffBo8Yz4j

http://voicethread.com/share/124542/

Dr Javed Alam, upper left, and a number of his students

It is interesting to see how the different students handled the use of Seesmic. In the main they seem quite confident and relaxed with an air of formality as well.

Their use of the tool in this context contrasts with the threads yesterday where a rather serious conversation on the teaching and learning applications of the tool was seamlessly blended with a parade of sunglasses, hats, wigs, soft-toys and puppets. What does that tell us?

Some of the respondents to Kevin’s Seesmic thread.
That’s me in the psychedelic wig.

I personally feel as though I have come out of the Twitter closet and gone Seesmic. How about you? Will you take the plunge also?

Addendum. Check out the Seesmic Wordpress plug-in that facilitates video comments. You still need to enter your normal details, email address, etc in addition to the Seesmic log-in. You can see it in action on Kevin’s post where he is engaged in a conversation with Critter, a Seesmic developer.

This afternoon I thumbed through the old feed reader and a post by Kevin Lim caught my eye. He was exhorting one and all to take up Seesmic. I had seen it raised in blog posts before yet put it on the digital backburner. Then, a few weeks ago, Sarah Teo of U21Global mentioned how they had been using Seesmic as part of the delivery process of their various online MBA programmes.

What is Seesmic? Well if Twitter married YouTube you will get Seesmic.

Well, Kevin’s post stirred me into action and I sought out the old email invitation, copied the key and signed up. I sought out Kevin’s Seesmic profile and responded. I made a lame first post and then another tongue in check post in response to Kevin. I thought on that and wondered how would my employer and students react. I immediately posted another video about public versus private identity. That garnered an immediate reply from Mark Taylor. I have embedded the thread here if you wish to view it. Basically, be professional and apply some commonsense.

The exchanges are quite exhilarating and, in my humble opinion, leave Twitter for dead. Perhaps I am a visual learner. I began a thread on Seesmic versus Twitter versus Blogging. Quite a few picked up on that, including Christy Dena, Dean Terry, Andrew Brackin, Kevin Lim, Freida Wolden and Kamel Daoudi. The demographics and the geographical location of the respondents was diverse. The respondents included a young student from England, researchers from the USA and a retiree. A number of the conversations can be viewed on this page.

The discussion covered such topics as mockumentaries, ARGs, Second Life, avatars, World of Warcraft, historical recreations and collaborations. Useful, very useful.

I was surprised when Andrew Brackin joined the conversation from England. He was incredibly articulate. He may be 12 or so. You can see him pictured above. I have no idea how old he was. I was actually quite reluctant to respond to his observations given the paranoia here regarding online safety and the like. Would appreciate any input on that thought. I wonder how the books on Andrew’s shelves compare with Kevin’s? Addendum: Andrew is in the process of setting up Kwiddo.com. This is Andrew’s blog.

The conversations obviously all exceeded 140 characters and the visual aspect is wonderful. I noticed that at one stage a number of participants were wearing sunglasses. I thought that was weird so I grabbed some wigs and some puppets and utilised those in the discussions. That caused others to wear hats. You can see some examples in the images above and below. It was a visual meme. Weird. Fun. Connectedness.

Well, what can I say? Give Seesmic a try. I feel it is quite useful. I found it quite liberating. Twitter feels like a closed shop. If you feel Twitter is not for you then give Seesmic a burl.

Postscript: Seesmic Wishlist

1. Could the Seesmic developers set up an education entry point for Seesmic so that some of the more controversial posts on the public timeline can be avoided?
2. Would love a tool that allows the downloading of a thread or selected posts in a thread as a combined single .flv, .mp4 or .m4v file.
3. A search engine for threads would be neat too…

Links:

Seesmic
Wikipedia: Seesmic
My Seesmic page
Seesmic ~ captured thread on public identity
Seesmic ~ thread of Seesmic versus Twitter versus Blogging

Few days back Clay Burell began a meme, Bullying then, Successful Now. I responded with a comment on Clay’s blog. I recounted an experience that still impacts upon me to this day. Once again, as I consider the events of that year the ninth floor of a particular building and an almost empty room spring to mind. I decided to just call this post Bullying Then… as opposed to Bullying Then, Successful Now. I have not quite completed the journey through to the other side.

I made reference to an album by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds called The Boatman Calls in my comment. One track from the album, Into My Arms, is particularly special for me. In fact music has always been important for me. It has helped me get through some, let’s say, interesting experiences.

Clay responded within the comments and asked if I could reproduce the lyrics that did it for me. I do so here. These are extracts from the lyrics.

People Ain’t No Good

People just ain’t no good
I think that’s welll understood
You can see it everywhere you look
People just ain’t no good

It ain’t that in their hearts they’re bad
They can comfort you, some even try
They nurse you when you’re ill of health
They bury you when you go and die
It ain’t that in their hearts they’re bad
They’d stick by you if they could
But that’s just bullsh*t
People just ain’t no good

People they ain’t no good
People they ain’t no good
People they ain’t no good
People they ain’t no good at all

Into My Arms

I don’t believe in an interventionist God
But I know, darling, that you do
But if I did I would kneel down and ask Him
Not to intervene when it came to you
Not to touch a hair on your head
To leave you as you are
And if He felt He had to direct you
Then direct you into my arms

Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms

And I don’t believe in the existence of angels
But looking at you I wonder if that’s true
But if I did I would summon them together
And ask them to watch over you
To each burn a candle for you
To make bright and clear your path
And to walk, like Christ, in grace and love
And guide you into my arms

Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms

And I believe in Love
And I know that you do too
And I believe in some kind of path
That we can walk down, me and you
So keep your candlew burning
And make her journey bright and pure
That she will keep returning
Always and evermore

Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms, O Lord
Into my arms

Are You The One That I’ve Been Waiting For?

I’ve felt you coming girl, as you drew near
I knew you’d find me, cause I longed you here
Are you my desitiny? Is this how you’ll appear?
Wrapped in a coat with tears in your eyes?
Well take that coat babe, and throw it on the floor
Are you the one that I’ve been waiting for?

As you’ve been moving surely toward me
My soul has comforted and assured me
That in time my heart it will reward me
And that all will be revealed
So I’ve sat and I’ve watched an ice-age thaw
Are you the one that I’ve been waiting for?

Out of sorrow entire worlds have been built
Out of longing great wonders have been willed
They’re only little tears, darling, let them spill
And lay your head upon my shoulder
Outside my window the world has gone to war
Are you the one that I’ve been waiting for?

O we will know, won’t we?
The stars will explode in the sky
O but they don’t, do they?
Stars have their moment and then they die

There’s a man who spoke wonders though I’ve never met him
He said, “He who seeks finds and who knocks will be let in”
I think of you in motion and just how close you are getting
And how every little thing anticipates you
All down my veins my heart-strings call
Are you the one that I’ve been waiting for?

Black Hair

Last night my kisses were banked in black hair
And in my bed, my lover, her hair was midnight black
And all her mystery dwelled within her black hair
And her black hair framed a happy heart-shaped face

And heavy-hooded eyes inside her black hair
Shined at me frome the depths of her hair of deepest black
While my fingers pushed into her straight black hair
Pulling her black hair back from her happy heart-shaped face

To kiss her milk-white throat, a dark curtain of black hair
Smothered me, my lover with her beautiful black hair
The smell of it is heavy. It is charged with life
On my fingers the smell of her deep black hair

Full of all my whispered words, her black hair
And wet with tears and good-byes, her hair of deepest black
All my tears cried against her milk-white throat
Hidden behind the curtain of her beautiful black hair

As deep as ink and black, black as the deepest sea
The smell of her black hair upon my pillow
Where her head and all its black hair did rest
Today she took a train to the West
Today she took a train to the West
Today she took a train to the West

Lime Tree Arbour

The boatman calls from the lake
A lone loon dives upon the water
I put my hand over her
Down in the lime tree arbour

The wind in the trees is whispering
Whispering low that I love her
She puts her hand over mine
Down in the lime tree arbour

Through every breath that I breathe
And every place I go
There is hand that protects me
And I do love her so

There will always be suffering
It flows through life like water
I put my hand over hers
Down in the lime tree arbour

The boatman he has gone
And the loons have flown for cover
She puts her hand over mine
Down in the lime tree arbour

Through every word that I speak
And every thing I know
There is hand that protects me
And I do love her so

All words and music by Nick Cave.

Links

Nick Cave / Bad Seed.org
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave Online

I have began a page of bullying links. I would like to add more. Can you suggest any?

Have been doing a little work on the site about my dad, Frank. Added some additional links and corrected a few others this week. Presently in the process of gathering together some students to work on a similar project.

Do you have relatives who also experienced the trials and tribulations of war? Would love to hear about them.

The Jaiku server is down. Again. I like Jaiku. It gathers in updates from a variety of feeds and displays them in the Jaiku badge. It acts like a “What’s new?” for my main site, etc. It has not been quite the same since it was purchased by Google.

In my previous post regarding clotheslines I referrred to the high rise residential buildings in Singapore. This reminded me of a little video I had created that captures these buildings.

I am specifically referring to the public housing that is built by the Housing Development Board of Singapore. They are referred to by Singaporeans as HDB flats. Several years back I sat at the front of a Light Rail Transit vehicle with my little video camera and captured the journey around half of the circuit. I used Apple’s iMovie to create a simple Quicktime movie of the project. I increased the speed of the movie. I reduced a 20 minute journey to about 30 seconds.

The movie provides a perspective of Singapore’s new towns. Shao Ping and I lived in Choa Chu Kang for a while. We lived within walking distance of both the Hai Inn Temple and the Uttamayanmuni Buddhist Temple.

Whenever visitors came up from Australia or elsewhere we always took them on the LRT. The vehicles are driverless. We never mentioned that to our visitors until they asked the inevitable question, “Where is the driver?” I remember taking a ride on the LRT the day it was opened.

The vehicles pass close to some of the buildings and in order to maintain the privacy of the residents the windows of the LRT vehicle frost over as you pass by the building. You will see in the video the imposing avenues of the HDB blocks and it almost feels like flying an aircraft down a man-made canyon.

The population density of Singapore is 6489 people per square kilometre. You never get the impression that it is crowded however. It feels different to other cities such as Hong Kong. Sure, some peak hour trains are packed, but not like a tin of sardines. Some shopping centres can get a little crowded on Sunday afternoon.

Links:
Singapore’s Rail Network
Mass Rapid Transit in Singapore
Light Rail Transport in Singapore
Flickr tag: hdb