Everkvetch

Spiffy new android

Not a long post today.  More a note to myself than anything.  Still, strange things happen whilst surfing to find previously posted python code.

flickr.py is now hosted a Google Code.  And that's where I came across Android.

http://code.google.com/android/

I've wanted to do some mobile work for a while, but I didn't really want to do something that would work on only on providers handset.  So now there is a growing way to make things handset neutral.  I'm guessing this will also be the core of the upcoming Google phone.  So there's another reason to consider learning it.

Oh, and of course they have a demo game already up.  So it seems the platform is game friendly and that they want more of them to be developed. 

Now if I could only get the time to focus on this for a bit.  Guess I need to tuck this away until at least winter break.

Happy Veteran's Day to all who have served

I attended the New Brunswick Veteran's Day parade today.  I'm not trying to make myself out to be a patriot.  I didn't even realize there was going to be a parade in town today.  I  had to run some items over to the church so that the 'wish-tree' angels could be completed.  Since my daughter was a little fussy I decided to take her for a walk around the town, hit the DnD for some coffee, enjoy the November sunshine a bit.

I was at first taken aback by the strong police presence in town.  I had to pause for a beat to remember what day it was. I almost found myself asking an officer if this was not a good to be walking an infant around on the streets.

Instead I found a sunny spot on the side of the road and parked us there for the short parade.  Turn out was sparse.  I was struck by the lack or people along the sides of the road.  Maybe people didn't know about the parade,  maybe my generation was raised by people too exposed to the realities of war to glamorize it or maybe most of us just don't know enough to care.   

Our My fighting gets done by those far from our my personal circles for causes more nebulous than the causes I remember being taught of for past wars, for stated reasons that do not align with any objective reality I am able to discern.

But while standing on the edge of the road, watching the dwindling numbers of heroes from a different era walk by, I found myself fighting back a tear.  How do I help instill a sense of civic pride and remebrance in my daughter for those with the courage to serve our country while also fostering a sense of awareness and responsibility for how those forces are presently used and will be used in her future?  The enormity of the moment ambushed me, left me blinking in the mid-day sun.

A lone veteran walked past.  The last of his platoon?  His brothers in arms?  He looked over and waved to the little girl taking it all in from her stroller. 

All I could get out was a heart-felt, "Thank you, sir."

The old man smiled, and then walked on alone.

Croquet

Just viewed Croquet.  Found my way there from the Squeak home page because I promised my OOP class that I would post some other items on my Sakai site about squeak. 

I like what I am seeing with Croquet, but I do have to wonder, what is the advantage to taking a web page and sticking it 'in world'.  I mean, we have alt-tab.  Many people have multiple monitors at high resolution.  Why are we forcing web content in to a smaller window?  Or is it just a way for people comfortable with text (read: educational Establishment) to feel like they are doing innovative instructional design?

I'm not slamming Croquet.  Maybe it's just going to be the "we are filming the stage" version of educational virtual spaces.  But it seems like the real promise in this was the moon orbit and the mars rover simulation, and not in the shared collaborative workspace where everything is relegated to a small fraction of your screen real-estate.

Having said that, I may try to bring my multimedia students in to a Croquet world next semester.

The emperor's avatar has no textures

God, this has been kicking around in my need to publish list for a while.

It was originally called Second Life as an instructional platform.  I like this title better...

I'll just come right out and say it.

I don't think Second Life is a particularly good platform for learning.

It's not that I don't think it could be made to be one, in the proper hands.  I'm just afraid that the SL true-believers, the ones who have drunk the kool-aid, gone around the bend, argue poorly, and simply for the sake of arguing, on every mailing list that dares to point out that the existence of a media type is not as important as how that media type gets used with respect to learning are not the ones to be leading the charge in to this bland new world of instruction.

Of course, with every school needing one or more SL islands to prove they haven't been left behind, that they 'get it', the powers that be will be dropping wads of cash at any developer who can build them a presence in world regardless of effectiveness.

Sounds disturbingly like the web rush of the mid 90's to me.

All that being said, I think investing time in Croquet may be more beneficial in the long run, though I have issues with that product as well.

So ok, I've said the heretical thing.  Do you agree with me?  Or am I remarkably wrong on this point?   

Bonus points to your argument if you don't claim that I 'just don't get it.'  We can meet in world so I can explain why you are wrong on that notion...  Incredible bonus points if you can make some concrete suggestions as to how to make it a useful tool for instruction.