October 26th, 2009
So, today was apparently the day the XBOX Live Update Preview went, well, live. Huzzah!
Since I was the only one in our household willing to actually click through the screens on the XBOX to find our serial number, I was able to sign up to be part of the preview. Once I signed up, I promptly forgot about it thanks to real life and Netflix. Oh, that and a fun mini-vacation down to San Clemente.
Anyways, I am now one of the proud members of the XBOX Live community who can use Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm (what’s that?), and Zune-thing on my (ahem, “our”) XBOX. Fun stuff so far, but I don’t think I’ll be migrating over to the XBOX completely anytime soon for the following reasons:
- I’m just not on the XBOX as much as I used to be, and I really don’t want to leave a game just to tweet or update my status.
- I had to dig out my keypad and re-attach it to my controller.
- If I am on the XBOX, I’m using Netflix or playing DDR. I dare anyone to try typing a status update from a DDR dance pad…dare…
Here’s a breakdown of my opinions on each item so far:
Facebook
Very pretty UI. Very pretty! Scrolling through the different options is fun and truly makes stalking…erm…keeping up with friends easier. Plus, quickly scrolling through status updates on a large-screen TV is rather satisfying in a lazy way. I have a feeling people will enjoy this integration.
If your friends are also on XBOX Live, I think you can share game info, compare stats, etc. Isn’t that what logging in to xbox.com is for? Well, I guess you can do this through Facebook now, too.
I won’t be using this one often. I try to avoid the masses on Facebook as it is. I am weak, however, I confess…
Twitter
Now this is the most fun addition for me. I love Twitter! I think it’s one of the best social networking-ish tools out there today. And I love the UI design for the XBOX! Look at that cute Twitter birdy! *le sigh*
As much as I love Twitter, I won’t be using it as much on the XBOX, even though there are some things I like about the XBOX version, such as:
- Twitter’s “Remember Me” option actually works on the XBOX.
- Tweets are easy to read and scroll through.
- My avatar is pretty entertaining.
- I like the Twitter bird…and the moving clouds.
Why I wouldn’t use it:
- I have to type with the controller or a keypad. Why would I do that when my laptop is usually right next to me?
- I’d have to leave a game/movie to tweet. I might as well pick up my cell phone and tweet while playing…or utilize the aforementioned laptop.
- I can’t click on URLs and see the cool sites, photos, videos, etc. my contacts are sharing.
So, fun stuff, but not quite enough to keep me glued to my console. I mean, “our” console…
Last.fm
I have no idea what last.fm is, but if you use it, you can now use it on the XBOX. Yay for you!
And finally…
Zune (Video)
Alas, I thought this was going to be a full-out Zune integration. I have a Zune and an amazing Zune Pass subscription, and I was hoping this would usher in the marriage of my Zune Pass and my XBOX. It was not to be.
The XBOX now integrates with Zune Video, as in…you can now purchase full movies, rent movies, etc. that can then play on your Zune HD, your computer, or your XBOX. As fun as that is, I won’t be using this feature because of…
Netflix
Netflix integrates seamlessly with the XBOX. I can stream movies from my Instant Queue and browse new additions at no extra cost to my monthly Netflix subscription. So, Zune Video? You’re not for me. Sorry.
All in all, the additions seem pretty fun. It’ll be interesting to see what else is rolled out.
In the meantime, I better get back to grading, studying, and longing for the release of Mass Effect 2.
P.S. – I was just enlightened as to what Last.fm is. I’ll still be using my Zune Pass and/or Pandora.
Posted in Fun Stuff, Technology | 2 Comments »
October 10th, 2009
“It’s a new day, and I’m trying to put Yusif behind me, but it’s difficult. I’ve promised myself that when I go back into the booth, I will remember my sense of humanity and compassion. I don’t want to end up like some of our veterans here, bloated with hate for our enemy.”
Believe it or not, I first heard about this book on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Matthew Alexander, the author, was Jon’s guest of the evening, and the title of his book intrigued me – How to Break a Terrorist: The U.S. Interrogators Who Used Brains, Not Brutality, to Take Down the Deadliest Man in Iraq. The interview was pretty interesting, and I resolved to borrow the book and read it.
That was over 5 months ago. About 2 months ago, I finally got to check the book out of the library. Unfortunately, my hectic schedule relegated the book to our bookcase where it started gathering dust. Plus, I was still trying to finish The New Kings of Non-Fiction. I kept renewing the book until the library’s website told me, “No more! Read it or turn it back in!”…or something to that effect. I cracked it open last night, read for a few hours, and finished it this afternoon.
I don’t usually read books this quickly. This one was worth it.
Torture has never sat well with me, both morally and ethically (I think there can be a difference in the two). When the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse scandal came to light back in 2004, I was shocked and saddened. I thought the U.S. was a pretty good country and had pretty good people, but what I heard, read, and saw was appalling. It was argued that Abu Ghraib was an isolated incident; this was not common practice. Maybe it was, but then the U.S. got involved in waterboarding. Where a person stood on the issue of waterboarding unfortunately became the rubric by which his “patriotism” and “commitment” to the war on terror was measured. Personally, I think that’s pretty sad. As a Christian, I think it’s abominable.
Back to the book – I had heard accounts (word of mouth from friends/colleagues) of interrogation techniques used in World War 2 to get information from enemy prisoners. These all involved treating the prisoners with respect, building rapport with them, and just “hanging out” with the specific purpose of getting information. Of course, the enemy already thinks you’re the enemy, so why give them more reason to think that? “More secrets were spilled over games of ping-pong than through torture,” one friend claimed. I have yet to look that up, but it makes sense.
And what Matthew Alexander shares in this book makes sense. You alienate your enemy when you treat him like a piece of sh*t, and if you think they are, that will come out in your interrogation methods. One cannot forget that the enemy is human, too. He has concerns, motivations, and feelings that drive him to do what he does. Find those, and you can manipulate them to gather information. Abuse him, whether physically or verbally, and he will close himself from you.
No torture takes place in the interrogations shared in the book. However, different approaches are used by different interrogators. “Old school” interrogators use Control as their main method of breaking down a prisoner. If the prisoner feels he has no power, no hope, etc., then he will spill. The “new school” interrogators used knowledge of the culture, of motivation, and a basic sense of human decency to deal with their captives…and it worked.
It took one month for one interrogator to get nothing out of a prisoner, because all he did was insult him and try to “control” him. It took a few hours for another to get the prisoner – of his own free will – to admit to knowing (and promising to give up) one of the biggest leaders the military was hunting. The difference? The first interrogator spent his time demeaning the captive. The second one treated him with respect (he was an imam), asked him questions about his beliefs (stroke his ego), engaged him in discussion (he was a brilliant man, clearly, why not engage him as such…even if he is the enemy?), and used persuasive and argumentative skills to convince the captive that giving up his contact was in his best interests.
And it worked. No torture, no psychological trauma, etc.
I believe the difference between the two interrogation techniques is this – knowledge. One style rejects understanding the enemy and simplifying everything down to “They’re all suicide bombers who have pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda and sworn off all family ties, etc.” Thus, they demean them. The other style understands that things may be more complex than that – most operatives do not even fully agree with all al-Qaeda ideologies. So what motivates them? That takes work to find out, and that takes time, and it is not simple, and it is not easy.
Torture is easy; engaging the enemy and finding his motivations is not. I think there should be more of the second…it seems to work better in both the short and long-term.
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September 27th, 2009
(Side note: I find it absolutely ironic that the week I learn the OSI Model in grad school, I learn about Learning Networks in an open course – so many networks!)
Well, that YouTube video never came to fruition. Life got more hectic than planned, drama happened, and the cool recording snippets I made were lost or deleted off my camera. For someone who is so invested in technology, I sure do fail a lot at it sometimes.
On a happier note, I was able to attend my first synchronous session ever with the class through Elluminate last Tuesday, and it was pretty interesting. So many students were logged in to participate in both listening to a lecturer and discussing different points on the side. While I have attended webinars and board meetings via Elluminate, I have never attended a class. Some of the students were complaining that the side chat function was too confusing. Others were having side conversations that didn’t seem to have much to do with what was being talked about. Others of us “lurked” and contributed every once in awhile. I even managed to embarrass myself by cracking a joke at an inopportune time on what I was about to find out was a terribly sad topic. *slaps self* As I mentioned before, I really need to read more Canadian news if I am to participate effectively in this class…
Anyways, the question of the week is:
So we know that social learning matters. We know that people form communities in formal and informal environments. How far should we go, as educators, to support non-formal and informal learning? How do we deal with the fact that we are part of a formal system when we know that a heck of a lot of learning (many say, most) happens outside of our formal learning systems? Where do we fit into this? Or in summary, the key question to consider is “what is our role in non-formal learning?”
To be quite honest, if you were not paying even a bit of attention during the amazing lecture or if you were not there at all, the above questions may make no sense. I was moderately paying attention, and I’m still a bit confused. I think I may ignore the side conversations next time…
To break it down:
How far should we go, as educators, to support non-formal and informal learning?
- Non-formal learning was defined to happened in a “prescribed but unfettered learning environment” where the “learner” is in “control” and “personal intentions outweigh externally defined intentions”. I think it was described as the middle ground between formal and informal learning.
- Informal learning is…well…I think as informal as it gets.
- How far should we go to support both? I would say that depends on the students you are dealing with. There are pros and cons to all three learning environments.
How do we deal with the fact that we are part of a formal system when we know that a heck of a lot of learning (many say, most) happens outside of our formal learning systems?
- Well, I think we should better ourselves as teachers so a heck of a lot of learning happens in the formal environment as well! Whether that be utilizing the tech tools out there or ensuring we pursue some sort of personal development, I think we owe it to the students to be the best teachers we can be in any environment.
“What is our role in non-formal learning?”
- There was a saying on one of the slides that read, “Engagement matters more than interaction”. Maybe that’s it – to engage. Not to watch from the sidelines, not to put down, and not to become a fanatic, but to engage others and be a teacher/participant that fosters that engagement. Wrestle with new ideas. Try new means of communication. Learn to be discerning. Work on trust.
It is interesting to me to be considering what my role is in non-formal learning considering I’m a “not-for-credit” student in this open course, and I got a sense that some of the for-credit students resented our presence in the class. I do tend to be a bystander because I have no binding responsibility to the course. I can watch, I can listen, I can process, but I am not required to complete assignments, participate, etc. I have to motivate myself to move beyond the bystander role and into one of engagement.
But, I’ll admit, that seems hard when nothing tangible is at stake (unlike my grad school classes or the classes I teach).
Well, next week again. We’ll see how it goes…
Suggested Readings from the class wiki:
Tags: eci831
Posted in Observations on Life, Technology | 1 Comment »
September 15th, 2009
Despite my amazingly hectic schedule, I decided to attempt to “attend” an open course on Social Media and Open Education through the University of Regina in Canada. Really, it was the trailer that roped me in – how can any resist such creativity? (Apparently, I can’t) While I’m at it, I’m going to insert a shameless plug for Free Technology for Teachers, the blog through which I found the class in the first place.
Non-Credit students got to meet with the class for the first time this evening, and since I’m a dork (and generally lazy to boot) and apparently cannot convert Saskatchewan Time into California Time (even though the prof gave us a handy-dandy converter), I missed the Elluminate session. (Dang it!) Thankfully, the materials are available for viewing/contemplation through the class’ wiki.
One of the optional (“but highly recommended”) assignments is to create an introductory video of oneself and post it to YouTube. It’s not that long – only 2-3 minutes (shorter than what I require my Spoken COM students to complete with their podcasts), and I have all the tools needed to make the video. Still, I hesitate…
…and I ask myself why…
…and I realized why it was.
- It’s not that I’m shy (heavens, no!). I’m a proven extrovert by nature. (Albeit, I have become a bit more withdrawn over time)
- It’s not that I don’t have the “skillz” to make such a video.
- It’s not that I lack the tools to make said video.
- It’s that I have never viewed myself as a contributor to any online community in this way.
I’m a online consumer by nature. I read others’ posts on Twitter, Facebook, etc. that I find interesting. I subscribe to blogs that educate or entertain me. I subscribe to newsfeeds, cooking blogs, tech reports, photo blogs, and so much more, but the common feature they have is generally a one-way communication. I read them, and they never know who I am (unless I actually talk/tweet/post back).
I take, I read, and I rarely give back.
I think that is why this class is challenging for me. Not only are the different tools of the Internet discussed; we are encouraged to use them to contribute something to the Internet that is actually meaningful.
Now that is a true challenge, and I will attempt to meet the task…
I now have a YouTube account. Oh, dear. I can promise you I won’t be posting videos of me dancing in tights or drooling as someone shaves my eyebrows off. Hopefully, I’ll be posting something more substantial.
Like that intro video. Now to get to work…
Tags: eci831
Posted in Observations on Life, Technology | No Comments »
August 26th, 2009
Inspired by the article Barack’s Book Bag published on Slate.
The president of the United States is on vacation. Apparently, like most people on vacation, most of the U.S. presidents bring a stack (or mini-stack) of books with them for personal edification and enjoyment. According to the article above, ever since John F. Kennedy confessed to reading the 007 series, the media has speculated on what exactly a president’s reading list says about him. I wasn’t quite sure what was meant by that – says about him as a what? A person? A leader? A curious mind who happens to like reading?
The article got me thinking about what I have been reading (or attempting to read) or have read this past summer. It also reminded me of the stack of textbooks waiting for my attention next week when I return to grad school.
Should we judge a person by what they read? Or, for that matter, should we judge a person by what they haven’t read? I know if I were to plop myself down on a lawn at my place of employment with certain books in hand, I would definitely receive some curious stares, miniscule applause, or maybe even some chastisement. Were I to do the same at my local Starbucks, I may get a few stares and nothing more (maybe a few free samples?). I sometimes feel embarrassed checking out books from my local library (especially the day I checked out She’s Not the Man I Married, which I found quite by accident and discovered to be truly fascinating. Unfortunately, I did not finish…I shall return to it next summer), where some of the teenage clerks give me odd looks as I smile at them in an effort to hurry my checkout process.
Either way, here are the books I am currently reading/will be reading in the months to come. Judge me as you will.
For Grad School:
- Ethernet: The Definitive Guide – Charles E. Spurgeon (O’Reily)
- Beginning Web Programming with HTML, XHTML, and CSS – Jon Duckett
- PC Hardware in a Nutshell – Robert B. Thompson & Barbara F. Thompson (O’Reily)
- Managing and Troubleshooting Networks – Mike Meyers (no, not the comedian nor the murderer – different spelling, too)
For Teaching:
- Principles of Public Speaking – Monroe, Gronbeck, Ehninger, German
- A Rulebook for Arguments – A. Weston
- Intercultural Competence – Lustig & Koester
- Intercultural Communication in Contexts – Martin & Nakayama
- Teaching Culture – H. N. Seelye
- American Cultural Patterns – Stewart & Bennett
And a few other books I can’t remember or don’t have nearby at the moment.
For Personal Interests:
- The Holy Bible – You know, this is the book I should be reading the most of. I am praying that will be the case this coming semester.
- The New Kings of Nonfiction – Ira Glass (amazing, so far)
- In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto – Michael Pollan
- Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife – Mary Roach
- How to Break a Terrorist: the U.S interrogators who used brains, not brutality, to take down the deadliest man in Iraq – Matthew Alexander (looking forward to this one)
I guess my lists are slightly ambitious (*laugh to self*), but I’m hoping to get through all the books. I really am.
What do my lists say about me? I’m not sure, actually. The only thing it shows for sure is that I will be mind-blowingly busy next semester.
Good luck on your reading list, President Obama. Wish me luck on mine. Let me know how the judging goes!
Related Articles on Obama’s Vacation Reading:
Posted in Books, In the News, Observations on Life | No Comments »
August 20th, 2009
I was reminded of my blog this morning when I was asked to take care of an IT issue at work having to do with WordPress. My last post was from the “beginning” of summer in May. What happened to all the time in between?!?!
Well, a lot has happened since then, so…as not to overwhelm the 3 of you who actually read this (hi, Mom!), here is a summary of what I can remember from this summer:
(Sadly, I am opening up my Outlook calendar to jog my failing memory)
May
- I used to blog more
- I read a ton of books, including Lord of the Flies, The Devil Wears Prada, and some others I just can’t remember at the moment. Scratch “ton” out of the previous sentence.
- Vacation! I completely forgot about this (sadly), but Mike and I were able to drive up through Oregon and Washington…all the way up to Victoria, Canada. So much fun!
June
- Vacation, still! Ah, fun memories. Seems like years ago already. Pictures can be found here.
- Back to work. Thankfully, we do like work…
- We went to a cabin with some friends. Fun times!
- I vaguely remember a lot of sushi…
July
- Birthdays, weddings, and work. Not necessarily in that order.
- Some of our dearest friends moved to Texas (*sniffle*), but I think that might have been at the beginning of August…
August
- In progress, but I think I’m ready for next semester. I think…
- Lots more reading, but most of it was lesson prep. Except for the Mass Effect novels. Good stuff! I hate Saren that much more…
- Mike’s birthday is on the 31st (which happens to be the first day of classes). I am going to attempt to get him something he will never forget. That’s right, babe. You’ve got it comin’…
Next semester, I’m teaching 4 undergrad classes, taking 2 grad classes (and one “open course” on Social Media and Open Education for good measure!), working part-time for IT, attempting to get my website up and running, and some other things, so I’ll be busy and mostly out of trouble. God is good. :)
I better get back to reading as much as I can before the semester really starts. Icanhazcheezburger, I’m looking at you…
Posted in Observations on Life | 2 Comments »
May 26th, 2009
Awhile back, I found a fascinating little app on Facebook called “Your Interview”. Fun little app, it is. Every week, I’m going to take one of those questions and answer it here…just for fun, and because I am too lazy to write my review of The Devil Wears Prada.
Q: Do you believe that the cup is half empty or half full?
A: Personally, I’m wondering what you’re doing with my cup, but to answer your question, I generally believe the cup/glass is very full. The question is – what’s in it?
Tags: interview, question
Posted in Fun Stuff, Observations on Life | No Comments »
May 24th, 2009
Mike and I went for our first swim of the summer tonight at around 7:00 pm. I thought it was great; he thought it was cold. Ah, differences in opinion. :)
Anyways, it was fun being able to splash around in the water. It was just the two of us, so that made it extra fun. I felt like a kid again. Okay, so I’m not terribly ancient or anything, but there’s something terribly fun about being the only people in the pool and being able to splash around/swim around/try to take the other person down without actually hurting them, etc. We might need to get some pool noodles or something to add to the excitement.
It was also fun to be able to spend some time alone doing something fun with my husband. There’s something especially fun and romantic about having a pool to yourselves. We swapped hilarious swim stories from when we were younger, discussed the finer points of why swimming was a great workout compared with other options, raced each other (pathetically, but give us a summer…we’ll be so fast…), and got tons of water up our noses.
More importantly, we got to be together.
..and in less than a week, we’re going to have all the time in the world to do whatever we want for 2 whole weeks.
Yes, swimming will be included.
Tags: pool, romantic, summer, swimming
Posted in Fun Stuff, Observations on Life | No Comments »
May 20th, 2009
Something exciting needs to happen.
Something amazing needs to happen.
I finally finished Chuck Palahniuk’s Haunted last night. Again, it was one of those books that left me sitting on our couch, thinking. I believe I enjoyed it far more than I enjoyed Fight Club.
The basic summary is this – 17 people all respond to an invitation to participate in a “writer’s retreat” to create their “masterpiece”. It will last for three months; no contact with the outside world. Food and lodging provided. They are picked up by a Mr. Whittier and a Mrs. Clark, driven to the location of the retreat, and then pretty much locked in for the three months. Things are alright at first, but as time progresses, human depravity takes over in ways one generally only reads about.
The book really resonated with me, and…I must warn you…I am going to air my views on a potentially touchy subject for some in the following paragraph(s).
Artists – writers – poets – novelists – etc. Some succeed; some don’t. Some are truly what they claim to be while others claim the title and don’t actually produce anything in their given domain. I have friends who are artists, and I do love them. There are a few that I have personally known, however, who don’t go a day looking for drama…looking for adventure…and if not looking, then creating the drama, adventure, angst, conflict, etc. that they long for in order to be a “better” writer, poet, etc. To be honest, that annoys me greatly, and I will be honest and state that I am still trying to figure out why it really irritates me. By the way, you don’t have to be an artist to be like the above.
The characters in Haunted reminded me of those types of artists. Some of them had gone through harrowing life experiences; others had not, but they each had a story to tell, and they wrote them down. As you read their stories, you become disgusted, feel compassion for them, mourn their losses, empathize, etc. However, their stories are not enough; in fact, none of them view their stories as “masterpieces” in the making. Instead, they end up creating a “masterpiece” out of them all, locked in this abandoned theatre. Each one starts to sabotage their peaceful, rather comfortable existence in order to create a drama of unprecedented magnitude. They abuse themselves and others; they delve into the depths of depravity…all for this masterpiece they can sell once they are released/rescued from the locked theatre. Each one tries to outdo the others – whether it be mutilating themselves, claiming abuse from other members of the group that never happened, claiming “ghosts” are haunting them all to hider their own devious actions, etc. – all for this story. Yet, as you read their stories, it becomes apparent that reality is brutal enough without having to go out of one’s way to create it.
What I am trying to say is this: open your eyes to what is going on inside you and around you. Life is hard enough as it is. You don’t need to create drama to get a good experience or a “better story” than the person next to you. In fact, why don’t you create something beautiful? Help someone?
It really all boils down to how selfish we are…
…and I thank God that He is more powerful than my selfish ambitions and keeps me in check; by His grace, keeping me from becoming one of those who is Haunted.
Tags: chuck palahniuk, haunted, opinion
Posted in Books, Observations on Life | No Comments »
May 12th, 2009
“I want you to hit me as hard as you can.”
Until a few months ago, I had never heard of Chuck Palahniuk. I had, however, seen the movies Fight Club and Stranger than Fiction. Apparently, some of his other novels are slotted to become movies soon/in the distant future.
A friend of mine mentioned that I should read a book entitled Survivor “by the author who wrote Fight Club”. It was then I realized that these movies had all been books. Since it’s summer, I figured I’d get some personal reading time in while trying to keep up with work and craft a new class for next semester. I’m so ambitious…
I finished Fight Club (the book) a couple weeks ago. When I finished the last page, I just sat on our couch…thinking. Personally, I found the book more engaging and thought-provoking than the movie. The extremeness of the book brought out more of the anguish, ideals, actions, etc. of the characters than the movie did, albeit I believe Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, and Helena Bonham Carter were exceptional in their roles.
While I enjoyed Fight Club immensely, I would not recommend it for very many people I know. It’s a deep read. Some may not understand the point Palahniuk is trying to make (or points…and I don’t claim to understand them all). Others may read too much into the story and just mess it up for themselves and others (know those kind of people?). Either way, if you choose to read the book, it’ll give you a lot to think about.
Tags: chuck palahniuk, fight club, marla singer, tyler durden
Posted in Books | 2 Comments »
