Category Archives: ipod touch

app of the week, iphone, ipod touch

Black & White Camera – iPhone App of the Week

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Black & White Camera – iPhone App of the Week

This is a regular feature of the blog looking at the various iPhone Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive. Though called iPhone App of the Week, most of these apps will also work on the iPod touch.

This week’s App is Black & White Camera.

If you love black and white photography, this is the app for you! Just take a photo or pick a picture from your photo library, you will get beautiful black and white art photos.

Features:

– Create black and white photos directly using iPhone
– Create black and white photos for pictures in photo library
– Automatically create and save to file
– Processed and saved in original size
– Fast processing & saving
– Polished UI, beautiful design

The pro version “Black & White Camera Pro” comes with flash to do fine grain brightness adjustment.

Free and £0.59 for the Pro Version.

I sometimes think the best Apps for the iPhone are the simple ones, the ones that do one thing well.

Black & White Camera is one of those Apps, you take a photograph, it converts it to Black & White and saves it as a new image to your camera roll.

Nothing more and nothing less.

It’s a free app, the pro version has a “flash” but that isn’t necessary for most photographs. If you want to use photographs from your photo library (for example on an iPod touch) then you can do that too.

Regular readers of the blog will know that I do like to use black and white images to illustrate posts. This App allows me to take a picture and use it in a blog article quickly and easily. The top image was created using this App.

iphone, ipod touch, podcast

e-Learning Stuff Podcast #038: iPodding and iPhoning

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Do you iPod? Do you iPhone? The e-Learning Stuff Panel discuss the use of iPhones and iPods in colleges.

With James Clay, Ron Mitchell, Lilian Soon and Lisa Valentine.

This is the thirty eighth e-Learning Stuff Podcast, iPodding and iPhoning

Download the podcast in mp3 format: iPodding and iPhoning

Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes

Photo source.

app of the week, e-book, iphone, ipod touch

Classics – iPhone App of the Week

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Classics iPhone App of the Week

This is a regular feature of the blog looking at the various iPhone Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive. Though called iPhone App of the Week, most of these apps will also work on the iPod touch.

This week’s App is Classics.

So you can download an e-book reader, Stanza (iTunes Store link) for free on your iPhone, you can then download hundreds of public domain books for free.

So why would you spend £1.79 on an iPhone book App with just 23 books in it, all of which can be downloaded using Stanza for free?

Well that is a good question.

I did in fact purchase Classics before Stanza was available so I could use that as the reason (or excuse). However I would still recommend that you get Classics and the reason is that the design of the App, the interface and user experience really make the most of the iPhone. If you ever need to show off what the iPhone can do, Classics is one App which really does impress people and makes them see that this is a device is more than a phone and a Twitter client, you can use it for reading and also learning.

It has a nice page turning effect, you can bookmark where you get to.

The selection is good, I am guessing that there is at least one book that you haven’t read!

It’s not the only book App in the iTunes Store and certainly it’s relatively expensive at £1.79 compared to other Apps, but it does look nice and does a really neat job of allowing you to use your iPhone to read books. It’s not an e-Book Reader as you can’t install other books, but for what it does, it does it well.

app of the week, blog, blogging, iphone, ipod touch

WordPress – iPhone App of the Week

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WordPress  iPhone App of the Week


I am hoping that this will be a regular feature of the blog looking at the various iPhone Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive. Though called iPhone App of the Week, most of these apps will also work on the iPod touch.

This week’s App is WordPress  (iTunes Store link)

I have written before on this blog about the WordPress App for the iPhone.

Back then I said

The interface is not fantastic, though having looked a little more into it, if you had an iPhone (it has a camera) you can add photos quite easily; from the iPod touch you can only (obviously) use images stored on the device.

I am reasonably impressed with the app and if it allows me to blog more easily and more often then that can only make my blog better (or will it).

In the end I have made use of it, as well as writing full blog entries I have also used it for ideas for blog posts which I can then use as drafts once I get behind a full size computer.

WordPress 2 is a revised version which looks and works better than the previous version. It also now supports password protected self-hosted blogs.

WordPress is blogging software, that you can either use free via WordPress.com (which is where this blog is hosted) or you can go to WordPress.org, download and install the software on your own server.

Once installed you can then post blog entries. One of the features of the software is you can either have a fully open blog or one with a password; a closed blog allows for example a learner and a tutor to reflect and communicate without letting the rest of the group (and the world) in on that conversation. A blog is different (better) than e-mail in that the reflections and conversations can be tagged, allowing both the learner and the tutor to collate and look at a group of blog entries. With e-mail they can get lost in amongst the body of e-mails we now get and many places limit how much e-mail you can store!

Since WordPress.com took advantage of the WPTouch theme, it can be much easier to view a WordPress blog on an iPhone (or other mobile device). You can also install WPTouch on your own WordPress installation if you are self-hosted.

The WordPress App on the iPhone allows you to post blog entries to your blog whilst on the move.

You can write entries, add images and then either publish direct, or save as a draft.

The App also works offline which makes it useful if you have the iPod touch, as you can write offline and then publish once you are in range of a wireless network.

Simple to use for just plain text, you can attach photographs, but can only embed them if you know soem HTML and already have the image somewhere already online! Not the easiest thing to do with an iPhone, though at least now we have copy and paste!

The WordPress App is a free app and WordPress.com can be used for free, so if you like free then this is one way that you can blog without needing to spend any money.

Blogging software is very much a personal thing, some like WordPress, others don’t. If you already and are happy using another service such as Blogger or Typepad then you are probably not going to swap to WordPress. However if you already use WordPress or are new to mobile blogging then the combination of the WordPress blogging software and the WordPress App has made it quick, easy and simple.

app of the week, iphone, ipod touch

Strip Designer – iPhone App of the Week

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Strip Designer iPhone App of the Week

I am hoping that this will be a regular feature of the blog looking at the various iPhone Apps available. Some of the apps will be useful for those involved in learning technologies, others will be useful in improving the way in which you work, whilst a few will be just plain fun! Some will be free, others will cost a little and one or two will be what some will think is quite expensive. Though called iPhone App of the Week, most of these apps will also work on the iPod touch.

This week’s App is Strip Designer.

With Strip Designer you can create your own personal comic strip. Add your own photos, apply simple image filters to increase their impact, and add speech balloons and text-boxes. When you are done, save the resulting image to the iPhone’s photo album and email it to friends and family.

Cost £1.79

Comics can be used in many different ways to enhance and enrich learning activites, as well as other processes in the college. Think of it as just another medium to get a message across to learners.

  • Rather than have a written list of instructions for a particular activity, create a comic that as well as text has images that support the explanation of the instructions.
  • Create a comic of how to find help and support in the Library or Learning Resources Centre.
  • Add captions and speech balloons to a photograph to make a informative poster.

There are various comic creation apps for the iPhone, where Strip Designer is different is that it allows you to create a comic strip. Most of the other applications allow you to add comic touches to a single photograph, Strip Designer allows you to use a series of photographs, comicfy them, add captions, speech balloons and then save it as an image, send via e-mail or send direct to Facebook or Flickr.

The interface is quite complicated with various menus and sub menus.

However it doesn’t take long to see that the reason for this is the variety of effects and adjustments you can make to the images, text, balloons and captions.

This is a finished strip. Click the image to see the full size version.

Overall the app works very well, but as with any comic app, the key is the thought and planning that goes into the comic design process and writing before you even open the app. That is something to consider if you want your learners to create a comic as part of a learning activity.

apple, e-book, ipod touch, kindle

e-Book Readers, are they the future?

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On Ollie Bray’s blog a comment was made on Ollie’s post about e-Books.

Neil commenting on the blog said:

I don’t think e-book readers will cut it. They will please a few – gadgeteers and the followers of Oprah (or would that be Jonathan Ross over here?) – but I think they will only be a niche product. After all, you can already read e-books on many phones, netbooks and PCs, so why would you want a specialist device?

Which would you rather spend on – a class set of Kindles (at £175 each) or a set of iPods touches (@£149)? No-brainer really. ANd you are never going to get a head to spend that kind of money twice.

I do agree that in terms of functionality that the iPod touch (currently) is superior to the Kindle, but you do need to ask what functionality are you looking for when purchasing a device.

I am going to disagree with  Neil about the e-Book, personally I think they are going to be one of the next big technologies.

Many negative things were said about early mp3 players and notably the iPod. If you go back to 2001 the following comments were made which are not exactly positive about Apple’s music player.

The iPod does cost considerably more than the nearest competitor with a portable hard drive…

…analyst Tim Deal dinged the $399 price as “a little high.”

“I question the company’s ability to sell into a tight consumer market right now at the iPod’s current price.”

“Apple lacks the richness of Sony’s product offering. And introducing new consumer products right now is risky, especially if they cannot be priced attractively,”

Stephen Baker said that the iPod will likely stand out for its large storage capacity but predicted that the device may have trouble digging out a niche in the market.

The iPod has “good features, but this is a pretty competitive category,” Baker said. “The question is whether people want that robust of a feature set with that high of a price.”

Look where the iPod is now!

Let’s take Niel’s comment:

After all, you can already read e-books on many phones, netbooks and PCs, so why would you want a specialist device?

If you rewrite this as

After all, you can already listen to mp3s on many phones, netbooks and PCs, so why would you want a specialist device?

That’s what many people said about the iPod and the early mp3 players.

e-Book readers are supplementary to netbooks, iPhones, iPods and PCs, not replacements.

They also have one big advantage over those devices for e-Books and that is battery life.

I have to charge my iPhone on a daily basis, I charge my e-Book reader once a week.

For me the Kindle and Sony Reader are generation one devices, and as the technology matures and changes I expect to see better and smarter products.

The rumours are that Apple and Microsoft will both release an e-Book Reader type product in the next twelve months. These devices will certainly raise the profile of e-Books and the market for devices to read them.

iphone, ipod touch

Live TV on your iPhone

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TV CatchUpSo you want to watch live TV?

I know get a television…

But sometimes that isn’t possible or convenient. For example when you are in a hotel room, waiting for a train, etc…

It is now quite easy to do with a computer and a browser, however until now it was not really possible on your iPhone (or iPod touch).

Simply go to http://iphone.tvcatchup.com/ on your iPhone and you can now watch live TV (well there is a lag of a few minutes) when you want to.

IMG_0194

I added it to my homescreen and they (as you can see above) they have a nice icon for your iPhone.

The quality is quite good and certainly watchable.

IMG_0195

The service also has a browser version, however you need to sign up to that!

Regardless of which way you go, as this is live TV you do need to have a TV licence.

altc2009, apple, ipod touch

It’s only rock and roll, but we (still) like it

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As I have mentioned before, on September 9th, Apple are running a music style event called It’s only rock and roll, but we like it.

appleevent090909

It’s quite normal for Apple to make an announcement at this time of year. In 2007 Apple for example announced the iPod touch. I said before that:

According to the rumour sites, there are good indications that we will see new iPods with cameras.

Will we see the rumoured Apple Tablet?

I think it is a strong possibility, but there are other rumours which state we won’t see it until the first quarter of 2010. I wonder if Apple will announce it, so that developers can develop Apps for it in the same way that they did for the iPhone.

Reading Ollie Bray’s blog he brings to the rumour table, the social side of iTunes.

Again the rumor mills suggest a number of new features of iTunes 9 of which I think the most likely are the introduction of social networking tools or someone else’s social networking tools (eg: Facebook). This will allow you to share your playlists with your friends. If you think about it this makes a lot of sense – Apple knows that the future of the web is social.

I would agree that this is a strong possibility, think about how iPhoto ’09 now has Flickr and Facebook intergration, how easy it is to upload videos from the iPhone 3GS or iMovie to YouTube. It makes sense to add a social element to iTunes.

Some say that we may see the Beatles, possibly.

Whatever happens it will be interesting and fun to see what happens at the event. The Apple event takes place at 6pm BST on the 9th September, which is the same night as the ALT-C Gala Dinner, I suspect that many with iPhones at that dinner will be closely looking at their iPhones to see what new things are announced.

altc2009, apple, ipod touch

Apple iPod Event

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On September 9th, Apple are running a music style event called It’s only rock and roll, but we like it.

appleevent090909

It’s quite normal for Apple to make an announcement at this time of year. In 2007 Apple for example announced the iPod touch.

So what will be announced?

According to the rumour sites, there are good indications that we will see new iPods with cameras.

Will we see the rumoured Apple Tablet?

I think it is a strong possibility, but there are other rumours which state we won’t see it until the first quarter of 2010. I wonder if Apple will announce it, so that developers can develop Apps for it in the same way that they did for the iPhone.

Personally I think the proposed Mac Tablet has a lot of potential for learners and learning, especially if it has a battery which lasts all day.

The Apple event takes place at 6pm BST on the 9th September, which is the same night as the ALT-C Gala Dinner, I suspect that many with iPhones at that dinner will be closely looking at their iPhones to see what new things are announced.

iphone, ipod touch, podcast

e-Learning Stuff Podcast #016: One month later…

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On the 12th February 2009 David Sugden was given an iPhone for just one month. In a previous podcast he talked about his first impressions. Now a month later, is he still excited by the iPhone? Does he want to keep it? Will he be buying one for himself? Find out more in the e-Learning Stuff Podcast, “One month later…”

This is the sixteeth e-Learning Stuff Podcast, One month later…

Download the podcast in mp3 format: One month later…

Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes.

James is joined by David Sugden.

e-Learning Stuff Podcast #016: One month later...

Shownotes

Photo source.