Though you can create PDF files on a Mac, it is not always possible on a PC unless you have dedicated software. This is where online PDF creator sites can be very useful.
They are also useful if you for example have been sent or downloaded a Microsoft Publisher file and you have a Mac, or you don’t have Publisher on your Windows PC. They can take the Publisher .pub file and print it as a PDF.
One such site is PDF Online, which can convert a range of file formats (including Microsoft Publisher and Microsoft Office) into a PDF which is then e-mailed to you.
I would suggest that if you do use such a service that you use a disposable e-mail address, or one that can be deleted later.
I have mentioned the beta of Comic Life for Windows quite a fewtimes now. So it’s nice to tell you that Plasq have now released the full and final release of Comic Life for Windows.
Comic Life is one of my favourite applications and certainly is one of the easiest ways of making comics for use for print and online.
A 1000 seat educational licence for Comic Life is only £511.77 which is quite good value if you ask me. A 25 seat licence is only £101.95.
I will probably get a licence for my institution for staff use at least and for student use if required.
The Guardian has reviewed the Sony VAIO UX1XN and found that though a wonderment of design, it is somewhat fiddly to use.
But delightful though this notebook is to look at and hold, it’s too flawed to be anything other than a novelty.
The review also mentions issues with the keyboard and the tablet input, which I both agree with.
… there’s the first disappointment – the keyboard. You wouldn’t want to do much more than tap out an email on it, as the size of the keys make it no good for touch-typing. Double-thumb input is feasible, but the tiny keys make it hard to be accurate.
and
The touchscreen is a nightmare. Fiddly to calibrate, it failed to retain its settings and eventually refused even to acknowledge that it was in fact a touchscreen. So I resorted to the pointing device.
I still think it is useful and not as flawed as the review makes out, and the more I use it, the more uses I find for it.
Despite a lot of scepticism and negative coverage about Amazon’s new digital book reader, the device has sold out according to the BBC.
Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader has sold out despite scepticism about whether the device will prove popular. A notice on the Kindle pages on the Amazon web store said “heavy customer demand” for the device meant it would be out of stock until 3 December. Since its launch on 19 November the device has been widely examined but opinions about it are mixed.
Looks like people are interested in this digital book reader. Is this the device for e-books what the iPod was for digital music? We will have to wait and see.
BBC reports that T-Mobile to open up iPhone sales.
T-Mobile is to start allowing German customers to buy Apple’s iPhone without a contract to its network, as it moves to comply with a court injunction.
However this is in Germany only and the iPhone will be twice as expensive as the contract version.
Legislation in the UK allows for locked phones, but you could import iPhones from Germany and then avoid the two year contract making it available for testing and usability.
The BBC is reporting that nine out of ten internet connections are broadband connections.
Almost nine out of 10 UK net users are connecting via broadband services, official figures reveal.
Information gathered by National Statistics (ONS) for September show that 88.4% of Britons are choosing to use broadband rather than dial-up.
This means that delivering e-learning content does not need to rely on the assumption that learners are on dial-up.
With broadband often cheaper than dial-up now, if learners wish to access e-learning from home rather than in college (or in their local library) then more than likely they will be choosing broadband.
The TES have published (as part of a wide ICT supplement) an interesting article on how West Suffolk College with support from RSC Eastern are using social networking tools to support and enhance learning.
Are websites such as MySpace, Bebo and YouTube entertaining time wasters or can they be teaching tools? At West Suffolk College, students are encouraged to use online social networking sites.
Really interesting article.
news and views on e-learning, TEL and learning stuff in general…
