Are video games a bad thing?

Like many adults, you probably hear the words "video game," and automatically start thinking of wasting time and violence. Well, I'm here to let you know that not all video games are bad. In fact, some of them can be, well.... educational!

I grew up playing tons of video games. All kinds of video games. Most would be considered to be just plain wastes of time. But are they, really? The object of most video games is to solve problems. You have goals, and are encouraged to go beyond those goals for social recognition. Still sound like a waste of time? Isn't that what we want them to learn - problem solving skills and goal-oriented self-motivation?

Still not convinced? Take a look at this game. It's called Brain Age and is played on the Nintendo DS. Here is a quote about the game taken from the Nintendo page:

"Brain Age presents quick mental activities that help keep your DS brain in shape. Activities include quickly solving simple math problems, counting people going in and out of a house simultaneously, drawing pictures on the Touch Screen, reading classic literature out loud, and more."

What!?! You mean kids are playing a game that involves reading, writing, AND arithmetic?!? Yes, they are. As a matter of fact, it's not just kids anymore who are playing games. Many adults are finally getting into video games as well.

Personally, I still love to play video games. My taste in gaming has changed throughout the years, but my passion for them will always remain the same. Currently, I have pre-ordered the Nintendo DS Lite (Launch date is June 11), and have already purchased 2 games for it - The New Super Mario Brothers (gotta get my Mario fix on!) and Brain Age. I'll give you a full review after I actually get it in my hot little hands.

Are your students using their cell phones in class?

I thought this was pretty interesting. Apparently, there is a device that's being used in certain places called a "Mosquito" that emmits a high frequency that can only be heard by most people under the age of 20. Most people over the age of 30 don't hear it at all, so it is used to keep loitering teenagers away from certain areas. You can read the article here.

Teens have begun using this technology to their advantage and have recorded the noise and saved it as their ringtone for their cell phones! That way, they can text message and call each other in class without any teachers being the wiser! Teachers, you've got your work cut out for you now!

A Musical Blast from TV's Past

O.K., here's one of those time-killing sites you just have to check out. Go to the link here. Thanks to Carolyn Sexton for pointing out this little gem to me. It's a site that hosts all of the TV theme songs to almost every old TV show imaginable. I've found from playing with this site that I definitely watched way too much TV as a kid. Still, it's nice to remember all those great shows... which makes me think - why isn't there anything good on anymore?!? (See my article on "The Death of TV") Enjoy!

Skype Me!

For those of you that haven't heard of Skype, it's basically an internet based phone service. You can talk to other people, instant message, and send files back and forth easily. The really neat thing about this is that you can make phone calls to regular phones or mobile phones now for free to anyone in the US or Canada! (At least until the end of the year) You can download the free program here. You can also make secure conference calls and text chats as well! What a great tool! Say goodbye to long distance charges!

Browsers

On one of the email reports, it tells me what browser you are using to view the web page. I was shocked to see that over half of you are still using Internet Explorer! Microsoft has stopped all it's upgrades and support for that browser on a mac. That means you not only have been experiencing more and more crashes (these will only get worse with time), but may not realize, you are missing half of a web page in many cases.

Still not convinced? Here's a test you can see for yourself: Open www.blogger.com (yes, you'll have to authenticate) in Internet Explorer and Safari (throw Firefox in there too if you have it). Now compare the page. Should be the same, but it's not! You'll notice several links missing from the Internet Explorer version. One of these links just happens to be the one you need to create a blog page.

My personal opinion - for what it's worth, is that Firefox would be the best browser to use. Safari would be my second choice, but I will not recommend that anyone continue to use Internet Explorer. Worried about losing all those bookmarks? You can import them into either Safari or Firefox. Come by and I'll show you how.

Communication

O.K., I need some feedback on this one. With the addition of the email feature for this blog, I am curious to know what delivery method you like better and why. Some of you will faithfully visit the page every couple of days and check to see what's going on. However, I know a lot of you will be busy these next few weeks (especially with SOL testing going on) and may not have time to view the web page. That's where the email comes in. It will be a weekly update (every Monday) that will keep you up to date. What I am finding, however, is that with the emails, not many of you are clicking on the links to read the rest of the story. I'm not sure if you aren't interested, or just didn't realize you could do that. Every title is a link that will take you to the rest of the blog entry. Let me know what your thoughts are by clicking on the comment button (you will have to authenticate to do this).

Password Security

Have you ever given your password out to your spouse or child? Do you just have one password that you use for everything? Has a student ever been over your shoulder while you typed a password in the system?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, it's time for a change! As teachers, you have a responsibility to uphold security on confidential information (grades, IEPs, etc.) Come by and I'll teach you how to remember numerous passwords, as well as practice "safe computing."

New Feature

Like the blog, but too lazy to check it? I've got a solution for you. Scroll down to the bottom of this page and you will see a place where you can subscribe via email. Type in your email address and click the subscribe button. Each week, the new blogs will be sent to you via email. Thanks to Zookoda for making this possible.

Quick Tip: The Black Dot

Ever noticed that black dot that sometimes appears in the red dot used to close programs? If you haven't, don't be ashamed, it's easy to miss. Here's what it means:

The black dot means you have made changes and haven't saved.
The red dot means your file is up to date and saved.

The Death of TV?

With the introduction of video podcasts, I find myself watching less and less TV. To me, podcasts are more interesting because they can focus on such a narrow audience. We no longer have to suffer through what the masses find appealing. Those of you who know me, know that I march to the beat of my own drum. I don't always go with the inline crowd. Well, my TV viewing habbits are no different.

I find myself bored with the everyday sitcom. I am nausiated by shows like Amerian Idol and that bad Let's Make a Deal spin-off (can't remember what it's actually called). They just don't keep my attention. It takes great writing and plot developments to keep my attention. I LOVE Boston Legal, the Sopranos, and yes, I hate to admit it - Desperate Housewives. So that makes 3 shows that I like out of a thousands of shows to choose from --- pretty poor! Other than that, I don't watch TV. I am much more engaged when I watch a podcast. Currently, I subscribe to 15 podcasts that I listen to or watch on a daily basis. A little skewed? I think so.

In my humble opinion, I think it's only a matter of time before we see traditional TV programs die a slow, painful death. Long live IPTV! Let the revolution begin!

You've got mail!

Are you still using iPlanet to view your mail? Entourage is nice, but give Apple Mail a try. It's already on your laptop and works great! If you need help setting it up, come by and see me. I'll be glad to help you.

New Toy!

Well, I've done it. I've taken the plunge and bought at brand new 20" Intel iMac! I'm very excited, and can't wait to get home to play with it some more. It will take me a while to get it all set up just the way I want it, but in the end, it will all be worth it. I also purchased a .mac account as well and plan to move this blog to a new site. I will be giving everything a serious overhaul, so be prepared for change! I'd type more now, but I just don't seem to have the time (gotta do some research on moving my iTunes and iPhoto libraries over to the new machine). I'll post some pictures of my shiny new iMac later.