Workshops and Events

October 26, 2010 – Academic Technology Fair

10am-2pm
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Scheuer Room

Information Technology Services, in partnership with the Language Resource Center and the Library, proudly presents the 2010 Academic Technology Fair: Collaboration and Creativity. This event is open to ALL Swarthmore College community members.

We’ve worked hard to put together our most interesting program to date, featuring:

DimDim

DimDim is a web-based, real-time, collaboration solution that allows for easy, cross-platform (Windows, Mac and Linux, equally) conferencing.  Only presenters who want to share their screens—not attendees—need to install anything.  If you need to present somewhere when it would be inconvenient to go in person, DimDim can help you get there “virtually.”

Kaltura

Kaltura is for when you have video that you want to share with other people. The Kaltura open source video platform handles all aspects of online video from editing to publishing. Kaltura easily integrates with many popular web content management systems including WordPress and Moodle.

Highlights of the platform are its online video editing tools, customizable video players and MediaSpace (billed as a “YouTube for your campus.”) We are currently evaluating Kaltura as a possibility for Swarthmore’s campus, and welcome your feedback on this demo.

The Lively Sketchbook

People say that iPods and iPads are great for consuming information, but not for creating new things. We think that’s wrong. The Lively Sketchbook station will show you examples of apps that turn the iPod touch into a versatile pocket notebook. Explore possibilities for use of mobile devices in fieldwork, research, or anywhere that you or your students aren’t seated at traditional work spaces.

Many Eyes

Many Eyes is a bet on the power of human visual intelligence to find patterns. The goal is to “democratize” visualization and to enable a new social kind of data analysis. Developed out of IBM’s Collaborative User Experience (CUE) Research group’s Visual Communication Lab, Many Eyes exemplifies the design goal of transforming visualization from a solitary activity into a collaborative one, utilizing interactive visualizations to help people see and exchange information in novel ways.

Moodle

Moodle is Swarthmore’s new learning management system that will replace Blackboard.  We are transitioning from Blackboard to Moodle over the next three semesters.  Learn about the features that Moodle offers and discuss how best to transition your courses to Moodle.

3D Technologies from Panasonic

A new generation of video electronics, such as Panasonic’s 3D Plasma displays and consumer-level 3D video camera may soon make it possible for us to experience immersive, 3D imagery in our homes and classrooms. We will have a 3D display and the HDC-SDT750 camera on hand at the fair so that we can understand what could soon be a commonplace way of viewing recorded video.

Student Project Showcase

See how Swarthmore Students are applying both current and emerging technologies to their coursework. Examples include geo-location mash-ups with Google Maps, Capstone Seminar projects, course blogs, videos, audio recordings, and more!

Triceratops: The TriCollege Digital Repository
Do you have important research, media, projects and other materials on DVDs, CDs, VHS, in boxes, bag, or on shelves? Would you like to store them securely and let others at the College or in the public see them? The Triceratops station will show you how the TriCollege Libraries can take materials important to Swarthmore College, preserve them digitally, and provide easy web access to them.

VGO The Telepresence Robot

The telepresence robot is a videophone with a bit of a difference. The screen and phone are incorporated into a 2 wheeled human sized robot. “Skeptics say these machines do not represent a great improvement over video teleconferencing. But advocates say the experience is substantially better, shifting control of space and time to the remote user.” (NYT 9.5.2010)