TechSmith: Ask3

User Story: Boyne City iPad Initiative Spurs Digital Learning at Every Age

Boyne City, a small town located in northern Michigan, has made a commitment to digital learning. With the city's 1:1 iPad Initiative, every student in the district has access to an iPad. But once students get the tablets into their hands, what should they do with them? Having the technology is one thing, but harnessing it to enhance learning experience is quite another.

Three teachers from Boyne City have been implementing some big ideas to do exactly that.

Check out the customer story to see how Erin Mastin, Rebecca Wildman, and Erin Luckhardt are using Ask3 to help students take charge of their learning.

Got classroom iPads? Ask3 enables students and teachers to collaborate on lessons in and outside of the classroom. By turning your iPad into a recordable whiteboard, lessons can be posted into an Ask3 classroom where others can add text and video comments, questions and answers. With Ask3, peer teaching is possible - anywhere and anytime.

Create a Classroom
With our latest release of Ask3, you can now create multiple classes.  Teachers can create classes for each of their courses and create extra ones for their professional development or professional learning networks.

Learn more about Ask3 and see it in action. Or, try it for yourself! Ask3 is free and can be downloaded from the iTunes store.

Already Tried Ask3?
What did you think? Let us know what you like, or what you would change. If you haven't yet rated Ask3 on the iPad app store, we would love for you to do so! You can also submit your feedback and questions directly to us here at TechSmith.

Ask3 in Schools
See how Boyne City Public Schools are using Ask3 to improve communication in classes of all grade levels. Read the full story on our website.

Learn More »

SC Magazine awards Sophos Mobile Control v3.5 a 5 Star Rating

Sophos Mobile Control v3.5

QUICK READ

• Strengths: Easy to deploy and manage with a vast set of features.
• Weaknesses: Administrator guides could have had a few more visual elements.
• Verdict: If the documentation was just a bit more complete, this would be a perfect-scoring product. Even so, Sophos Mobile Control receives our Recommended designation.

Read the full article here…

OWA available for iOS devices now

Take a quick look at the Exchange Team Blog entry announcing the availability of the new OWA App for both the iPhone and the iPad. It will show you setup and screenshots of the application but the one drawback is that you need to have an Office 365 account to get it.

See the article here.

Dropbox Platform Announcement plans to sync everything in the cloud

Dropbox held its first developer conference and used this meeting to announce an new initiative called “Dropbox Platform” that provides a set of APIs that are said to deliver an easy cross-platform syncing solution for just about any form of data.

At the heart of Dropbox Platform is a new API called Datastore, which allows apps to sync almost all types of data, including settings, to-do lists, and game saves, across a number of platforms. The new platform was detailed at Dropbox's event and on its official blog.

"When you use an app built with datastores your data will be up-to-date across all devices whether you’re online or offline," writes Drew Houston. "Imagine a task-tracking app that works on both your iPhone and the web. If it’s built with the Datastore API, you can check off items from your phone during a cross-country flight and add new tasks from your computer and Dropbox will make sure the changes don’t clobber each other."

While a few apps have already been using Dropbox in this manner, the new API will offer developers an easily accessible method to tap into the company's cloud.

Here is their Live from DBX blog post from today.

FAA easing ban on electronics during takeoff, landing

Interesting article from arstechnica:

The words "please stow all electronic devices" may soon disappear from the scripts of flight attendants. The Federal Aviation Administration is poised to lift its ban on the use of electronic devices aboard airline flights at elevations under 10,000 feet. It would also allow the use of e-readers, iPods, tablets, and phones in "airplane" mode even during take-offs and landings. The Wall Street Journal reports that the FAA is circulating a draft set of recommendations from an advisory panel that recommends relaxing the bans. Use of cell phones during flight would still be banned.

The report acknowledges that technology has changed dramatically since the FAA originally placed the ban on electronic devices during takeoff and landing back in the 1960s, when there were valid concerns about interference to aircraft communications from personal radios and other electronics. The panel also admitted that having airlines each evaluate the safety of individual electronic devices before allowing them to be left on at low altitude "has become untenable." Passengers are widely ignoring the ban already, and the FAA advisory panel's report cited research that showed a third of airline passengers had "accidentally" left a device turned on for entire flights at least once.

An FAA spokeswoman sent a statement to the Wall Street Journal that said that the FAA "recognizes consumers are intensely interested in the use of personal electronics aboard aircraft, that is why we tasked a government-industry group to examine the safety issues and the feasibility of changing the current restrictions. At the group's request, the FAA has granted the two-month extension to complete the additional work necessary for the safety assessment."

New Samsung ATIV Q hybrid Notebook/Tablet

So you need Windows for the office and Android for your entertainment, huh? This new tablet from Samsung may just fit the bill. At Samsung’s London event today they showed this new tablet that is very interesting with a high resolution display, low weight and both Android and Windows 8 installed on the unit.

Brent Rose of Gizmodo wrote:

ATIV Q

Samsung's most interesting tablet-type thing is a double-hybrid freak of a device. It has a keyboard that is connected by a rather versatile hinge. It can fold all the way flat against the back so you can use it as a straight up tablet, you can use it as a normal laptop, you can type with having the screen magically floating above your fingers, or you can use it as a stand.

But why is it a double-hybrid? Because it runs Windows 8 AND Android. I guess that's one way to solve the lack of good tablet apps in the Windows 8 ecosystem. The tablet can switch back and forth between modes, and while it won't share settings or apps, at least you can share files and folders back and forth. It will be running a full version of Windows 8 (not RT) and Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) with the Google Play Store and all.

Switching back and forth between operating systems looks lighting fast. Just the press of a single button. No booting or anything. It looked extremely seamless. You can also add Android apps to the Windows 8 homescreen for quick access, which is handy.

The other highlight on the ATIV Q is the touchscreen. It's at 13.3 inch gHD+ display, which comes in at 3200 x 1800 pixels. At 275 pixels per inch that bests even the screen on the Google Pixel (239 PPI). Samsung claims that it's "the world's highest resolution display," has a 170-degree viewing angle, and is clearly viewable in bright sunlight. Very impressive looking.

The ATIV Q comes running Intel's latest and greatest Haswell processor, which means it should be mighty fast, and it also comes with an S Pen, so the graphic design crowd should be able to really take advantage of all those pixels.

The ATIV Q comes in at 0.54 inches thick and weighs 2.84 pounds. That's pretty fat n' heavy for a tablet. But for a laptop-hybrid thing? Well, maybe that's not so bad. No word on U.S. It bears mentioning that this entirely dissimilar from Acer's R7 hybrid, though the ATIV 8 certainly wins in on the resolution and processor front.

New Release: Camtasia Studio 8.1

Press Release:

Camtasia Studio 8.1 is here! And if you already own Camtasia Studio 8, this is a free upgrade for you.

We're looking forward to hearing what users like you will say when they get their hands on the latest version. If you think Camtasia Studio 8 couldn't be better, be assured that Camtasia Studio 8.1 offers you even more.

So, What's New?
To start, we listened closely to the feedback we were getting from Camtasia Studio 8 users. We then worked like mad to fix all the things they didn't like.

User feedback is essential to making a great product even better, so thanks for your comments and requests. Next, we wanted to give you more options when editing. So, we added a handful of new and easy-to-use editing tools.

Remove a Color
You can now use TechSmith's Remove a Color feature to superimpose yourself into your videos making it appear as though you're right in the action. Also known as chroma key or the green screen effect, Remove a Color helps you create more professional videos without having to be a video pro.

Crop, Stitch, and Copy
Use the crop tool to show your viewers exactly what you want them to see and nothing you don't. Stitch clips together to avoid having to reapply visual effects multiple times. And finally, copy an effect to quickly apply it to numerous clips – saving you time and improving your editing workflow.

On a Version Prior to Camtasia Studio 8?
When you upgrade to the current version of Camtasia Studio, you'll receive not only the newest features, but also all the great features included in Camtasia Studio 8. Take Camtasia Studio 8.1 on a test drive with our free trial, or upgrade to the latest version now and let us know how it goes!

And as always, if you have questions or want to give us some feedback, we're all ears at our feedback site.

Upgrade to Camtasia Studio 8.1 »

Kids going to college? Consider adding Skype to their Notebook and Phone…

I know that texting is all the rage but when your parent or grandparent there's nothing like seeing your child's smiling face while you are speaking to them from the comfort of your home. And when they're away at college and it's doubly nice to know that they are all right and that they are doing well while they are outside of the safety of your home.

Skype is free for Skype to Skype communication is available on quite a few different platforms. Not only is it available on your notebook whether it is a Windows-based or Apple-based system is also available to put on your iOS and android phones and tablets. This makes it very convenient to connect with them from any of these devices.

One of the interesting features of Skype is a video messaging capability that allows you to send and receive for free video messages when you cannot both be available at the same time. This can help alleviate the frustration of not getting an instant response when you are trying to connect with them. So it's on an emergency this makes it a very convenient way to get your message across to your child.

To find out more about Skype or to sign up go here.

Just a quick update… Skype continued.

Remember if you are setting your college-bound child up with office 365 for students then Skype is part of the package and if you are setting yourself up with office 365 for home, which allows you to have up to five systems in the house installed with office 2013 you will also get Skype with that subscription as well. So here is a little more incentive for you to go ahead and get this all set up and tested out before they leave you for their new digs.

Learn more about Office 365 Home Premium

Learn more about Office 365 University

Read and earlier post on Office 365 University

Microsoft Surface Firmware Updates for June 2013

Nice updates to both Surface devices

Jun. 11, 2013Paul Thurrott

Nice overview of the updates that became available last week. So if you have Surface RT or Surface Pro you may want to take a look at what is new by taking a look at Paul’s article.

Surface RT firmware improvements

Update includes these firmware and performance improvements

Surface Pro firmware improvements

Update includes driver and performance improvements including

To learn more about Windows Update, see Install Surface and Windows updates.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking Home 12

I went and purchased a recent copy of Dragon NaturallySpeaking version 12 for myself to use at home and I decided also to bring it into work to see if it would help me out there as well. I have been using the built in voice to text recognition functions that are in Windows 7 but it seems to be getting worse and worse as I use it more which seems very contradictory since this was to be getting better as you use it got worse. I am very impressed with how well it works both in its accuracy and in its speed.

I will have to report back into you have couple weeks to update you on what I have found. I think that I will find it to be quite useful and will become part of my daily tools that I use to complete projects that I do throughout the day.

SmugFolio for SmugMug now SmugMug for Android

The creator of SmugFolio has been hired by SmugMug and his original program is being renamed to SmugMug for Android. If you are already running SmugFolio for SmugMug your App will automatically be updated and become SmugMug’s official Android App!

"SmugFolio for SmugMug" will be renamed to "SmugMug for Android" and it'll have a new snazzy icon. The new app will be free to download. For those of you who own SmugFolio, you'll automatically receive the update via the Google Play market. It will be the same app you know and love with a few changes:

· You'll now be able to browse other SmugMug user accounts without needing to log into the app. This is a great way to give friends and family easy access to your public galleries on their phones and tablets.

· The app has been made more secure by switching to OAuth for the login. This change will require you to re-login once you have updated to the new app. After you login, your photos will still be available in the app as they were before. You will not need to download them again.

· To make the app more secure and to prepare for some exciting future enhancements, the updated app will now require Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) or above. Those using Android 2.x or earlier can still use SmugFolio, but you will not be updated to the new app. This is not an easy decision, but it is necessary to move the app forward.

SmugMug has a motto that "Your Photos Look Better Here", and I plan to keep that motto true on Android. I hope you've enjoyed using SmugFolio over the years, and I hope you enjoy the new app even more.

Shut down Windows 8 from the keyboard | TechRepublic

Great article to add some new features to your Windows 8 machine. Worth taking a quick look at this.

Shut down Windows 8 from the keyboard | TechRepublic

Remember that Google Reader goes away at the end of the month…

If you are using Google Reader as your RSS consolidation source you are going to have to make some decisions on what you are going to do at the end of the month when Google turns off Reader. This is a big deal if you are using it, but there are several options that you can move to that will help with the transition. The best that I have found for myself so far is from Feedly. By creating an account with them before the end of the month you will be able to bring over your Google Reader settings automatically and be up and running within seconds.

I have setup categories for my Reader to make it easier to manage and work through the information that is flowing in and Feedly has kept all of that together automatically which makes great sense. It work with both Pocket and Instapaper for capturing long term the articles that I want to either come back to in more detail or keep for longer time for reference.

It works with bot iOS and Android devices and works really well within the Chrome Browser. So if you are like me and you are reaching for the closest mobile device when sitting down to read, it makes a lot of sense to have a program on all of the types of systems that you would possibly use it. Don’t wait to the last minute to make your choice of a new reader.

Is Exchange 2013 for you?

When Microsoft killed the Small Business Server product last year it took away the one function that we implemented the most of for small businesses and that was an in-house Exchange Server. For those people that wanted control over their communication data this was a big thing. The cost difference of having to install a full blown Exchange Server setup vs. what was needed in SBS is a large expense and one that is beginning to be hard to justify. Can we really expect an under 25 user office to put up a full blown Exchange Server to support their employees? In most cases the answer is no!

So what do you do now to get beyond this cost barrier and still have enterprise communication capabilities? Microsoft’s answer is Office365. We have began deploying offices as small as one user to as large as you want to deploy on Microsoft’s cloud product with fairly good results. This past week we had a few indications of Microsoft’s growth pains but they are quickly updating their system and tweaking it to make it better and better everyday. I am thoroughly impressed from a user basis of what they have been able to accomplish and I like the prospects of where it is all going.

Microsoft’s whole suite of Office Productivity packages are available from the cloud now as an ongoing SaaS (software as a service) model and it is becoming more and more reasonable to buy into this approach. If you are a traditional office worker you may not need your Office software on multiple devices but if you are more mobile, take work home, have multiple devices that you use than the SaaS model makes a lot more financial sense.

Let’s take Microsoft Office for instance. If you are a single workstation worker, than you only need this suite of programs on one machine. Paying $229 for a perpetual license for that machine may make a lot of sense. However, if you also like to work from your home office machine or your laptop than taking that cost and multiplying it three times becomes awfully expensive, a total of $657. If you go with Office Pro that amount approaches $1,000. With the Office365 Small Business Premium package your cost is $150/user annually and you can install office Pro on up to 5 different devices for that user. Now this package is limited to a maximum 25 users in the company but for many small office environments/businesses this will be a great fit.

So what do you get for this annual fee? Microsoft Office Pro with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Access, Publisher and Lync. You have access to Office Web Apps which include Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote files via a web browser. Hosted email, you get business-class email, shared calendars, 25GB of storage space per user and the ability to setup your own domain name. Simple file sharing through SkyDrive with 7Gb of personal storage that syncs with your Pc. You can easily share these files internally or externally and control who sees or can edit them. Web conferencing and IM using your Lync communications program. You can conduct meetings over the internet with HD video conferencing, screen sharing, and instant messaging. Share presence, IM and audio calling with Skype users. You get a public website to market your business with a website that is easy to set up using your own company domain name with no additional hosting fees. All of this and a guaranteed 99.9% uptime/availability.

While $150/user annually by itself sound like a lot, the services that you get the and the enormity of the enterprise functions that you receive for that money are great and I feel are easily justified. As we are refreshing more and more of our Small Business Server installations the move to a SaaS model is making more and more sense.

Windows 8 Apps are finally coming into their own…

Are they? According to Microsoft there are now  six times more apps in the Windows Store as there were when Windows 8 launched in October 2012. While 60,000 is a fraction of the 800,00 plus found in either the Apple App Store or in Google Play, it is still a lot of apps.

It seems that they Apps are becoming more stable and more capable as the developers are revising them. Feedback from users are also helping developers to figure out what user really want from their apps and are making the changes to suit these requests.

Most of us are still drawn to the traditional “Programs/Software” that we use from the desktop. While the differences are subtle what really defines the difference between and APP and a Software program? Aren’t Apps just smaller snippets of code that differ mainly from their software/program counterparts by having fewer features and capabilities? Apps are great for devices that have limited resources like phones and tablets but do they really have a place on fully capable notebooks and desktop computers?

Apps provide a different delivery method of these smaller snippets of code to perform simplified functions that may be all you need from that program. One of the reasons some of us are drawn to the lure of the Windows 8 tablet design is the promise that we can use our favorite Windows programs alongside of these new Apps that are appearing side by side of the old standbys.

The Redmond Channel Partner Magazine collaborated on an article “40 Killer Windows Store Apps for Microsoft Partners” that discussed this very fact:

…even those helping deploy Windows 8, have focused on traditional Windows applications. After all, one of the main selling points of Windows 8 is that customers and partners don't have to reinvent computer software. If it ran on Windows 7, it will generally run on Windows 8. Unlike iPads and Galaxy Tabs, the Windows 8 ecosystem doesn't have to start from scratch.

This is just it. I have both IOS and Android devices and when I am using them for the workplace I am constantly looking for Apps that make more productive like what I have on my desktops or notebooks. In fact many times when using one of my tablets I am using them as a terminal to access one of my machines to do functions that I can’t do directly with the tablet apps.  In fact the usefulness of the tablet for me is primarily as an entertainment device or as something I use to give me access to my other systems to do the things that I need or want to do.

Will Windows 8.1be enough to begin Windows 8 adoption?

Two of the biggest complaints I keep hearing from users is that Windows 8 doesn’t look like Windows and where is the Start button? I know that anything new always has a hard row ahead of it but the antagonism associated with the Start Screen and the loss of the Start Button has been vicious. I haven’t completed moving over entirely to Window 8 myself but I do have it running on my laptop and I have become quite comfortable with it. Though I don’t have a touch screen on the notebook to take advantage of the what that brings to the table, I have played with tablets that do and if I were to purchase a Windows 8 notebook I wouldn’t do so without it having a touchscreen. You just lose too much function without it.

With Windows 8 booting to the Start Screen doesn’t bother me at all, it does cause me to one extra step every time I boot up to jump to the regular desktop where I do all my work.When the free Windows 8.1 update comes out that will provide a choice of booting to the desktop, this will satisfy one of the complaints that most new users have with it not looking like Windows. On a tablet device the Start Screen is probably more desirable  but in a world where users are trying to be productive and get some work done, this is not the case.

Microsoft’s constant drive to make your experience simpler when using the Windows interface initially makes it harder to change to the simplicity of new Start Screen interface. On a desktop computer that has a keyboard as its primary input interface you can just type the word of the action or program that you are looking for and that immediately brings up a list of things that meet the criteria you are typing in.  I am a touch typist and I find this feature very useful. On Windows 7 I used the Windows Key to jump to the search bar within the Start Button a lot to find things and to launch programs and now if I am on the desktop I can do the same thing to jump to the Start Screen and begin my search in the same manner. Once you think of the Start Screen as the growth of the natural evolution of the contents of the Start Button than the new changes begin to make sense. The Start Screen becomes a more customizable palette for you to access many of the p[programs and utilities that were once found only on your Start Menu. But does Microsoft tell you this?

In a recent Redmond Channel Partner article by Kurt Mackie, many of the new networking features of Windows 8.1 were revealed and they are really sounding pretty interesting. Many of these new features will require adoption of the technology by other device manufacturers to be able to use these new networking functions and only time will tell if they will do this. If the do great but for now it is useless. Tethering will become a big function as well but again, there will be limited use of this function beyond turning your Windows phone into a hotspot I would think unless you are connecting your notebook wired into your internet connection and wanting to then piggy back your Wi-Fi devices on to it to have a sharable hotspot.Read Kurt’s article to find out more about some of the new BYOD Features and Security Features that are being shown at TechEd Conference last week.

Sophos and James Lyne

I was at the Sophos Partner Conference earlier this week and the final speaker of the last day before we were sent on our way was James Lyne. I hope that Sophos puts up yesterday’s talk because he was very interesting as well as entertaining. Here is a YouTube video I found of him giving a very similar talk that I thought you all would enjoy.

Aruba Networks Maps Out New Indoor Location-Based Services with Acquisition of Meridian

Press Release:

“Indoor GPS” Platform Will Offer Wayfinding and Context-Aware Advertising and Marketing for Public-Facing Enterprises

Sunnyvale, CA – May 16, 2013 – Aruba Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARUN), a leading provider of next-generation network access solutions for the mobile enterprise, today announced the acquisition of privately-held Meridian Apps, Inc. (“Meridian”). With this acquisition, Aruba Networks enables new location-based services by combining its unique, network-based contextual information about users, devices and applications with Meridian’s Wi-Fi based wayfinding solution for smartphones and tablets.

The Meridian enterprise software platform is targeted at public-facing enterprises, including casinos, hospitals, malls, stores, transport hubs, convention centers, museums and campuses, to help customers navigate these large, indoor facilities. Enterprises use the platform to create custom-branded mobile applications to provide turn-by-turn directions, highlight points of interests along the way, deliver context-awareness advertising and offer detailed analytics about users’ travel patterns and preferences.

“GPS-based wayfinding solutions are extraordinarily popular, but they don’t work well indoors,” said Keerti Melkote, founder and Chief Technology Officer at Aruba Networks. “We intend to address that gap by creating ‘indoor GPS’ using Aruba’s Wi-Fi infrastructure and Meridian’s wayfinding platform. The addition of Meridian will enable enterprises to tap into a wealth of network-driven information so that they can better engage their customers with more personalized services. This is a clear opportunity for Wi-Fi to become not only an enabling platform for BYOD, but now across industries, a revenue-producing, customer engagement platform for the business.”

To learn more about Meridian’s platform, visit www.meridianapps.com.

ZixCorp Email Encryption: Security Meets Simplicity

To ensure convenient email encryption for all recipients, ZixCorp automatically delivers encrypted email in the manner that works best for the end-user. Here is a brief video that explains how this product can benefit you.