Greener computing, greener planet
Generally, now that the economy is down the pan the growing consensus is that environmental issues are less of a priority until that situation can be improved. Still, there are a number of small things that individual consumer can do right now to start making a difference – one Watt at a time:
Change powersaving settings to turn your screen off sooner and give your computer a chance to sleep
- If you are not using it then switch it off and or suspend/hibernate it.
- If it is off then unplug it as it will still draw power otherwise.
- Change your operating system’s power saving settings, most computers are tuned for performance out of the box with no regard for power.
- If you are thinking of getting a new computer just because your old one is getting slow or the software on it is broken then think whether it is the computer that is the real problem.
- If you do want a new computer, get something more energy efficient – my eeepc is currently drawing only 12w in active use.
I’m sure that I will not have been able to cover everything in this short post so if you have any tips of your own please comment.
Finally here is a short video from Google and the power down the planet campaign about how you can simply cut down your power usage (sorry if you are unable to view this at school due to the county’s Internet access policies 
):
Coursework, looking back and the new web
A section of my coursework
Now the deadline for the IT coursework has finally passed, many are trying to forget it as quickly as possible – after all there is nothing we can do now so it is about time to start focusing on other things. On the other hand sometimes it is worth looking back at what we have done and considering the technologies we used over the duration of a project and what how the technological landscape has changes.
Just think about it, since we first started the project:
- The first email using US presedent has been elected.
- After everyone predicted Vista would crash and burn, it did exactly that (but in a profitable way).
- The biggest anti-piracy case ever has taken place (and there is still no justice).
- Facebook has been redesigned twice (strangely everyone hated it both times).
- The economy has gone Kaboom (this was worrying profitable as well).
- Everyone has started talking about ‘the cloud’.
- Scientists have decided we are all doomed thanks to swine flue/bird flue/meteorites/black holes/the end of the universe/global warming/our own stupidity.
- Netbooks have taken 1% of the computer market.
- So has Linux.
In short everything is different yet everything is fundermentally the same, we don’t all have hover cars and computers certainly don’t feel faster than they did this time in 2005. Whilst we may have better hardware out demands have increased even more and the man who predicted noone would ever need more than 20MB of RAM masterminded the release of an opperating system which requires 2GB of the stuff 
. My point is not to point the finger but rather to highlight how rapidly everything can change, without anyone noticing at all. Although we might get there differently we are fundementally heading in the same direction.
The internet can be considered as a case in point for this, for its humble conception as a tool used by scientists to exchange info complicated concepts which noone understood it has evolved into the universal method of communication through by anyone can send picture of cats speaking uninteligably. Currently the very technologies which shape the internet as we perceive it are being shaped with new draft specifications for (X)HTML5, CSS3 and XHTML2. In a decades time when Internet Explorer finally gets arround to supporting them we can truely expect the next generation of websites, intergrating beautiful design which complete semantic accessibility reaching toward an internet which can been understood as well by computers as by humans. This point may be pivotal in the future of technology as we will be able to find anything; as good as Google is now, it is only scratching the iceburg. I have no idea how far this will streach but one thing is for sure it will change everything… and still noone will notice.
Make the perfect home server… out of junk
These days with everyone in the house having (multiple) desktops, laptops and/or netbooks, the appeal of a common household server becomes clear. Many people have been talking of the possibility of getting new, highend Windows Home Server machines such as this nice one which james built. But why spend so much on a new machine with a cut down version of what is already a second rate server OS when you could rig up an old machine to provide a more capable, more reliable and more secure server at completely no cost. Whilst new machines are becoming increasingly cheap, there is always something to be gained from putting an older one to good use.
Ubuntu Server is a fully powered, Linux server which is very easy to deploy with much more advanced capabilities than other home server solutions such as remote SSH access, SVN and other versioning servers for programmers, the ubiquitous apache web server for if you want to gain an online presence and PHP support so that you can integrate online applications and CMS such as WordPress with MySQL databases. On top of this it will support file sharing for Windows, Linux and OSX via Samba and provide network printing. In short it can do almost on a old computer everything that a much more expensive new Windows server device whilst providing the capabilities of a top end commercial server which go above and beyond what would be possible with such consumer level devices.
You can download a CD for installing on any computer newer than about 1998-2000 so whether it is the relatively new computer you had to write off when Vista was released or the old neolithic clanger which has been lying around in the attic, it can now be the perfect home server.
Desktop or server:
Ubuntu comes in two versions, Ubuntu Server which provide a ready made server environment with to option to choose server components on install and no graphical interface wasting space or resources or Ubuntu Desktop, a fully customizable Desktop operating system on which you can install server component later. Which you choose depends on how you want to use the machine; if you want it to still usable as a desktop machine then Ubuntu Desktop can offer server functionality on top of this but if you want to get the maximum power out of your machine as a dedicated server, controlled remotely then Ubuntu Server is the option to go for.
Uses of your home server
Whilst there are many potential uses of a home server here are some of my favorites:
- Web page testing - When designing websites, especially those which rely on server side scripting and databases, it is often helpful to have your own server to test out your work.
- Bittorrent client - If you want to download a lot of content legally available via bittorrent (e.g. creative commons and public domain music) then you can set up your server to download it for you. As it is always on and you do not have to access it directly then it can be a much easier solution.
- File/printer sharing - You can do what I do and have a computer connected to your printer and with some shared folders that anyone on your local network can access so that they do not need to get up in order to print/access the photos.
- Much much more… Really, the thing I love about computers is that the possibilities can be potentially endless. With a general purpose, high end server like apache combined with popular scripting languages like php many people have built great online applications that you can easily make use of to create the ideal solution.
A load of old waffle
Created using Wordle.net
Ever get the fealing that you are repeating yourself? Now you can know for sure with wordle.net, a cool java based service which can analyse a text or a blog and make very nice word clouds sizing words based on how frequently they appear.
Tom’s revision podcast – episode 2
After episode 1 of my podcast, told myself that it was probably the last as well as the first, but never the less here I am, intrepidly typing the prefix into another attempt to make something which will hopefully be of some use. The focus of this episode is pretty much the same as the last, what revision resources can you use to improve your absorption and retention of knowledge whilst briefly coming back to the much beloved mindmap.
This episode I have elected not to bother editing it, just record then publish the first take as to err is human and I can’t be bothered to spend half an hour getting everything into place. This episode was created on my eeePC once again but this time using cheese, the simple webcam program which comes with Ubuntu.
Enjoy…
Pivot, fame and glory
A sample animation in pivot
Recently the proliferation of pivot, a free application for creating stick-figure animations, has created quite a buzz throughout the school, with increasingly ambitiously ingenious work being created by students.
Now, finally, you have the chance to submit your work to the first Langtree Pivot competition in which everyone can get their master pieces recognized (and at the end of it you could get the prestigious title of ‘King (or Queen) of pivot’). So what are you waiting for? – Check out Alistair’s blog to enter:
http://igglepiggle.langtreeshout.org/2009/04/27/pivot-competition/
Tom’s Revision Podcast
I have attempted to create a basic video podcast containing revision tips and information about mindmaps, here it is:
Right, now that you have (I hope) watched it I just want to go into a little detail about how I made it and how you can do the same using Langtree Shout, video upload sites (YouTube is often considered ubiquitous in this field but there are many alternatives which often have unique features and moreover are not blocked in UK schools).
Firstly, for making the video I used the built in Webcam and stereo mic on my laptop – whilst alone the mic provides good sound quality, when recording video at the same time this is degraded as noise creeps in and video and audio go out of sync. In short if you have to option use a stand alone video recorder or if your camera is good enough use that – I will probably be using my camera if I make any more. I did not do much editing for the video but what I did was with Kdenlive, an excellent video editor for Linux (if you are using Windows you will have to make do with Movie Maker). The music is a free track from the Smashing Pumpkins, you can find loads of free (and thus redistributable) music on jamendo.org; sadly due to the state of copyright law you are not just able to use any old track ripped off CD.
Next need to export it into a web ready format (not .wmv or .dv, .mp4, or .mov ) you can upload it to any video sharing site such as vimeo or blip.tv (this is the one I used) – they are both great services and will allow you to easily upload and share you video. The upload may take a while depending on your connection speed.
Now your video is uploaded and viewable by the world (depending on the sharing settings you determine), you just need to copy & paste the embedding code into the HTML view the post editor your blog or type {{vimeo>Video ID}} for vimeo and {{blip.tv>Video ID}} for blip.tv on the Wiki.
Happy recording
Creating first class learning resources with online apps
Recently there has been quite a lot of buzz around online apps such as Google Docs and Zoho which allow you to do things with just an internet connection and a web browser which would have previously required installing desktop software – something which is simply not an option on many school networks.
In this post I want to focus on 3 in particular, SlideRocket, Buzzword and MindMeister which I have found useful in my revision homework and preparing my speaking and listening as they not only allow could to do the same stuff which you would normally do but online; they allow you to create work more uniquely, more stylishly and more efficiently than has ever been possible before. And of course they are also all free (although some do have premium versions).
SlideRocket
SlideRocket is a presentation app with a difference, it comes with a wide variety of stunning effects, a beautiful interface, some really spiffy templates and basically everything you need to make an outstanding, interactive presentation.
SlideRocket provides so many tools whilst being extremely easy to use, it is the perfect program for creating a presentation which truly unique; not just another tired PowerPoint. SlideRocket also allows you to just send a link to let people view your presentations and embed them in your own websites, making a process which would be cumbersome with traditonal software absolutly effortless.
You can signup at http://sliderocket.com or see it in action below via their sample presentation:
Buzzword
My Tessay plan in Buzzword
Adobe is a company synonymous with style, this is something which is really apparent in Buzzword and all of their acrobat.com products. Buzzword is a online word processor which is designed to look beautify whilst producing beautiful documents, something it not only succeeds at but does so without sacrificing any functionality in the process.
With Buzzword you get a selection of stunning fonts, styles and useful collaboration features within a great interface to make whatever you are writing a pleasure to look at.
MindMeister
As is probably evident from the name, MindMeister specialises in producing mindmaps – probably the most useful tools for revision ever invented. MindMeister simply makes it really easy for you to create complex mindmaps and for multiple students to collaborate on one mindmap, just like in a Wiki.
You can access it at mindmeister.com
My English work in MindMeister
Easy comment uploads
Hi,
easy-comment-uploads is my first wordpress plugin, it is designed to allow users to upload files and images in their comments so they can very easily have a way of submitting content you can make your blog more collaborative and dynamic. I designed it for Langtree Shout so students could simply submit their work or images so that teachers or indeed other students can access it as easily as possible.
So – how does the plugin work? Here is a step by step guide: