It's March again so that must mean that March Madness is in full swing. I'm not the biggest fan of basketball as a spectator sport, since I much prefer to play it than to watch it, but I love to read the human interest stories that lie behind sports.
What could be more interesting than a story about a nun coaching a men's basketball team? As I ran across the headline, At Xavier, Nun Works Out Players’ Academic Side, I pictured a wee, little nun in a black and white habit chasing after 6 ft tall basketball players while brandishing a ruler. It gave me a chuckle. It turns out that I was not too far off the mark. Here's the opening paragraph of the article:
"By some measures, the success of the Xavier men’s basketball team rests not with a sharpshooting guard or a ball-hawking forward. Rather, it rests largely with a 5-foot-4, white-haired 77-year-old nun not afraid to rap on dormitory doors or to call players before dawn to ask about missed classes or late assignments."
I don't know about you all, but with Spring in the air, my head is in the clouds and my mind feels free to wander. I end up surfing the web instead of working on my homework.
How are all my online friends doing? Anyone else have a good March Madness story to share?
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Friday, March 12, 2010
Icloud - Beautiful Cloud Computer
I found another iclouder who shares my views on the beauty of icloud.
Icloud - Beautiful Cloud Computer is the title of his blogpost. The blogger, Matt, writes:
"I found a new website for Cloud Computing. A virtual machine computer in the web browser and I find them to be amazing. iCloud has now become the most beautifully working, and most sharp and “sexy” looking Cloud computing website I have found.
iCloud gives you a initiative 3 GB of storage space for free, and that is quite a bit. You can put alot of songs on the drive, alot of photos and all. Download documents at school and upload them to the iCloud and then download them when you get home. Much more efficient then a USB flash drive as it gives you a fun visual experience."
It's nice to read about other people's experiences on icloud. I'd love to read yours!
Icloud - Beautiful Cloud Computer is the title of his blogpost. The blogger, Matt, writes:
"I found a new website for Cloud Computing. A virtual machine computer in the web browser and I find them to be amazing. iCloud has now become the most beautifully working, and most sharp and “sexy” looking Cloud computing website I have found.
iCloud gives you a initiative 3 GB of storage space for free, and that is quite a bit. You can put alot of songs on the drive, alot of photos and all. Download documents at school and upload them to the iCloud and then download them when you get home. Much more efficient then a USB flash drive as it gives you a fun visual experience."
It's nice to read about other people's experiences on icloud. I'd love to read yours!
Monday, March 8, 2010
Finally, cloud computing from a student's perspective
I've been doing a lot of research lately on cloud computing but can't say I have come across too many articles written from a student's perspective. Cloud Computing Education Taken to the Next Level addresses why a student benefits from cloud computing.
A student these days is dependent upon a computer. Whether it is their own laptop or the university's computer lab, every student needs access to a computer and can't always afford to keep up with all the costs and hassles associated with owning and maintaining a computer.
"What Benefits Does Cloud Computing Have on Education?
It is no wonder why students find themselves in a bind. Not only do they have to worry about student loans and purchasing books, but they also have to spend hundreds of dollars on computer software in order to complete their assignments and prevent their computer from failing on them. With this in mind, cloud computing education allows computer users to use desired applications without the necessity of purchasing the software, the frustration of installing it or the hassle of taking up computer memory with support software. Through different cloud platforms like Software as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and Platform as a Service, cloud computing is made possible.
Considering the money saved through these cloud applications, most speculate that the largest benefit that cloud computing has on education is its economic factor. Instead of purchasing software and infrastructures, renting prices are determined by how often and how many services are being used. All software and data are stored in a remote host which enables computers to free up space while also being accessible at any time for users. Considering the amount of resources that cloud computing offers, users can find just about any type of infrastructure, service or software that they need. This helps to cut costs for educational institutions or any type of organization or business that uses cloud computing since these organizations will no longer have to purchase expensive software for an individual or a limited small number of employees and students."
This article does a good job explaining why I use icloud. I let icloud take over all the hassles and I just get the benefits of a free online computer. Very economical for me. I'll probably need to upgrade to their premium account with 100GB eventually but I already know it will be worth every penny!
A student these days is dependent upon a computer. Whether it is their own laptop or the university's computer lab, every student needs access to a computer and can't always afford to keep up with all the costs and hassles associated with owning and maintaining a computer.
"What Benefits Does Cloud Computing Have on Education?
It is no wonder why students find themselves in a bind. Not only do they have to worry about student loans and purchasing books, but they also have to spend hundreds of dollars on computer software in order to complete their assignments and prevent their computer from failing on them. With this in mind, cloud computing education allows computer users to use desired applications without the necessity of purchasing the software, the frustration of installing it or the hassle of taking up computer memory with support software. Through different cloud platforms like Software as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and Platform as a Service, cloud computing is made possible.
Considering the money saved through these cloud applications, most speculate that the largest benefit that cloud computing has on education is its economic factor. Instead of purchasing software and infrastructures, renting prices are determined by how often and how many services are being used. All software and data are stored in a remote host which enables computers to free up space while also being accessible at any time for users. Considering the amount of resources that cloud computing offers, users can find just about any type of infrastructure, service or software that they need. This helps to cut costs for educational institutions or any type of organization or business that uses cloud computing since these organizations will no longer have to purchase expensive software for an individual or a limited small number of employees and students."
This article does a good job explaining why I use icloud. I let icloud take over all the hassles and I just get the benefits of a free online computer. Very economical for me. I'll probably need to upgrade to their premium account with 100GB eventually but I already know it will be worth every penny!
Success! Icloud video now up and running!
Woo Hoo! Thanks to a little help from a friend, my video is now successfully up and running on youtube. How happy do you think I am?
Yup, I'm on cloud 9!
Since that was my first published video, I'm open to constructive criticism to help me before I dive into making my next video.
Any other amateur videographers out there?
Yup, I'm on cloud 9!
Since that was my first published video, I'm open to constructive criticism to help me before I dive into making my next video.
Any other amateur videographers out there?
Help! Not able to upload my icloud video to youtube
Well, I said I was going to do it and I did. I put together my first ever video that I planned to publish on Youtube and it doesn't upload. AUGH!!!
As you all know, I am NOT a techie so I have no clue why it will not upload. I'm going to have to look into this further. The video quality is not the best but I like that it explains a bit about why I enjoy using icloud so much.
Please drop me a line if you have any ideas about uploading videos to youtube!
As you all know, I am NOT a techie so I have no clue why it will not upload. I'm going to have to look into this further. The video quality is not the best but I like that it explains a bit about why I enjoy using icloud so much.
Please drop me a line if you have any ideas about uploading videos to youtube!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
US to Reveal Rules on Internet Security
According to the following article, US to Reveal Rules on Internet Security, on Tuesday the Obama administration planned to declassify portions of the Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative, created during the Bush administration as a secret effort to harness the nation’s defensive and offensive strategies for protecting commercial and government networks.
I am a bit behind on my news, so it should be interesting to see just how much information IS declassified. I'll be happy to read about how the government "has a clear and workable strategy for protecting the nation’s computer systems". I hope I'll walk away feeling comforted and not scared by what I read seeing as how I wasn't sure how to take the following statement from Howard A. Schmidt, the industry cybersecurity veteran who was appointed in December as the White House Internet security adviser.
“I don’t think there will be any surprises,” he said. “Much of what has been going on has been what people would expect us to be doing.”
Has anyone had a chance to read the declassified information yet?
I am a bit behind on my news, so it should be interesting to see just how much information IS declassified. I'll be happy to read about how the government "has a clear and workable strategy for protecting the nation’s computer systems". I hope I'll walk away feeling comforted and not scared by what I read seeing as how I wasn't sure how to take the following statement from Howard A. Schmidt, the industry cybersecurity veteran who was appointed in December as the White House Internet security adviser.
“I don’t think there will be any surprises,” he said. “Much of what has been going on has been what people would expect us to be doing.”
Has anyone had a chance to read the declassified information yet?
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Having fun sharing photos from icloud
I've learned several ways to share photos from my albums on icloud.
I love this! As you all know, I am definitely looking forward to Spring and therefore have been keeping my eyes peeled for what I consider the first sign of Spring - Snowdrops (the flower). Anywho, I got a kick out of sharing a picture I took several years ago of snowdrops with some friends on icloud. It was so simple. At the bottom of every picture there are two icons to click. One says "Tweet this picture" (which I will discuss next) and the other says "Share photo". Easy peasy! I clicked on "Share photo" and then chose which friends of mine I wanted to share the photo with. While I was at it, I shared the photo on my personal profile for all of you iclouders that take a peek at my profile from time to time. Finally, I was given the opportunity to create a link to post the picture elsewhere like here on my blog for non-iclouders.
http://os.icloud.com/v1/links/12885161939/5536
Since that was so easy, I went ahead and tweeted a link to my picture on my twitter account. Take a look at my favorites tweets to the right.
Can you just imagine putting YOUR favorite pictures out there on the net with a few simple clicks?
I love this! As you all know, I am definitely looking forward to Spring and therefore have been keeping my eyes peeled for what I consider the first sign of Spring - Snowdrops (the flower). Anywho, I got a kick out of sharing a picture I took several years ago of snowdrops with some friends on icloud. It was so simple. At the bottom of every picture there are two icons to click. One says "Tweet this picture" (which I will discuss next) and the other says "Share photo". Easy peasy! I clicked on "Share photo" and then chose which friends of mine I wanted to share the photo with. While I was at it, I shared the photo on my personal profile for all of you iclouders that take a peek at my profile from time to time. Finally, I was given the opportunity to create a link to post the picture elsewhere like here on my blog for non-iclouders.
http://os.icloud.com/v1/links/12885161939/5536
Since that was so easy, I went ahead and tweeted a link to my picture on my twitter account. Take a look at my favorites tweets to the right.
Can you just imagine putting YOUR favorite pictures out there on the net with a few simple clicks?
Monday, March 1, 2010
blog.crappy.org
I've been thinking alot about what I'd like my upcoming icloud video to say, therefore, instead of recreating the wheel, I thought I'd look around and see what others have to say about icloud. At blog.crappy.org, (yes, that is the actual name of the blog!)they did an amazing job of explaining who, (people like you and me), and why one would use icloud. (Other than the fact that I've already told you it's great.)
"This type of free online computer is good for people who spend lots of time on the internet, browsing and chatting and want to avoid the pain of having viruses, spyware, malware. Since the operating system is contained in your browser and maintained by icloud you don’t need to worry as much about viruses or keeping your system up to date. You can also use it on any computer which makes it very handy if you need access to a familiar workspace from someone else’s computer."
In a more technical way it also states...
"Since the OS(operationg system) and its applications executes in the browser it also works offline. The Internet OS(operating system) boots itself (takes around 3 seconds) and runs in the primary memory of the computer. As soon as the browser is shut down, the OS disappears from the computer. Using XIOS/3 you never have to think about installing patches, updates or new versions of software again. The OS updates itself. You may also access your applications and documents from any Internet connected computer."
This gives me a little food for thought.
Any iclouders out there that want to fill me in on their favorite experiences on icloud?
"This type of free online computer is good for people who spend lots of time on the internet, browsing and chatting and want to avoid the pain of having viruses, spyware, malware. Since the operating system is contained in your browser and maintained by icloud you don’t need to worry as much about viruses or keeping your system up to date. You can also use it on any computer which makes it very handy if you need access to a familiar workspace from someone else’s computer."
In a more technical way it also states...
"Since the OS(operationg system) and its applications executes in the browser it also works offline. The Internet OS(operating system) boots itself (takes around 3 seconds) and runs in the primary memory of the computer. As soon as the browser is shut down, the OS disappears from the computer. Using XIOS/3 you never have to think about installing patches, updates or new versions of software again. The OS updates itself. You may also access your applications and documents from any Internet connected computer."
This gives me a little food for thought.
Any iclouders out there that want to fill me in on their favorite experiences on icloud?
Dear FB, Twitter - We want narrowcasting, not just broadcasting!
Ok, I copied the title from another person's blog, Bladam. This guy makes a good point.
How many of you all have wanted to limit who reads what on your Twitter, blog, Facebook etc...account? No, not you guys! I write my blog as a public stream of conciousness that I allow you all to choose to read or not as you will.
Ok, as Adam pointed out, it's not to exclude people but to write about something that is only interesting to a subset of your readers/friends/family. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to set up groups? One for family, one for close friends, one for classmates/workmates, etc...
It's nice to see that there are others who feel the same way.
What do you think about this?
How many of you all have wanted to limit who reads what on your Twitter, blog, Facebook etc...account? No, not you guys! I write my blog as a public stream of conciousness that I allow you all to choose to read or not as you will.
Ok, as Adam pointed out, it's not to exclude people but to write about something that is only interesting to a subset of your readers/friends/family. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to set up groups? One for family, one for close friends, one for classmates/workmates, etc...
It's nice to see that there are others who feel the same way.
What do you think about this?
A video about Icloud may be a better choice
It was painfull how bad my first attempt at a video was. (NO! I'm not showing it to you all.) I thought I'd talk a little about cloud computing but I have to admit that even I was bored to tears with the final cut.
Time to regroup and give it another try.
I figure if I do a video about a subject that is a lot more fun for everyone in general, you and I will be interesting in looking at it. So keep your fingers crossed for me. I'm going to be working on video number 2! (icloud- fun in the cloud)over the next week or so.
Time to regroup and give it another try.
I figure if I do a video about a subject that is a lot more fun for everyone in general, you and I will be interesting in looking at it. So keep your fingers crossed for me. I'm going to be working on video number 2! (icloud- fun in the cloud)over the next week or so.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
