CWA New Media: Our Blog

If we needed convincing, and I’m not sure we do anymore, this item from Robert Scoble’s blog confirms that news gathering and dissemination is no longer in the hands of the traditional broadcasts and networks.

“Plane crash in NYC captured on real-time web”

“…One of the first phots (as report on Silicon Alley Insider) was made by Janis Krums on his iPhone and posted to Twitter. He was on one of the first ferries to get to the scene, just minutes after the crash….”

It also reminds us that access to knowledge and information is dynamic and ever-changing.  This is a powerful new element to the learning landscape that, if harnessed by expert teachers, could add an X factor to student’s engagement in the learning process.

Large numbers can attract the attention.   These figures come from a BBC report, and it advises that this is a 41% growth since last year.    Included in the report was that 117.6 million people accessed the internet using their mobile phones last year, up 133% from 2007.

Students are the main strength of mobile internet users, the study said: 43.5% of them use their mobile phones to read online news, download music, check email and perform a variety of other tasks.

At the end of 2008, the number of net users in China, which has a population of 1.3 billion, was almost the same as the entire population of the United States.

wow!

It’s that time again – when everyone makes predictions.  CWA’s team will share theirs soon, and in the meantime we’ll borrow these.

I’ m  a subscriber to Read Write Web and it is a great place to keep in the loop  about new products, services and thinking.  A pre-Christmas topic stirred up some interesting debate about where learning is going, with the tantalising title “Education 2.0: Never Memorize Again”

With 2009 well and truly underway, it’s a jolt to realise that next year is 2010 . No doubt it will be a year of review and future gazing.  Reading up on the NZ Secondary Futures site might provide a head start as this 4-year initiative has been considering the future of learning, and has produced a range of interesting theme-based papers.

As usual, this year’s Animfx in Wellington was a fascinating mix of topics and people, reminding us that this city is packed full of creative talent.

Some of the sessions I attended had a big focus on 3D.  For example, guest speakers signalled likely growth in 3D movie releases as production and post-production technologies become more flexible and multiplexes begin to upgrade their projectors.     An intriguing bi-product of the upgrades is that some cinemas overseas are beginning to offer beamed-in, live presentations of 3D-enhanced events  – such as major sporting events and powerhouse opera performances.

So hang onto those 3D glasses!

It’s no secret that CWA is a company that loves connecting the dots between people, knowledge, information  and resources.   What may not be so well known is our ongoing commitment and work in ensuring that those who are making contributions to an open and connected learning world are acknowledged and have their rights communicated.

CWA’s long-standing relationship with New Zealand’s Council for The Humanities - and its associated initiative The Humanities Research Network - has recently enabled us to collaborate on bringing the Creative Commons Aotearoa New Zealand project (CCANZ) to life.   We worked with the team to communicate the arrival of New Zealand’s Creative Commons licences on the scene – participating in sector workshops earlier in the year, and building the newly launched CCANZ website

The international Creative Commons movement is about an internet-friendly, open copyright model and it is embraced in more than 40 countries.  Its generic licences are available to everyone, and New Zealand now has a set which reflects our legal jurisdiction.  New Zealand is among the first countries in the world to be using the new generation version 3 licence.

The Creative Commons Aotearoa site has been designed to enable our designers, artists, authors – in fact anyone who has something to share – to choose how they protect their work.  The site is the first stop for finding New Zealand’s Creative Commons contributions and includes case studies, information about the licences, and even a google map to help locate the contributions in cyberspace.

We like what Brian Opie, the Executive Director of The Council for The Humanities has to say about Creative Commons:

“Innovation societies depend upon open access to knowledge. Creative Commons is an important initiative, providing New Zealanders with a means of gaining recognition for their work while encouraging its use by others.”

I grew up with television as my window on the world. Now its the web. An example of the marvellous world of convergence is TED Talks – mini tv programmes, interesting topics, fascinating people – on the web, on tap and viewable when and where I want them.

I recently dropped into TED Talks to catch up on the status of the big and bold One Laptop Per Child project – two years on – with Nicholas Negroponte giving the update – you can view the video here.

I’m a convert to the iPhone having acquired one from eBay 6 months ago.   It’s the aesthetics of the device that won me over – good design is just so compelling and “must have”.   So I – along with the rest of the global fraternity of iPhone followers – now await with enthusiasm the distribution of the new 3G version, as discussed in this CNET  report.  Yum.

A topic that’s been bubbling up to the surface in the e-emedia world recently has been the cost of bottled water – not only in terms of the $2.00+ we’re willing to pay for it, but also its eco cost. This National Geographic site provides some interesting perspectives.