Welcome to episode 214 (“Fair Use Victory”) of the EdTech Situation Room from April 7, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed a copyright/fair use victory for Google and software developers everywhere, Russia and China’s plans to host an in-person conference in June to further develop their plans for a joint lunar robotic base, and the departure of LG from the ranks of Android phone hardware manufacturers. Also in Google related news, the announced return of Google I/O (in virtual form) this May, new autosave features in Google Forms for enterprise education users, and a storage extension deadline for Google Workspace users were discussed topics. Apple’s forthcoming battery recalibration features in iOS 14.5 (for iPhone 11 and newer devices only,) the mechanics and carbon footprint of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) in the art world, and exciting connectivity / infrastructure / digital divide related announcements from T-Mobile and the Biden administration were also highlighted. On the social media front, Twitter’s “fleets” feature (announced back in November 2020,) Jack Dorsey’s infamous $2.9 million NFT sale, Twitter’s flirtation with subscription models, and the challenges posed to federal archival agencies by Twitter’s lifetime ban on President Trump’s past tweets were topics rounding out the show. Geeks of the Week included LineageOS (for older Android handset owners) and a mind-blowing article and podcast from the New York Times and “The Daily” on TikTok influencers and the global cosmetics industry. Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as our Facebook Live page via StreamYard.com, and compressed to a smaller video version (about 100MB) on AmazonS3 using Handbrake software. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights (normally) if you can at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links.
Welcome to episode 146 of the EdTech Situation Room from September 4, 2019, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the release of Android 10, Carl Hooker’s (@mrhooker) recent Twitter conversation and blog post on why banning smartphones in the classroom is a bad idea, and lessons we should all learn about security following the hack of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s account. Imposter sellers and FCC-illegal cell phone signal boosters on Amazon, Apple’s forthcoming September 10th event with rumors of a new iPhone, and the “deep fake” Zao iOS app craze in China were also highlighted. Microsoft’s October 2 Surface event and more warnings for Windows10 updates were topics rounding out the show. Geeks of the week included the amazing app “Genius Scan” for both Android and iOS, Wes’ free Flipboard magazine “iReading,” and Wonder Links shared on Wes’ new curriculum and lesson website for school. Our show was live streamed and archived simultaneously on YouTube Live as well as Facebook Live via StreamYard.com and Restream.io . Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us LIVE on Wednesday nights if you can (normally) at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific or 3 am UTC. All shownotes are available on http://edtechSR.com/links.
Screens are like heroin? Silicon Valley exec parents opt to put their kids in non-tech schools? I tackle these excuses and more in this post – “What Opportunities Are Lost When You Ban Technology” https://t.co/Idod43e6s1
Welcome to episode 99 of the EdTech Situation Room from June 19, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed advice for attendees of the upcoming 2018 ISTE Conference, the AI robot debater from IBM, Facebook and social media privacy settings, and poor home wifi router security. Wes shared a weekly dose of cyberattack doom and gloom (shout out to NPR Fresh Air and their recent interview with author David E. Sanger) and highlighted Apple’s decision to make it harder for border customs officials to quickly copy data off of traveler’s iPhones. Microsoft’s announced purchase of Flipgrid, the demise of freemium platforms Padlet and Tenmarks, and the emergence of “Minecraft Story Mode” remote control game/story videos on Netflix were also highlighted. Jason shared an update on the ZigZag Podcast mentioned last week, and also highlighted two Android apps: Android Messages (now includes a desktop version) and Datally to gain more insight into your smartphone use habits. (Or perhaps addictions). Geeks of the Week included the Adobe Spark App’s port to Android OS, and the “Caliphate Podcast” series from the New York Times. A shout out to Peggy George, the PhotoMyne app, and the Classroom 2.0 Live Bucket List Google Sheet of apps and websites from last Saturday’s show rounded out this 99th episode of EdTechSR. We will NOT have a show next week, but may squeeze in a July 4th show on a day other than Wednesday that week. Follow @edtechSR on Twitter for updates. Stay safe and stay saavy, friends!
Welcome to episode 95 of the EdTech Situation Room from May 16, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the recent vote in the U.S. Senate to preserve net neutrality, Android-related updates from Google promoting more frequent security patches by smartphone manufacturers / OEMs, and the forthcoming Oneplus 6 Smartphone. The U.S. President’s reversal of a trade ban on ZTE smartphones in the United States, updates to Gmail, Google Drive, and Google News, and imminently expected announcements about new Chromebooks rounded out the Android and Google-focused news articles in the show. Computer security firm Kaspersky’s decision to relocate from Russia to Switzerland amidst continued concerns over its integrity, NASA’s plan to send a drone helicopter to Mars, and the recent Toronto Declaration calling on algorithms to respect human rights were also discussed headlines. Under the title of “Technology Correction,” the release of over 3500 advertisements funded by Russians to influence the 2016 US Presidential election were discussed, along with articles highlighting how over fifty percent of those ads focused on race and many ads targeted U.S. teens. Cambridge Analytica, which has been in the news constantly in the Facebook / Russian election influence story, declared bankruptcy but has apparently reformed as the company Emerdata. Wes shared his pessimism that these kinds of election psyops are going to continue unabated in the upcoming mid-term and regular term elections in the United States. Microsoft’s work on a $400 tablet to compete with the iPad rounded out the discussed tech news. Geeks of the week included “The Most Useful Podcast in the World” by Popular Mechanics (from Jason), and two from Wes: a YouTube video of Sylvia Martinez INTED2018 Keynote Speech, “The Maker Movement” and the July 15-20, 2018 Summer Institute in Digital Literacy. Check out our shownotes for links to all these articles and referenced resources, and please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates. Stay safe and stay savvy!
Welcome to episode 94 of the EdTech Situation Room from May 9, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week newly minted Ph.D. Dr. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Dr. Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed lots of news from the Google IO developer’s conference, as well as news from the Microsoft Build Conference. The continued march of artificial intelligence is evident in the forthcoming release of Google Duplex, which was demonstrated at Google IO and allows your Google Assistant to make phone calls to real people and book appointments for things like haircuts and restaurant reservations. Google’s new Android P operating system will focus on wellness and greater awareness of screentime to promote healthy living. They also discussed Facebook’s “Sauron Alert” feature for employees, now called “Security Watchdog,” which is not available publicly but warns when someone is using content or personal information in unauthorized ways on the platform. Microsoft’s announcements for WindowsOS features which integrate with both Android phones as well as iPhones were discussed, as well as their efforts to bring machine learning benefits to all their applications. The use of AI technologies to potentially open up access to the Vatican’s Secret Library was highlighted, along with an older article (September 2017) from “The Conversation” about how software licensing restrictions affecting objects we purchase for our homes is bringing a property rights / intellectual property rights situation into our lives which is regressive and feudal in nature. Geeks of the week included open source software for DVD ripping (Handbrake) and YouTube video downloading (y2mate), as well as software for identifying and installing optimal Windows OS drivers on older computer systems (Snappy Driver Installer). Check out our shownotes for links to all referenced resources, and links to articles we didn’t have time to discuss in this week’s show on edtechSR.com/links. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates, and join us live weekly on Wednesday nights at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific.
Welcome to episode 87 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 28, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed news from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, net neutrality debate in the U.S. Congress, the forthcoming freemium option in Microsoft Teams, and new Chromebooks from Lenovo. Additional topics included Facebook’s facial recognition features, outlier conspiracy theories focusing on the recent Florida school shooting fueled by social media, and YouTube’s reinvigorated policing of videos required to adhere to community guidelines. Challenges for Android OS security, a possible replacement of Android OS by Google (with Flutter), and the prevalence of “credential stuffing” with online accounts rounded out the show’s main topics. Geeks of the week included a new Google MOOC focusing on AI and machine learning, compatibility of Mac Magic trackpads with Chromebooks, and the free Google Docs Add-On “OrangeSlice: Teacher Rubric.” Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR for updates on our show. Thanks for viewing / listening!
Welcome to episode 85 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 7, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Chrome blocking autoplay videos, Smartwatch privacy issues, amazing LIDAR discoveries in Guatemalan jungles, work by the Center for Humane Technology, and changing norms with Smartphone memory capacity. Additional topics included Apple’s HomePod release and Apple’s AI lag behind Google and Amazon, new smart glasses from Intel, Best Buy discontinuing CD sales, expected impacts of 5G cellular wireless, and recommendations for home mesh routers. Geeks of the week included the Common Voice Project by Mozilla (from Wes) and “Android Lite” apps for situations with poor connectivity (Jason). Note we will NOT have a show next week on February 14th / Valentine’s Day, but will return on our regular schedule February 21st, Check out all our shownotes (including articles we did not have time to discuss this week) on http://edtechSR.com – Stay safe and stay savvy, friends!
Welcome to episode 75 of the EdTech Situation Room from November 29, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed rumors on other edtech podcasts that they are “a bit nerdy,” recent Apple security issues with the default root user account, and YouTube with respect to protecting kids and restricting content. Additional topics included the state of email in 2017 and useful apps / email workflow strategies, the amazingly fast new FireFox browser from Mozilla, exciting new announcements for more Android apps on Chromebooks, and the continued march of automation via AI, especially involving trucking. Geeks of the week included the upcoming December 15-31 “Ditch that Textook Digital Summit” (from Wes) and Google Voice (from Jason.) Refer to our podcast shownotes for all referenced news articles and links. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR to stay updated, and join us LIVE for a future show at 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain most weeks on Wednesday night. Check all our shownotes on http://edtechSR.com/links
iReading: Automation could kill 73 million U.S. jobs by 2030 https://t.co/60c1ttlIcG by @USATODAY via @techsavvyteach#edtechSR (This issue is the canary in the coalmine when it comes to the labor force in the United States. We need to prepare for this NOW!) #OklaEd
Welcome to episode 71 of the EdTech Situation Room from October 25, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Microsoft’s play to offer its universe of applications (including the Edge web browser and the Cortana assistant) on Android phones, upgrade woes with iOS 11, and Coda’s efforts to create a new document format merging word processing documents and spreadsheets. Security articles included a shout out to Nicole Perlroth’s September 11th interview on cybersecurity on the World Affairs Council podcast, Facebook security issues and the Facebook privacy checkup, and new attacks including “BadRabbit ransomware” and “The Reaper Botnet.” Jason Snell’s recent article hoping for / predicting a forthcoming Mac Mini update, the incredible learning speed and accomplishments of AlphaGo Zero, SeeSaw’s addition of “Activities” to its classroom app, and new/updated clear solar cells were also discussed. Jason finished out the week’s articles talking about “containers on Chromebooks.” Geeks of the week included discounted Amazon Echos on Woot, the BBEDIT text editor for batch-editing documents, and Storyspheres from Google. Please follow us on Twitter @edtechSR to stay updated, and join us LIVE for a future show at 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain. Check all our shownotes on http://edtechSR.com/links
Welcome to episode 64 of the EdTech Situation Room from September 6, 2017, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed rumors of Apple’s September 12th event and expected iPhone updates, enhanced Android app performance on Chromebooks, Gimlet Media’s significant funding round supporting podcasting, and the recent NY Times article about ethics and teacher product promotion. Additional topics addressed included Apple’s newly announced support for network neutrality, pacemakers at risk for hacks, and social media file vulnerabilities for hackers to exploit. Geeks of the week included Manoush Zomorodi’s new book, “Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self,” Google File Stream for G-Suite, Plow for socially filtered web news, and Hop as a new/transformative email client. Check out the podcast shownotes for links to a post about that incident and all the referenced articles / resources from the show. Follow us on Twitter @edtechSR to stay up to date about upcoming shows. Please try to join us LIVE online if you can, normally on Wednesday nights at 10 pm Eastern / 9 pm Central / 8 pm Mountain / 7 pm Pacific.
