Welcome to episode 246 (“Metaverse Rising”) of the EdTech Situation Room from January 19, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed new Apple rumors about Mac Pro computers and a “portless” iPhone 14. New metaverse patents by WalMart and Meta (the company formerly known as Facebook) as well as the enormous challenges of moderating social media and the emerging metaverse specifically were highlighted. The Democratic bill to address surveillance capitalism by “banning online surveillance advertising” was discussed. A new study showing we’re spending a third of of our waking hours looking at our smartphone screens, A really fast ARM processor for Chromebooks, and fast new HP Chromebooks were also highlighted. The health and wellness app “Welltory” and the recent cyberattack against Albuquerque Public Schools were topics rounding out the show. Geeks of the Week included Podchaser.com, the Chrome extension OneTab and the amazing “Moonrise Podcast” from the Washington Post. 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. Please sign up for our NEW SubStack newsletter to receive all our show links each week in your inbox, including links we are not able to discuss on edtechsr.substack.com. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 245 (“Roblox as Metaverse”) of the EdTech Situation Room from January 12, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed a recent explosive Guardian article about Roblox and child labor. Rumored Apple glasses which auto-adjust to a user’s prescription, Windows 11 post-install tips, a hotel chain which ransomware inspired to drop WindowsOS for ChromeOS, and a Google Street View mafia arrest story were also highlighted article topics. Improvements to Google File Stream for Google Drive, live translated captions in Google Meet, T-Mobile’s blocking of iCloud Private Relay, and the overwhelming seriousness of the LOG4J security vulneratibility were topics rounding out this weeks’ show. Geeks of the Week included the DD-WRT open source router firmware project, the Milkeshake web design app, and Infinite Painter software. 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. Please sign up for our NEW SubStack newsletter to receive all our show links each week in your inbox, including links we are not able to discuss on edtechsr.substack.com. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 244 (“Join our SubStack”) of the EdTech Situation Room from January 5, 2022, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the case of two California teachers secretly recorded talking about LGBTQ student outreach, who used student laptop monitoring software to identify prospective club members. The DuckDuckGo privacy desktop web browser and Americans’ distrust of social media companies were also discussed. On the Google front, the new capability to host up to 500 meeting participants in a Google Meet videoconference for paying Google Workspace customers, changes to the “Your News Update” for the Google Assistant, and the potential dangers (according to the EFF) of the Google Chrome “Manifest V3” user tracking standard were highlighted. UBlock Origin as a free ad-blocking extension for Chrome and FireFox was extolled / recommend, and Google’s announced “major improvements” to Android were explored. Lastly, some tales of algorithmic poor choices by automated podcast advertisement selection programs were discussed. Geeks of the week included MapCrunch, James Webb space telescope links, and a good (but troubling) podcast about fascism in America by Vox Conversations. 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. Please sign up for our NEW SubStack newsletter to receive all our show links each week in your inbox, including links we are not able to discuss on edtechsr.substack.com. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 243 (“Bad Idea Alexa”) of the EdTech Situation Room from December 29, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Alexa sharing a dangerous TikTok challenge, LastPass credential stuffing, and cybersecurity discoveries in 2021. Russia’s Google fine, Texas’ misguided social media law, and a New York Times editorial challenging us to figure out what to do with our amazingly powerful technology tools were also highlighted articles. Predictions for how Apple may transform the Macbook Air in 2022, a lawsuit from earlier in 2021 challenging Apple’s use of the word “buy” instead of “rent” in the iTunes store, and ways our cloud-based infrastructure model is broken were also discussed. A shout out to the Smarter Every Day video, “Is Your Privacy An Illusion? (Taking on Big Tech)” and a brief mention of a complex San Francisco Chronicle article about a secret recording of a teacher presentation were topics rounding out the show. (We’ll talk more about the last article next time.) Geeks of the Week included Coffitivity, Xway web design software, and Wes’ latest blog post on social media stories, Instagram Reels and Mojo Videos. 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. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 242 (“Birds Are Real”) of the EdTech Situation Room from December 15, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the Log4j security flaw, bluetooth security risks, Apple AirTags used in harmful ways, changes for LastPass as it becomes an independent company (sold by LogMeIn), Life360’s announced purchase of Tile and the possible privacy implications, and the fascinating (and admittedly false) Gen Z conspiracy theory “Birds Aren’t Real.” Adobe’s launch of “Creative Cloud Express” to replace Adobe Spark Post, Pixlr’s enhancements for stylus users, and a possible solution to solve the rural-urban digital divide were also discussed topics. The security (or insecurity) of a Chromebook post-ChromeOS updates, the “snooping detection” included in ChromeOS 98, and reasons to update to iOS 15.2 were security related articles rounding out this week’s show. Geeks of the Week included the National Geographic “Storytellers Summit” January 26-28, 2022, the Google Canvas web-based drawing platform (free!), and the New York Times Best of 2021 lists. 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. NOTE WE WILL NOT HAVE A SHOW ON DECEMBER 22, but will be back on December 29th. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 241 (“Twitter Upgrade Benefits”) of the EdTech Situation Room from December 8, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the monetization of user location data (including minors) by Life360 and other companies, Twitter’s new “Twitter Blue” upgrade service, and Instagram’s forthcoming chronological feed feature. The latest chapter in the Apple vs. Epic legal battle,Microsoft’s new Office UI, and a surprising discouragement by MS Windows to users downloading the Chrome browser. The story of Chinese superstar Peng Shuai’s courageous accusations of sexual assault against a high ranking government official was discussed, and her subsequent disappearance as part of a government campaign to silence her voice as well as others speaking out for women’s rights in China. Google’s foray into 3D telepresence and a backstory update on the Missouri governor’s mystifying accusation of a journalist as a hacker for viewing public webpage source code were discussed. The release of ChromeOS 96 and the developing “shadow war in space” between the United States, Russia and China were final topics in this week’s show. Geeks of the week included a great Scribble Maps tutorial from Richard Byrne, and an excellent Ezra Klein Show podcast about “superforecasters.” 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. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 240 (“Holiday Geek Gifts”) of the EdTech Situation Room from December 1, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach), Eric Langhorst (@elanghorst) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) shared “geek gift” ideas in advance of the 2021 holiday season. From charging devices to tracking tiles, from home office upgrades to security tools, we’ve got your holiday shopping needs for the geeks in your life covered! Check out our podcast shownotes for links to all referenced products and gift ideas. 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. Stay savvy and safe, and have a VERY happy holiday season!
Eric’s Geek of the Week: Clip to Comic App – create cartoon like versions of your photos, good for sharing class photos if you don’t have permission to post student faces
Welcome to episode 239 (“Debunking Security Myths”) of the EdTech Situation Room from November 17, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed the politics of international Facebook criticism, Facebook’s role in Ethiopia’s nascent civil war, and Facebook’s (Meta’s) lockdown of internal employee speech and criticism. Some good stories of social media sharing involving WordPress and cooking recipes, the removal of “dislike numbers” on YouTube, and an excellent recent article on “ending WikiPedia source shaming” were also discussed. Spotify’s new audiobook acquisition, rampant disinformation on podcasts and YouTube, and Jason’s endorsement of the “5 x 5 Podcast Network” were highlighted. Articles on the impact of the global chip shortage on supply chains for Christmas, U.S. critical infrastructure being the target of Iranian hackers, and an outstanding article debunking “security myths” rounded out this weeks’ show. Geeks of the Week included Earth View from Google Earth, the CellCase Vintage Retro 3.5mm Telephone Handset iOS Microphone, and the Secure Password Generator website. 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. Stay savvy and safe! Note we will NOT have a show (due to Thanksgiving holidays) on November 24th!
Welcome to episode 238 (“Chegg Extortion Revealed”) of the EdTech Situation Room from November 10, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed a story of extortion via the “homework help” website Chegg, the freemium future of Notability for iPadOS, and the social media lessons learned because of the (relatively) recent eruption of Kilauea in Hawaii. The benefits of social media powered news reading with Twitter lists, the implications of Facebook’s name change to “Meta,” YouTube’s decision to hide “dislike” video counts, and Google’s push for more 2 step verification on accounts were also highlighted. Plummeting Chromebook sales in advance of Black Friday sales, the question of whether a Chromebook with detachable screens are better than iPads, and the broadband provisions of the recently signed infrastructure bill in the US Congress were discussed. The official renaming of Google’s smart home initiative as “Google Home,” Microsoft’s Surface Laptop SE Chromebook competitor, and media literacy challenges thanks to the proliferation of fake local news sites and disinformation campaigns about the COVID19 death toll were the last topics for this show. Geeks of the Week included “Pet Portraits” from Google Arts & Culture and “YouTube Copyright School,” which amazingly just takes 4 minutes to attend. 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. Stay savvy and safe!
Welcome to episode 237 (“Fixing Social Media”) of the EdTech Situation Room from November 3, 2021, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wesley Fryer (@wfryer) discussed an amazing Wall Street Journal article featuring 12 Internet and cultural visionaries on “How to Fix Social Media.” Other articles on the social media / “tech correction” topic included “Facebook’s Lost Generation,” Facebook’s name change to “Meta,” the impact of Zuckerberg’s dream to transform the web into a “Ready Player One” VR playground. The financial impact of Apple’s iPhone privacy changes, Google’s policy to remove under-18 photos from search results, the debut of MacOS Monterey, and reasons you do NOT need the new MacBook Pro were also topics of discussion. The long awaited (for Jason) arrival of MacOS M1 processor native Google Drive for Desktop, the death of iMovie Theater, Google’s facilitation of work/life separation on Android devices, and Google Calendar’s option to schedule “Focus Time” were also highlighted. The arrival of Adobe PhotoShop on the web for Chromebook users, powerful, web-based image editing tools, and Geeks of the Week including a new NASA astronaut bio video, a “Parent University” slideshow about online influencers, and the “Mindful Schools” website as “geeks of the week” rounded out this weeks’ show. 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. Stay savvy and safe!
