Long: Workshop Notes:"Multimedia Sandbox" Fred D'Ignazio from

[JCONSTANT@UMASSD.EDU]

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                                Best wishes,
                                jconstant@umassd.edu
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MSLMA Fall Conference              NOVEMBER, 1995
Sunday Seminar: The Media Center as Multimedia Sandbox
4 Hour Presentation by  Fred Dignazio, President of Multimedia Classrooms,
 Inc.
============================================================
PART ONE

Mr. D'Ignazio has a background as a children's book writer. He is associate
editor of the Futurist magazine and has a regular column in Computing Teacher.

Kinds of Questions Addressed in this Seminar:
     -Big Picture: Social implications
     -MEdium Picture: Local implementation at district and school
level...catalysts for change
     -Small PIcture: Hardware questions

Publishing and the Library Media Center:
     We need to rethink the role of the library media center. Fred elaborates
on this in articles he has published and made available online at the FIRN
WEBSITE.  Some of these articles were made available to conference
 participants as handouts in the following journals:

      D'Ignazio, Fred. "Information Dirt Roads, Bike Paths, and  HIking
Trails" in The Computing Teacher.  v22 no26. March, 1995

     D'Ignazio, Fred. "A Multimedia Publishing Center From Scratch and
Scavenge" in Technology Connection. v2 no5, September, 1995


To locate Fred's articles, go to the FIRN WEBSITE and look  under the menu
for Learning and Leading With Technology, an online telecommunications
course developed by Mr. D'Ignazio.


Hardware Issues:

Don't purchase technology the way you purchase an appliance. Technology by
itself won't solve your problems. Don't sink all your money into one
technology, because they are changing so fast. You can't install technology.
We need to respect it as a habitat.We really need to teach coping skills. We
need to teach students how to put things together, and how to work as a team.
Try to use what technology  we do have to accomplish these goals. We can be
on the cutting edge with a minimum of equipment. We need to work on staff
collaboration. As technological demands on library media center increase, we
will need the help of teachers, because we can't do everything alone.  Fred
refers us to the September, 1995 issue of Technology Connection, the magzine
for school media and technology specialists.
In this issue, his article, "Create a Multimedia Publishing Center From
Scratch and Scavenge" tells us how to organize a multimedia club and train
students to help us with technology.Students learn problem-solving and
cooperation skills, and there is a transformation in their attitudes. HE
includes a sample student contract and the list of items for the  multimedia
workstation starter kit that was  included as an insert in the book Fred had
for sale. More about the book later.)


Fred showed us some video clips from his videoconference and
telecommunications based course. His concept of the ONe Minute Guru can be
explored further by examining the course syllabus online at the FIRN Website.
There are over 300 pages of materials online. Advice from Fred: Retire your
own guru hat, because every child can become a one-minute guru. The 20th
century is the century of the guru. The 21st century will be the century of
 the web, because the pace of knowledge increase, and the rapidity of
obsolescence prevent us from keeping up as individuals. We need to create a
web of humankind, a web of collaborative intelligence and imagination.In the
21st century, we will need Total Quality Mangement in which there are teams,
and sharing. In schools the teaming picture will include students as teacher
apprentices who share skills.

In Fred's One MInute Guru tape overview, the process of team building is the
aim of education. He stresses the need for
Research/Authoring/Publishing Centers in which there is a sharing of ideas,
 a pooling of resources,media, etc, and a buddy system.

     Research Components Can Include the Following Materials and Tools:
          -Computers
          -Vidoe Camcorders
          -Tapes and Microphones
          -CDROM Players and Disks
          -Laser Disks
          -Video Digitizers (ie Computer Eyes, etc.)
          -Online resources via a modem to the WWW
          -Blank disks, video cassettes, audio cassettes

     Authoring and PUblishing  Components Can Include the Following:
          -student plans, scripts, ideas, timelines, etc.
          -Use of above tools to create own radio or tv  program
          -Use of word processing and multimedia scrapbook program to select
          -materials to include in student produced audio, video, hypercard
          stack, etc.
          (My notes are sketchy for this part. IF you donwload Fred's article,
"The Active Media Center" from the FIRN Website, it elaborates on this idea. )

The main idea is that all these options for authoring and presenting lend
themselves to different student learning styles, and help promote greater
student involvment.


     NOTE: EMAIL FROM FRED
   l November 15, 1995 about his new website:
     This address is slightly different from the one the card given out at
     the conference:
                       http://www.tcimet.net/mmclass

     THIS SITE LINKS YOU DIRECTLY TO FRED'S FIRN GOPHER PAGES THAT CONTAIN
     HIS ARTICLES AND OTHER ONLINE INFORMATION.Fred would like feedback
     from us about what he could feature that might be more useful to
     teachers and librarians.

CABLEOLOGY:
Fred then discussed different kinds of cables to connect different kinds of
equipment in order to create multimedia on a shoestring. He has written two
books which give practical strategies for doing this. They were on sale at
the conference, but copies were sold out when I tried to puchase them. Here
is the information on the books and how to obtain them:


     D'Ignazio, Fred. Multimedia on a Shoestring. Okemo
MI:Multimedia Classrooms, Inc. no date                      available
(Gives nuts and bolts of hardware)
                              $9.95 shipped

     D'Ignazio, Fred. Multimedia Cookbook.
          Okemo MI:Multimedia Classrooms, Inc.  no date available
          (Tells how to use media as a launch pad for student and
           teacher explorers. This is a building
          change guide with long term objectives.Use of
          multimedia clubs and stress on helping, service
          oriented model.)
                              $16.95 shipped

In his section on  "cableology", Fred discusses the three different types of
cables:
        Level 3---->dangerous: electrical cables, hazardous to
people, not the focus of this workshop
        Level 2---->data cables: safe for kids, but dangerous
for equipment, not the focus of this workshop

         Level 3---->live cables  SAFE to use. These are focus
                     patch cables     of this workshop. We use
                     dub cables       them with "magic adapters"
                     rca cables
                     phone cables


In his student and teacher explorers workshops, Fred gives a basic cable
starter kit to participants, and an assigned task. He lets them discover on
their own how they can combine and use the cables and equipment. It is an
exercise in team problem solving which results in a multimedia presentation
 or demonstration project.

Ideas FRom Fred:
     -Scavenge strategy
     -MEdia construction
     =Grouping Boxes, Categoriz


CATEGORIZING

     Research Component can include a number of input devices.
      Reading is one of them

     Authoring Component can include an number of techniques.
     Writing is one of them.

     Publishing Component can include text, sound clips,  video clips, etc.
America Online midi files are free sound clips available online for AOL
subscribers.
     There is also a program called Orchestra in a Box,  which contains a
     midi box of sound clips that students  can use.


PRESENTATION TOOLS (Output devices)
To connect audio visual components and computer components, Fred gave us
handouts on the following useful tools. I didn't get all of the handouts, but
many of the products are advertised in Macwarehouse Catalog and PCWarehouse
Catalog.  Prices vary for these. Most are under $400.00:

     Presenter Plus,  a TV/Video Converter Box. (lets you      display
computer images on a video monitor for large      group viewing.)

     Telebox

     Televeyes Plus from Digital Vision Co. (With a blank      tape in your
vcr, this device will let you input data      from the computer into your
 vcr. The advantage here,      is that students can take home a video of
their computer work to show parents. Although many homes  don't have
computers, most do have vcrs!

     Fred's students have also experimented with using      their walkman
headsets as improvised microphones. They      were able to turn the walkman
into an improvised tape      recorder. (Not sure if they also used other
 cables to  do this or not.)

COMPUTER COMPATIBILITY FOR OUTPUT PURPOSES:

OUtput ports are OK on most computers, except the MAC LC. (I believe you have
to install a video serial card or something like it into an LC.)  With most
computers, all you need is a standard video output, 15 pin jack that connects
to the converter box for sending computer output data to the vcr.

NOTE: IF YOU HAVE AN OLD APPLE II, YOU DON'T NEED A CONVERTER BOX. APPLE II'S,
IIE'S AND IIGS"S HAVE BUILT-IN RGB VIDEO PORTS FOR COMPUTER OUTPUT TO THE VCR
OR COMPUTER MONITOR.  You need an RCA cable that will fit in the monochrome
or color monitor output jack and connect to the tv monitor or vcr input jack.
Fred discusses this and other cables in his book, Multimedia on a Shoestring.

(My notes from my Apple IIGS Manual:On the IIGS, the 40 column text mode, and
all four graphics modes (low res, high res, double high res, and super high
res) can be displayed in either color or monochrome on either a tv or or a
monitor.

Fred's students have also used Sony Walkman tapes as OUTPUT to VCR! )  All
old computers have built-in video out. The audio out is already converted.
You can use either a 1/4, 1/8 or an RCA cable to connect one component to the
other.

FRED'S MAGIC CALBLES

Media
     Activities
          Generate
               Involvement and
                         Creativity

This concluded the first two hours of the seminar.
============================================================PART 2

Fred quoted a recent Business Week article that referred to technology in
terms of "gumball machines". The convergence of telephone lines, computers
and multimedia will yield lower costs which will make technology more common.
We need to think of ourselves as learners. Those of us with Internet access
 can read many of Fred D'Ignazio's articles on the FIRN gopher or websites.

Two multimedia authoring programs that also let you create an HTML file
and/or WEB page.The HTML file  can be sent online to another site, or read
online using a browser such as Netscape or Mosaic are:

FOR the IBM                        FOR  The MAC
     |                                  |
     V                                  V
Webster                            Adobe Page  Mill

Internet in a Box

Webmaster




The following multimedia programs allow rough drafts to be composed for
publication on the World Wide Web:

FOR THE IBM                        FOR THE MAC
     |                                  |
     V                                  V

Linkway LIve                       Hyperstudio

Multimedia Scrapbook

(also Hyperstudio, soon)


In Webster, objects can also be used.(see handout given at conference.)
We can create text fields. Highlighted text also has link buttons.

TCIP Connections in Schools:
OVer 20 thousand schools in country to get TCIP connection in 1996.  Every
school should have it.

CABLE TV FOR MODEM:
Cable companies are selling cable internet modem connections to homes for
$39.00/month

GETTING NETSCAPE:
You can download it free from Internet. If you belong to the Boston Computer
Society, they can provide it to you. If you are subscribed to a commercial
provider such as America Online or Compuserve, they will give you a copy.IF
 you buy it for $25.00, you are entitled to have updates mailed to you.

BOOKMARK HOT LISTS:
Experienced users of World Wide Web will often share their bookmark hot lists
of interesting Internet sites with you.

STARTER KITS:
YOu can get a browser for $30.00 in the Internet for Dummies Kit. It contains
free software ina book.

GETTING ONLINE
You still need to sign up with an online provider. IF you don't have an
 account with MEOL, or an account with a local university, you can find local
Internet Providers in your community, or you can sign up with a national
provider such as America Online, Prodigy, etc. The new AOL has a built-in
Web browser (NEtscape, Mosaic) which tries to integrate the Internet and its
services with AOL menu. Many of the new computers come with built-in  modem's,
cd rom drives, and telecommunications software. Global NEt and Sprint Net
are examples.(I need to find out more about these two.)


REAL TIME  VS  PAPER TIME

Fred advocates that kids in his multimedia clubs  sign a contract stating
that they will share responsibilities and knowledge with others and be polite,
considerate
 and courteous.

HYPERSTUDIO DEMONSTRATION on the MAC

If  you use the Command/Shift/3 command to save a screen image to a PICT file,
that file can be later opened with Hyperstudio. The new Hyperstudio 3.0 is a
hybrid which combines telecommunications with multimedia. It lets you do FTP
from within Hyperstudio. It also lets you do multimedia footnotes.  At
Michigan State, the WORLD'S LARGEST VOICE LIBRARY is available via the
website:
                    WWW.MSU.EDU

Once there, go to the EGRobert Vincent Voice Library. This library was begun by
Edison and includes sound testimony by former slaves, the original bugle call
that led the charge of the light brigade, and sounds from the last 100 years!
You can use Hyperstudio to get these.  Use Web Browser to get sounds such as
"Big Ben" at the turn of the century. You need to download them by ftp.

MEMORY REQUIREMENTS:
You need a minimum of 8 Megabytes of internal memory. Some of the newer
machines have hard drives of  500 megabytes and some have 1 Gygabyte. Since
sound and picture files are memory intensive, getting adequate hard drive
storage capacity will be important when purchasing new equipment.


INTERNET RADIO:

Internet radio is piped live  into the computer without storing it.
    The website is at   http://realaudio.com/

A free radio player can be obtained from ABC, Turner Broadcasting,
Smithsonian, and/or National Public Radio. You can download the player for
your pc or make phone calls for it. In order to use the radio player, you do
need to have a web browser or use one that is already on a commercial service
such as AOL. You can also get radio archives in the same way.

Note: IF you can connect an ouput jack from your computer to a tape recorder or
vcr, you can record the radio output as it is being broacast.

A 500.00 WEB COMPUTER IS IN THE WORKS. IT IS STILL IN THE PLANNING STAGES.



WEBSTER PROGRAM FOR THE IBM

It can create pages for the web, but you still need to have access to a web
site or web server such as MEOL, AOL, etc.

There has been a tremendous growth of Internet SErvice Providers. Schools
should partner with local business service providers.

DEMONSTRATION OF AMERICA ONLINE WEB BROWSER

AOL subscribers can click on the Web Browser Button, or can type in the
Keyword, Internet. Fred demonstrated locators or search engines that help you
to find interesting sites. Some of these are: Lycos.com
              Webcrawler
              Yahoo.com
              Excite  (Someone in the audience said this was available at
Bridgewater State Colleg's new Moakley Center for Technological Applications)


ONLINE INTERNET COURSES
Some of the online tutorials mentioned by Fred:
     -Bck2skl     a listserve discussion group for librarians)

     -LM_NET archives (30 lessons by Ellen Chamberlain)

     -Patrick Crispen's ROADMAP course that is emailed to you

     --ICONNECT  the AASL gopher site that has lessons and  tips


Mention was made of the NYNEX program to provide ISDN 128K lines at
$69.00/month flat fee for schools to 1,500 sites. The future will be an era
of virtual collections with ISDN connections.

If you have a problem organizing your Internet information sources, make your
own web page using one of the multimedia programs mentioned earlier.


NEWER MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY:

Fred had handouts on some of the following:
Color Scanner from Logitech scans not only pages but also bound items. It also
does character recognigion.
About $400.00

Digital cameras by Logitech take low resolution and 48 high resolution
pictures. It sends these to the input jack on the monitor. (I think that
refers to the tv monitor. I think it would have to go into a serial port on
 the back of the computer, but my notes are sketchy, so I can't tell.) This
digital camera imports JIF, PICT and other graphic files. They can be posted
right into a word processing or graphic program.

EZ Photo Scanner by Storm Technology(???) Portable. Runs on 3 AAA batteries.
Costs about $700.00. Takes about 35 pictures.


ComputerEyes LPT from Computer Vision (See notes in HOt OFf the Griddle,
 one of Fred's workshops mentioned on FIRN Website.) By letting you plug into
the computer's printer parallel port, this lets you use a digitized video
source from your vcr or tv monitor.


Quick Cam digital camera by Connectrix, Co. (also called "golf ball  camera" is
an inexpensive black and white camera which runs on batteries and allows kids
to go out into the field to do video nature science projects, etc. It  also
lets you do quick-time video. At $99.95, it is a low-cost videoconference tool!
There is a file that can be downloaded from Cornell UNiversity which will
 also let  you send the quicktime files made with this Quick Cam digital
camera over the Internet. This is great for collaboratve projects between
schools in different parts of the country and the world. I believe Fred called
it the CuSeeME file. It is used as part of the Global Schoolhouse Project.


In the film clip, "Fast Forward", Fred showed examples of student projects.
Students did research prior to making the video. They used HYperstudio to make
a page of credits for each student contributor. This page had the student's
photo, and a list of the student's accomplishments. This is a wonderful
portfolio idea.


Since copies of the two books by Fred D'Ignazio sold out immediately, I
obtained the address for MSLMA members who would like to order them.

     Multimedia Classrooms, Inc.
     41210 Okemos Road, Suite 24
     Okemos, MI  48864-3220  USA

     Website: http://www.tcimet.net/mmclass/
      (This is new, since the conference.)

     Telephone: (517)  349-1340
     Fax: (517) 349-3657

     Email: dignazio@msen.com
            dignazio@interserv.com


END of seminar
============================================================

P.S.  I emailed the notes to Fred for his approval first. He welcomes our
feedback about his new website: http://www.tcimet.net./mmclass/

Best,
J.C.