I’m finally back! (and it’s been a real experience…)

The old adage “to err is human, but to really foul things up takes a computer” has been true for me since the first part of December. As I worked on my final project for ELS 832/Statistics (a 25-page manuscript related to my dissertation), my computer began to act funny. I managed to get everything off the machine and continued on another machine, while sending my own in for checking. However, regardless of the fact that my laptop kept restarting at odd times (in the middle of typing) and would restart if jarred, the retailer could find nothing wrong. They recommended that I order new recovery disks from the manufacturer and redo the machine, which I did right before Christmas (with three complete formats to remove everything before reloading the machine to its original Day 1 condition. (So long, SPSS 15 Grad Pack, SwishMax, and Office 2007!). But, the problems continued with the laptop even after that. So, now the machine has been sent off to a service center for examination for at least the next two weeks.

With classes starting on Monday and the immediate need for a faster processor for accessing Foundations of Distance Education (IDT 846 which uses Polycom’s PVX software), I bought a new desktop computer on Wednesday. This one has an AMD 64-bit dual core processor, runs Vista (which I’m not sure I like yet), and has 320 GB of hard drive space (of which I can only locate 288 GB). But even a new machine was not without its own nightmares. Windows Media Player 11 is part of Vista and could not be uninstalled and the version of PVX I had purchased required Media Player 9. I was unable to load a second version of the player to the computer and then found that PVX 8.0.2 did not run on Vista at all. Fortunately, Polycom was answering the phones after midnight on Wednesday and Renee gave me a service request number for the next day. On Thursday morning, Ben gave me a link to a later version supported by Vista (and not readily available to the public, as of yet) and I was all set–or so I thought.

I loaded the new version of the software and found that there were still a few issues. After trying to test my PVX system for class all week, I feel that I am now on a first name basis with several of the people at Master Control at ODU. I have talked with some of them extensively while trying to work the kinks out of the system. Today we finally got it working–after configuring my router, sending information on the updated software I was using to one of the technicians, and working through the settings one more time after he updated to the 8.0.4 system. On Monday morning, we will do a final check for audio and video. Hopefully, that will finally get me ready for Dr. Gary Morrison’s class at 4:20 P.M.

So, here’s a big thank you to Renee and Ben at Polycom for their timely assistance and to Susan, Duane, Craig, Christa, and Rodney at ODU’s Master Control for helping me circumvent the problems I encountered with Polycom’s PVX videoconferencing software. After this drawn out and harrowing experience, I can only hope that the IDT 846 class ends up being easier than the time spent so far in getting ready for it. (Now that I have a working computer, I can also get to the backlog of information I have wanted to post on this blog.)

Update: Despite the successful test on Monday afternoon, I was unable to log in for the first day of class. I guess this will continue to an experience. I only hope that logging in will become easier and I can get through this class.  : )

Great Quote

“The illiterate of the twenty-first century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” –Alvin Toffler

Interesting Articles in Edutopia Magazine

I just received my latest print copy of Edutopia, a magazine sponsored by the George Lucas Educational Foundation. I found a couple of interesting articles that you can access at the online magazine site:

How to Get Students to Use New-Found Skills

An Interview with George Lucas and Daniel Goleman about the ways that social and emotional learning enhance the education process. It also includes a small section on project-based learning as well.

A subscription to the magazine is free and the current issue is at November 2007 issue.

What is a Blogroll?

A blogroll is a list of blogs written by other people who write on the same or similar topic that you do. The blogs that I have included in my blogroll include some on adult education, the use of technology in education, using blogs in education, and online learning. While the content may vary from time to time and from blog to blog, the main purpose behind the blog is educational. I have included both WordPress, Blogger, and educational blogs in my list. You might want to check a few out.

Adult Education Journals

There are a wide variety of educational journals out there and many that focus on adult education. I will continue to look for additional journals to add to my journal listing in the sidebar of my blog. Several of the ones that I have listed were used for my Reading Journal readings.

Resource File

My resource file is an online one. By checking out the sidebar of my blog (at Lisa’s Blog: A Study of Adult Education), you will see that I have organized my file by category. You can find access to blogs about education, websites that focus on education (even one with online texts that I plan to peruse), government sites on literacy and adult education, and journals that cover the gamut from adult learning to the psychology of learning and teaching. I have also included two studies that I found interesting for their perspective on adult education.

By checking out my categories section, you can find the various things that I have written–either annotations, reading journal entries, teaching tips and random thoughts. I’ll keep adding to this list as I find additional things of interest. I hope you’ll check back, too.

Reflections on my Reading Journal

Lisa’s Reading Journal

My reading journal consisted of chapters and excerpts from several books (including the class textbook), some journal articles, and a book review on motivation. Most of the information is included in annotations and posts on this blog. The actual journal of what I read is attached as a PDF at the top of this post.

Learning Activity 8 – What is a Blog?

The early 1990s were when blogs first became popular and they were known as web logs (or weblogs) at the time. The term has now been shortened to simply “blog” and the word was selected by Merriam Webster as the 2004 word of the year (Merriam Webster, 2004, p. 1). According to current estimates, there are well over a billion blogs posted and updated regularly around the world.

A Great Idea for the Holidays

I got this by email and thought I’d pass it on to anyone who reads this blog.

When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, please include a card to the following address:

A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue,NW
Washington , D.C. 20307-5001

If you also approve of the idea, please pass it on to those on your e-mail list.

Searching for “Adult Education”

Sometimes you don’t get what you expect when you are typing “Adult Education” into a Google search box.

For all of us old-timers out there (or should that be experienced adult learners?):

I couldn’t resist adding something that wasn’t educational. Enjoy!

(P.S. Please don’t try watching this on a dial-up connection!)