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by Stephen Downes
July 8, 2009

College Lectures Should Be Free Online, Argues 'Wired Magazine' Editor in New Book
This is nothing that hasn't been said in these pages a hundred times (and I'm sorry about that, but in 17000 posts there's going to be some repetition of themes) but Chris Anderson certainly knows how to create a firestorm of publicity (said firestorm, not the book, being his main accomplishment here). The book is available for free on Scribd and Google Books (marketing tie-in there? The odds....). Interesting that the idea was received to a chorus of Boos from professors in the comments section. Jeffrey R. Young, Chronicle of Higher Education, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Audio, Books, Google, Marketing, Scribd] [Comment]

AACE Global U - Social Media Seminar Series
The first of a series being launched by the ever-busy George Siemens and the even-busier Dave Cormier. Like they had spare time for this! The recording of the session - which attracted 300 people (via) - is available here. George Siemens and dave Cormier, AACE Global U, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Connectivism] [Comment]

D2L Ltd. et al v. Blackboard, Inc.
D2L has sued Blackboard. I have no details because I'm not willing to pay for the information (oh hey, David (Wiley), here is a classic example of how information that is free (the complaint) which is published commercially (here) is available only for a cost. Get it directly from the government? Nope. You get blocked. This is where CC By takes us.) Still waiting for the stuff to be posted on D2L's site. Update: Here's the D2L post (I beat it by one minute - heh). It's a pre-emptive strike: "Plaintiffs request a judicial declaration that they do not infringe any valid and enforceable claim of U.S. Patent No 7,558,853." Various Authors, RFC Express, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Books, Blackboard Inc.] [Comment]

Reshaping our practice
OK, while I won't gush about what a fantastic resource this is (good, but not great) I will enthuse about this way to set up a conference. "Unconferences are faciliated, participant driven gatherings centred around a particular theme... as many attendees as possible taking an active role in presenting, faciliating or discussing. An unconference is what its participants, not its organizers make it." The conference here is being organized using a wiki with contributions from prospective attendees. Graham Attwell, Pontydysgu, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Schools, Online Learning] [Comment]

How are you dealing with TMI? (Too Much Information)

This image is a stunning representation of the new world of online learning, a world composed not of learning management systems and course packages, but rather, a melange of special-interest sites. The link to AllMyFaves.com takes you to a clickable version of the image. A veritable eeducational library, on a single computer screen. This post by Wesley Fryer discusses ways of dealing with TMI (Too Much Information). Wesley Fryer, Moving at the Speed of Creativity, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Information, Online Learning, Flickr] [Comment]

On the (im)Possibility of OER Research
Asked and answered. David Wiley offers us this poser: "Dr. Wiley takes a textbook from his shelf. He rips the (c) statement page out of the book, and inserts a new page with a Creative Commons license. Now riddle me this: is the textbook more or less effective instructionally than before?" But, of course, the effectiveness (just like the learning, and the meaning) is not in the object. It's in the use. That's why I define 'learning object' (in a definition universally ignored) as a resource that is used for learning. Wiley, more or less explicitly, recognizes this. "What is it that makes OER special or different from other digital educational media? The answer must include their '4R' potential for reuse, redistribution, revision, and remixing." In other words, the answer lies in an examination of how the license affects their use. David Wiley, iterating toward openness, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Online Learning, Books, Open Educational Resources, Learning Objects] [Comment]

Introducing the Google Chrome OS
This will be all over the place. Google is launching an operating system designed for Netbooks. It stabs at the heart of Microsoft; not only is it lightweight, it is free and open source. "Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010." More from (the now very appropriately titled) Google Operating System weblog. Oh, and let me be the first to give the Google Operating System (GOS) its informal name: Goose. Sundar Pichai, Official Google Blog, July 8, 2009 [Link] [Tags: Operating Systems, Google, Open Source, Microsoft, Google Chrome, Web Logs] [Comment]

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