Software

Steam For Mac

No you are reading the title of the post correctly and no it's not a question but rather a fact. Steam the gaming distribution and social interaction platform has just been launched for the Mac platform. Steam is a gaming hub where users develop a gamer persona, join groups about various games that interest them and download gaming titles. Up until now the application has been exclusive to the PC platform where millions have joined up and enjoyed the fantastic range of services on offer. Steam i...
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Backing Up, Carbon Copy Cloner, Time Machine & Mozy

Backing up is something most computer literate people will be aware of, yet it is something that is often neglected my millions of computer users in varying disciplines all over the world. I myself fall into this category to some degree, I do have Time Machine backups and a good part of  my data stored on external hard drives but I do not manage the process with any degree of regularity or indeed care. Listening to a few of my favourite podcasts The Mac Attack, Mac Power Users and generally real...
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Transmission – Torrents Are Viable

The very mention of the word torrent signifies illegal activity and the acquisition of files in a non-legitimate fashion. It's a shame because for all it's misuse BitTorrent is actually an extremely useful protocol that when used properly provides a fast and reliable way for people to share data. I guess it's fair to say that it's not so much the concept but how people decide to use it or in this case misuse it. In today's digital media society the connected nature of our existence and the exten...
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Getting Things Done With Things

A series of screencasts developed in a couple of hours to outline how to use Things from Cultured Code to support the "Getting Things Done" process developed by David Allen. Videos are available on YouTube and are in HD. I hope you find them useful, as always any constructive feedback is welcome. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZ7gy6sEHuc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2faOEgFuOKM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdNzUGyJdow http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4q3h1pvjARs http://www.yout...
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ScreenFlow 2.1 Update

I love software updates. There’s something about having software you love and use with a degree of regularity and dependence getting incrementally refined and improved, that I find immensely exciting and gratifying. I guess it’s partly down to the feeling of community, the fact that a group of users can collectively experience the refinement. There is I guess also a sense of reward, a feeling of being considered valued and appreciated for your purchase. Ok I think I have made it clear that I ...
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Review: Rucksack Mac

It's getting to that time of year again when I need to process electronic versions of students files before submission to the exam board. The next two and a half months are the most demanding of the year for academics and if I'm honest I have to admit that I greatly dislike all the stress and pressure. It obviously however needs to be done so year on year we grit our teeth and get on with it. It's just starting this week so check back with me at the beginning of June to see if I still have a pul...
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Mahara 1.2 E-Portfolios Beginners Guide

I have already discussed Mahara and the wonderful range of features it offers in an earlier post on the blog and have received some inquiries regarding it's implementation. While the initial setup process is fairly straightforward I can appreciate for those not technically minded or with the same knowledge and experience with computers as myself it may prove more of a challenge. Indeed although the basic setup and usage of the platform is fairly intuitive, Mahara provides a wealth of features an...
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Review: Moodle 1.9 Teaching Techniques

Recently I was lucky enough to get my hands on a review copy of Moodle 1.9 Teaching Techniques distributed by the wonderful people at Packt Publishing. I have long been an advocate of Moodle and indeed of all things open source, so I must complement Packt Publishing on the excellent job they do in providing educational material on a wealth of open source software. I have ordered several e-books from them over the past few months, with each delivered quickly and securely, while saving me money by...
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Mahara

My involvement with education over the past number of years has spawned an intrinsic fascination with educational technology. Not only has my career required exploration of the field to support my teaching but I have become passionate about the use of technology & software to enhance the learning process. Nothing frustrates me more than educators who refuse to embrace the wealth of resources available to them, often for free, and remain stagnant in established, antiquated. out dated & re...
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On The Job – Review

I am continually working on different projects and find it hard to keep track of the time spent on each of them; there are times when I feel I am neglecting certain projects over others and times when I feel as though I have spent too long on one thing. With development work ongoing for the GeekCaster Store, GeekCaster News Network, Blog updates, writing for a book, screencast production and others I thought it was about time I invest in some time tracking and invoicing software. After co...
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Twiducate

A screencast overview of Twiducate, a social networking platform for education. Minutes after completing the screencast the developers updated the platform to include functionality for multiple classes, everything else in the screencast is still relevant so I thought it worthy of distribution. This was my one main drawback for the concept so I encourage anyone involved in education to investigate further, I think there is a lot of potential. I for one will be using the platform to support my tea...
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Things Screencast – Manage The Things You Have To Do

A screencast introducing Things from cultured code, an excellent task management application. Things - Task Management On The Mac from Paul McGovern on Vimeo.
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