ICS 131--F00--Lecture Six--12 October 2000

Readings

Schwartz, John. New Economy: Finding some middle ground in a world obsessed with the new and impatient with the old, NY Times, 9 Oct, C4. ®

Richtel, Matt. Signs of Market Saturation in PC World [Does almost everyone who wants a computer already own one?], NY Times, 9 Oct, C8. (o)

Morris, Bonnie Rothman. A day in the life of the wired school, NY Times, 5 Oct, D1, D8 ®

Hafner, Katie. Schools and computer: debate heats up, NY Times, 5 Oct, D8 ®

Brown, John Seely, and Duguid, Paul. The Social Life of Information.

Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2000. HM 851 .B76 2000 (o)

-----------------------. 1996b "The University in the Digital Age." Times higher Education Supplement, 10 May (multimedia supplement): iv-vi.

Available: http://www.parc.xerox.com/ops/members/brown/papers/university.html

[1999, July 21]. ®

1. Education

A. Elementary education

Morris, Bonnie Rothman. A day in the life of the wired school, NY Times, 5 Oct, D1, D8

Viola Elementary School, Suffern, NY

Some examples:

1. Fifth Grade Language Arts

2. Third graders

3. Sixth grade science students

Trap--Using computer just for sake of using it

Trick--How to use them creatively? What does it take to do it?

Great ways to use computers in elementary schools

and lots of way to do it poorly

B. Elementary Education

Hafner, Katie. Schools and computer: debate heats up, NY Times, 5 Oct, D8

Allianceforchildhood.org

Moratorium on introduction of computers into elementary schools

until their effect on your children is assessed more carefully.

C. Colleges and Universities

Brown, John Seely, and Duguid, Paul. The Social Life of Information.

Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2000. HM 851 .B76 2000

-----------------------. 1996b "The University in the Digital Age." Times higher Education Supplement, 10 May (multimedia supplement): iv-vi.

Available: http://www.parc.xerox.com/ops/members/brown/papers/university.html

[1999, July 21].

Schwartz, John. New Economy: Finding some middle ground in a world obsessed with the new and impatient with the old, NY Times, 9 Oct, C4.

[interview with JSB]

Chapter 8--Re-education

Basic theme: computers and the web are not going to eliminate the

world as we know it. best solution is to use them to augment and improve what we have.

On Colleges and Universities

1. Pressures for Change

a. Changes in Student Body

from one school for four years

from all 18-22 year olds

b. Changes in Competition for students

Open University in UK

University of Phoenix

Unplug and play

Changes in Competition on research

people and money

PARC, Microsoft

c. New Technologies

Do things differently

Do things more cheaply

2. The New Model

25 Courses make up half the curriculum in two-year schools

and one-third of the curriculum in four-year school--too much

centralization

The Hype problem--

IBM ad--Italian Senior doing grad work at Indiana

California Virtual University

Penn State

3. The Old Model

a. What is it?

b. What's important about it?

Degrees--Certification

Incidental learning

Peer Support

local impact, Davis-wine, UCLA-film, B-computers

4. What could be improved?

a. Open up college education to disenfranchised

b. External degree model

c. Access to information

d. More flexibility

Degree Granting Bodies

Univ of Chicago exams

Many schools

Choices

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Lecture Six--Comparisons

Productivity

Whalen, Charles J. High-Tech hustle sweeps the nation, BW, 16 Oct, 98, 100 ®

Uchitelle, Louis. In a productivity surge, no proof of a 'new economy', NY Times, 8 Oct, Bu 6

95-98--Burst of prosperity

Computer at heart, but not because it transformed the world

"Computers have indeed lifted the economy,

but mainly through the manufacture of the computers

themselves and the production of semiconductors,

communications equipment, software and other

computer-related devices."

Maybe affect other sectors later.

How will it affect other sectors?

Revolution--like biotech may revolutionize medicine

Evolution--small increments

Ripple effect--only 25% from 95-98

Not the kind of impact others (electric motor,

Internal combusiton engine) produced.

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Comparisons--G4 Cube

Beautiful, with beautiful, spherical, transparent speakers

15" flat panel display in transparent housing

performed very well--ran all software I threw at it.

Surfed web, email, silent (no fan)

$1799 price is comparable to windows machine

with same spec's.

Downsides

Disk drives: no floppy, no CD-RW, only DVD

Price: For $1799, you should get 128 MB RAM, not 64

And >20 GB of hard disc

Goodies

Connectors and ports on bottom

Handle to lift guts, antennas for wireless networking

New keyboard, new mouse

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Wildstrom, Stephen. The Cube: Looks Aren't Everything,

BW, 16 Oct, 29 ®

Imac proves that style matters

G4 proves that style is far from everything

Cube is an object of real beauty.

No fan, but power supply in a brick

Big keyboard, nice mouse

Overpriced and underfeatured and no clear target audience

Overpriced for students, families, and schools

(a major Mac constituency)

At 1799 plus 500 or 1000 for a monitor

Underfeatured for creative professionals

Can't use dual monitors

Drive problem--missing CDRW or floppy

DVD drive not very useful

Hooking up outside drive ruins aesthetic

Dual processors, but software can't use them

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Logistics

1. make lunch reservations with JF for Tues, 17 Oct
2. project outlines (2 pp) due Tues, 17 Oct
3. things to think about for Quiz 2, 17 Oct

1. Good computer based project for sixth graders
2. How would you change 131 if you were Brown and Duguid

Keep good parts

Make it better

3. comparisons, G4, productivity

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More

1. Week five schedule
2. Key to Quiz One: DCAA BAEB CCBC BBAD AC

 

3. Schedule of deliverables