Posts Tagged ‘iphone’
Why jailbreak?
Posted on: February 9, 2013
The day the iOS 6 jailbreak was available from evad3rs, I successfully jailbroke an iPhone 4, iPad 2 (3G), and an iPad mini.
evasi0n iOS 6/6.1 jailbreak is live! Download from evasi0n.com #evasi0n—
(@evad3rs) February 04, 2013
The iPad mini, which was already on version 6 of the OS, provided the best jailbreak experience. The process took just a few minutes.
The iPhone and iPad were still in version 5 and had to be wiped, updated, reinstated, and then jailbroken. But all is good now.
The only bug I have noticed is that text shortcuts (e.g., for “omw” to become “on my way”) do not work on the iPhone even though they work on the iPads.
Why do I opt to jailbreak? I explained briefly here https://ashleytan.wordpress.com/jailbreak-apps/ but I thought I should elaborate.
I take ownership of my devices and what I do with them. That means customizing them to make them do what I want them to do.
- I want my default browser to be Chrome and my go-to map to be Google Maps.
- I want to be able to tether my phone any way I want in any country I travel to because I have bought the bandwidth and the data plan.
- I want to be able to toggle between multiple Apple store accounts. (I have more than one account because a few apps are not available in Singapore!)
- If there is something irritating or lacking in iOS, I want to remove that irritation or add some functionality.
I do not jailbreak to get paid apps for free. I want my device to work conveniently, efficiently, and effectively, so I jailbreak it.
The practice of jailbreaking got me thinking about how there is similar trend in education.
I think more people will want to “jailbreak” education because schools and universities are not responding fast enough. They want to customize their experiences and they want what works for them.
Learners might accept an initially one-size solution, but they will want to tweak it or transform it to their needs. If schools and universities are not prepared to help learners do this, there are stakeholders will find jailbreak solutions.
Answering without answering
Posted on: December 2, 2012
A colleague of mine held up her iPhone and pointed to another colleague’s phone (a Samsung) and asked me which phone I thought was better.
I think she expected me to side with her because I brought my iPad mini to the meeting.
But I replied that whether something was better depended on factors like preference and context of use.
I also added that whether something was better depended on where one wanted to be on the evolutionary timeline. You could interpret that as support for Apple, Samsung, both, or neither.
Sometimes teaching is not about giving an answer. It is about letting learners make up their own minds. It is also about pointing out what they miss if they do not change their minds.
Secure your iOS device
Posted on: November 13, 2011
Recently, a blogger shared what he thought were the top five security settings for iOS. I think there should be at least two more.
You should deactivate the ability to change accounts and the untoggle the change location settings.
Once you have entered all email and iCloud account information, you should prevent the settings from being deleted or changed. Likewise, to prevent Find My iPhone from being deactivated, you should lock down location settings.
You start by tapping on Settings -> General -> Restrictions. I am making use of the new WordPress photo carousel feature to illustrate the other steps.
iOS device as a visualizer?
Posted on: August 3, 2011
Who would’ve thunk it? Here is someone who thought of a way to use an iPad2 as a document camera (visualizer).
I guess that the iPad2, iPod Touch and iPhone could serve as a visualizer in a pinch. But why?
Perhaps because you don’t already have a visualizer. Or you might do this to sell the idea mobile devices to tech-resistant teachers.
Or you might just change the pedagogy around to let students take centre-stage and show off their work.
So sure, it’s low brow use of the technology. But it could be a small step in the right direction…
Lean back, lean forward
Posted on: June 15, 2011
This RWW article I led me to a distinction between the iPad and iPhone that I have not thought of before.
The developers of Flipboard will extend their service from the iPad to the iPhone, but they will not simply replicate the experience. Different screen sizes aside, they have analyzed the use of the two mobile devices and labelled the iPad as a “lean back” device and the iPhone as a “lean forward” one.
In other words, Flipboard sees the iPad as an outside the work day device while the iPhone gets used the rest of the time. Leisure vs work. Flipboard has a good overall strategy.
Then I started to think about how iPads are beginning to be used in schools that have adopted them.
I think that iPads, whether owned by the students or provided by the schools, are the lean forward device. The student-owned phones are the lean back devices now.
The longer battery life and the larger screens make the iPads the go-to devices for learning. If it is not possible to go 1:1, a small group of learners can share an iPad. Most schools still do not allow their students to text or make calls, so their phones are used outside of class time.
The lean forward or back distinction might be important when planning how to integrate the devices into learning activities.
Wiimote plus iPhone equals?
Posted on: April 19, 2011
The invisible instrument according to Tim Soo in the video below.
Some might ask why something like this is necessary. In the grand scheme of things, it might not be. Not when you have instruments that already do what the Wiimote and iPhone do together.
But Soo’s effort is really about pushing the boundaries of what is normal or conventional. It’s about innovating and learning from the successes or failures that emerge. And then perhaps a new norm or convention results…
Collaborative Christmas cheer
Posted on: December 24, 2010
Video source
It’s been a busy time leading up to Christmas. The folks who made this video, Torchbox, have been busy too!
They spread Christmas cheer, use iPads and show a great example of collaboration. Ho-ho-ho!
Tool and talent
Posted on: July 19, 2010
Most neutrals might become skeptical on learning that the artist, Kyle Lambert, uses the iPhone and iPad to create his art.
Why should his tools of choice make his talent any less valuable? You might get over your skepticism by looking over Kyle Lambert’s portfolio.
So how do I link this to education?
First, there is a clear a need for people to learn how to fact check and not just take what they read, watch and hear at face value.
Second, we tend to recognize talent in limited ways, but talent can express itself in more broadly. With new tools come many more ways talent can be shown, discovered and showcased. We need to be open to these tools and methods instead of limiting learners to what we are used to.
Third, an e-portfolio like Kyle’s is not only a showcase; it also contains his processes and reflections. He has extended his portfolio to YouTube where he gets bouquets and bricks, but the fact of the matter is that he has opened himself up to a real audience. It is the experts and lay people, the informed and the ignorant, who will judge, be judged and learn in the process.
Google Goggles
Posted on: June 9, 2010
I was glad to hear from RRW that Google Goggles will be coming to the iPhone. It’s been available for the Android platform for a while now.
We already have text-based and voice-activated searches from Google. But since we are such visual creatures, it makes sense to be able to initiate searches on what we see. This would add one more tool to the arsenal of the independent learner!
Zombies for educational gaming?
Posted on: March 17, 2010
I have been messing about with Zombie Farm on my iPhone during my interstitial time. My 5-year-old son has too. Below is a screenshot he took of his fledgling farm.
[from isaac's posterous]
I have been struck by the possibilities of how teachers might use this as a context for the teaching and learning of languages, mathematics and science. Beyond specific content, I am more interested in how such a game can promote strategic thinking, delayed gratification and design aesthetics.
I might integrate this game into the educational gaming series of my ICT course next semester. There will be some who can download the game into their iPhones (if they haven’t done so already) and I can provide two of my own iPod Touches to those who visit the mobile gaming station. Might Apple sponsor a few more devices?
