the digital consultant

iMovie drop folder

2011-10-22T07:11:34Z

I noticed the latest release of iMovie has a drop folder. At first I wasn't that excited but I wasn't quite sure what this was about so I did a bit of research. Turns out if you dump movie files in the right folder iMovie asks if you want to import them into your events next time it starts up. Wow.
So here's how it became more interesting for me.
I have a Panasonic HD video camera and all the stuff I capture on it imports to iMovie events onto my external media drive. I also have an iPhone 4 and this content is imported via iPhoto. Problem is as the iPhone camera improves I find I am using more and more to capture video and having all the footage in iPhoto is inconvenient to say the least when it comes time to edit. Sure, you can access our iPhoto library in iMovie but if it's an actual iMovie event it's easier to find and you get more control (tagging for one). So this is where the drop folder comes in. Instead of importing from the phone using iPhoto, fire up Image Capture instead (it's actually the app iPhoto leverages). I recommend you set it as the default application to launch for all your cameras in fact. In Image Capture you can sort files all sorts of ways to find the relevant stuff (file size is helpful to identify movies), select the files you wish to import, point the "Import to" menu to the iMovie Dropbox folder and you're away.

If you want to get fancy you can create an Image Capture plugin using Automator to streamline the process.

iOS 5

2011-10-17T03:40:20Z

Of the however many hundred "updates" and changes that have been made in iOS 5 there is one that hasn't received much publicity and that's system wide proxy support. I have riffed on this before and in my opinion will have tremendous impact on Apple's bottom line. Think about it, all of the air has now been sucked out of the education room. If you wanted to run an "agnostic shop" your organisation could employ an annonymous proxy authentication process (like at a hotel or airport) but this appears rare in most individual schools and non-existent at a system level. You cannot in good faith recommend anything other than a device running iOS 5.
The openness of the Android platform gave other device manufacturers an opportunity (Samsung tried with the Galaxy but it was too difficult to manage) but they dropped the ball by not identifying schools as a significant market. Now Apple have it sewn up.
A couple of years ago the "halo effect" of the iPhone was attributed for a bump in Apple laptop sales. What will be the impact if over 50% of students start using iPads at school every day?

Facebook buys Push Pop Press

2011-08-30T23:53:36Z

Pity. Unlikely Facebook will want to get into the publishing industry. It's what's called a talent buy. Shame is that a company who was doing some amazing stuff to refine the 'digital book experience' on iOS will no longer be doing it. If you haven't seen "Our Choice" the 'book' they produced for Al Gore go check it out. It will cost you a few $ on the iTunes store but I think it's a great example of what can be done in this space with a little imagination and effort.

Is the tide turning?

2011-06-06T13:27:46Z

I haven't posted for a while (and there's reasons, mainly, you can't do everything at once) so the fact that this is getting written should be a good indication of how excited I am about my latest discovery.
I now have two, yes two non-native applications on my iPhone 4 that utilise iOS system proxy settings. You heard correctly. Two applications that go out to the world wide web through the proxy server (here at work) get information and bring it back.
The apps are Omnifocus by the Omni Group and PocketCast from Shifty Jelly.
Omnifocus I am particularly excited about because now I don't need to switch to 3G mode just to synchronise my task lists. It now round trips beautifully with the desktop.

Discussions for GDocs

2011-03-21T13:00:36Z

The newly introduced "Discussions" feature for Google Docs brings a different look and hopefully improved functionality to the review and commenting system. Each comment is timestamped and will now feature a profile picture of the commenter. You can add (include) people to a discussion using and '@mention' ala Twitter and all comments have an email notification option. I'll be checking it out over the next few weeks.

See the Google Apps blog post for an introductory video and further information.

Divisive language

2011-03-15T02:13:30Z

Language is powerful.
We have a platform agnostic environment so to keep the peace our team have made an effort to take heat out of things by changing the language.

Eliminate 'Mac' and 'PC' words from all of our discussions. It was convenient advertising language designed to polarise. Works well don't you think?
Anytime the term 'Mac' is used the response is, "Do you mean iMac, MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac OSX, Mac OSX server etc?"
Anytime the term 'PC' is used the response is, "What make of personal computer are you referring to? Apple, HP, Dell etc?"
If there is a specific request for a 'PC' firstly respond with 3, then follow with, "what task are you trying to achieve and what application/OS do you feel you require?".
In any surveys, questionnaires, discussions etc with parents, staff or students we never ask, "what sort of computer do you have?" rather, "what operating system do you run?"

I'm sure you probably get the idea.
This is subtle adjustment and difficult to start with, no denying, but changing thinking often requires difficult conversations and they can be very powerful. Gradually, as people learn more, they realise the operating system isn't the computer, the application isn't the operating system and the like. There are horses for courses depending on the product, portability and share-ability (is that a word?) and the discussion turns slowly back to our core business. We are an education institution after all.
Just don't get me started on the use of the word 'USB'.

OneNote for iPhone

2011-01-18T03:20:18Z

Good news and bad news.
The good news...Microsoft has released OneNote for iOS. So if you use OneNote on your desktop/laptop/tablet (or as an online web app through your SkyDrive account) now you can have it in your pocket. It synchronises via Windows Live SkyDrive so if you'll need to sign up (if you haven't already) to move things around and for automatic back up.
And it's free (as in beer) which would explain the popularity and ensuing server demand issues Microsoft experienced.
The bad news...It hasn't been released outside the US iTunes store yet. Hopefully OneNote for iPhone app doesn't follow in the footsteps of Microsoft's Bing app which is now in version 2.0 and still yet to be released outside the US. Bummer.
The interesting...I wonder what it's like on the iPad? Does it take advantage of the large screen or just use the x2 option? How will it compare with the OneNote web app on the iPad?
Hopefully we only have to wait a few days...
Technorati Tags: iphone, microsoft, app, OneNote

Melbourne aquarium

2011-01-01T11:11:32Z

The Melbourne Aquarium have released a super nice, free iPod and iPhone app to compliment their exhibits. Now the temptation would be to do an information dump and let the user try to make sense of it through an alphabetical index and search. Instead someone did a bit of thinking and cleverly by put a big number on certain exhibits and provided a search function in the app. Put in the number and you instantly have extra information and a couple of photos of the organism. My 4 year old loved it. It was a great primer before we went, added a treasure hunt element while we were there and was great for talking about things afterward. The application is great even if you don't set foot in the Aquarium. If your a member its a new way of experiencing the exhibits and if not it will definitely extend the reach of your single visit. Get it.

Melbourne Aquarium App on iTunes...

And with one gulp, it was gone

2010-10-31T08:58:03Z

An important update on the future of drop.io | Drop.io Blog

Today, we're proud to announce that we've struck a deal with Facebook. What this means is that Facebook has bought most of drop.io's technology and assets, and Sam Lessin is moving to Facebook.

I mean no frickin' way!
Drop.io was a favourite service of mine. I had been exploring different ways I could use it over the last twelve months with the intention of subscribing in the New Year. So much for that idea.
Now don't get Drop.io confused with Dropbox. I have a Dropbox account as well (shameless plug - sign up with my referral and we both get 250MB bonus!) which is super convenient for automatic online synchronisation of files or folders. You can share folders with other Dropbox users and even have a public Dropbox but it's personal first and collaborative second. Drop.io is the opposite. It doesn't synchronise but is a great tool for sharing files of all types. You could upload via web, email, Firefox extension, Facebook (Grrr!) and output through a webpage, RSS, iTunes or even fax. Super useful for hosting and distributing your own media files (bugger iTunesU!), collaborating with small groups or working with a class.
It's disappointing but what would have really sucked is if it had happened this time next year. I wonder how many people Drop.io have been "dropped in it" by the acquisition? I guess that's why they charge by the month.
Roll on Plan B.

Smartphone travelling

2010-10-26T11:07:29Z

If you're traveling overseas and don't want to pay truckloads for global roaming invest some research time and compare PAYG plans with your global roaming costs. I'm heading to the UK and O2 have some good options "Simplicity on Pay & Go"
With the "Text & Web add bolt on" I should be totally covered for my 9 days with better service for less cost.
Word is Carphone Warehouse are the people to see.