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Category: General Technology

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Reanimating the Dead

Posted on March 4, 2021March 4, 2021 By Tom No Comments on Reanimating the Dead
General Technology, History and Genealogy, Photography

This past year MyHeritage released two new products that add an interesting, albeit creepy new dimension to old photos. The first of these was a colorizer for old photos. The second looks like something right out of Harry Potter. The colorizer app was released about a year ago and does a pretty good job of … Read More “Reanimating the Dead” »

Help Save SCIWAY.net

Posted on February 19, 2017February 19, 2017 By Tom 1 Comment on Help Save SCIWAY.net
General Technology, Local

Ten years or so ago I was active doing workshops and presentations for SCETV and various technology conferences. One of the resources I cited consistently was SCIWAY.net. The South Carolina Information Highway (SCIWAY, pronounced “sky-way”) has been a fantastic clearinghouse of information about the state. Later I became involved with the site’s South Carolina Picture … Read More “Help Save SCIWAY.net” »

Robot Uprising – Siri vs Alexa

Posted on December 16, 2016December 16, 2016 By Tom No Comments on Robot Uprising – Siri vs Alexa
Gear, General Technology

Amazon Echo Dot

Yesterday I completed one more trip around old Sol. Yep, it was my birthday. My gift this year was an Amazon Echo Dot, one of the new home A. I. units. I’d actually been playing with the system for a couple of weeks. I thought I’d take some time to share my thoughts on this, and its competitor (sort of), Siri.

Read More “Robot Uprising – Siri vs Alexa” »

Working with Google PhotoScan

Posted on November 17, 2016 By Tom No Comments on Working with Google PhotoScan
Gear, General Technology, Internet, Photography

Google PhotoScan Screenshot

This week Google was making news with the release of a new app. PhotoScan is designed to capture old photos from photo albums, with algorithms to enhance the photo and minimize glare. I have tons of old photo albums from Laura’s family and from my own family, and I’ve been trying to find the most efficient way to digitize these images with the best possible quality. I figured I needed to give PhotoScan a shot.

Google PhotoScan App Demo

Here are my first impressions…

Read More “Working with Google PhotoScan” »

A Pilgrimage to Asheville for a Moog Music Tour

Posted on September 5, 2014September 5, 2014 By Tom 1 Comment on A Pilgrimage to Asheville for a Moog Music Tour
General Technology, Music, Rambling
Moog Voyager 40
MiniMoog Voyager 40

It was 1982. Dr. Robert Moog (rhymes with “vogue”) was visiting the campus, giving master classes in the afternoon and presenting a lecture on music synthesis in the evening. I was a senior music major at Furman University, and a DJ with WPLS, our campus radio station. Somehow I landed (mostly by begging) the assignment of interviewing Dr. Moog for the radio.

Dr. Moog was gracious, and turned my bumbling, star-struck questions into a wonderful interview. He made me sound good. It’s now years later, and I wish I had a copy of that recording. Alas, with the ephemeral nature of magnetic tape, it’s probably long gone.

I’ve always held an appreciation for Dr. Moog, Ray Kurzweil, and other early pioneers of electronic music. Some years back I was amazed to learn that Dr. Moog had moved to Asheville, NC, and further still, had re-established his company, Moog Music, in the area. I knew that I would have to pay a visit. It was always on my list of “that’s something I’ve gotta do someday.” I finally made the pilgrimage yesterday with my friend, Ken Cothran.

Read More “A Pilgrimage to Asheville for a Moog Music Tour” »

Super Simple Timelines

Posted on March 26, 2014May 16, 2014 By Tom 2 Comments on Super Simple Timelines
EdTech, General Technology, History and Genealogy, Internet

I’m just getting around to writing about this, and I’m probably late to the party as far as this product is concerned, but I’ve discovered a very simple, very effect way to create timelines for websites.

Back in the 1990s Tom Snyder Productions made some of the coolest EdTech software around. One of my favorites was Timeliner. Users could input dates and events, then print out long timelines on fan-fold printer paper with a dot-matrix printer. Along with Print Shop, it was one of my go-to tools for classroom printing.

Timeliner is still around, and has been updated to take advantage of modern technology. I haven’t played with it in ages, so I don’t know what the new version has, and, quite frankly, I no longer need to. I’ve found a much, much better (and free!) product in Northwestern University’s Knight Lab’s Timeline JS.

Read More “Super Simple Timelines” »

iMake Music

Posted on January 6, 2012 By Tom 5 Comments on iMake Music
Gear, General Technology, Music

It seems timely that the lowly Commodore C64 was introduced 30 years ago this week. The C64 was my introduction to music technology, and my gateway to the larger world of instructional technology. I used the C64 with a MIDI interface and some very basic sequencing software to control a Casio CZ101 keyboard, a Korg … Read More “iMake Music” »

In Praise of Old Tech

Posted on December 5, 2011 By Tom No Comments on In Praise of Old Tech
Gear, General Technology

This time of year I get lots of questions that go like this: “What’s the best [insert current popular tech device type here] to get for my [insert spouse, sibling, offspring, parent, or pet name here].” I know the reputation I have as a gadget guy, and more often than not I feel like a … Read More “In Praise of Old Tech” »

RIP Steve Jobs

Posted on October 6, 2011 By Tom No Comments on RIP Steve Jobs
General Technology, Miscellaneous

I’m a latecomer to the Apple world, but seem to have bought into it wholeheartedly with an iMac, iPad, and three different iPods (although I have an Android phone.) The world has lost a visionary.  

iPad – First Impressions

Posted on May 28, 2011 By Tom 9 Comments on iPad – First Impressions
Gear, General Technology

Our district purchased several iPads for special ed and for our ESOL teachers. I’ve had one for a week to put it through its paces and see how it might work, and how we might design some staff development. I can see the educational benefits of iPads in the classrooms, and I’ve seen some excellent results form kids working with them. However, from a personal standpoint I’m still conflicted as to whether I really like it, and how useful it might be compared to other options. Since I already have a netbook, Kindle, and iPod Touch, the device just seems redundant. Personally, I probably wouldn’t buy one, but if I didn’t already have these things, would it be a good choice? My very first thought was that it was just an overgrown Touch.

New iPad

Coming from a laptop/netbook experience, my first impression was that the shortcomings of the iPad are numerous…

  • No USB connections
  • No easy way to transfer files
  • No real GPS functionality for maps
  • NO FLASH!!

…and lots of other pesky problems that prevent it from doing what I think it should be able to do. The lack of Flash is especially bothersome, because it prevents me from using slide shows on Flickr, and even using the admin screens of this blog effectively. Aviary.com won’t work at all on it, and Google Docs is a real bother.

Read More “iPad – First Impressions” »

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