On This Veteran's Day

Veteran's Day is called by various names and celebrated in various ways by friends around the world. In England, they call it Remembrance Day. The playing of Nimrod, one of the movements of Edward Elgar's Enigma Variations, is a tradition on this day.

Veterans Day is a opportunity not only to carve out some time from our lives who remember those who gave their own, but to celebrate all that we enjoy. Today is also my Davonia's birthday, my wife of 21 years. Nimrod happens to be one of her favorites.

Freedom is not Free

As we aproach Veteran's Day, a remembrance to those who paid the ultimate price to preserve the freedom we all enjoy.

I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze
A young soldier saluted it, and then
He stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud
With hair cut square and eyes alert
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many Pilots' planes shot down?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No Freedom is not free
I heard the sound of taps one night,
When everything was still.
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That taps had meant "Amen"
When a flag had draped a coffin of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No Freedom isn't free!

Kelly Strong, 1981

Most Popular Posts

Blogger has added a "stats" tab. It has evidently been there since May, but I just noticed it a couple of weeks ago. One of the neat features is the ability to see which posts have the most hits. Here are the top three posts:

1. Test Item Analysis Calculator (from June 10, 2010) What if students could sit down computers, take a test, and have the computer return to the teacher a spreadsheet containing the student names and their answers. Furthermore, each answer is graded correct or incorrect, an average calculated for the student, and item analysis performed on each question. That what this post is all about. If this is something that your school would like to pilot, email me and let's talk. This post has received 498 hits.
2. Understanding Facebook Privacy Settings (from July 6, 2010) While we love to communicate through Facebook, we are understandably concerned about our personal information falling into the hands of strangers who have questionable motives. This post received 171 hits.
3. 20+ Ways to use the Flip Video in the Classroom (from August 21, 2010) This post explores exactly what the title says. It has received 139 hits.

The Campaign is Over...for Now

Election day is behind us, at least for now. My mailbox now gets a rest from the daily stack of political advertisements. Too many of them do nothing but attack the opponent. Most fail "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth" test. Virtual all reflect more on the resourcefulness of the ad agency than the actual ability of the candidate to do the job.

The billboards and the buttons are pretty, but do they really make the case for who can do the better job? Why do we spend so much money on something that has so little to do with ability?

As technology gets more sophisticated, the tactics grow in frequency and intrusiveness, which brings up the worst offenders...the "robocalls." I long ago lost count of how many times creative thought has been interrupted by a recording of little substance and sometimes even less truth. Enough is enough. The game is reminiscent of the "Spy versus Spy" spots in MAD Magazine during my childhood days.The strategies got more elaborate, yet in the end, somebody and somebody loses.

There are good uses of technology, and below is what I think is one of the best. The candidates made use of a technology that was still fairly new to political campaigns and a technology that had become common to most homes...the television. If you have never heard this debate in its entirety, the 50th anniversary of it is a good time to step back in time.



Kennedy v. Nixon was like Lincoln v. Douglas with one notable exception. The former could be viewed by an entire nation.

Why can't we use technology to get back to that? Let's put the candidates face-to-face on stage. If one starts to stray from the truth, the opponent stands right there to call the offender's hand. Let's use the power of technology to record those events and make them available as video posted on the websites of our daily newspapers. Some of that is being done, and it's a step in the right direction.

And let's give some of the other a rest. For sure, let's stop the robocalls, so that we can get some work done. Let's rethink the huge amounts of money spent on slick ads and instead focus of that which really speaks to the job someone will be able to do.

No single candidate is to blame for a system which has gotten out of hand. Every snowflake in the avalanche pleads "not guilty." When one candidate spends a mint on slicks ads, the other is pretty much forced to do likewise. When one starts the robo calls, the other must follow. When one plays loose with the truth, its tough for the other to still take the high road.

Maybe I am the only one who feels this way. But make no mistake...look at the worst of this campaign season, and left unchecked, it will be far worse the next time around two years from now. Let's take the idea of  Lincoln and Douglas, bring it to everyone like Kennedy and Nixon, and use the power of the Internet to make the face-to-face debate the bread and butter of the campaign.

What Football Games are on TV?

Like so many people this time of year, I am always interested in my options for watching college football. Television schedules are not set far in advance. Even game times are listed as "TBA" as close as two weeks before a game.

I found a site that gives me the information I need in a very concise form:

Click here to see the college football schedule

As you see, the site lists games only for the future, so that as the season progresses, I am not scrolling through past events. The game time (listed in Central Time) and television network are listed. Games for the future along with time and television commitments as known are listed.

In Outlook, I created a task that reads "Plan football games to watch" followed by the URL. In Outlook, this URL is a clickable link. I set the task to repeat every Friday. So, every Friday, that task appears, I click the link, and I now see a complete list of every televised game.

By the way, credit must go to LSU for maintaining this site. Ironically, that's the next game for my home team, the Alabama Crimson Tide.

60 Second Recap

Plot summaries are certainly no substitute for reading the book, but if time is short and you simply need as brief overview, this site is for you. 60 Second Recap provides a short video explaining the major themes of the book. You will find the old standards that we all read in high school. New selections are being added to the site all the time.

If you have an iPhone, there is even an app for that.

Just a Little Halloween Funny

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers are great instructional tools. There is an old adage that "a picture is worth a thousand words." Graphic organizers provide that picture. Write Design Online provides examples of many varieties of graphic organizers. the site is well worth viewing.

Your Own Blog in 10 Minutes or Less

"Your Own Blog in 10 Minutes or Less" is both a blog and a workshop. The workshop in one that I have presented in various forms for several years and is designed to take people who have no background at all with blogging and allow them to leave with the knowledge and the motivation to establish a web presence through a blog.

Watching what others have done with their blogs is interesting. It seems those who produce incredible results are those with moderate amount of technical knowledge but a huge amount of creativity.

Your Own Blog in Minutes or Less is also a blog, and it is a blog about blogging. Blogging includes some basic concepts that can be used repeatedly. The vision for this blog was for to be a set of post, each of which would demonstrate a concept. I would take a sets of actual posts I had used in other blogs at other times and bring them together in this one place. A little explanation wold then follow of what each post was demonstrating.

I recently updated that blog with a new look and new "gadgets" down the side. While I originally thought I would compose a series of posts and the project would be complete. My thinking now is that there will be more posts to come on that blog. As new material is added there, it will also be highlighted here.

Need Help?

Are you tired of recorded messages? When you need help, would you like to speak to a real person? If so, I have a website for you:

www.contact help.com  

Enter the name of the company and you will see a phone number along with instructions for how to get to a real person.

 

Extended Daylight Saving Time...One More Reminder

Thank goodness for all of our electronic devices which are smart enough to know when Daylight Saving Time kicks in. They simply adjust themselves. That's all great and wonderful...until Congress steps in and changes when that "kick in" is going to be.

That's exactly what happened in 2007. Electronic devices manufactured after that pose no problem. They change according to "Extended Daylight Saving Time," this year which occurs on November 7.

But what if you still have some electronics that are pre-2007? Don't be surprised if they "fall back" on a week too soon. If that happens to you, take a moment to read some suggestions as to what to do.

Public Wi-Fi...Are you Safe?

Free public Wi-Fi seems to everywhere. That's a good thing. We can work from the local coffee shop or the airport. The benefits, however, come with risks. How safe are you? How much sensitive information resides your laptop that others could access?

Lifehacker published this post which gives some very practical tips on keeping your data safe while you surf on public Wi-Fi.

Where is That Command?

For anyone who is familiar with Word 2003 and then moves to Word 2007, finding where items are located can be tricky. There is a great reference site that will allow you to choose any Word 2003 command and see where that same command is found in Word 2007.

Click here to access the interactive guide.

Skipper (February 6, 1997-October 17, 2010)

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.


When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.


All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.


They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.


You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.


Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....


Author unknown... 

Skipper came to us unexpectedly. His owner had died. The family did not want him. Neighbors called the Humane Society about a dog tied up in a backyard in the dead of winter. Friends at the Alabama Sheltie Rescue thought of us and asked if we could foster him until a home could be found.

Skipper was a funny sight when we got him. His fur was so badly matted that once he had been rescued from the cold, there was no option but to shave him. But after only a couple of days, we decided he had found his forever home...with us.



Bonnie now had a playmate, and Skipper had a new lease on life. That was almost seven years ago.

But, as all of us know, our pets lead very temporary lives, and there comes the day when we have to say goodbye.For those of us who let our furry friends get close to our hearts, making that decision is not easy. Today, that was the decision that Davonia and I had to make. Just shy of 14 years old, Skipper made that journey to Rainbow Bridge.

Two years ago, a good friend sent me a letter written from the point of view of an aged pet. Now is a good time to review it. Goodbye, old friend. I just hope that we were able to enrich your life as much as you enriched ours.

Google Apps for Education

More and more, we are seeing school systems and universities adopt Google Apps for their e-mail and productivity package needs. Here is a video, a little under 11 minute long, which explains the concepts involved simply.

Attending National Middle School Association Convention?

If you are attending the National Middle School Association Convention in Baltimore, please join me for these two presentations, both happening on November 5:
Your Own Blog in 10 Minutes or Less (2:00)
Data That Matters: Using a Balanced Scorecard to Summarize and Organize Data (3:45)

Here is a brochure for the event.

Best School Websites

In today's world, often the first and possibly only impression may people have of a school is through how it portrays itself on its website. For some, a website is something to get "done," and then move on. For others, the website lives and breathes, and is as ever-changing as the world in which we live.

If you want see some really good ones, you are at the right place. In April, SchoolE announced its winners of the best school district websites in America. You can read the article or visit the websites of the winners.

Most Popular Posts

Blogger has added a "stats" tab. It has evidently been there since May, but I just noticed it a couple of weeks ago. One of the neat features is the ability to see which posts have the most hits. Here are the top three posts:

1. Test Item Analysis Calculator (from June 10, 2010) What if students could sit down computers, take a test, and have the computer return to the teacher a spreadsheet containing the student names and their answers. Furthermore, each answer is graded correct or incorrect, an average calculated for the student, and item analysis performed on each question. That what this post is all about. If this is something that your school would like to pilot, email me and let's talk. This post has received 508 hits.
2. Understanding Facebook Privacy Settings (from July 6, 2010) While we love to communicate through Facebook, we are understandably concerned about our personal information falling into the hands of strangers who have questionable motives. This post received 173 hits.
3. 20+ Ways to use the Flip Video in the Classroom (from August 21, 2010) This post explores exactly what the title says. It has received 140 hits.

Documentation and "The Final Word"

Those who have attended Get Organized! workshops have heard me talk not only about the importance of documentation, but the ease with which this skill can be implemented...provided you have a good system. Those who receive my monthly newsletter heard a little more about that topic last month.

This month, a short podcast on documentation is being featured as "The Final Word" on The Audio Journal. The Audio Journal is a monthly "executive briefing" on CD that is mailed to over 3,000 busy educators who choose this method as a way to stay on top of trend and ideas in their field. The companion website distributes the same material through streaming audio. My thanks to Dr. James Cisek, who extended the invitation to be featured as "The Final Word" in the current edition. People who have been featured in this segment recently include Harry Wong, Tom Peters, Warren Bennis, and Lou Holtz, so I feel pretty honored.

But, this blog is not about me; it's about getting the word out to other people about easy tools and techniques which improve our ability to work and play. Thanks to Dr. Cisek for bringing part of that message to the 3,000+ subscribers to this professional development series.

You can not only listen to the podcast but take a test-drive of the entire site for 7 days absolutely free. Click here, and after responding to the agreement statement, choose the "I want a no-obligation 7-day free trial" option. Happy listening!

Keyboard Shortcuts Using Google Instant

About 3 weeks ago, I composed this post on Google Instant. I am a huge fan of using keyboard shortcuts instead of the mouse. Google Instant has introduced a couple of news features which make the service easier to use.
As you type and Google produces a list of possible completions, you have the ability to use the down-arrow key to move to your choice. The results change with each highlighted choice. Once you get to the one you want, press .
Now, use the down-arrow key to select the choice from the search results. Press .
This video illustrates the concept: