energy, cleantech, conferences Gregory T. Huang wrote: This afternoon, I’ve been attending the second annual Algae Biomass Summit at the Bell Harbor Conference Center down by the waterfront in Seattle. This year’s conference has drawn 600 participants—who knew the algae community was this big already? Here at Xconomy, we’ve covered some algae biofuel startups with local connections, including AXI out of the University of Washington, and San Diego-based Sapphire Energy, whose investors include Arch Venture Partners and Bill Gates’s firm, Cascade Investment. After a fascinating panel discussion on algae-based biofuels (more on that soon), it was time for the keynote address, by Vinod Khosla. Khosla is a co-founder of Sun Microsystems, a venture partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and founder of Khosla Ventures. A Silicon Valley celebrity, Khosla has invested in a number of cleantech and energy startups, mostly in ethanol and next-generation fuels (Gevo, KiOR, Amyris, LS9) and fuel-efficiency technologies (Transonic Combustion, Ecomotors). Khosla is an interesting guy to be speaking here, because he hasn’t invested in algae—at least not yet. There has been some speculation that he’s looking into it more seriously these days. “I’m here because I believe in the potential of algae,” Khosla told the packed room. “We’ve looked at maybe 100 different plans on algae in the last few years.” One topic he wanted to cover was what factors would make him invest in algae as an alternative fuel technology. He set the stage with some energy context. “It’s not cleantech that’s interesting, it’s ‘main tech,’” he said. By this he meant the huge, billion-dollar markets provided by traditional industries such as engines, lighting, applicances, batteries, cement, water, glass, gasoline, diesel, and power generation. To address these markets, whether you’re looking at algae biofuels or other technologies, he said, you need …Next Page » Comments | Permalink | Share |  E-mail UNDERWRITERS AND PARTNERS Less

Mobile, social media, conferences Gregory T. Huang wrote: “One banker says to the other—wait, what other banker?” says Tom Huseby. The Seattle venture capitalist and wireless guru slipped in a joke about the thinning ranks of financiers during his keynote talk at today’s second annual Mobile Northwest Conference. I had a chance to stop by and see this morning’s session at the convention center in downtown Seattle. Just a quick recap here. Huseby, the co-founder of SeaPoint Ventures and chairman of several local mobile-company boards, spoke about deals, markets, and what he likes to focus on in the wireless space. But first, he addressed the economy. “Who thought we’d end up where early-stage venture capital would look like one of the safer investments?” he said. “It’s better because nobody expects to get any money out of it for a long time, that’s it! Venture funds are supposed to last 8-10 years. It’s a long investment cycle.” “So the venture community is pretty good,” he continued, pointing out there’s still a large number of investments being made in startups. “Compression of market cycles is enormous. The real economy is going to lag, the markets aren’t.” When it comes to startups, he said, “Hope is diminished, no question…Venture capitalists are marginally connecting the dots, and now they don’t even see the next dot. But one thing hasn’t stopped at all, and it’s the great American startup machine. Barring restaurants, America starts a huge percentage of companies in the world. The miracle is a totally undeserved sense of self-confidence. We revere new wealth, and people who’ve started companies…We compete on how humble our origins are.” Huseby went on to describe the big trends he’s seeing in the mobile sector—”superphones” like the iPhone that are connected to the Internet all the time, and “Superusers” who “walk around doing things [on the devices] we never thought they’d do.” Then there are “all-you-can-eat” data plans. “Mobile this year became embedded in everything. Everything is wireless. We all of a sudden can get viral with it. It didn’t used to be that way—not enough users had the right phones,” he said. “That to me is the big sea change.” So what does he look for in new deals and companies? “‘Winner-take-all Switzerland’ plays,” he says. This is where a small company comes in and solves a problem that the big guys (the Samsungs and Verizons, say) are in a standoff over. So a small company—like a Tegic or a SnapIn Software (both bought by Nuance)—can enter as a neutral party and own the space, providing a simple but necessary technology to handle things like text messaging or customer support. Huseby took the time to answer several questions from the audience. One was about what he thinks of new business models like mobile advertising, in the context of the economy. “The downturn is not good for anything. I don’t think people will spend more on their phones, or buy more games. They’re going to do less,” he says. “The key to mobile advertising is to get out of the ‘new stuff’ budget…You have to turn it into media, and remove all obstacles.” Someone else asked for Huseby’s thoughts on Google’s Android phone. He joked that because of its high weight-to-surface-area ratio, it could do well in the annual Swedish phone-throwing contest (apparently there have been at least nine of these “international” events so far). “They overkilled on …Next Page » Comments | Permalink | Share |  E-mail UNDERWRITERS AND PARTNERS Less

In It's Elementary #24 we talked with Dean Shareski and Wesley Fryer, two of the conveners for the k12Online2008 Conference. Dean is a Digital Learning Consultant with a school in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada. Westley Fryer is the Director of the Olklahoma Heritage Association. The K12Online2008 conference is totally online, including both synchronous and asynchronous components. This year's pre-conference keynote will be given by Heppell Next week. (week of October 13th) The conferece contains four strands 1. Getting Started 2. Prove it. 3. Kicking it Up A Notch 4. Leading the Change Within each strand, there are many presentations that fit that theme. Several of the presenters prepared teasers, or short advertisements. of their presenations. These are available at http://k12onlineconference.org/?cat=27 More information can be found at http://k12onlineconference.org Join us for our next show on October 27th where we will discuss technology in the Early Childhood Classroom. To read Chat see attachment read more Less

Been meaning to write up some quick thoughts about Google Teacher Academy: Chicago, but realize that time is fleeting and I just didn’t see myself getting to it soon. SO, I decided to go the video route and do a quick vlog wrapup about it. FYI, that’s the last time I use the camera on the front of the phone. While it’s great because I can see comments that are typed in live, and I can see myself and make sure I’m centered and such, the quality is SO much worse than the camera on the back. So from now on, I use the good camera and even if it’s a little laggy while watching it live, at least the archive will look much better. And let’s face it, thats’ much longer lasting. Less

If you haven’t already, download this poster and either send it to every teacher you know and/or print it off and place it in every school you visit or work in.  Beginning today, watch for the teasers for upcoming presentations. For those who have participated in this conference, you know its value, for those who have not, buckle up, you’re in for a treat. Oh, and did I mention is was completely free? K12 Online Downloadable Flyer Less

I presented at the Inbound Marketing Summit on the topic of Should Your Business Be Podcasting? Here’s the video: Video streaming by Ustream The slides are located here - use these rather than squint at the video! Ims08 View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. Resources - Corporate The Financial Aid Podcast The Student Loan Network Resources - Personal Mitch Joel at PodCamp Toronto PodCamp Personal blog Marketing Over Coffee Marketing Podcast Less

Michelangelo’s David, Spore Gets World’s Tiniest Billboard, Requires Telescope To See, Spore’s DRM is awesome, 9000!! NINE THOUSAAAAANDD!, Feature Film to be Released on MySpace, The Mannsfield 12, Michael Moore to release new film for free online, Michael Moore’s Slacker Uprising, Brilliant: HP Packages Laptop in its Own Bag, Koichi Toyama wants to be President of the United States, video of Koichi Toyama, Sporepedia, Preteen girl helps family escape crashed vehicle , GTA San Andreas, 2008 TechCrunch 50, DEMOfall 08, Probably Nano Less

[simlulposted at the DEN National Blog] I can’t tell you how many people I speak to that have a ton of great information to share, but come up with one excuse or another not to bother submitting any proposals to the various state conferences. Well, let me tell you something… You’ve got experience, you’ve got ideas, and you’ve got knowledge that would be valuable to other people. Why not take the next step and share it with other educators? As I do every year, I’ve aggregated together a list of state conferences along with when their proposal dates open and/or close. I didn’t realize just how late in the year I was doing it this year and a few of them have closed already. So don’t waste any time! If you’d like to participate in any of these conferences, JUMP at the opportunities and apply immediately (if not sooner). One thing to remember, particularly if you’re an East coast resident… You aren’t restricted to just your state. Apply to present in a neighboring state and see how they run things across the border! More thank likely, there’s several conferences within driving distance that you could be presenting at. Why not apply to them all and see what happens! Florida Educational Technology Coorporation, January 21-24, 2009. Deadline is past, but you can still volunteer to support the conference. Northwest Council for Computer Education, Portland, Oregon, February 17-20, 2009. Deadline is October 3 South Carolina EdTech 2008, November 5-7, 2008. Call for proposals is past. Arizona Technology in Education Alliance, November 8 2008, January 31 2009, and May 2 2009. Call for proposals open now. Georgia Educational Technology Conference , November 5-7, 2008. Call for proposals is open now, deadline is Sept. 7th. Massachusetts Computer Using Educators , November 19-20, 2008. New York State Association for Computers and Technologies in Education Conference, November 23-25, 2008. North Carolina’s 18th Annual Technology Conference, December 1-4, 2008. Call for proposals is open now, deadline is September 27. Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference, New England, December 2-4, 2008. Deadline is passed, but proposals are still being accepted for Thursday Share-A-Thon Tennessee Education Technology Conference, December 10-12, 2008. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Oct 16. Louisiana Association of Computer Using Educator’s Conference December 3-5, 2008. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Oct 1. Virginia’s Educational Technology Leadership Conference, December 10-12, 2008. Deadline not posted. Midwest Education Technology Conference, Missouri, January 26-28, 2009. Indiana Computer Using Educators, January 27-29, 2009. Call for proposals not open yet. eTech Ohio Educational Technology Conference, February 2-4, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Oct 8. Texas Computer Education Association Conference, February 2-6, 2009 Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo and Conference, February 8-11, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Sept.30 Virginia Society for Technology in Education, February 22-24, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Oct 1 . Illinois Technology Conference for Educators , February 26 -29, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Oct 1 . Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning, March 18-20, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Sept 29 Kentucky Teaching and Learning Conference, March 4-6, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is October 31st. Wisconsin Technology Education Association, March 5-6, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Dec 23 . California Computer Using Educators, March 5-7, 2009. Call for proposals is open, deadline is Sept 12. Delaware Instructional Technology Conference, April 22-23, 2009 And of course the big momma, which happens to be in Washington DC next year… National Educational Computer Conference, June 28-July 1, 2009. Call for proposals is open now, deadline is Oct 8. Did I miss any? If so, leave a comment with the info! Less

We were recently invited by Jon Gatrell to be guest posters on his Spatially Relevant blog. We wrote about networking – both online and offline. What sparked our post is a friend of ours who says she thinks social media is a waste of time. We can see her point – she has a stable job in a city she’ll probably never leave. She’s active in her community so she does do plenty of networking. She also cares for a young family at home. . . She’s not alone in her opinion. There’s no doubt that online networking benefits some more than others. But we think everybody should at least dip their toes into the water. Online networking makes it easy to find people that you may not have talked with in some time. Like that colleague at your first job who’s now the President of a company. You can catch up, keep up, and meet up. We have another friend who said that if he hadn’t talked to someone in twenty years or so, he didn’t need to talk to them now!  . I disagree. A prime example – I’m catching up with some of my old high school classmates. It’s interesting to see what businesses they’re in now. Some of them are in similar businesses to what we’re doing here at Bigg Success. So we can talk and help each other with some of the ins and outs of the business. . . It’s easier for me to keep up with people using social media. I know me – I’m not going to write a letter. I’ve probably lost their phone number years ago. Their e-mail address may have changed and I forgot to note it. Social media is just a great way to stay in touch. . It’s also important to build relationships offline as well. We’ve learned this – Bigg Success is, of course, an online business – but we found that it’s vital to meet people offline as well. In fact, we met Jon, and his wife Emily, at a conference. We liked them instantly! Since we met them offline, we got to know their full personalities in a way that wouldn’t have been possible online. However, we’ve been able to keep in touch with them because of the online world. The power comes from merging the two When we hear about a merger in the corporate world, the word “synergy” usually comes up – the whole is greater than the parts. We think the same thing happens when you merge your networking worlds. To take this one step further, think about marketing principles. You don’t just use one form of marketing in a campaign; you use a combination to create better results. And networking is marketing – at least that’s part of the reason we all network. By putting the two together, the results will be better than if you just use one forum. You have two hands … why wouldn’t you use them both? The bottom line – online or off – it’s all about people and building relationships.  Subscribe to The Bigg Success Show in iTunes.  Subscribe to the Bigg Success feed.    Related posts  Relationship Building Blocks 5 Laws of Stratospheric Success 3 Keys to Effective Networking (Image by bjearwicke) ShareThis Less

FAP845: Awaken Your Superhero from Podcasters Across Borders Listen now: I gave a brief, five minute talk about how podcasting is changing the world at Podcasters Across Borders 2008. Enjoy! Did you enjoy today’s show? If so, please consider subscribing for free to get it delivered to you . Subscribing for free means you don’t have to remember to download it every day. + + + Direct MP3 file download: Click here to download the MP3 Reminders + + Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com. + Free scholarship search secrets eBook at StudentScholarshipSearch.com/ebook + Open an FDIC-insured savings account today! + Private student loans available at any time - visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com + Student credit card information at StudentPlatinum.com + FAFSA form tutorials and free help at FAFSAonline.com + Financial Aid discussion forums + Get FAFSA news at the FAFSA blog + Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com + The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network. I want to hear from you! Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 206-350-1208. ShareThis Less

Many thanks to everyone I had a chance to meet at the NASFAA national conference! I’ve put together some resources for you from the conference that might be of help. The guest speaking I did with Dr. Steven Bryant was a short version of this session from EASFAA. Here’s the video in full: Slides from the session are here: | View | Upload your own I was asked to record and produce the The College Goal Sunday What’s Working Session video: Here’s the audio from the Retention of Underserved Students session. And finally, some fun - a musical slide show of the conference, featuring the music of Black Lab. I’ll have more content from NASFAA as I produce it, so be sure to bookmark this page and share www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/nasfaa08 with others who want to get this material. ShareThis Less

FAP839: Retention of Underserved Students and How Financial Aid Administrators Can Help A session from this year’s NASFAA national conference. Listen now: A few dollars a month for medication may cause a low-income college student to drop out of school. An $8 transcript fee may prevent a student from transferring to a four-year institution. One-third of all first-year students who enroll at America’s colleges and universities will not return to the same institution next fall. On Point for College serves over 1,800 students in Syracuse, NY and works daily with the financial aid community to help them succeed. The presenters will share 27 retention program elements and 13 simple ideas that any campus can implement. Moderator: Jeanna Keller, Program Manager, Lumina Foundation for Education Presenters: Virginia Donohue, Executive Director, On Point for College LaSonya Griggs, Assistant Director of Financial Aid, Ithaca College Did you enjoy today’s show? If so, please consider subscribing for free to get it delivered to you . Subscribing for free means you don’t have to remember to download it every day. + + + Direct MP3 file download: Click here to download the MP3 Reminders + + Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com. + Free scholarship search secrets eBook at StudentScholarshipSearch.com/ebook + Open an FDIC-insured savings account today! + Private student loans available at any time - visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com + Student credit card information at StudentPlatinum.com + FAFSA form tutorials and free help at FAFSAonline.com + Financial Aid discussion forums + Get FAFSA news at the FAFSA blog + Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com + The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network. I want to hear from you! Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 206-350-1208. ShareThis Less

FAP837: Review of the NASFAA National Conference, Free Stuff Friday Listen now: Student Financial Aid News + A review of the NASFAA national conference in depth + A longer than normal show Scholarship Update + Scholarship Points, kids. + Scholarship Search Secrets eBook. + PodCamp Boston scholarships Free Stuff Friday + I’d encourage everyone, regardless of whether you’re a student or not, to actively research cost-saving options for fuel and food. Take a look at community supported agriculture (CSAs) in your area - you may find a community farm that will save you significantly over the grocery store. + If you use oil heat, ask your furnace manufacturer if your heater can accept a mix of fuel oil and waste vegetable oil, or even straight waste vegetable oil, which could save you hundreds, even thousands, of dollars this winter. + For those families with fireplaces, investigate the potential cost savings of a wood stove fireplace insert, which will let you burn firewood instead of propane, natural gas, or oil. + Consider alternate modes of transportation - Matthew Ebel has recently highlighted a conversion kit for a bicycle for $1,000 that will transform a regular bicycle into an electric vehicle, which could be practical for those with relatively short commutes. If your budget permits, consider a hybrid vehicle; at the least, reduce your driving and inflate your tires to the maximum safe pressure. + Be mindful of your other utilities as well. Use power strips with off switches to prevent appliances like DVD players from consuming electricity unnecessarily. If you have access to your toilet tank, put a fist-sized rock in the tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush. If you find that your toilet performs satisfactorily, replace the rock with a brick or sealed, water-filled glass bottle to further reduce the water used per flush. + Make liberal use of free entertainment. Your local library has likely evolved quite a bit since your early childhood days, and if you haven’t been back recently, you may be surprised at what you’ll find. Local libraries often have significant CD and DVD collections which you can borrow for free or at nominal cost - my local library charges $1 per week for hit movies, and no charge for CDs and non-fiction DVDs, including past seasons of popular TV shows. + There’s tons of free entertainment online - download popular podcasts like the TED conference for some videos that will blow away anything you can find on television, plus thousands and thousands of other great shows. There’s still lots of free wireless to be found at places like public libraries, some fast food and coffee shops, and other locales. You can find great audio and video all over the place, and if you download it onto a laptop, you can take it home with you and watch it with the entire family. + Check out the events section for your town on popular event sites like Craigslist, Upcoming, and Eventful, as you may find terrific local music festivals and other community activities that are free. Many unconferences such as BarCamp and PodCamp are free, and those that charge may have scholarships for students to attend. + Your town may have lots of free stuff you don’t even know about. In the town I live in, there’s a weekly events calendar which is poorly organized and poorly publicized, but has lots of great events and activities on it, from free play groups for kids to free movie nights, and many other free or very low cost activities. Your tax dollars already go to support these activities, so make sure you check out your town’s municipal web site. + Check out the Friday episodes of the Financial Aid Podcast, where we highlight every week a bunch of free stuff online and offline that can save you significant money. Grab our free scholarship eBook to find scholarships using Google and other online tools. Check out our other student financial aid resources, too. + Free hearing aid batteries from Energizer + Dress like a cow at Chick-Fil-A, get a free combo meal today only + Free Stevia Sweetener Did you enjoy today’s show? If so, please consider subscribing for free to get it delivered to you . Subscribing for free means you don’t have to remember to download it every day. + + + Direct MP3 file download: Click here to download the MP3 Reminders + + Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com. + Free scholarship search secrets eBook at StudentScholarshipSearch.com/ebook + Open an FDIC-insured savings account today! + Private student loans available at any time - visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com + Student credit card information at StudentPlatinum.com + FAFSA form tutorials and free help at FAFSAonline.com + Financial Aid discussion forums + Get FAFSA news at the FAFSA blog + Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com + The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network. I want to hear from you! Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 206-350-1208. ShareThis Less

I know most people have already put up their post-NECC reports, but I figure it’s never really too late and I’m glad that I had time to put some things in perspective and do a little soul searching before writing this. There’s so much to write about, both positive and negative, so I think I’m going to try to separate them into two different posts. Without question, while the sessions are phenomenal, the most memorable parts of NECC often seem to be the networking. It seemed that every ten feet there was another person on my list of “People I Need to Meet F2F” and unfortunately there was never enough time to have a proper conversation. I truly felt humbled that I met so many people who consider me a part of their learning networks, personal or professional. Additionally, there were so many people that I’ve been a fan of for so long that it was an honor to finally meet them in person. I hate to do name lists because I always forget people, but among the most memorable were Miguel Guhlin and Bud Hunt. These are colleagues and friends that I have known for years, but never met face to face. It was truly a pleasure to finally be able to shake their hand, give them a hug and tell them in person just how much I’ve admired their work over all these years. Of course there were so many others that I could say the same for, but this isn’t about name dropping. It’s about friendships, and making personal connections between nodes in our networks. And no matter how many names I listed, I couldn’t name them all. I can’t remember who said this, but someone at EduBloggerCon truly summed the networking side up quite eloquently: “Every single F2F conversation with someone makes the 140 characters that much more meaningful.” That’s not a direct quote, so if you said it, then let me know so I can get it right and give you credit. Without a doubt, live video streaming was (as predicted) a big topic at NECC. I’m still trying to get a grasp on how many sessions were streamed. EdStream.TV was not as successful as I’d have liked it to be, but it was a spectacular learning experience that I think has huge potential. In particular, I learned that you really need someone dedicated solely to keeping the project organized and handle the video production, whether on site or off site is irrelevant. Unfortunately I just had too many other time commitments to devote the necessary hours to make it a true success. MAJOR kudos to Jen Wagner for her incredible effort aggregating the streams together here and making sure that virtual attendees had just about as rich an experience as physical attendees. While backchannels and live streams were becoming commonplace in many sessions, the internet connectivity issues were always around to throw a monkey wrench in the works. During two of the panel discussions I participated in, I couldn’t stay connected to the backchannel to contribute there. Very aggravating. Even my cell-phone-as-a-modem solution failed me, despite the fact that we were in AT&T’s corporate home. However, most backchannels were archived and quite honestly are a wealth of information. That being said, I think it’s a bit presumptuous to assume that people know what a backchannel is, how to find it and how to participate. Vicki Davis has made it a priority to explain the fine art of backchanneling in some of her presentations, and I think she’s got the right idea. I’m going to make that a priority in future presentations. Speaking of backchannels, while Chatzy and CoverItLive seem to be the hot ones right now, my backchannel of choice has become Plurk. Why Plurk? Well, for one thing, I think it could be the best successor to Twitter that I’ve seen yet. Instead of a series of loosely related posts, you get one threaded conversation with its own RSS feed and permalink. Check out Ginger Lewman’s live blog from Ian Juke’s session. Not only that, but it has a rock solid mobile version that you can use from a cell phone, iPhone or any other mobile device. Heck, on a PC it looks alot like Twitter for those that don’t like the timeline. So while I couldn’t get online, if the backchannel had been on Plurk I could still have participated actively via mobile. On the subject of mobiles, I don’t think I’ve ever used my cell phone more at a conference before. I used it to keep up with Twitter. I used it to keep up with Plurk. I used it to check in with emails, both work and personal. I used Google Maps on there to find where I was going. I used it to read blogs and to look up people’s names and information. I used my phone as a camera and a camcorder. And as many saw in both Will’s and Hall’s sessions, I used it to do several live video streams. I broadcast solo from the airplane on the way to NECC, and interviewed Kelly Dumont, Bonnie Muir and Darren Draper (who had the misfortune of sitting next to me) on the return flight. Video of that one is embedded below. While the videos may be a little rough and got cut off before the end, I felt that they were a great proof of concept and something I will definitely continue to pursue. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say that I believe that live video streaming via mobile is going to play a crucial role in education within the next five years. These devices are just too powerful and diverse to blow off. I’m seriously considering upgrading from the Blackjack to a Nokia N95 just so I can improve my live streams and get a full screen browser. I was pretty busy presenting in formal sessions, panels and in the booth, so I didn’t have too much time to attend many sessions. I did attend the DEN’s Second Life Leadership Council’s panel presentation about building out their personal learning networks which was absolutely phenomenal. A classic example of how you can never be over prepared. They knew what they wanted to say, had it timed well, and really did magnificent job of sharing the fine work they’re doing in Second Life. Speaking of being over prepared, I did catch Hall Davidson’s cell phone presentation. It was easily the best presentation I saw at NECC, and I’m not just saying that because I work with him. I don’t think there’s anyone out there that understands the art of presenting better than Hall and watching him up on stage is like a magic show that you actually learn from. It was chock full of hands on demonstrations and it was a pleasure watching hundreds of educators break out their own phones and participate. If you missed it, they did record it. You can catch it at ISTE’s NECC On Demand website. Of course, then there was the DEN Pre-Conference which was an absolute blast. Where else are you going to get to see your boss get thrown in jail, a friend get hog tied, participate in an Old West scavenger hunt and STILL have time to network, share ideas, and do a little presenting? The DEN’s 3rd birthday party was a huge “overflowing” success and with STAR Discovery Educators in every corner of the room it was more like a family reunion than cocktail party. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Howl at the Moon, the piano bar where I left both my voice and my dignity. I can honestly say it’s the most interesting place I’ve ever celebrated my *ahem* birthday. All in all, it was definitely a NECC to remember. Next time I’m going to try to make a point to carve out more free time so I can actually spend more time chatting with people beyond the 10 minute, “Hello! I follow you! I read you! Thanks for all you do! Hope to see you again soon!” There were way too many of those unfortunately. SO that’s the end of part 1, The Good. More to come. Less

The K12 Online Conference is truly unbelievable opportunity for teacher learning and indeed student learning. This week many of the virtual aspects of this conference became a reality. Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach already wrote eloquently about our planning meeting and Wes Fryer and Sheryl offer a full recap of our presentation at NECC. The more I think about the value of this conference, recall the stories shared during our presentation, I can’t believe what a powerful learning opportunity this is for all educators. While I’m sure others will find fault and criticize some of our efforts and decisions, I will, without hesitation, state that this is by far the best value for a professional learning conference you’ll ever find. I’d say that even if we charged $500 for the event. But it’s less than $500. It’s free. The real magic of this conference is not only in the presentations. While these continue to provoke thinking and support for learners, here are what I think make the conference as good as it is: Connections. The story of Vicki Davis and Julie Lindsay meeting via the conference and continuing to do the work they’ve done is one example. There are countless other examples of people who met during the conference and have continued a relationship well beyond the initial release dates of the presentations. Re-purposing. I’m excited about the way leaders have used the content to create unique learning festivals in their local contexts. Jeff Utecht’s LAN Party is one example. Listen to the video to hear him explain it more fully. I’m looking forward to more creative ways of using the content locally. Unlimited access. This is more than simply unlimited access to the content but unlimited access to the presenters. Again, there are many stories here but I’ve been able to make connections with Liz Kolb and her work with cellphones and been able to use her to support my work locally. Authentic Collaboration. The organization of this conference is done entirely online as well (except for the one evening that 3 of us were together). I’ve been overwhelmed with the response in the past 2 weeks of volunteers. Many have never done anything of this kind in working together to organize a virtual event. Being part of building and creating something real is a great experience and one that certainly transfers to our work with students. There are likely oodles more stories out there of what this conference means. If you have a story, go ahead and leave a comment. We’ll likely take them and post them to the conference blog but we can start here. I’ve also added a Skype video recording of our convener meeting. It’s unedited, 23 minutes long and mostly of Darren Kuropatwa’s unshaven face. But here it is if you’re interested. Less

The K12 Online Conference is truly unbelievable opportunity for teacher learning and indeed student learning. This week many of the virtual aspects of this conference became a reality. Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach already wrote eloquently about our planning meeting and Wes Fryer and Sheryl offer a full recap of our presentation at NECC. The more I think about the value of this conference, recall the stories shared during our presentation, I can’t believe what a powerful learning opportunity this is for all educators. While I’m sure others will find fault and criticize some of our efforts and decisions, I will, without hesitation, state that this is by far the best value for a professional learning conference you’ll ever find. I’d say that even if we charged $500 for the event. But it’s less than $500. It’s free. The real magic of this conference is not only in the presentations. While these continue to provoke thinking and support for learners, here are what I think make the conference as good as it is: Connections. The story of Vicki Davis and Julie Lindsay meeting via the conference and continuing to do the work they’ve done is one example. There are countless other examples of people who met during the conference and have continued a relationship well beyond the initial release dates of the presentations. Re-purposing. I’m excited about the way leaders have used the content to create unique learning festivals in their local contexts. Jeff Utecht’s LAN Party is one example. Listen to the video to hear him explain it more fully. I’m looking forward to more creative ways of using the content locally. Unlimited access. This is more than simply unlimited access to the content but unlimited access to the presenters. Again, there are many stories here but I’ve been able to make connections with Liz Kolb and her work with cellphones and been able to use her to support my work locally. Authentic Collaboration. The organization of this conference is done entirely online as well (except for the one evening that 3 of us were together). I’ve been overwhelmed with the response in the past 2 weeks of volunteers. Many have never done anything of this kind in working together to organize a virtual event. Being part of building and creating something real is a great experience and one that certainly transfers to our work with students. There are likely oodles more stories out there of what this conference means. If you have a story, go ahead and leave a comment. We’ll likely take them and post them to the conference blog but we can start here. I’ve also added a Skype video recording of our convener meeting. It’s unedited, 23 minutes long and mostly of Darren Kuropatwa’s unshaven face. But here it is if you’re interested. Less

Here’s 4 minutes of random video of some of my day at Edubloggercon. Nothing fancy here but a few moments of learning.  You might get a sense of some of the passion and energy in this short clips. That’s more or less why I came. I came to hear stories, share a few and spend time together. I’ve used the video annotations within youtube. You’ll have to view it on youtube to see them. I thought others could annotate but it may not be possible. Less

Here’s 4 minutes of random video of some of my day at Edubloggercon. Nothing fancy here but a few moments of learning.  You might get a sense of some of the passion and energy in this short clips. That’s more or less why I came. I came to hear stories, share a few and spend time together. I’ve used the video annotations within youtube. You’ll have to view it on youtube to see them. I thought others could annotate but it may not be possible. Less