Apple’s announcement of iBooks 2 introduces a realm of possibilities for students and educators that we could only imagine until now. Up to this point there was much talk about the evolution of textbooks, but there was a lingering question of “How? On what platform?” With this new publishing software it’s easy for anyone to develop and publish digital techbooks which integrate multi media content. The advent of iBook Author makes it possible for professors to create and publish their own interactive books. The software is so simple to use one can simply drag and drop a document into the program and it will automatically format it. And it’s all free!

A digital techbook solution for the iPad has been in the making for a long time. It started with PDF editing software and evolved into

application based solutions such as Our Choice from Push Pop Press (which was bough out by Facebook), and Inkling which now carries McGraw Hill’s top 100 titles and involves note taking, note sharing, quizzing, and virtual networking between classmates. Now,  iBooks 2 integrates all of these features and accommodates creative freedom for more functions such as interactive graphs, full screen interactive images, and 3D models. Furthermore, iBooks will automatically organize highlighted text and notes into notecards for students to study later. In addition, the new iTunes U app works in tandem with iBooks and gives professors the tools to create complete virtual courses which include audio and video, presentations, documents, PDFs, ePub books, iOS apps, and web links.    

In sum, this technology unequivocally solves the question of “How?” and students have already answered why. iSchool Initiative is excited to see yet another barrier to creativity stripped from the classroom. We look forward to exploring the limits of this new technology with Volume 1 of iSchool Initiative Workshops iBook – Professional Development for Educators Everywhere.

I’m sure Apple is feeling extremely confident with a 400 BILLION dollar market cap, almost double that of Microsoft today. After all we are in the age of the mobile application and Apple is not only the King of this space, they are practically a dictatorship–talk about big brother. Enter relative newcomer Mark Zuckerburg and his evolutionary new vision for Facebook. If I were Mark, I’d be playing nice with Apple as well, reminiscent of early Bill Gates. Before Apple realized it, Windows ran the world and Apple took a back seat.

I see the same forces here at work with Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Google. We can learn a lot from history and what history says to me is that Apple’s stronghold will last only as long as they remain a dominant force in the phone and tablet marketplace. The need for mobile applications on mobile devices will one day be non-existent. The question is… how long before that day arrives?

What about the “Post-Mobile Application Era,” which is coming sooner than most think? What happens when you can create software that works as efficiently as a perfectly programmed application from the App-Store and all you need is a decent browser with internet connection? What happens when there is no application necessary? What happens when Facebook creates that interface and it works seamlessly on ANY device? What happens when Facebook integrates ALL media and enhanced media sharing tools and it’s available on ANY device you can imagine? When this day comes, it won’t matter if you have a $499 iPad or a $199 Amazon Fire!: your media-friendly, shareable Facebook account will be available and operable the SAME on all of them! That will be the day that Facebook doesn’t need Apple. They already don’t need Google and Amazon. Facebook’s new partnerships with Netflix, Spotify, and a host of other media giants have perfectly positioned them to be the new gatekeeper of all things media.

This will give Facebook a tremendous advantage. They won’t have hardware issues to deal with so they will be able to focus on one thing and one thing only: Becoming “The Social Media Platform” in the information age much like Windows became the one and only solution for all hardware manufacturers. I believe Facebook is best positioned to play that role in the near future.

So will history repeat itself? Only time will tell… Stay tuned for the big event on Tuesday!

Here is the interview:

We have recently launched an all new program called “Donate to Educate”. With the recent launch of the iPad 2, it brought new hope for classrooms in need of mobile devices. We have created a way for those tech savvy people, who always want the latest technology, a way to give back to their community. With new technology coming out every year, there are millions of older generation mobile devices sitting idle in someone’s living room. With our new “Donate to Educate” program, you can donate your mobile device to iSchool Initiative and we will send a set of devices for a classroom in need!

So if you are looking for an excuse to upgrade to the iPad 2, here is your way out! Donate to iSchool Initiative, receive a tax deduction, and make a difference in a students education.

Teachers, you can go on our website and apply for a classroom set. If you are selected, you will receive mobile devices for your class and the iSchool initiative team will work with you every week to get the most out of your new devices!

I am very excited to begin my blog again and share with you my mobile learning experiences. If you are new to my blog, my name is Travis Allen, I am 19 and the president and founder of iSchool Initiative, a student led non-profit dedicated to revolutionizing our education system through innovative technology. If you want to learn more about my company and team, feel free to check out our website.

For those of you who don’t know, I am a mobile learner. I take my iPad and only my iPad to all my college courses at Kennesaw State University. I do not own pens, paper, books, calculators, printers, ink, or a backpack. I am a true 21st century, digital learner. I am here to give you a student perspective on learning.

What do you think of the new blog outline? Do you like it better then my old blog? Answer the poll below and comment with any suggestions for improvements.

I plan on writing at least one post a week, so check back here regularly if you want learn about my progression as a mobile learner and the latest news on iSchool Initiative.

Full story can be read here: http://www.worldatways.com/2010/07/06/casta-ways-an-interview-with-travis-allen/

“For Travis Allen the gift of an iPhone for Christmas in 2009 quickly became much more than the increasingly common rite of passage coveted by many American tweens and teens. As you’ll hear in this interview, the iPhone profoundly changed how Travis experienced himself as a learner. At the time, Travis was just seventeen.

We first became aware of Travis through a video he posted to YouTube while still a high school senior, that as of today, has well over 18,000 views. In the video, Travis outlines his vision of mobile learning which he calls the iSchool Initiative. One year later and Travis has turned his iSchool Initiative into a non-profit organization that includes:
a student team that tests, evaluates and recommends educational applications for mobile devices
an iSchool community that connects learners and educators around the world who share a common interest in the educational potential of mobile technologies
a Facebook group and newsletter that posts events and project updates
and a website that pulls everything together”
Click Here to Play Interview

Click Here to Read Full Story…

Feel free to let me know what you think. I am open for discussion.

Among some of these people, I met an ambitious teacher living and breathing the 21st century classroom. Megan Allen is Florida’s 2010 Teacher of the Year and uses iPod Touches with her elementary students with great results. To learn more about Megan and her class, visit her website: http://www.redheadedteacher.com/Megan_Allen/Welcome.html

I also met Sharyn Gabriel, a middle school principal, was also a presenter with a lot to show. In the short two years since she became principle, she has changed her middle school, engaging students and pushing them to do their best. Together, she and her school banded together and made a very catchy music video on reading books.

It’s inspiring people like this who make me believe that what iSchool Initiative advocates is possible and that people out there are willing and ready to make the change.

On another note, I’d like to share a great experience I had at the airport with my iPhone. The Atlanta airport now has completely paperless tickets! How does it work? With the use of QRCodes. QRCodes are similar to a barcode, but can link you to a website through a picture. Click here to learn more about QRCodes.

Delta is using this technology to make life easier and better for the frequent flyer. While you are checking in and getting your ticket, either at a kiosk or online, they now give you the option to have your ticket sent to your smart phone. You get all of your flight information and a QRCode on top, which security can then scan rather than scanning a paper ticket. This is great for an iPhone user like me and it’s great to see companies starting to embrace new technology. Here is what the ticket looks like on an iPhone.

I thought this was a really neat innovation, and if you are ever flying Delta see if they offer these new and efficient tickets!

Hope you all are enjoying a great summer, feel free to comment and ask any questions!

For those of you who don’t know, I take my iPad (used to be my iPhone) and only my iPad to all my college courses. This post is to help explain some of the different ways I have been using my iPad.The first thing most people ask me is, “What apps do you use to take notes” and, “How do you do it?” There are two main ways I take notes, depending on the type of lecture. Here are examples of those two.

Cranberry flashcards – This application allows students to make intuitive flashcards. One of the great parts about this applications is that it is also web based and can be pulled up in any device with Internet access, also allowing you take make the flashcards on a computer instead, if you so choose.

In my political science class, I build flashcards as the lecture is going on, rather than taking traditional notes. This saves me the time of later converting my notes into flashcards to study. I can then study for my test anytime, anywhere and with flashcards. This app has been incredibly useful and has improved my test scores significantly.

Sundry notes – This app is better when you want to take more traditional notes. It combines text notes with images, drawings, audio, imbedding from google and wikipidia, and much more all in to one page.I use this application in my history class and absolutely love being able to combine multiple things into one page.

For example, when talking about the industrial age in class, I was able to type in my notes, insert images from google of what we were talking about, insert a wiki definition of a subject I knew little about, draw arrows connecting things, and a recording of part of the lecture. Overall, it’s been very valuable when it comes to cram sessions.

Another question I get asked a lot is, “How do you stay organized using your iPad?” I use one of my favorite college apps for that, called iStudiez pro. This is by far one of the best organizational apps for students. First you plug in your semester classes and times. Once that’s set up, you can easily add homework assignments, exams and projects with due dates that you can set to alert you days in advance. Because of this app, I now have no excuse to not turn in an assignment and I haven’t missed one since.

These are just three of the many apps I have started using with the iPad. Follow my blog post and follow me on twitter to here about more apps I use in the classroom. Don’t forget to retweet this post!

I want to know what apps you have started using on the iPad. Please post comments and tell me all about them.