Skype is a text, audio, and video chat program that allows you to connect with people online. With the right setup, it can be a great tool for private or professional video conferences. However, as with any tool, there are pitfalls that can be avoided by preparing properly. This article will walk you through the basic preparations that should precede any use of Skype and it will conclude with specific tips for video conferences.

Jacob Bradshaw discusses a few ideas and considerations that you should chew on while building your battle plan to handle the BYOD invasion.

A good presenter has a mental bag of tricks to rely on. In fact, the presenter is the presentation. Add a powerful visual element, such as a PowerPoint show, and you can’t go wrong… until something goes wrong. A presentation kit with most of the following items could help you quickly recover from or even avert a disaster.

In 1961, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley, the jazz saxophonist best known for his work on Miles Davis’ epic album Kind of Blue (listen here), narrated a children’s introduction to jazz music. Part of a larger series of educational albums for children, this 12-inch LP offered an “easy-going, conversational discussion of the highlights of the jazz story,” highlighting the “major styles and great performers” that began in New Orleans and spread beyond.

The default view in Outlook 2010 can be overwhelming if you receive a lot of mail. One option which most modern mail clients have adopted, is conversation view, where we group all mail that is related so it reads like a conversation.

In addition to syncing your bookmarks, extensions, history, and other settings, Google Chrome now syncs your tabs between computers and devices–no tweaks or third-party tools necessary.

A Liverpool NHS trust is pushing ahead with a bring your own device (BYOD) strategy in a bid to cut costs, despite its IT chief conceding that the policy may well result in job losses in his department.

James Norman, IT director, Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust, told Computing this week that the policy is necessary to meet his cost reduction targets.

UK organisations that are not yet compliant with the EU cookie law should show some awareness of the new legislation to avoid hefty fines, according to Kim Walker, partner at law firm Thomas Eggar.

The law is enforceable in the UK from 26 May and is part of the EU Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications.

It means that websites will need to obtain users' opt-in consent before installing cookies that pass on information about browsing activities to third parties.

Last week I was asked to present to the current cohort of PGCE students on digital technology. I decided to try and make it as hands on as possible so booked us in to a computer room. Conscious of the time available, and the variety of previous experience, I set the students three pre session tasks.

Update – Issue 108

The Register of Training Organisations: Closing Date Monday, 21 May 

Notification of Changes to Learner Reference Numbers: Deadline Friday, 8 June

Submission of R11 ILR Returns: Jubilee Bank Holiday 

FE Choices Learner Satisfaction Survey: Deadline Friday, 25 May

Apprenticeship / National Training Awards Entry Deadline: Just Over a Week to Go

Community Learning Trust Pilot Proposals: Closing Date Reminder

Creating an Inclusive Apprenticeship Offer: Government Report Published

Provider Guide: A Guide to Delivering Adult Skills Provision to the Unemployed

New Name for Loans

24+ Advanced learning Loans: Funding and Events

AELP with the support of the Learning and Skills Improvement Service has produced this very useful publication - ‘Provider Guide - A Guide to Delivering Adult Skills Provision to the Unemployed’, designed for all providers active in the employment, learning and skills markets.

The Campaign for Learning is working for a society where learning is at the heart of social inclusion. Research shows that lifelong learners are more likely to be happier, healthier, have better jobs, contribute more to society and live longer and more fulfilled lives.

Find out how we engage more people in learning throughout their lives

Valuing and investing in staff learning and development is a strong driver for employee engagement – a key concern for many businesses today.  That is why companies and employers are being urged to mark this year’s Learning at Work Day, 17 May 2012, by promoting learning opportunities and career support services to all of their staff.

Now a new report written by a team of academics from the Institute of Education, London School of Ecoconomics, and King's College London, has thrown new light onto problems of cyberbullying. Entitled A qualitative study of children, young people and sexting, the report suggests that the biggest threat to e-safety comes from within.

The (latest) study participants — known as Cathy and Bob — had had strokes that damaged their brain stems and left them with tetraplegia and unable to speak. Neurosurgeons implanted tiny recording devices containing almost 100 hair-thin electrodes in the motor cortex of their brains, to record the neuronal signals associated with intention to move.

In a trial filmed in April last year and presented with the paper, Cathy, who had her stroke 15 years ago and received the implants in 2005, used her thoughts to steer a robot arm to grasp a bottle of coffee and lift it to her lips. She drank and smiled.

I've reviewed a lot of note-taking tools over the last five years, but I have never made a list. So here's my list of seven great note-taking tools for students and teachers.

Within the last few years, applications or “apps” have gone from being big software programs on computers to small and downloadable apps on mobile devices. This video explains what caused this evolution and how it is impacting our lives today. 

Your website may be enjoying a solid ranking on Google’s desktop web search, but might not be found at all searching the same keywords on a mobile device.

 

On top of that, small phone screen sizes make it difficult to explore results beyond the top ranks. As a result, it has become essential to optimize your mobile search presence to make the most out of online business opportunities! 

Former head of Ofsted Christine Gilbert examines the implications of the mass academisation of schools and the impact this might have on educational outcomes.

 Zoho Sites is a new addition Zoho's suite of services.