Ed-Tech @ DU

As the CTL implements Flash technology extensively in our applications, there is potentially a lot of exciting news for the DU community coming out of Barcelona, Spain at the Mobile World Congress.

Firstly, Adobe has announced that Flash Player 10.1 is coming for almost all mobile operating systems including Android, the BlackBerry® platform, Symbian® OS, Palm® webOS and Windows Mobile®. Flash Player 10.1 is the first version of the Flash Player released through the cooperation of over 70 organizations including 19 of the 20 top mobile providers through the Open Screen Project.

View an excerpt from the Google Keynote:

It was also announced that AIR 2.0 would be coming to these same platforms over the next year, allowing Flash Platform developers to create applications distributable through application stores such as the Android Marketplace.

See what Nvidea has to say about Flash and AIR:

A plethora of new tablet devices were announced, all of them supporting Flash and AIR runtimes. Many of these devices allow open development, full multitasking, and extensive hardware configurations.

What perhaps may be the most important long-range announcement is that the world’s largest wireless operators (Verizon Wireless, AT&T, NTT DoCoMo, Deutsche Telekom, China Mobile, and Vodafone among them) are uniting to create “an open international applications platform” in an effort to tap demand for mobile applications. As things stand right now, the mobile world is fragmented across different operating systems, runtimes, networks, and application distribution mechanisms. This new platform would provide a single point of entry for application developers and meshes well with the open, cross-platform application distribution environment made possible by Flash Platform technologies.

Mobile is huge right now and will only gain greater momentum in the years to come. The fact that so many mobile players are collaborating on these various runtimes and initiatives should be heartening to anyone invested in the future of mobile application development.

More info:

• Adobe Unveils AIR on Mobile Devices; Readies Flash Player 10.1 for Launch
• Android catching up fast!
• AIR and Flash Player coming for Android and Mobile Devices
• The unofficial Nexus One Flash demos

Join Adobe education and industry experts as they conduct free online seminars about using industry-leading Adobe software solutions. During these live, easy-to-follow sessions, you will discover brand-new ways to prepare engaging curriculum, teach essential digital communication skills, empower students to creatively express what they’ve learned, simplify complex concepts, and improve communication.

REGISTER HERE

Administration and Productivity with Acrobat 9 Pro
Thursday, January 21, 2010 10:00 AM PT
Reduce the vast amount of paper that is used for administrative functions and make it easy to create forms and manage content with Adobe® Acrobat® software. Discover how your institution can save substantial time and money through the electronic distribution of these forms and through the streamlined collection of data they make possible.

Integrative Learning with ePortfolios at CSU, Monterey
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 10:00 AM PT
Learn how CSU, Monterey’s graduate program is boosting learning effectiveness and student success with ePortfolios leveraging Adobe® Acrobat® 9 Pro software and Acrobat.com to create and share.

University of Michigan Medical School: Setting a New Standard in Academic Collaboration
Wednesday, February 10, 2010 10:00 AM PT
The U-M Medical School is frequently cited as one of the best teaching and research healthcare systems in the United States. With the adoption of the on-premise version of Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro, U-M Medical School continues to innovate – facilitating more efficient and effective collaboration for clinical trials, research programs, and student learning. Join Ted Hanss, Director of the Office of Enabling Technologies at U-M Medical School to learn more about this implementation.

Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro and Learning Management System Integration
Tuesday, February 23, 2010 10:00 AM PT
Extend the reach and scope of your online learning experience by using the advanced communication features of Adobe Acrobat Connect Pro within your Learning Management System. Acrobat Connect Pro offers an ideal platform for virtual classrooms and meetings. In this session we will feature samples of Connect Pro integration with Blackboard, Angel, WebCT and Moodle.

Last month, I participated in a phone interview with the education team at Adobe to talk about how the University of Denver is using Flash Media Server to stream both live and on-demand content across campus and out into the world. The resulting article was recently published on the Adobe Developer Connection website.

Topics covered include our CourseMedia™ system, live events, and various video uses across departments. It’s a fairly quick read and a comprehensive look at what DU is doing with media streaming using the Flash Platform.

Check it out: Q & A with Joseph Labrecque

I’d encourage anyone going to Educause in Denver to stop by the Adobe Booth (#909) for a theater presentation by myself and John Schuman.

Streaming Video for Education
Wednesday, November 4
12:45pm–1:15pm

In this session, you will learn the inner workings of a real-world video solution for higher education based on Adobe Flash technology. Join John Schuman, Adobe education solutions architect, and Joseph Labrecque, senior multimedia application developer at the University of Denver and an Adobe Education Leader, as they take you through the underlying technologies that went into the creation of the amazing video applications of the University of Denver.

During the opening day of Adobe MAX 2009 in Los Angeles, two separate sessions featured DU video systems.

Firstly, Joseph Labrecque, Senior Multimedia Application Developer for the University of Denver and Adobe Higher Education Leader included mention of the ALORA Embed Generator video player and its ability to tap into Google Analytics during his session for the FITC Unconference:

Custom Event Reporting from Flash to Google Analytics
With the ability to define and report custom events from within your Flash application, you retain control over how specific events are reported and the information contained in these reports. This presentation will cover the implementation of the Google Analytics Tracking For Adobe Flash ActionScript 3 API for generating custom events and the generation of unorthodox event logging from within Flash.

This presentation was streamed live by FITC and Influxis.

Another strong mention was made by John Schuman, Education Solutions Architect for Adobe Systems during his session on video delivery systems in education during which he focused on the CourseMedia™ application:

Customizing the University Experience with a Rich Media Delivery System
Explore the potential of developing a customized, security-focused, RSS-driven delivery solution. This session shows how you can use Adobe Flash Media Rights Management Server, Flash Media Server 3, and Adobe Media Player

While there were some inaccuracies presented during the session, the spirit of our system was well-represented and we thank John for his coverage of CourseMedia™ and other DU video delivery mechanisms.