no blog entries!!!

Hi.

we are in the middle of an upload of new pages and content to the RP website so the blog has not had many posts lately. I’ve been uploading some industry and company news which you can find in the news section of the website.

We’re planning to have the blog moved in a few weeks!

we are moving our blog…

we are moving our blog to your website and are planning to locate it at blog.realprojects.co.uk.

Over the next couple of weeks we’ll keep this blog updated with news of when the move is ready. In addition we are also planning to upload some of our new whitepapers which will be available at www.realprojects.co.uk/resources

real time feedback at the e-learning forum

When I first has the idea to set up an e-learning forum in Norfolk I wanted to make sure that we listened to the people who came and improved the event. I’ve been able to move the event from an idea that I had last year to something that is well supported and valued by those who attend.

Reading this…you might be thinking….how does he know it is well valued!

At our last event I invited the customer feedback company, during the event they ran 2 live trials using their mobile phone feedback system. They asked a simple question about whether people found the event worthwhile and would they recommend the event. It was pleasing to see so many people post comments and then to read the positive ones! I still want to make improvements to the event and continue to improve the sessions.

The feedback system allowed us to view real-time feedback and we were able to collate the most feedback that we have ever had!

mobiles come to the e-learning forum

Jonathan Newcombe from the Customer Feedback Company was our guest speaker at the norfolk e-learning forum. He delivered a great session on the mobile phone feedbadck system demonstrating how companies such as Tesco are using the feedback system and the many possible uses for it.

When I first met Jonathan we talked about what they did but it wasn’t until I saw the technology being used that I actually began to understand how it could be used and how many potential uses there were. Since that first meeting we’ve had loads of ideas abotu how it can be used and we are going to have an open day at our offices so more people can come and see some of our ideas.

The session today must be one of the only ones I have been to where you were asked to leave your mobile phone on! I didn’t hear any comedy ringtones so a lot of people must have been on silent!

After the session there was an excellent debate on the possible uses of the feedback system for a range of education and commerical uses. A number of attendees stated that organisations that the worked for were already using or were looking at ways in which the technology could be used.

We were also able to give out a 3 free whitepapers which were provided by Rob Hubbard, Real Projects and The Customer Feedback Company. For more information on the forum including how you can attend please visit http://www.realprojects.co.uk/about.php.

when did we all get mobile?

I’ve recently read a number of articles about the iphone, google phone and other pda’s which are apparently going to change the way that we think about out internet usage. These super fast devices are going to let us browse on the move, check email, get GPS positions and a whole host of other applications. Whilst reading the articles I thought back to my first mobile phone purchase: the size, the cost and the weight of the thing! Just when did mobile phones become so widely adopted in our society?

In 1993 I had access to a shared mobile (more of a breeze block than a mobile device) which was used mainly for incoming calls. It was pretty impractical and the thought of carrying it around let alone using it to check emails seemed a tad ridiculous. 5 years later I had my own mobile phone along with most of my friends. Along came flashing aerials, text messages, address books, using it overseas; it all became common place without anyone realising it.

When will I look back and think about how obvious it is to use my mobile phone to provide a gps of my position, which then pings me traffic news, food options, relevant shops and loads of other information via some kind of information burner. I can imagine a scenario where I am overseas trying to book some train tickets but need somehelp. My position is sent to my personal web profile, I’m then sent a series of learning packs to help me, a short podcast, time information, cultural information, perhaps a translation to show the assistant….or my profile generates a personal bar code which I pass over the ticket machine. My online ticket account is debited and the train ticket uploaded to my pda.

touchscreens – on the comeback trail…!

At Real Projects we’ve recently been invited to look at a number of touchscreen projects for clients. I looked at the possibilities of touchscreens in 1996, since then the technology has moved on a lot. the technology is now being used in many devices from information points in shopping centres to mobile phones. On the blog one of my first posts was about microsoft sphere. A few weeks before I came across sphere I was at Norwich University College of the Arts and some of the students and technicians had created a very cool table top touch screen to showcase the work of the computer games degree.

It was a very clever use of technology and displayed the students work in a really elegant and clever way. I then read last week about a project in Scotland (http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/sep/17/itforschools.elearning) where an interactive desk has been developed. The desk and its possibilities look fantastic. The Guardian article discusses how they could be used in the classroom but I can think of many commercial applications from designers to architects. There are also many custom e-learning applications that could be developed for these touchscreen tables.

After being invited to come up with some design concepts for touchscreens we started to wonder where they were currently being used…we all went out on a march across the city to see where the technology was in use.

• Pubs
• Betting shops!
• The tube
• Shopping Malls
• Train Stations
• Police Information Points
• Mobile Phones
• PDA
• Remote Controls

It was really interesting to see that the technology is already being used in many places and its become part of our technical landscape. I spend a bit of time travelling to clients in London and regularly look at how travellers engage with the video screens in tube stations. I wonder how long it will be before we see interactive adverts using touchscreens. (not on the escalators!)

mobiles, feedback and e-learning

Last week I went to a great event hosted by the Norfolk Network. At the event James Duez from the feedback company spoke about his experiences of running a succesful e-learning business and also his current project: The Customer Feedback Company.

James and his team demonstrated a great piece of technology that captures instant feedback sent via a mobile and displayed via a dashboard. The possibilities for this technology are vast, from feedback to workplace assessment. I enjoyed the session so much that James has agreed to come and speak at the next e-learning forum.

Mobile technologies and handheld learning are developing radidly with Africa being the fastest growth area for Mobile Phone ownership. The Guardian also ran an article about parents wanting to receive more information about their children’s performance via mobile phone. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2007/sep/18/link.link17)

We are currently finalising the details of the event which will be on the 23rd October. The norfolk elearning website will be updated with details of the event in the next couple of days so look out for the booking details.

For more information:

http://www.thefeedbackcompany.com/

http://www.realprojects.co.uk/about.php

http://www.norfolkelearningforum.co.uk/

learning to make great pizza!

Ever since a trip to Italy last year I’ve been trying to find the ‘perfect’ receipe for pizza dough. After much experimentation and comparing results with my friend Jay (http://www.thechilliking.com/) I’ve stumbled upon something I think works:

• 80g tipo 00 italian flour
• 20g strong bread flour
• 20g semolina flour
• 7g yeast
• 3 fluid ounces of water
• pinch of salt
• brown sugar

I only added the strong bread flour after running out of tipo. After kneading the dough and leaving it for an hour I was really pleased with the results. A quick compare with Jay over email confirmed a few things and we’ve agreed to continue to share notes.

Whilst the latest pizza was in the oven it made me think about my own continual professional development. I’m learning at my own pace, experimenting, using a mixture of research techniques (video, internet, books, tv) and I’ve actually created my own informal learning plan.

I’ll tweak the dough here and there, but my next task is to get the dough into some kind of round shape as opposed to square/rectangle. I’ll go through the same process: research, reviews, testing and measurement. Social networks and blogs have all helped with the quest for perfect pizza. It really did get me thinking about how social networking sites, informal and formal are of benefit to the learning process. I could even post my receipe on a site and have others test it and get all their feedback, a community of testers – carrying out pizza dough research.

….I thought some more about how this would translate to an e-learning module. The receipe and creation would be suited to linear process but I’d want to include decision and thought points where you could review your work. Getting comments from others who have tried the receipe and have their own thoughts.

In a large company this pizza experiement could lend itself to range of topics from the restaurant/bar group looking for feedback on new dishes or getting staff feedback on how difficult it is to create the dish. In a research area people like Johnny Lee are already doing similar things to great effect.

Scott

custom or bespoke?

Custom or bespoke? Which one to use? Hot on the heels of e-learning v elearning we have had another word based debate in the office.

We were preparing a new version of our company brochure when a debate started about custom or bespoke. Custom cars, bespoke suits: everyone knows about Saville Row, West Coast Custom, MTV’s Pimp My Ride…after hours of discussion we’ve settled on custom.

good job ryan!

News reached me this week that Ryan (Games Degree Graduate) has got his dream job! Ryan worked with the Real Projects on a e-learning project in August. his input and new ideas were a huge help and everyone at RP is really pleased for him.

Ryan produced a great model of the forum using the Unreal engine for his final year project. A stunning piece of work.

Everyone wishes Ryan good luck as he starts his career in the games industry.