e-Literate

Present is Prologue

Author: Michael Feldstein

  • Zimbra: What a Mashup-Enabled Enterprise App Looks Like

    Phew. Enough with the Apple stuff. I actually still have one or two more posts on the topic that I want to return to at a later time, but I need a break from it. (I’m sure you do too.)

    So here’s a slightly different angle. As regular e-Literate readers know, Patrick Masson and I published an article in eLearn Magazine in which we advocated for “an LMS for a mashup world.” Since then, there have been a lot of questions of what such a beast would look like. Can you build a system that has both the ease-of-use that comes from tight integration in traditional enterprise apps and the nimbleness that you get from mashups?

    In response, I present Exhibit A: Zimbra. (more…)

  • What I'd Like to See Next in iTunes University

    Update: Although you can’t copy and paste the podcatching URL from the iTunes client, it is apparently possible to expose the podcatching URL from the administration interface. I have no direct information about why this is so. However, it is consistent with Apple’s general approach to DRM. It may be that by making it easy for the producer to expose the URL but inconvenient for the consumer to do so without help from the producer, they are trying to strike a balance that gives iTunes U a “soft” DRM capability without resorting to encryption. But that’s just a guess.

    This is part 6 of a series of posts documenting a vist to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. and part 6.

    As you can probably tell from my last few posts, I’m pretty jazzed about the potential of iTunes U. But that doesn’t mean that I think the first version is perfect by any means. Here’s what I’d like to see from Apple going forward: (more…)

  • Why iTunes University is a Game Changer

    This is part 5 of a series of posts documenting a vist to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, and part 6.

    In my last post, I made the case that we should feel reasonably safe taking Apple at their word when they say that they want to keep iTunes U free and free from lock-in for the long-term. As far as I can tell, it’s not evil. In this post, I’m going to argue that it is, in fact, a force for good-good for the evolution of learning environments, good for the textbook market, and good for expanding the horizons of digitally-enhanced teaching and learning interactions. (more…)

  • Who's Afraid of iTunes U?

    This is part 4 of a series of posts documenting a vist to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. and part 6.

    In my last post, I outlined Apple’s business model, particularly as it relates to the higher education market. You can’t really understand why they have launched iTunes U without first understanding how they do business. And from what I’ve been able to see so far, iTunes U is exactly the opposite of what some fear it to be.

    (more…)

  • Apple's Stake in Higher Education

    This is part 3 of a series of posts documenting a vist to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. and part 6.

    If you want to understand how a company is going to treat you as a customer, you have to understand what’s in it for them. In the case of Apple and higher education, the answer is simple but not obvious.

    (more…)

  • Apple Trip, Day 2–the Warm-up

    This is part 2 of a series of posts documenting a visit to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. and part 6.

    Holy cow.

    My brain is melting.

    We just had an eleven-hour marathon day of executive briefings on the Apple campus. And amazingly, it was all useful content. Lots and lots and lots of good stuff. I’m way too tired to blog about it right now, though, and it’s clearly going to take me a few posts to get at even a significant percentage of it. And some of it won’t come out at all, because we signed non-disclosure agreements. To be clear, the Apple people were very mellow about the whole issue, and the information they seemed concerned about protecting was all stuff about collaborations with other organizations where they don’t have permission to publicize those partnerships (yet). Maybe .1% of the content falls into that category. Nevertheless, I have asked our local Apple relationship manager to review my coverage of the day before I post it to make sure that I’m clear on what the boundaries are. So all in all, it will probably take me a few days to get this all out.

    In the meantime, here are a few general observations about Apple: (more…)

  • Apple Visit, Day 1

    This is part 1 of a series of posts documenting a vist to Apple headquarters in February, 2005. For the full series, see part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5. and part 6.

    We arrived in Cupertino today. I flew JetBlue non-stop from JFK to San Jose for an amazingly low price. I have to say, JetBlue has become far and away my favorite airline.

    At any rate, we had an uneventful trip and a nice dinner hosted by Apple. The real meat of the visit comes tomorrow. In the meantime, I had an interesting lunch-time conversation with Steven and Beth about the pros and cons of podcasting as an educational medium. (more…)