Author Archives: admin

ADDIE – Development

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Development

*If you are just coming to this screen, you might want to read about ADDIE, Analysis, or Design first

During this phase of instructional design (ADDIE) we develop our instructional product and get it ready for implementation.

Prototype – From our design, we should build our prototype. This can be a screen shot or mock-up of screens that show what the final product could look like. It is very important to get client approval here before moving onto storyboard development. These should also look good – so get a graphic designer to design them if needed. These will help the developer and graphic designer in the long run when looking at the storyboards if these are done well.

Storyboard – This is the story. Each screen (or scene/action if developing a game) will be depicted. Everything we have done in design will aid in the development of the storyboards. The client should be able to look at these (and see the visual in the prototype) and have an exact idea of what the final product will look and feel like. Again, these need to be signed off on.

Development – Once the storyboards are completed, development can begin. Thus, the instructional developer, programmers, graphic artists, etc. will develop the software or instruction. This might involve one to many different deliverables depending on the type of instruction being developed (i.e., CBT, software, game, simulation, training manual, instructor guide, etc.)

System Testing – During this phase the LMS, network, etc. should be tested (if needed) to ensure that the servers and network are prepared for the implementation. This is the time that the IT team and ISDers work out any system glitches, especially if delivering this to many users. This way when implementation is ready the rollout will run without glitches. And if you’re looking to effectively build and deploy your app, you should learn more about the event based architecture business.

dev

Virtual reality and motion sickness

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Since I was just talking about this…

It looks like Occulus Rift has just hired a VR expert to help get rid of motion sickness in their vr kit: Here is a link to the article

For those new to VR and wonder about why the motion sickness happens, here is an explanation from sciencedaily.com:

“Years ago research showed that the brain can re-set an upside-down view of world to be right side up. Constantly changing images pose a bigger challenge for the brain, which has to deal with ‘lag’: the time it takes the computer system to update and display changing visual images corresponding to the users head movements. This may be a variable linked to motion sickness and other symptoms related to helmet-mounted devices.”

Occulus Rift Review

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I had the chance last night to try out Occulus Rift in my Gaming and Simulation class and thought I would share my thoughts. Keep in mind I only had the opportunity to try it one time as did each of my students. Here are my thoughts:

Its awesome, there are tons of possibilities for it, I am really excited for it, but there is still a glitch in VR tech.

So….its awesome. It has a tons of cool demos, that come with it, so that you can test the technology and its really fun to go through them. You really feel like you are in a virtual world. You can look around, move around, etc. in these virtual worlds. Some of these demos are fun and some are geared towards education.

When you first look at the goggles, you notice that there are two eyes, rather than just one screen, in the unit. You also need to put ear phones (really ear plugs) on to get a better effect. The unit is very light though, you dont even notice it is on except for the wires and I am sure they eventually come out with a wireless one.

There are tons of possibilities for the technology. I am most excited for this to use Kinect technology so that your whole body can be used with the VR screen.

There is one glitch that is slowly being solved – you can get motion sickness from it. I did after about a minute and when I took the goggles off I felt like I had just been on a roller coaster ride. Other students felt the same way after using it but I was one of the only ones that got motion sickness while using. Apparently the motion sickness goes away as you get used to the technology. This is why VR technology failed in the 90s. Apparently they are still working on this issue though and believe they have a solution. It should also be noted that I used an older version of the occulus rift – they have an even newer version out now, which solves this problem even more. This problem, in my opinion, will make or break this technology as it just wont be used on large scales if people get sick from it. But my fingers are crossed that it gets solved.

If you are interested in purchasing this, its only $300 for the developer kit, which is a beta version of the technology: http://www.oculusvr.com/

Here is a picture of me in the goggles during my class:

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Project Spark – Developing your own games is getting easier

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How would you like to develop your own game? Its getting easier and easier with new technology. Technology is also changing everything now you can play casino games from your home, this kind of games have been growing very fast that much that California Going to Overtake Nevada as the USA Gambling State. Many schools love minecraft because it gives students the ability to create their own worlds. Many schools lack the ability to create games due to money because games cost a lot to develop. Well project spark takes those ideas and puts them together in one game. Essentially the point of project spark is to create a world, just like minecraft, except you can make it a game that you can share and the graphics are very good. Project spark is currently in beta form and not released just yet to the public. I was lucky enough to be invited to the public beta this weekend so I will post my thoughts after playing. For now, here is the link to their website.

What is project spark:

Some example games:

Solution for snow days in K-12 eduction

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No more snow days? Yes there is a solution and it sounds simple but its not as easy as it sounds. The solution: Online learning during snow days.

Why its simple and how it would work…

Students could log in during the snow day and participate in asynchronous (not live) discussion and assignments or they could participate in live virtual classrooms with their teachers. It would almost be like regular school and prevent districts from having to make up days.

Why its not simple and will cost a lot…

All students would get internet connections and computers. While this is common in wealthier districts, this is not the norm in schools that have lower income families. Also the school would need to set up and purchase an online LMS to track/teach these classes. They would also need to pay for teacher training to use them and then train the teachers to teach online.

This is an article on the topic posted by one of my Master’s degree professors Karl Kapp: http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/23/living/snow-days-virtual-schools/index.html?sr=sharebar_twitter

Titanfall Beta Review

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I had a chance to play the beta version of titanfall this weekend. I was able to reach the max level offered and play for several hours, so I believe I am able to give a fair review. First off, let me say this game has gotten a ton of hype. That is usually not a good thing. I have been burned in the past by games that got so much hype and turned out to be major letdowns. However, this game has gotten hype from e3, as it won best game, and people who had played the game. So I was a little more intrigued to get my hands on it. So here is my review:

The good:

Graphics – graphics are great. I think the graphics on the 360/ps3 were great and these are just a bit better. Not that graphics make a game but they are pretty good.

Camping – finally a FPS game that people cannot camp. You can get 1-2 kills in a spot but you will be killed if you stay there.

Game time – short games. This is great for people that might only have 15 minutes to kill. Also keeps things moving if your team is just getting killed by another.

Options – tons of options. You can be a sniper, you can melee, you can shoot an automatic gun, you can be a mech, you can have your mech follow.

Mechs – Mechs are fun. Fun to use, fun to have follow you, and fun to kill.

Jumping and movement – I love the double jumping and wall running. Its cool to get up buildings and also tough to kill a pilot that is moving fast.

Sprinting – unlimited sprinting is a nice feature. Keeps the game moving.

Maps – maps are a good size and made well. You cant hide and you also will not spend the whole game getting into the gameplay if you die.

Fast pace – Very fast paced. You cannot sit still

The bad:

Loading screens – this was the only bad thing I found in the game. I thought these were pretty generic. Have some cool stats here or maybe a good picture.
stats – sometimes I could not see my stats.
Pilot vs ai – I wish I could tell who was who on the other team. Make it clear its ai/pilot.

What I would like to see in the final version:

Ranks – definitely needs a halo 3 type ranking system
Competitive playlists – definitely needs ranked vs fun playlists

Overall:

Honestly I have not felt this good about a game since I played halo 3. I believe every FPS fan should have a copy. I dont think people can say this game is bad, they might not like it because they do not like FPS games but they should recognize it as a game that is going to change a genre.

Score:

90/100 (the final game could be more or less)

Get certified to teach online!

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The Watson College of Education at UNCW Introduces New Online Teaching & Learning Certificate Program

Beginning this summer, the Watson College of Education will offer a post-baccalaureate certificate in Online Teaching and Learning (OT&L).  The 18-credit hour program is designed to meet growing demand from K-12 schools, colleges and universities and businesses for professionals who are interested to gain knowledge and skills to design, develop, implement, manage and evaluate effective online and blended learning programs.

WCE’s Online Teaching and Learning certificate is the first program of its kind in the state.  Courses are offered in the evening and led by faculty with real-world experience in K-12, government and corporate settings.  Full time students and working professionals who enroll in the program can participate either face-to-face or online through synchronous conferencing technology.

The Watson College of Education is now accepting applications for summer and fall 2014. For more information please see the attached flyer, visit http://uncw.edu/ed/mit/otlcertification.html or contact Florence Martin, Instructional Technology Program Coordinator (martinf@uncw.edu or 910-962-7174).

See attached brochure:  MIT_OTLCertbrochure

Play this game to help cure cancer!

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This is a very cool idea. I would love to see more people doing things like this. My Gaming and Simulation class is currently evaluating this game while I am at my conference next week:

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/support-us/play-to-cure-genes-in-space

The game
The mission of Genes in Space is to collect a fictional substance dubbed Element Alpha. This represents genetic cancer data, which might underpin certain types of cancer.

As a recruit of the game’s ‘Bifrost Industries’, your mission is to collect the valuable and tradable substance Element Alpha and rise through the employee ranks by:

Mapping your route through the densest areas of Element Alpha.
Following your route as you fly through space collecting as much Element Alpha as you can, destroying asteroids along the way.
Avoiding and shooting asteroids to get to the next level of Element Alpha collection.
Upgrading your ship to become more powerful and trading your Element Alpha for more points.

Download from Apple App Store

Download from Google Play