elluminate

We currently use Adobe Connect at work for our webinars and conference type calls, so I thought I would look at Elluminate and compare the two. 
The cost of each program is comparable at under $500 a year, and both appear to offer monthly rates.  Elluminate actually offers a per use rate as well, but you do pay per user with this choice.
The equipment needed for Elluminate is a computer with high speed access (preferred to dial up), and enough RAM on the facilitators computer to load the initial software.  The participants do not require the space to load the software but  will still need the computer and Internet access.  A head set or microphone of some sort is ideal for both sides although strictly using it as a chat program is an option, and a video camera may be added from either side.  All of this equipment is similar to Adobe.
No special training is required for Elluminate although I feel that it will require more introduction time for new users than Adobe does..  Getting participants logged in seems a bit more cumbersome but it seems easy enough to navigate once you have been orientated and have seen the tools that are available.
Support appears to be readily available through the help links and buttons, tutorials, and 'live sessions' that you can attend to become more familiar with the program.  Adobe however seems to be a bit more robust with its tutorials and is laid out well as far as who each lesson is intended to help.  Also I know that we have had wonderful support from Adobe any time that we have had questions at work.
One thing that I came across  in Elluminate that I did feel might be useful to our company is the add on packages, specifically the translation options and the Bridge that is available for Moodle.  As far as I could determine these add ons are available to download without an extra cost.
Another option that I liked was the ability to "organize, script, & package" different pieces of the presentation ahead of time.  This could be useful for us with the webinars and polls that we use with our current sessions.  It may decrease the amount of support that the facilitator would need during the presentation (ie bringing up different screens at different times.
Using Adobe for a conference call the other day we found it difficult to switch between who was controlling the screens.  I would need to do some more research to see if this can become as easy as it is by using Elluminate.
One area that I found I did like Adobe better for was the 'cleaner' look.  I can customize the screen at bit more- resize each window or open up more windows to fit my needs.
If the technology doesn't work, both programs allow you to go back from video to voice or to text based communication.
Both of these programs enhance communication.  They remove barriers such as distance, time, cost of travel.  Groups of people (professionals, students, etc) can collaborate on projects that would not have been feasible otherwise.  In that sense it can extend each person, certain groups or a society in general.  With the ability to record the sessions, it definitely can help to extend our memory.
I don't feel that the technology here makes face to face meetings or classes obsolete, just not necessary as often.  There still is a place for this type of communication techniques but more so in smaller settings or more centrally located projects.  I do feel that Elluminate and Adobe have come a long way towards replacing the basic teleconference, as now we can incorporate so many other mediums.  People can see not just hear, and they can participate easier than 12 people all trying to talk at once without visual cues to know that someone else was speaking. (Something that it retrieves too I guess-the non verbal cues and facial expressions)
As far as what these programs reverse- I would say that we need to be careful that we don't get so wrapped up in the convenience of the technology that we forget that as humans we need the social connection! 

Viewbook

Has anyone heard of, or used 'viewbook'?  I came across it on another website and it looked like an interesting concept.  I found a short video on it but not a lot of details yet.  From what I gather so far you use it like a home page, but the site I found it on seems to use it as a way for their student to customize the information that they want to take from the site. 

these blogs should come with a warning that they may become addicting!

Check out my second blog: http://derbyshire-acreage.blogspot.com/
I still want to add a few things, including a google map but it will have to wait another day

frog song

Happy Birthday Song - Tilly the Frog Messing Up Singing - Funny videos are here

Zack and Elizabeth's cakes

Elizabeth's 1st birthday cake.  Made from Jello & whip cream!

Zack' Pokemon Ball for his 8th birthday.

Misc Cakes

I made this one for a crew party.

A birthday cake for my go-cart crazy husband.

Projects for fondant class.

More cakes

Here are a few of Cameron's birthday cakes.

previous cakes

Here are some more cakes that I did for Jeremy

Swimming Cake

Here is the swimming cake for Jeremy's 7th birthday last week.

banking applications

First is applications the right word for these web 2.0 things?
Today I thought I would compare 2 different banking/budgetting programs- Moneytrackin' and Plan2Spend.
Both programs are free.
Moneytrackin' allows you to manage more than one account off one 'Dashboard'.  So far I haven't seen that I can do that from Plan2Spend.  On initial evaluation Moneytrackin' is more comprehensive and seems a bit more involved to get the information entered.
Plan2Spend has a specific budget section that I like that shows me on a graph how much of my budget I have spent to date and what I spend compared to people with similar profiles.  It seems very straight forward and was very easy to enter my information.
For what I am looking for at present, I think the Plan2Spend will be a better fit for my toolbox.

work on web 2.0 stuff

Well, the paper has been turned in so I have been looking at somemore of the web 2.0 sites.  I finally was able to get signed up on Delicious (after more than an hour of retrying) but  can't seem to get the task bar on my home page.  Anyone have any suggestions?  I really like the idea of being able to access my own bookmarks from what ever computer that I am using, and the potential of using other contacts bookmarks is huge.
I really like the Rypple that Carla posted in her blog.  I think it will work great for an external project that I am just starting.

Testing out web 2.0 for CACE workshop

I signed up for Eduslide today.  I was looking to see how it compared as an educational tool to the Moodle program that we are currently using at work.  I was able to register easy enough but now I can't seem to get anywhere in the site.  There is a tab on the top for courses but I do not have nay listed and can't seem to find a way to add any.  I was hoping to look at a few of the other courses listed but they are all marked private, so I can't even see how they are laid out.  I will try playing with it a bit more, but so far it isn't one that I can see myself using.
I have signed up for Twitter as well.  It was easy to get into and I was able to find some groups that I might be interested in following- both personal and work related.  I haven't had much time to play with it since as my next CACE paper is due Wed.  Hopefully I can look around some more after that gets turned in.

Jeremy' 7th Birthday Cake

My current project is Jeremy's 7th Birthday cake.  He choose to go swimming for his party, and wants a swimming pool cake.  So far it is going okay.  I have the 11x13 sheet cake (Lemon) done and the Jello is setting.  Jeremy and I found some Lego people last night that seem to be a good size for the cake.  After class tonight I will have to figure out how to put it together.