RossJ News

Jeff Ross

What? You Haven't Visited the GeoOvals Page?

Welcome

Good day everyone and thank you for visiting my web site. For those of you who do not know me, I work at the Peter Sammartino School of Education at Fairleigh Dickinson University. I serve as the Field-Based Internship Coordinator for the School of Education, Educational Leadership Program. This is a dynamic program that is designed for those who are seeking to become school administrators. As part of the program, each student must accrue 120 hours of internship under the tutelage of a principal/mentor who works with the program. I coordinate this internship experience for the students enrolled in the Masters for Educational Leadership.

Visit the Educational Leadership Web Site at: http://edweb.fdu.edu/soe/edleadership/

As you may also note, I have a strong interest in the effective use of educational technology. I believe that technology has the potential to transform the educational process by enabling the differentiation of instruction to suit the needs of all learners.

Feel free to explore the site and send any related comments you may have to jbross@fdu.edu

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11/9/05 - Publish Yourself - It seems that the web has reached an explosive peak where everyone has an opportunity to become a content provider. If you are an avid hobbyist, writer, artist, etc. this may be your opportunity. Even the cost has been eliminated or significantly reduced to enable nearly anyone to post information on the web.

When I speak of information, I am not just speaking of the written word. Audio and video are being produced and hosted on the web for free or little-cost. In a recent article for CNET Tom Meritt, Executive editor, CNET.com, in his Nov. 4th online column explains how to accomplish this feat using Ourmedia.org to host the content and FeedBurner to set up RSS feeds and perhaps help with marketing (for a fee).

If this has an interest for you, read the entire article and get the scoop at:
http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-3000_7-6377236-1.html?tag=nl.e501

10/31/05 - XM Experience - Note: This is an opinion piece so if you don't agree that is quite acceptable. This is just MY opinion.

Well, I finally had it with purchasing CDs that contain one or two laudable tracks and the rest not worthy of a second listening. It is rare nowadays to purchase a CD where ten of twelve tracks are good and four or five are very good. Many CDs I have purchased contain only one good song, i.e. the one I heard on the radio.

I have tried it all. I have gone to websites and listened to the first 30 seconds of each song. Unfortunately, the instrumental intros to many of those recordings take up all of the 30 seconds the retailers are posting. One cannot get a very good sense of the overall quality of the song without hearing at least half of it and preferably all of it.

I≠ve tried to support artists who have done their best to issue quality CDs by providing numerous worthy tracks on each album. George Winston, piano tune weaver extraordinaire, is one such artist - http://www.georgewinston.com/montanabio.html.
There are others to be sure, but there are far more who provide only a small sampling of quality and the rest is musically banal.

I have been tempted by satellite radio mainly because of the staggering selection of genres. I have been watching Sirius˙ and XM˙ radio for quite some time. When a friend leased a car with XM radio and we had an opportunity to try it, I was, more or less, sold. What sealed the deal was a tremendous sale Circuit City had on an Audiovox XM˙ Plug-and-Play Satellite Receiver and Car Kit Package (XCS9) which normally sold for $149.99. On the day I found it, it was selling for $19.99 after all discounts and rebates were considered. For less than $25, I was able to land a complete automobile system minus the subscription fee of course. I think that Audiovox and Delphi are changing models and they are discounting their current XM radio/receiver models. If you hurry, you might find a similar bargain!

Naturally, I wanted to listen to XM via my home-bound stereo system. I was able to find a home docking station, complete with antenna, etc. at Best Buy for another very good price that was under $30. This unit normally sells for around $50. To summarize, I was able to gather $200 worth of XM equipment for approximately $50. Now that≠s a deal.

All I needed to complete the set up was the subscription. I opted for the monthly $12.99 fee, at least until I assessed the quality and quantity of music. I have had the system in place for about two weeks and I am very satisfied. There are dozens of channels that carry music of interest across many genres. The greatest benefit is hearing many songs that are not the most popular, but are still very good. Standard FM radio generally plays only those selections that are ≥hits.≈ Of course that is a very subjective thing. I like to find my own hits!

I didn≠t have any idea of the numerous special programs with interviews, songs and artist-favorites that are broadcast on satellite radio. On the Village Channel (Folk), for example, they had an interview with the group Sweet Honey in the Rock, an African-American a capella group (specializing in jazz, blues, and black church music - http://www.sweethoney.com/). As they spoke of their songs and sang them, they also gave samples of different artists from which they derived inspiration. It was a very good hour of listening; if you like that kind of music. It is doubtful that such an offering would be heard anywhere else. Even college stations play only samples of such groups.

Computers make the XM experience complete. The Audiovox radio mentioned above has six lines of text which can display every song being played on any of the XM stations at a given time. One just has to page through them. If the listener prefers, they can see the artists currently on each of the stations. While I haven≠t used this feature yet, the radio also enables one to select thirty artists/songs to have the receiver ≥remember≈ and inform them when that music is on any XM station so they can listen to it. I find that amazing!

One final note about XM. I find their website a bit needy and they don≠t do half as much as they could to make their service great rather than just good to very good. What they do right, they do well. All radio subscribers have access to XM Online which provides many stations for online listening pleasure. I can now enjoy XM anywhere I have a DSL or better internet connection. It isn≠t something I would like to experience on a modem, but if you are on a network or have cable Internet service, this is a very nice option. XM claims to offer a free, three-day trial to their online offering which will provide some insight into the XM experience. Remember, however, that the online offerings are not as extensive as XM Radio. Ironically, XM claims that there are some channels offered online that are not available via radio; go figure! One other note is that a subscription can be had jus to XM Online.
If you are interested, here are some links you can visit for further information.

XM Radio website - http://www.xmradio.com/

This Week on XM (Special Shows, etc. There are actually more than are listed here) - http://www.xmradio.com/programming/programming_main.jsp

See a PDF listing of all their stations - http://www.xmradio.com/programming/full_channel_listing.jsp?sort=number

xmfan.com (An XM radio community of people who are interested in XM radio) - http://www.xmfan.com/

I don≠t know if I will purchase many more CDs in the future, but for now, I am musically satisfied.

09/13/05 - On the Flip Side, Rubber Erasers - http://www.onthehouse.com/tips/20050913

Considering how important the pencil is and has been to the educational process, these facts about pencils and erasers are interesting and might be shared with students.

"Years before the lead pencil was invented, Joseph Priestly found rubber could remove marks. For more than 200 years, man has found countless uses for these handy rubber erasers. They rub light rust away, remove spots and smudges on paint and wallpaper and take black heel marks off shiny, clean floors. Erasers can clean small electrical contacts, too, like those on doorbells or on the base and handsets of cordless phones. Think about it, and you will find lots of uses for the mild abrasive in erasers.

For what it's worth, the average pencil can draw a line 35 miles long, much farther than the mile or two its rubber eraser can erase. Another note, while erasers were invented in 1770 and lead pencils in 1795, it was nearly 100 years before the two were put together. The first pencil with an attached eraser was patented in 1858. And that's the On The House tip for today."

07/26/05- Learn from Mistakes: On the Woopidoo site [ http://www.woopidoo.com/ ], Ryan Allis provides a unique insight into the world of mistakes. Reading the article, On Failure and Learning from Mistakes, one can glean an entirely new perspective. Mr. Allis also provides some inspiring examples. I particularly like the quote from Theodore Roosevelt that begins the piece.

"'It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.'" Theodore Roosevelt

Mr. Allis does caution about taking "educated" chances to minimize errors. To gain more insights, I recommend that you read the article at http://www.woopidoo.com/articles/allis/mistakes-article.htm and begin to learn from mistakes.

07/26/05- Virtual Street Reality: I am constantly amazed at what one can find on the Internet. Every day I spend an hour or so checking out interesting websites (links) to see what is out there. Here is an example of the interesting things that can be found on the Net.

3-D paintings on sidewalks: I had no idea that this was an art form. Even after reviewing the site, I am still amazed that this can be done. Apparently it is a matter of perspective as demonstrated by the picture of the lady in the swimming pool (scroll to the bottom of the page). How did they get that Coke bottle to look so 3-Dish? I am just amazed and I hope you enjoy this site too.

http://www.rense.com/general67/street.htm

04/12/05 - Last week millions witnessed the passing of an acknowledged world leader. How did this man who had very humble beginnings, beat the odds at almost every turn? How did the leader of the Catholic church become so well respected by people of many faiths? There are lessons to be learned by examining the leadership qualities of Pope John Paul II.

My sincere thanks go to Mr. Sharif Khan who has written the article Leadership Lessons from Pope John Paul II and has granted permission for me to post it on the Educational Leadership web site. Take a few minutes to read and learn about the essential leadership qualities that guided Pople John Paul II's life and endeared him to so many.

http://edweb.fdu.edu/soe/edleadership/papal_leadership.html

03/31/05 - With the death of Terri Schiavo and the public spectacle of her families trying to impose their particular understanding of what she might have wanted, the importance of making careful final arrangements for one's end-of-life is highlighted.

There is a document called Five Wishes which is accepted as a legal document in numerous states and it guides the user through the process of expressing their final wishes. While there are probably numerous sites that refer to this document or provide it for a small fee or donation, the Supportive Care of Dying site will send you one for the small donation of $1.00.

Supportive Care of the Dying - http://www.careofdying.org/

If you would like to view a copy that cannot be printed, you may find one at Aging With Dignity site which also sells it for a small fee.

http://www.agingwithdignity.org/5wishes.html

Click the preview button on the right. While this is a topic that may make us uneasy, the time to act is now.

03/24/05 - Because You Can

In an effort to set websites apart, webmasters are looking for new items to add to their site to make them interesting. Douwe Osinga has used a Google hack (apparently) to provide this resource.

HTML code is provided for a site manager to add a map of all the states they have visited on their website. The states visited are seen in red while the non-visited states appear in grey.

Interestingly, had someone asked me how many states I had visited, I would not have thought I had visited as many as I did. Of course, I had to make a philosophical choice of what the word "visited" meant. I determined that if I spent a significant portion of one day in a state and/or saw significant sites in that state, it counted as a visit.

If you want to see a sample of how this looks, you can visit my sample page here:

http://home.comcast.net/~j.ross787/samples.html

If you want to do this yourself, visit:

http://douweosinga.com/projects/visitedstates

and follow the directions. I thought this was a neat idea. you can do the same with foreign countries as well. See other interesting links on the site as well. A word of caution. Don't make more than one major change to your site without waiting a few days. If something goes wrong, it will be easier to track! Good luck! - [ Jeff ]

Jeff Ross

02/22/05 - A Flickr for Photos - http://flickr.com/

Flickr is a web site that, among other things, hosts pictures posted by its members. There is a free option and a pay option. The free option has some limitations, but offers a good way to become familiar with the site and concept for those who have an interest in such a service. Pictures can be grouped into sets. Sets can be thematic or anything else the user desires to make them. The member is allowed to decide whether each picture should be public or private when they are posted. Public pictures are available to anyone. Private pictures are viewable only to those people you select.

I object to inviting my friends to view my photographs because their email address had to be provided to Flickr. They have added the new option of creating groups with each group having its own web page designation or URL although people who want to join groups are required to register and give their email addresses; ugh!. The group then becomes a "community" with people adding pictures and comments. The directions are a bit obtuse so play around a bit to figure out this option. .

You might wonder why this type of site is worthwhile. For one thing, it saves sending large files through the mail. At the time of this writing, the free accounts are limited to 10 MB of files per month and 100 pictures total, it is an interesting option. I recently wanted some friends to see new furniture I purchased. It was easy to put them on the web site and refer everyone there rather than send files as email attachments.

If you make your photos public, you can share them with the world as many do. Just visit the site to see what others have made public. This has become a repository for some interesting images. With Cristo' s Gates in Central Park, NYC, pictures were uploaded shortly after the exhibit opened. To view pictures of this phenomenon, simply go the Flickr site and enter a key phrase such as Gates or Cristo and view the results. Select to see them as a slide show and sit back!

01/19/05 - Another thought that comes to mind as a result of the Tsunami and the idea that a tragedy may take any of us at any time is how do we keep in touch with all of our friends and family. I suggest that you never leave your home for more than a day without telling someone in your close circle where you will be traveling. I strongly recommend that you involve your family and friends in establishing an emergency contact list with all the people who are close to all of you and whom you would like to notify in the event of a tragedy. Keep this list safe in a number of places. Once the list is established, update it for address and contact information revisions at least once a year.

If such a list is available and others need to be notified in the event of emergency, the information will be easily at hand. You may extend this for as many branches of friends that you like. I have such a list for my best friends and my family. I want to be prepared "just in case!"

01/11/05 - I work with technology every day and I am constantly amazed at what new technologies can allow us to do and see. Take these small videos taken from tiny cameras attached to Tilly the Golden Eagle. They are amazing. At first I thought I would just take a quick peek, but the images were so compelling that I watched each video several times.

Don' t miss any part of these. I don' t think you will be disappointed. Listen carefully as the narrator explains how the eagle moves her feathers and wings to maneuver. I hope you enjoy these as much as I do.

Here are the URLs you can try. They lead to the same place. Try the short one first, but if it doesn't work, try the longer Internet address:

http://tinyurl.com/4jczs - Enter Continue and then choose Mini-Cam in Action and sit back for a good ride!

http://media.animal.discovery.com/convergence/spyonthewild/birdtech/birdtech.html?ct=1329.15073148073
- Enter Continue and then choose Mini-Cam in Action and sit back for a good ride!

01/08/05 - The recent disaster in Indoneisa, Sri Lanka, India and other nearby countries encourages one to pause to consider how they can help. To which charities should I think of donating money? This can be a difficult question. I have hope that the largest percentage of the money I donate will go directly to aid the victims. Assessing a charity can be difficult so it does take some research. I chose to send my donation to the Christian Children's Fund (CCF),
http://www.christianchildrensfund.org/

Keep in mind that the CCF does not promote a religious or political agenda as far as I can tell. I also don't suggest that you donate to them. This is directly from their website:

"Christian Children's Fund is one of the world's most respected international child development organizations. Regardless of race, origin or creed, we serve more than 7.6 million of the world's neediest children and families in 30 countries around the world. Over its 65 year history, CCF has spent more than $2.2 billion in services to children.

CCF provides educational opportunities, nutritional assistance, health benefits, access to safe water and waste disposal, as well as other essential services. We strengthen families by helping parents become self-sufficient and enabling communities to build for the future." (available 1/8/04 from the FAQs - #19) http://snipurl.com/bv4y

What I can tell you is that this organization does some very good work. They find people across the world who will financially support a child for a year or more. The fee is very reasonable and the child develops a relationship with the donor. You can review the site for more details. Currently the cost for supporting a child for one year is $288. I know of someone who has supported several children through the CCF and who has been very happy with the results. Save the children is another charity that may be worthy of your consideration http://www.savethechildren.org/ I am just not as familiar with them. For those of us who have so much to be thankful for, it is important to remember those who struggle to live every day.

Is SPYWARE on your computer?

10/27/04 - Spyware is the latest buzz word in the compute circles these days. It refers to small programs companies place on your computer that you may not even know about. These small programs including cookies track your moves and send information about you to the companies using the spyware. Not all cookies are bad. Some just store information about you in the event you visit the site again, it "knows" who you are. Other cookies, however may track more personal information.

If this topic is new to you and/or you want to learn how to protect yourself from this nasty software, you owe it to yourself to visit the following stories from Steve Bass's column on PC World's website.

"Spyware Primer"
http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/261376/21274738/756277/0/

"More on Fighting Spyware"
http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/261376/21274738/756278/0/

"More Spyware Prevention and Removal"
http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/261376/21274738/756279/0/

More Spyware Prevention and Removal
How to deal with the toughest cases, plus a site for statistics fans.
http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,118060,00.asp

As quoted on the bottom of Steve's recent newsletter:

"Steve Bass writes the 'Home Office' column in PC World's print edition and is the author of "PC Annoyances: How to Fix the Most Annoying Things About Your Personal Computer," available from O'Reilly:

http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/261376/21274738/755301/0/

Good luck!

10/19/04 - While many people use Microsoft Office, perhaps only a small percentage make use of the resources provided on Microsoft's website. Many of these resources are offered to assist in maximizing the use of Word, Excel and PowerPoint as well as some other Microsoft programs.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/default.aspx

The home page contains a highlighted template as well as a couple of new additions. Also notice the"clip of the day" which provides clip art to be used with Microsoft programs. More artwork can be found at:

http://office.microsoft.com/clipart/default.aspx?lc=en-us

Examining the template download page, will yield items in the following categories: Calendars and Planners, Holidays and Occasions, Finance and Accounting, Orders and Inventory, Education, Healthcare and Wellness, Home and Community and Legal. One must be careful, however, not to rely too heavily on these categories. As an educator, I can find a couple of uses for some of the calendars and planners:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT061993171033.aspx

While some of these are provided as PowerPoint presentations, printing them will create a handy desk or wall calendar. One could even keep a digital calendar if they desired.

In the stationery category, the four-message "While You Were Out" reminders might be useful:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC010184431033.aspx?CategoryID=CT011217991033

There are also a variety of labels designed to work with Avery-sized labels available in most stationery stores:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT011218291033.aspx

One of the ancillary benefits of reviewing the templates are the eureka moments when you may find yourself saying: "I didn't know you could do that", or
"That's a great way to use Excel!"

Visiting and returning the Microsoft's resources will most likely prove a worthy detour from your daily/weekly routine.

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Visit the archives for more interesting sites and information!
GO TO THE ARCHIVES - http://edfolio.fdu.edu/RossJ/ql_archives

Regards, Jeff