NewsScan Daily, 20 October 2004 ("Above The Fold")

NewsScan Daily, 20 October 2004 ("Above The Fold")
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"ABOVE THE FOLD"
        Bridging the Distance in Distance Learning
        Online Rating Ranks High With One in Four Internet Users
        Music Album Debuts on Memory Card
        Home Entertainment Takes a Road Trip
        ACS Pushes Own IT 'License'

FEATURES
        Flash Card
        Honorary Subscriber: Edith Head

BRIDGING THE DISTANCE IN DISTANCE LEARNING
      Although many educators will argue that there's no good substitute 
for face-to-face contact to monitor students' attention level, several 
technological solutions are available to help teachers gauge whether 
learners are learning. WebEx recently debuted an "attention indicator" that 
tells the teacher whether the WebEx window is in the foreground on the 
client's PC screen. And LearnLinc offers a glimpse feature that enables the 
teacher not only to see, but to capture an image of the student's desktop. 
However, most instructors will agree that just because a student is 
multitasking, mindlessly clicking through a solitaire game, does not mean 
he or she is not listening -- studies have shown that most people are adept 
at distinguishing items of particular importance in audio streams and will 
snap to attention when there is useful and pertinent information offered. 
Meanwhile, it's just as important that the student be aware of the 
teacher's attention in order to generate the positive feedback most of us 
take for granted in F2F interactions. Unfortunately, there's "no analogue 
to this kind of multimodal conversation in online learning," say authors 
Lisa Neal and Michael Feldstein. "It may turn out that… the best way to 
compensate for a loss of capability on the instructor's side is to increase 
empowerment on the learner's side," providing them the tools, such as 
biofeedback mechanisms, to monitor their own attention levels. Building on 
safety systems developed by automobile companies that set off an alarm if 
the driver starts to drift into another lane or fails to brake when the car 
ahead decelerates, educators may adapt the technology to give students a 
"wake-up call" when their attention wanders. (eLearn Magazine Oct 2004)
<http://www.elearnmag.org/>

ONLINE RATING RANKS HIGH WITH ONE IN FOUR INTERNET USERS
      Twenty-six percent of adult Internet users in the U.S. have 
participated in "reputation systems" -- those online rating systems used by 
Amazon, eBay and others to assist other users in deciding whether a product 
or service is trustworthy, worthwhile or enjoyable. Men are slightly more 
likely to offer their opinions than women (29% vs. 22%) and Generation Yers 
are more likely than Baby Boomers to have posted a rating (30% vs. 23%). In 
addition, those from wealthier households (income above $75,000) are more 
likely to participate in rating than those who live in households with an 
income below $30,000. The findings provide evidence that the trend toward 
using the Internet for two-way communication among online communities is 
increasing. "Internet users see these systems as a way to help them figure 
out what information and people they can trust online," says Paul Hitlin, a 
research associate at the Pew Internet Project, which conducted the study. 
"People also see the Internet as a place where they can voice their own 
opinions. Online they can recommend a CD, warn about a dishonest 
salesperson, or even defend their high school history teacher." (Pew 
Internet & American Life Project 18 Oct 2004)
<http://www.pewinternet.org>

MUSIC ALBUM DEBUTS ON MEMORY CARD
      British singer Robbie Williams is exploring the future, releasing his 
greatest-hits album on a mobile memory card as well as on a conventional 
CD. The album will feature video content as well as "CD-quality" music, 
although the hefty price may have some fans grumbling. The CD version will 
cost about $16, available through online outlets, while the preloaded card 
is priced at about $54. EMI digital music director Danny Van Emden calls 
the move the "next logical chapter in the affair" of mobile usage. (ZDNet 
19 Oct 2004)
<http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1040_22-5417269.html>

HOME ENTERTAINMENT TAKES A ROAD TRIP
      Consumer electronics are migrating to your car, with new gadgets 
likely to start showing up in new cars and SUVs as early as next year. 
Buyers should begin seeing larger LCDs, up two inches from the current 
5-inch standard screen, appearing in more places around the interior. 
Future models will include organic LED screens, which feature better color 
quality, faster response time and more flexible viewing angles. To 
transport the video files from the living room entertainment center to the 
vehicle, Pioneer is betting on hard drives that will let you "take your 
TiVo menu into your car." Pioneer is also hoping to market television 
reception via digital satellite TV. Currently, the satellite antenna weighs 
40 pounds and rests on top of the roof rack, but the size is expected to 
shrink over time. Meanwhile, Richard Lind of automobile gear maker Delphi 
predicts drivers or their passengers will be able to order online music or 
games while traveling, enabling kids to play a "videogame downloaded at the 
last gas station." IBM senior VP Nick Donofrio predicts, "In two years, 
nearly 40% of a vehicle's value will reside in the software and 
electronics," adding that the percentage will rise to about 90% in five 
years. (CNet News.com 19 Oct 2004)
<http://news.com.com/Digital+home+entertainment+hits+the+road/2100-1041_3-5417159.html>

ACS PUSHES OWN IT 'LICENSE'
      The Australian Computer Society (ACS) has called on government to 
support its bid to become the accreditation agency for the IT profession, 
making membership mandatory for computer staffers ranging from Microsoft 
Certified Engineers to high-level project managers. ACS president Edward 
Mandla also called for state and federal governments to assist in funding 
Australian companies seeking to acquire quality assurance certification 
like CMMI and ISO 15504. Mandla announced the ACS software quality 
accreditation policy in an address to the Software Industry Action Group 
conference, being hosted by Software Engineering Australia (SEA) in 
Melbourne. (The Australian, 18 Oct 2004) rec'd from John Lamp
<http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,11106986%5E16123%5E%5Enbv%5E,00.html>

*****

FLASH CARD
      "The uncompromising self-examination of a Rembrandt self-portrait 
remains, almost four centuries on, far more 'shocking' than a museum 
installation of cow carcasses." (Ralph Peters)

HONORARY SUBSCRIBER: EDITH HEAD
      Today's Honorary Subscriber is the American fashion designer Edith 
Head (1898-1981), who was the acknowledged dean of Hollywood costume 
designers in movieland's heyday.
      Head received 34 Academy Award nominations for costume design, eight 
of which earned Oscars for such hit movies as: "The Heiress," "All About 
Eve," "Samson and Delilah," "A Place in the Sun," "Roman Holiday," 
"Sabrina," "The Facts of Life," and "The Sting." She was the first woman to 
head a design department at a major studio, when in 1938 she took charge of 
Paramount's costume department with its hundreds of employees. She became 
directly or indirectly responsible for the costuming in all Paramount 
films, and this gave her great visibility in the larger world of costume 
design. In 1967 Gulf & Western bought out Paramount, and Head moved to 
Universal Studios where she held the position of Chief Costume Designer 
until the end of her life in 1981.
      Head was born the daughter of a mining engineer in Los Angeles, most 
likely in 1898, but the date has never been disclosed. She grew up in 
various towns and camps in Arizona, Nevada, and Mexico. After attending 
high school in Los Angeles, she earned an undergraduate degree at the 
University of California, and subsequently took a master's degree from 
Stanford University. While working as a schoolteacher (she taught French, 
Spanish and art), she did additional study in fashion design at the Otis 
Institute and the Chouinard Art School. Designs she submitted to Paramount 
Studios in 1923 so impressed the head designer that she was immediately 
hired as a studio sketch artist. In the next few years she worked her way 
up to feature designer, having made such minor but memorable creations as 
the design for Dorothy Lamour's sarong in the Bob Hope-Bing Crosby "Road" 
pictures. Finally, in 1938 she became Paramount Studios chief designer to 
begin the career that made her America's best-known and most successful 
Hollywood designer.
      Head was noted for the range of her costume designs, from elegant 
simplicity to intricate flamboyance, and she also gained a reputation for 
being able to placate temperamental actresses and directors. Another of her 
strengths was the ability to create designs suited to particular actors and 
actresses as well as to their roles.
      Among her other accomplishments was her 1959 autobiography, "The 
Dress Doctor," written with J. K. M. Ardmore, and a 1967 self-help book, 
"How to Dress for Success," written with Joe Hyams. She also appeared as 
herself on screen in "The Oscar" (1966).

[To find a library copy of Edith Head's book "Hollywood" visit RLG's 
RedLightGreen.com: 
<http://www.redlightgreen.com/ucwprod/servlet/ucw.servlets.UCWController?ACT 
ION=EDITION&WORKID=14610039&>. To buy a copy go to: 
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0525242007/>. Note: We 
donate all revenue from our recommendations to adult literacy programs.]

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