The Buzz

Document cameras open up all sorts of possibilities when it comes to classroom presentations. If you want to ramp up your read-alouds and more—and the budget allows—there’s the latest digital presenter from Samsung. The SDP-6500DXA sports a powerful 36x (12x optical plus 3x digital) auto-focus zoom lens to render detailed enlargements, whether you’re presenting documents or 3-D subjects. The product also supports USB 2.0, so you can save, edit, and print high-quality images, with Windows or Mac. A built-in drawing function lets you scribble directly over any image in up to six colors. $4,750. www.samsungpresenterusa.com.

Greg Allen calls his mom, who hand knit an iPhone, “insanely cool,” and we couldn’t agree more. Allen, who blogs at daddytypes.com, posted the backstory last month. For this New York/Washington, DC-based father of a three-year-old, the new iPhone represented “a drool-soaked disaster waiting to happen.” So upon Allen’s request, his mom knitted his daughter her own device so she wouldn’t grab his. The post drew numerous comments, many from admirers who wanted to buy the homey iPhone. On the site, you’ll find detailed instructions for knitting your own, along with another of his mom’s genius patterns: a Pop Tart cell-phone case.

Released by takingITGlobal an international, youth-led organization, “Making the Connection: Best Practices in Global Education and Collaborative Technologies” offers 15 case studies of educators from around the world who are harnessing the power of social networking to help drive project-based learning centered on social issues. The examples all leverage kids’ enthusiasm for these tools, including commercial sites like Facebook and MySpace. “Making the Connection” is available online at www.tiged.org/bestpractices. To order print copies, email education@takingitglobal.org.

MySpace, shmySpace. What’s all the fuss about social networking anyway? A brief, animated explanation of the concept is now available for your viewing pleasure. The sub-two-minute video “Social Networking in Plain English,” is the latest in a series by Common Craft, which has similarly deciphered RSS and wikis. The stripped-down piece explains how networking sites can tackle a real-world problem, with visuals that were created using only paper, whiteboard, markers, and string. The video can be freely shared for noncommercial use and with proper credit. www.commoncraft.com.

JVC has announced a new high-definition hard drive camcorder, this time in a compact size. The HD Everio GZ-HD3 follows up this year’s earlier launch of the GZ-HD7, which enabled handy storage on a built-in hard drive. The GZ-HD3 has a 3-CCD image sensor, high definition 1440 x 1080 recording, a Konica Minolta HD zoom lens, and embedded 60GB hard-disk storage in a palm-sized package. The hard drive accomodates seven hours of HD recording, while in XP mode, shooters can record at a higher bit rate for extra special scenes. The HD Everio GZ-HD3 is set for delivery in September 2007 at a retail price of $1300. www.jvc.com.

Who doesn’t love Gumby and Pokey? Or, for you youngsters out there, Wallace and Grommit? Now, aspiring animators can create stop-motion video productions of their own with a new product. Launched at NECC, Claymation Studio, by Honestech, allows any user to generate animated projects from imported images, photographs, and audio. $39.99. Software features include Onionskin, which displays the previous frame in transparent overlay to help you capture or create the next frame or image. A blue or green screen capability called Chroma key lets you easily change the background. For more information, visit www.honestech.com.

Math was never our favorite subject in school—most of us at SLJ being right-brainers. If only we had cool video games to teach us significant concepts like the software Tabula Digita introduced at the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). The latest in the company’s DimensionM series, the 3-D multiplayer games for pre-algebra and algebra immerse players in a virtual world, featuring high-end graphics and an action-packed story line that also manages to work in graphing linear equations and much more. The games are aligned to state standards and come in various packages and pricing structures for Windows and Mac. www.tabuladigita.com.

Have you ever wanted to copy handwritten notes, a newspaper listing, or a whiteboard graphic, but didn’t have a scanner nearby? Now there’s Qipit. The free mobile online service allows you to copy documents, children’s artwork, anything, with your camera phone or digital camera. Simply send the image to your online Qipit account and you’ll get a clean digital copy to store, fax, email or publish as you wish. To test your phone, check the compatibility chart and shoot a test page on the product site. That’s Qipit CEO Benoit Bergeret at left in a “qipit” shot with the new iPhone. www.qipit.com.

The best swag, as it turns out, was distributed at the American Library Association annual conference in DC. The “Change Agent” badge (at right) was issued to attendees who ensure that “knowledge and information are free and accessible to all.” If you couldn’t be deputized in person, you can still buy the badges ($2.50 each) through the Metropolitan Group, a PR agency for nonprofits with a social purpose. Site visitors will also find tips for libraries related to marketing, fundraising, and promoting services, including summer reading programs. www.metgroup.com.

QiGOs (as in Key-Go) are handy little USB devices that launch a specific Internet experience when plugged into a PC. Marketing online content with a physical package is an interesting twist and one QiGO LLC is hoping will catch on with businesses seeking a customized promotional tool. Konami, maker of Yu-Gi-Oh, has commissioned a QiGO for the online version of the trading card game. Each QiGO will physically resemble the experience it will launch, for example a QiGO to unlock a rock band’s latest music video might be shaped like the group’s logo. How about a QiGO for library services? For pricing, visit qigo.com.

The One Laptop per Child (OLPC) project has authorized mass production of its XO laptop, based on the release of the final Beta-4 (B4) model. The much anticipated nonprofit project intends to provide each child with a self-powered, Internet-wired laptop computer in the poorest countries throughout the world. Considered to be among the most durable computers ever produced, the B4 laptops—now with a faster processor and greater storage capacity—can withstand the most severe weather and environmental conditions and the innovative display is fully readable in bright sunlight. Able to operate for 12+ hours on its battery, the B4 can derive power from alternative sources, including a pull cord and solar panel. For details, visit wiki.laptop.org.

Imbee.com, a social networking site designed just for kids ages 8–14, now offers expanded features to help tweens create a more personalized experience online. “Kids should have more options beyond game playing,” says Jeanette Symons, CEO for imbee.com. “Imbee.com was developed to enable our members to define their own user experience, and focus more on their own content creation instead of just corporate content consumption.” New features include an enhanced user interface and trading card maker. With unique security features geared around tween users, imbee.com has launched a free blogging program used by more than 500 schools. www.imbee.com.

Info-portal Answers.com showed off a slew of recently added elements to conference-goers at NECC. The 1-Click Answers feature, which allows you to Alt-click on a term to reveal an AnswerTip bubble containing more information about that word, can now be adapted by any Web site or blog. Answers.com spokesperson Gina Larson explains: “1-Click is great to have downloaded on library computers so users can get instant definitions, biographical information, and geographical data on whatever site they may be conducting research on, and now, librarians can also put it on mini-research sites, blogs, or webquests.” Answers also features two new graphic organizers just for students. www.answers.com.