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Engadget tries on the gTar for iPhone
Engadget hopped over to TechCrunch Disrupt to check out gTar, a guitar accessory for the iPhone. If you've never heard of gTar, it's a learning guitar powered by the iPhone that's part Fender and part Guitar Hero. It'll help you learn the basics of finger placement and strumming using an LED-lighted fingerboard and other electronics inside the body of the guitar. The iPhone fits nicely into the guitar and lets you select songs and other effects for your music. Engadget spent some time with the gTar and has a quick hands-on review of the product. You can get a closer look at the gTar in the video below and head over to Engadget's website for all the details. The gTar is available as a Kickstarter project that'll ship in September 2012. It costs $350 as a Kickstarter project and will retail for $450 when it launches.
gTar iPhone guitar hands-on
When we first caught word of the gTar, it was a bit of a mystery, with an online presence amounting to little more than a low-res press shot, an enigmatic YouTube teaser and assorted specs coming out of South By Southwest and various investor sites. This week, however, brings TechCrunch Disrupt to town -- and Incident Technologies has braved some unseasonable New York City storms to come along for the ride. We managed to snag some time with the iPhone-docking instrument ahead of its debut on stage this afternoon. Details are still a little scarce -- but here's what we know: the company is looking for a summer release for the educational instrument. In the meantime, Incident has thrown up a Kickstarter page, so you can get in on the action. A limited number of investors can get their hands on a unit for the low, low donation price of $350, once it goes into production. That's $100 off the estimated $450 retail price point -- not cheap, sure, but there are a couple of things to note here. First, we played with the gTar for a bit and we can say, definitively, that this isn't just some cheap, plasticky toy -- this feels like a real, amateur-level electric guitar. Also, for whatever it's worth, that price also includes a backpack carrying case -- so that's something, right? Follow along after the break to get some fingers-on impressions.
MIT and Harvard announce edX web education platform, make online learning cheap and easy
We'll forgive you if you failed to take MIT up on its offer take its courses for free when it rolled out its MITx online learning platform last year. However, Harvard took notice of its efforts, and has joined MIT online to form the edX platform and offer courses and content for free on the web. There's no word on the available subjects just yet, but video lessons, quizzes and online labs will all be a part of the curriculum, and those who comprehend the coursework can get a certificate of mastery upon completion. edX won't just benefit those who log on, either, as it'll be used to research how students learn and how technology can be used to improve teaching in both virtual and brick and mortar classrooms. The cost for this altruistic educational venture? 60 million dollars, with each party ponying up half. The first courses will be announced this summer, and classes are slated to start this fall. Want to know more? Check out the future of higher education more fully in the PR and video after the break.
MIT gets musical with Arduino-powered DrumTop, uses household objects as a source of sound
Everyone's favorite microcontroller has been a boon among hobbyists and advanced amateurs, but it's also found a home among the brilliant projects at MIT's Media Lab, including a groovy instrument called DrumTop. This modern take on the drum pad delivers Arduino-powered interactivity in its simplest form -- hands-on time with ordinary household objects. Simply place a cup, or a plastic ball, even a business card on the DrumTop to make your own original music. The prototype on display today includes eight pads, which are effectively repurposed speakers that tap objects placed on top, with an FSR sensor recognizing physical pressure and turning it into a synchronized beat. There's also a dial in the center that allows you to speed up or slow down the taps, presenting an adjustable tempo. DrumTop is more education tool than DJ beat machine, serving to teach youngsters about the physical properties of household objects, be it a coffee mug, a CD jewel case or a camera battery. But frankly, it's a lot of fun for folks of every age. There's no word on when you might be able to take one home, so for now you'll need to join us on our MIT visit for a closer look. We make music with all of these objects and more in the video after the break.
VIM Adventures teaches you keyboard shortcuts, :%s/n00b/pro/gc in no time
If you've ever had the pleasure of using VIM, the popular Linux (and other platforms) text editor, you'll know that dark magic lies within its keyboard shortcuts. However, with so many to learn, where do you start? Well, some fine fellow (Doron Linder to be precise) thought the answer to that question was a neat little fantasy adventure game. VIM adventures coaxes you through the learning process via ingenious little tasks that teach you the shortcuts along the way, all washed down with a healthy glug of gaming nostalgia. Before long you'll have the keys to the castle and, of course, unabated word processing prowess. Tap j to hit the source link and get started.
Daily iPad App: The Little Girl Who Could Fly is a delightful interactive book for children
Today we are stepping outside our typical app reviews for the iPad and looking at an interactive book. Because of their interactive elements, these titles stray over into the app category. This particular title, The Little Girl Who Could Fly from YellowPixie, is an animated, illustrated adapatation of Karl Capek's children's book, The Man Who Knew How to Fly. The digital book opens with an illustrated page that has the book's credits, a start reading button and two toggles for controlling the background sound and the narration. The narration is pleasant and is an excellent accompaniment for younger children. Each page of the book has navigation arrows that let you move back and forward through the pages. There's also a home button and a toggle to turn off the background sound on every page. The 20 or so illustrations throughout the book are light-hearted and colorful. They are animated and move along with the story. Each page is filled with adventure as there are three to six illustrated items that'll move or make a noise when your child taps on them. My favorite is the teacher's hat that'll do a flip when you tap on it. Your child can also tilt the iPad and control the main character when she is flying. There are also two mini-games within the book. One will let your child color along with the lead character and another is a dress-up game that the little girls in the audience will enjoy. The games pop up in the middle of the story, but they fit in with the story line. As a result, the games add to the story and only minimally distract from it. The storyline about a girl who proves she can fly is fun. My children read the book, both with me and by themselves, several times. It's definitely geared towards the younger set, but it's not an early reader like See Jack Run. It's a storybook with a delightful tale that's perfect for a parent or an older sibling to read to their three to six-year-old. Set aside some time when you first read the book to your child as some of the words are long. You may have to explain the meaning of words like delegation and 90-degree angle, before you let them loose on their own. You can download The Little Girl Who Could Fly from iTunes for US$4.99.
Vatican and Oxford libraries scan ancient works, let scholars stay in their armchairs
Two of the world's most hallowed libraries are about to get even quieter, having been given $3 million to go with the flow and put some of their oldest collections online. The Vatican Library and Oxford University's Bodleian Library will together offer up 1.5 million pages of hoary text, including Gutenberg's Latin Bible from the 15th Century, a 1,200-year-old Hebrew codex called the "Sifra," and enough Greek philosophy to make even Homer seem succinct. At the end of a five-year flatbed scanner marathon, these digital copies will be accessible to speakers of dead languages everywhere, and hopefully for less than sacrilegious prices.
Daily iPad App: Murky Reef is a fun, underwater game that'll improve math and language skills
There are apps that teach your kids math and apps that teach your kids language arts and then there are some like Murky Reef by Frolyc that teach them both. Murky Reef targets the younger elementary group with a series of apps that teaches math, English, critical thinking and logic. All these skills are presented in an entertaining, underwater-themed game. For this review, I am focusing on the Murky Reef app for first and second graders which has both language arts and math. Murky Reef has an underwater theme that stars Puff, a puffer fish. The puffer fish is slowly being pursued by Ogee the shark and must be saved by your child's correct answers. Children are presented with five problems and each correct answer will help the puffer fish grow. When the fish gets big enough, he can spew hot lava on the shark and chase the predator away. There's also a variety of underwater sea creatures which your child can earn. The creatures are helpful as each one has a different weapon that can temporarily push the shark away. The Murky Reef version that I tested was broken down into 22 different sections that cover subtraction from 1-20, spelling, addition, sentence formation, number patterns and more. There's even a few quiz sections that cover a topic like sharks. After reading a passage, children must answer a series of questions that test their reading comprehension. Between the math, grammar and reading, the breadth of information covered in this app is impressive. The graphics are colorful, the sound effects whimsical and the overall feel of the app is fun. My kids enjoyed the storyline and loved it when the puffer fish spit out lava on the shark. Besides learning about ABCs and 123s, the app also has tidbits of information on the undersea animals. With your reading help, your child can learn about the octopus, sea stars, sharks, puffer fish and more. From a parent's point of view, the iPad app has one feature that most apps overlook -- support for multiple children. I have more than one child and each one can setup their own profile. They can choose their profile and all their achievements will be saved separately. Parents can even pull up an individual reports that keep track of each child's progress. The Murky Reef:1st - 2nd Grade Reading, Science & Math app that I reviewed costs US$4.99. With 22 different exercises, progress reports and multiple profile support, it's well worth the cost.
Friday Favorite: A bushel of educational apps for learning fun
A friend on Twitter asked me the other day if I had a list of the educational apps I have on my iPad. With all the reviews I have done, I was ashamed to admit that I've never taken the time to list those apps that I use on a regular basis with my children. I reached out to the other writers at TUAW and asked them the same question. Together, we compiled a list of our favorite learning apps for children, and wow, what a list. The apps are presented below in no particular order. NXTapp ($0.99) Khan Academy (Free) Elmo Loves ABCs ($4.99) Where's my water? ($0.99) Simple Physics ($0.99) Simply Find It ($1.99) SparkleFish ($0.99, 99-cent in-app purchases) My First Wood Puzzles: Dinosaurs (Free, $1.99 in-app purchase) Zoo Sounds ($1.99) Paper by FiftyThree (Free, in-app purchases of $2.99 for tools and $7.99 for everything) Plants HD for the iPad ($1.99) Discovery Kids Sharks ($4.99) Minecraft-Pocket Edition ($6.99; more game-ish, but building with blocks is learning, no?) Articulation Station (Free; sound packs are $2.99 to $5.99, full app is $49) Letter of the Day Interactive Activities ($1.99) AniMatch ($0.99) iBuildABCs ($0.99) Junior Bingo ($0.99) Rocket Speller (Free) Wood Puzzle USA Map ($1.99) Word Bingo ($0.99) Math Bingo ($0.99) Beginning Sounds Interactive Game ($0.99) Motion Math Hungry Fish (Free, in-app purchases from $2.99 up to $8.99) Letter Quiz ($1.99) Phonics Tic Tac Toe Interactive Game (Free) Sentence Maker (Free) Flashcards+ (Free, in-app purchases to get new voices) Word Jigsaw (Free, in-app purchases to get extra hints and unlock all the levels) Monster Coloring Book ($2.99) Math Tables ($1.99) Word Search + (Free, in-purchase of $1.99 for premium version) Missing Link (Free, in-app purchases for hints and extra levels) Bookworm ($2.99) If you have any educational apps you enjoy, please share them with us in the comments.
TED launches 'TED-Ed', hopes to make lessons worth sharing
Who doesn't love filling an idle hour with a good ol' bit of TED? Now, the people behind those share-worthy ideas are bringing us TED-Ed: a new lesson-based YouTube channel. Aimed primarily at high-schoolers, the initiative invites teachers to submit their "best lesson" in a youthful mind-friendly ten minutes or less. If chosen, TED will ship out a "portable recording booth" -- which look suspiciously like an iPad in a sound-absorbing flightcase. Once the knowledge has been preserved, it's sent over to a team of animators to bring it to life. If you know a great teacher, or animator, you can also nominate them to the TED-Ed team if they're too humble to put themselves forward. The TEDEducation YouTube channel is up and running right now, but the new original content won't land until a dedicated site is launched next month. There's a typically heartwarming and informative video about the project after the break.
Khan Academy releases iPad app
MIT alum Salman Khan has an ambitious plan. He wants to provide anyone, anywhere with a quality education. To that end, he's created a website with over 2,700 K-12 lectures spanning math, history, science and more. Now he's bringing all this online learning to the iPad with his new Khan academy app. In keeping with Khan's philosophy of learning, the Khan Academy app and all its resources are available for free. The app lets you login to your Khan Academy account and track your progress as you work through the courses. You can also download videos and playlists for learning on the go and follow along with subtitles that'll help you navigate through each lecture. You can grab the Khan Academy app for free from the iOS App Store.
Five apps to entertain and educate your toddlers
One of the best toys I had for my kids was Professor Owl, a talking owl that taught them the alphabet. Sadly, Professor Owl stopped working a few years ago and we've never been able to find a good replacement. Instead of continuing to buy cheap learning toys that break, my husband and I decided to use an iPad or an iPod touch filled with educational apps for our younger ones. In an earlier post, I listed five apps for the pre-school group. Now, I will list five of my favorite apps appropriate for toddlers (18 months to three-years-old). If you have any recommendations, please add them in the comments. Wood Puzzle (US$1.99) Wood Puzzle is a chunky puzzle game for toddlers. It has several different puzzles, each with six to ten pieces. The puzzles are colorful and have objects that appeal to kids like a train, princess and frog. Just like a traditional wood puzzle, your child grabs the pieces and places them in the right spot using a single finger or two fingers if they have enough dexterity. There's also an automatic mode that'll solve the puzzle for your child and animate the solution. Scratch a Sketch ($0.99) Scratch a Sketch is a unique toddler games which has a colorful kids picture covered by a layer of black. As the child touches the screen, the black is erased, revealing the image underneath. It's fun for the toddlers who enjoy seeing the picture pop out at them and entertaining for the under-two set who can randomly wipe the tablet screen and gradually see the picture. Barnyard Games for Kids (Free; $1.99 in-app purchase) Barnyard Games for Kids is a series of mini-games that's perfect for kids four and under. It has bright colorful images and catchy sounds that'll attract your child's attention and hold it. It's more than just farm animals and sounds. Barnyard Games for Kids has games that'll teach your child his or her shapes and colors, alphabet, and numbers. The app includes two free games for free and a $1.99 in-app purchase unlocks the rest. Little Sky Writers ($1.99) Little Sky Writers is an alphabet app that teaches children how to write their letters. It uses an airplane that sky writes each way through each letter. It's easy for your child to trace along and my kids just love the airplane theme. There's even a control tower voice that helps your child learn the sound and usage of each letter. Thomas & Friends: Engine Activities ($1.99) What child doesn't love Thomas the Tank Engine? Both my boys and my girls have enjoyed the Thomas and Friends animated series. That's why I had to buy the Thomas & Friends: Engine Activities when I spotted it in the App Store. The app includes three coloring sheets, three animated puzzles, and three collectible engine cards from Pop Goes Thomas and three of each from Creaky Cranky. There's also a matching game that uses the engine cards that your child has collected. When your child has exhausted the content in the app, you can buy additional activity packs for 99-cents each.
Samsung's Learning Hub demonstrates a commitment to education, profits
Samsung's R&D department has been working overtime as it strives to break the idea it copies wholesale ideas from its competition. Yesterday we heard word about its planned new cloud service and today it's announced that it'll be unveiling a unique education-focused app for Galaxy Tabs 8.9 and 10.1. Learning Hub will provide free materials from 30 major educational establishments from elementary schools through to universities, although there's no word on what certificates you'll be able to earn at the end of your course. The program will expand to other devices in the Galaxy family later on, once the company's done showing off the software at MWC.
MacTech Boot Camp
"MacTech Boot Camp is specifically designed for those techs and consultants supporting home users, small office/home office, and small-to-medium sized businesses. This one-day, hotel-based, seminar is designed specifically to help you be the most successful consultant you can be. Learn. Network. Expand your horizons." We're a media sponsor for the MacTech events, and from what we have seen they are quite excellent. Plus, there's a special deal for TUAW readers here that'll save you US$200. To see what sessions and topics will be covered, check out this page. For a full schedule, look here. Did I mention lunch is included? Seriously, if you are a consultant for the clients mentioned above, these Boot Camp sessions are an excellent way to get up-to-date on what's going on with Apple technologies.
Switched On: You tell me it's the institution
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology. Apple rose to dominate sales of digital music by more or less mirroring the way consumers acquired music in the physical world -- that is, purchasing songs, but providing a greater degree of granularity. This worked well for music and has also held true for apps and best-selling books, but hasn't been as in step with consumer media acquisition habits for other content.For example, before Apple brought sales of video material to iTunes, most consumers did not generally own TV shows except for perhaps a few cherished series on DVD. They either watched them as they aired as part of a cable-like subscription or paid a flat monthly fee for the privilege of recording them on a DVR to be viewed after they aired. Furthermore, both Blockbuster physical stores and later Netflix's DVD by mail feature relied on a system of one-time consumption via rental or subscription that eschewed ownership of movies. And today, Vevo.com offers free streaming of many music videos that Apple still seeks to sell.
Apple iBooks 2 textbooks video walkthrough and screenshots (hands-on)
We had a few minutes to browse through iBooks 2 textbooks following Apple's press conference this morning, but now we have a fully-loaded iPad 2 to play with, so we decided to spend some more time getting educated in the comfort of our in-house studio. You already had a chance to get familiar with the new app and associated media earlier today, so this time it's all about the visuals. Browse through the galley below as we explore Life on Earth before taking a front seat in Biology and getting our hands dirty with Frog Dissection. And if you're feeling brave, there's a juicy video walkthrough just past the break.
Apple's education announcement: what you need to know
Today's education event was a reasonably small one, so far as Apple pressers go, held at the Guggenheim museum in New York City, with a smattering of media representatives in attendance. It arrives on the tails of some already hearty numbers for the company, including the existence of 20,000 learning-themed apps and 1.5 million iPads currently in use for education. But Cupertino's plans for the future of learning are grand indeed, including the desire to "reinvent the textbook" via iBooks 2. And while our expectations weren't particularly grandiose going into this morning, we were, indeed, pretty impressed with what we saw. So, what did you miss if you happened to sleep in late today? Find out, after the break.
Apple's iBooks 2 e-textbooks pack tons of info, take up tons of your iPad's memory
Apple just got done unveiling its new iBooks 2 platform, letting us in on its plan to revamp education (in part) through its fancy new e-textbooks. These digital volumes look beautiful and come at a relatively meager monetary cost ($14.99), but a quick perusal of the textbooks available in iTunes reveals they'll take a sizable chunk of your iPad's memory. The current lineup of eight texts range in size from 800MB to 2.77GB, so folks looking to grab a full semester's worth of materials may have to carry an extra iPad or three to get the job done. Not an ideal solution, but a few Apple slates are still easier to schlep across campus than those massive texts you're used to, right?
Apple iTunes U hands-on (video)
Would you like to make more money? Sure, we all would, and a great way to do that is to get a better education. There was a time when you had to go to schools or rely on shady mail-order diplomas. Now you can use your iPad and get the same thing with the new iTunes U app. It's an extension of the existing iTunes U service, which has been around for about four years despite few people knowing anything about it. This new apps should change that. Join us for a full exploration of why.
Apple iBooks 2 textbook hands-on (video)
We just got our first opportunity to get our hands on one of Apple's new interactive textbooks and we have to say, they're as good as they looked during the live event. We tried a few titles, ranging from steady textbooks to more exotic stuffs, but by far the best is the selection from E.O. Wilson called Life on Earth. Join us for full details and video demonstration of the future of learning after the break.
