Tech Article 11/21

Super Smash Bros for the Wii U Review

One of the promotional posters that you can buy for
your room or anywhere. I like the expanded roster
they have this year, including Little Mac and Mega Man. 

• The game costs $59.96
• Introduces a multiplayer of up to eight people, the highest of any of the Smash Bros games in the series
• There are many modes to play
• However, the tutorial, according to reviewers, is too short and leaves the player at a lost
• Super Smash Bros is a series of games containing many Nintendo characters
• These Nintendo characters fight each other until one is left standing
• This also came out for the 3DS a month ago, but was hard to control the characters
• However, it is not hard to control with the Wii U
• Found it's Pro Controller the easist to handle with
• Nintendo is selling a Game Cube adapter for the Wii U, however, for $30
• The three things that make the game experience better for the Wii U instead of the 3DS is the fact that it had better control, the screen size and detail, as well as the fact that there is an eight-man multiplayer feature
• Makes a great present for all ages of any gender
• A very difficult game to master
• With barely a tutorial, you are off on your own with only button mashing to get you so far
• You can get what looks like figurines that come with the game that serve no purpose but to store game data, but dosen't save the game 
• They are most likely for promotion purposes; they are just for show
• They are expensive, though: $13 for one figurine 
• In conclusion, I think this game will be a hit when it hits gaming stores in the USA on November 21, 2014
• The reference article link is located here

Wiki Dissection & S.S.

1. What is the purpose of this Wiki?

      The purpose of this wiki is to inform disruptive technology in the classroom.

     2. When was the last post?

      The last post was on November 7, 2007.

     3. How was this Wiki created?

     This Wiki was created by using Wikispaces.

     4. What would you add to it?

     We would add more information regarding disruptive technologies in the classroom. For example, phones are disruptive in classrooms. They get taken away in classrooms everyday.

     5. What did you learn from it?

     We learned that there are different forms of disruptive technologies that disrupt or interrupt classroom lessons.

     6. If you had to create a Wiki with a team, what would be the specific topic(s)?

     We would create a wiki all about basketball, baseball, and football stats and the history of each sport.

     7. How can Wikis be used in the classroom or in education?

     We can use a wiki to put notes of a lesson that we just learned and use those notes on an upcoming test or quiz.  

  

Tech Article 11/14

Microsoft's First Smartphone: Microsoft Lumia 535

These are the new phones Microsoft is creating this year.
No plans for the USA, but I think
 it will be a hit

• Microsoft gets rid of its Nokia phones and makes new Microsoft brand phones
• Has a quad-core 1.2 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor  
• Has a 5-inch 960x540-pixel display
• Runs on Windows 8.1
• While although Microsoft plans to release the phone in developing countries between now and January, they actually have no plans for a US release
• It's a "sequel" to the old Lumia 530
• It runs just like the Lumia 530, but now looks just looks bigger and slimmer
• At 9.4mm thick, people like how comfortable it feels when they hold the phone for the first time
• For now it only comes in bright green, blue, orange, dark grey, black and white 
• This new phone comes with front and rear 5-megapixel cameras
• Has 1GB of RAM, 8GB of actual storage in the phone, as well as a microSD card slot that can hold up to 128GB cards
• Powered by a 1,905mAh battery and has 2 SIM-card slots
• The slots will support 3G connectivity
• Unfortunately, it doesn't have 4G LTE
• It costs $135.00
• To see the article where I got this information, click here

Web 2.0: Wiki Research

1. How can a wiki be used in a current class on your schedule (not this course)? Pick a class and be specific how the class could create and use a Wiki on a regular basis (tip: Use the Internet, here is a good source).

A wiki can be used in my US History I class by creating presentations. We have presentations once every month. Our class can create a wiki and put all of our group presentations on that wiki instead of using Google Drive and using the presentation app. That way everything is in one place and people don't have to log in and get their presentation every single time. 

2. What are the benefits of using a wiki in class?

Some benefits of using a wiki are creating better presentations, creating nice glossaries, making a study guide, and students can share notes so that people can understand the lesson better.

3. How can we create a wiki in this class, what would we contribute to it and how would we utilize it on an on-going basis?

We can create a wiki by using the website Wikispaces.com and we can contribute anything that's educational, specifically notes and maybe any projects that the teacher would assign. We could utilize it on an on-going basis by checking back on it and reference it to anything we learn. For example, we could put notes of a lesson on our wiki and we could study off it for an up and coming test or quiz.

4. What experience do you have using or creating wikis?

I have never created or contributed to a wiki. But, I have used one. I have some good experience in using a wiki. I would use it to get background information for an essay I would write. However, I would never use it as my only source; I would dig deeper for info. I would also use it for anything I have a question on. If I wanted to know who Lebron James is and his career stats, then a wiki is where I would go first.    
    

My Upcoming Vacation

          Over the summer in July 2015, I will be going to Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts. There, I will be participating in a Leadership in Action program. I will be dorm at the university with people all over the US. I think it will be a nice experience that will also be an once-in-a-lifetime one. I will staying in Boston for a week seeing the sights of Boston and also taking a tour of the university. 

Click here for detailed information on this awesome trip!