09 Feb 08 Using the tablet for the ch.4 test
After I realized I had volunteered to use the tablet for taking the test, I immediately regretted my decision to raise my hand. For the first 5 or 10 minutes it was a bit difficult to get used to not writing on paper. It made me a bit nervous because I had never used a tablet before, and I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t want to end up accidentally deleting everything half way through the test, or something to that affect. After my nerves calmed down a bit it wasn’t so bad. I actually prefer using the tablet for taking tests.
Using the tablet made erasing much easier and neater, and I never ran out of paper. I liked the fact that I could change colors and widths when I was writing. It is easier to make the more important things noticeable. It was also easy to go back to a problem because there were no papers to shuffle around to find the question I wanted to go back to. Everything is in a nice logical order, and I didn’t have to plan according to page length. I hate running out of room and the bottom of a piece of paper when I am working on a long equation, and with the tablet I never had to worry about that. It was also nice to be able to put a graph into the work that I created in winplot. It looks much neater.
It was a bit awkward to get used to writing on the tablet at first. It took a few minutes to find a comfortable way to write. I found that Mr. Seamon’s suggestion to rest my hand on the screen while writing worked best for me. The other thing that bothered me while I was using in was I would accidentally press the button on the stylus and highlight something that I didn’t want to highlight and move it. I hadn’t realized that there was a button the stylus so the first time it happened I had no idea what I did.
I think I prefer using the tablet for test taking now. Over all it makes the work look much neater, and the tablet isn’t hard to use.
Tags: tabletpc, test taking
08 Feb 08 Tablet
When I used tablet to take notes in class, it was great. It is so easy to use. I can change pen easily. I can move everything I write. However, there are many problems while I was using it.
- Battery is too big and hot
- Battery didn’t last long enough so I have to tell Mr.Seamon to put AC Adapter in
- All the writing count as picture so when I made mistake, it delete everything if it is connected line
- It was hard to write on the table
I want to show you all my note at the end of this post.
07 Feb 08 My Tablet Experiences
For the sake of disclosure let it be noted that I love technology.
That being said, My experience using the tablet in Calculus was a mixed bag. The ability to dynamically modify and save work and telecommunicate my thoughts and ideas effectively was fantastic. However, there were some major issues that I found while using the tablet.
- You can’t comfortably use it on the desk. The writing angle just doesn’t work.
- The only comfortable place to put it is on your lap. (see next point)
- It gets ridiculously hot (see next point)
- I think this speaks for itself.
- The weird shape battery makes resting it anywhere a pain because the angle of the tablet has to be adjusted.
- The rope attaching the pen to the tablet was so troublesome I had to disconnect it.
- Running the tablet in portrait instead of landscape while taking notes, I found that you run out of screen space reallly quickly. OneNote Doesn’t create enough page bottom space fast enough for my tastes.
- Once I switched to Landscape I found that i was constantly knocking into the buttons encircling the perimeter of the screen. Highly annoying.
- I can see the tablet being an issue for persons who re not completely comfortable with wacom technology or the onenote interface.
I think, and I’m sure Mr. Seamon does as well, that the tablets have real potential. A few minor bugs are always to be expected.
A list of my suggestions for their use:
- Either new chairs or new desks. The angles simply do not work currently.
- A different battery size for the tablet.
- The ability to dynamically interact with the teacher’s presentation.
- Figure out a way to make one note provide more real estate in portrait.
My class notes are at the end of this post for all those interested in seeing my take on the test prep and 4.10 homework.
06 Feb 08 Problem #77 & Chapter 4 Test Review
I thought I could have done a better job at explaining #77 from class on 2/6, so I went ahead and recorded a screen capture (w/sound) of another run through of the problem: Part1, Part2
The files are in flash format and are pretty small (<4mb each), so you should be able to play them fine. Email me if you have any issues.
Last night I wanted to see what more I could do with my shiny new tablet, so I setup an online study session. Here is a recording of what went down. Note: I was on a conference call with three students during the session. You can only hear me in the recording.
