EDUCAUSE Forum for the Future of Higher Education

EDUCAUSE and the Forum for the Future of Higher Education announced the launch of the Forum's new website. The Forum is a community of academic leaders and scholars from around the country who explore new thinking and ideas in higher education.

http://net.educause.edu/forum/

Camtasia Relay for Recording Lectures - easy and inexpensive!

Camtasia Relay is something I learned about at the EDUCAUSE 08 conference last week in Orlando, Florida. Betsy Weber, who writes The Visual Lounge blog, wrote the following:

"Camtasia Relay is something I learned about at the EDUCAUSE 08 conference last week in Orlando, Florida. It is an easy and streamlined way for anyone to record lectures, presentations and meetings. As a presenter, you can walk into the room, select your profile settings and everything, from the recording to the formats the recording is produced into, to the location where you will publish your files, is predetermined. When you're done with your presentation, no need to hang out while your video produces or make technical decisions. You can just leave the room and a central server does all the work for you by automatically processing and publishing your video.

Top features include

* Easy recording on Mac or PC - Yep, you heard me right. Recording on the Mac or PC.

* Automatic processing and publishing handled by the server - Predetermined profile settings automate everything from the recording settings, to the formats the recording is produced into, to the destinations where produced files are published.

* Multiple file formats - Produce your recordings in Flash and iPod video (MP4), audio (MP3), Camtasia Studio (CAMREC), Windows Media (WMV), along with others... Plus, you will have the ability to produce one recording into any or all of the formats above.

So, are you wondering how Camtasia Relay differs from Camtasia Studio? Basically, Camtasia Studio is for individuals who typically edit their recordings and choose how to produce the video and where it should go. Camtasia Relay, on the other hand, is for teams and organizations to do recording. Typically the recording would not need to be edited (note: you can edit your Camtasia Relay content using Camtasia Studio), and production and publishing are handled automatically by a central server.

* Licensing: Affordable and flexible licensing - No monthly, annual or per-seat fees. "

http://www.techsmith.com/camtasiarelay.asp

It's coming....it's coming....iTunes U!

The University of Minnesota has created an access-restricted iTunes U site for students, faculty, staff, and guests. The access-restricted iTunes U site will provide University affiliates with access to audio and video recordings of campus

* course sessions,
* faculty lectures,
* interviews,
* music, and
* sports events.

These can be played on your computer, iPod, or other portable device.

The University is launching a public iTunes U site. The public iTunes U site will provide the University with a dedicated presence in iTunes, allowing a worldwide audience to view and download our digital academic content.

UMM will have its own section on the iTunes U page. Start getting your podcasts and vodcasts ready!

Check it out at:

http://itunes.umn.edu