Highlights From mLearnCon 2013

main stage at mLearnCon 2013

Despite being a "first-timer" to the Mobile Learning Conference and Expo (or "mLearnCon"), I thoroughly enjoyed my time.  Now that I have not only successfully attended the conference, but also given two presentations, I believe I qualify as a "seasoned veteran".  Maybe.  :)

So, with that in mind, here are some brief highlights from my interaction at mLearnCon 2013 (in no certain order).

Conference Backchannel
mLearnCon has created a wonderful way to follow the events, information, and thoughts of the presenters, vendors, and general attendees.  Fueled by attendees' Twitter hashtags, the backchannel provides great insight to the constantly-changing technological flavor of the conference.
This is further enhanced by Hashcaster (http://mlearncon.hashcaster.com/), "a real-time Twitter curation platform setup by your mLearnCon organizer to help you find the best content tweeted at mLearnCon and to help you easily identify and connect with top influencers."

mLearnCon2013 presentation #1

Presentation #1
Despite occurring immediately after lunch - making both the speaker and the audience slightly lethargic - my presentation was a success.
Attendees to "B.Y.O.L.: Touch & GO: Quickly Enhancing Lectora for Gesture-based Interaction" were able to get some technical tips on specific projects they had in mind.
Discussion continued even long after the presentation was over (...my apologies to the person presenting directly after me..!), as an attendee and I traded notes on 3D software and how to best implement JavaScript code for gestures in Lectora and other HTML5 projects.

Presentation #2
With a great turnout and good audience participation/interactions, "Nuff Said: Tips and Tricks from Digital Comics to Breathe Life into Your HTML5" went smashingly.
Several Tweets were fired off that focused on various aspects and info nuggets from this  presentation ... and another long discussion after the end made this event a great one to be part of.
Thanks to everyone that came out and contributed to the discussion.  You all rock!

And finally...

artsy...AND mysterious

Hotel paintings that make me think they're really QR codes
I still think it's a code...

HTML5 or Flash ?

Ok. I'll admit, right up front, that I'm not going to take sides on this one.  I've been a long-time developer using both HTML-based and Flash-based solutions. I'm quite comfortable using either technology to get the job done.

To use a mechanical analogy: Say you hand me either a pair of needle-nose pliers OR a pair of lineman's (or "combination") pliers. These are certainly different tools and have different functions...but, I can sure squeeze/pinch/etc. the heck out of something with either one. The same can be said for HTML5 or Flash; each have their own specific set of advantages, but both come in quite handy, when it comes to getting the job done, especially from a software solutions perspective.

A recent blog article on http://www.trainingindustry.com further discusses HTML5 and Flash's differences, but supports the above idea that either/both technologies work well. The article goes on to discuss "HTML5 in Learning Solutions" and highlights some advantages. Namely, Semantics, Multimedia, Graphics, Device access, and Offline Storage. I'd suggest viewing the article at http://www.trainingindustry.com/learning-technologies/articles/using-html5-in-learning-solutions.aspx to get the full description behind these.
One part of the article stands out to me, which I will quote here:

HTML5 in Learning Solutions: Collaborative Learning
There is yet another aspect to the learning equation and how HTML5 can play a role that is quite distinct in the world of learning solutions, with respect to social collaboration. Just about everyone is familiar with social networks these days and the benefits of staying connected in the personal and professional world. HTML5 makes it easy to build solutions around collaboration among a group of experts and learners. Collaboration in the online world is so powerful that it can change the way everything works.

I agree with much of this. Thinking towards social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and/or other, it becomes clear that we developers need to plan for implementation of these technologies, not matter what platform for which we are creating content. Take the JSFiddle example below, showing how easy it is to grab Tweets using jQuery. Click the 'Result' button to run the simple script.

 Of course, this is a rudimentary example, but think of the possibilities implementing the social aspect for our clients, as we deploy to desktop units or even mobile devices, using HTML5.  Certainly, I am not taking sides here - I will continue to use both Flash and/or HTML5 where needed...however, I use the example above to remind us, as developers, that we can continue to think past our current technological reach.


For now, we'll see how the comparison between the two solutions work out. I'd wager that both will be around for quite some time, for us to all argue over, even if one dies on the vine. (...I mean, there are still developers out there programming in Authorware, right?)

Unity 3D Mobile Overview

Unity 3D is an excellent all-around tool for multi-platform developers.  With the additional plug-ins for Android and iOS, developers can also create rich, immersive, and interactive content for mobile devices utilizing the same build-once-deploy-many pipeline. This is one of Unity's many great innovations, which allows developers to power to import assets in their original form (i.e., Maya, Max, Photoshop, etc.) while Unity 3D does the work of converting everything to the correct formats for in the various and different builds.

Below, I have provided some distilled information for using Unity to develop in applications and content for Android and iOS devices.


Unity 3D Overview:

Unity 3D "is an integrated authoring tool for creating 3D video games or other interactive content such as architectural visualizations or real-time 3D animations. Unity's development environment runs on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X, and the games it produces can be run on Windows, Mac, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, iPad, iPhone," Android, and online utilizing the Unity web player plugin within the browser. Unity consists of both an editor for developing/designing content and a game engine for executing the final product. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unity_(game_engine))

Currently there are over

"one thousand Unity games for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad [that] are published and live on the App Store." (http://unity3d.com/unity/publishing/ios)

Some examples of markets that potentially benefit from creating content with Unity 3D include:


Health:

image from CliniSpace website

CliniSpace™ (http://www.clinispace.com/)

CliniSpace™ offers the next generation of training environments for healthcare professionals – immersive, authentic, 3D virtual environments that replicate the familiar surroundings of daily work. Logging into these environments, learners encounter realistic scenarios and problems. They practice alone and in teams, learning to make decisions, to communicate effectively, and to recover safely from errors. As a hosted application, accessed over the Internet, CliniSpace™ is a cost-effective and scalable addition to all simulator training. 

DoD:
Aircraft Marshalling Virtual Trainer (http://hwd3d.com/services/custom-3d-virtual-trainers-simulations-and-training-videos/aircraft-marshalling-virtual-trainer/):

"Aircraft Marshalling is a job function that requires the use of hand signals to communicate with and direct pilots and other relevant personnel during take-off and taxi. To train for this skill-set, the student would need to physically perform the hand/arm signals and an instructor corrects or approves them instantly. But what does the Canadian Air Force schoolhouse do when there is a lack of human instructors and a need to provide scalability? Enter Heartwood & Atlantis Eduplus. Heartwood & Atlantis Eduplus developed an application that uses motion sensing technology (COTS device i.e. the Kinect) to accurately translate real life body gestures into on-screen virtual actions. An on-screen instructor (instructor avatar) leads trainees through a series of lessons, and the learner must repeat the signals accurately to advance. As the game progresses, the trainee is exposed to a variety of virtual scenarios that test their marshalling skills. Gold Winner at Serious Play Award Competition."

image from Roma website

Academia / Education:
Virtual History – Roma (http://itunes.apple.com/it/app/virtual-history-roma/id410358487?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4) iOS app

A real journey through time, in Italian and English, in Rome, the capital of the greatest empire of antiquity, and explored virtually reconstructed in 3D at 360 degrees. The format offers a surprising rediscovery of Roman civilization through media and innovative features : digital restoration of the statues from the spectacular aerial views of the exciting metropolis of 2000 years ago, the manipulation of models of legionnaires, gladiators and war machines to the exploration of monuments in 3D, including the Colosseum, Circus Maximus, the Mausoleum of Adrian and many others. The reconstruction of the original in many points is superimposed and compared with the current reality. As through a time machine, we can observe the transformation of the site where it currently stands the Coliseum, originally the fire and from the pond the Golden House of Nero, to the amphitheater. The virtual journey continues to Pompeii, Herculaneum and other places of the Roman civilization - in Europe and the Mediterranean - proposed with 3d models, fact sheets and hundreds of high quality images. Among the unpublished content, the reconstruction of the original appearance of the "home of the Gladiators", recently dropped out in the context of Abundance Street in Pompeii. Maps and introductory cards allow us to investigate the origins of Rome, the conquests and the downfall of ' empire, the techniques of engineering, art, war and entertainment of the Romans, the profiles of the emperors, to find out what survived in the modern world of Roman civilization. Virtual History International is the first app to use the technology ' Bubble Viewer ', designed in Italy and patented in the U.S., which values the sensors in mobile tablets (accelerometer and compass) by creating a new generation of bubble-shaped digital illustrations. The new digital book becomes a sort of telescope that can see the 3D reconstruction of Imperial Rome and in the future - in subsequent releases of the series - other imaginary of other cities and environments of all kinds.

screenshot from iTunes website

Self-Help / Personal Enrichment:
Tiga Talk Speech Therapy Games (http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/tiga-talk-speech-therapy-games/id412024533?mt=8#&partnerId=30&siteID=6pnvjxKjsS4-IwIsPIIHeXTE4dK6lM4ZCQ)

"Tiga Talk Speech Therapy Games", developed with licensed speech and language pathologists, is a fun way for children to develop speech sounds through playful voice-controlled games that can improve speech clarity, articulation, and instill confidence. The app is for parents and speech therapists working with toddlers and children with language delays, as well as any parent looking to give their child a head start in early language development. Children learn fundamental phonetic sounds, that are the building blocks of language, as they play 23 fun voice controlled games on an imaginative adventure with Tiga and friends.

Integration with other mobile development platforms
Applications created with Unity 3D can be run on Windows, Mac, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, iPad, iPhone, Android, and online utilizing the Unity web player plugin within the browser. True Multiplatform Authoring Unity lets you target all platforms from a single tool. Within a single project you have complete control over delivery to all platforms. ('Build Once…Deploy Many [times]', as I like to say.) "Publishing a build for iPhone will create an entire, complete Xcode project that just works. Press 'Build and Run' in Unity and [the] game automatically compiles in Xcode, installs, and launches." (http://unity3d.com/unity/publishing/ios)

Additional software and/or considerations needed to create mobile content in Unity 3D 

iOS Requirements
In order to license and use Unity iOS Publishing, developers must meet the following requirements: You must be an approved Apple Developer for iOS and install the iOS SDK (requires Intel-based Mac running Snow Leopard)

Android Requirements
"Android has proven itself to be the fastest growing mobile platform. Unity gives you the power to painlessly develop applications for any of the 30 million-plus Android devices out there."

Setting up your Android Developer environment for Unity 3D (http://unity3d.com/support/documentation/Manual/android-GettingStarted.html)
Before you can run Unity Android games on the actual device, you'll need to have your Android developer environment set up. This involves downloading and installing the Android SDK with the different Android plaforms and adding your physical device to your system (this is done a bit differently depending on whether you are developing on Windows or Mac). This setup process is explained on the Android developer website, and there may be additional information provided by the manufacturer of your device.