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Two things really struck me about the iPad during my time with it. The first was how it extended my activity in reality. The touch screen feels like an natural extension of myself.

This is a huge paradigm shift

the device changed my perception of connecting

This case study examines how ePortfolios, used in conjunction with blogs, can encourage students to become more critically reflective learners. The benefits and challenges of using ePortfolios are discussed, along with strategies for providing sufficient technical and pedagogical support, to enable teachers and students to confidently use the technology as a collaborative learning tool.

The open source learning management system Moodle has a new mobile companion. Developers at Moodle HQ have released a free app for iOS designed to work with Moodle 2.1 or later.

My Moodle isn't a replacement for the Moodle interface; rather, it just provides some additional tools tailored specifically for mobile users. These include the ability to: Capture video, still images, and audio and upload those to Moodle; Upload images and video from users' existing libraries; E-mail and message participants in users' courses; Add notes about users; Add course participants to users' iPhone contact lists; Get help through MoodleDocs; and Access the full Moodle site. (A separate login for the Web version is required with the version of the mobile app.)

So can computers actually help improve our concentration and contemplation, instead of leading us into distraction? The problem, as Pang puts it, is that "Technologies that were supposed to help us think better, work more efficiently, and connect more meaningfully with others now interrupt us, divide our attention, and stretch us thin."

In the paper he outlines give principles of contemplative computing; Build awareness through DIY and self-experimentation Recognize that we are cyborgs, and humans Create rewarding challenges Support mind-wandering Treat flow as a means, not an end

Pang suggests that we don't have to choose between information technology and contemplation, and suggests contemplative computing as a new way forward. He describes contemplative computing as something you do, not a product. But the principles of contemplative computing could be extending to application design. "The problem is that today's information technologies are often poorly-designed and thoughtlessly used: they're like unreliable prosthetics that we have to depend on, but can't quite control or trust," Pang says.