ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY BLOG | INVENTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

I have made several posts about the LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen and can't wait to get my hands on it. The LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen is a new computing platform with tremendous promise. In the video link you can see the Pulse Smartpen in action as it translates from English to Spanish, English to Mandarin, and English to Arabic. It is really exciting to see the Pulse Smartpen in action. Just think of the power and the application that this computing platform has to offer.

There are times when you have developed a rather complex MindManager 7 map, that all you want to do is just focus in and isolate that branch so that you can attend to the information that is on that topic. The Show Branch Alone command is a great feature which lets you do just that. All you need to do is click on the Topic and go to the View Menu and select Show Branch Alone. You can accomplish the same thing by Pressing the F4 key. The F4 key when you have a Topic selected toggles between Show Branch Alone and Show Other Branches. I have created a short screencast in Camatasia Studio 5 to show you how it works.

If you are looking to store your files on-line you may want to take a look at Xdrive which will provide you with a free 5GB account. Xdrive announced the release of the Xdrive Desktop Lite client that has been developed using Adobe Air, which once installed lets you drag files from your desktop or USB drive right into your Xdrive account. I installed the Xdrive Desktop Client today and it worked like a charm. Within minutes I was able to drag my files and have them stored on-line. By setting permissions for files you can easily share files with friends and family. Once your files are stored you can access them with any computer with any internet connection. Give it a try! If you need more space you can subscribe for premium storage plans that start at $9.95 a month for 50GB of storage.

Chuck Frey has posted the latest results of the whats "Hot & Not" survey on his blog. I had a chance to read it and was surprised at some of the findings. If you have the chance take a look at the findings and let me know what you think.

If you are a MindManager User then take a look at the just released Mindjet February Newsletter. You will notice that the newsletter has been totally redesigned with lots of great MindManager information and articles. You will find great maps and articles by Jamie Nast, Stephanie Diamond, and CJ Cornell. Each month I will contribute a video tip demonstrating how to do use one of the many MindManager features. The new Mindjet Newsletter not only looks greta but is chock full of great tips and information. Enjoy!

PS: Additionally, I am available to help your organization create video tutorials for in house training using state of the art screencasting software. If you look at my blog you will see some examples of the work that I have done using Camtasia Studio 5.

Noted MindManager User and Trainer Andrew Wilcox has started a blog focusing on MindManager solutions. Andrew is quite active on many MindManager Forums and runs Cabre, a UK-based training firm that provides training on MindManager . It will be great to have Andrew write regularly about MindManger. I for one am looking forward to his blogs and posts.

Yes- I know this is a shameless plug but why not, this is my blog. I have been doing a lot of work with MindManager Pro 7 and some of the Third Party Add-ins and feel that these are some really powerful tools to help professionals and business people manage the onslaught of information that we need to handle. If you are interested in finding out how I can help you use these tools to solve your business or professional need, please feel free to email me. Additionally, I am available to help your organization create video tutorials for in house training using state of the art screencasting software. If you look at my blog you will see some examples of the work that I have done using Camtasia Studio 5.

For those of you who are interested in learning about PersonalBrain for the Mac plan on attending this special webinar. I have written about the PersonalBrain and you can access my blog posts here.

http://assistivetek.blogspot.com/2007/10/using-personallbrain-for-upcoming-web.html
http://assistivetek.blogspot.com/2007/09/personalbrain-4-on-web.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Web Event:
PersonalBrain on My Mac
Wednesday, February 13, 2008

PersonalBrain 4.0 is cross platform for all PC, Mac and Linux users! The software is used by hundreds of thousands of people worldwide who need to analyze, brainstorm, and synthesize a wide variety of information both on their computer and the Internet. Learn how PersonalBrain can help you link and organize all your files and Web pages on Mac OS X.
Topics Covered Include:

• Using PersonalBrain and Safari Browser to add Web pages and Thought icons
• Integrating files and folders from your desktop
• Taking notes to capture key ideas and concepts
• Moving quickly between different Thoughts with Instant Activation
• Editing and changing your Thoughts
• Working across platforms and exporting your Brain to HTML

Date
Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Time
11:00 AM Pacific, 2:00 PM Eastern

Date
Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Time
11:00 AM Pacific, 2:00 PM Eastern

I am always on the look out for new MindManager Add-ins and recently came across one from Thinking Dimensions, a consultancy that focuses on helping companies to make better decisions through a collaborative problem solving approach using the KEPNERandFOURIE™ thinking technologies. In order to learn more about the TD ThinkingWorks add-in for MindManager 7, I had the opportunity to speak with Ingrid Hogervorst, Product Manager to get some background information and to learn how Thinking Dimensions ThinkingWorks can help individuals and companies make better decisions. Ingrid shared with me that the company Thinking Dimensions is an International consultancy that helps companies and organizations to resolve strategic and operational issues. Using the tie tested and proven thinking methodologies developed by KEPNERandFOURIE™ the consultancy helps companies to work through problematic situations using a structured problem solving approach which helps to make the decisions making process both visible and collaborative. Ingrid shared with me that MindManager 7 is an extremely important tool to help individuals and companies to better visualize possible solutions to a problematic situation. Combining the visual tools built-into MindManager with the TD ThinkingWorks add-in provides a wonderful platform to help individuals and groups to collaborate and to think through a situation all the while being guided by the prompts that TD ThinkingWorks add-in has to offer. As Ingrid shared, all too often groups will brainstorm possible solutions which may not really be tied to the objective and may be irrelevant to the problem being solved. Using the TD ThinkingWorks add-in, ensures that groups work through the problem using timed tested approach. The KEPNERandFOURIE™ thinking technologies relies not only on rational thinking and divergent thinking but captures creative and intuitive dimensions to problem solving as well.

TD ThinkingWorks includes 5 different templates that can be used depending on the problem that is at hand. These include ThinkingWise, which can be used to clarify a vague or complex problem; CauseWise, which can be used to understand the cause of a problem; RiskWise, which can be used to identify potential risks; SolutionWise, which can be used to generate solutions to problems, and PriorityWise, which can be used to prioritize and gain focus on a problem.

I had the chance to download The TD ThinkingWorks add-in from the Thinking Dimensions website and the installation went very smoothly. Once TD ThinkingWorks was installed it appears as a tab right within MindManager 7. Clicking on the TD ThinkingWorks tab shows the ribbon and your options for selecting one of the starting Wizards which include: ThinkingWise, RiskWise, SolutionWise, CauseWise, or PriorityWise. Depending on your scenario you select one of the Wizards and you are walked through the entire process step by step. There are helpful prompts and hints on how best to answer the questions as the Wizard guides you and your team to better decision making process. The Wizard really keeps you on task and makes you think through the problem in a clear and methodical manner. This would be a great tool to have at a meeting with a projector so that everyone can collaborate as your resolve a particular issue. By going through the process, you ensure that the end result or output is relevant to the problem. When you have completed the process the Wizard in the background has been building a visual map with all of the inputs that you entered during the session. I found TD ThinkingWorks add-in to add a great deal of value to MindManager 7 and a cost starting at $29.99, you having nothing to lose and all to gain, as your teams become more effective in making problem solving highly visible, visual, and collaborative. Ingrid shared with me that she will be doing a number of webinars during the next couple of months to show people how TD ThinkingWorks can be used with MindManager 7, to help organizations make better decisions. I think that once you take a look at TD ThinkingWorks you will agree that is much value in this add-in for problem solving and decision making in your organization. For more information go to ThinkingWorks web site. If you have ad questions about TD ThinkingWorks, please feel free to contact Ingrid Hogervorst, Product Manager.

Over the last couple of months I have begun to rely more and more on Google Docs for collaborating and sharing documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. As I noted a couple of weeks ago Google continues to develop and add incredible features to this platform. Just yesterday I learned that Google has added the ability to create Forms from within the Spreadsheet application. I tried it last night and found it very easy to use. It is now possible with this feature to collect data from a group of people and then analyze and collect it within Google Spreadsheet. It is a great way to do a simple survey and share with people in your group. Just go to Google Docs and select New Spreadsheet-then click on Share and Select To fill out Form and then click on Start editing your form. From there follow the steps to create your form. Once you have created the form you can invite others to it. Once your collaborators have submitted their forms, the data automatically is published to your spreadsheet.

Chuck Frey is at it again with another mind mapping survey. Chuck's surveys are always very informative and help to pinpoint how users are deriving benefits from mind mapping. If you have the opportunity, participate in his latest survey and provide the mind mapping community with important information and feedback. Chuck's latest survey focuses on which features are "hot or not." To find out more, click on this link to take the survey.

I wanted to let you know that OoVoo 1.5 has been released with some really great features. You can now use OoVoo for free phone calls as well as recording your videoconferencing sessions. Find out more about OoVoo by going to OoVoo.com. I had a chance to use the video recording feature and it works extremely well-it is a great tool for doing interviews and recording them. Take a look at it when you get the chance!

A couple of months ago, I shared with you how I have been using Yuuguu to do webinars and to share my computer screen with colleagues. Yuuguu has really come in handy but one of its downfalls was that the person who you were sharing your screen with had to have the Yuuguu client installed on their computer. Well all of that has changed, and Yuuguu now allows you to share your screen even with colleagues of yours that don't have the Yuuguu client installed- right over the web. The process is very simple simply point your colleague to www.yuuguu.com/share and provide them with your six digit PIN number and voila they can now see your computer screen. This makes Yuuguu incredibly valuable Web 2.0 tool for training and providing support. Combining Yuuguu with OoVoo for videoconferencing make this a great one two knockout punch for training, support and webinars. The Yuuguu client is available for Macintosh and PC computers. Check this application out you will be glad you did!

LeapFrog announced a new product Demo 2008 called Tag which is a touch reading system that takes advantage of Anoto Functionality; the same technology used in the FlyPentop Fusion. Using Anoto Functionlity, LeapFrog can print their books with very small microdots on the page that give the paper interactivity. LeapFrog will be shipping this product in June 2008 and can open doors to reading by creating a very engaging and interactive environment. To see the live demonstration from Demo 2008 click here.