Tuesday afternoons, 4:15 PM - 5:00 PM, CCL Training Lab in the Forum

The Creative Computing Series (CCS) is meant to highlight (a) particular academic technologies and (b) some examples of their creative uses in a short amount of time.

We have not planned any more events but please feel free to contact the CTSs if you have an idea for a topic.

November 20 - The Truth about Wikipedia and the Googlization of research
Wikipedia is held up as both an ideal of the potential of the internet for creating shared resources and as a potentially misleading information resource. Catherine Rod and Cecilia Knight will attempt to take a more nuanced approach to Wikipedia and where it fits in today's information landscape.

November 13 - What's Primary About Digital Sources? Historic Primary Sources in Digital Form
Inquiry-based learning, relying on primary sources to conduct research, is a hallmark of Grinnell¹s education. In the past, access to extensive collections of primary sources for research in history, literature, and related fields meant traveling to distant repositories. With digitization, many of these primary texts are now available to students and scholars from their desktops. The Grinnell College Libraries recently purchased three collections of digitized primary texts: Eighteenth Century Collections Online, Early American Newspapers (Series II), 1758-1900, and Empire Online.

Richard Fyffe and Catherine Rod will discuss the strengths of these collections, demonstrate how to search them effectively, and suggest how how they might complement original materials held in the Libraries¹ special collections. Bring your questions and ideas about using primary sources in your teaching and mentoring.

November 6 - RefWorks
RefWorks is a Web-based bibliographic citation tool. Many databases have a mechanism by which you can download citations directly into RefWorks. You can then organize these citations into folders and prepare bibliographies and notes using any of hundreds of different formats. With Refworks, you can add abstracts or descriptive terms to your citations and, because you have a Web-based personal account, you can connect to Refworks wherever you have an internet connection. Refworks is compatible with Word and Outlook and can be exported into Endnote (and vice versa). Most libraries/colleges subscribe to RefWorks meaning that you (or your student) can keep your folders if you should leave Grinnell. There are a variety of ways to use RefWorks in your classes that will aid your students in thinking critically about the material they are using and the research they are undertaking. This workshop will provide instruction in using RefWorks but also provide the opportunity to discuss the different ways this tool can be used to advance your research, your work with your students, and your students' research.

October 16 - Now Where Did I Put That?
As the time we spend on computers increases, so does the complexity and volume of digital assets that we have. The real question is how do we find that critical needle-like email or file within the haystack of others? This CCS session will demonstrate some free fast-search tools for Windows, Mac, and Linux users (Mac Spotlight, Google Desktop, and X1).

October 9 - Bringing Virtual Guest Presenters to Class
We will explore the options available for allowing a guest to present or participate in your class from a remote location. From two-way high-end video conferencing to a discussion board, there are a number of ways a "virtual visit" can be arranged. Participants will learn of the various options and be introduced to the technology that can make it happen. Mark Schneider from the Physics Department will describe his recent in-class use of this technology.

October 2 - Podcasting
Podcasting is the melding of the word iPod (for illustrating mobile devices) and broadcasting (for illustrating easily-distributed media). In this session, we will discuss why anyone would want to use podcasting in classes, especially in a residential liberal arts setting. We will then show some basics of creating and distributing podcasts, focusing on the tools available at Grinnell College.

September 25 - Wikis in Your Teaching
According to Wikipedia, "a wiki is a collaborative website which can be directly edited by anyone with access to it. Ward Cunningham, developer of the first wiki WikiWikiWeb, originally described it as "the simplest online database that could possibly work". One of the best-known wikis is Wikipedia."
We will be demostrating what wikis look like, how they work, and how they are used for various pedagogical goals. We will focus on tools available at Grinnell College as well as popular free services out in the Webosphere.

Some topics from the 2006-2007 CCS include: What can you do at the CCL?, web design, PDID, ARTstor, social software (Web 2.0), movie editing, virtual guest presenters, podcasting, creating learning objects with Flash, Google Earth and other web-based mapping, and reference managers for writing papers.