Gord Barentsen

16 minutes ago, Ima Student said:

Other members of the Learning Space (if any) can comment on blog posts as well.

And of course, your tutor will be here to offer feedback and insights!

36 minutes ago, NotWithoutMyOntic said:

link?

Fixed! 

24 minutes ago, traumaturgist said:

Hey congrats mate (even if it is a few months late but I guess that's academics for ya 😋).

Does that mean the 20% off has expired?

Thanks!  I'm not sure - haven't checked the website lately.  It's bound to expire at some point though, so hurry over and buy 5 hardcover copies!  lol j/k 

Yeah I'd like to get some stuff going but for now I'm frantically revising chapers for submission to Routledge.  Once they're in it gets the ball rolling on their end and I'll have some breathing room.

As for the Psych chapter, I can't say much right now...don't even know what it's going to be called.  Probably something adventurous like, I dunno...."Psyche"? 

I gave my talk today as scheduled, and just wanted to add (in case you didn't read the site message) that it was received very well and I received some very helpful criticism.

One of the very positive aspects of the CPRG is the fact that it includes people from a very wide range of disciplines, so the criticism one can get for one's project can really broaden one's horizons and offer possibilities for further research.

Thanks to the CPRG for having me and letting me speak, and I look forward to attending more sessions!

The link to the talk abstract is here:

Good idea.  I'll put that right on to the "when I get around to it" pile. 

Thanks @stimmung79!  I'm glad the changes are getting positive reviews.

Lots more to do, but I hope to be posting more material in the near future.

Thanks @Graham Barnett .  Many others have said it really makes the site "pop"!

For those of you who are able to use Sticky Notes, you can now leave Notes for yourself on the site as well as sending them to me.  This is a great way of setting up eye-catching reminders of upcoming events, tutoring sessions, or just homework deadlines.

I'll put one up so you can see what they're all about.  There is also the ability to send Sticky Notes to other site members, which I'm currently experimenting with.

I forgot to add: if you like, you can update your current location to let people know where you are.  Simply change your location back once you get home.  I'm at the University of Essex right now, so I've revised my current location on the Map. 

On 8/10/2017 at 1:35 PM, Marjorie Pfennig said:

ok one thing i noticed is that the newer themes don't look great on mobile view.  the Dashboard one is ok but with the other one the background images don't appear right and they move around on the screen.  wondering if there's any way to fix this?

 

Yes, I know.  Unfortunately there's no simple way around this, due to the way the CSS handles background images.  It's always a challenge to get things looking right on both mobile and desktop themes at the same time; I know many, many people use mobiles more and more nowadays, but given the nature of the site I'd suggest using the LF_Blue theme if you can't take how the background images look with other themes (for which I can't blame you!).

On the plus side, using LF_Blue will certainly be easier on your bandwidth. 

In the meantime, I will see if I can develop a mobile-friendly version of the fancy themes with background colours or simple patterns only - something a little more aesthetically pleasing for mobile browsers.

UPDATE: Thanks to our dedicated theme developer, both Chameleon and Dashboard now work fine with MS Edge as well as the other browsers.  Issues with formatting in IE have also been fixed, but I'd still highly recommend using some other (non-Microsoft) browser for your experience of the site.

lol...I actually decided to make it available to everyone, but have recently been dealing with some configuration difficulties in the theme (which have since magically sorted themselves out....no kidding! .  I'll get it set up for everyone except Guests in the next day or so.

As with Dashboard, here's a screenshot so those of you out there who haven't registered yet can see what you get with free Membership. 

I'm adding a screenshot so people who haven't registered yet know what how snazzy the new theme is .

The major software changes (starting today actually) will affect everyone using the site - it's just that the changes will be initially geared towards Tutor Clients.  These changes come in the form of a social groups app which allows for the creation and maintenance of clubs/groups, which are sort of like mini communities in the site.  A group still uses all of the site apps like forums, blogs, galleries etc., but they are constellated around a private Learning Space where Clients can pool their materials and research.  It's also where I will be offering my online assistance to Clients from now on.  As a Client you'll be made the owner of your Space, and you can invite people in (or give them the boot ) as needed.

So first thing, I will set up private Spaces for Clients (which will be pretty much everything you already have privately, only shifted into a "Space" environment with better permission handling, so Clients can make their own blogs, galleries, etc. for their project).  After that infrastructure is set up, we can make social groups for other ideas.

I will also (I promise!) write some brief tutorials on how to use some of this site's many cool functions, in a more structured way than posting tips in this blog.  I'll obviously also be providing some instructions on how to operate your Learning Space (or social group).

That's the collaborative app.  Then there's the site software upgrade, which will have a whole bunch of improvements to site-wide apps: the Calendar, Media Centre, and more will have improved functionality for everyone.

Stay tuned!

You'll see....in the works.  It's part of a software upgrade, but I'm also fixing up a new theme for the site

Yeah, the upgrade was fine...just a very small (and somewhat inane) error gave the server a schizoid embolism.  All is well now, but if there are any problems do let me know.

@stimmung79 I couldn't agree more...the only thing worse than Microsoft's browsers is their <ahem> "technical support," which has never once helped me when I've been bashing my head against the wall wondering "why is this happening?"

Every single Windows related problem I've had I've Google-solved.

Just as a followup: I'm logged in to the site using IE 11 on a Windows 8.1 laptop and have no difficulties viewing icons or dropdown menus.  Maybe it's a Windows 10 thing?

chacheng, this is interesting.  I'm posting this response using IE 11 on Windows 7, and I'm not experiencing any of the image issues you're describing.  In fact, IE here is working pretty much like the other browsers.

Given your comments I would suggest using something other than Microsoft browsers to use the site (e.g., Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Vivaldi).  I've never seen any issues with those browsers.  Microsoft, on the other hand, has a longstanding tradition of trying to conceive the Internet in its own image, which differs from pretty much the rest of the world.

Hello everyone,

As of today, a new software upgrade has given you many, many more options for embedding content!  You can now embed content from teh following sites simply by copy/pasting the link:

• codepen.io
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• screencast.com
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• slideshare.net
• smugmug.com
• ustream.tv
• Google Maps