Just a little while ago I recieved an email from Barnes and Noble saying the long awaited Nook Color App store is now ready. This is what I had been waiting for because it now unleashes some of the Android operating system on the Nook Color to give a tablet experience. I went over the the Nook Apps site to see what was in the initial offering. As to be expected, the offerings are rather slim but there are a few apps teachers should look at if they have the Nook Color or thinking about one. Here are some of the apps that caught my attention:

Word of the Day (Free): Could be a way to review vocabulary or pickout those great SAT words.

Study Droid ($2): Allows users to create flash cards on the web and study anywhere.

Miss Spell's Class ($1.99): another way to learn vocabulary from Dictionary.com.

Dictionary.com ($2.99): handy dictionary app never hurt anyone.

Math ($1.99): Basic math tutor.

Organize

Fliq Calendar and Fliq Notes (Free)

Quickoffice Pro (Unknown): Allows users to create and edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files on the go.

Goodreads (Free): Possibly a great way to get kids to read. Users can keep track of what they read, give recommendations for books, form small book clubs, and more.

My6Sense (Free): Allows users to read their RSS and Social Media feeds on the go. Could be good for picking out those blogs and tweets that are valuable to class.

Explore

GoBeeChallenge (Free): Surprised this offering was not located in the learn section but looks like a great way to learn geography from the National Geographic.

Pulse News Reader (Free): Another blog reader which has a limit on the number of blogs one can subscribe to.

Kids

Drawing Pad ($1.99)

Tikatok (Free) Barnes and Noble is trying to hook budding young authors with their free app that allows kids to create and share books they create.

Matching Zoo ($1.99), My First Zoo ($.99), Animal Show ($1.99): Looks like some Nook Color App developers have a soft spot for animals. Should be good to teach students about the other creatures that inhabit the Earth with us.

Tap To Talk (Free): This could help ESOL and students learning to read.

There are other offerings such as language tutors available as well. If you did not see something you like, you could get the developer's kit and start programming your own apps. The Nook Color should give developers with an interest in education an interesting challenge to create apps that tap into the reader's abilities. I could see some interesting apps that could help students read better in the future. In the meantime enjoy Angry Birds.

Intel to launch app store for netbooks

The creator of the Atom chip, which powers most netbooks, announced the beta of an app store for the small computers. Hopefully, there will be free or inexpensive apps that could be of use to students and teachers. I wonder if I should open an app store? What would I put them on? A Teacherbytes device? Right! Source: Engadget

Pixel Perfect

Apple is working on making each LCD pixel a touch sensor for future displays. This is further evidence that my prediction of multi-touch displays will be on the walls of classrooms of the future. It will make a certain math teacher I know very happy because she believes the Promethean Board is not exact enough. ARS Technica

Arc of the keyboard

Microsoft announced a new keyboard called the Arc. This form factor is to compliment Microsoft's thin Arc Mouse. The $59.95 peripheral will be exclusively sold at Best Buy stores starting February 21st. This could help free up some teacher desk space for more papers to grade. Source: Engadget

Now that is Socially Networked H2O

Vitamin Water has a new flavor called Connect complete with a Facebook logo and a label with all kinds of Facebook references. What is next? Google Water? Source: TechCrunch

Is Child Predator a character on WoW?

A 42-year old women was arrested at her home in Texas after meeting with a 16-year boy she met on the popular online game World of Warcraft. The boy left his Barrie, Ontario home to meet the woman with whom he had been communicating on the game. Ironically, no Canadian laws were broken but since the age of consent is 17 in Texas the woman is thrown in jail. This might not go anywhere since the boy said he was 20. Anyway, the mother of four will have a lot of explaining to do with her soon to be former husband. Source: CNET

Social Agents of Change

Mashable has a post with lists how Social Media has changed society. The first of two points that interested me is writing blogs and other Web2.0 apps has raised child literacy rates. The second point is how social media allows a greater exchange of knowledge.

Intel Reader

Intel is showing a device that scans text and reads it back. This could be a good adaptive technology device but the $1500 price tag could slow deployment to classrooms in these tough budget times. Below is a video demonstrating the reader. Source: Engadget