A complex world calls for an array of devices that seemingly does the same thing but is designed to perform task in a completely different manner.
As the holidays are approaching, knowledge based sharing makes for a great gift.
For instance, let’s take a microwave, oven, and toaster. All three products produce an enormous amount of heat and can burn food, but each product is designed to direct heat and burn different foods in different manners.
Take a slice of bread and put it in a microwave. With supervision you will get white, crispy, bread in about 30 seconds. Not quite the text book idea of toast, but it does work. For folks with money to burn in electric cost, use an oven. With even more supervision than a microwave, you are sure to get a nicely bronzed slice of toast – don’t forget to use the broiler to toast the top for an uneven slice of expensive toast. Now, if asked which product is the best to use, I would recommend slapping that slice of bread in a toaster, place it on the proper toaster setting, and in a matter of a minute (or less) you have a nicely even slice of crispy toast! Browned to perfection. Delicious! The toaster will even pop the toast up for you. The simplist solution made the job easier. Amazing!
Please don’t try baking a turkey in a toaster!
Toaster's Dictionary to Collaborative Support and Associated Appliances
Call
- Telephone!
Skype
- Best effort, end-user, self-service... seriously, good luck!
Media Production
- Lights, camera, action! Not a service of collaborative support.
Conference Call
- Refer to Teleconference
Teleconference
- Telephone + Conference = Talk to more than one person!
- Remember three-way telephone calls the cool kids would talk about? Well, that's basically what a teleconference is, just a big multi-way call. Cell phones, office phones, conference phones, home phones, and/or computer sound structures are set to dial into a multi-call line that allows participants to chitchat, or just listen to the conversation. The only special part is having the telephone bridge provided. Other than that, no specialized room or equipment required.
Interative Television (ITV)
- The last time I tried interacting with my television was last Sunday during TWD and King Ezekiel didn't hear me... must have been a dropped call.
Webinar
- Refer to Web Conferencing
Web Conferencing
- Internet based presentation to view content and listen to a presenter. Webinar has evolved from a one-way delivery of content (visual and audio), into computer based audio for Q&A, allowing for audio exchange between presenter(s) and participant(s) through built-in, or external, components. One could say it's a Teleconference with a PowerPoint.
Two-way Video
- Refer to Videoconference
Videoconference
- The general concept that pops into most minds is a form of conference that tends to restrict people, or groups, to specialized locations. The conference is mostly comprised of two locations connecting to one another from different geographical locations. Some people still refer to it as “Two-way Video” when in fact the sessions often involves multiple sites, which is more than two, but who’s counting. Therefore, nothing wrong with calling it a “video conference,” but it is becoming an outdated phrase for a more complex environment that expands beyond simply “video.” As soon as laptops, desktops, and mobile devices integrated visual components and full sound structures, we no more started referring to a cell phone as a video conference device, or a laptop as a video conferencing suite.
Author's Side Bar Mental Note: I submit to the committee for approval that cell phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops have evolved into interoperable collaborative appliances.
Zoom
- Appalachian State University’s self-service cloud conferencing application. Zoom can be used on cell phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops. 100% supported through Collaborative Network Services.
Collaborative Networking
- Interoperability between multiple platforms across multiple networks converging into one session: Specialized Rooms, Zoom, Desktops, Laptops, Tablets, Cell Phones, Office Phones, and even Home Phones -- presentation content is not available to audio-only devices. This service model offers guidance from in-house tech support.
Hope this helps avoid burnt toast for your future collaborations.
Here’s to a great end to Fall semester 2017 and a wonderful start to Spring 2018!
Toaster Turns Bread to Toast
Toaster Turns Bread to Toast