Reading Books on-screen)-Kindle for PC and Kindle for iPhone and iPod Touch

Yesterday I was attending the Virtual Edge Summit 2010 as a virtual participant using the Virtual Beginnings VirtualU 3D software.  Byron Reeves, one of the keynote speakers, mentioned a book he had co-authored--Total Engagement.

In the summer of 2008, I took five graduate courses from the University of Phoenix Online to qualify for some Illinois state approvals for my teaching certificate.  While working on those graduate courses, I became comfortable reading books on-screen.  All of the articles and textbooks used in these courses were available from the University of Phoenix library or other sources as downloads.  I worked with Adobe Acrobat Pro to highlight and to make annotations to all of the on-screen reading material.

Of course I went to Amazon.com to look for the book and found that it was available in a Kindle edition--for a better price than the hard cover edition.  I remembered my experiences with the reading for the University of Phoenix and looked to see if Kindle was available for the PC.  Amazon has a Kindle App for the PC and, via Apple's iTunes App Store, a Kindle App for the iPhone and iPod Touch.  (Amazon is building a Kindle App for the Mac.)  These Apps are free.  Once the Apps and the machines are registered with Amazon.com, customers can purchase the Kindle editions.  Even better, once the Kindle edition has been purchased, it can be read on both the iPhone/iPod Touch and the PC.  Amazon has built-in some annotation software so that I can make the same kinds of annotations I did using Adobe Acrobat Pro.

I downloaded and registered the Apps and purchased and downloaded the Kindle version of Total Engagement.  I started reading it on my iPod Touch last night.

The Apple iPad is coming and I did some research last year on eBook readers--Kindle, Sony, and BeBook,  a European competitor.  I was horrified to hear about the price of a data package for the iPad being marketed by AT&T.  I enjoy my iPod Touch and could see the iPad as an easier-to-read extension of the iPod Touch.  I don't pay AT&T anything directly for the iPod Touch--it's covered in my AT&T bundle of services for my home computer and mobile devices.

I am delighted to be able to read Kindle books on both my iPod Touch and PC.  I am already working with eAudiobooks from Audible.com (an Amazon company) and from the public library (using NetLibrary).  It's nice to add a new resource for the information I am looking for.

Teaching--Student Loans--Forgiveness for Teaching Service

President Barack Obama has generated a call to service in many sectors.  The federal government has had a program in place to "forgive" or "cancel" some or all of student loans taken out by techers if they work for a pre-set number of years in "at-risk" schools.

While this is an excellent way to build a cadre of qualified teachers working in "at-risk" schools to help students learn, it is of vital importance to these teachers, especially teachers who have entered teaching as a second (or later) career and who had to go back to school for another advanced degree to meet state teaching requirements.

Part of my day today was invested in contacting school districts where I used to work and going to the Human Resources department to have them complete an employment verification for the time I was a full-time teacher in an "at-risk" school in their district.  When I have all the signatures from the school districts and other relevant signatures, I can send the entire package to the bank holding my student loan for their consideration for forgiveness.

I am applying for the elimination of $5,000 worth of debt in return for five years of full-time teaching in at-risk schools.  Had I taught special populations in these at-risk schools or extremely important subject matter, I could be eligible for $17,500 worth of debt cancellation.

Reducing my student loan debt by as much as $5,000 is certainly a great way to invest the day before Labor Day.  In one Human Resources department I found everyone still working this afternoon and now have one more form completed.  Next week I'll go to a different district for another signature on a form.

It's also fun to reconnect with former employers and to see who I know who's still working where I used to work--or of the changes that have taken place in the intervening years.