Tutorial

A few times recently Ive been asked about retrospectives - specifically how to keep them from becoming a gripe session. Here are a few things that Ive found effective:

1. Start with the positive 

While we certainly want to talk about and address any issues, I like to talk about the positive things that have occurred during the last period before we delve into things we might want to change. I havent yet been involved in a retrospective where the list of positive things wasnt long. This helps set the tone for the rest of the retrospective.

2. Wording matters 

I still have strong memories of watching Linda Rising run a retrospective for the Agile Vancouver organizing team in 2010. The words she chose as facilitator were powerful in keeping the retrospective positive yet useful. Instead of writing down "what went well", participants were asked to complete the phrase "it was great because..." (see the full quote and story at the link above). Instead of writing down "what didnt go well", they were reminded that no process is perfect and to write down "what they would do differently the next time". This simple re-wording of the phrases is powerful.

3. Every voice is heard 

If youve met me in person or even just through this blog, you probably know my passion for silent brainstorming. Generating in silence and discussing out loud isnt just a great way to get more ideas on the table, it is also a fantastic way to make sure every voice is heard. Weve all been at retrospectives where one or more people with loud voices carry the conversation and the ideas. That isnt fun and doesnt encourage a positive atmosphere.

4. Build up Trust 

Using the 3 things above have shown themselves to be important in building up trust but sometimes you need to go a little farther. With new teams Ive found that walking through Norm Kerths prime directive can be a helpful way to eliminate blame from the discssion. They dont even have to believe the prime directive is true, they just have to act as if it is true for the period of the retrospective. I have found this pattern to be important to building up trust over time.

5. Do the (small) change

Finally, the point of all of this is to find ways to improve. If your team is having positive discussions about change and then doesnt follow through, the retrospectives become a waste of time. One simple way to make sure the change happens is to put the action items into your backlog and then start off the next retrospective by reviewing them to see if they were done and if they were helpful.

All the best in making your retrospectives more powerful by making them a positive experience. Feel free to add your tips in the comments.

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This post is prepared by Nina Gorbunova, Teamlab Office Marketing Manager

About Teamlab Personal
Teamlab Personal is a suite of online document editors free for individual use. Weve recently implemented two way integration with Google Drive and would like to share our experience.

Why Google Drive integration
Many of our users connect Google Drive to Teamlab, and we wanted to reach more by being in the Chrome Web Store. The availability of Google Drive SDK and Google Drive API helped us fit it all together. We thought: if a user can connect a Google Drive account to Teamlab Personal, why not build a return path? In the eyes of users, it is an enhancement of their Drive accounts. They get an opportunity to process documents using high formatting quality in browser and to make one more step away from desktop apps.

Integration goals
From the technical side, here is what we wanted to do:

• Integrate Teamlab editors and viewers with Google Drive.
• Provide co-editing opportunities.
• Enable file conversion and creating new files in the common Office Open XML format.
• Enable users to login with Google to use Teamlab Personal.

Five steps to achieve two-way integration

1. We registered with Google’s developer console, added our project and connected the Drive API and Drive SDK to the app.
2. Then we needed to decide what scopes our app needed to access the Google Drive API. We chose the minimal set, ample for us to access the files to edit without trespassing the user’s privacy (most users are not likely to provide full access to 3rd party apps)
   
   
3. Because we work with traditional office apps, we chose docx, xlsx and pptx formats as default file extensions for our app. We also added secondary formats: ppt, pps, odp, doc, odt, rtf, txt, xls, csv, ods, mht, html, htm, fb2, epub, pdf, djvu.
4. The current listing for the pre-existing app, we modified the code and added the following to the manifest: "container" : "GOOGLE_DRIVE","api_console_project_id" : "YOUR_APP_ID". Once a user installs Teamlab Personal app from Chrome Web Store, it automatically connects to their Google Drive account.
5. Finally, Teamlab Personal uses OAuth 2.0 for authorization and file access. The application processes requests for creating and opening files.

How it works
As soon as youve installed Teamlab Personal from the Chrome Web Store, the integration automatically activates. Now, you can choose the Teamlab icon when creating new and editing the existing documents.


If the user selects the Teamlab editor as the default, .docx, .xlsx and .pptx files are opened in Teamlab automatically. For other documents, we create a copy in Office Open XML format which will be saved on Drive alongside the original.

Requests processing at personal.teamlab.com

When a file is opened or created on Google Drive using the Teamlab Personal application, the handler gets the request with the following parameters: "ids" ("folderId" if case of file creation), "action", "userId" and "code". The "code" parameter is used to get the authentication token via OAuth 2.0 protocol (with the help of the request to https://accounts.google.com/o/oauth2/token with the "client_id", "client_secret", "redirect_ur parameters", and the additional "grant_type=authorization_code" parameter from the developer console). The received token is used in the subsequent requests. The "ids" parameter is the file to be opened identifier which is sent to the https://www.googleapis.com/drive/v2/files/ address in JSON format. The returned "mimeType" and "downloadUrl" are used to get the file content. Thats all what is needed to open the document file in Office Open XML format (.docx, .xlsx or .pptx) in Teamlab.

Files in other formats are converted to the corresponding Office Open XML format and a copy is saved to the Drive folder prior to opening. In this case the "downloadUrl" is used to get the original file. The file is saved with the help of the POST request to the https://www.googleapis.com/upload/drive/v2/files address. In this request the "ContentType" is set as "multipart/related; boundary=boundary" and the request body contains the file information placed before the main request content.

Request code:

string CreateFile(Stream content, string fileName, string mimeType, string folderId, string accessToken){
    var bytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(
        "

--boundary

Content-Type: application/json; charset=UTF-8



{"title":""
        + fileName + "","parents":[{"id":"" + folderId + ""}]}"
        + "

--boundary

Content-Type: " + mimeType + "



");

    var tmpStream = new MemoryStream();
    tmpStream.Write(bytes, 0, bytes.Length);
    content.CopyTo(tmpStream);

    bytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("

--boundary--

");
    tmpStream.Write(bytes, 0, bytes.Length);

    var request = WebRequest.Create("https://www.googleapis.com/upload/drive/v2/files?uploadType=multipart");
    request.Method = "POST";
    request.Headers.Add("Authorization", "Bearer " + accessToken);
    request.ContentType = "multipart/related; boundary=boundary";
    request.ContentLength = tmpStream.Length;

    var buffer = new byte[2048];
    int readed;
    tmpStream.Seek(0, SeekOrigin.Begin);
    while ((readed = tmpStream.Read(buffer, 0, 2048)) > 0) {
        request.GetRequestStream().Write(buffer, 0, readed);
    }
    return request.GetResponse().GetResponseStream();
}

Conclusion
The "Works with Google Drive" label does its magic indeed. We strongly recommend other developers build a Chrome Web Store app, as the results are clear and valuable. We had a high jump in installs (see the graph below) after we completed our integration. Teamlab Personal website traffic doubled and we received more than enough of users’ feedback – great impact for further development.


About the author
Nina started her career at Teamlab in 2011 as an intern. She is now a Senior Marketing Manager at Teamlab Office.

As we build out a new platform and APIs for developers, we find it helpful to create our own applications to try it out. It helps us validate and influence the design based on direct experience using the APIs. In the case of the Google Apps Marketplace, we needed a real application to integrate with Google Apps. We decided to build SaaSy Voice -- a web-application for handling the phone system for small and medium businesses. For the call features we used Twilio, a cloud based voice communications provider.

This tutorial is pretty easy, but not as easy as you would think.  In theory, if I change the paper size in one area of the document, shouldnt everything sync and know that my document is legal sized?  Unfortunately, thats not the case!  Either way, its pretty easy to do (and very helpful when you make your own classroom items!








For next weeks poll, Ill add the option to recolor an image in PowerPoint.  Be sure to vote for whatever choice you want to win!  Also, be sure to add any other ideas you want me to write about on my Technology Tuesday form!

I think I could write a novel with all of the funny things my kids say each week!  But... since I dont know a publisher Ill do another linky party instead!

<div align="center"><a href="http://aturntolearn.blogspot.com/" title="What Did They Say!?"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OIhmtxluCS0/ULwEfazkl1I/AAAAAAAADpM/MMMzxm23B0Y/s320/What+Did+They+Say+Wednesday.png" alt="What Did They Say!?" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

This is possibly a story that only tech geeks will appreciate, so it obviously made my day!!


In class we were reviewing words with "w" at the beginning and one student said "windows."  Another student excitedly calls out: "I have Windows 7!"

I wanted to reply with "I do too and I love it so much more than I liked Vista!"  I honestly dont think he would have understood that response though!

Rules for the Linky Party:

1. Share a story that one of your kids said on your blog!  If you dont have a blog, leave a comment with your story!
2. Use the HTML code at the top of this post to link back to the post!
3. Comment on the two blog posts before yours!

);

Since I finally figured out how to add the button to follow me and I have my first four followers, I figured Id celebrate a bit by posting a free game!  Click any of the pictures to take you to my TPT store to download it!

I have to admit I am obsessed with these photo mosaics.  Ive given them as gifts for bridal showers, birthdays, and Christmas!  I also made one with all of the pictures from my wedding and had it printed on canvas and its hanging up in my living room looking absolutely fantastic!  Do you want to know the best part of all!?  Theyre actually SUPER easy to make! 



I gave one of these as a gift to a coworker this Christmas and another coworkers first reaction was, "So youre making a tutorial for that, right!?"  So here it is... I added this option to the poll just for her... and it won the poll this week!



First things first, download the program here:


Now its time to play along.  I promise its much easier than it looks!






Here are two versions of the mosaic for you to see close up.

This one has 1500 tiles:

This one has 5000 tiles:

All of your settings will depend largely in part on what pictures you use, so be sure to play around with the settings!

"Every blog has a story behind it."

- Teenage Advisor

THE STORY

In late October 2010, Sheba DMani, the coordinator (facilitator) for the A Critical and Reflective Response to Media (Medical Humanities Selective) course (at IMU) explored with me the idea of assigning students to work in groups to develop blogs addressing important issues and promoting a healthy lifestyle.

Of course that made me excited, as I have been promoting the usage of web 2.0 and social media for learning ever since I joined IMU (June 2009). And having already been through one cycle assisting Prof. Khoo Suan Phaik with her students project using Google Sites, I was quite confident it would be an inspiring and valuable learning experience.

Interestingly, both these inspiring lecturers are not exactly IT-savvy, but they were willing and open to explore possibilities, and with a bit of assistance they managed to get through both projects successfully without too much hassle. As todays Y-generation (Most IMU students) is already quite IT-savvy, you dont exactly need to train them, but instead explore and empower them with creative ideas and possibilities.

A CRITICAL & REFLECTIVE RESPONSE TO MEDIA
This module facilitated by Sheba DMani focuses on connections between media and health within socio-cultural contexts. Media in the form of text and graphic presented through visual and audio modes from magazines, television and internet will be explored. These may include advertisements, films and music videos related to themes on health and healthcare. Students will approach these media texts through critical interpretation, reflective thinking and creative presentations. Upon completing this course, students will have learned that the media constructs views of the real world and that these views have been mediated to provide filtered and partial meaning of health belief and behaviour.

THE PROJECT & EVALUATION PROCESS

So, instead of writing a group assignment (using Microsoft Word/PowerPoint) to impress the lecturer, students were assigned to create a blog and promote their mission to the world. Surely that is more inspiring and exciting, right?

The students were assigned randomly into groups (consisting of 10 or less) and had three weeks (29 Nov-17 Dec) to prepare the blog, before presenting their project to the class and a selected group of evaluators. The blogs purpose was to promote health information to a specific audience (i.e. children, teenagers, adults, special needs and pregnant women).

The blogs would be evaluated based on their originality and creativity (title, tag-line, content, etc.), and the blog had to include at least 3 articles/columns and/or editorials that convey messages on the chosen topic. Finally, each blog had to include at least one video or audio message developed by the group.

Strong emphasis was given on originality, and students were reminded the importance of avoiding plagiarism and dealing with risk communication. In other words, it is important to acknowledge and appreciate authors and sources (re)used to develop the content for the blogs.

Overall, the blogs were assessed for accuracy and relevance of information, creativity, interactive features and the use of media techniques. To make it more exciting and competitive, each group did not make their blogs available to the other groups (or public) before their group presentation on the 16th December (2010).

Each group was given 30 minutes to present and defend their blog on the 16 December. Interestingly, Assoc. Prof. Dr. SriKumar Chakravarthi (IMU lecturer) whom was one of the evaluators was in India during this period, but still managed to watch and participate in the evaluation process using Skype. In addition to getting feedback from other class mates and evaluators, students voted for their favorite blog (using the Moodle poll feature) after the group presentation.

So, what was my role besides being one of the evaluators? As Sheba DMani is not too familiar with blogging, I handled a Q&A session on creating a blog with the students on the 3rd December. No, I didnt present any PowerPoint slides! I simply came to class, asked them relevant questions, and explored possibilities from this awesome list of free learning tools they could use to create or reuse sizzling content for their blogs.

So, how much did this project cost? In terms of technology, all the online tools they used to spread their message to the world cost.... ZERO! Not bad!

STUDENT LEARNING OUTPUT?

Nutrition 101 in Pregnancy

"Healthy foods for a healthy baby"

This blog aims to guide pregnant women through the process of making a positive change in the diet. It discusses and explores nutrition tips, delicious recipes, common myths, pregnancy tips and no-nos, useful links, and a few cool widgets, including the Weekly Pregnancy Calendar. Overall, the blog is well-designed providing the user with a visually soothing and user-friendly navigation experience, which is certainly a requirement for any pregnant woman.

The project team (Amelia, Melisa, Moushini, Natasha, Ray, Shahira, and Sharon) did a great collaborative effort. Congratulations!

In one word: Wonderful!

Teen Advisor

"Teenage Life is Never Black & White"

This blog focuses on adolescent issues aimed at the teenage population of 13-19. It explores in an emotionally creative, but informative way common youth challenges such as alcohol, drugs, relationships (family/friends/girlfriend/boyfriend), stress and smoking.

To really connect with the youth in an inspiring and engaging way, this hard working project team mashed-up their own original graphics, directed and recorded a short Abstinence Educational Video, set up a Facebook page, and used Xtranormal to create this cool animated video:

In one word: AWESOME!

Pink Awareness

"BIG or small, We Save them All"

This blog aims to provide a one stop avenue for information on breast cancer in an easy way to understand. Its combination of stylish (pink) and interactive design, easy navigation, and relevant topics makes it a great place to discover more about breast cancer, which include symptoms, risk factors, preventive measures, test and diagnosis, and alternative medicine. In addition to developing a great website, the project team (Qi Quan, Melody, Wern Ching, Shariffa and Praveena) developed a very informative Breast Self-Examination video...

In one word: INSPIRING!

Understanding Asperger’s Syndrome

This blog focuses on Aspergers Syndrome, which is often misunderstood among people. Aspergers Syndrome is an autism spectrum disorder that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, along with restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. The project team has done a good job in designing and structuring the few (identified), but relevant issues regarding this disability, which include helping people to recognize it, statistics and epidemiology, books and resources, and famous people with it. Did you know that Albert Einstein had Aspergers Syndrome? Now you know!

In one word: INTERESTING!

An Apple a Day Keeps the Doctor Away

"Dont Forget to Brush Your Teeth"

This blog provides some useful tips on how to take care of your health, including brushing your teeth, eating oranges and carrots, and washing your hands. The highlight of this blog has to be the creatively designed video developed by the project team (view contributors), entitled "The story of Bluey and Pinky.

In one word: CREATIVE!

LESSONS LEARNED

From my experience working with students involved in projects requiring them to develop a website (using web 2.0), often complain that it is time consuming and that it requires a lot of work. But by knowing that their work will continue to live on (more meaning), and that they are publishing it to the world (instead of only to the lecturer), they are willing to take up the challenge and put in a greater effort. In other words, their motivation often goes beyond grades, and that is very exciting and encouraging.

Though, we still have to work on their fair use or reuse of external content and graphics, and teach them proper online referencing procedures, which is something we have to continue to work on. It is alright to quote and reuse (if permission is given), but we must appreciate and recognize other peoples work. As such we have already setup a site for IMU staff and students (only) exploring project based learning (in the e-learning portal), including proper online referencing procedures.

Although, our e-learning portal (using Moodle) is wonderful for uploading and organizing course content, linking online resources, online discussions, assignment submissions, online quizzes, and so on, we should also encourage and empower students to use other web 2.0 and social media tools for creating creative content and informal learning. For example, several lecturers from the School of Pharmacy use Facebook for communicating online with their students, and have experimented with conducting Problem-Based Learning (PBL) sessions using Facebook Groups.

I have noticed that some Universities in Malaysia ban the usage of Facebook and YouTube at their campuses, and use the excuse that they encourage poor learning/working habits and clog up their network (bandwidth) for other usages. That might be true, but if staff and students learn how to discipline themselves using such tools (no choice!), they will actually have access to some of the most amazing learning resources on the planet (for free), and be able to interact with experts and students from all over the world through Facebook groups/pages (e.g. Harvard University - Facebook). I cant think of a better investment for learning than boosting the network (bandwidth) to support online learning in all forms. The Internet is the heart, blood circulation, and oxygen of learning in the 21st century.

More importantly, today more than ever, it is critical to encourage students to nurture their communication, collaboration, creative and analytical skills using the web and multimedia tools. Increasingly in the future, people in organizations will be working and collaborating online using the cloud, so it is important to encourage and necessary to prepare our students for this new world.

Also, it is important to highlight here that the quality of the students output (results) at this stage is not as important as empowering their passionate and inquiring mindset to explore possibilities and ideas, and continuously reflect, learn and improve from these learning experiences. In short, focus more on the learning process than the output (results). Results will come as they learn. Some are early bloomers, others are late bloomers, and that is something we should never forget.

Can you imagine hiring a graduate that cannot communicate and collaborate online? Try asking that same question in four years time :)

So... you know that moment when youre sitting at your computer promising your husband that youre doing work and he looks over and sees you shoe shopping?  Well... this quick little trick is just what you need if that happens to you all to frequently!

This tip is also great if you constantly open up programs on your Mac to find a million windows open from the last time you used the program!



Its a nice, simple trick... I hope you can find some use for it!

I recently realized that its been a while since I posted a tutorial on how to make a specific product, so it was no surprise to me that this was a winner on the poll!  So, here it is... how to make a one page folding book!


This took more than half (and nearly 3/4) of the votes on the poll... wow!

Now for the tutorial:








For next weeks poll, Im actually going to gear towards middle/high school students and teachers, as well as even college students by adding the option "How to easily make a bibliography (MLA -or- APA)."  I hope I can blog about this option before teachers start year end research projects with their students!!!!

PS: This was a request from my "Technology Tuesday" request form.  I read it over every week and try to pick from those options for upcoming tutorials, so be sure to leave me a note if theres anything you want to learn how to do!!!