News flashes

Purchase K12 Handhelds Integrating Writing Into the Writing Curriculum book and CD now and receive a free classroom license of the new ebooks "Writing a WOW Essay" and "Types of Poetry." Refer to code JAN133 when ordering.

If you are interested in the use of technology for special needs populations, California State University-Northridge's 2007 Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference is a great opportunity to see all the latest and greatest. This event is scheduled to take place March 19-24 at the Los Angeles Hilton, Marriott and Renaissance Hotels.

SuccessLink's 5th Annual Technology Innovations/Handheld Computer Conference will be held July 10-11, 2007 at the Tan-Tar-A Resort in Osage Beach, Missouri.

If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any mobile devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.

K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803

toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com

Dear Educator:

Happy holidays! Here are a few news items that may be of interest. We hope you all have a very enjoyable holiday break with your family and friends.

Handheld applications

K12 Handhelds Middle School Math Content Bundle is now available in a variety of configurations. You can get just the ebooks, the math movies on SD cards, or the whole package.

Quizzler now has several new versions available, including a teacher bundle for Pocket PC, the Quizzler server, and support for iPods.

Podcasting news

If you are looking for good sources of free (and legal) content for audio or video podcasts (or even PowerPoint presentations or web sites), check out these sources of public domain and Creative Commons licensed content:

• Spoken Wikipedia
• Wikimedia Commons
• Yahoo's Creative Commons Search tool
• Creative Commons Search Tool

Schools often have end-of-year funds that have to be spent before the calendar year. Handhelds or other mobile devices, like MP3 players, are inexpensive ways to enhance student learning. If you have funds that need to be spent, contact us for more information.

Want to set up iTunes or Windows Media Player 10 to default to MP3 as the format for ripping new music? (This is a good idea, the MP3 file format is compatible with more devices.) Here's how to do it.

Looking for an easy way to create an RSS feed for your podcast? Try setting up a blog with Blogger. Blogger blogs automatically include RSS feeds, and they're free and easy to set up.

If you're looking for a good introduction to podcasting, here are some books we recommend. You might also visit our podcasting web site.

From the blog...

Check out these interesting items from Karen's blog:

• No time to sync? Check out these alternative ways to get student work to the desktop.
• Use Gabcast to post an audio file to your web site right from any phone without having to even touch a computer (and it's free)!
• Looking for ways to differentiate instruction? Try mobile devices and mini-movies.

Professional development

K12 Handhelds offers on-site workshops at districts and schools nationwide for Palm and Windows Mobile. If you are interested in finding out about a workshop at your school, contact us for more information.

K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands on workshops at the following upcoming conferences:

Los Angeles County educators
Podcasting and Audio Blogging for Education
Austin, TX at TCEA
Feb. 6, 2007

Creating Audio and Video Podcasts for Education
Spokane, WA at NCCE
Mar. 6-9, 2007

Mid-Atlantic Handheld & Emerging Technology Conference
Salisbury, MD
July 25-26, 2007

News flashes

K12 Handhelds is going to be publishing an annotated bibliography of favorite books for middle school readers as a free ebook. Email us your students' favorite books along with a few sentences about the book to be included in this resource. We'll let you know when this resource is available!

Handheld User Tips

If you're using your handheld to take notes on a special topic, consider making a shortcut for a word or phrase you have to write often. For example, if you're at a conference on podcasting or differentiating instruction, make a single letter shortcut to make writing faster. To create a shortcut on a Palm OS device, go to Prefs, choose ShortCuts, and tap New. On Windows Mobile, you can use shorthand in Transcriber. To set these up, tap the input method selector and choose Options. Select Transcriber as your input method, and tap the Options button. Tap the Advanced tab to get to Shorthand Settings.

If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.

K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803

toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com

Dear Educator:

It's hard to believe that the school year is coming to a close so soon! We hope you've had a good year and have a wonderful summer. In the meantime, here are some new developments in the world of mobile technologies.

New product announcements

K12 Handhelds is now offering “Integrating Handhelds into the Writing Curriculum,” upper elementary and middle school curriculum that can be used with Palm or Windows Mobile handhelds or even laptop or desktop computers. The 44 lessons cover every step in the writing process from brainstorming and organizing to revision and editing to publishing and presenting. The lessons include strategies for writing personal narratives, expository essays, and persuasive pieces. Also included is a CD with ebooks, quizzes, templates, handouts, photographs, assessment rubrics, and more. The CD includes the Writer's Style Guide, a comprehensive ebook with a grammar handbook, punctuation guidelines, mechanics and usage rules, and information on citing sources.

The price for a single classroom license is just $34.95 plus $3 shipping and handling. (Call for site license or volume pricing.) For more information, including a table of contents, sample pages, and ordering information, see www.k12handhelds.com/book.

Handheld news

The Mid-Atlantic Handheld Conference is back this year in Salisbury, MD on July 24-25. We'll be there and hope to see you there too! Visit the MAHC site for more information.

Podcasting news

Podcasting is taking the world by storm. Our new podcasting workshops have been our most popular offering at conferences this year. We think this technology has enormous potential for education. For more information, visit K12 Handhelds Podcasting page. If you are looking for podcasts for teaching ESL students, here are a few good ones:

• English Idioms and Slang (formerly the Daily Idiom)
• TOEFL® Podcast – Center for Educational Development
• ESL Podcast – Center for Educational Development
• English through Stories – Center for Educational Development

Professional development

K12 Handhelds offers on-site workshops at districts and schools nationwide for Palm and Windows Mobile. If you are interested in finding out about a workshop at your school, contact us for more information.

K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands on workshops at the following upcoming conferences:

Podcasting and Audio Blogging for Education
Hot Springs Technology Institute 2006
Hot Springs, AR
Date: Mon., June 12, 9:00am-4:00pm and repeated on Tues., June 13, 9:00am-4:00pm
Price: $225; receive a MP3 player/voice recorder as a part of this workshop!
Register at HSTI.

Using Palm OS Handhelds - Beginners Workshop
TCEA summer workshop
Austin, TX
Date: Thurs., August 3, 2006; 8:30am-4:00pm
Price: $400; receive a Palm Tungsten E2 handheld as a part of this workshop!
Get more information and register at TCEA.

Using Palm OS Handhelds in Education - Intermediate Workshop
TCEA summer workshop
Austin, TX
Date: Fri., August 4, 2006; 8:30am-4:00pm
Price: $150; bring your own Palm OS handheld and sync cable/cradle
Get more information and register at TCEA.

Podcasting and Audio Blogging for Education - The Power of Audio Publishing
TCEA summer workshop
Austin, TX
Date: Sat., August 5, 2006; 8:30am-4:00pm
Price: $250; receive a MP3 player/voice recorder as a part of this workshop!
Get more information and register at TCEA.

News flashes

We think wikis and blogs have great potential for education! Wikis and blogs are ways for teachers, students, and others to create web content quickly, easily, and for free. You don't have to know HTML or even have your own server to publish your own web content.

K12 Handhelds is offering workshops on these new technologies and also using them for our workshops on handhelds, podcasting, and mobile technologies. At these workshops, we host a blog as a quick way for workshops participants to access and post information. At a recent workshop on “cutting edge” technologies, we put together a wiki to act as interactive electronic handouts. It worked great!

Speaking of wikis... do you wonder how accurate Wikipedia is? If you're not familiar with it, Wikipedia proclaims itself as “the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.” That sounds suspicious, but a recent study published in Nature magazine found that the accuracy of Encyclopaedia Britannica and Wikipedia were comparable. See this article for more information.

Our own experience with Wikipedia is that it gives you everything that more traditional sources gives you plus a lot more. One thing that we like about Wikipedia is that the content is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License, which means that you can reuse it. This is a great for educators. Another related source of great license-free images and video is WikiMedia Commons.

Handheld User Tips

Having trouble making the letter “k” in Graffiti 2? Try making it smaller and lower in the Graffiti writing area. It works every time!

Do you have a document in Documents to Go that causes your handheld to freeze? You most likely just need to reinstall the handheld component of the program. To do this:

• Go into Docs to Go on your desktop computer.
• Select your user name.
• Go into the Help menu.
• Select Re-Install Handled Applications.
• Sync.

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If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.
 
----------
 
K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803
 
toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com
-------
 
This is a periodic update on the latest in handheld news and special pricing announcements.
 
If you would like to be taken off this mailing list, please reply to this message with a subject line of UNSUBSCRIBE.

Dear Educator:
Here are some new developments in the education-related use of mobile technologies that wed like to share. Make sure to check out the all-new K12 Handhelds web site with lots of new content and features.

We wish you all a very happy holiday season and a great start to the new year!
 
New product announcements

Palm announced a couple new handhelds recently, including the Palm Z22 and the Palm TX handheld.
 
K12 Handhelds has released a new wireless classroom bundle. We can customize this bundle to include additional items, such as keyboards and professional development.
 
Handheld applications

The very popular Principalm program for getting student information system data to your handheld is releasing version 7 this month. This new version includes several very useful new features and will also be available for Windows Mobile, which many of you have been asking about. If you purchased Principalm previously and are still under a maintenance plan, this upgrade is free for the platform you purchased.
 
Podcasting news

We are really excited about the potential of podcasting to engage students, differentiate instruction, communicate with parents, and even deliver professional development content. Check out our new podcasting web page. We are also facilitating new workshops on podcasting. Email us for more information about this.
 
Professional development

K12 Handhelds offers on-site workshops at districts and schools nationwide for Palm, Windows Mobile, and podcasting. If you are interested in finding out about a workshop at your school, contact us for more information. Here are some workshops available for open enrollment by individuals.
 
K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands on workshops at the following upcoming conferences:
 
TCEA
Austin, TX
Feb. 6-10, 2006
 
NCCE
Portland, OR
Feb. 8-11, 2006

News flashes

Visit the new K12 Handhelds web page for all new content. Check out the new pages for Getting Started, Podcasting, and Cool New Stuff. K12 Handhelds is also now selling MP3 players and projection devices. Next month, well be launching a whole new collection of books about handhelds, podcasting, blogging, technology integration, and more.

Nicholas Negroponte, visionary founding chairman of MIT's Media Laboratory, recently unveiled a $100 laptop initiative, targeted for use by students in developing nations. This Linux-based, color laptop will be WiFi-enabled and will include innovative power features such as a hand crank. Stay tuned for further developments on this exciting idea.
 
We have seen over and over again how handhelds help students develop organizational skills, which are so important to overall academic success. Read this Ed.Net Briefs article by Dr. Steven Simpson for a perspective on this. We know that handhelds help student learn to be better organized and have seen these organizational skills even transcend the use of the handheld. Help your students learn these skills, and theyll appreciate it lifelong!
 
Handheld user tips

Want to get podcasts automatically delivered to your handheld? The answer is RSS feeds and free, easy-to-use aggregator software like iPodder. (Here is a list of other aggregator software programs.) Just download and install this software. Then follow the instructions to subscribe to your favorite podcasts. Youll do this by using the RSS feeds for the podcasts you want to subscribe to.
 
You can configure the aggregator software to download your subscriptions to a designated location on your desktop. Then just sync that folder to your handheld.
 
Depending on which handheld you use, how you set up the sync will vary. For Windows Mobile handhelds, just set up file synchronization in ActiveSync. For Palm handhelds like the LifeDrive that allow MP3 files to be played from the internal memory, you can set up the accompanying manager software to sync your podcast folder to your device. For Palm handhelds that require an SD card to play MP3 files, you can have your aggregator put the files in your handhelds install to SD card folder (on most Windows desktops, this is in C:\Program Files\Palm\[your_user_name]\QuickInstall\ExpCard). Then make sure your SD card is in when you sync. (Using a card reader is a much faster way to install files though.)
 
For MP3 players (and some handhelds and other devices), you can set up a sync using Windows Media Player or iTunes.

For more information on this, visit our podcasting web site or come to one of our podcasting workshops.
----------
 
If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.
 
----------
 
K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803
 
toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com
-------
 
This is a periodic update on the latest in handheld news and special pricing announcements.
 
If you would like to be taken off this mailing list, please reply to this message with a subject line of UNSUBSCRIBE.

Dear Educator:

Welcome back to school. We hope you had a restful summer - it went by fast, didn't it? Here are some of the new developments in handhelds in education that we have to share.

****************************
On a personal note, our thoughts are with the people of the Gulf Coast during this difficult time. We are deeply saddened by the loss and devastation from the hurricane and pray for you as you begin to rebuild.

Handheld pricing

Palm has reduced the price of several of its best-selling models. The Palm Zire 72 is now just $249 (suggested retail price), there is a special $50 mail-in rebate offer on the Tungsten E2 through Oct. 7, bringing it's net price to $199 (suggested retail price). We have been impressed with the battery life and flash memory in the Tungsten E2, and it's also compatible with the Palm Wi-Fi card . If you'd like a volume quote on these or other handhelds, email us at sales@k12handhelds.com.

Several HP handhelds have had price reductions as well. The HP iPAQ rx3115 is now just $299, and the HP iPAQ hx2415 is $399.

New product announcements

Over the summer, Palm announced the new LifeDrive mobile manager. This is a whole new breed of handheld with a 4 GB hard drive! It will hold the equivalent of thousands of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents, 300 songs, 1,000 photos, 2.5 hours of video, and more. It is also the first Palm handheld with both Wi-Fi (wireless Ethernet) and Bluetooth built-in.

There have also been some exciting new announcements in the Windows Mobile/Pocket PC world. First, Inspiration for Pocket PC is now available. We love Inspiration and are very happy to see it available on Windows Mobile.

Our friends at Grant Street Software have also come out with SD Deploy! for Pocket PC. This is a product that schools say over and over again that they couldn't live without. We agree - if you are setting up groups of handhelds for your staff or students, this tool will save you many hours of time.

Windows Mobile 5.0 has also been released this summer. Stay tuned for more details as manufacturers release new devices with this operating system.

Handheld applications

There is a new tool available for managing student handheld files. HiHo (Hand In   Hand Out)   Classroom Edition runs on a Windows desktop computer and manages the handing out of files to students and the handing in of students work to teachers. Contact us at info@k12handhelds.com for more information.

Make sure to check out the new Integrating Handhelds Across the Curriculum kit. This kit includes two 22" x 34" posters, a 128-page resource guide book, a CD full of resources, and, for a limited time, an SD card with installable content. The book includes cross-curricular lesson plans for elementary and middle school, quick tip mini-posters about many handheld functions, quick reference guides for popular software, and classroom management tips. The CD and SD card (limited time availability) contain the Handheld Toolkit, which includes educational programs, ebooks, quizzes, templates, handouts, photos, and other resources used in the lesson plans. Just put this SD card in each student's handheld and lesson resources can be quickly and easily installed.

K12 Handhelds is also now offering custom curriculum development. We will work with your teachers to design and develop grade- and content-specific handheld curriculum units complete with student resources such as electronic handouts, ebooks, quizzes, templates, and more. Contact us at info@k12handhelds.com for more information.

Professional development

K12 Handhelds offers on-site workshops at districts and schools nationwide for Palm and Windows Mobile. If you are interested in finding out about a workshop at your school, contact us for more information.

K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands on workshops at the following upcoming conferences:

California School Nurses Organization Conference
Rancho Mirage, CA
Sept. 30, 2005

NCETC
Greensboro, NC
Nov. 28 - Dec. 1, 2005

TCEA
Austin, TX
Feb. 6-10, 2006

NCCE
Portland, OR
Feb. 8-11, 2006

News flashes

Grants are a great way to fund your handheld program. Here is information about a couple of grants that you might be interested in. The Vernier/NSTA Technology Awards promote the innovative use of data-collection technology such as handhelds, computers, or graphing calculators in the science classroom. Applications for the 2006 round of this program are due October 15, 2005. For more information, see www.vernier.com/grants/nsta.html for more information.

The Toshiba America Foundation offers grants for projects that advance science and math teaching. The deadline for K-6 grants is October 1, 2005. Grants for grade 7-12 programs under $5,000 are accepted year round. Grants for programs over $5,000 are due February 1 and August 1. See www.toshiba.com/taf/apply.html for more information .

Also make sure to check with your state department of education web site for grant opportunities in your state. Many of the larger technology grants are funded by the federal or state departments of education.

Here's an innovative program we'd like to share with you. The Pennsylvania Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology recently launched “Hands On Learning,” a program to foster the use handheld technologies in classrooms. The program offered competitive mini-grants of $10,000 each to assist Pennsylvania principals in grade K-6 schools who had already taken part in handheld professional development. The funding will be used to implement their strategies for handheld integration at the teacher and student levels to improve student performance. The grants were awarded this summer, and winning schools are now busily implementing their handheld programs. K12 Handhelds is working with a number of those schools to provide professional development, hardware, software, and curriculum. We think this is a winning model for other states or regions to consider, and we'll be reporting on the program outcomes later in the year. For more information, see www.pde.state.pa.us/ed_tech/cwp/view.asp?A=169&Q=100390 and www.aiu3.net/HandsOnLearning.

Palm OS Tips

The new release of Palm Desktop (4.2.1 rev C) for Mac OS X is now available. Visit the Palm web site to download it.

Here's a good tip for Zire 72 users: If you are in the Camera program and push the camera hard button, you will automatically go to the Media program. If you are in Media and push the camera hard button, you will automatically go to the Camera. Camera is the program you use to take photographs, and Media is where you view them.

If you've run into the bug in Documents to Go v7 where you change the color or highlight of text and part of the dialogue box disappears (you have to click on a then invisible button to get out of the dialogue box), that bug is fixed in v7.006. To get that update, you need to register on the Dataviz web site and then download the free update.

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If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.
----------
K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803

toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com
-------
This is a periodic update on the latest in handheld news and special pricing announcements.

If you would like to be taken off this mailing list, please reply to this message with a subject line of UNSUBSCRIBE.

------------------------------------

Dear Educator:

We have lots of news this month about some exciting new product announcements.

New product announcements

K12 Handhelds is pleased to announce the release of Integrating Handhelds Across the Curriculum , a cross-curricular lesson plan kit that includes two 22" x 34" posters, a 128-page resource guide book, a CD full of resources, and, for a limited time, an SD card with installable content. This SD card includes lots of great handheld content, such as the Writer's Style Guide for Students, writing checklists and rubrics, quizzes and ebooks on topics including the periodic table, biomes, the planets, and more. If you have struggled to find an easy way to get content to your students' handhelds, you will love this SD card with installable content. The price of this kit with the SD card is affordable at just $49.95 for a classroom license.

palmOne just announced the new palmOne Tungsten E2 handheld. This handheld has a brighter screen, longer battery life, non-volatile flash memory (which means that you won't lose data if your battery goes dead), and Bluetooth wireless -- all for just $249 (retail price; call 800-679-2226 or email info@k12handhelds.com for volume pricing).

K12 Handhelds announces the new Classroom Solutions - E2 Basic Edition. This bundle includes the new palmOne Tungsten E2 handhelds, as well as several other special classroom tools. The Classroom Solutions Bundle - Classic E Edition is also still available, but supplies are limited, so order soon.

If you have a palmOne Tungsten E, Zire 31, or Zire 72 handheld, check out these retractable sync/charge cables. A travel charging solution is also available so that you can charge from your cigarette lighter. We love these new cables!

Handheld pricing

Buy 1-9 palmOne Tungsten T5 handhelds, and get a $50 mail-in rebate. Or buy 10 palmOne Tungsten T5 and get 2 free. Offers good through July 16, 2005 and subject to applicable terms and conditions.

Buy a palmOne Zire 72 handheld and get a free 512 MB SD card through July 16, 2005.

The price on the palmOne Zire 31 handheld has dropped to $129 (retail price).

Handheld applications

Test prep has come to handhelds -- check out Handmark's Kaplan SAT Test Prep and Kaplan ACT Test Prep. These are very comprehensive programs that make getting ready for these important tests fun.

Looking for a way to project your Pocket PC screen through an LCD projector? One popular solution is the Margi Presenter-to-Go. This is a combination of hardware and software that lets you project your handheld screen or show PowerPoint presentations with no laptop or desktop computer needed. Another solution to consider is the Pocket Controller software from SOTI. This software runs on your laptop or desktop computer and lets you project an image of your connected device. This software is also useful for creating screen shots or for entering data quickly into various Pocket PC applications.

Professional development

K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands on workshops at the following upcoming events:

Inland Area CUE Conference
San Bernardino, CA
Date: May 21, 2005

Using Palm OS Handhelds in Education - Beginners
Hot Springs Technology Institute 2005
Hot Springs, AR
Date: Mon., June 13, 9:00am-4:00pm
Price: $400 with a palmone Tungsten E2 handheld

Using Palm OS Handhelds in Education - Intermediate
Hot Springs Technology Institute 2005
Hot Springs, AR
Date: Tues., June 14, 9:00am-4:00pm
Price: $100; bring your own Palm OS handheld

NECC 2005
Philadelphia, PA
Date: June 27-30, 2005
Come see our presentation "Using Handhelds to Strengthen Literacy Skills" on Tues., June 28 at 12:30 p.m.

Using Palm Handhelds in Education - Beginner Workshop
ESD 123
Pasco, WA
Date: Mon., July 11; 8:30am-3:30pm
Price: $349 with a palmone Tungsten E2 handheld

Using Palm OS Handhelds in Education - Intermediate Workshop
ESD 123
Pasco, WA
Date: Tues., July 12; 8:30am-3:30pm
Price: $99; bring your own Palm OS handheld and cable/cradle

Mid-Atlantic Handheld Conference
Salisbury, MD
Date: July 18, 2005

News flashes

If you want to use your handheld as an MP3 player to listen to music, take a look at our new MP3 page. It also includes links to sites with free MP3 downloads. Stay tuned for more information about using MP3 audio in the classroom. If you are using audio now and have ideas you'd like to share, drop us an email.

Palm OS Tips

Check out K12 Handhelds' new page of FREE applications here. Download our Palm Troubleshooting ebook (available in Plucker and eReader/Palm Reader formats) for a lot of useful troubleshooting tips.

If you are looking for a way to preview eReader (Palm Reader) ebooks on the desktop, you can use the desktop version of eReader to do this.

With an increasing number of handhelds with wireless capability, remember to keep your wireless (Bluetooth or Wi-Fi) turned off if you're not using it. This will help preserve your battery life. Wireless consumes battery power very quickly, so keep this in mind.
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If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.
----------
K12 Handhelds
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803

toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com
-------
This is a periodic update on the latest in handheld news and special pricing announcements.

If you would like to be taken off this mailing list, please reply to this message with a subject line of UNSUBSCRIBE.

Dear Educator:

We hope you all had a wonderful and restful summer! We welcome the start of the school year with this update with news about handhelds and their use in education. It's a great time to re-evaluate your program, and make sure you're getting the most from your handhelds this year.

Handheld pricing

palmOne just announced their new Back-to-School promotion. Buy 30 palmOne™ Tungsten™ E handhelds between August 15 and October 30, and you'd receive three additional FREE handhelds plus a free eBundle that includes 33 copies of one eBook title of your choice from the eReader® Classics Collection, one copy of any eBook title from eReader.com, 33 Zire™ logo backpacks, 33 Palm™ logo graph-ruled notebooks, and 33 palmOne Software Education Demo CDs. In addition, you will be eligible for the BTS Software Bonus Offers with great discounts off popular educational software and accessories. Subject to applicable terms and conditions. Call or email K12 Handhelds for special volume pricing!

Also, make sure to check out K12 Handhelds new offers for Money-Saving Specials. See www.k12handhelds.com/store for more information.

New product announcements

The long-awaited Enfora Wireless Portfolio for the palmOne Tungsten E handheld is now available. This portfolio case adds wireless Ethernet (WiFi, 802.11b) to your Tungsten E handheld. Contact K12 Handhelds for volume pricing.

HP recently released a new Pocket PC device -- the HP iPAQ rz1715 Mobile Media Companion (suggested retail price: $279.99). This handheld features entertainment essentials of photo and audio capabilities at a great value price.

Imagiworks recently announced the new SD version of the popular ImagiProbe sensor interface that many of you have been awaiting. This interface will connect through the SD expansion slot and will be compatible with most palmOne handhelds, including the Tungsten E handhelds, as well as the Dana from AlphaSmart. This product is compatible with Vernier sensors (with an adapter), as well as selected PASCO sensors.

Grant Street Software recently released a new version of the popular SD Express! The new SD Express! v2 includes new features such as the ability to create a file set on the handheld device, the ability to set up categories for file sets, and the ability to select multiple files sets to install. This utility is indispensable for installing and sharing applications or data.

Dataviz recently announced the new version 7 of Documents to Go. This new version includes enhancements such as native support for PowerPoint files, Mac support for PowerPoint files, improved picture support, an updated interface, and more. Call 800-679-2226 or email info@k12handhelds.com for volume academic pricing!

Handheld applications

One of the most popular applications for handheld use is ebooks. K12 Handhelds was recently launched a new ebook web page to share information about how to use ebooks, where to download great free ebooks, and how to make your own ebooks.

We also offer on-site workshops that give hands-on experience with ebooks on either Palm or Pocket PC handhelds. Email info@k12handhelds.com or call 800-679-2226 for more information.

In addition, we are now pleased to offer a variety of new ebooks for sale, including the encyclopedias from World Book and Funk & Wagnalls and the 2004 World Almanac. For volume pricing, email info@k12handhelds.com or call 800-679-2226.

Professional development

K12 Handhelds will be presenting sessions and hands-on workshops at the following upcoming events:

Introduction to Using Palm Handhelds in Education - Beginners Workshop
San Bernardino, CA
Date: Fri., Sept. 24, 2004; 8:45am-3:45pm
More information at www.k12handhelds.com/workshops.

Intermediate Handheld Workshop for Teachers
San Bernardino, CA
Date: Tues., Nov. 16, 2004; 8:45am-3:45pm
More information at www.k12handhelds.com/workshops.

Intermediate Handheld Workshop for Administrators
San Bernardino, CA
Date: Tues., Nov. 23, 2004; 8:45am-3:45pm
More information at www.k12handhelds.com/workshops.

Using Palm OS Handhelds - Beginners Workshop
Austin, TX at TCEA Convention
Date: Mon., Feb. 7, 2005; 8:00am-4:00pm
More information at www.tcea.org.

Using Palm OS Handhelds in the Classroom - Intermediate Workshop
Austin, TX at TCEA Convention
Date: Tues., Feb. 8, 2005; 8:00am-4:00pm
More information at www.tcea.org.

News flashes

RCET’s 2nd Conference on Handheld Technology in the K-12 Classroom, will be held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004 at Kent State University in Ohio. The conference is a collaboration between Kent State University's Research Center for Educational Technology and area school districts. K12 Handhelds will be there and would love to see you there! See http://www.kent.edu/rcet/Handheld-Conference-2004.cfm for more information.

For those of you who have been waiting, the palmOne Treo 600 smartphone is now available for Verizon Wireless! See http://web.palmone.com/verizonwireless/ for more information.

Kindergarten through college science teachers are invited to apply for the Vernier/NSTA technology award grants, which reward the innovative use of data-collection technology using a computer, graphing calculator, or other handheld in the science classroom. Seven $3,000 awards will be awarded. The deadline for receipt of applications by NSTA for the 2005 awards is October 15, 2004. See www.vernier.com/grants for more information.

Palm OS Tips

When you copy a program from your handheld to an SD card, the program remains in both places until you delete it. Also, remember that if you're using an SD card, the card is not backed up during synchronization. Make sure to back up your card. Inexpensive SD card reader/writers, such as those from SanDisk, are a good tool for this. They also provide a much faster way to install handheld content, such as MP3 files, to your SD card.
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If you have any questions about any of this, about other handheld information, or would like pricing on any handheld devices, accessories, software, professional development, or curriculum, let us know! You can contact us by email at info@k12handhelds.com or by phone at 800-679-2226.

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K12 Handhelds, Inc.
4105 E. Broadway, Suite 203
Long Beach, CA 90803

toll free: 800-679-2226
phone: 562-438-3868
fax: 562-438-3857
email: info@k12handhelds.com
web: www.k12handhelds.com
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This is a periodic update on the latest in handheld news and special pricing announcements.

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