Apple Offers Keynote and iLife for Teachers 29
MikeXpop writes "Apple announced that its two new apps, Keynote and iLife, will be available for teachers for only $15, saving educators $113 (compared to the regular education price). Also, Apple is extending the deadline for free Jaguar for teachers. Both offers end March 31st."
Well, hot piss. (Score:1)
I sure don't want to shell out $150 for something I can get for $15. That's what, a 90% discount? Sign me up!
Re:Well, hot piss. (Score:1)
Re:Well, hot piss. (Score:1)
Weird move... (Score:1)
Re:Weird move... (Score:3, Insightful)
Besides, they're not 'making' teachers pay. They're offering them a heavily discounted product. That's giving them options, not forcing something on them. If I could get Keynote that cheap I would.
Re:Weird move... (Score:1, Informative)
I'd have preferred it if.. (Score:4, Funny)
Can't have everything I guess!
Already discussed to death at macslash (Score:5, Funny)
That should make it easier to lift high-karma comments there and just paste them here for hopeful same effect.
Re:Not enough high rated postings there.. (Score:1, Funny)
Rant Mode (Score:4, Funny)
Of COURSE they have ulterior motives, they are a *business* and are trying to turn a *profit*.
By giving away iLife and Keynote at what is essentially cost of producing the boxes, they distribute their software more widely into the hands of people who might use it later and help gain a toehold against MS.
Remember, MS PowerPoint already dominates that market and if they want people to try out Keynote they *have* to give them a reason to experiment and play with it. Keynote is not a PowerPoint replacement: there are things that PP does that Keynote can't (yet, though keynote is still the better product overall), however, by offering it at that price they might convince teachers to "try it out" even if they already have PowerPoint and are using it regularly.
Further, if Teachers have the latest and greatest in terms of software--or at least can run it--it helps them defeat the fact that schools tend to lag on the technology curve. Having the most up-to-date software is not necessary, but if you want to give kids an accurate presentation of what yoru software is like, or even want them to be able to run the latest applications, up-to-date software is a Good Thing?.
"In ways its no different to drug dealing. Hook them while they're young?"
Hello? McFly? Are you even engaging your brain here?
Anyone else notice something odd...? (Score:2, Interesting)
Oh, and also, why only in the States? The Free-Jaguar deal applies in the UK, too... when for free iLife and Keynote?
Re:Anyone else notice something odd...? (Score:1)
Re:Anyone else notice something odd...? (Score:1)
And I'm British
Re:Anyone else notice something odd...? (Score:3, Informative)
this offer is available only to K-12 teachers and accredited Faculty members of post-secondary colleges - surely secondary school teachers are *most* likely to want/need these tools, and are more likely to be getting to students when they're both aware of the tools being used on them but also open to *uhm* suggestion...?
I think maybe you're getting American educational terminology mixed up. In the US, there's elementary education (Kindergarten, or K, for 5-6 year olds, plus grades 1 through 8 for 6 through 14 year olds; most school systems nowadays divide them up into K-4 elementary schools and 5-8 "middle" schools, but there are other variations), high school or secondary education (grades 9 - 12, 14 to 18 year olds), and post-secondary education ("colleges" are either 2-year Junior Colleges or Community Colleges, offerring the Associate's degree, or 4-year institutions offerring Bachelor's degrees; "universities" being institutions that offer graduate and/or professional degrees in addition to "undergraduate" (bachelors) degrees).
Why the family imac needs keynote (Score:4, Interesting)
For example, a friend of mine who works for an ISP plans on converting server statistics into graphs, which can then be displayed on his desktop as a Quicktime movie, in fact, there's a nifty (evil) OS X hack out there which lets you use Quicktime displays as your desktop background, which I believe he is planning on using for this.
So, sitting at a friend's house with his iBook, he can minimize his windows any time he likes and take a look at how his company's servers are doing. Okay, he's doing it more to be '1337 than for the actual utility of it, but that does give you an idea of how there are other cool ways to utilize keynote besides uberPowerPoint lectures.
A few more steps, and we'll be safe in the Fire Swamp.
Read the fine print (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Read the fine print (Score:2)
TANSTAAFL
Re:Read the fine print (Score:3, Informative)
In response to your question, I haven't decided yet whether it's worth the price or not for iLife+Keynote, but I can tell you I haven't signed up for any supermarket discount cards or the like... in those cases I would prefer to pay full price.
Perhaps someone who has signed up for this program or the "X for Teachers" one (which I see has the same language [apple.com]) could let us know if they're able to later stop Apple from "contacting them."
Re:Why just K-12? (Score:2)
2) Presentation apps are a tool. If the teacher cannot find something to do with that tool, then there is no need for them to purchase it. OTOH, I think most teachers, if they think a little on the topic, could find a use for it.
For instance, I had a lot of History teachers write notes on the board, a projecter and Keynote/PPT would allow them to present those notes far more legibly and still cover them completely.
I remember several HS math textbooks covering applications. Keynote could easily help craft presentations on some of these applications and how the math applies.
Computer Science classes are the same way: the presentation could be made much more dynamic and informative if the software is correctly used.
In College I have had a *lot* of classes taught using overheads--these transition easily into Keynote/PPT presentations.
For younger classes there are many ways it could be used that I can think of, put your mind to it!
Just because no-one is using a tool doesn't, by any means, mean that said tool could not be used to help improve things.
HS, in particular, is in dire need of an improvement.
Also for Higher Ed. Instructors (Score:4, Informative)