Distance education has afforded generations of students the opportunity pursue their educational goals outside of the traditional school system. It has allowed countless students the ability to further their education, while allowing them to maintain their obligations to their families and employers. While distance education is not for everyone, it has certainly stood the test of time. The following is a brief timeline of events related to distance education.
• 1840 – Isaac Pitman begins teaching shorthand by correspondence in the UK.
• 1858 – The University of London creates its External Program.
• 1883 – New York State authorizes the Chautauqua Institute to award degrees earned via correspondence.
• 1891 – The Colliery Engineer School of Mines renames itself International Correspondence Schools.
• 1892 – The University of Chicago starts administering the first university courses by mail.
• 1906 – The Calvert School of Baltimore becomes the first primary school in the United States to offer correspondence courses.
• 1916 – The National University Continuing Education Association is created in the United States.
• 1921 – Pennsylvania State College begins broadcasting courses on the radio.
• 1933 – The University of Iowa begins broadcasting courses on television.
• 1950 – The Ford Foundation begins offering grants to create and develop educational programs for television broadcasting.
• 1967 – The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is created.
• 1970 – Walden University is established.
• 1974 – California State University offers a Masters degree via correspondence.
• 1982 – The National University Teleconferencing Network is established.
• 1984 – The personal computer is named "man of the year" by Time Magazine.
With the advent of the personal computer and the development of the internet, distance education has evolved into an extremely important element of modern education. Most every university in North America offers courses online, while an entire cottage industry has formed around the concept of online education. There are countless online courses available to members of the general public. The wonderful thing about online education is that there are no borders, and prospective students worldwide now have access to the same opportunities. Online learning has the ability to make the world a better place. In some ways, it already has.
David Madison is a regular contributor to onlinelearning101.com – a highly informative and authoritative website specializing in online educational resources, such as Online Associate Degrees, Criminal Justice Degrees, information about studying abroad and more.
What Enables You To Flip Your Cell Phone Open?
The latest Nokia N90 and Motorola RAZR V3 clamshell mobile cell phones all incorporate sophisticated hinges which allow you to flip open your cell phones smartly amongst admiring onlookers. Another winner is the hinge assembly in Orange SPV M5000 3G PDA cell phone device which allows the screen half of the cell phone to swivel 180 degrees and close to allow simultaneous tablet mode and full phone functionality.
These hinge assemblies which were previously used in laptop computers have been designed into the sleekest cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDA) and small handheld digital cameras over the past few years.
Basically, the hinge assembly connects the cell phone base to the folder unit which contains the display screen. From the simple open-snap-close mechanism, the latest hinge mechanism now can control the angle of opening. Free-stop designs, where the folding stops at any angle, and 2 degree-of-freedom hinge assembly is in vogue. This flip-and-twist hinge assembly combines 2 rotary hinges with perpendicular axes, letting the clamshell cell phone flip open then twist 180 degress.
Each tiny custom hinge comprises a guide pin, shaft, cam, spring and housing. Advancing from the classic hinge components which were made from polyoxymethylene, the latest complicated hinge components are designed and manufactured from metals to provide stronger rotary hinge joints. These hinge components are manufactured using the metal injection molding (MIM) process or cnc machining. The former process, which are suitable for complex solid net-shape components, allows the mass production of hinge components competitively. However, with the recent shortening of product cycle in the competitive cell phone market, especially in Japan, more and more cell phone manufacturers are working with competent precision machining companies capable of machining these hinge components.
Leading Japanese companies in developing and selling sophisticated hinge units include Strawberry Corporation, Sugatsune Kogyou Co., Ltd, Omron Corporation and Yamamoto Precision Co., Ltd.
Author Ken Yap is a director of Suwa Precision Engineering Pte Ltd in Singapore which represents precision components manufacturers from Suwa, Japan. Niche components we manufacture include hinge components for cell phones and miniature gears.
Introduction to Thomson NETg
Thomson NETg is one of a kind global learning Enterprise offering live online classrooms and a wide range of Integrated Learning solutions. Their learning offer includes high-quality instructional content, cutting-edge enabling technologies with multiple delivery options, and a full range of expert consulting services.
NETg has been around for 35 years, as a leader in learning and professional development partner of choice for innovating organizations worldwide. Their Integrated Learning solutions are designed to help other companies to unlock the potential of people in their organizations to achieve the results each company needs.
The history of Thomson NETg dates back to 1971 when the company introduced mainframe computer based training, and by the year 2005 NETg acquired KnowledgeNet, a company leader in live and mobile learning, offering the first viable alternative to classroom-based training.
Nowadays, thousands of government agencies and leading companies all over the world rely on NETg when it comes to achieving performance improvements and important business productivity.
Such companies include a large number of industries including telecommunications, manufacturing, health care, pharmaceuticals, retailers, financial services, human services and even military operations.
NETg training area maintains two separate online catalogs, their own NETg Learning Catalog and the following KnowledgeNet catalog after its acquisition:
Technology Skills, including Cisco Technologies:, Microsoft Technologies, CompTIA, Citrix, (ISC)², Oracle Database Administration, Java Programming, Sun Microsystems Solaris, Lotus Notes Technica, UNIX, and Web Development.
Productivity Skills including Microsoft Office 2003, Microsoft Office XP (2002), Microsoft Office 2000, Client Operating Systems, Introduction to Technology, Lotus Notes, Siebel and Web Browsers.
Project Management with the following areas: Project Management Skills, Project Management Institute.
Business and Professional Development including Management and Leadership, Communication Skills, Project Management Skills, Personal Development, Sales, Service and Marketing, HR/New Employee Orientation.
NETg training catalog includes diverse e-Learning courses such as Certification, Information Technology (IT), Desktop, Business and Professional Development, Specialty, Continuing Professional Education and Accreditation Programs offered in US English, besides other in 12 languages: German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian, Korean, UK English, Japanese, Turkish and Chinese.
For those interested in development and IT careers, Thomson NETg offers a number of courses in Cisco (39), CIW (70), Client Server (6), CompTIA (50), Database Concepts and Technologies (3), e-Business (15), IBM (85), Internet Technologies (80), IT Management (6), Lotus (33), Microsoft (356), Networking and Communications (41), Novell (50), Oracle (311), Programming (33), Reporting and Analysis (6), SAP (4), UNIX and Linux (23), Web Development (7).
Additionally, Thomson NETg provides Live Now, a virtual classroom to get Cisco, Microsoft & Project Management Certification Classes to help IT and project managers to obtain professional certifications.
