IT @ ISM Tech Think Blog

(Warning: this one may be a bit on the geeky side…)

Following on from the post earlier today about inserting comments in Microsoft Word, someone asked whether it’s possible to create a comment bank in Word. When marking lots of papers in digital format - which is good because it’s quick and saves lots of paper - this would save you from having to retype frequently used comments umpteen times.

The answer is “Yes, you can - using macros“. I’ll explain how here…

Read the rest of this entry »

What happens when you get three computer geeks in a pub? They talk about monkeys.

While a feeble attempt was made to discuss standard small talk items such as politics and sport, the focus inevitably turned to computers. So what do computers and monkeys have in common?

The infinite monkey theorem loosely states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a keyboard for an infinite amount of time will almost surely type or create a particular chosen text, such as the complete works of William Shakespeare. This idea has several variations including a thousand monkeys on a thousand typewriters. Even the Simpsons and Ricky Gervais had a go at it.
Read the rest of this entry »

I love programming. I love how you can make something useful from scratch, and in very little time. I love it because it’s logical, and I’ve always been one for logic puzzles. And I especially love it because it’s fun.

As a computer science teacher I want everyone to love it. It’s an uphill battle. People tend to see programming as completely alien, difficult, and frustrating to understand. And especially as something that has very little use in their lives. Why worry about what goes on behind the scenes of a program? You’re just using the program, right?
Read the rest of this entry »