Jennifer Demski of Campus Technology posted a great article today about the use of mobile technologies to not only enhance communications on campus, but to also provide access to increased administrative information. The article profiles the usage of mobile technology at three institutions: Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3), Illinois State University and Dartmouth College.

Demski’s first profile discusses TC3’s work with SunGard Higher Education’s web applications to create myMobile, an initiative that allows faculty and staff to send e-mails over the school’s existing SMTP server, which are then received by standard cell phones as text messages. The exciting thing about this initiative is that it is designed to adapt the school’s existing web services for a mobile interface, enabling instant access to vital information over a cell phone or PDA. Students can check their grades, class schedules, and campus news, all with real-time updates. The mobile portal also allows faculty to view class lists, e-mail students, and check their schedules right on their phones.

The article goes on to profile Illinois State Univesity’s adoption of Agilon’s Mobile Access for Development Officers. ISU’s executive director of development information and donor services, Jill Jones, initiated this adoption because she wanted to make sure that her traveling development officers had the most up-to-date donor information when they stepped into a meeting with a potential benefactor. Consequently, development officers at Illinois State can use their smart phones to update prospect proposals on potential donors, examine demographic details of donors and alumni, review a donor’s giving history, and more, all in real time.

Finally Demski discusses Dartmouth College (NH) partnership with Agito Networks to install a campuswide mobile network that allows dual-mode phones to switch seamlessly between cellular signals, campus WiFi signals, and 3G/4G technology, depending on the location of the user. Via “fixed-to-mobile convergence,” Agito’s RoamAnywhere Mobility Router (in conjunction with a little piece of Agito software downloaded directly to the phone) monitors the location of an active cellular device and adjusts its signal accordingly, without any disruption to the call.

Be sure to check out Demski’s full article at Campus Technology.

Today, TUAW posted quick review of Briefcase, the latest in a flood of apps for the iPhone that lets you transfer files to and from a PC or Mac and view them on the iPhone. Briefcase is also the only app of this type to allow Wi-Fi file transfer between iPhones.

Several competing applications require running special software on the host computer, Briefcase doesn’t. Mac users just turn on File Sharing in System Preferences and make sure that the iPhone and Mac are on the same Wi-Fi network. A list of machines appears on the iPhone, the you tap on one to connect, and once the user of the computer allows you to have access, you can browse the directories of the machine you’re connected to. WIndows and Linux machines simply need to support remote login via SSH. You can also make remote connections to machines if you know the IP address and SSH port number.

When Briefcase shows up in the App Store, it will cost US$4.99. A free version, Briefcase Lite, just lacks the ability to zap files to other iPhones.

TUAW promises a full review soon; until then, be sure to check out their “first look.”

David Chartier of Ars Technica recently posted a great “mini-review” of the new iPhone blogging client iBlogger. While some clients work directly with a specific service, like WordPress, iBlogger joins a budding group that can speak a variety of blog platform languages. This iPhone blogging client also happens to be a descendant of a long-time Mac desktop client, ecto.

Chartier suggests that as a multi-platform blogging tool, iBlogger is an easy candidate for the jack-of-all-blogs award. It offers direct support for 11 platforms, including (alphabetically) Blogger, Blojsom, drupal, ExpressionEngine, LifeType, LivingDot, My.Opera, SquareSpace, TypePad, WordPress, and Xanga, as well as support for other platforms that support either the MetaWeblogs or MovableType APIs. For the review, Ars Technica tested the app on a WordPress 2.6 blog.

After constructing an extensive list of iBlogger’s pros and cons, Chartier asserts that the app is a solid 1.0 client that, for $9.99, supports a broad range of platforms, including some we haven’t seen in competing products. With a little more UI polish and these deeper hooks for bloggers who need to speak multiple languages, iBlogger will be a very appealing option for iPhone bloggers who need everything, including the kitchen sink.

For Chartier’s complete post, visit Ars Technica.

Merriam-Webster recently joined forces with ParagonSoftware Group, a leading software developer and content provider for mobile devices and desktop PCs, to bring the eleventh edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary to iPhone users. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary for iPhone is now available at the App Store. The program is supported by iPhones with firmware 2.0, iPhone 3G and iPod touch with firmware 2.0.

The dictionary’s database contains 225,000 entries, including more than 10,000 new words and definitions, which can be accessed anywhere, any time, without Internet connection or additional charges. The new app features an easy-to-use, single-click application for instant access to all words and definitions. The SlovoEd engine compresses the database to a minimum of memory space while allowing users to quickly perform multiple lookups.

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition for iPhone has a suggested retail price of $24.99 USD and may be ordered at http://www.merriam-webster.com/store/iphone/collegiate/.

Find more information at PRNewwire.

TUAW posted an interesting update today about Stanford University’s fall iPhone programming course. The course is obviously in full swing, with a reported 80 students signed up. Stanford has also started a project that is beginning to bear fruit in the form of iPhone and iPod touch apps—the Stanford iApps Project.

TUAW reports that five student-developed apps are now being tested as part of the Stanford iApps Project. Two of the apps are targeted at Stanford students and provide management of course registration and bills, while the other three apps are aimed at a much larger audience including the general public and alumni.

These other apps give access to a searchable Stanford University map (see screenshot), schedules and scores for the University’s sports teams, and listings in the StanfordWho online directory.

While future iApps may be the result of the iPhone development course, these apps were developed by TerriblyClever Design. a startup created by Kayvon Beykpour, a Stanford computer science undergrad. Once the Stanford apps are out of beta testing, they’ll be available in the App Store.

For more, check out the full article at TUAW.

This week Thumbplay, an online platform of mobile entertainment content, expanded their services to allow users to download reference materials and study aids like CliffsNotes and American Heritage Dictionaries and titles from Scientific American Magazine and the Sierra Club from their cell phones.

The new titles span a wide variety of classes and disciplines including:

• Language and grammar aids: 100 Words Almost Everyone Confuses & Misuses, 100 Words Every High School Freshman Should Know, 100 Words Every High School Graduate Should Know, 100 Words To Make You Sound Smart
• Literature: CliffsNotes for classic works, including Beowulf,The Canterbury Tales, Great Expectations and Julius Caesar
• History: Great American History Fact Finder
• Science: Scientific American: Ask The Experts, Scientific, American: Geography, Scientific American: The Human Body, 100 Words Science Words Every College Graduate Should Know
• Mathematics: Scientific American: Mathematical Games

“With nearly 85 percent of the U.S. population using cell phones, we’re seeing an increasing demand for ever more engaging and useful content,” said Are Traasdahl, Thumbplay’s CEO and founder. “We’re thrilled to add these applications to our ever-expanding content library.”

Apple unveiled three new iPod touch models during its “Let’s Rock” event, all of which are available today. For $229 you can receive 8GB of storage, for $299 you’ll get 16GB, and $399 scores 32GB. That’s knocking $70 to $100 off the price of each.

The new touch body is very slightly thinner, and has a similar tapered back as the iPhone 3G. It will also include an exterior volume control and a built-in speaker for “casual listening.” There is no microphone built in, but the touch will work with new Apple headphones that include a microphone on the cord. This new feature could prove handy for teaching and learning. I can foresee students and teachers creating and sharing educational podcasts, playing and recording lecture notes, etc. from the palm of their hands.

For more details, check out iPhone Atlas’ coverage of the “Let’s Rock” event.

As you likely already know, The New York Times recently published an article entitled “Welcome, Freshmen. Have an iPod,” which provides an overview of the debate sparked by Abilene Christian University and three other universities planning to distribute iPhones to some or all of their students this fall. The article gives voice to both the advocates and skeptics of the mobile learning strategy.

While plans to distribute the devices worry some professors, who suggest students are less likely to participate in classes if they are multitasking, many schools emphasize both the iPhone’s educational usefulness and the inevitability of the movement toward the use of mobile technology in education.

If you’re interested in the conversation (which is highly likely if you’re on this page), this article is worth checking out.

A significant step toward full iPhone copy/paste functionality was taken today as independent developer Zac White recently unveiled his open-source solution: OpenClip, a standard for other iPhone application developers.

As iPhone Atlas reports, OpenClip is not a standalone app but rather a technology that developers can incorporate into their iPhone applications should they choose to participate. No applications yet support OpenClip, but it’s coming soon for the American Heritage Dictionary and Roget’s Thesaurus applications, Twitter client Twittelator, notepad application MagicPad, finance lexicon Wall Street Worlds, and a number of others.

iPhone Atlas goes on to report that iPhone users will be able to copy and paste from one OpenClip application to the next, but not to developer applications that aren’t participating or to Apple’s own iPhone apps, such as its e-mail client or the Safari browser.

Apple has, of course, acknowledged that copy-paste functionality will be officially coming to the iPhone, eventually, and OpenClip’s creator has recognized Apple’s plan.

“Instead of just waiting on the sidelines, we wanted to help iPhone users and Apple by being proactive and trying to help with a solution,” the site’s FAQ reads. “While just an interim fix until Apple adopts a systemwide version, OpenClip hopes to add to the iPhone user experience and provide a working case study for Apple, hopefully allowing (company engineers) to roll out their version more quickly.”

This past Friday, MiGhtyDocs released an app that makes viewing Google Docs on the iPhone a bit easier. The app enables you to keep your important documents with you at all times, even without an Internet connection.

All you have to do is open your document once on your iPhone, and MiGhtyDocs caches it for offline viewing. Unfortunately, the application doesn’t allow you to edit docs or view spreadsheets or presentations. As TUAW suggests, the app does one thing very well—plus, it’s free.

For more, check out TUAW’s post on MiGhtyDocs or download the app from the iTunes App Store.