In searching for a good content management system, I looked for something well known and highly customizable. I started with Joomla!, which has had a lot of recommendations and is apparently a very powerful CMS used in the web industry. I downloaded and installed it on my test domain to get a feel for it, and didn’t like it. It was way too cumbersome to manage for a little website like mine, and very difficult to work my way around in it. It took me two days to figure out each part of my website, and that’s a huge learning curve.

So, burned on that (and glad I didn’t replace my original website yet), I started shopping around. I came across a website that recommended a lot of different management systems, and mentioned Frog CMS. They said it was a small, simple CMS system that was pretty flexible for most things (easy to set up a blog with it, for example), and it was simple to use.

So, I visited their website http://www.madebyfrog.com/, to see what it could do for me. About five minutes reading through the extensions did it for me: I was ready to do my install. The download was simple, but the setup wasn’t that simple, though after a few tries and getting the right password for my MySQL server (very critical there!), it was up and running on my test domain. Within an hour, I had a great template with which to work, and another hour had the CSS styled exactly as I wanted it (minus a few little tweaks).

Migrating the initial web content from my old website took a little doing, but after another hour I had my website the way I wanted it, with all my images set correctly, Header and Footer built up and exactly the way I wanted it, and all without having to look too hard for each component.

The strength of Frog CMS, from what I can see, is that it doesn’t deviate too far from the standard web page setup. It keeps it simple for web developers who feel comfortable with HTML and CSS, and it’s really easy to create a nice HTML5 friendly website using any of the existing templates. All the templates are easy to reconfigure with a little CSS or HTML knowledge, making it a great platform for any website.

So that was my experience using Frog CMS. I’d recommend it to anyone starting a new website that just wants something simple and easy to configure without a lot of hassle. Granted, it’s not what your big office will be using to build their site, but for anyone just looking for great content management without the bells and whistles, this one definitely takes the cake.

1. Raising Children: I’ve always been told that raising children would be challenging, and when we had our first child I wondered what all the fuss was about. Sure, he would need attention (which meant less time on the computer games), but other than that I had a great first child. My oldest was generally quiet, curious, and loved to play. Everyone told us we were lucky, until we found out that he had Autism when he had turned three without saying even two words together. ?Then things like his inability to sleep at night unless he was held, his fascination with mechanical things (wheels, fans, etc.) and his desire to stack and order became clear. But until it was pointed out, I didn’t know I had a challenge raising my son. We just worked with him as best we could without pushing too hard, and ended up with a generally well behaved child with the exception of the occasional melt-down when something triggered his Autism.
2. Approach to Teaching: I’m a teacher by trade (or instructor, as I’m at the University), and an instructional designer. I spend a lot of time trying to think of ways to better approach my students, reach out to them, and help them retain the knowledge they want from me. Most of this is done on the fly while teaching in front of a class, with a lot coming from past experiences with different types of students. So when it came to teaching my son to write, read, or practice Math, it all came down to the basic skills I use with Adults that I try to apply to him. And I would get results that tended to last for a while, though they would occasionally regress (which is normal with Autism). ?The thing is, I didn’t know this was an issue. I thought this was what all parents did with their children. I mean, don’t all parents like to sit down with their child during their play and try to see what they do, how they react, and how you can tie in what they are doing with what they should be learning? Apparently, that’s not the case. Many parents out there trust in their children’s natural instinct to imitate their peers and parents to get a lot of their learning done. If you are a parent with a child on the Spectrum, you know that imitative learning is not common. So everything, from reading, to writing, to speaking becomes an exercise in trying to learn via other means. We’ve found that digital methods (multimedia and games) tend to work well with our sons, and we let them go with an iPad or iPod Touch. But again, this was something we just did, and didn’t know we had a unique and difficult situation.
3. Bolting: When my oldest was younger, we would constantly walk with his hand in ours. Perhaps it was because I was over-protective, but he would often just take off and run without looking back. Occasionally I would let him get quite far before I would race after him, but I didn’t think much about it. We just learned that when walking with our kids, we held their hands. They felt secure, and we felt secure. We didn’t know about bolting. ?Bolting is an Autism trait that most kids on the Spectrum go through up to the age of 4. They will just take off an run without looking back, forward, or to the sides. Their Wanderlust is pretty well documented, and many children on the Spectrum have been endangered or lost because they have been unable to keep close to their parents. We naturally wanted to keep our kids with us, and so we always walk with their hands in ours. We didn’t know you were supposed to, we just did it.
4. Diet: Our sons are picky eaters, but not in how you would imagine. One son will only eat meat, dairy products, eggs, and some breads (not white, but wheat, sourdough, rye, etc.). The other son prefers salads, dairy, all breads, and eggs. Occasionally we can get them to try something new at a restaurant or buffet, but they usually keep to their specific likes and dislikes. So, we kept them on the diets they like, making sure they get as much from the four food groups as possible within their constraints. ?What we didn’t know was that persons with Autism tend to have specific likes and dislikes because of the type of food. Not so much because of taste (though that is in the equation), but rather texture, color, and smell. My oldest likes his textures more firm like cheese, or crunchy like chips. My youngest loves soft breads with crunchy chips, crisp lettuce and veggies, and firm cheeses. It wasn’t until we learned that other children learn their likes and dislikes more from social queues (I don’t like lima beans because they are not popular in my cartoons!), as well as flavor. Rarely is it because of texture. That’s unique to Autism.
5. School: Our boys both go to a special education class where they focus on the skills necessary to become mainstreamed within the classroom. We have regular meetings with the teachers, keep in daily contact with them through notes in a notebook, and try to reinforce what they do at school in the home. I had assumed this is what every parent did when they were concerned about their child’s education. Apparently I have been wrong. ?Teachers look to the day when working with parents becomes the normal, established way to reach all children. Teachers can only do so much, particularly when you have 20 to 30 kids to one teacher (and no aides). They want all parents to come to them for a plan, and back them up when it comes to trying to find ways to get their child to learn. But apparently parents get defensive when teachers suggest goals with which parents could help at home, and teachers are slowly getting jaded or hesitant to suggest anything. I can often pick out a teacher who has been in the business for a while, because they are hesitant to mention anything negative about your child. It shouldn’t be that way. Teachers should be telling the parents where their child is struggling, and with the parents help make a plan to help their child achieve their potential.

So those are the five things I didn’t know going into parenting a child with Autism, and I’m glad I’m still learning. It’s a great opportunity to learn how to help your children.

Triumph Bonneville 2012

As I’ve posted previously, I’ve gotten a new motorcycle. And in order to get the most out of that motorcycle, and to remain alive as long as possible, I took the Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s Basic Rider Course over the last two weeks. They have several class schedules that can work for you, and mine was two consecutive Saturdays. Now, before I took the course, I had only ridden a bicycle, and I can tell you now that as much as I would like it to be, riding a bicycle isn’t the same as riding a motorcycle. They are two different animals, as I found out that first day when I jumped on my new Triumph Bonneville and ended up flat on my back with a broken toe shifter peg.

The first day we went through the book and a couple of videos to learn the basics of riding a motorcycle and the importance of safety gear. Then we got out on the range. The classes will provide a helmet, gloves (if you didn’t bring your own), and a 250 CC motorcycle. The most common bike type is a cruiser (either a Honda Rebel or Yamaha V-Star 250), but there are a couple of dual-sport bikes you can get on. I chose a Yamaha V-Star 250, as it was closest to my Triumph. We started by learning where the “Friction Zone” is on our bike, just rocking it back and forth as the clutch started to engage. This is something I didn’t know about motorcycles: you are encouraged to ride the clutch (unlike a car). So much for a salesman at a Honda dealership (which shall remain anonymous) telling me the clutch and shifting is just like a car! We then power-walked out bikes across the range (in this case the parking lot of the Salt Lake Community College). We then hopped on and rode across.

With each successive pass we found better experiences, faster movement, and increased difficulty. It all lead to a better feeling of comfort and confidence on a motorcycle, something I really needed after blowing it on my bike the day before. I was so excited that the next day I couldn’t wait to jump out on my bike and start riding around in the neighborhood. By the next week, I was feeling really confident, and took my own bike to ride for the rest of the class. Because I took the class at the Salt Lake Community College, they will give you the option of using your own bike throughout the class, or even just when you test out. I’m glad I did, as I’ll get to it in the end. Of course, with a broken shifter peg, I needed a replacement as the shop wasn’t going to have one by the time I took the class. So, I found a bolt at my local Lowes with the same thread count (metric, because it’s a British bike), and it’s been working well.

The second class was more about maneuvers, and preparing for the riding exam (which is essentially the same as the State riding exam). I was doing well, but because of a lot of waiting and holding the clutch in while stopped, my hand got tired. Then when I tried to take off at the end of the day, I stalled my bike, and it fell over on the temporary shifter peg. The peg, not being very strong, bent to the point where I couldn’t use it. It was almost a disaster, but luckily I had a second bolt at home. My wife brought it over for me, and I was able to run through the practice run at least once before the exam.

The exam had me sweating bullets, because I didn’t have all the practice I wanted. I ran through the course, and messed up a couple of times (put my foot down in the U turn portion, and took the curve a little slow). But, even when I was certain I had screwed up, I passed. I was thrilled! So now, since I have already taken the written exam with the Driver License division, I can run over there and get my motorcycle endorsement for my driver’s license, and for the largest size, so I can ride any motorcycle or scooter.

So what did I learn from this little adventure? The best thing for anyone new to riding a motorcycle is to take the Basic Rider Course. I promise you, it will give you a better feeling of confidence on your motorcycle. From then on out, it’s just learning to drive a clutch all over again, but using for

While reading my daily articles I came across an article in the Press Release section of the San Francisco Chronicle called “Study: Autism Linked to Flame Retardants – The Futon Shop’s Chemical Free Mattresses are the Next Step in Helping to Reduce Rates of Autism“. It sites a research study done by Irva Hertz-Piccotto, Ph.D. chief of the division of Environmental Health at the University of California Davis that supposedly proved a connection between PBDE’s, which are flame-retardant chemicals used in furniture (and other things), and Autism. It’s a PR piece done by a furniture company that doesn’t use PBDE’s, and so they are trying to “inform” (or better yet, scare) consumers into purchasing their products.

Anytime I see any claims like this, red flags fly all over the place. I found it interesting that so important an environmental connection as this would be so unknown, and only first published by a furniture company. Nope, something wasn’t right. So I pulled open Google Scholar, and searched for the research paper.

It wasn’t easy to find, but I found the article in the journal Environmental Health (2011, 10:1). The article is located here: http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1476-069X-10-1.pdf, if you care to read through it yourself. The research project was more of a survey, looking to compare PBDE concentrations in children with Autism and those in the control group. The qualifiers were that though current levels could be influenced by a number of conditions (such as diet, current exposure, previous exposure, etc.), the hope was a possible connection between fetal exposure to PBDE’s through the mother would reflect an environmental cause for Autism.

The research pulled plasma samples from the Autism group and the control group. Their PBDE concentrations were tested, and compared. The results? “Children with autism/autism spectrum disorder and developmental delay were similar to typically developing controls for all PBDE congeners, but levels were high for all three groups.” So, based on this research, there was no difference between concentrations of PBDE’s and a correlation between PBDE’s and Autism. Now, that doesn’t mean there isn’t any possible environmental triggers or causes, but it just points out that the possibility of a connection between PBDE’s and Autism are remote.

So, to the Futon Shop, the company that made the claim, I would say they need to check their sources a little closer before they try to use scare tactics to sell their products. I’m all for naturally produced and protected products, but I’m not a big fan of using Fear, Uncertainty, and Disinformation by any company to induce sales.

To date I have put almost 20 miles on my motorcycle, mostly because of a short window of time to ride. But so far I’m loving my bike. It rides well on the road, and shifts well. The clutch is very sensitive, which is taking some getting used to. But other than that, it’s a great bike to ride.

Something I’ve found in my learning to ride is the similarity to learning to drive a standard transmission. My revving of the Triumph accelerator harkens back to the revving I used to do with a stick shift. Hills make me nervous, as I haven’t gotten the clutch control down pat, and I’m nervous when riding in traffic to this point for the same reason.

But that being said, in the two days of little practice rides I have taken, I’ve found that I’m feeling more confident. Slowly but surely I’m working my way toward being a confident, experienced motorcyclist. It’s a great feeling to ride down the road at 45 miles per hour with the wind whipping around you, even when your hair (or what little you have at any rate) is enclosed within a full face helmet.

Right now my goal is to feel comfortable enough to ride my motorcycle to my last Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s Beginners Riding Course for Saturday. This weekend we take our exams, both written and practical. If I test out on my own motorcycle, then I will have no size restrictions on my motorcycle endorsement from the Driver License Division. Here’s hoping, anyway!

Today marks the end of April, and the end of Autism Awareness Month. All month businesses have had special promotions to raise funds for research about this very prominent condition, while also focusing on providing events for families who deal with the condition every day. But, like Breast Cancer Awareness Month or Black History Month, it seems the public mindset feels they have done what they needed to do when they were assigned to do it, and will move on without another thought. African Americans don’t stop contributing to our Country just beacuse it’s not February. People don’t stop getting breast cancer just because it’s not October. And parents, siblings, and children don’t stop working with those on the Spectrum just because it’s no longer April.

So what can you do every day to help someone with who deals with Autism on a daily basis? Here are a few pointers:

1. Don’t Judge: Don’t be judgemental of someone who is struggling with their child. Chances are that child may have Autism, even if he doesn’t “look” it. Autism doesn’t really have a visual cue or physical “look” that identifies it. Children with Autism look just as beautiful as neurotypical children. Parents of children on the Spectrum are acutely aware of their child’s behavior, and don’t need your reminder. Sometimes a reassuring smile is all you need to give in order to help a parent feel more comfortable.
2. Don’t Stare: Children on the Spectrum are completely aware of their surroundings. They know when you are staring, and they know what proper behavior is supposed to be. They just can’t control themselves in their own behavior. Don’t stare, because that makes them feel uncomfortable (just as you would feel uncomfortable when someone stares are you). They are real people, and want to be treated as such.
3. Don’t Talk As If They Are Not There: Again, children with Autism are acutely aware of their surroundings (often too aware), and can hear you. Just because they don’t speak or don’t look at you when you are talking doesn’t mean they can’t hear you. Let me give you an example. Early in our oldest’s diagnosis, we went to IHOP. It was loud, and the service was very slow. Our son became agitated and needed a walk to help calm him down, so I walked him around the unoccupied areas of the restaurant. A patron, talking to her friend, said “I’m glad MY children are all well behaved”. This set my son off into another bout of fits. Needless to say, we have never returned to that IHOP again.
4. Try to Understand: Children with Autism are puzzles. They think differently, have unique perspectives, and want to know all about their world, or at least specific aspects of it. If you take time to watch them, you can gain insights into their world. Just minor glimpses, but it’s often enough to hook you in. You will want to learn more, and it becomes an exciting endeavor to become part of their world.

Autism has increased in diagnosis to 1 in 88 children in the US, and 1 in 47 children in Utah (though there are some questions as to those numbers). It’s becoming a more common diagnosis in our lives, and is most likely impacting you, the reader, in some form. You may have a child, neice, nephew, cousin, brother, sister, or have a friend that lives with a person on the Spectrum. Instead of writing them off as “stupid”, “dumb”, or any other adjective that could be applied, start looking at the way they learn, interact, and explore. I can guarantee that your life will change, and definitely for the better.

The problem is, I have lost out on a lot of home time with my kids. I don’t get home until late, and then they are eating and then getting ready for bed. I also run into the problem of needing to carefully plan out my commute when teaching at other campus locations than the main campus in Salt Lake. There are times when having your own vehicle of some sort would be nice.

I’ve tried using a bicycle for a while, but it’s very dangerous to ride in traffic because of it’s size and driver’s lack of attention for two wheeled vehicles. And it doesn’t change my commute time much. Also, with fuel prices increasing and my desire not to have a huge car payment every month, I started looking for a vehicle.

My wife has been against me having a motorcycle, because of an accident that her uncle had when he was young. It’s taken me 12 years of careful suggestions and convincing, but she finally has allowed me to get a motorcycle of my own. They are great, providing you get the right one for you.

So I started doing research on the right motorcycle. I started with Harley-Davidson, of course, because of their cultural impact on motorcycling. My eyes settled on the Iron 883. It looked great, was a “small” bike, and fit my goal of having a fairly basic bike. I didn’t want a Sports bike, just more of a Standard or Cruiser. It’s also a great price for an “entry level” bike. But I didn’t like the fuel economy.

So next I checked out the BMW G650 GS. This is Dual Sport or Enduro bike that can be ridden on the road or off. It’s smaller, has great gas mileage, and would run well on the freeway (if needed). But the seat is very high, and I’m not very tall (just 5’8″). I didn’t quite fit on the bike, being unable to put both my feet down on the floor while sitting.

Just for fun I started looking at the very small bikes, the 250 range. Not long ago (back when my Dad was riding), these were your mid-range bikes. Now they are considered beginner bikes. Still, they generally have great gas mileage (around 78 to 84 MPG), so that was appealing. I checked out the Honda Rebel and the Yamaha V-Star 250, both of which are really nice bikes (I’ll explain why later). But niether *should* be ridden on the freeway (engines are too small).

The freeway took me back to the Harley-Davidson Iron 883. I had just about settled on it, when I read a review that compared the Superlow 883, Honda Shadow 750, and the Triumph Bonneville. I’ve heard of Triumph before, and had a lot of respect for the maker. The Bonneville has a great history (was once the fastest bike on Earth), and made a connection for me as I live in the Bonneville Basin. It also had very favorable performance compared to the Shadow and the Superlow. And finally, it reminded me of the old BSA bikes with which I fell in love years ago. It was my dream bike.

So I got it, and signed up for the Motorcycle Safety Foundation’s (MSF) Beginning Rider Course (BRC) over at the Salt Lake Community College, that luckily started the next day. When I brought my bike home, I couldn’t wait to hop on and give it a quick ride. I should have. I went down in just 5 feet and did some minor damage to my bike. I was devistated. Was this really something I wanted to do? Did I spend a bundle of cash on the bike and equipment for nothing? I was discouraged as I did some repairs on my dream motorcycle.

The next day, I was a nervous wreck when I started my course. I didn’t worry about the classroom section, because I had already passed my written exam for my Motorcycle learner’s permit. But when I got on my bike, I didn’t know what to do. Luckily my instructors were very patient, and helped me through using the clutch (I didn’t know you could ride it to control power to the engine, hence why I did a header on my bike the day before). By the end of the day I was making turns, stops, starts, quick stops, and weaving in and out. Granted it was on a smaller bike (Yamaha V-Star 250), but it did wonders for my confidence.

That was yesterday. Today, I walked my bike out of the garage between two cars, and using the clutch started off without a problem. My intention was to take it slow, but I couldn’t help myself. I headed out around the neighborhood, onto the main road into minor traffic, and then up and around several other neighborhood roads. I was a little nervous, and even killed the engine a couple of times (and almost laid my bike down), but by the second run I was feeling great!

So now I feel I can say I am a motorcyclist, if only a beginner. And I can also say I love my Bonneville. It’s quiet, quick when it needs to be, and doesn’t intimidate the rider. Lots of people have written reviews of the Bonneville and have said the same thing, and they are right. It’s a great all around motorcycle. I love mine, particularly now that I can ride it.

So, if you are thinking of a new motorcycle, I can highly recommend the Triumph Bonneville. And if you have never ridden a motorcycle before, even if someone promises to “teach” you, take the MSF’s Beginning Rider Course. Your bike and wallet will thank you.

We then looked at our cable TV.  When we got it, we had grand visions of watching great channels like the Discovery Channel, History Channel, and BBC America for all our favorite British Comedies.  And yet, since we started using Netflix on our Apple TV, we haven’t been using Cable at all, other than for local channels which we could get for free over the air with the right equipment.  The other problem is that Cable does provide television signals to two TV’s, so we would need quite the antenna to replace it.  We have discussed the possibility of getting rid of it before, but it seemed like too much hassle.  And in the mean time, our bill continued to siphon a lot of funds for unused channels.  

Finally, the push came.  A pending purchase was in need of those funds.  It was time to pear down.  Doing a little research I found a good indoor/outdoor antenna for sale on Amazon for a decent price, and then I called my cable provider.  Once I got to the right selection in their phone tree (not a big fan of phone trees), the representative was helpful and willing to try and lower our bill without discontinuing service.  Unfortunately, he couldn’t lower it to the amount I wanted, until he offered to put us on a special one year promotion for Voice and Internet that cost less than Internet itself.  It was a good deal, and it was one less thing I had to return, so I went with it.  The Cable Box will be returned today, and we will no longer be paying for unused channels. 

But what about entertainment, you ask?  Well, aside from reading books with the kids, we will still have our local channels using our antenna, and that covers all the major shows we watch.  Other than that, we still have Netflix, and less signal being eaten by the unused cable box which will (hopefully) increase Internet performance.  But in the end, it feels good to no longer be throwing money away on something we don’t use, and instead spend it on something we will need. 

Today, as I sit out here in my back yard for the first really nice day in months and watch my sons play, I’m reminded of what family life is all about. I have my youngest son playing in the dirt, a common sensory activity in our family. My oldest is running back and forth from the swings to the dirt, trying to get as much sensory in as he can.

Having good sensory activities has been the goal, and it’s. Even working. I’m sitting on a bench that oversees the entire yard to be sure they are completely safe, and all I can hear is the happy squealing of my sons.

The yard isn’t anything special, having. Even torn apart so many times by digging, trampling, and general playing by the boys and their cousins. The only plants that have survived our family has been the grape vines, the roses, spearmint (great mosquito repellent, by the way), and some wild snap dragons who refuse to die. But it’s a great place for the boys to play when they need to get out of the house.

So when I think about Autism, I think about the fun things in our back yard, and how much our boys enjoy them. I think about the fun squeals, the joy of exploration, and the fun they have while playing. It’s times like these that I wonder if there truly a difference between children with Autism, and those without.

And that’s the thing about children with Autism: they are just children who happen to have a brain wired different than other children. But they have the same desires, same needs, and same pleasures. Treating them differently doesn’t help them, and often frustrates them.

So as I sit in my backyard and enjoy the evening with laughing children, I think of them as children. My children, who just want to be kids.

Recently I have been looking for a learning management system for my personal domain to practice deploying come classes as eLearning modules.  I’ve used the University’s Canvas system, which I do like, along with both WebCT and Blackboard in the past.  But due to funding constraints on my private domain, I needed an Open Source LMS.  But not just any LMS, because I wanted something that would cater to the mobile environment. 

So the search was on.  I’ve used Moodle in the past, but haven’t been too impressed with it overall.  It always looked clunky in it’s distribution and needed a lot of CSS editing to get it to look somewhat decent.  And in reading the boards, most administrators and instructors using Moodle have an almost hostile response to the need of HTML5/CSS3/Javascript on most mobile platforms instead of using Flash.  Nope, I needed something else. 

Then I came across Dokeos.  It’s a learning management system that was developed in Europe, and has an open source release and a paid content release.  The difference is a few features (like video conferencing) is removed from the open source release, though the core functionality is all there.  The thing that struck me the most about Dokeos was that it was built from the ground up to be mobile friendly!  Instructors could use Dokeos from a Tablet computer, like the iPad, as well as students.  With the future moving rapidly to mobile devices, it was very important to me. 

The installation was pretty straightforward, though I had some minor setbacks with the MySQL database settings that took a few minutes to resolve.  Once done, I had a fully functioning LMS that looked great from the outset on my domain.  I installed it at http://learn.robbclan.com as a test bed, and I’ve been pretty impressed. 

So what’s the most impressive thing about it?  It natively supports “Hotspot” exams, though it requires Flash 7 to run the test.  Hotspot exams allow the instructor to mark certain locations of an image as “hotspots”, and then have the tester select that section for points.  For software training it means selecting a “button” or “tool” that will perform a function.  It’s as close to being hands on as instant testing can do, and it’s very impressive in how it works.  All the other standard exam types are there as well, but that one is my favorite.  Unfortunately, it’s not very iPad friendly because it requires Flash.  

So that’s my initial review of Dokeos!  If you haven’t already checked it out, I would recommend a quick browse.  It’s simple to set up, very powerful, and very easy to manage.  And very Mobile friendly.