BETT is big - very big. About 30,000 people are expected to come to see over 600 exhibitors. If I’d remembered to take the camera cable, I’d have uploaded a picture to illustrate this. Just believe me it’s big and busy.

The sheer scale of the exhibition means that there’s a great deal to see but also means that it’s easy to miss things. Hopefully, the various blogs will provide different parts of the jigsaw.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I’d been asked to look for secure computer desks. RM’s Intelidesk worked well but is no longer sold. I found desk units that included built-in computers but that was of no use for situations where there was already a PC and didn’t allow for easy upgrading. There were units which secured the base unit but left the keyboard and monitor open to mischievous attack. I found two companies which supplied units which would securely hold different styles of base unit and allowed the keyboard and monitor to be locked away inside the unit. My favourites were the Eurotek Smart Top Desk and the Verso Desk from Desktec.

So what caught my eye? Some of these things are new, some old and some new versions of old.

I like the new Digital Movie Creator 3 from TAG Learning. The DMC 2 was a good machine for kids and this latest version improves on it. There is now a fold out screen like a more expensive video camera, the video resolution is higher and the memory can be expanded with SD memory cards. The software has some enhancements but is still very noisy - great fun for kids but really annoying in a classroom. The head camera looks fun. It could be used with children with motor difficulties, to film sports activities from the participant’s point of view or attached to a floor robot. To kickstart the use of video, Tag Learning has 4 different ‘How to Make a Movie‘ kits. These contain scripts, sound effects and video clips - all for £15.

I loved CrazyTalk 4 from Techknowledgey. It allows you turn digital photos into animated talking actors. This is not the only software to do this but it is very easy to use and produces great results. It may appear just to be a bit of fun with little curriculr use but I can see this having a place in early years and with children with additional needs. Imagine the kids’ faces when a story is read by an animated animal or seeing themselves telling a story in another language. I’m looking forward to playing with this program. Techknowledgey also sell iClone which lets you control an avatar.

Finally, I liked the experiment kits from Cambridge Brainbox. The kits are inexpensive, easy to put together and suitable for primary and secondary. To the probable delight of the more mature reader, they also have what they call metal construction kits but which looks very much like meccano. I know what my grandson will be getting for Christmas in a few years.

Tomorrow, amongst other things, I’m going to take a close look at Podium which is podcasting software from Softease and wander around the Special Needs area and Special Needs Fringe.