Thursday squibs

Back to blogging, with a lot of stuff saved from the last three or four days:

• How Much Does It Cost To Create Media? From “Teach J,” a Texas journalism and media tech teacher, a breakdown on what it costs to get new media tools into the classroom. For the 20-seat classes, the estimates range from $19,500 at the budget end to $79,000 for pro-level equipment, and that’s just for video. (All you newspaper folk out there moaning about how unprepared j-school grads are for the new “real world,” might want to consider a donation to the local school.) Via Ponto Media.
• Utility in Google’s Mobile Maps. After getting around Phoenix with a cellphone and Google maps, Dan Gillmor says newspapers are behind the curve in serving the local business search market.
• Lazarus resurrects old argument. David Lazarus must have liked the attention his mid-year rant against providing news free a lot, because he’s done it again. Douglas Fisher neatly takes apart his arguments.
• Handshakes, hugs and hoopla — What pictures don’t tell us. Dennis Dunleavy on the art and reality of political photojournalism. He doesn’t go so far as to say photo ops will only exist as long as journalists keep covering for them, but I will. Also from Dennis, a nice tribute: A Year in Passing: Remembering some photographers who died in 2007.
• Two on economics. These are not good times for newspapers and these headlines suggest they may not be getting better soon: Canadian economic party winding down? and Home Prices Fall for 10th Straight Month.
• Resolution: Newspapers should be more like Apple. Steve Yelvington points to Apple’s model of building on the innovations of others as a model newspapers should be emulating.
• Five lessons from 2007. Robert Niles at OJR draws five lessons for newspapers from the past year.
• Job outlook for journalism graduates. Mindy McAdams parses the numbers on what a journalism degree is worth.