Technology Update 5/1/2009
Moodle Tutorials: Very excited about seeing this site: MoodleTutorials.org. Moodle is such a great open source project for online course development and really needed more tutorials in using its functionality. Sure, it has its limitations, but it is a convenient way to run a class online without knowing HTML or web design. Link
Twitter hyperventilation. So much talk about Twitter in the news these days. Sure, most of it is hype. It’s been popular for some time and now it’s been caught in the media’s attention and everyone has an opinion. It’s another online tool / resource and nothing more. It’s great for following updates of specific people and groups, but like any service, not every one is using Twitter and can only follow people who are into promoting their “brand.” There is something a little egotistical about Twitter in that you have to feel like you have something worth saying that the general public would care to follow.
Articles I’ve seen just this month:
100 Tools for the Twittering Teacher
Six Ways You Should Be Using Twitter
Finding free images online without using Google Images is always a challenge. A nice post of possible places to go to find photographs to use in different projects. Link
Morguefile.com is good for photographs.
Also finding free music to use in video creation and projects. Music Archive might be an alternative. Link. The problem with free music and image databases is the quality of the photographs and music requires lots of searching to find anything worth using. I like to buy those 30 CD clipart and photograph packages when they are in a bargain bin as opposed to trying to find anything worthwhile online.
Software picks:
Top Five Malware Removal Tools. I usually use Spybot Search and Destroy. If I have to use Hijack This, it usually means I have a serious problem, and a time consuming effort to remove it is probably necessary.
You can read tons of magazines online at Zinio.com. I like the resource, but I can’t imagine reading magazines online in the same way I can’t read novels online. The web has always been for short reading spurts. Nothing more.
Best ways to download videos from YouTube:
Very simple solution. Use PWNTube. Link
All in One-Video-Bookmarklet. Link
Ten tried and tested internet tools for teachers. Good blog post of Web 2.0 tools for teachers. I confess I only have used Diigo and WordPress. I like the possibilities using Edmodo, a way of communicating with classes, posting notes, calendars. Looks more promising the Google Groups, and no installation required in Moodle. Some of the tools look promising, and I plan to investigate more later.
Google Timeline is a nice way of viewing news about a particular topic. Try using a name of a famous person or sports team and see every story in timeline view. Link
Also worth checking out: