Links that have been included in previous eMagazines...

To visit the shared links go to http://www.only2clicks.com/pages/acljohn/ or use the live pages below...

A site with several how-to videos for beginners. The nice thing is that users are not required to register or complete email list sign ups. Just visit the site and start watching the videos (10 of them available right now).

Watch them at http://www.becomeablogger.com/. 

Green technology is the way of the future, no doubt about it. Nothing fuels mind-boggling innovation like the possibility of the world being totally destroyed if we don’t clean up our act. So, it’s an exciting time to be a geek right now – there’s so much cool green tech out there, you can hardly keep up. That’s why blogs like EcoGeek, WorldChanging, Ecotality Life, Treehugger and EarthFirst are around – to school us in all matters of green technology. These five blogs will keep you updated on all the latest gadgets, gizmos, models and ideas that are going to change the world for the better.

Read more and access the links at http://www.geeksaresexy.net/2008/07/23/five-blogs-green-techies-should-be-reading/. 

The 9th July 2008 was a big day for the United Nations University Media Studio. They launched a new web magazine called Our World 2.0 focusing on...

• climate change,
• peak oil and
• food security.

"We are witnessing a convergence of these issues and now is the time to look for solutions that ameliorate, rather exacerbate the problems."

Take a look at this new webzine at http://ourworld.unu.edu/en/.

Lots of useful resources.

If you or your learners are looking for a simple way to get 'stuff' online in blog format, look no further than Posterous.

How simple?

• Just email post@posterous.com.
  
  • Your message subject becomes your blog post title,
  • the message text the body of the blog post.
  • The service treats attachments smartly
    
    • - images turn into image galleries,
    • while documents are rendered via Scribd.
    • If you register (it is free), you can set up...
      • a custom Blog title and
      • a URL and tweak a few things like comment settings, but you don’t have to.

Given the extremely low bar for posting to a Posterous site, it might be a good alternative to a wiki or traditional blog for a new or less-technical team trying out distributed (collaborative)/peer assessed work for the first time.

Remember, whatever you post is public, which makes it impractical for sensitive information.

The service is currently free, though there’s passing mention of charging for future premium features.

Try it out at http://posterous.com/.

Or take a look at my posterous site at http://acljohn.posterous.com/.

SocialLearn is a UK Open University project. According to the SocialLearn blog:

“Some learners will be happy running 20 web apps [for their Personal Learning Environment], while others will want to access this ecosystem via a coherent web interface. Currently one would do this via iGoogle, Netvibes, Facebook etc, if the applications have widgets in these different walled gardens.

In SocialLearn, we aim to move beyond web-feed based interoperability and visual clustering of applications on the webtop, with SL-aware applications communicating via the API (Application Program Interface), so that the learner’s profile can track and intelligently manage the flow of information and events to support their activity.”

Read more at http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/socialearn/.

If you write a lot of emails, you’ll often find yourself facing the same sorts of situations again and again, and you’ll often see stock phrases used in business emails to convey a professional, helpful and friendly tone.

For all of the following situations

• When you’re initiating email contact with someone new
• When you’ve answered someone’s question
• When you’re asking the recipient to take some action
• When you need a response (but not necessarily any action taking)
• When you’ve heard nothing back and want to chase up a reply

Read the full blog at http://www.dailywritingtips.com/useful-stock-phrases-for-your-business-emails/.

Due to the level of demand for places for this one-day workshop we have arranged for the workshop to run again on Thursday 18 September 2008, at Myerscough College, Bilsborough, Nr Preston.

There are currently 12 places available for the workshop on 18 September 2008.

To secure a place for the 18 September, please register online NOW, by using the following link: http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=89uz3kii40pgzhf470018

There is also just one place left on the same workshop, running on Wednesday 17 September 2008, at Myerscough College, Bilsborough, Nr Preston.
To secure a place for the 17 September, please register online NOW, by using the following link: http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=wngspln9cqb9lin470015

The delegate fee for either date, is £150 including refreshments & lunch
Booking forms will be treated on a first come first serve basis. So a quick response is recommended.

Further details of the event are as follows:

‘The Moodle learning environment is becoming increasingly popular in the UK education sector. It is free to use, having been developed through the Open Software model, and is designed using sound pedagogical principles. This workshop introduces Moodle, its main features and demonstrates why Moodle is different from other learning environments. You will be given access to your own installation of Moodle for 4 weeks after this workshop.

Topics:

• Moodle basics
• The student, teacher and admin view
• Use and suitability of a range of tools in Moodle Course structures and content development explained

Attendees will have:

Access to Moodle as an administrator, teacher and student Guided hands on in using Moodle Create their own Moodle course and added content Investigated the management of learners through Moodle Used course support tools provided by Moodle Explored good practice techniques when using learning environments Access to their own Moodle server for 4 weeks.'

Location: Fairsnape Room, Myerscough College

Contact: Helen Smith at hs@rsc-northwest.ac.uk or 01524 593797

Book now, to avoid disappointment.

A way to get real time traffic statistics for your websites, blogs, learning objects etc. If you are looking for a counter for your blog or online profile pages then 99counters is for you. 

The counter will display...

• the number of users currently visiting the website,
• the total for the day,
• and total numbers of visits since it was installed.

There are nearly 20 counter templates, in different size and colors, so there is a good chance you’ll find something to match your site’s theme. 

If you don’t like the available templates, you can create one on your own.

Register and try it out at http://www.99counters.com. 

A new free software program has been developed by Verdiem that will help cut PC energy use by allowing users to schedule when their computer goes into sleep mode.

Edison allows a user to decide when their home and/or work PC slips to sleep so it consumes far less energy. For people who know exactly when their computer won't be in use for short enough durations that a full shut down doesn't make sense, like lunch or dinner hours, then this program could be handy. It is hoped that people wouldn't need this for night use, and that they actually shut down their computers at night.

The software will allow users to schedule when to shut down the screen and hard drive, and it lets users see how much electricity, CO2 emissions, and money they're saving through their use of the software.

PCs can be responsible for as much as 10% of a home's energy bill, and one estimate places Verdiem's software as saving about 410 kilowatt hours a year, which translates to a pounds a month. Saving £1-2 per month really isn't bad for just loading up free software and putting the PC to sleep. It even runs on Windows Vista.

Find out more at http://www.verdiem.com/edison/. 

 

It is not the software it is how you use it! 

FluidTables is a versatile tool that can be used for various types of events, not just weddings.

For new users, there is a demo video <http://forums.fluidtables.com/static/fluidtables_demo.swf> that explains how to use the site, making it easy to learn.  Furthermore, this tool is free for all users.

Take a look yourself at http://www.fluidtables.com/session/new. 

Can be used for events, assigning teams for collaborative/group work etc. 

Dabbleboard helps people think and communicate visually. Unlike other alternatives, it makes powerful features easily accessible, so that using it feels as natural as using a real whiteboard.

Since it's...

• digital - Dabbleboard allows reuse of old drawings,
• on the web - Dabbleboard enables sharing of drawings with people anywhere in the world.

Dabbleboard runs in your browser. It has all the usual whiteboard features plus some nice extras.

It is easy to use and draw shapes even using a mouse. Images from anywhere on the web can be embedded into multiple pages.

When you have finished creating your whiteboard pages...

• you can download them,
• share them publicly online (the public library is not, currently, too impressive; people are testing out the software and using it as a sandpit. If it takes off it has the potential to produce an impressive collection of teaching resources) or
• email them to learners (great way to send your learners notes or their 'missed' lesson).

You can use the software without registering, but if you want to save and share whiteboard flipcharts them you'll need to create a simple account (which doesn't seem to require any personal information beyond your email address).

If you use this with a data projector you have a pretty cheap interactive whitebaord to use in class.

Visit DabbleBoard at http://www.dabbleboard.com/ or

view a tour showing you all the features at http://www.dabbleboard.com/main/video.

Here is my first play with dabbleboard... 

Kindling is a Place for Ideas

... a place where learning providers, administrators, curriculum/programme staff, and learners etc., can share and collaborate. Kindling cultivates ideas from the ground up and believes that everyone in a group has something valuable to say, from the learners to the Head of the organisation.

Because good ideas help everybody.

For a brief overview watch the video below...

 

Introducing : Kindling from Richard Ziade on Vimeo.

 

To find out more and/or to request an invite, go to http://kindlingapp.com/.

Features:

• Send self-destructing messages to others.
• No sign up or registration required.
• See the IP address of the person that read your note.
• Option to get notified when the recipient opens the note.

If you want to try it out, go to https://privnote.com/. 

Note: as it self-destructs when opened, you can only send it to one person! Sadly it doesn't burst into even virtual flames; you just can't revisit the message once the browser is closed.

 

visiting websites
- from samfind's homepage, you can visit websites in two different ways, by clicking on a website's name or by typing a search query and then clicking on the website's name.

customizing samfind
- you can choose which topics and websites are on samfind by clicking customize samfind on the top-right of the homepage

give it a try!
- once you have samfind all set up, give it a try for a little while and see if it makes you more productive. you can register by clicking login or register. This way you will be able to use your customized samfind on any computer and on any homepage system.

Take a look yourself at http://samfind.com/index.php.

This is an image of my customised samfind...

A web tool that lets you encode any text you want. Encodor makes the encoded text unreadable unless a person knows the password that was used to encrypt it.

To Encode text...

• simply paste it into provided field,
• type in a password and
• click “Lock”.

To Decode text...

• copy and paste the encoded message,
• enter the password and
• click “Unlock”.

Features:

• Encode important text before sharing it on...
  • a VLE
  • an electronic noticeboard
  • a shared desktop
  • the web etc.
• Unlimited - encode and decode as many times as you like.
• The maximum number of characters you can use is 400.
• No registration required.

Try it out at http://encodor.com/index.php.

My message is

NgD"kN y{7 Bz c\) 3@iM pk; x' tz }&K@~)nCo E{# T242 @"m 9c ^>m[uD=X !R EP,a >g:w =p P=73x\0C@/ HpHZv -iLp2H Q@ hO`~ J !A 1uUl

If you want to read it the password is RSCNW, try it out.

Block Work Environment Distractions with White Noise 

Anyone who has ever tried to work in a crowded office, common room, library (is nowhere quiet these days?) probably knows that sometimes it’s nearly impossible to get things done because of all the noise.

• Phones ring,
• photocopy machine,
• voices etc.

If you and/or your learners frequently find yourself in the same situation then SimplyNoise might help.

It helps you concentrate by generating so called White Noise - relaxing equal power noise.
The only requirement is a pair of headsets.
Very simple if it works for you and cool at the same time. 

Try it out at http://simplynoise.com/. 

SMS Poll is a fast and east way to find out what your learners/colleagues/stake holders are thinking.

• Requires no special hardware or software
• A poll can be created in just a few seconds.
• Your learners/colleagues/stake holders vote by sending an SMS to a local phone number
• Results are updated right before your eyes, in real-time, in your PowerPoint presentation or on your website.

SMS Poll is a great way to...

• gather in-real-time data from learners/colleagues/stake holders or anyone else!

There are just four steps - Create, Customise, Share, and Vote.

There are a number of price plans, including a free plan which I have used for this demonstration.

There are two ways your audience can use their mobiles to vote (1) they can send an SMS or
(2) browse to http://m.smspoll.net.

They can also vote online if you embed the voting as I have here...

You can also embed the results in a PowerPoint Presentation.

Try it out and/or sign up for a FREE Account at http://www.smspoll.net/index.php
or watch a UK Demo at http://www.smspoll.net/demouk.php.

BgPatterns is a web application that offers a collection of easily repeatable patterns for website backgrounds.

• Switch patterns,
• change pattern opacity,
• customize color,
• choose canvas,
• rotate and scale patterns,
• customize pattern location and more.

Create unique tiled backgrounds by experimenting with different pictures, colors, textures and transparency options. Plenty of possibilities.

When you are satisfied with the background you can...

• either download it to your computer
• or save it on BgPatterns.

Note: You can also see the backgrounds created by others, leave feedback and even download and use them on your own website.

No registration required (registered users can bookmark and manage backgrounds in one place).

Check out BgPatterns at http://www.bgpatterns.com.

SnapYap^TM is, for some of you, a new way to communicate.

As a SnapYap^TM user, you can:

Participate in live video calls in your browser

Send and receive video messages

Embed the SnapYap^TM application directly into your webpage to record video messages

Instantly connect with friends and family through video technology

All you need is an internet connection and a webcam, and you and your learners too can experience the excitement of video communication. To learn more about the simplicity of SnapYap.com, sign up for the service today at http://www.snapyap.com/.

You take a look at my first attempt with SnapYap^TM at... http://www.snapyap.com/stream/view-message?m=m544550a64e4a41d0621e21bcba4154e8.

All tutors should have this on their PCs for 'class/workshop/conference etc. presentations'!

ZoomIt is screen zoom and annotation tool for all presentations.

ZoomIt runs unobtrusively in the system tray and activates with customizable hotkeys.

Features...

• Zoom - in on an area of the screen and move around while zoomed
• Draw - on screen using a range of colours (red, green, orange, yellow, blue, pink); draw straight lines, rectangles, ellipse, arrows, freehand;
• Type - on screen using a range of colours (red, green, orange, yellow, blue, pink)
• Save - any screens produced using ZoomIt as png images.
• Break - on screen count down timer for assessments, timed on-task periods, breaks etc.

Find out more and/or download ZoomIt at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb897434.aspx.

A big thank you to Kevin Hickey (JISC RSC-Northwest eLearning Adviser) for bringing this to our attention!

Original on Flickr at http://flickr.com/photos/28379739@N06/2671042273/.

Red Green Show - A Handy Computer Desk

Warning! Don't try this at home!

Bill Pearson, Lecturer in IT at Reaseheath College, flagged up this resource...

 

"A nice silly one is http://www.giganticurl.com – makes a change from http://tinyurl.com etc."

Now that is silly!

PS the link to our website is http://www.GiganticURL.com/url/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5yc2Mtbm9ydGh3ZXN0LmFjLnVrLw==aHR0cDovL3d3dy5yc2Mtbm9ydGh3ZXN0LmFjLnVrL2FIUjBjRG92TDNkM2R5NXljMk10Ym05eWRHaDNaWE4wTG1GakxuVnJMdz09aHR0cDovL3d3dy5yc2Mtbm9ydGh3ZXN0LmFjLnVrL2FIUjBjRG92TDNkM2R5NXljMk10Ym05eWRHaDNaWE4wTG1GakxuVnJMdz09YUhSMGNEb3ZMM2QzZHk1eWMyTXRibTl5ZEdoM1pYTjBMbUZqTG5WckwyRklVakJqUkc5MlRETmtNMlI1Tlhsak1rMTBZbTA1ZVdSSGFETmFXRTR3VEcxR2FreHVWbkpNZHowOQ==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 

(The abuse of a thing is no argument against its use.)

Both my colleagues, Anita Holt and Lisa Valentine, thought you would all like to read this article...

A Proposal for Banning Pencils
By Doug Johnson

When it comes to "technology" use in schools and colleges, every responsible educator's first concerns should be student safety and educational suitability. I am suggesting that we ban one of the most potentially harmful technologies of all -- the pencil. We must eliminate them from schools because:

1. A student might use a pencil to poke out the eye of another student.

2. A student might write a dirty word or, worse yet, a threatening note to another student, with a pencil.

3. One student might have a mechanical pencil, making those with wooden ones feel bad.

4. The pencil might get stolen.

5. Pencils break and need repairing all the time.

6. Kids who have pencils might doodle instead of working on their assignments or listening to the teacher.

Oh, sure, kids might actually use a pencil to take notes or compose a paper -- but really, what's the chance of that?

Want More? Want to read more about Doug and his thoughts on library media and technology? Visit his Web site or browse his new blog. Got a compliment, a complaint, or just a comment to share? E-mail Doug at dougj@doug-johnson.com.

Sounds pretty absurd, doesn't it? But listen to the reasons teachers and administrators on our district technology committee gave for banning iPods and MP3 players from the classroom:

1. They might get stolen.

2. They make kids who can't afford them feel bad.

3. Kids might listen to them instead of to the teacher.

4. Who knows what kinds of lyrics the kids might be listening to?

5. Kids might listen to test answers.

Oh, sure, kids might actually use them to study, to replay their French vocabulary lesson, or to listen to audio books, an NPR broadcast, or a teacher-created lecture -- but really, what's the chance of that?

I cringe whenever I hear a district or school "banning" cell phones, student blogs, e-mail, flash drives, chat, personally owned laptops, or game sites. Student access to the Internet itself was hotly debated in the mid-90s. Each of those technologies can and does have positive educational uses. Each of those technologies is a big part of many kids' lives outside of school. And yes, each of these technologies has the potential for misuse.

One of my biggest worries has always been that by denying access in school to technologies that students find useful and meaningful, we make school more and more irrelevant to our "Net Genners." (One of our students on the advisory board had the courage to say he concentrates better in study hall and the library when his digital music player drowns out other distractions.) When are we going to learn to use the kids' devices for their benefit rather than invent excuses to outlaw them?

My experience is that the more familiar educators are with a new technology, the less likely they are to restrict its use by students. When we old-timers experience a technology's benefit ourselves, the more we understand its benefit to students.

Is an iPod on your holiday wish list? Add it -- for your students' sake.

Johnson, Doug, first name. "A Proposal for Banning Pencils” Education World, 12/06/05 Accessed 24/07/08 http://www.education-world.com/a_tech/columnists/johnson/johnson004.shtml

Education World®
Copyright © 2005 Education World

Are you, like I am for long periods, desk-bound?

If so, then you, we are told, have to get a little extra exercise to make up for the fact that you're sitting all day.

Exercise, apparently, will also...

• reduce stress,
• increase your energy and
• clear your mind.

But the gym can seem like a waste of time. It's not the 45 minutes working out that's a problem -- it's the additional 45 minutes of preparation, travel and shower etc.

"If you're at the office, take a 15-minute break in the morning or afternoon to complete this session -- and you'll have your first workout under your belt before you go home. If you're at home, take 15 minutes before lunch or dinner to knock out the routine. The movements are unobtrusive -- you can think of them as "stealth" exercises"

Go to http://entrepreneurs.about.com/od/lifebalance/a/deskexercise.htm to find out how you can exercise at your desk.

Exercises include...

• Strength Exercises

  • Chair Leg Extension
  • Isometric Hand Press
  • Wall Push-Off
  • Overhead Press
  • Drawing-In Maneuver
  
  
• Flexibility Exercises
  • Side Bend
  • Cross Arm
  • Neck Stretch

There are lots of rabbits around Bailrigg House I wonder...

 

No need for me to add anything, just click play!

 

Even for people who dislike cats, these three clips are worth a look; visit Simon's Cat at http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=simonscat.

• "TV Dinner" - A hungry cat resorts to increasingly desperate measures to gain its owner's attention.
• "Cat-man-do" - A hungry cat resorts to increasingly desperate measures to wake its sleeping owner.
• "Let me in!" -  A hungry cat resorts to increasingly desperate measures to get indoors.

Blogs are designed to be social, collaborative tools which facilitate discussions and allow like-minded colleagues to share their ideas.

Building Personal Learning Networks exemplifies the power of these growing virtual communities.

Take a look at this..

Pay nothing.
In Pictures online tutorials are free. There's nothing to buy or download.

Learn with pictures, not words.
In Pictures online tutorials are based on pictures, not words. "They're the easiest way to learn computer subjects."

There's no complicated multimedia, just pictures that show exactly what to do.

Background

In Pictures tutorials began as part of a research study conducted for the U.S. Department of Education.
The goal: to make it easier for people with learning disabilities to learn computer subjects.

As part of the study, they created simple, illustration-based tutorials. Everyone who tested them-not just people with learning disabilities-said the new tutorials enabled them to learn faster and easier than conventional text-heavy books.

So where are the colour screenshots? The cartoon characters? The video animations? They don't use these things, because the study showed them that:

• The simpler, the better.
  Tutorials should be as simple as possible. Multimedia animations may look nifty, but they can be hard to follow. That's why these tutorials use static screenshots.
• Black-and-white is better than colour.
  Colour screenshots can create a "kaleidoscope" effect that makes it difficult to focus. Black-and-white doesn't. That's why these tutorials use black-and-white screenshots.
• Tasks are more important than features.
  Most computer learning aids concentrate on features-the things a program can do. But most people care about tasks-the things they want to do. That's why these tutorials focus on common tasks.

Well worth a look, go to http://inpics.net/.

Take a look at the eGuide flyer about the Training Programme 2008-2009 844KB pdf.

More information and dates are available at http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/TrainingCourses/eguides.htm.

In the north west eGuide Training is being offered 3 times; the dates/schedule for each 3 days of training is...

1. 27th and 28th November 2008 with the 3rd day on 9th January 2009 (Liverpool)
2. 2nd and 3rd February 2009 and the 3rd day on 3rd March 2009 (Manchester)
3. 23rd and 24th April 2009 and the 3rd day on 22nd May 2009 (Liverpool)

Sandpit for our readers... 

There should be a toolbar at the top of the screen where you can, among other things, open a protonote and leave a comment on this page.

Feel free to try it out... 

Nfomedia is trying to be a free online courseware choice, with a full list of features. (It does appear that they are going to make money by charging for a “premium” service,” but the free set of features will more than meet most needs.) Features include...

• Wiki-style editing; course blogs; video lectures; online exams; student journals; announcements; online gradebook; message boards; personal homepages; personal blogs; text messaging and live chat.

Once you create an account (this was very quick indeed, until you wanted to create a course! If your Learning Provider name isn't present you have to notify them and wait! It is the 5th of July today, I'll let you know when I can continue...Good news it's the 10th and I can progress!) it is relatively easy to set up a series of course pages.

The site works like a wiki allowing the professor or teacher to simply add content. You can add...

• a syllabus page,
• assignment pages,
• note, or content pages.

All of these are treated as nodes so you can link between them, pretty much getting your learners all the class information you would need. A gradebook and exams are also offered (As learning providers you need to consider the implications of storing learner grades on a third party site).

Nfomedia allows you to register learners, or have learners register themselves, allowing for email distribution etc. to all of the learners.

Finally the way Nfomedia is set up at the end of the course you can roll over all the general class information and delete out the student specific information. So, if you are teaching the same class over and over again you only have to write the content pages once.

Take a look yourself at http://www.nfomedia.com/.

Very much Higher Education!

 

Need a poll for your website, blog, VLE, eXe resources, etc., and don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a custom solution? Then Poll Authority's unique approach to poll creation allows users to create customized polls. There's no expensive database to maintain, no developer to hire, and no complicated installation or set-up.

Signup for your FREE Poll Authority account at http://www.pollauthority.com/Default.aspx and see how easy adding a poll to your website can be! In less than a minute you can be creating unique and custom polls that match your website theme and style!

My first attempt is shown above. I hope you have voted! 

 

•  Warning over universities' future

Some universities will face closure or merger as they struggle to compete for a dwindling number of students over the next 20 years, vice-chancellors warn.

A report for umbrella body Universities UK says unless institutions adapt quickly to the changing demographics, some institutions will become unviable.

The number of 18 to 20-year-olds is set to fall sharply between 2009 and 2027.

Read the full article at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7496247.stm.

Thanks to Angela Harvey, JISC RSC UK Services Coordinator, for bringing this to our attention...

At just over the half way point in the year, Policy Watch attempts an A - Z listing of what's been going on in education over the first 6 months of 2008 by way of a reference guide.
Unfortunately there has been so much, this runs to 20 pages. If it's all too much, the first page provides a simple headline summary
<Click to download document 214KB Word Doc>

Prepared by Steve Besley, Head of Policy, Edexcel.
Edexcel Policy Watch is a service intended to alert busy colleagues to national developments that might interest them. Please pass on as appropriate. Information is correct at the time of writing and is offered in good faith. No liability is accepted for decisions made on the basis of information given.

About Policy Watch

Edexcel Policy Watch is a service that aims to provide anyone with an interest in education and skills with regular, easy to read and simple summaries of education developments.

Summaries are generally produced each week on a single sheet and provide informed comment on latest developments in an accessible and relaxed format.

You can now sign up to receive the Policy Watches as they come out. Simply send an email to policywatch@edexcel.org.uk, giving us...

• your name,
• job title, and
• organisation.

We will send all the Policy Watches direct to your inbox as soon as they are issued. The service is open to anyone and currently has over 2000 subscribers.

Find out more at http://www.edexcel.org.uk/about/policies/epw/.

Google rolled out a new feature for its online Google Docs suite during Julu: templates. Now, if you don’t like starting with a blank page, you can select New, From Template and start browsing their gallery <http://docs.google.com/templates?sort=hottest&view=default>.

You will find hundreds of choices, from presentation designs to a runner’s log to resumes to meeting minutes. Google brought some partners into this offer - there are templates from TemplateZone, Vertex42, and others as well as ones developed in-house.

Overall, the templates seem to be well-executed, and no doubt we’ll start to recognize some Google presentation designs just as we used to recognize PowerPoint themes. Google continues to provide more functionality into Docs, making it a serious challenge to other software providers.

• A Google map for your library
• And the greenest university is...
• Facing a brick wall
• One in five graduates regret degree course choice
• Remember, the government is not the customer
• Tefl directory
• Web 2.0: boon or bane for universities?

When it comes to indexing you can't beat the human touch, but search engines are starting to have power over the knowledge we receive, says John Sutherland

Read the full article at http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/jul/23/research.google. 

Creating excellent public services means devolving power to a more local level - article by Andrew Thomson former chief executive of the Quality Improvement Agency.

"Colleges and providers aim to hit targets for success rates and funding - but this is not necessarily what learners, employers or communities need. Higher success rates may well be due to better teaching and learning, but they can also be the result of restricting the curriculum offer or teaching to the test in ways that reduce access and restrict wider success. Meeting funding requirements with employer-related training may mean offering what's fundable (qualifications) not what is needed (skills)"

Read the full article at http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/jul/22/furthereducation?gusrc=rss&feed=education. 

In response to regular requests from readers, EducationGuardian.co.uk has created...

...a directory to help Tefl teachers share their expertise,

wherever they are.

To find out more or to see what is already in the directory, go to http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/tefldirectory?gusrc=rss&feed=education.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has endorsed a recommendation to promote e-learning. This recommendation draws on the discussions that took place at preparatory eConference on 1 October 2007.

The good news is that the recommendation contains specific reference to the importance of promoting open source software and open educational resources. Here is the direct quotation:

“E-learning can be a powerful means of creating open educational resources accessible to everybody thus counteracting a divided knowledge society. In this regard, the Assembly calls on member parliaments to support the so-called “open source” movement in software development and initiatives for open educational resources – freely accessible on the Internet, and to adopt measures to combat the digital divide in order to close the gap between those who have access to ICT and the acquisition of ICT skills and those who do not, thus ensuring digital literacy for all.”

An important development (mile post) for Europe.

As the younger generation shifts to texting and instant messaging, some think the 'old fashioned' way to communicate is dying.

Read the full article by Rachel Leibrock at http://www.sacbee.com/107/story/1064021.html.

 

• Evidencing the personal skills requirements

...for teachers, tutors and trainers in the lifelong learning sector

Lifelong Learning UK (LLUK), Institute for Learning (IfL), Standards Verification UK (SVUK) and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) have released a position statement outlining the intended process for evidencing teachers, tutors and trainers' personal skills in literacy, numeracy and Information and Communication Technology (ICT).

Read the full article at http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-news-1.nsf/lfi/DNWA-7GLLSQ.

To review this position statement and summary of the process go to http://www.lluk.org/documents/evidencing-personal-skills-requirements-english-mathematics-ict.pdf.

FiTES - I'm inviting you to Find, Try, Evaluate and Share.
You are the experts in your field of work, management, administration, practitioners etc., and you know what works for you! By sharing not only will you raise the awareness of your colleagues but you should also benefit from their submissions.

Share your resources by completing the form available at http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=p6ZzsRcFe4Rh71c9ArHs2OQ&email=true. or use the embedded form below...

This month's submissions are...

• eCalc - Subject Learning Coach (Anon)
• FotoFlexer - Bill Pearson
• globrix - Bill Pearson
• Periodic Table of Videos - Rachel Fligelstone

An online calculator and unit converter.

eCalc offers two types of calculators...

• basic - this version works as a simple web-based alternative to calculators that you can find in pretty much any convenient store. Add, subtract, multiply, divide, square root, etc.

and

• scientific - this version is for more advanced calculations and includes a unit converter (see screenshot on the left).

Features...

• Web based multi-functional calculator and unit converter.
• Equation Solver, Scientific Functions, Complex Numbers, Decimal to Fraction, RPN or Algebraic.
• Unit Converter for Mass, Time, Power, Volume, Area, Length, Energy, Temp, Force and Pressure units.
• Free, no sign-up or registration needed.
• Take a look at eCalc video demo at http://www.ecalc.com/calculator/demo/.

Try out eCalc at http://www.ecalc.com/.

 

Bill Pearson, Lecturer in IT at Reaseheath College, uses

FotoFlexer claims to be the world's most advanced online digital photo editor.

Bill says, "...very easy to use and needs no software installing."

I've had a quick play and there is no doubt that FotoFlexer performs advanced effects previously only available to professionals using expensive software. FotoFlexer was founded by Arbor Labs, a team of graduate students and alumni from the Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, University of California at Berkeley (and just one MIT/Stanford alum too).

It is a site I'll be revisiting, thanks Bill!

Try it out yourself at http://fotoflexer.com/ and let us know what you think.

Bill Pearson, Lecturer in IT at Reaseheath College, flagged up this resource and said

"...is good for people buying houses but could also be used with students. Use the search via map and experiment to find out where the 5 bedroom houses or posh gardens are!"

I've, as usual, had a quick play and, if I was still teaching, I would find it very useful for providing 'realistic statistical data' for maths classes; I'm sure there are many other uses as well (including learners looking for rented properties!)

What makes Globrix different?

Globrix exists to allow users to search nearly every property for sale or to rent in the UK down to the last detail.

Globrix is different. Their software...

"...tracks down almost every single estate agent in the UK and scours their websites, coming back with a nearly perfect list of what's available to buy or rent. Note that we said, "almost every" and "nearly perfect". That's because in the property market things move quickly. For example, If a new agent starts trading one Saturday morning, our software probably won't find their listing... for a few hours, at least."

Excellent site to show how keywords can be used to filter results. A practical demonstration of databases at work. Ideal for eLearning Skills Courses/Practice.

Looking for a house with a pool? Or off-street parking? Or even a nuclear bunker? Globrix now allows users to do this, saving them time and helping them find their perfect home.

An interesting aside, they inform us that they make their money by only allowing targeted and relevant ads down the side of the pages.

Have a play. See what potential this site has for teaching and learning!

Take a look at http://www.globrix.com/.

Tables charting the chemical elements have been around since the 19th century - but this modern version has a short video about each one.

"I don't know if any of you know anyone who is interested in Chemistry, but these videos from Nottingham actually make the periodic tables quite interesting! Thought it was worth passing it on just in case!"

Take a look your self at http://www.periodicvideos.com/index.htm.

Thanks Rachel (Lancaster University), I'm sure many practitioners and learners will enjoy this resource.

In case you missed it http://www.webelements.com/ is well worth a look; it was in an earlier eMagazine.

Saturn's many moons have shaped its beautiful rings. And now we have an amazing collection of close up photos courtesy of the Cassini Spacecraft.

Phil Plait, of the Bad Astronomy blog (http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/), explains several little known facts about Saturn’s rings, from theories on how they came into existence, to why there is a gap inside them.

Saturn’s ring system is magnificent, and amazing. But if we can’t go to Saturn to see the rings, this video clip will bring the rings to you and/or your learners.

If the above embedded player doesn't work go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8QcSC7PAQE.

Got a problem with your bike?

Need to fix a flat tire, or maybe repair a broken spoke?

Learn how you can fix it on BicycleTutor - an excellent how-to site for bike maintenance and repair.

It shows people how to fix common bike problems using home tools without taking it to repair shop.

BicycleTutor tutorials are of a very good quality and easy to follow. Watch how-to videos, ask questions, post comments etc.

Features:

• Tutorials and how-to videos to help you repair your bike.
• Search and browse by how-to videos by category (maintenance, repair etc.)
• Interactive videos with clickable steps and tips.
• Embed repair videos onto your own website.
• Ask questions, add comments and leave tips.
• No sign-up or registration required.
• Option to download videos (not free).

Take a look at BicycleTutor at http://www.bicycletutor.com.

Note: -the videos can take some time to load. 

 

Not sure if this is real or 'manufactured' video but still worth a look …

View it on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x64-GmBcvbE.

Read more about SocialLearn, a UK Open University Project, in the Blog section of this eMagazine; then watch Martin's Presentation;One of the advantages of Elluminate is it allows you to watch a recording of presentations after the event. The presentation looks at the changes in Personal Learning Environments.

To view go to http://tinyurl.com/6ayazt.

Note you will have to download Elluminate software, it doesn't take long!

Prepare for Success is an interactive pre-arrival learning tool for international students who are getting ready to come to the UK to study.

It contains twenty two different learning resources on themes connected with academic life in the UK.

International students can find out

• what British academic life is like and
• what kind of academic skills they will need for effective study.

As well as preparing students for what to expect during their studies, the activities also provides scope for language improvement*.

Find out more and/or take a look at the resources at http://www.prepareforsuccess.org.uk/index.html.

* Prepare for Success is intended primarily for international students whose first language is not English. It is aimed at students with an IELTS level between 5.0 and 7.5 or equivalent.

Developed by eLanguages in the Centre for Language Study at the University of Southampton for the UK Council for International Student Affairs, Prepare for Success can be used for educational purposes by UK institutions. It may be used to enhance an institution's pre-arrival support package for its international students in various ways.

For more information on how institutions can make use of Prepare for Success, view the Notes for institutions or download the printable version: notes for institutions (pdf, 80kb).

 

This will be the most important lesson of your life.
Maybe the only important lesson.

Jake Polonsky’s School of Life.
The film is set in a high school, but it tells a poignantly ironic story that any adult will relate to. School of Life won the 2004 British Independent Film Award for Best Short.

View it on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLYhtFEQ07A. 

The self-regulation challenge explored

Self-regulation promises to be one of the biggest changes for the sector since incorporation. Many sector leaders and managers now consider it the best way forward and a change that will improve the system for all.

LSN, along with the Association for College Management and the 157 Group hosted a seminar back in October last year on self-regulation in the FE sector.

College principals and senior representatives were invited to discuss models for self-regulation and the steps needed to take the system forward.

This report explores the themes of that debate and reveals the insights from the day and so will appeal to the many people across education who are intrigued by how the self-regulation agenda will move forward.

To download your free copy please  go to https://www.lsneducation.org.uk/user/order.aspx?code=080043.

Preston College: Clearing up communication - transforming communications for students and staff 

This case study, produced by John Davey, can be found on the excellence gateway at http://excellence.qia.org.uk/article.aspx?o=162784.

Written for Intute by science writer David Bradley, Spotlight contains topical science articles and news features.

This issue has articles on...

• the “Cheerios Effect” on solids under the force of surface tension;
• the surface and atmospheric composition of Mercury; and
• melting ice sheets.

Go to http://www.intute.ac.uk/sciences/spotlight/ to find out more.

Because the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) and The Basic Skills Agency (BSA) have merged into one organisation - NIACE - they now publish an even larger number of resources unrivalled in the sector.

NIACE can now offer you an even larger and broader range of inspirational and authoritative titles covering issues from language, literacy and numeracy to family learning; ICT to government policy; financial literacy to citizenship; and many more.

• Your favourite BSA resources are still available to order online as before by visiting http://www.niace.org.uk/publications then following the link to ‘Get your Basic Skills Agency resources here', or by telephoning 0870 600 2400.

• All NIACE publications can be ordered online at

http://www.niace.org.uk/publications or by telephoning 0116 204 4216.

Basic Skills Agency - Latest resources

Order online by visiting http://www.niace.org.uk/publications then following the link to ‘Get your Basic Skills Agency resources here', or by telephoning 0870 600 2400.

Don't forget, we still sell the very popular resources Fast Track: 20 Questions, Initial Assessment, Key Words: Numeracy dictionary and Key Words: Literacy dictionary.

The Starter Pack

Second Edition (includes CD-ROM)

£75.00

The Starter Pack is one of BSA's most popular resources, essential in the teaching of literacy and language. It has been extensively revised and re-written and contains many new sections including ‘Speaking and listening' and ‘Using ICT in literacy teaching and learning'. Whether you are a new or experienced tutor you will find it full of useful ideas and tips. The CD-ROM of the book makes it easy for you to view the many lesson ideas and then customise them to create your own lessons.

The Spelling Pack: 21st-Century Edition

(Includes CD-ROM)

£40.00

The first Spelling Pack was published in 1988, and since then has become an essential resource for teaching literacy and language to adults and young people. Extensively revised and updated to meet your needs and those of your learners, this edition reflects the many changes in practice such as the increased emphasis on vocational contexts and the rapid growth in ICT as a resource for teaching and learning. It provides you with activities, strategies and approaches to help you support spelling within any programme of study. It also includes activities to support your Continual Professional Development.

Dumbstruck! Using drama to develop the oracy skills of young people in custody

(Includes CD-ROM)

Brenda Ainsley, Rachel Davies and Bethia McNeil

£45.00

Invaluable to those seeking to develop the literacy and numeracy skills of young offenders, this book is based on a project that used drama to develop young offenders' oracy skills. You will read about the importance of speaking and listening skills in literacy work, how the project was run, the impact it had and the lessons that were learned. It contains suggestions on how you can go about doing something similar. The CD-ROM contains the powerful story of how the project impacted on the young people's lives and is an excellent tool to communicate the benefits of such projects to managers or funders.

NIACE - Latest publications

Order online at http://www.niace.org.uk/publications or by calling 0116 204 4216.

Money Matters to Me: A guide for adult learning practitioners

(Includes CD-ROM)

Malcolm P Smith, Howard Gannaway and Paul Worrall

£50.00

As a financial learning tutor or Skills for Life tutor, you will find this guidebook invaluable. Linked to the popular financial learning website www.moneymatterstome.com, it is a specific resource on how to use the website in your lessons. It is full of structured learning programmes that make use of the interactive resources on the website. The book is well illustrated and contains a CD-ROM of the entire book to make it easy for you to print off worksheets. The CD-ROM also contains the interactive resources from the website to enable you to still use them when you don't have access to the Internet.

Fast Facts

£30 for pack of 50

Fast Facts booklets equip people from all walks of life with the literacy and numeracy support they need. Designed to fit into a top pocket or purse, Fast Facts are an ideal aid for those who do not have instant access to a dictionary, textbook, calculator or spell-checker. Latest titles in the series include Fast Facts for Early Years Child Care and Fast Facts for Teaching Assistants. Each booklet contains general information including:

• spellings of days of the week and months of the year;
• 24-hour clock;
• multiplication table;
• weights and measures; and
• tips to improve spelling.

They also contain specific information that is relevant for peoples' particular situations including:

• common abbreviations;
• spellings of useful words and phrases;
• how to write reports, letters and other paperwork; and
• useful resources.

Lifelines 23: Supporting learners with dyslexia in workplace learning

Rachel Davies and Heather Hardie

£7.95

Informed specialist support and advice on dyslexia is often not available to workplace trainers. This is a concise and practical book, essential reading for all those workplace trainers and educators who are dealing with people with dyslexia, and for experts in dyslexia who are going into the workplace to advise trainers or set up courses.

Lifelines 24: Working with unions to support literacy, language and numeracy in the workplace

Judith Swift and Sue Southwood

£7.95

By 2010 there will 22,000 Union Learning Representatives across the country promoting training and learning in the workplace on behalf of union members. Over 250,000 learners are expected to progress through the union route. This book will be a key resource for both unions and educational providers.

New and Free!

Windows and Macintosh users, download Tony Vincent's 34-page booklet about podcasting. It takes you through the basics of finding, subscribing, and listening to podcasts. Then, learn, step-by-step how to record and publish an audio podcast using free software such as Audacity, Podomatic, The Levelator, Feedburner and iTunes. 

Download from http://learninginhand.com/podcasting/Podcasting_Booklet.pdf. 

This pdf guide discusses podcasting from an educational perspective. It covers software, hardware, podcatchers, directories, iTunes and gives plenty of links to useful podcasts and resources.
The guide also includes a STEP BY STEP tutorial to creating a podcast with the FREE host PodOmatic.

Note: - This guide is not for resale - (c)Alan Carr, 2008

To download go to http://pppsig.podomatic.com/entry/2008-04-15T10_18_36-07_00. 

• Bilingual Search Engine
• Data-Sheet
• Flickrstorm
• Jog the Web
• Knol: a unit of knowledge...
• Lyrics fly
• Searching for the wrong answers
• Whozat
• Yoozila

2Lingual is a search engine with robust functionality. Results are pulled up in not one, but two languages.

• There are currently about 550 different bilingual combinations available for searching.
• Languages run the gamut from Chinese to Swedish.
• Enter search term, as you would with any other search engine.
• Choose your language combinations, for example, English to Norwegian. The results are shown side by side in each respective language.

Note: 1: There are tabs to sort through results: web, image, video, Wikipedia and blog. 2: 2Lingual is still quite new, so expect more to come in the future.

A great tool for researchers, learners, and academics. Often search results in different languages bring up altogether different stories. With 2Lingual users can get a more global perspective on disparate topics. These results can be easily compared and scrutinized for a more in depth view.

Try it out for yourself at http://www.2lingual.com/.

Does what it says... go to http://www.data-sheet.net/ to try it out. 

Flickr is great for finding images, but Flickrstorm is another alternative, which makes it easier to search within the creative commons images contained on Flickr, add them to your tray of photos, and download all of them at once, providing you simultaneously with the original URL of each picture.

Take a look for your self at http://www.zoo-m.com/flickr-storm/.

Imagine you know all about physics (or health & safety, or anything in fact) and you have discovered a lot of cool information on the web
you now want to share with all the other physics-addicts. The thing is that this information is spread out on plenty of different sites.
You could of course...

• put up your own site or blog and
• draw the list of the links to all the interesting pages you found.
• put a comment for each page and give the URL.

Your visitors would then browse your page and follow each link and need to come back each time on your page to find the next URL… So it would be a load of backwards and forwards… but I suppose we are used to that.

Now with a track you can do a lot better.

Using the Track Editor...

• You simply list all the URLs and associate to each URL the comment you want to make for the page.
• Once you have entered all the URLs and comments, you save the track which has its own URL. 
• The visitors who follow your Track (simply clicking on the track’s URL, like for any web page) will then go from page to page according to the order you chose and read under each page the comment you posted.
• Your visitors can also launch the slideshow and sit back and view automatically each page one after the other.
• One very important aspect is that each page opened in the track is the actual page, so it can be browsed or used normally.
• Once the visitor wants to jog to the next URL he simply clicks on the right arrow of the track reader (below the page where the comment appears).

So tracks boil down to simplifying the web and building paths to share with others.

Tracks can be used

• by anybody who wants to share a list of pages (some use it for instance on youtube to build a track of related videos)
• by anybody who goes every day on the same sites (they can now simply jog from one page to the next).
• by websites to show their visitors around (for first time visitors or to show all the new products etc…)
• by websites to lead their visitors on other websites whilst holding their hand: once the tour is over the visitor is back on the initial website
• by trainers who want to use the web “material”
• by anybody who wants to lead the web…

Happy Jogging at http://www.jogtheweb.com/.

Google has just launched Knol - an alternative to Wikipedia - I don't think so!

Find out more at http://knol.google.com/k#.

LyricsFly is user-contributed music service for searching lyrics.

Find lyrics to your favorite songs...

• by artist,
• song and
• album name,

or search using phrases from the lyrics.

In addition to lyrics text, LyricsFly also returns...

• related YouTube videos,
• links to stream songs online (from Seeqpod),
• MP3 download links and
• CD covers.

The lyrics text can be printed out, sent to an email or even edited.

Check this resource out at http://lyricsfly.com/. 

Researchers using search engines are in danger of mistaking information for knowledge, says John Tarrant...

Read the full article at http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/jul/24/commonwealthuniversities.internationaleducationnews. 

Whozat? is a search engine designed to find and display information about people.

• Fill in the search fields with information about the people you want to search for.
• Fields are optional, the more information you type, the more accurate your results.
• Click Whozat and you are done!

Try it out at http://whozat.com/.

Yoozila is a powerful new search engine.

Its primary purpose is to provide users with relevant results and present them in a fresh web 2.0 way.

They don't just look nice, they are also easy to use.

Among the features of Yoozila you will find the Parental Control feature, which you can use to filter adult content, region, file type, license and language filters, to make sure you find exactly what you're looking for. 

Try it out at http://www.yoozila.com/.

Ten major natural history museum libraries, botanical libraries, and research institutions have joined to form the Biodiversity Heritage Library Project.

The group is developing a strategy and operational plan to digitize the published literature of biodiversity held in their respective collections. This literature will be available through a global “biodiversity commons.”

Take a look at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/Default.aspx.

Comprehensive, collaborative, ever-growing, and personalized, the Encyclopedia of Life is an ecosystem of websites that makes all key information about all life on Earth accessible to anyone, anywhere in the world.

Find out what the goals are and investigate the site at http://www.eol.org/index.

FuelYourCreativity is an extensive site full of news, articles, interviews, and ideas to help stimulate designers’ creativity. 

The site has separate categories for...

• interior designers,
• graphic designers,
• web designers,
• packaging designers, and
• illustrators. 

Users can submit all sorts of designs, and for doing so, a link to their profile and their portfolio are included. 

The right side of the webpage contains an ever changing list of the most popular and the latest submissions that have been made to the site or to Twitter and del.icio.us, depending on which thumbnail you select.

Take a look at this really well-designed and clearly-focused site that should continue to appeal to artists and designers of all shades at http://www.fuelyourcreativity.com/.

'Inanimate Alice' tells the story of Alice, growing up in the early years of the 21st century. Written and directed by writer Kate Pullinger and digital artist Chris Joseph, this series of multimedia, interactive episodes uses a combination of text, sound, images, and games as Alice takes us on a journey through her life from the age of eight through to her twenties. Alice becomes a games animator; not just any animator, but a creator of characters for the most successful games company in the world.

And one character stands out: Brad, Alice's only true friend in life.

The ten episodes of 'Inanimate Alice' become increasingly interactive and game-like, reflecting Alice's own developing skills as a game designer and animator. 'Inanimate Alice' is a study of human/computer relations in a world where having friends means never having to meet them.

"'Inanimate Alice' is easily assimilated into learning environments; its use of multimodality (images, sounds, text, interaction) enables learners to see storytelling in a new, multi-sensory light. 'Inanimate Alice' is a new media fiction that allows students to develop multiple literacies (literary, cinematic, artistic, etc.) in combination with the highly collaborative and participatory nature of the online environment"

An ideal resource for Modern Foreign Languages as well as English, Media Literacy and Key Skills...

Find out more at http://www.inanimatealice.com/.

An on-line programme in which members of the public can decide what they think is the most suitable sentence for virtual offenders has been launched, as a new poll claims the public think reforming offenders to cut re-offending is equally as important as punishment

The survey, which analyses the public's understanding of community sentencing and their views around crime & punishment, showed that 82% thought rehabilitation was as important, or more important, than punishment when sentencing offenders.

The survey polled over 3,000 people across England & Wales and revealed only 25% of the public understood what makes up a community sentence, typically a combination of rehabilitation and punishment.

‘Judge for Yourself’ will hopefully help tackle these misunderstandings.

Its interactive design is intended to help educate people about Community Sentencing and the National Probation Service.

The publicly available programme will also be available to schools from September.

Go to http://www.ezstream.co.uk/coi/ and try it out for yourself. 

Other links that may support Judge for Yourself are...

• The Judicial System - http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CrimeJusticeAndTheLaw/Thejudicialsystem/index.htm;
• Probation and community sentencing - http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CrimeJusticeAndTheLaw/PrisonAndProbation/DG_070333;
• Community Sentencing - Reducing Reoffending, Changing Lives - http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/community-sentencing.htm.

LessonWriter is an innovative free online service that...

• allows teachers to cut text from any website,
• paste it into the LessonWriter interface, and
• have dynamic English language lesson plans generated in minutes. 

The service works by analyzing the text that has been pasted and then pulling out...

• vocabulary,
• grammar and usage,
• pronunciation,
• word roots and stems,

...and then generating a lesson plan. 

Teachers can be as creative as they like when selecting the text and they can also tailor lessons to meet the needs of individual students.  All lesson plans can be saved for future use and LessonWriter even tracks what has been taught and recommends the subsequent instructional objects needed to systematically cover all of the English language.

In their own words

“LessonWriter is a web application that creates lesson plans and instructional materials for teaching English language skills from any reading passage.”

By allowing English practitioners to take advantage of the limitless material available on the web, without having to spend hours developing new lessons around it, LessonWriter could become a essential tool.

If you want to use the resulting resources online some additional functionality is required; currently the material has to be printed.

Watch a demo at http://www.lessonwriter.com/html/demo.asp 

or find out more at http://www.lessonwriter.com/html/index.asp. 

A fun website that can help learners improve writing skills and speed of thought. 

• OneWord comes up with, now here is the surprise, one word!
• Users are required to write about that word for entire minute.
• At the end of that time you can  see and evaluate what you have written.

In addition they can check out archives and read what others have written on various topics. 

No sign up or registration required so go try it out at http://oneword.com/. 

Readability - how to test how easy a text is to read

SMOG (simplified measure of gobbledygook) is a formula that gives a readability level for written material. Readability is an attempt to match the reading level of written material to the "reading with understanding" level of the reader.

If only there were a service that helps with the struggle of rewriting text aimed at learners who need a low readability level.

Well now there is:

Thsrs, the thesaurus that only gives you synonyms shorter than the word you’re looking up. Just enter one of the longer words in your message, and Thsrs will suggest shorter words to use instead.

It’s a brilliant idea, but early days in its development and when I tried it out, for some words, I got ‘Unknown word, try again’; I'm sure it will evolve and become a useful tool.

 

To try out Thrs go to http://www.ironicsans.com/thsrs/ and...
for a quick SMOG go to http://www.literacytrust.org.uk/campaign/SMOG.html.

NOTE: - Relating SMOG levels to adult literacy levels
As a rough indication...

• SMOG 9-10 = Entry Level 3,
• 11-12 = Level 1 and
• 13-14 = Level 2

...but that it's far from an exact science and SMOG should only be taken as one indicator among many for the suitability of a text.

...is a free site, developed by Southern Codes, for finding all kind of sound FX and musical instruments samples on their mega online library. Soungle is NOT a Web search engine. It only searches their growing database. Their goals are to keep it simple to use (search, preview and download) and to keep it free.

Keyword searches are performed by entering any word or phrase in a search box. The retrieved results of a keyword search are displayed ten to a page. Clicking on play icon allows you to preview a file. Download button instantly downloads the sound effect or musical instrument sample file. A short description of the sound appears on top of every sound , followed by the frame rate, duration and bit rate. Remember, all of our sound effects and samples are royalty free for downloading.

Try it yourself at http://soungle.com/index.php. 

 

A chance for budding artists to daub a wall with their own creative juices by working collaboratively.

The amount of paint is limited and it probably won't be enough to complete a masterpiece! That's when group art kicks in! Click the save and send and send it to the next painter.

This could be used to get learners to collaborate on a specific end product/desigh and to plan it in such a way that the goal is achieved; with each member of the team adding to the masterpiece. They won’t earn oodles for their efforts, just the admiration of others when they spot their paint job in the online gallery, or from peers when you email them your contribution to the group masterpiece.

Try it out at http://www.wetpaintpleasetouch.com/.

I had great fun, and I'd love to see some of your efforts; mine is above.

 

Although targeting the West Midlands, if you are a lecturer, student or business manager in a college, university or sixth form Business and Learning Connections can help you by providing, free of charge, reusable learning materials.

These are in the form of video clips which bring the real world of business into the classroom environment. The project, which is funded by Advantage West Midlands has good links with, and the strong support of, many of the West Midlands businesses and business organisations who provide their expertise to Business & Learning Connections to pass on to you.

All the material produced is in collaboration with higher and further education learning providers around the West Midlands and relates directly to courses being offered.

If your organisation wants to bring the real world of business into your teaching arena then this can help. Check the list of topics covered by the project and register to gain access to the material - no charge!

In addition, there is...

• a range of useful videos including interviews with student work placements discussing their experiences;
• comments from the supervisors of work placements about the business perspective;
• careers advice and guidance about the engineering sector and
• an interview with a leading restaurant manager about catering management opportunities.

For those involved in Work Based Learning, this has got to be worth a visit; go to http://www.businessandlearningconnections.co.uk/ to see for yourself.

My thanks to Theresa Welch, eLearning Adviser for RSC West Midlands, for flagging up this excellent resource in her 'wobble' blog (http://wblwestmids.blogspot.com/)

Zap Reader is a web based speed reading application that can train you and/or your learners to read faster.

• There is nothing to install or download
• Copy & paste text into the reader
• Choose your reading speed.

"ZapReader also states that some of the people who tried ZapReader reported a 300% increase in reading speed, without any loss in comprehension."

Features

• Learn and Practise speed reading online.
• Pause and resume your reading whenever you want by hitting the pause button.
• Easily skip forward and backwards by one sentence.
• Adjust the reading speed.
• Read two or more words at the time.

Try it out at http://www.zapreader.com/reader/.

Further details are found at http://www.zapreader.com/... 

Or watch the video overview below...

Or watch it on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uw6R3TkRf4.

At the RSC-Nortwest's Conference in Aintree, 4^th July 2008, I was asked about software for converting video clips.

If YouTube or Google Video is blocked in your organisation then learners need to learn how to convert online video at home to a hard file they can import into their presentations or ePortfolios for example.

I have included such tools in previous eMagazines but these two online tools are new to me and are well worth a look...

1. 
   Visit http://vixy.net/.
2. 
   Visit http://www.zamzar.com/.

Bubble Joy is a way of sending short (60 seconds) fun educational video messages to people.

BubbleJoy have a selection of message cards and you just record your video message to be placed in the middle. This just requires a webcam and microphone. The whole thing is very quick and easy to do.

So why use this with learners?

• Good listening and speaking practice
• Good fun and easy to do
• Communicative
• Creative
• Free, easy to use, no registration required
• Good selection of cards

So how could this be used with learners?

• Be sure to remember that with Bubble Joy you only have 60 seconds, and the video card expires after it has been viewed 50 times.
• Use it for specific occasions, reminders, feedback, learner reflection
• Get learners to create messages.
• Students could also plan an imaginary holiday and then send a card to tell other as about it (on safari, riding in a hot air balloon etc.)
• Learners can use one of the TV or stage designs to give a brief news report. They could each report on their day in a work placement.
• They could use the stage or TV designs to a 60 second presentation/argument/sales pitch etc., and then send them round and vote on the best one.

Remember: It isn't the software it is how you use it!

Have a play Experiment with BubbleJoy at http://www.bubblejoy.com/intro.php.

Fumpr is a newly launched image hosting service that claims to be web’s fastest image host. According to the site the images are loading in under .01 seconds on average.

A simple and visually appealing interface (Especially for family learning).

No registration or email required. Simply...

1. choose the image you want to store with them and
2. click the upload button.
3. Once the image is uploaded you are given four different links to share it on the web.

• These include a separate link for...
  • sharing the image with friends,
  • direct download,
  • adding images to forum threads and
  • embed code.

It is essential that you and/or your learners record these links or the images will not be accessible.

Solves, for many, the problems of storage space and provides ways in which images can be linked to from ePortfolios.

Try it out at http://fumpr.com/. 

An online GIF maker program that lets you compose GIF animations from regular static images.

• Upload the images you want to use (supports gif, png and jpg images),
• Set duration for each frame and
• Click on “Generate GIF” button.

Note: It can decompose existing GIF animations as well. 

Features

• Upload images from your PC or a web address.
• Download and save animated GIFs to your computer.
• Preview animations before downloading them.
• Specify the duration for each frame in the animation.
• Set the nr. of times the animation should repeat itself (infinite = 0).
• Resize frame images to largest (by width), smallest (by width) or specific size (in pixels).
• Upload and decompose existing GIF animations online.

Try it out at http://gifmake.com/.

Just got round to trying out Magic Studio;  some great free interactive learning tools and curriculum content ready for you to use -

• Timelines,
• Interactive Images,
• Drag 'n' Drop
• and more.

Visit http://www.magicstudio.com/

or

take the Teacher Tour at http://www.magicstudio.com/home/teacher_tour

Here is is my first effort at producing an Interactive Image...

Free PowerPoint to Flash converter creates web friendly Flash movies from your PowerPoint content keeping its visual parameters and animation effects. Generated Flash presentation will look as if it has always been a Flash movie.

Download and/or find out more at http://www.ispringsolutions.com/products/ispring_free.html.

Magnigraph lets you turn photos to vector graphics.

Create magnigraph (vector art) of...

• your signature,
• a sketch or
• a photograph.

Customize the magnigraph color, scale it to the desired size, and save it to your PC.

Optionally you can get magnigraphs printed on T-shirts, mugs, or posters.

There are two ways to create magnigraphs. You can either upload an image from your hard drive, or point it to some image on the web.

Magnigraph recommends using low resolution and high contrast pictures.

Find out more at http://www.magnigraph.com/. 

Here is one I made earlier...

Nik Peachey, in his Quick Shout Blog, flags up Panfu as...

" Well what kid wouldn't want to be a language learning panda? Panfu has used this premise as the basis for a new virtual world for kids in which they can play games and learn languages at the same time. They create their own panda avatar, dress the panda and have their own panda tree house to decorate and invite friends round to."

• Panfu are offering two levels of membership;
  
  • Free and
  • Gold - entitles children to get extra personalisation for their panda avatar and his/her lodgings.

Note - getting children involved in virtual worlds or any kind of social networking is always slightly risky, but it does look as though Panfu are taking this seriously. An ideal opportunity for Family Learning tutors to address these risks with parents/guardians etc.

• There is a parental guide at http://www.panfu.com/eltern.php?langId=EN&partnerId=0 that covers...
  • an overview
  • child's security
  • privacy etc

If children register as being English, then they get to learn some Spanish, if they register as other nationalities it looks like they get to learn English.

Like Nik, I haven't tried Panfu out myself, yet, it however does look like a serious and well thought out educational effort.

Hope your family learners and/or other children & parents/guardians enjoy it.

Find out more and evaluate it at http://www.panfu.com/.

PS I've investigated a little further and discovered that...

• Children first must create their own panda avatars, picking a color (these panda bears aren’t limited to black and white), and a panda name. 
• After inputting a couple of personal details, kids can then go on to select their panda world, and add cool accoutrements to their pandas, such as clothing and accessories. 
• Every Panda has their own treehouse; clicking on a panda will open up his or her player card (here users can also browse through the objects they own. 
• One of Panfu’s main focuses is on early language learning. 
  
  • English speaking users will find a certain amount of content in Spanish (the site is also available in other languages, including Polish, Spanish and German). 
  • There is also a Spanish speaking Panda named Penelope who encourages children to speak without fear in Spanish. 
• Within their worlds, Pandas can freely explore buildings and outdoor areas (click on any place to get your Panda in, or use the navigational map). 
• Games are hidden throughout Panfu’s islands. 

Ekpenso is an online mindmapping tool.

Create and share your mindmaps and/or get your learners to do the same.

Ekpenso offers the ability to edit your mindmaps even when you are offline. There is also a Mindmap-module for those of you with a moodle-platform.

Find out more at http://en.ekpenso.com/.

People have been toying around with their picture ever since the first version of MS Paint came on the scene.

Photofunia.com provides users with a fun alternative to alter their images.

What does it do?

“What can I do with my old pictures?” A question has been bothering humans ever since the invention of the camera. Finally, Photofunia.com has the answer.

On the site, you will be able to upload pictures of your face and add fun effects to it.

Whether you want to alter your picture so it looks older, or stretch your face out to make you look like an alien, you will be able to do that and more on this site."

The site uses feature detection technology, which allows the effects to look realistic. The variety of effects is considerable, so you should not have a problem finding one to suit your photograph.

The site works surprisingly fast for an image processing website.

• Upload your picture and
• chose the effect

...and that's it.

On the whole, this site should provide learners with a number of options for portfolio presentation of images.

Take a look at http://www.photofunia.com/.

My first attempts are shown below Clicking the thumbnail will open a viewer; clicking the image in the viewer will enlarge it. 

Share Flickr Photos in Stylish Slideshows...

This simple web application lets you quickly create beautiful slide shows, using your Flickr photographs, and share them with others (Ideal for galleries/showcases/presentations/etc). At the moment there are 8 slideshow templates to choose from.

There is no need to create an account or configure anything. Just...

• enter your Flickr username,
• select the photo quality,
• choose one of the provided slideshow templates
  
  • Tiltviewer,
  • Polaroid gallery,
  • dfGallery,
  • Flashapi,
  • Slide film gallery,
  • Grey gallery,
  • Pictobrowser,
  • Black gallery,

and

• click on “Pick Me” button.

It is that straight forward! You have created your own Flickr slideshow. If you want to share it with colleagues or learners simply send them a link.

Try it out at http://www.picsviewr.com/.

Below is a slideshow of my latest images shown in Tiltviewer...

How about making your pictures more fun informative by adding speech bubbles?

That's exactly what Speechable can help users with. It lets you add speech bubbles to photographs and then easily share them with others. It further lets you embed photographs onto your blog or social networking profile.

Features:

• Add speech bubbles to photos online.
• Customize text and bubble size.
• Publish ready images on Speechable or keep them private.
• Embed photos onto your blog or online profile (ex. Myspace).
• Download and save ready photos back to your photos.
• Check out Most Popular images.
• Leave comments on publicly shared photos.
• No sign-up or registration needed.

Try it out at http://speechable.com/.

Ever been asked by a learner to add subtitles to video clips? Subyo is a web service that can help you with that.

• You need to register and get yourself a Subyo account.
• Copy and paste video URL into provided field
• Click on “Add Subtitles”. The video will be loaded in Subyo editor from where you can start adding subtitles.
• When adding subtitles is complete save and share the video with learners.

Note: you can also search Subyo user created database for already subtitled videos.

Features:

• Easily add subtitles to YouTube videos and share them with others.
• Add subtitles to as many videos as you like.
• Store and manage subtitled videos from one place.
• Browse subtitled videos created by other Subyo members.

Find out more and/or register at http://subyo.com/.

Note: Subyo.com is a young website started in June 2008 just for one purpose: to provide subtitles system for YouTube videos.

Six Word borders you can apply as you type...

When you want to set off a paragraph with a horizontal line, you can switch from the keyboard to the mouse and click the appropriate border tool - or you can simply type it in.

Note that Word's AutoCorrect border option must be set for the following keys to work.
Go to Tools>Auto Correct. (For Office 2007, click the Office button, click the Word Options button, point to Proofing in the left column and then click the AutoCorrect Options button).

This clip, from TeacherTube, describes two ways of reducing the volume of music in Audacity so you can hear your voiceover properly. Great for making your own podcasts.

The screencast demonstrating how to use Audacity to duck or fade music behind voice tracks most frequently used when preparing audio files for podcasts can also be viewed at http://www.teachertube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=a6c607d2fe43b43ba96f.

"After taking time to input a large amount of data, is there an easier way to double check it just to make sure I've entered everything correctly?"

"Currently it is time consuming I either have to constantly look back and forth from my printed list to my spreadsheet or I get a colleague to read out the list while I check the spreadsheet. Help Please!"

"By the way I have Office 2007"

With Office 2007, and I'm informed by Colin, eLearning Adviser for WBL, it works with 2003 as well, a better way is to have Excel read your data back to you; this allows you to check the printed list while listening to the spreadsheet values.

To use the Speak Cell functionality,

• You need to add it to Excel's Quick Access toolbar.
  
  • Open Excel 2007 and go to the Quick Access Toolbar at the top of the window. It will look like one of the images below...
    or
  • Click the downward point arrow to the right of the toolbar and select More Commands.
    
    The Customize the Quick Access Toolbar window opens
  • In the Choose commands from pane, click the drop-down arrow to the right of Popular Commands
    
  • From the drop-down menu that appears select Commands Not in the Ribbon
    
    A list will appear on the left...
  • Scroll down the list and find Speak Cells, Speak Cells — Stop Speaking Cells, Speak Cells by Columns, Speak Cells by Rows, and Speak Cells on Enter. Add each of these, to the existing list on the right, by selecting them one-by-one and clicking the Add button.
    
  • Click OK after all 5 commands have been added to the list on the right.
    
  • The Speak Cell commands are added to your Quick Access toolbar
    or

Now for the bit you have been waiting for...

• Open any spreadsheet that you wish to check the data
• Select the cells you want Excel to read by performing a simple click and drag.
• Once the data is selected, go to the Quick Access toolbar and select...
  either Speak Cells by Columns
  or Speak Cells by Rows.
• When you are ready for Excel to begin reading off the data contained in the selected cells, select Speak Cells and Excel will begin reading out the data to you.
• If you need Excel to stop reading, simply select Stop Speaking Cells.

What about the other icon?

This one, I think, has even greater uses; by selecting this icon, every time you have completed typing in the cell and you type the enter key or Tab key on your keyboard, Excel reads out what you have typed! How cool is that? (Sorry I got carried away)

Not only does this help data input but it has many other uses, especially in Functional Skills, ESOL, etc. e.g. spread sheets can be set up with text IN A COLUMN, one word in each cell, that learners have to read. clicking on the first word (cell) prepares the interactive resource. Learners can...

• Listen to the text by repeatedly typing the ENTER on the keyboard.
• Say the word then Type the ENTER key to listen to the word, read the next word etc...

...and there is so much more that can be done...

Is there a quick way to work out how many working days to a deadline? Trying to allow for weekends and holidays.

There is indeed! You do not need to count out days on a calendar to find out how many days you have to complete a project.

Excel’s NETWORKDAYS function can calculate it for you — without requiring you to work weekends or holidays.

To set up a worksheet that will calculate the number of working days excluding weekends and holidays from a project’s start date to its due date, follow these steps:

• Enter the headings for Project, Start Date, End Date, and Work Days as shown.
• Select B2:C2 then
  • Press Shift+ Ctrl + Down Arrow. (this selects all the cells in both columns except the headings)
  • Right-click the selection and
  • choose Format Cells.
  • Select Date under Category and
  • 14/03/01 under Type.
  • Click OK.
• Select G2.
  • Press Shift+ Ctrl + Down Arrow. (this selects all the cells in this column except the heading above)
  • Right-click the selection and
  • choose Format cells.
  • Select Date under Category and
  • 14-March-2001 under Type.
  • Click OK.
• With these cells still selected
  • Click in the Name box and
  • Type Holidays_2008 followed by the return key on the keyboard
    
• Add some sample data or actual data as shown below...
  
• Click cell D2 (as shown above) and enter the following formula:
  =NETWORKDAYS(B2,C2,Holidays_2008)
  
  Follow this by typing the Enter Key on the keyboard.
• Copy the formula in D2 to the other cells (D3:D4 etc) to obtain the number of Workdays for Projects B and C.
  

Sample file to download - DeadlineDaysLeft.xls (19KB)

To Print a phone directory of your contacts...

Open Outlook and go to your Contacts.

1. If you wish to only include certain contacts, hold down the ctrl key and left click the desired contacts. When finished, release the ctrl key. If you wish to print all of your contacts, don't select anything.
2. Go to the menu, click File and select Print. 
3. In the Print dialog box, go to the Print style section. Scroll down and select Phone Directory Style.
   
   In the Print range section, select...
   All items to print out all of your contacts or
   Only selected items if you selected specific contacts in step 2.
4. Click OK to print the document or click Preview to see how it will look.

Remembering keyboard shortcuts is hard enough, for some, when the are working on some no-pressure project at their desk.

Put them in from of an audience and their mind may go totally blank.

Their focus needs to be on the material they are presenting and how they are connecting with their audience - not on...

• How do I back up to the previous slide?

That is why it is a good idea to pick a handful of the most useful shortcuts and make them second nature.

Here are seven PowerPoint Shortcuts that I find most useful...

F5 - Start a presentation from the first slide

Enter or Spacebar - Run the next animation or move to the next slide 

Backspace - Return to the previous slide

Esc or - (hyphen) - End a slide show

Home - Jump to the first slide

End - Jump to the last slide

Type the slide number and press enter - Jump to a particular slide (OK that one isn't going to be that useful!)

B or W - Go to a black (or white) screen or resume the slide show from a black (or white screen). (Now that one is very useful!)

I'm a fan of the Quality Video Tutorials produced by Tinkernut <http://www.tinkernut.com/>

This example video will show you, and/or your learners, how to convert small video clips into printable flipbooks using free software.

Cost of business cards may be an issue but they do make nice interactive presents.

Flipbook Printer is a program that lets you make your own printed "Flipbooks" from avi movie files using business cards.

The Flipbook Printer software used in this video is downloadable from http://www.donationcoder.com/Software/Mouser/FlipbookPrinter/index.html.