teacherlibrarian

=AIS Teacher Librarian Conference 2009: Beyond, between & bemused= //Resources from Melanie Hughes' session ICT update: a smorgasbord of the latest applications for T-Ls//

File Conversion
[|Zamzar] Do you have a file that you like to convert to another format? Zamzar will allow you to upload a file up 10 100mb in size and convert it to another format which is then emailed back to you. [|Any video convertor] (Look for the FREE VERSION in the centre of the page) is software that allows you to convert a great variety of video files types to another kind of video file types. (With appropriate permission from the author) you can also download Youtube videos.

Multimedia making tools
[|Glogster] make multimedia posters or collage to express an opinion, represent learning or just to have fun. They also have an [|education page] [|Animoto] combine your images and music to create a professional looking video in minutes. [|This Blog post by FreeTech4Teachers] gives some good tips on using Glogster. It includes some easy tutorials and some great examples. [|This blog post by Amy Mayer] gives some great tips on using Animoto (Glogster and Wordle to learn).

RSS feed readers and aggregators
RSS feeds are a way of subscribing to information from a site online. The information is sent to an aggregator/feed reader each time it is updated. I like to think of it as the electronic equivalent of getting the newspaper thrown on your front lawn. Instead of needing to visit numerous web sites each day to keep abreast of news. Simply subscribe and have it delivered to your feed reader. [|RSS feeds] are usually marked on a web page by the words subscribe or by a chicklet (this orange icon) [|Pageflakes] and igoogle are too popular feed readers. There are many others however, each presents the information to you in a slightly different way. The one you choose is based on your personal preferences. Pageflakes allows you to make pagecasts ([|click here for an example]) which is a way of publicly broadcasting your collected feeds on a topic or topics. These would be ideal for a library page on your school website or intranet.

Finding Resources/ New ways of exploring Copyrighht
[|Creative Commons] is a movement that allows authors of works of all kind to license them so others may use them legally. [|Slideshare] allows authors to upload slide presentations and documents for others to view and use. Some content is licensed under [|Creative Commons]. See this page for even more tips on creative commons and copyright friendly resources.

Online text, audio and video conferencing
[|Dim dim] Dimdim does not require users to install software on their computers to attend web meetings. Users can start or join meetings with just a few clicks. You don't even need an account to join a video conference meeting. Invitations to attend are sent by email and link directly to the meeting room online.

Online Bibliography maker
[|Bibme] is a free automatic bibliography maker that auto-fills. It's the easiest way to build a works cited page.

Coming Soon
Google Wave a new tool (not yet released) that will allow a new overarching way of communicating and collabortaing online by combining a host of Web2.0 applications. There is a 1 hour video explanation available online but if you'd like to get a feel for what it might do take a look at the 10 minute abridged version of the Google Wave presentation below.

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