Write an eBook - PDF or ePub

Digital Publishing is back with the spread of eReaders and iPads in schools and homes. Cheryl Davis from Acalanes Union High School District has created 3 mini-tutorials for teachers and students to use, depending on the app they select: Google Mobile, Pages or Google Docs. The first 2 options generate PDFs which don't allow for resizing the text, but the Google Docs (+ ePub Bud) let you create true ePubs.

More about ePubBud:
https://sites.google.com/site/ebookcooltools/epubbud-site

SafeShare

Share Youtube videos in class without all the extras.

Youtube has many great clips that can enhance a class discussion or serve as a springboard to a lesson. Sometimes the "related content" is just not appropriate. SafeShare allows you to view just the clip without the "extras".

"Our service provides a unique combination of the ability to view the video with minimum distraction as well as the ability to crop distracting scenes within the video !"

Example: http://www.safeshare.tv/w/kPQWdwTOIB

picoDoodler - quick draw artist!

What can you do with just 10K? The site "10K Apart" sponsors a competition to see who can create the most interesting webapps, with the smallest footprint. These apps run in your browser window and let you play games, doodle, look up stuff, calculate, run animations, etc. One I like is quick draw app called PicoDoodler. This basic draw program lets you select pen size and colour, erase mistakes and save the image to your desktop, and it's only 4.97K - wow!  Perfect for a quick little sketch to show off an idea or illustrate a concept. Launch it is a sec, draw your image, and move on.

Spiderscribe

Spiderscribe is an easy-to-use mindmapping application that allows you to upload pictures and documents to enhance your "web". From the site: "It lets you organize your ideas by connecting notes, files, calendar events, etc. in free-form maps. You can collaborate and share those maps online!" Maps can be private or public, and can be a way to marshall resources needed for a presentation. Students simply login to their account and all their material is in one place.

Intervue - get video feedback on topics you post

One of the key features of the Web 2.0 world is the ability to give feedback to posts and webpages. In most cases, the feedback takes the form of a text comment. "Intervue" by particleteam allows you to create a video response wall where people can be invited to leave an AV comment to a question or issue you post. As the owner of the intervue, you can choose to set the video responses to Hidden. (When you do, only you will be able to see the videos.) Or you can allow them to be visible to the world.  Compose a set of questions, post them for your class, gather the responses publicly or privately, download the responses as mp4s or embed them. Use Intervue to get student responses to a test question, practice public speaking or as a placeholder for your own video clips.