A Reply to David....

David,

I agree with you. Apple provides high value in what you pay for. Simple case in point, when I was connecting my Mac to a home network, it was very easy. The Mac found the network within seconds. As for my friend’s PC, it required much more leg work (identify the network etc.).

On a different topic, for Assignment #5 I was very tempted to use MS Power Point or even Google Documents free online software to hand in this project. The reason that I did not use this online software was due to my slow internet connection (uploading audio/video would be a horrendous task), as well I was unsure if these online versions would let me export a final project to hand in. Something I will definitely experiment with in the future. Just curious if anyone else was also contemplating this idea, or will experiment with these online programs in the future.

Google Earth Extended

Google Earth is very impressive. They have actually extended this program to be even more detailed. Google Street allows you explore places at a real street view. The street view allows users to rotate 360 degrees and zoom in on real digital pictures of certain locations in the States. I'm sure this will eventually extend to many different locations across the world.

Take a look for yourself, it's really cool.....yet scary that they can do this.

http://books.google.com/help/maps/streetview/

A Reply to Christine....

Hi Christine,

From my experience with the Hamilton Boards (Catholic and Public) they have been using PCs. However Apple integration into schools have been growing over the past decade, so I'm sure that eventually more schools may choose to "switch sides" soon enough.

Basically Macs have many user friendly programs for: presentations, video editing, audio editing, photo editing/display, conferencing, web creating, and DVD creation.

A Reply to David....

David,

Very insightful view of PP vs. Keynote. I firmly believe that Keynote, and just Apple as a company, is far more user-friendly, innovative and dynamic than Power Point (MS), however Apple’s problem lies in its overall price. More people have PCs than Macs, because they are cheaper. I promise you, in a couple years the debate won’t just be between PP (MS) vs. Keynote (Apple). Google will have it’s whole suite to content with (give it a couple more years to really develop).

As to why inserting a chart launches Excel……like you mentioned it’s all about the marketing ploy. They want to establish how “easy” their suite performs in terms of integration of one program into another. Their defense is, why should we create chart features in Power Point, when we have built an entire program to handle charts etc. Apple also does this tactic in their programs.

A Reply to Keethai...

Keethai,

That's a great find. I wish there were slightly more options for your font, as it sort of gets lost with the background. I'll def. save this in my favourites folder. Thanks for the link.

A Reply to Mark....

I'm glad you also found the link useful Mark. It sounds like you already do a lot of creative technology aspect projects for your students. I would have loved to have that available to me back when I was in school. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly the curriculum has evolved over the years. I could just imagine what it will be like when these current students enter the work force.

A Reply to Shane

Hi Shane,

Sorry to hear about your problems with sound. I know it has to be frustrating. The best way to get rid of that “scratchy” background noise with your sound clips is to use the software that came with your microphone/web cam to record the sound clips, and then insert this sound clip into your Power Point Presentation. I'm sure the audio quality would greatly improve. To play this presentation on another computer, you would have to include the linked sound files as well as your power point file, and possibly relink the sound files onto the new computer. You are absolutely correct; power point has to get a better audio recorder.

Free eBook Libraries

The link below provides a collection of free eBook libraries that are available to the general public today. There’s a lot to filter through, but there are some interesting ones.

Here’s the link:
http://drscavanaugh.org/ebooks/libraries/ebook_libraries.htm

e-Book Defined

What is an ebook?

An ebook is a book published in electronic form, similar to a Word document, which can be delivered to any computer that is connected to the internet from anywhere in the world.

Epublishing is the way of the FUTURE. Stephen King brought epublishing to the attention of the world by publishing his novel, Riding the Bullet, exclusively in ebook form. In the first 24 hours of availability, 400,000 copies were downloaded - more than any other book in any format!

With Ebooks ...
- you can return easily to previously viewed pages.
- you get instant access to content.
- you can search for words or phrases and get access to the pages instantly.
- the environment is protected because no trees are destroyed.

An eBook ...
~ can be a 400-page novel, complete with illustrations or photographs.
~ could also be a training manual.
~ can be a 10-page specialized report that focuses on solving a specific problem.
~ can be short stories

More Power Point Presentation Tips

Text:
· Limit the number of bulleted items per page. There should be fewer than 6 bullets per page.
· Don't try to put too much text on a slide. Each slide should have less than 10 lines of text.

Charts:
· Make sure that you include enough labels so that people will know what the chart refers
to.
· Often a simple bar chart is much easier to read than a 3D chart. Many times it is difficult
to compare the size of the bars in 3D charts.

Templates:
· Consider how much information you will be displaying on each page when picking a
template. If you plan on presenting a lot of material per page, use a simple template.

Animation:
· Limit the amount of animation that you use.
· Don't have animation on most of your pages.
· If you animate your titles, have the rest of the slide appear after the title is displayed. If
you don't, your audience won't know what the data refers to.

Colors:
· Overhead projectors have low contrast. Make sure you use high contrast colors or the
colors will blend together on the overhead. For example, don't use white and light blue
bars in a chart.

Final Checklist (or things to check when you think you are done).
· Does each slide have a title?
· Does all the information fit on the slide? Maybe you can move the text or graphic up, or
perhaps you can widen the text boxes. If it is text, you might want to highlight the text
and pick a smaller font. Make sure the text isn't too small though.
· Did you spell check the final copy? Spelling mistakes are embarrassing!
· Are any of the graphics overlapping text?
· Are the chart sufficiently labeled? Are the X and Y axes labeled?

Another Finished Example of Digital Photography

Found another example of a completed digital photography activity that a teacher has done and posted on the web. She created a book of opposites in which her pre-kindergarten students acted out. The students took digital pictures of one another illustrating the opposites, and then the teacher attached each photo to a book. A caption for each opposite was then added. It looks very good, and definitely something I will use in the future.

Here’s the link:

http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/teacher_feature/teacher_feature006.shtml

Good Old Power Point

I've had trouble with exporting my Assignment 6 as a stand alone player. It was a very annoying process, since my older version was installed quite a while ago on my computer and I no longer had the Application CD. In order to complete the export, the program required the CD.

This whole process just makes me apprechiate Google (and now MS) making their software programs purely as an online format. This would eliminate the above problem I had encountered, and ensure that the intended viewer would be able to view, hear, and watch all the embedded file formats.

Of course, these online applications can produce their own unique problems.

David Reply 3.....

David,

I also heard that information about the health records. And I agree, if security can be a non issue, then this can be a very effective tool.

Looks like MS started to react a lot faster than I though. Today they announced that they are releasing the entire MS Office Package in an online format for free (it's a beta test, but still works). It works on the same principal as the Google Software, where users documents are saved on MS's database.

Interesting......to say the least.

Another Reply to David....

Actually David, Google has been laying the seeds for their own operating system/computer for a few years now. They want to create Google Computers where by each user would have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. The tower/hard drive as well as all of your Google Programs would exist on the internet (and on their servers across the US). Sounds scary now, but in due time it’ll prove its reliability and benefits. They already have test markets for this stuff in the States. To say Microsoft is concerned, is an understatement.

Google Presentations

It was just a matter of time before Google stepped into the Presentation software realm. Google created a documents and software program a few years ago, that allowed people to collaborate on a single document in real time, over the Internet. They have recently extended this program to include side show presentations. The program is called Google Docs. It’s a powerful free tool that can be used on an individual/collaborative basis.

Below is a You Tube video that shows how easy it is to create a project. As you will see, the software is very user friendly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_vsNV3po2k

Side Note: “WYSIWYG” means What You See Is What You Get. They make reference to this in the video.

If you are interested in experimenting in this software then you can obtain your free download from:

https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?service=writely&passive=true&continue=http%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2F&followup=http%3A%2F%2Fdocs.google.com%2F&ltmpl=homepage&nui=1&rm=false

I don’t know why the link is so long, but it works. This page will provide you with some more detailed information on how Google Docs work.

A Reply to Patricia

I'm glad you liked the article Patricia. I find PowerPoint can be convoluted at times, when it does not need to be. Apple’s products always seem to be more user friendly which often times produces greater results.

If you are going to install the Keynote software, make sure you have a MAC computer, as it’s only an Apple product. The program itself can export a type file that can work on PCs.

Keynote can be found on Apple’s iLife software packages, as was mentioned on our discussion board.

Came across this article on Al Gore’s documentary, and why he chose to use Key Note. It’s an interesting read. It’s revealed in the article that Gore was able to tailor his presentation to suit different audiences. I don’t know too much about the program, but to be able to do this is quite remarkable. The article states: “He decided he wanted to talk for 40 seconds instead of five, he had that control. He could go forward or return to a previous point if he wanted to. Had we gone away from Keynote, we would never have had the versatility that we were able to have.”

Here’s the link:
http://www.apple.com/hotnews/articles/2006/05/inconvenienttruth/
(there’s also a link to the trailer for the movie on that page).

Also, if any of you are planning to use to integrate some of the technology applications we have learned via this course, though a Mac based platform, then you might be interested in registering for Apple Canada’s “School Night at the Apple Retail Store” program. It basically lets your class come into their store, and exhibit their apple induced technology in the classroom presentations. The added incentive is that you will receive a one year one to one training sessions at the Apple Store.

Tips for Student Presentations

1. Know Your TopicStudents usually want to charge right in and start using the presentation software immediately. Do the research first and know your material. Think through what you will present before beginning the project on the

computer. Creating the slide show is the easy part. The best

classroom presentations are created by people who are

comfortable with what they are going to talk about.

2. Use Key Phrases About Your TopicGood presenters use key phrases and include only the most important information. Your topic may be vast, but choose only the top three or four points and make them several times throughout the presentation in the classroom.

3. Avoid Using Too Much Text on the SlideOne of the biggest mistakes students make in classroom presentations, is in writing their whole speech on the slides. The slide show is meant to accompany your oral presentation. Write in the form of jot notes, called bullet points, on slides. Use simple language and limit the number of bullets to three or four per slide. The surrounding space will make it easier to read.

4. Limit the Number of SlidesToo many slides in a presentation will cause you to be rushing to get through them, and your audience might end up paying more attention to the changing slide than to what you are saying. On average, one slide per minute is about right in a classroom presentation.

5. Layout of Your Slide is ImportantMake your slides easy to follow. Put the title at the top where your audience expects to find it. Phrases should read left to right and top to bottom. Keep important information near the top of the slide. Often the bottom portions of slides cannot be seen from the back rows because heads are in the way.

6. Avoid Fancy FontsChoose a font that is simple and easy to read such as Arial, Times New Roman or Verdana. You may have a really cool font on your computer, but save it for other uses. Don't use more than two different fonts – one for headings and another for content. Keep all fonts large enough (at least 18 pt and preferably 24 pt) so that people at the back of the room will be able to read them easily.

7. Use Contrasting Colors For Text and Background
Dark text on a light background is best. This combination offers the most visibility. Sometimes though, you may want a dark background for effect, to dazzle the crowd. In that case, be sure to make text a light color for easy reading in a classroom presentation.
Text is often difficult to read on patterned or textured backgrounds.
Keep your color scheme consistent throughout your classroom presentation.

8. Try a Slide Design Template to Keep the Look ConsistentWhen you use a design template, choose one that will not detract from your classroom presentation. Test it ahead of time to make sure that the text will be readable and the graphics won’t get lost in the background.

9. Use Animations and Transitions Sparingly in Classroom PresentationsLet's face it. Students love to apply animations and transitions every place they can. This will certainly be entertaining, but rarely will the audience be paying attention to the message of the presentation.

Apply animations to graphics to make a point, not to entertain. Using preset animation schemes will apply action to titles and bullet points, keeping the slide show consistent and interesting. Remember, the slide show is a visual aid and not the objective of the classroom presentation.

NOTES....on PowerPoint Presentations

Presentations for Instruction

Use PowerPoint presentations to enhance the effectiveness of classroom instruction in many ways in every subject area.

· Main points can be emphasized and the presentation itself can be enhanced by
using graphics, animation, or sound.
· Add flair to presentations with slide and bullet transitions and animated effects.
· Presentations can be used to make lessons more organized and flexible.
· Text on a PowerPoint presentation is much easier for students to read than trying to
read notes that are written on an overhead projector or chalkboard.
· Student interest can be stimulated through the use of graphics and cartoons.
· Variety is the key to keeping the attention of students.
· Many tools are available for use with PowerPoint, so experiment to see what works
best for you and your students.


Creative Presentation Ideas
· Flash Cards - Create Flashcard presentations for individual and group
reinforcement. You can create a template and choose whether you or your students
will insert the words or phrases. Topics may include: reinforcing math concepts;
practicing parts of speech; practicing spelling; reinforcing story problems; and
reinforcing numbers, letters, or colors.
· Field Trip Slide Shows - Develop field trip slide shows to review and apply
knowledge learned on a field trip. Students can work together to make a slide show
that presents what they saw, as well as what they learned.
· Autobiographical Stories - Students can create short autobiographical stories about
themselves. Scanned photos can be inserted for interest. Once the slides are
complete, you can put them together in a presentation to show an audience, such as
an open house or parent night.
· Interactive Book Reports - Have students create a PowerPoint presentation about
books they read.
· Music Class Recitals - For music teachers, PowerPoint is a useful tool for creating
slide shows of student recitals. During a recital, take pictures of the students while
they are performing and record a small portion of their music. On slides, include
both each student's picture and music.
· Group Slide Shows - Give your students a topic (such as zoo animals) and tell them
to choose parts of the topic to focus on (such as specific zoo animals). Have
students research their assigned portions of the topic and develop slides to serve
as a part of a group presentation about the topic.
· Poetry Readings - Students can create slides exhibiting their personal poetry along
with a voice recording.
· Science Presentations - Use PowerPoint to teach processes and how things work.
Teachers or students can add additional items to a diagram to illustrate how a
process grows and changes. Science principles work well using this format.
· Student Portfolios - PowerPoint can be used to create portfolios of student work.
· Class Yearbook-Type Presentations - Collect photos; information about special
events; examples of class and student projects, etc. throughout the year and create
a year-in-review presentation.

Useful Sites

Here’s a site that gives you tutorials on powerpoint and explains why it is useful in the classroom:

http://www.actden.com/pp/index.htm

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/on-line_powerpoint.htm
(provides PowerPoint slide shows available for download)