Media: Your role as a developer

Introduction

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Content

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Hosted vs. Self-Run Blogging Services

I have seen a few discussions come through my inbox about running your own blogging service vs. having one hosted on something like Blogger. I just wanted to weigh in on this quickly this morning...

Hosted

To have a blog hosted on a service such as Blogger is very simple. You create an account and go. That's obviously what I've chosen to do with this service. It works for what I am trying to do, and that is to quickly and easily share information with whoever comes across this blog. It also serves as a reminder to me as well, a place for me to go back to when I have a question, I don't always remember what I've learned... A hosted blogging service is a great and simple to way disseminate information, as well as illicit feedback through comments.

Technically and financially speaking, a hosted blogging service, for the most part, is free. You don't have to pay for hosting, you also don't have to support the platform. There is no technical support involved. Using a hosted service is a quick and easy way for organizations, individuals, teachers, professors, students, and even businesses to get information onto the web. Writing an effective blog is beyond this post, but a good place to start would be to read 97th Floor's blog. They do a great job of blogging.

You are able to customize the look of your blog as well using a hosted service. For example, Blogger allows for editing of the stylesheet that controls the look and feel of your blog. As a tip though, be sure to always back up your stylesheets before you change them. You never know when you'll need to revert back to a previous version.

Self-Hosted service

Hosting your own blog service has its advantages as well. You are able to define and work with what functionality you would like to have built into your blog. Many blogging platforms, such as WordPress and Movable Type, have turned into lightweight Content Management systems. (note, wordpress offers both hosted, and self-hosted platforms). You are able to not only host a blog, but also maintain content on a website. This makes for a much more robust environment.

The down side to this is that there are often times a lot of time spent setting up one of these systems. There are technical requirements. You will also need technical knowledge. You may need to set up your own database, as is the case with WordPress. You will also need to support your system that you have built.

WordPress offers plug-ins that extend the functionality of the platform as well. Often times you will need to make changes to the source code to get the functionality to work, but not every time.

Summary

Choosing a blogging platform does require some homework. Once you have chosen a platform, stick with it. It may be difficult to learn the details of the system initially, but with time, you will be able to customize and use the system to its capacity.

Also, a closing note regarding blogs, a blog is only as good as the content. I write this blog as quick overview of technology for tools for educators, providing links to more detailed information. Choose a reason for your blog, and go with it. A blog is not a magical tool. It is a way to effectively organize content, and a blog will only ever be as good as the content that resides within it.

Powerpoint to Flash Conversion

AuthorPoint Lite is a PowerPoint to .swf converter, that is, it converts your PowerPoint presentations to Flash format. This appears to be a very powerful tool, similar in nature to Adobe's Presenter, but it is free. I highly recommend checking it out. The output screen is nicely organized, and very clean.

http://www.authorgen.com/authorpoint-lite-free/powerpoint-to-flash-converter.aspx

iSpring Free is also a PowerPoint to Flash conversion tool. It is very professional and has a very high quality output.

http://www.ispringsolutions.com/products/ispring_free.html

Both tools are very good, and deserve a look if you are trying to convert PowerPoint to Flash.

Vodpod video service

Vodpod (http://www.vodpod.com) is a service that allows a user to search different sites at once for video, then store them in their own "pods". These pods are user-defined groups, a way to organize video. They also offer widgets to display your pods (see the VodPod Service Example on the left).

This service is free, and definitely worth looking into.

Innovations 2008 Presentation

I have had a few individuals ask for the presentation that I was a part of for the Innovations 2008 conference in Denver. The presentation should be made available via iStream, but I have also linked to it here as well. Please feel free to contact me for discussion or with any questions at jarred.truschke[at]riosalado.edu.

Innovations 2008 Presentation

Multimedia Tools

This is a list of tools that has been compiled over time for multimedia development. If you have any thoughts or extra tools to offer, please share them.

Microsoft Office Suite

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/default.aspx

Standard software used in most environments. Easy to collaborate and share documents.

Open Office

http://www.openoffice.org/

Open source office suite of programs that allows for writing, drawing, spreadsheets, presentations, and databases. Similar to Microsoft Office, but open source and free. There is a large support community online as well.

Photoshop

http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/index.html

Standard professional graphics editing software, with multiple versions available. Also part of larger suites of software (Create Suite). Professional software, lots to learn, but simple to learn as well, with plenty of tutorials online.

GIMP

http://www.gimp.org/

GIMP is a graphics editing software similar to Photoshop. Software is free to download. A review of the GIMP can be found at http://grimthing.com/archives/2007/01/11/Gimp_vs_Photoshop/

Adobe Illustrator

http://www.adobe.com/products/illustrator/

Illustrator is a vector graphics tool. You can create vector images in Adobe Illustrator. There is a lot to learn, but, like Photoshop, can be learned easily.

Inkscape

http://www.inkscape.org/

An Open Source vector graphics tool, with capabilities similar to Adobe Illustrator. Free to download with online support and community.

Flash

http://www.adobe.com/products/flash/

Standard Multimedia design tool. Create interactive objects. Use bitmap graphics, as well as Flash’s own vector drawing tools. Import from Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop is possible as well. Lots to learn, an industry standard, but easy to learn as well.

Google Earth

http://earth.google.com/

Google Earth is a satellite imagery/map/terrain tool that maps the earth. Animations may be made and recorded using the Pro version of Google Earth ($400), or made using the regular Google earth version using software such as Captivate or Camtasia.

Google Sketchup

http://sketchup.google.com/

Google sketchup is 3D authoring software. Free for regular version, Pro version is $495, but is free for educational licensing. Large (and growing) warehouse of premade 3D objects in the 3D warehouse. Works with Google earth as well. Great for 3D buildings. Medium learning curve, lots to learn, and very effective.

Blender

http://www.blender.org/

Blender is free open-source 3D authoring software. There is a large learning curve. Professional results are attainable with this software.

Audacity

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Audacity is a free, open source audio recording and editing tool. Small learning curve. You can start recording immediately. Online documentation and support, as well as community. Small program that can get you quickly recording audio.

Reaper

http://www.reaper.fm/

Reaper is a multitrack recorder similar to Audacity. Depending on what you want to record, and how you want to record it, Reaper may be a better option. Reaper is more on par with applications such as Steinberg Cubase, Cakewalk, and ProTools.

Adobe Premiere Pro

http://www.adobe.com/products/premiere/

With Premiere Pro, you are able to capture video straight to the hard drive from a regular DV camera. You can also transfer video from DV to the hard drive.

Adobe After Effects

http://www.adobe.com/products/aftereffects/

Create movies with Adobe After Effects. Using standard plugins, professional quality video effects may be achieved. Export video to .swf format for use in Flash, or export to .flv. Large learning curve, professional results.

Microsoft Movie Maker

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/moviemaker2.mspx

Simple to use movie editor that works on Windows. Small learning curve, easy to use.

Apple iMovie

http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/

Simple to use video editing and viewing software for Apple. Small learning curve, easy to use.

Flash Media Encoder

http://www.adobe.com/products/flashmediaserver/flashmediaencoder/

Encode movies into the .flv file format for use with Flash. Easy to use, small learning curve.

Adobe Captivate

http://www.adobe.com/products/captivate/

Quickly create learning simulations, quizzes, or multimedia based learning with no programming experience. Capture video from your computer screen as well. Great for machinima. Can be limiting, but if what you need to do is within the bounds of Captivate, it is a great tool.

Techsmith Camtasia Studio

http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp

Screen recording software. Record video from your screen, insert it into a timeline based editor, and create your own video. Great for creating machinima.

Blogger

http://www.blogger.com

Online push-button blogging software. Simple to setup your own blog website. When online communication is needed, Blogger can be a great tool. Blogger also supports video postings as well.

You Tube

http://www.youtube.com

You Tube is a great resource for hosting video. Channels can be setup, as well as sites for your own college. Simple to use.

Osflash.org

http://osflash.org/

This website is committed to researching Flash, and creating open-source tools that can be used with Flash. Visit the projects page to see what type of work is being done. Projects include Red 5 (an open source Flash Media Server), as well as multiple Flash IDEs (integrated development environment).

Lynda.com

http://lynda.com/

Lynda.com is an online training library that utilizes video to teach. Lynda is a great source for training materials.

Kirupa.com

http://www.kirupa.com/

Kirupa.com is a great resource for Flash tutorials. Some tutorials can be quite advanced, while others are very good at teaching fundamentals.

Machinima

Rather than recording real-life video, use machinima to create video. Machinima is machine based cinema. Using screen recording software such as Camtasia or Captivate, you can record situations and scenarios, and then export the video for viewing on the web. Second Life is a great source to record from. Scenarios can be developed, and then played out on screen in Second Life, recorded, using screen recording software, and then delivered online.

Open Source Tools

When a tool or application is needed to complete a project, the tool needed may very well exist as an open source project. Search Google for these tools. There is often times a large support community online with e-mail lists and support documentation.

File Hangers and Binder Clips

Sometimes, the tools you need to complete a project are simple, and right at hand. You don’t always need the most recent technology, or the exact tool for a particular activity. Sometimes its as simple as finding “a” tool that will do the job. If you look around you, you can often times find the tools you need.