Open Side By Side extension

 Alice Keeler Open Side By Side extension

A new Chrome extension has come from Alice Keeler that teachers and students should like really well.
Often when using a computer, I like to have two windows open at the same time so I can view them at the same time. Usually my steps are to open one window, right click on the link I want to open and select open in new window, and resize the two windows so they fit on my screen. I can see teachers doing this while reviewing student online work and entering grades into the report card at the same time.
Now all the resizing is done for me thanks to this handy Chrome extension.
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/alice-keeler-open-side-by/oohcehjlgohbhbljoepeoedbgcpcefod

After the extension has been installed, from the Chrome browser, right click on any link, select Open Side by Side and open the destination URL on the right side of the screen.

Now you have two windows open. Your original window is open on the left side of the screen and the new window is on the right. 

An extension that is very easy to install and use.

Not sure what the difference between a Chrome app and a Chrome extension? Got 2 minutes?

ocenaudio Audio Editor

For a number of years my go to audio editor has been Audacity. And I feel I have tried many others, but always come back to Audacity because of its simplicity to edit and export.

I recently came across an newer player in the game, ocenaudio. ocenaudio is a "cross-platform, easy to use, fast and functional audio editor. It is the ideal software for people who need to edit and analyze audio files without complications. ocenaudio also has powerful features that will please more advanced users."

Looks like it works on Windows, Mac, and Linux only. It installed very easily with the .exe file and opened very quickly. The controls are intuitive with the red record button, familiar play, forward, reverse, and stop icons. There is also an easy way to drag and drop audio files, folders, URLs... instead of having to import or open.
From the file menu, users can save the file as a variety of format, export a variety of formats, and even create an iPhone ringtone.



So if you are looking for an easy to use audio recorder/editor give this one a try.
http://www.ocenaudio.com.br/whatis

Video Tutorial on ocenaudio

P.S. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Hope everyone is having a great start to the year.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! Happy Holidays!

However you celebrate, I hope that you have a wonderful time with family and friends!

Appy Hour... Christmas Edition

I haven't written about our Appy Hour presentations lately, but here is the last one we did. We highlighted 5 iOS apps to get you through the holidays.

Google Keep - iTunes 

Google Keep is a great and simple note taking app. Teachers and students can login to https://keep.google.com to take notes from any browser or use the app. Any note will sync to any device with the Keep app or that can be viewed from a web browser. Keep has the ability to take notes, set reminders, create to do lists, snap photo to add to a note, and share notes with others. If you are looking for a simple way to keep up with Christmas to do lists, or shopping lists, Keep can help keep you organized

Norad Santa Tracker - iTunes 

On Christmas Eve, use this app to track Santa's location.

Christmas Countdown - iTunes

Instead of kids asking every 5 minutes, "When is Christmas? When is Santa coming?", install this fun little countdown app to let them check. 

Tiny Calm - iTunes

So the kids are driving you nuts, your Christmas cookies are crumbling, the cat knocked over the tree again, and you just found out your in-laws are staying an extra 3 days. You might need to enhance your calm. Use this simple meditation app to do just that. 

Nutshell - iTunes

Nutshell is an app that tells you to snap three photo and capture a moment. As you snap the photos, you are really taking video. The videos just stops and focuses on each photo you took. So you are capturing the moment in a nutshell. Add text and small animated icons to your photos for more excitement. Then save the video to your camera roll and upload to your favorite social media to share your nutshell moment.  

Try Spruce for Social Media Pictures

Spruce is a great way to add text to a photograph to use in presentations or for your Twitter feed. Visit http://www.tryspruce.com/ to start the process. There is a how it works button, but it really is pretty intuitive.

1. Insert your Text.
2. Pick your Font from the pull down menu
3. Search for a background photo or upload your own photo
4. Download your image or share it through Facebook or Twitter

Now you should have an attractive looking graphic for your presentation or social media needs. Give it a try!

30 Day Twitter Challenge for Teachers

Came across this site as I have been researching Twitter for the classroom. Great looking program to help teachers learn how, when, and why to use Twitter in the classroom.

www.TwitterForTeachers.com by Eric Langhorst

Eric has broken down 30 Twitter lessons into short video clips. Perfect for anytime/anywhere learning.

Ribbet

In 2005, a tremendous photo editor, Picnik, came out and helped transform free, online photo editing. This site was a great tool for teachers and students alike as the ability to edit photos from any web enabled computer was now available, free. Then around 2012, Google purchased Picnik with the hopes of bringing the photo editing experience to their products. However, this unfortunately meant the closure of Picnik. There was much sadness and disappointment in the education world, myself included, as this tool was perfect for photo editing.

We tried to fill the void with other good online tools like PicMonkey and Pixlr, but there always seemed to be that hole that something wasn't quite right.

Today, as I was looking at some other Chrome tools in the Web store, one of the "suggested for you" links was Ribbet. And I noticed a curious little tree frog looking back at me. So I went to the link and discovered Ribbet is Picnik! Well, not the same company, but basically the same product taken on by a team of programmers and designers who saw the public outcry for Picnik. They even got permission to use the tree frog image.

I don't know how long this has been out there, but I am pretty excited about using Ribbet. Great for online photo editing and collage creation. Just like Picnik, the majority of the site is free, but there are some Premium edits only available to those that upgrade and pay the $29.95/year fee (that is the best price; there is also a $4.95 monthly, and $19.95 six monthly).

So visit www.ribbet.com and get to creating!

360 Degree Video

Recently, YouTube started posting 360 degree video on their service. What that means is you can click and drag across the video and see all views the camera took while the video is playing. Photographs have been allowing that for years (think Google Street View), but now with the advent of 360 degree video cameras (like the Ricoh Theta) video can be taken as well. Try out the video below.

Click and drag across the video to see other angles under the sea.

Where this really shines is on a tablet. Now instead of clicking and dragging, the user can just move the tablet while the video is playing and the video follows the movement. So I hold my iPad, view the video, and turn 90 degrees to the right the video will follow my movements in the same direction to the new point I am turned to. Way too cool!

The cameras are not cheap, but we all know as the technology develops the prices tend to drop. Not every 360 degree video is appropriate so don't just turn students loose searching for video. But what a way to take students to a virtual field trip. Now we see more than just the pictures, or the straight on shot the video taker is looking at. 

The September Apple Event

Did you see the new iPad, Apple TV, and iPhone announced today? What was your favorite?

That iPad Pro is huge and looks to be a competitor of the Microsoft Surface. Wondering if it will be the laptop killer. It costs as much once you add the Smart Keyboard and the Apple Pencil.

http://www.apple.com/ipad/compare/