Smart Notebook 10-Attachments

In today's Smart Video I explain the Attachments tab and how you can use it to store files so that you always have what you need when you are teaching.

Internet Explorer Is So Old School....

If you are still using Internet Explorer it is time to come out of the dark ages and realize there are more and better options out there. Everyone has their favorites. From the standards of Safari, Chrome and Opera to the more specialized browsers like Flock for social networking and Camino for the Mac there are several options to choose from. However, in my opinion they all pale in comparison to Mozilla Firefox. If you want total control over your browser and browsing experience then it is time to make the switch to Firefox.

Download Firefox 3

Go ahead, download it, install it, and come back here. It's ok. I will wait.....


Ok now that you have Firefox installed it is time to jazz things up a bit. Firefox has the ability to add programs called extensions to really make Firefox your own. There are 1000's to choose from. I currently have over 20 that I use everyday. From Twitter to weather to iTunes control to Evernote I rely on these add-ons everyday. There are 100's of lists out there that claim to have the "must have" extensions. Here are a few of my favorites.

ComputerWorld Top 20 Extensions
Mashable's Top 30 Extensions
Geeks Top 5 Extensions

Now that you have accessorized your browser it is time to trick it out! Firefox allows you to choose themes to truly match your personality. Are you a Carolina Fan (I'm sorry) there is a theme for that. Favorite color pink? There is a theme for that. What Firefox to look more like a Mac? There is a theme for that. There are 1000's. Check them out!

Themes From Firefox

So go forth! Break the bonds of Internet Explorer. Get out there and show your browser who is boss!

Smart Notebook 10-Adding Content

In today's Smart Video I demonstrate how to add your own content to the Gallery and make the content you add searchable.

A Beginner's Guide To Podcasting...

More and more teachers and students are venturing into the world of podcasting. Some teachers are using podcasts made by others to suppliement what they are teaching while others are creating their own. Ultimately I would love to see more teachers and especially students creating and sharing their own podcasts among themselves and the community. But where do you start? Do you have to have an iPod or speciality recording equipment? Nope! Let iLounge show you the way.

iLounge prides itself on being the place on the net for all things iPod. If you need help picking the right iPod for your needs or are looking for the latest reviews of apps for the iPhone or iTouch then you really should check out iLounge.

While all those features are great, we want to know about podcasting. iLounge has a special section that most educators would agree is the most comphrensive guide for creating podcasts. The guide has step-by-step instructions on everything from equipment to recording programs to getting your podcast published in iTunes so that others can subscribe and get new episodes as you produce them.

If you are looking for examples of what others are doing with podcasts in their classroom check out these websites and listen to what kids can do! While you are at it check out iLounge and learn how you can get your first podcast created and published in a matter of hours!

WillowWeb Radio
Newfound Elementary Podcasts
Coral Gables High School Podcasts

iLounge

Smart Notebook 10-Tables

In today's Smart Notebook 10 video I demonstrate the use of the Table Tool.

Webpages In Power Point...LiveWeb

Have you even been to a presentation where the presenter fumbled back and forth between their Power Point and the web. Admit it, you have done it. Heck I have done it! But no longer! LiveWeb to the rescue.

LiveWeb is a Microsoft PowerPoint add-in available for versions 97-2007 that allows you to embed a live, workable view of a webpage into your presentation. There is a tutorial to guide you through the process of adding, which makes this add-in very easy to use. You can even have the page set to refresh every time you view the page in your presentation so you have the most acurate visual of the page.

The only downside is that you have to run the presentation on the machine where LiveWeb is installed. But the installer is in a little zip file that you could easily put on a flash drive and run it when you needed it.

LiveWeb

Calculations On The Fly...InstaCalc

Calculators can be fun. Graphing calculators can be even more fun. We can even teach our kids to do calculations in Excel. But what if you want to create calculations for specific events like to see if calculations mentioned in a literature book actually work or students want to work out debt to earnings ratios for a high school level economics class. What do you do? You turn to one of the greatest Web 2.o tools around...InstaCalc.

From The InstaCalc Blog- "It's called InstaCalc for a reason: answers appear as you type. Your time is important, the computer's time is not. Spend less time waiting, more time doing. Normal calculators and spreadsheets make you type and press Enter. Change the numbers, press Enter. Change the numbers again, press Enter. Why this extra step? Imagine having to press "Enter" every time you typed a key in Word. Decades of spreadsheets and desk calculators have conditioned us to tolerate this pause between entering numbers and getting an answer. Break free."

See your work as you go, just like working on paper. You can see how you got an answer and change the numbers in real-time. You don't have to switch between viewing a cell's results and editing the details.Regular calculators erase your equation to show you the results. You have to keep track of previous results yourself - will you write them down each time? And if you want to change an answer, you need to retype the entire calculation.Sure, spreadsheets can have multiple equations, but they only show you one cell at a time. For the other cells you see a number like 81.879 and have to guess or remember how it came to be.

There are two features I really like. The first is readable equations. If you type 6.6 Billion into a cell, your result will be written as 6,600,000,000. We know that students sometimes have a problem learning complicated equations. They can get lost in the flow and don't understand how everything fits together. InstaCalc makes this process easier with the readable equation feature. Check out the example below with the Distance equation.

The other feature that is really cool is two-fold. Once you create a custom Calc you can share it with the world or you can embed it, live, on your website or blog. When you share it it becomes searchable on the site so others can find it. You can also share the Calc via a link. Head over there now and check out the interesting Calcs created. Below you can see an example of a live Calc I have embedded from the site.

InstaCalac