Justin Georgesjo-georges@wiu.eduInstructional Materials Specialist University Libraries-Western Illinois University

TEACHING IN THE CLOUD (ON A SHOESTRING BUDGET)

The cloud is a set of services and technologies that enable the delivery of computing services over the Internet in real-time,

WHAT IS THE CLOUD?

allowing end-users instant access to data and applications from any device with Internet access.

Applications delivered over the Internet, usually through a Web browser. • Activities that are managed from central

locations rather than at each customer's site, enabling customers to access applications remotely via the Web

• Centralized feature updating, which eliminates the need for downloadable patches and upgrades

CLOUD APPLICATIONS

• Dropbox• Jing• Wordle• Diigo• Picnik• Poll Everywhere

TOPICS COVERED TODAY INCLUDE:

• Put your files into your Dropbox on one computer, and they'll be instantly available on any of your other computers that you've installed Dropbox on

• Windows and MAC compatable!• Your files are stored on Dropbox's

secure servers. You can also access them from any computer or mobile device– Can install mobile application on

phone to access files• Dropbox keeps a history of all changes

made and you can login to the website and revert back to any previous versions of files.

• Works even when offline. You always have your files, whether or not you have a connection.

CLOUD STORAGE

You can store any type of file:• Photos • Documents• Videos, etc…

• Dropbox simply creates a folder on your computer when you download the application.

• Can create sub folders. Everything will automatically sync– Get a green checkmark

when synced• Can always also access files

from logging into the Dropbox website.

CLOUD STORAGE

• Up to 2GB’s of storage FREE!!!– That’s approximately 400 decent

quality pictures or 70,000 word pages (depends on file size)

• You can pay for more storage if needed.• Similar to Mozy and MobileMe• Eliminates need for a USB drive• The Dropbox public folder is a great

way to share files with others who don’t have a shared folder in Dropbox. – Simply drop file in “Public Folder”

and a link is automatically created. Right click on this file and go to the “Dropbox” menu and select “Copy Public Link”

– Now you can paste and share this link with others.

– Think of it as your own public web server storage space that can be used as web hosting.

THE FEATURES

• With Dropbox, you can share a folder with users which can be used as an assignment drop box or collaborative area.

• You can put files in the public area and send links out.

• When you sign others up, you will get more storage space, free!!!

• A great way to store and share larger files.

1. Create an account2. Install the application3. Create a folder4. Share that folder (Right click on

folder) with someone else5. We’ll start adding items to this

folder. ..

COLLABORATIVE USES FOR EDUCATION

• The always-ready program that instantly captures and shares images and video.

• Windows and MAC compatible!• Easily share your capture by

creating a link.• Can easily embed video into

website or blog. • Up to 2GB’s of storage FREE!!!– This storage is on the TechSmith

servers.– Eliminate the hassle of storing it

that and just drag into Dropbox to share with others. You can access it from anywhere.

SCREEN CAPTURE TOOLFEATURES

• Capture anything you see on your screen and annotate that image.

1. After you have installed the application, use the Jing sun from your desktop

2. Hover over the sun and select the cross hairs icon.

3. Click and drag area of the screen thatyou want to capture.

4. Release button and decide to click to capture the image or video.

5. You will be re-directed to editing interface. Add callouts and text.

6. Name image and save to your Dropbox shared folder.

GETTING STARTED

• Collaborate on a design project• Software tutorial• Comment on students' homework• Share a snapshot of a document• Capture that pesky bug in action

There is also an upgrade with more features. See the comparison chart below:

COLLABORATIVE USES FOR EDUCATION

• No install needed• Copy in some text and generate the word cloud.• You can tweak your clouds with different fonts,

layouts, and color schemes.• Do what you want with Wordles, it’s free!!!

WORD CLOUD GENERATOR

SAVING WORDLES• Wordle is a Java applet, and Java

applets are not permitted to write anything to your disk. So, while the applet could generate a jpeg, it wouldn't be able to give it to you! – Solve this by using Jing to capture

the wordle.• Save your wordle to your shared

dropbox folder. • You can print wordles.

THE FEATURES

1. Click “Create”2. Copy some text from someplace3. Paste the text in the box4. Click “Go”5. Make modifications using the menu at

the top of the Wordle window

• Great to create artwork for a classroom.

• Some have used to create a poster for class doors the first day of class.

• See the Advanced page on Wordle for some really neat features!

• The Wordle front page will never feature images or links that are inappropriate for classroom use. Therefore, it's possible to configure an institution's "site-blocking" software to keep Wordle safe for classroom use.

COLLABORATIVE USES FOR EDUCATION

• Collect and access information on the web.

• Store that information and retrieve it for later

• Access from any web browser or mobile device.

• Everything stored on Diigo Server in your own library space stored in the cloud.

• Add digital highlights and interactive sticky notes.

• Install browser add on for easier access.

• Save pages and access them later, even if you don’t have internet access.

INFORMATIONMANAGEMENTSYSTEM

• Save all bookmarks in one location in the cloud

• Organize these bookmarks by tags for better reference.

• Use snapshot to archive an entire webpage.

• Mark things to read later• Capture tool built right in!!!– Annotate screenshot with

shapes, arrow and text– Store image in diigo library.

• Use the Digolet, Diigo Toolbar, Power Note for Android, extension for Chrome and iPhone

THE FEATURES

• You can keep things private or public, or shared with a group.

• Publish your findings to your blog by using "Send to Blog" feature, by setting up automatic daily posting, or by adding linkrolls and tagrolls to your blog.

• You can also easily post to other sites like twitter, facebook, delicious, etc.

• Use "Annotated links" to share your "diigoed" page with anyone! The recipient can see your annotated page without needing any software installed!

• Get a stream of updates from people you follow, where you find interesting resources and conversations can occur easily and naturally.

SHARING

• Sticky notes and highlights are great for interactive e-reading and better retention.

• Create a private or public group for your company, class, and team– Group members can share

bookmarks for a particular project or research paper.

• When adding sticky notes, you can make them private, public, or viewable only by members of a certain group. With group sticky notes, group members can interact and discuss important points right on the web page, preserving the original context.

• Group tag dictionary to enforce tagging consistency

COLLABORATIVE USES FOR EDUCATION