Sally
Drummond has worked in the adult community education sector as a teacher,
emoderator and educational designer for 12 years. She is currently working as
a consultant for William Angliss Institute of TAFE, the Country Education Project
and RMIT. As a self confessed computer nerd she enjoys the challenge of working
out how software works.
Email: sdrummond3@vtown.com.au
Pushing the boundaries and being creative
with shareware
As an avid reader of software magazines I scan the free CD on the cover for
cutdown versions of software that can be used in creative ways.
The banner was created in minutes with Webstyle, an easy to use tool for creating
flash banners, 3D headings and buttons with rollovers.
Flashcam Lite is one of my favourites, it enable you to create instructional
videos add callouts and record voice overs, the file is then saved as a small
shockwave file which can be added to webpages. Great for setting up role plays,
telling stories or sending surprise gifts. It works best if you don't play with
the recording settings.
Protect your computer system for free with BigFix, checks your system and recommends
the correct patch for your system. The ZoneAlarm firewall protects you from
hackers and check for spies attacking your system with PestPatrol
Try the free download software for adding interest and fun to a presentation
or set up quizzes and games. Brainstorm Bungy is a fun tool for keeping people
focused in brainstorming sessions or download a copy of the Countdown Clock
and really keep a session on its toes.
The following sites also contain interesting shareware:
UNESCO
GNU software - this site contains an evaluation of online platforms such as Moodle
Hot Potatoes was developed by the University of Victoria in Canada and is free if used for educational use. This program enables you to create a range of games and quizzes such as crossword, drag and drop and cloze activities. Grab a copy from www.halfbakedsoftware.com
The Pizza Game and Food Wars are fun games for teaching students how to set up a business and manage their money. Computer Sims are available at http://compsimgames.about.com/cs/freesimbytype/index.htm
If you are keen to develop your own flash games then try FlashKit. This site takes you through games construction step-by-step.
The software that I use the most is a small screen capture program called HyperSnap. It has probably been updated several times since I bought my copy for $25. I have used this program to write computer instruction manuals, nick images from the web that I couldn't download, create images, rollovers and buttons. You can download a trial copy from www.hyperionics.com
RSS Newsfeeds are also a great source of information on what is happening in software development, particularly open source software. Developers often provide software for a limited period of time as shareware.
Stephen Downes OLDaily is a great source of information http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/website/subscribe.cgi
The Bloglet Update from Kolabora News is another great site for the latest info on what's happening in software development. Join up at http://www.kolabora.com/index.htm