Syllabus: Technology Tips

Each week you can do one Technology Tip assignment for extra credit. You may choose whichever assignment looks most interesting and/or valuable to you. You may declare a total of 15 Technology Tips for extra credit during the semester, one per week - and yes, you can work ahead! If you want, you can complete as many Technology Tips as you want early in the semester, and then just declare the points you have accumulated each week. All the Technology Tip Declarations, for Weeks 1-15, are available now.

Already using these tools? That's great! If you already have a Gmail account or if you have a Blogger.blog, for example, that's excellent - you don't have to create something new for the tip; just go ahead and send the email as described in the instructions for each tip. 

 

Special note for repeat students: Those of you who took classes with me in the past may have done many of these Tips already. To get credit for this semester, please try to choose different tips that you did NOT complete in the past. There are enough tips here for people to do fifteen different tips for all three semesters! To help you quickly see which ones are new this semester, I've marked them with a yellow "New" icon.

 

KEEP A LIST. It's a good idea to keep a list of the Tech Tips you have completed! You can do that in a GoogleDoc, for example, where you can list each of the Tech Tips as you have completed them. Alternatively, you can cc: yourself each time you send me a Tech Tip email and save your completed Tech Tip emails in an email folder.

MOST IMPORTANT TIPS: Please do these first, before you do the other tips, because they are "building blocks" that the other tips often rely on - although if you already have a Gmail log-on and/or have Firefox on your computer and/or already know how to take a screenshot, you can skip these and move directly onto any other tips that interest you. :-)

• Gmail Account. Create a Gmail account. You are not required to use Gmail for your email - but having a Gmail account log-in gives you access to all the other free Google services, such as GoogleDocuments.
• Firefox Browser . Firefox is a great browser for BOTH Windows AND Mac, so I highly recommend it. Even if you already use another browser already, having multiple browsers on your computer can be handy!
• Screenshot. Learn how to take a screenshot using your built-in Mac or Windows software, or by using free Jing software (for Mac or Windows). Many of the Tech Tips require you to send me a screenshot to complete the assignment.

GOOGLE:

• Google Documents. Learn how to use Google Documents to create online documents, access them from any computer, and share those documents with others.
• Google Calendar. Subscribe to the class calendar using Google Calendar (you can even get notifications by cell phone for homework reminders!)
• GoogleBooks Library. Save some FREE online books from GoogleBooks to your Library Bookshelf, and share that Library with others.
• GoogleTranslator. You can use Google Translator to get at least a rough idea of the contents of a webpage written in a foreign language.
• iGoogle. Create a customized Google Homepage, adding gadgets that are both useful and fun (dangerously fun, in fact: add Tetris to your iGoogle page at your own risk!).
• GoogleReader. You can subscribe to news and other RSS feeds using the Google Reader service.
• GoogleReader Podcast. You can also use the Google Reader to subscribe to audio and/or video podcasts.
• GoogleProfile. You can create a kind of homepage for yourself at Google, uploading a photo and including links to your OU website, too.
• GoogleSearch: Learn how to limit your Google search to a specific website.

BLOGGER.COM BLOG

:

• Blogger.com. Learn how to use Google's Blogger.com blogging service to create your own blog(s) for personal and/or professional use.
• Blogger.com Subscribe Widget. You can make it easy for people to subscribe to your blog by adding a subscribe widget ("gadget" in Google terminology).
• Subscribe to your Blog. You can see how the Subscriber widget works using iGoogle or Google Reader (you need to already be using one or the other; see above).
• Blogger.com Fun Widget. You can easily add fun widgets ("gadgets") such as a game, clock, calendar, news feed, etc. to your blog.

FIREFOX:

• Firefox Word Count Plus. You can add the Word Count Plus utilitiy to Firefox so that you can quickly check the word count of anything you are viewing in your browser - blog posts, webpage, etc.
• Firefox Dictionary. This add-on allows you to right-mouse click on any word on a webpage and look it up in several online dictionaries at once.
• FireFTP. You can use FireFTP to manage your OU webspace, or any other webspace that you can access using FTP (alternatively, you can use any other FTP program you want for this tip).
• Foxmarks. You can use Foxmarks to organize your bookmarks and also to access them from any computer.
• Firefox Themes. You can choose a custom "look and feel" for your Firefox browser.
• Firefox Shortcuts - Enlarge Font: Learn how to instantly enlarge the font of a webpage along with other useful keyboard shortcuts in the Firefox browser.

IMAGES:

• Resize Images. Learn how to take giant-sized images and make them smaller, for use in your webpages, blog posts, etc.
• Google Images. Use Google Images to search for images online and find the webpages on which those images are displayed.
• Picasa. Set up an image sharing account online with Google's Picasa image service (alternatively, you can use any other photosharing website, such as Flickr or Photobucket, that you want for this tip).

NING:

• Ning Profile Theme. Choose your own look for your Profile page - Ning keeps adding new themes to choose from!
• Add a You-Tube Video to your Ning Profile. You can add a YouTube video (or a video from any other embedded video service) to your Ning Profile page.
• Add an RSS Feed to your Ning Profile. You can add an RSS feed (from an online news source, from a blog, etc.) to your Ning Profile page.
• Ning Profile Clean-Up. Make more room on your Profile page by hiding features you do not need, such as Latest Activity or duplicate Blog listings (please wait until you have posted at least 5 or 6 items in your Ning blog before you do this tip).
• Your Own Ning. You, too, can create your own Ning, just like the Ning we are using for class. You can set it up for private family communication, for example, or you could create a public Ning for any group or club you belong to.

D2L and OU:

• Online Course Announcements Email List. You can sign up to receive the online course announcements for this class via email.
• Desire2Learn Font Size. Learn how to choose the font size you prefer when working with Desire2Learn (this is especially useful if you would like the font to be bigger).
• Desire2Learn Homepage Layout. Learn how to open and close the boxes on your D2L course homepages so you can focus in on what is useful to you.
• Desire2Learn Profile Page: You can upload a photo of your choice to your Desire2Learn Profile Page, and also create a link to your OU homepage.
• OU Email Folder: Create a folder for your class emails (instructions are provided for creating folders at Exchange.ou.edu).
• OU Library Homepage: Create a customized homepage for the electronic resources and other library services you use most often.

MISC:

• TinyURL. Learn how to convert long, awkward webpage addresses into short little addresses using the TinyURL website.
• PollDaddy. Add a dynamic, interactive poll to your blog or webpage for free, using PollDaddy.com.
• Twitter. You can use Twitter to make quick posts to the web and share them with your friends.
• Puzzle: You can use this tip to create a dynamic online puzzle from the image of your choice - and if you want, you can embed it in your Blogger.com blog.
• Learning Styles Inventory: Take a quick survey to get some insight into your own learning styles and study tips that best suit your styles. 

GOOGLE SITES:

• Homepage: The first step in building a GoogleSite is to create a homepage and add some content to it. This counts as a Tech Tip ONLY if you are not using GoogleSites for your Storybook.
• Additional Page: These instructions guide you through the process of adding more pages to your Google Site. This counts as a Tech Tip ONLY if you are not using GoogleSites for your Storybook. 

• Google Site Navigation: Learn how to customize the navigation display in the left-hand panel of your Google Site. This counts as a Tech Tip ONLY if you are not using GoogleSites for your Storybook.

   

• Google Site Video: Add a YouTube video to a Google Site page. You can do this Tech Tip for extra credit if you are using GoogleSites for your Storybook - but please make sure you add the video to your practice "About Me" website, not to your Storybook (unless, that is, there is a video  related to your Storybook topic that you do want to include).
• Google Site Audio: Learn how to play an MP3 inside one of your Google Site pages. You can do this Tech Tip for extra credit if you are using GoogleSites for your Storybook - but please make sure you add the audio to your practice "About Me" website, not to your Storybook (unless, that is, there is some audio related to your Storybook topic that you do want to include).