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Best Free Instructional Software
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Introduction
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It is with some hubris that I attempt to create this collection of free computer instructional resources. I appreciate the existence of a wide variety of instruction and niche instructor needs. I'll try to address both the tools the majority of instructors may find useful and really good niche tools. I'm a university professor teaching business and CIS classes. My computer savvy wife is a K-5 special education teacher. This list will evolve in response to your comments and suggestions. I'll provide pointers when selected software is reviewed elsewhere on this site. This is a volunteer job and my only agenda is to create a great collection of instructional software tools. Please keep the conversations lively, on-topic, and civil. |
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Discussion
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With some reach, almost anything can be considered to facilitate instruction. This is a collection of "best" and "free" computer tools. Many of these tools are portable applications. Portable Applications do not require administrative privileges to install or run. As such, they can provide much improved function on computers that have strong usage restrictions. I keep my portable application in the my documents area. If you want to start them in the "normal" send the icon to the desktop then drag the icon into quick launch and/or Start => All programs. |
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Instructional Applications
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| Audacity | Audacity is a great sound editor. Sound editors are very useful for the creation of pod casts. |
| CamStudio | This is a free alternative to Camtasia screen capture. It doesn't have as many features but it does the job well. Will record full window or application with tracking. Also records to voice and packages a flash file for web distribution. (Just copy the files to your web area). |
| Ditto | Ditto is a multi-clipboard manager that allows you to save more than one item in the clipboard. You can also paste out in a variety of formats as needed. |
| ESBCalc | A replacement for the somewhat lame calculator that comes with windows. |
| FileZilla | I like this FTP client. Here are some Instructions on how to use FileZilla to access your network drives off-campus. |
| FireFox | An alternative to Internet Explorer. Faster and works better in some cases. See Zotero above. |
| Gimp | This is a full featured picture editor. I recommend Irfanview for lighter projects such as resizing and cropping. |
| Google Docs | Google docs provide a reasonably full featured set of office applications. Google docs are useful as you can access and edit your content with web browsers such as Internet Explorer. What really makes Google Docs exciting is their sharing capability. Multiple persons can actually edit documents at the same time. Scrolling issues in word processing documents make simultaneous editing less useful but the ability is extremely useful for spreadsheets where large numbers of people can work develop data collaboratively. The text chat area in Google Spreadsheets makes adds to the utility. Note: Google Docs are technically a cloud applications in that they run on the Internet through your browser instead of off your local hard drive. As long as you have Internet access, the effect is the same in that you can use Google Docs without installing anything. |
| Irfanview | View, convert, and edit almost any kind of image. Editing is basic. See Gimp for a more powerful image editor. |
| Micro Egg Timer | A count down timer. You can run as many of them as you want. |
| PDF-Xchange | PDF-Xchange allows PDF annotation, searching, and tabbed viewing. It also allows you to fill and save Adobe PDF forms, extract text and images, magnify text and export PDF pages or documents to BMP, JPEG, TIFF, PNG formats. |
| Print your own paper | Templates for printing your own popular types of paper such as lined, graph, and music. |
| Rapid Typing Tutor | Learn to touch type. |
| SereneSound | Makes environmental sounds. I'm partial to this one as I wrote it. |
| Skype | Skype lets you exchange text, voice, and video. Text can be any number of users but communication breaks down with larger groups (large as defined by the number of folks who are contributing -- after about five it gets hard to follow). Three way voice is possible and only two way video. Of course you'll need a microphone to send voice and a webcam to send video. |
| Video DownLoadHelper | Capture media including video from web pages. This is also technically not a portable application but it will work with Firefox portable. |
| Virtual Magnifying Class | This program allows you to enlarge a portion of your screen. This can be useful in lecture environments where screen objects are to small for students to see. You can also use the windows utility for enlarging screens by pressing WindowsKey-U. |
| VLC - Video Viewer | Plays almost any kind of media. |
| WinDirStat | See how your files are organized and what the space hogs are. |
| WinSCP | Use FTP to access your AWC network files off campus. This is our IT departments preferred client. |
| Zotero Citation Manager | Zotero is a bibliographic tracking and insertion system. It handles most common reference formats including APA and MLA and will import for current screens. Zotero is a Firefox add-in and thus not technically a portable application. |
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Comments
1.Moodle is a course management system (CMS) - a free, Open Source software package designed using sound pedagogical principles, to help educators create effective online learning communities.
http://moodle.org/
2.ATutor is the first fully inclusive LCMS, complying with the W3C WCAG 1.0 accessibility specifications at the AA+ level, allowing access to all potential learners, instructors, and administrators, including those with disabilities who may be accessing the system using assistive technologies. Conformance with W3C XHTML 1.0 specifications ensures that ATutor is presented consistently in any standards compliant technology.
http://www.atutor.ca/
3.eFront is a product of cutting-edge technology, ready to satisfy your needs and help your organization be more efficient and more productive. You will discover new ways to perform educational tasks easier and faster, while keeping your people in shape.
http://www.efrontlearning.net/
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