Need a place to store your files? Sick of USB thumb drives? Well then drop box is the solution for you (http://www.dropbox.com/). This is a very cool tool that can even be accessed from your mobile device and you get over 2 GB of free online storage. Check it out!
Category Archives: Web 2.0
Install and setup a WordPress Blog
The following video shows you how to setup and install your own wordpress blog:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL6MeHZF8u0]
Best Opensource Software
Here is my list of the best opensource software and its all 100% FREE!
Blogging – WordPress
Forum – PhpBB
Photo Gallery – Coppermine
Office (Word/Powerpoint) – Open Office
Browser – Firefox
Survey – Lime Survey
Social Networking – Buddy Press
Music Editor – Audacity
Photo Editor – Gimp
Course Management System (CMS) – Moodle
Best Blogging Software = WordPress 3.0
WordPress 3.0 was just released, and yes, wordpress is the best blogging software. Why? Its powerful, its opensource, its free, and it has a huge community of users. In fact, this blog was created in wordpress. If you are interested in having your own blog, check out wordpress at http://wordpress.org/.
Additionally, wordpress integrates well with bbpress and buddypress because they are all made by the same companies. It is my belief that many future websites will be created using software such as wordpress rather than standard html.
Coppermine
This has got to be the best free photo gallery software around. Its opensource and installs on your webserver. An example can be seen on my nj surfing club website: http://www.njsurfingclub.com/njgallery/njimages/
Coppermine installs easily and its upgrades are easy assuming you do not have many mods. It comes pre-installed with around 7-10 themes. Creating your own theme is very easy with some basic html, php, and css programming.
Coppermine can be found here: http://coppermine-gallery.net/
What is opensource?
What is opensource software?
Opensource software is FREE software. It is free software that not only can you install and own, but you can modify it because the developers make the source code available. This means that anyone can change any part of the software they do not like. So for instance take your web browser. Lets say that you wish your web browser would keep track of how much time you spent online. If it was an opensource web browser, you could develop a program, called a mod or app, that kept track of your time online. You could then submit that app to the opensource company so that they could offer it for free to other people who might like to use it. Opensource is awesome and is a great business model. But how do opensource companies make money? Service. Thats how. What are some examples of opensource software packages: open office (replaces word/powerpoint), firefox (web browser), and gimp (replaces photoshop). I encourage you to check them out.
Time Compressed Instruction
What is time-compressed instruction?
Time compressed instruction is audio that has been increased in speed, yet has preserved its quality.
What are the advantages of time-compressed instruction?
My research has shown that you can compress audio/narration up to 25% and still retain high level learning and problem solving skills as long as images are used in conjunction with the narration. This could save 25% of training time if done right, which is a significant time-savings.
What are examples of time compressed instruction?
Normal speech – 0% compression
How do I compress speech?
Check out my video on using a free program called audacity to do it. All you need to do is change the tempo speed. At 33% tempo change, time is compressed 25%
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFk4b1itOjQ]
Is HTML Dead?
It appears that the recent Web 2.0 craze is really catching on and standard HTML pages are becoming a thing of the past. Many people are creating their web pages via blog software such as wordpress and/or utilizing CMS software such as Moodle/Joomla/Drupal, etc. These software packages are free and easy to set up. They only require programming experience if you want to change their interface or modify them. Otherwise, they are stand alone packages that any user can set up. Many sites are converting to these applications because they allow for more interaction, are easy to set up, and very easy to edit and maintain. So is HTML dead? Not right now but its use as a stand alone web language is declining dramatically.
Pizap
This video shows a free online photo editor, pizap. Its not too great for pro editing but is a fun tool for kids:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdI62P9MB44]
Buddypress
Looking to create a community similar to facebook for your site? Buddypress might be the answer you are looking for.
Buddypress is a free, opensource, social community that runs as a plugin on the largest blog software, wordpress. Buddypress thus far is in its early stages of development with version 1.2.2.1 just being released. However, buddypress can be used for schools, businesses, or any online community.
Here is an example site: http://njsurfingclub.com/users
Buddypress site: http://buddypress.org