ideabuffet

Open Office 2.0.2 Is Out

Yeah! Drop by Filehippo and see for yourself. This is a must-have for anyone educator that wants the functionality of Microsoft Office without the hefty price tag. My thanks to undauntedspirit for digging this item.

 

Storage Made Simple

 

Here's a neat resource: the next time you need to save, share, or transport a file consider using eSnips.

 

Google Goodies

Michael Catledge from Pioneer RESA wants to share a ton of great Googlish resources. Here are a few of his favorite Google tools.
Google Labs
Xtra Gooogle--Google at a glance
Google's desktop search
Getting more out of Google
2-in-1 Search Engine
Google Satellite Maps and related information Google Scholar and related thoughts
Google Video
Google Directories
More than one way
Google Sets
Google and Libraries
Google Suggest
Google Cheat Sheet
Google Operators If you're very interested in Google,
Google Blogoscoped is a spiffy resource for keeping tabs on the search engine giant. Also, check out the Google Factory Tour.

Pictures, Picasa, and PowerPointlessness

I came across this while looking at Educational Weblogs. Thought it might be of use to teachers who want students to make a slide show but don't want them to fall prey to PowerPointlessness. It won't completely solve the problem--only teachers can do that--but, it will give you and your students a new tool and possibly a new approach to sharing information. “Picasa. Everything you need to enjoy your digital photos in a single software product: * Auto-transfer photos from your digital camera. * Organize and find pictures in seconds. * Edit, print, and share photos with ease. * Create slideshows, order prints, and more! The download itself contains only the Picasa software. Oh, so you like Picasa but you're still having trouble with the PowerPointlessness concept? Pop over to FNO and read the Scoring Power Points article by Jamie McKenzie. Yep, it's old (originally published in September of 2000) but still very relevant. For a little more enlightenment, check out what the folks at the The New Curriculum have to say about avoiding the problem.

An Educated Assault On Batteries

It's very frustrating to be plugging away on a project only to have your computer die before you can stop to save your work. Want to get the most out of your laptop's battery? Enroll at Battery University.

Agog Over Google

Gentleman Joe from Effingham just emailed me a link to the technology playground known as Google Labs. Take a look and let me know what you think.

TAG...You're It! A Tasty New Resource

Back in December, I turned a few friends from Screven County Elementary on to the pleasures of del.icio.us. Somehow, I never got around to blogging it. Instead, I was happily teaching Holly and Winona about the virtues of blogging. Well, it turns out that another has done a fine job of discussing del.icio.us. Emily's World, a very spiffy blog, explores this effective and efficient means of saving and exploring web-based resources in a very well written post. You'll want to read what she has to say it. Good work, Em!

Need A Little WiGLE Room?

If you're new to wireless and feeling a little overwhelmed, you might want to know about the Wireless Geographic Logging Engine (WiGLE). In addition to the many things that WiGLE offers, this spiffy resource allows you to do a search and view wireless access points that wardrivers have located in your vicinity. You might want to see if you're on someone's radar.

Codec Candy Store And Other Goodies

Drop by FreeCodecs before you begin working on that video/audio project. You'll have access to a number of resources that might just save you some frustration and anxiety. While you're looking around for useful things, glance over a list of free PC utilities endorsed by PC World.

Tech Directors: Make Mine Movable Media

If you find yourself hopping from school to school or classroom to classroom you may want to drop by No-Install.com. Once you get there you'll find lots of nifty applications that you can run from removable media--stuff like CD-ROMs, compact flash, memory sticks, and USB drives. Why is this a spiffy option? According to the site...

This means you do not need to install the applications on your computers local hard drive but instead, take it with you wherever you go saving your preferences and files no matter what computer your on.

Sounds like a winner to me.