New Release
eZediaMX 3.1.5 for Mac OS X and Windows XP
Here we are again, a New Year and new beginnings. Last month we released an update to eZediaQTI for both Mac OS X and Windows, bringing the painting and image editing capabilities to Windows. This month we are releasing eZediaMX 3.1.5, bringing it out of beta status and retiring eZediaMX 3.0. This updated version of eZediaMX is a free update and available to all registered eZediaMX 3.0 users on Mac OS X and Windows 2000/XP.
If you are not familiar with eZediaMX, it is an easy-to-use multimedia authoring and editing software for creating digital portfolios, dynamic presentations, multimedia slide shows, animations and interactive CD-ROMs. It allows users to combine and edit all major media formats including video, graphics, animation, sound, MP3s, VRs and text; add interactivity; and incorporate sophisticated logic elements - with no programming or scripting required.
The two major new feature additions to eZediaMX 3.1 are eZediaMX Composite and the Key Point Editor. eZediaMX Composite gives users the ability to capture and export their interactive eZediaMX projects to a non-interactive QuickTime movie that can be used in other video editing applications or inserted into an eZediaQTI project and uploaded to the web. The Key Point Editor allows users to animate media-text, graphics and movies by adjusting the position, rotation, scale and opacity levels of the media as it moves along a path. Along with the new features, eZediaMX 3.1.5 offers an enhanced Graphic Object Edit palette that provides users with new tools to rotate and flip images.
| Purchase eZediaMX 3.1.5 today for $49.95 |
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The Two D's of Website Creation
It could be argued that a good donut is the third D of website creation. For the moment, I'll put my appetite aside and discuss Downloads and Directories.
Downloads
I've had a number of clients ask for instructions on how to offer a file for download, be it a resume, sound file or, in the case of one finely fragranced florist, a list of state flowers.
Setting up a download situation is quite easy, and I invite you to open eZediaQTI and follow the steps:
- Create a one-frame document, drop in a Goto object and select it.
- In the Attributes panel, change the Go to Action dropdown list to Web Location.
- Add the path and file name in the URL field. We are going to create a subdirectory called "downloads," so you would type something like this:
downloads/stateflowers.pdf
- Choose File>Generate Web Site or File>Export Interactive Movie.
- Locate the HTML file you just exported, and alongside of it, create a folder called “downloads.”
- Place your document inside this folder, launch the index.html file and click on the Goto.
Congratulations, you have just downloaded your own file! Let's have a donut to celebrate.
It is important to note that the file you offer for download may be displayed in the user's browser rather than actually be downloaded. In the case of a PDF for instance, my Internet Explorer browser displays it via the Acrobat Reader plug-in. From there, I can choose to save it to my computer. With my Netscape browser, I am given the choice to download or view it.
It is also critical you maintain the directory hierarchy when uploading your files to the web server. Otherwise, users will get the dreaded “File Not Found” error message when they click on the link.
Directories
Objective: A school wishes to create a website that contains a school home page. Two of the teachers, (Emma and Alex), would like to set up a home page for their respective classrooms. Once complete, the directory structure would look like this:
Alex wants to place a link on his index page that takes the user to the school’s home page. He would use a Goto object and set it up like this:
In order get to the school’s index page, the link has to step up one level. To do that, we need the “../” in front of “index.html”. Hence, we have “../index.html” in the URL field of the Goto object.
Stepping down a level is a little different. For instance, if you wanted to link from the school’s index page to Alex’s index page, the URL field would read “Alex/index.html”. (Notice how it resembles the download directory from above.) “Alex” indicates the directory name and “index.html” indicates the file you are linking to.
To link from his index page to Emma’s index page, Alex would do this:
In this case, we are stepping up (../) and then stepping down (Emma/index.html).
The same rules apply for Emma, for you and for anyone else, no matter how large and complex the website.
The Name game
To comply with sensitive operating environments, it is advised to stick to some basic naming conventions for files and directories:
- keep names meaningful but short.
- keep spaces out of names.
- use lower case.
- don't use funny characters in file or directory names i.e. $,*,%,#.
You should now be well on your way to becoming a downloading, directory-making, donut-loving webmaster. If you have any questions on these topics or anything else, I'm only an email away.
Happy 2006!
By Randy Kilian-Smith
Engaging Students With Content Trailers
“A picture is worth a thousand words” is an expression that has been used to express the power of images. It is no secret that the human brain thrives on images, with vision being 80% of information input to the brain. Audio pales in relation to vision by only 19% of all input, with the other senses comprising 1%. This will vary on circumstances, however, in the classroom this would be an appropriate breakdown.
Often, teachers rely on reading as the primary method of beginning a new point of inquiry. Most teachers in the classroom today have developed strong skills in reading and research as compared to the novice learners in the classroom. When students are asked to engage in new content with reading as their initial foray into the information, is it any wonder that they flounder toward success? Perhaps providing a different interface to new content will bring a stronger success profile to the learning environment for students. By attaching images, sounds, motion, etc., teachers can deliver an engaging hook to new content.
Content Trailers can be one of those tools that establish a strong visual point for students to grasp while they begin to inquire. Technology certainly is providing teachers with new tools that can be employed and deployed into the classroom in order to capture student interest, maintain and engage inquiry, and as a result, establish a higher point of success. Technology also provides a new and enticing tool for students to create products that show teachers what is being learned and internalized.
These same tools can be used to save time. Once a resource is developed, the resource can be accessed at any time to provide redirection and clarity for the student. The tools of technology can allow teachers to mobilize a greater resource capacity in the classroom unlike any in education to date.
So what is a Content Trailer? Very simply, a Content Trailer is a short, 2- to 3-minute, media-rich experience from which a point of inquiry can begin. The vehicle is unimportant in the relationship to the concept. Providing students with the images and sounds that can be attached to the textual information that they will be exploring can provide a profound shift in the way learning is engaged. Content Trailers can be one tool to help the process of inquiry begin.
Another critical factor in the process of using Content Trailers is the teacher’s involvement. This provides a new perspective for teachers to invigorate their learning while they explore and create the trailers. For teachers who have been hesitant to embrace technology, trailers bring technology to their toolbox in an exciting way. Teachers who have already brought their classrooms into the 21st century will have a different perspective to the use of technology for their own continuing education as well as for the students.
Good teaching always involves good planning. Knowing where the lesson is headed and how to measure success in reaching the lesson goal is critical. Starting with assessment in mind will help establish the questions that each student must be able to answer at the finish of the lesson or point of inquiry.
Content Trailer Key Elements
- In this step, identify and elaborate the critical concepts and key questions that are considered non-negotiable when dealing with your content issue. (If you begin by developing this in a text document, you can utilize this resource for copy and paste into the trailer.)
- Identified content
- 3 (or more) critical concepts
- 3 to 5 key questions
- In this step, research the Internet for sites and images that provide a good information source and image source. Be sure to keep track of the URLs visited for documentation of your resources and for use by students when they explore and develop their "Reflective Learning Trailer." This provides good modeling for following and honoring copyright.
- Five websites (min)
- Images (min 30)
- Mpegs (movie clips (Short))
- Audio
- In this step you will actually put the trailer together. If a teacher is unfamiliar with developing a movie clip or slide show, tutorials can be found at a variety of websites or by asking for help from a instructional technologist in your school or district. The software applications listed below are just some of the resources that can be utilized for this process.
Develop trailer (no more than 3 min.)
- eZedia QTI (multi-platform tool)
- iMovie (Apple)
- Moviemaker 2 (Windows)
- Review the trailer to make sure the following elements in the trailer are included.
- Titles (opening)
- Credits (ending)
- Images and movie clips
- Key concepts (copy and paste the key concepts before or over the images that relate to each concept).
- Key Questions (insert the questions either at the end or over a sequence of images that would relate to the question).
- Audio ( the sound file used should highlight or support the images).
Reflective Learning Trailer
(Student Project)(60-90 sec max)
- Students submit a written report or storyboard which represents their reflective learning trailer.
- Documentation of resources used should be included in the credits or stamped on the images used or both.
- Websites
- Images
- Mpegs
- Audio
- Include Critical elements addressed relative to Key concepts.
- Include Key statements for each Key Question covered.
- Use images (no more than 30), Mpeg, and audio to elaborate and support Key statements.
A reflective learning trailer should not imitate the initial content trailer. Some images may be the same due to the sites visited for content and image acquisition; however, students should provide a distinctive trailer for the issues that they find most relevant to the concepts investigated and key questions answered.
Click here for an example. We will show the construction of a content trailer in a later newsletter.
About the Author: Randy Kilian-Smith is a Technology Coordinator in the North East ISD, San Antonio, TX.
No remuneration was received for the writing of this article. |
