Technology for Teachers

In the simplest definition, Flash Presentation 8 is a software tool that can be used to create interactive web content, including websites and presentations/slideshows.  It can be a powerful tool, keyword, can.  My experience and the time I spent wasn’t the greatest.  Most of that has to do with my experience with the program, which is little to none.  After looking at the program and downloading it I thought I’d take the tour to see if that would help: [Click to view link]  If anything it showed me again what the program can do and what at this time I can’t.  I also took a look at www.AtomicLearning.com to see if they had any tutorials, they had some for Flash 5 which again gave me a better idea of what I was looking at.  This is definitely a program where experience and training are a must.  The program was easy to download and install and there are ample help/tutorial sites online but this is a program where I’d need the book and some “face to face” time with someone who could walk me through it.

[tags]technology,   technology4teachers,   seanmartinson,   sean martinson,   education[/tags]

So apparently I’m really behind the ball here.  I hadn’t heard of or paid attention to a product out by Microsoft called Microsoft Producer for PowerPoint.  The program works as a free addition to PowerPoint… and well, take a look at the link at the very bottom of this posting to see what it does.  My hope is that it will stay free but you never really know.  It’s not that the program does anything that you can’t already do, it’s that it does it all in one spot seamlessly.

The reason I said that I was behind comes from viewing one of the examples that Microsoft had listed on its site (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/technologies/producer.mspx) of what some are doing with Producer.  A Wylie school district nerd has his own explanation of what producer is, just a shade under 10 minutes and a very quick definition and example of Producer.  He makes reference of using something coming up in the Summer of ’02… so it’s safe to say that I’m a bit behind the game. http://www.microsoft.com/office/powerpoint/producer/demos/Wylie150/E-LearningProducerI_files/default.htm

The first thought I had of Producer was a cross between Microsoft Movie Maker and Powerpoint.  Being familiar with PowerPoint that portion of the project was much quicker than the rest.  The wizard made putting things together easy that is until I couldn’t get my webcam to show any video.  Now this goes to this program being commercial and catering to a much different community than the open-source where everyone lends a hand and helps each other.  It was impossible to find help for my particular problem.  I tried to update everything, get new drivers, pull out my hair… wait no hair….  I tried my new digital video camera but it didn’t work for this type of application.  It took more time trying to get video to work than all of the other portions (including writing this) combined.  Suffice to say the community supporting Microsoft stinks….

Why is it that the thing that finally works is always the last thing you try?  The way I worded that…. I know….  ;-)  Well, I tried an older camera that I have and things worked like a gem.  So once it was all working it was quick and easy!  View the show, it’s a bit over three minutes and shows what the program is much better than me writing about it.

Can you see the many implications?  For me it leveraged the prior purchases of all the network/hardware equipment including the camera and PowerPoint… so for this one there was no additional cost for me other than all the time troubleshooting.

Sample File:

http://www.seanmartinson.com/files/final_show.htm

You have to use Internet Explorer… nothing like Microsoft to offer something free but then make sure it only works with their programs.  I use Firefox but keep IE for things just like this.

Sean M.

[tags]technology,   technology4teachers,   seanmartinson,   sean martinson,   education[/tags]