I often get asked what tools I recommend to explore and in which areas have I tested these with some degree of success.

The following is by no means a definitive list nor an endorsement of these online products rather a direct lift from my personal wikispace web office where I try and keep track of what I have explored for use in an educational context. I have a mind like a sieve by 5.00pm so this ensures that I keep a hold on what I’ve been using with some success - sometimes a lot of success.

Of course I also have explored the use of these tools in a number of other settings ( ie. home life ) and to varying degrees of success so please use these as a begining into the myriad of tools available for use on the web and in your respective learning / training setting ….a great number of them at little or no cost.

I keep them in a wiki for others contributions and to update them at will and for distribution to others for use.

Enjoy.

A Web Office Toolkit

 

ONLINE - INTERNET / WEB

COMMUNICATION

CONFERENCING
Vyew - collaborative desktop sharing and audio / video conferencing
DimDim - show presentations, applications and desktops, chat, show your webcam and talk with others
Skype - online audio / video calling / conferencing
Yugma - online conferncing tool with synchronous desktop, content and chat sharing with audio

AUDIO / RENDERING / PODCASTING
Springdoo - audio and video emails
Odeo - audio / podcasting feeds / storage podcastingwith onboard personalisation features
Podomatic - audio / podcasting feeds / storage with onboard personalisation features
Streamload - audio / video storage with open web access

STORAGE
Box - multi-media storage point

VIDEO
Niceshorts - video upload / share / distribute
Google Video - video upload / share / distribute [ open web links ]
Blip.TV - video upload / share / distribute - mobile enabled
DFilm - short video film production tool

MANAGING

BOOKMARKING
Del.icio.us - social bookmarking tool with feedcast and personalisation features [ tagging, RSS feeds ]

RSS / LINK / COMMENT TRACKERS
Technorati - keeping track of who is reading who and a great blog search tool ( community )

RSS READERS
Bloglines - feed reader used to keep track of who I’m reading on the web [ RSS, XML ]

COMMUNITY BUILDING

SOCIAL NETWORKING
Explode - ELGG community
Facebook - Network your profile and your interests

GEOLOCATORS
Frappr - visual global location introduction and profile network [ geolocation, maps, RSS ]

PUBLISHING

Text / Imbedded Media - online
Blogger - blog that allows template hacking and multiple PLE functionality [ PLE, commenting, trackbacks ]
Wikispaces - wiki pages that allow multiple authorship and imbedded media [ versions, discussion, RSS feeds ]
Edublogs - blog integrated with Wikispaces [ PLE, commenting, trackbacks ]
Dandelife - collaborative social biography publishing

Images / Imbedded media - online
moblog.co.uk - multi-media PC / moblogging gallery [ tagging, rating, posting, commenting ]
flickr - multi-media PC moblogging gallery [ tagging, rating, posting, commenting ]
bubbleshare - multi-media PC or moblogging / audio gallery [ tagging, rating, posting, commenting ]

Calendar - online
Google Calendar - integrated web calendar [ HTML, ICAL, XML ]
RSS Calendar - integrated web calendar [ RSS , XML ]

Presentation - Online
Slideshare - online presentation sharing

Syndication
Feedburner - Managing RSS feeds and multi-media syndication [ tagging, RSS feeds, blends ]

Start Pages
Protopage - start page with personalisation features [ RSS, webpage ]
Pageflakes - start page with advanced personalisation features

Publication - online
LuLu - publish and print your online creations

Referencing
Shelfari - short note referencing tool that allows you to collect, tag, annotate and organise your reading references
EndNoteWeb - Search online, save web of knowledge, collect and organize references

DISTRIBUTION

URL Compactor
TinyURL - Compress and distribute where things are at

OFFLINE

COMMUNICATING

Audio / Rendering / Podcasting Tools - PC

Audacity - Audio recording tool for podcasting and general editing
Erightsoft Super - Simplified universal player encoder and renderer.
Juice - podcast reciever

Internet Telephony / VOIP

Skype - Integrated desktop - VOIP communication - PC-to-PC, PC-to-phone etc. ( internet telephony )
Gizmo Project - Integrated desktop - VOIP communication - PC-to-PC, PC-to-phone etc. ( internet telephony )
Google Talk - Integrated desktop - VOIP communication - PC-to-PC, PC-to-phone etc. ( internet telephony )
Ineen - Integrated desktop - VOIP communication - PC-to-PC, PC-to-phone etc. ( internet telephony )

Alex Hayes
NSW LearnScope
Project Officer