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1 free applications hundreds of apps with potential to enhance professional development technical assistance and dissemination activities and results by larry edelman larry.edelman@ucdenver.edu note this document v 11 ­ 1/1/12 is updated frequently the most current version and related discussions are posted at http exploringtech.wordpress.com please cite as edelman l 2012 free applications hundreds of apps with potential to enhance professional development technical assistance and dissemination activities and results version 11 denver colorado author retrievable at http exploringtech.wordpress.com why should we use technology for pd ta and dissemination in particular technology can help us to efficiently effectively and creatively 1 create content 2 share knowledge and 3 build and support relationships we should consider all applications that are available to us this includes applications that are expensive moderately priced inexpensive shareware and free freeware this includes software that we download to our computers and software that runs on the web some expensive applications enable us to us to communicate in very unique and effective ways while the functions of other expensive applications can be easily replicated or even improved upon by the use of freeware likewise some free applications are all we need to get the job done while other free applications have significant limitations or involve the use of paid advertisements that detract from our purposes i use some relatively expensive applications for tasks such as video editing and authoring online learning modules but i also use many free applications for things such as document sharing web conferencing video conferencing media transcoding audio editing screen capturing media posting and building and hosting wikis blogs and web sites why in particular should we explore free applications · · sometimes free applications are all that we need why purchase or license expensive software when there are free solutions the budgets in pd and ta programs are being dramatically reduced at the same time there are greater needs to provide more people with more timely information free or lowcost applications can help pd and ta specialists should try to model and encourage the uses of technologies that are accessible to local providers and programs free applications if they are appropriate for the functions that we use them fit the bill and can enormously help local programs and providers · edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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2 why might some companies and individuals offer free applications · · · · · · · to encourage large numbers of people to use an application that is in development in order to identify and fix the bugs to offer an application as a free lite version in which functionality or quality is limited in the hopes that users will want to migrate to an enhanced pay-for version to offer a trial version to generate revenue through ads or other related plug-ins to gain market share before switching to a fee-based arrangement to offer a loss-leader to help change the world for the better by offering widespread open access to useful digital resources important things to keep in mind about the applications on the following pages some free applications are very powerful and will allow you to do just about anything that you need to do other free applications produce inferior products or lack important functions compared to commercial software you ll need to try them out and judge for yourself what is good enough for your purposes some apps are online and require no downloading or installation others require downloading and installing software some applications require registering for an account while others don t some apps use other log-in credentials e.g facebook twitter etc not all programs work on all platforms pc mac or on all operating systems i aim for universal design and prefer applications that work on both pcs and macs but this is not always possible applications are continually updated and new software is published all the time check often for updates downloading programs carries the risk of unwanted cookies malware or a virus use virus protection software and update it frequently your it department and help desk specialists are important resources for you consult with them on adoption decisions encourage them to learn about the applications that you want to use show them your appreciation for keeping you and your computer and network running efficiently and safely treat them nice buy them gifts if you are denied access to a web-based application or prevented from downloading or installing a key application write up a business plan the plan should make a clear and concise case for how the application is required for your work safe and secure effective cost-effective if you are denied access ask for an alternative application if you are still denied find out who in your organization can say yes and make another appeal some software programs may not be secure when in doubt consult with an it specialist before downloading and installing some software may create a conflict with your operating system or other software applications when in doubt consult with an it specialist before downloading and installing there are thousands of useful free applications that can and should be used to enhance our work the applications on the following pages are only examples there are many more choices try to do a search on your favorite browser for free [key word software edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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3 i constantly update this list to try to keep it as up-to-date as possible with emerging developments and information but some of the applications on this list may not exist by the time you explore them or they may now charge a fee many apps do more than one thing for instance one app might be used for video conferencing instant messaging and as a telephone rather than trying to list them in multiple categories i list them under what i feel might be a good primary category remember that free apps come and go sometimes they are discontinued and sometimes they start to charge for their use it is wise to have a backup www.go2web20.net provides a great data base of thousands of web applications that you can search by type please note that i have not tried out all of the applications on the following pages so no promises are made i used to try out every app in earlier versions of this document but there are just too many now but each application listed has been recommended by at least one valued source this interesting book offers an interesting perspective free the future of a radical price by chris anderson abridged audio files at http www.hyperionbooks.com/free/free_downloads.htm or free audiobook at http www.wired.com/techbiz/it/magazine/17-07/mf_freer one final note the following pages list applications designed for laptop and desktop computers there are tens of thousands of applications built for smart phones pads and tablets with hundreds of new ones appearing every week that are incredibly useful for our work in professional development technical assistance and dissemination keep on the lookout for example here are two ipad apps that enable the creation of mini-tutorials show me http www.showme.com screen chomp http labs.techsmith.com edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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4 navigation to free tools and applications click on category to go directly to it aggregating animation audio podcast production audio recording editing and sharing audio file creation and sharing audio text-to-speech avatars see video animation birthyear event tracking blog creation and hosting bookmarking researching knowledge sharing broadcast on the web business planning calculation calendars and scheduling chatroom audio video text clipboard manager co-browsing tools collaborative documents and spaces color resources comic/cartoon/caricature makers computer faxing crossword puzzles create data cleaning data visualization desktop publishing desktop sharing diagramming charts diagrams graphs digital publishing digital storytelling resources drawing document sharing elearning templates email email enhancement email newsletter distribution and mailing services email reminders file conversion file encryption file sending storing sharing flashcard creation fonts grammar and spell checking graphics editing icons images and videos image/photo editing manipulation image resizing instant messaging invitations learning content and course management systems logo makers mapping media players media hosting and posting meeting scheduling messaging micro-blog platform mind mapping/concept mapping multi-media creation aggregating and sharing music and sounds royalty-free downloads music creation music playlist creation music sharing news aggregator and visualizer note taking office-like tools online course locator online forms online polling online surveys painting pdf conversion tools pdf from web page pdf to text photo voice annotation/talking photos photo editing see image editing poster creation pop-up book creation polaroid makers powerpoint to flash conversion powerpoint to video conversion powerpoint uploading and sharing presentation tools printing web sites project and event management publishing platform qr code generators questions and answers quiz/assessment makers screen sharing search send store and share files shareware and freeware downloads simulations single digital identity creation slideshows sound effects space simulation stop motion movie creation student information system task management/to-dos telephone calls conferencing and texting teleprompter creation text-to-speech timeline creation timers training games url shortening video edit play encode convert download video aggregator video analysis video animation creation video annotation video captioning video conferencing video downloading video editing video editing software resource lists video interactive video making from images music video messaging video platform video playing see media players video screen capture video storyboarding video streaming from smart phones with video video-to-text video transcription platform video watching without crap voip web page sharing web page snapshots web usability and accessibility webcast and webinars hosting web page clustering/referencing web site building and hosting whiteboards wikipedia annotator wiki creation and hosting word cloud creation word processing words to time calculator youtube captioning youtube editing and sharing youtube questions and answer page creator open content sites p 34 free apps lists from others p 36 cool and useful blogs wikis p.39 edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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5 note this version v.11 of this document includes more than 120 new resources for users of previous versions i indicate new entries in red so you can easily recognize what s new aggregating friendfeed http friendfeed.com odeo http odeo.com netvibes http www.netvibes.com general issuu http issuu.com whatisissuu animation domo http domo.goanimate.com disapainted http disapainted.com/myanimations.php audio podcast production gcast http www.gcast.com talkshoe http www.talkshoe.com yodio http www.yodio.com podpress http www.podpress.org audio recording editing and sharing audacity cross-platform sound editor http audacity.sourceforge.net audacity manual http audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/index_splash.html lame mp3 encoder ­ allows you to export audacity files as mp3 files available at http audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq?s=install&i=lame-mp3 callburner records skype calls http www.callburner.com for managing audio files itunes works on both macs and pcs there are many other software options i like itunes http www.apple.com instructions for recording editing and sharing audio files from skype using callburner and audacity http www.kineo.com/free-tools/audacity-callburner-review html myna http www.aviary.com/tools/audio-editor filelab audio editor https www.filelab.com/audio-editor wavesurfer http sourceforge.net/projects/wavesurfer audioexpert http www.audioexpert.com audio file creation and sharing audioboo http audioboo.fm yackpack http www.yackpack.com voxopop http www.voxopop.com postcard.fm http postcard.fm edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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6 chirbit http www.chirbit.com spreaker http www.spreaker.com wave editor http www.wave-editor.com qwips http qwips.com audio text-to-speech readthewords http www.readthewords.com vozme converts text to mp3 files that you can download http vozme.com voicaroo http vocaroo.com avatars also see video animation digimi http www.gizmoz.com/newsite/presite/home.jsp birthyear event tracking whathappenedinmybirthyear http whathappenedinmybirthyear.com blog creation and hosting google blogger www.blogger.com class blogmeister http classblogmeister.com/index.php 21classes http www.21classes.com gaggle https www.gaggle.net wordpress www.wordpress.com posterous post things on the web from your email http posterous.com kidblog http kidblog.org/home.php coveritlive http www.coveritlive.com iivejournal http www.livejournal.com windows live http login.live.com/login.srf?wa=wsignin1.0&rpsnv=11&ct=1281210185&rver=5.5.4177.0 wp=mbi&wreply=http 2f%2fhome.live.com%2f&lc=1033&id=251248&mkt=en-us vox http www.vox.com xanga http www.xanga.com tripod http www.tripod.lycos.com blog.com http blog.com/wp-signup.php?new=int yahoo pulse http pulse.yahoo.com/y/landing blogr http www.blogr.com bookmarking researching knowledge sharing delicious http delicious.com diigo http www.diigo.com edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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7 digg http digg.com furl http www.furl.net reddit http www.reddit.com simplybox http simplybox.com only2clicks http www.only2clicks.com middlespot collect and visually manage your digital content http middlespot.com/search.php sqworl http sqworl.com scrible http www.scrible.com broadcast on the web livestream create live scheduled and on-demand internet television on the web http www.livestream.com business planning plancruncher http plancruncher.com the startup toolkit http thestartuptoolkit.com calculation google calculator http www.google.com/webmasters/igoogle/calculator.html#source=coha&ct=1056755011 calendars and scheduling meetingwizard www.meetingwizard.com doodle www.doodle.com genbook http www.genbook.com google calendar http www.google.com/support/accounts/bin/topic.py?topic=14117 meet-o-matic http www.meetomatic.com timebridge http www.timebridge.com presdo http www.presdo.com timetomeet http www.timetomeet.info whenisgood http whenisgood.net scheduleonce http www.scheduleonce.com clickbook http www.clickbook.net online meeting and appointment schedulers comparative guide and review of the best collaborative tools http www.masternewmedia.org/online-meeting-and-appointmentschedulers-comparative-guide edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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8 chatroom audio video text tinychat http tinychat.com chatterous http www.chatterous.com clipboard manager ditto http ditto-cp.sourceforge.net co-browsing tools twiddla http www.twiddla.com showdocument http www.showdocument.com clavardon http www.clavardon.com brosix http www.brosix.org collaborative documents and spaces chatter https www.chatter.com convore https convore.com teamlab http www.teamlab.com teambox https teambox.com sync.in http sync.in twiddla http www.twiddla.com buddypress http buddypress.org google docs http docs.google.com adobe buzzword http www.adobe.com/acom/buzzword writeboard http www.writeboard.com scriblink http www.scriblink.com zoho http www.zoho.com/index.html voicethread http voicethread.com mixed ink http mixedink.com/main.php pbworks http pbworks.com wiggio http wiggio.com orkut http www.orkut.com wall.fm http wall.fm groupsite http www.groupsite.com/features conceptboard http conceptboard.com ubidesk https www.ubidesk.com huddle http www.huddle.com openmeetings http code.google.com/p/openmeetings diipo http diipo.com edmondo http help.edmodo.com edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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9 adobe.com https www.acrobat.com/welcome/en/home.html qtopia http www.qtopia.com amplify.com http amplify.com todaysmeet http todaysmeet.com color resources kuler http kuler.adobe.com color scheme designer http colorschemedesigner.com goffgrafix http www.goffgrafix.com/pantone-rgb-100.php colorschemer http www.colorschemer.com/online.html photocopa http www.colourlovers.com/photocopa copaso http www.colourlovers.com/copaso/colorpalettesoftware seeforyourself http www.purveslab.net/seeforyourself color in motion http www.mariaclaudiacortes.com comic/cartoon/caricature makers toondoo http www.toondoo.com bitstrips http www.bitstrips.com comicstripgenerator http www.comicstripgenerator.com/maker.asp makebeliefs comix http www.makebeliefscomix.com toonlet http toonlet.com digibody http digibody.com cartoonize.net http www.converttocartoon.com/index.php sopre http www.spore2d.com design cmics http www.designcomics.org the best ways to make comic strips online http larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2008/06/04/the-best-ways-to-make-comic-strips-online computer faxing hellofax https www.hellofax.com crossword puzzles create eclipsecrossword http www.eclipsecrossword.com data cleaning google-refine http code.google.com/p/google-refine data wrangler http vis.stanford.edu/wrangler edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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10 data visualization vidi http www.dataviz.org rubyvis http rubyvis.rubyforge.org protovis http mbostock.github.com/protovis datawrangler http vis.stanford.edu/wrangler highcharts http highcharts.com javascript infovis toolkit http thejit.org/demos moochart http moochart.coneri.se demo style chart http chart.inetsoft.com tuftegraph http xaviershay.github.com/tufte-graph desktop publishing scribus http www.scribus.net desktop sharing apreta http sourceforge.net/projects/apreta diagramming charts diagram graphs oomfo http oomfo.com cacoo http cacoo.com simple diagrams http www.simplediagrams.com/home creately http creately.com gliffy http www.gliffy.com/prodcomparison.shtml my.origramy http my.origramy.com/index.html?startmeup=1 lucidchart https www.lucidchart.com creately http creately.com digital publishing issuu http issuu.com/signup digital storytelling resources 50 web 2.0 ways to tell a story http cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/50+ways digital storytelling in the curriculum http web.mac.com/digistoryteller/digitalstorytelling/home.html my storymaker http www.carnegielibrary.org/kids/storymaker digital storytelling in the classroom http www.microsoft.com/education/teachers/guides/digital_storytelling.aspx photostory http www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/default.mspx edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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11 digital storytelling resources http patricklowenthal.com p=337 creaza http www.creazaeducation.com/frontpage drawing crayola http www.crayola.com/coloring_application/index.cfm draw island http drawisland.com inkscape http inkscape.org draw a stickman http www.drawastickman.com document sharing tag my doc http tagmydoc.com elearning templates e-learning heroes http community.articulate.com/downloads freepsdfiles.net http freepsdfiles.net/backgrounds/free-old-papers-set email gmail http www.gmail.com yahoo mail http billing.mail.yahoo.com/bm/mailreg hotmail http login.live.com/login.srf?wa=wsignin1.0&rpsnv=11&ct=1253879194&rver=6.0.5285.0 wp=mbi&wreply=http 2f%2fmail.live.com%2fdefault.aspx&lc=1033&id=64855&mkt=enus email enhancement wisestamp http www.wisestamp.com scr.im http scr.im email newsletter distribution and mailing services mailchimp http www.mailchimp.com contactpro http www.contactpro.com bravenet mailing list manager http www.bravenet.com/webtools/elist comm100 newsletter http www.comm100.com/emailmarketingnewsletter yourmailinglistprovider http www.yourmailinglistprovider.com icontact https www.icontact.com/email-marketing-free-solution email reminders kis reminder http www.kisreminder.com edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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12 event management event bite http www.eventbrite.com file conversion convert.files http www.convertfiles.com faq_section file encryption truecrypt http www.truecrypt.org file sending storing and sharing dropbox https www.dropbox.com yousendit claims to be hipaa compliant http www.yousendit.com airdropper http www.airdropper.com sizablesend.com http www.sizablesend.com mailbigfile.com http www.mailbigfile.com/free filedropper http www.filedropper.com rapidshare http www.rapidshare.com skydrive http skydrive.live.com divshare http www.divshare.com opendrive https www.opendrive.com/login.php wuala http www.wuala.com store share http storeandshare.sky.com/base/login.jsp yuntaa http www.yuntaa.com addrive http www.adrive.com zshare http www.zshare.net orbitfiles http www.orbitfiles.com icloud http www.icloud.com/en 4shared http www.4shared.com pipebytes http host02.pipebytes.com 2peer http 2peer.com filephile:http www.filephile.net zapr http www.zapr.com otengo http www.otengo.com filesovermiles http www.filesovermiles.com skype http www.skype.com sendthisfile http www.sendthisfile.com conexme http www.conexme.com gigasize http www.gigasize.com edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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13 windows live mesh 2011 http explore.live.com/windows-live-mesh?os=other syncplicity http www.syncplicity.com box http www.box.net sugarsync https www.sugarsync.com/referral?rf=c6g3ccjrtagq2 just beamit http justbeamit.com dropittome http www.dropitto.me media fire http www.mediafire.com 16 apps that make sharing large files a snap http www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/08/16apps-that-make-sharing-large-files-a-snap note many of these applications were discovered in a post prepared by daniele bazzano for masternewmedia and first published on december 7th 2009 as send large files of any size guide to the best tools and services to transfer large files flashcard creation quizlet http quizlet.com fonts and icons 70 seriously useful handwritten fonts and inspirational showcases http www.tripwiremagazine.com/design/design/70-seriously-useful-handwritten-fonts-andinspirational-showcases.html over 100 handwritten fonts http www.articulate.com/rapid-elearning/over-100-freehandwritten-fonts free fonts http www.dafont.com 50 free handwritten fonts for web designers and logo artists http www.instantshift.com/2009/06/08/50-free-handwritten-fonts-for-web-designers-andlogo-artists dafont.com http www.dafont.com/theme.php?cat=603&page=2 serif fonts http vandelaydesign.com/blog/design/serif-fonts vintage and retro fonts http vandelaydesign.com/blog/design/vintage-fonts script fonts http vandelaydesign.com/blog/fonts-2/script-fonts font squirrel http www.fontsquirrel.com grammar and spell checker after the deadline http www.afterthedeadline.com graphics editing inkscape http inkscape.org edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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14 icons primo http www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/07/200-free-exclusive-vector-icons-primo icon finder http www.iconfinder.com icons etc http icons.mysitemyway.com images and videos freerangestock http www.freerangestock.com open stock photography http www.openstockphotography.org fotogenika.net http www.fotogenika.net/modifica/igallery.asp finding images online by paula berinstein http www.berinsteinresearch.com/fiolinks.htm favorite 10 free stock photo download sites by dazzlindonna http www.dazzlindonna.com/blog/2007/07/18/favorite-10-free-stock-photo-download-sites how to find pictures for your elearning http engagedtraining.wordpress.com/2009/04/01/how-to-find-pictures-for-your-elearning google images http images.google.com openphoto www.openphoto.net flickr www.flickr.com be sure to use the advanced search and select the only search within creative commonslicensed content box before searching tag galaxy explore flickr photos via virtual planetary systems http taggalaxy.de freephotobank www.freephotosbank.com unprofound www.unprofound.com stock.xchng http www.sxc.hu history of medicine http www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/ihm/index.html stockfootageforfree http www.stockfootageforfree.com stock image sites http community.articulate.com/forums/p/1187/6428.aspx stock photo and illustration sites http theelearningcoach.com/resources/stock-photo-sites kozzi http www.kozzi.com image/photo editing and manipulation blender http www.blender.org picasa from google http picasa.google.com gimp http www.gimp.org autostitch http www.cs.ubc.ca mbrown/autostitch/autostitch.html microsoft photo story 3 for windows xp http www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/photostory/default.mspx picnik http www.picnik.com aviary see falcon and talon http aviary.com pixie http www.nattyware.com/pixie.php paint.net http www.getpaint.net edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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15 poladroid http www.poladroid.net adobe® photoshop® express http www.photoshop.com/tools?wf=editor splashup http www.splashup.com phoenix http www.aviary.com/online/image-editor sumo http www.sumopaint.com/home phixr http www.phixr.com fotosketcher http fotosketcher.com textify.it http textify.it image resizing dropic for macs http www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/23017&vid=140851 vso image resizer for pcs http www.vso-software.fr/products/image_resizer picresize http www.picresize.com pictureresizer http www.rw-designer.com/picture-resize instant messaging meebo http www.meebo.com invitations evite http www.evite.com learning content and course management systems lcs lcms and cms moodle http moodle.org drupal http drupal.org joomla http www.joomla.org atutor http www.atutor.ca dokeos http www.dokeos.com olat http www.olat.org/website/en/html/index.html sakai http www.alliedlearningsolutions.com/sakai.html claroline http www.claroline.net nfomedia http www.nfomedia.com edu2.0 http www.edu20.org myicourse http www.myicourse.com/welcome lectureshare http www.lectureshare.com schoolrack http www.schoolrack.com elearning community 2.0 http www.elearningcommunity.com ecto http www.ectolearning.com/default.aspx 15desks formerly collegebrain https www.15desks.com/index.php edelman free applications for professional development technical assistance and dissemination v.11 1/1/12

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