Obviously, we'll include a wide variety of licensed software on these machines. But, in addition to the basics, I'd love to include a wide variety of open-source software so that our users can hone there skills more effectively.
Here's a partial list (in alphabetical order) of some open source apps that I'd love to see available to all teachers and students. While many of these apps can be included easily, a couple of them are in beta (or private beta), so some considerations need to be made before going ahead and installing them onto a slew of machines...
After glancing at this list, what other open source titles would you include? I'd love some more feedback from my network on this one ;-)
ATMOSPHIRAn amazing cross platform video game design application that allows users to upload, share and edit all levels that are created...
AUDACITYA no-frills audio editing and recording application which makes it very easy to produce audio podcasts...
GIMPA great photo editing application that can introduce students to layers, masks and other powerful image editing tools...
GOOGLE EARTHInstantly take your students on virtual field trips anywhere in the world for free - without having to deal with permission slips - what more could you ask for?
PHUNA simple to use physics engine where students can dabble with creating objects and solving complex problems...
SCRATCHA simple programming language developed by Mitch Resnick at MIT - introduces students to action scripts and allows uploading and sharing of files...
GOOGLE SKETCHUPA comprehensive 3D design environment that allows users to create models to scale - features an online object warehouse so that objects/models can be easily shared...
SKITCHA great little application for annotating or marking up photos - also makes it very simple to crop and resize image files...
SKYPEAn amazing application that allows you to freely and instantly connect with anyone, anywhere in the world...
SMART Notebook 10An object oriented application that is used to create interactive lessons and activities for use with SMART interactive whiteboards. Why not encourage students to create and share their own Notebook files?
STELLARIUMA very cool application for viewing constellations in great detail - allows zooming, searching, and even enables users to manipulate the passage of time to track the paths of orbiting planets...
VLCA great little media player that handles some video formats that Quicktime may not like very much...
2 comments:
I have them put Audacity on and also Tux Paint. Because some classrooms are using MIMIO I have that and the SMART software installed for the students. I'm just waiting to hear how long the Beta (free) version of Webspiration is expected to continue before putting a shortcut to that on the desktops.
Cheryl
Cheryl,
Thanks for your feedback :-)
We have a couple of Mimio's in our division, but all schools are also working with SMART Boards. We've decided to just install Mimio Studio on those machines that have access to Mimio IWB's...
Tux Paint - we'll have to consider that one!
And I agree that Webspiration is a great online app. We've subscribed to Inspiration for years and I find that teachers are using it more and more these days. If we were looking to save a little money, moving to Webspiration instead would be a viable solution :-)
Have you tried out Gliffy? It's another online concept mapping application that is very easy to use and has some slick features :-)
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