Chanatown

Video Demo/Tutorial: Google Chromebooks Domain Autocomplete

2015-07-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

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Day Two Notes from Google Midwest Summit 2012

2012-11-13T14:10:00.002-06:00

Day two from the Google Midwest Summit. No snow in the forecast today - it's sunny, blue skies and a crisp 42 degrees in the Dells. Day one was a great experience both as a presenter and a learner. I'm eager for another day of learning, and I'll be touching base with a few attendees from yesterday's session on Google Sites. Read on for more notes, links, and goodies picked up from day two.

Source Links/Session Pages:
Steven Butschi, Shared Notes
Minnetonka - Google and iPads
Chad Kafka - Google Hangouts

Google+ is coming soon to K-12, possibly for Staff first for professional development, PLC work, shared department initiatives.

"The Web is what you make of it." Google Chrome's current motto applying to education: the base platform for technology - the browser. It's not about tying to one device - web is unifying link (less licensing, specific apps)

Check out Google Apps EDU App Packs for bulk discounts on popular paid apps including Teacher Dashboard which we use at ETHS.

Making Google Docs Offline is tough - think about what it takes to make real time collaboration online work when offline. Spreadsheets are particularly challenging because many calculations are done in the cloud and need to be done locally.

iPad 1:1 in Minnetonka: iPads for all freshmen and sophomores (science, math, english during first year, control group = students w/out iPads). Using Google Forms, Schoology for formative assessments and access results/grades in real time.

Workflow: Schoology has a dropbox feature (connected from Google Docs) for getting work from students to teachers. Remarks app links to Google Drive. This is very nice since we have Google Drive folders already created for our teachers. (Link to comparison for annotation apps). We use Notability and they have just added Google Drive support, so I need to test this when I return. Schoology demo - looking pretty nice for 1:1, especially if it plays well on the iPad.

Using Quickoffice Pro HD instead of Google Drive because they wanted offline editing capabilities.

Google Drive app vs. Safari experience - additional editing capabilities but messing with tables and images can be a bit tricky. Stay with Safari for editing Google Docs and collaboration.

Schoology also has a plugin/connection with Turnitin.com.

Hangouts have started to be allowed in K-12 Apps accounts, but it's only the "Lite" version, 1-to-1 video only, no extra features (so far). Lite is in the URL.

Users can start hangouts directly from Gmail. No longer need to go through Google+ anymore. Uses include professional development - screenshare, text chat, show Google Drive files, teaching from home, podcasts

Gmail Labs - right side chat is great for moving your chat bar to the right side which allows for more room.

Hangout Tips - stop other apps that may be running in the background. Add as a Chrome for quick launching from a new tab, Google Hangouts toolbox - adjust volume of other people, additional apps available

Live hangout features - screenshare, live edit of Google Docs, effects, multiple screen shares

Honestly, I became a bit overwhelmed with how much can be done with all of these tools. This is a good thing, but just as I recall from my experience at the Google Teachers Academy (way back in 2009), I need to take a deep breath, let the head come to rest from all of that spinning, and go back to work with some goals of implementing these ideas into the classroom. Get ready ETHS - here we go!

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Day One Notes from Midwest Google Summit 2012

2012-11-12T15:30:00.002-06:00

Great day of sharing and learning at the 2nd Annual Midwest Google Summit (Wisconsin Dells, WI). I began the morning working with close to 100 attendees on creating and editing Google Sites. We had a lot of great ideas, questions, and I hope that everyone walked away with something new. With my presenter duties completed (thank you conference schedulers!), I got to sit back and enjoy the work of other presenters. Hit the jump for some notes from the day one sessions.

Sources Links/Session Pages:
Stacy Behmer
Lindsay Welch
Chad Kafka
Jamie Casap
"Bears vs. Packers" Session Notes

Lots of good stuff here, and as a side topic, I picked up a few new Chrome Extensions. Additional tips and tricks from Chad's preso.

Timer - great way to keep track of things without opening a separate tab or application.
Tab Cloud - great for bookmarking a set of tabs that opens up automatically (definitely will try this out for presentations in the future).

Picasa Web Albums - nice tip for collecting photos by having students send via email to a shared Picasa web album. Check out the Settings in Picasa Web Albums and type in a secret word which then gets incorporated into an email address. Share the link to others for a photos dropbox that send pictures directly to the web album.

Google Translate - World Language teachers can open U.S. websites and then use Google Translate to make it appear as another language.

More Google Translate - voice input (English original language) - after installing a Voice extension for Google Chrome, you can speak into the Google Translate box and then translate into a different language.

Google Inside Search and Google Search Posters offer some great resources for faculty and staff to educate students (and ourselves) on how to use Search effectively.

I forgot this tip, but students looking to search based on an existing image (already downloaded, looking for the source for citation) can do a "reverse image search" by uploading the image through Google Images and then viewing the search results.

Google Search Story Creator - I used this awhile back, but I was worried that Google discontinued this service. Alas, the link is alive and provides a fun way to create new and engaging Google Search stories.

And this just in from the Twitter wire: Google Docs Story Builder - looking forward to trying this out later in the week. The Wedding List story is always a crowd pleaser.

Quiettube - "videos without the distractions" - very cool way to eliminate the comments and "other stuff" that comes up when you use videos from YouTube. Available as a Chrome extension and you can then copy the direct link for use elsewhere.

Using Google Voice in the Classroom - lots of great ideas regarding the use of Voice. One really cool use involves having students record messages on the phone to the teacher's Google Voicemail allows the teacher to access the recorded messages on the web, as well as offer the ability to fadd notes, email results, download as .mp3, and embed (through HTML add).

Using templates are a great way to share Google Forms for use in other classrooms or departments.

Color code by level - using color in a Google Spreadsheet (from form data), teachers can quickly assess where students are and regroup as a class to differentiate instruction.

Transform data from a Google Spreadsheet (form data) and then use the Word Cloud (use tilde (~) symbol) gadget (Insert, Gadget, Word Cloud). Too bad spreadsheet gadgets will be retiring in 2013. =(

Using generic answer sheets (blanks) Google Forms along with paper or projected questions can help with issues such as looking/searching for answers during an assessment as well as talk from one class to another later in the day.

Using Branch Logic with Formative Assessments - good idea for using Google Forms logic branching is for incorrect answers going towards a different set of questions whereas correct answers go elsewhere. Possible use for "flipped" classrooms and including assessments.

IFTTT - "If this, then that" - sets up automated actions based on If Then rules.

Live summary of results - nice trick - open the Summary of Responses for a Google Form in a new tab (command-click on link) and then use a Chrome Extension (Chrome Reload) set for a specific time interval (ex. every five seconds).

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Video: How to Pre-Populate Google Forms via URL Shorteners

2012-11-06T16:30:00.000-06:00

This topic came up on our Google Certified Teacher Group and I was so excited to see that there was a possibility of pre-populating Google Forms (thanks E. Curts for the source link). With this capability, you can have fields pre-filled with specific data (like an email appendage), checkboxes pre-slugged, or address fields pre-populated (different forms for different states, cities, etc.). Lots of possibilities and just a minimal amount of legwork in adjusting the URL. Hit the jump for the Google support link and a 2-minute tutorial.

Google Support Article

Save Those Dates and Let's Meetup, Hangout, and See Each Other Soon

2012-10-26T16:30:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year, no not the holiday where you have your kids dress up as baby animals and solicit neighbors for candy. No, it's professional development conference season, and we're hitting the ground running starting in November. I'll be presenting at a few local conferences, waiting for word on the big state and national ones, and will be co-chairing the local Mini-Conference held in January of next year. Hit the jump for more details on each of them, and let me know if you'll be attending!

Google Apps for Education Midwest Summit (November 12-13)
I missed round one, but I'll be in attendance and presenting on day one at this sold-out two day conference for all things Googley.

Illinois Education and Technology Conference (November 29-30)
The edtech caravan heads downstate to Springfield, IL for this great conference, my first as an official edtech employee. Springfield's a great place to visit as well - the Lincoln museum is amazing!

Google EDU On Air (October-December, 2012)
You have the best seat in the house to learn with educators around the world. Over 110 Hangouts. Over 70 presenters. All free on Google+. Education On Air. Register today. http://goo.gl/OyqFc

Specifically, I'll be presenting twice for EDU On Air - come hang out on 11/26 for Sites one month from today.

NICE Mini-Con 2013 - Call for Proposals
Lastly, the Northern Illinois Computer Educators (NICE) is having its annual Mini-Conference on Saturday, January 26, 2013 at Niles North High School. We've got presenter proposals rolling in daily, but we'd love to hear from you regarding any topics that you'd be interested in presenting. We've got a great keynote speaker in store and this year promises to be the biggest, best conference ever!

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Converting PDFs to Word via Google Docs (VIDEO)

2012-10-24T16:10:00.002-05:00

This one has been out for awhile. In fact, I wrote a post in 2011 on this very capability. However, I went ahead and created documentation and a video since the topic still comes up frequently. Teachers (or anyone for that matter) occasionally request editing of PDF documents. Although PDFs are meant for viewing only, there are times when we want to be able to access an editable version in a word processor. Google Docs has a handy PDF converter built in, and it does a pretty decent job of converting, especially if you're looking at just a bunch of text in your document. First, you'll convert to a Google Doc, and if you need some Microsoft goodness in there, you'll need to download as such. Here's the tutorial guide and a YouTube video is embedded after the jump.

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Day Two - Staying on the Move

2012-09-05T18:22:00.000-05:00

I was able to sneak in a 15 minute lunch, but other than that, I was again on the move throughout the building working in a lot of different classrooms. More setup on the iPad carts working with a few teachers, and then we successfully used the Chromebooks with three classes today. Coupled with Hapara's Teacher Dashboard, we've got a powerful solution for Google Apps and one that makes it very efficient for teachers to stay organized with their students' documents. Here are some of today's SBS moments. (I'm changing the acronym to Solved By Searching - . I just couldn't live with WILTs!)

Burning a Data Disc on Mac/PC
I need to make a quick copy of a DVD for backup purposes. First, I looked up a free solution for PCs (CD Burner XP - works for Windows 7 as well), but then realized that I needed to do it on the Mac. Apparently, OS X does this through Disk Utility, so it was a quick and easy procedure.

Screen Capturing on a Google Chromebook
Lastly, I wanted a reminder on how to take screen shots on a Chromebook and I found the shortcut needed. Add that shortcut to the arsenal of screenshot tips and tricks.

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Reflections from IETC Springfield - 2011

2011-11-18T15:51:00.001-06:00

It's presentation week for me, as I co-led an in-house learning strand on Monday for our school, followed by a 2-hour workshop at IETC on Wednesday, and tomorrow it's off to NCTE for a 1+ hour workshop on Tablet PCs. Although I'm looking forward to some turkey and time on the couch, I wanted to reflect for a brief moment on my presentation.

The topic was "Creating a Teacher Website Using Google Sites", and I was pleased to have over 40+ in attendance. Most stayed until the very end as we discussed the ins and outs of how to create a useful and manageable teacher website. The workshop included a presentation on what works and what doesn't for teacher websites, followed by over 1.5 hours of hands-on time creating, adding, and editing web pages. I tried to address as many questions and offer 1:1 assistance throughout the session, and I was pleased to see individuals helping each other as well when I was occupied.

One huge surprise was the ability of many attendees to create and edit their Google Site using Apple's iPad. With so many iPads now in the field, I was admittedly skeptical that those with the iconic tablet would not be able to do much more than watch and take notes. Instead, we found that the device held up quite well, and I don't think we lost any of those in attendance that chose to go forward with building a site.

It was mentioned that I appeared to have spent a lot of time building this workshop. I certainly did, but I hope that it will be worth it as the site can effectively help all of our teachers as well as those in other districts who may not have the time or the opportunity to set up individual meetings with me or their respective technology staff developer. That being said, I do hope I get to offer this workshop again in some capacity. It was a pleasure working with dozens of new teachers and playing a role in their website development process. Please feel free to view the session resources, and contact me if you have any questions or would like me to present at your conference or organization.

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How Google Docs Really Sells Itself to Students (and to you as well?)

2011-09-09T16:01:00.000-05:00

As I wrap up another introduction training of Google Apps to students, I wanted to pause and reflect on how much good can come out of increased usage of Docs alone by our students. Thanks to an updated campaign to encourage our incoming freshmen to log in and check their email, we've gotten a large spike in users testing out the Google Apps waters. After the jump are a few items I make sure to bring up during my presentations. If you're not using Docs yet, educationally or personally, perhaps, you'll try it out after reading the following.

Auto Save

Before you can press Save Now, Google does it for you. This is huge for students when they encounter unreliable Internet connections, power outages, or if they simply forget to save after spending hours on an important paper. No longer do we have to remind students to save every now and then. And no longer will students lose all of their essay because they forgot to click the save icon.

Online Storage

An equally important benefit of the cloud application is the ability to access all of one's documents regardless of location. Students don't have to worry whether they saved their work at home, on their network folder, or on a flash drive. If they use Google Docs, their work will be there, ready and waiting for them to continue, print, or share. An underutilized benefit might be the fact that multiple types of files can be stored in one's Google Docs. There are the obvious - Google Spreadsheets, Forms, Presentations, and Drawings, but then there are the other possibilities including MS Office Documents and recently added Videos. This makes Google Docs almost as feature rich as another must-have tool by the name of Dropbox.

Integrated Comment Stream

As more teachers choose to utilize Google Docs in their classes, they may choose to take advantage of the robust commenting system built-in and recently updated. Teachers can insert comments in specific parts of a document, thus highlighting spelling, grammar, punctuation or other mechanical issues. Comments can also be made on the document in whole, and teachers can add lengthy reflections online, ones that may have been more challenging and time consuming when done by hand.

Real Time Editing
Although I show this off during presentations, I will be the first to admit that the educational application of real time collaborating isn't quite as relevant. I have had teachers comment on their student's work while the student was viewing the document, so a real time conversation and consequently a live writing review session was conducted, but this is probably the exception rather than the norm.

Chat

Similarly, the chat feature often wows students and we then battle a bit to tear them away from this feature, but I believe that the tool provides a valuable opportunity, and when encouraged to use this in a positive, constructive manner towards meaningful collaboration, students generally see the benefits and ultimately apply their energy towards the final classroom product.

I am fully aware of many of the downsides to using Google Apps. I wrote about several of them in an earlier post. However, one feature that I don't mind is the lack of a built-in spell check. The visual spell check found in most browsers is plenty powerful, and once students are trained to use the right-click/correct combination, it helps them check their spelling all throughout a document, rather than just at the end. For a free product (Education edition), Google Docs provides many features that help our students prepare for not only their current work but also for the future in terms of strengthening their communication and collaboration skills.

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Google Sites Gadgets for Education - Limiting What's Available, Adding What's Useful

2011-09-07T16:01:00.000-05:00

As more teachers create their websites and more students set up portfolios using Google Apps, it becomes increasingly likely that both parties will stumble upon "more gadgets" and the bounty of gadgets that come with a potentially unfiltered part of the application. I wrote in an earlier post how to setup DGDM, a gadget management feature that easily limited what was either shown (whitelist) or not shown (blacklist) when site creators went searching for gadgets. Later, I created a video tutorial that demonstrated the process from start to finish. Recently, a fellow GCT (Google Certified Teacher) created a site that included his own tutorials as well as a category listing for specific gadgets useful for educators. Check it out here: Gadgets4schools and read more after the jump for a few of our teachers' favorites gadgets.
Embed

Although Code Wrapper is listed as an essential on the site mentioned above, we've been using the Embed gadget (found quickly under Featured) to insert HTML snippets. Once teachers become familiar with this type of gadget, the possibilities for website expansion multiplies exponentially. A quick lesson in how to spot the HTML embed code from various Web 2.0 tools such as VoiceThread, Discovery Education, or Voki, and teachers and students are well on their way to Embed heaven.

Countdown

Just a simple but effective gadget that counts down the the weeks, days, minutes, and seconds to an event of your choosing. This one is fun to include on sites, and I have seen teachers count down anything from days to the final exam to days until graduation...for juniors. Ouch!

Iframe Wrapper

Another "essential' gadget listed on the site, and I agree. Th Iframe wrapper helps teachers and students keep users on their site while allowing them to peruse another site within a frame. Not the most elegant solution from a design point of view, but it gets the job done for various scenarios, and one can be quite creative with the use of this gadget.

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Wrapping Up the ISTE 2011 Conference

2011-07-08T06:31:00.001-05:00

It is hard to believe that it's been over one week since my five days of non-stop edtech goodness in the city of brotherly love. Although my walking shoes have been thanking me for taking a break, I have had some time to reflect with satisfaction on another year of learning new information, tips, and tricks as well as setting job related goals for the upcoming school year.

Nuts and Bolts

For the conference, I chose to use the live blogging tool Cover It Live for every session that I attended. This served multiple purposes. One, for those that could not make a session or even the conference, I offered an opportunity to follow along live or review the archived session. The most popularly played replays included the session on Mobile VoiceThread and Tammy’s Time Savers for Teachers. Second, I didn’t need to worry about pushing timely blog posts since my session notes are already published directly on the site. Lastly, this made the process of reviewing each session for those golden nuggets that much easier, and enabled me to offer the following:

Golden Nuggets

These snippets were just from the sessions that I attended. I’m sure you could comb the Twitter feeds (look for the #iste11 hashtag) and find tons of information from every session. Here’s just a smidge of what I gleamed from each workshop or presentation. For more coverage, including links to a lot of great resources, check out all of my live blog replays for ISTE 2011, found here.

Saturday

Transformation using NETS(!T) – some fun role playing and a nice addition of self awareness to the NETS(!T) standards.

Sunday

Technology Time Savers – Tammy’s workshops are always engaging, and I certainly picked up a few ideas, including the easy sending of audio files through links (Vocaroo) and the plotting of locations from a spreadsheet onto a Google Map (Batchgeo).

Maximizing WhiteBoard Usage – some interesting professional development models to consider when rolling out similar initiatives at our school.

Implementing VoiceThread and Mobile VoiceThread – This was one of the highlights of ISTE – meeting the founders of the web tool and then seeing the iPad version live. It reminded me of being at an Apple event, only less crowded.

Monday

Dr. Z’s Creative Cookbook – lots of tips/tools – some new, some old – second time in the conference that etherpad spinoff (http://typewith.me/) was used. I do see the benefits over Google Docs for a specific type of activity.

Tips for Improving Staff Morale – Rushton Hurley impresses with his relevant videos, strong enthusiasm in presenting, and overall solid tips in how to get more school spirit.

Creativity Unleashed: Tablet PCs – very enthusiastic presenter who’s been using Tablet PCs (1:1) for a long time. Interesting insights and discussion on the future of Tablet PCs if support is weaning and growth in iPad “tablet” market growing.

Tuesday

Climbing the Interactive Whiteboard Mountain – Bret Gensburg, are you kidding me? This man has so much energy, so much enthusiasm, and combines it with humor, knowledge and Pez giveaways. What more could you ask for? Seriously.

Tablets: The Smart Medicine – Interesting look at how Tablet PCs are being used in an Australian school. Some new applications that are Tablet friendly along with the usual suspects (MS Office and OneNote)

VoiceThread for Interactive Projects – great intro and also some intermediate tips, tricks, and lesson ideas for using VoiceThread. Solid work done by Collette tailoring the presentation to a wide variety of attendees.

Move Beyond the Textbook – some interesting insights from Discovery Education presenter about the future of the digital textbook and where we currently stand.

Wednesday

The All Inclusive Website – a great summary for all things having to do with successful student and teacher websites. Also, a pitch for http://www.editme.com/

Innovative Technology Science Inquiry – learned about a great new initiative for online science lab simulations and real world experiments using probes. Soon to be entirely web based, for now, Java based.

Online Learning – my final session – I was interested to pick up tips for online instruction as many of our teachers communicate and work with students outside of school hours. Although the session was geared more for preparing teachers for online instruction, I enjoyed seeing the web tool Pixton (an online comic creator) in action.

Again, for more links, notes, and full presentations (where available), click here to search for all of my live blog sessions at ISTE 2011.

The Social Network

I’m still learning the ins and outs of expanding my professional learning network (PLN). However, I will say that I had a blast playing miniature golf, noshing on mini-bites, and touring the Academy of Natural Sciences with several of my fellow Google Certified Teachers (Woot – DC ’09). It was also a blast getting a taste of what the Philly food scene has to offer (a lot) with my Technology Chair, and the Illinois Computer Educators (ICE) party proved to be a nice meetup for those from the land of Lincoln. Epic times indeed. Looking forward to ISTE 2012 in San Diego, but first, there’s plenty to apply from this year’s conference.

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Setting Up Domain Gadget Directory Manager (DGDM) for Google Sites

2011-04-27T16:01:00.001-05:00

One of the earliest experiences I had with Google Sites when we started using Google Apps for Education was noticing all of the cool gadgets that you could use in Sites. Unfortunately, many gadgets were also inappropriate and able to fly in under our school's filter. With Domain Gadget Directory Manager (DGDM), we can set up a "White List" filter and specifically choose which gadgets to allow for users on the domain. Alternatively, one can also create "Black List" filter to exclude specific gadgets. I chose to implement the former due to the large number and possible expansion of inappropriate gadgets. A video tutorial on how to set up DGDM follows after the jump.

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How to Convert a PDF, JPG, PNG, or GIF file into Editable Text for Free Using Google Docs

2011-04-26T16:01:00.000-05:00

Recently, I had a request to convert a PDF into an editable document, and although we have access to Adobe Acrobat Professional, that would have meant assigning a ticket and waiting for an install on the user's machine. Instead, I remembered and then recommended that the teacher try the "Convert PDF to Google Doc feature." Before completing selling it to other teachers with similar requests, I gave it a quick test run with the following results.

How It Works:

To get started, you'll need to log into your Google Apps account and click on Documents. Select your PDF file to upload and (this is important) check the box where it says "Convert text from PDF or image files to Google Docs Documents." Next, click on Start Upload, and wait for the link to your Google Doc to appear. The process is a bit longer than the regular "Word to Google Doc" conversion, but most multi-page documents I tried were converted in under a minute. Google Docs uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR), and anyone familiar with using a traditional flatbed scanner will recognize the OCR acronym as this was commonly used when users wished to convert a scanned document into editable text. Thus, what's really cool is that Google Docs will attempt to handle .jpg, .png, .gif files in addition to PDFs.

The Results

Of course, the conversion depends partly on the quality of the PDF, and keep in mind that we are converting text from the PDF and not the images. Thus, there will be large gaps where the images may have been, special formatting including indents and paragraphs may be missing, and the OCR program does not do well with headers and footers. Still, when focusing on text and text only, Google did a fine job. Testing the converter with an image worked as well as seen in the screen shot. I liked how Google includes an image of the original above the editable text, thus allowing you to see where it had any trouble and thus enabling you to make edits on the spot.

Conclusion
There are plenty of times when teachers find themselves in situations where it would be useful to copy/paste a selection of text from a PDF. This could be a scanned test or assignment that predates access to computers or something that they no longer have electronic access to. The option to convert text from a PDF or an image file such as JPG, PNG, or GIF into a Google Doc (and subsequently a MS Word file if necessary) is a valuable one to have, and integrating it with Google Docs make it even easier to access for everyone.

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Real Time Collaboration Using Prezi - Classroom Observations

2011-04-20T16:01:00.006-05:00

This week, I had a teacher request an introduction and ongoing support for Prezi. I'm a big fan of the zooming presentation editor and have written several posts about the tool. For this assignment, the class was divided into 3 groups, and each group had approximately 6-8 students. This represented a perfect opportunity to test the collaborative features of Prezi in a live student environment. After some minor testing with a few dummy accounts, we were ready to go.

Collaboration similar to Google Docs
Sharing a Prezi with other users is as simple as sending an email link. Although I would like the ability to just add collaborators as we do in Google Apps, the share link is very easy and once students clicked on the link, they were automatically shuttled into the presentation. Note that each user must already have a Prezi account, as those without will be prompted to login when clicking on the shared link for the presentation. There is also a 10 person limit when collaborating on a single Prezi.

As real as real time can be
I was thoroughly impressed with the speed and stability of the collaborative features found in Prezi. We had between 6-8 different students all working on the same Prezi canvas simultaneously for a 42 minute class period. This was pushing the program towards the 10 person maximum. The students were inserting text, images and video, rotating and resizing all throughout the time. Since many had prior experience using Google Apps, the ability to collaborate was no longer a novelty, but instead a means to an end in terms of producing a final product that combines their shared research. Although one could press save and then refresh to insure the viewing of the most recent presentation, most students simply prodded along and when their screen automatically refreshed, new content contributed by their fellow group members would appear on screen.

Suggestions for your classes
Of course, not all was perfect in Prezi land. When students were first introduced to the collaborative features, there were the usual complaints of "where is my image?" or "who deleted my stuff?" that come with real time group sharing of work. Also, since there's a big blank open canvas initially when working with Prezi, we found it helpful to use frames or have each group member carve out some space to work. When the number of embedded videos and images increased, choppiness with simultaneous collaboration increased as well. Also, Safari proved to be inferior to Firefox and even Internet Explorer in terms of browser choice. Lastly, there's potential for students to focus too much on the look and feel of the zooming features, but we found that most students were focused on their projects and not distracted by the technology tool shortly after the initial exploration.

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Changing the Language in Google Docs

2011-04-18T16:01:00.001-05:00

Image via CrunchBase

One of the most common calls I get on Google Docs is when the user opens their documents and finds that their language settings have been altered without their knowledge. Often, this results in the inability to effectively work in Docs, so I've created a video that illustrates how to identify the settings needed in order to change the language back to the desired choice. Check out the YouTube embed after the jump.

youtube link

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Why I Need to Use Three Web Browsers Everyday

2011-03-25T15:59:00.001-05:00

Image via Wikipedia

Article first published as Why I Need to Use Three Web Browsers Everyday on Blogcritics.

With new versions of web browsers coming out regularly, including the heralded Firefox 4 (released on Tuesday), I am excited but certainly not holding my breath that the next version will be the one to rule them all. As it stands, I open multiple browsers daily, as each has their own strengths and weaknesses. On top of that, certain web applications or websites work better with specific browsers, and I have no choice as these applications are essential for my work as a teacher, a staff developer, a blogger, and recently, an editor.

So what do I do? Upon powering up my PC at work, I'll double click on Internet Explorer (IE), Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome. At home, I'll substitute Safari for Explorer as Macs have long since abandoned support for IE. I'll use Explorer at work and on a home PC since Outlook Web Access allows for drag and drop and other features only in IE, and our gradebook program went through a lack of support for Firefox for a short time. As a Google Certified Teacher and Apps Trainer, I rely on Google Apps regularly, and their Chrome browser naturally works best. Chrome has also established itself as the fastest browser in my mind, though I am sure that the competition is closing the gap if they haven't already.

Those Mac owners who work solely with what ships in the box will likely be surfing the web via Safari. Admittedly, the browser has helped me on occasions when the release candidate of Firefox wasn't cooperating and the website I needed to use was not supported by Chrome. Still, one might be tempted to try either Chrome or Firefox to at least see what life is like away from the world of Apple.

If I absolutely had to fire up only one browser, though, it would be Mozilla's Firefox (sorry Google). As a user of several content management systems for both my teaching and writing responsibilities, Firefox has been the go-to browser when something doesn't seem to be working right. And with the release of Firefox 4, Mozilla has managed to combine the speed and simplicity of Google's product, not to mention the use of pinned tabs (taken directly from Chrome) with the wide range of add-ons and accessibility that has made Firefox a major player in the browser battle. Which brings us to the question of which browser works best for you?

Questions View Results

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Apple and Google's Popularity Described in Three Words

2011-03-07T16:01:00.000-06:00

Article first published as Apple and Google's Popularity Described in Three Words on Technorati.

After reading an article on Apple and Google's respective positioning as the top two most admired companies in the world, I couldn't help but 1) agree with the rankings, 2) further reflect on what makes them so great, and 3) come up with three words for each company that offers some additional reasoning on their climb to the top.

Apple: Innovative, Sexy, Buzzworthy.

Innovative: Apple has always been a leader in design, and whether it is the choice to use an aluminum unibody for their hardware, or the decision to blanket their retail stores with glass exteriors, the company knows how to make a statement with design. In a world filled with dull black plastic laptops, Apple makes sure its products stand out and get noticed. It is a wonder that other companies continue to play catch up to Apple since the technology and hardware tends to be dealt on an even playing field. What distinguishes Apple is how it uses the technology to create new experiences with existing products. As a result, the company gets noticed by establishing itself as the trendsetter.
Sexy: Feeding off a good design, Apple products are in a word, sexy. You want to hold and use them, be seen with them, and say that you have one. It's no wonder that people take leisure trips to the Apple Store found inside suburban malls or on metropolitan shopping strips. Apple incorporates technology into the world of window shopping, and even if you don't have one or can't afford to buy one at the moment, you still want to sample or touch an iPod, iPad, or Macbook Air. Of course, what Apple really wants is your business, and chances are, with you in the store on a regular basis, it will get just that in the future.

Buzzworthy: When was the last time you discussed when a non-Apple product was going to be released, let alone followed a keynote presentation on its announcement? The buzz surrounding Apple products is nearly inescapable, and whether it is a direct marketing campaign or simple word of mouth, Apple news finds its way to you. Hip and clever commercials early on in the iPod era catapulted the portable music player to dominance. Similarly, product placement in mass media outlets keep the Apple Macbook logo fresh in your mind. And one can be certain that iPads will soon be visible in everyday places ranging from restaurants to big box electronics stores.

Google: Simple, Fast, Free

Simple: One's experience with the Google search engine begins at the minimalist start page. The message is clear: type your search in the big box in the center and you will get results. Similarly, the Google Chrome web browser clears the way for what's most important to be displayed on the screen: the webpage. Going down the list of apps now available from Google, one finds a similar pattern of simplicity. This is what makes Google so popular and easy to use with the masses. Although one could get more use out of the advanced search tools, the focus when using Google remains the simple box that can do so much.

Fast: Google takes pride in how fast it operates, as it proudly displays the time it takes to produce your search results. Everyday, the company makes advancements in making its products work as fast as they can, whether it is in search or in document collaboration. Although Google will always be looking to expand its product lineup, it seems to stay true to its roots and continuously works to improve its search algorithms as well as keeping things fast and current. With today's digital world operating in the now, products like Instant Search and Realtime clearly show that Google understands what the world wants and how fast it wants it.

Free: Perhaps, altruistic is the wrong word for a company that generates billions of dollars a year in revenue. However, when was the last time you paid to use a Google service? With Google, one can obtain an email account, share a calendar, create and collaborate on a document, spreadsheet, or presentation, store and edit pictures, publish a website and even more all with a single login. There's not a hint of a fee coming in the future for any of these products, and though there are ads present in Gmail, they blend in well and often go unnoticed. With the other aforementioned services, ads are next to nonexistent. So, although Google may not be totally unselfish and concerned for the welfare of others, its products are positioned to be available to the masses, and they are there for the taking.

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Previewing the New Google Groups - Why Teachers and Students Will Love the Changes

2011-02-14T06:01:00.003-06:00

Perhaps, it's because I use Groups mostly through our school domain, which is not currently set for pre-release features, or perhaps, it's because I've been so consumed with other work, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the new Google Groups features when logging into my personal Gmail account this morning. Apparently, users were given opt-in options starting late last year, but I swear the link only popped into my account recently. Anyways, here's three reasons why educators may be particularly interested in the new Groups.

Improved user interface
Visually, one of the first things you'll notice is the newer interface. Compared with the original look and feel of Google Groups, the new features resemble Google Reader in a good way, with users able to see descriptions of the groups, number of topics, and a snippet of the last post. Also, though not shown below, there's a left sidebar which similar to Reader, allows you to quickly reference recently viewed groups, previous searches, and favorite groups.

Before

After

Rich Text Editing
I think the best improvements are found in the message editor mode. As seen below, users now have access to a rich text editor, with the most important features being the image upload, hyperlink, and attachments. We have several Google Groups at school where students need to cite resources, share documents, and peer edit essays/reviews. The ability to include hyperlinks, share pictures, and attach their files is a huge step forward in making the Group more functional for classes.

Before

After

A Better and More Powerful Search
I was excited to see a revamped search bar, and my first few searches revealed fast and accurate results. I was able to search within all of my groups, a particular group, and even drilled down to a single topic, all notable improvements over the older interface. However, during my testing, I ran into some problems as I looked for terms that I knew existed in posts, but they were not coming up in results. Assuming this gets fixed (and since search is what Google is known for, it's a safe bet that it will get fixed), students and teachers will find it a lot more efficient to search for and find posts.

Google claims that this is the first of a series of updates to Groups, and all of the admin features are still accessible only in the older interface. Still, there's lots to be excited about with the new Google Groups. Specifically for educational use, the tool has the potential to give every student a voice in class discussions, as well as offer a safe and accountable tool for teachers to use in administering online assignments.

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Chrome OS Notebook Cr-48 Review: Thoughts for Education Deployments

2011-02-04T06:07:00.001-06:00

When I recently discovered that Google had resumed sending out Cr-48's, I was being picked up by my wife and we were on our way to our first date night as parents without the baby. I promptly asked,

"Did I receive any packages today?"

She casually replied, "Oh yeah, there was one."

"And...?" I pondered.

"Oh, it just said Chrome on it." Classic, and thus began my weekend, chock full of exploration and excitement over the new hardware initiative from the folks in Mountain View. After a week of playing and a day long conference, here are my thoughts and how they tie in with future education deployments.

Why Chrome Notebooks May Displace Netbooks for 1:1:

Full Keyboard: The typing experience is pleasant as the full size keyboard bests any and all netbooks with anything less than 100%. I did not have to adjust to any diminished size or awkward key placement. Instead, it was typing as usual, as it should be. Students should not have to hunt and peck for keys when writing a paper or performing research. Speaking of keys, I'm a big fan of the special keys on the top row, particularly the dedicated browser back and forward keys, along with the full screen key. And yes, I like that there's no CAPS LOCK key. Other than writing CAPS LOCK, I don't ever type in all caps and neither should our students.

Build Quality: Initial reviews pointed out that the notebook is rather dull in design keeping in mind that the machine is not intended for public consumption. However, I will argue that the rubberized matte look and feel of the notebook is rather pleasant and functional. Not slippery like an aluminum Macbook and unadorned with logos and stickers as PC laptops generally are, the Cr-48 achieves its design aesthetic in that it represents a minimalist machine which is what the unobtrusive Google OS is striving for. With the included sticker set, you do get some customization capabilities, and I wouldn't be surprised if a "Powered by Google" moniker appears on these machines when they are eventually released.

Bright Screen: Although not as vibrant as an Apple iMac or Macbook display, the screen on the Cr-48 is surprisingly bright and clear. When compared to some PC Tablets and netbooks that I've used, the Cr-48 more than holds its own in terms of brightness and resolution. The fact that it is matte instead of glossy is observable in rooms with strong lighting as well as outdoors. I think this is a smart decision for schools given the amount of fluorescent lighting that is often used in today's classrooms.

Power and Connectivity: Since unboxing and the initial full charge, I've only managed to discharge the battery once in a week. Granted I did not use the machine as my full time computer during the weekdays. However, this past weekend, the Cr-48 made its conference debut, as I used it to take notes and prepare blog posts, all without a hitch. Thus, an impressive display for a standard battery, tons of standby time and enough juice to probably power a few classes' worth of instruction. This is critical when dealing with limited charging options for students in 1:1 environments. Despite some spotty wireless coverage at the conference, the Chrome OS notebook was able to find all available networks and connect with ease. Unlike the often confusing networking icon on PC's, the wireless signal icon in the upper right of the Cr-48 is familiar enough to users of any major smart phone or portable music device.

Bonus: I don't know why it took playing with the Cr-48 for me to realize that the Chrome browser allows for pinning of tabs, but I'm now hooked. What is new and home only to the Cr-48 (I believe) is the feature that the Gmail pin glows (white orb slides by top of pin) whenever there's a new email message. Sweet! On top of that, the speed at which the machine boots up, resumes from sleep, and signing in/out are all as fast as advertised. I will say that the Apple Macbook gives the Cr-48 a run for its money in terms of time from resume, but Chrome certainly wins in all other categories.

Why Chrome OS Notebooks are Still Beta:

The Trackpad: Of course, not all is rosy for the Cr-48. The biggest disappointment thus far has certainly been the trackpad. This isn't anything new, as the poor performance has been noted in several other reviews. In short, the trackpad has issues when using the index finger to scroll and then your thumb to click on the mouse. That particular motion has given me many problems, and I just can't seem to get it right despite adjustments in sensitivity. However, I will add this observation: the trackpad is still very usable if you use the tap to click feature. This includes using two fingers to scroll - it works. The problem is that if you've used any Apple multi-touch device, you get spoiled as their trackpad is simply outstanding. Thus, users grow accustomed to the near flawless experience they have when using a MacBook, iPod or an iPad. I assume the Google engineers will have a fine working trackpad in time for release, and this will be important as students tend to get frustrated with a poor trackpad experience (just ask them about those miniscule square pads on their netbooks).

Where did all of my programs go? The biggest strength and selling point of the Google OS may also likely be its biggest downfall as any 1:1 initiative with these notebooks will require a major paradigm shift for our students. Programs such as Microsoft Office or its free open source alternative Open Office are still included on most netbooks as backups for students when Google Docs is not available or good enough. Thus, the Cr-48 represents a full, no-holds barred commitment to the cloud, and those with spotty wireless networks better brace yourselves. That being said, I can only imagine a world that grows without wires, and the future looks more and more like it's going to be run on servers as opposed to local machines. This is the bet that Google is making, and since they're driving a large part of the ship, I'm confident we'll be able to get there.

What about the specs? Interestingly, I neglected to include the hardware specifications for the Cr-48 notebooks. This happened for two reasons. One, I just plain forgot. Two, and more importantly, it just doesn't matter. Whether the notebook is equipped with a high speed CPU, a ton of RAM, and a huge hard drive simply doesn't come into play with Google's operating system. Although you can get the full detail on specs (and a solid review) here, the so-so numbers and the component brands that make up the Cr-48 don't mean as much when you rely solely on the cloud for usage. This could prove to be another interesting shift in thinking as hardware makers move forward with new products.

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NICE Conference Presentation: Senior Studies and Google Sites

2011-01-29T06:28:00.000-06:00

Welcome NICE Conference Attendees!

Here's the Prezi for our Senior Studies and Google Sites presentation:

Accompanying the presentation is a handout which can be accessed here.

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Google Global Science Fair - Calling All Student Scientists

2011-01-11T15:09:00.000-06:00

In an attempt to compete against (or hopefully compete with) prestigious contests such as the Intel Science Talent Search or Siemens Science and Technology Competition, Google's stepped into the arena with the Google Global Science Fair. Open to all students from around the world ages 13-18 and working individually or in groups of two or three, the contest represents a nice opportunity for students to get involved and excited about science, technology, and of course, some valuable experience using Google products. I like that the process seems a bit more open to all students (not just the already scientifically inclined) and less intimidating than the aforementioned contests. Check out the promo video below, and sign up here to register.

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Google Chrome OS Notebooks and Education: What Cr-48 Means for Classrooms

2010-12-09T12:40:00.000-06:00

To think, I was excited just over the release of a native Google Reader app to the Android Market last week. This week, we get an entire bookstore, a preview of the new Google operating system, and a sneak peek at the notebook that will be the first to demonstrate the capabilities of the new OS. Thoughts on the those other items will have to wait, as I am most excited about the possibilities of Cr-48 (the cool code name for the notebooks) and education.

Nuclear Stability
First off, I have to give props to Google for throwing in the Cr-48 moniker. As a Chemistry teacher, I appreciate the tiny detail that went into using the element symbol and the mass number, though I was intrigued that "48" was used. I am glad that they didn't just spit out Cr-24 since that is the atomic number (most recognizable on the periodic table) as this would confuse our budding chemistry students. However, "48" was still an interesting choice since it is not one of the three stable isotopes of Chromium. In fact, the half life (how long it takes for 1/2 of the isotope to decay) of Cr-48 is just over 21 hours. If only that referenced the notebook's battery life, we'd be in business. In the end, Cr-48 just had a better ring to it than Cr-50, Cr-52, Cr-53, or Cr-54.

Less booting, More working
Teachers using netbooks for 1:1 initiatives or those using laptop carts such as the ones we have for several classes at ETHS will rejoice with the announcement of a boot time of about 10 seconds. Honestly, anything under a minute will be a welcome sight given the fact that it often takes at least this long to start up our Windows XP and 7 based netbooks and even longer to log into desktops. With less time lost to starting up and logging in, students get more time to use the notebooks for their intended purpose. Since our schedule features daily 42 minute periods, every minute is precious.

Need for Speed
Google has built its brand name on a speedy search, and its Google Chrome browser often delivers a fast, no-frills web experience. This seemed to be the inspiration for the new Chrome OS, as users simply login at the beginning, and they then have access to their email (Gmail) productivity apps (Google Docs) and other services (Apps through the new Google Web Store). The result will hopefully be a quick and efficient way to get students directly to their work. I like the approach of creating a tool that doesn't dazzle you with looks, but rather focuses on speed and efficiency. Time will tell whether Google has the right formula with its shift in operating system.

Connect Anywhere
WiFi is becoming more widespread, as more homes are connected, and entire cities begin building public hot spots. However, we clearly are not at a point where everyone has access to the Web, and once students leave their connected schools, many find their homes isolated from the Internet, or they rely instead on a smartphone (mostly for Facebook). With Google's partnership with Verizon, the opportunity to purchase a reliable connection nearly anywhere can potentially bring all students to the same playing level. Schools may begin looking into partnerships with wireless companies to augment their 1:1 initiatives and in turn save money on hardware solutions within the school.

Sync and Durability
Perhaps, the coolest thing about the new OS is how little dependency there is on the native machine. As mentioned in the demo, a user's email, docs, and apps simply pick up where they left off. Logging into Google Chrome on one machine will produce a similar experience when logging into a Cr-48 notebook, and so on. For students, this would prove useful as they often work in a variety of environments ranging from school, to home, to a friend's house. For IT staff, this could mean saving valuable time and resources when a student experiences difficulty with a machine. Instead of losing time to re-image a notebook, trying to repair it in house, or worse yet, waiting for a third party to fix it, a student can get a backup notebook and pick up right where he or she left off.

I am excited at the possibilities that this project may potentially bring, not just because of the Google branding, but because the company brings a new and innovative way of thinking about notebooks, operating systems, and the user experience. I predict that this won't be just another tech tool that gets lost in the shuffle.

Click here to apply for participation in Google's Chrome Notebook Pilot Program. Good luck!

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Google FadeIn - A Silent Death to a Loudly Protested Feature

2010-12-07T08:53:00.003-06:00

Remember when the top link bar featuring Google Apps would slowly fade in upon mouse movement on Google's search page? Well, it occurred to me that it has gone MIA for the past few weeks (and possibly more). This morning, I tried to track down the fade out departure of the not so popular feature. As now customary with Google, when a product goes down, it does go quietly.

Fading In

When Google introduced the fade in effect on its official blog, it referred to it as an "elegant solution that provides options to those who want them." The company went on to acknowledge that the feature slowed down the search process by milliseconds, and this seemed contradictory to its mission of getting users to content as fast as possible. The rationale was that they wanted users to notice the change, and the fade-in seemed to achieve this effect. In case you forgot how it looked, see below:

User Response

A quick search of "Google Fade In" reveals many forum posts filled with outrage about the new feature. Many users demanded the feature removed immediately, and some claimed that they would jump ship to another search engine if the fade in continued. Resourceful enthusiasts produced copy/paste codes, a Firefox Add-on, and within just one week of its official release, there were solutions available to disable the fade in effect for nearly any web browser.

Fading out

I'm not sure when I first noticed the disappearance of the fade-in. Perhaps, I was distracted by the introduction of Instant Search (nice decoy, Google), or it's possible that I just use the web address/search box in Chrome so much now that I rarely have a need for the Google Search homepage. However, I found little news online about the removal of the feature. A lonely Google Support forum post and a few comments on YouTube are what I dug up in a few minutes, but it appears that the fade in was removed about one month ago (early November 2010). I can't say I miss it, though it may have been an interesting experiment in design. May it join the ranks of Wave and other Google Products of the past.

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Creating and Editing Google Docs on the iPad

2010-12-02T17:39:00.005-06:00

Article first published as Creating and Editing Google Docs on the iPad on Blogcritics.

I'm sure this one's been in the back of Google's mind for awhile now, and two weeks ago, it become a reality. Splattered across its multiple blogs was Google's announcement that Google Docs were now editable on mobile devices such as the iPad, iPod Touch, and Android 2.2 devices. Since I would much rather use a large screen to do any meaningful document editing, I'll offer a brief review of how the iPad experience compares to the standard browser. Together, we'll see how the Google engineers did, and whether the mobile experience will be a pleasant one.

It should be noted that this feature set is brand new, and I'm confident that Google will only work to improve the experience. That being said, here are the results of my Google Doc mobile experience on the iPad:

Creating a new Google Doc
Clicking on the pencil/paper icon in the upper right of your iPad docs homepage, and you'll be prompted to create a new spreadsheet or document. After giving the item a title, you can start typing right or entering data into cells right away. I was pleased to find that the experience supports both portrait and landscape mode, so a longer typing experience is probably better served by the larger keyboard found on the sideways orientation. What's noticeably missing is the standard toolbar (or any toolbar for that matter). Thus, it's standard text and that's it. No bold, underline, italics, formatting, nothing. In fact, the only buttons available on the screen are refresh, help, sign out, and an option to use the desktop version (which was not supported on the iPad when I tested). Remember what I said about this being the beginning for Google.

Editing an existing Google Doc
For documents or spreadsheets that you've already created, Google Docs offers limited editing options on the iPad. Clicking on the edit button in the upper right (if available, more on that below) gives you the ability to add, change, or delete text from the document. One cool feature was that the changes are made in near real time, similar to what users experience (and love) on desktop computers. The iPad seems to automatically refresh and changes are immediately reflected. The same feature set applies to spreadsheets, though I did not observe the near real time editing capabilities, but instead had to click on "refresh" to see if and when changes are made.

I mentioned "if available" for the edit button because I was unable to edit several documents on the iPad that I owned in my Google Docs. I verified that I was able to edit them on my laptop, so it definitely had to do with the mobile experience. Another flaw seems to occur when I enter edit mode on the iPad, there is no easy way to return to my docs homepage other than pressing back and then all docs. The good news about Spreadsheets is that neither of these errors appeared. I was able to edit every spreadsheet I opened, and I was able to return to "All Docs" through the button found in the upper right of the spreadsheet.

What about Google Presentations?
Opening a Google Presentation on the iPad will take you to a View only version of the presentation. In addition, while looking great and functioning well in portrait mode, the presentation fails to render correctly in landscape mode. However, the presentation runs well in that links are active, and it's worth noting that tapping on the screen advances the slide. Overall, a nice viewing experience for slides.

Conclusion
So, where do we stand with Google Docs on the iPad? It is safe to say that you won't be writing your 10 page essay exclusively on the iPad using Google Docs (OK, somebody probably will). However, as Google promotes in its YouTube introduction (see below), mobile editing of a Google Document or Spreadsheet would best be suitable for quick memos, group editing of proposals, and/or meeting notes. To this, the company may have a good start in this current version. Readers should note that there are other apps available in the App Store that gives Google some competition in the document editing arena, and many users already use some combination of a word processor app such as Documents to Go and an online storage solution such as Dropbox. It will be interesting to see how much usage Google Docs Mobile gets, and whether it can make a dent into classrooms looking at the iPad as a possible 1:1 netbook alternative.

UPDATE (12/11): Faster than you can say "Instant Search", Google has updated its mobile editing iPad experience by allowing use of the desktop version on the Tablet itself. I tested this out and as seen in the screenshot, I was now able to access the complete rich text editor that was previously unavailable as described above. This makes for an enhanced experience on the iPad and already addresses some of the concerns I had with Google Docs on the iPad.

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Reflections from Google Apps Certified Trainer Meetup

2010-11-13T09:34:00.008-06:00

Image via Wikipedia

So, I finally completed the certification process for becoming a Google Apps for Education Certified Trainer. Yesterday, we had a meetup in the Google offices in downtown Chicago with the live feed from Mountain View, and although I learned a few things I'm not allowed to share, I'd like to reflect on a few nuggets of Google goodness that's open knowledge but might have flown under the radar.

Demo Slams
We had a few rounds of pseudo slams at our meetup, but there are some really cool and funny ones here at the official site. With a beautiful interactive interface, demo slam pits two videos (pressure is on to make yours short, slick, funny, and engaging) against each other with users picking the champion. The goal is to promote a Google application in a new and innovative way, and I have to admit, the videos do inspire me to Google Translate or make me appreciate Google Instant more than I already do. We'll see if I get the courage (and time) to create a slam, and/or if the site continues to grow and allow for more creative uses of technology.

Goo.gl
I recently showed this to a small group of teachers, and I love the URL shortening tool. Although not much different from other popular shorteners, Goo.gl is nice in that it is integrated with your Google account, and thus allows for near real time statistics (clicks by country, browser, platform) and other goodies such as QR codes. I do like the custom naming capability of other shorteners (free for tiny.url), but it was mentioned that Google's emphasis is on speed, and I will attest that the goo.gl urls are faster (if only on the order of milliseconds).

Chrome Extensions
Lastly, just as I'm preparing a post on Firefox add-ons, we discussed some really cool Google Chrome extensions. I tend to have multiple browsers open during any work session, with each having its particular advantages for the websites that I need to view. However, I will say that because a growing majority of tabs involve something Google, Chrome has grown to be my browser of choice. Thus, it's only natural to check out the Extensions gallery to see what could prove to be helpful. We were directed to a blog post on how to "Use Chrome like a Pro" as well as a page that features available extensions. Before I even left the meeting, I had Google Voice (shows messages and count), Google Dictionary (double click for definition), and Send from Gmail (makes Gmail the default for compose mail) installed. Similar to Labs, Extensions looks like a great place for you to find the coolest and more importantly, the most useful ways to get the most out of your browsing experience.

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Chanatown

Video Demo/Tutorial: Google Chromebooks Domain Autocomplete

Day Two Notes from Google Midwest Summit 2012

Day One Notes from Midwest Google Summit 2012

Video: How to Pre-Populate Google Forms via URL Shorteners

Save Those Dates and Let's Meetup, Hangout, and See Each Other Soon

Converting PDFs to Word via Google Docs (VIDEO)

Day Two - Staying on the Move

Reflections from IETC Springfield - 2011

How Google Docs Really Sells Itself to Students (and to you as well?)

Google Sites Gadgets for Education - Limiting What's Available, Adding What's Useful

Wrapping Up the ISTE 2011 Conference

Setting Up Domain Gadget Directory Manager (DGDM) for Google Sites

How to Convert a PDF, JPG, PNG, or GIF file into Editable Text for Free Using Google Docs

Real Time Collaboration Using Prezi - Classroom Observations

Changing the Language in Google Docs

Why I Need to Use Three Web Browsers Everyday

Apple and Google's Popularity Described in Three Words

Previewing the New Google Groups - Why Teachers and Students Will Love the Changes

Chrome OS Notebook Cr-48 Review: Thoughts for Education Deployments

NICE Conference Presentation: Senior Studies and Google Sites

Google Global Science Fair - Calling All Student Scientists

Google Chrome OS Notebooks and Education: What Cr-48 Means for Classrooms

Google FadeIn - A Silent Death to a Loudly Protested Feature

Creating and Editing Google Docs on the iPad

Reflections from Google Apps Certified Trainer Meetup

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