Images

          One of the things that I learned in this chapter were that there are lots and lots of free image editors out there available for people to use.  I knew about and have used GIMP extensively (and love it!), but I had never heard of any others programs other than GIMP and PhotoShop.  I also learned that pixel-based drawing, like that found in GIMP and PhotoShop, are not the only ways in which to edit images.  Fryer discussed vector-based drawing and image editing, which sounded pretty sweet because it allows for scaling that doesn't skew image quality.  I learned about SeaShore, which sounds like (and looks like) and easier to use version of GIMP.  I know that GIMP took me a while to learn how to use, so in the interest of time in my classroom, I think I might have my students use Seashore instead of GIMP to create images for one of their lesson projects.  It will save so much time and so many headaches, hopefully, in terms of students having to learn how to use GIMP and in terms of me trying to teach it to them in such short a time.

          This leads directly into my exploration of the Inkscape site.  Inkscape is a video editing software that works with vectors rather than pixels in images.  This means that images can be scaled up huge or scaled down small and still keep their image quality, which is pretty crazy after I have only ever worked with pixel-based image editing (scaling up and down was a huge pain in my butt).  After looking at screenshots, however, I still like the image quality and look of pixel-based image editing, but I think I might try Inkscape out and how it handles.  Maybe I could learn to enjoy it.  The website was easy to navigate, and I'm glad it gave images of examples of things you can create in Inkscape, unlike GIMP, which didn't do much of that when I downloaded it.

          Another thing that I learned about was the idea of Quickshare image sites, such as Twitpic, or Instagram.  I often use Instagram, but I never knew that it was known as a Quickshare site (I guess I kind of did, but I never really considered it that).  I think that I would use one of those Quickshare sites for classroom lab experiments.  For example, I know that on Instagram, you can add hashtags to picture descriptions.  I was thinking about having students take pictures of their lab experiments with their phones or other devices like that and then posting them to Instagram.  I would have the students add a hashtag that was unique to their picture description.  The students would know the hashtag so that they could search for the class pictures on Instagram by searching for the hastag.  They could then do at home comparisons, answer questions, etc.  It could also be a helpful resource for absent students, because they could be given the hashtag used and search for the pictures online and look at them and still be able to potentially answer questions.

          The final thing that I learned about was voicethreading.  Fryer mentioned that it was his favorite site and his favorite way in which to discuss and work with images.  I learned about what voicethreading was, and it reminded me a lot about the videos on Khan Academy.  It was basically screencasting, but with picture manipulation and voice discussion.  It sounded like something that would be really cool to incorporate into my classroom, for lessons or for students to reference at home or when they are absent.

          Because of my interest in this, I looked at 2 websites: VoiceThread and Screenr.  The VoiecThread website was a bit hard to navigate, to the point that I could barely figure out what the website actually did, or how to get it.  This kind of made me like VoiceThread a bit less.  However, I believe that I might still use it.  It seems like a good tool to share things with students or other people, as well as give them verbal, video, or text directions to help with it.  It might be useful for video calls with other teachers from other places and stuff like that.  Screenr was something I was definitely interested in.  I love the idea of screencasting because I love what Khan Academy does with pictures, text, and voice.  It feels so seamless and easy.  Screenr also seemed easier because it didn't involve any downloads or annoying upload and rendering processes.  It was just so easy to do.  It's also good because you can play the product on any device because it is web-based.  Definitely something I want to try in my classroom.