Easy Use of Callouts for your Screenshots

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Last week, I was working on a print tutorial for a new class I am teaching in the fall semester. As I started using my callouts, I started thinking more about these little tools. So, I decided to write a little about them.
What are callouts? If you develop instructional materials, you'd know the answer.

Callouts are graphics with text, symbols or numbers that explain content. Most often, the content being explained is a graphic or some kind of illustration. Callouts consist of a shape containing some text and a pointer such as an arrow or line.

When I design instructional materials for publishing companies, I use callouts in teacher guides, student guides, on-screen lessons and in online assessments. When I teach courses online, my syllabus, rubrics and learning activities often contain callouts.

FREE IMAGES for your Online Content

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Pixabay.com

If you are developing an online course or presentation, then you know that good pictures are worth their weight in gold! Whether you are developing content for a company or on your own, there is always a need for images that won't break the piggy bank are paramount. Luckily, there are TONS of free, professional-grade images available for your use. Here's a short list of some sites for free images.

How to Choose a Cloud Storage Provider

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In the early days of my teaching career, I had an office, a desk full of lesson plans, a file cabinet full of textbooks, a computer and a printer.  Shortly after the Internet was introduced at my school, we received school email accounts. Later on, I found myself teaching faculty how to integrate technology in their classroom and so was given some storage space on the school's main network server.

Nowadays, teachers can use cloud storage over the Internet to store  lesson plans, online textbooks, media files and more. In order to get a cloud storage account, you will need to apply for one with a cloud storage provider.  Luckily, there are many cloud storage providers out there and the best news is that they are FREE!

Tips for Making Good Screen Captures

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Images are an essential part of any online document. They can be used to clarify, provide details and inspire your audience. Screen captures are customized images that you create from the contents on your computer screen. In order for these to work effectively, they must be created properly from the beginning. Below are some tips that I use for making my screen captures.

3 Tools for Creating a Screen Capture

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Whether you are a teacher or a content developer, the ability to capture your computer screen is essential. A screen capture is an image file that is created from taking a "snapshot" of the contents from a computer screen. This image can be used in text documents, slide presentations and even in video animations.

Content Developers: Don’t Forget About Meta Search Engines

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 http://pixabay.com/en/google-www-online-search-search-485611/

As online content creators, we often use search engines to look for citations, information from articles, public domain images and general background material for the content we create. While we all use the most popular search engines, Google, Yahoo and Bing, we should not forget about the meta search engines.

TOOL: Da Button Factory (Quick and Easy Web Buttons)

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If you are developing a website, online material or just need a button for your blog, try Da Button Factory at https://dabuttonfactory.com/.  It is quick, easy to use and gives you a lot of choices for attractive buttons. I've used this website for a few years now.

Sprucing Up Faculty Introductions

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Faculty Profile
"Hello. I'm Prof. Angela Heath and welcome to my
Computer class. This semester we'll explore major issues
in computing that affect our society.
My email is (blah, blah, blah) and
my phone number is (blah, blah, blah).
I will have office hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays."

Example of an InfoGraphic for a Faculty Introduction from Prof. Horn @ Stanford

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Using Google Advanced Search Page to Find Free Images

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Photo from Pixabay

As a teacher, I have to create a variety of educational content for my blogs, online courses and workshops. Images offer a great way of imparting information to my students. Some of the ways that I use images are -