Make a Quiz on the Cloud (ProProfs Quiz Maker)
There is a new addition to the Free Cloud Apps page, it’s ProProfs Quiz Maker. Quiz Maker is a quick and easy way to build a quiz that is hosted on the cloud. No software needed, it is completely web-based. You can easily post a link to your quiz from a blog or web page. It also has the functionality to tweet a link or add to Facebook or MySpace. Proprofs was gracious enough to give me a complimentary account (full disclosure) to test drive it. Here is a link to a simple quiz I made to test some of the features and so you can see some of what it does - Take my Rhode Island History quiz.
Although you can embed the quiz in blogs and sites, it uses iFrames, which does not play nice with my WordPress blog, otherwise I would have done so here. I was told they are working on a new widget with additional customizations for embedding the quizzes, which is expected later this week. However, it is very easy to post a link to your quizzes (like above) or share via social media.
Here is what I like about Quiz Maker:
- It is extremely user-friendly.
- It is on the Cloud, so users have access anywhere, whether taking a quiz or building one.
- You can add images, video, and links to each question.
- You can add feedback.
- They offer a free version.
- You can track participation, including each user’s answers and quiz stats. I was impressed with how easy it was to view participants’ answers and overall quiz stats. I wish most learning management systems (LMS) made this same task so easy. FYI: Tracking is not included with the free account.
- According to a representative from ProProfs they are currently working on SCORM compatibility, so integration with an LMS is on the horizon.
What I wish it had:
- If you update/edit a quiz the stats are reset to zero. So, once you have a quiz made, make sure it is the absolute final version.
- More question types. They have multiple choice, fill in the blank and essays, but it would be great if they had some more interactive options like hot spots, drag and drop or matching, etc. Hopefully they will expand the question types in the future.
- I am splitting hairs, but I would like to see the fill in the blank allow the blank to be placed anywhere in the sentence. Unless I missed something, it appears the blank could only be placed at the end of a sentence.
- I would have liked to be able to also add graphics, video and links to the feedback.
Regarding the free version, you cannot add the creator’s name to the certificate and it is only an ad free trial for seven days, then ads will be posted. Also the tracking and stats features are not included in the free account after seven days. You can view the comparisons of pricing plans here, including what you do and don’t get with the free account. FYI: They do have a very reasonably priced plan for educational users.
All in all, if you are looking to create and share simple quizzes with the benefits of doing so on the Cloud, it is worth your time. I will emphasize the word “simple” because if you are looking for more interactive question types (e.g. hot spots, drag and drop, graded sims, etc.), you will probably need to utilize more robust e-learning authoring tools to do so.
If you are interested in taking Quiz Maker for a spin, here is the link again - ProProfs Quiz Maker.
Keeping Up - April’s Big Question
April’s Big Question from Learning Circuits is “How to Keep up?” This is in reference the immense and rapidly expanding technology tools.
It is tough to stay on top of all the emerging tools. However, being involved in an e-learning community is a big help. For me it is a blog community and following many experts on Twitter. Not only am I often made aware of new tools, but also get opinions, tips, and examples of their use. You can never keep up with it all, but access to many experts who are also finding and sharing the lastest tech tools make it much less daunting.
Many of the blogs I follow are part of the eLearningLearning community. So, I browsed “Tools” by keyword on eLearningLearning. Here are the results and the level of exposure to technology tools this community provides:
That is a lot of tools this blogging community has discussed and introduced to its readers. I also like to make occasional visits to Google Labs and Adobe Labs to “keep up” with the tech tools they are working on and to test drive any beta versions available. When I do find interesting tools I will keep track of them using my Delicious account. Tagged either under Development Toolsor Cloud. When it comes to free cloud apps, I also share them on my blog’s Free Cloud Apps page.
It is tough to stay on top of all the great stuff being offered out there, but the blogs and social media certainly help.
Public Data Explorer - Google Labs
Google Labs recently released their Public Data Explorer. You can create charts and visualizations with public data sets. I created the examples below from data provided by the World Bank. The amount of data provided by the World Bank is impressive.
In my opinion, the animated map and bubble views need some work, but it is a beta so I will cut Google some slack.
In addition to data from the World Bank, they have data from the California Department of Education, U.S. Census Bureau, Eurostat and more. Researchers and teachers alike may find Public Data Explorer very useful. So, give it a test drive. FYI: You can embed your charts into a webpage or blog (like the examples above), which are updated automatically so the data is current. I will also be adding this new tool to the Cloud Apps page .
On The Cloud
On occasion, I have written about the “Cloud” and have expected to use cloud computing more and more. So, it is time to reflect on how much cloud computing I do. Here are the tools that I use while on the Cloud, in no particular order:
WordPress - my blog
Delicious - bookmarking and sharing my bookmarks
Twitter - sharing my incoherent thoughts on e-learning
LinkedIn - professional networking, participating in e-learning/ISD groups and keeping an updated professional profile
Google Docs - occasionally creating docs and spreadsheets
Gmail - easy, simple e-mail
Picasa Web Albums - store, view and share my photos
YouTube - everyone knows what this is for… my videos
Screenr - creating quick, easy screencasts that I can Tweet and/or embed in my blog
ChartGo - this one is new for me, but I like how easy it is to make charts that I can keep on the cloud or save on my hard drive (yes, I have a hard drive too)
I think I have established a bit of a residence on the Cloud. Are there cloud apps that you would recommend? I would love to here about them.
Google Chrome OS Announced
Google has announced they will release the Chrome Operating System in 2010. This OS is for netbooks and takes full advantage of the cloud. Thus, less of a need for a hard drive and a much quicker machine. In fact, they are currently boasting of a 7 second boot-up time. The success of a Chrome OS can mean a huge leap in cloud computing and hopefully more e-learning tools and apps on the cloud too.
Here is a video preview of Chrome OS.
Not sure what cloud computing is?
- Cloud Computing in Plain English (explanation from CommonCraft)
- Cloud Service and Deployment (Brandon Hall)
Free and Easy Chart Creation Tool
Here is a free, practical tool for creating charts.
ChartGo.com provides an incredibly easy to use web-based tool for creating charts, including bar, pie, line and area charts. You can quickly create a chart, save it, and add it to a course, website or blog. They also provide numerous avenues of sharing your chart (URL, e-mail link to chart, social bookmarking, Twitter, etc.).
If you want something more sophisticated, stick with Excel. If you want something you can create in a matter of minutes, this is the tool for you. Here is an example of a chart I made.
Here are some more examples of the types of charts you can make.
Feds on the Cloud
U.S. Federal agencies are utilizing cloud computing and now have an app store, Apps.gov, which provides federal agencies and their staff with cloud computing applications. This includes business apps, productivity apps, social media apps, and cloud IT services.
Here is the video Apps.gov provides as an introduction to cloud computing.
Many corporations, and individuals, are still very hesitant to use the cloud, but hopefully the government’s move to using the cloud will encourage others to use it. Especially if the government’s use results in efficiencies, cost cutting, and being environment friendly.
How will cloud computing affect education? The Don’t Waste Your Time blog just added a post on this very question. And he gives the “good” and the “bad.”
You can also read how Google is playing a role in this.
Delicious, Take Two
I signed up for Delicious social bookmarking quite a while ago, but it just didn’t take for me. Perhaps the fact that I could not access it at work or that I was perfectly happy with using my browser for bookmarking. Either way, I set-up Delicious and just never really used it beyond the first few days. Why not give it another try. After all, I am trying move more onto the cloud, I can have my bookmarks in one place and I can share sites that I value. Let’s hope my new job does not block Delicious. I will find out tomorrow.
Here is what I like so far:
- Everything can be tagged - easy to stay organized
- Adding a badge widget to my blog, promote sharing my bookmarks
- Adding a Delicious tag cloud to my site or blog (see my Delicious tag cloud below)
- Viewing how many people, and who, bookmarked pages. It’s motivating to see someone tag my pages
- Finding new and interesting sites by viewing other people’s bookmarks
- Easy access from any computer, if Delicious is not blocked by the “man” at work.
- Customized descriptions of each bookmark can be added
So, I started with bookmarking and tagging the links I have collected on my Free e-Learning page and added a few blogs, blog communities and some e-learning resources.
And here is my Delicious tag cloud.
FYI: Here is a great video on social bookmarking and Delicious.
I am sure there are additional features on Delicious that I should be using. Let me know what Delicious tools and features you would recommend.
Economic Times - Impact on Distance Learning
Has the economic struggle had a positive or negative impact on online learning?
This question has been posed a lot on the e-learning blogs, for example.
The Boston Globe just published an article titled Where the Jobs are in Anxious Times. Distance learning and a few related fields are noted as being areas where there are jobs
Here are quotes from the article that pertain to distance learning, social media, cloud computing, and mobile technology.
Government stimulus funding has been creating new opportunities in education and energy, says Clark Waterfall, a partner at Boston Search Group. “We’re seeing activity in for-profit education companies, and companies geared to distance learning and corporate learning,”
A new role at many companies is a social media expert, who can help the company communicate with customers and prospects using new channels like Twitter, Facebook, and blogs. “Sometimes that job is called ‘community manager’ or ‘community rep,’ ” says Tom Summit of Rowley-based Catalyst Recruiting Corp. “But the people who can get hired are the ones who can relate online activities to quantifiable metrics. What are you doing for the company, aside from just starting a blog?”
Cloud computing - technology services that can be accessed over the Internet - is another area of increasing activity. “I also see a lot of interest in search engine marketing” - making websites more prominent in search results - “and engineers who know how to design websites with that in mind,” Summit says.
Keith Cline of Dissero LLC says one position that can be hard to fill at the moment is a mobile application developer. “If a company is trying to build an app for the iPhone, there aren’t a lot of people who have that experience,” he says.
Where the jobs are in anxious times
By Scott Kirsner
Globe Columnist / June 14, 2009
It is good to hear that there are opportunities out there in the fore-mentioned fields and probably more to come. From my own glances at job boards it appears companies are still hiring people in the distance learning field.
Graphics on the Cloud
I have slowly been moving onto the cloud. Thus far, I have starting using Google Docs and Picasa Web Albums (also Google). My motivation for using Picasa is to put all my graphics in one place. I have one too many computers each with too many graphics. This includes family photos and e-learning graphics. So, what better than to consolidate and organize on the cloud. Plus, I can easily access and share them with others.
An online photo album is nothing new and Picasa has many features you can find on other graphic tools found on the cloud, I am sure. But here is something I really found convenient about Picasa, e-mail upload. Here is how they describe it:
Email upload
You can now forward photos to your online albums using email. Perfect for use on your mobile device, you can even collaborate with friends by submitting photos to one album with the same email address.
I am really finding this convenient. Through Picasa, I set-up a Picasa web address, then I just send the graphics to it as an attachment. It then ends up in my Picasa drop-box. Real easy. So, now if the graphic is on the phone, I send it in an e-mail and it is there. Found it on any of my computers…e-mail…and its there. And if someone sends it to me as an e-mail, I can just forward it onto the drop-box. I can also send others the address and voila, they put graphics in Picasa for me.
FYI: If you use Picasa, you will find the e-mail upload listed under “New Features.” It will walk you through setting up the e-mail drop-box.
