Ed Tech Terminology by jennifer

Work around

anearlgirl — 2013-02-21 16:45:43 UTC

a method, sometimes used temporarily, for achieving a task or goal when the usual or planned method isn't working.

Example: Editing blog comments aren't an option in Blogger...so a workaround would be copying and pasting text from a blog comment into a new comment box and editing it, then deleting the previous comment.

Please define an add on. How is it different from a gadget?

2013-02-25 14:33:12 UTC

Add-ons are programs that can be added to a browser to allow for expanded/enhanced capabilities. Add-ons are also sometimes called "plug-ins" because you "plug" them into the browser...they cannot run as an independent program. Add-ons are built to make browsers multi-faceted usually for the purpose of making a task faster and easier. They usually eliminate the need to visit another website to accomplish a task and instead use the browser to perform that same/similar task.

For example...you could go to the diigo website to add bookmarks...but the diigolet add-on makes the process of adding a bookmark easy and fast with a single click.

A gadget or widget (in software terms) refers to a small program with limited functionality that can be installed/embedded on a web page and used by the end user.

An example would be the small programs... called either widgets or gadgets... that are added to an igoogle page like a weather gadget that displays the 5 day forecast.

An example of an add-on would be the lightshot program (purple feather icon) that allows you to use a screen capture tool right from your browser rather than going to a website to grab the tool.

Tool vs. and application

2013-02-25 14:34:40 UTC

An application is a software program. In the past couple years as smartphones have exploded the marketplace the word "app" is being used more to describe mobile software programs that are made specifically for smart phones or tablet devices.

A tool is typically an application or software program used to produce or create something.

A tool is a type of application...but an application doesn't necessarily have to be a tool.

Cached?

2013-02-25 14:58:47 UTC

Cached in computing terms means something that has been duplicated and stored in another location.

For example, the web pages at www.archive.org have been cached.

Ping

2013-02-27 00:10:00 UTC

ping is a computer program used to test whether a specific website is accessible online. It is most often used to troubleshoot internet connection problems.

On some websites or blogs authors can set for their sites to ping which just updates their new posts on "recently updated" lists.

Still not sure about how to organize my diigo.

2013-02-28 14:21:39 UTC

I know you said we would be learning more in the coming weeks but I use my diigo now all the time. I want to know if I can create folders to organize my material (Ex. by novel, class, personal, etc.

Diigo uses a tagging system instead of folders...this allows for more flexibility with organizing, sorting, and retrieving resources. Folders are becoming a thing of the past because they limit resources to one location. With tags you can be more specific about the types of keywords you apply to the resource which enables you to categorize and then retrieve a resource in a variety of ways.
You can attach multiple tags to a site so you can return later and filter them based on the tags you assigned. For example, you can tag a resource with the words: novel, name of the book, writing prompts, discussion guide, lesson plan, etc. By using multiple tags you can filter by those later. It's up to you if you put one tag or more than one tag on a site depending on how you may want to use the resource later. You could also set up a diigo list by book if you wanted to push those resources to that list for yourself or for others to access.

cookies

2013-03-03 20:12:45 UTC

A cookie is a yummy treat that comes in a variety of delicious flavors... :)

A cookie (in technology terms) are little pieces of data sent from a website and stored in a web browser while a person is using a website. Their purpose is to "remember" information or activity that the user took while on the website. Cookies can be used to "remember" login information so the user doesn't have to login each time they want to access a website. There are also cookies that authenticate or check whether a person has the proper rights to access a website.

dashboard vs. desk top

2013-03-03 20:13:21 UTC

Dashboard is usually referred to as a control center for an application...it's the place where you can access all of the pieces to the program in one location.

A desktop is usually referred to as the working area (screen) on a computer. The desktop is where you'll see icons to programs and a background picture.

Hashtag

2013-03-05 22:33:04 UTC

Is a mystery to me. Sometimes twitter looks like a foreign language. What was the purpose again. Is it like a tag?

a hashtag is a way to filter tweets that others post that have content intended for specific groups of people. By using hashtags you can find people and follow them if you so choose. We'll talk about hashtags more this week. there are specific well known hashtags used for large general groups like 4th grade teachers use #4thchat and math teachers use #mathchat....there are also more specific hashtags used as well as unique ones that we'll illustrate in class.

What is the difference between a pod cast and a web cast? Or are they the same?

2013-03-06 20:43:03 UTC

A podcast is typically an audio broadcast that is distributed via the internet. A webcast is usually audio and video broadcast via the web.

Bookmarking vs Favorites ? What's the difference?

vogeld — 2013-03-15 00:33:05 UTC

Same thing...certain programs call them bookmarks....others call them favorites.

Activating Plug-ins

2013-03-17 12:13:35 UTC

The prompt to activate plug- ins (specific ones such as Adobe Flash or all plug-ins) appears each time I open my google drive. should I just say 'yes' to all and not have it ask again.

Yes, just select yes to all so you don't have that annoyance every time.

You may have to update the plugin by following the prompts.

Hashtags

2013-03-18 12:26:46 UTC

I would like more time to figure out how to connect with other colleagues through twitter, using hashtags. I still don't understand how to hook up with other teachers.

One of the best ways to connect to other teachers is to try a live chat. http://cybraryman.com/chats.html

Clicking on the days of the week on that page will tell you the times that live chats take place. What type of teachers are you interested in connecting with? That will help with determining the hashtag we need to use.

"flipping" your classroom

2013-03-20 13:21:04 UTC

Typically this refers to creating a video or screencast of a lecture or direct instruction that students watch outside of class and then do their practice or homework during class time so the teacher is there for more one-on-one or support.

threading

2013-03-20 13:22:00 UTC

A threaded discussion is one in which the discussion topics and replies are displayed together so that it's easier to follow/read the discussion that takes place rather than having to search for pertinent responses if they are posted at different times. It basically aggregates the "threads" of the discussion together in one place.

Linkbunch

2013-03-26 12:20:23 UTC

is a website that is used to take multiple websites that you want to share and create one single URL to share the list. On the linkbun.ch page you can indicate you want all of the websites to open simultaneously so you can tab from one to the next.

Glog

2013-03-27 04:34:14 UTC

A glog is an interactive web based poster that can have multimedia embedded in it. You can see some cool examples at

Embed

2013-03-27 04:37:55 UTC

Embed means to place something inside of something else. The difference between linking and embedding is that the interface shows rather than a link out to someplace on the web. This padlet board is embedded into the wiki rather than linked to it like the hyperlink you see at the top of the page titled "our ed tech vocab". Embedding things makes the content more user friendly, puts it in one place for easy access, and is more visually appealing for the user.

2013-04-14 22:38:11 UTC

ILit

These days any word with an i in front of it usually refers to something apple related...I did a quick google search and you are probably referring to an ipad app called ilit which is a paid app for ipads. here is a link that explains more about it. http://redefiningliteracy.com/

anearlgirl — 2014-02-13 04:14:21 UTC

A gadget or widget (in software terms) refers to a small program with limited functionality that can be installed/embedded on a web page and used by the end user.

An example would be the small programs... called either widgets or gadgets... that are added to a dashboard page like netvibes. For example, the weather gadget/widget can be added to display the 5 day forecast.

anearlgirl — 2014-02-17 03:49:18 UTC

Is a search engine the same as a browser? No.

A search engine is a piece of software on the web that searches other web pages. Yahoo, Bing, and Google are search engines.

A browser is a program installed on a computer or device that allows a user to access the internet. Internet explorer, Firefox, Safari, and Chrome are all examples of browsers. They allow you to browse the web.

Query

2014-02-19 23:21:57 UTC

A query is a question. The word query is used to define what is typed in a search box in a database or search engine like Google. An example of a query would be "Hillary Clinton" 1990..1998 site:gov That query would be looking for information about Hillary Clinton from 1990 to 1998 from only .gov sites.

annotated link

2014-02-26 23:22:34 UTC

an annotated link is just a weblink that you add your own annotations (comments) to. Many times adding your own comments about what you found worthwhile or interesting about a site will help you later on when you go back to your bookmarks and want to browse or find something in particular.

avitar

2014-03-01 17:40:37 UTC

I get it now, but I had seen the movie and new what an avitar was in the movie. But for a lengthy time in class, I didn't understand that it was to be a character that was developed to be your persona when a photo was requested on the web.

2014-04-05 14:40:04 UTC

wikki - I've heard the term, but don't really know what it is. Star Wars creature?

A wiki is simply an editable webpage that requires no technical skill. Wikis are generally used for collaboration with multiple people. We will be looking at wikis next week in class so you'll have a better understanding of what they are.

* after a word

2014-05-03 20:46:18 UTC

I understood that it gives any variation of a word when in front of it, but I don't understand what it does after the word.

* is a wildcard symbol in google which means it's use in front of or in back of a word allows for variations of the word instead of the exact word. For example, Direct* could result in direct, director, directing, directed, direction, etc. It is useful depending on the type of word you may be searching for.