Ecto is not as pretty as the rest, but it does what you need it to do. I would like to see a single window interface, and easier media management, but it is very easy to format your articles and text like you want. One feature that is either not there or difficult to find is the ability to add columns. It is not important for this blog, but it is a feature I use all the time on my classroom blog for spelling and vocabulary lists. Inserting ads, and links is very easy, and it is possible to create your own scripts to make repetitive tasks a breeze.

It’s not often that Mac software is blown out of the water by PC apps, but in the case of Blogging clients Mac software doesn’t even come close. But if you are on a Mac, your best option is Ecto.

The ipod touch with the 2.0 software does have great potential.  Judging by the other applications availible the capabilities are amazing for a handheld device.  With time I think the development community will fill in the broad education software gap with apps that are actually valuable tools, and with the right collection of apps, and a little better pricing on the ipod touch, it could actually put a powerfull computer in the hands of every child.  We will keep a watchfull eye on the app store to see if somthing usefull becomes availible.

Adobe has just released a great tool for basic editing of photos.  The best part about it is that it is free and does not require installation.  Photoshop Express is a free online application that lets you do a variety of things to photos, including: Cropping, Rotating, adding effects, correcting blemishes and more.  This is not Photoshop CS3,  The advanced tools and layers functions are not available in this version, but in reality for teaching middle grade students and perhaps even primary grade students how to do basic photo editing it is very cool.  If you an advanced Photoshop user looking for a new version you will have to wait for Photoshop CS4.

10 Fast Fingers is a free online typing tutor that is simple yet effective in teaching the basics of keyboarding.  It is based on touch typing principals meaning that we know where the keys are based on muscle memory rather than sight.  I enjoyed using the lessons, and will continue to use it until I break my poor keyboarding habits.

Grade : A

Cost Free

Picasa is one of my favorite photo management applications. I use it frequently on the PC. For me it is one of the easiest to use photo management tools on the market. I find the the ability to scroll through hundreds of photos in seconds a great feature. In addition to simple photo management it also has many editing and image enhancement capabilities. You can quickly crop, rotate, enhance, remove red eye, and many other basic tasks. Best of all it’s free.

Now this powerful tool is available for Linux users. I get excited anytime mainstream companies start to port things to Linux. It just means the day we truly have choice in operating systems is getting closer.

Grade: A

Cost: Free

I have reviewed and suggested Ubuntu before, but with their new upgrade to Ubuntu Feisty Fawn, I felt that it was a good time to talk about it again as a solution for schools. Schools face many interesting challenges, but the biggest is lack of current technology, older computers, donated computers, and lack of finances for software to keep everything working and running smoothly. Although it can’t fix everything Ubuntu can help us in some of these areas. Ubuntu is a free Open Source Linux operating system that includes a wide variety of software to get you started with most common tasks. Of all the Linux varieties out there Ubunto is probably the easiest to get up and running. It also includes great software that gets you going, including a word processor, a spreadsheet, presentation software, firefox, email, and much more. Edubuntu is the education or kid friendly version that comes bundled with the basic applications as well as many educational titles. If you have an older computer that needs something more secure that an unsupported version of windows, or a donated pc that your not sure about software licencing on, or you just want a fun alternative, Ubuntu Feisty Fawn, and Edubuntu are a great choice.

Later this month Adobe is scheduled to release it’s CS 3 suites of creativity software. Adobe has made many acquisitions over the last few years including Macromedia with the most used web development software Dreamweaver and Premiere the popular Video Editing software. With the release of CS 3 now the interoperability of these industry standards will be paired with Adobe’s dominant Photoshop software package that works seamlessly together. The way the programs work together is the most significant change, but each of the applications has many enhancements that significantly improve the user experience.

Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope. This application is available for Mac OSX, Windows, and Linux. A useful guide is also available on the site that provides you with all of the information you need to get started. The imagery is amazing and very accurate. This is a very powerful tool that is being used in many planetariums. This is a perfect application for any class studying space.

NVU is an open source software based on Netscape Composer from a while ago. It has been significantly improved and is now a very powerful and capable WYSIWYG (What you see is What you Get) web editor. With many powerful features that make it easy to build and manage a website. NVU is relatively intuitive and easy to use, however due to the complexity of the task managing links, menus, and web management takes a little effort to learn.

The support system for NVU is better than most open source projects, and has a wide variety of support options to help you learn the product. The manual and online guides are very helpful and cover most basic topics needed to create a great website. For more advanced help there is a forum, but it may not be active enough to get help for everything, or to get immediate feedback. Over all it is a very good program.