Tammy's Top 20 Tools

We arrived at this session late after ditching another we weren't feeling (decided with budget constraints we would do better with free products rather than paid products). We raced around and ended up on the floor of a ballroom, listening to Tammy's Top 20 Favorite Web Tools. Below is a sampling - obviously not all twenty, as we weren't on time. 
  • Plurk: Like Twitter, but the conversations are threaded. Need to join, and wait around to get friends, and hang in there a while to see the value in it. 
  • BibMe: Free bibliography maker that plugs in the information for you. So search for a book by title or author, and then BibMe pulls in the information on publisher, publishing city, date, author, etc. from Amazon. You pick the format - MLA, APA, etc. Can then download into MicrosoftOffice.
  • Random Name Picker - Allows you to select a student at random. Enter your class list into the machine, pull the handle, and watch the "fruit picker" select a student name at random. Once a student's  name is picked, it's removed from the list. You can use the tool to call on students, create collaborative teams, etc. 
  • Fur.ly - Shorten multiple URLs into one
  • Evernote - Like Delicious, but instead of storing your bookmarks, it stores "stuff" online, and syncs it automatically with all your devices including your iPhone and iPad
  • DropBox - Cloud based file storage.
  • Google's new advanced filtering option that lets sort by reading level
  • Google's real time search feature
  • Qwiki - Cool visual/audio approach to wiki encyclopedia content
  • WolframAlpha - Search engine that gives you answers. For example, will solve an algebra equation. 
  • QR Codes - Visual graphics you snap a photo of with your phone. Snapping the photo/scanning the graphic takes you to a web site. QR codes in back of books that take you to a review, QR code scavenger hunts, etc.
  • TripIt - Builds your trip itinerary, collecting your hotels, flights and rental car info all in one place
Some great ideas here!! Check them out. I think I'm probably most impressed with BibMe -- so nice to ditch those silly index cards (at least for books).

View Tammy's complete list here. 

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