Google Presentation
well, earlier yesterday Google released the next web-app to their set of office apps and it’s presentation software . . . named appropriately: Presentation. Here’s the snippet Google writes in their own intro:
Starting today, presentations — whether imported from existing files or created using the new slide editor — are listed alongside documents and spreadsheets in the Google Docs document list. They can be edited, shared, and published using the familiar Google Docs interface, with several collaborators working on a slide deck simultaneously, in real time. When it’s time to present, participants can simply click a link to follow along as the presenter takes the audience through the slideshow. Participants are connected through Google Talk and can chat about the presentation as they’re watching.
i have been playing with Spresent in my classes and i even have my students using spresent this week; however, i fiddled with Google’s Presentation and I am impressed. I added a photo from my computer to a slide and then decided i wanted it on another slide. i right-clicked the photo and cut it. i went to the next slide and chose paste and the photo appeared on the next slide. worked like a charm. now granted, this is a web-based application so it’s not yet a PowerPoint killer, but it also does things that PowerPoint can’t do. the collaboration tool that goes along with the this app is fantastic. i am sure this has a great use for my online teaching, but i don’t yet have synchronized sessions so the live collaboration piece is not high on my list, but i could certainly see how folks could be working on a presentation together and using the live chat built into this app.
and, like i always do with these free web-based apps . . . i certainly hope this new set of office applications gives some schools cause for consideration. i have no clue why any grade school would be trying to justify purchasing Microsoft Office for their computers when stuff like OpenOffice and/or these web-based solutions exist. Much money could be saved with little inconvenience to teachers and students.
hard to beat free and that’s how much Presentation is.
Technorati Tags: Google, Google Presentation, OpenOffice, spresent
November 24th, 2007 at 8:59 pm
I would agree it is hard to beat free. It is especially hard to beat free if a program works just as well as the programs that take the mula. I do think it would be wise for schools that are looking to buy software to look into free web-based programs out there like OpenOffice. Schools are constantly concerned about money and budgets and that would be an awesome way to save money. I also like the idea of creating presentations online where other people can view them but just going to web address. That is a great way to promote collaborative learning through creating presentations together from different locations or just being able to view other’s presentations. Although I have not looked into using Presentation, it sounds like a great idea and could be used in very useful ways.