I am trying to teach myself how to use some of the latest web based communication tools in my classes. My goal is to create an open source web site for all three of my classes by the start of the spring semester.

I have used several different proprietary programs (i.e., BlackBoard, WebCT, Turnitin) in the past, but I find them to be cumbersome in their design and politically unpalatable. I do not want all of my intellectual production (i.e. intellectual "property") to be exclusive. I would like my course syllabi, and elements of my course content to be available to those who are interested to use them as they please. In other words, I believe in and support the spirit of MIT's Open Courseware Initiative.

Below is the first video I created for this project. The most obvious problems are the poor sound quality and the fact that I could not get the default controller to work (i.e. the play and stop buttons). I know it would be easier if I just used the YouTube interface, but (as noted) I am trying to avoid using corporate crutches as much as possible. I also have an aesthetic aversion to viewing sites that contain advertising. Moreover, I find most of the content on YouTube to be rather inane and sensationalist... not the sort of stuff with which I want my courses to be associated, if I can avoid it. This is not to say that there is no good content on YouTube or Google Video that could be used to illustrate important concepts or arguments, but I would prefer to not become reliant on those platforms for content or publishing.



The site is hosted by my educational institution. The general template for this web site is based off of a free, open source template. In the open source tradition, the designer of the template has only asked for credit to be given for their work with a link and I am happy to oblige.

Of course, I am using Blogger software to manage this on-line notebook. I initially contemplated making a completely hand crafted web log, but I just don't have the time to manage it all with my teaching load and research requirements. Some of the features on Blogger make it easier to tailor the program without any obligation of displaying corporate logos.

I created the video using a basic camera and microphone attached to my desktop computer at work, converted the file with Adobe CS3 and Flash. At the moment the colleges where I work have not installed Flash on the networked computers. Hopefully, I will be able to convince them to add this to all of the campus web browsers as it is pretty standard software.

Basically, I am willing to use proprietary software that promotes personal expression without requiring the user to submit to corporate branding.

Labels: web technology