dabbleBOARD: Collaborative Whiteboard

http://www.dabbleboard.com/

Here's another collaborative whiteboard that was suggested by a reader. If you need visuals, dabbleBOARD is a great tool for letting you collaboratively draw your ideas. This is their blurb:

Dabbleboard is a powerful online whiteboard that's actually easy and fun to use. With a revolutionary new interface, Dabbleboard gets out of your way and just lets you draw.
Draw with flexible tools. Reuse previously-made drawings. Share and collaborate in real-time. All as naturally as using a marker or a pencil.

Reader Zohair gave this review: " Looks like you're covering a bunch of collaborative whiteboard apps today. I suggest giving Dabbleboard a try as well. As a whiteboard, it's got an innovative UI that makes drawing much easier and faster than anything else.
Admittedly it's just a whiteboard app and doesn't include other conferencing features, which we believe can be handled by several other applications anyway."

Thanks for sharing, and I will work on my skills of drawing with a mouse. We do so many planning sessions here at the college, and having a tool that can be quickly accessed to draw out ideas seems to have a lot of value. I think it could save time as well by sending to others at different sites and getting their immediate input, without the cost of everyone driving to the same campus. It's all about sustainability. Saving green while going green seems to be an absolutely brilliant plan.

addendum: I just realized that the program automatically detects basic shapes, and turns my squiggly rectangles and circles into something that looks quite professional. Very cool tool.

SKRBL: Online Interactive Whiteboard

Here's a great Web 2.0 tool:

http://www.skrbl.com/


Simple and easy online multi user whiteboard, start skrbl, give out your URL & start working together. Sketch, text, share files, upload pictures all in one common shared space. There are no new tools to learn, nothing to download, nothing to install. Brainstorm on our simple whiteboard to start thinking together, everyone sees the same screen, everybody gets on the same page.

There's a widget for it in the right hand column so you can try it out.

Now Showing in the AELC: Interchange Interactive Software

Interchange Whiteboard Software

http://www.cambridge.org/

Do you want to see a new way to teach using the ESL Interchange texts? Then come up to the AELC and see the new whiteboard software that correlates with the Interchange text series used in ESL.

Within minutes of setting it up in the lab, students and teachers were saying 'wow, can I try it?' With just you fingertip you can choose the lesson you want from the book, choose the page and the skill, and start working on the lesson. Each lesson is represented, and there are additional videos and listening lessons. Many of the pages have an audio component. which is quite effective in a classroom setting.

Cambridge says about the program " This innovative software allows teachers to display the elements on the whiteboard screen at the front of the classroom and use them interactively to enhance English-language learning skills. This cutting edge technology allow you to play the class auio and video programs, display scripts and answers, highlight and annotate text. You can even select and organize elements to create your lessons."

Equipment needed : electronic whiteboard, computer (min. Windows 98), an LCD projector and the software. Set-up is easy, and the learning curve is quite short. Within 15 minutes we had loaded and started the program from scratch. Subsequent start-ups were just turning on the equipment and clicking on the program icon. Staff and students found it intuitive and easy to use.

We'll have the program in the Center until the summer semester ends. Please come up and try it out. Classes are also welcome. We are using Level I Interchange. Call x 4118 for a tour appointment.

update:

Interesting reactions from people viewing the program. While setting it up, students looked more at what we were doing than at their own computers. Finally, one student had enough courage to say ' that is very nice'. We invited her up to try it out, and then laughed as they all lined up to try it. Teachers reactions seemed to center around 'volunteering' to try it out in their classrooms. Apparently, this program fits the category 'if you build it, they will come...'