Mediacologyputting the ‘eco’ into media ecology (and other tangential meditations)

This is a random collection of work tools that make my life easier (occasionally updated):

Hardware:

IRISPen Executive 6- The first  time I used it I had some problems and crappy customer support from the company, but after I wrote a scathing review on Amazon the company contacted me and fixed the problem. I have to say this is a pretty good product. It helps me hand scan quotes out of books, which saves a lot of time. It takes a little getting used to, but saves a lot of typing. ($150)

Services:

Googledocs – I use this to post my class schedule and syllabus (it’s dynamic, so if I change a reading or order it automatically updates the public schedule. I also use this to collaborate on group edited documents.

Ning – I use this for creating Websites for all my classes. It enables me to have students blog and comment in weekly forums.

SlideShare - Upload all your PowerPoints, PDFs and other documents onto the Web. I use this to back up my presentations in case there is a problem on a host computer reading my files. I also use this to embed my slides hows into my class Websites.

University Readers – A fantastic DIY course reader and textbook company; helps you bypass the traditional textbook monopolies. Great customer service.

WorPress – What can I say, I love this blogging platform.

Software (all are for Mac OSX 10.4 or higher):

Audio Hijack – I used this to record my narration for my SlideShare slidecast. It’s much easier to use than an advanced or professional audio program.

Ecto – This has been my main offline blogging tool, but I’ve had some problems with it. It was upgraded, but not really supported anymore. Also, Amazon changed its API, so now the best feature, which creates Amazon associate links, is buggy. Currently I have to switch between versions 2.4 and 3, the former because I like the older version bettter, the latter because I can make Amazon links with it.

Endnotes – This bibliography program was very useful when I wrote my book. But now that I’m affiliated with a university, I prefer to use RefWorks (which I don’t have to pay for). ($124)

RefWorks - All around amazing bibliography tool. ($100)

Scrivener – The best organizational writing tool I have found. I used it to write my book and to organize all my courses. Well worth the $40.

Skim PDF Reader and Note-taker for OS X – This is a great tool for reading, trimming and note taking for PDF files. I use it to also crop out the black margins from scanned documents to save my printer toner. (Freeware)

XPad – Pretty decent note taker if you are reading documents on Websites. (Freeware)