WEBify yourself with the Open Source
Posted by digitelligence on December 1, 2008
The Open Source Matters, yes it does. It matters because it can make you a brand, launch your ideas as handy tools for others and more… As the Web 2.0 revolution takes place it gives you a chance to prove your worth and make you online. With Web 2.0 happening you can’t just launch your very own web broadcasting channel you can also write suggestions and reviews on blogs which lacs of people read.
The Open Source is an example of how enormous and great platform has been provided to us by the Internet for collaborative creativity. Open Source is both the result of the new technology and the programmers working together collaboratively.
The finest of the Open Source examples include Mozilla Firefox, Open Office, Linux, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress and Media Wiki. Despite some rather goofy names, these are serious apps that you can run on local computers or on the Internet.
Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net). A full-featured audio-editing program that has become a standard tool for podcasters everywhere. You’ll be amazed at its capabilities.
Moodle (www.moodle.org) and Sakai (sakaiproject.org). These “learning management systems” provide calendar, assignment, grading, and quiz functionality and are often implemented just for these practical benefits. They can also enable discussion forums, chat, instant messaging, and wiki capability, and have been known to transform whole curricular programs and teaching practice.
Joomla (www.joomla.org), Mambo (mambo-foundation.org), and Drupal (www.drupal.org). These are “content management systems,” which means that an administrator sets up a Web site design, and contributors simply add content. These applications have been used for site building by many educational organizations because they are so easy to update. They are also great platforms for educational blogging, forum discussions, and social networking. Mambo and Joomla are relatively easy to learn and use; Drupal has more sophisticated Web 2.0 capability, but is less prepackaged.
Elgg (www.elgg.org). Truly not for the faint of heart, but an amazingly sophisticated social networking program that brings the pedagogical benefits of social networking (and there are many) under local control.
