LibGuides: Continuing Education for Library Personnel: Tools

Collaboration Tools

Bubbl.us
Easy way to brainstorm and create mind maps online.
Dropbox
Online backup, file sync, and sharing made easy. Can also create public folders to share large files with collaborators.
Google Docs
Collaborate and share online documents (word processing, spreadsheets, etc.).
Popplet
Create mind maps and other collaborative spaces.
Milkr
Mind mapping tool
Zoho
Online document creation and collaboration. Alternative to Google Docs.
WeTransfer
Send large files (up to 2GB) and make them available for 2 weeks.

Social Networking

A great guide on how researchers may use social media is available from the (British) Research Information Network.

Academia.edu
Perhaps the most academically oriented of the social networking sites.
SPIN
Recommended by the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs, also includes a grant opportunities alerting database and a searchable expertise database.
Facebook
Though widely used on a social basis, can also be used for professional use. Privacy settings and use of friends lists can help keep these functions separate.
Linked In
Large professional networking site, used in business and academe.
Mendeley
Create and join groups of people with the same research interests.
ResearchGate
Professional networking and collaboration for scientists.

Quick Polling sites

KwikSurveys
Ad supoprted, but many options.
MicroPoll
Obsurvey
Obsurvey gives you all the standard survey features like branching, mandatory questions, filtering reports, exporting pdf and csv, downloading charts as images
Polldaddy
Free account has: 200 survey responses per month, 10 questions per survey, Content contains Polldaddy links, Basic reports for polls, surveys, & quizzes.

Presentation Tools

Prezi - The Zooming Presentation Editor
Create a dynamic alternative to a PowerPoint presentation
Slideshare
Upload and share presentations online.

Tips for designing Posters for presentation using PowerPoint
Annotated list of sites and resources for designing your Poster Presentation using PowerPoint slides or templates. (From G. Natal)

Poll Everywhere
An alternative to the 'clickers' to get audience/class feedback. You ask a question, audience answers via text message, twitter, or web, and responses are tallied and displayed in real time. Free for audiences under 40 people.
Quipol
Create a quick, embeddable one-question poll with options for media and comments (through Facebook and Twitter).

Word Clouds

Tagxedo
Like Wordle, except you can create a tag cloud with a specific shape.
Tagul
Create word clouds in specific shapes, each word can be linked to a search.
WordItOut
Generate word clouds

Timelines & Storylines

Tiki-Toki
A web app that makes it dead easy to make stunning, animated timelines that work in your browser. Basic account is completely free.
Timetoast timelines
Create timelines to share on the web or embed (flash).
Preceden
Timeline creator. $29 lifetime fee.
Infogram
Create infographics or charts from your data based on professional designed templates.
Easel.ly
Create infographics using backgrounds, objects, and icon sets.

Screencasting / Screen Capturing

Tools to capture either a static image of what's on your screen (and sometimes add annotations, boxes, arrows, etc.) or to capture a video of your movements and usually audio.

Jing
Free version does screenshots with annotations, videos up to 5 minutes with sound.
Screencast-O-Matic
15 minutes of video in the free version.
HOW TO: Add Captions To Your YouTube Videos
Awesome Screenshot
Firefox, Chrome, or Safari add-on. Capture the whole page or any portion, annotate it with rectangles, circles, arrows, lines and text, one-click upload to share.

Citation Management

Collection references, organize papers, and cite in documents. This article has a table for comparisons.

Mendeley
Citation management + Academic Social Network / Collaboration
Zotero
Browser-based citation management.

Audio, Video and Graphics Tools

Audacity
Free recording software and cross-platform audio editor. Record multiple tracks, create, edit, import and export mp3, wav and other types of audio files.
GIMP
Free software for manipulating images. Robust capabilities include photo retouching, image composition and authoring, resizing, and image format conversion. Also acts as an online batch processing system and mass production image renderer. May require more than average expertise to use.
Finding Images Libguide
Animoto - Video Slideshow Maker with Music
Free version can create 30 sec videos from pictures and your music, pay versions for longer vids.
Infogram
Create infographics and charts from your data based on professionally designed templates.
Sound Cloud
Record, upload, and share audio.