TechThursday (10/25/2007)
4 (out of many) ways to create a classroom web site
Probably the most sophisticated: Dreamweaver - the software is loaded on your laptop. You create the web site on your local computer and then upload to the district server. Dreamweaver is used by professional web developers.
iWeb – Apple software (can’t run on PC), loaded on your laptop. Very intuitive WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) software. Has build in templates, is connected to iPhoto (you don’t need to upload pictures, just drag them to your web page and edit them right there), keeps your pages organized. You need to purchase .Mac service to upload your web site.
Google Page Creator (part of Google Labs) – web based (you can use it on any computer connected to the Internet) WYSIWYG application, free (you just need a gmail account). Has several templates, pictures have to be uploaded, then can be edited). You can link to documents (Word documents). Unluckily Page Creator is not compatible with Safari, so you would need to have Firefox browser (download for free here). Example of a page here.
WordPress.com blog – web based (you can use it on any computer connected to the Internet), WYSIWYG application, free (you just need to create an account). You can have different pages (schedule, field trips, homework….). The blog format is nice since it keeps the posts on the main page in order, they are searchable and the parents can use RSS feeder to see posts right away. Here is an example – NixonTech Blog, Joe’s blog for B4.
Here is another blog to help you start: 4 steps to a new site at WordPress.com.
