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Many schools have now received their Shoo Fly software. We are holding a training event led by Vicki Cable from Shoo Fly in the Gateshead CLC on 22nd November 2007 EYFS Key Stage 1 in the morning and Key Stage 2 in the afternoon.
To book at place contact Gateshead CLC
tel: 0191 4602900
email: jbrookes@ictgateshead.org

Ever wished you could have a way of editing or creating websites without having to pay through the nose? Well now you can. Ive tried and used it and though it isn't as fully featured as the software it mimicks it is an excellent tool for anyone who doesn't want to learn HTML.

The makers say....

A complete Web Authoring System for Linux Desktop users as well as Microsoft Windows and Macintosh users to rival programs like FrontPage and Dreamweaver.
Nvu (pronounced N-view, for a "new view") makes managing a web site a snap. Now anyone can create web pages and manage a website with no technical expertise or knowledge of HTML.

Is there such a thing as clipart that is truely royalty free. There is now and the bank of images is growing by the day. Nowhere near as extensive as Microsofts library that ships with Office but worth a look, especially if your considering moving to Openoffice (Please look at the Beta release of Openoffice 2 as it now ships with a database to complete the office suite).

Click here for http://www.openclipart.org

INKSCAPE is an Open Source Scalable Vector Graphics Editor. This is what they say on their website.

Inkscape is an open source drawing tool with capabilities similar to Illustrator, Freehand, and CorelDraw that uses the W3C standard scalable vector graphics format (SVG). Some supported SVG features include basic shapes, paths, text, markers, clones, alpha blending, transforms, gradients, and grouping. In addition, Inkscape supports Creative Commons meta-data, node-editing, layers, complex path operations, text-on-path, and SVG XML editing. It also imports several formats like EPS, Postscript, JPEG, PNG, BMP, and TIFF and exports PNG as well as multiple vector-based formats.

Give it a go, you can build logo's, icons, all sorts of scalable graphics quickly and easily, and best of all it won't cost the school a penny; just a little time to learn the ropes.

Click here for http://www.inkscape.org

Software for Blogging with your PDA.

You can download and install the following software for your PDA. Instructions Here.

To complete installation, your pocket PC may need '.net Compact Framwork 1.0'. To get it click here and download from the Microsoft Website.

Pocket SharpMT 2.6 Blogging Tool

VLC is a free to download, highly portable multimedia player for various audio and video formats (MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX, mp3, ogg, ...) as well as DVDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols. It can also be used as a server to stream in unicast or multicast in IPv4 or IPv6 on a high-bandwidth network.

Download VLC here.

FreeMind is a premier free mind-mapping software written in Java.


Download FreeMind now!

Further to Steve's useful post on RSS and news aggregation...Gateshead Grid for Learning uses Bloglines as our preferred aggregator tool.

Bloglines is NOT a software download...it's a hosted service (means you can access 24/7 from wherever) with a raft of useful syndication services and it's free! Once subscribed you can download a small alert programme which notifies you of new content from your subscription news sites...of which, of course, ICT Works should be one...

Click here for ICT Work's XML newsfeed

RSS is a format for syndicating news and the content of news-like sites, including major news sites and personal weblogs.

RSS-aware programs called news aggregators are popular in the weblogging community. Many weblogs make content available in RSS. A news aggregator can help you keep up with all your favorite weblogs by checking their RSS feeds and displaying new items from each of them.

Download

Feedreader is a lightweight open-source aggregator that supports all major RSS formats. It works under Windows 95 and later versions.
Download FEEDREADER here!

Spybot - Search & Destroy can detect and remove spyware of different kinds from your computer.

Download this software free from SPYBOT Search & Destroy

The GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It works on many operating systems, in many languages.

Download Gimp here.

Audacity is a free audio editor. You can record sounds, play sounds, import and export WAV, AIFF, Ogg Vorbis, and MP3 files, and more. Use it to edit your sounds using Cut, Copy and Paste (with unlimited Undo), mix tracks together, or apply effects to your recordings.

Download Audacity here.

HomeWatcher is motion sensitive webcam software for Windows.
Originally designed for security purposes like watching your house from work, HomeWatcher can be used in almost any situation where remote monitoring is required.
This can be used as introduction to remote sensing in Keystage 3.
Download Homewatcher here.
The Lite version is free of charge.

Take a look at this free modelling software.

The West Point Bridge Designer 2004 will introduce you to engineering through an authentic, hands-on design experience. This software provides you with the tools to model, test, and optimize a steel highway bridge, based on realistic specifications, constraints, and performance criteria.

Download West Point Bridge Design here!