Just yesterday I was advocating for more free software use in schools. But then, that was before this question came up:

Our English department has one on one labs running Linux. They would like to have their students do visual book reports but they don’t know what software options are available. What do you recommend? One caveat, some of our teachers are just entering the technology realm. A simple program is a necessity.
Source: Classroom 2.0 post

It’s these kinds of questions that make one ask, why must the technology we have in schools be “one-size-fits-all?” Why must we standardize on all Windows computers, or GNU/Linux, or Macintosh? Could the simple answer be, “We’re just too lazy to think things through?” Naa.

For fun, I immediately googled “linux video software” and ran across this article, of which I’ll only quote the lead:

There is an sizeable amount of free video software available on the Linux platform which is both fully featured and mature. Become a digital video editing master, turn your Linux machine into a Home Theatre box are two options that are explored in this article.

To provide an insight into the quality of software that is available, we have compiled a list of 42 high quality Linux video applications, covering a broad spectrum of uses. Most of the titles included in this feature are desktop applications with an elegant graphical front-end, although we have not neglected console software.
Source: 42 of the Best Free Linux Video Software, LinuxLinks News

However, before anyone starts reading that article and decides to figure out these elegant graphical front-end solutions, let’s go back to the teacher’s request for help.

1. Newbie teachers who are looking for something simple
2. Visual book reports
3. Unaware of the software options

I can think of several possibilities, as I’m sure many of you can. While we don’t know what version of GNU/Linux is being used in the lab, what about considering these entirely web-based solutions for visual book reports?

• Voicethread – enables you to arrange slides (which you can create in OpenOffice Impress and then export as images or, just import into VT (have to try that)) or pictures, then add audio narration. It’s easy to use. Some examples appear here.
• Using an online video editing tool like Jumpcut, MuveeMix to mix videos from images.
• MyPlick.com This is a wonderful tool that allows you to upload your presentation, and then, if you have it, enter audio you have recorded. When working with the presentation, you listen to your audio and advance the slide show at the appropriate moment. When you’re done, MyPlick actually remembers, and when played by a visitor, plays the audio in sync with your presentation slides. Amazing!
• Slideshare This is another slideshow sharing tool that I use with great frequency. You also can add audio to Slideshare so it works in a similar way to MyPlick.com.

if you must have a video-editing tool to install, then consider using:

Avidemux
Avidemux is a free video editor designed for simple cutting, filtering and encoding tasks. It supports many file types, including AVI, DVD compatible MPEG files, MP4 and ASF, using a variety of codecs. Tasks can be automated using projects, job queue and powerful scripting capabilities.
http://fixounet.free.fr/avidemux/

Unfortunately, Avidemux never quite “works” for me. I just don’t get it. You?

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Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin’s blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure