TOP 10 TOOLS 2009
Vaclav Friedrich

I am a lecturer at the Technical University in Ostrava, Czech Republic. I am very interesting in eLearning and blended learning technologies and in cognitive educational technologies too (especially LOGO and CAS software). Although Windows is my favorite operating system, I prefer open source software for educational purposes.

Vaclav's Top 10 Tools as at 26 March 2009

1. Moodle - Moodle is my best tool for e-learning. I have tried several CMS / LMS systems in previous 6 years, but only Moodle fully meets my needs. It is free, friendly to use and very flexible. I have transferred all my educational courses into Moodle. Visit our Moodle site – moodle.vsb.cz.

2. PowerPoint - Slide shows for presentations are still very popular learning resources both among teachers and students. Power Point is very comprehensive although it is easy to use. I do not know better tool for making slide shows.

3. eXe - EXE is not only XHTML editor. It is also the authoring tool for creating eLearning content. You can create IMS package or even SCORM package without knowledge of HTML language and web programming. I use eXe to create my own educational resources and also I teach my students to use eXe for making their own web presentations. Fully compatible with Moodle.

4. Word - I may be too conservative but I have been using MS Word as my favorite text processor since version 6 for Windows 3.1 (I had used Lotus Ami Pro before). Now I have Word 2007 and I am fully satisfied with it. And why Word as a tool for education? Most of my educational texts was created using Word.

5. Maxima - I may be the only contributor mentioning this CAS software in Top 10 Tools for Learning but I teach mathematics using this software and students love it. Maxima is free although it is very powerful tool comparable to proprietary and expensive software as Mathematica or Maple.

6. Chrome - The new internet browser from Google seems to be faster than IE and Firefox. Simple to use, no unnecessary tools, icons and menus – very suitable to browse in Moodle courses
7. Foxit Reader - My favourite PDF reader is Foxit Reader. It is small and fast utility to display PDF files – no installation is needed, you can have it at your flash disc or memory card. As I convert most of my educational resources (texts, presentations, etc.) into PDF, I recommend this tool for my students instead of robust and slow Adobe Reader

8. Google Search - I think that Google is still the best search engine in web. If you need to find anything, try Google!

9. Star Logo - Logo became popular as a funny programming tool for children with turtle graphics but this software can also help to explore and understand various complex dynamic systems. Twenty years ago students created their simulations in Simula 67 or other robust and expensive software systems, now they can utilize Star Logo which is free and simple to learn.

10. FreeMind - Mind mapping software is very useful for me (and not only in education). I use mind maps for drawing definitions at my textbooks, designing projects, “translating” ideas into paper, etc. I also teach my students to use mind maps. Although I have NovaMind 4 Pro for professional work I prefer FreeMind in education – it is free and easy to use.