Tag Archives: blogging

15 Minutes a Day: Get an AIM WIMZI Widget

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What does it do?

An AIM WIMZI Widget takes visitors and signs them into the AIM network anonymously, with a randomly generated id like “aimguest369131.” They can then IM with you, via the widget inserted on your blog or webpage.

Chat Client Particulars

If you are using the latest AIM client, visitors will appear in a group in your Buddy List with the same name as your widget.  If you are using Google Chat you can enable AIM.  If you use an alternative client like Adium, you will be able to chat but the group will not show up on your list.

How do I get one?

Customize and create your AIM WIMZI Widget, which gives you the code that you can drop into your web page or blog.  Similar to other chat widgets, AIM WIMZI is customizable:

  • the default standard size is 190×275
  • it comes in both Javascript/HTML and Flash flavors
  • there are 8 styles, as well as a Mini size (160×195)
  • you can change your displayed name (so you can IM with people without revealing your screen name)
  • you can customize the name of the widget
  • you can customize your greeting and offline messages

How do I put it in my webpage or Blog?

The html or flash code can be added to your blog, social networking pages or any other website.  Copy and paste your widget code into the html code where you’d like the widget to appear.

Rather put it on your CofC Blog?  BLOGS.COFC.EDU only allows the flash version.  To embed your widget use the White “Embed Flash” button and cut and paste the flash code into the URL field.  The trick is remove the <embed src=” before the URL and the ></embed> after the URL.

Here is an example of what your widget will look like:

[kml_flashembed movie="http://o.aolcdn.com/aim/web-aim/wimzi.swf?appKey=jo1x4P5PIgW3s9kE&theme=snowdust" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="190" height="275" >" width="190" height="275" wmode="transparent" /]

Handy Reference: Cleaning up Word Files and Adding Images to Your Blog

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Cleaning Up Word Files

  • The character codes used in your word documents are not necessarily the same as those used on the web. If you want to use the contents of a word document use the Paste from Word button rather than cutting and pasting directly

Kitchen Sink Toolbar

  • To the left of the Flash icon (white circle with the letter “F” on it) in the post toolbar is a button that looks like paint sample cards (similar to the type you would get from a hardware store) turned sideways.  This button is called “the kitchen sink”
  • When you hover over the “kitchen sink button” you will see the message “Open Kitchen Sink.” Click the button until you see a second row on your formatting toolbar.
  • Click the button of a clipboard with a Word icon superimposed on it (from the second row).  It is called the “Paste from Word” button.  Click the “Paste from Word” button to paste your content in from your Word document.
  • This method should clean up any gobbly gook or weird formatting you may have.

Uploading Office Documents, Images, Audio Files

  • 10mb storage space

Linking to Shared Media Websites

If you want to Embed the Image

  • select html tab
  • type <img src=”paste your image link here” alt=”image description here”>
  • What it looks like after you do this

Ghastly Beast Drawings

If you want to Embed Audio or Video Files (link to an mp3, mov, Google, YouTube”)

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/TPAO-lZ4_hU" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

  • MP3’s (streamed audio files from the web – The College of Charleston’s Language Resource Center is using stream.cofc.edu to host course audio files for enrolled students.

Listen to Introduction to Con Fantasia

Download Title NerdTV MP3 Podcast

Thurs@3: Blogs and Blogging

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All Faculty and Staff are invited to the next Thurs@3@Addlestone session.  We’ve enjoyed your presence at our first sessions, and would love to see more of you there at these twice-monthly sessions.

From collaborators Jared Seay, Jerry Spiller, The Center for Faculty Development and Jolanda-Pieta van Arnhem comes this description of our next informational session on blogs and blogging:

A blog is a type of website that is usually arranged in chronological order from the most recent “post” (or entry) at the top of the main page to the older entries towards the bottom.

(from What is a blog? )

Since this definition tells you absolutely nothing useful about blogs, you should register for the next Addlestone Thursday @3 session and find out the answers to these tantalizing questions:

  • What is a blog? (this very page is one)
  • How can I get one?
  • How can I make one (with the new CofC blog thing)?
  • Why would I want to?
  • How can it help me teach, learn and communicate?
  • How come everybody at the College has a blog (on the CofC blog thing) except me?

Register by sending an email to thurs3@gmail.com.  Don’t forget to register, especially for this one – so we can request that the webmaster have your blog account ready beforehand!)

Information about the Addlestone Thursday @ 3 sessions including resources, sites, and a calendar can be found at: http://library.cofc.edu/thurs3/

Addlestone Thursday @ 3 Session: Blog, blog, blog, blog!
Thursday, October 9 at 3pm – 4:30pm
Addlestone 120

We’d love to see you there!

New College of Charleston Blogging Server

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CofC now has our own blogging server.  Take a moment to look around at: https://blogs.charleston.edu/

The web team is willing to set a redirect from your existing web account if you would prefer to use the blog server for your website. Some advantages to this are that the admin panel is web-based, which means you can access and update your site from any wired/wireless location.  The fact that WordPress allows for static pages provides greater flexibility with your content. Another benefit of WordPress is that it can be used as a kind of content management system.  It separates the layout & design of your page from the content without any need for programs like DreamWeaver, NVU or SeaMonkey, allowing you to create, edit, or update as much content as you want – when you want.

Blogging projects also encourage student collaboration and and participation in the creation, evaluation, discovery, and selection of information.  By participating in a classroom blog, students are able to experience the process of research by posting some of their findings and views on what they are reading and doing. They can also present mini-presentations and comment on classmates works. The blog format can aid in the organization and archival of their work. It can also be used for peer collaboration and feedback from one class member to another, as students learn what their peers are doing as they themselves are doing it. As a result of this interaction, new ideas and opportunities may arise and class projects may morph into new directions.

If you are interested in getting an account please contact the webmaster at  webmaster at cofc.edu and specifying “Blog Request” in the subject line of the e-mail.  By default your blog’s address will be blogs.charleston.edu.

I have a posted a printable handout to get you started.  Happy Blogging!

Why use Weblogs in the Classroom?

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Options for instructors using blogs:

  • Content-related blog as professional practice
  • Networking and personal knowledge sharing
  • Instructional tips for students
  • Course announcements and readings
  • Annotated links
  • Knowledge management

Options for students using blogs in your courses include:

  • Reflective or writing journals
  • Knowledge management
  • Assignment submission and review
  • Dialogue for groupwork
  • E-portfolios
  • Share course-related resources

Full Article Available at: http://www.det.wa.edu.au/education/cmis/eval/curriculum/ict/weblogs/

Instructional Strategies for Blogging

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Campus Technology | Ruth Reynard
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While the notion of “finding individual voice” is not new to the learning process, technology such as blogging has presented a unique opportunity for teachers and students to work intentionally at this process. The notion of individual voice, however, is difficult to manage and evaluate. How individual is a comment? How personalized is the voice of the student? Are students aware of a developing voice? Does this voice raise the confidence of the student in the learning process? Do students perceive the blogging process as helpful or just another task/assignment? These are all useful and interesting questions; however, patterns and trends can only be evaluated over time as the answer to any or all of these questions are as diverse and unique as the students who blog.

Read the full article at:  http://campustechnology.com/articles/47775/