Google Docs Viewer Rocks!

Google Docs Viewer is very useful for displaying any doc, pdf, tiff or presentation files that are saved online.

You don't have to worry about loading your files onto any third party server and although it is a basic version, no bells and whistles, it does the job that it is meant to do very well.

You can move forwards and backwards through the document, zoom in and out and show one page or four pages at a time. You can also choose a full screen mode where you can then select to download the file.

And, of course, you can also embed the viewer. Here is a little introduction to Google Docs in the classroom!

---

Share

Make Your PDFs Web Friendly

Make your PDFs web friendly in just three easy steps using Youblisher.

The 3 easy steps involve:
1. Uploading the PDF
2. Letting Youblisher work their magic
3. Adding the link to your website

The PDF document becomes flippable and quick loading. It feels just like working with a real document. As an improvement, I would like to see 'zoom in' retained when you flip from one page to another - rather than zooming out each time. Apart from that, you and your website visitors "will love it!"

Already have it in action on our College Website :-)

---

Share

Work Online with Acrobat.com

Acrobat.com provides several online services including file sharing, storage, PDF conversion, word processing and web conferencing.

Using Acrobat.com you can easily create and share documents and communicate in real time.

Adobe ConnectNow, the web conferencing part, contains all the standard required features including whiteboard, screen sharing, audio, video, chat and file sharing. However, you can only connect with a maximum of two other users in the free version.

Also, the Adobe AIR version enables you to transfer files and folders by simply dragging and dropping them from your computer directly into your Acrobat.com account. You can browse, preview, share or publish files easily from your computer.

---

Technorati Tags: acrobat.com, adobe air, word processing, web conferencing

---

Share

Goodbye Adobe Reader, Hello PDF-XChange

PDF-XChange is a great little PDF reader that does everything Adobe Reader does and much more!

With PDF-XChange you can:
* add comments/annotations, subject to security settings
* type directly on any page
* add & apply custom stamps from any Image
* mark-up pages with text and objects
* export PDF pages or entire files to any one of the supported image formats
* extract text from the file
* navigate using 'Loupe' and the 'Pan' window tools
* fill and save Adobe Forms to disk as well as email
* use plug-ins for both MS IE or Firefox

Best of all, PDF-XChange also has a portable version - no installation required!

By using PDF-XChange your students can easily make their own personal additions/notes to your PDF files and save their own copy. They can then go back and change their amendments as many times as they wish.

What a great classroom tool if only all teachers and students were using laptops - no need to spend hours at the photocopier, just switch to PDF-XChange and save the trees :-)

---

Technorati Tags: pdf files, PDF-XChange
 

---

Share

The Photoshop Anthology - Free Download

Sitepoint are offering a time limited free PDF download of 'The Photoshop Anthology: 101 Web Design Tips, Tricks & Techniques.

The book, written by Corrie Haffly, is very comprehensive offering 9 complete chapters covering everything from the basics to advanced techniques. I particularly like the chapter that is devoted to designing a website.

Don't miss out. The offer ends in 25 days from now.........

---

Technorati Tags: pdf, photoshop, the photoshop anthology

---

Share

Online Copy Service for Mobiles

Qipit is a free mobile online copy service that has great potential for classroom use.

You just take a picture of your printouts, whiteboard or handwritten notes with your camera phone or digital camera and then send the image to Qipit, where it is turned into a digital copy (PDF).

As well as using your phone, you can also send the image via email or fax. Once uploaded the PDFs can be tagged for easy searching and sorting.

You can also publish and share the documents.

It even works with my humble Nokia 6234!! Read a great review of Qipit on Joe Wood's blog.

Update (13/5). Just discovered that Qipit also blog and tweet. Now that is the complete service ;-)
Update (7/11/09) . Free online service discontinuted as from 6th December 2009

---

Technorati Tags: image, mobile, pdf, qipit,

---

Share

Convert your HTML to PDF

htm2pdf is an extremely easy tool to use to convert your website/blog pages to pdf format. At htm2pdf, you can either enter the web address or paste in 'unpublished' html code.

What I particularly like about this tool, apart from it being free, is that it has an option to preserve your links and flash content. So, htm2pdf could easily be used to produce interactive pdf documents without having to buy any expensive software! Here is a one page example from the International Edubloggers Directory - with links intact.

International Edubloggers Directory Webpage

I like htm2pdf - thanks for finding this tool Jane!

---

Technorati Tags: flash, htm2pdf, pdf

---

Share

Online PDF Manipulator

PDF Hammer is a neat little tool for rearranging and extracting pages from your existing pdf files.

With PDF Hammer you can "edit PDF documents right now inside your browser. Once you start, you will be able to upload one or more PDF files into your project, arrange the pages in any order you wish, and delete any pages you don't want".

When you have finished, you simply export the final document and save it to your computer.

PDF Hammer is still in Beta testing and new features promised will include the ability to rotate pages and to apply watermarks or stamps. Found this handy little tool thanks to Judy's blog.

---

Technorati Tags: pdf online, watermark

---

Share

Excellent PDF Tool

I have been using PDFCreator for some time now and have found it an excellent tool for creating PDF files from any Windows program. It is installed as a printer driver and is easily accessed from the 'Print' option in any program. Several image formats (png, jpg etc) may be created, as well as the standard PDF file. It also incorporates several security features.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to get it working with Windows Vista - despite reports that it will run on Vista in the server mode! Hopefully a 'Vista friendly' version is on the way.

It is not strickly needed when using Open Office which includes its own built in PDF export feature. However these resulting PDF files are much larger than those created with PDFCreator.

---

Technorati Tags: image, openoffice, pdf, pdfcreator

---

Share