Leveraging 3rd partY web services  







EWU Faculty Success Showcase
May 21, 2014

P. Colin Manikoth


Faculty Lecturer, VCD

Web consultant: design and development

Work on Internet: don't get too attached
 
Work anywhere

Always have access to files on any device


go ahead, catch on fire



Canvas


Cannot ( should not ) be everything
- Support, Maintenance, & training
- Faculty needs & policies change

Canvas is evolving & is an extensible LMS via LTI

APIs (application programming interface) are now common place

Canvas  3rd party web services have limitations

requirements


Don't let technologies get in the way

No coding necessary

Supplement, not replace Canvas

Canvas is central (links out) to web services

Must be available on mobile, tablet, & desktop 

caveats


Free comes at a cost

3rd party services are reliable, but do go down

Logins. Logins. Logins. 

Login stack


Good stack of widely accepted logins
   - Twitter
   - Google
   - FaceBook
   - GitHub

Use a Password Manager 



EASY STUFF

TLK.io


http://tlk.io/ewushowcase

Supplement Canvas Conversations. Chat no longer offered by Canvas

Pros:
  - Public to everyone
  - Can include non-EWU members, e.g. Guest Lecturers
  - Easy to use. Non archival. 

Cons: 
  - Public to everyone
  - Non archival. 
 - Moderation

SLID.ES


Slid.es
 - create, store, & share slide decks 

Pros:
  - Compatible on mobile, tablet, & desktop devices
  - Slides always available online

Cons:
  - Free account, no private presentations
  - Free account, only 250 MB of storage

See also SlideShare

Screenr.com


Screenr.com for web based screencasting

Pros: 
  - All web based
  - Screenr.com encodes & delivers video

Cons: 
  - Free trial, but no free account
  - Requires Java



Medium

 

Why?

why Dropbox?


Take advantage of all DropBox features

Canvas limits file storage to 500MB

Used by many schools - Space Race (now over)

2GB free account with more Free Space

Many apps use DropBox for storage

Canvas LTI: DropBox DBX


DropBox: File Sharing


Add links to Canvas Pages, Modules, Assignments, etc.

Easy file sharing & hosting

Right-click Copy public link
  - Posting links to downloadable files on Canvas
  - Not-attaching large files to emails
  - Sharing photo galleries
  - Sharing video



NOt-s0-medium

Canvas Backup & Restore


Restore a Deleted Item

Undelete item, but which version?

Last saved? What about past versions?  

 Backup vs. 

Version contorl


Backup: 
* Duplicate file(s).
* Single backup.
* Does not track versions.

Version Control: 
* A time machine for files(s). 
* Tracks changes. 
* Steep learning curve, but worth it.

DropBox: Events


* Pros: 
 - Simple backup of files
 - Simple version control of files by date saved

* Cons: 
 - Every save is its version. Creates many versions.
 - Cannot set own "milestones for saves (commits)". See GitHub up next. 

why, again?


For Students: 
  - No Excuses

For Faculty & Stuff: 
  - No Excuses
  - No more Final_v1, Final_FINAL, etc.
  - Collaborative Version Control

Pen flip


Collaborative writing

Version controlled files

Use Markdown syntax

Export to many formats

Growing in popularity




conCLUSION


 Add LTI app if it required feature(s)

Be wary of apps in beta






Thank You.


P. Colin Manikoth
PH: ext. 4086
Email: pmanikoth@ewu.edu
Twitter: @poukong
Skype: colin.manikoth
URL: manikoth.com