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"...... there are many online web applications which can edit your pictures and images online without the extensive knowledge of any graphics application. Photo Editing is always fun and its pretty essential if you want your pictures to look good. You can apply many cool effects, that can make your photo look better and more enhanced. Some common photo editing techniques include 3D effects, adding textures, adjusting backgrounds, editing text etc. Just choose picture from your computer and it will do the rest. So here are 20 Best And Free Online Photo Editing Websites that can make your photos look better."

"What I gained from this exercise was a thorough understanding of issues surrounding Cloud Computing and the information I needed to be able to speak confidently with my school community about the move we were making. If you're a school looking to move into the Cloud Computing space, then measures like this are necessary. If you're an Australian school looking for links to assist you with the process, then take a look at the following."

"Technology has evolved at a neck-snapping pace. We see it every day as we all learn about new web tools, apps, startups, and ideas in the education technology arena. We have bright eyes staring toward the horizon and we're all hoping for a bright future for our students. But it's important to look back. I've found you never truly know where you're headed until you understand where you've been. In terms of education technology (emphasis on technology), we've come so far. Let's look at an interesting image that I came across whilst browsing the ol' Pinterest:"

"The initial process of linking a Google+ account and a YouTube account is very simple indeed. There are, however, quite a few things I have learned along the way. If you are a business looking to make the most of your Google+ experience, an individual looking to get all your 'ducks in a row and ready to quack', or a consultant who wants to guide people on their way, then this is for you!"

"Higher education options are changing for all students - not only for gutsy school reformers and tech enthusiasts dropping out with hopes to become the next Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg. As MOOCs proliferate and college costs keep rising, more young reformers and "edupreneurs" are looking for a way around a four-year degree, some opting for a gap year to work on personal passions they hope will take off, and some looking for meaningful work experience in the world's classroom."

"It's natural to want to move to the next thing-but I'm convinced that today we are largely still talking about the "social media" era. The best of "social business" is yet to come in my opinion and we have a lot of work to do in between. Let's take a look back before we begin to look forward. "

Darrel - check this game out - HTML5 bet you wet your pants over it :-) Looks good and the source code is available to look at, explore and change.

Alvaro González-Alorda has created a powerful presentation that's a must see for any educator looking to push his or her school / classroom into the future. He talks about what the leaders of today's major schools and companies have to say about what academics will look like in the future. Basically, it's decision time for schools who have been clinging to best practices from the past and not paying enough attention to future trends. In fact, Alvaro lists more than a few trends to be on the lookout for in terms of education technology. The following presentation is on Slideshare and worth spending the next minute of your day on.

Looking for something to jazz up your literacy lesson? Check out Domo by goannimate. A free animation tool that allows you to create funky looking animations. A great tool for any literacy lesson especially if wanting to emphasise dialog, setting and characterisation for creative writing. 

Been toying with the idea of using Augmented Reality in your classroom or library? Here's your chance to use the latest in AR to excite your students and get them looking at environmental issues through a new lens, then lens of their smart phone, iPad or tablet. If you are looking for a super #edtech way to engage your students, I have just the thing for you this World Environment Day - June 5. How about  a 700 x 1156 pixel poster which when scanned with the Augmented Reality (AR) app Layar will display rich  media elements.

"You may know what a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is; you probably don't use one. You really should be using a VPN, and even if you don't think so now, at some point in the future you may consider it as important as your internet connection. When we took at look at your five favorite VPN service providers, we noticed a few things. First, being the "best" is big business for VPN providers, and they'll fight dirty to be one of them. Second, there are so many VPN providers that it's difficult to choose a really good one. VPNs are not all created equally, and in this post, we're going to look at what a VPN is, why you want one, and how to pick the best one for you. Let's get started."

Looking at the New Directions for school leadership and the teaching profession discussion paper, the only evidence presented to support the assertion that Victoria's education outcomes are not improving is the report "Challenges in Australian Education: results from PISA 2009: the PISA 2009 assessment of students' reading, mathematical and scientific literacy" Specifically the New Directions paper focuses on reading literacy, where in 2009, 14,251 students were given a two-hour pen and paper comprehension test. To get an idea of what types of competencies the reading test is assessing we can look at the sample test , with questions range from comprehension about a letter in a newspaper, the ability to interpret a receipt, comprehension around a short story, an informational text, and interpreting a table. While it doesn't seem unreasonable to want our students to be able to accurately perform these kind of tasks, these tests are not a true or accurate representation of the skills and competencies our students need in today's technology driven world.

"DocumentaryZ offers hundreds of documentaries organized into two dozen categories. Many of the videos are served via YouTube, but some are not. If you're fortunate enough to work in a school that allows you to access YouTube, DocumentaryZ is worth bookmarking. If you're looking for a documentary to use in your classroom, take a look at DocumentaryZ. I do have one word of caution, the Health and Sexuality categories do include some topics that may not be appropriate for all students. Therefore, it would be best to use DocumentaryZ for your own searches rather than letting students search the site on their own." Evaluation summary from http://goo.gl/42ouh

"But these days, Chrome looks a lot more appealing. An update made it look more like Windows or Mac OS X, and the cheapest Chomebooks cost as little as $200, making them potentially cheaper, and more useful, than a lot of 7-inch budget tablets. So I decided to take the plunge. My entire job is online and I've wanted to really try a Chromebook for a while. Last week, I finally did it."

"Artists are constantly looking for new ways to express themselves. Instead of simply sticking to painting a portrait with a brush or molding some clay into the chiseled body of a god, creatives today are exploring the world with new eyes. Their work offers incredible, new perspectives that will make you question what you're looking at. For a dose of creative inspiration, check out the work of these artists who think outside of the box"

"Five years ago every computer in an Australian school ran Microsoft software. But search giant Google is now looking to corner the $2.5 billion market for technology in Australian schools and universities with cheap software and laptops. Thousands of Chromebooks, laptops manufactured by vendors Samsung and HP that come with Google's Chrome web browser and software, have been deployed into primary and secondary schools as technology administrators look for cheap alternatives to replace aging computers handed out under the Rudd Government's $2.4 billion Digital Education Revolution."

"There are lots of different skills that go into game development. This course is about key technical concepts in game development, and has been developed for people of many different backgrounds and skills. Some programming experience would be nice but is not required. We start by looking at the central role of game design and common development processes used in the industry. You will see how game software can be broken into parts that work together, and in particular the idea of game engines. We'll explore the relationship between game design, balance and player experience. Lastly we'll look at enhancing player experience though the use of AI techniques."

I like the visual in this post. It offers a technology integration matrix that looks at the idea of embedding technology at the curriculum level. Along the top are the levels/stages of the integration of technology in learning whilst on the left side are the descriptors of what each level might look like in the classroom.

This looks very interesting. The potential is huge for students to develop apps for the Android platform. How can apple beat this one if they have locked down their apps store? The great thing about App inventor is that it looks like it has been modelled on Scratch 'Blocks' of building scripts. My Grade 5 and 6's (some whiz kids lower) would love to get their hands on this. The potential for them to develop their own apps for perhaps an Android tablet or smart phone is enormous. Rich and authentic possibilities for learning. Have DEECD made a wrong choice in going with the ipad? 

A great Slideshare looking at QR Codes from the marketing point of view. The presentation contains a great explanation of the makeup of a QR code as well as examples of good and not so good uses in marketing. It also looks at other types of codes that compete with QR codes.