Top Browsers, Extensions, and Tips for Education – The Death of Internet Explorer?

Modified on December 22, 2011 by Sue Waters

Perhaps I am a bit obsessive when it comes to web browsers?

And I’m sure it’s directly related to running four different web browsers daily on my computer for work.

But it constantly reminds me how which web browser you use directly impacts your internet user experience.

Here’s our review on what educators need to know about the top web browsers.

And our challenge to you is to trial some of these web browsers for 2 weeks to work out which browser is the best for you!

The top five most used web browsers in 2011 were:

Key browser facts to be aware of are:

Internet Explorer continues to dominate the web browser market because it comes with the Windows operating system and many users aren’t aware that there are alternative web browser they can use.
Internet Explorer’s dominance is decreasing because tech savvy users find the alternative web browsers are faster at loading sites and have less issues than Internet Explorer.
Firefox and Chrome are the most commonly used web browsers by tech savvy users.
Educational institutions often only allow one web browser to be installed on their computers due to the reluctance to provide support for alternative web browsers. This attitude is slowly changing as awareness of the benefits of alternative web browsers increases.
Some educational institutions continue to use outdated versions of Internet Explorer (IE 6 and 7) which greatly impact user experience (negatively).
You can run more than one web browser on your computer at the same time without causing any issues.
You should always check your website or blog in Internet Explorer, preferably IE 8, because this is the browser most likely used by people visiting your site. You can find that a website looks fine in other web browsers but look differently or loads poorly in Internet Explorer.
You can check whether you’re using the latest version of a web browser by checking the version number, usually located under Help > About in your web browser, with the information on Browse Happy.

Popular Browser add-ons used in education

Regardless of which web browser you choose, all modern browsers support a large number of freely available add-ons (extensions) that give it new functionality while improving your experience.

These can be searched for and installed from:

Popular add-ons used in education include:

Apture - highlight any phrase on a page to search and explore more information without leaving the web page
Awesome Screenshot - for quick screenshots
Diigo Toolbar - to easily annotate, screenshot and bookmark links to Diigo. Great for reference and resource sharing.
Delicious Bookmark - to easy bookmark links to Delicious and access Delicious bookmarks
Evernote - for saving things you see on the web to your Evernote account
Read it Later - To quickly save pages to read later.
Shareaholic - easily share interesting links via social networks, blogs, IM
Springpad - Quickly save ideas and information you want to remember
TweetDeck (Chrome) – for monitoring Facebook and Twitter
Xmarks Sync - Keeps bookmarks, passwords and open tabs synced across computers and browsers
Zemanta - improves your blogging dashboard by recommending images, links, articles and tags while you write.
Zotero - helps you collect, manage and cite your research sources

Top Browser trends in Education

The top browsers used by visitors to all 1 million+ of the blogs on edublogs.org provides a good indication of changing browser habits in education and schools.

The sudden drop in Internet Explorer usage in July is directly related to the school holidays in the Northern Hemisphere where educators and their students are able to use the web browser of their choice on their home computers as opposed to what they have to use on their school computers.

When compared with data from StatsCounter you’ll notice Internet Explorer usage in education is lower than data collected for all Internet users while Safari is higher reflecting the higher percentage of Mac use in schools.

Source: StatCounter Global Stats – Browser Market Share

Overview of the Top Web Browsers

Internet Explorer

Microsoft Internet Explorer might be the most widely used web browser but it isn’t the best web browser. It tends to be slower loading and more prone to being unresponsive than some of the alternative web browsers.

Mozilla Firefox

Firefox is one of the best web browsers and includes an extensive feature set. It’s interface is fairly similar to Internet Explorer making the change over from Internet Explorer easy for the new user.

Google Chrome

Google Chrome is the web browser developed by Google. It has rapidly grown in popularity this year and recently become the second most widely used web browser (based on StatCounter stats).

It has a minimalistic user interface that is different from other modern web browsers. However, once you get use to the differences you’ll soon appreciate how fast, simple and stable Chrome is to use. It also include features that aren’t part of other web browsers such as:

Incognito mode – handy for opening different accounts for an online tool using the same web browser (great for testing student and teacher accounts) or when you want to browse in private without it being recorded in your histories.
Google Sync – allows you to sync your bookmarks, settings, theme, and so on between different computers running Chrome.

Apple Safari

Safari is Apple’s web browser.

While it is most commonly used on Macbooks, iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch; you can install it on a PC.

Opera

Opera uses a very minimalistic user interface similar to Chrome.

Final Thoughts

Are we missing any tips and advice you would give on web browsers? Do you have any favorite add-ons to add to our list?

Please leave a comment to let us know!

DIY Decorating Your Blog for Any Holiday or Season

Modified on November 29, 2011 by Sue Waters

It’s that time of the year again when people get creative and start decorating their houses for the festive season. Everyone loves Christmas decorations, but did you know that you can get just as creative with decorating your blog?

With so many options now available, we’ve decided to show you how easy it is to decorate your blog for any holiday or season!

We’ve also set up a demo blog so you can check out what a live blog looks like when you use different options to customise with a particular feel!

Adding a Custom Background

Most themes now allow you to set your own custom image header and custom background.

Yet most people are unaware of how easy it is to add a custom background to achieve a more customised look while adding a personalized touch to their blog.

The first step is to search for a free background you’d like to use. Numerous websites provide a wide range of suitable free images and backgrounds.

Here’s some sites to get you started:

Once you’ve located an image you would like to use, all you need to do is right mouse click on the image and select Save Image As (or Save Picture as) to save a copy of the image onto your computer.

Now uploading your background is as simple as:

1. Go to Appearance > Background inside your dashboard.

2. Click on Choose File, select the image you want to upload and then click Upload.

3. Once it is uploaded select your preferred display option and then click Save Changes.

And when you check your blog you should now see your new custom background!

Student bloggers often like using an animated gif for their background. All they need to do is locate the animated .gif they want to use, save it onto their computer the same as you would save any other image, and then upload it as a background.

Of course, animated gifs can be a bit overwhelming when used as a background and Ronnie made me remove my pretty ones

Adding a Custom image header

Custom image headers, like backgrounds can really add to the look and feel of a blog.

You can easily make your own or search for a free image header to use.

Here’s some sites to get you started:

Once you’ve located an image you would like to use all you need to do is right mouse click on the image and select Save Image As (or Save Picture as) to save a copy of the image onto your computer.

Tip:

For the best quality use the recommended image header dimensions for your chosen theme (recommend size for your theme is displayed on Appearance > Header)
I use Snagit to resize and adjust my image headers to the correct size before uploading.

Now uploading your image header is as simple as:

1. Go to Appearance > Header inside your dashboard.

2. Click on Choose file, browse for the image on your computer and then click on Open.

Only .jpeg, .gif, and .png files can be used for image headers.

3. Next click Upload

4. Your image will upload and if it isn’t the exact dimensions you’ll need to select the area you want to crop and then click Crop and Publish.
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And when you check your blog you should now see your new custom image header!

Adding widgets to your sidebar

There are lots of seasonal widgets you can add to your sidebar. Widgetbox provides the best selection of Christmas widgets.

You can check out the widgets I liked in the sidebar of our demo blog. I also added a mixpod widget of Christmas music (student’s love music players on their blogs).

Please note you need to be using an Edublogs Pro blog, Edublogs Campus blog or have had extra features enabled on your blog by a Pro blog to be able to add embed code.

Adding a widget to your sidebar is as simple as:

1. Copy the embed code for the widget.

2. Go to Appearance > Widgets in your dashboard.

3. Click on the sidebar to expand it (so you can add the widget).

4. Drag a text widget from the Available widget area into the sidebar area.

5. Add the embed code to the text widget and click Save.

And when you check your blog you should see your new widget!

Enhancing your posts with embedded media

There’s a gazillion tools that you can easily embed into your posts that can create some great seasonal activities and fun.

Please note you need to be using an Edublogs Pro blog, Edublogs Campus blog or have had extra features enabled on your blog by a Pro blog to be able to add embed code.

I’ve added a selection to our demo blog so you can see how you could use them:

Christmas Trivia Fun – from Widget box
Christmas Glogster – get your students to create their own Christmas Glogster
Christmas VoiceThread – create your own VoiceThread
Christmas LiveBinder - packed full of ideas and Christmas activities
Christmas AnswerGarden
Christmas Quizzes – get your students to create their own quizz!
Christmas Picture Puzzle – from Widget box
Christmas Coloring pages
Festive Turkey scoffing game – from Widget box
Singing Christmas countdown – from Widget Box

You’ll find a comprehensive list of popular web tools to embed here!

Adding them to a post is as simple as:

1. Completely write your post including the title, text, images, tags and categories.

2. Click on Save Draft, preview your post and make all necessary edits.

3. Go to the online tool you want to use and copy the embed code.

4. Click on the HTML tab in your write post area.

5. Paste the embed code into your post where you want it to appear then immediately click Publish

Don’t click back to Visual Tab before hitting Publish as it can break the embed code.
Immediately close your post once you’ve published.
Change back to Visual Editing mode when you write your next post by clicking on the Visual tab.
You use this same process for any website that provides embed code.

And don’t forget the longtime-favorite Let It Snow plugin on Edublogs which adds falling snow right on your blog!

Leave a link to your decked-out and holiday-trimmed blog below so we can all get in the festive mood.

Seasons greetings and happy blog decorating!

Using categories to organize multiple classes or subjects on your blog

Modified on August 18, 2011 by Ronnie Burt

One of the most common back-to-school questions we have been getting lately has to do with how to use one blog with multiple classes or subjects.

The good news is that our newest custom menus feature makes this even easier!

This is ideal if you want to put up a post or question geared only towards one group of your students. They will see a link for their class in the top menu navigation of your blog, and once they click on that link, they will see only posts meant for them, with the most recent at the top.

Don’t let the length of the instructions fool you – it really is easy to setup, and once it is done, it will last you all school year

Step 1 – Choose what should be shown on your “home page”

Option 1 – All posts are shown with the most recent first – this what you are most likely used to

Option 2 – A “static home page” where you place a welcome message or important announcements

What we will be doing is assigning categories to certain classes or subjects. Because of this, you may not want all posts to show on your home page – what people see when they first visit your blog.

If you are ok with all posts, no matter the subject or class, showing together on your home page, then you won’t need to do anything special and can skip right to Step 2.

If you go with the static home page (Option 2), then you will first need to create a new page, just like any other page, and put in the information you want people to see.

Then, go to Settings > Reading in your blog’s dashboard, choose ‘Static Page‘ and in the drop down, select the new welcome page you just created.

Click ‘Save Changes‘.

You will be able to go back and update this page with new announcements whenever you like – but users that have subscribed to your blog feed or by email, won’t receive any sort of notification.

You can also create a new blank page called something like “All Posts”, and choose it under the posts dropdown box so that there will be a place for all posts to be shown on your blog in one place.

Step 2 – Create categories

Go to Posts > Categories and create new categories for each class, year, or subject that you want to appear in your blog’s navigation menu.

You will need a category for every post you write if you are using the static home page from step 1.

As you publish new posts, make sure to assign them to appropriate categories. You will get an error message when you click on a category that doesn’t yet have a post assigned to it. You can also assign a post to more than one category, which is great for news you want to share with all groups.

Step 3 – Create a custom menu

Go to Appearance > Menus and create a new custom menu for your blog.

Once you do this, all of the links at the top of your blog will disappear and you will need to add them back using the custom menu.

Visit our help site on custom menus to learn more, or check out the video below:

Going from here…

If you have this up and working and would like to share, feel free to leave a comment below letting us know!

For more information on setting up a class blog, check out the ongoing Class Blog series on our Teacher Challenges free professional development blog.

A free widget to enhance collaboration and discussion right in your blog!

Modified on October 13, 2011 by Ronnie Burt

We recently came across CollaborizeClassroom and think that anyone with a blog will love what they offer!

Like blogging, CollaborizeClassroom makes it easy to have discussions online. And best of all, there is a widget that lets you embed questions and polls right into your blog!

Anna and the team from CollaborizeClassroom was nice enough to set up a site just for edubloggers – you don’t need to even be an Edublogs user to use it. You can also set-up your own online space and the service is completely free either way!

So play around with the following directions and let us know what you think!

Step One: Visit the Edublogs Collaborize Community. Click Ask a Question. When the window pops up, it’s time to set up your poll.

Step Two: This is the form where you’ll create your poll. In the first field, type in the topic (or title) of your poll. Add any other information you would like to include in the description area. We recommend using this space to explain how you would like people to use your poll. Next, select a category. If you don’t see a category that is specific to your poll, you can use the “Other” category. You can also add an end-date or attach an image, video or document.

When you are done, click Publish.

Step Three: Once you see your topic displayed in the topic listing, click Make Widget (the link with the gear icon next to it). You will be taken to a wizard that guides you through the process of customizing your widget’s appearance.

Step Four: Once you have customized your Widgets appearance, click Next then click Grab Code at the bottom of the page. Copy the Widget Code.

Step Five: From your Edublog site, in a New Post – Click on the HTML Tab and Paste in your Widget Code.

Step Six: Click Publish and view your new widget in action!

Thanks CollaborizeClassroom for putting together this site for our community and for helping with the directions above!

Adding the NEW twitter follow button and other twitter widgets to your blog

Modified on June 1, 2011 by Ronnie Burt

Just yesterday Twitter launched a new “Follow” button that will make life easier for all of us twitteraholics.

Before now, you had to put a link to your twitter page and then potential fellow tweeters had to click “follow” there. Now, they can do it all from your site with one single click.

He’re an example for my account. Go head – click follow – I won’t mind!

Follow @ronnieburt

So how do you add one to your blog?

Twitter makes it easy to grab embed code for your own personal follow button here.

We’ll walk you through the steps, but if you want to know more about embedding, you should check out the in-depth post here from our Teacher Challenge blog.

1. Visit the Twitter Resource page for the Follow button

2. Choose from the available options and then copy the code that appears on the right side

3. Paste the code into the HTML tab of a page or post. A popular place might be to put it on your Contact or About page.

How To Embed In a Sidebar

You can see that we’ve embedded the follow button into the sidebar of this blog on the left side under our photos.

Here’s how to this:

1. Complete steps 1 and 2 from above (which is to go here)

2. Go to Appearance > Widgets in your blog dashboard

3. Click on the desired Sidebar to expand (so you can add the widgets)

4. Add a text widget to the desired sidebar by dragging it from the Available Widgets into the Sidebar area on the right.

5. The widget will automatically open — just add the HTML code for your follow button or widget, click Save and then Close.

6. That’s it!

What other twitter widgets can you add?

Using the exact same steps as embedding the follow button, you can also add several other twitter widgets too!

All of the different widgets and options can be found here.

Here are a few on display for you too see:

The Profile Widget

The Search Widget

Edubloggers List Widget

The Edublogger

Tips, tricks, and help for educators and bloggers using technology

Category Archives: Tips For Better Blogging