Podcasts, Screencasts, and Wikis

Three "new" technologies seem to be capturing the imagination of the Web 2.0 generation:

1. Podcasts (audio and video files made available through RSS on a subscription basis),
2. Screencasts (usually tutorials and short "documentaries" which is taking screenshot of demos of software while the steps are being narrated), and
3. Wikis (a database that is expandable and editable by all participants).

Podcasts simply make use of digital audio and/or video software to generate a file. The usual techniques of editing apply. These range from highly scripted presentations such as the Bill Edddins series on Classical Connections Lives!!!!!, or collections of files for playing, such as a collection of jazz like The City at Night. Video adds a layer of production to the audio, including moving and still images as you can see in this promo on learning the guitar.

Screencasts use screen capture technology to demo new software such as the this short 90 second tutorial on how to use Linky, or mixing video and screen capture such as Jon Udell's account of a flood in Vermont.

Wiki may best be known for the Wikipedia. The public has been creating this on-line encyclopedia for years. It has become one of the largest shared creative projects on the Internet. Wiki coms from the Haiwian word wiki wiki which is used to describe something as quick or fast. This collaborative approach to creating knowledge has tremendous implications for the arts, but it is time that we understand art as not only expression but as a form of knowledge. Maybe then we can enter into collaborative creations with a sense of adventure and discovery.

These three technologies have helped to reshape the new age of digital technology, making the acronym CAI more and more obsolete in terms of teaching and learning, perhaps taking on a new meaning for CAI: Can't Attract Interest.