Saving WeVideo to Google Drive

WeVideo is a great web-based video editor that connects with Google Drive (here's an earlier post about it). Here are some tips on saving (and sharing) videos you create in Google Drive

1. Before starting to use WeVideo, go to Google Drive, click Create, then Connect More Apps.  Search for WeVideo and add it.
2. You can now start a new video project by going to Google Drive, Create, and choosing WeVideo. As you work on WeVideo projects, the project files will be conveniently saved in Google Drive (see the last pic below).
3. When you are ready to share your final product…
4. Click Publish and give it a title.

5. Click the Google Drive icon.  Also, change visibility to private. Publish.

6. You will now see the finalized video in your Drive.  The format will be mp4.  Note that this is different from the project file.  Share the video as you would any Google Doc.  You will  get a URL that you can e-mail, post to Moodle, etc.

Note that you get up to 15 minutes of download time per month.  This is usually plenty, but it’s best not to publish until you’re confident that the video is in final form.  Note that the other “My PSA” file above (the one that doesn’t say mp4) is the WeVideo project file (that can still be edited).

Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides

You have probably noticed that Google now has separate apps for Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides.  Nick fixed the link in Moodle and updated the icons, however it's possible that you may end up in a strange place wondering what happened to Drive.  So, here's what you need to know:

Google Drive is where you will find all of your documents, whether they're Google text documents (Docs), presentations (Slides), spreadsheets (Sheets), forms, or any other type of file (remember-- you can use Google Drive to store and share any kind of file.  In fact, the video below is stored in--and shared from-- Google Drive).

If you have GMail (or any other Google app) open, you can use the App Launcher (3 x 3 icon) to get to Drive.  If you end up in the Docs app and want to get to Drive, use the menu in the upper left.  Below is a 50-second video explaining this.

The information in the video is still accurate, although you can now use the new Drive icon.

More ways to get video from your iPhone or iPad to a PC

Using your iOS device to capture video and need it to get it onto a PC* at school?  Last year I postedmethod of using Google Drive to do this.  I heard back from some students that the process could take a long time.

So, here are some other approaches:

1. Find the USB cable that attaches to your phone or iPad (best if it's the one from Apple) and plug it into your computer.  Click Computer in the Start Menu and look for an icon for the device.  Right-click on this and choose Import pictures and videos.  Note: this method does not always work.  If it doesn't, try restarting your device, or using a different cable or USB port.


2. Use a wireless transfer app.  I just used WiFi Album (free version) and it worked great.

3. If you don't need to actually save the video on your computer (but just need to share it), you can also simply upload to YouTube.  Lots of sites let you then incorporate the video from YouTube.  To do this, click the share icon and choose YouTube.  Once it's on YouTube, you can edit, as necessary.  You can make the video unlisted, but don't set it to private if your intent is to use it on a website or other project.

GradeQuick Unit Reporting (for teachers)

For teachers using GradeQuick, here are tips on creating end-of-unit or interim reports.

Google Maps how-to

Here's a nice, simple "cheat sheet" for  doing more with Google Maps, including ideas for using Maps in your class.  Thanks to Jennifer Judkins for the share.

https://docs.google.com/a/cvuhs.org/document/d/10YLdGjwJk9ufYrvvzorrrMCQPqrU1Bh-nzhXIfNdWWQ/edit

Updates to Google Apps

Here are some changes you'll notice soon in Google Apps:

1. It's now easier to share a document, presentation, or sheet with someone.  When you click share, you will (soon) see a button that says "Get shareable link."  This link automatically gives viewing rights to anyone you send it to.
2. Google Forms now lets you create a custom theme.  That's just plain fun-- and it lets you decide you want your form to look!
3. Need to insert a special character (like a non-Latin character or an arrow) into your doc?  Go to the Insert menu. You can even draw the character you want to use and it will search for you.