Slidecast is a new service from SlideShare which allows users to sync audio files with PowerPoint presentations they share over the net. To learn how to start slidecasting watch the step by step guide above created by Jonathan Boutelle, co-founder of SlideShare and check out the comprehensive FAQ section on the main site.
Here is a Spanish example published two days ago called De Madrid al Cielo which has been uploaded by Emico with digital images taken from Flickr. Using an RSS Reader like Google Reader, you can subscribe to any future Slidecasts by clicking on the Subscribe to user link and copying the feed into your reader. That way when any new Slidecast is published it will appear automatically for you to view.
To embed a Slidecast into your blog is easy too. For a Typepad blog, just copy the code from the Embed into your blog box and paste it into your post having clicked on the HTML tab first. Don't forget to adjust the height and width tags so it fits properly. For Wordpress or Blogger blogs, watch the following clip by Leigh Blackall from New Zealand to show you how to do it. The reference to SlideShare starts about half way through.
Through trial and error, I know that for my blog, if I want to embed media across the full width of a post, it needs to be 370 pixels. To work out the corresponding height value, divide the original size by 370 using Windows Calculator or equivalent and then multiply the answer by the height. That done, simply adjust the values in the html code accordingly. To embed Jonathan's Slidecast for example, I used height="303" width="370" because the original height and width were "348" and "425".
To adjust an image's width and height for a blog post, I use Microsoft Office Picture Manager for MS Office 2003 or above. Simply right click it and select Open With Microsoft Office Picture Manager. Click on Edit Pictures ... and Resize. Select Custom width x height and enter the values you have calculated. Click File/Save and you're done. If you want to compress an image so it uses up less webspace and loads more quickly, click on Compress Pictures instead of Resize and see how large it is by looking at the original size. If it is over a couple of MB, it is better to compress. To do this select Documents or Web pages depending on how clear you want the final image to be. Again, don't forget to save before you finish.
Now there is no excuse for your embedded media not to look right on your blog! .
Slidecast is a great tool Joe that I have used with the children as it teaches them PowerPoint skills too. Last year to get the audio to run along with the slide show we had to be creative and add podcasts with specific sounds for turning the page. This was a bit fiddily so the addition of sound to Slidecast is a super bonus.
Sharon
Posted by: Sharon | 18/08/2007 at 14:27
That's right Sharon,
I remember refering to your clever use of SlideShare+GCast in the introduction of my post about your 'must listen' interview with David Noble. Here are the links for anyone else reading this:
http://joedale.typepad.com/integrating_ict_into_the_/2007/06/booruch-intervi.html
http://juniorschool.wikispaces.com/L6-xmas
I was really pleased to see that they had added audio streaming too. It makes it an even better tool for digital storytelling and the like.
Posted by: Joe Dale | 18/08/2007 at 14:47