I recently came across a neat Web 2.0 application that makes it very simple to post an Ebook, e-magazine, interactive catalogue… you name it! The WoBook service requires email registration and is free for personal use. “Easily create your ebooks (newspaper, albums, drawings, flyers…) in a few clicks and share them by publishing them on your blog, emails, myspace, facebook…Upload all your PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Open Office files… Wobook will take care of everything, including hosting and storage!” I love the interface of the online viewing feature…it’s a real page-turner. You can also create widgets to the books or material that you upload to the service. Below you will see two examples of widgets that will direct you to the Technology Plan I facilitated and developed for Ballston Spa CSD.

Just a quick note…I tried uploading the content in Word 2007 format and found that the format of my document did not “hold” when it was converted to online format (I have found Word 2007 table formats pretty funky anyway). When I uploaded the same document in .pdf format formatting held perfectly. I have not experimented with PowerPoint yet. I would love to hear your feedback regarding your experiences with the product.

As far as integration goes…I think students would really enjoy the format of this product as a way to share their stories, journals, or portfolio work. Material posted to the site can be posted as private or public and the “publisher” can also assign print rights to readers. Essentially, the product not only posts documents in a reader friendly fashion, but also serves as a free online .pdf generator. I do want to point out that the site is open to anyone, so content could be questionable at times…I didn’t see anything inappropriate when I perused the site, but like all good things in life (and on the net) there is the possibility for abuse.