Mary Jo Swiger

Fairmont State University

Spring 2013

Web/Online Technology: Jing

Overview

Looking for a way to share your ideas instantly? Jing is a simple and free Web 2.0 tool to enhance your fast-paced online conversations. Jing tools allow the user to capture what you see, record what you do, and send your screenshots and videos all over the web.

http://www.techsmith.com/jing.html

Get started with Jing by clicking the link below and choose:

Getting Started

Getting Started

Once you have downloaded and installed the free version of Jing, go to screencast.com and create a free account.

The Jing “Sun” and Screencast.com

Jing TutorialsUse the link below for Jing Tutorials.

Use the following link for Screencast Tutorials. Screencast Tutorials

Once Jing has been downloaded the Jing “Sun” will appear on your desktop. You can easily move the Jing “Sun” by clicking on the “Sun” and dragging to a new location.To capture an image: Place your cursor over the Jing “Sun” and click Capture

Annotating a Screen CaptureUse the Jing tools to annotate your capture.

The Jing tools provide the user with a comment tool, text tool, font choice and size, highlighting and framing.

The capture above illustrates a frame with text to annotate the weather report on a computer desktop.

Sharing a Screen CaptureUpload your screen capture to screencast, save the capture to your computer, or copy your capture. The “buttons” to perform these tasks are located on the bottom tool bar of the capture.

http://www.techsmith.com/jing.html

Creating a Jing Video

Record and narrate what’s happening on your screen.

Begin with a screen capture, then click “capture video”, wait for the count down to begin, then record your voice while performing tasks on your computer. You need a microphone to record your voice, and you also have the option of “no sound”.

Upload to screencast or save to your computer.

Share a Video

http://www.screencast.com/#

Teachers using Jing are designing and exploring creative applications of technology to promote student learning.  Jing would allow teachers to model digital-age work and learning by providing screen captures and videos to deliver content. Some possible suggestions for integrating Jing in online learning include students creating video lessons to teach concepts to classmates or even to teachers, teachers providing feedback on major assignments, or recording short videos showing the steps to solving complex problems and post them for students to review (Grand Canyon University, n.d.). Screencasts can assist learners in navigating a web environment and multimodal tutorials allows the learner to watch and watch again (Literary Research Association, n.d.). Jing is a tool that has unlimited potential. As users have explored the many options, the results are amazing. For example, teachers may ask students to explain a task to demonstrate mastery and provide an alternate way to communicate with parents. Anyone can use Jing to connect with tech support so they can see what exactly is going on, and embed videos and images to blogs, websites and wikis (UNC Charlotte, 2010). Too, searching the internet for how-to videos yielded several videos for using Jing within Blackboard. In my view and personal experience, I had an instructor use Jing to assist with an Excel project that included statistics. My success on the project definitely weighted on having the screen recording available.

Delivering Online Education Using Jing

Jing is free and easy to use, 2 GB of storage available, and a privacy option to secure videos for specific individuals or groups. It’s easy to define an area to capture or record.

Ranganathan & Nygard (2010) state, “Although the free version of Jing Software can be used for quick tutorials of producing such simulation tools, each recording video session cannot exceed more than five minutes with the free version. For any extended Screenshot capture, one has to rely on other purchase software Snagit 9 or JingPro” (p.6).

Pros and Cons

As with many Web 2.0 tools, Jing is free with limited features. So TechSmith, the website to choose a tool that will fit your specific needs offers upgraded versions. To better meet the needs of customers, TechSmith retired Jing Pro to the free version of Jing. After listening to customers, a choice was made to use Snagit, a tool that ends the five minute video limit. Snagit is the perfect tool for MPEG-4 video and youtube uploading. Of course there is a one-time fee, and the possibility of receiving a discount for educators, colleges and universities (TechSmith, 1995-2013). Users of Web 2.0 tools must be willing to adapt to changes that are made by the tool designers, and frequently review the Web 2.0 tool sites for updates.

Future for Jing

“Because Web 2.0 allows users to interact with one another or within the group rather than passively consuming information, these tools are an ideal match for online instruction” (Tunks, 2012). Therefore, instructors using Web 2.0 tools, such as Jing, with careful planning and meaningful integration will most likely affect student learning and engagement in a positive manner.

As online courses increase in popularity, the need for instructors to communicate, support and personalize learning is essential. I believe there is a right way and a wrong way to implement Web 2.0 tools in courses. In my opinion, there needs to be scaffolding and connections within assignments to enhance student understanding.

Conclusion

Grand Canyon University Center for Innovation in Research and Teaching. (n.d.) Technology teaching tools. Retrieved from http://cirt.gcu.edu/teaching/tools/jing

Literary Research Association Research and Repository. Digital text and tools. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://sites.google.com/site/textsandtools/techtutorials//screencasts/jing

Ranganathan, P. & Nygard, K. (2010). Computer (jing) based teaching in virtual engineering laboratories. International Conference on Engineering Education. Retrieved from

TechSmith.(1995-2013). Retrieved from http://www.techsmith.com/jing.html

Tunks, K. W. (2012). An introduction and guide to enhancing online instruction with Web 2.0 Tools. Journal Of Educators Online, 9(2),

UNC Charlotte. (2010). Teaching with technology. Retrieved from http://guides.library.uncc.edu/content.php?pid=319548&sid=2634434

Reference