EPC154 Computer Curriculum 2

Software evaluation

Identification of software (title, publisher or URL, author), system requirements (processor, RAM, HDD, peripherals, OS) Title: Story Book Weaver
Publisher: SoftKey International Ltd

System Requirements:

PROCESSOR
IBM Computer 386 or higher

OPERATING SYSTEM
Win 3.1 or higher
MS-DOS 5.0 or higher

RAM
4 MB RAM

GRAPHICS
VGA Colour Graphics
256 Colour Display

DISK
Hard Disk

PERIPHERALS
Mouse
Keyboard

OTHER
CD-ROM Drive
Sound Blaster and compatible sound cards

Value judgement (price/registration fee versus educational worth), ease of use (your own impression, what features made it easy to use, how was it to install)
VALUE JUDGEMENT

PRICE: $19.95
1. The program was difficult to install as the instructions were not compatible with the operating system. The ability to locate the manual was particularly difficult, once again due to this problem.The instructions said go to Program Manager and there was none on the desktop. I went to 'My Computer' instead to locate the program.

There was no introduction to the program or a beginners lesson. However, help was available and there was also a book that had already been started to get ideas from. Throughout the program the only form of instruction was icons and balloons which indicated the use of the icons. This limited the knowledge of the user.

Many icons made it easier to use as did the many menus.

The large amount of graphics and applications available made it a very worthwhile piece of software. Children will have a great deal of use as there are so many things that you can do with this program. It is useful for English as children will be wanting to write stories if they are able to draw wonderful pictures to go with it. Also the pictures may work as a stimulus for stories. Students are able to link music with words with pictures and therefore see how they reflect each other - eg. a sad page may have sad music and a grey sky.

The program is very good in providing learning experiences in the use of computers. It provides the use of the mouse in cutting and pasting and moving objects, the use of pencils and erasers to draw with and the ability to make objects bigger and smaller. The program enables the creation of foregrounds and backgrounds and the use of colour. There are many programs for students to look through.
Students are learning about publishing in an exciting and challenging way. Therefore I think the program is quality value for money.

Documentation accompanying (operating instructions, help system, student worksheets), Framework nature (to what degree does the program permit you to change content etc) DOCUMENTATION

A brochure comes with the CD providing instructions as to how to install the program and also obtain the on-line manual. However, the instructions given were unable to be performed.

Operating instructions are provided in the manual. Also a help menu is available when the program is running.

A great deal of freedom is given in this package. You can change music, colour, font and the size of objects. Objects that are cut and pasted can be altered through a draw program. Sound can be turned off.

Description of operation of software, illustrated with screen-shots. Quality of web-pages, including appropriate backgrounds.
DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION OF SOFTWARE

On opening the program a screen appears with a lounge room with furniture which includes a door, two open books and a printer. By moving to each icon with a mouse the words exit program, write a story, read a story and print a story appear, respectively.

The read a story option allows you to read the story that you have already written but not to edit the text. By pressing on the write a story with the mouse a screen appears which asks whether you want to write a new story, edit a previous one or use a story that has already been started by Softkey International Ltd.

On requesting a new story. A blank screen appears. The menu up the top is similar to that of a normal word processing menu with edit and font and file menus.

On the left hand side of the screen six icons appear. When the arrow is pointed to the icon a box appears stating what the icon is for. The icons when clicked provide applications such as borders for the text, change of colour for the text and music to play. This screen is the title page of the storybook.

An arrow is at the bottom of the page which points to the right. When the arrow is clicked on with the mouse the next screen appears which is the first page of the storybook. More icons are available on this page. Scenery backgrounds can be put on the page and objects. These objects can be made smaller and bigger and can be altered with a paint tool.

A separate section at the bottom of the page is for text to be written.

To exit the program a stop light is pressed at the bottom of the page.

Keen observation of someone else using the software, ideally from the target student group, highlighting differences between your expectations and the student's responses.
Keen Observation of a Student

I observed a Grade 4 student so I expected that their understanding would be a great deal better than Grade 2 students.

On the first page the student sat for a very long time as there were no instructions, only a picture. I expected that they would move the mouse around but they did not. I had to ask them to try moving the mouse around.

They were able to use all the icons at the side and could use them straight away. They were very confident in exploring. They were unable to change the colour as they did not realise that they had to highlight the area that they wanted to change beforehand. I had this difficulty also.

They had difficulty in moving objects and had to ask me how to do this. I had to explain that you had to click on an object before you could move it. They quickly gained skill in moving objects and were able to create a very believable picture when they finished. They also quickly gained the skill of looking through menus to select the appropriate objects. This was surprising.

They clicked mainly on icons and did not look at the pop up menus until I instructed them to do so. This surprised me as they were so confident in exploring the icons and did not look at any of the other menus.

They were quite content to play for a long period of time which I would not expect with a normal word processor. They loved exploring with moving pictures around and selecting different backgrounds and music. They loved the whizz bang parts.

They were not interested in writing a story.

Software evaluation
Identification of software (title, publisher or URL, author), system requirements (processor, RAM, HDD, peripherals, OS)	Title: Story Book Weaver Publisher: SoftKey International Ltd System Requirements: PROCESSOR IBM Computer 386 or higher OPERATING SYSTEM Win 3.1 or higher MS-DOS 5.0 or higher RAM 4 MB RAM GRAPHICS VGA Colour Graphics 256 Colour Display DISK Hard Disk PERIPHERALS Mouse Keyboard OTHER CD-ROM Drive Sound Blaster and compatible sound cards
Value judgement (price/registration fee versus educational worth), ease of use (your own impression, what features made it easy to use, how was it to install)	VALUE JUDGEMENT PRICE: $19.95 1. The program was difficult to install as the instructions were not compatible with the operating system. The ability to locate the manual was particularly difficult, once again due to this problem.The instructions said go to Program Manager and there was none on the desktop. I went to 'My Computer' instead to locate the program. There was no introduction to the program or a beginners lesson. However, help was available and there was also a book that had already been started to get ideas from. Throughout the program the only form of instruction was icons and balloons which indicated the use of the icons. This limited the knowledge of the user. Many icons made it easier to use as did the many menus. The large amount of graphics and applications available made it a very worthwhile piece of software. Children will have a great deal of use as there are so many things that you can do with this program. It is useful for English as children will be wanting to write stories if they are able to draw wonderful pictures to go with it. Also the pictures may work as a stimulus for stories. Students are able to link music with words with pictures and therefore see how they reflect each other - eg. a sad page may have sad music and a grey sky. The program is very good in providing learning experiences in the use of computers. It provides the use of the mouse in cutting and pasting and moving objects, the use of pencils and erasers to draw with and the ability to make objects bigger and smaller. The program enables the creation of foregrounds and backgrounds and the use of colour. There are many programs for students to look through. Students are learning about publishing in an exciting and challenging way. Therefore I think the program is quality value for money.
Documentation accompanying (operating instructions, help system, student worksheets), Framework nature (to what degree does the program permit you to change content etc)	DOCUMENTATION A brochure comes with the CD providing instructions as to how to install the program and also obtain the on-line manual. However, the instructions given were unable to be performed. Operating instructions are provided in the manual. Also a help menu is available when the program is running. A great deal of freedom is given in this package. You can change music, colour, font and the size of objects. Objects that are cut and pasted can be altered through a draw program. Sound can be turned off.
Description of operation of software, illustrated with screen-shots. Quality of web-pages, including appropriate backgrounds.	DESCRIPTION OF OPERATION OF SOFTWARE On opening the program a screen appears with a lounge room with furniture which includes a door, two open books and a printer. By moving to each icon with a mouse the words exit program, write a story, read a story and print a story appear, respectively. The read a story option allows you to read the story that you have already written but not to edit the text. By pressing on the write a story with the mouse a screen appears which asks whether you want to write a new story, edit a previous one or use a story that has already been started by Softkey International Ltd. On requesting a new story. A blank screen appears. The menu up the top is similar to that of a normal word processing menu with edit and font and file menus. On the left hand side of the screen six icons appear. When the arrow is pointed to the icon a box appears stating what the icon is for. The icons when clicked provide applications such as borders for the text, change of colour for the text and music to play. This screen is the title page of the storybook. An arrow is at the bottom of the page which points to the right. When the arrow is clicked on with the mouse the next screen appears which is the first page of the storybook. More icons are available on this page. Scenery backgrounds can be put on the page and objects. These objects can be made smaller and bigger and can be altered with a paint tool. A separate section at the bottom of the page is for text to be written. To exit the program a stop light is pressed at the bottom of the page.
Keen observation of someone else using the software, ideally from the target student group, highlighting differences between your expectations and the student's responses.	Keen Observation of a Student I observed a Grade 4 student so I expected that their understanding would be a great deal better than Grade 2 students. On the first page the student sat for a very long time as there were no instructions, only a picture. I expected that they would move the mouse around but they did not. I had to ask them to try moving the mouse around. They were able to use all the icons at the side and could use them straight away. They were very confident in exploring. They were unable to change the colour as they did not realise that they had to highlight the area that they wanted to change beforehand. I had this difficulty also. They had difficulty in moving objects and had to ask me how to do this. I had to explain that you had to click on an object before you could move it. They quickly gained skill in moving objects and were able to create a very believable picture when they finished. They also quickly gained the skill of looking through menus to select the appropriate objects. This was surprising. They clicked mainly on icons and did not look at the pop up menus until I instructed them to do so. This surprised me as they were so confident in exploring the icons and did not look at any of the other menus. They were quite content to play for a long period of time which I would not expect with a normal word processor. They loved exploring with moving pictures around and selecting different backgrounds and music. They loved the whizz bang parts. They were not interested in writing a story.