My #scoopit digest - the most popular tools in May/June

I looked through my scoopit website to find out which tools and software have produced the largest number of reactions during the months of May and June. The number of responses may indicate how serviceable and practical the technology is. It may also suggest which tools are in greater demand or more called for.


Free online mind mapping software - MAPMYself (Mapul) - 57 reactions
Multimedia tools for educators - 54 reactions
6 Top Tools For Creating Presentations In 3D - 54 reactions
Present.me officially launched today - 52 reactions
TweetShow - 52 reactions
Create interactive infographics - Infogr.am - 50 reactions
PDF Presenter - 42 reactions
Ezvid - Record Screencast And Create Slideshows - 41 reactions
How to create an animated presentation with #PowToon - 37 reactions
Viewbix - empower your video - 36 reactions
Open Sankoré | The Free Interactive Whiteboard Software - 36 reactions
Add Speaking Animated Characters To PowerPoint Slides With SitePal - 36 reactions
How to create a great prezi (iPad) - 36 reactions
Grabilla – ScreenShot and ScreenCast tool - 34 reactions
Conceptboard for education - 31 reactions


There are some fantastic tools that have failed to attract due interest from the site visitors therefore I'd like to point out some of them.

SnapCrab for Windows - Screen capture software (free) - easy screen capture with one click of the mouse.

CanvasDropr - How to create and back up multimedia presentations virtually? - a web based visual collaboration service that is available for free. It helps you to create presentations and place them on the digital canvas in real-time.

LittlePPT - Free Powerpoint Reader and Presentation Editor - a free powerpoint processing program similar to Microsoft PowerPoint, compatible with all formats.

How to make your Scoop.it work

I have been asked several times to share my experience about curating the content on the Scoop.it site.

I am pleased to see that my Digital Presentations in Education keeps gaining popularity, the number of visitors is growing daily and the magic score which measures the topic quality has reached 91 (out of 100).

I have been curating my topic for about 10 months and I have mulled over the principles that I stick to in curating my topic. They are simple and they are proven.


1. Pick a topic that is relatively narrow so that you can focus on one theme (instead of gathering a wide range of links and eventually going off on a tangent). This will attract the right audience who have true interest in your topic.

2. Pick a topic which you are familiar with and, better still, where you have some knowledge and experience because you will need to evaluate the resources you are going to scoop.

3. Be very picky! Don't scoop everything the sources offer, select only the most relevant articles or posts which will add new value to your collection.

4. Be consistent. Keep to the topic you have chosen, don't go astray when you see a new, fantastic tool or resource which is a gem but does not match your theme.

5. Scoop regularly. (Perhaps this is the hardest part.) New information gets stale in a day. Try to find all the new tools/ resources/ information/ reviews etc. pertaining to your topic that have been published on that day. It's no use scooping very old information except if it is extremely worthwhile and you wish to save it on your site.

6.  Check and double check how reliable and valid is the source you are going to link to your site. Verify the authenticity of the website. Out there I have seen so many fake websites which post stolen materials and disappear in a day or a week.

7. I have seen some curators write their own reviews of the tools or technologies they scoop but I have neither time nor skill to do it, and I believe the developers or professionals have said everything that has been worth saying on the webpage I am scooping.


My Scoop.it page is obviously useful not only to my visitors but also to myself. I return to it every time I need to prepare a new presentation or suggest a new tool to my students.