Software description

Monday 28 November 2011

All the versions of this article: [English] [français]

What is an image active ?
An image active is an image enriched by your comments. By flying over the image, you get these comments based on the details you have chosen to highlight.

For whom ? For what ?
Science, history, geography, mathematics, language arts ... all disciplines are using visuals, diagrams, photos calling for comments. You choose the image to comment (Geo card, a section of a living organism, a chart of statistics, a landscape picture, a work of art ...) and please to the software, you surround areas that you want to forward and you attach your text.
No need to be professional in image processing, Images-Actives is an easy software to use and each image is fully customizable. You can use it at home in preparation for the course ou lesson or even in class with students !

See examples

For each objectif, his mode
You have the choice
Two modes :

Discovery mode to create an image map commentary. Its exploration can be done in groups, on interactive whiteboard or individually on a computer, digital tablet, mobile phone ...
Quiz mode to create an image where just questions appear first and where answers appear in one click. So you let some time for participation and student activity. You want to use an image active as support of directed work or supervised homework ? Lock your quiz by a secret code and control the access of students to the answers.


Discovery mode: The text are displayed by clicking on an image area


Quiz mode: Questions appears in bubbles

... and several presentations :

The text appears in an accordion next to the image.
The text appears in bubbles on the image.
The text appears by clicking on buttons located below or above the image.
You record your text for an audio version.


accordion: The text appears in the tabs on the side


Bubbles: The text appears in the bubbles


Buttons: The text are displayed by clicking on buttons


Audio: The comments are activated by clicking

And even more functionalities

Examples of use

Interactivity in the classroom
You want to use your image active on an interactive whiteboard ? Use the Quiz mode : choose image areas on which you want to ask questions. You increase the interactivity with your class : the answers are hidden and you let time enough for participation and activity of students.

A work watched ?
You want to use an image active as support of directed work or supervised homework ? You can lock your quiz by a secret code and control the access of students to the answers.

For you it’s a detail that means a lot ?
Take a close-up of an image area by turning on "zoom". With one click, it will spring to the foreground, at maximum resolution, the ideal way of presenting to users.

Turn the sound on
When the sound dimension is essential (language, music,...), you can opt for audio captions. Import your sound file or even record it directly in Images-Actives into a microphone! While use, you will have precise control over sound playback.

Customize your image active
With the export module that performs a direct compilation flash, you can customize every aspect of your image : colors, graphic effects ... You can even insert it your image active royalty-free fonts that you find on Internet!

Tidy up your cut outs
To facilitate the cutting of the details, several tools are available: clipping rectangular, elliptical, freehand lasso, polygonal lasso, and highlighter. This is not enough? Cut out the areas you wish to highlight in your image editing software and import back the result !

Watch your work live
With the preview pane, you follow step by step the animation that you generate inside the software, without having to open a browser or an external flash drive.

Technical strengths

Optimize the dimensions
You can size your animation as you wish to fit the current screen resolutions or to optimize the dimensions to obtain harmonious space.

My current image on almost all platforme
Put an image active online on your website is simple. To distribute your image active to your students, you can easily turn them into "projector" (executable Windows, Mac or Linux) that do not require flash drive ! In addition, images in swf file are running on tablets and Android smartphones.

New file format
SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) is at the heart of Images-Actives and the interaction between software components. The content of the image-active file (.xia) is editable with a vectorial drawing program like Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape.

Complement

Image publication rights

All images are protected by "copyright" :
property rights, which are into the public domain after a certain period
moral rights, which are perpetual. When you select the image you want to work on, make sure you have the right to use it, otherwise you may expose you to legal action by the stakeholders (individuals, legal entities, who have the rights on the image: the author, his heirs, museum ...). It should be noted that a photograph has two dimensions: the picture itself, which has an author (it is protected by copyright) and the subject can also be protected by copyright (ex : a building of modern architecture, a work of art, a pattern ... all these creations have an author or ...).

« By the time I publish my image active, I’m sure to be in my right: I did some research, contacted the beneficiaries and got authorization of publication. »

The advantage of creating an active image, beyond a certain personal satisfaction is to present it to an audience! To share knowledge in the classroom and / or publish on the Internet. Remember that "publish" is an act that involves your responsibility: it is "made public". All issues are addressed on the site Citizen of the internet - CToutNet.