Mozilla+Popcorn+Maker

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“Until now, video on the web has been stuck inside a little black box...Popcorn Maker changes that, making video work like the rest of the web: linkable, remixable, and connected to the world around it.” - //Brett Gaylo, Mozilla’s Director of Popcorn//

Popcorn Maker Tutorial from Mozilla

Popcorn Anyone?
toc Description As a fun user-friendly web application (app), Mozilla Popcorn Marker allows you to make multimedia interactive web videos for FREE. Fundamentally it is a video editor tool to create original, mashup, and/or remixed projects with web-based video, audio, animation, Google maps, text, Twitter feeds and images. You can then share these videos via links, embedded on other websites.
 * Tell a Story with animation, audio and video
 * Tutorials or instructional videos for students or for business
 * A documentary with dynamic links
 * News report
 * Dynamic information delivery of a topic
 * Video Biographies profile to introduce yourself

Three of the most distinct features I found are…
 * 1) Pretty easy and fun - You don’t have to know programming, video production or web design to use.
 * 2) Quick and direct - The components such as videos, sound and images can be pulled quickly and directly from the web (e.g. drag and drop or cut and paste).
 * 3) Interactive for the audience – for example viewers can directly click links, scroll through pop ups and zoom in and out on a Google map.

Cool Tidbits
Created by Mozilla you can find Popcorn Maker in their suite that includes X-Ray Goggles (remix public website) and Thimble. It is a HTML5 web app that is housed in the cloud. (Richter, 2012; Wiggins, 2012). You will also be excited that, as well as being free it also has no hidden fees and is ad free. To share you can create an account on at Mozilla[| Persona].


 * ** Pros ( **** +) **
 * It’s free
 * Easy – don’t have to be a “techie”
 * Quick – drag and drop or cut and paste links to images, videos (YouTube, SoundCloud, Vimeo or an HTML5 video) and links directly from the web in real time
 * Precision editing and timing – you can control layers and the timeline, entrance and exit of content visually and/or numerically
 * Limitless content – the range of options that can be added will endless variations
 * Upload your own images – you can upload images such as gifs, jpeg and png directly of your own
 * You can not only 1 but multiple clips from YouTube videos of your choice. || ** Cons (-) **
 * Does not allow you to upload your own videos from you computer.
 * Cannot resize workspace or work panels.
 * Cannot group elements to edit them at the same time.
 * Video can only come from YouTube and audio must come from Soundcloud. If you are an educator or student using YouTube may be restricted.
 * Cannot download the final video to your computer
 * Embedded pages can only come from Wikipedia (Jebakumar, 2013; Neal, 2013). ||

Admittedly there are cons to Popcorn Maker and this is not a sales pitch however in a comparison to other online video tools from Common Sense Media ratings Popcon Maker shows pretty good results for children and education (see Chart 1 below).

** Chart 1: Online Video Tools Comparison ** //Note: Table created by Mya Eveland - data collected from Common Sense Media reviews at @http://www.commonsensemedia.org//

The Recent Past
Popcorn Maker's History Popcorn’s predecessor Popcorn.js 1.o was released in 2011 during the Mozilla Festival in London. The intended audience was filmmakers, journalists, artists, and bloggers who wanted a way to use audio and video with web integrations.

At the same festival a year later in November 2012, Popcorn Maker 1.0 was released expanding the intended audience to educators, remixers and web makers. Popcorn Maker is a combination of a number of separate projects, influenced by the [|“12 factor” philosophy] (A methodology for building modern, scalable, maintainable software-as-a-service apps), community feedback in development stages, and other Modzilla projects (Richter, 2012; Wiggins, 2012). Learn More >

**Mashup and Modernize Education**
Impact on Teaching and Learning In the 21st century technology skills and proficiency are becoming invaluable. Though Popcorn Maker is a newer app without extensive review, its ease of use and endless creative and educational possibilities can reduce technology barriers for educators and students in both K-12 to higher education. Popcorn maker reduces users barriers such as; price, lack of technology proficiency, years of experience and age, availability and access, institutional and technology support. “By making digital creation accessible, Popcorn Maker helps students gain key technological literacies, potentially spurring interest in video and audio editing” (Educade, 2013). Furthermore, Popcorn Maker and be utilized in all three general points of integrating technology in the classroom - technology for instructional preparation, technology for instructional delivery, and technology as a learning tool (Inan & Lowther, 2010). Educators can use Popcorn Maker to prepare instructional material or communicated information to parents in an engaging way. For instructional delivery math teachers to science and art teachers can make interactive videos to deliver otherwise static lessons. As a learning tool, Popcorn Maker’s functions like real-time previewing allow for instant gratification of students’ creative process and adjustments (Chad Sansing, 2013). Popcorn Maker promotes learners’ digital authorship while they produce digital media rather than only consuming (Common Sense Media, 2013). Mozilla Teach promotes Popcorn Maker and its suite as resources in educating anyone on the topics of web literacy, digital skills and digital creating (Mozilla Teach, 2013). Aligned with potential activities as enhancing anyone’s skills, teachers’ technology proficiency and information delivery, Popcorn Maker can specifically enhance student’s learning in: language & reading through presenting to others and storytelling; mathematics through using arithmetic and measurement during the video editing process; the arts via film making and script writing (Common Sense Media, 2013). What Skills Students of all ages can learn:
 * [[image:etec602/popcorntree.jpg width="244" height="330" align="left"]]Creativity and Multimodal literacy: combining elements (image, text, audio, video) to create new products
 * Planning and Strategizing: setting up concepts, outlines and timelines to appropriately deliver a message
 * Critical Thinking and Reasoning: using data and information to problem solve, conceptualize and shape new concepts
 * Collaboration: easy sharing, reviewing, and remixing by single or multiple users
 * Communication: convey messages in multiple forms of expression via text, audio, images combinations or individually
 * Media literacy and web skills: gives access to using technology and the web without being intimidating
 * Basics of video editing: features such as timeline, layers, audio, and entrance/exit are basic, straightforward and logical
 * Online Research: practice collecting information from the internet
 * Technology Skills: digital creating, sharing and applying multiple forms of technology (Chad Sansing, 2013, Common Sense Media, 2013; Paul & Elder,2013; Mozilla, 2013).

** Real Life Application Ideas **
Practical Applications
 * < [[image:13642279_l.jpg width="219" height="213" align="center"]] ||< ===[[image:etec602/Teachers-icon.png width="65" height="61" align="left"]]===

**Educators**

 * Daily Lessons (replace static/boring slide presentations)
 * Lessons for Diverse Learners
 * Flipped Classroom videos
 * Tutorials
 * Language Learners Tool
 * Parent Orientation Tool
 * Accessible for integrating with online/distance education ||< ===[[image:etec602/personal-information-icon.png width="59" height="59" align="left"]]===

** Personal Life **

 * Memoirs
 * Visual and Interactive Journal
 * Blog Content
 * Music Videos

*If your as old as me you might remember VH1 Pop up Videos - make one for fun and share with friends. ||
 * < [[image:etec602/graduated-icon.png width="77" height="77" align="left"]]

** Students **

 * Digital Storytelling
 * Newscasts
 * Commercials
 * Class Presentations
 * Documentaries
 * Biographical and Autobiographical videos
 * Present/share their social clubs and/or activities ||< === [[image:etec602/family-icon.png width="69" height="66" align="left"]] ===

Parents & Families
(e.g. vacations, holidays and history) (e.g. explore & share the web with your family while discussing what is  okay to share online) ||< ======
 * Interactive Holiday Cards
 * Family videos
 * Family Activity

Professional Life

 * Tutorials
 * Trainings
 * Information Dissemination
 * Promotion (work products, events and activities) ||

**Grab a Bag of Popcorn! -** Videos
Examples & Demonstrations




 * ** About ** || Ryan Merkley: Online video -- annotated, remixed and popped  media type="custom" key="23873278" align="center" ||
 * ** Examples ** || My Back to School Reflection Project  media type="custom" key="23942100" align="center"

Teens Talk to the Mayor: Improving NYC Schools []

Someone I Admire: Cecila Payne-Gaposchikin []

Remix of Harlem Shake: Obama Edition [] ||
 * ** Tutorials ** || Popcorn Maker Tutorial from Mozilla  media type="custom" key="23942178" align="center"

Popcorn Maker Tutorial from School Library Journal []

Tech Tip: Mozilla Popcorn Maker (as a marketing tool) [] || [] ||
 * ** Templates ** || Lesson Plans using Popcorn Maker for ages 3-12 from Educade

The Kernels
More About the Features Popcorn Maker has three main sections (1) preview pane (2) the timeline, and (3) feature list that houses the “events” (e.g. where you add video, pop-ups, images, text and audio). The center of the screen is the preview pane. Below is the preview pane is the timeline with the availability of creating multiple layers and events. The events you can add found in the feature list include:
 * 1) **Text:** Text boxes that can be modified with different fonts, sizes, colors, shadow, background color, and can be linked.
 * 2) **Image:** Upload your own, pull from the web or insert an image or Flickr slideshow. Images can be resized, repositioned, and linked to URLs.
 * 3) **Popup:** Text bubbles - with a variety of icons to choose from (e.g. stars, callout, heart, etc.) Both the shape (pop-up, thought or speech bublles) and icon may be changed. You can also use with or without a ‘pop’ sound.
 * 4) **Loop:** Your video can be looped - either for a specified number of repetitions or infinitely.
 * 5) **Skip or control Embedded Video:** You can cut out a section of the video or play a portion where/when you want on the timeline, turn the audio on/off or down.
 * 6) **Pause:** Videos can be directed to pause for a specific amount of time or infinitely.
 * 7) **GoogleMap:** A Google Maps can be added with a specific location and/or map type map type (e.g. road map, satellite, street view, etc.).
 * 8) **Twitter:** Insert a Twitter feed or ticker with a specific number of tweets displayed. The feed can be of either a specific user or a search term.
 * 9) Wikipedia: Insert a Wikipedia page (Educade, 2013).



Sharing is Caring
Resources Popcorn-Maker User Manual []
 * Not bored yet? Good. To learn more try some of these resources... **

‘How to Use Mozilla's Popcorn Maker’ []

Mozilla Teach (Free Tools, Activities and Lesson plans - to help anyone teach web literacy, digital skills and making) []

Example “Localize it: Street Level Journalism” Activity []

Popcorn Hacktivity Kit (learn the concept of procedural storytelling, how to use Popcorn Maker and nuances of web native film) []

About M.E.
Mya Eveland is a media design production specialist at the Center on Disability Studies at the University of Hawai`i - Mānoa. She is pursuing a Master's of Education in Educational Technology, an interdisciplinary certificate in Disability and Diversity Studies and graduate certificate in Online Learning and Teaching. Currently she works on designing and integrating a variety of technology platforms into research project development and implementation, training materials and other education products. She also has a recent fascination with [|Cinemagraphs] - (photographs turned into animated GIFs).