First open your PowerPoint file and go to File and then choose Print. In the drop down menu tha allows you to choose which printer you want to use, select Smart Print Capture. Choose your other options for example do you want a note taking page with three slides or each page to have one slide. Once your options are correct, click print and the slides will appear in either a new Notebook file if you didn’t have a Notebook file open or in the Notebook file that is already open.

This solution, however makes each PowerPoint slide into an image. If you had any interactive elements, animations or transitions in your PowerPoint file, they are now gone. Many teachers have created review games with numerous links so this solution will not work. Typically these teachers have neither the time or the desire to recreate the file in Notebook even if it is a much more interactive program.

This issue had me stumped until I came across a free program for Windows called iSpring Converter. This little program will take files created in PowerPoint and convert them into a Flash file while preserving sounds, animations, transitions, and hyperlinks. The main idea behind the app is that it is an easy way to display PowerPoint files in a website but since Notebook easily handles Flash files it is a handy and fast way to put PowerPoint files into Notebook. As a bonus, iSpring Converter compresses the PowerPoint files as it converts making the resulting Flash file smaller in size than the actual PowerPoint file. Since each PowerPoint exists on one Notebook page, you can even have more than one PowerPoint file in one Notebook file.

The steps are pretty easy. When you install iSpring Converter it will place several new buttons in PowerPoint. (2007 version seen below, 2003 versions and below will have similar buttons.)

Open the PowerPoint file that you want to convert. Press the Publish button (as seen above) in the iSpring toolbar. Name your new Flash file and choose where you would like to save the file. Then publish your PowerPoint file.

After iSpring has converted your file, open Smart Notebook. Go to the Insert menu and chose Flash File… Navigate to the .swf file that you created and insert. Once in Notebook you can easily resize it to fill the whole Notebook page. There is also a button that allows you to go to full screen mode.

iSpring also offers iSpring Presenter as a paid product that allows a user to have more control over the Flash files that you can create as well as allowing you to create quizzes.

If you have a question that you would like to ask the edTech Ninja, leave it in the comments or e-mail the edTech Ninja:

When you open up NSE it starts on a very different screen than you plain jane Notebook installation. The first stop is the new “My Home” page. Here, Smart gives several templates that allow students to have their own schedule as well as areas to customize with their own pictures.

Across the top of the My home area, there is a new tab bar with three tabs. The first takes you to the “My Home” area, a tab labeled “My Binder” (more on that later) and then a tab with the day’s date called “My Notes”. Any new notebook files opened will create another tab with the name of the file on it. If you hover over a tab, a small x will appear that you can click to close the file similar to most tabbed web browsers.

Down the right (as in the picture above) or left side of the screen depending on the preferences is the normal toolbar tabs with the addition of one new tab at the bottom for Quick Links indicated by a picture of a pencil and ruler. The other tabs, page sorter, gallery, attachments, and property tabs are unchanged from Notebook 10 (though they are a wider width than in Notebook 10 Service Pack 1). The new Quick Links tab provides handy links to recent files that have been opened and links to files that are due in the coming week. Included in the Beta version are some links for some surveys about the new program that I imagine will not be in the regular release.

During the installation process, the user is asked to choose a location on the computer to put the My Binder save date. Here, students can create and import Notebook files. After they add files, students can edit the properties of the document to add due dates, subject and keywords. Students and browse these files under the My Binder tab. The ninja wonders if a teacher could set up and binder save location on a network to multiple installations of NSE in a lab setting. Would that then allow a teacher to drop a notebook file into that save location on the network and it be available to all the student computers.

A new button is also included in the default toolbar.

This new button give you a link to tutor.com which is a pay-for-use website that allows students to fine tutoring help on homework via the internet. This button can easily be removed.

So what are your thoughts on Notebook SE? How can it be used in a class settings? Share your ideas in the comments.

Smart has just released a new piece of software. The Ninja is installing it now. The new software is called SMART Notebook Student Edition (SE). The program is only in BETA right now which means if you don’t feel comfortable playing around with what could be flakey software, you shouldn’t install it. BETA is a version before it is officially released. Just a warning.

The student edition appears to be just the same as Notebook but it does add a few features. I will leave those for a larger post.  Coming soon.

This Notebook file includes the Theme Music, several versions of the Think Music, the Banker’s phone and the Deal Music, and No Deal Music built in.

Here is how to play:

• Before choosing a case, students must make a “Probability Statement” using words like certain, likely, unlikely, and impossible. For example: “It is unlikely that briefcase number 15 has one million dollars.”
• A student chooses and circles one case. This is the class case.
• First round, students must choose 6 cases. X through cases and dollar amounts that have been selected.
• The Banker (the teacher) makes an offer after 6 cases are opened. The students take the deal or reject the deal (no deal).
• If no deal, move on to round 2 and the students must open 5 cases, making “Probability Statements.”
• Banker makes another offer. Students must accept or not.
• If no deal, students must choose 4 cases in round 3.
• In round 4 students must choose 3 cases.
• In round 5 students must choose 2 cases.
• In round 6 and after, students must choose 1 case.
• Play until a deal is taken or you get to the last case.
• Check the student’s circled case to see how much was in it. Was it a good deal?

Use the music buttons at the top of the main game board to enhance the experience.

There are two different games boards. You can create your own game by switching up the links on either of the two game boards.

Technical Information: This file was created in Smart Notebook 9.7.46. Notebook versions older than 9.5 may not be able to
open this file correctly. To prevent download issues, I have zip compressed the file. To view the file on Windows, right
click on the compressed file and choose "Extract All..." Double click the resulting file to view.

>>Download now<< 3.4 MB (ed. note: Link corrected 04-18-08.)

Explore several famous tall tale heroes with your students with this SmartBoard Notebook file. Learn about Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill. Learn about the heroes of legends like Casey Jones and briefly discuss Greek and Roman myths.

As a final activity, have your students write their own tall tale.

This SmartBoard Notebook file originally contained two Discovery Streaming Education video files:

• Page 3: Rabbit Ears Children’s Literature Collection: Paul Bunyan (Since the video is 30 minutes, the Ninja only used segments of this video)
• Page 7: The segment entitled Peco Bill: Super Cowboy from the video The Art of Storytelling: Tall Tales

Technical Information: This file was created in Smart Notebook 9.7.46. Notebook versions older than 9.5 may not be able to open this file correctly. To prevent download issues, I have zip compressed the file. To view the file on Windows, right click on the compressed file and choose “Extract All…” Double click the resulting file to view.
>>Download now<< 20 MB

There are several videos in this file from Discovery Streaming Education. If you have a subscription you will need the following files:

• Page 2: The segment Flag from the video entitled U.S. Symbols
• Page 8: The Star Spangled Banner
• Page 13: The Uncle Sam Segment from the video entitled Celebrating America: Symbols and Ceremonies of the United States.
• Page 14: The segment entitled Symbol Origins: Uncle Sam and the Liberty Bell from the video
  Just the Facts Learning Series: Fun Facts of American History

Also featured is a video with the music of the group called Teacher and the Rockbots in a video that is included in the download.

Technical Information: This file was created in Smart Notebook 9.7.46. Notebook versions older than 9.5 may not be able to
open this file correctly. To prevent download issues, I have zip compressed the file. To view the file on Windows, right
click on the compressed file and choose "Extract All..." Double click the resulting file to view.

>>Download now<< 28.7 MB

A note about this lesson (also detailed in the Lesson Notes page): The original version of this file had videos from Discovery Education Steaming (http://streaming.discoveryeducation.com/) that are have copyright. If you have access to DES you can easily download and add those video clips.

Technical Information: This file was created in Smart Notebook 9.7.46. Notebook versions older than 9.5 may not be able to

open this file correctly. To prevent download issues, I have zip compressed the file. To view the file on Windows, right

click on the compressed file and choose "Extract All..." Double click the resulting file to view.

>>Download now.<< 3.19 MB