Tagxedo

If you liked Wordle you'll LOVE Tagxedo! (http://www.tagxedo.com) It's a Web 2.0 tool (in a really nicely organized, easy-to-use site) that, according to them, "turns words into a visually stunning tag cloud". Since pictures are worth 1,000 words (okay, ya gotta see the irony in that statement!) below is a screen shot of Tagxedo. (Click on it to see a larger view.)  I typed in the address for Boyden-Hull's website, chose the colors, and then chose the shape (appropriate since we're the Comets).

 It was fast and easy and required no registration to use. You can type in a list of words or upload a current list. The more words you have the more detailed your design. After you choose your words, you'll select the "Shape" option. You can tweak the other options as well if you want to fine tune it.

When you click the "Create" button you may get a message that you need to install Silverlight. It's free and you must have it or you won't be able to use Tugxedo. (Silverlight is similar to Adobe Flash in that it integrates graphics, animations, multimedia, etc. into a single runtime environment.) The link to Silverlight is right on the page so you don't need to go find it anywhere (how thoughtful, huh?)

How will you use it? Once again, the Tagxedo site anticipates this and provides a presentation on "101 ways to use Tagxedo". Here's just a brief overview of their suggestions:

Summarize a presentation - turn your PowerPoint into a "Tagxedo"
Compare documents - Gettysburg Address /MLK "I Have a Dream" speech
Review a book or movie
Keep track of current events
Make a poster of your favorite celebrity, historical character, fictional character
Make a self portrait - list words to describe yourself
Critique your resume - see it from a more visual perspective
Create an advertisement for a marketing class
Start a class topic and have groups provide input
Contrast candidates in a political debate
Summarize a report, story, book
Create artwork from original poetry or an old classic
Create a synonym word wall
Visually display a class poll
Make a "find the words" game