Are you creating an online course, event or conference? If you’re not a programmer, and if you don’t have a lot of money to spend, this guide will get you started. Read it from top to bottom to get a step-by-step guide to what you can do to set up your course or event. Then check the links to find free or cheap and easy tools that will get the job done for you.
Downes, S. (2020). Creating an online community, class or conference – A tech guide. Google Docs.
There are rules for adding resources to this list:
- Cloud only – if you have to set up a web server, it doesn’t belong on the list. If you are required to download an application, it doesn’t belong.
- No apps (no Play Store, Apple Store, etc., even if they’re free).
- Free (or Nearly Free) – ideally, the tool has a free tier that lets you try it out. Your total costs to do everything should be less than $100/month (and free for students).
- No credit cards – doesn’t ask you for a credit card unless you’re actually paying them money .
- No adjectives; just say what it does, and keep everything brief.
I think that the list of services, platforms and tools in this document will be more useful if you already have an idea of what you want to do but are less certain about how to go about it, or what technology would be most appropriate to use. On the other hand, you could also go through the list as a way of generating ideas around what’s possible for your own course or class. If this is your aim then make sure that you don’t try everything on the list.
Either way, go into with a reason. The danger of reading the list without a plan is that there’s a risk you’ll try to implement things simply because they’re there, rather than considering whether or not they solve a real problem you have.
If in doubt, remember that simpler is always better.