1. Scanner Pro: This app is wonderful. It “scans” by taking a picture and uploads the picture of the document to the app. You can email it from there as a pdf, send it to your printer, or upload it to Google Docs, Dropbox, or any other cloud platform. I have used it frequently and I love it. It unfortunately is not free on the App Store, I was able to get it for free as a promo from the Apple Store, but it is worth the $2.99.
2. Printer Pro: I find that this app can be very useful. It allows you to print from your mobile device. I have noticed that when you use ‘air print’ on your mobile device, you aren’t able to format what you want to print. This app allows you to do so. Again, this app is not free in the App Store. I also got this app as a free promo from Apple. The app is $6.99, but there may be cheaper apps out there that do the same thing.

CRAAP Test Results:

Fact Check (dot) org

C: The website is relatively current. It was last updated four days ago, on September 17. The links are operational, and the website was created in 2003. The only problem is that it is updated infrequently, only with major political events, such as presidential debates, or State of the Union addresses.

R: The articles on this website are relevant in fact checking American politicians, especially presidential candidates, congressional members, as well as those in the White House.  Their articles are through in their analysis. The information is both age and education-level appropriate.

A: The information on the site is produced by the Annenberg Public Policy Foundation. The authors are listed on all of the articles and there is also a webpage with profiles of the staff of the website. The website has a page with contact information as well as a page listing awards and recognitions. They also have a page sole dedicated to the funding of the website. The URL matches up with the website name.

A: The information on the website appears to be accurate, with many sources given at the end of every article. I do not see that the information is peer reviewed. The site looks professional, and the language is neutral. The information on the website appears to align with that of other websites. There appears to be no political bias on the site.

P: The website has a page detailing their mission to provide Americans nonpartisan factual information about the current state of US politics.

Just Facts (dot) com

C: There is no indicator on the websites that suggests the currency of the information. The links are operational and the website was created in the 1990s.

R: The articles on this website are relevant in regards to common issues and controversial issues in the United States and the rest of the world today.  Their articles are through in their analysis. The information is both age and education-level appropriate.

A: The information on the site is produced by Just Facts, which is a nonprofit corporation. The authors/publishers are listed on each article. The site gives credentials as well as has brief contact information. They do not reveal sponsorships, they just ask for donations. The URL matches the rest of the site.

A: The information on the site fits in with what I know personally. The website provides detailed citations on their articles. There is no proof of peer review, but it is stated in their mission statement that they try to only use primary sources of information. The information can be confirmed with other sources on the web. The site looks professional, and the language seems neutral and appears to be bias free.

P: The mission statement of the website states that the goal of the information on the website is to provide transparency to key issues in the country and the world.

I was surprised to find that all of the search engines provided almost the exact same top five results, with the exception of Yippy, which for some reason, provided websites that I have never even heard of. So in this discussion of similarities and differences, I will leave Yippy out as an outlier. I was surprised to find the website/blog ‘Barçablaugranes’ coming up in all of the search engines with the exception of Google. All search engines (excluding Yippy) provided the Champions League website, the FC Barcelona website, and Wikipedia in the top five results, which is to be expected.  Otherwise, the only difference amongst the search engines is the order in which the sites appeared.

I have taken various online courses consistently for the past five years, and over the years, I have learned the best methods to taking online classes. Here are a few tips:

1. Go into the class with the mindset that it is a face-to-face class. Schedule out a block of time in your daily schedule for online coursework.
2. Always do your coursework in the same place if you can. Make sure that you have a good desk and computer to do your work if one is available.
3. Minimize distractions. Try not to listen to loud music, surf the web, or text your friends when you are doing coursework. It takes a long time to get back ‘into the groove’ once you break it.

Happy Studying!