Working with Images

Today I want to go over editing images and tools we can use to edit with. First we need to acquire an image to work with. As with all images we will need to respect copyright laws and make sure any image we use falls under Public Domain, Fair Use, or Creative Commons. One way to ensure you are not violating any copyright laws is to make create your images. 

How can we create our images? Well we can take pictures with our mobile phone, we can create images using programs like Photoshop or GIMP, we can use a Snipping tool to capture images or we can utilize an AI image generator. 

Snip & Sketch!

 If I am making some instructional material I will most often start with the Snipping tool or Snip & Sketch which is built into every Windows 10 or newer OS. The snipping tool itself has some features for annotating including a pen and highlighter tool.  

Snipping tools are a great way to capture something on your computer that can' be natively saved as an image like a piece of software. 

While the snipping tool itself works great for getting your image sometimes it still needs some extra work to get it looking a little better. For editing images I like to use GIMP as it is a free image manipulation program. 

GNU Image Manipulation Program or GIMP!

GIMP is a complex program but it can be used for simple image manipulation, it is not as powerful as photoshop yet I find it does almost everything I need.

To start we will launch GIMP and create a new file and select Advanced Options to change the Fill with option to Transparency. We can now use the option Open as Layer option for the image we would like to edit. For this example I will be editing the above image to get it looking a little cleaner, I will use the image from before I annotated using the Snip & Sketch tool. 

Next I will be using the Rectangle Select Tool to select the portion of our image we want to keep.

   

Our next step will be to trim the canvas to match the size of our selection. Now we will go to our Toolbar and select Image-> Fit Canvas to selection. This will trim our image to match what we had selected and leaves us with our desired image. To get our image out of GIMP we will need to Export it which can be found on the Toolbar under File-> Export As. This will allow us to name it and pick our file type. File formats saved as a GIF or PNG will retain any transparency or will not save with a background color if left transparent.

Now this was a very simple and brief walk-through of GIMP. There are multiple ways within GIMP to do the same task we just completed, I have shown what I think is the easiest way to do so. There are still a plethora of tools with in GIMP to be explored. While our final image could have been obtained using the Snip & Sketch tool it's not always easy to get your snip right the first time or if want to do more with GIMP like adding text or directional arrows GIMP can do that too. GIMP, admittedly, is a very difficult program to navigate and operate. I would strongly encourage you to watch a tutorial if you would like to learn more about it. 

For fun I ran my previous blog post through Chat GPT 3.5, I used the prompt "Can you help with my blog post?" then posted my blog in. This was Chat GPT's response:

"That sounds like an intriguing and informative blog post! Here's a draft incorporating the points you mentioned:

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Title: Exploring the Boundless Potential of AI in Education

In the realm of education, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) has sparked a wave of innovation and possibilities. One particularly enlightening blog, aptly titled "AI for Education," delves into various facets of AI's role in shaping the educational landscape.

One of the standout posts on the blog examines the efficacy of AI detection software in educational environments. This technology holds promise in enhancing learning experiences by providing personalized feedback and identifying areas where students may need additional support. By leveraging AI, educators can gain valuable insights into student performance and tailor instruction to meet individual needs.

Another compelling initiative featured on the AI for Education blog is the concept of the "Prompt-a-thon." This innovative approach harnesses the power of AI chat services to address local community challenges. However, its applications extend far beyond problem-solving. Schools can host their own "Prompt-a-thons" to generate ideas for school activities, themes, or even curriculum enhancements. This not only fosters creativity and critical thinking among students but also promotes community engagement and collaboration.

The versatility of AI in education knows no bounds. While STEM educators readily embrace its potential, integrating AI into other disciplines, such as literature and the arts, may pose challenges. The key lies in thoughtful implementation and management. Educators must discern when AI can enhance learning experiences and when it's prudent to rely on traditional teaching methods. Striking this balance ensures that AI serves as a valuable tool rather than a mere novelty.

As we navigate the ever-evolving landscape of education, AI stands poised to revolutionize how we teach and learn. By embracing its potential and harnessing its power responsibly, we can unlock new opportunities for student growth and academic excellence.

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Feel free to modify or expand upon this draft as needed to align with your vision for the blog post!"

If you read through my first post you will find that I am not a great writer. Once running my post through ChatGPT it greatly fills in the post with many extra details and makes me look like a great writer, at least I think it reads better that my first post. There are many points in the AI edited post which are slightly wrong or takes my ideas in a wrong direction. It should be easy to find a copy and pasted AI response, if a student were to massage the draft more in line with their natural writing style it may be harder to recognize.

I recently came across a blog titled AI for Education. There are several blog posts highlighting several different topics relating to AI and how it can be used in educational environment. One notable posts discussed the effectiveness of AI detection software, that blog can be found here. 

Another post found on the AI for Education blog related to using an AI Chat service to solve local community problems, they called it the “Prompt-a-thon”. I thought this would be a great way to introduce AI to students of any grade level and can be incorporated into other areas of study too. It's also not just limited to solving community problems, schools can host a "Prompt-a-thon" to generate the year's school actives or themes for said actives. 

The possibilities for integrating AI into classrooms are almost limitless. I can see STEM educators getting onboard with AI while some literature arts programs may struggle with its use. The tricky part will be how to manage it, when should it be used and when should we avoid it. 

Image generated by Ideogram 1.0, Prompt: AI in education

Welcome to Tony's Blog

 Hello,

I am Anthony and I creating a blog for my Instructional Technology in Human Resource Development class. I hope to share some content related to IT learning tools on my blog. I have picked Pixelcut, an AI image editor, as my Technology tool. I hope to share more on what I learn about Pixelcut and maybe some other AI technologies.