Is all this free? Yes!

Basic service includes the following:

• The use of the Weebly server to manage two publicity-free sites⁶ whose moderator (in this case the teacher) is the only owner;
• Optimized playback on mobile phones by enabling visualization of parameters suitable for this purpose;
• A co-publishing site with invited guests;
• An intuitive "drag & drop" environment which is customizable without technical knowledge required in order to do the following activities:
  • Insert windows for various text sizes, images, documents (in various formats including Flash), hyperlinks, Google maps, embedded videos (hosted on an external server⁷ such as the The World of Images or YouTube), RSS readers
  • Create slide shows⁸ and photo galleries, and small commands in HTML code

• The ability to export  the site’s pages⁹ in HTML to edit in another web browser or to be published elsewhere,
• Access to traffic statistics for site pages,
• Easy referencing by Google,
• A survey or a contact form.

These services have largely met our teaching needs. If you want more, like having your own domain name or making a private page, the pro version can be activated for a modest amount.

Starting a Site in Easy Steps

1. Go to the site Weebly.com.

2. Enter your full name, your email address and your password.

3. Name your site (which can be changed) and file it in the Education category. The resulting site address should be meaningful and easy to remember!

4. Create your home page using the instinctive drag and drop features.

5. Avoid options displayed as Pro features.

6. Remember that any changes made on the site are stored in your publisher account, single or shared. They will only be visible by visitors when you publish them.

In Comparison with the Turnkey Version of Wordpress¹⁰

WordPress, a blogging tool that allows you to customize interface to resemble a regular website, is popular but somewhat more complex to handle. It does offer interesting options, however, such as publication via email and password accessible private web pages.

In Brief

We invite you to visit some of our sites created with Weebly. If you're hooked by the Weebly interface or already use it for your courses, we invite you to share your experiences below.

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^{1. Suzanne Roy has been a member of the editorial board of Profweb for several years.}

^{2. Comments by participants of the workshop given at the ACPQ Symposium of May 30, 2011.}

^{3. Profweb's staff member Émilie Lavery recounts her experiences.}

^{4. There's a lot of information on the Weebly site in English.}

^{5. We suggest the sites Issuu or Calameo to convert your PDF into e-books with a link to your site through an HTML button.}

^{6. The site address includes the Weebly name which can also be removed as an incentive to adopt more advanced options (Pro Weebly).}

^{7. If videos are hosted on Weebly, there is a charge.}

^{8. This option allows you to integrate PowerPoint documents exported in PDF format.}

^{9. This is one of the few programs that allow this. This is a major advantage. We did not copy and paste all of our sections to export the contents of the site. A program like Dreamweaver can perform the necessary adjustments for republication.}

^{10. This tool for prepublication content offers a simplified and limited version of its software for beginners at wordpress.com.}