Title: Recommended comic strip generators
Course: AMORES revised learning materials for teachers on interactive ICT tools in teaching national and European literature - final version - UK > Section: Week 2: Comic strip generators

Here you can find more details about comic strip generators that were considered for use in AMORES.

1.   ToonDoo

This is an online tool intended for comic creation and is available on http://www.toondoo.com/. The tool is available for free but offers the option of an online environment for classrooms that serves as a closed online social network and this is available for purchase. The free version has no limits on the tool functionality. The tool also allows users to make their own drawings or upload new content. Registration is required and must be through email.

ToonDoo is a recommended tool that is not platform dependent and in order to use it only a web browser and Flash are required. It is intuitive and easy so it takes very little time for students to learn how to use it. It is fun and offers the possibility of including their own content in addition to a range of premade content. The downside is that the virtual classroom environment needs to be paid for in order to be used and there are no application versions for mobile devices. The tool requires registration and offers a variation of collaboration which is based on redoing another user’s comics. It has a community but browsing through it can be controlled with safe filters. In the context of the project this tool will provide the students with a fun and different approach to reading and understanding the reading material.

2.   Pixton

Pixton is an online tool intended for comic creation and is available on http://www.pixton.com/. The evaluated version is free but Pixton also offers a paid-for basic version and a version for schools. The free version requires registration using either a Facebook or Google+ account or an email account. The basic free version allows the user to create unlimited comics and fully posable characters. It also allows rating, embedding and editing of other users’ comics. Printing and downloading of comics can only be achieved with coins that can be collected in various ways. The free version does not allow uploading of own content.

Pixton is a tool that is not platform dependent and in order to use it only a web browser and Flash are required. The advantage that this tool has in comparison to other tools of the same context is the possibility of customizing premade content in a way that enables the user to change positions of characters and their body parts. The downside is the limitation of the free version: it offers no possibility of importing own content and the download of created comics must be paid for with coins (part of the application). The tool requires registration and a virtual classroom version must be paid for. Collaboration can be achieved through redoing comics of other users who have enabled this. In the context of the project this tool will give the students a fun and different approach to reading and understanding the reading material.

3.   MakeBeliefsComix

This is an online tool intended for comic creation and is available on http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/. It is fully free to use and requires no registration. The tool does not allow uploading of own content and has limited content. The created content cannot be downloaded.

MakeBeliefsComix is a tool that is not platform dependent and in order to use it only a web browser and Flash are required. The advantage that this tool has in comparison to other tools of the same context is that it does not require registration and is quite simple to use, as well as completely free. It enables quick creation of comics without the need for account management and that has made it popular. The disadvantage is that without an account the created materials cannot be stored unless they are sent via email. The tool also does not have the possibility of downloading the created content, nor a possibility of uploading own content. The premade content is very limited. Collaboration is not possible and there is no virtual classroom environment. In the context of the project this tool will give the students a fun and different approach to reading and understanding the reading material.

4.   Chogger

Chogger is an online tool for creating comics and is available on http://chogger.com/. The tool is free and registration is made through email only. The tool’s main feature is that it has no premade content but focuses on user uploads or drawings inside the tool. It does not have a download option available.

Chogger is a tool that is not platform dependent and in order to use it only a web browser and Flash are required. The biggest advantage, which can also be considered a disadvantage, is the feature that allows the user to import his or her own content but has no premade content to offer. The tool is free to use but requires registration. Another disadvantage is that it does not enable download of the content. It also has no virtual classroom environment or versions for mobile devices. In the context of the project this tool will provide the students with a fun and different approach to reading and understanding the reading material.