Documents play the same role they always have, but how we create and share them has evolved significantly. This video explains online documents and how they differ from local documents that are saved on a computer. If you know students or anyone who needs a clearer understanding of online documents, this video will help.

This video, our 110th title, is now available in the Common Craft video library. You can watch it in full for a limited time.

What it Teaches:

For many years, documents lived on our computers. When online documents came along, they started to live on the internet and that changed how we created and shared them. This video explains how online documents differ from local documents saved on a computer. It teaches:

• What makes a document local versus online
• Why local documents represent a risk and make collaboration difficult
• How to create and share an online document
• Why collaboration is easier with an online document
• What kinds of documents are online documents

Watch the Video

We've published a new video that explains Private or Incognito Browsing. 

Using a web browser in "private" or "incognito" mode can be a useful and responsible way to navigate the web. Unfortunately, these versions of web browsers are not easy to understand. This video explains why private or incognito browsing matters and how to use it effectively.

What it Teaches:

Modern web browsers come with two versions: the normal version and one that provides for “private” or “incognito” browsing. Using this feature can be helpful, and using it effectively requires an understanding of what it does and why. This video teaches:

• What information web browsers save when you visit websites
• Why this information is saved
• What makes private or incognito browsers different
• Why private browsing is not truly private
• What makes provide browsing useful

Watch the Video

Cyberbullying and How to Stop It

This video is built for the teachers and students who are on the front lines of this phenomenon. By understanding cyberbullying, we can take steps to reduce the harm it causes.

Watch:

Watch the video now

What it Teaches

Using a simple example of a cyberbully in action, this video follows a bully’s tools, motivations and tactics. It also covers what can be done by adults and fellow students to stop the bully and prevent further problems. It teaches:

• Why cyberbullying represents a problem
• How cyberbullies use the internet to threaten and harass others
• What motivates cyberbullies
• What adults and students can do to help the bullied students
• What adults and students can do to prevent problems

Watch the video in the Common Craft Video Library

If you're looking for more resources on cyberbullying and prevention, see the sites below:

• http://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/
• http://us.reachout.com/facts/factsheet/cyberbullying
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberbullying

IP Addresses Explained by Common Craft

At the very heart of the web are a set of rules or “protocols” that let us send and receive information. By understanding Internet Protocol Addresses or IP Addresses, we can see how information is delivered on the web.

What it Teaches

Without IP addresses the internet could not function. They are essential. Unfortunately, because IP addresses are often hidden from view, we rarely hear or learn about them. This video reveals the powerful role they play on the web through a useful analogy involving traditional mail. It teaches:

• Why rules or “protocols” are important in the basic functions of the web
• Why traditional mailing addresses are an example of a protocol
• How IP addresses are used to request and receive information on the web
• Why there are two versions of IP addresses

Watch the video.

We just published a new video and thought you'd like to know. This one explains a subject that touches us all: privacy online.

What it teaches:

This video helps students understand the reality of using today's Internet in terms of privacy. It explains how our actions online are tracked and used. It teaches:

• Why privacy online is different than it is in the real world
• How nearly everything we do online is documented and analyzed by companies
• Why our data is important to the success of online companies
• How our data enables websites to be free
• What we can do to understand how our data is being used and make choices to protect it.

Watch the full video now

Save 15% on Explainer Academy Courses

We're in the process of developing self-paced, online courses that will teach explanation and media creation skills (pretty much everything we've learned).

If you're a subscriber to the Academy Newsletter (view a recent example), you'll get 15% when the Academy launches.

Sign-up for the newsletter at explaineracademy.com.

Today we've published a new video that explains Net Neutrality. 

Note: This video release is special. For the first time in about four years, we're publishing a version of a new video on our website and YouTube so that it can be shared easily.

Why? Because it's about a complex and important subject that could impact all US internet users. This subject deserves to be understood by everyone, so we want to make that easy by making it more sharable. 

Watch the video now on YouTube or Common Craft.