Diagram in a gliffy

Don't have five hundred extra dollars to spare for diagramming software? I don't blame you. Gliffy is an online application that provides the tools necessary to create various types of diagrams, share and collaborate with others, and publish the finished product quickly and easily. It's like Google Docs meets Microsoft Visio.

The service boasts a comprehensive shape library with the ability to import your own images, revision control feature so all users are working on the same version, and enhanced multi-user management (for premium accounts).

Whether you are working on a SWOT analysis for your management class or drawing up technical layouts for engineering, this tool goes the distance. Watch the Demo here.

Siftables: Computerized Toy Blocks

Coccinella - Instant Messaging w/ Whiteboarding and VOIP

I just tripped across an instant messaging application called Coccinella that allows you to do whiteboarding as well as voice chat with your conversations partners. It supports AIM, ICQ, Jabber, MSN Messenger, and Google Talk.

As long as the person on the other end is using Coccinella, you can take advantage of it's advanced whiteboarding and voice chat features.

Coccinella works for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

Five Best Instant Messengers

Check out this Lifehacker post about the Five Best Instant Messengers. I often find myself forwarding this link to my friends when they tell me that they're still using AOL's Instant Messenger application (complete with advertising).

You can find upgrades to your current IM situation regardless of your operating system. I like Adium for OS X, and Digsby for Windows. When I'm not on a personal computer, it's the web application Meebo for me. All of the apps mentioned can do multiple protocols at once, meaning that I can be connected to my friends on Facebook, GMail, Yahoo! IM, and AIM all at once.

100 Helpful Web Tools for Every Kind of Learner

I just stumbled upon this magnum list of web-based tools to supplement your learning on the College@Home blog. The list is broken down into three types of learners (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic). You can find links to mind mapping, note taking, and chart/graph creation tools, as well as various podcast and presentation creation tools.