Studying Online;Succeeding through Distance Learning at University

80 Studying online 
nor can they add text or highlights to the page. If you wish to use 
screenshots to capture what you are reading online, you will need 
additional software beyond what is provided on the computer it-
self. As a lecturer, I need to store many screenshots and annotate 
them to share with students. I use a program called Snagit by the 
company Techsmith. Tis has extensive features for annotating 
and highlighting, and the company has specialised in the educa-
tion sector with its software. Hence, for students, this program 
could be appealing, especially as the program is ofered at a dis-
count for people who have an email address from an education-
al establishment. Other programs are listed at the website I have 
created to accompany this book, https://studyingonline.tips. 
If you would prefer to work directly in your web browser and not 
have to swap to a screenshot program, then you can consider 
browser plugins that allow for annotation. Many of these are avail-
able; however, there are three worthy of particular consideration as 
they allow you to annotate PDFs in addition to web pages. Tese 
services are called Mindstone, Scrible, and Hypothes.is. Tese al-
low you to annotate and add notes to web pages and upload PDFs 
or view a PDF in a web browser tab and annotate that as well. All 
of the annotations and PDFs are stored in your account with these 
services. Some elements are free, but if you wish to take advantage 
of the full range of options, you will need to pay for the premium 
versions of the programs. 
QUICK TIP:Annotating web pages, PDFs, and other documents 
will enhance your learning and help your memory and under-
standing. 
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MAKING NOTES DIGITALLY 
Even though you may well handwrite some notes, it is inevita-
ble with online studying that you will also make notes digitally 
in addition to annotating what you read on the web. Many stu-
dents that I teach use word processors to write their notes up. 

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