OpenAuthor Create sharable lessons and resources

Presentation
OpenAuthor is an application that is part of a larger Web space called "OER COMMONS". This platform is basically a huge digital library where you can find documents, lessons, presentations, etc. of any subject to satisfy any need and/or interest. OpenAuthor is the program that allows the public to create and then publish their work. In fact, as we read on the main page, three emblematic verbs are mentioned that perfectly define the purpose of OER COMMONS: "Explore. Create. Collaborate." Therefore, OER COMMONS offers many categories of research, but, in order not to dwell only on the reading, we will try to understand how to write and publish something for others through OpenAuthor. First of all you need to register by clicking on "sign in/register" on the top right. Registration will take place by entering the classic personal data, name, surname, email and password and confirmation will arrive via email. Then the home page will appear again and we will try to create something on "Resource Builder", clicking on "Start authoring." . It appears a page where you can edit a text, or import it from Google documents. Moreover, Openauthor asks you to insert a title to your work and gives you the possibility to have a Preview. An additional function is the possibility of adding co-authors to the project. Once the work is completed you can click on the bottom right "Next step: Describe" (remember that we are at the first step, "write"). At this point, you are asked to specify the characteristics of your work by selecting for each option the most suitable answer so that what you have created is cataloged in the most coherent way possible with respect to its content. As soon as all the spaces have been completed (which are explained very clearly) you can click on the bottom right "Next step: Submit" and continue with the validation of the product. Finally, OpenAuthor protects you by offering you the possibility to choose the license (of the Creative Commons family) to publish your work. After the choice, you click on the bottom right "Publish" and you have contributed to make the library of OER COMMONS a little broader. Moreover, as you can realize from the first image OpenAuthor also offers the possibility to create presentations or lessons as well as interactive modules. The procedure, however, remains essentially the same as the one illustrated, consisting of three phases: creating the document, defining its specific characteristics (so that it can be cataloged consistently to its contents) and finally the protection of authors through the license of use that allows the subsequent publication.