INTRODUCTION

Our e-learning projects usually have many layers. The visual layer is normally the one we concentrate on most. But there is also a sound layer including audio scripts and sound effects. I want to concentrate on the latter in this short blog. In most cases, it’s just icing on the cake. It’s probably something we think of last. In reality, we can live without it but sound effects improve the reception of our projects and make them more lively. What kind of sound effects am I talking about? For example clicking sound, a sound of a disappearing or appearing object. If the project includes machines, they can also make certain noises. If there is a city in the background, we can include a whole plethora of sounds, such as car engines, car horns, people speaking, etc.

SOURCE

Now the question arises where we can take such sounds from. Of course, with some creativity, we can record some of them. But sometimes it won’t be easy.  So I want to point out to one online library, where we can find and use sounds without breaking copyright.  Below, I’m placing a link to my favurite webpage.

https://freesound.org

This source includes tons of sounds. And what is very important, it has a filter. This filter lets you find sounds that are Creative Commons 0 licence. (See the picture below).

Why is it important? I also use some web pages where this filter is not available. Of course, in most cases, I don’t mind attribution, but sometimes I insist on a real FREE sound with no legal restrictions whatsoever. In such a case, without a filter, you will get a result of, say, 500 sound samples and you need to scroll the list and check them manually for the type of licence. A gruelling process. And for this reason, I recommend this webpage.

There is another side of this coin. If you have some sounds to share, you can contribute to this website. It’s always welcome.

Below, I attach two sounds downloaded from freesound.org. The first might be used for positive task completion and the next as a failure sound.

Thank you for reading my article. Enjoy the sounds and contribute (if you can).