Blog Lucky Number Seven

I would like to use all of the ten steps presented; however, I don't have a portfolio that would be very effective. Also, I really don't think I can provide any services yet, so I won't post anything along those lines.

I like the idea of a tag line and the about me section, I just have a hard time thinking of what I could write about myself that would be kind of interesting.

First, I accidentally looked at the 50 beautiful and creative web portfolios. I loved the http://www.dotedesign.com/ site the best! I would love to be able to do something as creative as that; however, I think that this site must have been made using Flash or some other program, because it seems to interactive to just be done through something like Dreamweaver (but I'm not sure because I'm not that great at coding).

Another cool website was http://www.thibaud.be/. It was very creative and interactive. I think that's what I like about both of these two sites because they are so interactive!

Out of the 40+ beautiful portfolio websites I liked the DUCO Architects website, because of the table of pictures presented in it and the quick to use navigation bars. This is a simple but pleasing website. I love pictures so that might be part of the reason I enjoy it the most.

Digital Literacy Narratives x5 !!!

1.       Multimodal Literacy Narrative (Scannell) — I like that this narrative has “interviews” with her parents, even thought the wording and sound was off due to Skype probably. However, the length of this piece was pretty long. I thought the flow and organization was well done, but by the end it seemed somewhat repetitive (yes we understand she’s an awesome writer… since she’s been four). I think what was said in class was pretty accurate; it would have been more fun to have her say what she is doing now (large gap between third grade and college).

2.       Digital Literacy Narrative (Andfull) — Honestly I did not really like this narrative. It was odd that she had a film background for a topic on children books. Also, she really could have made simple improvements, which would have really helped her narrative (like finding larger pictures of the books, I could even do that super easily & rerecording the speaking portions and finding something more creative to say about them). Easy topic and could have done A LOT more with it.

3.       Words, Magic (Truaman) — Even though this did not have video editing or digital supplements, this was my favorite narrative we watched in class. The guy was personable and was able to connect with audiences through his story about the girl, Elise. I liked how raw this narrative was. Sometimes I am far more trusting of something that seems raw and unedited just for that reason; nothing is being edited out or staged. I understand that is not the point to our narrative, but I still like this style, even though I will not be able to use it.

4.       Digital Literacy Narrative (Peyton) — This narrative was alright. Clever idea to use his cell phone and texting to show examples, but kind of defeated the purpose because it was blurring (even though he used captions, it did not deliver the same impact). He had a moral to his narrative; however, throughout the whole thing I was wondering…Dude, does your computer not have Spell Check?

5.       Literacy Narrative (Wooten) — As far as a more DIGITAL narrative goes, this one was my favorite. There was just background music for auditory engagement (I think he could have picked a better choice for the pictures). I really liked how simple this clip was; the pictures tell a story with brief, humorous captions. It was simple and funny :  ) my kind of narrative. I would like to do something similar, but I’m not good at delivering humor.

CRITERIA: I’m not entirely sure on how to evaluate these texts (lucky thing about me not being the teacher! :  ) haha!) Umm I think for the sake of our class we need to grade on two major components: content (message, target audience, purpose, etc.) and deliverance (editing, digital emphasis/usage, overall visual appeal). That’s really all I can think up.

Cool Websites, Man

Chris Hoertel

Another really cool website! I would like to know how these people are creating these! I liked how the links were organized, it might be even better if they were aligned differently on the page. Just cause they are circular buttons and could go anywhere, but I'm not sure if the text has a sequence which is why you would want to keep that format. Couldn't find the text, but I think the examples would have a lot of rhetoric elements to them.

Sara E Johnston

Sara's website is AWESOME! Everything is really well connected and it looks very professional! :  ) Hope I can figure out Dreamweaver to do something like this!!!! Really cool! The videos were great multimedia devices and are packed with rhetoric devices. I just couldn't get to the text, which was the only problem, because with such a great website and examples I would have liked to read her commentary. LOVE THE WEBSITE! and great examples! (Good topic!)

Nate Lindahl

As soon as I get to his project 2 page I can tell he knows how to produce a functional website and that it has content that I can easily access. It is really well organized and covers so much information in depth! I love how I don't have to scroll down and can just click links. What might have been a better idea is to have the five sites being examined open up into a new page or tab, just from me clicking on them that's what I would have liked, but it is easy for a user to create that option themselves.

The content in a chart format is really smart. I know what I did and I have sort bulk paragraphs, but this method encourages readers to actually read all of it and he is getting his point across. He is expecting his audience to be knowledgeable (to some degree) about what he is talking about. What I learned about his content is that you really can come up with something for every rhetoric device and mode, even if that just means mentioning how it was not used. Sometimes the lack of something is just as important as something else being there. He did a brilliant job with organization and sequence! Overall a really great project. A+++++

Conclusion:

There are much better ways to organize my content, to make it more user friendly and not so..."oh great block text" ...boring! Nate did a great job showing a different way to convey text.

I really want to learn how these three used Dreamweaver! I've spent days on it, messing around and playing with different things. The only reason I got as far as I did was because of English 300 and I still ended up stumped and resorted to using a Photoshop image. I understand how it works, but need some major guidance...maybe videos or something. These websites are great and very appealing!!!

Photography

I have been interested in photography for a fair amount of time and think that this is a perfect opportunity to explore that avenue.

The three texts I am considering to use include:

-My uncle: Made is living off taking pictures

-A series of three books I bought a year ago

-Sources from the internet

-Maybe set a meeting with a photography professor at WSU or someone majoring in that field

I am using some more informative texts (like the books and the web), but then I'm combining them with more personal texts (like my uncle and a professor or student). I want to compare and contrast these two things to see what real photographers find most important and the passion that might drive them, which I cannot gather from just informative texts. I think there has to be a level of similarities and differences.

Proximity Response

1)      I grouped the information in two separate manners. First I grouped the title and what the novel was about together by using proximaty. This shows the little subscript is related to the title, thus giving readers an idea what they might be reading about. I also grouped “The Seagull” and “James Peach” together, because I wanted to show that there is a connection between the title and the author, obviously. I did this by using the same font style so viewers know the two are related.

2)      I Think the most important piece of information on this cover is “The Seagull.” I made the title stand out the most, because (personally) I prefer when the title has more emphasis than the author or subtitle. I made the title look the most important by using a bold and large font. Also, I put it at the top of the page, and with the subtitle right under the main title this chunking matter I think draws the eye further to the title. This layout just has a basic top to bottom layout, but the size and style of the font does matter to how quickly your eye travels down the page. For example: I first see “The Seagull” then “James Peach” THEN “A Novel About Flight."

3)      Some limitation I have had in lay outs is simply that I have too little or too much information I want to put onto a “cover” (as an example). A problem I think with traditional is that is sometimes can look to bare, but on the other hand a problem with a non-traditional format is that it might look to cluttered. It’s all a balancing act and depends on what you want to convey. I can’t come up with any ideas myself, but Lullaby by Chuck Palahniuk is an example of a nontraditional layout. The cover is just of an upside down yellow bird. No title. No author. That more basic and traditional layout is put on the back cover. It’s an interesting style and it seems like the only way to understand the symbol is to read the book, which is the whole point of the cover.

Alignment Response

1)      I wish that the three slides would go back to the very beginning so I could see the alignment of the text instead of just trying to remember it. But what I do remember that it was interesting, because to me it seemed almost like the word murmuring was trying to mimic the way in which a tear or dew drop might fall, almost drizzle off something like a cheek. And the way insects was then reflected just reminded me of glassy eyes; however, I think I might be trying to read too far into the third slide and trying to make connections between the first and third that might result in a loop. Regardless, this unusual alignment catches the viewers’ attention, even if the sound didn’t.

2)      (Yep I tried making connections too fast, and looked at all three then answered questions) The alignment of these three words mixes with the use of contrast as well. Because “air” is somewhat more noticeable because the light font contrasts with the darker background, but my attention to air might also have to do with the double line stretching across the top part of the screen and to the right. This first causes your eyes to travel directly to “air” then back down the line to earth (like you would a normal text), then across the crescent and down to “water.” I’m not sure about how this alignment is supposed to work or its significance. I’m actually slightly confused by the last part to this response question. I would like someone to explain to me first how they think this alignment works well, cause the only think is the lines and the moon are in a wrong alignment. I guess it does give weight to the appropriate horizontal axis but that’s all I understand, but I really don’t seem much of an alignment.

3)      I think this alignment of words is different than the previous two scenes, because it was trying to tie into the picture more I think. Like those shapes I thought were kind of haphazard made a lot more sense in the third slide.  I think the main use of alignment in this case was to focus upon the words and by shifting them into a tear it made the piece more meaningful and efficient. The voice behind it is sober, which further adds to this alignment. What I find interesting, and I might be wrong, but I don’t think alignment has to be stationary. I think the whelming up and flowing effect worked quite well for the poetry segment. 

4)      Honestly, the poem is really hard to hear. I can’t make out most of it, but to me it sounds like action was not being taken despite human tears being shed. It is really hard to make an analysis on what I can’t hear, but the alignment just seems to relate to the human strife this man feels, because it does follow the curvature of the eye similarly to the path a tear would start and end. The main point is a reflective but sober, sad or even grieving emotion.

5)      I think this lack of alignment is just done to show that these are similar components but very different. This method of organization forces viewers to find their own way to follow the scattered alignment. I’m not really sure if my thinking on this piece is right at all!

Organization Response

1)      5 of the 15

a.       The first picture I chose was the gray scale picture with the word “MODERN” written on the side of an old building. I picked this one first because our culture is so concentrated in being modern that the term here shows how ironic it is, because what we consider modern today might not be tomorrow

b.      Next, I picked the enormous pile of crushed cars. I wanted this one to come next to show where some of the things we value end up and the surplus of objects we have and ultimately won’t need or want, because American culture is so bent on getting the next best thing. I wanted to show where that “next best thing” might end up when something better, but maybe unnecessary comes along.

c.       1+1=2 is my midway picture, because I wanted to show that if we continue with the ideology of the two previous pictures then we might only end up with two remaining options (which are my final two pictures)

d.      The bar code on the bottom of a person’s foot reminds me of how in a “modern” society everyone is a number, whether it be a social security number or a school ID number that’s how we are distinguished in the massive system. I wanted to use this picture, because I feel like we need to be careful with these ideas, because we might lose the humanity which makes us for a market which we are trained to obey, which leads to my last picture.

e.      I wanted to end with the girl painting a vibrant mural with the concentration of dream. This is my last picture because I want it to leave myself thinking positively, and that things can change. That we are not just part of the modern system and faceless in the masses, but we are individual with unique dreams.

2)      Another argument I could have made was maybe show the progression of life, but perhaps in an almost backwards way. The grave scene à the wedding cake topper à the righteous fist with the dirty American flag background à the cheering crowd à then the chalkboard with elementary math. I think putting them in chronological or backwards order might completely represent two different objectives. Tons of ways in which we could order these pictures and come out with a distinct reason behind each.

3)      Adding other element could make my argument stronger; however, I really think that sometimes simplicity is the best and most effective way to share something. Especially, with impactful photos likes these. I would not add music or text, because I would want viewers to pay attention to the pictures’ details and in the order I deliberately but them in.  I want to make them think about why, and maybe if they don’t come up with the same ideology I did, at least they had to think about it.

Contrast Response

1)      First, the sound of The JUMP greatly contrasts with the background behind the water-scaled gray layer; however, that contrast goes throughout the entirety of the short film. The sound alone has a contrast, because in the background there is a light undertone, which seems to match the cartoon background more effectively, but the overall tone is the computerized tense tone. This more distinguishable tone matches more of the idea that this is a semi-serious proposition for students to take, that buildup of sound which relates to the idea of waiting before you’re about to jump head first into something. (Personally, as far as the computerized voices go, that contrast did not really work for me. It made me feel more fearful rather than amped to “JUMP”.) However, if there was no contrast then no one would take this film seriously, if everything matched well including having a more appropriate voice over, even if using the same words, no one would really take this advertisement seriously.

2)      This pure black background and white text is all the contrast that is needed here. It is used to draw the viewers’ attention onto some important information that people wishing to apply to The JUMP need to know. The music loses its tense tone and thus some of its volume and the female voice become more distinct and associated with important information, which is a contrast to the prior time. The words are the most emphasized, because sense this is a video people will be paying more attention to the screen than the words (at least that’s how it appealed to me).

3)      To go along with this video I think I would take the character “Dan” with “a bag full of Benjamin’s” as a main focus on the flyer, but in order to contrast and stay with the same them of the video. The background would involve something associated with digital; the first thing that comes to mind would be a water-scaled, black-and-white “Matrix” theme background. I think this would contrast, because it takes an old cartoon character and places him in the digital world, and the idea of the Matrix seems to be limitless. A lot of this piece has to do with sound and I’m not sure how that could be transposed onto the flyer. I know some of the words and information I would want on the flyer, like: The JUMP’s “Call for Papers,” the details about the information needed to be included in the submission, and maybe what this opportunity to arise to. However, I’m not sure how I would try and add contrast with the text to make it match the video, because the font they have would not seem to contrast enough (but maybe too much contrast would cause it to become ineffective).

Emphasis Response

1)      In this text, my eyes go directly to the note pad opened on the cluttered table. He emphasizes this element because it is completely blank and void of clutter. While the video loaded, my eyes roamed the surrounding area and found scads of things, a lot of which I relate to (a laptop, a WSU Bookie bag, a cell phone, iPod connector, headphones, a missing iPod (which I currently am), dishwashing gloves and more). By having the rest of the space cluttered it gives emphasis to the blank notebook page, because it is void of anything; this arouses the audience’s curiosity. I think this title page is somewhat effective for me, but in other ways not. It is a great way to catch an audience’s attention, but now that I don’t get to see the rest it bothers me because I would like to see if the creator strategically placed each of these “cluttering items” in this title page and that they have their own relevance once the project continues. I guess mainly this is productive, but mainly because of the deliberate crossing out of “Digital Right Management” and replacement of “Digital Robbing MANICACS!” This is another use of emphasis, because of the large crossing out and the huge, capitalized “MANICAS!” Gives me idea about what the project is going to be about, while catching my interest.

2)      This barely two second pause places a lot of emphasis on text, because after that jumping and disjointed camera motion this complete freeze forces the viewer to pay attention to her final product. Prior to this freeze frame, I was noticing how all the other things around the notepad were moving and her writing, but this still frame is perfect to emphasize what the rest of the project is going to be about.

3)      This sound bit helps to emphasize certain moments in the clips, because it mainly seems to match the jumpiness of the film. It is not some flowing sound piece, which would completely confuse the viewers after paying attention to the disjointedness of the filming. The sound kind of matches the speed at which the woman writes. This sound clip places a particular emotional emphasis on the meaning of the word “robbing.” That is what I mainly associate with the sounds. It has ties with digital and maybe even crazy, “manic” behavior, but I think associating it with robbing was the overall goal in using this sound piece.

Western Washington's Website

The XKCD comic is pretty accurate, but that is because most people who regularly venture onto a university website have these specific reasons. I think the designers of these websites understand that and think that these consistent users will know how to navigate the page and ignore the “junk” that litters the homepage. For example, I know to either use the search toolbar (now that WSU has improved it) or one of the links which quickly directs me to the area I am wanting. 

I looked at Western Washington University’s website and was rather surprised. For one, our WSU website is much more appealing to the eye and to someone who is searching for an important looking school. However, Western’s site is very straight forward. It appears to be kind of cluttered with links, but each link actually has significance relevance to the main users of the site. Right away a person can find where to pay bills, register for classes, academics, job postings and school news. With all of this on the home page the user is not left trying to find ways around a littered website. Everything is right at their finger tips and in plain sight. WSU’s website does a good job of concealing a lot of this “clutter” to make it look appealing and professional, but just by first glace I would assume that Western’s website would be easier to navigate.

Responses to Chapter 1

1.       Visual Mode: The two main visual differences I see between the two Twitter profiles are the color and the profile pictures. I find that the color layout of the profile on the right is more eye catching and more efficiently directs my attention. The profile on the left, makes my eyes wonder a little bit and makes the profile seems choppy. Neither pictures give me a sure sense of confidence; however, between the two I would say the real life person picture (on the left) seems more creditable. In the same breath that might allow audiences to judge, where the panda picture has the idea of anonymousness, which helps me understand the idea of having a pen name. I can’t really guess what either of these two accounts could use twitter for nor why. I’m new to twitter so as of right now I don’t have a picture, but the idea of a “pen picture” so to speak seems kind of alluring. I chose the travel template just because that is my main goal. I think once I have time to mess with the website I might change it up to something that appears more attractive to my senses and something that suits my personality.

2.       Aural Mode: I listened to this video without watching it. I simply hear almost elevator music and a calm, yet informative woman’s voice. Honestly, it really bored me and I started to zone out on what she was saying. I’m really not sure what kind of music should have been used instead; however, I can say that getting the right human voice for some kind of add is huge! Even with things like documentaries I think the voice can either make or break it. My favorite voice is Morgan Freeman.

3.       Spatial Mode: My eyes would immediately go to the pictures changing on the home screen. However, then I would see that none of those have anything to do with what I’m searching for and would quickly look through the main links, which then would lead me to a direction I was intending (and further on) until I reach what I wanted. Honestly, how WSU has their website layout, it is pretty easy to try and get to where you want to go. It almost breaks it down into a tree. The trunk would be the home page and then whichever link you click would be the major branch you follow up until you break off again and again until you find the particular leave (in this analogy). If things were switched up, I would simply have to get used to it and redirect the path a laid out in my head and follow the new one set up for me.

4.       Gestural Mode: I watched Obama’s Weekly Addressed from August 20, 2011. I find Obama very reassuring. His face is calm but engaged. He does not blink to much where you would mistrust him, and he has a slight smile on his face. Nothing that would make him seem like a brown-noser or an idiot, but someone who is confident with what he is saying and personable. His hand gestures are kind of cut off; however, you can see him using them and it makes you engaged, because he is making his talking more animated and welcoming. It is nice to have a president who is competent and who does not look down and say um every other sentence.