Tips For The Next Class

I learned a lot from CS1300. You will learn how to use everything from excel to expression web. I recommend that you come to every class because there is so much information packed into every class, and it is easy to fall behind. I also recommend that you frequently check the class page to make sure that you don't miss any assignments. Don't leave things to the last minute. The projects are much more enjoyable when you are not rushed. Don't be afraid to ask questions! Good luck!

Student Websites

I really enjoyed seeing all of the student websites my classmates made! They were all so creative. One of my favorites was Nicole's. I really liked the colors that she used, I thought they all tied together nicely. I also liked the different pages she included and how they linked to one another. Another of my favorite websites was Lucy's. I absolutely loved her welcome design, and the navbar she made! It was very cute! I also liked that she included so many pictures. I also liked John's website. I thought his idea of making his website a place to comment on his favorite sports teams was unique and cool. Great Job!

Tori's Site

Please visit my website at www.cs.trinity.edu/~vcarey.

Making the website was easier than I expected. Both Expression Web and KompoZer made the whole process fairly easy and not nearly as complicated as I imagined designing a website would be. However, I did find it extremely difficult to insert images, and get them to go exactly where I wanted them to go. I used both Expression Web and KompoZer. I did not actually use hand code. I am most proud of my Favorites page. Even though it is extremely simple with only a collage I made in photo shop, I thought it was cool that I could hot spot particular images within the collage, making it more of an interactive page. If I were to change something, I think I would give it a more exciting background. My biggest technical challenge was getting the pictures to line up and go exactly in the right place. My biggest design challenge was picking a relevant theme. I will show my site to my friends and family. I can definitely see myself making another site in the future, either for a class, or even for fun!

HTML CODE

It is important for web designers to be able to know and use HTML code even if sophisticated web-authoring software such as Expression Web or KompoZer is available because it is easier to fix any random glitches the page might have, if the designers understand what the code actually stands for. If the designers can read the code, they should be able to easily diagnose the problem and quickly have the page running smoothly. They can also read the HTML code from other sites in order to recreate any effects they really like.

Pictures That Lie

I chose to manipulate a picture taken from my visit to the Korean War Memorial in Washington D.C. this past summer. I found pictures of United States soldiers fighting in Iraq from Flikr and then used the magnetic lasso tool to place them in the Korean Memorial garden. I placed the soldiers alongside the statues, and decreased their opacity and brightness to give them more of a ghostlike effect. I manipulated this photo in this manner in order to remind us of the detrimental effects of war. Despite knowing of the harmful ways ways of war, we as a people continue to partake in wars. I do not think that manipulation in this way is harmful. It is not trying to manipulate people to act in a certain way, it is just reminding us all that war is not in our past, or merely a monument, but part of our present and affects all of us today.However, it is quite obvious that this photo has been tampered with. Often times photo manipulation can be harmful. The article "Now You See Him, Now You Don't" offers several examples of how the manipulation of photos can impact society in a negative way. The article explains that as computers make altering photos easier, they [computers] "are destroying the credibility of photography, and it's getting worse." Photo manipulation is used not only to make statements as mine does, but to alter history, manipulate people themselves, and as this article explains, alter evidence. These are examples of how photo fakery can be taken too far.

Citation:
Curry, Andrew. "Now You See Him, Now You Don't." U.S. News & World Report 131.2 (2001): 46. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 12 Apr. 2010.

Powerpoint Presentations

I thought everyone did a wonderful job presenting their PowerPoints! It was interesting to learn about all of the different opportunities out there. My two favorite presentations were Chelsea's and Lucy's. Chelsea had a very nice template, that was very relevant to her presentation on birds. She included beautiful and bright pictures which really captivated me. The video that she included really grabbed the audience's attention and provided a good laugh. Lucy also did a great job of keeping me interested throughout the presentation. Her picture were very nice, and she presented her information in a creative way, which really made me interested in neurology. The video that she included was moving, and was a great example of why someone might choose this major.

Powerpoint Tips

There really was a lot to learn from all of the links on PowerPoint presentations. The Microsoft Online Tutorial offered explanations for all of the major components of a PowerPoint.

The excerpt from "Really Bad PowerPoint" was very interesting. I liked that it gave a little background on the origins of the PowerPoint presentation. It also stressed to avoid distractions such as dissolving and spinning transitions, or greater than 6 words per slide.

The Top Ten Slides seems to be business oriented but I think that it is relevant to most presentations. It stresses the importance of simplicity while maintaining the quality with captivating graphics and well chosen fonts.

My Top 5 Tips:
1) Do NOT read directly from the slides. It is important to maintain eye contact with your audience.
2) Include audio/video. It really helps hold the interest of the audience. Plus it shows you are experienced with PowerPoint : )
3) Choose a relevant template. The template can really make the presentation. Make sure it is captivating, yet not too overwhelming.
4) Do NOT have too many words. You want your audience to listen to what you are saying, not frantically reading your slides.
5) Be enthusiastic. While enthusiasm can get on some people's nerves, it is much easier to enjoy a presentation from a presenter who enjoying themselves, than from someone who clearly wishes they were somewhere else.