Learning Essay Before taking this course, I had little knowledge of how to build websites and how to write for them. I took a class on FrontPage early on in college, but have never used Dreamweaver. With each website assignment, my skills improved and my understanding of how to write for the virtual Internet developed. During my first project I did not know how navigational bars should best be used or how to make a great header. I had to constantly look at the instructions to build my way piece by piece. My idea was rather simple and I simply wrote about my recommendations for foods to east, places to visit, and nightclubs to dance in. While making the second hypertext, I only had to refer to the instructions very now and again. For this project, I wrote about the benefits online sexual activity provides for individuals and society. I learned about the concept of building a virtual essay that allows readers to easily more around the site in a logical manner, but so they can customize the reader the way they want. I complied by webpage by first outlining all the webpages I thought I wanted and adding blank placeholders in Dreamweaver. I then went in a word file and designed the bulk the writing that was going on each page. Later I went back to each page and added links and made it more interactive. Going from the web version to a my first linear version with the academic hypertext was definitely a challenge. However, I feel that it was beneficial because it helped me understand how different writing for the Internet really is. Writing my the linear version of my final project was easier because it was my second time, but I still learned about the difference in writing due to the fact tha tmy final website was more complext than my first. By the final website, I did not have to refer back the instructions at all. I was able to make a developed webpage that looked more professional than the other two. I wrote about the way students and career centers can better work together. I established expectations for students, so they don’t ruin connections or writ the career center off by illogical complains. I also told career centers how they can go above and beyond and improve their centers, partly by getting the latest technologies. As Santa Clara student, I felt the need to include onions that some SCU students felt, and this was a great influence on my Public Service Announcement. Finally, I discussed how the current economic crisis is affecting career centers and students. I offered advice to students and career centers on what they can do to deal with it and possible curb some of the negative side effects. Final Project I also learned how to use technology to make videos. I had never used iMovie before and actually really enjoyed learning about it. While making our machinima was long and sometimes frustrating, I did have a lot of fun in the process. It’s amazing that we can use the games, like Second Life, in so many ways. You can use it for recreation, to build relationships, and to make movies to get your voice heard. I again used iMovie for my multimedia video that I created for my final project. For this assignment, I created a PSA for students at Santa Clara expression their concerns and then finding solutions by working with the center effectively. However, I did not only learn how to use technology, I also learned about the nature of that technology. I thought I understand the culture of the Internet before the class, but I now realize it is actually much more complex. With each reading, I grasped a new concept and learned about a new dimension of Internet culture. I did not understand the importance of the Internet in regards to forming groups and revolutionaries that speak out against issues they disagree with. I suppose I knew this was possible, but usually associated the Internet with things like Facebook, Amazon, and Craigslist. Now I realize that network has the ability to change cultures and governments drastically. In fact, the Internet itself will change our culture more than I never knew it could. We are changing the way we read, learn, search, and network. I also learned about the nature of working in the field of Internet technology and how they often struggle. I learned a about how online games are very similar to the human mind and that games will be able to transform our American school system for the better. Technology also has a large impact on society, and effects it both positively and negatively. In our final readings, I learned that the Internet is a valuable resource for grassroots organizations, making it much easier for them to have their voice heard. Overall, I found the articles to be complex, and sometimes hard to read. But I learned so much about the culture of the Internet and am able to think about the technology critically. Learning about the culture of the Internet while learning how to use it at the same time is what makes this course so valuable and allowed me to grow. I know that the Internet is going to change my life, and I feel more educated about this change that is taking place and transforming with every passing second. |