Archive for Comm 361
March 22, 2012
Pinterest is a very interesting concept… Before this class I actually wasn’t sure what it was. Now that I have one I’m actually not sure how much I’d actually use it. First of all, I think it’s strange that you have to be “invited” to join. That doesn’t seem to be very inviting, but at the same time it’s like piquing the audience’s interest because everyone wants to feel like they’re in on some kind of secret.
My pinterest is currently a sad sidekick to my (epic) tumblr. They both show my interest in interior design, fashion, and books. My tumblr has a lot more content, some of which I’ve made myself. Alas it’s not necessarily appropriate for viewing in a class room. So, I guess that makes my Pinterest come in handy. Still, I’m not sure how often I will use it. It seems so simplistic next to Tumblr.
There once was an iPad 3…
This past weekend I had the unfortunate experience of being with my mother when she got her new iPad… I should clarify that the iPad itself wasn’t what bothered me. What bothers me so much is when she and my father buy things and then expect me to teach them how to use it. I don’t have a data chip in my brain that receives a constant stream of data from some incognito Apple satellite…
I promised myself before she got it that I wasn’t going to help. I don’t have an iPad, so why would I want to spend an evening show her how to use hers? That’s her m/o. Make me teach her how to use her stuff then when I want one myself there’s an issue… Such is the case with parents. Like I said, I made a promise to myself that I wasn’t going to be her instructor this time.
But guess who ended up with egg on their face? Me.
No sooner than we left the store she was craning around in her seat asking me questions like I’ve had fifty iPads in my life. There was nothing I could do for her, and when I tell her I don’t know she gets frustrated and thinks it’s because I don’t want to help… It could never possibly be because I actually don’t know, could it?
Briggs Chapter Nine: Data Driven Journalism
This chapter took me back to my tenth grade year at Freedom High School. I was taking a Computer Information Systems class with my favorite teacher in the entire world, Kathryn Cossa. In that class I was taught many of the things that this chapter taught. It makes me feel like I’m ahead of the curve to know that I have already been taught these things.
I meticulously organize my e-mails and my computer, which eliminates plenty of the difficulties that I face with my scheduling. I’m extremely lucky because I have a pretty good memory, which means I very rarely have to write things down to remember them. I remember assignments and due dates after hearing about them a couple of times. Not many people can do that…
I found it interesting that this chapter seems to be a combination of the skill sets we’ve learned and completed in class while adding in a few new concepts. For example, the location in your smart phones. Playing hookey has never been more difficult, has it? Because your phone will be the betray you every time… Unless of course, you just turn the GPS locator off.
Briggs Chapter Eight: Telling Stories with Video
Throughout the semester we’ve been learning about the importance of video in today’s media and journalism world. I came into the class with a decent pool of knowledge only to realize that there was so much more I could learn. Between this chapter and the workshop with Jake, I’ve learned what is and isn’t important when it comes to video.
People in our society are much more visual than anything else, and video helps to capture and keep attention more than a piece of paper would. Moving images are more stimulating to the brain and keeps us interested… To a certain extent. Videos longer than three minutes tend to make viewers stray unless it’s something that your audience is extremely interested in learning about. In reality a video should capture the audience’s attention within the first thirty seconds.
Video is often used as a supplement to the print form of media, which is a good journalistic element because your audience receives different stimulus from the different medias leaving them with a full sense of completion.
March 8, 2012
Briggs Chapter Eleven: Digital Audience
This chapter is essentially a supplement to the search engine optimization seminar I did with Aram. I found it interesting that so many of the topics overlapped. You know what they say? People retain information better when they’ve seen it multiple times, and this is certainly true for me and SEO.
I sat through the seminar twice and then read this chapter. I’m not complaining though. This is a valuable skill to possess. Whenever I Google my name, Jarrod Wadsworth, from Australia comes up as the top result. But now because of the lessons I’ve learned on SEO I can easily bump him from the top spot. One unfortunate thing for me though is that my Myspace is still the top result for me, and I haven’t used that site in years. So, I’d really like to get rid of that.
I was pleased to find that my LinkedIn and this blog were both some of the top returns when I signed out of my Google Account.
Briggs Chapter Ten: News and Conversation
I think that it is beneficial to have news as conversation. For so long the news was an unquestionable media. People just received, but very rarely were given the opportunity to contribute or state opinions. Outside of sending in letters to the editor. Maybe it’s just the 21st century kid in me that doesn’t like to just ingest things without being able to question them.
I personally prefer to be a part of the news that I’m getting. I want to know where it came from and I want to be able to ask questions about it. I must not be the only one because now there is a full chapter dedicated to that subject in Briggs. I think it’s interesting how the news world has changed to incorporate the opinions of its readers/viewers.
Of course it could compromise the integrity of the story, but I think that’s alright. I’m probably in the minority for that particular thought process, but I don’t mind. I think that it’s beneficial for a person to be a part of the news that they’re receiving because then they have a higher retention rate. Or such has been the case in my life.
March 7, 2012
Workshop #2: Search Engine Optimization
I recently attended a search engine optimization seminar hosted by Aram, and I learned a lot of important things that I can implement in my blog. I enjoyed learning about how I can make my blog and my information easily searchable for by employers. Some of the technical things that I learned was that titles should be 60 characters or less. Tags should be important keywords inside the article in order to be relevant. If you falsely link Google can possibly black list your site.
Important Programs:
- Zemanta
- Google Adwords
- Website Grader
- Google Analytics
- Webmaster Tools
We also learned about page rankings, which was what I thought was the most interesting. Pages get a ranking of 1 (the lowest) to 10 (the highest). .edu pages also get a bit of a boot when it comes to page rankings. In order to boost your page rank you must link in and link back out. In site linking is also important for boosting the page ranking.
Apple accepts Netflix
A few weeks ago I posted a blog item that said that Apple was trying to muscle out Netflix with a product that didn’t seem to be all that practical. Well, it seems that I might have been wrong. Either that or Apple realized that their own version of Netflix wasn’t ready to be released to the public.
Apple has now begun to offer Netflix streaming on several Apple products. The AppleTV, the iPad, and the iPhone are now able to stream Netflix in 1080p via the use of an application. The costumers are able to pay for their Netflix account through their iTunes account.
I personally don’t know how I feel about it. It’s good for Netflix because Apple is a huge client to secure and if Apple signs off on something, others will sign on as well. So, business wise it was a smart decision. However, Apple does have a tendency to try and monopolize or change markets. But you know, as long as they don’t take away my Legend of the Seeker then I’ll be fine.
