The Nightmare of Dreamweaver

Dreamweaver, or as it is sometimes called "Nightmare" is a rather difficult program to work with when one doesn't know much about the wonderful world of coding. HTML or otherwise. Though, when the code is given, and one has just a little knowledge of experience of Dreamweaver (Nightmare) then it is perhaps not so bad.

The good news about this project, is that it is all about self-promotion. As a communication student, there needs to be something like this from the start, perhaps. There needs to be a place for students to post all the work they get done from the start of their college careers, until the end, whether or not that work is done in school or off campus. Student achievements should be promoted, especially in a way that makes it more personal to them, with a nice header picture, a flattering picture of themselves, and all that good stuff.

Without the social media projects done in class, students would likely not have the necessary grasp on what it means to properly promote yourself. Furthermore, for those students without a twitter, they now have one to link to the website made in class. Najee plans to use his website to actually host some of his work and use it as a temporary portfolio since he is graduating, so all of his social media contact links are links to his personal, yet professional, social media profiles. The idea is to use what he knows to promote himself and get somewhere after graduation.

With the portfolio and the social media contact, and even just the homepage bio itself, the website truly does work for self-promotion, and so does the social media. By blasting out the website on various social media, followers can check out what work is posted on the website, and pass it along to new followers, potential employers, and the like. Furthermore, by posting the link to the website on a social media profile, like LinkedIn, connections to people in an industry can lead to views of the profile, then views of the website, and hopefully, employment! The end goal comes!

The design process, as mentioned, is a lot easier for someone with a little knowledge of Dreamweaver. Luckily for Najee, most of the jargon and general understanding of the program wasn't lost completely to him. This was perhaps one of the easier assignments of his year. However, the same could not be said for his peers. While he imagines that most of the students did well, he did find himself helping out his peers when they were lost in the horrible string of text, slashes, hyphens, and other random bits of code that make up Dreamweaver, and ultimately, their website.

Ultimately, a successful website can only be a boon to students, whether or not they are coming out of college now, or coming out later. This is especially true for journalism, public relations, and media production students looking to get a head start on the competition.

To those students who have experienced the nightmare that is Dreamweaver, rejoice and celebrate! The nightmare is over.

Group Project?! Is it too late to drop this class...?

The dreaded group project. The bane of every student's existence. Even the very word shakes the most sociable of students. It goes without saying that none in the 336 class was ready for what Pabico was about to unleash. Still, the class took their number, a deep breath, and perhaps a shot of whiskey when they got home. Though the idea of a group project may have shaken the class at first, it seems as though each group came out on top--for the most part.

The abstract group had an interesting time with their group project. Brett immediately thought up the idea of using spoons as the subject of the video. Replacing them with everyday objects, making them seem more important than they are.

"I'm always thinking of something stupid," Brett said when asked why he chose spoons for the abstract project. Still, his stupid idea was a boon to the group, as they did their best to shoot video, edit, and stay glued together as a group.

Perhaps what was most troublesome for the abstract group was finding times to meet up. Siobhan never has class on Friday, and so was unable to meet due to work scheduling. Brett and Dimitri seemed fine with meeting for most of the times the group could think up. No time was a bad time. Shooting individual video seemed to be the hardship of the group. Najee nearly did not have enough footage--even for his personal video--to make ends meet. He quickly remedied that and, after adding his face to the group video, made the video really come together throughout (continuity errors aside.)

Editing was perhaps easiest for the group, and where the group came together. Indeed, Brett did amazing work with his cuts, however, it truly was the input of all that brought the video to it's final stages.

"Try this song," Dimitri said, handing over his flash drive.

"Why not add this?" suggested Siobhan.

"Let me handle the credits!" Najee said excitedly.

The above quotes are, of course, only a few examples of what went on during the editing process. Each cut was handled professionally--even if the class was only using iMovie. Most of all, perhaps, it seems that the "dreaded group project" had finally become fun as the group put their finishing touches on the video. There was truly a connection between the four.

Rarely in the abstract group were there any disagreements--aside from what times they would meet. The group communicated through text for the most part, perhaps not unlike other groups. It was the preferred method. It is a social media class, anyway.

At some point, Siobhan referenced music by the band "Spoon" to be in our video. And although they found some likely good songs, it was decided that perhaps the group was trying to push the "spoon" idea a bit too much. And perhaps no one would get the reference anyway.

One tiny hardship the group faced was how to convey their message. What should they do? What is their narrative? It took a few tries, many text messages, many ideas, for the group to finally arrive at "the dream." Once again, Brett's "stupid idea" shined bright as brilliance.

Posting the individual video went smoothly on YouTube, the preferred website. The video is linked below to check out!

Actions speak louder than words, as the saying goes. Video can often be much more powerful than writing, or even a photograph. A video can be much more engaging, much more inviting to the watcher, and can make them feel like they are a part of whatever is going on in the video. For the abstract group, the big success was bringing everyone into "the dream" that Brett was having. A strange dream of spoons, where he and his friends are not using them to eat. But to play drums, change the channel, and so on.

It is also likely easier for a group to work on a video than to write collaboratively, or to work on any single photograph. The process of filming, editing, and mixing audio is generally done by multiple people as it is, especially more than four people.

Perhaps the subject of abstract at first seemed broad, but as the group narrowed down on their narrative, the message they tried to convey perhaps became somewhat lost to them until the editing process rolled around. It was perhaps then that the group realized that this was more than just a video for class that would be shown to their peers. Bits and pieces of their personal life was to be presented in an abstract way. Brett the drummer, Dimitri and his dog, Najee the nerd and Siobhan the driver/piano player. There was a bit of everyone in Brett's dream, although the focus may have been the spoon, the context was really on the people using the spoon.

Feedback from the class toward the group was, relatively positive. The dream worked! The group conveyed a message that was, for the most part, clear to the class. The class picked up on aspects of their life, as well as on the overarching theme of the video abstract.

The themes for each group seemed very general and broad, but perhaps that was the point. It would have been easy for the abstract group to go to an art gallery or something. It would have been easy for the politics group to do something about the recent political race. But, creative communication students know better, it seems.

Vine is a strange, cruel, and unusual platform for posting videos. In this case, six seconds seems too little to convey a proper message. Though most can do it, it seems that others cannot. Perhaps the biggest obstacle was creating a proper video for only the allotted six seconds. Furthermore, having to move the video from drive to phone to drive to phone. Nothing is more annoying, except not being able to upload the video after all that time.

Perhaps some of the students in Professor Pabico's class have changed their tune about group projects. Perhaps forcing the students to work together on such a wide range of topics has brought the class together in some way or another.

Perhaps another group project lurks on the horizon.

Perhaps not.

As stated above, check out one of many individual videos below!

https://youtu.be/VkCi5uVCoHs

WikiHow Creation: It's Alive!

Creating a WikiHow wasn't too rough of an experience. It was kind of like a refreshing crash land into softly coded grass. While it would have clearly been much easier and quicker to use the template they already setup, the advanced editing was certainly a much more rewarding experience.

Learning the code and playing with it is a good first step in learning how to code anything else. While it is much simpler than any other code out there, it is safe to say it is just as finicky. When setting up anything on a WikiHow using the advanced editing, it was imperative to take notice and really understand where things where to go, because if there were even one space in the wrong part of the code, it could have messed up the entire page.

More often than not, people who are interested in roleplay take a whack at it when they are either really new to it, have some experience in other kinds of roleplay environments (i.e. forums or Dungeons and Dragons), but it is never really quite the same as online roleplaying.

Imaging a way to explain online roleplaying to those who may not have already done any was rather odd. Teaching someone how to roleplay is not easy, and people kind of pick it up and enjoy it, or they do not. More than anything, it depends on first experiences, friends, interests and arguably the chosen setting. If these factors are not present, even the WikiHow could possibly not save someone from having a bad time.

Narrowing the topic down to Final Fantasy XIV was likely a good choice, simply because it eliminates at least one of those tough factors one chooses when thinking about roleplaying online. The good news is that the WikiHow article can still be applied to other games. It is a flexible guide for someone who really wants to get their feet wet in the world of roleplay.

One of the things mentioned in the WikiHow, and likely the most important, is a love of writing and some basic skills in English. For the most part, roleplayers love what they do. They love writing, the love the craft, the story, all of it from head to toe--or in this case beginning to end. It is so important to have a love of what is going on in roleplay. A mass of people have come together to create an ever growing world that changes as the developers change the game, and keep their own personal stories rolling, even when the credits on the main story have finished rolling. That, quite honestly, is amazing.

Most of the photos used were screenshots of the in-game characters, landscape, and loading screen. Since the topic was narrowed down, it became a much easier thing to photograph. Of course, there are some actual "real life" photos.

Part of roleplaying, as explained in the WikiHow, is knowing when to take a break and enjoy real life, as much as virtual life. Eating, drinking, stretching, and social interaction are very important to keeping roleplay alive. If one person roleplays all day everyday, eventually they will get completely burned out!

The WikiHow is all based on personal experiences and over 8 years of roleplaying both in video games and elsewhere. For someone with that many years under their belt, the passion just kind of flows out like a river, and that goes for anything. The writer, as I am sure is the case with many other WikiHows, has a long relationship and history with their how-to, even for something as mundane as "How to find a job" that contributor must have had some serious bad luck, or a lot of experience with job hunting. Either way, it was likely good in the long run!

The WikiHow creation experience gives a window into finding out how passionate one really is when talking about something they love to do, know how to do, and just want to share with the world. It is amazing how passionate one can get when they don't even realize it, unless it happens to come about when you're just trying to give someone some tips.

The problem, perhaps, with WikiHow is worrying about stepping on legal-toes. That is, copyrights and the like can sometimes prevent a passion from becoming a how-to in the WikiHow-universe. There are a lot of "to whom does this belong" and "what-ifs" that pop up when using images, or thinking up an original topic. Still, it comes with the passion, there are tons of people who may want to or may be writing the same topic at any given moment.

Brainstorming with others really helps get that out of the way. Having people critique ideas and say which they think is truly original and which they think could benefit a lot of people is a really engaging way to get the "is it already done"-phase out of the way. Furthermore, having more than one solid idea--brilliant! This should go without saying, of course, but backup ideas are a good idea. Always know that there is someone out there who thinks similarly to another, sometimes originality clashes. Three ideas is a good start, but five would have given a bit more weight and thought to choosing a final topic.

Overall, while the WikiHow creation process can be tedious, daunting, and perhaps even a bit too straightforward, it was also rather relaxing, and enriching. For someone, reading a WikiHow can really change their life for the better, even if it's just a tiny nudge in one direction or another. For others, there is entertainment value.

For the contributors, there is a content sigh, knowing that their work is done, it is released to the world, for all to enjoy and take a great lesson from.

A salute to all WikiHow contributors who have given the people of the internet something to look forward to, and a salute to the people of the internet who have given those contributors a few nice page views every now and then.

Web Evolution and the Internet: Differences in Web Media

Web 1.0, Web 2.0 and the Web of Tomorrow

Web 1.0 is your grandmother's Web. Or perhaps your mother's Web. It is the Web of the late 80's and early 90's, where everything was just hyperlink connected to another hyperlink. It was literally just for information, nothing more. If it couldn't fit on one page, it wasn't worth it. There was no interactive content, no games, no music. It was just as is: a page for you to look at. Or perhaps click onto another page.

Web 2.0 sought to change that.

It seems that Web 2.0 has achieved it's overall goal. The idea that Web 2.0 is for people to participate and to communicate. We've gone almost further than that. With things like blogs, being able to comment on virtually everything, Skype, and so on, we are without a doubt, participating in a constant flow of Web interaction. To further this point, take a look at the website for stores like Sears or Macy's. You can buy whatever they have in stock, while also receiving comments and ratings based on other shoppers' experiences. It's innovative, yet perhaps scary, that nearly everything has a section for comments and reviews by the general public.

Looking at things like newspaper websites as well, we can usually tell what kind of agenda--if any--a newspaper company has based on the people that comment on a given story. Aside from reading the story itself, taking a look at the comments is an easy way to tell who is reading what and what we they think. Which, is why I find it a bit scary. Web 2.0 is an all-inclusive way of interaction without ever really seeing anyone face-to-face. As stated it is an "open source" program, available to all.

Web 3.0, as we move into it, I think will bring about a smarter and more helpful way to comment and interact. That is to say that, with Web 3.0 and the Internet accessible from just about anywhere and everywhere, we can properly do our own research when looking into other things people have said. I feel that Web 3.0 has more educational value than 2.0. I feel that with the help of Google and other such engines, Web 3.0 teaches that not everything is or should be the first link you click on. 

Furthermore, I think that this is the direction that Web 3.0 should be moving in. Many people take the first piece of information they hear as fact, without any research or credibility, and spread it in a very "2.0" fashion. I think that when you get a piece of information, you should use the resources made available to you by Web 3.0 to find more information, build upon it, and figure out a truth that is at least somewhat undeniable. 

Unfortunately, super engines like Google do tend to give you the top result based on other peoples feedback and how much site traffic it gets. You need to be very specific and narrow with your research at times. A small price to pay to get to the truth.

The Facts: Web 2.0 and 3.0

The Web, and thereby the Internet, was created for very few purposes. For military, academic, and scientific purposes. The web, however, has become a big part of our lives, offering those same old benefits, but adding a few new ones. Connection, being the biggest benefit hands down. 

Web 2.0 was, and still is--for now--the Web most people know and love. Web 2.0 saw the start of amateur webpages adding clickable links and navigation to their websites. It saw the addition of comments sections. Perhaps most importantly, it saw the addition of social media. Things people know and love today, like Facebook, Tumblr and Blogger, all came from the advent of Web 2.0. Community is the name of the game when it comes to Web 2.0, and there is no better example of the community that comes from Web 2.0 than Wikipedia.

The "original" Web, as some put it, is Web 2.0 and is the way we've seen the internet since the 1990s. With new and innovative styles of webpages, visually and technologically. This further enforces the idea that Web 2.0 is working and will soon evolve. People can barely remember a time where browsing the Internet was simple, easy and perhaps even boring. Now, people interact with everything including the Internet itself and the Internet interacts back.

 “Web 3.0, a phrase coined by John Markoff of the New York Times in 2006," The website "Lifeboat" references. "Refers to a supposed third generation of Internet-based services that collectively comprise what might be called ‘the intelligent Web’." The intelligent Web. A semantic Web. It is portable, easy to understand people, and easy for people to understand it. There is no guesswork with Web 3.0, especially with the use of "behavioral advertising."

Basically, Web 3.0 moves us more into a artificial intelligence style. A way that the internet can communicate with people, while they communicate with one another and also the internet. Examples of this are already starting to appear, like when someone visits a website looking for underwear and Facebook gives you ads for all kinds of underwear websites.

This, in a nutshell is Web 3.0

There are arguments about whether we are in Web 3.0, or if we are still creating it. It might be better off to call the current "Web" era something along the lines of "Web 2.5". A web where people interact with one another, yet the internet and the Web have begun to interact as well, giving us it's "thoughts"--for lack of a better word.

The Web is an ever evolving state. The further people get out of "Web 2.5" and into Web 3.0, the faster people will be looking at the future and Web 4.0. Though, that may be getting a little too far into things too soon.

How to Roleplay in Final Fantasy XIV: Draft

Roleplaying, as most who participate in it know it by, is a form of writing that allows the writer to insert themselves or a character into an ever changing, playable world. In a sense, the player is living a second life, controlling their character through different situations. Roleplay (or RP) can come in all different forms, dramatic, entertaining, or even romantic. When roleplaying, it is important to know what you want to get out of the character, and ultimately, what you consider to be fun. Consider this how-to merely an opinion and guide to how to roleplay within Final Fantasy XIV. This how-to can also be applied to other multiplayer games as well.

For roleplaying in Final Fantasy XIV, you will need:
1. A Final Fantasy XIV subscription
2. A computer or Playstation 3 or 4 that can run the game.
3. Basic English language skill.

Step 1. Character creation
Aside from creating your character in a "physical" way, you should think carefully about your character traits. More often than not, the player inserts pieces of their own personality, likes, dislikes, and perhaps even their beliefs, into their character. Try to be unique but, in some way, realistic. Think about what your character may have gone through in their past and how that may shape their personality.

Step 2. Learn the lore
In established settings, learning the lore is important. The lore in Final Fantasy XIV is rather solid and easy to grip. There is some lore that can be speculated and bent to benefit your character or the kind of RP you're looking to do, and that is where the fun comes in. Naturally, not all people stick to the lore 100% and that is completely fine.

Step 3. Play the game
You are paying for the subscription after all, so try to enjoy the game as well. As you play, you will understand the lore, and get a feel for your character. This is also how you make friends and find out more about other roleplayers.

Step 4. Find your roleplay style
Try out different kinds of roleplay with different people and see what is right for you. Often times, simple interactions like having your character go out to eat or drink, can open up many other doors for you. Sometimes, all it takes is a simple interaction to get pulled into a part in a much larger roleplay story. Part of learning your style is also learning the lingo like "In-character (IC)" and "Out of Character (OOC)".

Step 5. Know the difference between IC and OOC.
This step is important. If a character does not like your character, that does not necessarily mean that the player does not like you. Sometimes, characters don't make friends out of everyone. Sometimes, a character is evil. It is up to you to keep your in-character interactions separate from out of character ones to avoid confusion and conflict.

Step 5. Make friends!
There is a world of roleplayers out there, waiting for you to befriend them. Take the time to learn about people, about their characters, and you will make friends in no time! Without a friend, your roleplay is not much of a roleplay. Try your best to find forums to find roleplayers, or check out Tumblr, where many roleplayers in Final Fantasy XIV visit!

Step 6. Have fun!
Of course, you should be having fun the entire time, but overall, if you are not having fun while roleplaying, it may not be your thing. Roleplaying should be fun and enjoyable. People should get a real kick out of writing stories together and having interaction through their characters. Always have fun, do not make roleplaying a chore!

wikiHow? Indeed.

If you frequent the online world, then of course you will know what a wikiHow is. Writing a wikiHow though? Yikes. There are thousands of writers on wikiHow, so much so that many topics overlap and it becomes difficult to be original or creative. So what does one write about for their first wikiHow post? How to survive working at a country club? How to roleplay in an established video game settings? How to survive senior year of college? All great ideas, right?

When searching for a job and seeing that a local country club is hiring, you may feel apprehensive. You look at the advertisement and think "I can never work there". The truth is, working at a country club is just another job. With over 11,000 clubs in the United States alone (more overseas), you would think there is a wikiHow on this subject. However, there is no wikiHow on how to survive working at a country club. Most people in a country club setting know: it is all about appearance. Employees should look happy, things should be pristine, and beautifully presented. These are just a few ideas that can be touched upon in this wikiHow.

If online video gaming is your thing, then you've at least heard of roleplaying. When the video game nerds and writing geeks come out of the shadows and create a character within an already established world. For some (like me) Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games (MMORPGS) still have the word "roleplaying" in them. Meaning, that is part of the fun. There is currently no wikiHow describing how to have fun roleplaying in established settings. Passion is one of the most important parts of roleplaying. If you do not enjoy it, why would you do it?

Surviving senior year can be even rougher. When you're in the last leg of your studies, when you're finally just at the grasp of that diploma. Things seem easy sometimes, but rough other times. You need a friend, a guide, a mentor. You need to concentrate. But your need to be wild and free during your last semester also calls. How do you balance it all? There are plenty of wikiHows about senior year of high school, but none about college.

These are a few topics that have been chosen, and are perhaps the strongest topics for a wikiHow article. None of these have been done before and may prove useful to wikiHow users. More often than not, people find wikiHow helpful with even the most troubling and outlandish of topics. Each of these topics, most will agree, have a bit of trouble and outlandish in them, making them both interesting reads and the perfect wikiHow subjects.

Social Media Since the Early 2000s

Remember Myspace? The go-to social media website in the early 2000s? Where everyone needed friends and more friends. Where you could have Chris Brown on your background page and your mouse cursor turn into a glittery heart? Looking back, it was a fun time. However, I often wonder--about any social media, not just Myspace--if it does more harm than good. 

Myspace eventually phased out of popular culture when Facebook made it's rise to fame (or infamy). Facebook got rid of the gratuitous details in favor of having apps connect you to all kinds of companies and other media outlets to keep you coming back. Some would argue that a website knowing what kind of underwear you wish to purchase based on something you "like" is a bit intrusive. Others would argue for convenience.

The intrusiveness of social media, comes not from the creators and moderators of the social media websites, rather, I think it comes from its users. It goes without saying that the amount of information Facebook can gather about you to shove other media at you is rather absurd. However, it is up to the user to determine what Facebook gets to see and what it doesn't. If a user of Facebook only uses it for friends and family, then they don't have a need to "like" the Candy Crush Saga page. However, a user who likes all their favorite games and apps will get similar games and apps on their timeline, in the sidebars, all over their pages. Furthermore, the sharing of personal information on sites like Facebook is--again--the users choice. Questions such as sexual orientation and posting about what you're doing every second is a users choice, Facebook does not require you to post at any given intervals.

Social media can often be used for "good" and "evil." In the case of the good, there are constant posts on Tumblr that advocate or ask for help for needy people by way of GoFundMes or similar websites. "Reblogging" as Tumblr calls it, helps to spread the word and find people who are able to donate. The same goes for those that reblog projects on crowd-funding websites.
Tumblr--and websites like Tumblr--have a downside as well. It can serve heavily as a place for what the internet calls "trolls," people who get joy out of making fun of people. The problem with this is that, should it get out of hand, it can have serious penalties, like some people becoming depressed or committing suicide.

As much as I'd like to not admit it, media is moving rapidly toward being fully online. Social media connects us in ways that, even 20 years ago, no one would have even imagined. It is hard to say where this will take us. I hope that as time goes on, we will be able to be smarter about our media use. Do more fact checking, be smart about what we share and what we don't, and overall become better people because of it.