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eid100 final project

If you've been reading my blog the last few weeks, you know that I've been taking a Digital Literacy course called, EID100. It's finally come to a close.

Now I can actually, confidently say that I am "digitally literate". LOL. It feels kind of bittersweet. There's so much I would still like to learn, but at the same time, I realize I could still continue my learning on my own.

I know the things I've learned so far will be extremely useful to me in the future. In fact, it already has!

My final project marks the last of my obligations to the course. My partner and I created a mock-up, informational app about Personal Branding. Check out a screenshot of it below:

The app explains what Personal Branding is, and leads you through "7 Basic Steps to a Successful Personal Brand".

It also offers a "Resources" page with links to helpful websites you can use to enhance your personal brand.

Here's the 7 steps with their accompanying blog entries:

Step 1. Branding = Self-Actualization + Promotion

Step 2. Project Damage Control

Step 3. Your Image Matters

Step 4. Make a Good Impression

Step 5. Branding Email & Site Tips (BEST)

Step 6. Social Media Essentials

Step 7. Be Active Offline

I love the concept of the web application used to make it. It's called, The App Builder. However, it could stand to be improved, because it's often not very user-friendly. 

I struggled for a long time to get the formatting for the pages, especially the ones under the "Resources" icon, to look cohesive and neat. After all that muss and fuss, I still wasn't able to get it perfect.

Which is really frustrating! Especially for a perfectionist like me. LOL. Anyway, I hope people out there still get some enjoyment out of it, and they find it useful.

The Personal Branding informational app is currently live! Check it out here. 

[digimediadomain-blog]

step 6 - social media essentials

These days social media prominence is like the equivalent of social currency. The more interesting, positive content about you pops up on the web, the more respect you gain from your fellow Internet community. Often times this even translates into offline opportunities.

The earlier you start understanding this and start actively pursuing ways to hone your brand, the better! Make sure your website is always on point! Ensure there's a great biography of you and photo of you on your "About" page, as well as a great personal brand statement. 

Stay on top of what's trending on the web as a basis for your social media profile and blog posts. Use services like Google Alerts to send you automatic email notifications of interesting new content appearing on the web that meets the search times you pick.

You could also try using StumbleUpon, which is suggests interesting images, videos, websites, or blogs, based off of your chosen interests. It's a great way to actively seek out interesting stuff to talk about.

Use a site like Delicious to keep track of the online content you discover. It stores them as bookmarks and allows you to organize them into categories. You can even search other users' bookmarks for inspiration or to interact.  

Perfect your blog entries! They're your best tool in enhancing your social media presence and allowing you to stand out online. 

Try to include video blogs (vlogs) as blog post choices whenever possible. They're surprisingly effective at connecting to your audience. You can use a camcorder, cell phone, or even a laptop camera to record a short vlog.

Google's "Hangouts On Air" allows you to use your computer to record one, and even allows screen recording too. Then post your vlog on YouTube or Vimeo and share it on your site and social media profiles.

There are so many different social media sites out there these days, that it's hard to figure out which ones are the most essential to join. Start out by creating profiles on the Top 4: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube. You can even try Google+.

LinkedIn is especially great for professional aspirations, because it allows you to not only connect with prospective employers or colleagues, but also allows you to connect with your existing colleagues, classmates, friends, and clients.

Use it organize an online CV with up-to-date info on your education, qualification and experience. Join its groups related to your interests and get involved with discussion. You can also request for your contacts to give you recommendations, which highlight your skills.

GiveBrand is another site similar to LinkedIn's recommendations service, that's also worth trying out. 

The Top 4 are proven to help boost your ranking on Google's search results. Plus they connect you with people, like key industry contacts, that can help you build an impressive following online. Something as simple as "retweeting" someone's interesting tweet might lead to a new follow.

Social Media Management is definitely a huge time investment, but it's worth it. There's tools out there to make it a bit easier though, such as HootSuite and TweetDeck, that allow you to manage more than one social media account in one convenient location.

With these tools at work, you'll be a branded force to be reckoned with!

Being efficient, consistent and positive with your branding online (and offline) can also be considered as a "civic" contribution to the Internet community (and offline community as well).

It helps to enrich others' lives, even in a small way, by giving them something to look forward to in life that they can find inspiring and uplifting.

                    Sources: 

"How to Build Your Personal Brand" - Inc.

"5 Top Personal Branding Tools You Should Be Using" - IdeasByBlog

"The Immense Guide to Social Media Sites 2013" - IdeasByBlog

"Keep Up and Blog On" © 2010 Alexander Baxevanis, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"Junge Dame Mit Blog Und Mobiletelefon, after Caspar Netscher" © 2011 Mike Licht, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"Social Media" © 2010 Sean MacEntee, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

[digimediadomain-blog]

step 5 - branding email & site tips (best)

By now you're well on your way to developing a strong personal brand. Just don't forget the little details that often get overlooked when developing your brand.

Email

Your email address is another important piece of the puzzle.

Many people think that having an email address like: 

rooster763@aol.com

badboy11@yahoo.com

sexygirl99@hotmail.com

are still ok, because they've improved other aspects of their online presence, are heavily reliant on that email address, or forget to address the email address issue altogether.

No one says you have to get rid of that email address! If you do keep it, be selective in how you use it. Keep it as an address you use with close friends; avoid using it publicly, especially in professional social circles.

A more effective method would be to keep the old email address, but set it up to have all of its email traffic automatically directed (i.e. POP3 and IMAP servers) to a new email address account. Most free email account services allow this.

Ensure the new email address looks professional and supports your brand positively. Here's some examples of professional-looking email addresses:

jane.doe@gmail.com

doe.jane@gmail.com

j.doe@outlook.com

The username you select for your email address is not the only thing to keep in mind. The service you use for your address could also hinder you.

Email address extensions like hotmail.com, aol.com, or yahoo.com have gained the reputation as being "too outdated" and "too casual-looking" for serious consideration these days, especially for professional use. 

The best choice of the free email services is Gmail. It's used a lot professionally, plus it allows access for a whole slew of web apps that come with joining, such as accounts for YouTube, Google Drive, Google Docs, Blogger, among others. 

If you want to seem even more professional, purchase your own internet domain name (i.e. Go Daddy). It typically costs between $10 - $20 per year! It will allow you to have your own cool, specially branded email address such as:

janedoe@janedoe.com

Don't forget the email signature! It's a great way, at the very bottom of each email you send, to further push your branding. You can set one up in under your email account's settings, so it's automatically attached to each email.

Too little info makes the signature easily forgettable, but too much is too overwhelming to the eyes and comes across like a desperate ad.

Ask yourself, what info do people really need? Maybe it's your phone number, maybe not. Do include your personal website's link and links to your social media profile pages. You can even include a link to your online portfolio.

If you don't ensure you email address looks professional and resonates with your brand, you can risk losing that credibility you're working so hard to gain.

Website

Another area to be mindful of is how you maintain your website. 

After you decided on the subject matter of your website, which should relate to your brand, and picked a website platform to use, begin designing.

Decide on an aesthetic theme that relates to your brand, but pay attention to what colours you use; they help set the mood of your site. Implement your brand statement (if you haven't already) as a headline under your website's header title or as part of your bio on an "About" page.

Check out popular sites that relate to your brand. Take note on the topics posted, and how great blog posts are crafted.

Especially read your fellow bloggers' posts from your site's domain (i.e. Wordpress, Tumblr, Blogger, etc.) and comment. Don't forget to link to your site, so others can visit and you can build your following. There's no point in having a website if no one visits it!

Don't hog the spotlight! Find interesting, talented, influential individuals who relate to your field of interest who you can interview. Incorporate the interview's transcript (with images of the interviewee) into your blog post, and do something out of the usual for a post.

Get well-known, respected bloggers to be guest bloggers and do blog posts for your site periodically. This not only offers different points of view on your site that can help you reach a wider audience, but also shows you're humble and that it doesn't have to be all about you.

Establish a blogging frequency and stick to it. How frequent you post can affect your credibility. Too much posting might make you come across desperate to please or too attention-seeking, or make your posts look poorly planned. Too little posting makes it easy for people to move on from you.

Most of all...have fun! If you're not enjoying what you're doing, people can tell from your posts. It will likely affect their ability to relate to you and be drawn in.

Stay tuned! More great branding tips to come! Next up, Step 6 - Social Media Essentials.

  Sources:

"Build Your Personal Brand with These 5 Simple Tools" - Michael Hyatt

"Personal Branding: Using Your Blog" - Celebrity Branding Agency

"Email" © 2010 Sean MacEntee, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"Email Address" © 2010 Sean MacEntee, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"Preview of Jayel Aheram's New Website" © 2009 Jayel Aheram, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

[digimediadomain-blog]

step 2 - project damage control

So you've decided that you want to have an awesome personal brand, and you've spent a lot of time reflecting on yourself. You've even created a wicked personal brand statement. So what's next?

As mentioned in the previous step, you should start promoting your brand. Improve your social standing by implementing your brand statement wherever possible.

This can be places like:

A Social Networking Profile Page (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, etc.)

A Personal Website (i.e. Wordpress, Weebly, Wix, Blogger, Tumblr, etc.)

A Cover Letter

A Hardcopy or Online Resume (i.e. LinkedIn, Prezi, Video Resume Worldwide, etc.)

An Online Portfolio (i.e. Krop, Dunked, Portfolio Box, Carbon Made, etc.)

A Hardcopy or Online Business Card (i.e. Zazzle, Vistaprint, Moo, Minted, TwtBizCard, etc.)

But there's more to preserving your new online identity than that.

You'll need to do a search online to see exactly where any trace of you (i.e. name, messages, photos, videos, etc.) comes up. Go through all of your web pages. For each instance of where you appear, take a good look and ask yourself:

Do these photos or videos flatter me and communicate my brand clearly and positively?

Do these text descriptions of myself and my personal (or professional) life flatter me and communicate my brand clearly and positively?

Do these messages I have sent out to others flatter me and communicate my brand clearly and positively?

If you find yourself answering no, then either delete them or alter them so that they do.

But there are times when we don't have control of what's out there in cyberspace or offline.

In those instances, it sometimes pays to come clean and own who you were and use it as a contrast in emphasizing who you've become. 

As the saying goes, "Everyone loves a comeback story". People like to see when others demonstrate that they know how to reflect on who they are and grow as people.

It's inspiring and endearing! It might just help you tap into a new target audience you made not have otherwise. Plus, it gets rid of the shame involved with hiding your past, especially if that's beyond your control.

Stay tuned! There's more branding tips to come on Step 5 - Branding Email and Sites Tips (BEST).

            Sources:

"Personal or Professional? How to Balance Your Brand Online" - Personal Branding Blog

"Build Your Personal Brand with These 5 Simple Tools" - Michael Hyatt

"Social Media" © 2010 Sean MacEntee, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"01 (40)" © 2012 Victor1558, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

[digimediadomain-blog]

step 1 - branding = self-actualization + promotion

Whether you're a business leader or a student still trying to figure your life out, branding has become an important key to both social and professional success. Especially due to the rise in popularity of social media.

Personal branding is simply about how we market ourselves to others.

Networking has moved from an offline personal interaction to being an online one as well. We've all heard how a lot of the best opportunities, especially paid employment, tends to go to people who know the person offering it.

Employers habitually troll the Internet to see what their prospective employees or current employees are up to, so they can get a sense of who you really are and if you're a positive addition to the company.

Branding is a useful tool to in helping you build a social following that can help you achieve your social-ladder-climbing or professional goals, so you might be the one to get that next lucky break, or keep the job you got.

The first step to building a successful personal brand is usually the hardest. Trying to figure out what about you would make someone want to invest time, money, or even an opportunity for employment could be difficult to figure out.

Start by doing some self-reflection. Ask yourself questions like:

What are my best personality traits?

What makes me unique?

What are my passions?

What do I want to do with the rest of my life?

What are my goals?

What are the positive qualities people most say about me?

How do I make people feel? How do people benefit by associating with me?

It doesn't matter how you brainstorm.

    You can brainstorm ideas by writing them down on paper, typing them into your computer's word processing software, or recording them on a voice recorder, cell phone, or video camera.

It just matters that you do it, and take your time. This is the most important part of the steps. It can be the deciding factor of how effective your brand is. 

Some of these questions you ask yourself will require a bit more than soul searching, and might need some research at the library, online, or by asking people who are knowledgeable and trustworthy to get to the best conclusions. 

Once you've found a list of your top qualities and interests you'd like to use to build your brand, then it's time to decide on a personal mantra, slogan, or brand statement. They all essentially mean the same thing. 

It's a short, punchy, memorable description about what your best "selling points" are in relation to what your interests are.

You don't want it to be too long, the shorter the better, so keep your interests and qualities down to no more than 3 - 5 points.  Your statement should be no more than two sentences. 

Keep your intended audience in mind when writing it. Think about the people you could most appeal to to help you reach your goals.

When you've finished your personal brand statement after much scrutiny and re-editing, now's where the real fun begins. 

You implement it everywhere possible and practical: your cover letter or resume, your social media network pages, your website, etc.

We're not done yet! Stay tuned for the next step to a successful brand: Step 2 - Project Damage Control

    Sources:

"Personal Branding 101: How to Discover and Create Your Brand" - Mashable

"The First Step to Building Your Personal Brand" - Forbes

"117/365 - I Wonder if Chuck Connors Read This Book?" © 2012 DavidD, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

"Tapping a Pencil" © 2008 Rennett Stowe, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

[digimediadomain-blog]

hands-free computing

  Tech geeks, like me (yeah, you know who you are....those of you, like me, who consider reading Best Buy's flyers religiously, or nearly salivating over what's new in the consumer tech market, a pastime...LOL), have been abuzz with excited chat over the release of Google Glass. 

This device could literally revolutionize mobile computing and bring it to a whole new level many of us thought would remain a mere fantasy, or a creation set for generations from now: Hands-free computing!

Apparently, it ain't so far away.

Google has already released beta testers of the device. So far reviews have been pretty good.

It's been said to allow you to browse websites, like Gmail, hands-free, because it's voice command operated! How amazing is that! It's like pseudo-Star Trek tech come to life! I'm so excited for this.

It also supposedly allows users to activate a button on the right side of its frame to enable discrete photo and video capture capabilities. 

Needless to say, as can be expected, it hit a snag on account of concerns for privacy, in particular with its video and photo capturing abilities.

Some are concerned the discreteness of these functions might encourage some people to take unauthorized, violative photos of friends, family, and children.

It's become so acute that there's a White House petition circulating to have the glasses banned in the U.S., until the government passes specific regulations tailored to addressing the glasses' privacy and security concerns.

Even some businesses, like Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, have decided to ban the use of the device on their premises.

Chris Nerney of Cite World, the main info source for this post, states that the glasses will inevitably be banned in other businesses, like Victoria's Secret.

He believes it's possible for a man to come waltzing in wearing them, with the possible intent to take discrete, unauthorized photos or video of women getting bra fitted, changing, or trying on lingerie, for his own perverse enjoyment. 

The thought of this possibility is a fair prediction, and makes me shudder with disgust at the possibility that some may use this fantastic technology for negative and exploitative reasons. 

The technology has not been released commercially to the public yet, so it remains to be seen how this new tech trend will shape human behaviour.

Hopefully, Google will collaborate will governments soon to find ways to regulate this technology before it is released, to help avoid the propensity for this technology to be taken advantage of. 

Tech innovation is important, but so are laws that keep them in check. I'd hate to see Google (and governments) fail us on that front.

            Sources:

"Privacy Concerns Prompt Google Glass Bans, White House Petition" - Cite World

"Google Glass @ 1776dc 23296" © 2013 Ted Eytan, used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license.

[digimediadomain-blog]

My previous post discussed some of the visions people have for how computing will evolve and become more gesture-based in interface and context aware with applications.

Here's one company's vision of how vast this concept of computing could potentially become. This would definitely be many interop lovers' dream. 

It does seem like an exciting, admirable concept, but I still can't help but think in the back of my mind:

What's going to happen to my right to anonymity and security of my personal information? 

Will this give way to more instances of filter bubbling of information I want to access?

[digimediadomain-blog]

eid100 reflection and exam prep

EID100 has been an amazing journey of discovery for me in understanding modern digital technology practices. I’m very thankful to have had the opportunity to learn what I have.

Therefore, to pay it forward, and to aid my colleagues in preparing for our final exam, here is a recap of Module 11 of the course:

  The Internet of Things & Its Relationship with Interop

 The two fundamental influences that have been predicted to have a lasting impact on future web design are Interop and Information Overload.

Interop would allow for services, such as cloud computing, becoming a more popularized fixture, because it will allow for cross-platform access.

This means that computing devices, regardless of type or memory capacity, could be compatible with cloud-based services for storing information or running applications.

Unfortunately, with every gain comes a consequence. The consequences to Interop would likely involve less data privacy. Interop’s philosophy is to make technology as cross compatible as information technology users could hope for, to encourage user-friendliness.

The more data is exchanged across a wider variety of different devices, the more the chances there are for the info to be tampered with. This could mean instances of cyber crime, like identity theft, could potentially be on the rise.

Personal data could even be accessed by services a user is invested in and influence companies to have a change of heart in how they treat their client.

For example, an insurance company might decide to raise a client’s premiums if they find out they’ve been holding out on telling them about a serious medical condition.

It can even affect employment if an employer or prospective employer finds out personal details such as these about someone, and uses it as a basis for deciding whom to fire or hire.

This leads to the second issue Interop could cause, security-related challenges. Interop would need to be give way to corporate and government collaboration on deciding on fair regulations as to how client data is managed and who should have access to it.

Information Overload is another factor that will influence future web organization. Because of web 2.0, the advent of user participation in producing web content since the early 2000s, more and more information is being added to the web regularly. Especially for the purpose of personal branding.

Information Overload is the inspiration behind the current big data movement. The trend of big data and big data management (i.e. Hadoop) will continue to be a necessity, and will grow in its urgency. 

Large organizations (e.g. retailers and financial institutions), governments (e.g. healthcare services), and even social media providers are increasingly becoming aware of the benefits to organized big data. It allows for better understanding of their target group (i.e. their needs, wants, and habits) so they can better serve them.   

In order for big data management to improve, data search engines must be built upon, new types of data filtering or personalized technologies must be invented, new data processing or database models more efficient at organizing big data must be developed, data processing, computer processing power and infrastructure must be revolutionized as well.

In addition, information used in places it wasn’t before (e.g. augmented reality; ubiquitous computing), more media multitasking and further development of social technologies, such as more social networking sites to aid with social filtering, must occur as well.

Software as a Service (SaaS) is another trend that will continue, which means software and its related data will be delivered in a cloud-computing format; it will require a web browser and Internet access for access.

Many companies that traditionally offered software as a boxed product are already transitioning into this format. Companies such as Adobe, which has recently announced that they no longer plan to offer their Creative Suite software as a boxed product anymore, are one example of this trend.

  New User Experiences

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags is another emerging technology, and is already being implemented into consumer devices. It allows for instant Internet access and access to information about objects also utilizing the tags. 

RFID and the “Internet of Things” are encouraging the concept of developing Internet connectivity with everyday objects such as taxicab windows and household fixtures or appliances (e.g. refrigerator), which takes the spirit of computing convenience Interop holds to a whole new level, and consequently gives way to privacy and security concerns as well.

The “Internet of Things” and RFID also encourages the development of gesture-based computer interfaces, similar to how one uses a Xbox Kinect or Nintendo Wii, as seen in the Microsoft video.

Context aware computing applications are another, which allows for recognition of who’s using an app, where they are using it, and how to best display the information. 

Radio Frequency has become an immensely relied upon choice in consumer technology for quite some time now. It’s found in everything from cell phones, to TVs, to laptops.

I worry that not enough attention is being paid to the health-related problems all this increasing exposure we are subjected to of radio frequency waves is having on our bodies. It’s great to want to strive for better tech, but should it be at the cost of our health? 

  Convergence

 Digital technologies tend to cause remediation, which means analog media forms, such as audio recordings, films and printed texts become digitized; a transfer into binary code.

Convergence allows for different media types to be distributed across different devices, which changes the media’s interoperability and how people interact with each other and the technology they rely upon to access it.

Henry Jenkins, a convergence scholar, believes it can even affect how people interact with government, education, and commerce.

  Transmedia

One of the cultural impacts convergence has given way to is transmedia storytelling. According to Jenkins, “it’s a process where integral elements of a fiction get dispersed systematically across multiple delivery channels for the purpose of creating a unified and coordinated entertainment experience”.

The concept is not entirely new, but the new development of technology has influenced how it can be executed. For example, one of the earliest examples of transmedia storytelling came from the Super Man comic books.

It started off as a comic book, then became a radio show, a TV show, a movie, and even a board game! The storyline extended to different storytelling platforms.

Modern transmedia more often relies on digital mediums primarily, and often takes the form of what Jeff Parkin has done. He did a web series (webisodes), and then created a video log one of the show’s characters would maintain regularly, as well as an augmented reality video game viewers would participate in.  Each offered a different vantage point to the webisode story’s action.

Very cool stuff! I can’t wait to see all these developments come together as time goes on.

Well that’s all folks! I hope this helps you all prepare for our exam and ace it! Good luck!

     Image Source:

“Studying” © 2013 Mer Chau, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

[digimediadomain-blog]

data visualization & web analytics

The digital age has become many people's main means of communication with the world around them, their means for entertainment, and their means for shopping.

It has become more important than ever for companies and web designers to find effective ways to get and keep web users interested in their sites, and ultimately invested in their products or services.

More and more, an expectation for visually appealing ways of interacting with data is being expected by digital users, as a basis for getting and keeping their interest.

Infographics are one way in which that expectation is being met. Infographics are charts, graphs, grouped images, etc.; any sort of picture that is informative and relies heavily on visuals to communicate its info. It's especially great for displaying dull or complex data in a way that's more visually engaging, and easy to understand.

I tried out a great online tool for making infographics called Piktochart. It is a fairly easy to use site that allows you access to a wide array of image types, and templates for creating an infographic.

I used it to make an infographic about 6 of the 7 Incredible Web Design, Branding, Digital Marketing Experiences mentioned by Avinash Kaushik on his blog Occam's Razor. The blog is dedicated to discussing web analytics.

I decided to cover 6 instead of all 7, because I found the six chosen demonstrated more enthusiasm by Avinash, and were a more concise description of the strengths a good website should possess. 

The infographic distinguishes the two most well-liked websites, Songza and Method, in a subtle fashion. This was done by highlighting them in a slightly lighter colour to make them stand out, and utilizing a bolder, darker-looking text colour, while maintaining the cool-toned colour scheme of the infographic. 

Also, Method has the largest sized box to emphasize the fact that Avinash regards it as the best site of all. 

Throughout the image, icons are used to symbolize key textual info such as the thumbs up icon by the header text showing approval of the forthcoming sites mentioned in the infographic.

The speech bubble icon shown by the "Feedback" header symbolizing communication, is another example of this. Likewise with the Twitter icon shown at the bottom right drawing attention to dd's Twitter handle.

Each of the boxes discussing the websites provide a basic description for their effectiveness. In addition, they provide the company's name and logo, to aid viewers in seeking out more info on them, if desired.

Overall I had a positive experience with Piktochart, but feel it could be improved to become more user-friendly. I had a difficult time finding the appropriate functions for changing box background colors, image sizes, and adding new boxes, among other annoyances. 

I'd still recommend it though. Try it out! Impress your instructor or employer with how creative and digital savvy you are with explaining information.

            Infographic Image Sources:

Songza Logo - Apple iTunes Preview

John Lewis Logo - Sew Review

Innocent Logo - Logo Design Love

AAA Life Insurance Logo - Town Target

Shopbop Logo - Amazin Kreation

Method Logo - Abe's Market

Twitter Logo - The London School of Economics and Political Science

Avinash Kaushik Picture - Occam's Razor

dd Logo - digimedia domain: About 

*All other images have been provided by Piktochart.*

[digimediadomain-blog]

coding in the digital age

Computer coding involves using computer programming language, or syntax, to create web pages. It's a set of skills that is increasingly becoming a need-to-know set of skills in the digital age.

Many people dismiss it as something only extreme tech geeks should be concerned with, but this is simply not true.

Employers are increasingly expecting their employees to have this knowledge, especially since a web site has quickly become most organizations' most valuable branding asset, and way to reach their target audience.

It's a lot easier than one thinks to develop at least a basic understanding of computer coding. There's a great online educational source called Code Academy. It offers free lessons on a variety of different coding languages. 

Of course dd tried it out, and it's extremely user-friendly, encouraging, and simple to master. I decided to start with the most well-known, basic computer coding language, HTML. I completed a few HTML course lessons and a project. 

I started off by learning the fundamentals first, such as Tags, which are how different types of coding are distinguished. They control how textual details on a web page such as its title, headings, and paragraphs, appear.

As I started getting the hang of it, I completed this exercise, which had to make use of different looks of headings.

I also completed a project that teaches you how to create a basic web page. You start with learning how to create a web page title that shows at the top of the browser's tab, then you learn how to create a heading for the page. I also implemented paragraphs, among other details. Take a peek at what I did below.

I love that the site allows you to see how it would actually look as a real page:

The site offers great encouragement to keep users working to complete the courses by rewarding them with badges. They are also serve as a convenient way to track your progress on the site. Check out the ones dd earned below:

The site's great! Try it out! If you're not ready to even consider learning computer coding yet, much less create your own site with one, there are great, easy DIY style web site design platforms you can use.

They include the popular Wordpress, Tumblr, and Blogger services, which are less flexible with design options and leave you stuck with their company name in the URL, but they're free and simplistic. 

For more flexibility with design choice try out Weebly, or Wix.

Like the other 3, they still leave you stuck with their company name in the URL unless you pay for a premium account that allows you the option of losing it.

The great thing about them is, unlike the others, they allow you to drag and drop content on the pages you design for your web page. Pretty cool! 

You also get mobile app support for your web site that works on cell phones and tablets. Try them out, but whatever you choose, don't get left behind in the digital age movement. 

-dd

[digimediadomain-blog]

eid 100 promo vid

Much mention has been paid to a code called EID100. It’s a course I’m currently taking that teaches digital literacy. We learn a whole slew of information about the digital age.

Everything from the how to’s of social media, Internet privacy, digital accessibility, big data, data filtering, cloud computing, digital image and video editing, amongst many other topics.

This week we were asked to create a promotional video for the course.

I chose a playful, upbeat tone to my choice of video. I thought that the course’s target demographic (i.e. people in their teens or early twenties) would find this approach more entertaining and engaging than a more serious, reserved presentation of the facts.

I chose to focus the video on the key areas the course covers that I believed the target demographic would find most interesting, i.e. social media and Internet privacy.

I created a stop motion animation for the video, which appears towards its end. I thought it was a cute and cool way to end the video, and emphasize a reason why the course is useful in a humorous, less in-your-face fashion. Plus, the yellow tint adds a sense of warmth and hipness to the idea of attending the course.

I chose to focus on dolls to represent the many types of negative reactions people have to modern technology practices. The dolls pointing at the computer represent the people who see it as a strange thing to be fearful and skeptical off, and who keep it at a distance.

The doll laying on the floor with 2 others surrounding it represents the people who try to expose themselves to technology, but struggle to understand how it works, or are impatient with its occasional kinks, and get easily frustrated by it because they don’t know how to work around it.

The doll with the computer mouse represents the people who are too hesitant to seek help in conquering their technological fears or inadequacies. The one with the sword represents those who are the opposite.

The picture of the doorknob with the “privacy please” sign represents the desire many technology users have to find ways to protect their privacy in their digital activities.

The man in the black attire with a stocking on his head represents the Internet identity thief threat, which is a theme discussed in the course’s coverage of cyber crime and Internet privacy. The rest of the images are pretty self-explanatory.

Check out my video!

Video Image Sources: “Computer Testing” © 2009 Zhao!, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. “Computer Testing” © 2009 Zhao!, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.  “Computer Testing” © 2009 Zhao!, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. “Computer Testing” © 2009 Zhao!, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. “Continuing Studies” © 2009 SFU Public Affairs and Media Relations, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

“Privacy.JPG” © 2007 Jorge Cortell, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

“Scary Identity Thief” © 2005 David Goehring, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

“Facebook” © 2010 Sean MacEntee, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

“Social Media Apps” © 2013 Jason Howie, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

“Tumblr_Dashboard” © 2011 Stephan Hochhaus, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

“Twitter Profile” © 2009 Rosaura Ochoa, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

“Computer Testing” © 2009 Zhao!, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

[digimediadomain-blog]

building apps

This past week I learned about a cool technology called “The App Builder” in the digital literacy course I’m taking right now.

  It’s a website that allows you to create your own app that you can share across mobile platforms (i.e. smartphones and tablets) by the likes of Apple and Android.

  I decided to give it a go, and created an app called, “Toronto Survival Guide”. The blog’s based out of this city, and because there are so many nuances one should know about living in Toronto, I thought it could be useful.

  Especially since Toronto attracts a lot of foreigners. Many immigrants from places such as Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and even Europe tend to come here.

  Toronto is also a media powerhouse city, so there a lot of people within Canada from other cities who will travel to it looking for education or work in the city, both in media or otherwise.

  American media production companies, especially ones catering to film, tend to send production crews and cast members to Toronto to live and work for a few series of months at a time.

Therefore, as a lifelong Torontonian, I felt it was my duty to pass the torch of knowledge onto newcomers and visitors to help them better settle into the city.

I included information on the need-to-know details about how to find an apartment in the city, and the best ways to commute around the city as well. 

It's definitely a work in progress. There's so much more I could do to develop the concept further, because there's a lot more to Toronto than that, but those are the big 2 important points I thought should be shared for the time being.

It was a lot of fun to do, although I did experience trouble with uploading photos at times, because the image resolution sizes are so specific, and often weren't compatible with the images I chose to use to build the app.

Overall, I think the technology is fantastic, especially for amateur app builders like me, who aren't quite ready to create my own app from scratch with coding.

Here's the link for my app. Check it out!

http://myapp.is/TorontoSurvivalGuide

              App Image Sources:

“Toronto Viewed South From Bloor” © 2000 Small, used under a Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-No-Derivatives license.

“CLRV TTC Streetcar No 4177” © 2011 Peter Broster, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

“Apartment Building at Sunset” © 2007 Andrea Schaffer, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license.

[digimediadomain-blog]

digimedia domain’s personal brand statement

Personal brand statements are all the rage in online self-representation. It’s a way to show the online world who you are and what drives you as a contributor to the space. It’s usually quoted on a person or organization’s personal website, blog, social networking pages, among other places.

  So I got to thinking about this blog’s personal brand statement. And voila! I came up with the one below:

  “Your faithful tour guide of the elusive lair of IT lowdown.”

  I’m someone with a sense of humour, and I also like to play around with symbolism.

  The statement compares information technology lowdown, or in other words, its true information and facts, to an elusive wild animal, because although information on the in-and-outs of computer technology practices can be acquired, often times one really has to look long and hard to grasp the reality of it.

  Often times its customs are hidden in complex legal jargon, is not readily available to the public, or hidden in half-truths or full lies.

The difficulty in finding out the true facts about how modern IT works can prove to be a strenuous task, much like trying to confront an intangible wild animal scared of discovery and protective of its privacy.

This also goes for finding IT resources like how to use new trends in IT to your advantage.

  I compared the blog to a tour guide because although it is not claiming to be an absolute expert on the topic, it is attempting to lead you through the need-to-know details about computer technology and IT practices.

  The blog’s hope is that it will leave you with a sense of enlightenment, and protection from the diagnostics of IT, including its historical, cultural, and modern implications.

[digimediadomain-blog]

a little refresher

Here's a little review of some important aspects of digital technology to enrich your mind, and help you prepare for the EID100 Midterm Exam.

  Big Data is large amounts of data that is too difficult to analyze by organizations, because it surpasses their IT department’s data management limit. Big Data is characterized by volume, velocity, and variety.

  The data helps large organizations to understand customers better, and distribute resources more efficiently. Such as data from retailer databases, logistics, science, financial, and health field, as well as social media data (i.e. photographs, audio, video, location data). Plus, Big Data systems help data to be viewable in real time.

  Hadoop is one popular solution to Big Data management, and is a free open-source software library. It transfers the data across a large group of server computers, reports system failures, and substitutes alternate servers for faulty ones, among other things.

  Cloud-based Big Data systems are also in place, and are more convenient for transferring data due to their Internet connectivity.

  Websites that allow anonymity allow users to protect their real identity when posting, such as 4chan and formspring. Ones that don’t require authenticity expect users to display their real identity, such as Google+ and Facebook.

  Sites that offer permanency allow a users content to be permanently attached it, such as reddit. Sites that promote ephemerality, allow a user to delete their content, or erases content automatically after an elapsed time, such as 4chan.

  A cookie is user data in a text file downloaded to your hard drive when using the Internet. It’s generated by a site’s server, and can be re-used upon subsequent visits by the server to identify the user, and their preferences, or registration information. It also carries demographic and browsing information about the user that can be tracked by other sites, and sold to marketers.

  You can prevent privacy violation caused by cookies by disabling your browser from storing usage history, by enabling your browser setting that requests that websites don’t track you, and by using browser add-ons like Collusion.

  Remediation is when a media form is taken and transferred into another media type. Such as when a book is turned into an audio book recording.

  Kirby Ferguson believes “everything is a remix”. It means that not many or anyone can claim complete ownership over an idea, because most, if not all ideas, usually build upon a preexisting one, which means it was never the individual’s own idea to begin with. He believes the borrowing of ideas is also a necessary part to human innovation and progress.

  Intellectual Property believes otherwise. Its standpoint is that a work or invention created should allow for the creator to have exclusive rights over its use, supported by a patent, copyright, or trademark.

  The Digital Age has caused instances of intellectual property violations to increase by non-authorized use of online content. Creative Commons is helping to solute things by giving creators a platform to publicly declare if they would like their works to be used, and how.

  The different Creative Commons licenses creators can sign up for are:

  Attribution CC By

  Allows others to distribute, tweak, remix, and add to the work, as long as credit is given for the original work, even when used commercially.

  Attribution-No Derivs CC By-ND

  This allows for the redistribution of the work in its original form, both commercially and non-commercially, as long as credit is given to the creator.

  Attribution-Non-Commercial-ShareAlike CC BY-NC-SA

  Others can distribute, tweak, remix, and add to a work non-commercially, as long as they provide credit to the creator’s original work, and license their creation under the same terms.

  Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA

  Others can remix, tweak, and add to work, even commercially, as long as they credit the creator, and license their new creation under identical terms.

  It’s often compared to “copyleft” free and open source software licenses, and is used by Wikipedia. It’s ideal for materials that would benefit from using content from Wikipedia and similarly licensed projects.

  Attribution-Non-Commercial CC BY-NC

  Others can remix, tweak, and add to work non-commercially, as long as the creator is acknowledged, but derivative work doesn’t have to be licensed on the same terms.

  Attribution-Non-Commercial-NoDerivs CC BY-NC-ND

  Others can only download creator’s works and share them with others as long as they credit the creator. They can’t change the work in any way, or use it commercially.

  Malware is an unwanted software package that is unintentionally installed onto a computer while using the Internet, by unknowingly clicking an activation link. It’s often used to steal banking information, and to aid in identity theft.

  It can also cause pop up advertisements, allow a user’s key strokes to be noted, allow a user to be watched through their camera, or the hacker can connect to the user’s other devices through Bluetooth connectivity.

  Phishing is when an email is sent to a user from a seemingly reputable company, like a bank, usually urging the user to change their password for security precautions. It’s used as a way to gain the user’s personal information for committing bank fraud and identity theft.

  Spoofing is when a fake site is generated to look like a site a user might try to access, like a bank site, in order to collect the user’s personal info to steal their identity. The user often activates malware by clicking on a fake link on the fake site.

  Cyber Bullying is a form of bullying done by use of online tools like computers, smartphones, and social networking sites, rather than happening offline. It typically involves the bully posting hurtful messages about another user privately or publicly on the Internet to embarrass and distress the individual.

  All the above are examples of cyber crime, and rely on social manipulation to work successfully. The best way to protect your computer from most cyber crime is to use more secure browsers like Firefox and Google Chrome.

  Also, use search engines that don’t track your usage like DuckDuckGo. Use add-ons for browsers like Firefox, such as NoScript, which prevents scripts from being downloaded onto your computer unknowingly, or AdBlock Plus, which prevents pop-up ads.

  Other great options are Quick Java, which can allows you to allow or disallow script software. Lastly, Web of Trust (WOT), which shows user ratings for a site based on coloured circles, ranging from green, which equals a very safe site to red, which means a site isn’t safe to access.

  That's all folks! I hope after reading this you feel more enlightened and empowered with digital technology. Cheers.

  -dd

[digimediadomain-blog]

the internet and the illusion of privacy

There’s a common misconception people have about the Internet. People believe as long as you’re not publicly posting on sites like Facebook, Twitter, or a blog, that you can keep your identity hidden.

The reality is that there are many sites that are tracking your Internet usage using cookies.

One of the most known and feared types is Permanent aka Persistent, or Stored Cookies. They often collect demographic information about you. Also details about what sites you’ve surfed.

This data is used to make a profile of you that’s often sold to marketers. The marketers use this information to come up with ads to send you, and consumers with similar details, for products or services they think you’ll like. 

There’s a great add-on available for Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome, that allows you to fight back. It’s called Collusion.

  Collusion organizes all sites tracking you into a real-time graph, which you can access anytime by a button built into the browser. The button pops up and shows the number of sites tracking you as you’re surfing.   

Once you open the graph it shows a web of circles, each representing a site that has received your personal information. I tried it out. Check out my graph below.

Circles with a blue outline, or halo, are sites I accessed, and the ones without the halo are sites I didn’t. Red circles are sites that typically track people. Gray circles are sites that aren’t known to track, but still present a risk. If you move your mouse over a circle, the name of the site is shown.

I was shocked to see so many sites I had no intentions of accessing, being able to take my personal information! The great thing about Collusion is that it automatically blocks those sites, as seen by the red circles with crosses through them. You can even unblock them by pushing the red sign.

You can also fight back by setting browsers like Firefox or Google Chrome to not to store your browsing history. Alternatively, you can select a setting that requests that websites don’t track you.

Collusion highlights the prevalence of data tracking. Like the traditions of radio and TV, the Internet is not without the aggressive hidden agenda of trying to encourage users to buy products and services. But with these awesome tools we can better control the tracking.

                Image Sources:

"Facebook on The Computer" © 2010 English 106, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

 "This Is How I Watch TV" © 2008 Joshua Blount, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license. 

[digimediadomain-blog]

A lot of the inspiration for my posts come from a course I'm currently taking about Digital Media.

We're currently in the process of starting a group research project on how to teach important aspects of digital literacy to young people.

We decided to do our project on Personal Branding. There's been a lot of discussion, especially on the Internet, these days about the importance of having a great brand identity.

However, much of the discussion is usually centred on branding in relation to businesses. More and more, the discussion about brand identity is including personal branding. Although one could also apply many of the principles of business branding to personal branding.

My partner and I created this video to introduce our topic, and offer a sort of teaser, for our project to come.

It's a short video about the why and how to building an awesome, personal brand identity.

I apologize for the quality of the video. The technology we had access to is not the greatest, and we did experience some technical difficulties.

Just click the post's title, to activate the link, that will bring you to the video. I hope you get some amusement and insight from it. Cheers!

-dd

[digimediadomain-blog]

Cloud Computing is all the rage in technology right now. Yet, it remains a mystery to many.

It's so widespread, that many people are using it, but don't even know it. 

Ever used Gmail, Twitter, or Facebook? Yep, those are considered cloud computing too! 

Want to know more?

Here's an interesting article on the basics to Cloud Computing, and some tips on how to use it. 

Just click the post's title, and it will bring you straight to it. Cheers.

-dd