More In Class User Testing

Sarah
What is the major argument?
The main theme involves running from something; continuing and staying strong when you are tired or when you fall.

What is done well?
Good environmental setting. I also thought using a vehicle to move alongside the characters while they ran through the woods was a good idea.

Suggestion(s):
It may have been because you were having a bit of technical difficulty in class but it seemed like some of the transitions were choppy. Consider smoothing them out.

Greg
What is the major argument?
Copyright and fair use laws are confusing and lengthy and most people don't have the time or attention to read through and understand them. This site was created to simplify and educate.



What is done well?
The scrolling wheel at the top was a great way of presenting your topics. Easy to read and follow.



Suggestion(s):
I couldn't fine a "home" link that goes back to the welcome page. This might be something you could add for ease of use.

Kay
What is the major argument?
Son has grown over the past year. School progress.



What is done well?
I liked the transitions while flipping through the number/alphabet work and art work. Good presentation. Some of the themes from the music match what is happening on screen (swings).



Suggestion(s):
I'm unfamiliar with the song used in this piece. I may have imagined or misinterpreted it but I thought I had heard some swearing in the music. While I agree that rock music over a more tame song is a good idea, your audience (teachers, principals, other parents) might not agree that it is a good idea to use a song with swearing in it to present your child and his accomplishments.

Kyle
What is the major argument?
Presentation of himself, experience, portfolio, etc.



What is done well?
Cool logo banner. Good quote. I think it's a good idea to include links to things like NHL.com and Lids.com that subtly highlight some of your outside-of-school interests.



Suggestion(s):
Consider making the picture on the main page a link to somewhere even if it just enlarges it. I really wanted to click it.

Jifu
What is the major argument?
The player is talented at this game. It is a showcase of their skills.


What is done well?
Music goes well with the video. You seem to have some good videos of talented game play.


Suggestion(s):
I thought the piece got a bit boring after a minute or so. It was very repetitive. I would consider adding some depth to the piece. Also, I think a title would help clarify your argument and purpose.

Major Assignment 3

Here is the blog I've been working on for Major Assignment 3. A major problem I am having is that my time stamps are incorrect. They all say February 2009. I have tried messing with blogger's time settings but it didn't seem to do much. Any advice on this or any other feedback on the blog would be greatly appreciated!

In Class Project User Testing

Alex
What is the major argument?
Pro-tattoo mindset through his artwork.

What is done well?
Visuals appear in rhythm with the music.

Suggestion(s):
Possibly add more color. I'm not sure if you're planning on moving away from blue and black but including a variety of colors might be helpful.

Chris
What is the major argument?
We aren't in control. Nature and time control our lives.

What is done well?
Narration over video with music. The calm tone of your voice along with the classical music adds to the piece and fits well.

Suggestion(s):
I agree with what was stated in class. A moment of silence would be a good addition to this piece. You could also add something you don't think the audience will expect to further illustrate that they are not in control.

Craig
What is the major argument?
A montage is a useful way of illustrating events that occur over a period of time.

What is done well?
Video seems to be put together well. Pace of video matches the pace of the music. Comedy attracts the audience, draws them in, and keeps their attention.

Suggestion(s):
I'm sure you will be working towards this but try to figure out your technical issue with the higher quality video. I think that your video needs to be well put together because quality affects your credibility.

Steven
What is the major argument?
We may not be sure what we're looking for in life.

What is done well?
You obviously have experience with film. Very well put together.

Suggestion(s):
Some of the dialogue seemed a bit unclear to me. This may have been my fault but you could double check to make sure there isn't anything interfering with the clarity.


Ronnie and Stevie
What is the major argument?
Be yourself and do what you want to do.

What is done well?
The interview style works well. The effect of having the "record" symbol as if this were a rough cut or through an older video camera is cool and adds to this style.

Suggestion(s):
The beginning text sequence was bright and a bit difficult to read. I would darken the text a little so it is more clear.

Challenges

I have had a couple challenges while producing my digital media artifact.

My major challenge so far is determining the types of subjects and topics I want to write about on my blog. I don't want my writing to be interpreted as me complaining about my parent's inexperience with a college lifestyle. I want to continue to inform and advise new students. I want some of it to be like "If I could go back and start my college career over, this is how I would do it differently." I also want to discuss the issue in more depth. I want to relate it to our class discussion on access, fluency, and literacy.

Another challenge I've been concerned with is my blog design and layout. I'm inexperienced with site editing and I don't know too much about html. I would like to create a custom banner for my site that goes along with its theme. I haven't attempted to create one yet but with my experience with photo and image editing I know it will be challenging.

Design Plan

Statement of Purpose: I am a student who's hometown is only about an hour and a half away. I am also the first in my immediate family to attend college. Through this situation I have come to realize that there is a lack of knowledge and understanding in parents and family who are experiencing college life for the first time through their children. There is an absence of access, which leads to an absence of literacy, which leads to misunderstanding. I feel that there is an exigence for education and literacy of these families. As I am very familiar with this situation, I would like to share selected parts of my college experience in order to educate and inform.

Description: 

Medium: I would like to share my ideas and stories via a separate blog. I will be creating a  new blog using a blogging service I am somewhat familiar with, blogger.com.

Audience: My primary audience will be the students in my HU2642 - Introduction to Digital Media class. They will be viewing my presentation in the morning in the summertime. Other major audiences will be parents who have not attended college, prospective college students, Michigan Tech students and faculty, friends, and possibly my family.

Production Strategies: I hope this blog will allow me to be opinionated on specific topics related to its purpose. I would like to detail events, stories, and thoughts from my 4 years at MTU. A few major prospective topics which come to mind include: Orientation, Fraternity Life, work load, Graduation/Commencement, career search. I hope that this blog isn't viewed as an insult to my parents or means for me to vent frustration. It will be a challenge to make sure it doesn't turn into something of this nature. I hope that my points will focus on the fact that while my parents were inexperienced, so was I. While others had parents to compare and contrast experiences to, I didn't. Because I had access to this lifestyle the literacy gap grew quickly.


Arrangement: Unless a brilliant idea comes to mind while producing this blog, I don't really think there is need for special arrangement. If I am able to post enough on specific topics I may be able to arrange topics into groups for organization purposes.

Testing: I will share my project with some of my peers in order to gain prospective. I will be showing my blog to some of my friends, roommates, and possibly a couple fellow classmates before I give my presentation and make my blog public.

Statement of Purpose II

I have decided to scrap my last idea regarding change. I realized that I needed a more concrete and clear topic for this project. Also, the creation of a music video wasn't realistically feasible in terms of my competence with video and video editing software and the project due date.

After doing some quick brainstorming with my professor this morning I have decided upon a new topic idea. I am a student who's hometown is only about an hour and a half away. I am also the first in my immediate family to attend college. Through this situation I have come to realize that there is a lack of knowledge and understanding in parents and family who are experiencing college life for the first time through their children. There is an absence of access, which leads to an absence of literacy, which leads to misunderstanding. As I am very familiar with this situation, I would like to share selected parts of my college experience in order to educate and inform.

Purpose:

          -Educate first time college students and parents through stories, opinions, ideas.

Audience:

-Students enrolled and attending the 9:35 am section of Summer 2012 HU2642 (Track A).
-Professor
-Michigan Tech students and faculty who may not be in the class.
-Friends of Michigan Tech students and faculty.
-Parents of Michigan Tech students.
-Parents/Adults who have not attended college.
-Prospective and first year students (@Michigan Tech and elsewhere)

Context:

-Will be presented in class.
-After presenting in class I will most likely not be in attendance when this blog is viewed and the communication takes place.   

-I would like to present this in the form of a separate blog meaning that it should be able to be viewed via a computer with internet.

Statement of Purpose

I will be officially done with my undergraduate studies at Michigan Tech in July. Being a U.P. native my entire life I'm not sure how I feel about leaving. I'm not sure where I'll be in 6 months but there's a pretty good chance I won't be here or in my hometown of Negaunee. There aren't a lot of jobs for chemical engineers in the Upper Peninsula right now and I expect to have to relocate to other parts of the country/world in order to begin my career. Part of me is excited yet part of me is terrified.

I think I would like to base my project off of this experience I am having. I would like to argue that change can be depressing, sad, and scary. I'm not exactly sure of what type of media I'm going to use to portray this argument. My immediate thought is that I'll create a video for a song about change. I have a couple songs in mind but I haven't decided quite yet. If I decide to do a video I need to remember that it will require quite a bit of work because I am inexperienced with video and video editing.

One of the messages I may want to incorporate is to "seize the day." Major, inevitable change can occur at any time so enjoy your life today because you may be afraid of what comes tomorrow.

My audience will not only be the students in class but also any students at Michigan Tech and the surrounding area. If I am proud of my work and others enjoy it, it will most likely be shared on facebook or twitter so I can consider facebook and twitter users as part of my audience. Fans of the band or the song could be exposed to the video as well. My primary audience will be the students in class. They will be viewing my presentation in Walker 120A in the morning during a summer class. I will have to make this interesting if I want to appeal to this audience.


Summary:

Purpose:
                -Show that change can be scary, upsetting.
                -Communicate that change is inevitable so enjoy today.
                -Change is bittersweet.

Audience:
               -Students enrolled and attending the 9:35 am section of Summer 2012 HU2642 (Track A).
               -Professor
               -Fans of the music I choose to use.
               -Michigan Tech students and faculty who may not be in the class.
               -Friends of Michigan Tech students and faculty.

Context:
               -Will be presented in class.
               -Possibly facebook, twitter, youtube, vimeo, etc.