Powerpoints

When making a powerpoint, the most basic goal is to asthetically appeal to the viewer while transmitting information in a clear, understandable way.  It is not an easy task to, when compiling data and information with which you are very interested or knowledgable, convey that knowledge in a ledgible, helpful way.  When I am viewing a presentation, there are a few critical things that can make or break a powerpoint for me:

1)  There can't be too much text on a single slide.  Bullet points are much more helpful in giving the presenter a starting point from which to speak; however, insterting entire paragraphs onto a slide is risky and can often overwhelm the viewer. 

2) Poor quality clip art can really throw me off.  If there is a poorly drawn/designed cartoon or, even worse, animation, then it not only distracts from the information but it also makes the project appear less professional. 

3) Tacky sound effects are the wrost.  If the powerpoint is casual and the presenter uses a funny sound to humor the group, then that is one thing; however, excessive use of noises just distracts and takes away from the integrity of the presentation. 

4) Even worse than lengthy text on a single slide is use of wordy language or grammatical/spelling errors on a slide.  Just use Spell Check!

and 5) When presenters jump through slides too quickly.  I hate it when a professor won't allow students time to copy information from slides.

In a communications class in high school I was exposed to several great powerpoints that looked professional in their simplicity.

CLT Adventure

This Thursday we were greeted by Mr. Robert Chapman on the first floor of Coates Library for the grand tour of the huge technological resource known as CLT.  CLT is essentially a space open to students and faculty alike that houses 26 computers-- 14 Macs and 12 PCs-- and 11 scanners with countless software capabilities.  Likewise, CLT hosts an expansive conference room with the ability to facilitate visual feeds from 20 different sources and 100 simultaneous audio feeds.  Not that I think that I could keep track of 100 different voices trying to talk to me at the same time, but it is definitely an impressive option if I ever need it!  While Mr. Chapman spoke, I sketched out a quick self-portrait of myself on my notes page; moreover, I was overjoyed to scan it afterward and save it in my Y: Drive.  It was a relief to know that it was secure on the Trinity network if harm were ever to come to the original masterpiece... ha. 

I love the idea of using the scanners because I like to make study guides via Microsoft Word but I will sometimes take notes by hand; therefore, if I am able to scan large amounts of hand-written notes and compile them onto a single document, they are much more organized and easier to read.  Likewise, if I am unable to draw out a certain, say, biological process, then I can scan the image from my textbook to place into my study guide.  I will definitely take advantage of that aspect of CLT.  I was also really excited about the audio center, where I could potentially compile and mash some of my personal music.  I think that could be a fun thing to do if I find the time.  I am definitely excited to utilize the resources that CLT has to offer in the very near future!

Photoshop and the Media

I chose to snip a picture of a British soldier in Basra from April of 2003. The war in Iraq had only begun a month prior and the media upset was phenomenal in regards to the US’s presence there, both from a political and an ethical standpoint. At the time there was a significant liberal bias from the media and a hard press for President George Bush to withdraw the troops. LA Times photographer, Brian Walski, was apparently fired for retouching this photo in what he described as an improvement to the composition. I’m not exactly sure what the photo originally displayed; however, in all likelyhood, it did not depict the military presence in such a negative light. The manipulation, prior to the discovery of Walski’s retouching, surely sent a negative message to the public regarding the British and US forces working within Iraq. This is a perfect example of the news’ ability to spread choice propaganda throughout the public.




This video is a perfect example of the news' ability to manipulate photographs and change the way that the public views those in the spotlight.  It enables the public to sway in whatever direction the news dictates.

Excel and the "Real World"

I have used Excel before and considered myself to be somewhat less-than-proficient when it came to organizing and calculating. I am a biology major and it is definitely a critical element in lab work; therefore, I am actually really excited to learn how to maneuver around the program. Excel is clearly a handy tool in not only sorting data, but calculating and creating charts and graphs. These are all really important for research and I know that understanding the different aspects of the program will definitely help me in the future!

Copyright and Creative Commons

Copyright is a permanently fixed original work in a “tangible” form.  This means that the “owner” of the work is solely authorized to their intellectual property and is completely responsible for the distribution and use of that property.  Copyright, included in the original draft of the US Constitution in 1790, was considered a very important issue to the founding fathers.  The fathers understood that when artists, scientists, creators and thinkers are assured that they will benefit from the fruit of their labor then the society will much more rapidly benefit from new ideas.  Currently, much debate has risen in the music industry in regards to sales versus illegal downloading.  Legally, artists are protected under copyright laws that give them complete access of their music distribution and sales.  Illegally, the seemingly infinite bounds of the internet allow users to access, download, and utilize this “intellectual property” with neither permission nor compensation to the artist.  Ethically, it is clear that illegally downloading music is an infringement of copyright law; likewise theoretically, when artists do not believe that they are to be compensated for their efforts, it discourages the production of new, original work.  Upon considering the concept on the whole, users understand the importance of abiding by such laws; however, rarely do people believe that their single music “share” will stunt the intellectual progress of the music industry.  Consider this:  A single new Beyonce hit costs $1.29 on iTunes—a purchase that is considered legal and ethical.  A college student consciously buys “generic” toilet paper in attempt to save $1.29;  likewise, in knowing that Beyonce averages about $87 million/year (meaning that that single song purchase amounts to a whopping .00000000015% of her annual income) if he is able to access music for free then there is little incentive to buy it.  Therefore, illegally downloading music may be both illegal and unethical, but it is easy for individuals to justify doing so without seeing immediate consequences. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJn_jC4FNDo

<a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nd/3.0/88x31.png" /></a><br /><span xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" href="http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text" property="dc:title" rel="dc:type">Copyright and Creative Commons</span> by <a xmlns:cc="http://creativecommons.org/ns#" href="http://katherinegarrett.blogspot.com/2010/09/copyright-and-creative-commons.html" property="cc:attributionName" rel="cc:attributionURL">Katie Garrett</a> is licensed under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/">Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License</a>.

My Trinity Network Diagram

This is a network diagram of Trinity University from the perspective of my dorm room on Prassel third.  It's extremely exciting, as you can see.  Essentially, the diagram shows that while I'm just chilling on Facebook or here on Blogger.com in my room, a lot of things are going on behind the scenes.  From my laptop the Ethernet cable carries data through the wall port to Prassel's Data Closet with its own access point.  From here, the data travels all the way up campus to the Ruth Taylor Fine Arts Center then to the Internet... in a split second!  It really makes me appreciate modern technology! 

Trinity Mystery Spot

Of course this image is one that many, hopefully most, here at Trinity would recognize; however, in a valiant attempt to save the world from poor recycling habits, I modified the photo a bit.  I chose this location because it is somewhere that I spend a lot of my time, but whose resources are often unused and undervalued with the technology era.  Using Picnik, I adjusted my original photograph by sharpening the image, adjusting the lighting and adding a warm tone to arouse an overall... affection, of sorts, for the picture.  Likewise, I rotated and cropped the photo to express a more unorthodox perspective of the very commonly seen subject.  Finally, I added a frame that resembled a Polaroid and added some sketch-like drawings around the bottom to overemphasize the message.  I had a bad experience with GreenPeace, so I wouldn't necessarily consider myself your average "Tree Hugger" but I did enjoy this project and I encourage good recycling habits!  Can you figure out where this picture was taken?  Try to figure it out and leave a comment!