Advice for future classes

If I could give one piece of advice to future classes I would say that the key to success in computer skills is attendance! Mrs. Belisle is a wonderful instructor who teaches the matieral in a way that's easy to understand and gives plenty of individual attention. However, each class covers a lot of ground and if you aren't there to learn with the teacher and the rest of the class it can be very hard to catch up!

Student Websites

I really enjoyed and was impressed by all of the websites made by students in our class. My favorites were sites that had lots of personal flair and originality. Two perfect examples of such sites are Emmalee Bannon and Demi Keith's sites. I liked Emmalee's a lot because it addressed a cause I can tell is very important to her and had really compelling images and information. The design was also sleek and professional, which was appropriate for the subject matter. Demi's site was about herself and her artwork, so it featured a really colorful, fun, artistic design that fit her subject perfectly. I loved the rich designs and the way the artwork and photos blended so nicely with the overall design. If you'd like to visit my site, you can find it by going to www.cs.trinity.edu/~agabbert
Hope you enjoy!

The Importance of HTML

Even though there are many sophisticaed programs available today that assits in creating websites and designs, it is highly important for professional web-designers to know and be proficient in using HTML. For starters, in order to be qualified as an expert in the field of web-design it is neccessary to understand the root of "computer language" and how it is used in newer, more sophisticed programs. Additionally, by knowing HTML web-designers are free from the worry of a system failure or change in software when they create sites because they have a strong enough foundation to continue in their work if the program fails or to quickly adapt to new technology. In fact, by knowing and understanding HTML web-designers may even be able to add elements to their pages that are not made availble with traditional web-designing software. All in all, knowing and understanding HTML can be a huge asset to a web-designer and would certainly allow for him or her to secure a job before someone not capable of using HTML and ensure that they would be a highly valued member of any company.

Student Powerpoint Presentations

I really loved all the student powerpoint presentations given by the class, however two of them stood out above the rest for me. I enjoyed Emmalee Bannon and Demi Keith's presentations most of all because they integrated a unique and aesthetic design, relevant music, compelling photos/graphics, well prepared narration, and most importantly a smooth, easy to understand story line that caught my attention. The story of Tanta Carhutha is surely something I would never come across in my own life or field of study but I found it to be captivating and entertaining. I could really see through Emmalee's presentation her dedication to Anthropology. Similarly, in Demi's presentation on Medusa, I felt a great interest in the subject at hand because the story format of the show really drew me in. I also enjoyed how each of the two mentioned slide shows featured little-known facts that demonstrated in-depth research but kept the information limited to useful and easy-to-comprehend material that could be accessed by viewers who knew little about the subject beforehand.

Chris Nolan's Web Advice

I learned some really cool and interesting things about search engines and websites during the talk given by Chris Nolan. Some of my favorite aspects included the way you can narrow your search using google advance, I had no idea you could set so many search constraints to your choosing! I also enjoyed how we learned to set those constraints without even clicking advanced search. I was initially unfamiliar with the "I'm feeling lucky" button and the cache link beneath most search results, I'm glad I understand now what they're for so I can take advantage of what they have to offer. Another cool topic we learned about in class was google scholar, which is something I had heard of but had no idea how to use it or how it worked. I can now see how google can actually be a useful tool in an academic setting- which I had never considered before- and plan on using it's resources in the future. Who would have thought you could find a research paper from Princeton on google! Overall I feel very informed now about ways to find accurate information online and better prepared to use the Internet and search engines as tools to help me with my academic career.

Powerpoint Pointers

The articles we read about the effective way to create a powerpoint presentation really made it easy to look at powerpoints from the perspective of the audience. Some of the information, such as too much information being boring and distracting, seemed obvious when the audience was taken into consideration. I think the problem most presenters encounter is that they become so focused on relaying what they want to say that they forget about the best ways to say it. Simplicity, accessibility, and creative design are the main ingredients to a successful presentation. Simplicity in both design and material make the presentation more visually and mentally appealing . Accessibility of the information presented is key to gaining the understanding of the audience and swaying their opinion in favor of the proposal. A creative design is helpful because it attracts the audience to the presentation and maintains hold of their attention, it also gives the subtle hint that if you can do a great job creating a powerpoint presentation your ideas must be worth while! If I had to outline what I feel are the five main attributes of a successful powerpoint presentation they would be as follows:
1. Give only simple, relevant information
2. Use only simple but appealing slide layouts
3. Make a clear argument or statements about the information
4. Avoid distracting or irrelevant information/pictures etc.
5. Create an original and appealing design that will attract an audience

Working with Excel

As an English major I initially found little use in learning how to operate excel. I typicially do not engage in activities such as calculating, or charting, or really even taking any kind of inventory whatsoever- so what need was there for me to ever use a program like excel? What I now have come to realize after learning more about excel and the ways it can actually work to help it's user is that the reasons I thought would prevent me from needing excel are actually the very reasons I should be excited to use it! Since I am not good at doing any type of mathmatical activity, or keeping track of statistics or finances, I can let excel do the work for me by useing formulas and generating charts and graphs at the click of a button. Now that the intimidating fascade has been wiped clear off the spreadsheet, I am ready and willing to explore the uncharted territory (pun intended) where I had never ventured to go before. Thanks excel :)

Photo Editing

O.J. Simpson made a splash when he was arressted for the murder of his wife, Nicole, and since the story made such big news it was natural for big name magazines to include his famous mug shot on their cover. In the comparison between Newsweeks's photo, which was unaltered, and Time's photo, which had been made darker using photoshop, I found no harmful methods employed. Time's magazine headline reads "An American Tragedy" and it is clear to me that the photo included on the cover is an altered one, therefore I doubt readers would actually take the menacing appearence too seriously. Newsweek's, on the other hand, would be less appealing on the shelf because it appears more plain and less interesting. Art is a form which transcends past the canvas an into many forms of modern day media, it seems evident that the rendition of Time magazine's photo was an artistic one and not one meant to harm O.J. Simpson directly. Anyone with the slighest familiarity of mug shots, or any legitimate photo for that matter, would plainly see that photoshop was used to darken Time's image, and if it is clear that it is not meant to represent reality, what's the problem?

The AT&T Tech Center

The AT&T Tech center is something that can be highly beneficial to all students, however I don't think many students are aware of all the resources it provides and therefore it is not used to it's full capacity. The resources at the Tech center include new model computers with updated software, printers and scanners, video conferencing, audio technology, and more. In fact, the center is more like a Kinkos mixed with a high-tech corporate office facility. Many of the resources offered there are ones that even I didn't know about after going on the library tour my freshman year or my use of the library since then. Now that I am better acquainted with the system, which can be a little intimidating at first, I feel much more comfortable with it and happy to use the AT&T center in the future to help me with all kinds of individual and group projects. 

Copyright Information

After the presentation given by Diane Graves on copyrighting I felt well-informed on the subject and much better equipped to handle copyrights within my own work and the work of others. The copyright law, which dates from 1790, is a very complex one that can easily be misunderstood. One common misconception about copyrighted work is that once the author is dead or the piece is out of print that work has entered the public domain. This is not the case. A privately published work (such as a novel) currently holds it's copyright status for the remainder of the author's life plus 70 years. In the case of a corporate-based copyright (such as a Disney character) the copyright stands for 95 years after the date of publication. This exceedingly lengthy amount of time can be attributed to the Sonny Bono Act, better known as the Mickey Mouse Protection Act, which was passed in 1998 and extended the term of any copyrighted material by an additional 20 years. Though this act may have been beneficial to the Disney company and perhaps some other copyrighted material of the day, I feel the legislation was largely ineffective because it limited so many other works from entering public domain. It is rare, as Prof. Graves mentioned, for a work of literature or otherwise to stand the test of time and retain financial value for the full term of it's copyright. Since some of these listed materials could be useful for educational and other purposes, it is a sincere loss to the greater good that they will be hindered in their ability to serve others publicly.

Trinity's Wireless Network

One of my favorite aspects of Trinity's campus is the wireless network. I feel like I have never plugged in a computer in my entire time at Trinity! I enjoy being able to work on projects and homework in different settings, it keeps me from feeling trapped in my room or tied down by my work. Because of the wireless network I'm able to use my computer on my balcony, on the lawn, sitting on my bed, next to the fountain, pretty much anywhere! I feel more comfortable doing work on my own terms, and when I am comfortable I produce better quality results. Trinity not only understands this but is completely accommodating to it and that is something I love about this school.http://www.informationweek.com/news/software/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=6507827 Tells more about how wireless networks help college students perform better.

Computers and Me

Hello all! My name is Ashley Gabbert and I am a sophomore at Trinity. I was born and raised in Dallas, TX and will always consider it my home. I am part of a large family; 2 half brothers, 3 half sisters, two step parents, my parents, and my dog Oatmeal. I am an English major and am double-minoring in music and creative writing. Although I have many academic interests my primary passion is writing poetry. As one might imagine from my background I know very little about computers and am excited to learn more! So far the only programs I have any expirience with are facebook and photoshop. If anyone in class would like to contact me, please email me at agabbert@trinity.edu!