Finishing up Project #4

Even though I am on my way to completing this project, and I have learned a lot about writing for a social cause, I have run into many problems regarding the socialgo website that have really been frustrating me. The one aspect that I gained from WRT235 and had the greatest impact on me was the importance of aesthetic appeal in technology-based writing. I have not only learned what the meaning and importance of this is but I have also learned techniques to enhance aesthetic appeal and have gotten several opportunities to apply them to my work. Trying to figure out how to best use the applications of the socialgo website has been extremely frustrating. For some reason no matter what format, layout, or color scheme I use, I never quite get what I picture in my head. After several hours of playing around with the website I got it to look somewhat like what I imagined by applying the URI logo “Think Big” as my background and creating a color scheme to go with it. The design portion of this project has defiantly been the most challenging and frustrating element.

As I come close to finishing this project I can defiantly say I took a lot away from it. I learned the way in which technology-based writing acts as a powerful catalyst for social change, and the way in which to go about creating a social networking site. The aspect of this project that I took the most from was learning how to, and attempting to, write with passion and a strong voice that comes through the text in the hopes to ignites passion in an audience, enough passion to prompt action for change. 

Abolish The Dry Campus Policy

After my initial postings on my website, "Abolish The URI Dry Campus Plan," I began brainstorming ideas for my blog posts and discussion fourm. I had already decided that the purpose of my particular blog would be to persuade people to join my cause, rather then to explain or inform. So my blog posts are based more like arguments for the elimination of the dry campus policy. I wrote each blog with one main point regaurding my opinon on my cause. I also used the sources I had already found on my subject to gather facts that supported my point of view. Although my blog posts are more argumentative and persuasive, I still tried to write in a tone that woudl spark passion and possibly action in my readers.
One theme that is consistent throughout everything I wrote for my website is the fact that the only way we will see any sort of change is if we, as a student body, unite, make our opinions heard, and take action.
Throughout the writing process for this project I realized the significane of the way in which my voice came through my writing. Taking this course has taught me a lot about technology-based writing, and during this proejct I really got to apply the techiniques I have picked up during this class. This project really made me concentrate on writing in a way that would not only catch someones eye, but I was forced to try to write in a way that would actually ignite action, which was a lot tougher than I thought it woule be. I went through many revisions of my posts before I felt that they portrayed the right amount of passion to reach my readers.

Social Networking

When project #4, social networking, was assigned I had a feeling that it would be the toughest project yet. To be honest I was a little intimidated and nervous at the thought of not only creating my own website, but one that reveloved around enacting social change. It sounded like a lot of hard work and unfamilar material, and because I was unable to join a group I had to dive into this project on my own.
First I chose an issue that I not only believed in, but one that I felt I coudl really pour my writing into and relate to a local level, and the cause I settled on was to abolish the dry campus policy here at URI. I chose this topic because obvisouly it pertained to me personally, being a 21 year old and living on a dry campus, but also because I have actually spent time previous to this project disscussing this injustice with some of my friends and fell really strongly about it.
Next I attempted to explore the socialgo website. At first I thought I had a good grip on how to use it, but during the process of creating my website, I found out that I was very wrong. The first trouble I ran into was simply just trying to figure out how to best format my website. Before I even began composing text for  the website, I found myself extremely frustrated with this project, especially because I didn't have a group to navigate with. After a lab session in class I began to get a better feel for how to use the website, and I finally began writing.
I first created a mission statement and a welcome note to all of my potential members. I really tried to write with a lot of passion to grab the attention of my audience and keep thier intrest in my cause. I then write an "about me" blurb in order to make my profile more relatable to those who might read it.

Website redesign- creating a new website

After the maps were finished myself and my group turned our focus to the changes in aesthetic design and content that we felt were needed to improve our website. The first aspect of the Farsnworth Cafe website that jumped out at us was the over all theme including the color scheme, alignment, and other various poor design elements, so we started with the home page. The original site had a kind of patriotic theme with a white background, black text, and generally boring presentation that did not reflect the actual establishment in the least. After brainstorming for a little, as a group we decided that a more contemporary theme for the website with natural and soft colors would not only make the website reflect the atmosphere of this cafe, but would also be much more eye-catching and attention holding for the audience. We also completely rearranged the alignment of the text on the website by incorporating a sidebar and placing the text in a more visually appealing way. We also played around with different fonts and font sizes to highlight things like important information.
The next step we of this project that we focused on was the content. There were several pages that included text that was either irrelevant or just actually false. For example, the original menu on this site was not up to date and actually displayed things that the cafe no longer offered. Since Rachel has been to this cafe we were able to eliminate text in this section to accurately show what exactly people could find at this cafe. We made a few other small content changes to enhance the appeal of the cafe in the hopes of being able to draw in a larger audience.
Once we as a group were satisfied with our final product we drafted a proposal that explained all of the changes we made and why we felt they were an improvement on the original website. I admit that more often than not I don't really have good experiences with group projects. The main reason for this is simply that I prefer to work alone, but also because there is always that chance that every group member wont contribute equally, but that was not the case with this project. Not only did we all contribute to the final product, but we also just got along really well. We were able to openly discuses our opinions about the re-design process and incorporate each member's ideas without any conflict. I truly had a good time working with this group and I think our final product reflects what we have all learned about technology based writing.

website redesign-getting the project underway

After my group members, rachel and victoria, and I decided to do a power point presentation instead of the google site templates to display our redesign of the Farnsworth Cafe website we then talked about how to split up the work. I offered to draw up the original and post map of the website links. We all agreed that there were to completely unnecessary links, "Farnswoth Video" and "View All Jobs," both of which had nothing to do with actual cafe and would deter the audience's attention away from the intended point of the website, to advertise and inform about the establishment. While we were exploring the original website we noticed that the various links didn't connect to one another or even back to the homepage which made the site more difficult and time consuming to navigate, so we decided for our redesign we incorporate a sidebar that made all of the pages on the website link to one another. When I was drafting the two maps I began to realize just how important tools like a sidebar can be. I defiantly think that our choice to have all of the pages link to one another as well as back to the home page was a great improvement to the site.

Creating the first map proved to be quite easy because there were so few links that I needed to display in the presentation, the post re-design map didn't turn out to be quite as simple. I used the power point application on my mac to draft both of the maps using the example given by my professor as the guideline. While I was making the second map I found myself having to stop and start over several times to make sure I was making all of the correct links visible and understandable to the viewer. In the end I found a way to show all of the pages and how they link back to each other and the home page in a way that made sense and was visually easy to follow. 

website redesign

When this project was first assigned I was actually excited about it. I thought that after the previous three projects I had learned enough about online writing styles and website design to at least get a good jump start. Upon the very first meeting with my group, Rachel had already had an option for a website that was in great need of redesign, and since the website was for an establishment that Rachel has been to before we figured it was a good choice. So we all agreed upon redesigning the website for Farnsworth Cafe. We spent a good portion of a first meeting exploring this poorly done website and brainstorming ideas for how to improve it. The first thing we noticed were the questionable design elements. The color scheme, alignment, and overall theme of the website were not only boring to look at, but could actually be quite confusing to perspective audiences because it gave a completely false impression of what the cafe was and had to offer.
The next problem we noticed during the process of mapping the original websites links. The original Farnsworth cafe website had both confusing and unnecessary links. We first decided to eliminate the links "Farnsworth Video," and "View Jobs" links because they had absolutely nothing to do with the actual cafe and would be very confusing to the audience. Next we decided to have each and every link on the website not only link back to the homepage, but also link to each other by using a sidebar.
The next task we set for ourselves was to brainstorm ideas for the new look of our website, as well as content changes we wanted to make to sections such as the menu. The only problem was we could not figure out how to work with the google templates for the life of us. After speaking with our professor we decided to do a power point presentation instead.

3 potential entries for WIkitravel

As I have stated before I plan to do my Wikitravel project on my hometown, South Orange NJ. As there is already a page for this town, I am going to add entries to enhance this page.
One entry I plan to add to is the "Eat" section. There are quite a few restaurants, delis, etc. that have not been listed on this site. There are also a few new eating establishments that are important for the readers to know about. I am going to add the information for the various traditional New Jersey diners: Texas Wiener, and The Village Diner, and the new eating establishments: Tratoria, and Eden's Gourmet.
Another entry I plan to add to is the "Do" section. Although the basic information for the South Orange Performing Arts  Center (SOPAC) is listed, there is no information as to what exactly there is to do at this establishment.
One more entry I am going to do is list the local bars that South Orange offers. There is currently nothing under the "Drink" section of this page, but there are at least two bars I can think of in South Orange.  

Wikittravel: Style

While reading through the assigned Wikitravel pages, I got a lot of useful information. As I stated in my first post for this project, one challenge I think I am personally going to run into is the way in which I write and how I am going to work to change it to fit Wikitravel writing.
Three tips I gathered from the readings:
 1) Wikitravel writing is NOT blog writing
When writing for Wikitravel it is obvious that the writing must be informative, as it is an informative site. But the writer must not incorporate personal opinions or bias of any aspect of the particular location. for example, if I post about a certain restaurant in my town that I don't personally like, I cant write " I have been there and the food sucks." Posts for a personal blog, like out last project, leaves room for as many opinions and descriptions we want. Also writing for a blog is like writing how you would talk. Writing for wikitravel, although it should be somewhat conversational, is primarily for truthful information about the particular location.
2) Format of a Wikitravel page should be to the point
To be as simple as possible, don't go overboard! I am focusing my project on a town(small city) just out side of New York City. Even though there is a lot to do around my town, it is important to keep the readers focus on information relating to this particular town. After reading though the templates I notced that a lot of things I would have included are not needed. For example, if I were to write about the newly built entertainment building in South Orange, I should include only the useful information like address and contact info. and a short description of what is offered there.
3)Wikitravel is a travel guide NOT a brochure
Although it may seem like we are supposed to talk up our locations, Wikitravel is not a site where people go to discover the best place to visit. Wikitravel is more of a site that offers all the information one would need after already deciding to visit a location. Do not write as though you are trying to convince people to come visit, but write as though you are very knowledgeable of this particular place and that WIkitravel readers should trust what it is that you wrote.

Getting to know wikitravel

When this project was first assigned, I immediately decided to base my topic on my hometown, South Orange, NJ. I chose this because I knew that having lived there for 18 years of my life I could offer a great insider perspective for any reader looking to visit my town. 

Originally I thought that this project would be more like advertising for people to come to my town, but after listening to my professor and exploring Wikirtavel I realized that is exactly the opposite of what I am supposed to do. After this realization, I knew that this project would not be as easy as I thought. It would be extremely easy for me to just talk my town up, since I know it like the back of my hand, but I am learning that Wikitravel is more informative rather than an advertisement.  

Another challenge I predict that I will run into is accommodating my style of writing to fit that of Wikitravel. I am a very descriptive and lengthy writer, and the information posted on Wikitravel is actually simple, short, and to the point. I am glad that I understand this from the beginning and now I will be able to go through this project with the right mind set of what I am supposed to do.

During my exploration of Wikitravel I found that there is already a page for South Orange, and that I will have to add information rather than create an original page. While reading through this page, without much thought, i noticed several areas that need work along with a lot of information that was simply missing. Just from a first glance I plan to add restaurants, shopping areas, methods of transportation, as well as other "things to do" to the South Orange page. 

Post-Write and Reflection for Project #1

I know that I have stated in a number of posts for process blog, that I am not at all computer savvy, and completely new to the world of blogs. In fact, I don't think that I have ever even read a blog before this course. So its no surprise to say that this particular project has been a struggle.
In the first stages of this project our professor told us to explore the world of blogging. After looking though blogger.com and reading a few blogs in class I thought I had at least a beginners grasp on this whole blogging thing. Oh boy was I wrong. I quickly realized that the research I had done on blogging, which I thought was adequate, was in fact no where near close enough to the amount that needed to be done. I do admit that I did not put the amount of effort into learning about and understanding blogs in the beginning stages of this project, and after a talk with my professor during class I was forced to come to the conclusion that I was far behind the majority of my classmates. So that day when I got home from class, I sat down on my computer, which is mainly only used for writing papers and facebook, and I explored blogger.com until I positive that I had a grasp on every little aspect that I could manage to find and understand.
At this point I began to feel more confident in my technology skills and began to truly immerse myself in my blog, Hops To It. I discussed in a previous post on my process blog the way by which I came to settle on a blog about beer. At first I though that it was kind of a little weird to dedicate an entire blog to beer, but after writing my first post I realized that, although it can be considered an odd subject, I really did like writing about it and chose to stick with it. After each and every class meeting, my understanding of blogging grew, and after each blog entry I became more comfortable and confident with my blogging skills. Finally after some rough patches concerning aesthetic design, I can honestly say that I am proud of my blog thus far.
Looking to the future, I am excited. I am excited to take what I have learned so far and continue blogging and building upon my new found skills with technology. During the reflection part of my blogging process, I came up with a few ideas that I think are sure to improve my blog and further my technology based education. In my opinion, one of my weaker points of my blog is the aesthetic design. Even though, as I have previously stated, I am light years ahead of where I was before this course on blogs, I still feel as though my aesthetic design leaves room for improvement. As the semester continues I plan on exploring the aesthetic aspects of blogs a lot deeper. I am going to take what I have learned from this project, suggestions from my peers both classmates and friends, and also do some more research and hopefully I will be able to mold my blog into the blog I can picture in my mind. I also have a few plans for future posts. I want to incorporate another one of my passions, sociology, into my clubhouse blog. Being a sociology major, and having an immense amount of love for the subject I want to create at least one post on the social construction of a college campus and the roll beer plays.
Overall this has been a stressful, yet amazing learning process for me. I always considered myself as someone who was horrible with computers and technology, but I can honestly say I have my foot in the door and can't wait to continue my technology based education.

My favorite post from my clubhouse blog

While finishing up the last touches to my clubhouse blog and reading through all of my posts, I found myself asking the question: which post is my personal favorite? Sitting there and thinking, I realized how hard this question was to answer, mainly because this entire blog is devoted to a subject I love and am passionate about, so how was i supposed to choose a favorite? After analyzing each and every post I created, I noticed that although I am proud of every single one, the posts I truly think came out the best were the ones with the most personality. Anyone can sit at their computer and spit out facts and information, attained through research or personal experience, but the posts that seem to come out the best are the ones where the writer's voice jumps out of the text and into the reader's ears. The posts where the reader can really can not only gain an understanding of a particular subject, but ones that display an individual's personality through a medium as difficult as the internet.
Which is why my favorite post is my post about my love for Yuengling. I consider myself an decent writer, as it is one of my majors, but I have always noticed that my greatest strength in the world of writing is my voice. I have an ability to compose pieces in which my reader's can literally hear my inner voice as they scroll through my text. Writing happens to be one of my passions in life, so when I do write, I write from the heart and I think that my post on Yuengling best represents that aspect of my writing.
This post was not only my first post, but also the post in which I didn't really have to think, I just wrote. Throughout my extremely short writing career I have always known that writing about subjects I not only know well, but love never fail to produce some of my best work. I didn't have to "pretend" while writing this post, and I think that is the reason why my voice shines through in this most more than my others. I feel as through this post was the strongest in providing my readers with the means to relate and connect with me because my inner voice shines through the text on the screen.

Thoughts for new posts

The other day while reading through the posts of my clubhouse blog, I realized that there was something missing. In my description and my About Me I promised my readers some posts that reflect on my actual experiences relating to beer. Although the majority of my posts are personal and the content is primarily derived from my own knowledge, I composed them in a more formal format than I originally intended. So in an attempt to make my blog more about my actual life I created a post revolving around an actual conversation about beer that I had with my close friends the previous night. The post re-created a debate I had with my friends about our favorite ways to consume our favorite drink. By incorporating this post I feel as though my readers will not only get to know me on a deeper level, but also get to be introduced to my friends, and fellow beer lovers, who are such a huge part of my passion for beer and my daily life. I included direct quotes from that night as well as thoughts and opinions myself and my friends had about this particular subject. I really think my readers will appreciate the inside look into my daily life and I think this post defiantly added more personality to my clubhouse blog.

Keeping up the posts

My most recent post on my clubhouse blog was simply about a discussion I had with my friends last night relating to my topic, beer. While composing this particular post I realized that I really like writing about my personal experiences and sharing them with my readers. I feel as though this post not only helps my readers understand me as a person, but also lets them into my life and relationships with my friends while staying on the main focus of my blog. I really love being able to integrate my daily conversations and experiences I have into my blog.
Every time I create a post on my clubhouse blog, I try to enhance my understanding of blogs and further my technology based learning by constantly exploring blogger.com and various aspects. Today I discovered how to incorporate pictures into my posts. I spent a good amount of time experimenting with different pictures and how the best format to use in order to enhance the visual appeal of my blog. One thing I noticed was that pictures not only add to the aesthetic appeal of my blog, but also provide my readers with visual aid that may help them understand the text of my posts. For example, I posted a picture of a beer ball next to text in which I was attempting to describe what a ball is. Another thing I learned from my discovery of how to post pictures was that they can also be a way for my readers to get to know me and relate to my blog. I posted a picture of myself holding my favorite beer in a post discussing my love for this particular brand. I feel as though this picture adds a great deal of personality to my blog, which I think my readers will really appreciate!

Workshop- Super Helpful

Today in class we had our first major peer review workshop, and I could not be more thankful. As I have stated in several posts, I am very new to this whole technology based learning and have very little previous experience with blogging, so I was excited to hear constructive criticism and receive feedback from my classmates.
During the workshop I was able to not only receive feedback, but give it which really helped me further my understanding of blogs and how they should be organized. By critiquing my peer's blogs i was able to look at the blogs from an objective viewpoint. What drew me in? What kept me interested? And what would I have wanted to see more of? By participating in this workshop I feel as though I will be able to take the advice I gave my classmates and work in into my future posts.
I found that the suggestions I got from my peer reviewers will help me a lot in continuing the process of creating my clubhouse blog. One weakness of my blog that was brought to my attention from my classmates was that, although my aesthetic appeal was on point, my blog lacked any visual aids. After talking with my classmate, she helped me come up with a few great ideas for pictures that would make my posts more eye-catching and interesting, as well as a better layout to emphasize my visual aesthetics.
Overall, this workshop helped me more than I originally thought it would. It not only allowed me to recieve feedback, but also forced me to engage in the process of blogging deeper by looking at other blogs from a reader's point of view.

Getting the hang of this blogging thing, Finally!!

So after out last class meeting and talking with my professor and peers, I am finally starting to not only understand hoe blogs work, but I am actually beginning to enjoy it! As i have said in previous posts I am not very savvy with computers, and blogging was a whole new and challenging realm of the technology world that I have had to tackle. I consider myself to be a decent writer, but I am coming to the realization that blogging is a type of writing that entails several different aspects. After posting my first few posts on beer, i realized that not only was my blog not aesthetically appealing, but that they didn't really engage my readers or have enough personality to them. So i went back and revised my posts, and ended up with, in my opinion, a much better blog.
I still have a lot of work to do, especially in making my blog more personable, but I think I'm on my way to creating a great, informative and engaging blog for my fellow beer enthusiasts.

Slow, but Exciting Start to Clubhouse Blog

When trying to create my clubhouse blog I ran into quite a few challenges. My first problem was simply what in the world was i supposed to focus the blog on?? I had this same problem in my other writing class, research writing. In this particular course, the entire semester revolves around an in depth research project in which we are supposed to investigate and report on a subject that we are passionate about. After a week of failed brain storming sessions my professor sat me down and asked me what my interests were. After i told her i really have idea, she asked me what I do in my spare time, and I said I mostly just like to hang out with my friends. After about an hour more of just conversation, we came to the conclusion that since I like to be social, i should base my paper on the social scene at URI through a sociological perspective, since that happens to be my major. 

I went through a very similar process when trying to come up with an idea for my enthusiast blog. While sitting in class I was talking to my friend, Amy Levinson. She new exactly what she wanted to base her blog on, her major and passion, fashion. Coming up with an idea for my blog was a little more difficult. As i have previously explained I really dont have too many interests that I am particularly passionate about. Within my group of friends, there is a sort of on going joke about my love for beer. Amy said I should just do my blog on beer, and as much as I wanted to do that, I wasnt sure if that subject would fit the criteria for this class. Still stumped about what my topic should be, I went to my professor for some help. He simply asked me if you could do anything this weekend, what would it be? I told him what I told my other professor, I mainly just like to hang out with my friends and drink a few beers. My professor then said, do you blog on beer.

I can honestly say that I have never been as excited to do an assignment, as I am to write this blog on beer. Although I do love beer, my love for this beverage is not solely based on my love to consume it. Being born into an Irish family my father, grandfather, and cousins are all avid beer drinkers, so I grew up having family BBQs that included kegs, beer bong, flip cup, and various discussions and debates in which everyone in my family would argue which beer was the best. I cant remember a Friday evening without seeing my dad sitting at the dinner table drinking a bottle on Yuengling, which has become my favorite beer as an adult, and the beer brand I plan to focus at least one of my posts on through out the semester. 

But before I was able to start research and begin the blogging process i needed to come up with a fitting anme for my blog. So last Friday night, while drinking a few beers with my friends, we had a brainstorming session about the perfect name for my blog. After several ideas were bound around, I finally came up the name that is a play on words, "Hops To It." Hops is the ingredient with which most beers world wide are flavored with. Hops adds bitterness and and acts as a preservative. 

Now that i have chosen a topic I am passionate about, and one I already have plenty of previous knowledge on, and a great name for my blog, I am ready and excited to being blogging. 

Wurman reading Response

Wurman presents an interesting and eye-opening philosophy on the process of learning and what it means to succeed in today’s society. He speaks of his “ignorance” in a positive way and a type of launching pad for retaining new information and furthering his education. One of my favorite lines in this article, “…the key to making things understandable is to understand what it's like not to understand,” really resonated with me because it made me think about my own ignorance and how that ignorance is in fact just more room to fill with new knowledge rather than trait that should be hidden from society.

Wurman’s description of aesthetic seductions in relation to writing and the outpour of information to the general public sheds light on the fact that people seem to be less concerned with understanding information, whether it be vital or trivial, and more preoccupied with elements that initially attract them.  We as human beings are drawn to what appeals to us aesthetically, which is why Wurman points out that most graphic designers are taught more about how to make things “look good,” rather than presenting information in a way that any person in the general public would be able to not only understand, but be able to process that information and apply it to everyday life. 

Overall I really enjoyed this article. Wurman presents a simple yet useful philosophy of understanding information by being able to admit what it is that you don’t know, asking questions and attaining the answers you need to learn and in the end succeed. This article made me think about the endless amount of knowledge floating around in our world and how all that I don’t know, “my ignorance,” is actually the basis of my abilty to truly understand the information I need to learn, succeed, and survive. 

Jump Start on Technology Based Learning

After exploring blogger.com I feel a little more comfortable with the blogging process. To be honest, I have never even read blogs online, let alone created my own. In fact, i have very little experience with computers in general. Over the summer i took my first online class and spent most of the course attempting to navigate  Sakai. After  a few meetings with my professor and several hours familiarizing myself with technology based learning i feel as though i have my foot in the technology door. Even though I am not as naive with technology based learning as I was before completing my summer course, I will be the first to admit that I have a lot more to learn in order to succeed in this class.
I decided to name my process blog "Katie Bo Process Blog" because Katie Bo is my nick name and I felt as though it would give my process blog more personality. I wanted my readers to to get a little piece of me directly in the title. While creating my process and enthusiast blog my first challenge was to make my blog appealing to the carious readers that may come across them. It took me a while to understand the process by which to enhance the aesthetic appeal of my blogs. During this course so far one thing I have learned is that aesthetic appeal is extremely important. If I want people to not only read my posts, but remain interested in my topic, my blogs need to be visually attractive. I chose a comb nature-like background for my process blog because, again I feel as though it fits my personality and will create a stronger understanding between myself and my readers.