Digital Storytelling

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Digital storytelling could be used effectively in Public Relations pitch presentations. When a practitioner delivers a pitch presentation they are selling their services to a person, corporation, or client. During this pitch presentation practitioners are taught to use visuals that will attract attention and form a sense of familiarity between presenter and client. With videos like the ones created on Animoto.com, practitioners could create video slide shows to create a story about a plan of action they find appropriate for their client's situation. I find digital storytelling as a tool that can create a sense of comfort during a pitch presentation, which is what practitioners are looking for and rarely find.

The Power of Photoshop

Photoshop is a computer program that is taking the computer world by storm. Its popularity is off the charts due to its diverse and complex functions. Photoshop is used for a cornucopia of things: Photograph manipulation 
painting, virtual drawing, 
graphic design, illustrations, page layout, 
typography, 
animation cells, sprites, gif. animations, 
web images etc.


Photoshop's design allows the user to use several tools on several layers of an image to create an extraordinary finished product. Tools such as the magic lasso, magic eraser, and eyedropper are complex tools that can be used for the simplest of changes. Here is a list of tools used in Photoshop. The list provides a brief explanation of each tool.


In today's age of social networking Web sites, photoshop has become an everyday tool used to enhance people's Web page. With vast amounts of Facebook and Twitter users viewing pictures on other's profiles, users have gone as far as changing their body structure by using Photoshop tools to impress their page visitors. In this video we are given instructions on how to use certain Photoshop tools: 



As a public relations major I have come across mentions of Photoshop but never really used the program to its full potential. After using and understanding the tools provided by the program I was truly able to understand and appreciate the power of photo enhancement provided by the Photoshop. Many public relations campaigns have completely revamped corporation's images (figuratively and literally). With Photoshop practitioners are able to create company logos, enhance images, and create Web compatible photos. The current state and future of Public Relations lies in the hands of programs such as Photoshop.

Media and Information Literacy

According to the EME Web site, visual literacy is the ability to interpret, negotiate, and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image. Visual literacy is based on the idea that pictures can be “read” and that meaning can be communicated through a process of reading.

According to the link we were presented in class (http://museumca.org/picturethis/visual.html), visual literacy is defined as the ability to understand communications composed of visual images as well as being able to use visual imagery to communicate to others. Students (humans) become visually literate by the practice of visual encoding (expressing their thoughts and ideas in visual form) and visual decoding (translating and understanding the meaning of visual imagery).

Through the process of encoding and decoding images we are able to make sense out of and attach meaning to inanimate images. For example a sequence of circles could trigger the idea of a super store (Target) in some people, and it could remind others of hunting (an actual target used to practice). It all depends on each individual's process of encoding and decoding. There are many universal signs that trigger universal responses among humans. We see that in a video posted on the EME Web site. This is how why the term "literacy" is used.

In the field of public relations understanding how visual literacy works and the power of it is essential. As a public relations practitioner you must disseminate messages and make them suitable for your target publics. If a practitioner were to use a symbol similar to one that could be taken as offensive, he or she has a problem. The target public decodes the messages that were encoded by the PR practitioner, so when choosing how to present certain messages through images, one must be very careful.

In the following video, we see how a group of images placed in different orders can completely alter the audience's opinion of what the images mean.

Creative Commons Licensing

Here is a great video educating Youtube watchers about Creative Commons Licensing. Check it out!

Concept Map

Here is MyWebInspiration creation: http://mywebspiration.com/view/563002a17213

Week 3: A New Generation of Learners & Education

           The reading assigned in class, “Web 2.0: A New Generation of Learners and Education,” was an interesting and relevant read. The reading highlighted the numerous benefits and changes that have come about from the fusion of technology and education.

            The section “Web 2.0 Students” illuminated the creation of a culture that my generation has adapted to with ease and acceptance. The article opens with an introduction to the different names often applied to today’s generation of learners.

           

            “The term Web 2.0 students, along with other terms, such as the Net

            Generation and Digital Natives, is a popular catch phrase often thrown out.

            These terms identify a new generation of individuals who are comfortable,

almost natural, at using digital technologies.”

            The article then illuminates the saturation of our lifestyle with technology. We, as learners, welcome technology in our learning endeavors with open arms because of the convenience and effectiveness it brings to the table. The reading contained some interesting and relevant facts about technology’s role in our society of Net Geners.

They are presented as follows:

            This generation is unique in that it is the first to grow up with digital

            and cyber technologies. Not only are Net Geners acculturated to the

            use of technology, they are saturated with it. By the time he or she

            has reached 21 years of age, the average NetGener will have spent

            • 10,000 hours playing video games,

            • 200,000 e-mails,

            • 20,000 hours watching TV,

            • 10,000 hours on cell phones, and

            • under 5,000 hours reading (Bonamici et al., 2005).

            When I first read over these facts, I had to go back and read them several more times. I immediately questioned what my life had come to because I have certainly contributed to those facts on a daily, if not hourly, basis. Although at first I was taken back and embarrassed at the amount of time and trust I put into the use of technology, I was quickly reminded later in the reading that the enhancement of learning provided by technology is a great, and a bad thing. When I am in the professional world of attorneys I will be dealing with clients and fellow attorneys on a daily basis. Being a “Net Gener” will allow me to adapt and take advantage of the opportunities and conveniences that technology has provided and will provide in the future.
           
             This video explains the evolution of our society into a new generation of learners. Professor Don Tapscott explains the shift to the digital age through a synopsis of the trends of America. From the generation of baby boomers to the growing digital baby we have created (the Internet), Professor Tapscott covers it all.

Week 2: The power of a search engine: Web 2.0

      The Youtube video we were presented in class, Web 2.0, simply put, was an eye opener. More than 2 million people have seen this revolutionary video. There were many statistics and facts that would get the average American butterflies and goose bumps. Some of the facts and statistics presented were as follows:

• Many of today’s college majors didn’t exist 10 years ago. It took the radio thirty-eight years to reach a market audience of fifty million.
• It took the television thirteen years to reach a market audience of 50 million; it took the Internet just four years.
• One out of eight couples in the United States met online.
• More than 2.7 billion searches were performed on Google in a month. To whom were those questions directed before Google?

     The Internet has the power to educate billions, in days. The fact/statistic about Google searches and the question that followed was, to me, the most powerful fact/statistic presented in Web 2.0.

Without Google and the Internet, where would we find the answers to our questions? Being a young college student I use Google daily for educational purposes. What the amazing thing is, is that friends, my classmates, and me use Google as a casual fact finding service several times a day. I never realized this until Web 2.0 presented the facts about the educational power of the Internet.

With the Internet continuously growing at a ridiculous rate, Web 2.0 has evolved into Web 4.0. Check out the new video and think about 10 years from now. Think about how ridiculous the educational power of the Internet can/will be.