Week 12: Reflections

Week 12, end of the road... Thinking back to the beginning of the semester I recall not knowing what the course was like, and most importantly not knowing whether I would like it. Well, the end result surprised me...

The course was useful for me as a first year student, as an introduction to different aspects of digital media. It was also important in developing an understanding of the necessesity and presence of digital media in any modern media.

The course was succesful in teaching the basics of different formats of digital media, and most importantly creating an interest (at least in me) about digital work in the modern media.

The most important, and enjoyable skill I learned in this class was the Flash Animation. Flash is important in modern media because it allows the ability to create animation for any platforms, in different formats, whether a commercial or a cartoon. I am considering using Flash in my future studies, and work.

Thank You for a great semester!

Week 11: Daft Punk

This is going to be the last post of online discoveries and findings. I was thinking of things I could do for this week's post when I came upon reflecting all the themes we covered in this year's digital media class. We covered design principles, animation, motion, and most interestingly (at least to me) the evolution of the music videos. I set out to find a music video that combines multiple core elements that we covered in class.

One such video is Daft Punk's "Around The World:"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWMM8EmMZ-E

The video successfully combines the contrast and shapes of different colours to deliver it's message. The motion (though not digital) is executed in excellent synchronization with the music. I also find this video, though unvoncentional, works well in delivering the universal message of global culture.

Week 10: Web 2.0

Here are some of the examples I found for each of the characteristics of web 2.0

1. dynamic content, viewable on multiple platforms

http://www.nfl.com/

The site for the National Football League, is perhaps one of the best examples for this particular characteristics. The website alone offers live updates on games, videos, pictures, news stories about every team, and tonns of special content. The advantage here, is that virtually all of those are available for access from your cellphone. Choosing the parameters through your mobile phone you can get updates on your favorite team anywhere.

2. user contribution (user generated content or user generated value)

http://www.youtube.com/

In the modern world of digital media there is no alternatives or comparisons to YouTube. The website is entirely user generated, where you can post anything from your family vacation to a music video you made about your favorite band. The recent adaptation of YouTube for cellphones is a huge plus for the website on its way towards becoming the most visited website on the Web.


3. social media

http://www.meetmeinto.com/

The local website features perhaps one of the largest online communities in Toronto. Users are able to create a unique profile, write on each other's pages, and view pictures from events around the city. One advantage over Facebook? The interactive forums that encourage you to come up with your own threads for any given the theme or topic.

4. online applications

http://www.musicovery.com/

If you have heard of http://www.pandora.com/ a website that builds a playlist based on whether you like one song or the other, meet Musicovery. What's great about it is the fact that the playlist that is generated for you is based on the specifics of your mood, musical era preference, genre, AND whether you like a certain song or not.

5. harnessing collective intelligence

http://www.blogger.com/

If you are reading this, then you know about Blogger. The website allows you to post anything from your philosophical opinions on the state of the world, to jokes you make with your friends. Tagging text and images creates an advantage in letting your blog be known to the rest of the world.