Monthly Archives: November 2022

Potential Audience for the Blog

This post is for Process Post Prompt on October 4th, 2022.

The main audience for my blog is mostly university students and would like to see the progress or changes I have made as a design student. My main platform to publish my online self is YouTube. Because of that, I have some kind of recognition online, but without a solid identity other than a design student. I am currently not writing consistently on the blog. On top of my lack of confidence in writing and lack of time to create my identity on this blog, I fail to connect with my audience. This is because, long story short, I do not make my blog feel like a valuable place for the audience to stop by.

Currently, I am looking for ways that I could make this blog feel more like me and attract an audience that does not include writing. Since it is not my strongest skill, I want to show something that will make me enjoy updating this blog. In other words, I want this place to feel fun and not as if it is an assignment. Even though it has been mentioned multiple times in class, it is hard to know where to start when your world is spinning around a hectic schedule and unstable mental health. I know I will figure it out. I have been thinking about starting a podcast before, so maybe that could be an option. It might work because although I love video editing, I just do not have time right now. I need to prioritize creating an identity first. Plus, it is going to be exciting that I can try something new. I imagine my audience would be informed about my week in the introduction of my podcast. I want the audience to feel like they are learning something from this “conversation”, so my chosen topic of the week will bridge my experience and the lesson from it. Not only that it can help me to express my thoughts about my mental health, but it will also show my valuable side. The side that makes me unique and different from other creators. It seems like I do have a plan, after all, Let’s see how it turns out!

I’m Not Built To Be A Keyboard Warrior

This week in Posiel, we discussed the idea of comment sections, and the different motivations people may have for commenting.  This can range from being an expert on a topic and wanting to share your knowledge, to someone who thinks they know what’s going on and wants to help, but really has no clue, all...

week 12.

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6.

I am using this gif that I found. I tried to find a photo in my camera roll that would make into a gif but nothing appropriate or funny did I find. But, the pig is exactly how I am feeling since school is almost done and it is winter break soon!!!!

(Mini Assignment #6) It is GIF

The post (Mini Assignment #6) It is GIF first appeared on Self Therapy.

Process post: Transmedia Integration

I think one thing I could do to incorporate more transmedia integration into my online publication is to create graphic design imagery, such as adding a short piece of text onto an image or colour block. An example of this is an Instagram post of a graphic I created for Earth Day 2020 as shown here. The type of messaging I would incorporate with these images would revolve around motivation, especially in terms of fitness, and mental and physical health.

Instagram post for Earth Day with a graphic that says "We are the world" on an image of a mountain

Instagram would probably be the main channel I would focus on because posting images is still one of the main things people do on this platform, and I believe that it is a place that is popular among my intended audience.

Although there are many people/accounts, such as @wetheurban shown here, who use Instagram as a platform to post images that carry some type of motivational messages or affirmations, I think this space allows for people to reflect on their health or experiences and hopefully be in a better state after reading the message that came with each post. By contributing to this space, I can hopefully help someone become more motivated, and help them feel better about themselves mentally and physically.

Screenshot of @wetheurban Instagram account

Transmedia Integration- Week 11

Creating a journey for a reader through multiple platforms and keeping them invested by continuously adding more layers to the original topic is the premise of Transmedia Integration. In Kevin Britteny Lauren’s blog (2013) they detail how the internationally famous media franchise Pokémon has withstood the test of time through Transmedia Integration. They quote Henry Jenkins’s breakdown of transmedia storytelling, “a transmedia text does not simply disperse information: it provides a set of roles and goals which readers can assume as they enact aspects of the story through their everyday life” (2013). 

The blog then describes how Pokémon has used transmedia integration through couple of key points. They state that Pokémon has made its content very accessible and that anyone can easily follow along. They also state how Pokémon engrosses viewers by surrounding them with different types of Pokémon content on different platforms and allows them to enact aspects of the story in everyday life. These three aspects, accessibility, storytelling, and real-life application make up the success story of Pokémon and had me thinking about how I could apply this to my own blog. 

The first idea that I thought of was branching onto Instagram and making an archive page. That was the original inspiration for this blog in the first place, so it made me happy to know that I’m able to come full circle. For those who do not know, an archive page is a showcase of aesthetics of all kinds, arranged in a collage type of format. The main difference between the archive page and my blog right now is that it is harder to write as much detail about the piece of art in the Instagram caption. My next idea is to also create art showcasing content on Tiktok. At first, I was a little stumped on how to do this as on Tiktok it is not as simple as finding a cool piece of work and clicking upload, there has to be more to the content for it to be successful on Tiktok. An idea that I then came up with is explaining the background of the artist and how the art was created in a more commentary style of video. I thought of this by thinking about one of my favorite Tiktok content creators known as songpsych. She gives breakdowns of songs, provides background for why a song was created, and teaches fun facts related to music. I think that many people may enjoy this blueprint of content geared toward art instead of music. Those are just two simple ways that I can get started with Transmedia Integration, after I take those first two steps, I hope to continue branching out to even more platforms to fully engage my viewers throughout their lives. 

 
Example using songpsych's video format

References:

Kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com. (2013). “Pokemon as transmedia storytelling“

The post Transmedia Integration- Week 11 first appeared on Astrometrics.

Mini-Assignment #6: Transform Your Live Photos into GIFs

Preface

As part of the class that I am taking which has resulted in the creation of the website you are viewing, I must complete some mini-assignments.

This post is one of those mini-assignments.

The instructions for this mini-assignment were “make a GIF.”

Recalling a GIF From Grade Nine

I am in my fourth year of university now, which means that grade nine was over six years ago, but I distinctly recall a GIF that I made in my grade nine information technology class. 

The GIF was a cartoon character running and unfortunately, I no longer have access to it.

I mention this because it is the only other time I have been required to create a GIF as part of a class.

The GIF I Made Today

GIF is really not a term that comes to mind often. So when I saw the term the first item that came to my mind was Apple’s live photos.

I recognized that these two types of media were very similar and wondered if there was a way to turn a live photo into a GIF, so I googled it and learned that there indeed is! (Here is a link to the resource I used to turn one of my live photos into a GIF).

So, here is the GIF that I ended up making:

My dad and I at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

This GIF was made from a photo of my dad and me at the Seattle Mariner’s first playoff game in Seattle since 2001. 

I really cherish this photo, as one of the ushers at the game saw us and asked us if we wanted him to take a photo for us. It was an excellent example of generosity and the photo itself ended up being really nice.

I will always remember this game and if you want to learn more about my experience at the game, here is a link to a video where I reflect on it.

An Additional Note

It should also be noted that turning your live photos into GIFs certainly does sacrifice quality. However, there is a certain aesthetic to the graininess that makes the GIF appealing to look at.

Understanding Transmedia.

The idea of storytelling across multiple different platforms made me reflect on my website as well as the ones I view in my personal life. 

From my standpoint, creating my website has been a journey. I think it was more difficult than I anticipated. Throughout posting on the blog, I have been unintentionally incorporating different media within the blog. The problematic area within that is I used my platforms rather than creating platforms directly for the blog itself.

For example, in the second mini assignment based on incorporating a video, I strategized making the video using Instagram. I utilized the Instagram platform for editing and creating the video. Still, instead of posting it on that platform and tagging the link to my webpage, I saved them and uploaded it to a private YouTube page for easier viewing. 

Similarly, I followed that same pattern when I created a remix, I used a template I saw from TikTok, created it on Instagram and then uploaded it onto YouTube. From there, the same pattern continues. I made the gif assignment using a gif template app and then downloaded and redirected where I uploaded it.

To incorporate transmedia into my website, I should have been creating a different platform to not only upload the content but also allow other users to use it. 

When I think about the reading of Pókemon as the transmedia storyline, I think about several other platforms that replicate similar processes for storytelling. For example, similar ideas like marvel comics, became movies, shows, action figures, and more. It demonstrates different variations and platforms of the same thing. 

When I was thinking about transmedia on a social media scope, I thought about celebrities. Several celebrities have their websites/blogs, clothing lines or makeup lines, along with their social media platforms. These platforms help promote the celebrity and gain social media attention and awareness.

It’s interesting because prior to completing the reading on transmedia and attending the lecture, I never thought about the scope. Transmedia has a large impact on the delivery and dispersal of information in the media world. Therefore, I believe it is widely important to have multiple platforms to generate awareness.

Conversations with the Age Gap and Transmedia Offline

It’s now the end of November; which means the holidays are fast approaching with families beginning to put up their Christmas trees, people going to the mall to get their Christmas shopping done and Mariah Carey beginning to take over pop radio. I was invited to a work Christmas party last week to attend to this past weekend. A part of me just wanted to stay home, but from sitting at my desk for over 3 days and continuously working on schoolwork, I figured that this would be a good time for me to get out of the house and just escape the realities of life for the night.

The party was mostly of guests that were quite older than me and outside of my age demographic. Luckily I already knew the majority of the guests, but sometimes I find the age gap can be a bit awkward as finding topics for discussion that interests both parties can be quite different; most of the guests are married with children and are quite established in their careers, whereas I am still a young adult student still living at home. Instead, I turned this around into an opportunity where I could network and perhaps just get to know people more on a personal level; similar to what I am already doing with this project.

I think one of my favourite questions that I asked a couple of people during the night was, “what did you decide to do after high school?”, as everyone has a different journey to land the career they did. Some went to post-secondary, some dropped out and some simply chose to pursue something else. In a way, I think their stories will help me gain perspective on how I’m going to direct my life through my 20s and give me direction on what I should do next with my life. As I am approaching the end of my degree within the next few semesters, life is starting to become a question mark once again with another chapter closing and a new one beginning; but I’ve realized that I’m also not alone in feeling this way and some talked about how they felt like they need some change in their life as well as they approach their 50s.

Regarding this week’s process post on transmedia integration, I think the channels that are chosen depend on one’s public and what interests that particular demographic on that platform; quick content or sitting down for a read? I think something such as taking snippets of each of my interviews and making a remix (similar to my video assignment) would work well on a platform such as TikTok/YouTube Shorts/Instagram stories, as this is quick content one can watch and it could transform into sort of like a spin-off to what is already discussed in the interviews; sort of like how YouTuber Thoraya Maronesy does on her social channels:

But to post the entire interview write-up as a post would not be appropriate on Facebook or Instagram. Even though Instagram is visual and media heavy, because my content is more in-depth and not just visuals, I think that viewers on these channels would be quicker at turning away to read the content. These platforms instead could be a place to bait people to read more and re-direct them to the website, in addition to Twitter with a catchy tagline to gain reader interest. On platforms such as Tumblr and Reddit, I’m curious if these platforms would work to share more lengthy transcribed segments, as I find these channels are more text-heavy with posts shared. Perhaps this is something I could integrate in the future…

From an offline perspective, a format such as a book, magazine or zine I think would work well. This could act as more of a coffee table book, where one can pick up and almost be like reading various short stories. As my visuals also add an element to this project, I think that the tactility can also make it more like a photo book. The book “Humans of New York” by Brandon Stanton was a big inspiration for this project. Although I haven’t read the book in the entirety myself, after conducting this project and having done multiple interviews now, I am so much more intrigued to read his work on a medium different from how I’ve done it. Perhaps one day I could transform my project into a book, I think this could also help take out the irony of how “offline” is still being shared online on this website; but perhaps what it this project was offline altogether…

Regarding Various Channels and Media

In this post, I explore how to choose a medium for your message and the importance of using channels to distribute your message to your audience.


Choosing Your Medium

“Types of media”

Upon googling “types of media”, you will discover that definitions and descriptions of types of media that exist in the world vary significantly from source to source.

Just look at this section that was the second item to show up on my google search:

Google search results depicting text that says

People also ask
What are 10 types of media?
What are 4 types of media?
What are the 7 forms of media?
What are the 3 media types?

After reviewing the various types described in these search results, I realized that boxing and organizing types is unnecessary.

Media, after all, is just the plural form of the noun medium which Oxford Languages defines as “an agency or means of doing something.”

After all,

The medium is the message

Marshall McCluhan

In other words, you must craft your own form of media to communicate your message.

Crafting Your Own Form of Media

To craft your own form of media, I recommend you examine three elements, the message itself, yourself as the messenger, and your audience as the recipient.

To review these elements ask questions such as:

  • In what ways could I share this message?
  • How does this message want to be shared?
  • What is the broader purpose of this message I am sending?
  • How have others previously communicated a message like this? Could they have done it better?
  • Are there conventions for messages such as this? Are they ideal?
  • How can I make this message uniquely my own?
  • If I could do anything to share this message how would I share it?
  • What am I capable of doing to communicate this message?
  • How can I compromise between my own ability and my ideal for sending this message?
  • How does the audience want to receive this message?
  • What do I want the audience to do upon receiving this message?
  • How is the audience capable of receiving this message?

After asking questions like these (note that you are most certainly not limited to these or required to answer all of these), choose your medium. Then take action to craft it.

Selecting Channels

What a Channel Is

When I hear the term “channels”, I immediately think of television channels. Although those are most certainly types of channels, the type of channels we are looking at here is broader.

Here, we are going to define channels as paths that we can use to enable our content to reach our audience.

Channels themselves are too media, however, they are different than the form of media described above in that we are going to be using them to direct our audience to our message, whereas previously we were using our medium to direct our message to our audience.

The purpose of channels is reaching our audience so they can connect with our message.

Choosing Channels

To choose channels, we need to answer the question “what is the best way to get our audience to reach our content?”

Sometimes, the best channel is by talking directly to people and asking them to interact with our content. Other times it is best to simply let the content exist and be found by others.

Channels again come down to the sender, the receiver, and the message. Examining these three elements will allow you to choose the best channel for your content.

Media and Channels

To choose your form of media and your form of channel, you need to examine the sender, the audience, and the message.

In examining these items, you will discover a distinct medium you need to create to embody your message and channels you can use to spread your message to your audience.

Communication is an art form. Practicing and iterating on messaging is the best way to improve.

References

McCluhan, M. (1964). The medium is the message. https://web.mit.edu/allanmc/www/mcluhan.mediummessage.pdf

Comments, Questions and Concerns

The concept of a comment section on the Internet is generally a scary and overwhelming place and for good reason. The more that we have been allowed free rein of anonymity on the Internet, the more and more people start to feel free to express some of the more controversial and hateful opinions that they harbour with little empathy for others, as is seen particularly with articles and content created by women. Aubrey Hirsch in particular writes about her experiences in receiving online vitriol for content that she has created, and the ferocity that was in some of those comments was quite honestly horrifying. I knew in my brain that those types of things were being said on the internet, but to see the real screenshots of what people have to say when they are given the appropriate environment was jarring at best.

When I was designing Considering Cardamom, the template I picked out for my site had comments automatically built into the post formats. Initially, that was something of a turn-off for me. The last thing that I wanted was to have to potentially deal with disrespectful comments or people criticizing my content. Furthermore, reading more and more about the backlash that women experience when writing articles was overwhelming even just to think about. I’m not a professional journalist, I am not writing this blog intending to reach the masses and educate them about my opinion. The posts I write are for personal reasons, whether those are for internal reflection or just to have a record of some of the recipes that I’ve learned from my family.

Ultimately, I did decide to leave the comment sections open. Logically, it makes little sense that there would be a large amount of political debate or harassment within my comment sections given the content of my blog. I highly doubt that people are going to be sending me death threats or sexual harassment over my chai recipe. The context of a site is so important to consider, and it put my worries at ease to realize I wasn’t going to be linking my real full name to any highly controversial content. Additionally, while checking out other recipe blogs that I have used in the past, one thing I noted was that most of them had open comment sections. Most of them that had significant activity allowed users who made the recipes to offer suggestions and personal anecdotes that could facilitate new users’ experiences while cooking. I wanted to provide that possibility for a community and figured that I would handle any unrelated comments as they arose.

Works Cited

Becky Gardiner, Mahana Mansfield, Ian Anderson, Josh Holder, Daan Louter and Monica Ulmanu. 2016. “The dark side of Guardian comments

Hirsch, Aubrey. 2022. “That’s How it Works When You’re a Woman on the Internet

PROJECT: Offline — Declan

It Starts With Hello

Taylen’s point of view on how she met this person.

There was a time when I thought that Declan was the more annoying younger sibling, but perhaps I’m realizing now that I think we were both equally annoying to each other; more now I feel sorry for our parents dealing with our shenanigans and making dumb home videos. Over the past couple years, I’ve been thinking about how interesting it has been to see our relationship change from when we were younger. I think that because we are older now and we have both went through our teenage years to learn more about how to deal with life, not that we didn’t talk to each other in our teen years, but I think having that time “allowing “apart” allowed us to appreciate each other and the time that we have to spend together when we can. Even though we currently still live in the same house hold, these last few years of having different schedules and not really seeing each other, it did feel like that we grew apart. In a way, I think that helped our relationship as now I feel that we have grown closer and have a different understanding for one another; and this makes me excited for our relationship in the future into adulthood together.

This or That

You can only choose one…

  • Salty or Sweet
  • Winter or Summer
  • Air Guitar or Air Drums
  • Coffee or Tea
  • Dogs or Cats
  • Sleeping or Eating // That’s a tough one

Five Facts of Fun

What are 5 facts about yourself?

  1. I am an industrial chef.
  2. I like to workout and go to the gym.
  3. I enjoy finance and investing and stocks.
  4. I like listening to music, rap and R&B.
  5. I really like cars.
A portrait of Declan.

Drop a Bop

Pick a song that is the theme song to your life and discuss why.

Fudge, that’s a hard one. I would say “Love Yourz” by J. Cole. It simplifies falling in love with myself, in which that I (in a humble way) want to be able to carry out my everyday life being happy and accepting myself for who I am. But also not pretending to be something else that I’m not; and the song just simplifies that there’s “no such thing as a life that is better than yours”, and using that one main lyric in the chorus, it simplifies that if there was a group of people, no matter their success, I still would probably not trade my life for someone else’s. I find a lot of the time in life, people are upset about where they are, or where they would rather be. But I think, it’s about making the best of where you are and not wishing you were some else, right? So I don’t know, I just think that song “Love Yourz” by J. Cole resembles a lot of my life and how I perceive myself.

Debate Time

What is your perspective on the following question: Is a Hot Dog a sandwich?

Yes, it is a sandwich. My reasoning behind a hot dog being a sandwich is it’s 2 pieces of bread put together with something in the middle. I do not consider a wrap a sandwich, but consider a hot dog a sandwich because I go strictly of what the guidelines say in what a sandwich is. So I bet you if we search up ‘what is a sandwich‘…

“An item item of food consisting of two pieces of bread with meat and cheese…” but the thing is…hmm okay, so the verb sandwich is “[to] squeeze something between 2 things” and the definition of the noun sandwich is “between 2 pieces of bread”.

But the thing is if that the hot dog bun is only 1 piece of bread, it depends. So if you just slide the glizzy in the hot dog at first, it is not a sandwich. But if you had “Chad” handing out the hot dog buns and he rips it apart, then puts it together, then it’s a sandwich. So, it depends. So it’s like the process of production. So if you’re making a smoothie, it’s just fruit, but once you blend it, it’s a smoothie. So it’s a sandwich until Chad breaks the buns apart. So a hot dog can be a sandwich depending on the variables that exist in a certain scenario.

Some Deeper Small Talk

Chosen from a group of questions, the person answered the following question: What’s the most exciting improvement that I’ve been seeing in myself recently?

Probably the biggest improvement that I’ve been seeing in myself is… I’d have to say, my time management skills and my discipline; I’ve been on top of myself about my discipline lately. Simon Fraser University’s wonderful Beedie [business school] program has allowed me to do some really good MANDATORY goal setting on how to improve using my S.M.A.R.T. goals, I don’t know the abbreviation of S.M.A.R.T. cause I forgot, but they made me make one and they really made me implement it into my life. I was just gonna make one up but then I ended up doing it to the best of my ability to help capture the real essence of the improvements in my life. So, yeah I would say I’ve been more disciplined.

The Final Spotlight

If you had the final opportunity to say anything to the world, what would you say?

I would say that life is too short to be stressing about the little things. You need to take one step at a time with anything you do and not be down on yourself on the sense that… I find that a lot of people in life, they mess up something good and search for something better, to only end up with something worse. And to count your blessings, and life is too short to be stressing about the little things, so.

My main message is make the best of where you are.

Goal 7 + 8 – Spending 20 Minutes in Nature Every Day & Working Out 3 Times or More Per Week (Nov 21 –27)

Spending 20 Minutes in Nature Every Day & Working Out 3 Times or More Per Week

November 21 - 28

Introduction

This week I combined 2 of my challenges and attempted to spend 20 minutes in nature every day while working out. I live beside a park, so I regularly go for runs, have picnics, read, and generally chill there during summer. I also love hiking, paddle boarding, and kayaking in all of BC’s beautiful parks when the weather is good. Unfortunately, I stay indoors as much as possible when its rainy and or cold. In fact, I am almost wholly cut off from nature from September – May. I realize this is not ideal for my health, so that is why I decided to go for a daily jog regardless of the weather this week. However, before diving into my experience, I want to highlight some of the perceived benefits of spending time in nature and exercising regularly. 

 

Some of the Benefits of Spending Time In Nature

1. Spending time in nature can help lower your risk of respiratory concerns.

2. Spending time in nature can help improve your sleep.

3. Spending time in nature can help improve your mood.

4. Spending time in nature can help you feel more relaxed and focused. 

5. Spending time in nature can help boost your immune function.

6.Spending time in nature can lower your chance of developing myopia or nearsightedness.

7. Spending time in nature can make you feel happier, more peaceful, and more optimistic.

 

Some of the Benefits of Exercising Regularly

1. Exercise can make you feel happier.

2. Exercise can help with weight loss.

3. Exercise is good for your muscles and bones.

4. Exercise can increase your energy levels.

5. Exercise can reduce your risk of chronic disease.

6. Exercise can help skin health.

7. Exercise can help your brain health and memory.

8. Exercise can help with relaxation and sleep quality.

9. Exercise can reduce pain.

10. Exercise can promote a better sex life.

My Experience 

Unfortunately, I failed to complete this challenge. I was able to go on runs on the days I didn’t have school or work, but on the three days I had to go to school, I didn’t go on any runs. I have classes later in the afternoon, so by the time I am home from school, it is already really dark, and I honestly did not feel safe running alone at night. I also did not wake up early enough to go on runs before my classes. However, I get to spend a little time in nature when I walk to my bus on the days I go to school. So in the future, on days when I come home late, I will count my walk to the bus as my time spent in nature, and I will try to do some other form of cardio indoors instead.

 

Here is an Interesting TEDTalk About the Psychological Effects of Spending Time in Nature

References

Pattemore, C. (2022, August 5). Spending Time In Nature Is Good for You. New Research Explains Why. Healthline. 

https://www.healthline.com/health/health-benefits-of-being-outdoors#emotional-wellness 

 

Semco, A. (2021, December 14). The Top 10 Benefits of Regular Exercise. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-benefits-of-exercise#TOC_TITLE_HDR_8 

Transmedia Integration and Channels

This week’s topic is centered around incorporating more transmedia integration and leveraging various channels for our blog. In Kevin Britteny Lauren’s blog (2013), they reference Henry Jenkins’ definition of transmedia storytelling which describes it as a process by which elements of fiction are disseminated across different media channels to enhance users’ experience.

They go on to quote Jenkins, “a transmedia text does not simply disperse information: it provides a set of roles and goals which readers can assume as they enact aspects of the story through their everyday life” (2013, para. 7).

Regarding YVRchives, I could certainly leverage this to create more accessible content that is disseminated in a more versatile way. The photography medium offers an opportunity to be easily shared on multiple platforms. While social media is the most efficient channel I could tap into, I think a unique form of transmedia would also be beneficial.

For instance, a video game could be a great way to create a story around Vancouver photography that people could easily integrate into their everyday lives. A few ideas I could pursue:

  • Matching the photo to the local artist
  • Vancouver trivia with photography attached to each question
  •  Speed snapshot the local photo

Finally, I could feature a place on my site that centers a virtual photography feed. This would be a dedicated page where my blog audience interacts and engages with the site. People can create their own content, remix other local artists’ work, and even screenshot other virtual content and share it with other users. This would be a great channel for users to access content, and participate with the media.

Furthermore, I’d share all this transmedia on social media channels to garner exposure. I would use hashtags to further disperse this information and integrate it into multiple platforms. This way, I could increase more traffic as well as engagement to my online publication.

References:

Kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com. (2013).Pokemon as transmedia storytelling

Mini Assignment #6: GIF

a pink and blue gif with moving text saying: Welcome to YVRchives!; local artists with cursor hovering over it and "everything photography" moving along the page.

More Media? MORE?

(Week 12)

Hi all!

Right now, What the Cat Said is primarily a written blog. That is, I write things and I post them.

Shocked Pikachu face
It was between this an Owen Wilson going, “Weow.”

However, with POSIEL’s process prompt this week there is a great opportunity to shake things up a bit and figure out ways to incorporate transmedia.

I am sick right now so bare with me and my scattered, feverish thoughts.

All four of Charlie's grandparents lying in bed sick. Yes four.
As sick as Charlie’s grandparents. (Anyone else think it’s weird that Charlie’s grandparents all share one bed? Anyone? Hello?)

Ok, back on topic, to say that I ONLY have written things on my blog is a bit of a lie. A lie because, I have been encouraged through Posiel to post media that is not text, aka my video post, Instances, Objects, and Classes! Oh My! As well as my very polished audio snippet post, Talking about Linked Lists.

Would I incorporate these types of media again? Yeah, I think so.

It makes inherent sense to incorporate videos for computing science concepts because many people learn well visually and by following along with a video coding tutorial you can pause and repeat as needed. I have found that if I don’t understand something from documentation, finding a relevant YouTube video can do wonders in solidifying concepts that I’m iffy with. So, for the future of this blog, I can definitely see myself adding more video tutorials 👍.

As far as audio only media… I think that CS concepts can be lost when handling abstract concepts in an audio only manner. There are so many concepts that just NEED a visual, which is why I added images of linked lists on my linked list audio post. I think if I were to venture into more audio only content it would be in the form of a podcast discussing tech news and easily imaginable computer science concepts.

Otherwise?

It’s hard to think of media that I could or would want to venture into that would fit the overall vision for this blog. Integration with social media seems… weird for a CS blog? I don’t know. I started a twitter account for this blog but have not and frankly will not use it (Elon nonsense aside). Here is my reasoning:

A) I have a sneaky suspicion people who give a hoot about CS are not really on social media, and B) when I am looking up something related to programming or CS I absolutely do not and will not click any link remotely associated to social media.

I need the facts, give me those lines, give me that expertise only a 50-year-old grunt who is the single most integral cog in a legacy system that has no documentation holding everything in his noggin would know. I need that. And best believe, that good sh&nbspt is NOT on TikTok or the like. So, what else?

One could contest that CS content persists on reddit’s subreddit r/programmerhumor, but that’s the only kind of vision I see working with social media and CS, humour.

Meme of Elon Mush disliking elegant code in favour for less elegant code that does the same thing with more lines.
More lines equal better code, right? RIGHT? Doesn’t matter, you’re already fired.

I don’t know… Perhaps I am being short sighted. I think I will revisit this topic at some point to gain a better understanding of what is possible. For now though, I need to drink all the Neocitran I have and pass out.

Bye, bye!