Topics people liked from the web 2.0 Expo:
Zude- social computing platform. create, consolidate, communicate, and share the web.
Octopus-file share for design (make edits to logos or whatever)
Jing-cross platform, screen capturing, file is stored on a network drive instead of your computer
***No class next couple weeks: work on final project.***
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Web 2.0 Expo
I couldn't make it to the Web 2.0 Expo so I checked out the blog, which provided all the highlights and news coverage from the expo. I checked out the article "Cool and Not So Cool from Web 2.0 Expo 2008" covered by David Sparks. The article detailed the interesting and not so interesting presentations and topics that were covered during the conference. Below are some subjects that sparked my interest:
Oosah - A Web-based media management application. Sure I can upload all my media and manage it from Oosah. What’s really valuable is the ability to bring in media from all your social media applications like YouTube, Picasa, Flickr, and Facebook (more to come soon). You can edit and upload from within Oosah and the media will be updated on the respective social media applications.
This is a great mash-up. Some times I feel like the majority of my time working on the internet and with computers in general goes to opening up programs and logging in here and there. It can get really annoying and time consuming. I checked out the Oosah website and it looks very clean and user friendly. I will be opening up an account very soon.
David Calkins’ presentation on Robots - David Calkins’ is the world’s biggest robotics geek I know. His ring bearer at his wedding was a robot and his groomsmen were storm troopers. Seriously! I believe his father also dressed up as Darth Vader (not 100% sure of that though). Calkins teaches at SFSU and is also the President of the Robotics Society of America. I attended one of his ROBOlympics events and wrote about it for T3 magazine. His presentation talked about all the ways robots have and will continue to help us in our lives: home entertainment, home security, assisted living, SEX!, robotic cars, robotic bartenders and waiters, manual labor, sports (NASCAR danger without the loss of human life), battlefield robots, and space/underwater exploration. While all of this is impressive, it is us humans who will decide what robots will do.
I didn't even know this guy taught at SFSU. I did more research on David Calkins and his passion for robotics and it seems like a very interesting guy. On top of teaching at SFSU, he has been on numerous television shows, and is the founder of ROBOLympics (the international olympics for robots), and is a judge on Battlebots.
TellMe - These guys have been around for a while but they showed off their new voice-activated information system for BlackBerry devices. Extremely impressive and accurate voice recognition by anyone using the device. I spoke into the device the name of a Mexican burrito joint, Papalote, and it found both locations. From there I can easily get an address, phone number, a map, or directions. Best part, it’s free. If you have a BlackBerry you should definitely download and install this application.
I researched this further and found out that TellMe and Microsoft had partnered and that TellMe had won CNET Webware 100 Award for mobile application. I think this is a very innovative technology that goes beyond what many technologies do. TellMe actually made their technology fitted to the human user, instead of people having to change their natural human instincts and methods to operate a tool.
In addition to covering the "cool" aspects of the expo, David Sparks also discussed a few presentations that did not go so well and he deemed "uncool". Those ranged from a speaker who was clearly drunk to a new company presentation that Sparks considered "the absolute worst product demonstration in the thirteen years I’ve been a technology journalist." He didn't mention who the company was so I wonder if anybody knows what he's talking about and may have been there to witness the atrocity.
Oosah - A Web-based media management application. Sure I can upload all my media and manage it from Oosah. What’s really valuable is the ability to bring in media from all your social media applications like YouTube, Picasa, Flickr, and Facebook (more to come soon). You can edit and upload from within Oosah and the media will be updated on the respective social media applications.
This is a great mash-up. Some times I feel like the majority of my time working on the internet and with computers in general goes to opening up programs and logging in here and there. It can get really annoying and time consuming. I checked out the Oosah website and it looks very clean and user friendly. I will be opening up an account very soon.
David Calkins’ presentation on Robots - David Calkins’ is the world’s biggest robotics geek I know. His ring bearer at his wedding was a robot and his groomsmen were storm troopers. Seriously! I believe his father also dressed up as Darth Vader (not 100% sure of that though). Calkins teaches at SFSU and is also the President of the Robotics Society of America. I attended one of his ROBOlympics events and wrote about it for T3 magazine. His presentation talked about all the ways robots have and will continue to help us in our lives: home entertainment, home security, assisted living, SEX!, robotic cars, robotic bartenders and waiters, manual labor, sports (NASCAR danger without the loss of human life), battlefield robots, and space/underwater exploration. While all of this is impressive, it is us humans who will decide what robots will do.
I didn't even know this guy taught at SFSU. I did more research on David Calkins and his passion for robotics and it seems like a very interesting guy. On top of teaching at SFSU, he has been on numerous television shows, and is the founder of ROBOLympics (the international olympics for robots), and is a judge on Battlebots.
TellMe - These guys have been around for a while but they showed off their new voice-activated information system for BlackBerry devices. Extremely impressive and accurate voice recognition by anyone using the device. I spoke into the device the name of a Mexican burrito joint, Papalote, and it found both locations. From there I can easily get an address, phone number, a map, or directions. Best part, it’s free. If you have a BlackBerry you should definitely download and install this application.
I researched this further and found out that TellMe and Microsoft had partnered and that TellMe had won CNET Webware 100 Award for mobile application. I think this is a very innovative technology that goes beyond what many technologies do. TellMe actually made their technology fitted to the human user, instead of people having to change their natural human instincts and methods to operate a tool.
In addition to covering the "cool" aspects of the expo, David Sparks also discussed a few presentations that did not go so well and he deemed "uncool". Those ranged from a speaker who was clearly drunk to a new company presentation that Sparks considered "the absolute worst product demonstration in the thirteen years I’ve been a technology journalist." He didn't mention who the company was so I wonder if anybody knows what he's talking about and may have been there to witness the atrocity.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Final Project Proposal
The final project proposal is on my wiki. Please check it out and make changes or suggestions as you see fit.
Final Project Proposal
Final Project Proposal
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Interface Design: VoiceThread
Information Design:
The primary users of VoiceThread are educators and students.
The amount of information presented on the homepage is a lot, but is presented in a parallel, easy-to-read and follow way. Information is chunked int he center of the screen with visual and verbal clues and headers directing the users.The language used is basic enough that a younger audience may read it and understand. Larger size headings direct users to a specific function and the graphics used are relevant and easily comphrendable. For example, visual cues are shown underneath the heading "Comment" and a different icon is used for each type of commenting that can be used: voice (mic or phone), text, audio file, and webcam. The consistency of the site is on and off. By clicking on a category tab (travel, classroom, etc.) the consistency in graphics, color, and type is well done, but when creating a VoiceThread or viewing your account, the consistency is a little off. It is not clear how to get back to the homepage or how to start creating a thread, you kind of have to play around with different functions in order to find out. The detail about making a VoiceThread and specific rules and regulations or specific functions within creating a thread are not properly detailed anywhere that I can see.
Interactivity:
Orientation is pretty basic in the VoiceThread site. There are essential three main areas you can explore (browse, my voice, and create). You can quickly navigate you way around. Sub-topics are branched to larger topics. For example, when you are browsing the threads you can select "all" "today" "this week" or "this month". The functionality works very well for the most part. The only problem is when you are using the actual voice thread technology, certain problems arise that effect the overall functionality and merit of the site.
On Screen Design:
My first impression of the Voicethread website was that it was designed in an easy understand interface. It wasn't oo flashy or too detailed, just basic, with the amount of information on each page. The interface isn't the most impressive and lacks a little creativity, but it suites the technology it was designed for. The resloution and colors are fine. Three main colors are used: red, white, and gray. The layout is well done. Voicethread used a three colum layout to display and organize information, which maker all the information readable because it is a recognizable structure to users.
The primary users of VoiceThread are educators and students.
The amount of information presented on the homepage is a lot, but is presented in a parallel, easy-to-read and follow way. Information is chunked int he center of the screen with visual and verbal clues and headers directing the users.The language used is basic enough that a younger audience may read it and understand. Larger size headings direct users to a specific function and the graphics used are relevant and easily comphrendable. For example, visual cues are shown underneath the heading "Comment" and a different icon is used for each type of commenting that can be used: voice (mic or phone), text, audio file, and webcam. The consistency of the site is on and off. By clicking on a category tab (travel, classroom, etc.) the consistency in graphics, color, and type is well done, but when creating a VoiceThread or viewing your account, the consistency is a little off. It is not clear how to get back to the homepage or how to start creating a thread, you kind of have to play around with different functions in order to find out. The detail about making a VoiceThread and specific rules and regulations or specific functions within creating a thread are not properly detailed anywhere that I can see.
Interactivity:
Orientation is pretty basic in the VoiceThread site. There are essential three main areas you can explore (browse, my voice, and create). You can quickly navigate you way around. Sub-topics are branched to larger topics. For example, when you are browsing the threads you can select "all" "today" "this week" or "this month". The functionality works very well for the most part. The only problem is when you are using the actual voice thread technology, certain problems arise that effect the overall functionality and merit of the site.
On Screen Design:
My first impression of the Voicethread website was that it was designed in an easy understand interface. It wasn't oo flashy or too detailed, just basic, with the amount of information on each page. The interface isn't the most impressive and lacks a little creativity, but it suites the technology it was designed for. The resloution and colors are fine. Three main colors are used: red, white, and gray. The layout is well done. Voicethread used a three colum layout to display and organize information, which maker all the information readable because it is a recognizable structure to users.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Class Notes
Web 2.0 Conference next Tues. instead of class
Homework:
1.Blog about conference
2.Interface Design critique assignment.
3.Decide final project topic.
4.Write draft proposal on wiki.
Empathy:
empathy: "putting yourself in ones shoes"
not sympathy...that's pity.
ties in with design. when a designer is designing they must think about the user.
symphony: empathetic people understand the idea of context.
build empathy by volunteering in an area that is unfamiliar to you.
odiogo.com
Play:
games, humor, joyfulness, bringing humor and light-heartiness to business and products.
launchball (comp game premised of sound and engineering stuff)
"play will be to the 21st century what work was to the last 300 years of industrial society-our dominant way of knowing, doing, and creating value."
Meaning:
take spirtuality seriously, be thankful
take the 20-10 test
picture yourself at 90
Homework:
1.Blog about conference
2.Interface Design critique assignment.
3.Decide final project topic.
4.Write draft proposal on wiki.
Empathy:
empathy: "putting yourself in ones shoes"
not sympathy...that's pity.
ties in with design. when a designer is designing they must think about the user.
symphony: empathetic people understand the idea of context.
build empathy by volunteering in an area that is unfamiliar to you.
odiogo.com
Play:
games, humor, joyfulness, bringing humor and light-heartiness to business and products.
launchball (comp game premised of sound and engineering stuff)
"play will be to the 21st century what work was to the last 300 years of industrial society-our dominant way of knowing, doing, and creating value."
Meaning:
take spirtuality seriously, be thankful
take the 20-10 test
picture yourself at 90
Orbit Design Flaws
Check out my Voicethread for The Design of Everyday Things, Chapter One: The Psychopathology of Everyday Things.
Design Flaws of Orbit Gum
Design Flaws of Orbit Gum
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Class Notes: Eugene Lee
CEO 2.0- the first enterprise wiki companysocialtext: campus technology
case study:Boston college
wikis to run his business class. wiki as a mashup to combine all web 2.0 tools.
"its not the tools it's the process it enables."
educators must provide incentives for usage.
incentive in business: competition, he would copy and paste the amount of people making edits for all to see and that gave people an incentive to use the wiki.
carrot: top contributers to wiki (typically by perr vote) receive bonus points.
stick: base-level participation required.
training and development, human resources.
in a corporation they version track ever edit. the company can see everything. anamity is not allowed.
the edit button is a osychological thing. in a corporate world there is the sense of authorship that feels like it should not be messed with.
gardening: in wiki language it means fixing peoples stuff, editing. it happens fast.
adobe-hard for the sales guys to know about products.
instant access to information about it on wiki
dell: after installing wiki, call time was reduced by 20% (thats millions of dollars)
wikis work best:
small groups (les than 150 people)
donated wikis to non-profits.
wikis facilitate diff public and private workspaces.
one trick to get people to edit is they purposefully put errors on the page.
core wiki use:
1.collaborative inteligence(all levels of people in a corp. communicating, great for field sales and marketing teams, comprised of employees and external partners)
2. participatory knowledge- great for tech support and cust. service
3.flexible client collaboration- managing complex projects with geographically disperesed teams, great for extrnets where connecting with partners and suppliers is crucial
4. business social networks- discover the experts and tap the innovations of employees.
socialtext was the first co that talked about web 2.0 patterns and wanted to apply it to enterprises.
company sells on a subscription basis
corporate deployment: they ship you the appliance (software)
training is usually a 2 day thing.
customers are: media company, law firms, fortune 10 company, innovation center inside a health care company.
Brian's Presentation: Snapz Pro Z
one month trial for free. to buy it $200 (camptasia) $70 Snapz Pro Z
selection: customized to what you want. 3 icons in box, press return and it will copy what you want in the box (apple, shift,3)
movie: hit return and it automatically starts filming him, to stop press comand, shift, 3, save and then view it in your quick time player.
Homeowrk:
read chapter one in everday things, picture assignment
case study:Boston college
wikis to run his business class. wiki as a mashup to combine all web 2.0 tools.
"its not the tools it's the process it enables."
educators must provide incentives for usage.
incentive in business: competition, he would copy and paste the amount of people making edits for all to see and that gave people an incentive to use the wiki.
carrot: top contributers to wiki (typically by perr vote) receive bonus points.
stick: base-level participation required.
training and development, human resources.
in a corporation they version track ever edit. the company can see everything. anamity is not allowed.
the edit button is a osychological thing. in a corporate world there is the sense of authorship that feels like it should not be messed with.
gardening: in wiki language it means fixing peoples stuff, editing. it happens fast.
adobe-hard for the sales guys to know about products.
instant access to information about it on wiki
dell: after installing wiki, call time was reduced by 20% (thats millions of dollars)
wikis work best:
small groups (les than 150 people)
donated wikis to non-profits.
wikis facilitate diff public and private workspaces.
one trick to get people to edit is they purposefully put errors on the page.
core wiki use:
1.collaborative inteligence(all levels of people in a corp. communicating, great for field sales and marketing teams, comprised of employees and external partners)
2. participatory knowledge- great for tech support and cust. service
3.flexible client collaboration- managing complex projects with geographically disperesed teams, great for extrnets where connecting with partners and suppliers is crucial
4. business social networks- discover the experts and tap the innovations of employees.
socialtext was the first co that talked about web 2.0 patterns and wanted to apply it to enterprises.
company sells on a subscription basis
corporate deployment: they ship you the appliance (software)
training is usually a 2 day thing.
customers are: media company, law firms, fortune 10 company, innovation center inside a health care company.
Brian's Presentation: Snapz Pro Z
one month trial for free. to buy it $200 (camptasia) $70 Snapz Pro Z
About Snapz Pro X
A quantum leap in video capture technology, adroitly capturing full motion video of anything on your screen at a blistering pace, complete with digital audio, and an optional microphone voiceover. Think of it as a digital video camera for your screen. If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine how priceless a movie would be for getting your point across. Snapz Pro X makes short work of making training videos, producing product demos, creating tutorials, archiving streaming video, and anything else you can think of.
selection: customized to what you want. 3 icons in box, press return and it will copy what you want in the box (apple, shift,3)
movie: hit return and it automatically starts filming him, to stop press comand, shift, 3, save and then view it in your quick time player.
Homeowrk:
read chapter one in everday things, picture assignment
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