Reminders for Class Tues., Apr. 12th

We only have 2 class sessions left–aaack! Where did the semester go?

I just read through your editing comments to each other and I must say thank you for being such thorough and thoughtful readers of your peers’ work. I’m so impressed! You’re really giving great feedback and suggestions for improvement–keep up the awesome work!

For class on Tues., April 12th:

• We will again have an in-class production day so bring whatever materials you’d need to work on your digital text.
• You should have already received (or will be receiving very soon for a couple of unique situations) feedback from your Stage 2 editor, so take a few minutes to read through that before class so you can perhaps use class to address some of the issues raised.
• By the end of class on Tues. (though some of you may have posted this already), you’ll have another production reflection due. This will be #4 of a total of 5 production reflections. If you happened to get off-track with the due dates, just make sure you’ve done 5 by the end of the term. Ideally, check-in with your production group members’ reflections to offer some feedback/advice/support, etc.

Your hybrid assignment due by Sat., Apr. 16th will be Stage 3 editing, the final stage.

For class on Tues., Apr. 19th:

• This will be our last class, and I’ll try to bring some goodies for us to share and celebrate all you’ve accomplished.
• This will mostly be a production day, but I’ll take the last 15 minutes or so for you to update the class on what you’ve been able to accomplish thus far in your production for the semester.
• Your 5th and final production reflection will be due by the end of this class session (unless you’ve chosen to post it over the previous weekend, which I know many of you prefer).

Final Due Date: Tues., Apr. 26th:

• Post final, revised digital text URL in D2L dropbox, along with your reflection(1-2 pages) that should explain the revisions you made based on editing feedback, why you made them, and any future plans for revision (i.e., things you may not have had time to address but hope to address in the future).

 

Class Cancelled Today, Mar. 29th

Check your email for details and assignments to complete. Email me with any questions you may have.

Production Reflection

As we move into the production and editing cycles for the course, you’ll submit weekly production reflections. Please use this template. Remember to post your weekly work to your group’s shared Google drive folder.

Sounding Composition Lecture: Tues. Feb 9th @ 2PM

Class – Please consider stopping by (it’s okay to arrive late or leave early) the Sounding Composition lecture by Steph Ceraso on Tuesday, February 9th at 2:00 PM in Troy Moore Library (24th floor of 25 Park Place). See details below and on the flyer.

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Sounding Composition: Learning to Listen in the 21st Century

TUES l FEB 9 l 2:00 PM l Troy Moore Library

(room 2343, 25 Park Place NE, Atlanta 30303)

Dr. Steph Ceraso will discuss how sound works to shape and affect embodied listening experiences. Drawing from the listening and composing practices of deaf percussionist Evelyn Glennie, acoustical designers, and automotive acoustic engineers, Ceraso demonstrates how “multimodal listening practices” offer an expansive sensory approach to listening and invigorates the role of sound in digital composition.

RSA at GSU event Wed. 2/3 @ 11AM

See the linked flyer for details about the Rhetoric Society of America at GSU’s upcoming event.

Some Alternatives to CamStudio (updated)

UPDATE: Because the current version of CamStudio has risks for giving users a virus, I would recommend using a different screencasting program. In fact, if you downloaded CamStudio, you should seriously consider uninstalling it.

Some other options for PCs include EZvid (free download, though please be wary of any freeware and do not download if you feel uncomfortable) or a free short-term trial of Adobe Captivate or Camtasia.

Of course, for future screencasting you’d be welcome to record using computers on campus if you don’t want to download programs onto your personal computer.

Links to some things I mentioned in class…

• The disability studies webtext published in Kairos that I mentioned to Kristeen is Yergeau et al.’s “Multimodality in Motion: Disability & Kairotic Spaces.” It may be of interest to many of you; it’s a great webtext.
• The “guy in the brown suit” article I mentioned about coding is actually called “What is Code?” by Paul Ford. It’s a really interesting article that you might read/skim both for content and interactivity/design. I almost assigned it as required reading for this class.
• Cheryl Ball’s video “Creating a Digital Portfolio” from her talk at Emory last spring (2015). Many of her comments connect with our discussions about our online representation and identity as an academic. It may be helfpul to view some or all of this as inspiration for writing your philosophy statement.
• We need a class hashtag for those of us who currently use Twitter or maybe want to experiment with Twitter for the first time in the course. Join us! It only takes a couple of minutes to create a Twitter account, if you don’t have one. Let’s use #eng8123. You can follow me @the_ashleyjh, if you want. I’ve embedded a Twitter feed on the sidebar of our class website. Hooray for interactivity!

Did I forget something? Remind me in the comments. 🙂

Tech Walkthrough: Screencasting (Due 1/23)

I’m starting the class off with an example tech walkthrough on the topic of screencasting. Because I have a MacBook Air, my video and handout explain how to screencast using QuickTime, though see the previous blog post linking to a Lynda tutorial on CamStudio for PCs. Both programs are fairly simple and, regardless of which you use, you can follow the same instructions for uploading to YouTube. So, for this first tech walkthrough, here’s what you need to do.

Step 1: Watch my tech walkthrough video.

Step 2: Read the corresponding e-handout I made as an infographic using Piktochart. You don’t have to use Piktochart, but I thought it would be a neat program to model here.

Step 3: Complete the activity I designed: First, decide whether you think you’ll use QuickTime (for a Mac) or CamStudio (for a PC) for your own tech walkthrough or mini-lesson. Then, using one of those programs record a super short (I’m thinking 2 or 3 minutes, here) screencast video that does one of two things:

A) previews a piece of your already-existing online presence (maybe a Facebook or Twitter account, a blog or website that’s current or out-of-date, or something else…) and talk us through what you think works about that component or what you’d like to enhance/improve/change, OR

B) if you don’t have much of an online presence, or would rather not share that with the class (which is ok!), then simply make a screencast video that tells us a little something about who you are or what you’re interested in (on the screen you might scroll through some pictures or navigate to your favorite restaurant’s website or anything you’d like, really). Be creative and have fun! 🙂

Whichever option you choose, create your screencast video, save it, and upload it to YouTube as the instructions explain on my handout and in the video. I’d like to keep those videos a little more private, so I’ll ask you to post them to a D2L discussion board for your peers and I to see but not a broader public.

As a hybrid assignment, these 3 tasks are due by Saturday, Jan. 23rd. If you have questions, you can email me (aholmes@gsu.edu), and I will be available for email questions or chat on Friday 1/22 between 9:30 and 11:30 AM.

Lynda Video on CamStudio for PCs

If you plan to record your tech walkthrough or mini-lesson on a PC, I recommend you use the free, downloadable program CamStudio, available here: http://camstudio.org/

Also, here is a link for GSU users to log-in to a tutorial video from Lynda.com about how to use CamStudio.

Software Access (updated info)

Access to CamStudio for PCs or QuickTime for Macs

One of your peers asked about how and where you might be able to record your video for the tech walkthrough/mini-lesson if you do not want to (or cannot) use your own computer. Here are options as I see them:

1. If you’re able to use your own computer, you can download CamStudio for free if you have a PC. If you have a Mac, you can use the free, already-on-your-computer program Quicktime to record a screencast video (with audio).
2. Updated info: I had forgotten that CamStudio is PC-only, so I will correct the assignment description to note that you can use CamStudio or QuickTime for screencasting your video. Because I have a Mac, I will demonstrate how to use QuickTime for screencasting, and I will direct you to Lynda videos for help with CamStudio. Sorry I forgot about this distinction!
3. If you need/want to use a different computer than your own personal one, I would recommend either using a Mac at a computer lab on campus (to use QuickTime) or checking out a Mac laptop ($8/day for grad students’ library use). I’m also happy to try to coordinate with you to find a time to use the new rhet/comp lab in Urban Life (Mac computer lab); it would most likely be on a Friday morning between 9:30 and 11:30 AM–just let me know. It may be difficult to find a PC in a lab that would allow you to download CamStudio for free, but let me know if you’d like me to contact one of the labs on campus to inquire.

Adobe Software Access

If you are a graduate teaching assistant in the department, you may have access to the faculty/staff software at GSU, which includes Adobe’s Creative Cloud (Photoshop and Dreamweaver and much more). If someone wants to give this a try, let me know if it works for GSU TAs. If you’re not a TA, you may be able to buy Adobe products at a discounted price, but I’m having trouble seeing that since my log-in is as faculty.

Adobe’s website with links to students and teachers offers a range of options for renting, purchasing, or downloading a free trial of some or all of it’s programs (including Dreamweaver and Photoshop, which we’ll use in this class).

I want to emphasize that you are not required to purchase any of these programs. You will have access to programs that aren’t free on the computers in the classroom. The majority of online assignments to be completed out of class will not require your access to software that costs money. However, depending on the kind of digital project you choose for yourself, you may need access to some of these programs outside of class. There are open computer labs on campus, though, that have Dreamweaver and Photoshop, among other programs.