CSCI 1300 Blog

CS 1300 Advice

2008-04-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

First of all: this class is amazing! I learned SO much! If you are not very computer savy, do not worry! Ms. Belisle is always willing to help, and the computer assistance guys on the first floor of Winn are always happy to assist!
My only piece of advice is to not hesitate to ask questions. If you are confused, just ask! You can't learn if you don't understand the first time. Most likely you are not the only one lost, so speak up!
Enjoy the class! I know I did!! :)

Student Websites

2008-04-22T19:43:00.000-07:00

Everyone's website looks so great! I can definitely see the time and dedication put in to it! There were a few though that stood out to me.
Emily Hilliard's contained multiple image maps. All of which were extremely creative and full of vibrant colors and pictures. I also thought that the political aspect of her website was interesting. The upcoming election is very important and will be a big change in politics!
Caitlin Masse's had such a great navagation bar! I loved the cross country theme! Plus all the pictures were fantastic! Overall very well done!
Darcy Wheeler's was very creative as well! My favorite part of her website was the travel page with all the vacation postcard links to pictures! Each was so well done!
To visit my website, click here!

Web Designers

2008-04-11T12:55:00.000-07:00

It is important for web designers to know how to use html code so that their website can be as creative as they want it to be. Also if they like an idea of another website, they can view the source and do it too!
Web Expressions is nice but cannot do everything, especially not sophisticated code. Understanding how html works is crucial to know, not only to create something without limits but also to just understand what one is doing. Just like a civil engineer needs to know a bridge works before designing one in a computer program. A specialist should know their craft that is part of what makes them so highly regarded.

Awesome Class PowerPoints!

2008-04-01T13:47:00.000-07:00

Today's class was one of my favorite days! I really enjoyed learning more about everyone in class and seeing their passion come to life on the screen. Two particularly stood out to me though (even though all were very well done): Adriene Busch's and Hannah Zeller's presentation.
Adriene's template stood out to me. The colors and formating complemented her topic (Green Businesses) very well, and the light blub animation enhanced her points. Overall, very well done!
Hannah's pictures and animation stood out to me the most though. The photos showed all the various types of geology surfaces on Earth, and her diagram was an excellent explanation of how Enchanted Rock was formed! The presentation was simply amazing!

Thanks everybody for an amazing class! :)

PowerPoint Dos and Don'ts

2008-03-26T14:23:00.000-07:00

I'm sure everyone has had to sit through a terrible PowerPoint presentation, but our previous class really highlighted the do's and don'ts! My favorite article out of the ones we had to read was the Top Ten Slide Tips. Every tip gave excellent advice on how to improve one's PowerPoint presentation. To not be afraid of empty space was the best advice I think. A lot of people do not feel comfortable having large empty spaces when in fact it makes one's presentation more organized.

Some guidlines I would reccomend are:
1) It is OK to have empty space
2) Do not have too much information on one page (leave something to talk about that the audience cannot read!)
3) Be consistent on slide design so as to not distract the audience from your overall message
4) Color scheme is crucial! (make sure not to choose contrasting colors)
5) Limit animation to only aspects that you want to accent otherwise the audience will be watching the animation and not listening to you!

Hopefully this helps when making your next PowerPoint! :)

Google Scholar

2008-03-13T14:21:00.000-07:00

WOW, so I had no idea about Google Scholar. It looks amazing! I feel really comfortable using Google since I've been using it for roughly 7 years and to use it towards scholarly projects sounds amazing! Also the advanced search tab will really help too and refine my search. I never knew about it! Also the directories will narrow my search even more to sites with the facts I need. Today's presentation was AWESOME!

Copyright

2008-03-11T10:27:00.001-07:00

I've never really had a problem with copyright music. I don't download music illegally, but I do get cds from friends. I never thought of that as copyright infringement, but I guess it is. Since my friend has already bought the music and makes a cd and I copy, I don't think RIAA can track it. I guess technically I am still breaking the law though. I never really thought about it before! It seems kind of ridiculous when you think of it, but I guess the artists are missing out on revenue they would have earned if I had bought it. Do they really need it though? Most I would say don't, but then there are the newer artists that are just starting out. And without a clear definition of popularity from sales, they might be wary of making more music. Now that I know more about copyright laws, I can be more aware of my actions!

Excel

2008-03-06T10:30:00.000-08:00

Even though I already knew a lot about Excel, I learned even more! I had no idea about absolute cell reference! After learning about all the functions of Excel, I can definitely use spreadsheets in my other classes like Statistics! I am double majoring in Communications and Marketing, so I know that a lot of my work will deal with presentations and analyzing data. Excel will definitely be able to help me with that!

Photo "Enhancements"

2008-02-26T20:38:00.000-08:00

O.J.'s mug shot on the cover of Time magazine seemed the most disturbing to me, because it could be seen as reinforcing the stereotype that black men are criminals. His "enhanced" mug shot appeared on the June 1994 cover. The photo was made darker using higher contrast in order to make him look more "guilty" and "menacing." Time stated it was for "aesthetic" reasons, but the publishers did not allow this altered copy go to the final print. They were afraid of racial controversies and that the public would view O.J. as being guilty before he even went to trial. I guess a picture can say more than we think!

Wireless Internet Across Campus!

2008-01-31T21:13:00.000-08:00

Having access to the internet anywhere on Trinty's campus is absolutely amazing! When it is a beautiful, sunny day, I sit outside under the trees on a blanket and work on homework. In most of my classes I need the internet to check assignments on Blackboard so having access to the internet is very important. Even though I use it for homework there are other distractions like facebook. There is even a facebook group called, "I was doing my homework, then ended up on facebook!" Haha! I am in the group, because I do tend to end up on facebook! I feel very fortunate to go to college that has a wireless campus because not all do. UCSC got wireless internet all over campus in 2005! Click here for more information. Overall I really enjoy having wireless internet all over campus, because it allows me to leave my room to areas with less distractions so I can focus on my studies.

Microsoft Office 2007

2008-01-24T18:22:00.000-08:00

I remember when my family got our first computer with internet in 1999! Now I can't imagine living without it! Since then, computers have been used continuously throughout school. I have had to use them to do projects, homework, resumes, and more. Computers are a critical part of society now. It seems like I have always had to use computers and feel very comfortable using computer programs like Microsoft Office. The new Microsoft Office 2007 is not too difficult too adjust to. The only problem I've ever really had with it is headers. I cannot figure out how to format it where the header on the first page can be different from the others. Other than that, I feel very comfortable working with Microsoft Office! :)

Computer Meltdown!! :O

2008-01-22T10:26:00.000-08:00

I sit down at my computer at 9 P.M. Monday evening to start my CS 1300 homework for the next day when I see the "blue screen of death"!!! What else could go wrong? Lucky for me, I have an amazing roommate and suitemmates who are more than willing to let me use their computers! Or I could just go to Murchinson computer lab and work there. Good thing I copied all my files to my Y drive!! The day is saved! :)

About Me

2008-01-17T10:14:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody!
My name is Avery Callon. I am a first year here at Trinity and absolutely loving it! :)
I am originally from New Orleans, Louisiana but moved to The Woodlands, TX in 2000.

Here is an aerial view of The Woodlands:

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=30.161225,-95.488438&z=15&t=h&hl=en

As you can see, The Woodlands is a planned community and is very different from New Orleans. Even though I miss the culture and atmosphere of Louisiana, I enjoy what Texas has to offer.

I haven't gotten too involved in clubs at Trinity. I decided that I should get used to college first and the work load before I put more on my plate. I am in Trinity's Catholic Student Group and University Choir which I love!

This class sounds pretty exciting! I have a fairly good background in computers. I took AP Computer Science my junior year of high school and had fun writing programs and such. So this class doesn't sound too difficult, but I should still get a lot out of it! What I am most looking forward to is the graphics section where we learn about photoshop! I love photos, so I'm excited to learn how to enhance them!

You can contact me at acallon@trinity.edu

Well I hope everyone is having a great day!

Avery