Week 15: We Made It

Insert pretentious drum roll here: we've made it to the end save the final exam. For this week I have watched the videos in the class module first. I found the videos to be the most.......inspiring yet informative of the semester. I enjoyed the talk of how the world of academia focuses on the head and not human ability on the whole. I especially liked the joke of professors living in their heads and their legs and body as a means to an end (or a transport method to reach a meeting).

I got some good feedback on my web project from some class mates and I'm hoping that this will concur with the grade book this next week. I am so close to finishing this Master's I can do more than taste it, digesting it would be more spot on here. My Wiki this week was on the topic of genius. I have also done the SAO survey and the ending skills assessment. I feel like I am better prepared for the use of multimedia, especially with terms and subjects relating to the various tools of the WWW. I came into this semester knowing little to nothing about HTML and how pressing the enter button at the hotmail page carried me to my inbox and allowed be to communicate with other via the same tool, but now I feel like I can explain (in some detail) how the process works.

I did post by discussion on creativity v. critical thinking earlier this week. Now, it seems, that all is left would be the final. I've got some cleaning up to do in my other online class and I only have 3 weeks left here in France as of today (sad face). But I'm ready to get back to my beloved Texas and move on with life as I knew it a year ago. This year has been more than amazing in terms of experiences and what I have learned. I just hope this trend continues until the Man upstairs calls me home. Thanks Dr. Whitworth for the instruction and help along the way.

Regards to my last posting for this blog,

Mark Felts

Week 14

Alors, here we are at the next to last week of my final semester in the Master's program. Elation is a word that would come close to my feelings regarding this said completion. I have had quite a bout with the online program in the past two years, but I am glad to have stuck it out and made it through. With the exception of another wiki, blog, and discussion board posting, my final project and final exam stand in the way between me and what has been a goal of mine for the past six years. I have decided to pursue a Doctoral degree in the fall of 2011 but until then I am free of personal school work. It will be nice to just have a teaching position and not teacher by day, teacher by afternoon, student by evening, and student by night for once. Come to think of it I have been a student with a full time class load since my first semester of kindergarten way back in 1987. Can you say life change?

So, this week I have written my wiki on Learning 2.0, posted to the discussion board on collaboration and the listed websites, and put final touches (again) on my final project. I await the final exam and what I hope to be a decent grade on the final project. I found the Learning 2.0 video to be quite interesting this week. I have just under 5 weeks left in my year-long furlough de France. Texas here I come!

A Plus!

Mark

Week 13

Okay so my Italian escape is over and it's time to get back to work. Here we are in week 13 with a few to go and I couldn't be more happy with the progress we've made thus far. I have just put the final touches on my Final Project and I think it is solid enough to merit an 'A'; will see what the good doctor thinks. After all, I did do those extra assignments because I know I will goof up on something along the way.

I have written a wiki on concept mapping this week. I also did some in depth reading about evaluations through the links in the module. As far as the Gauls are concerned, they are still their usual sulking over paradise selves. It was such a relief to see the Italians so happy all the time (and granted when one sees their landscapes while eating authentic pizza and gelatto, who wouldn't be happy? the French). Spring has reached the shores of Nantes and I'm stuck inside with a body rash (yuck!). It's gradually going away though. I guess that's the price I pay for two weeks camping in Italy. Totally worth it! And now...the benadryl is kicking in which makes it nap time.

Ciao for now,

Mark

Week 12

Still typing away at week 12 during the calendar week 9. I checked the course schedule pretty meticulously for things I might have missed and it looks as though I should work through week 12 of the course work to actually be caught to where I need to be. The end of my Spring Break is on the 20 (or so) of April. This means that it will be two to three days before I am brain ready to dive back into course work. Also, I don't even know if I will have Internet access for the month of April (my apartment is real weird about things like this). It's almost like if you don't get on board with the swisscom connection on the first of the month when you pay your rent, they don't allow you to 'buy' a login during the middle of the month, Internet Nazi! Maybe I shouldn't say that out loud here in the German lit. section of the library?

Anywho, for this week's work I have written a wiki on deliberate practice and typed a lengthy discussion for the 'paradox of practice.' I have watched most of the week 11 video lectures about the next big thing and the 'how to concentrate' video in the week 12 module. I have neglected to do the extra credit flash assignments for week 11 and 12. This is mainly due to me not having flash on my computer...

Let's see...what else...oh yeah I have tried to post the compVideo.wmv file on my class project site and of course it didn't work the first time. I will look at that later this evening at the apt. Again, no WinSCP access behind the firewall of Univ. de Nantes! So there is a huge confick..something in the news today. Done the scan and update and it looks as though I have escaped this one (XX fingers crossed). Well it looks as though for 5110 I am caught up for Spring Break; that is, of course, if I can get the video to play and stop being what I like to call user error.

Have a good break blog see you soon,

Mark

Week 11

Okay so I think it is still week 9 in the course but the fight against time must continue. For an update on the French situation: my wife actually had class today. This is the first full day of class for her since Christmas break. Even then, it was like a half-week of not much to do at the university. There are four weeks left in her semester with a two-week Spring Break starting on Monday next week (ITALY!!!!). So, I'm trying to keep up with her no homework (or work period) over the past...entire semester. I really don't want to have to sit out on the Coliseum or something to make a blog or discussion posting, so I'm trying to get 'er done.

In terms of the course work for week 11, I think I have about done it all, save the file transfer to the class project server (again super-firewall here at the univ.). After I do a quick upload of the javascript, php, and video file I think I might be caught up to something like April 13, which is a great head start for my Spring Break. Yeah that's right I worked right through the calendar Spring Break for UNT so I can enjoy Spring Break de France. I have also done some more tweaking of the Final Project (still can't figure why my suggestion box/javascript page isn't forwarding submissions to my email). Now I should figure out how to order coffee or pizza in Italian because I have read that restaurants have three prices for everything on the menu: one if you order in Italian, one if you order in English politely, and one if you are the stereotypical Westerner who refuses to learn anything but your regional English/French/Spanish and demands that the service bend your way. Needless to say I'm going for some culture acquisition and cheap prices.

A Bientot,

Mark

Week 10

Here we are at week 10 of the class! This week has been the hardest by far compared to the other weeks of class. The main culprit: Final Project site! I don't know the hours I have put into this site thus far (amazing that it can still be so simple) but it's been pretty much non-stop for six days. I have made a little headway but I know my main enemy is XHTML validation. Wow! When said with a low voice that echos a little, it actually sounds just like the monster I know it as. I have made a few pages using the embed feature (Hoping this is still exempt from the VALIDATIOR! for now) and a few that have actually passed the validation. I think I am down to four pages to make the ten. I am having trouble with the 'suggestion box' page because the comments that I type in and submit don't ever reach my inbox. JavaScript problem? Who knows?

Other than getting started on my Final Project site, I have posted to the discussion board using my comments about the pros/cons to the information delivery method. I have written a wiki (more of a blanket criticism) on the multiple intelligences theory of Gardner. I need to finish up some other work in CECS 5010 so that my head start on the assignments for the month of April will be complete. I will be in Italy for two weeks starting April 4 and not sure if Internet will be in the hostels.

A Plus,

Mark

Week 9

Well here we are at week 9 of the material. This week deals with two very interesting things in my opinion. The tweaking of audio files is always something I wanted to play with to see if I was any good at it. This remains much of a mystery due to the fact that I cannot connect to the WinSCP server from the university wifi connection (stupid super firewall). I will have to wait until I get back to the old 9 meter square apartment to try my novice out. I have written a wiki this week on codecs, well it was more of an extension to the definition that was already present. I then read up on the modality principle in the text, which I was already pretty familiar with due to my many hours of learning courses is the psych. department in undergrad school. It seems that this theory hasn't changed much, except the statistics that the text mentions are very strong in favor of the principle (median: .97 average: .72), those are pretty strong numbers in the stat world.

Other than that, I haven't done much this week (actually it's just week 7 in the calendar but anywho). I am desperately trying my hardest to get as far ahead as I can because I probably won't have Internet access for two weeks in the middle of April. This is in fact a good thing because I will be camping in Italy for two weeks!! Alas, I continue to push forward toward the goal. On another note, I didn't really understand the Web 2.0 instructions...maybe that's something I need to email the Doc about. And since Dr. Whitworth is probably the only person who will read this, I'll wait a few days for a comment to save you an email. Cheers!

Week 8

Well the French life continues....The campus has sort of been opened after 'le blocus' at least, I can access the inside of the library today. However, the typical (I would say stereotypical, but in this case it is certainly true and prevalent) French attitude has remained the same. Note: if one sees or anticipates a physical collision on the sidewalks of France with a local, it is certain to happen if the visitor doesn't move. While I am not usually this cynical towards their way of life, I have been a bit bothered by the, "To hell with you, hooray for me" attitude that I see so well represented here. In the words of my wonderful wife, "These people don't deserve their country." This was after we visited another wonderful chateau and vineyard where a woman went out of her way to stop my wife and use her body (yes she actually grabbed the wife to restrain, her from walking away) as a windbreaker to light her latest cigarette. Wow the nerve! I know that selfish is not only a word that applies to the French, but it just seems that it is more easily noticed when you are in a room full of people that refuse to talk with you because you have an accent (even if you have taken the time to become fluent in their language).

So, this week’s rant is over. For the class I have written a wiki on the RGB color scheme, started the dynamic HTML activity, watched the videos, and read up on what DHTML and color theory is all about. I’m going to finish the chapter in the text and then post to the discussion board. For now, my discussion within the blog here is more of a platform of disgust with one of the most beautiful and rich in culture countries in the world with the ugliest-attitude inhabitants. I certainly hope these next few weeks prove me wrong. A Bientot!

Week 7

Here we are at week 7, feeling better with no where to go. I have been stuck at the library for the better part of the week due to the uncertainty of the French university system. The local students have been on strike for four weeks now (and yes all the Americans are still working, go figure) with little end in sight. It must be nice to just take four weeks off of class (professors too) after just two days of class following an extended Christmas break. In the past three months there has only been two or three days of solid class as scheduled. These people have been on vacation since Turkey Day. What gets me is that these students feel oppressed by their government. Okay let's be objective by creating a plus and minus list of being a French national. Minus: you might have to pay the 19 percent tax on your house and food. Plus: free education through graduate school, maximum 35 hour work week, salaried positions with free health care for anyone with a high school degree, monthly housing stipend, lunch allowance, you live in France, you can go to Paris and London every weekend, the list goes on. My rant is over; here's what I did this week:

First I played with the Gimp software for a while and did the four parts of the assignment with the text and graphics. Then I played with the Gimp software a little more and realized that there is much more to be done in other classes. After I had a run-in with the OpenOffice suite and an Excel assignment in CECS 5010, I chose to download the Office 2007 software against my will. Now, I'm going to attempt the Web 2.0 activity all the while the French students sit and watch me type away with their government cigarettes a blazing and their oppressed butts a showing.

Cheers,

Mark

Week 6 (Weak 6)

Well as one can tell from the corny pun in the title, I have been a little ill this week and slow getting all the assignments done. I have, so far, contributed to the discussion on the navigation wiki although I feel like I know next to nothing about navigation on a web page or website that has several avenues for one to embark upon. I haven't had any experience with working on navigational schemes but from what I read and viewed in this weeks' module it seems that as far as navigation styles it has all been done before. There was no speak of novelty or originality when it comes to navigation within a website but I did manage to learn what some of the styles are and how they work.

I have also written a wiki on Breadcrumbs, well it was more of a discussion of my thoughts on the breadcrumb concept. I hope this goes over as not so stupid to others as it did in my head in hindsight. I then read over the 4 principles of learner control in the text and online a little and completed a follow-up discussion on the discussion board with my most amateur assessment of the learner control theories. I am now choosing to attempt the extra credit mashup. Wooo hoo (non-scarastic)! This is something I know nothing about and am excited to learn something that seems so new to the world of computing. I am genuinely excited about this extra credit for the points and the novelty of the concept. Three cheers for Web 2.0....hip hip...

Week 5

Well it's not week 5 but...you know me and my forward moving ways. This week has been the most productive in terms of class content and confusing in content also. I like playing with new software like PSPad and other HTML (XML), XHTML, etc editors just to see what the differences between each are and what they can do. I am still stuck here in the library alone due to the current French strike that has crippled the already fragile/loose fabric that holds this univeristy together. I have edited the template document (page) to the degree that I think will work as of now. The objectives and directives within the module were sort of out of place and extremely vague (this may be the creativity suite working itself in), so I was at a loss when it came to writing text on the intro.php page. Other than that I have written a Wiki on XHTML. The Wiki this week was more of a stab in the dark than professional, empirical fact. I am almost certain that someone will edit my input the moment it hits their browser. I haven't posted to the discussion board yet because I'm still reading on the multimedia topics that are quieried in the module. Week 5 content to tackle: discussion board posting and flash lesson. Content presumably tackled: PSPad editing, template modification, wiki, and in the blog process.

Other than pushing my way through the content as fast as possible while still maintaining quality, I haven't been able to do much else. One of my notorious trips with questionable Internet access begins on Friday with a trip to Epernay, France to tour the champagne caves of Mr. Moet & Chandon (yay!). Moderation is the word of the day but I doubt most attending will adhere to the rule. Follow up on frequency and amount of consumption to come next week....A Plus!

Week 4

I know, I know it is still actually week 3 on the WebCT calendar but I am trying to get as far ahead as I can while I have daily Internet access. As most know through repetitive mention, I am living in France and will be traveling a lot this semester. This makes my Internet access pretty much dependent upon free roaming partners (pretty much non-existant in France) during my travels. For the week 4 assignments listed I have watched the learning theory video, some of the longer 55min video, written a wiki about Behaviorism in Education, and started the flash assignment. I have found the flash activities to be the most difficult in terms of content thus far, but also the most rewarding. I know absolutely nothing about flash creation and am anxious to learn via the tutorial on the web. What's even better is that we get extra credit (how much I don't know but any is worth it) for completing each flash tutoiral assignment. I hope to be posting more blogs like this in advance (see above for complication) to help with the stress level management this semester. I did not work ahead last semester and traveling around a lot with unpredectiable Internet made both classes very stressful. I need an A in both of my classes this semester and am willing to do the work and then some to earn them. Well anywho, other than that stay tuned for more exciting working ahead in the near future.

A Bientot,

Mark

week 3

This week has been pretty laid back for me. As most of you know, I am living in France until May with my wife. The country went on strike last week and most teachers and students at the university here in Nantes are still on strike. So, I have the entire library pretty much to myself, with the exception of a few people coming or going. I wrote a wiki this week on Market Impact as it pertains to copyright infringement. It wasn't much more than what was already posted on the term but I gave the "addition" a shot at specific relationship to copyright and what Market Impact actually means.

Other than that I watched all of the videos and read the articles posted on the copyright issues (to me, it seems that copyright laws and regulations change weekly). Afterwords, I completed the flash lesson with Adobe but I am not sure how I am going to do a flash lesson every week because I only have the trial version of Adobe CS4??? Well that's it for this week, see you all in class.

Mark

Week 2 "All I have done"

Okay so I just wrote a several paragraph blog entry to which Firefox obviously did not care for and shut down. I love technology and I love my wife but neither are immune to frustrating "happenings." Anywho...this week I managed to complete my first Wiki on Multimedia Learning Theory. I have also posted my first message on the bulletin board, watched the week one video, read most of the e-readings listed in week 2. I found the cognitive processing topics the most interesting especially when they mentioned the biological part of the brain that is responsible for its respective functions.

I have also been a bit frustrated with the schedules this semester. As of the first class day, both of my classes didn't have an up to date calendar (this frustrates the part of me that is somewhat anal when it comes to schedules and requirements). I am living in France and so even the slightest change in textbook, required materials, or date changes can be monumental for my schedule over here. Fortunately, the text for this class was posted early; this is not the case for my other class (urgh!). Well now that the gripping is over, it's time to get to work. I look forward to being the sponge when the prof's. and other students' knowledge starts to liquify.