Survival (Digital Story)

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/learnshops/digital/movies/survival.m4v

SYNOPSIS

Mary is a nurse that went to Qua-ate to teach back in the eighties. She had to assimilate to survive. She assimilated and appreciated the life of the people. She had a family and she ended up loosing her daughter during the nineties. Iraq and Qua-ate were fighting. Mary continued to teach and survive life without her daughter.

COMMENTS

This story was told from a 1st person perspective. Along with the sound, she added children and crowd sounds to accompany her story. The author was able to connect the media with audiences on an emotional level. She started the story off with her arrival in Qua-ate. The way she was telling the story, one would assume that she was trying to survive Qua-ate. In the end, we learn to find out that her daughter passed away. She is trying to survive life without her daughter. This impacted me as a reader. She kept it short and sweet. The images were real photos taken on her journey. The loss of her daughter really impacted her. Mary makes it own that she is strong and she will continue to keep her strength up.

Magnetic Attraction (Digital Story)

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/learnshops/digital/movies/magnetic-attraction.m4v

SYNOPSIS

Carol meets her future husband Tom and they instantly fall in love. Tom marries her and he is asked to go to war. The couple are able to stay in touch, but they loose it as the months fly by. The years past and Carol is contacted by Tom. The couple reunite and live happily ever after.

COMMENTS

This story was told from a 1st person perspective. The author did a good job using visual cues to tell the story. She used flowers for her theme. She showed different kind of flowers through out her whole story. Her voice was easy on the ears and interesting to listen too. Since this was her experience, the connection between the story and the readers were strongly wired. The title was a metaphor for their connection. She used it to describe the distance between her and Tom. She compared the strength of the magnet with her distance away from Tom. The images went along well with the story.

Web 2.0 Storytelling Pt.2

Storytelling on the web has opened doors for independent authors. Now you don't have to waste trees for distribution. The concept of Web 2.0 is interesting and very unique for this generation. Everybody with a computer can be a storyteller now. He or she can start off a story and allow the audience to pick it up where it was left off. This is a unique way because the story is being told from all angles. Instead of one author, it could be 10 authors who will write the story down.

For example, the site Lust bites has the freedom that allows readers to join and continue the story. The author starts the story off and the readers continue. In a way, the story turns into a never ending story. The readers that participate can keep the story going as long as the continuity exist. Old fashion storytellers would end their stories and force readers to use their imagination to think beyond the ending. Now a story can be never ending and engage readers to take it to new levels.

Web 2.0 Storytelling

The Investigation of Web 2.0 Storytelling

The art of Storytelling has existed since the beginning of the human race. Even the begin of the human race has its own stories. Through Christianity or any religion one has chosen to believe, there are stories that are told that feeds readers backstory. In another case, William Shakespeare was a master behind the wall of storytelling. He would use the theatrical approach with his stories. Stories are told over campfires. They are told through lyrics of a song. Dealing with everyday life, we tell stories without being aware. It is because of these stories, the evidence of historic events exist. However, not everything in the history books are the truth.

Motion pictures tell stories too. They use a structure that easily translates the medium to the audience . Beginning, Goal, Climax, and Resolution. These four are used in conventional storytelling. Web 2.0 storytelling is a another way of storytelling. This does not change my notion about the subject matter. As long as a story has a beginning and end, it is a story. Video games has become the new storytelling media. Plus, the gaming industry is pulling in more money than every other industry.

Video games is what Web 2.0 is using to pull inspiration from. Games like "Grand Theft Auto" puts audiences in the shoes of a gangster. The game tells a very compelling story about the character while it entertains using interaction. This enlightens the experience because you will run, jump, shoot, just like the character you are playing. Web 2.0 is a complexed version of video gaming. Some of the stories have links that you click on to get involved in the story. Other web stories look like slideshows with images that has significance in the story. Web 2.0 allows storytellers to use the digital tools to express their artistic vision. Both visual media require audiences to take part in the story instead of listening. This defeats old fashion storytelling. The world might be moving closer to a "robotic" era, but storytelling will always be the same.

Peer Review pt. 2

AUTHOR: Alexander Thomas Jacobs

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this writer's site is to inform the public about movie news. The writer discusses behind the scene news on upcoming movies. The theme of his blogs work with his entries. The title "Let's complain" sums his blog page up. The writer criticizes movie news based on his personal taste. For example, he slams the news for Ghost Rider 2.

Viewers who visit this page will always be on top with upcoming films. The only thing viewers would have to worry about is his personal opinions. The writer might ruin some of the anticipated movies to come with his remarks.

STYLE:

The writer's page looks good. He makes it easy for viewers to follow his entries. He uses hyperlinks that work and support his case. The font he uses makes the information presentable. The background is black and plain. The writer's voice sounds like a person in his twenties. He doesn't use a professional tone with his blogs. The writer makes his blog entries interesting by putting himself in there. For example, the writer appears to be sarcastic with some of his remarks. He does it in a way that keep readers engage in what he has to say. He provides photos and videos to add flavor to his page.

Peer Review

Author: John Michael Brien

PURPOSE:

The purpose of the blog is unknown. The writer comes off as retired. Since his retirement, the writer has had time to reflect on things. The writer's theme is catchy, but it does not connect with his blog entries. The writer talks about a number of things that the normal person wouldn't reflect. For example, he mentions the advertisements with juices. He makes the particular blog look like a conspiracy.

The viewers who visit his page will learn a thing or two. For instance, one of his blogs starts off with a story about a geese's honk. After the story, he uses scientific information to describe the origins of the honk. When you visit this blogger, expect to leave his page with insightful information.

STYLE

The writer is out to be informative with the public. He discusses topics more for a mature audience. The font size the writer uses is small and plain. Viewers might loose themselves in a pool of information the writer provides. However, the writer uses a formal approach with his blog entries. He has a structure that is easy to follow, but he forces readers to take in all the information. He provides hyperlinks that work and back up his claims. The voice of the writer comes off like a teacher. He uses statistics to ensure readers that he has done proper research about the subject matter. Along with the heavy information, he provides pictures that make his overall presentation nice to look at.

AlaTest site

Purpose

Alatest is a site that allows members to review the products they purchased. They have every electronic device from cameras to televisions. Creating an account on Alatest is a breeze. It takes a minute to sign up. As a member, you can also find reviews on other products. You don't need an account to view reviews. The site shares all the information with you when you go to the page. They have 7.2 million reviews from 1225 websites. They also provide a rating tool for those who don't have time to write a review. They have expert reviews along with user reviews. So if you are looking for the best buy, this site will help you with your decision.

Features

You can upload videos of your reviews. The site also provides links to other sites like Amazon to purchase reviewed products. When you look at a device, the site shows how many people looked at it and other devices they looked at. For example, I check out a Sony camera. When I had scrolled down the page, they had other viewers who looked at the same and other cameras. In a way, this expands your search for the right product. On the side of every review, they have different prices from other sites. So you can choose the best deal on the site without navigating the web.

Just like the other sites, they show different advertisements on the page. The site encourages members to upload pictures of themselves. For a site like this, pictures are not needed. This is a review site, so the only thing that matters is the reviews. Your homepage displays the last items you looked at. Since there are a ton of devices on here, this feature comes in handy.