1) The title of my blog is View from the Outside. The blog focuses on autism, more specifically autism awareness. I currently work for an organization that provides services to adults and children with developmental disabilities. I work one on one with children, as apart of a home based therapeutic service. Prior to working with these children, I did not know much about autism; I had my beliefs and stereotypes. These were completely broken down once I got the amazing opportunity to work with these kids and see how unbelievable they truly are. It was the change in my attitudes about autism that guided my decision to write this blog. I want to help others have a change of heart or at least see autism from a different perspective.
2) I can’t say that there is necessarily a rhyme or reason to the organization of my blog. I want to give people a mix of both facts about autism along with personal experiences dealing with the children. I think that this mix is important for the message that I am trying to give out because I want people to realize how prevalent autism is and the figures behind this disability in our world. However, in order to truly get someone to have a change in attitude, telling personal stories can really capture the emotion of the reader and allow them to put themselves in another’s shoes.
3) I think in my first few entries my personality tends to be more serious. Typically I write with some sarcasm and satire, but I think with the nature of the blog and the fact that I feel so strongly about the topic, this made it come out with more of a serious tone. I think this personality really shines in my first entry when I talked about what autism means to me. It got pretty personal, which is probably something that I should stray away from when talking about something so controversial. However, because I am so passionate about the topic, it got difficult for me to hold my personal views back.
4) I can’t say that I have really fallen into a particular blogging style. Before this class, I never really did anything with blogging or social media in general. I actually don’t really like blogging, so it has been hard for me to have a certain style. If I am passionate about something, I usually like to go act on it; I can be rather impulsive. I guess I feel like my blog won’t reach out to the people I want, so I have been pretty hesitant about the whole idea.
5) I actually picked a template that has colors representing the organization that I work for. It worked out really well that there was already a pre-made template on the blogger site that had these colors. I also included a picture of a child with autism riding a bike. I thought that this picture was important because the child actually looks like a normally developing child and he is performing an activity that every child does.
6) I think that my blog would change pretty drastically. I think the reason that I have not expanded my blog beyond what it is now is because I do not know anything about computers. I would like for my blog to come to life with videos, a larger burst of colors, more interesting fonts, and more pictures. If my job did not require such a high amount of privacy, ideally I would like to include pictures and videos of the kids that I specifically work with.
7) Honestly, when I have compared my blog to other students in the class, I feel like mine is pretty boring. I guess I really would like to learn how to change it to make it more interesting. I think the part of my blog that could use the most work is the aesthetics. I have seen people with videos and personal photos on theirs. I have never considered myself the creative type, so I feel like any colors that I would pick might just look weird in the context of my particular topic. I would say that the strongest part of my blog would be the entries, and even these I feel like could use some work. The hardest part about writing my entries is the privacy issue. I have to leave out names and certain places making some of the entries seem pretty vague. This is something that has held my creativity back a little.
8) Because of the fact that I am so concerned about the improvements of my aesthetics, I think suggestions from my group on how to improve them was the best feed back I got. Along with this, I thought it was really important for me to hear that the topic of my blog was interesting. While I know it is not something that everyone will want to stop and read, my group members informed me that it actually was interesting because they were pretty unknowledgeable about the subject.
9) In another class, I actually was asked to describe blogging to an older woman in the class. As an assignment we were asked to incorporate some sort of social media into our projects. The woman was really hesitant because she had never used any social media before. I told her that I felt like it was a diary; a way for someone to write down how they feel about a particular topic; a way to provoke some sort of emotion and allow readers to feel what you feel. As I described this, another student intervened and proceeded to attack my views on a blog, telling me that it is not a diary, but an information provider. I guess we all have different views on the actual purpose of a blog. Blogging allows for a huge array of people to access your writings and indulge themselves. It allows for people from all over the world to share their views on the same topic. I think that this is what is truly interesting about writing in the electronic environment. There is such a diverse group of people that can read your writings whenever they want. Blogs allow for dialogue; a place for people to converse back and forth about how they feel about something specific.
10) While I can’t say that I like blogging yet, my views about it have actually changed. I have heard the term “blogging” in many of my business classes. I seemed to attach the meaning of a blog to a business atmosphere. However, blogs can be so much more personal than simply for business matters. They allow for a sense of connectivity and networking that I never really realized prior to doing this project.
11) I think I would really like some feedback on how to improve my writing so more people would be interested in reading it. How can I work around the fact that because of my job I have to keep a lot of things private?
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Potential Wikitravel entries
Section About Madison, Connecticut...
Madison is a town located in New Haven County of Connecticut. It is located in the central part of the Connecticut shoreline. The population of Madison is around 19,000 as of 2006. The total area of Madison is 38.6 square miles. It was first founded in 1641 but was originally known as East Guilford. It was named its own town in 1826, which separated Madison from is bordering town of Guilford. Much of Madison is known for its pricey, historical homes and its miles of beach. It is 15 miles east of New Haven and 35 miles south of Hartford. Madison is immediately bordered to the east by Clinton, on the north by Durham, on the south by Long Island Sound, and on the west by Guilford.
Do...
Hammonasset State Park, exit 62 from Interstate 95 North, if you are already in Madison take a 20 minute drive east to the major shoreline. This state park offers various things to do for couples and for families with free parking and admission. There is over 1,000 acres of campgrounds, parks, beaches, walking trails, bike paths, and fields. Meigs Point Nature Center is also within Hammonasset State Park, offering aquariums and reptile and amphibian exhibits for the kids. The park is open 7 days a week at 8 am until sunset. Contact: +1 203 245 2785.
Sleep...
Beach Tree Cottages, 1187 Boston Post Road, Cottages set within a tranquil landscape. Cottages consist of bedroom with queen size bed, full bath, living room with pull-out couch, and kitchenette with all necessary appliances. Walk or bike to Hammonasset State Park. Contact: +1 203-245-2676.
Madison is a town located in New Haven County of Connecticut. It is located in the central part of the Connecticut shoreline. The population of Madison is around 19,000 as of 2006. The total area of Madison is 38.6 square miles. It was first founded in 1641 but was originally known as East Guilford. It was named its own town in 1826, which separated Madison from is bordering town of Guilford. Much of Madison is known for its pricey, historical homes and its miles of beach. It is 15 miles east of New Haven and 35 miles south of Hartford. Madison is immediately bordered to the east by Clinton, on the north by Durham, on the south by Long Island Sound, and on the west by Guilford.
Do...
Hammonasset State Park, exit 62 from Interstate 95 North, if you are already in Madison take a 20 minute drive east to the major shoreline. This state park offers various things to do for couples and for families with free parking and admission. There is over 1,000 acres of campgrounds, parks, beaches, walking trails, bike paths, and fields. Meigs Point Nature Center is also within Hammonasset State Park, offering aquariums and reptile and amphibian exhibits for the kids. The park is open 7 days a week at 8 am until sunset. Contact: +1 203 245 2785.
Sleep...
Beach Tree Cottages, 1187 Boston Post Road, Cottages set within a tranquil landscape. Cottages consist of bedroom with queen size bed, full bath, living room with pull-out couch, and kitchenette with all necessary appliances. Walk or bike to Hammonasset State Park. Contact: +1 203-245-2676.
Manual of Style
When reading through the manual of style for wikitravel, I have to say I was a bit overwhelmed. As I have said many times before, I am completely computer illiterate, so using different formatting techniques is jibberish. It's hard to read something like how to link pages and actually picture the outcome. My brain works in those ways for certain aspects in my life, but certainly not for computer use.
What I found to be the most useful tips in the manual of style all came from th section of writing style. I think this was especially useful for me because I have always found myself with a certain style when I write. However, writing for something like wikitravel requires a much different tone and writing style all together.
When I was doing my wikitravel, I found myself using very descriptive words which made me give off a biased tone, as if I were advertising for the town. As one of the style rules in the manual, it mentions that it is extremely important to avoid doing this. They point out that in your writing you should simply provide useful information to the reader that will allow them to make a decision on their own. After reading this, a lot of my writing definitely needed to be altered.
I also found that "Words to Avoid" section to be extremely important. In this part, wikitravel gave a large list of words that definitely need to be eliminated from the writing. Many of these words were actually things that I found in my own wikitravel page when I was describing a restaurant or hotel. I felt as if I was becoming more of a travel guide than a source for information.
It seems, for me anyway, that the most useful section in the manual of style was the part about determining your tone accordingly. They say that writing should be fair. However, they also mention that this does not mean that your writing needs to be boring. Also, they hope that you can find a conversational and informal tone. In this section, it says that you should not be afraid to write with a humorous tone as well, as this makes the writing more interesting for readers. Also, you should never assume that your readers are idiots. Originally I thought that anytime there was a word or place that was out of the ordinary, then I should go into depth about it. However, after reading this, I really changed my attitude realizing that people probably know more than I was giving them credit for.
Writing for wikitravel seems pretty complicated. There are so many guidelines to follow in order make a suitable page. It actually reminds me of writing for a newspaper. There are so many style guidelines to reference in the Associated Press handbook, that it often feels like you are focusing more on the style opposed to the actual writing.
What I found to be the most useful tips in the manual of style all came from th section of writing style. I think this was especially useful for me because I have always found myself with a certain style when I write. However, writing for something like wikitravel requires a much different tone and writing style all together.
When I was doing my wikitravel, I found myself using very descriptive words which made me give off a biased tone, as if I were advertising for the town. As one of the style rules in the manual, it mentions that it is extremely important to avoid doing this. They point out that in your writing you should simply provide useful information to the reader that will allow them to make a decision on their own. After reading this, a lot of my writing definitely needed to be altered.
I also found that "Words to Avoid" section to be extremely important. In this part, wikitravel gave a large list of words that definitely need to be eliminated from the writing. Many of these words were actually things that I found in my own wikitravel page when I was describing a restaurant or hotel. I felt as if I was becoming more of a travel guide than a source for information.
It seems, for me anyway, that the most useful section in the manual of style was the part about determining your tone accordingly. They say that writing should be fair. However, they also mention that this does not mean that your writing needs to be boring. Also, they hope that you can find a conversational and informal tone. In this section, it says that you should not be afraid to write with a humorous tone as well, as this makes the writing more interesting for readers. Also, you should never assume that your readers are idiots. Originally I thought that anytime there was a word or place that was out of the ordinary, then I should go into depth about it. However, after reading this, I really changed my attitude realizing that people probably know more than I was giving them credit for.
Writing for wikitravel seems pretty complicated. There are so many guidelines to follow in order make a suitable page. It actually reminds me of writing for a newspaper. There are so many style guidelines to reference in the Associated Press handbook, that it often feels like you are focusing more on the style opposed to the actual writing.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Places, Places, Places...
My original thought about a place to focus on for wikitravel was Coventry, Rhode Island...it is my hometown afterall. I have lived in the same town, in the same house for the 20 long years of my life. I know a lot about the town including the cheapest gas stations, the places to go for sightseeing, and pretty much just basic history that someone might want to know when researching my town. I thought that this would be a good place for wikitravel specifically because there is very little information about Coventry on wikipedia...I have to say, I was a little offended...I mean, who wouldn't want to search for Coventry and learn all about?!
Then, as a class we came up with this brilliant idea to tackle the town of Kingston, the home of our beloved university. I actually think that this is a really good idea. We all have our own specific knowledge about random things on campus that would all come together and form a great wikipedia page.
Then, as a class we came up with this brilliant idea to tackle the town of Kingston, the home of our beloved university. I actually think that this is a really good idea. We all have our own specific knowledge about random things on campus that would all come together and form a great wikipedia page.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Wikipedia
Ok, let me just put it this way...WHAT THE HELL IS A WIKI?
...well prior to looking at the video and going through websites about it, I really had no clue. Teachers and friends have used the term so often, but of course I have never really taken the time to look it up. I have used wikipedia in the past, but I usually try to stay away from it. I mean, we have all heard our teachers saying..."Use something other than wikipedia, something credible." So this obviously makes us think that everything on this site is a load of crap...that we can't believe anything that is written on the site. But now I know the real truth behind it.
Even though volunteers are the ones who put up the information, it is still based on factual and researched information. I guess I am still skeptical about using the information on the website. Specifically because I have been forewarned so many times in the past about using it.
I think that by watching the video on youtube, the founder of wikipedia talked in a way that made the website seem alot more credible and useful. He presented the facts and information up front and very professionally. I guess we rely on people like him to give us the green light to continue using sites like wikipedia to get information for our school research papers and projects. It would be a joke to say that I would use wikipedia to find information on how to save the world and how to cure rare diseases...BUT for other less important information, I think it is safe to say that I'll be visiting wikipedia more often.
I think that similar to a blog, wiki posts are open to anyone to share their expertise. However, when reading through wikipedia, specifically wikitravel, I noticed that they make it a point to tell you not to put stories and personal experiences as a source of information. They want concrete facts to make it easier for people to navigate through the page. This is very unlike blogs, or atleast from what I have noticed about blogs so far. I think blogs are meant for you to share what you know about something, but this can be done by using stories and experiences. Similar to my enthusiast blog, I am using my personal experiences with autistic children to present people with information and help them to learn something new.
When it comes to writing in electronic environments,wikipedia is a way for users to access various types of information quickly. I also feel that users from all parts of the world are able to contribute their ideas and what they know about particular topics.
...well prior to looking at the video and going through websites about it, I really had no clue. Teachers and friends have used the term so often, but of course I have never really taken the time to look it up. I have used wikipedia in the past, but I usually try to stay away from it. I mean, we have all heard our teachers saying..."Use something other than wikipedia, something credible." So this obviously makes us think that everything on this site is a load of crap...that we can't believe anything that is written on the site. But now I know the real truth behind it.
Even though volunteers are the ones who put up the information, it is still based on factual and researched information. I guess I am still skeptical about using the information on the website. Specifically because I have been forewarned so many times in the past about using it.
I think that by watching the video on youtube, the founder of wikipedia talked in a way that made the website seem alot more credible and useful. He presented the facts and information up front and very professionally. I guess we rely on people like him to give us the green light to continue using sites like wikipedia to get information for our school research papers and projects. It would be a joke to say that I would use wikipedia to find information on how to save the world and how to cure rare diseases...BUT for other less important information, I think it is safe to say that I'll be visiting wikipedia more often.
I think that similar to a blog, wiki posts are open to anyone to share their expertise. However, when reading through wikipedia, specifically wikitravel, I noticed that they make it a point to tell you not to put stories and personal experiences as a source of information. They want concrete facts to make it easier for people to navigate through the page. This is very unlike blogs, or atleast from what I have noticed about blogs so far. I think blogs are meant for you to share what you know about something, but this can be done by using stories and experiences. Similar to my enthusiast blog, I am using my personal experiences with autistic children to present people with information and help them to learn something new.
When it comes to writing in electronic environments,wikipedia is a way for users to access various types of information quickly. I also feel that users from all parts of the world are able to contribute their ideas and what they know about particular topics.
Autism
Being so passionate about autism and working so closely with those affected by autism, I was able to make my enthusiast blog with ease. I can honestly say that prior to working for my company, I had the same stereotypes about autism that most people today have. I didn't know the issues. I had a complete change of attitude when I realized how truly amazing and wonderful the kids are. I think that people can consider me a credible source on this topic because I have had that first hand experience...I work with the children one on one in their homes. This allows me the opportunity to witness the kids and families in their everyday lives. I see how tough it can be on the parents, but also how loving and supportive the environment is. I think that witnessing this each day, gives me the authority to speak on the topic. Also, because I became so passionate about the autism through my work, I have done pretty extensive research on autism in general, and others people's views on it.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Information Architecture
I'd have to say this article brought about a philosophical side to myself. It makes you think about your ignorance in a different way. I have actually always considered myself to be pretty ignorant when it comes to what is going on around me. I have never been one to understand politics and other world issues. I think this lack of understanding mostly comes from the fact that I lack the desire to explore outside of my comfort zone. I know what I know, and that's where my knowledge ends.
I really enjoyed that this reading makes you take a step back and look at yourself. I related this article to all of my classes and how most students, including myself, are fearful to raise their hands and give a wrong answer. We have this notion in our minds that it is wrong to not know something. Where did this idea come from?
I think that similar to what Wurman said, I should use the fact that I know nothing,in order to push myself into a less ignorant state. Wurman also stated that a "prerequisite to understanding is to be able to admit when you don't understand something." She says that by doing this you will be able to relax more and feel liberated. With most things in life, you need to feel comfortable in your environment in order to truly take in new information. Being in the right frame of mind allows you to listen to the things that you already know, while also processing new information. I also think that being able to use your previous experiences to add to your new knowledge and others' knowledge is an important part of learning.
I really enjoyed that this reading makes you take a step back and look at yourself. I related this article to all of my classes and how most students, including myself, are fearful to raise their hands and give a wrong answer. We have this notion in our minds that it is wrong to not know something. Where did this idea come from?
I think that similar to what Wurman said, I should use the fact that I know nothing,in order to push myself into a less ignorant state. Wurman also stated that a "prerequisite to understanding is to be able to admit when you don't understand something." She says that by doing this you will be able to relax more and feel liberated. With most things in life, you need to feel comfortable in your environment in order to truly take in new information. Being in the right frame of mind allows you to listen to the things that you already know, while also processing new information. I also think that being able to use your previous experiences to add to your new knowledge and others' knowledge is an important part of learning.
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