Daily Tasks
| 4-26 | It's been such an enjoyable journey exploring new means of composing and literature with everyone. I hope you feel like you have gained some experience with creating knowledge with words, images, and sounds. And I hope some questions and goals remain. Today we will reflect on the project we have created, and then make sure everyone is comfortable with the steps needed to continue developing and submitting the portfolio. To help us look back, let's think about one of your portfolios in progress and at some examples (1 - 2). After we have discussed expectations for the portfolios one more time, I will go over contact information and meeting options for next week. Here are some details: If you have any items that are not showing as completed in Sakai, check with me to make sure about the submission progress. You can submit them with the final portfolio, but we should be on the same page about what might still be needed. If you see any discrepancies with the… |
| 4-24 | We will start by looking over some of our tall videos (1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5), and then reflecting for about five minutes on aspects of learning and communication related to video composing. Use this link to compose your reflection. We will also discuss additional fine tuning that you might do with your tall videos. If you decide to make tweaks to any of them, you can do so, and then upload them with the revised tall video option before the day of our final and incorporate them into your portfolio. We will next go over the logistics for adding peer feedback, reading comments, and other non-project aspects of the course to your portfolio. Follow along by selecting your name at the top of the screen, and then once you are in My account, select… |
| 4-22 | Today we will begin integrating materials into our portfolio drafts, and then post the first of our tall videos. First, we will do the portfolios. Follow along as we work through these steps, helping your neighbors as needed: Create the portfolio composing posting by following this link and opening in a new tab or window.
|
| 4-17 | Today will be a work day, but we will do some guided thinking related to our final video assignment and our class portfolios. First, we will look over the prompts for our tall videos. Note that I have moved the submission of the first video to Monday. Next, we will review quickly the portfolio assignment. We will then go over the steps for integrating some materials into the portfolio posting. |
| 4-10 | Today we will take a short break from our discussion of Watchmen to kick off work on our final media project. Follow these steps:
|
| 4-8 | Today we will continue discussing Watchmen. We will cover through Chapter 6. For homework, complete the reading of Watchmen and update your copy of Adobe Premiere |
| 4-3 | Today we will go over how to submit our revised video poems using this option. I will also give a brief demo of how to work more with sound in Adobe. We will then go over some of the background for Watchmen. After that we will work on our projects. For homework read the first three chapters of Watchmen |
| 4-1 | Today we will review some of the moves we have been learning in Adobe Premiere, and then look at some of our video poem drafts in terms of the possibilities those moves open up. We looked at:
With those possibilities in mind, let's consider these drafts:
… |
| 3-29 | Today we will do more work with Premiere. Follow these steps: Go to the Prelinger Archive and locate some color footage that has a nostalgic feel. Make sure the clip is at least a few minutes long. From that site, download the video file in H264 format. Also download this mp3 file. Create a new Premiere project, and bring the video into the timeline. Switch to Editing mode Select the video track, then right/ctrl click on it and choose Unlink Delete the audio track that is associated with the video Switch back to Assembly mode, and bring the audio clip that you downloaded into the video. Switch back to Editing mode Lock the audio track Use the razor blade tool to cut the video into small pieces. Use the keyboard V to switch back to the pointer. Use the keyboard C to switch back to the razor. Cut, move pieces around, stretch them to make a bunch of cuts as you listen and trim the clip to match the audio track. Make cuts that create switches between visual… |
| 3-27 | Today, we will experiment with text manipulation using Adobe Premiere. As we work, we will check on our partners next to us to make sure everyone is making progress. Follow these steps:
|
| 3-25 | Today, we will complete our discussion of The Road. Once we have finished, we will look over our schedule and plans for the rest of the semester. Next, we will consider some aspects of the weekend's reading and fair use and copyright. Here are some segments of the film to consider: 5:45-8:35 vision of internet and how it relates to remix? If no longer true, does it invalidate remix? Are the laws from analog no longer true? 25:11-28:40 film versus essay -- fair use -- donations vs. payment 32:50-35:58 21st-century literacy and role of remix in creativity 102:44-104:30 Patents and remix as research (epistemology) 108:55-111:45 Social and political 112:20-115:35 Creative Commons and the future After discussing the film, we will talk about fair use. We will use the US Copyright Office guidelines, and then watch a short video. For homework, provide peer reviews of at least four… |
| 3-18 | Today we will go over how to submit your video drafts. Here are the details:
Once we have gone over these steps, we will discuss the novel, The Road. |
| 3-6 | Today we will use the first part of class to work on our video poems (about 25 minutes). I will then draw some names for people to share their work-in-progress videos with the class. We will then talk about our novel that we will discuss after the break and if time permits, look over one or two more poem examples. For homework, complete this reading, continue working on your video poems, and make sure you have a copy of the novel, The Road, for our next major focus after the break, |
| 3-4 | Today we will use class time to make progress on our video poems. I will first go over some of our scheduling and logistics with the upcoming spring break. Next, we will review one or two aspects of the Adobe RUSH editor and discuss video editing possibilities. After that, we will use class time to work. |
| 3-1 | Today we will look over some video poems and prepare to pick the poems for our video project and begin thinking about imagery. We will devote any extra time to planning needed steps on our playlists revisions. To start, let's look at some examples: http://altscholarship.com/digwriting/node/193 https://ilit.altscholarship.com/e-poem-showcase We will also revisit the aims and steps for revising our playlists. For homework: 1) complete the following steps: Decide on the poem that you will use to create your project. You will want to aim for something short enough for the format. Or you can excerpt a poem. Or you can compose your own poem. Once you have a poem in mind, read it carefully and identify one or two themes or interesting interpretations. Next, think about adjacent imagery that would represent one of the themes or interpretations. Adjacent… |
| 2-27 | Today we will do some quick videos to get comfortable with our composing materials and tools. In groups of two or three, choose a person to compose--all members using one person's computer. Download onto that one computer these files. You will be downloading a "zip" file that you will need to open/uncompress. Open Adobe Rush, and navigate to the downloaded folder in the media window. Pick 8 items to import--quickly. Think quickly about the materials, and then make a list of 5 words:
Use the 8 items and the 6 words to create a 15-30 second video poem. When finished, export (Share) the poem as an mp4 file, and then upload it to our site using the improv video option, listing the names of your partners in the posting. Work quickly, but also respond to one of the challenges below in the video:
|
| 2-25 | Today we will wrap up our audio essay work and move on to thinking about video poetry. To get started, we will do some free writing to capture our thoughts on the audio essay project. Use this link to add content and create a reflection. In your reflection, write freely to explore these two prompts:
We will write for 5 minutes or so, and then look at the reading we did from last night. We may also have time to look at a sample of what we are going to make For homework, complete this reading assignment. Also download and install Adobe software.
|
| 2-22 | We'll start today by exploring some possibilities for new directions in scholarship. We'll begin with a look at a class web site from last semester, and then we'll look at digital humanities, and then I'll share an invitation. Next, we'll consider our reading from last night. Next, we'll look at some possibilities related to alternative scholarship. Finally, we will go over the steps for submitting the revised audio essay. For homework, submit your revised audio essay and complete this short reading. |
| 2-20 | Today we will give a quick listen to another of our projects, and then one more audio essay. Next, we will do an exercise in further script trimming. Follow these steps: Open the latest version of your audio essay script. You most likely have the script on your laptop, but if you need to, you can retrieve the version you posted or the version with my copy edits. Keeping the thoughts you posted about potential revisions in mind and working with an aim to tighten the prose, refine the pacing, and bring out the structure, transitions, and movement through the essay, revise the script one more time. If helpful, incorporate markers for pauses or larger scale revision ideas. When finished, save the script with your last name and an indication that it is a revision. Finally, open the posting with your initial script and select Edit. Use the new button at the bottom of the posting to upload your revised script. When finished, you can turn to your essay revisions.… |
| 2-18 | Today we will listen to some samples of our projects and practice giving feedback. We will work through three samples: http://altscholarship.com/makelit/node/154 http://altscholarship.com/makelit/node/155 http://altscholarship.com/makelit/node/162 After we listen to these samples together, you can begin working on this homework assignment: Listen to at least five of the audio essays that have been posted by classmates. Pick essays somewhat randomly. Don't just start at the top of the list. Look to find one item that works well at incorporating content audio (interviews, etc.); look for an item that works well at using ambient or background sounds; look for an item that uses sound effects for punctuation; and look for an essay that is particularly strong with its use of voice/narration. Based on your experiences listening to the five or more essays and your thoughts on these… |
| 2-15 | Today we will focus on a few tasks needed to complete the drafts of our audio essays. To begin, we will look over the files that were created for our improv project from Wednesday. Next, we will experiment with adding the LAME library to our audacity projects and exporting in mp3 format. First, reopen the file you were experimenting with on Wednesday Next, download and install the LAME library. Follow these links and instructions. Once you have installed the library, export your audio project in mp3 format: File > Export Audio If all works well, you should be able to save an mp3 file. If you don't get this to work, we can troubleshoot, but it is not a problem and you can continue to use WAV format for exports as needed. Next, we will review the instructions from Monday to make sure everyone has the ability to get audio from clips they find online. We will also look over a page with links to samples that may be… |
| 2-13 | Today we will learn a few more Audacity composing strategies, and then conduct peer reviews of our script drafts. Audacity Exercise … |
| 2-11 | Today, we will begin by experimenting with capturing materials that might be useful for your podcast. Once again, we will work with peers nearby to help one another. There are many ways to do this, and each has its benefits and drawbacks. For our purposes, we are going to try to get set up with options from simplest to more complex. To get started navigate to one of the audio items that you identified as part of the reading over the weekend. To complete this exercise If you just need to get audio out of clips that are on YouTube, you can download this YouTube to mp3 converter. It should be reasonably straightforward to then save mp3 files to your desktop If you need to capture materials from sites other than YouTube, we will use a more complicated method that involves first capturing a screen recording, and then converting it two mp3 format. 1. The first option to try is an online screen recorder which will be easiest to install and use: If you go to this link: https://www.apowersoft.com/… |
| 2-8 | Today we will conduct an exercise in using Audacity. We will also experiment with a style of collaboration to help with technical aspects of the project. We will organize into groups of three. Next, follow these steps: Have every member open Audacity. Help one another if needed. Once everyone has the program open, move on. If, after 3 minutes, anyone cannot get the program working, have that person watch another member of the group. Have every member download these two sound clips. http://altscholarship.com/digwriting/sites/default/files/2018-10/pencil1.wav http://altscholarship.com/digwriting/sites/default/files/2018-10/pencil2.wav One your own, but helping each other, bring the first clip "pencil1.wav" into Audacity (File > Import). Listen to the clip. Pick a short segment of the clip that you find interesting (aim for around 10 seconds of less. Cut the clip so that only that part remains. Make sure everyone completes this before moving on. Save… |
| 2-6 | Today we will spend some time going over our reading Next, we will look at our Audio Essay assignment. As we discuss the assignment, we will begin thinking about the assignment for the script that we will need to develop, For that, we will consider an example. If we have time, we can listen to the final result:
For homework, download and install the Audacity audio editor. You may also want to spend a few minutes looking at the Audacity manual. |
| 2-4 | Today we will focus on peer review activities. The first portion will be in class conversation about some of our Twine drafts. We will look at some examples: Thoughts and Fractured Reality. We will also do any troubleshooting that might be needed on the projects. … |
| 2-1 | Today will be another work day. Before getting started, we will review some aspects of bringing media into your Twine stories. This page provides the basic commands. One things you will need to get the hang of is storing or locating the media online. To make that simple, we have a posting type on our web site. I will guide you through using that. Finally, we will look over how you will go about posting your drafts. Follow these steps:
After we have a sense of how the uploading will take place, we can work on our projects. For homework, make sure to have your Twine draft poster before class on Monday. |
| 1-30 | Today will be spent mostly working on our Twine project. We will quickly review our readings, and the list of Twine resources, before getting started. |
| 1-28 | We will start with our playlist revisions before we learn some more key aspects of using Twine. I will guide us through the task. After discussing playlist revisions, we will explore how strategies from the reading we did last week--Soliloquy--might be translates into Twine. To get started, download to your desktop this file: http://altscholarship.com/mashlit/sites/default/files/fourbirds.html (You can right/ctrl click on the link above to download it. Next, go to the Twine online application From the Twine online application page select Import from File, and then locate and choose the fourbirds.html file that you downloaded to your desktop. Once you have the file imported, open the Four Birds story explore the code to learn how to create your own story that plays with words. You can also explore the Twine manual and do google searches to find other things you can… |
| 1-25 | Today we will begin using the Twine program to do some storyboarding. There are two key outcomes: 1) we will be learning to use the Twine program--making links and adding style information; and 2) we will begin to think about the kinds of stories that are well suited to the Twine platform and develop a tentative topic for your projects. Follow these steps: Basic Story: Begin by completing the paper-based brainstorming activity that we will do in class. This should give you a basic structure for experimenting with Twine links. Once you have completed step one of the paper-based activity, go to the Twinery.org web site, and compose your story. Don't bog down in getting the perfect turn of a phrase--instead add some language and create the structure. We will do this together. Style and Moving Files: For this exercise, we will experiment first with the process of changing the look and feel of the Twine page. Open the Style sheet for your project, and add the codes below: tw-story See what happens. Go back and change the font colors using more CSS:… |