Tutorial 4

Heya! Well how bout this photo shop guys? I’m so used to doing it at home... I don’t know which version this is but let me tell you, the one I have is waaay easier. On this one, all the tools are hiding and you can’t get them to do what you want. Like there’s this doo wacky I use at home to like sorta blur the edge of the photo but when I go to blur it in this one, it insists on blurring the photos to the point where my friends and I look like something out of a horror movie... but hey maybe some people like that kind of look WHO KNOWS. So I’m having a little trouble, I just want to make it look cool. So if any of you guys have some helpful hints or have found anything worth sharing, please don’t hesitate.

So this is my first photo... it’s a little bit blue... and we look a little bit scary... haha stop looking at it. I couldn’t find anything to do to it that wouldn’t deform it lol. I started getting frustrated towards the end huh. And the sucky thing is that you can only undo a certain amount... so if you go crazy with it and forget to undo it at a certain point, you’re stuck with it and have to start all over again. ARRRGGG not cool guys. I had to start again like 5 times! You think I would have learned my lesson the first time... (-_-‘) That’s me annoyed with a little bit of sweat on my forehead lol. I’m going to try and make a cool one next lesson... it will probably be pink this time haha. byebye

Tutorial 3

Hey hey. how much stuff did we have to do for this weeks tutorial task! I don't even the internet at home at the moment so here i am devoting my spare time to writing this blog in the library. hehe.

So with the library search i found around five books which i think are relevant to my topic - which is technologies of war. I found books on hitler, the enigma and on cryptology. I had a little bit of a hard time finding any journal articles in the database but when i got the hang of how to use it i did find one on 'The Science of Secret Codes and Ciphers'. The article talks about how to decipher the codes on the enigma and other devices. It discsses how we can use a pen and paper to break the codes of the machines.... which i don't think i could ever do. It then goes on to talk about the introduction of the computer - how they can make or break more complex codes. This information might come in handy when i'm discussing the enigma in my assignment but it might not.... we shall see.

I found the weirdest sites in the scavenger hunt! for that pumpkin question i found a great recipe for pumpkin pie.. lol the biggest pumpkin weighed like 1337.60 pound which is like around 6ookg i think??? That's crazy! I also discovered Grant Hackett has a live journal and email WOW so if any of you guys want to go to that it's at granthackettonline.com lol... and did you know that stephen stockwell played for a brisbane punk band called "The Black"? you do now! I didn't find answers to questions 8 and 9 did you guys????...

Okay last part! We had to discuss what a search engine is. I found that it is an information retreival system designed to help us find information stored on a computer system - such as the world wide web... Just like we had to use a search engine to find all the answers to our scavenger hunt by using key words and phrases. The contents of a web page is anaylyzed to determine how it should be indexed with words, headings, titles or specific fields. The order in which the web page comes up can highly depend on how much money it has payed to be in a certain position otherwise it's usually based on relevance. Google, yahoo and wikapedia are usually what i use - google mostly because i usually find whatever i'm looking for straight away. There are news articles you can find on www.topix.net which tell you all the latest goss like how google is the biggest web spammer and how wikapedia is losing credibility.

I also found a mailing list that keeps you up to date on new technologies - couriermail.com.au has a mailing list and a section on new technology ranging from computers to cameras. I wasn't really sure what a mailing list was so i had trouble finding more but if i do i will let ya kno! cya

Tutorial 2

Hey guys, how is everyone? I'm half asleep, 8:00 in the morning is too early for me (-_-)zz. But hey how did everyone go in the lecture? That movie was deep man. What about the readings? Only one chapter this time! yay. I found this chapter a bit easier to understand aswell so it wasn't so bad. It was just a very elaborate look at histories communication machines.

The history of technology and the way in which it evolved was actually pretty interesting. (Nerd) hehe. I had no idea that the abacus was an invention that sparked the future of communication technology. Another creation, The 'figura universalis' was a creation which was made up of a series of discs that rotated to assemble equations. Although it wasn't a computer or calculator, it did contribute to new developments especially to the future of mathematics. It's pretty cool how things like this led to something like the computer.

There were heaps of inventions that evolved technology. The development of hole punching cards, the silicon chip and machines which assisted the armed forces. This shows me that some inventions may not have led to good things. The technologies of war led to major destruction but on the other hand led to a raise in the economy. Dosn't mean to say that it was right.

The development of communication technology has ultimately enabled certain people to become more powerful and create bigger and more intelligent weapons of mass destruction. Not to say the technology was all bad... after all it did bring us the computer.

Tutorial 1

I just like to start by saying, hello to all my fellow uni students! How's life on Campus been treating you? I have to admit, being in my first year, I'm a little bit scared. But hey we are all here to have fun... and also study hard ofcourse.

Well let's get down to it. Three words, New communication Technology... yes those three very words, which seem so simple, i have found aren't so simple to me anymore. I was like yeah ok it's going to be all about the new technology which helps us communicate with the rest of the world (mobile phones, internet etc.) Blah Blah Easy! But i have now come to realize there is definetly more to this subject (ofcourese there always is!).

In the first lecture i listened in content, hoping i could wrap my head around the subject. I learned that we have so many new technologies, some that i havn't even heard of before... like virtual agents? I also dicovered that the subject has huge backround in the way in which the world functions. The way in which old technology has evolved to new technology is pretty amazing and at times... well most of the time you can't keep up! Do any of you remember your parents old mobiles? they were like the size of a brick! haha. You wouldn't be caught dead with that today. When i bought my mobile it was pretty expensive and know its advertising for less than half that price! Don't you hate that!

After the lecture i wasn't yet feeling the subject so i went home to do the readings. Are you serious... four chapters!? that's huge... well it was to me anyway. So i sat myself down and got straight into it. So confusing! there were so many words which i never new existed like, hegemon, dialectic, commodification... and the list goes on. So by the end of this subject i hope i can 'think dialectically'. But other than those confusing words i did find that technology has a huge impact on our economy and culture. I began to learn about communication and narrowcasting and also about how communication teachnology was derived. Then the pages became blank... i was reading but it's like the words weren't there anymore. So i stopped before my brain exploded.

But all in all i can't say i am a total whizz at the subject now... far from it actually (i'm sure many of us are in the same boat). But then again it's only the second week and uni is a whole new world for me... so oh well i will get it soon enough.