As you can see in my blog, I have posted a You Tube video that was made in class and also uploaded a Flickr 'Badge' into Blogger. For your information and use, I will explain how to do this, incase you want to use it for future use.....
Instead of writing step-by-step instructions of how to embed a You Tube video, I have posted a video showing you how to do it. Keep in mind though that it is not updated. Thus the 'embed' option that you have to copy to put in the 'edit html' option in a new post is actually on the right hand side of the video (rather than underneath the video).
The video is a bit slow, but shows the whole process - hope it helps!
And TIP: as you watch the video, pause it so you can do it yourself at the same time.......
I found that posting a Flickr 'Badge' was a tad more confusing than the You Tube videos, but have a go and decide for yourself!
Follow these instructions on this link of how to make a Flickr Badge.....
Once you have made your Flickr Badge and copied the code, follow these steps;
- click on the 'Layout' tab
- Under the 'Page Elements' tab, click on 'Add a Gadget'
- Then click on the 'HTML/JavaScript' option.
- Write a Title
- and then in the 'Content' section, paste the copied code for the Flickr Badge that you have made.
- then click 'Save' and it should be on your page!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tutorial Seven: Assistive Technology
Assistive Technology can be defined as “any item, piece of equipment or product system whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customised that is used to increase or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities”.
Cook, A.M., & Hussey, S.M. (2000). Assistive technologies: principles and practice. St Louis: Mosby
In Occupational Therapy practice, assistive technology is used greatly, as Occupational Therapists aim to help individuals recover, or manage or gain as much functional independence as possible.
A useful website for looking into some types of assistive technology, or to just have a browse is http://www.star-educational.co.nz/
We were fortunate enough to have two guest speakers in class this week, who work with assistive technology devices, and were able to educate us on some that they use. We were also able to have a go using a variety of assistive technology devices. There were different styled keyboards, such as one with larger keys (on the keyboard). There were recording devices, and buzzer like devices; which allow for people that don't have fine hand movement.
One that really interested me was the Tracker Pro. Tracker Pro is about $1000, and enables people with little or not hand movement to perform mouse functions. It is a hands free mouse, where the cursor control allows small movements of head (could also be fingers etc) when glancing around the computer screen without use of hands. There is a camera, which is put on top of computer screen, which traces a 0.3” dot reflective sticker. This sticker can be placed on your forehead, finger, hat, glasses etc, where the motion is tracked. If the sticker is on your head when you move it, Tracker Pro converts that into computer mouse movement. This means that someone who cannot move a mouse very well can use a computer with just small movements of their head. Clicking can also be accomplished by using assistive technology switches, or programming it so that you can keep your head (cursor) in the same place for 3 seconds, and it will ‘click’ eg. Open the file for you.
Cook, A.M., & Hussey, S.M. (2000). Assistive technologies: principles and practice. St Louis: Mosby
In Occupational Therapy practice, assistive technology is used greatly, as Occupational Therapists aim to help individuals recover, or manage or gain as much functional independence as possible.
A useful website for looking into some types of assistive technology, or to just have a browse is http://www.star-educational.co.nz/
We were fortunate enough to have two guest speakers in class this week, who work with assistive technology devices, and were able to educate us on some that they use. We were also able to have a go using a variety of assistive technology devices. There were different styled keyboards, such as one with larger keys (on the keyboard). There were recording devices, and buzzer like devices; which allow for people that don't have fine hand movement.
One that really interested me was the Tracker Pro. Tracker Pro is about $1000, and enables people with little or not hand movement to perform mouse functions. It is a hands free mouse, where the cursor control allows small movements of head (could also be fingers etc) when glancing around the computer screen without use of hands. There is a camera, which is put on top of computer screen, which traces a 0.3” dot reflective sticker. This sticker can be placed on your forehead, finger, hat, glasses etc, where the motion is tracked. If the sticker is on your head when you move it, Tracker Pro converts that into computer mouse movement. This means that someone who cannot move a mouse very well can use a computer with just small movements of their head. Clicking can also be accomplished by using assistive technology switches, or programming it so that you can keep your head (cursor) in the same place for 3 seconds, and it will ‘click’ eg. Open the file for you.
Tutorial Four & Five: Video Production Sessions
In these two tutorials, we made a short video, which was pretty fun, though coming up with something to do proved to be a slight challenge……we made a movie on “Toilet Troubles” which I have already posted on this blog. To be able to put it on this blog, we uploaded it onto a website called YouTube.
YouTube is yet another blog, where you can upload videos and watch other videos. You can also comment on the videos and rate them also. YouTube is another very useful website for studying, especially for presentations – if you don’t want to talk or do role plays, you are most likely able to find a video that is suitable for what you are presenting, off YouTube.
We planned and storyboarded our short video before going on to film it, as we needed a rough idea of what shots we wanted, and how we were going to take them. We only used 6 main shots, due to time constraints. It is much easier to film something if you know what you want to do, and how you are going to do it, beforehand. We decided what angles the shots were to be taken from, and then proceeded to do the filming. The planning meant less time was required for the filming process, as we knew what to do, though we had to film each shot several times to get it good as possible. So if you want to give making a film a go, plan it first, it will definitely make things easier for you!
YouTube is yet another blog, where you can upload videos and watch other videos. You can also comment on the videos and rate them also. YouTube is another very useful website for studying, especially for presentations – if you don’t want to talk or do role plays, you are most likely able to find a video that is suitable for what you are presenting, off YouTube.
We planned and storyboarded our short video before going on to film it, as we needed a rough idea of what shots we wanted, and how we were going to take them. We only used 6 main shots, due to time constraints. It is much easier to film something if you know what you want to do, and how you are going to do it, beforehand. We decided what angles the shots were to be taken from, and then proceeded to do the filming. The planning meant less time was required for the filming process, as we knew what to do, though we had to film each shot several times to get it good as possible. So if you want to give making a film a go, plan it first, it will definitely make things easier for you!
Tutorial Three: Blog Creation Tasks
Blogger, as you may already know (as you are in blogger), is a free blogging website where you can have your own blog, and share your thoughts, photos, movies, and more with people from all around the world. This is really useful for travelling, of living away from home, or just keeping in contact with people that you know (or don’t know). It is great for other people to be able to see what you are up to, and you can see what other people are doing too.
Wikipedia is a Bloghost too, although it is quite different to Blogger in that it is a search engine, where people can write definitions to words, and edit what other people have written for example. I have found it to be very useful when at school and university, to find the definitions for words, though you can not trust everything you read from it, because anyone can edit the information.
Wikipedia is a Bloghost too, although it is quite different to Blogger in that it is a search engine, where people can write definitions to words, and edit what other people have written for example. I have found it to be very useful when at school and university, to find the definitions for words, though you can not trust everything you read from it, because anyone can edit the information.
Tutorial Two: Digital Camera Use and Application
What do you think about technology, and the features of new upgrades, such as for digital cameras?
There is a statement; "A new technology is rarely superior to an old one in every feature" which I think is somewhat true in relation to digital camera technology. There are some pluses and minuses of digital camera technology compared to the more traditional film based cameras.
Pluses:
=> you can see what your picture looks like (straight after youve taken the picture, so if you are not happy with it, you can take another one)
=> don't have to buy film (or risk ruining the film, eg. exposure to light)
=> can edit the picture through programs like photoshop
Minuses:
=> needs batteries, or recharging.
=> photos taken are not as traditional, 'real' or 'special' as they are when taken by the older versions of cameras. We don't appreciate photos as much as we used to.
There are various ways that digital images can be stored, transferred and manipulated using other communications technology. Examples include:
- images can be taken on cellphones, and sent through picture text to others, or to email
- images can go from cameras => SD cards => computer => email/stored on flickr etc/faxed/printed and then posted to people.......
Flickr.com is a website which allows you to upload photos, share photos with others, and edit them. As you may be able to see, on the left hand side of my blog, there are some images "A Walk in the Courtyard of Otago Polytechnic" which I imported from Flickr. There are many other photo storage websites; Photobucket is another one I have come across, which has 1GB of free storage, providing a similar service to that of flickr.
Ethical issues were discussed in Tutorial One, which arise with the use of image capturing devices, for instance, images can be copied from the internet, and anyone can generally see them. Some images may be put up without permission, or copied without permission.
Digital images are used throughout Occupational Therapy practice. We might uses images to help demonstrate how to do things for example, or show others what we are doing at a regional meeting.
For those of you who don't know, there is a difference between digital zoom, and optical zoom. Digital zoom is the zoom of the lens, which allows you to capture an image closer than it actually is, or further away.
Whereas, Optical zoom, is the quality of a zoomed image.
Another term used with Digital imaging is megapixel, which is 1 million pixels. (A Pixel is the smallest element of an image that can be individually processed in a video display system).
There is a statement; "A new technology is rarely superior to an old one in every feature" which I think is somewhat true in relation to digital camera technology. There are some pluses and minuses of digital camera technology compared to the more traditional film based cameras.
Pluses:
=> you can see what your picture looks like (straight after youve taken the picture, so if you are not happy with it, you can take another one)
=> don't have to buy film (or risk ruining the film, eg. exposure to light)
=> can edit the picture through programs like photoshop
Minuses:
=> needs batteries, or recharging.
=> photos taken are not as traditional, 'real' or 'special' as they are when taken by the older versions of cameras. We don't appreciate photos as much as we used to.
There are various ways that digital images can be stored, transferred and manipulated using other communications technology. Examples include:
- images can be taken on cellphones, and sent through picture text to others, or to email
- images can go from cameras => SD cards => computer => email/stored on flickr etc/faxed/printed and then posted to people.......
Flickr.com is a website which allows you to upload photos, share photos with others, and edit them. As you may be able to see, on the left hand side of my blog, there are some images "A Walk in the Courtyard of Otago Polytechnic" which I imported from Flickr. There are many other photo storage websites; Photobucket is another one I have come across, which has 1GB of free storage, providing a similar service to that of flickr.
Ethical issues were discussed in Tutorial One, which arise with the use of image capturing devices, for instance, images can be copied from the internet, and anyone can generally see them. Some images may be put up without permission, or copied without permission.
Digital images are used throughout Occupational Therapy practice. We might uses images to help demonstrate how to do things for example, or show others what we are doing at a regional meeting.
For those of you who don't know, there is a difference between digital zoom, and optical zoom. Digital zoom is the zoom of the lens, which allows you to capture an image closer than it actually is, or further away.
Whereas, Optical zoom, is the quality of a zoomed image.
Another term used with Digital imaging is megapixel, which is 1 million pixels. (A Pixel is the smallest element of an image that can be individually processed in a video display system).
Monday, May 11, 2009
Tutorial 6 - Online Communities
I was introduced to a website last year by workmates, which i never really thought much of until it was spoken about at class last week.
The website is www.threadless.com
It has some pretty sweet designs of t-shirts on there. Whats good about it is you can become part of the community, and help choose which designs will become threadless t-shirts. If you are keen, you can also post your own designs for t-shirts on there, and hear what other people have to say about it. People in the community can comment on why they like it, or why not, and what you could do differently. If they like it, they may choose to score it (between 0-5) and say whether they would buy it as a tee or a print. If the designer gets it printed (from winning enough people's votes in the community) they get $2500 (plus $500 for reprints). So if you are a creative person, and love to design things, why not join this community, post your design up and see how you go! This kind of money would be useful for getting through the year while studying.......
People in this community appear to contribute their own ideas through designing something, or helping others towards designing something people like. It is also a way to buy some cheapish t-shirts that you like, rather than going to the shops in town spending more than you need to on a shirt you may not like that much.
Potential ethical issues could arise in this community, such as copying other peoples ideas, or taking credit for someone else's work. From what i gather, though i could be wrong, it seems pretty safe, and you would have to accept an agreement before signing up to the community first.
This is a much more effective and efficient way of communicating with others than traditional ways, such as club meetings on wednesday nights. You can talk to people across the world, and look at a photographic image of designs, rather than flying overseas or within your country to have a look at designs. There are challenges with this community though, as it requires the use of technology which, lets face it, is confusing most of the time. This community cannot provide the interpersonal relationships that traditional communities do, as you don't talk and comment in person, it is all in writing, which is not always representative of what is actually meant to say.
Check out threadless for yourself and see what you think of it and the designs they have.
The website is www.threadless.com
It has some pretty sweet designs of t-shirts on there. Whats good about it is you can become part of the community, and help choose which designs will become threadless t-shirts. If you are keen, you can also post your own designs for t-shirts on there, and hear what other people have to say about it. People in the community can comment on why they like it, or why not, and what you could do differently. If they like it, they may choose to score it (between 0-5) and say whether they would buy it as a tee or a print. If the designer gets it printed (from winning enough people's votes in the community) they get $2500 (plus $500 for reprints). So if you are a creative person, and love to design things, why not join this community, post your design up and see how you go! This kind of money would be useful for getting through the year while studying.......
People in this community appear to contribute their own ideas through designing something, or helping others towards designing something people like. It is also a way to buy some cheapish t-shirts that you like, rather than going to the shops in town spending more than you need to on a shirt you may not like that much.
Potential ethical issues could arise in this community, such as copying other peoples ideas, or taking credit for someone else's work. From what i gather, though i could be wrong, it seems pretty safe, and you would have to accept an agreement before signing up to the community first.
This is a much more effective and efficient way of communicating with others than traditional ways, such as club meetings on wednesday nights. You can talk to people across the world, and look at a photographic image of designs, rather than flying overseas or within your country to have a look at designs. There are challenges with this community though, as it requires the use of technology which, lets face it, is confusing most of the time. This community cannot provide the interpersonal relationships that traditional communities do, as you don't talk and comment in person, it is all in writing, which is not always representative of what is actually meant to say.
Check out threadless for yourself and see what you think of it and the designs they have.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
