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I don't remember what the exact prompt for this was anymore since we had to change it because we didn't do peer review, but I think you said to talk about the experience of building this site. I had quite some troubles working with Dreamweaver over the past couple weeks, as many knew because of all the help I asked for. I later found out using Dreamweaver for this project was NOT a requirement, but I was determined to stick with it anyway. After many struggles and challenges on several computers, I finally had to call it quits on Dreamweaver and switch to Wix last minute. I'm slightly disappointed in myself for doing so because I feel like I let the program defeat me, which makes me mad, but I think the final product of the site looks so much better now, which is what the client wanted anyway.

Project 2 vs Project 3

Blog 9:

In what ways were Projects 2 and 3 different for you? How was the experience of doing a personal, informal website different from the experience of doing a formal, organizational website? Which one did you prefer and why? Did each have its own unique pleasures and problems?

The main difference between project 2 and 3 for me was the fact that I was the client for one, and I have a real client for the other. Otherwise, I’ve still run into the same difficulties a very inexperienced user would have on both projects. I’ll admit this class has been a real challenge for me, which I both like and dislike. I enjoy being able to show what I’ve done when the process is over, but I hate feeling like I’m struggling or falling behind as I try to figure out what I’m doing while I’m building the sites. Doing the personal, informal website was a lot different because I sort of got free reign with it and could do whatever I wanted, whereas with this one, I have to talk to my client and let him figure out what he wants. Luckily, he and I are pretty good friends, so he lets me have a little sway in his decision making if I feel like what he wants to do is stupid. I actually prefer doing the formal one I think, simply because I like being told exactly what is expected of me, while with the informal I had no clue if I was doing way too much or too little work.

Google Google!

Blog 8:

Have you ever searched for your own name on Google? Do it now. For example, by Googling “Michael Charlton” I have discovered that my fellow Michael Charltons include a historian of the War of the Roses, an Australian rugby player, and an assistant professor at Missouri Western (wait, I know that one). Who did you find with your name in the wide world? What have the other “yous” been up to with their time? Did you find yourself? What were you up to according to Google?

After searching for my name on Google, I mostly found links to other people’s Facebook pages who had the same name as me. I did find one Kelsey Houser who is a photographer from Knoxville, TN. She does traditional photography stuff: weddings, senior pictures, baby photos, pet pictures, etc. I also found a Kelsey Houser who is a lead manager of a nonprofit organization called Relay For Life Central Area at American Cancer Society in Sacramento, CA. I found out that before that, she was a special events coordinator for Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. A link to my Twitter page also came up on the first page of the Google search, apparently according to Google I’ve been tweeting a lot. I have 3,979 tweets at the moment, my last tweet a song lyric from Florence & The Machine’s “I’m Not Calling You a Liar.” Although if you are reading this in class, I have more than likely passed the 4,000 mark by now.

More Changes! Woot!

Blog 7:

We've been discussing issues related to mechanics and cleaning up your copy. What changes do you plan to make between the current stage of your website and the final draft? What still needs to be done? What do you plan to revise? How close do you think you are to a polished final product?

I have a lot of changes I plan to make between the current and final stages of my website. First of all, I will have a website made by the final stage. Right now I just have a paper mock up, but on the last website I moved a lot faster once I had it all planned out on paper, so I'm not stressing out too much about being in that phase of the process still. I still need to get a logo and make sure I know how to embed a calendar my client wants and figure out how to get the exact color he is looking for. I also am waiting on him to send me some information that he wants put on the site, for example pictures of the members of the organization or the calendar events he wants listed. I'm still quite a ways away from a polished final product, but I know things will get moving right along once I get my template made and can start just plugging in the information he's going to give me. That should make the process go very quickly and then I will revise the site and probably have a friend look at it before I show it to the client.

Revision Process!

Blog 6:

What is your revision process like? When you go about proofreading or editing a document, what do you typically do? How long do you give yourself to do it? Do you consider yourself a good editor?

My revision process is different depending on whose document I am revising. If I am looking over my own work, I'm very picky and a stickler for mistakes. I make sure I find any possible problem and underline or highlight it to fix it. I check and recheck something if I think there's a possibility it may be spelled wrong or a grammatical error. After reading through the document, I go back in and fix all the errors on my computer and reprint the document and then check that version for errors as well. I try not to take too long to do this process as I like to be efficient, but I give myself as long as I need. I consider myself a good editor, at least with regards to my own work because I hold myself to high standards. When I check other people's work though, I go a lot easier because my kindness and my expectations for being correct conflict with each other. Do you point out every single mistake to them or only the big ones and let them learn the lesson on their own? You don't want to point out too much and make their self esteem go way down. It turns into a moral dilemma for me, but I try to help others as best as I can.

Comfy Mechanics!

Blog 5:

What's your comfort level with mechanical issues related to writing? Do you have problems with grammar, spelling, punctuation, or citation as a general rule? What's the most common error you know you make? Looking at your own writing, do you think your comfort level with mechanical issues helps or hurts how well you get across your ideas to readers?

I have a moderate comfort level with regards to mechanical issues related to writing. I admit I forget several small things with regards to grammar, but who doesn’t? It pains me to admit that sometimes I forget whether to use "who's" or "whose," which is probably the most common error I know I make. Everyone has their moments, but that’s what those nifty things we have called handbooks are for. If I am having what I call a “brain fart” and can’t remember a grammatical rule, I just look it up. I actually have a great handbook called Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. Not to brag or anything, but with spelling, I rock. Unless it’s some insanely long and obnoxious word, I have a pretty good vocabulary and am pretty great at spelling. I have my moments with punctuation as well, but I’m usually pretty good at remembering rules. Citations are tricky for me depending on the type. I have the basic citation format for books down, but for everything else (and even to double check book ones) I like to have a citation guidebook handy to make sure I didn’t mess them up. Looking at my own writing, I think my comfort level helps how well I get my idea across to readers, as my work is usually pretty easy to read and understand. Or at least I hope it is!

Yay Twitter!

Blog 4:

What's your own experience with social media been like to this point? Do you regularly use social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter? Maybe you even play a MMORPG or belong to a virtual community or listserv. If you take part in these, what do you value about the experience? What do you get out of it? If you avoid these things, why? Why do you think these forms of media aren't for you?

I have quite a large experience with social media to this point, as most people my age do. I have a Facebook and Twitter account, both of which I check at least 5 times a day. I have no clue what MMORPG is, so it's safe to say I don't play it. I have accounts on many other sites where there is some sort of social media interaction going on though, such as Youtube, Google Plus, Tumblr, etc, but I spend most of my time on Twitter and Facebook. There are plenty of meaningless values I get out of using these, my favorite that I get to interact with and make stupid jokes on my friends' walls/profiles. Another thing about it that I like though is that it lets me reconnect with people. For example, my cousin that I haven't gotten to talk to in years commented on one of my statuses the other day and it made me appreciate the fact that we have this opportunity to reconnect. The same goes with my aunt, she and I keep up with each other by looking at photos the other one posts and "liking" them.