Wednesday, February 4, 2009
I have learnt much about the Effective Internet Researching skills. Now I know that there's something called the Deep Web/Invisible Web. I also know now that maintaining a blog isnt easy. I learnt that meta search engine is very useful when searching a huge number of search engines. This marks the end of my EIR Journey. Wishing everyone all the best.
ITS ME .
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Tutorial 3 & 4
I feel that Youtube plays a vital role in my life. It gives my my daily serving of new information and tutorials, especially piano tutorials since I am very interested in music. I can also watch other people play their instruments on youtube.
Here's a screenshot of Youtube Main Page.
Figure 1
I CAN live without Youtube, afterall, Youtube isnt the one supplying me with oxygen and food and drinks. If I die without Youtube, then I'd have become a puppet already. But of course, Youtube is very important to me because of the extensive amount of information i'd get from it.
Using Youtube for research purposes? It IS obvious isn't it? If I were to work on a project that requires me to teach people how to play the piano, I'd have to go youtube and first learn how to play a piano. Also, on youtube, there are many other information that are of good use for projects and researches. Hence it'd be good that students do not forget Youtube when doing their projects.
TUTORIAL 5 & 6
I feel that using Wiki to collaborate requires not only extensive knowledge on the topic for collaboration, but also a high sense of responsibility. The information uploaded must be correct so as not to mislead other readers/visitors and give them the wrong information. In this age, misinformation is a very dangerous thing. It could even lead to fatality/mortality. Thus we had to be extra cautious and pay extra attention to the information we were sharing on wiki. It is meaningful because we share our knowledge with other users and let others benefit from our expertise.
The following is my participation in the wikispace.
Figure 2
Of course i'd use wiki to research for my own diploma. Wikispaces are very reliable because they are maintained by many dedicated users who share their information for the sake of benefiting others. Hence I always visit wikispaces to research. In fact I visit Wikipedia for most of my required information.
ITS ME .
Friday, January 23, 2009
Firstly, I'd like to continue from my previous post about summary of internet resources. I'd also like to apologize for a lack of pictures because I haven't got time to wait for my very slow computer to upload them all.
OK here goes.
Following last week, evaluating internet resources also involves checking the links of the website, since some websites might have changed its URL.
Also important, is the check for the status of the resource owner. Some information might have changed because the owner has left the company or an institution.
Some of you might not know, internet resources from an institution or an organisation might not be very relevant and reliable afterall. That is because it might be biased and might be trying to push an idea across to its viewers.
For example, it is very likely that a political website have an extent of biasness, otherwise, how are the citizens convinced to vote for that party?
Finally, to evaluate an internet resource, check whether there are hyped up languages in that resource. There may be exaggeration in the content of the resource, perhaps from a site advertising its products. Hence it is important to ensure that
there are no marketing languages in it.
ITS ME .
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
OK! Of all questions, it has to be My Dream Holiday!
How bout this, just get me a ticket for a plane trip around the whole world. Seriously my life is very deprived when it comes to holidays. I have never been on a plane and never been overseas. All except once, and that was a free 5 days 4 nights vacation to Malaysia. Even then, we travelled by coach. I have absolutely no idea what it is like to go overseas, and in fact, have no wish to even dream about it. What with all the turmoil and unstablity in the economy, even food has become a problem. I'd rather curl up on my sofa with good book, especially books by Low Kay Hwa, and spend a whole day reading it.
This post, I admit, will be rather slipshod because i have completely no notion about going overseas.
Destination: Japan - Nagoya, especially its Aichi Prefecture.
I chose this particular destination because of an absolutely perfect concert performance by the Aichi Meiden High School Symphony Wind Band. I would like to visit Aichi Meiden High School and experience the fantastic musical talent that the students have. Most importantly, I would like to visit my friend Natsumi, who was a B-clarinettist then. I do miss her quite a bit.
Back on track, Japan has very lovely scenery and for someone like me who simply adore scenic locations, Japan is definitely the ideal country to visit.
The following are some photo shots of the scenery in Japan. All the pictures in this post are from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan
~ Mount Yari, Nagano Prefecture in August
~ The well-known Mount Fuji in the background with the Shinkansen or bullet train in the foreground.
~ Japanese Garden
~ The Nagoya Castle
Other than the scenery, Japan is also well known for its culture, its technology as well as its world-famous anime/manga.
The Japanese culture definitely includes its various forms of martial arts, of which Kendo and Judo were in fact adopted as Co-Curricular Activities in many Singapore schools.
~ Kendo sparring session.
~ The latest Honda ASIMO model
The technological improvements in Japan are really fascinating. It is a wonder how Japan recovered so quickly from the World War II after-effects and managed to grow so strongly indstrially and economically. I guess a part of the reason could be that they are generating a lot of revenue from the exporting of cars to major dealers around the world. So i'd like to visit the car production factories in Japan and hopefully learn how the cars are made. This decision to visit a car factory is partially due to my interest in the automobiles industry, transportation, as well as my curiosity of finding out "How things work/How things are made/How things came about?".
The animation field in Japan is also expanding at the speed of light. There has been an impressive number of very famous anime films and games like the all-time favourite Final Fantasy Series (with the current FFXIII in productions for Xbox and Playstation 3 game consoles), Naruto, the children's favourite - Pokemon, the old time favourite Power Rangers (Super Sentai Series), Bleach, Katekyo Hitman Reborn and many more. I'd like to find out how the anime characters were first conceptualized, and how they were drawn, animated, and finally given their unique voices. I'd also like to discover how the video games were produced and who were behind these great works of the century.
There are many more things i'd like to know about Japan which includes how the researchers work in producing the newest innovations and the coolest technological gadgets that we now have, crave for, or saving hard in order to purchase. Who knows, they might give me one as a free gift. (--- "Dream on.. ")
There are many more things which i'd like to find out about Japan. Too much to list them all out, but i'd like to end the trip with a one-day journey on the Shinkansen and feel the Need For Speed!
When I chose the website, i had to bear in mind these few considerations:
- The website must have enough pictures to show me my destination, this makes it more credible.
- The website needs to be authoritative, verified by other users and visitors or officials.
- The website need to show comprehensive information about my holiday destination.
- The website must be amongst the top 10 search results when I google my search keywords for my holiday destination.
ITS ME .
Thursday, January 8, 2009
This is the first time I really panic. The exams are coming.
Ok, I have learnt from the past two weeks about how to evaluate internet content
Firstly, it is important to lookout for the relevance and currency of an internet resource.
Basically, we need to identify the date of the posting as well as the date of the latest update.
I have chosen Mothers Against Videogame Addictions and Violence (MAVAV) as my evaluation resource.
Screenshot of homepage of MAVAV
Figure 1
Next, we must also identify whether the resource content are relevant. We need to make sure that the
content stays on topic. The content shouldnt deviate too much from the main context.
Lastly(not actually, because i'm leaving some for my next post), it is important to check whether the
links on the website or materials are still updated. Some links are broken due to website movements.
ITS ME .
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
31st December 2008 [Tuesday] 1:15 AM
E-learning week
I feel that I enjoyed talking on the discussion forum. I was able to post my views freely on OLE because of the virtual barrier. I feel good that I am able to share my views with my other classmates and engage in a discussion with them. It is interesting to be able to find out what the others think and also very exciting to receive a reply or comment on my posting.
Screenshot of OLE Discussion, My posting
Figure 1a
I feel that this type of discussion is much better in terms of truthfulness. Due to the virtual barrier, there is a lesser tendency to feel embarassed hence its easier to say what we really want to say, as compared to face-to-face discussions where people not only observe your content and language, but also your subtle gestures. Hence you would feel more restricted. However, face-to-face discussion could be faster than this forum because of the difference in the log-in timing of my classmates. i.e. I may login in the morning, but my classmates login during late morning. So there is a lapse of a few hours before a reply comes in.
ITS ME .
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
This week I've learnt about this website called TalkingCock.com. It starts off greeting its visitors by displaying a page with a glaring rooster head. It also warns visitors of the content in the website so that visitors who deem them to be undesirable can choose to leave.
Screenshot of TalkingCock.com
Figure 1a
I have chosen to evaluate this website based on its currency, its coverage, purpose and accessibilty.
From there, I realize that TalkingCock.com's content, based on its own context, is very current due to its dedicated owners who are constantly updating the website.
It has a wide coverage as it basically makes a joke out of everyday Singaporeans' lives. Be it serious or funny, these events are turned into amusing entertainment for its visitors.
The purpose of the website has been satisfied. It fundamentally engages visitors in mocking Singaporeans' daily activities and the various scenarios that take place all the time. Regardless of occupation, rank, age, ethnicity or religion, none is spared when something of interest happens upon them. These happenings would be harnessed and put to work on TalkingCock.com.
Accessibility wise, its undebatedly very user-friendly. The links are all very obvious and conspicious. Use of images further helps visitors locate points of interest on the site. Everything is categorized appropriately. Refer to Figure 1b.
Figure 1b
Main site of TalkingCock.com
I feel that the role play helped me understand more about the different perspectives of visitors visiting various websites on the internet. Taking TalkingCock.com as an example, if I were Singapore's Prime Minister, I'd feel that the website might have gone overboard on its jokes, and despite the amount of entertainment my citizens would gain from it, the detrimental effects it has on the government cannot be neglected. Furthermore, there are falsified information that may mislead citizens into a dangerous misconception. Hence there could be a need to regulate the website.
If I were a Singaporean, I'd basically feel very entertained and be tickled pink by the jokes on the website. In fact, I'd probably visit it everyday to receive my daily dosage of laughter medicine. However, I'd also think of the risks of visiting such a website because I'd be afraid of being labelled as anti-government.
If I were a foreigner/student working in Singapore, I'd have mixed feelings. Firstly, of course i'd be very entertained by the jokes. Yet, I'd wonder what kind of government would allow such rampant spread of false or misleading information, corrupting the minds of the younger generation and possibly affecting the country's politics scene.
ITS ME .
Thursday, November 27, 2008
For this week's lesson, i realized that the deep web, also known as the invisible web, is practically useless. None of the websites returned favourable results that were beneficial to my research topic. I conducted several searches on various deep webs and not one of them yielded any useful search results.
Here is a screenshot of an invisible web (Academic Gateway)
Figure 1
I feel that the deep web search is for heavily object-targeted searches. Examples of that would be searching for a specific book from a library using the online search tool by knowing and entering the book title, the author or the publisher; searching from educational institions' invisible web for articles and related publications.
All in all, I find that the usefulness-rating of the deep web is extremely low and would discourage friends from using that as a search tool for very obvious reasons.
ITS ME .
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Including site feeds into my blog...
I regretfully say that the worksheet does not provide any instructions at all with regards to how to include site feeds into my blog. Hence there is nothing I can do, because I do not wish to incorrectly include site feeds which may bring trouble.
I regretfully say that the worksheet does not provide any instructions at all with regards to how to include site feeds into my blog. Hence there is nothing I can do, because I do not wish to incorrectly include site feeds which may bring trouble.
This is one of my practical 4 & 5 research site screenshot
Figure 1a
What benefits do I get when using different search facilities to search for resources related to my topic?
I was really amazed at how the meta-search engine actually works. It was able to search and obtain results from the existing major search engines and therefore saves a lot of time for people who often need to search several search engines like google, yahoo, MSN etc. individually.
Based on a little search that i conducted via a wonderful site known as Search Engines Showdown (Meta Search Engines) http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/multi/,
different meta search engines crawl different search engines to yield different sets of results. For example, the meta-search engine "Dogpile" http://www.dogpile.com/ mentioned on Syahir's blog, crawls conventional search engines like these: Ask, Google, MSN, Yahoo!, Teoma, Open Directory. While Kartoo http://kartoo.com/, also a meta-search engine, crawls these search engines: AlltheWeb, AltaVista, EntireWeb, Exalead, Hotbot, Looksmart, Lycos, MSN, Open Directory, Teoma, ToileQuebec, Voila, Wisenut, Yahoo. Therefore i suggest that, before conducting a search on a meta search engine, define which search engines you'd prefer to search on before you hit the 'enter' key.
Screenshot of Kartoo
Figure 1b
Once again, i thank http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/multi/ for valuable information.
Screenshot of searchengineshowdown.com
Figure 1c
I have personally experienced site feeds in other people's blogs. I feel that site feeds are good as it constantly updates your blog with the latest news of other websites. These make users feel that your blog is relevant and up to date, and provide users with convenience when linking to other websites or refering to the updates of other websites.
ITS ME .
Monday, November 17, 2008
Confession: I really do not know why but i couldn't bring myself to settle down and complete my work. It's getting increasingly difficult to regulate my work hours and rest hours. I often find myself sitting in a hypnotized state, eyes transfixed in front of my laptop...... DOING NOTHING.
EIR has been a really interesting subject, yet the objectives have thus been rather unclear, or should I say I am TOO dimwitted where I feel so lost with regards to what needs to be done.
Oh and err... Mdm Roselind Nah applied for MC for Tuesday's lesson. Mmm wonder what happened. So, get well soon mdm!
ITS ME .
Sunday, November 9, 2008
I'm guilty of not posting an update earlier, but oh well, I hardly have the time to do so, especially with my terribly packed schedule.
Main Topic:
~ Practical 3
=> Activity 4: Include Site Feeds into personal Blogs
I have to briefly reflect on lessons learnt from this practical by answering questions below :
a) Whether I was impressed by google’s search functions/features? Why?
b) How I feel about participation in discussion forum? Is it helpful for my research? Do I feel anxious about talking to others I do not know?
c) Why must I do citation and bibliography?
Answers for the questions are as follows:
a) Indeed I was impressed by google's search functions, and in fact i still am. It is really amazing how the search engine is able to operate based on boolean operators and sieve out relevant information that i desire from the enormous World Wide Web. Many of the search results were relevant for my search, and even if they weren't, a change of keywords would yield even more search results. With such a strong search engine, there is a high chance of finding what i set out to find.
b) Originally i felt rather edgy and restrained about participating in a discussion forum. The other parties on the forum are mostly people that i do not know or have not met before, and therefore, an air of awkwardness lingers in the air. However, with the internet as a virtual barrier, the discussion forum definitely beats having to meet up face to face for a real-time discussion, which can be even more frightful and embarassing. I felt anxious communicating with people that i do not know, but I know that this will eventually be resolved because there is always a first time in making friends.
c) I understand that doing citation and bibliography is important as it recognizes the original authors for their work and effort and it also identifies them as the original producer of the work. However, things like royalty-free content often makes me confused as to why some things require acknowledgement while some things do not. Is it because of mankind's materialistic nature, or the craving for fame and popularity, or to mark something that they have worked hard on as their own? I feel that it is more of a recognition of efforts and hardwork than for the popularity and fame. That is why there are still many works that have been uncredited because those people work for the masses and do not ask for fame.
Dear readers, what do you think about bibliography and citation? Or about the search engines? Please feel free to leave a comment or leave me a message on my tagboard, thank you.
Also please take part in the OLE-BB's discussion forum at http://ole-bb.tp.edu.sg/
Alternatively, it can be accessed via TP's student portal.
ITS ME .
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Just a small musing here,
I feel we are really very blessed. We sit down inside an air-conditioned computer lab contemplating how to spend an imaginary $500 on anything we like, while people in South Africa and the developing countries sit down on the scorching sands, unsure whether they'll live to see the next day.
Whenever I put on my clothes, put a spoon of food into my mouth, enter a classroom for lesson, and even when I use the toilet, i would count my blessings. All these, and more, should not be taken for granted by us. I'm not being sarcastic here, but i even count my blessings when i look into my wallet and see that $1 left inside. Why is that so, you might ask. Well, I HAVE a wallet! Isn't that a blessing too? I am not being a sadist here. In fact, I have NO RIGHT to be one! The people struck with poverty still live their lives with as much courage and optimism as they can ever muster up. It is something really admirable.
Dear Esteemed Readers, please think about all that you have received and been through, I'm quite certain that many of them were blessings in disguise.
ITS ME .
Monday, November 3, 2008
Anyway, I am left with $1. I will buy 11 music pieces in Kitaro's Album "Live in Singapore 2005" at $0.09 each.
Figure 1 - Album cover
The music pieces are
1 - Peace Bell Symphony - 6:45 - $0.09
2 - Hajimari - 4:34 - $0.09
3 - Sozo - 5:17 - $0.09
4 - Orochi - 7:22 - $0.09
5 - Koi - 11:34 - $0.09
6 - Silk Road - 9:01 - $0.09
7 - Heaven And Earth - 13:05 - $0.09
8 - Caravansary - 5:59 - $0.09 < - I already have this song so I will not purchase this one.
9 - Water Of Mystery - 16:15 - $0.09
10 - Kokoro - 15:02 - $0.09
11 - Matsuri - 9:04 - $0.09
12 - The Light Of The Spirit - 11:24 - $0.09 http://www.legalsounds.com/download-mp3/kitaro/live-in-singapore/album_35207
That will be $0.99 in total
I will still be left with $0.01 which I will donate to charity.
$0.002 to Adventist Home for the Elders
$0.002 to Care Corner Counselling Centre
$0.002 to Children's Aid Society
$0.002 to Boy's Brigade in Singapore
$0.002 to Girl Guides Singapore
ITS ME .
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Starters:
I combine week 1 and 2 because week 1 is basically introduction and ice breakers.
MAIN CONCERN:
MSN registering problems. I don't understand why i am unable to register for a new MSN account when my friends could.
Main topic:
~(Practicals 1 & 2)
=>Activity 3: Creating My First Blog & "E-Shopping Spree" (Individual)
"If I have $500, i will buy the following items:
From Ebay :-
http://www.ebay.com.sg/
- THE MAGIC OF RECLUCE: L. E. Modesitt, Jr. => $ 9.17 + Postage $13.35
- THE ORDER WAR: L. E. Modesitt, Jr. => $9.18 +Postage $23.25
- The White Order: L. E. Modesitt, Jr. => $9.18 + Postage $17.50
- Scion Of Cyador: L. E. Modesitt, Jr => $4.52 + Postage $19.00
- Wellspring of Chaos: L. E. Modesitt, Jr => $10.69 + Postage $23.25
- ORDERMASTER: L. E. Modesitt, Jr => $18.31 + Postage $23.25
and more books ... ... (Originally i wanted to purchase more books and encyclopedias)
Wait, I found something i really want.
*drumrolls*
It is : - Image Line FL Studio 8 Producer Edition Software for PC, Mac (31827AC5) :
$499 (Free shipping worth $99) from Shopping.com
The following is the source.
**
http://www2.shopping.com/xPF-Image-Line-Image-Line-FL-Studio-8-Producer-Edition-Software
** Pictures were taken from the following source, due to its superior quality.
**
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Image-Line-FL-Studio-8-Producer-Edition-Software-703245-i1392369.gc?source=4WDTWXX
**
Product description:
This is a music making product. It enables its users to create musical compositions from an empty slate. The users begin by choosing an instrument to be used, then create music based on a piano-scale. several groups of instruments can be combined to resemble an orchestra or a symphonic band. It understand it can be hard to visualize what i am describing, so i decided to upload a screen video-capture. The music i made is known as "Music Box Dancer", made using FL Studio 7.
I made a video lasting approximately 3 minutes 50 seconds.
Purpose of website - The website was created to bring ease to consumers who want to locate, compare and purchase goods from the internet. It combines variety with simplicity to list an array of goods for consumers worldwide. The list of product categories makes searching for a product or an item very simple and hassle-free.
Similarity or difference in purpose of website - I feel that there is high similarity in the purpose of shopping.com and other sites like e-bay. Sadly, yahoo auctions had been closed down already. However, i believe the purpose should be similar. Their purposes are to enable users to search for and purchase items with ease. Yet, the difference here is the implemention of a bidding system by E-Bay, such that the seller has a chance of profiting much more from the sale.
ITS ME .