Computer Skills Blog

Advice

2008-04-29T09:25:00.000-07:00

My advice for new students is to make sure you come to class and stay on top of things because it is very easy to get backed up and lose points.

Favorite Websites

2008-04-24T07:28:00.000-07:00

I thought many of the websites were well done. However, one of my favorites was Emily's website. She had tons of pictures and collages on her website that looked really cool. I also loved her crazy cool backgrounds.
Another website I liked was Adriene's website. I was pumped to learn she is a Pheonix Suns fan. I also felt her website was creative and well organized. She did a great job.
The last of my favorites was Nicole's website. I especially liked this website because she didn't do it on herself, but rather on umpiring. This topic has always interested me and I was excited to learn more about it. Her website was very cool.
If you would like to visit my website please click on http://www.cs.trinity.edu/~dmaurer/.

HTML Code

2008-04-11T10:46:00.000-07:00

I believe it is important for web designers to know HTML code in case something with their page goes wrong and Microsoft Expression Web can't fix it. Web designers should have the skills to manually fix and or create web pages using HTML code. Although it is much easier to use web design software, HTML coding is a good skill to have in case of a software malfunction or other emergency.

Powerpoint Presentations

2008-04-04T11:34:00.001-07:00

I thought the presentations for the class were very creative and well organized. One presentation that stood out from the others for me was Nicole's presentation. I found that she did a good job making accounting seem interesting and fun. I also found her edgy background and her animations were innovative and well structured. I didn't know that if you leave school with a masters in accounting you are automatically labelled an accountant without work experience.
I also found Adriene's presentation was very good. She chose an interesting topic in green business and I felt it kept the audience's attention throughout the presentation. The design with the green background fit the presentation very well. Also the pictures were easy to see and relevant to the topic. Her slide transitions were also very smooth.

The Truth About PowerPoint

2008-03-26T21:37:00.000-07:00

I learned many new things concerning PowerPoint presentations from these three articles. The article "Really Bad PowerPoint and How to Avoid it" was a very useful article. I found it funny that the good examples for Microsoft slides are exactly what you do not want to do. I also found it funny that reading off your slides was considered the kiss of death.
These are my five most important guidelines for your power point presentation.
1. Do not have to much information on your page. The audience doesn't want to spend the whole time reading paragraphs on your slide. It also takes away from the attention you get during your presentation.

2. Do not use fonts in which it is hard to read because of the style or color. You don't want to make the audience spend time trying to read your slides.

3. Do not use clip art. At a serious level nothing says unprofessional more than clip art.

4. Do not use slide transitions in which it takes twenty minutes to get all of the information visable on your slide. The audience doesn't want to have to wait for your slide to appear.

5. Do not use to many sounds or other audio. This also makes your presentation seem childish and unprofessional.

Make it simple and full of interesting visual aids that have to do with your presentation.

Search Engines

2008-03-13T09:23:00.000-07:00

I learned many new things about search engines in the presentation. I thought one part of the presentation that was very interesting was how search engines rank websites. Google actually weights websites to determine which ones are most useful. Google will also send automotive bots to scan the pages to find key terms. Usually the more key terms the more useful the article is for your topic.

Another thing I learned was how to classify your search. For example, I did not know you could type site: - .com and restrict your search to non .com websites. There are also advanced searches that allow you to limit your search. I learned how to use search engines more effectively and efficiently from the presentation.

Copyright

2008-03-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

As the world grows technologically, so do the number of digital files that consist of movies, songs, and many other things. This allows people to easily copy files without costing money or losing quality. Copyright has become a much larger issue because of the easiness to copy files.

I learned many new things concerning copyright and plagiarism from the presentation. First, I learned that the RIAA doesn't care if you have copied 1 or 1,000 songs, they still can catch you and charge you. Secondly, I learned of the dangers of copying files through limewire and the penalties that go with it. Another interesting fact I took away from the presentation was the law that gives rights to the author through their lifetime and 75 years after their death.

An issue concerning copyright is whether Disney should be able to keep their characters out of the public domain and continue to hold their rights. Disney believes they should be able to keep the rights to their characters, while other people want to be able to publicly use the characters Walt Disney created.

My stance on this issue is that they should not create a law extending rights for all works, but that if the certain subject is still making money for the company than that company should continue to hold their rights. Disney should be able to hold the copyrights to their characters until they stop making money or they give them up.

Excel Skills

2008-03-06T10:26:00.000-08:00

I learned many things about excel that I did not know before. Almost all the equations were new to me. I also learned how to format cells and charts in creative and exciting ways. I found it easy to use excel to balance check books and/or figure out pay roll. I will definitely use the skills I have learned in excel in other classes such as Chemistry and Accounting and perhaps use them in my future career in Business.

Photo Editing

2008-02-27T18:27:00.000-08:00

The photo I chose to examine was the Wisconsin Application cover photo. I chose this photo because my father went to the university and I am a big Wisconsin fan. I also chose this photo because I recently went through the application process and I thought it was a funny thing for Wisconsin to ad a black face into the picture.
The picture was taken by the school at a Wisconsin football game. The Wisconsin administration used photo shop or some other photo editing device to place a black face in the picture to try to display diversity in the picture. Colleges around the nation strive for diversity and it is usually a main concern for applicants applying to colleges.
I did not find the manipulation harmful. Wisconsin is a fairly diverse college and I feel like the administration loved the picture, but they felt they had to show the diverse side of the university as well. The only way to show the diversity of the University and use the picture was to manipulate the photograph.

My Use of the Wireless Network

2008-02-04T19:27:00.000-08:00

I use the wireless capabilities at Trinity many different ways. The wireless network is useful for accessing the internet, while juggling other distractions. For example, I often read assignments and look over homework, while eating and short periods between class. The wireless network allows me to be more efficient academically throughout my day.

However, there are some down sides to having access to the internet everywhere. The wireless network makes it easy for students to become distracted in class. Some students also become obssessed with facebook or email. However, I find the network more useful from an academic standpoint even with the disrtractive possibilities it brings.

To learn more about wireless networks please click on the link.

My Experience With Word

2008-01-28T22:10:00.000-08:00

I have had a fair amount of experience with Word 2003. I know the basics of spreadsheets and word documents, but not how to use many of the special effects. However, I have not worked with Word 2007. I believe it would be helpful to review the location of the buttons in the new Word 2007 format. Memorizing the location of the new buttons will make working with the new Word faster and easier.

Blue Screen of Death

2008-01-22T10:26:00.000-08:00

If I ever encountered a blue screen of death at 9:00 and I have an assignment due the next morning I would first attempt to use my roomate's computer to complete my assignment. If my roomate was not availabvle I would check around for other friend's computers to try to complete my assignment. If I was unable to find any other computers near my room I would try to go to a computer lab and access my account from there. Since I encountered the problem at 9:00 I know that the library, Beze, and Murchinson all have lab computers available. If no other computers were accessible the blue screen of death will have conquered me.

About Me

2008-01-17T10:15:00.000-08:00

Hi, my name is Daniel Maurer although I go by Dan. I am from Longmont, Colorado. This town is located approximately an hour north of Denver. To see a picture of Longmont click on the link below. My house is located in the brown spot next to the golf course on the far east side of the town because we built the house two years ago and google earth is not yet updated.

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.163817,-105.10252&z=13&t=h&hl=en

I participate in as many sports as possible. In highschool I played baseball, soccer, basketball, and golf. I now play for the Trinity University Golf Team. I also enjoy snowboarding, wakeboarding and hanging out with friends. My family enjoys vacationing together. I have travelled around the world to see different cultures. A couple years ago I lived in Thailand for a couple weeks on a converted rice barge.

I have a fair amount of computer knowledge and have taken computer classes in the past. I participated in a web design class along with a typing course. I hope to learn how to better use spreadsheets and Microsoft word in Computer Skills 1300.

For questions or comments please email me at dmaurer@trinity.edu