Louisa Green – Task 1: https://louisaagreen.wixsite.com/ubc-met-etec-540-tex/tasks
I chose to dive into Louisa’s task one post because it was made with the idea of engaging the audience in mind. This was done through using the Prezi presentation format. I was able to click through different areas of the presentation to learn information about Louisa’s bag in the order I chose instead of reading a basic written blog post which is what I have done for this task.
There were some similarities with the things in my bag and the things in Louisa’s bag. We both carry items in our bags that allow us to consume text such as using a laptop to read articles and headphones to consume spoken text or music. We both came to the conclusion that by looking at our bags, one would assume we possess a good amount of technological literacies.
There were also some insights that I learned from exploring Louisa’s task. One of the things that was brought to my attention was the importance of the different types of literacies. In the post, Louisa mentioned eco-literacy while describing non-traditional literacies and how they form a person’s self image. I thought that was interesting and got me thinking about the other non-traditional literacies that I possess and how it contributes to my self image. Another thing I learned from Louisa’s post is the cultural significance of text and the creation of text. In Western countries such as Canada and USA, a written signature often proves a person’s identity and will allow a person to buy things or even enter into contracts. Through Louisa’s post, I learned that signatures in Japan take form in a stamp called “hanko”. It’s very interesting that both forms of identification are symbols or words placed on paper, but how it gets there matters significantly according to different cultures.
Rich Payne – Task 3: https://blogs.ubc.ca/540rp/
I chose Rich’s task three because he used a different transcribing software than myself. I used Microsoft 365’s online Word application while Rich used Apple Notes. I wanted to examine whether one application was more accurate than the other and what were some of the common mistakes made by Apple Notes when transcribing speech to text.
There were many similarities in the mistakes that Apple Notes made compared to Microsoft Word 365. For example, there were incorrect punctuations littered throughout the text. Rich made a good point that the pauses in our speech contributes to this. The transcription application is unsure whether the pause is the end of a sentence or a point of emphasis. The software has to make a guess and sometimes gets it wrong by placing a punctuation where we didn’t intend to. Rich also made a good point about AI and accents. Everyone talks slightly different in their cadence and accent, therefore the transcription software needs as much data as possible to examine all different accents and tones to transcribe correctly.
In analyzing his transcribed text, Rich also brought up a few good points regarding the differences between oral story telling and writing. Rich mentioned that speech contains emotions and expressions that adds to the story. In order to convey this in writing, it is “made up” by using expressive and accurate language in the writing. This is apparent in many books and stories where the author uses a plethora of descriptive words and phrases to make up for that fact. Lastly, Rich made an important note that “the exact same story told by two different people may feel quite different”. I also agree with this fact that by placing personal expressions and emotions into the same story, it can make the story unique to the oral story teller.
Barbara Stewart-Edwards – Task 6: https://sites.google.com/nsd61.ca/etec540texttechnologies/tasks/task-6-an-emoji-story?authuser=0
I chose Barbara’s task 6 to analyze because it was a show that I have also watched on Netflix and one of the things I noticed with her story was that she not only included emojis but also ASCII symbols and images to express the story. The show described is “Love is Blind”.
One interesting thing I noticed in Barbara’s submission is that she not only used premade emojis but she also used emoticons formed by symbols and punctuations such as using brackets, quotes, and other symbols to form two faces smiling at each other. This reminded me of the possibilities of drawings someone can do with ASCII symbols. Another thing Barbara used were images that included emojis in them. This definitely helped with the ability to decipher the plot as a picture of a beach is very difficult to be incorrectly interpreted compared to using palm tree and plastic bucket emojis to represent the beach.
One thing I would’ve done differently in Barbara’s submission is to rely on pictures less and to use solely emojis to represent the plot of the show. For example, instead of an image of a couple breaking up and walking away, she could’ve used emojis such as: 
Bobby Han – Task 7: https://blogs.ubc.ca/bobbyhan/task-7/
I chose Bobby’s task 7 to reflect upon because it was the most unique redesign I came across for this task. Bobby completed the mode-bending through writing a children’s song that summarized what was in his bag. I personally is a fan of music but would have no idea where to start if I was tasked with composing a song. Bobby gave many useful insights into the mind of a composer and the considerations he use when writing a song.
Bobby made a good point that music “transcends cultural boundaries and fosters emotional connections”. This was a great point and highlights that not only do consuming text evoke emotions, but listening to music can do the same thing or more. Some of the considerations Bobby made when crafting his song were the notes he used, the instruments he used, and the repetition of the melody. The notes from the pentatonic scale he used are used in music all around the world. This makes this song accessible to as many people as possible. The instruments Bobby used were unpitched instruments that can be picked up by anyone no matter their music background. Lastly, the melody he used were simple and repeated making learning it an easier task. By re-designing the “What’s in your bag” task into an easy to learn song, it not only gets the information across in a fun way, but it could also potentially evoke emotions that the text itself wouldn’t have.
Leighton Chiverton – Task 10: https://blogs.ubc.ca/etec540leightonchiverton/task-10-attention-economy/
I chose Leighton’s task 10 to reflect upon because it represented many of our peers’ responses. Generally people were frustrated with the task and some had given up a few times while completing the User Inyerface game. In my opinion, the website definitely tried to frustrate the user by making the worst choices in website user interface design. However, if you read carefully and went into the task with the website trying to trick you in mind, the task becomes fairly easy to complete.
Leighton made a point regarding how websites that try to keep you on their platform for as long as possible have the potential to make more money from selling ad space for their website. Although this is true, by making the website as frustrating as possible and making the user stay as long as possible doesn’t necessarily increase traffic to the website. Websites need to find the right balance in efficiency and time spent there by consumers. If the website is too frustrating to navigate, the consumer will not return. Getting new consumers are always more challenging than keeping the existing ones. Websites that try to deceive the user will often times get a bad reputation and “word of mouth” in the age of the internet can have significant damage the website’s traffic.
Anne George – Task 12: https://blogs.ubc.ca/annegetec540/
I chose to analyze Anne’s task 12 because of the creative format it was presented in. Anne created a week’s worth of journal and reminder entries in the Genially application. The entries were multi-modal including both text and voice. I believe this is a good prediction of what weekly calendars will look like and how they will function with the abilities to record voice memos to elaborate and to remind.
In the task, Anne described the world as less inhabitable and the government placing more control on their citizens. All this is very plausible in 10 years if there are no changes in policy to protect our environment. The prompt mentioned camping gear as a gift. One thing I wish that Anne would’ve included in her narrative is how the camping gear would be used in this dystopian future. It would be interesting to imagine camping gears having more heavy duty air filters to make sleeping outside possible, or a new business that offers indoor warehouse space decorated as if it’s the outdoors for people to safely camp in.
