Concept Map

Animator vs Animation

really cute and clever video!!

My Garageband Sample

Here is a sample of my work on Garageband. My sound is the cute poem about sea shells with seagulls and waves in the background to help accent it.  Sound can be very influential and helpful during presentations. It can help to emphasize certain points or just make the presentation more entertaining. Also, if it is necessary to interview for the presentation it is a sure way to present the information with direct quoting and not just summarizing what was said. 

My Podcast - Elise Gilpin

Week 8: The Sound Of... Podcasting

            We began this week by first learning about “Audio formats.” An audio format is a way of storing sound and music. It has evolved from phonographic cylinders in the 1800’s to vinyl records all the way to compact discs and Blu-Ray. There are innumerable types of audio formats as well. They are divided into three major groups of formats: uncompressed, formats with lossless compression, and lossy compression.  This segued into Podcasting. Podcasting is a way to watch or listen to media at any given time.  Podcasting is a type of broadcast that stands for “Personal On Demand.” There are many advantages to this but the three main reasons it has gained such popularity is (1) the ability for anyone to use it without extra technology needed, (2) subscribing allows people to retrieve future shows automatically and (3) the ability to download it to any device, not just computers.   Finally, we learned how to use Garage Band, a popular application on Mac computers.

            Podcasting is very useful in my field of Accounting because it is a simple way to spread new information to anyone interested. With the ever-changing trend to globalization, accounting standards are becoming more international as well. We are beginning a transformation from the US GAAP to the International Financial Reporting Standards. Through podcasting, authorities and large firms have the ability to present new information, standards, and other findings to all accountants and clients who would be interested in the information.

            Here is a video of a man’s opinion on possibly patenting podcasts. I thought this was interesting because it somewhat relates our lesson on Podcasting to our lesson on Copyright Law and ethical issues. 

Week 7: Digital Storytelling

In week 7, we learned about Digital Storytelling. This is the use of media and new computer-based tools to tell stories. It usually contains a combination of pictures, text, video, audio and music. This is used highly in education, by either recounting events in history or teaching new concepts. Outside of just educational stories it can be narratives, for workshops or participatory production. They are innumerable ways and resources to present digital storytelling. It can be slideshows, travels shown on Google Earth, timelines, comic strips, collages, videos and many more.

With an ever-changing environment and economy, it is imperative in the accounting world to constantly learn new rules, processes and events. Digital storytelling is one way to present this information to employees of firms in a more interesting way. Continuing education is a requirement for the CPA license and this could be one way they could incorporate facts in an entertaining way. It is important to incorporate the different types of media like video, audio and facts, and this is one successful way to encompass these.  When these accounting firms recruit students, it is important to appeal to them and display different aspects of the firm. Using Digital Storytelling to describe the company, show locations they can travel to with Google earth, and video/picture footage of their activities could be very successful in presenting the firm.

The following link is a website provided by the University of Virginia for teachers and students to create “narratives” (digital stories) in one easy site. They provide materials and images to use, as well as a location to actually make it with ease.

http://www.digitalstoryteller.org/

Digital Storytelling

Week 5: Media and Information Literacy

This week’s focus was on the presentation of information and guidelines for instructional media. There are four main aspects to focus on when presenting information. The first guideline is Contrast. This refers to how the foreground and background coordinate. It does not necessarily mean fun colors, but it is the contrast that makes it appealing to the eye and easy to see. Repetition is also very important when presenting information in this form. The consistency makes it easier to understand. Alignment is the third factor to consider. If the alignment does not have a proper format, the information trying to be portrayed could be confused or key concepts could be missed. Proximity, how everything is arranged next to each other is also key in presenting information. The discussion also mentioned appropriate size font, arrangement of graphics, and other guidelines about font, number of words, and amount of space. The next topic of the week was “Web Based Resources“,  an Internet accessible tool of instructional activities. We also compared multimedia to hypermedia. Multimedia consists of presentations with pictures, sound, text, video, etc. Hypermedia is media connected by links to navigate non-linearly. They both have strong attributes like flexibility, developing creative thinking, and improving skills.

In the corporate world, and especially when presenting information or dealing with clients, PowerPoint is highly incorporated. When presenting facts, plans, or ideas, professionals use this tool to present information in a clear and concise matter. To accomplish this, however, there are certain guidelines that are extremely important. The presentation will be ineffective if the contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity are not appropriate. The last thing the Board of Directors wants is to have a poorly made PowerPoint that distracts them from the topic on hand.

Here is a business training website that discusses the importance of PowerPoint skills. They give advice and guidelines for students, teachers and business professionals. 

Week 4: Copyright Law, Plagiarism & Ethical Issues

Copyright is a protection that applies to all tangible and creative works. Title 17 of the U.S. code provides protection for such copyrights. This assists the creators of such work to control how it is used. It helps prevent different unauthorized uses like reproduction, altering, or displaying. There are certain time limitations to works. If it was done before 1922, it is public domain. Between 1923 and 1978, works are copyrighted for 95 years. Another limitation is that it lasts 70 years after the death of the author. It is always necessary to ensure certain works are not protected, under copyright or others. In terms of education, the Fair Use Act allows schools and libraries to use works with certain restrictions like the percentage of the work used or how it would affect the work’s market. Technologically, almost all works on the web are protected in some way and software has no Fair Use concept.

In accounting, the importance of following rules, laws and guidelines is insurmountable. In 2002, the amount of expectations, tasks, rules and guidelines to follow increased drastically after the fall of Enron and the firm Arthur Andersen. While it did not occur because of copyright law, it is very similar in that protection and regulations are there for a reason. Also, in accounting, much research is done and past court rulings and instances help define our responses. It is important to not plagiarize but to use the resources in an appropriate manner. Ethics has become a major focus in the accounting profession and is something that every firm has high expectations for.

The following is a really cute video from YouTube done by a teacher displaying the Fair Use rule as well as explaining copyright law. It is done by taking approved-length clips from different Disney movies and piecing them together to form a presentation and speech about copyright. Clever!