Top Ten or Twelve

What are the top ten things I have learned in this class. Here goes - In Online Documentation, I have learned...

• that I need to learn a lot more about online documentation
• how to make a template in Dreamweaver (Thanks Tim!)
• basic HTML tags
• that I do not have any clue as to what Johnson is talking about in Datacloud
• that online environments are ludic and iterative
• Steve Jobs keeps his job in large part because of his charisma
• the current web site for S&TC sucks
• the feng shui web site can rock with a few tweaks
• it is important to know how people go about their daily work in order to determine how technology can best serve them
• there are good examples and formats for research proposals
• audience analysis is important in web design
• remediation can involve reverse engineering of prior and new technologies so that features can be liberally borrowed

Please note that these are not in any particular order.

Remediation unveiled

Well, it's back to blogging. It seems like a long time, but I guess that is due to spring break. In addition, my hard drive crashed last Friday and I have been spending time reloading what I could salvage. As a result I am a bit behind in my work (sorry Dr. Mara!). At any rate, I need to define what remediation is. To start, let's look at what Bolter and Grusin have to say. The definition in the text basically says that remediation is the process by which new media technologies improve upon or remedy prior technologies. This remind me of a discussion from a class last term. We were discussion resistance to new media and the topic of "tally sticks" came up. Tally sticks were used to keep financial records in England until they were replaced by paper. Following is an excerpt from eXplore Parliament:

Tally sticks were an ancient method of accounting used by the Treasury.
Notches were cut into wooden sticks according to a code. The sticks were then
split down the middle and the Treasury kept one half and the debtor the other.
When the debt was paid the two halves were matched to see if they 'tallied'.
Tally sticks were abolished in 1783 but their use continued until 1826. The fire
at the Palace of Westminster in 1834 was caused by the burning of old tally
sticks. The fire soon got out of control as there were huge numbers of these
sticks.

Eventually, the new replaced the old. In more recent times, you can see the same thing happening with CDs and vinyl records, as well as DVDs and VHS. I don't believe that the old is always replaced though. Take paintings for example, which were not replaced by the photograph.

In addition, new media oftentimes borrow from older technologies and the old from the new. Pictures use the frame just as paintings do and DVDs use chapters just like books. On the flip side, TV news now uses many features found on Web pages. It has become hypermedia in the sense that there is audio, video, images, and scrolling text, all in multiple frames on the screen. So there it is. Those are my thoughts so far on remediation. I am interested to see where this takes us in the next few weeks.

Mechanism-Telos

Tonight's entry contains the answers to three questions.

1. Out of the list generated in class, pick the two most important mechanisms.
2. Connect the mechanism with the telos. Describe how they are related.
3. How do you measure each mechanism?

The two mechanisms that we chose are employment and certification and they are related to the telos (status of the field) in a number of ways. For one, certification elevates, or at least maintains, the status of the field. By producing qualified graduates with the appropriate credentials, colleges and universities supply the field with a continuous flow of knowledgeable workers. Likewise, employment ties into status for a similar reason. Employers are looking for credentialed prospects and once the student gains employment they begin contributing to the status of the field.

Finally, how do you measure each mechanism? I think the obvious answers are that employment is measured by placement rates and certification (or graduating with a diploma) can be measured by graduation rates and/or completion of program rates. In addition, post-graduation surveys such as employer satisfaction surveys and graduate surveys can be conducted. Following is an explanation of each.

1. Placement rate - measure the number of graduates who find gainful employment in their field. Obviously the key words are "in their field." Finding employment in any area is not a measure and there would be no connection to the telos/status if the graduate isn't employed in his or her field.
2. Completion of program - measure how many students who enroll actually complete their program of study. Students who do not complete the program cannot contribute to the field and should not be considered a successful "product" of the program.
3. Employer satisfaction surveys - measure employer's satisfaction with the graduate and his or her skills as developed via the program.
4. Graduate surveys - measure the graduate's satisfaction with the program and how well that student perceives the education he or she has received. Does the student believe that the education he or she completed has prepared him or her for employment in the field.

What Have I Done for My Research Project?

What I have I done? Well, I am not sure that this will take 250 words, but here goes. (Isn't technical communication about bringing down the walls of text? I could probably do this in a few bullet points.)

There are several things I have done for my research project. Please realize that some of these cross over into my thesis and Online Documentation class. At this point, I have actually done quite a bit of research. This has mainly included looking at what has been done in relation to blog genres. Some of the people I have (figuratively) run into in cyberspace include Carolyn Miller, who conducted a lot of the original work in this area of genres, Rebecca Blood (gotta love the name), Jill Walker, and although not technically a person, the Media class at Richard Stockton College in New Jersey. There have been a few others that are currently on my annotated bibliography, but those listed are the ones I have utilized the most.

In addition, I have been kind of in a continual state of revision with my research proposal. I think it is finally pretty close to complete. I am trying not to get too hung up with this because I could end up wasting time by rehashing the same old stuff. However, I do find that it helps clarify my thoughts and the "plan" becomes ingrained in my mind.

Last week, I spent a few minutes talking with Dr. Mara about where this was all heading. That was a definite plus because, as a result, I finally got the proposal to where I think it ought to be. I have always found that I work best when I can bounce ideas off of someone else. Sometimes my wife is a big help in that area; sometimes it needs to be some else who has more knowledge of the topic, or who is more familiar with my own personal work.

At any rate, that's about it. This next week is going to be spent getting the annotated "bib" together. Even though it is spring break and I would rather be someplace warm, it is kind of relaxing to just sit and read at a slower pace than what usually occurs during a regular class week. However, thoughts of the Caribbean still linger...