Hi all, my name is Meagan and my favorite feature of the internet is our ability to share information with each other. You can learn almost anything on the internet from a comprehensible teacher who most likely isn’t even a teacher- anyone can share their knowledge without credentials and have many platforms to do so.

This week on the internet, the queen’s library website
has made me happy because they have resources on their website to help you learn a wide variety of languages and even dialects of specific languages. It is free and accessible to all of those with a library card.

Most of my time spent on the internet is dedicated towards language learning (and just learning in general) and the plethora of resources and knowledge available to me always leaves me awestruck.

I dabble in the internet as much as the next person, but i don’t interact with many people on there. i did however find something that both made me happy and was very interesting to me. I don’t usually look up stuff on the internet, but instead find a lot of stuff i like off of Youtube where i find reviews for a lot of things that i already like or may be interested to search for in the future.

One of the most interesting websites i have learned about from Youtube has to be the Library of Babel. This is also know as a a novel written by Jorge Luis Borges. The novel explains how the universe is like an almost infinite library, made of hexagonal rooms, galleries’ and staircases. it contains almost an infinite amount of books with every possible combination of letters, commas, periods, and spaces enveloped in books of 410 pages each. it is supposed that the library has been around since ab aeterno. It was created in order for scholars to study and learn as they please, with books that are undecipherable, millions of identical copies of books, and dead ends. It is said to contain everything that has ever been written and everything that could be written. The website succeeds and replicating that story. Even going as far as including every image possible from a color pallet of 4096 colors on a grid of 416×640. it is supposedly able to make every image possible that has ever been taken and can be taken with those colors. They even called it the Babel Image Archive. This is such an interesting concept and could not stop smiling over the fact of how cool it is and how fascinating the story is. Might just be my weird mind but i find it very cool.

Heyyo everyone, I’m Joshua or Josh (which ever you want to use is fine) I’m  really excited to be in this class and learn the ins and outs of this website and how to convey story through digital media on the internet, which is a versatile tool accessible to almost anyone.

I’m a pretty introverted person so I might not say much in person however, don’t feel afraid to say hi or make a sarcastic joke, because I will almost always laugh. However, when I’m not laughing at sarcastic jokes I’m usually drawing (because I’m a digital artist) or writing short stories. I’m actually working on one right now on this website called Wattpad.

If you’ve never heard of it Wattpad is, in their own words “The world’s most-loved social storytelling platform.” In other words, Wattpad is a place for writers to share their work and network with other writers/readers to get feedback, or just to get their work out there in the world. Sometimes if writers are seriously passionate about making it their career and gain a big following, Wattpad will help to publish that creator’s work.

Now moving on to the part why this has made me happy…well, this website has made me happy this week because, as I mentioned before, I have posted a body of work onto this website and recently I’ve gained a lot of new readers. Someone even reached out to me on the website and told me that they really like my story so far and how I wrote the intricate details of each scene. Had me feeling like…

Even though I didn’t expect much out of it and only write this story as a hobby, having someone recognize me and taking the time to comment that really made me feel happy because I put a lot of work and thought into it and its characters.

Just a side note…but if you’re a writer or like to read fantasy type books with powers and character trauma✨ feel free to check out my work its pretty much finished so any feedback would be appreciated.

This is random, but I also wanted everyone to see this picture I saw on Instagram of @leroy.dacat while typing up this post that made me smile.

This has recently has made me happy on the internet because you can see that the driver wants for his friend to get home safe.

Hello All!

It’s Abby here, my favorite thing about the Internet is the ability to Search anything I want at any moment in time!

Assignment #1 – Example Fun with Ryan

I’m excited to be back and teaching again!

Here we are in the Spring semester of 2023. I have a particular love for teaching CT101 at York College!

“CT” is short for Communications Technology, and the course is called “Digital Storytelling”.. (I know, the name of the course says it all!) It has quite a bit of history and I will share more on its origins soon. CT101 makes me happy. CT101 takes place on the Internet!

I love this class because it can literally help and inspire everyone. There is something here that everyone can learn and benefit from while also helping others evolve collectively. I say and mean everyone because lets face it, “we” spend a lot of time using the Internet..

Its a relationship, really!

We can all benefit from learning new digital tools, techniques, applications of self-expression and participating in a cross CUNY community here on the commons. (Which is a piece of the Internet that makes me happy! Oh I already said that..) CT101 puts an emphasis on creating and publishing content to a class blog whilst experimenting with what the potentials of “what a blog post can be”…

This also makes me happy. WordPress makes me happy!

What is making you happy on the Internet this Week?

So here we are, officially jumping into CT101 this second week. We have a ton of great stuff to cover, learn, share, create, apply, rinse and repeat this semester!

Assignment #1 asks us to share; What is making you happy on the Internet?  We can do cool things like hyperlink text and verbiage.. We can make an image or ten, an animated GIF like the one above and below – also a “clickable thing” that redirects to another page or place on the Internet. That IDEA in and or itself makes me very happy! So in essence, the creative and practical functionality of the Internet as a whole makes me really happy.

The Internet archive makes me happy too! (did you know about this?) Jump in and go waaaaaaay down the Internet cultural rabbit hole! The Internet Archive is a cultural repository of “stuff and things” that have been shared and published on the Internet! I especially like the Way back web machine to examine what websites looked like back in the early days! Especially some of the top brands that are synonymous with the Internet as we know it. This kind of research ability gives me a ton of creative ideas!

Lets dig a bit deeper..

The GIF above is taken from my profile on GIPHY. (go ahead and click on the image of the hyperlinked word to find my “stock” of animated GIFS. You can use them and embed them almost anywhere on the web. Thats the beauty of GIPHY.com – its a search engine for animated GIFs and animated Stickers, like I said, its Internet culture and Internet culture makes me happy! Website’s like Giphy have a lot of utility, they give us the opportunity to share our emotions and feelings through looping visual imagery. This helps me express myself in so many ways. Giphy.com makes me happy this week!

I love to make animated GIFS! And guess what, you are going to learn how to make them in our class! I love GIFs and I feel that they are a huge part of Internet culture. Come on now, we all love animated GIFS! I made most of the GIFs in this blog post. These are just a few of the many of thousands that I have made (did I say thousands? Yikes, its true, I cant stop!) I blame Professor Michael B. Smith for this as he got me into GIFs and making them! Be sure to check out his blog here.

OK, so those are a few things that are making me happy on the Internet as well as a few ways that I use the Internet. Let’s get started!

PS – Did you notice the formatting for this blog post? Notice how my images are the same size and how everything has been aligned to the left? This is intentional and it helps the viewer/reader easily absorb the content. You too will learn how to apply a similar format, though it may see a bit tricky to manage at first, you will easily get the hang of it!

Week #2 – Assignment #1

A Recap & Forward Motion!

Here is the class recording from Tuesday 9/5/23

The Course Schedule page is here – this is our most important page as it hosts all of our weekly assignments and their specifications – please check this page each week at the beginning of class.

1. Did you read the 1st day welcome blog post located here <–it has an assignment that prepares us for this week – the assignment details are located at the bottom of that post, it simply asks you to leave a comment, and to respond to one of your classmate’s comments, did you? 

2. Let’s get signed up! Did you sign up for the CUNY commons and the CT101 website? If not, please review the process for access to the CUNY commons and the CT101 website as per the course schedule page.

And now… this week, its time to get blogging!

Let’s learn about and tour our WordPress blogging interface here on CT 101’s website. We will discuss and learn how to sign in, create a new post, add text, verbiage, images, GIFs, videos, hyperlinks and contextual content into the blogging interface! We will begin by sharing some sentiments accompanied by visual media to help tell our stories.

***Each week I will screen record a video tutorial that demonstrates techniques and tips for each assignment – The tutorials will always be posted shortly after class directly into the corresponding blog post with the assignment details.

This Week’s Assignment…

Assignment #1 – What Makes You Happy on the Internet this Week?

Your goal for this week will be to read and follow the info / links listed in this week’s blog post. Absorb the information and then begin to prepare and gather all of needed media, images, links and content that you need to create and publish your first blog post here on our class website!

(This assignment was originally created by Professor Michael B. Smith a few years ago, it still holds true as a great example and ice-breaker for our first blogging assignment.)

In a new blog post, take the time to introduce anything you want about yourself and describe a piece, or multiple pieces of the Internet that is “making you happy” this week. Share what the content is about, the media format, and the online space in which it was discovered. Let us know why this (or these things) make you happy! Thats right, express yourself! Make sure it’s something you can ’embed’ into your post and be sure to link back to the original source(s) of the the items via hyperlink.

Below is also an example:

“I recently discovered a writer who made side-by-side comparisons of frames from the Simpsons with frames from the original movies that inspired the cartoon. I love this kind work because it shows how culture is seemingly endlessly recycled and remixed.”

Also, here’s a video short (below) from the original, famous “shower scene” from the 1960 film Psycho that the inspiration is drawn from.

Lets notice some key words above: “The Simpsons” and “Re-Mix Culture”. These are both terms that you may be familiar with, but what about the audience that you are sharing this with? Both of those terms (subjects) are great examples to hyperlink to! Hyperlinks give context and meaning to subjects and terminology.

PS – THIS whole blog post is an example of a good quality post! Notice the length, the amount of embedded media added, hyperlinks, content and context to help support the verbiage.

It all just takes a little bit of regular practice.

Let’s do it!

Here is the class recording from Tuesday 9/5/23

Getting Signed Up and Signed in to the CT101 Website & the CUNY Academic Commons.

Welcome Back Digital Storytellers!

Please follow along with me during our class session to get signed up for both the CUNY Academic Commons and for this website, follow me and scroll down.. As we know, a big part of CT101 is the class website. It is where you will begin your active role as an “Author” of our CT101 community and where you will be publishing all of your class work and assignments. You will also become a part of the CUNY Academic Commons Community (Im a big fan!)

**First things first, It is super important for you to have access to your York College E-mail Address, and to make sure it works!  You will need to have access to it in order to sign up for our CT101 web site and the CUNY academic commons.

***If you need assistance with setting this up do not hesitate to contact the York College help desk at 718-262-5300 as needed or at [email protected]

Let’s Get Started! We must follow the sign up steps in the order below (I will demonstrate the process in our class this week)

*Remember, you must use your CUNY e-mail address for this only! And please double check for errors or typos 🙂

1. We will Sign Up for the CUNY Academic Commons Here – simply click the  “Register” button and fill in the form and complete the sign up! You will receive an e-mail that verifies your account. 

2. After you sign up for the CUNY Academic Commons, please Sign-Up for the CT101 website and use the SAME Username and e-mail address that used to sign up for the CUNY Academic Commons – this info will allow for me to send you a direct invite request from our class website to become an Author of the website.

Please “accept” the invite when it arrives via e-mail. You can also accept the invite under your commons profile under “my invites” (I’ll share an example like the image below)

  .. And then…. You will have access to “log-in” and start blogging as a CT101 author. The log-in prompt is always located in the main navigation menu area of the website – depending on the device that you are viewing the site in, you will see it in upper right hand corner of the page via desktop or laptops, but mobile devices may see the log in prompt on the left side of the page, either way, click “Log In” and enter your Log In credentials. 

**You cant start publishing content as an author of the website on CT101 until you have completed the sign up process steps above. Please let me know if you have any issues.

More to come!

Welcome Everyone!

Here we are: CT101 – Digital Storytelling! The Fall Semester of 2023!

Ok, this blog post is a lot things, but first and foremost it’s a welcoming! Im excited to meet everyone and share our 1st class session to connect and learn about each other. I hope that you like animated GIFS, we are going use a lot of them here, and make them too! We are going to spend a lot of time discussing ways that we communicate.  

There is a myriad of compelling content to cover this semester in CT101, which will happen in many fun ways!

**This is the direct URL / Link to our class Website – https://ct101.commons.gc.cuny.edu/ <—that link is where EVERYTHING is happening for CT101. I’m not a fan of blackboard (who is?? Its outdated and clunky..) and I will only use it to remind the class about password sensitive things or send a class e-mail. Please make sure you are familiar with the CUNY academic calendar for the semester as we will follow that..

The CT101 Class Modality / Structure – CT101 will be taught synchronously in person this semester on campus here in the lab on the 4th floor in room 4m03 (academic core building) – we will also have course work that will be assigned and completed outside of class.

Please know, I am always here to help you be the best that you can be in our course. And we are all here to do the same for each other. Our class is a community! A big part of our class is exploring your creativity and being experimental with the Internet! Plus, we will learn about the evolving array of digital tools that are available to us. We do quite a bit of the creative work from our own personal work spaces as we integrate the class work into our lives. Please know, I will always screen-record each and every assignment’s description, how-to’s and tutorials and share those videos here on our website. Please think of this website as a repository of information, energy and inspiration for the course (and beyond!)

*The Class Website – Our class website takes place on the CUNY Academic Commons! You will soon discover that the Commons is a huge resource and regular source of inspiration and community! Im excited to share this with you all.

**This Week’s Assignment is Below**

Let’s leave our first Comment!

In the comments section below (if you scroll down to the bottom of this page) Add a comment, Your comment will serve as your attendance today, but please introduce yourself! Tell us a bit about yourself, What is your name? What you are studying here at York College?  What is your favorite movie, activities, ice cream flavor? Favorite place or apps to visit on the web? What are you most interested in at this moment? Etc..) Feel free to add some links! Let’s get to know each other. Also – Reply to someone’s comment, say hello and share some interests. Commenting and activity on the website is big part of our class!

**PS -I moderate all the comments to make sure that spam bots don’t spam us into oblivion! If may take a few minutes before your comment shows up, no need to submit it twice if you don’t see it appear right away

** Also, please explore this website, read through the syllabus and some of the course resources, it will be super helpful in the next coming weeks.

In CT101, I have learned…

JK.

I have learned so many things but most importantly the many ways to tell a story. First, we learned how to make engaging and unique blog posts, which has completely changed how I approach project creation in other classes.

Next, through the DS106 Assignment Bank, I tested my skills in other media forms. I worked on journaling and photo-editing, two forms of expression I am not accustomed to but definitely stuck with me. The Canva application I tinkered with in Assignment #5, ended up being what I used to create fun graphics for another class’s final (pictured above)!

Lastly, the biggest thing I learned was that either I am a genius or anyone can create a website! Website creation was my favorite part of this course by far! I see myself continuing to edit and add to my blog throughout the summer. It has become an extension and explanation of my personality; and as I develop, I want the blog to grow as well!

I think considering how much effort I put in even though I have missed some assignments, I would give myself somewhere between a C+ and a B. Thank you all for a great semester!

After some thought, finding a domain for my site came very easily to me. At first, I wasn’t sure what cool blog name to make. I ran through some very corny contenders – like “bloggable” and “blognessmonster”. 

However, a lightbulb went off in my head with a very simple solution. When I first created my Instagram, I thought it would be a great handle in case I become famous or start influencing. It’s my first and middle name, it is easy to remember, and I think looks pretty.

Just jamilah.aniyah.com, very simple to the point! And since my parents gave me such a unique name combination, it was available!

This is not a plug to follow my Instagram, but look out for my blog when it is complete. The process of setting everything up was very simple. Getting a walk-through from the professor on using the domain site, was extremely helpful. I am so excited to have made a website, that’s so cool!

For now, this is what my blog looks like, but I have big dreams for what it could be!

There is one word I would use to describe this semester’s progress… forgotten. I have admittedly fallen way behind on updating this site. While I do enjoy the work in this class, I found it hard to keep up once I was considerably behind.

However, I have learned so much over the course of the semester! From creating engaging interactive blog posts to work on digital art projects, I have worked on things I thought only experienced coders would understand. Every time I complete a project, I feel that much smarter. Prior to taking this class, much of my computer knowledge was in editing photos on Instagram, so needless to say, my arsenal is a bit more stacked now. 

Honestly, I am missing quite a few assignments, but I try to leave comments whenever I can make it to class. I will try to respond to a few as well. When I am in class, I take notes, look through the dashboard and ask questions. I just admittedly have missed a few classes. However, I put a lot of effort and thought into every blog and comment I have posted. With all of this in mind, I think I deserve, at most, a B. 

I have attached my blogs thus far below:

Carnival Tabanca: Internet Makes Me Happy

Why I love CT101, but GIFs

Assignment #4: My Passion for Fitness

It feels like yesterday when the semester just started but, alas here we are the final day. I didn’t know what to expect at the start but, I found myself discovering new things and ways to do them. In my last recap, I commented on actually learning how to blog since this was my first experience consistently doing it. As far as my grade I don’t want to spend too much time discussing that but, I do believe I earned at least a B to B- for my work. I may not be the most reactive in terms of commenting back but, the work I’ve done I think is produced well.

Besides enjoying the freedom of working on your own time the thing I particularly enjoyed about this class came at the end when we started working on our websites. From laying the groundwork with my mmm.page it helped with adjusting to full webpage construction. Along with being introduced to the DS106 Repository and learning new skills there, I think I have a good foundation for what’s to come in my major (computer science).

Since building my first website at safehaventhinks.com I feel like if I keep working on these types of projects I could eventually make a hobby or a business from it. I do intend on continuing to work on my site since I really wanted to make it a part of my overall business structure.

Keeping a similar color scheme to my other site thinksafehaven.com I used a black/red/white look throughout.

For my about us page I wanted it to be less of a personal profile and more of a blog/idea station. I’ve uploaded a few posts already titled “Moments in Time” coinciding with different events in pop culture that are currently shaping the way we view the fashion industry. It’s essentially just a few of my takes on current events with the ability for others to share their thoughts through a comments section.

Here is an example of what one of my posts looks like. I did find myself having a little trouble working with the page editor but, I figured it out mostly with some tinkering.

This is what I know I’ll be spending most of my time working on since this is supposed to be the main focus of my site and there are a lot of changes that need to be made for it. It is operational now and you can sign up for it but, as you can see it is still very bare bones and needs a paint job. I started looking for youtube videos on how to edit my PHP chat and there’s not much information I found on it surprisingly. I  did come across one video that seemed to help but, it was still a little confusing.

Of course, I included the standard contact me page for all inquiries but, Im not sure if it’ll stay. I may want to have a more streamlined way for direct contact like something included in myphp chat.

1. Assignment #1: What’s making me happy on the internet?
2. Assignment #2: Making a GIF and CT101 so far…
3. Assignment #3 – Are Memes Art?
4. Assignment #4 – The Passion Blog
5. Assignment #5 Digital Storytelling Project Flexibility
6. Assignment #6 – MMM Good and Figma Woes
7. Assignment #7 – Middle of the Road
8. Assignment #8 – The Domain Name Game
9. Assignment #9 – Domain Registration Process
10. Assignment #10 – Constructing My Domain

Now that the Spring 2023 semester is over, here is my overall reflection of the CT 101 class. Which is basically a continuation of assignment #7, only more into depth.

If I’m being honest, I originally did not know what to expect when it came to CT 101. Now that I’ve taken the class, it was a pretty interesting journey. I learned I could just be myself. However, when it came to executing this, I originally didn’t know much of anything about it. I learned how over time. I discovered free websites I could use to edit images such as Figma and Photopea. I also found websites for images to implement into them such as Pixabay and Giphy. I also learned how hyperlink and attach YouTube videos to posts so readers can get additional context.

What I enjoyed most about this class is that I can use my imagination and execute it via the websites previously mentioned. I also liked making a website on my own. Grade wise, I see something in the B-, B or B+ grade range. Because I completed my assignments, however, I am not perfect as a few of my assignments weren’t submitted on time and some assignments might be a tad flawed.

I look to apply the skills I learned in CT101 by updating my website at https://randomnessabyss.com. Yes, I will certainly continue to keep up with the website by adding additional posts and possible changes in design. The topics will likely be sporadic and won’t exactly connect. They are just things I like such as video games, sports etc. Hence why the Domain Name is “Randomness Abyss” This being as I didn’t know how quick making a website based on your own interests can be, until I did so myself.