BP14_Working with symbols in Flash

It is important to understand some basics about symbols and instances.  Symbols are elements that you can reuse in Flash.  They can come in many different forms like a graphic, video, audio, and animations.  Symbols are stored in the library and you can drag symbols from the library to the stage.  An instance is the reference to the symbol.  The instances are stored on the stage and not the library.  It is pretty confusing but the more you practice it the more it starts making a little more sense.

Now that we know what a symbol is lets create one.  You can see a demonstration below.

These tutorials and Flash have been a whole new experience for me.  The next class of DAE is going to be very interesting.  There are many confusing elements in Flash but I hope with patience and dedication I will understand it.

BP13_Working with Text in Flash

In Flash a critical component to comprehend is working with text. You would think text is text but in Flash there are three types static, dynamic, and input. With static text that is embedded into the Flash movie and you can use any text that you would like. You do not have to worry about the person on the other side having the same font installed and you cannot edit it in ActionScript (the programming language of Flash). There is an example below of static text.

The next type of text is dynamic text and it is not embedded in the flash movie but it can be. The person viewing it usually must have the font installed on their computer to view it in the movie. Input is a type of dynamic text that accepts input from the user. This could be used if you are making a web site with a Contact Us section to collect information from the user.  Stay tuned for the my next entry on working with symbols.

BP12_Adventures with Flash, courtesy of Lynda.com

I plan on learning more about Flash.  This is important to me since the next class I am enrolled in is Digital Media & Education Applications, which is a Flash based class.  I know what Flash because I see it on web pages but that is as far as my knowledge goes.  Yesterday, I started going through the Flash CS4 tutorials on Lynda.com.   I also opened up the Flash application for the first time just to see what it looked like.  Some parts of it resemble Adobe Photoshop so it was not completely unfamiliar to me.  Before I officially started the tutorials I downloaded the exercise files.  These files are not required to follow along on the tutorial but I thought it may help to see this application in action.  It is a pretty large folder but the one thing that I can appreciate about these files is that there are files that will show the project in progress and a final project file too. 

Another feature that I enjoy is the “Play the whole chapter” option in the Lynda.com player.  Once you click this button you can watch the watch the whole chapter through.  Most of the time there are sub sections under each chapter and it is nice to watch a chapter straight through without having to click the next section.

Transcripts are also available in Lynda.com.  If you miss a part in the tutorial or if you need to read what the instructor is saying that option is very helpful.

I am so excited to get started on this Flash journey and I’ll be posting soon to update you all on my progress.

BP11_OMM_Explorra

My One Minute Message for Explorra.com

BP10_Comment on Dana's Blog

Follow this link to my comments on Dana's blog.

BP9_Comment on Crystal's Blog

Follow this link to my comments on Crystal's blog.

BP8_Explorra

www.explorra.com

 

Explorra is a Web 2.0 tool that I believe can be heavily utilized in the Hockaday Residence Department.  Explorra is a site that helps you explore different countries and brings the world to your fingertips.  Currently, we have students that come and study from about 10 countries throughout the world.  With this tool the staff and domestic students can learn more about the homes of the international students. Sometimes when girls first arrive to our boarding program they are a little shy about sharing about their home countries because they think we may have preconceived opinions.   I have not had a chance to visit any of their countries but anything that gives me a chance to learn more about the girls and connect with them is wonderful to me.  The main parts that I enjoy on the site are the vivid pictures, the sections on etiquette and national holidays, local foods.

From Jamaica to Japan it is great to actually “see” some of the beautiful places the girls are from since I have not been about to travel to those places yet.  It is pretty huge to understand some of the etiquette from the girls’ home countries.  It can help you understand where some of the students’ behavior is coming from.  Many things that I have observed from the girls from South Korea made since to me after reading about that country.  Another way we like to connect with the girls is with their national holidays.  For example, some of the Chinese girls will like to celebrate Lunar New Year.  That is usually a holiday were families get together and since they are so far from home it can be fun to bring a piece of home to them in Dallas.  It is always great to read about their traditions and customs.  Another way to connect with the girls is with food.  The girls also love cooking their traditional dishes and sharing them with the community.  It is interesting to read about difference in cuisine around the world.

The great thing about this site is that the users can contribute information about the different countries and that some of the pictures are coming from Flickr.  On Explorra there is interaction and sharing and that continues to supply information in real time.    

BP7_OMM_Tabzon

I created a one minute message about Tabzon.  Enjoy!

BP6_Comment on Jaqueline's Blog

Follow this link to see my comments to Jacqueline's blog.  This is my GoAnimate girl that I created.

BP5_Comment on Kiylise's Blog

Follow this link to see my comments to Kiylise's Blog.  This is an example of a picture I could jazz up with Smilebox.

BP4_Penzu

My Web 2.0 review is on a great tool called Penzu.  Penzu is an online journal that has many uses and features.  There are two ways to use Penzu:  Free and Pro.  I think that the free one has plenty of features so I’ll be discussing my three favorite features in this review.  Those features are security within Penzu, start up on Penzu and saving entries in Penzu.

Feature one:  Security within Penzu.  The privacy and security features on Penzu are pretty high.  Not only are your entries secure with a password for your account but you can have password protection each entry.   This feature gives more ownership to an individual's entries.

Feature two: Startup on Penzu.  Sometimes the main thing that prevents us from using a program is just the process to get started with it.  After you complete a simple sign up for Penzu Free and go to penzu.com it opens straight into the journal entry page.  Below you can see the home screen of Penzu after registration.  Everything is ready to go, you can get much better then that!

Feature three:  Saving entries on Penzu.  Penzu auto-saves your entries.  Sometimes you can write an entry you can get distracted.  You can have peace of mind that your entry will still be there for you to complete later or that it will be logged and saved for review.

Earlier this year I was inspired from a speaker that I heard at a conference and I feel this tool really could have been useful.  I was interested in having the girls on my hall refocus on the positive things in their lives and create gratitude journals.  Every morning they would spend about 30 seconds to 1 minute and record five things they are thankful for.  I was thinking it was going to be a pain to find the time and go to the store and find 25 journals.  Now I know this can be really easy implement with Penzu.  The girls can use their school laptops and journal away.  What a wonderful find!

BP3_Tabzon

Tabzon - http://tabzon.com/

Where is Austyn?  Where is Katherine?  Where is Brenda?  Where is Ms. Kim?  Tabzon to the rescue!

Tabzon has the possibility to be an incredibly useful tool in my professional environment.   It is an online in-out board that assists in keeping track of group member’s independent whereabouts.  This could be used in the Hockaday Residence Department exclusively for the staff or to take it one step further, with the girls.  Anytime a House Director leaves their office or floor they are asked to write an update on the whiteboard outside of the door.  I think that this tool takes the whiteboard up a notch because it is something that all the girls and other staff would have access to on their computers from anywhere.  A common question that I am asked while working is “Where is “someone”?”  I always wished there was one place I could look to find that information.    We do use a sign in/sign out logbook for the girls but to find an individuals information can be frustrating at times.  Anytime the girls leave our department they are required to sign out and provide information that includes their destination, the name and contact information of the person they are leaving with and etc.  Sometimes when the girls sign out they may scribble something down that cannot be read.  I do not see Tabzon replacing the logbook system that we have in place but I could see it working in concert with it.  While I am working I have huge responsibility of managing a floor with 25 teenaged girls. Most of the time the girls are all over the place, visiting friends, going to the mall, participating in extracurricular activities and etc. and I am required to know where each girl is located at all times.  I am confident that Tabzon would help with this task.  I tried this tool out and it is easy to register, no software downloads and has an ease of use that anyone can figure out.  Tabzon is a fantastic way to streamline the communication of a resident student’s activity in the Hockaday Residence Department.

Reference

Rhodes, M. (2010, April 22). Online In-Out Board - Tabzon.com [Video file]. Video posted to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrouIg0p3lQ

BP2_iGoogle Screen Shots

iGoogle Home Tab

iGoogle FSO Tab

iGoogle AR/CBL Tab

iGoogle ETC Tab

BP1_Google Reader

All Girls, The National Coalition of Girls' Schools

http://allgirls.ncgs.org/

I chose this feed because I currently work at an all-girls private school.  One thing that I have learned while working at The Hockaday School is that an all-girl environment is like no other in education.  It has many unique benefits and characteristics.  I am sure there is much for me to glean from this blog.

Digital Education Blog, Education Week

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/

This was a great blog that I stumbled upon while searching for information on the Online School for Girls.  I was impressed by this blog because there are categories that include Curriculum, Instruction and Online Learning (three things that I am interested in).  There is also an archive that I am interested in exploring that goes back to September 2008.

November Learning

http://novemberlearning.com/blog/

Alan November came and spoke at Hockaday for Staff Development last year.  When he spoke it was like a lightbulb went off in my head in regards to education and technology.  All the girls at Hockaday have school issued laptops but I have observed that most of the girls in my department are not too excited about them. It's kind of a love/hate relationship because they are constantly having technical problems with them.  

After hearing Mr. November speak I felt like the Residence Department could be doing so much more with the technology that we have at our school.

Spotlight Blog on Digital Media and Learning

http://spotlight.macfound.org/

This blog highlights people and projects that receive funding and support from the MacArthur Foundation.  There were a couple posts that discussed "girls, technology and learning".   The MacArthur Foundation recognize that the projects that they support are shaping education now and in the future.

The Young and The Digital

http://www.theyoungandthedigital.com/category/teens-and-technology/

This blog interests me because it's main focus is on teens and social media.  The girls that I work with are so connected to everyone and everything.  I am excited to read some of these posts because there is some data that explains this recent phenomena.