Challenge Blog: Why You Should Visit Shepherdstown

Have you ever seen those perfect little quaint towns, like you see on the movies and tv? You know the ones that have those swanky little shops, that have the most unique stuff, and they always have that one coffee shop that everyone swears by?

Well, they actually exist. And they're as great as what they're made out to be. Welcome to Shepherdstown, WV. Nestled in the northeast panhandle of West Virginia on the Maryland border, Shepherdstown is exactly the picture of a perfect small town. This comfortable cozy little gem invites a flavor that is all its own. You'll fall in love with the delicious treats of the Shepherdstown Bakery where all kinds of baked goods and coffees are made fresh everyday. And you're never forget the eclectic Lost Dog, talk to Garth and he'll make you the best hot apple cider you've ever had, complete with cinnamon sticks and orange slices.  And on the corner, the Blue Moon Cafe serves the best little gourmet sandwiches with a European flair. And if that doesn't convince you that Shepherdstown is the place to visit, then you have to know that all the businesses depend on each other, and support local growing and farming. Pretty cool, eh? 

And going on right now, is Shepherdstown's annual BooFest, where local businesses participate and engage in everything Halloween. Stop by and check it out! It won't disappoint!

Writing Challenge Blog Voice and Style

Having just fought off the death jaws of a killer grizzly with only his hands and a rusty butter knife, Sampson pulled his kayak out of the brush and into the raging river.

"Sampson! Isn't there a waterfall at the end of the river?" exclaimed his female companion who had taken refuge in the back seat of the vessel. Sampson ripped a part of his shirt with his teeth and tied the scrap around a deep gash on his shoulder. 

"Waterfall? You mean kiddie slide?" He laughed as he dipped his muscled arms into the water and began navigate right into the rapids. 

Board Games and Narrative

Previously in my blog, my discussion toward narrative in gaming been directed towards video games, but this week, I want to explore the direction of narrative in board games. In my experience, the narrative function in board games can be similar to the narrative function in video games.  Not too long ago, I played the board game Munchkin for the first time, which if you haven't played it, is a card-based board game where the players create a character and fight monsters in a cute parody of RPG/ traditional dungeon and dragon-esque games. But I think what makes the game so interesting is that it allows the players to come up with their own narrative based on the random character that is created.  The cards are a variety of different values, anywhere from equipment and armor to steeds and power-ups, all help form the character that you have throughout the game.

This form of gameplay allows the players to create their characters own stories, it allows for emergent behavior in the game, and fosters interplay between each player.

Traditionally, there has been a narrative arc in which board games were based upon,  and though they were loose arcs with room for change and exceptions, most of the games that we are used to playing are usually based around these arcs.

A game design mechanics blogger, Linnaeus illustrates the game arcs in 2 different functions,

- The opening, middle game. and end game
- Income, Engine Building, Conversion

He explains the first function as:

-opening : "activation and coordination" of pieces and forming of a gameplan
- middle game: active combat or "the main struggle" as Linnaeus says
- end game: game slows, final maneuvers that determine the winner

Linnaeus gives some examples of this game style, but I think one of the best examples he gives is chess.

1) Setup of pieces, forming of strategy (Opening)
2) The gameplay, moving pieces, capturing pieces (middle game)
3) Most pieces are out of commission, winding down to the last available moves ( end game)

And the second as:

Income : beginning resources and start up
Engine Building : Using income to build "victory points"
Conversion: Rapid accumulation of "victory points"

I think, the most familiar game we can associate this arc with is Monopoly

Income: Go space, first cash payout ( income)
Engine Building: Buying properties, earning rent, building houses and hotels (engine building)
Conversion:  Buying the most properties, rent accumulation due to multiple rent incomes, hotels and bankruptcy of other players

Though he doesn't that these arcs are a bad thing, he frames them as a generic layout that many other games are made of, where the structure there, and a slightly different narrative laid on top. The end result is always the same and the gameplay to the end is always similar ( as in Monopoly : The player with the most properties/ money wins, doesn't matter the player)

This presents another interesting depth to narrative in games. The more that the players can create their own narrative within the framework correlates to a more desirable game experience.

The Need for Complex Narrative is Growing

Last week in my blog, I discussed the evolution of narrative through gameplay, as in games that let the player discover or create their own story are starting to become the next part in video game evolution. This week I found an article written by gamer-journalist Daniel Clark, who discusses how his need for a complex narrative in a game is starting to trump other facets of gameplay and how this need is starting to become a universal need for many gamers.

Clark notes that the more freedom and the more realistic the outcomes can be such as decisions that are made have consequences, and actions are based in a cause and effect manner. He notes that there is a distinctive change in the styling of narratives in games, "in game design, has seen a distinct shift away from a purely active response (e.g. kill everyone in the room), to more complex webs of cause and effect. Players are given far more choice in what type of order is restored (e.g. selfish gain versus community well-being), and by what means these conditions are met (e.g. through might or diplomacy)."  

Just like all facets of technology, our expectations for games are growing, and with that is the expectation that the line that we put between games and reality is starting to blur. The more that games can mimic and become like real-life, the more we are interested and engaged in them.  At the beginning of this blog series, I asked why narrative was important to the function and success of games, and Clark answers that by saying that narrative adds a break in between modes of mechanical gameplay, and allows a game to not seems to repetitive, boring, or intense. But he also says that narrative is also more than that, "The rise of narrative in gaming has been exactly that – stories created under the auspices of game design, like any other component, tailored to the experience intended."  I think it is interesting to note that it seems that narrative is an integral part of experience.

Clark ends by saying "The fact is, our lives are intricate portraits of human desire; its satisfactions and frustrations, both negligible and immense. When games mimic the agonies and ecstasies of our time on this planet, the depth of experience equals those inspired by any art form."  I think that this is definitely true. There is a rise in popularity of games that allow more free-roam, more human-like interaction within a fantastical or unable to be experience setting? Call of Duty or Elder Scrolls, they appeal to us because we have experiences that would in no other way be possible.

Writing Challenge #4: Titles, Descriptions, Leads

<head> <title> Totally 90s Inline Rollerblade Shop </head>
<meta name= "description" content=" Totally 90s is your one stop shop for the rollerblade and skate gear for men, women, and sports such as hockey and derby! Awesome dude!  ">

Welcome to Totally 90s, dude! We are the awesome new skate shop for rollerblades and inline skating. Just getting started? We carry skates for both men and women. Looking to demonstrate your mad hockey and derby skills? We've got the best deals for the best gear!

Interactivity Evolving: Narrative Structure in "Heavy Rain"

In my last blog, I discussed how the mechanics of a game helped create the narrative of the game, such as Limbo, this time I am discussing a game that has a very strong, almost cinematic narrative, Heavy Rain and how in both games, there is a trend emerging in the narrative style of video games. Narrative evolving through interactivity.

I came across an article in my research, an article from Gamasutra about the game's creator, David Cage. Cage describes how Heavy Rain's narrative structure sets it apart from other games, " I want to make games for a mature audience, and I think you need to go for stories, characters, and emotion.There are so many games out there where you shoot, or you run, or you jump. The industry doesn't need one more. So, yeah, try to create something emotional." Cage seems to imply that that emotion is another narrative element that draws people into the game. "I think what really matters is to create characters that the audience can resonate with. As long as you have characters that you like, and when you feel they are part of yourself in there, you get interested in what is happening to them, and then it resonates with you. That's the most important thing. And you don't need to shoot or kill anyone. There are other ways of interacting that are just as interesting."  This definitely holds true in the structure for Heavy Rain, at the very beginning of the game, you play as the main character and you learn him. You get to know his emotions, his daily routine, the people that are most important to him in his life. You get to actually play his life, and you actually in a way become Ethan Mars ( the main character) through the gameplay, with immediate environmental feedback  of his activities and his day-to-day interactions. Your actions and decisions as the player matter! It inspires how the narrative evolves throughout the story. Different actions can lead to different consequences.

In this game, characterization becomes key to caring about the narrative, we are intrigued not because the game has us performing exciting actions or taking us to exotic locations or situations, but because we care about the story and we want to know what happens next. "My approach is sometimes not well understood: I am interested in creating emotions through interactivity. I chose to use storytelling because I love stories and I think it is a very powerful and universal way to create emotion, " says Cage. He also talks about the concept that the strongest narrative is that which the player can discover and learn for himself. Narrative then becomes so intuitive, so woven into the game that it engages on so many different levels. "How can we enable the player himself to tell the story he wants through his actions, rather than forcing him to watch cinematics? Defining a language to tell compelling interactive stories without using repetitive mechanics is really the goal of my work, " Cage says. And it really makes me think about the experience that I want to have with this medium. From Cage's point of view,  it seems that stories, good stories, beg for an audience that can get immersed in them. We want to have a shared experience with the characters, or even give ourselves a presence with in the story. All these things, I think Cage would argue add meaning and depth to the video game world.

Creating Narrative through Mechanics: Taking a Look at Limbo

As I continue this semester to research narrative/ and storytelling  in video games, I've found that the narrative or narrative elements in those games can be anywhere from very complex to very simple, to none at all.  In my last blog, I discussed the role and differences between narrative and mechanics within genre and even if narrative was necessary at all for gaming. In my next blogs,  I want to take a look at a few examples of narrative within video gaming by looking at some games in particular.

 Limbo. For those who haven't heard of it, it's starting to become one of those underground gaming gems finding its way into the mainstream.  I heard of it through one of my friends, who had bought it because at the time, because it was relatively inexpensive as far as games go and there was  a rumor about some of the intensity and shock value of its gameplay. Intrigued, I joined him  and some other friends one evening as they sat down to play it. 

Screenshot from Limbo showing   monochromatic
black-and-white palette,
the use of depth perception in the game,
and the concept of the game's puzzles.

The gameplay is what is referred to as " 2D sidescroller", which means that the play is horizontal and the environment and the character move from left to right across the screen as play continues. But what really is unnerving and interesting is the way that the ambiance and the mechanics of the game tie into the narrative of the story. 

"The game is presented in black-and-white tones, using lighting, film grain effects and minimal ambient sounds to create an eerie atmosphere often associated with the horror genre. Journalists praised the dark presentation, describing the work as comparable to film noir and German Expressionism. Based on its aesthetics, reviewers classified Limbo as an example of video games as art." - Limbo Wiki Page

There are no cutscenes, no in game text. There is a very minimalist style to the game, and players are left alone to figure out the systems of puzzles that block your way of reaching the goal. All that is known is that the character in the game is on his way to find his sister.

 "Limbo is presented through dark, greyscale graphics and with minimalist ambient sounds, creating an eerie, haunting environment. The dark visuals also hide numerous environmental and physical hazards, such as deadly bear traps on the forest floor, or lethal monsters hiding in the shadows, such as a giant spider. Among the hazards are glowing worms, which attach themselves to the boy's head and force him to travel in only one direction unless bright light comes in contact with it, which changes the direction of the player until it is removed by static NPCs. " - Limbo Wiki Page

Screenshot from Limbo

What I found so interesting about Limbo, was the amount of story that I understood with a very limited narrative. There is nothing to guide you through the game, only the vicious and graphic deaths of the character when a puzzle is completed incorrectly, that trigger you to start again in the same location. But I grasped with just the name and the mechanics of the game that the story was supposed to be metaphorical and vague. From the title Limbo, you can already deduce that the main character is probably in the midst of purgatory, but what impressed me the most was that in a puzzle based game, each successive puzzle and section of the story was like traveling through a bleak nightmare, with repetitive tasks and gruesome punishments for not solving the puzzles correctly. Almost like a penance,  where the character and the player complete each puzzle not knowing where the game is going to lead, or what the find result will be. If even if the gameplay has any significant meaning. I think this ties in to the idea of purgatory well, and it is not unreasonable with the horrible and eerie effects and tribulations of the game if ideas of hell and the afterlife become images in the player's mind.

 There is no record of time passing, no night nor day, only the present where the character himself is not even really a person, but more like a shadow, just barely making it through each level, sometimes having repeated each puzzle countless times until the solution is found. There is no way back, only forward. And at the end of the game, there is nothing that states the game has ended, the character only completes the last level to find himself somehow right back at the beginning where he started. All of these subtle clues in the gameplay and environment, allowed my own mind to fill in the narrative that was actually not ever really stated. Even the game's developers have left the story of the game purposefully empty, so as to neither agree nor disagree with critics and players own interpretations. 

Even having watched the gameplay, I still find it hard to describe Limbo. There is something almost poetic about its openendedness that ironically adds so much depth to the game.

Considering Narrative Scope and Genre in Video Games

Interactive storytelling.

How can we make the stories we tell more engaging? It seems more and more with the emergence and preference of the video game culture, that there is an ongoing evolution in how stories and narrative are digested.  In touching back on the Andy Gavin interview in my last blog and some articles that I've read recently, it seems a huge factor in determining a narrative's success relies on really on the game's genre.

Genre, in its most basic definition is just a category that we used to classify certain types of artistic expression that have similar attributes. Take stories for example, it is a scary (horror) story? Is it romance or mystery? When we define genre on its very surface, we can easily see how each of the stories can fit in their specific categories, all of the time. However, in video games, genre is more than that story category, it also has to consider how the game is interacted with by its players. "Narrative considerations in video game creation are relevant for a restricted class of games," blogger Pietro Polsinelli says in his article "Storytelling and Video Games" and the more that I study video games, I realize that there are situations in which a strong narrative might not be the best focus of a particular game. In the article Polsinelli mentions games that are apps on mobile devices often fit into those situations. It could even be said that video games include a non-narrative genre.

However I think that what helps to make a distinction in the genres of video games are their reflective narrative scopes. When I think of narrative scope, which can be somewhat ambiguous, I think of the amount of storytelling and the kind of storytelling that can be described in the genre. Polsinelli introduces an excellent point when he says, "Once one focuses on searching narrative structures in video games, these are found in a wide range of them, sometimes sedimented in character design." He mentions the popular mobile app game Angry Birds and how though the linear narrative in the game is minimal, he fills out the scope by saying that a main storytelling feature in Angry Birds is in the presentation and development of the characters.

I think game design is special in that way because it can pick and choose from the elements within storytelling and concentrate specifically on the elements that they want (such as character development). In typical storytelling, both plot and characters need to be somewhat equally represented, but in games, you can somehow get away with having development characters and minimal plot, but also extensive plot and minimal characterization (such as many platform games). In platofrm games, the characterization doesn't have to be so well developed because the player (especially in a single player game) becomes a character. They are forced to see their own changing and growth. The interactivity allows them to become part of the story, but at the same time it doesn't have to.

This duality I think is what adds to the appeal of the video games is that they are vast and changing and constantly evolving.

Naughty Dog's Andy Gavin's Creative Process for Games and Novels

On my Twitter (which I try to use mainly as my author twitter) , I usually follow other authors (which has actually proven to be a wonderful, wonderful thing), so I was presently surprised when I got a follow back from on of the co-founders of Naughty Dog (a gaming company) Andy Gavin. Little did I know that he is an author himself and provided a cool insight as to how storytelling can be such an integral part of video games.

Searching through his feed, I located an article/ interview that he had given to another author and found that it would be relevant in my discussions for Game Design.

In the article, Gavin discusses that the creative processes for writing literature and game design are actually quite similiar, "Video games and novel writing are both very iterative and detail oriented. They use a lot of the same mental muscles," he said. I find this very interesting because as I have started creating games in Game Design, I notice how a narrative seems to come naturally to game creation. Suddenly paper clips become "space junk" and coasters become "landing bases", and to me storytelling within games amps the interaction and helps engagement. 

But I think one of the most important topics that Gavin hits upon, is that games and novels are all about ideas and the expression of ideas, "Both games and novels start with a basic idea, and it’s essential to focus on what’s important. In both cases, this is a creative process, imagining something blurry and only partially formed that calls out to you." He uses the example of the creation of Crash Bandicoot, one of the protagonists in Naughty Dog's popular video game series, and his protagonist in his novel The Darkening Dream.  In the interview, though Gavin does not explicitly state it, he seems to say there is a distinction between idea development for games and again for stories, but does not outright name the distinction. In Crash Bandicoot, it seems that story creation becomes more like a means to an end. We we want to make a game, we pick out the genre (a platform game with animals) and then we create a story around it. Whereas in novel writing, there seems to be more of an emotional creative process, as in "I have an image in my mind's eye that I want to elaborate more on". I imagine that Gavin is not ignoring the fact that games have mechanics, and there can often be a certain set structure that games have to be constrained to (in general) that maybe can detract from the certain freedom that he notices with writing novels. I can definitely see where gaming for him is definitely more "business/structure" rather than "leisure/creative" as his novel writing.

But I have noticed in my experience with designing our Pick Four Games, that the narrative really does seem like carrying the game to from Point A to Point B, with a set starting point ( we have a, b, c, and we need to come up with d, e, f) rather than I'm going to create a game around an image in my eye and my brain then develops the starting point. It's a slight distinction, and often difficult to express, but explains how storytelling in games has evolved, more outside in, than inside out.

Press Release Sample

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

First in Flight, The Wright Brothers Take Off

By Rachel Stark

Kill Devil Hills, S.C.,  December 17, 1903- Aviation pioneers, Wilbur and Orville Wright faced the bitter winter weather to finally achieve lift off! After several several weeks of delay, The Wright Brothers completed the first engine powered, controlled airplane flight. The flight had a total distance of 120 feet and lasted 12 seconds.

The Wright brothers attempted the flight early in the morning; the plane finally taking off around 10:35 a.m. "This is one of the greatest moments in my life. Even with our setbacks, this is only the beginning." Wilbur Wright exclaimed as the plane coasted through the sky and landed in the field in front of the Wrights and a few bystanders. The plane ascended 10 feet air after a few first failed attempts and accelerated to a top speed of 6.8 miles per hour, no small feat. No other attempts by any other aviators in U.S. history have attempted this aeronautical goal.

###

Storytelling in Video Games

As an author, I'm already familiar with the art of storytelling. In fact, I think that is the one thing that all authors should strive towards, being a master storyteller. Stories are what add the meat to our lives, they keep us entertained, and keep us wanting more, that is if they're good stories.  Some stories though are riddled with plot holes and fallacies, and just like in our own lives , we all can point out the thread that is unravelling the quickest. Well-told or not, storytelling  is an integral part of the human experience. It is what allows us to invest our own emotions, form attachments, and actually care about the world around us.

What's the best way to tell a story? What medium seems to carry on this tradition in the most immersive way? For most, it means being an observer. We listen to others as they talk, listen to the radio, or watch television. We read books.

The Sims, by Maxis for the PC.
A video game that allows
the player to "create" their
own "stories" and "characters".

Not to say that these traditional forms of media aren't  effective means of storytelling, because they do have their own niches in their own ways into how stories are told, but none of them require much active participation.

However, the expanding art of video games seems to introduce a great potential for the kind of expression that stories inspire. There is a sense of complete immersion, audio/visually, mentally and physically that can be achieved in the act of playing video games. Some view this as a very positive thing, some negative.

In this semester's Game Design class, I plan to explore storytelling as it relates to gaming, and provide examples how games can translate storytelling in many ways that other media may or may not do, while comparing their similarities and the juxtaposition of storytelling within games as opposed to other types of games (i.e fighting, strategy, shooter etc).

These blog posts seek to understand the importance that lies in not what stories are told, but how they are told, and how that affects our reception to them. It will to explore the expectations we have begun to have for games. It will try demonstrate the differences that stories play in all our lives, do we seek stories as a total immersion, as in living vicariously through the scenarios in which we could not hope to experience ourselves? Or do we use stories to deflect the truth? To try and detach ourselves from the moments in our lives that become too much or to serious?

Uncharted, a game series on PS3, that
I think provides an excellent example
of storytelling.

Does the lure lie in  like RPGs (role-playing games) such as the massively successful The Sims where you can create you own story? Or in ones like one of my favorites, The Uncharted Series, where you play as a character through a story that's already created for you?

What grounds do stories in video games cover that other forms of media do not? What is limiting, or not limiting about storytelling potential? Is one medium better than the other? What do people prefer?

Do some stories not work in games? Are there sequences that just don't work with the manipulations and conventions of they way video games present information?

These are questions that I want to find answers to this semester. Often, I have thought about the appeal of storytelling in the video game media as opposed to novels, since I myself am a writer. I've considered  actually trying to create stories that would constitute a solid basis for a video game, and have often wondered what the transparency is like between both mediums.

Capstone, Summary and Conclusion

If anything, Capstone has been the ultimate learning and culmination experience. I came into the class unsure of how things would go. What project would I work on? How could I showcase my my abilities? Where would I go after my senior project was finally over? I can tell you that it was not without great effort, friendship, hard work, and rediscovering what it actually meant to be a Comm major, that I was able to create this Wordpress site for my final project. So many things happened and changed me. I am now pretty proficient in Wordpress and have now a understanding of how to use Adobe Illustrator, both of which I had no idea how to use before I started. I challenged and expanded my Photoshop skills, and I also learned so much about how the web functions not only as a hub of information but as a media tool that can have so many potentials.

My Capstone project

The project also expanded itself into more things than I ever thought, I created Shepherd University Career Services a functioning Twitter account that can be set for automatic tweets. I rediscovered video and photos for their site that added a sense of vibrancy, fun, and dynamic to their site.  I enabled them connections with useful software like Vimeo and Slideshare that allows them to create and distribute dynamic, multimedia content easily and efficiently via their website. I also integrated their site with Google apps such as calendar and docs to make it friendly to use. 

I also became more design savvy. I don't really have the best eye for design, but pushing myself through comparative analysis with so many other websites and researching their designs and their strategies, I am much more appreciative to see how design works fluidly and integrates well to contribute to the overall function of the site.

I understand now the importance of functional web navigation and how important it is to efficiently deliver content to the viewers in the fastest most intuitive way, I learned how using Wordpress's means for classification, such as  categories, tags, custom menus resolve to be not only helpful for storing content in an organized way, but are easy enough for non-developers to manage.

I am now passionate about the Career Services Center at Shepherd and everything that they can offer and do for students. It is such an important part of any students college career to stop in and participate in Career Services' events. Students do not realize at how powerful a resource they have here right on campus. Best of all, all the services that are offered are completely free.

I also learned that content management systems are one of the most intriguing and best resources to have for developing blogs and websites, even the free versions, such as what I used. I have a new confidence and a new love for developing websites.

Cultural Event: Peter Pan, the Musical

I was lucky enough over Spring Break to attend my hometown theater troupe's rendition of Peter Pan, the Musical. Having not seen Peter Pan since I was a child, I wasn't sure what to expect. However, as I realized, Peter Pan was all about rediscovering our child-like wonder and imagination. The musical aspect of the play was okay, though I'm not sure if it added anything to the story. I think the thing that I enjoyed the most was watching the younger kids in the audience. They seemed to have such a magical time, especially when the cast pulled off a very interesting version of "flying" for the fairy dust scene.

Wendy and Peter Pan, courtesy of WVTE

It started off a little slow and only got to Neverland about half-way through the play, and there were some parts in the show that I was a little unfamiliar with, but for the most part what I did recall was choreographed very smoothly, and there was a fight scene between the indians and the pirates that was pulled off very wonderfully. There was a great pirate ship set that looked very artistic and very visually stunning.

I've seen many plays and acted in many of the troupe's productions and I have to s
ay that this was one of the first times that I had really been impressed by the main characters' acting ability. For amateur theater, you come into the production knowing what to expect, and usually in the plays there are many child actors and a large cast, but Peter Pan balanced it out and actually turned out to be a great performance.

The Indians do their war dance in Peter Pan the Musical

Only slightly different from the Disney version that we all know and love, Peter Pan, the musical reminded me that I shouldn't be in such a hurry to finish growing up (though I think its a bit too late for that) but it also reminded me that it's okay to act like a little kid again sometimes.

Cultural Blog: Music of the Jazz Age: An Evening with Scott and Hemingway

For one of cultural events, I went to a Jazz presentation at the Frank Arts Center. The program, Music of the Jazz Age, literally blew me away. It featured two staff, Dr. Cook and Dr. Adams, and two Shepherd students Dan Dunn and Sawyer Gordon making up the ensemble of piano, saxophone, bass, and percussion.

Jazz, the music and the culture is very dear to me, as a musician myself, who has played jazz, I have such a great appreciation and derive much enjoyment from it. It was truly a night to be remember as this outstanding quartet took us back in time to the cafe culture, the writer's Mecca, in  20's Paris. Having taken a Parisian Modernism english class, I could easily place myself among all the sentiments and nuances of the era. In the background of it all was the birth of Jazz. Every time I hear a live performance  I fall in love with it all over again.

The performance was impeccable, there are no words to describe the talent and proficiency of those who have mastered their instruments.  Jazz was definitely an era that changed music for all of time. It introduced syncopation and swing, and led to the birth of improvisation, recreating and remastering every melody. The wonderful smattering of tunes included everything f

rom Gershwin to Duke Ellington, and a small short from the Jazz Singer. There was a lot of laughter, and a bit of history, and it all became a magical event and one of the best nights out that I have had in such a  long time.

Some of the funniest moments were when each of the soloists tried to outplay and outdo the other, but it  only added to the fun lightheartedness that is Jazz. But no less entertaining was remembering the spots of time that the music brought with it and experiencing a sort of wishful melancholy of the a time now passed. It was a wonderful evening to celebrate such an awesome and influential  time in music, art and literature.

Cultural Blog: The Rude Mechanicals Medieval Renaissance Farce and Student Play

I hadn't laughed so hard since I've went and saw the Rude Mechanicals Medieval Farces and student written play. The night that I attended, the Rudes performed Eighteen and Green, by Stephen Viau, a student play and then Confession Lessons and Monk-ey Business, two farces.

I wasn't sure what to expect at first with these plays, but the first that I saw was Eighteen and Green, an alien love story, about an alien Kirkland, who crashes his spaceship on planet Earth and falls in love with a high school teenager.  The performance was definitely the Rudes' comedy at its best, complete with funny antics and a crazy cast of characters including a pair of bumbling detectives (one that may be an alien himself! and some really well done stereotypes, the overbearing mother, the dramatic teen, the lonely neighbor) that reminds us not to take the plot so seriously. It takes an even funnier and drastic  tone when the main character gets pregnant just by kissing the alien, in which hilarity ensues, but eventually leads tot heir happy ending.  At times, I admit there was so much going on that it overwhelming at some bits, but still had me trying to catch my breath and covering my mouth from laughing so hard.


After the student production, the Rudes performed the bawdy modern translations of two medieval farces, another hysterical interpretation of old comedy. It was proof that comedy and satire and their sometimes raucous and sexual themes still appeal and entertain us. In Confession Lessons, we are able to see the satire of the corruption of the church and the treatment of women, and even though many of the themes don't directly correlate to our world today, the situations are still universal enough to an audience 500-600 years after its prime. There were many outrageous scenes that I never expected, and couple of shocking, albeit laugh out loud moments that showed the prowess of these actors.
After Confession Lessons, Monk-ey Business showed what can happen with a little spite and a whole lot of alcohol. It still proves that no matter what era it is, drunken hijinks always are a fun spectacle to watch.

Though the show was long, it was definitely worth seeing, and came just at the right time to relieve a little bit of end of the semester stress.

Cultural Event: A Celebration of Storer College

Me in the Storer Ballroom right after the film showing.

For one of my cultural events for my Capstone, I went to the celebration of Storer College in the Storer Ballroom. Program Board director Rachael Meads presented the event, which was a dedication of both a place and a people.

At the celebration, attendees were treated to a wonderful documentary film about Storer College by Jefferson Co. native Midge Yost, who wrote, directed, and produced the film.

The celebration of Storer College was more than just a program, it was an inward look at the many milestones that American history went through. It gives meaning to the name "Storer" Ballroom and reminds us that America is a country of many diversities. At times these diversities and gems are lost to other parts of history, but the film inspires us to remember and explore the rich community right in our very own surrounding area.

Storer College, which I had not heard of ( or rather knew much about) before attending the celebration is truly an achievement for the African-American culture and heritage that is such an important part of our civil rights history. The college was one of the very first colleges to educate freed black slaves, and provided one of the first state systems for the higher learning of African-Americans.

The college, which opened in the fall of 1867, set up missionary schools to over 30,000 freed slaves in the Shennadoah Valley.  These school were designed to show recently freed slaves how to manage their freedom and become self-sufficient and successful. It was at Storer and college like Storer that proved that (contrary to the popular belief at the time) that freed slaves could learn and they could be educated. They were taught valuable skills and developed a passion for self-determination that helped them give themselves respect and a greater sense of humanity.

Before the college closed in 1955, Storer had become one of the most influential and respected institutions for African Americans in the US. Storer not only enriched the lives of its student with a strong community, but also was home to an intense, diverse, and ultimately very spiritual learning environment. Student were required to go to chapel almost every day, which sometimes include the occasional visit by important African-American leaders, including George Washington Carver.

In fact many say that Storer College was one of the birthplaces of the NAACP, when it met as the Niagra Movement, their first meeting together in the United States.

People as influential as Don Redman, who was the first African American attorney in WV was a Storer College alum. Redman went on to be the first elected president of Nigeria.

After the film, we were entreated to a interesting discussion and were fortunate to have an alumni from Storer College present. She was full of spunk and kept reciting how she had a wonderful time at Storer and how important the experience was to her life.

This event truly was inspirational, and it reminded me of how much cultural and history I had missed out on, Storer was truly a legacy to be celebrated!

Creating the aesthetic for project presentation

So not only are we creating a project for Capstone, but we also have to present the project via board to the public in a "fair" setting. My board project has acquainted me more with Adobe Illustrator than I thought possible.

My idea for my board was to design something that was eye catching, but simple in design, but functional so it reflected the ideas that I put into my website.

Researching into Adobe Illustrator, I found a way to create my own paintbrushes to include my own personal color scheme into my board. It has also changed the way I feel about Photoshop and Illustrator.  Illustrator seems to have not an more expansive way of creating, but just a very different way, it seems a little more artist oriented than photoshop, which seems more business/industrial oriented.

Another way I researched for my board was look through the different capstone projects on the Facebook group to see how other students had done their project boards in the past.

After My Last Capstone Meeting, Revisions and Revelations

Knowing now what I  need to update and change going into Spring Break, I hope that I can make all my corrects and modifications before I present the site for user testing next Thursday. Some of the elements that I am researching to make better are:

-The testimonials page: I wanted to incorporate a testimonials page because it was important to Victoria (director of Career Services) to receive feedback from Shepherd students. Though with Wordpress.com, I thought it would be unfeasible to create, however I found an option that allows me to create a very basic testimonials page. The idea is that a blank page is set up, but the comments are left turned on. Then, the posted comments become the testimonials.

-The transfer of documents to posts: The posts feature of Wordpress, I realized, I was actually underusing the feature. By researching what I can do to make the most of how my posts function within my the theme I chose, I can definitely tweak and make adjustments to what I already have to make sure that the site is working as efficiently as possible

-Blog feature: I need to find someway to incorporate a separate example blog, which I have already completed in my 447 class, however, I need to find an example blog feed, or just incorporate it into my technical plan as something that I could not include in the wordpress site.

-Graphics into posts and pages: This is something I have put on the back burner, but I really need to complete and make sure that the graphics complement the pages and are not superflous.

-The technical plan: A technical plan was something that was extremely important to this project, and therefore I have been looking at formats that best presents information in quick, easy to read and digest manner, and also echoes the organization of the actual site.

My other research includes the final and most vigorous testing of the navigation to make sure that it is function and understandable.  This means  going in and checking my custom menus and making sure that I have the most efficient definition between my categories and my pages. The custom menu feature is a great one, but I do have to make sure, (by using comparative analysis) that I am using it effectively.

Ominupdate, the future of Shepherd's CMS solution, and capstone

So I just found out this week, that Wordpress is not going to be the future of Shepherd's CMS solution. And I'm okay with that. I always knew that what I was doing was laying a foundation for Shepherd Career Services. What my goal is, though is to discover how I can make my site and my content more adaptable to this new CMS solution called Ominupdate.

Omniupdate, as I have been able to figure out from their demos and website is another kind of CMS specifically used for educational institutions. The program is called OUCampus and like Wordpress, it is a browser-based CMS and features insertable modules for sidebar content and menus ( called widgets in Wordpress). It is unlike the in-depth self-hosted Wordpress, (the wordpress.com blog I'm using for my own site for SCS is also free) free.

From what I can tell with the site, is that educational institutions choose from three different customizable templates, which tells me that this kind of site is especially made for function, not necessarily aesthetics. Each instution's site is pretty much like every other site with a few customizable changes.  Examples of headers and footers show us that there are also custom options, that you don't get available with Wordpress.

OU Campus lists a variety of different benefits of using their programs including many of the same options as Wordpress, including intuitive CMS and easy editing, media addition with forms and polls, it also supports most browsers including IE, Firefox, and Chrome.

Though the OU Campus site is rather vague, so I researched some actual colleges that are using OU Campus as a CMS, University of Denver, University of Chicago, and University of Dallas, so I could get a better understanding of how the CMS functions on a real time level.

Surprisingly, my personal reaction was very positive to each of the sites, they seem well organized and feature some dynamic content, except with much more customizable ability, which actually does make it aesthetically pleasing.

I think this program works well with trying to incorporate any other kind of CMS, because it contains many of the same features, which will translate well.

I only wish that I could have been able to use the actual program, so I could better prepare Career Services for what is to come in the future, however I do plan on putting some of my research in with my technical plan so they can be more informed.

Sex appeal and feedback, capstone website

I think one of the most inspiring weeks of my Capstone has been this week. For another class that I am taking, Advanced Internet, we are also working with Wordpress, and I had to write another blog for that class analyzing another Wordpress site. I've learned so much about how to make a site dynamic, even when I can use fancy Javascripts or code. It really is a challenge to both my left logical brain and my creative right brain when it comes to figuring out how I'm going to make this site work.

A website's sex appeal, to designers and builders may not be be the number one (for me it's definitely organization) but to a standard audience, it means the difference in how long they're going to stay on a website, or how they're going to process information.  So what I plan on putting into this week, is thoughtful 'sex appeal' making sure as I start putting in visually attractive content (pictures, picture slideshows, organizing video) that I do it in a way that is not only attractive and interactive, but also smart and intuitive. I've learned that links, although not the superior form what I want to accomplish, work well if implanted constructively and seamlessly.

I have made some plans as to how I'm going to execute this idea, and I think that it is going to rely not only on my judgement, but also vigorous user testing. Though I feel like I'm in "beta" mode of my site still, I think the sooner I get people clicking and exploring, the more that I can do to make it better. Feedback is definitely going to help this part of my project. I've also begun mobile device testing, and seeing how I can customize what the mobile side of SCS site looks like and responses.

The Anti-Script Underbelly of Wordpress.com for SCS's site

So I found out today, that if you create a blog/website under Wordpress.com ( not .org) where you have a free blog/website, that you cannot embed html, javascript, or  (unapproved) iframe into these sites. It took me about an hour of searching Wordpress forums and Google until I came across this page. Which explains that external embeds are not allowed because they might contain harmful elements, so if Wordpress encounters these kind of scripts, they automatically strip them out.

So that means no Google Custom Search Engine. Which is a total and complete bummer, because I definitely think it would make such a great addition to the site. Good news though, I've already created the search engine until Shepherd Career Services' Google account, so that if one day it does become available, the search engine code is ready to be copied and pasted.

Actually the more that I delve into Wordpress.com, the more I think it would definitely be worth a company or organization's time to just spend the money and self-host with wordpress.org rather than use a free blog with wordpress. The snags that I have run into, are definitely frustrating.

Since I could not enter into custom javascript or css, and I wanted to do something a little more dynamic for Shepherd Career Services' "What Can You Do With this Major?" page, I decided that I could use Wordpress.com's gallery feature, create buttons in Photoshop and then have it display as a dynamic gallery while linking each gallery image to a link on Salary.com or other job search sites. Turns out though, you cannot link individual images to individual links inside of a gallery. Well i don't know if you can, but I've been researching it profusely for the past half hour to no avail, so if someone has done it, I would greatly appreciate it if you pass the word along.

Mainly, through my Wordpress experience, I've realized how much you can't do rather than what you can do with Wordpress.com. I guess that's an okay thing, since this site has to be integrated on a different server soon anyway, but it just makes it more difficult for me as I keep trying to find ways to make the content more dynamic without being to code in javascript or iframes.

After taking time to think about how I was going to include some of the cool elements into the site that I had originally planned to embed. I've just decided that it is easier to to just put links in to the different elements that I want to put in, especially some of the resources that I've found from Salary.com and other career service sites. Links are not the most dynamic thing, but I have been so focused on how to uniquely put them in so it seems more interesting and less static. I think it will just require more playing around with the gallery feature.


Other than that, the only real dilemma I've had to work with, it how to use posts and pages to organize content. I've found out how to use categories and a custom menu to do most of the work for me, however sometimes I've seen that's where I run into problems. Because under the navigation, the pages designated for a category show up as an index with no page content or text. It just brings up each relevant post in reverse chronological order under each category. So if I want to have an index or introductory page, I have to create it as a parent page and then make the category the child of the parent index.  This works fine, but it is a little bit clunky and not as streamlined as having a little static section on for each category page.
A little mix of each seems to be working out, but I as I work I just play with what feels right, if I add something new, or go in and change content, then I can always go back and change it so it makes more sense.

If you can sense the little bit of frustration I'm having, then you know how I'm feeling this week. I'm hoping next week that thing will be better and I can find better solutions to what I'm working on. I'm not ready to have a major breakdown yet, so that's a good thing. I think.

An Analysis of The Rolling Stones website

As I delve in deeper to Wordpress, I am learning so much about the way content is handled and organized.  And one of the best resources that I found that helps to build and better blog and/or website is to research other websites and see how they use a content management system. Though what I’ve learned is that there are wrong and right ways to use a CMS but there are also many different ways to organize information as well, not necessarily wrong, but different.

The site that I researched for this post is the band site for The Rolling Stones. I must say I am a little bit of a Stones fan, but I am even a bigger fan since they are using a CMS to do their web stuff. 

One important element of Wordpress that all builders, new and experienced should always take into consideration is the difference between posts and pages, when to use each one. This is a great feature of Wordpress and if done correctly cannot only make your site/blog more organized but it can also improve the visual aesthetic as well. The eye can definitely pick up when something is designed well, even if you can’t pick out what it is about the site that sets it off. The Rolling Stones site manages their posts and pages in this way. The pages function statically and hold the appropriate content, while the posts show up on each page. Some of the posts, you can tell are set to be sticky (holds them in place and ignores the reverse chronoglogical function of posts on pages) which actually works with the other content that they have. I think this display of posts is most functional on the home page. 

They also use Wordpress plugins very well. Wordpress is really just very basic without the thousands of plugins that are used to tailor so many different aspects of a site. From incorporating Javascripts to multimedia, plugins are definitely one of the most important features that Wordpress offers. ( Which sadly I found out the hard way by using a free Wordpress.com site for Capstone) There was actually a pretty good example of the Stones incorporating a Lightbox-like photo gallery that I know was made possible via Java.

I think navigation is what really sets Wordpress apart from other types of CMSs and

webbuilders, because you can almost guess that a site was created by Wordpress just by looking at the navigation. I like the Rolling Stones site because it uses custom menus and parent/child pages to help navigate content. Everything that I could possibly want to find on the Stones' site is easily accessible without having to search and sift through information. 

If I would give any cons to the site, I would definitely say that the text sections (scroll down once you click the link) have too much information for a user to digest at any moment, and that I would hope that they might go through and shorten/ condense some of the info to make it more user digestible. 

Starting Wordpress

Finally, the real work begins!

 These next two weeks are the going to be the bulk of my Capstone experience and I have to admit that I am a little nervous, but mostly excited to dive right into work. I definitely have so many ideas and goals running through my head still, and I hope I will be able to translate them all into the website.

I have found working with the Lynda programs makes me not so afraid of working with Wordpress. I actually think it will go very well. And I’ve come to terms that this site is going to be mostly framework, and that the organization of data is such an important factor that I have to convey in my work.

I met with Victoria again on Thursday and we talked about the additions that I needed to add onto my current client analysis and also, what features they needed as an organization. I’ve already set them up a Twitter account and linked their Facebook page to their new website, I’ve also already started dumping their written copy into posts and pages on the new site. I think that is going to be the bulk of the work is sorting and organizing the data, but I’ve also got some fun thing to put into the site as well.

Wordpress has so many great features such as polls, google analytics, a google calendar for their events and such that I’m sure those will be welcome add ons to what I already have. The only thing that I am truly concerned about is if I will have the means to insert some of the dynamic content. Hopefully most of the plugins that are available will be free and have installation that isn’t crazily complex.

I also need to go back and edit my proposal, client analysis, and previous webmap, which I am hoping to also complete this week. Website goals this week is to have all pages and copy in so I can maneuver posts around in the following week. I ‘ve got so much to do and not very much time to do it. But I'm just hoping that everything will turn out for the best. Victoria has been such an inspiration to work with and I want to give her my best, because she puts so much in Shepherd Career Services.

Why Content Management Systems are Preferred

For this blog, I am going to discuss why content management systems are preferred over traditional web building methods and why they should be considered for websites and the future of the internet.

Having used both web building software and browser based CMS, I can definitely say that first, in my personal opinion that I cannot believe how much simpler and easier building a complex and nice looking site is with a CMS. Not downing on Dreamweaver ( the website building software I used to use) because Dreamweaver definitely fits its purpose and now have available all kinds of plugins that can enhance the features of Dreamweaver.

However, Dreamweaver is code based. And I truthfully, I don’t mind noodling around with code, I find it interesting other than the fact that it can get repetitive at times and somewhat tedious after long intervals, however for me, I think it’s easier to pinpoint problems with a site if you can find the exact code where something is wrong, not exactly the easiest thing in a CMS.

So, to first start off, I guess I should explain what a content management system is or rather give an example of how I understand CMS. The easiest way that I can explain CMS, is like a big  self-organizing filing cabinet. It’s browser based really large database where you can store all your web’s content and have it organized any way that you want. Which I prefer to Dreamweaver, because I like being able to not having to use code all the time. Oh yeah, did I mention that it’s much less code focused than a program like Dreamweaver? It is. Oh yeah.

Well, not that code bothers me, it doesn’t ( see above) but I haven’t had a strong background in coding, (I knew some, but not enough above novice level) and a content management system allows me to bypass alot of the menusha code ( though it is still good to know CSS for stylistic purposes).

Also from a business end, CMSs just make sense. Websites are crucial to a business's success and you need an attractive, working, and current site, to make it in the market. One online company explains the benefits of using CMSs like this,  " Business websites frequently need to perform tasks like upgradation, content management, sales analysis, vistor analysis, etc... A majority of business websites prefer CMS solutions thanks to their ease of use and extraordinary features that make these tasks a lot easter. With the help of CMS solutions, online business management has become a lot simpler than it e was ever imagined to be."

What are some of these features you may ask? The plugins available for CMS are almost limitless there are thousands and thousands of them, from shopping cart and online web store plugins to photo and product design, to marketing enhancers, membership logins, security based, newsletters and so so so many more.

One webmaster, Christopher Heung of thesitewizard.com also describes some time saving, effort saving benefits of switching to a CMS, " Unlike an offline web editor, where everything you want done on your site has to be added manually, blogging and CMS software handle things like tagging, categories and a managing a search engine for you. 

-Simply tag your post as having a certain keyword, and a new index page is automatically generated for you with a list of posts that have that particular tag. There's no need to contemplate whether it is worth the effort and time to create a new page for that particular keyword or tag. The software does it for you. 

-Your visitors automatically have the option, if they wish, to check out all the other articles having the same tag. Unlike an offline web editor, where everything you want done on your site has to be added manually, blogging and CMS software handle things like tagging, categories and a managing a search engine for you. 

.-Likewise, adding a search engine to your website is no longer a hassle. In fact, the few popular blog software that I have tried automatically add a search engine for you whether you want it or not.

-The blogging software automatically increases the usability of your website without adding complexity to your job as a webmaster."

Learning from Lynda and Client Analysis

This week in Capstone, I feel like I have made a few big strides in my work.  I’ve drafted my client analysis and my old webmap. My meeting with Monica I think really helped me find the right direction that I was going on with this website. Also, in my 447 class, we are starting to delve more and more into Wordpress, which is helping me with my research for the Shepherd Career Services site.

In my client analysis, I tried to stay organized and streamlined with 3 main points/ goals of the new site:

-to be fun, entertaining, but informative

- to have connections to social networking and other databases

-to make the information easily accessible and user friendly to navigate

I've also been looking at other career services websites for even more research, and I've been looking at websites who have been acclaimed for their design and trying to pick out pieces of content and style that will make a seamless integration into the site. Social media such as LinkdIn really make a difference in how effective a career services site is. 

Victoria Buchbauer, head of Career Services, also gave me some content to start looking through that she had collected over the years. I found many creative and fun videos about career choices, creating a resume, interviews, and most importantly networking that I think will make excellent additions to the media on the website.

I am also starting to really try and get the hang of Wordpress and I’m ready to begin my intensive training with Lynda.com and any other tutorials that I can find. We also decided in 447 whereabouts we are going to host the site, and since I plan on using my time in 447 to work on my capstone project, I think it has been such important research in helping me determine what steps I need to take to make this successful.

Goals for this next week:

Try and absorb as much information about wordpress from tutorial sites and lynda.

Edit and do another draft of the client analysis

Fix and edit the old site's webmap

Beginning research and first CSC meeting

As my Capstone project start progressing deep into the production process, I am beginning to feel a little more optimistic about getting every thing done and completed to the best of my ability. This week, I began to familiarize myself with Wordpress and participated in a few tutorials to guide me around the site. I also began looking at themes that I thought would best suit the new Shepherd Career Services site.

Not only have I worked with Wordpress, but I thought it would also be important to look at other college’s career development sites to not only gain inspiration, but also know what I did not want in my site. Many of the college career sites are already set up close to the current Shepherd website with room for improvement. But then I saw one Career Services site that I believe was done through Wordpress and the difference was absolutely noticeable. The Wordpress site was fresh and clean cut, and also easy to navigate, which are keystone themes for Wordpress anyway. Some of the themes that I am considering are:

-Splendio

-Academica

-Oxygen

Of these, I am leaning towards Splendio, but it is still too early to make a final decision, I want to explore putting some of the content into each of the demos before I make a final say on what theme I want to use.

On Thursday, I met with Victoria Buchbauer, head of the department of Career Services at Shepherd. We hit it off right right away and from the moment I met her, I could  tell how passionate she is about her department. Her commitment and enthusiasm was immediately inspiring. She explained that she wanted a website that was not only functional, but fun. She wanted something that was going to interest all audiences, be easily accesible, and display all their information is a visually interesting and intuitive manner. At the minute, Victoria informed me that they don't have a very active social media area of their department, something that I thought that I might work on as well. I think that I can integrate the social media into the website. It was also important for Victoria and her office assistant Jamie to understand and know how to use the Wordpress system, so I want to make a big part of my project user testing and making sure that they know how to edit and update the content. Another issue that I found with the current website was the lack of intuitive navigation and content distribution and layout.  

This weekend I am working on writing up an official client analysis of a more detailed assessment of the changes and needs of the current Shepherd website, as well as mapping out the old Shepherd website, so I can see what is the depth of the navigation and why it isn't working as is, and how I can change it in the new site.

Cultural Event 1, "Motherless": A Legacy of Loss

For my first required cultural activity for my capstone class, I attended a film and discussion at the Byrd Legislative Center. The film was called "Motherless" and it was sponsored by WVFree a reproductive justice organization in West Virginia that provides services such as reproductive options and reproduction education for all women and families. 

The film "Motherless" explored the untold stories of people whose mothers had died from illegal abortions. When I first came to the Center, I had no idea what the film was going to be about and wa a little worried when I realized that abortion was the subject matter. Abortion is such a heavy topic, usually comes under rapid political fire, and so I was worried just how intense the discussion was going to be. But as the film played, I realized that the issues of the film went outside the political platform side of abortion. That there were real people with real issues with abortion that we neither black nor white. In fact, it showed just how unprepared out political system is to handle these grey area situations.

"Motherless" put faces to the countless names and issues of abortion, and added an emotional and thought provoking level to a such a topic. And regardless of which side of the abortion debate that is lesser shown and more personal than some people had ever realized, and even though I am not completely decided on this issue myself, I can say that these women did not deserve to die.  The women in the film were not irresponsible teenagers looking for a way out, neither were they women who did not want kids. They were all mothers, who had children, and loved them but felt desperate and unaware of their reproductive options. It was heart breaking to see that these women who had felt desperate enough to undergo these illegal abortions because they felt that they had no other options. Though the movie was geared toward pro-choice, I think that the underlying issue of reproductive options and education was far more significant whether or not to have an abortion.

From the movie, I did not judge the women on their actions, I only hoped that there could have been an alternative solution for these mothers that did not result in complications or death. I think that society has taken the issue of abortion and made it too political and and has taken away the intimacy from an intimate situation. There are many misconceptions that people think about when they think about women having abortions, there is so much judgment and not enough understanding.

After the film, there was a discussion in which we were asked to share our thoughts on the film, and many people felt the same way that I had, that this was bigger than an abortion issue, it was a reproductive issue. I know that now, I won't quite look at the issue in the same light. I though about it myself in a WWYD setting and I ask myself, what could have prevented this tragedy? What are the bigger issues in the abortion debate? As a woman, what options do I have for my own reproductive choices? The answer is not always clear and easy, but it is getting better and stronger for women.  

Visit WVFree for more information on their services and mission.