EBay Sidebar App = Fail

So I learned two things today. Traditional eBay = Win. New EBay App = Fail. I partially feel it might my computer error not the Apps. But either way it did fail and here is the story which brought me to this conclusion. I always enjoy the merging of two ideas together. Since we previously discussed both usability and applications actually adjudicating one seemed like an awesome hands on approach to the situation. I enjoyed actually sighing up for the eBay account. I had used my parent’s account before but had not personally signed up for one. I enjoyed how easy it was to use and the act that it had little sayings along the way. “ We promise this is the last step”, was one of the more memorable ones. I had used the traditional interface in the past and had been happy with its usability. One of my favorite features was the recognition of the recently viewed items. Sadly I was completely denied when I tried to experience the sidebar application. After following the link and the super quick download my computer would not open the app. Fro other writing I can assume that the App is very user friendly and opens eBay up to a wider usage along side other web interfaces. But personally when it comes to usability it fails. If I can’t open it the first time why even try again. If people get are unable to use something due to error they will just move on. Or in my case, back to they original website. This is how I feel about eBay’s side app. EBay you just may want to add a side of epic to that fail.

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How to Promote the Vote?

The majority of my research for my senior capstone is focused on how to not only motivate and get the youth out to vote but how to get them to back a female candidate. . I personally feel that a lot of the youth voters feel they have no impact in the political scene and I am hoping my research will be able to give me some incite into ways in which I can overcome this barrier This becomes even more difficult when the female candidate is running for a position, that has never been help by a woman. West Virginia is one of the 24 states left that have not had top female state leadership. I have not been able to fully research my topic as well as I would have liked by this point because I am still waiting to hear on my interlibrary loans but when they arrive I look forward to reading the following books and articles which I feel will help me better understand the road I have ahead of me. If anyone out there in cyber land has any other ideas on resources please feel free to comment and add to my list.

Brisbin, Richard A. West Virginia Politics and Government. Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 2008. Print.

Burgess, Diana, Beth Haney, Mark Snyder, John L. Sullivan, and John E. Transue. "Rocking the Vote: Using Personalized Messages to Motivate Voting among Young Adults*." Public Opinion Quarterly 64.1: 29-52. Print.

Franz, Michael M., Paul Freedman, Ken Goldstein, and Travis N. Ridout. "Understanding the Effect of Political Advertising on Voter Turnout: A Response to Krasno and Green." The Journal of Politics 70.01 (2008). Print.

Hill, Ronald P. "An Exploration of Voter Responses to Political Advertisements." Journal of Advertising 18.4 (1989): 14-22. Print.

Kahn, Kim Fridkin. "Gender Differences in Campaign Messages: The Political Advertisements of Men and Women Candidates for U. S. Senate." Political Research Quarterly 46.3 (1993): 481. Print.

Kahn, Kim Fridkin. The Political Consequences of Being a Woman: How Stereotypes Influence the Conduct and Consequences of Political Campaigns. New York: Columbia UP, 1996. Print.

Kaid, Lynda Lee., and Christina Holtz-Bacha. Encyclopedia of Political Communication. Los Angeles: Sage Publications, 2008. Print.

Sweetser Trammell, K. D. "Candidate Campaign Blogs: Directly Reaching Out to the Youth Vote." American Behavioral Scientist 50.9 (2007): 1255-263. Print.

Xenos, Michael, and Kyurim Kyoung. "Rocking the Vote and More: An Experimental Study of the Impact of Youth Political Portals." Journal of Information Technology & Politics 5.2 (2008): 175-89. Print.

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Color Me Effective

Pain, Sorrow, Laughter, Sadness, Happiness, Death, Birth. All of these things can be effectively portrayed to an audience through the use of color. Every hue, shade and tone used with complementary colors or contrasting colors can evoke emotions in a watcher. This idea holds true in the world of motion graphics. Although color is usually thought of with art and painting, motion graphics gives life and movement to what is traditionally seen as a static piece. Below I have chosen two examples motion graphics which I feel use color to the best of their abilities.



The first is an example of traditional Motion graphics. I liked how the use of black and white together portrayed the feeling of old and worn out. The introduction of the different colors gives the feeling of new and rebirth. The different hues and intensity of the tones represented in each of the colors gives it a fun lively feeling. I enjoyed this representation.



My second example is not the usual motion graphics but the Kinetic typography. It is a representation of the Jokers “ Why So Serious?” Monologue. Although most of it is done in black and white the use of red for emphasis I found extremely effective. This I believe fully hinges on the fact that that the black white and red are the colors of the Jokers face as represented in the movie “ Dark Night”. This is only escalated by the fact that red can represent aggression, anger but also love in western culture. This moment represented in the graphics is intense put the portrayal of the family and the opposition of the anger and love in the red makes it even stronger. The use of the red words as the mouth at the end makes this clip amazing for me.

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Usability: An Effective Website's Secret Weapon

Usability, is also known as how easy a website is to use. Before reviewing this topic, I never realized this type of research and knowledge existed. Although it makes complete sense due to the fact that I honestly never think about usability of a site until I find a website which I find hard to use. After having issues with using a website my chances of returning to it are slim to none. I feel as though this may be the case for many Internet users beside myself. In a world in which our new media usage is getting greater but our attention spans are getting smaller usability is becoming even more important. Having effective navigation along with an easy and maneuverable layout give a website the heads up in the worldwide web war.

Some things such as culture and language also effect the usability of a website. In the article Multilingual Website Usability: Cultural Context by Mathew Hillier, the use of language in websites which are reproduced in different languages and cultures enters the game as new payers and issues for usability. I found this article interesting because sometimes which it comes down to it, I take culture for granted. Never having personally traveled outside the United States into a different culture , western culture just seems to fit and is useable. But in creating an eastern culture version of a western website could have not only cultural issues but also translational issues. These were all things that never crossed my minding dealing with the world of web development.

Usability needs to be more than just a fleeting thought in a developers mind; it needs to be a major concern. After reading these articles in my future web development I will that my websites are easy to follow and make an enjoyable experience for my user. Because in the end, the website which can deliver information quickly and effectively will survive the worldwide web war of gaining habitual site users and come out victorious.

Hillier, M (2003) The Role of Cultural Context in Multilingual Website Usability, Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 2(1), 2-14

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Whole World Can Change In a Click...

So last time on “How The Capstone Turns” Ashley was set with a dilemma. She had figured out two Capstone ideas. One was a blog which she would create from scratch about politics and the media. Something tangible which combined her major and minor . It was something she had slightly been playing with in her head for awhile, but it just didn’t perfectly feel right. Her other choice was one which she would have loved to do but the timing was all wrong. She could combine her knowledge of Politics and Advertising/ Propaganda and create a campaign for a candidate aimed at college students. But, all of the local elections were last semester and creating a fake candidate would be silly. The day of reckoning was coming, she would have to meet with her director soon and give her a proposal idea, but even the night before she felt her hands were tied. What could she do?

The morning of her meeting Ashley clicked to her usual WV State News Website that she reads everyday, and what did she see. Not only was there going to be a special election in the state but The Secretary of State, Natalie Tennant, who Ashley had recently scored a summer internship with, would be running for the seat of Governor. There was her sign. After getting the OK From her Project Director. Ashley happily excited her meeting with a mission, to play her part in this election.

Because of this turn in events I have redirected my research. If I’m going to reach youth voters I need to know how to target and reach them. I am looking up books and websites, which focus on the use on New Media and its uses by candidates. How can I use Social and New Media to my best advantage? This will be the biggest tool for success. I am also researching websites such as Rock The Vote which are aimed at getting young voters out to vote. The usual voter in a primary election is one which is set hard in their political ways and an avid voter. But not many individuals show up to vote. How can I get young voters out to a primary election when the average voter usually throws it by the wayside? These outlets of research I am pursuing will hopefully answer these questions.

Politically Puzzled: Senior Capstone Confusion

Hi. My Name is Ashley Hawkins. I am a communications major and political science minor who half way through her degree decided that instead of reporting on government officials and legal cases, she wanted to be first hand involved with them. I have the promise scholarship from the state of WV which would pay my tuituion if I keep a 3.0 GPA and get out in 4 years. Communications is still a love and passion of mine, so I kept my major for my undergrad but set my sights on Law school for my graduate level education.

Now I know by this point you are probably wondering what in the world this has to do with my senior capstone project. Well it has everything! While others are creating movies, PR Campaigns and Documentaries to show as their best work to employers in the field, I am directing myself a totally different direction. In some ways I feel this frees me from some of the restraints a project could put. If you want to have a career in PR filming a zombie movie for capstone would not be very productive but I also feel it narrows me as well. I would like to accomplish something which I can show in the future to my law professors or even Admissions committees as the link between my major and my minor.

Throughout my four years at shepherd the world of politics and the media have intertwined and overlapped many times over leaving me some opportunities for advancement with my capstone project.

My first idea was to do a Public Relations project marketing a Political Candidate to the college crowd, but unfortunately at this point election season is over. To do this now I would have to completely make up a candidate but I’m not sure how that would go over. If I made it blatantly obvious they were fake (Barbie etc) then maybe it would work. If the special election for Governor of WV is announced and starts within the next week it maybe be an option I can use. But the chances of this happening is slim to none.

My second and more plausible option is to take my enjoyment of the web and the opportunities it posses and create a project along those lines. I would like to create a blog similar to the one that Shelby Hoffman did for her capstone but I would focus it on the interlaying relations between politics and the media or media law. These all rely so much on each other but it is never really stressed in today’s culture. Many Political Scientists refer to the media as the 4th estate as they see it as important as the first three estates which are the recognized branches of government.

I feel the second option is something that I could not only run with but could be beneficial in the future but I’m just not fully sure. I am afraid I am overlooking an option, but I’m not quite sure what it is. Any other ideas and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If nothing else comes up, I am feeling the blog. I mean I do enjoy writing this one : )
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Sorry Web… Trading You In For a Newer, Younger Model

It’s not new that in society and the world when something new comes out or catches our interest it is hard for the human mind to resist. Not only does it intrigue us, but the new options usually allow a newly created space for exploration into a world we have no yet experienced. This holds true for cars, women , men and electronics.
Every few years there is a new wave in the electronics world as the latest and the greatest electronic devices sweep the market making their predecessors almost absolute. There is no better example of this than the Apple IPOD Touch, IPHONE and recently the IPAD. Along with these leaps in the world of mobile communication came the world of mobile applications. Now from anywhere you can perform most of the functions of a PC without the hastle of using a web browser. In the article, The Web Is Dead. Long Live the Internet By Chris Anderson and Michael Wolff, the idea is placed that the web based internet is dying and will be replaced by these applications which use the web but it is not their primary function. I could not agree more.
I have an IPOD touch and will probably be switching over to an IPHONE when my contract is up in June. I LOVE my IPOD and all of its applications which allow me to maintain a high level of contact with not only the world of social media but Google and everything else in between. Some days I will reach for my IPOD to look up information simply because for a quick task it is a lot easier and faster than pulling up my computer. In a world where instant gratification has become the norm why wouldn’t the population step away from the old version which does not meet its current needs and slide to the newest technologies which will give society it’s fix.
There is no way to tell if this trend of applications use over the actual browser is permanent. Who knows what the developers for Microsoft and Apple are thinking of next to give us the latest and quickest forms of information and entertainment that our culture craves for its addiction. But If things keep going the way they are I can see myself telling my children the days of past in which you used a browser not an app to get online.

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