Julia's Blog

Week 12

2005-06-03T20:20:00.000-07:00

First off we sent ourselves an email containing information about our test which is on next Friday the 12th of June at 10am in the lecture room. Once we had sent the email to ourselves we then created some folders in our amil which we could use to clean up our inbox. I created a folder for friends, my lecturers, ECU and also one for myself when I need to send work to home that I need for uni.
After we had sent this email we went to the website www.google.com and clicked on the link of groups in which we search for a variety of different groups. I searched first for Jeff Buckely.This group website contained information about the death of Jeff Buckley as it was first posted for someone who was unsure as to whether Jeff Buckely was alive or dead. It then conatined an a press release by sony music which presented what actually happened; ie how he died, where, when and also some information about a memorial service for the singer.
The second group topic I searched for was on Jim Morrison. All of the information that was found and presented on the site was about whether Jim Morrison used performance-enhancing substances before performing to fans and that he should ahve been banned from the music industy.
For my final search of the groups website was on Jack Johnson. Initially I just typed in Jack Johnson and I got information on the boxer Jack Johnson, so I changed my search to Jack Johnson musician. From this search I got information on a musician called Jack Johnson but it wans't the Jack Johnson that I intially wanted to search for. So I changed my search again to Jack Johnson musician hawaii in which I found information about the Jack Johnson that I
wanted information on. I found out information about the music that Jack Johnson makes, a little bit about his family and some information about his new release album and tours
that he would be doing.

Week 11

2005-05-19T19:44:00.000-07:00

List of information sheers that will be relevant to you as an undergraduate students:
(taken from the website www.copyright.org.au/)

An introduction to copyright material in Australia: this could be relevant to me as an undergraduate student because it states the law of copyrighting and what copyright actually is. This would be helpful in our further studies as we will understand the consequences involved with copyright.
Film: this could be relevant to me as an undergraduate student if I was completing a course on film or something to do with the media as it contains information on the types of copyrights that are involved with film, clearances you can get to copy the film, what copyright protects and much more.
Music (bands): this could be relevant to me as undergraduate student as it conatins information about the copyrights involved in recorded songs, working out who owns the song, how the copyright protects the song, who owns the copyright and much more. This is important especially in today's society as we have major issue with people downloading and copying CDs and music without actually paying for it.

Brief Summary on case US vs Sankus found on the website www.cybercrime.gov/ipcases.htm.

John Sankus Jr. aged 28 of Philadelphia, Pennysilvania was sentenced to 46 months in a federal prison for conspiring to violate criminal copyright laws. Sankus also know as eriFlleH (Hellfire spelt backwards) was the leader of one of the oldest and largest international software privacy rings on the internet known as DrinkOrDie. His co-conspirator Barry Erikson was sentenced to 33 months in a federal prison, both of these sentences are the longest ever imposed for organised internet software privacy. DrinkOrDie was a highly organised, security concious, internet osftware privacy group that specialies in aquiring new software and 'cracking' it (striping/circumventing its coyright protections) and then releasing the software over the internet. The company had daily operations and approximatley 65 group members from more then 12 countries around the world including United Kingdom, Australia, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Sankus is amoung more than 40 individuals worldwide targeted by the operation Buccaneer, which was a 14 month undercover investigation by the U.S Customs Service that represnts the largest international copyright privacy investigation to date by law enforcement.

Protection Plan:

By far the most eficient way to protect my computer, documents, login and email from possible hackers is to use a password. I have a password to login to my computer, email, ECU database... everything. I try have a different password for all of these things as if they all have the same password and someone knows or gets access to my password they won't be able to access information to everything maybe only one of the above mentioned.

There are many different forms of viruses these include viruses, email viruses, worms and the Trojan horse. A virus is a small piece of software that piggybacks on real progams. The virus might attach itself to a to a program such as a spreadsheet program. Each time this progam runs, the virus runs too and it has the chance to reproduce by attaching itself to other programs or wreak havoc. An email virus moves around in email messages and usually replicates itself by automatically mailing itself to dozens of people in the victim's email address book. A worm is a small piece of software that uses computer networks and security holes to replictae itseld. a copy of the worm scans the network for another machine that has a specific security hole. It then copies itself to the new machine using the security hole and then starts replicating from there as well. A trojan horse is simply a computer program. The program claims to be one thing but instead does damage when you run it and it may erase the hard disc on your computer. Trojan horses have no way to replicate automatically. Protecting your computer from a virus can be easy if you know how they work. There a programs you can download that scan your computer for virus and if you have one they can destroy it before it infects your computer. As the owner of the computer you can also be careful when opening emails from someone you don't know or opening up attachments. If you don't know who sent it or if it looks dodgy don't open it. There are just some of the ways that you can protect your computer from viruses, worm or Trojan horses.

From completing today's workshops I have learnt about what copyright actually is, how it is protected and how serious it actually is, ie law enforcements. From reading the case Sankus vs U.S I have also learnt how serious copyrighting is, that you can be imprisond for up to 46 months or more.

Week 10

2005-05-12T21:08:00.000-07:00

Ten useful functions found on the Library Site:

Library Catalogue: this link helps you find books that are located in the library
Search Course Reserve Lists: this link allows you to look at the resources that you lecturer has given you for a certain topic in your course
Online Databases: this link allows you to search through various catalogues for journal articles
Resources by faculty: allows you to search for resources from a specific faculty
Virtual Reference Collection:
Internet Search Tools: this list some search engines that may help you locate information for certain topics
Link under resources for then Students: this link provides information for students such as opening hours, borrowing material from the library, photocopying and printing plus many more…
Link under learning assistance ECU reference guide: provides you with information on how to correctly reference texts and resources used for your work.
Simo: this is link which provides students with information about their courses such as semester timetable, bookshop, exam timetable and much more.
Student Information: this links provides students with information about assignments, logging on to our emails, MyECU and much more.

MEDline:

There are many different people that would use this website to find information about certain health conditions or drugs. I chose the health condition Heart Attacks. The interactive tutorial provides you with information about the symtoms, causes, treatment, emergency plan and prevention. This information would be useful for people wanting to learn more about Heart Attacks such as med students, doctors and people that may have suffered a heart attack before and want to find more about how to prevent and deal with having a heart attack.

Online database:

http://www.cadbury.com.au/divinerecipes/recipeofthemonth.php

Two-Minute Cup Cakes
Serves 8
INGREDIENTS60 g butter 1/4 cup caster sugar 1 tablespoon Cadbury Bournville Cocoa 1 egg, beaten 1/2 cup self-raising flour 8 Pascall marshmallows 1. Melt the butter in a large microwaveproof bowl on High (100% power) for 30 seconds.2. Add the sugar and cocoa. Mix well to dissolve any lumps.3. Add the egg and flour, and stir through with a fork.4. Spoon the mixture into eight triple thickness paper patty pans. Place around the edge of the microwave turntable and cook on High for 1 minute.5. Place a whole marshmallow on the top of each cup cake. Cook on High for 30 seconds or until the marshmallow begins to melt. Remove from the oven immediately. 6. Leave to cool.

I seach for Chocolate and found the Cadbury website which contained various recipies of products using Cadbury chocolate. I then bought up the recipe of the month which was two-minute cup cakes. This recipes provides step by step information to make your own cup cakes using cadbruy chocolate.

Week 9

2005-05-05T20:59:00.000-07:00

Six strategies to finding information on the web:

Make sure you're in the right place: not everything can be located on teh web, so make sure the information that you are looking for can be located on that site.
When in doubt, doubt: not all information on the web is necessarily correct, always check for evidence, bias and especially your own knowledge.
Consider the source: always find out exactly who wrote their source, their name as well as evidence about them that proves that they are a reliable source of information.
Know whats happening: make sure you check the reason why the website was created, whether it was to sell something, to inform or to persuade.
Look at the details: look at when the site was last updated, the quality of the grammar and the depth in which the author goes into.
Distinguish web pages: check to see if the web page was originally something else such as a book or report.

First website evaluated:

http://www.lib.virginia.edu/small/exhibits/sixties/index.html

Accuracy: This site is accurate as it conatin information on the author which is the University of Virginia and in contains a lot of information about the bands, drugs, protests, woodstock and many other important facts that occured in the 60s.

Authorship: As stated above this site clearly states the authorship on the home page which is Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia and this helps the readers to believe that it is a reliable site and that the information is valid.

Purpose: The purpose of this website is to inform people about the 60s. Including the music, drugs, social protests, hippies and woodstock.

Detail and Design: This site has a lot of detail of the topics it discusses and then supports this with pictures and photos which helps the readers understand and indorse the information.

Overall Worth: The overall worth is a very accurate site and it conatins a lot of valiable information about the 60s as it conatins information about the author and a lot of detailed information about the events and other important aspects of the 60s.

http://us.history.wisc.edu/hist102/lectures/lecture27.html

Accuracy: This site is very accurate as it conatins dates about the events from the civil war to present time. The information is for a lecture and the unit American History 102 this also supports its accuracy as its main purpose is to teach people about the civil war to present time.

Authorship: The authorship of the site is clearly stated at the top of the site which also helps in supporting its authenticity. The site is written by Stanley K. Schultz who is the Professor of History.

Purpose: The information presented on the site is from a lecture so its main purpose is for the students from the unit American History 102 who are learning about the civil war to present day.

Detail and Design: The site goes into much detail of the events that have accured in America from the Civil war to present day, this is then supported with dates and timelines of the information. The design of the site is very simple and is presented like a notebook which makes it look like an academic piece iof writing.

Overall Worth: This site is very worthy as it contains a lot of information, including dates that support the supplied information that is presented. This site is very reliable and this is mainly shown by the author who is a university professor.

Week 8

2005-05-04T03:09:00.000-07:00

Task One: Clues that the webiste www.bonsaikitten.com is a spoof:People are likely to believe that this is a serious site because it contains so much information about the concept of the Bonsai Kitten that people truely believe that this can happen.The language that the sites uses is very technical and persuading so that the readers believe it's real.The pictures that are shown of the kitten being inserted into the vessel are very misleading as we cannot be sure that these pictures are actually real.The site conatins and guestbook with many letter for people thanking them for the site and acknowledging the site however, we cannot be sure that these letters have been made up, another way of persuading people that this site it real.

Task Two: www.martinlutherking.org I am assuming that this site has been set up by an organisation as seen by the .org on the end of the website address and that it will contain information about Martin Luther King, his life from his birth to death and what he achieved throughout it.

Task Three: My first impression from looking at the Martin Luther King website is that it does contain a lot of information about Martin Luther King including; his historical writings, what he fought for, teh day he was shot and other information about what he achieved throughout his life. I think the information found on the site is true and that the site conatins valid information. Task Four: After looking at some of the articles found on the site it seems that the people that wrote the site are very biased towards Martin Luther King saying that many of the essays, sermons and speaches and anything else that he wrote was plagerized and none of it was his own work. It seems that the writters of the site do not support Martin Luther King and a lot of the information that is presented on the site is misleading and not true.

Today I learnt how to tell if a website is reliable or unreliable by the information and words that is presented on the page. The website www.bonsaikitten.com was an unreliable site as it cannot possibly be true. There is no way in this world that anyone would be able to practice this 'experiment' without the animal welfare stepping in. I also learnt not to think a site is reliable from the home page. The website www.martinlutherking.org on Martin Luther King seemed to be a reliable site but after i looked at the next few pages I noticed that the site isn't really accuarate as it contains a lot of bias towards Martin Luther King and that the people that wrote didn't really support him.

Week 7

2005-04-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

Question 1: The Incas
Question 2: Violet
Question 3: Birchard
Question 4: Alfred Lord Tennyson
Question 5: Shells
Question 6: Maps
Question 7: Giacomo Puccini
Question 8: Volcano
Question 9: Basenji
Question 10: Hieronymus Bosch

There are many different strategies that help you structure a good search. Some of these are:

learn which engines and directories provide different types of materical
target engines in one subject
tap into URLs that have their own databases and indicies
use several engines and directories

Today I learnt in both the lecture and the tute how to use various search engines, tips for searching and also some strategies to use when searching. We learnt that it is important to use several different engines and directories, read the information or tips for the search and most importantly to know what you're searching for. The information that we learnt today I know will help me when I am trying to locate information for my further studies, assignments and essays.

Week 6

2005-04-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

During today's lecture we learnt the importance of end note and how it can help us when we are writing long essays with various different references. Then during today's tutorial we learnt how to create an EndNote in a word document. We found a journal article of the library data base and ten copied and pasted into the EndNote program. We then put the end note reference onto a word document

Week 5

2005-03-04T14:42:00.000-08:00

There are many pros and cons to using atoms and bits for entertainment or leisure and business. An atom is the most common way to deliver information to us; either through newspaper, magazine, books etcetera the list is endless. The pros to these atoms are that they are easy to read and thumb through at leisure, in a way they are always there for you if you have them in your possession. The cons of these atoms are given in the article The DNA Information found on the website:
http://archives.obs-us.com/obs/english/books/nn/ch01c01.htm it is explained that many of the atoms that were needed at a management retreat were stuck in customs as they had to be sent to the retreat. This then shows the pros of bits. Bits which are digital pieces of information or information found on the internet are always there, you just have to know where to look and how to find them. However there are also some cons to bits, these include that you don’t physically have the material in front of you, in many cases it is found on a computer screen and it can be difficult to read such large amounts of information of a computer screen.

Week 4

2005-03-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

During today's tute we had to construct a triangle in word with three different levels. The levels being Data at the bottom, Information in the middle and Knowledge at the top. I used auto shapes and text boxes to help me in construction of my triangle. Once we had completed this we found a dictionary site on the web and search for meanings to data, information and knowledge. After we had found the meanings for these three words we had to think of three organisations that collect information from their clients of the public and why they might want to collect this information.

Dictionary Meanings (www.dictionary.com)
Data:
1. Factual information, especially information organized for analysis or used to reason or make decisions.
2. Computer Science. Numerical or other information represented in a form suitable for processing by computer.
3. Values derived from scientific experiments.
4. Plural of datum.

Information:
1. Knowledge derived from study, experience, or instruction.
2.Knowledge of specific events or situations that has been gathered or received by communication; intelligence or news. See Synonyms at knowledge.
3.A collection of facts or data: statistical information.
4. The act of informing or the condition of being informed; communication of knowledge: Safety instructions are provided for the information of our passengers.
5. Computer Science. Processed, stored, or transmitted data.
6. A numerical measure of the uncertainty of an experimental outcome.
7. Law. A formal accusation of a crime made by a public officer rather than by grand jury indictment.

Knowledge:
1. The state or fact of knowing.
2. Familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience or study.
3. The sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned.
4. Learning; erudition: teachers of great knowledge.
5. Specific information about something.
6. Carnal knowledge.

Five organisations that collect data from their clients or the public:

Telstra
Newspapers and Magazines
Banks
Health Department
Education Departments: Schools

These oragnisations want to collect information from their clients or the public as a means for feed back to their company, what they can do to improve it, areas that clients or the public want them to include and how good their service is. They also collect information on issues that may be of some interest to the public.

Week 3

2005-02-25T18:07:00.000-08:00

During todays tute we created a powerpoint of six slides on any topic that we wished. Before we created our powerpoints we got an article of the internet which we sent home so we could read in our own time. We were told that the article would help us with our further studies in the UPC 0004 course. But now back to the powerpoint. Mine was about me, my life so far and what I wasnt to achieve in the future. I used many different techniques such as getting pictures of the internet and making them my background and annimation schemes that looked effective in presenting my slide show. We ran out of time during the tute slot so we were asked to finish the powerpoint at home and then send it on the Muarry.
Top Five List: Strategies for a top-notch powerpoint presentation

Make sure all spelling and grammar is correct: when you are giving a powerpoint presentaion you are presenting people with information about a topic or issue that they may or may not know about and therefore your spelling and grammar should be correct as you may not be taken as seriously if you can't spell or write properly.
Don't over crowd your slides: having too much writing, annimations or graphics can actually take away from your presentation and it is often hard for the audience to concentrate on what you are actually presenting. Simple is better.
Use a large font: think of your audience and use a font that they can see and read, after all the presentation is for their benefit as well as yours.
Colour: colour is important as it makes the presentation more interesting then just white slides. However don't go over the top with too much colour try to stick to the same colour for all of the slides or maybe have a different colour for each section or topic of the presenation.
Practice: after all practice does make perfect!

Whilst I was at school I created many powerpoint presenations on many different topic so I was very confident creating my powerpoint and was ble to use my previous skills which helped me create the presentation.

Week 2

2005-02-18T15:22:00.000-08:00

During today’s lecture we learnt various application skills for the computer such as file handling, word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, the internet and communications. There are many things to be taken into account in file handling such as being able to cut and copy files, using sub-folders which are folders within folders and enables all of your file to be easily found and organsied. We also learnt how to send to, attach and sort all of our files. The application skill of word processing is not typing but document management, formatting, using short cuts and templates. Spreadsheets can be used for formulae, formatting and graphs and charts. We also learnt about presentations which can be down in PowerPoint. We learnt the three rules of presentation; message, simple/efficient and eye contact. We learnt how to use the internet efficiently; this included having a plan, knowing what you want and learning the difference between the good, bad and the ugly. Finally we learnt about the application skill of communication which is very important in today’s society as it is the most popular way to communicate.
During our tute we did two exercises on the computer which involved using the application skills that we learnt about in our lecture. The first exercise was to create a word document in which we were to create a heading and a list of items. I chose to make a shopping list so my document contained a heading of My Shopping List and underneath this I listed various items. We then had to put a header and footer on the document with our name, page number, an activity name and the date.
The second activity was to create a three slide PowerPoint presentation. This involved using word art, clip art and backgrounds. I chose some pictures of the internet which I was able to use as the background to my slides.
Today both the lecture and the tute session were very valuable as I was able to brush up on many of the skills that I had on the computer and also learn a few new things and tricks along the way.

Week 1

2005-02-12T23:05:00.000-08:00

During today's tute we logged onto the ECU network and checked that we can send and recieve emails using the ECU data base. Once we had completed that we then set up our blogger account which we would write in after every lecture and tute exlpaining what we learnt and what activities we complete during our labs. The blogger account will count for 40% of our final mark so it is very important that we keep it up to date and complete all the set tasks for the unit.