Tagged: assignments

The Linear Form

As an engineer, I have been taught that linearity is a form of a straight line. You start at one end and go straight until you reach the other end. There is no diversion from the path of trajectory other wise you don’t follow a linear path anymore. I believe that Luptopn talks about linearity in the same way as I do. It is a form of straight shooting. The same as a bow and arrow because when you shoot the arrow it can only go along the path of which you shoot it. Lupton’s idea of linearity is more based off of writing instead of bows and arrows but you get the picture. If you read a book, do you skip around? No you start at chapter one and don’t end until you are done with the last chapter. The same way you speak word after word to form a sentence and if you veered off the path of how you speak you might start to sound like yoda and the point you are trying to make wouldn’t come across in the same way.

To me a blog is a linear form to an extent. Yes I agree that with a blog it is a progression of posts that come one after another, but there is no form of clear thought. A blog is just a bunch of random posts put together week after week and day after day for a purpose. This purpose however is not ordered into steps. Most blogs are nothing like a book where things happen in a linear form. Books flow with a certain form where they don’t take steps back. Everything happens for a reason and it happens in that order for the very same reason, but blogs twist and turn, and move up and down. T he next step is unknown. So blogs are linear in the act of posting articles, but the thought behind most of these articles are not in a linear form and are way more complex.

Blogging VS Journalism

Friedman, Jacob. “Blogging vs. Journalism: The Ongoing Debate.” The Next Web. 10

Aug 2010. http://thenextweb.com/us/2010/08/18/blogging-vs-journalism-the-ongoing-debate/.

This article agrees with the idea that bloggers are not considered journalist. The author mentions in the article that in order to be a journalist one must go get interview people, get some facts and then write about what they learned. The best fact that is mentioned it that journalism is not an opinion. Journalism is supposed to give unbiased facts; it is not suppose to incorporate the opinion of the writer.  Blogging is sometimes a stepping-stone for journalist. They start off writing about things they are passionate about. Author mentions that journalists are not better than bloggers but they are both in two different categories. The lines between journalism and blogging can sometimes be difficult to distinguish but it is still present.

DIY

I am interested in creating a DIY Tutorial blog that would showcase crafts college students may want to make with little skill, and a low budget. Here are a few DIY blogs I found that I like:

1) Handmade Charlotte

Handmade Charlotte is a DIY blog run by a mother of 5, living on a farm. The posts relate to home crafts, as well as ways to get children involved. There are craft ideas, links to other website’s tutorials, recipes, and challenges to get a more interactive feel between the blogger and readers. The theme of the blog is easy to navigate, and features bright and colorful accents. She has a large banner displaying her name which is great for branding purposes, but doesn’t let the reader preview any of her posts without scrolling. Another aspect I do not like is how she makes crafts that while cute, some readers would not want to actually make (like this lighthouse marble run). I would like my blog to be targeted for younger people looking to decorate their apartment, rather than mothers looking for ways to occupy children. Overall, the blog layout is perfect for this style of blog as there is a preview of the post before the jump, and the lengthy tutorial is hidden away until you click the “keep reading…” link.

2) I Spy DIY

I Spy DIY is run by a young woman who has been working at a fashion magazine in Manhattan, so she seems very knowledgeable and trendy. I love that her posts are things that correlate to what is happening in the fashion world, like the tutorial on how to add spikes to a iphone case. This is the type of content I am looking to feature on my blog, geared toward a younger readership that has easy tutorials. However, to find the actual tutorial on her blog is a little difficult, as she mentions the steps come after the break, but there is no “keep reading” link. By clicking the post title you can access it, but I prefer there being a separate link. She categorizes her posts and includes the categories in the post titles- for example she lists whether it is a DIY she made herself, or a post she is using as inspiration. There are a lot of good quality photos of her crafts but overall because it is hard to navigate to the actual tutorial steps, her theme is not great.

3) College Life DIY

This blog is more like the theme I want to blog about. However, the theme is boring and the posts are also boring. There should be more text to engage the readers. However, the actual posts seem nice and go well with her topic. It doesn’t seem like she makes the tutorials herself, but she links to where you can actually find them.