Socialgo

Using Socialgo was helpful to expanding my knowledge for other types of social networking sites are available today. For the majority of social media uses I tend to stick with those that are more familiar and known, like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. However, there really are a handful of other social networking sites that have potential to grow in to something much bigger. Like Pinterest for example, the site has grown to gain so much recognition recently it's exploding with new users. Socialgo is different because it serves as a platform, and a place for others to start and create there own personal social media networks, for whatever reason, cause or organization deemed appropriate by the user. It definitely is a site I would consider in the future should I need to use something of it's nature.

Blog Topics

I really was happy with the fact my group chose 'sustainability' as the topic for our site's cause. I worked over the summer in the PR department for a hotel which stood out in their sustainability efforts so I have had some experience working with sustainability. I turned to their website to seek out some information about what they have done in the past to make their hotel a more sustainable place for not only it's guests but employees as well. I used some of the projects I worked on during my internship as content for my blog posts.  

More Group Work Online

     After having finished Project 3 and having to work with group members I felt like I was a little bit more prepared to start Project 4 as it also involved online group work. At first I was a bit confused by the project and what we had to do but once my groups site was up and running I had a better understanding for what it all entailed. Having worked on a few different blog type projects so far in this class has helped me to gain better knowledge of how online sites work and operate. Although I am still not 100% confident with my graphic design skills, it's definitely been something I have been trying to improve through out the semester and hope to continue working on in the future.

WikiTravel Post Write

I feel that I definitely learned a lot through doing the WikiTravel project. I obtained greater insight for the use of wiki’s, how they work and their purpose. I was unfamiliar with WikiTravel initially starting this assignment but I think with more input from knowledgeable sources the site has room for great potential.

Completing this assignment helped me to gain better understanding on how to draft entries for sites like WikiTravel and what content is most beneficial to its’ readers. It is important as the writer to put yourself in the shoes of the reader, and in this case the reader is aiming to travel and explore new things. 

At first I was unsure of what destination to write about and what exactly should be included in the entry. I then thought back to the few times my friends from here at URI have come to visit me back home in New Jersey. They are all originally from Johnston, RI and in planning their visit I thought about all of the most unique places I would want to show them and included those sites in my post.

As I continued writing I realized I had much more information than I realized and had to cut back a bit. A well-organized and detailed entry for WikiTravel definitely is something that would prove to be very helpful to someone looking to travel.  

I enjoy going to new places and sharing my experiences with others, writing for some type of site like this would be something I could potentially be interested in for the future. 

Interworking on the Internet

               I’ve taken an online class before and was already somewhat familiar with the workings of such classes. Adjusting to online classroom environments is difficult at first but as the semester has progressed I’ve learned to better understand how things work. However, I’ve never had to work on any type of group projects online previously so it was something new to me.

After initially getting in contact with my other group member it wasn’t too difficult to communicate and coordinate working together. The great advance that technology has made, even small changes over the past four years as a college student, makes for a more feasible group work schedule. It’s sometimes difficult to balance your own life, let alone manage time to work on a project as a team with the busy lives of others.   

The use of the Internet allows group members to contact one another at any point during the day. Communicating via the Internet or cell phones makes it easy to set deadlines and discuss what sections of a project each member is to cover. Also, not having to always meet face-to-face takes a little less pressure off each member giving them the leisure to work on their part wherever they feel most comfortable.

Bella Brow Design Analysis

The website for the new eyebrow threading business, Bella Brow, in the South County Commons was the site we chose to redesign. The business itself is fairly new as well is the website. It has a great start and is very easy to follow through out all of the pages. There aren’t many link options and each page is consistent in its lay out as well as color scheme. As all pages follow the same color scheme and lay out and don’t provide a great deal of information, they do seem to be a bit repetitive and could be improved.  

WikiTravel Manual of Style

WikiTravel provides a lot of guidelines, tips and instructions when it comes to their ‘Manual of Style’. There were three pieces of information outlined that I found to be helpful for writers as they craft entries to be submitted on WikiTravel.

First, as the writer you should think what exactly it is you want to get across to your audience. The ‘Main Page’ guideline offers five main concepts that are typically featured on the site. If aspiring to ‘make it big’ on WikiTravel selecting one of these options as your goal is a good place to start. Subcategories for this page include the ‘Destination of the Month” and “Off the Beaten Path”, “Discover” articles, selected major “Travel News”, a group effort for “Collaboration of the Month” or a “Star Article”. These options provide some starting point for writers as they begin.

The next section I found helpful was in “Travel Topics”. This pushes writers to think outside of the box and put themselves in the shoes of other travellers. It points out that perhaps people aren’t just looking for a great restaurant to get dinner at and are interested in other helpful details, such as weather. For example, the first time I travelled to Florida I had NO idea that it rained almost every day for at least 20 minutes. Other areas of information travellers may wish to know include if the destination is handicap friendly or is there fast access to a hospital for a traveler with health concerns.

Lastly, I found the section about article length and content to be very useful, especially for help in my own WikiTravel project. I love to talk which sometimes takes a toll on my writing causing it to be lengthy. The idea that an article should be long enough for a traveller to print out and put in their pocket is helpful to keep in mind. This allows for the writer to really focus on including only the most important information needed.