The Blog Of Interactive Media 2006

Web plan update...

2007-01-29T16:22:00.000Z

Hey,
Still doing the same, I'm producing my web plan for ‘’MLILB’’ and I have to say it’s going quite well. I’ve managed to get everything I need together including a questionnaire that was completed by an actual key stage 1 teacher (mi mum).

I only have a few pieces of research to find and then I am ready to come up with some ideas and designs to hand in also with the web plan. This week I've also managed to organise my work better, I sorted out my folder to make sure everything is where it should be and it’s making my life a lot easier.

I feel this whole HNC exchange has turned out to be the thing I could have done, I am actually enjoying my work and what stage I’m at and also I’m finishing that little earlier than anticipated giving me the chance to relax and reflect more on what I have done.

Feedback always welcome

Cheers

Dave

HNC is up and running!!!

2007-01-22T16:00:00.000Z

Hey,
This week has been a week of written work and nothing else, I have had the tasks of producing and putting together my web plan for the assignment ‘’MLILB’’ which seems to be an enjoyable one. Moving across to the HNC I thought there wouldn’t be has much written if not any, but I was wrong. This web plan that I am currently doing is hopefully going to be my best piece of written so far, I have gained knowledge and experience within my written work thanks to the help from John ‘’the legend’’ Munday.

I feel excited about this assignment, I think it’s because it’s the last one or maybe I just like the assignment. I’ve stuck to my time planning to minute, and this has gave me all the time to do my work and given me days off. I tried to plan my work to be done within the 1st few days of the week giving me a few days break after which has helped greatly has it doesn’t put too much pressure on myself for the next week ahead.

Its only going to be short posts for the next few week has I don’t really have that much going on apart from the written work but ill try to keep you informed has I progress..

Comments welcome!!!

Same again next week

Dave

HNC is the way forward...

2007-01-15T09:38:00.000Z

Happy New Year!!!

It’s been three week since my last entry so here is the latest:

Before the Christmas holiday I was presented with the choice of moving onto the HNC course rather than the HND that I am currently studying on and I have to say my first thoughts were ‘forget that’ Over the past few weeks I've been thinking long and hard on what I want to do at present and future. I’ve always had in my head that I would like to go to university to get my degree and I would like to go into the second year rather than the third, this giving me the chance to gain more knowledge and experience ready for the third year.

The HND has become as a bit of a struggle to be honest and if I was to move onto the HNC it would be like a breath of fresh air, it would take the tension away and would give me a more fulfilling felling of success. I would use the HNC as a crash mat, the HNC would give me the chance to go onto the second year and continue with my studies in the way that I want to. If I was to continue with the HND it would be like playing with fire, the HNC as become the way forward and seems to me as the only way in which I get what I want in terms of study and future.

HNC is what I have decided and is what I am going to work towards; I shall be putting 110% into this trying not to make a mess of what I did with the HND.

Thanks for reading; a new entry will be posted very shortly about the stages that I am at.

David

Mixed Feelings...

2006-12-12T20:37:00.000Z

Hi,
Another week gone but plenty more left. This week I have had to complete some of my referred work for numerous assignments and I feel these have been completed to meet the criteria’s requirements. It has been a breath of fresh air to get these assignments out of the way even though I don’t know whether I have actually past them (nail biting). This past week has made me go up a gear in terms of my work; I am going to start to work at a higher and faster level trying to demonstrate my potential to my tutors and my willingness to complete my HND.

The assignment that’s been getting up my nose this week has to be OnTheJob. This assignment started off very well, everyone knew what had to be done and who was doing what but maybe this week it has been the opposite. I have a good group to work with but did get a bit confusing this week, as it felt like my team had sort of turned their backs on me for some reason and maybe not included me in with their discussions compared to previous weeks. Maybe they feel I am going to let them down but to me I feel the team is letting me down, in terms of not being as involved as I hoped. Everything that was asked of me I accepted and got on with, the work load may have not been applied equally throughout this assignment but that is down to the roles in which each person takes on within the group.

The assignment I feel is brilliant, they way in which it was set up and how it has to be done is great but the only concern for me, has to be now my lack of input within my team in the closing week. Working with the group to me was something that I actually look forwarded to, I enjoyed having the chance to socialise, have a few laughs and yet get the work done but for some strange and bizarre reason the group has come in to my eyes has two separate groups. I feel like the outcast sometimes but hopefully it will change next week and I will have something more to do with the group and be part of it.

In terms of Mark being the Team manager, I have to say ‘he meets the criteria’. The ways in which he approached the assignment was done professionally I feel, he somehow made the team comfortable in what they were doing and this is what a team manager requires. Always knew what I was doing even though this week I may have misunderstood him on what he asked (my fault).

Feedback is welcome as always!!!

Thanks

David

Hat trick of Dave's

2006-12-05T17:26:00.000Z

Hey,
This week has been an enjoyable one, due to me being able to get the assignment ‘The Biz’ out of the way and finally completed, hopefully with the return of a pass. For me the assignment that’s been on my mind the most this week has to be the ‘onthejob’ assignment.

This assignment to me is going smoothly, there has been parts where me and my team may have been slightly behind but with the efforts of both Daves and myself we are now back on track and nearly ready to hand in a beauty of a website. The website that we have produced as gone through a number of stages, it’s been back to the drawing board a number of times but finally we have come to some sort of agreement and I feel it is a decision well made.

Working with my team as being an enjoyable one, each Dave brings their own ‘thing’ to the group. This assignment is at a stage where everyone is comfortable in what they are doing and from good leadership and good team work I know we can produce a well working website that more than meets the requirements of the pass criteria but working towards the merit / distinction.

So far for the learning plan I haven’t really got stuck into it, but having a few reliefs off my shoulders such as ‘The Biz’ assignment out of the way and working well in a group has allowed me to focus more on this learning plan. The learning plan for me, I feel will get quite annoying due to the following of tutorials and reading of books as I don’t seem to follow and stick to reading too well. I tend to get bored when it comes to this type of thing, and I feel I may lose interest in this task even though I will be trying my up most best to not go down that road. If I seem to be going down this route changes will have to be made such as, I will be trying to split up the way in which I do the learning plan by not putting the tutorials back to back and making sure the tutorials are relevant to me and what I am doing.

This next week is going to be more spread out rather then just focusing on one / two assignments, I'm going to try and implement all the assignments and tasks in to my time plans and hopefully, progression and relaxation will be shown next time you visit the blog.

So my fellow bloggers, if you wish to leave feedback on what I have written or previously written then feel free, but if you do I know where I can get you a ‘Chocolate Bounty’ for your efforts…

Hope to hear from you soon!!!

Dave

All round, good week...

2006-11-28T17:40:00.000Z

Hey,

This week has come to a close but the work is still ongoing, this being the situation for all my assignments. This week I have been trying to produce some ideas and designs for my group assignment (onthejob) it seems to have gone ok, we have managed to communicate in a professional manner and managed to come up with ideas and designs between us, but yet to come up with a finished design. I feel that this assignment will be a bit of a rush to the finish has it seems that 5 weeks isn’t enough considering what has to be done.

Onthejob is an assignment that I am enjoying very much, I enjoy coming up with the designs and not having the weight of the whole assignment on my shoulders. Working with the group is another success; they both seemed relaxed and talented at what they do. I hope this assignment can be my first pass of the semester as I've not had too much luck in terms of grades as of yet but hopefully with the likes of ‘the Biz’ and ‘Culture Vulture’ out of the way very soon I can finally relax and concentrate on my tasks for the other assignments.

Today I had my one to one and well after I had gone away from this I was reassured on what had to be done and when. I was also refreshed on what actually had to be done has I wasn’t too sure about what needed to be done. I finally know what I have to do in order to get my referred assignments out of the way and this has made me feel a lot better about the upcoming weeks. I have inputted my assignments into my weekly planning sheets and tried to focus more on my referred work more but at the same time try to level this out with the other assignments.

I now know what I have to be getting on with this week, these past few days have helped me get back on my feet as I was worried I was walking down the path to last year and we don’t want that… The weekly is based on my group assignment with the likes of my referred work making an appearance but after these are out of the way, all I can say is ‘‘WEEHHEEYYY’’

Checklist for the week:

I’ME

Web plan completion
More design ideas
Digital thoughts / ideas

CiSSy

Web plan completion
More design ideas
CSS insight

The Biz

Business plan arrangement
Referencing on plan

Onthejob One

Few design ideas
Digital prototypes (x4)

Other

Learning schedule sheet
Tutorial tryouts

So, this week is going to be busy one, but an enjoyable one. I will hopefully have a few assignments out of the way, be on schedule with others and enjoy the week without the likes of thinking of failure and disappointment. This week I will be sticking the my weekly plan by the fullest and try not to get distracted by things like work, girlfriend or the ice cream van…

Within next week you, my fellow bloggers, will hopefully see an improvement within my work and I will try to demonstrate this progress through my blog and submitted work...

Feedback welcome!!!

David

CSS aaarrrggghhh....

2006-11-21T17:57:00.000Z

This week as finally come to an end, this week seems to have kept on dragging and has been very tiring. This week I have been rushing about trying to complete my work within the limit that was asked. I had two web plans needed completing ready for hand in today and I have managed to complete one but the other is just about there. The web plans for me are defiantly the most difficult areas of any assignment. I find that the written areas are what are letting me down in terms of grades.

This week I have been put into a team for the next assignment and well, I feel this assignment will be a success and I feel we will beat the other team in terms of final choice. The team I am with makes it I feel easier for as I have been placed with Mark who is and excellent designer and Big Dave who is a very good producer. I hope with my input and ideas will help with the team’s success. The only thing that I'm worried about with this assignment is I think letting my other team members down but hopefully with my time planned well and set my goals I know it will be a success for the team of ‘Dave’s’, consisting of myself Dave Watson, Big Dave Sellers and Dave (Mark) Feathers.

Next week is going to be the real tester for me, I have lots of work to be done and ready for feedback and hopefully if this week goes well and I stick to my time plan I can reach my goals and complete the work that needs doing. I have started to get dug into my assignment I’ME more than ever now, I seem to be working on this assignment more than others, I’m trying to produce more designs and I keep changing my content of web plan but slowly its coming on. For me, as soon as I get my CiSSy assignment out of the way the beta I think, I hate having to go through CSS and having to keep learning and talking about it, I don’t get the life of CSS at all. I understand the concepts and a few of the basics but the rest is about as difficult to understand as the three wheeled car.

Next week I will have my web plans hopefully, fully complete and have some more screen designs in sketchbook and in digital format for assignments I’ME and CiSSy. I will have some designs and sketches ready for Monday morning ready for the meeting with my team and discuss what each of us has produced and come up with some favourites between us.

My next entry will hopefully be much better in terms of what I have done over this next week; I shall by then have met all my goals from my time planning sheets and this will hopefully be shown within my work and will be presented within the blog.

Thanks for reading!!!

Feedback will be blessed upon…

David

Entering The World Of CSS

2006-11-14T17:54:00.000Z

This week I have just handed in my assignment for ‘Culture Vulture’ and I have to say that it went pretty well throughout the whole of the assignment. The research and design parts of the assignment went very quickly for me and well if I'm honest I just wanted the written part out of the way so I could get stuck into the design part. This may have affected my first task but after going over and through the task I feel I have managed to find my mistakes and been able to recover these by replacing these in the correct way.

The designing of the assignment I feel was very exciting, being able to design for a product that could be anything. This enabled us to produce any kind of design as there really wasn’t any right or wrong answers. After handing in my assignment I dint feel the relief that I usually get from handing in my other assignments, I think this is due to me putting in more effort in this assignment therefore giving me the relaxation that I have covered everything that’s been required.

Next week I will have hopefully completed my web plans for my assignments ‘I’ME and CiSSy’. It will probably be a struggle for me due to me now liking the written parts of assignments and just wanting to rush them so they are out of the way.

Today I did some CSS work and well its getting more and more clearer as each session goes, I feel that I am not as confident with CSS as I should be but that may be the case of me not really wanting to. I am going to try and research on CSS and try some of my own and hopefully enable me to be up with the bright sparks in my class…

Thanks for taking the time to read…

Please leave feedback if you so wish…

Thanks
David

Absence is a 'sin'

2006-11-08T17:35:00.000Z

Hey…
This week I didn’t manage to make it into college for either days, but have still managed to keep my work on track. Last year when I had the odd absence I seemed to have slipped behind and after each day off and just kept slipping and well I've tried not to make this mistake again with the second year. This week I’ve managed to come up with a number of designs for the assignment ‘Culture Vulture’ and well they are coming along nicely. I may have chosen my design but still unsure, require the feedback of family before decision is made.

This week I was given the product in which I have to implement my design, turns out to be an ‘Adidas trainer’… Yey…

The product we are designing for is brilliant, not only do I work for a sporting company I know have the chance to come up with my own design. The designs that I have come up with, I feel fit perfect with the product. They are basic, colourful and attractive, all what you need for a successful trainer.

I tried to get involved in my ‘CiSSy’ assignment but still haven’t managed to get the buzz that I get from the other assignments, ‘CiSSy’ has yet to take my notice but will be trying to get my head around the assignment this week, hopefully…

I’ME is coming along in its own way; I’ve made decisions on what I want but not on how I'm going to do this. Next for me is the process of actually getting down with the ideas and trying to produce some sort of new design that could be used for my portfolio website. The ideas I came up with seem to be a bit dated and some seem to be a bit flashy, I need to come up with something in between in order for me to produce a website that I actually understand.

Thanks for taking the time to read, Cya next week…

Feedback always welcomes!!!

Thanks
David

Half Term Post...

2006-10-26T22:03:00.000+01:00

Hey everyone,
I've just managed to complete my Culture Vulture task 1 in draft about Nike and it didn't go too bad if I'm honest because this was a task that I was actually interested in doing. As well as working for Nike its nice to have that bit of background on the company that I work for aswell, thus the reason why I enjoyed researching Nike.

I have started my web plan on assignment i'ME but I didn't do that well to begin with, I thought I was missing data each time I read through it and well if I'm honest I'm still not satisfied with what I've produced. The i'ME assignment is a more hands on assignment and well its propably going to be my favourite but at the same time, for some reason I can't seem to get started. I think its because I have written work to produce before I start the design work and well I just can't wait.

This week off, so far as been a success for me, I've managed to produce (most) of my work but at the same time felt that, what I was producing wasn't enough. I tried to get my work for the week done in the first few days but trust me, 'It will not work'... You need to spread out your work evenly to give you a better understanding on what to do and how to do it.

'CiSSy' has had my head in a spin, I tried to complete the task 1 again like my tutor asked but I couldn't understand what had to be changed but in the end I managed to change the areas that needed changing by reading through the task 1. Thanks to John my tutor, I've managed to get all my work done in some kind of schedule, he's pushed me and pushed me to use time planning and schedules and I have to say they work like a treat...

Thanks for your time...

Feedback always welcome as usual...

David

Half Term 'WEHEY'

2006-10-17T16:06:00.000+01:00

Hello
This week has finally come to an end, I feel this week has been a bit of a menace. I have just had to hand in my task 1 of the assignment ‘CiSSy’ and well It didn’t seem to go that bad after receiving feedback from my tutor, also on Monday I had to come up with three ideas for my assignment 10 (Culture Vulture) and I came up with:

- The Nike Brand

- The Pepsi Logo

- The FedEx Arrow

In the end the decision was made between me and my tutor, and I eventually agreed to work on The Nike Brand. So far for the task I have produced a fare few pages of research and if I'm honest the assignment seems to be coming along nicely, even though I have only just started. I am looking forward to working on this assignment as Nike is in somewhat of an interest to me as I work for them. I’ve worked for Nike for 3 years and its going to be interesting learning about the company whilst at their employment.

I don’t know why but this week has been tiring, I haven’t been has enthusiastic about work as I was for the first few weeks, I think this is due to lack of sleep with the stress of work...

The iME assignment is starting to get a bit of attention now, I didn't really give it my focus as I based my work towards the other assignments but this next few week will be different, I have included the iME assignment into my self study time more than anything else, I need the time to put together a complete web plan and this is the part of the assignment I’m not looking forward to.

The first five weeks back at college has been a success, I’ve managed to hand it assignments on time, I’m enjoying being here and also I feel that I am doing something with my life. As of last year I think I am improving, feedback from the tutors has given me the confidence to keep improving as I believe I have a lot more to give and prove which I will try to demonstrate over the next passing months.

Thanks for taking the time to read, same again next week…

Feedback welcome as always!!!

David

''The Biz'' assignment just bit me in the ###

2006-10-10T16:28:00.000+01:00

Hello again,
This week I have just handed The Biz assignment in for marking and after todays response from the tutors I feel I may have let myself down. This last week I feel I have been working hard in trying to complete my assignment on time and correct, but I only managed the on time part. After handing in my assignment I now know that I have made some silly mistakes such as not including a word count and also not producing a professional business plan in the correct way.

I feel gutted about whats happened as I have put the effort in and not really got anything from this. I hope that sooner than later I can sort my work out and be able to hand in a fantastic piece of work without the worries of a bad response from my tutors or even piers.

I think the content of the assignment went ok, but it was the presentation part that let me down, and if I'm honest it has been letting me down for the past few assignments. I honestly thought I hit this on the head with this assignment but obviously that wasn't the case.

All I can do now is look ahead and focus on the other assignments, one of which is due in on Tuesday 17th October (task 1 of the assignment 'CiSSy')... I hope I can overcome the obsticles that I face with these assignments such as presentation, as I am going to focus alot more on more regular...

Thanks for taking the time to read my entry, feedback is more than welcome!!!

P.S. Does anyone have any idea where to get those stickyback plastic CD wallets from?

Thanks Again
David

My Work Is Back On Track

2006-10-03T17:22:00.000+01:00

Hey Everybody...
I can finally say that my work is coming together nicely, I only need to write up my tasks for assignment 9 (The Biz) and I can finally get that out of the way and ready for hand in which is on the Tuesday 10th October.

The work that I have produced on the assignment 'The Biz' hasn't put me in a panic, as usually when hand in date is near I start to worry and can show lack within my work. The Biz assignment I feel has gone very well in terms of how I have produced the work due to the fact that, I have been using my weekly planning forms to their full and this has enabled me to complete my work on time and in correct order without having the horrid task of referring back to what I feel I may not have done. Now this assignment is out of the way I can now focus on the other assignments at hand, I haven't put the effort required for the other assignments as I was more focused on the assignment that had a earlier hand in date, which is 'The Biz'

For the two other assignments that I have to produce have now got my full attention, I have produced some work for the assignment 'CiSSy' I have completed my task 1 of the assignment in a draft way, all that is required is the likes of a read through and presentation in academic format. The 'Ime' assignment I really need to focus more on as I have only produced this blog and my sketchbook I have yet to introduce any sketches and ideas into my sketchbook or on computer. This shall be done in the next week as I have scheduled the 'Ime' assignment into my weekly planner, which will tell me that I really need to do it.

This second year for me is going great, my work is coming along in good manner and my attendance is very good, I've only had the likes of 1 day of which to be fare I couldn't prevent. I hope my progress continues and I hope each assignment skills will somewhat improve after each assignment.

Thanks for your time, I shall keep you informed as I hopefully progress...

Feedback is more than welcome...

Thank You

Let The Real Work Begin...

2006-09-26T19:33:00.000+01:00

Hello again,
Its now the end of the third week at college, the work load is increasing and getting more and more confusing.

This week I have recieved more information for each of the assignments and its getting more difficult. It sometimes feels like ive just eaten some ice and been given a 'brain freeze' but after producing weekly planners and action plans it seems to be coming together nicely.
This week I thought it was going to go smoothly but certain circumstances have effected this (family sickness), this making my work plan go slightly off course. I had certain tasks to be doing but I couldn't complete these, such as 'action plan for assignment CiSSy'.
I have adjusted these plans and everything should be back on track within a few days of concentration on my work.

Last year I had personal problems to deal with, and i have to say the past eight months have been the worst of my life. I had hoped that nothing would get in the way for this year but it has, and again Im going to struggle but I know now how to get through these times, and this is done by cracking on with work. I know everything will become clearer to me in the next few days and it will hopefully be shown in my work.

Feedback is always welcome...

Regards
David

My Thoughts And Feelings Of The Second Year

2006-09-18T16:12:00.000+01:00

Hello,
Today we had a mini deadline for assignment 9 (The Biz) task 1 due in and I didnt manage to complete the task as I miss understood the deadline date, I thought the deadline was tomorrow (Tuesday) but in fact it was due in today...

I had a lot of work to be done today I had only three hours in order to complete my task 1 and also hand it in and I managed to hand in most of what was required. The task for me was a little slow not knowing what to write about next trying to make sure that I dont keep on repeating myself throughtout the task, which is what I tend to do.

So far, since starting the second year of my course and now knowing what is required to complete the year I am in a more relaxed manor, as my full attention is on my college work where as last year my mind seemed to be else where most of the time. I have the feeling that the next coming months will be a bit of a torture for me as its starting to get more and more difficult and more is being asked of us, but once I get my head down it should go ok.

Today I have been writing notes on my task 2 of the assignment 9 (The Biz) trying to find the research I need in order to complete the task, but so far everything is going ok. At this moment in time this year feels like it will be a success and im looking forward to the tasks ahead of me hoping they will come easy to me and not be too difficult...

Feedback always welcome...

Thank you for reading

Introduction Of Myself And Blog

2006-09-12T17:08:00.000+01:00

Hello
My name is David Watson and I am currectly studying at HND level at Thornes Park College studying Interactive media,

This is my first post on my first blog...

I will be posting on this every week that I am at college talking about my thoughts and feelings throughtout the year, and also an update on how my work is coming along...

Comments Welcome...

Thank You