TechTasters

#familytime #playtime Celebrating my nephews 4th birthday! (at...

Fri, 17 May 2013 17:01:21 -0400

#familytime #playtime Celebrating my nephews 4th birthday! (at Stars and Strikes)

staticphenomenon: ITS HERE THE FILM IS OUT NOW!!!!!!!!! GO...

Sun, 12 May 2013 16:33:27 -0400

ITS HERE THE FILM IS OUT NOW!!!!!!!!! GO WATCH IT! http://youtu.be/N1siq-r5tE8

Signal Boost For Static Shock Phenomenon!

I ask All who see this to Reblog and comment as well as Watch the Film!http://youtu.be/N1siq-r5tE8

Please spread the word tell you friends and any Static or DCU fan about this project :) Summary below

Static Shock Phenomenon is a Yvz Productions adaptation of the comic book and tv show superhero character “Static Shock” created by Dwayne McDuffie for Milestone comics who later became a character for DC comics. This is a Non Profit fan film mini web series that follows the stories of high schoolers Virgil Hawkins and Richie Foley. After an incident later named the “Big Bang” which caused many of the gang youth in Dakota City including Virgil to become gifted with meta human powers. Episode 1 takes you through Virgil’s first 48 hours the night after the “Big Bang” what he did and how he decided to become Dakota’s Hero and Protector.

To contact me go to my blog follow if ud like also check out our Facebook fan page :)Here on Tumblr: http://staticphenomenon.tumblr.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yvz-Productions/260948150610021?ref=hl and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Static-Shock-Phenomenon/125123764338968

Youtube Channel:http://www.youtube.com/user/yvzproductions?feature=mhee

Storytelling the Stillmotion Way For the past few weeks the WWDK...

Sun, 12 May 2013 15:21:00 -0400

Storytelling the Stillmotion Way

For the past few weeks the WWDK team at Duke Ellington School of the Arts has taken the Storytelling the Stillmotion Way Challenge to learn how to tell great stories using video. For some on the WWDK team video is a bit intimidating but the four part Stillmotion video series guides them every step of the way. I came across this challenge through the Vimeo Video School which has lots of great DIY how-to videos that cover any and everything a beginner digital storyteller needs to tell a story using video.

Most of the team has completed Part 1 and 2 of the Stillmotion Way Challenge which covers preproduction and are on to Part 3, shooting. Stillmotion Way Part 3 gave some great tips about overall production, and the 10 Steps to Shooting your First DIY Interview video provided by the Vimeo Video School should fill in all the blanks for our beginners.

Using the Vimeo Video School and the Stillmotion series has really helped to build my students confidence that they can tackle video as a storytelling medium. In addition to the video series Stillmotion has a downloadable pdf that covers all four parts of their storytelling process which many students have downloaded to their phones. This will hopefully come in handy while shooting their stories in the field.

I’ll keep you posted on our projects as we discover more about the World We Don’t Know of digital video.

Annular Solar Eclipse happening right now! View from Australia

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:33:14 -0400

Annular Solar Eclipse happening right now! View from Australia

#Reflecting - I’m sure everyone on #LinkedIn received this...

Wed, 08 May 2013 20:11:30 -0400

#Reflecting - I’m sure everyone on #LinkedIn received this message in their email. I don’t know how they decide who will be pictured from my contacts, but the group of people seen all played major roles in my success. It made me take a moment to reflect on how lucky I am to have worked with them. They’ve all taught me so much. Thank you, and Cheers to them! (L to R) @Koye @Weusib333 @Asheru @herondon21 @seshaty #teacherappreciation

#2things@1time having a snack while giving instruction. One of...

Mon, 06 May 2013 21:07:30 -0400

#2things@1time having a snack while giving instruction. One of my students @_thugthizzle took this photo while I wasn’t looking. Lesson for the day: #stillmotion videos on #vimeo, Four P’s(People, Place, Plot, and Purpose) #wwdk

#musicmonday #afrofuturists Rockin’ no stop in’!...

Mon, 06 May 2013 17:25:44 -0400

#musicmonday #afrofuturists Rockin’ no stop in’! Filled with the Soul-sonic force!

bendiswordsforpictures: Kurt Vonnegut’s classic lecture on the...

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:16:13 -0400

bendiswordsforpictures:

Kurt Vonnegut’s classic lecture on the shapes of stories, now in an infographic.

StoriesLab at the Center for Social Media

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 20:27:35 -0400

Come join me Saturday morning for a half-day of story innovation hosted by the Pride Collaborative for their StoriesLead group on American University’s campus at the Center for Social Media. Visit the Eventbrite link to learn details about the event.

StoriesLab
An interactive exploration into the possibilities of story
Saturday, May 4 | 9:00 am — 4:00 pm
American University | Washington, DC
Co-sponsored by Pride Collaborative and the Center for Social Media
Register here: http://storieslab.eventbrite.com/

If you on the mailing list for the Pride Collaborative’s CreateDaily you can get a 15% discount. Signup to get more information about gigs, event, and more daily in your email.

Check out the guest speakers for the day!

Dan Sonnett, Writer, Producer, Owner of Sonnett Media Group, LLC
Kickoff: The Evolution of Story

James Carter, Experience Designer Playwright, Transmedia Producer & creator of NY_Hearts
Talk: Transmedia Storytelling for Audience Engagement

Mike Knowlton & Aina Abiodun, Cofounders,StoryCode

Workshop: Mini Story Hackathon

Jessica Clark, Media Strategist, AIR

Workshop: Measuring the Impact of Cross Media Projects

photojojo: We’re giving away a Nanoblock Camera! Yep, you could...

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 09:47:29 -0400

photojojo:

We’re giving away a N anoblock Camera!

Yep, you could win one. Just follow the steps above.

Win a Nanoblock Camera

Ooh, I want one Photojojo! I love these kind if giveaways. However I was just tricked the other day by a sign that Bill Gates was holding in a image that said if I shared the post I would win a large cash gift. I know it was silly to believe but I need the money. I don’t think Photojojo has any tricks up their sleeves so I’m going to give it a go! I’ll let you all know if I get one! Clicking the share button now.

lookingfromsolitude: Chinua Achebe 1930-2013 Regarding the man,...

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 08:44:28 -0400

lookingfromsolitude:

Chinua Achebe 1930-2013

Regarding the man, it is simply impossible for an iroko tree to fall and the forest to remain quiet. The tributes and obituaries that have poured in from various parts of the world should be a pointer to the younger generation of Nigerians. Chinua Achebe was by no means a wealthy man. He was not a pauper either. But by using his God-given talents, he achieved global recognition. Now that the curtains have been drawn on his life, we can all sit back and see how the world treats a genuine icon. He lived to a grand old age. He was also an achiever. And the world has now shown, it is not only among ndi Igbo that achievement is revered. In publishing Things Fall Apart at age 28, Chinua washed his hands early. And Kings invited him to the table, such that he had the luxury of choosing what banquets to attend, and which to reject.

Click to read more

blackcontemporaryart: thekewliesgroupart: Kajahl Benes my...

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 22:31:29 -0400

blackcontemporaryart:

thekewliesgroupart:

Kajahl Benes

my friend Ken posted one of Kajahl’s works earlier but I couldn’t help myself since Kahjahl Benes is another one of my favorites.

http://www.vice.com/en_uk/read/kajahl-benes

http://rbb85.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/kajahl-benes/

Jea9

Benes’ work is on view now in eMerging at MoCADA.

Very Afrofuturistic! Love his work! I need to pay a visit to MoCADA!

A Shoe With Attitude, The Google Shoe

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 13:00:47 -0400

A Shoe With Attitude, The Google Shoe:

wwdk:

Google has recently released a prototype of a shoe they collaborated with Adidas and 72andsunny to make. Although the plans for the shoe is in tangible form, Google said that it doesn’t have plans to release the shoes. Now let’s talk about the shoes!

First, there is a speaker on the outer tongue of the shoe, not very attractive but not very drab, either. Then there is a chip on the part where your laces are supposed to be. Really not attractive, guys.
The shoe connects to the Internet and it’s able to post updates to Google+. Imagine that. Then.. wait for it… IT IS ABLE TO SPEAK!
Well, would you look at that, a talking shoe! Very mind blowing really. But this is Google, the same company that released wearable computing. (namely, Google Glass)

The shoe has 250 pre recorded phrases on it and it remarks on your activity. A shoe that gives you motivation. Awesome! A shoe with attitude. It either praises you or nags you for your laziness as it sends updates to Google+. (well, duh) Cool. But the world doesn’t need another assistant with attitude. *cough* Siri *cough* Or do we?

The shoe has a lot of attitude, don’t underestimate it. It says it’s “bored” when you’re still, then it says “that’s more like it” when you get up and walk. Everything it says is updated to Google+. It also connects to your phone via Bluetooth for you active people out there, it records your activity level and movement. Awesome since it records it then and there. The only thing about it is that it speaks. IT SPEAKS.

Imagine if all of the people in your school was wearing a pair? That would be total disaster. Shoes talking everywhere, you can’t even hear yours. Now, if students were to sit in class then it exclaims it’s bored, that would be quite funny, other than that, talking shoes are kind of taboo. I personally think it’s quite crazy. I mean, come on! Shoes that talk back? And not in a nice way, either. *sob* But hey, I’m not that active! Stop judging me, shoe!

It’s not getting a lot of pleasant feedback from society, either. After reading an article on Huffingtonpost.com about the shoes, “Google Shoes: Glass Maker Teams Up With Adidas To Make Smack Talking Footwear For SXSW”, I reviewed the comments from other readers. User cowman says: “Sounds horrific - speakers on clothing? We’d never get a moment’s peace from other people. These shoes would be the height of rudeness.” and I agree. What if you were in a room full of people wearing Google shoes? You wouldn’t hold conversations for long, pausing because your shoes are “bored”. In a way, it is helpful though. It is motivation for you to stay active, although user xNessaxo18 says, “you know you’ve hit rock bottom when you need a pair of shoes to yell motivating things at you…” Although this is quite true, this might be the solution to Americans with obesity, you would work out but you also get to be embarrassed.

The Google Shoe, if integrated with heat mapping and object sensors, can be very useful for blind people. Imagine: “Hey! Tree in your way! Scoot a little bit to the side.” Although, this might not always work as people are constantly moving around and might pass a blind person, it’s an improvement. Google’s shoes are a big thing, either bad or good, I don’t really care. TECHNOLOGY IS STARING US STRAIGHT IN OUR FACES, PEOPLE! THIS MAY BE THE NEXT BIG THING!!
Imagine wearable computing devices being manufactured in the near future? Would you wear them?

Till next time!
-Zynyl Anwynn Castor
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/11/google-shoes_n_2853098.html

This post was written by one of my student bloggers Zynyl Castor for the World We Don’t Know Tumblr. I thought it was kinda cute so I’m sharing it with everyone. I’m glad my clothes aren’t giving away any information about me right now though.

What is really private if my clothes are telling my business?

#caturday Whatchu looking at Kitty!

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 19:40:22 -0500

#caturday Whatchu looking at Kitty!

How to Use Storify as Your One-Stop Social Media Search Engine

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 13:00:20 -0500

How to Use Storify as Your One-Stop Social Media Search Engine:

futurejournalismproject:

Regardless of whether you actually want to create a storify. David Higgerson describes 12 tips with examples so read through his post.

Short version:

Create a Storify, just for the sake of recording what you find.

When searching, use the words people on social networks use.

Make a beeline for Facebook, where you’ll find a lot of people to start with when looking for sources.

Filter out retweets.

Use Twitter images.

Use the location filter carefully.

Embed picture Tweets.

Get your search criteria right on YouTube.

Check photo dates on Flickr.

Just because Instagram pictures are often filtered, doesn’t mean you can’t get valuable information from them.

Storify lets you search Google too.

Beware of hoaxes.

An addendum to #12: this post by Steve Buttry on how to verify information on Twitter.

Related: This piece on Andy Carvin, the “one man Twitter news bureau” and his social media news process.

Great tips for using Storify! I love Storify, a really great social media tool for digital storytellers. This is a goodway to bookmark information too. I have an on going project that I build research and gather information for using Storify. I like that I can keep what I’m building private until my full story is complete. Once it’s published others can use my story as a foundation for their own stories too.

Check out this Storify story created by The Pride Collaborative as a recap to their Social Media Week DC event When Story Turned Social. I was a guest presenter.

When Story Turned Social - Social Media Week DC 2013

storyboard: The Book of Sarth: An Interactive Cyberpunk...

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 13:00:34 -0500

storyboard:

The Book of Sarth: An Interactive Cyberpunk Tale

The influences of Brooklyn-based electronic musician Sarth Calhoun — of Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Trio — are, to put it succinctly, sprawling. Stretching from the surreal novels of Haruki Murakami to rock-opera bands like Pink Floyd and the innovations of sound-generating software system (he calls himself an “electronic alchemist”), his interests are so diverse that it becomes hard to peg him to any one genre. That ambiguity is particularly fitting for his latest project, The Book of Sarth, an interactive, multimedia iPhone and iPad app that combines original music with photography, illustration and ambient sound design. Calhoun calls it a “gralbum” — that’s short for “graphic album.”

The Book of Sarth (available on iTunes) sets off with two children who discover a mysterious piece of technology that emits unfamiliar sounds (music!) — sounds that could change the world, though the government attempts to cover them up. Set to Calhoun’s driving, synthesized electronic music, the graphics that accompany the unfolding narrative move from augmented photographs to cartoons and back again — an edgy match for a dystopian cyberpunk adventure.

The story is set in a kind of futuristic dystopia where there’s no music. How did that idea come about?

The story is an archetypical story. Kids find a device and it affects them in a certain way, the sounds it makes and the music affects them in a certain way. It’s symbolic, a meta-narrative about how music and technology can change people. The whole story was inspired by the music.

Read More

I’m going to download this app Friday as my payday treat, $7.99 in the iTunes App Store. I haven’t explored narrative in this way yet and I’m looking forward to being inspired. I’m currently building a strategy for a location based narrative experienced through an app with poet Alan W. King as the featured artist but I can’t let the cat out of the bag yet. Details to come, stay tuned!

This photo of me in action with the #WWDK Crew comes via Khalil...

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 23:04:25 -0500

This photo of me in action with the #WWDK Crew comes via Khalil Gill for Public Media Corps #AGFF2013 video competition. http://publicmediacorps.org/agff-2013/

DC Week 2012 Story Innovation Event - Melissa Carillo of the...

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 13:00:19 -0500

DC Week 2012 Story Innovation Event - Melissa Carillo of the Smithsonian Latino Virtual Museum

As part of the Digital Capital Week Festival 2012, Pride Collaborative, a DC-based strategic communications firm, and The Create Daily, a resource that connects storytellers with career opportunities, hosted an event entitled Story Innovation: Transmedia, Web Cinema, & Participatory Storytelling.
Melissa Carillo concluded with a presentation about the Smithsonian Latino Virtual Museum. As LVM creative director and founder, she illustrated the immersive education capabilities of the project, showcasing its bilingual mixed media benefits used to enhance visitor knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of Latino cultural heritage. - Pride Collaborative

I was really excited to see this video finally posted! Melissa became a personal colleague of mine after working with her on the Mi Tierra, Mi Mundo/My Land, My world project. I had a great time collaborating with their staff and young artists from CentroNia’s youth arts program Studio 64 to build more culturally representative character for the immersive interactive project. This led to working with Melissa on the Dia de Los Muertos/Day of the Dead 4th Annual celebration as an Online Educational Outreach Coordinator. I had the opportunity to curate their interactive Tumblr blog lvmdod.tumblr.com which highlighted digital artifacts from the LVM Interactive Archive, as well as virtual events happening in SecondLife at the Smithsonian Latino Virtual Museum.

I’ve had a blast working with Melissa, and this video gives you a glimpse of all the innovative educational resources she creates and manages as New Media & Technology Director of the Smithsonian Latino Virtual Museum.

thetangential: Hello Tumblr + Chronicle books. This gallery...

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 08:00:36 -0500

thetangential:

Hello Tumblr + Chronicle books. This gallery shows sample pages, including a front and back cover, of our proposed book, Activitorium. The back cover contains a synopsis as well as critical quotes and the last page contains some information about The Tangential. We would be honored if you would consider us as we are big fans of what both of you do for publishing.

We’d like to thank our designer Caroline Royce for creating the identity for this whole book pitch. The content was created by Becky Lang and Katie Sisneros,with additional fun ideas from Sarah Heuer and Crispin Best, as well as input from our entire staff. We would plan to put our whole staff to work creating original content for the entire book, and continue working with Caroline for design. We are also open to the idea of collaboration with editors and designers outside our collective.

Really cool! I remember when I used to play these kinds of games as a kid. Great design too! My friends and I used to make SLAM books with our old notebooks at the end of the school year to collect juicy gossip about everybody. Good times…

theatlantic: Here Comes the Parade of Computing Interfaces That...

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:42:55 -0500

theatlantic:

Here Comes the Parade of Computing Interfaces That Want to Replace the Touchscreen

The interfaces are coming! Over the next six months or so, we’re going to see an explosion of new ways of interacting with computers, televisions, and mobile devices. Many of them are radical departures from the way things have been done, which is exciting.

Read more. [Image: Alexis C. Madrigal]

I shared Thalmic’s Myo wristband in a previous post. It uses the motion gesture technology present in Xbox Kinect. Here are a few more examples of how touch screens and handheld devices will be replaced in the next few months by consumers anxious to free their hands and open their minds to a whole new way of interfacing with technology.