V. Wells

The first computer network, called ARPANET was started in December 1969.  It contained only four computers.  Other computer networks soon followed.  Because they used different protocols, transmission from one network to another was problematic.

In December, 1974 a draft of the Internet Transmission Control Program was published. By 1977 three different networks were able to communicate.  In 1982, the TCP/IP protocol enabled communication with networks outside the USA.

In 1993, the source code of WorldWideWeb was released to the public.  Quickly, there became a larger number of web browsers:  Opera, Netscape Navigator, Internet Explorer.

Web developers faced the problem of building web sites for different browsers.  What worked in one browser had to be changed to be able to work in a different browser.  Sometimes they just developed for one browser.

The World Wide Web Consortium, W3C, was founded in 1994.  It’s purpose was standardization of web development.  These standards and specifications are not required or enforced.  They are recommendations. There are still web sites developed which do not conform to the W3C standards.

In 2003, CSS Zen Garden was launched.  This enables web developers to develop the style and design of a web site separately from the content.  This enables code written for one web site to be copied and used again in the development of a different web site.   Style and behavior of the web site can be easily changed.

By using the W3C web standards, we can develop web sites that the end user doesn’t have to worry about which browser they are using.   Our web sites should be able to work not only on different computer platforms, (Mac, Windows, Linux), but also all the new devices such as mobile phones and video games.

Information taken from http://dev.opera.com

There is a very good review of this book by Roger von Oech at the following Web Page:  http://www.creating.bz/our-reading-circle/whack.html

The 10 mental locks that prevent creativity are:

1. The Right Answer
2. That’s Not Logical
3. Follow the Rules
4. Be Practical
5. Pay is Frivolous
6. That’s Not My Area
7. Don’t Be Foolish
8. Avoid Ambiguity
9. To Err is Wrong
10. I’m Not Creative

I have almost all of the locks.   My creativity is just beginning to be unlocked through photography.  Being primarily a Math-Science person, I’m always looking for the “Right” answer.

I’m buying the book tomorrow.  If anyone in class wants to borrow it after the Christmas holidays, let me know.

Dale Carnegie puts forth so many useful principles, it’s difficult to pick just one.  Don’t Try to Saw Sawdust in Part Three is very fitting for me.

Other ways he says it are:

• “Don’t cry over spilt milk.”

• “You can’t saw logs or grind any grain with water that has already gone down the creek.”

Many times I look at things I have done or said and wish I had handled things differently.  It’s easy to beat myself up over some social faux pas or something I’ve said that I wish I could take back.

We can only move forward from NOW.  What’s done is done.  We can learn from the past, but we can’t change it.

The individual stories in the back of the book were very good.  The one that hit home for me was I Stood Yesterday, I Can Stand Today by Dorothy Dix.  Thinking about it made me realize why I have such a visceral reaction to anything that makes me feel Stupid.

In school, I was on the “Dumb Kids” row week after week for not doing my homework.  Daily I spent recess in the principal’s office getting the homework finished.  Things at home were also very difficult.

Education later became my ticket out of the life I was living.  Learning was easy for me.  Feeling knowledgeable and competent is almost like a drug.   It sure feels good.  As I get older, doing the assignments is no longer a problem, but I do not learn things as quickly or easily.  That worries me.

The past is The Past.  Where do I go from here?

When I was teaching, I connected more with the students who were struggling.  I enjoyed working one-on-one with a student much more than teaching an entire class.  For that reason, I think tutoring may be in my future.

My favorite web page (so far) is The Kim Komando Show.  It is a website about all things digital.

The URL is very easy to remember: http://komando.com/

Kim has a radio show on FM 102.9 on Sunday afternoons at 1:30 pm.  If I am not free to listen to the show, all the information is available on her website.  The hierarchy of the website is straightforward and easy to understand.

The Content is interesting and varied.  There are links to cool Internet sites, computer tips, buying guides, and information about new products coming out.  There was even a link to a video of a professional performance of The Declaration of Independence.  How many are familiar with anything more than the Preamble?  http://videos.komando.com/2009/07/04/declaration-of-independence/

The Design of the website contains good color contrast, is brightly colored and is easy to read.  She uses primarily three different colors which go well together.  Most of the font is sans-serif.  She makes good use of different sized font, bold print when suitable, and has boxes around some of the content.

The Behavior of the site is very intuitive.  When the user clicks on a button or link, the response is what is expected.  The links work correctly and take the user to relevant web pages.  The buttons across the top remain visible, so it is easy to navigate back to other areas of interest.

I think most people who visit this website will have a very satisfactory user experience.  I like that the site is current and has information about new products before it is published in the newspaper.

What I don’t like about the website is that it contains so much information, that I can spend a large amount of time surfing around within it without realizing it.

Can Myers-Briggs scores change over a lifetime?  I think so.  I remember doing this index about 15 years ago.  At the time, I was sometimes driving as much as 100 miles a day carting children around.  My time was more limited and intensely scheduled.  Plans had to be made ahead of time.  At that time, my scores were much more Judging than Perceiving.  As a child, I was an extreme introvert.

Now I am an ESTP.  Extrovert-Sensing-Thinking-Perceiving.  The Myers-Briggs exactly matched my self evaluation.  I guess my holdover from my Judging days is that I am an absolute fanatic about being on time.  I HATE to be late.

My sister is an INFP.  When I am “rarin’ to go” she is dragging her heels.  I am almost always on time or early.  She is almost always late.  She spends more time exploring how things make her feel, whether it is her surroundings or the people around her.  At a party, I want to speak to everyone there.  She can be found in a quiet corner having an in-depth conversation with one person.

Listening to Catherine’s and Kaay’s stories of their travels helps me to realize this is not about who’s right or wrong.  It is about realizing that people have different innate personalities and that it is possible to use the strong characteristics of each person to achieve a better outcome.

I recently switched from Internet Explorer to Google and have loved it.  Previously, when I used Google, it was from within AOL.  Using Google directly is much faster.

In Safari, the commercial ads are overwhelming.  The opening page is nothing but advertisements for Apple or Mac.  I much prefer the news feed from Google, AOL, or Internet Explorer.

Opera was frustrating.  Maybe I didn’t download it correctly, but ALL searches resulted in the message:  No results matches on search for “Bank of America”. Please try refining your keywords.

I used http://www.bing-vs-google.com/ to compare the two.  Google loaded faster than Bing.  However, Google only pulled up one page of links compared to Bing’s 100 pages when I entered “underwater cameras” into the search engine.

For now, I prefer Google.  I like all the features I am only beginning to learn to use.

Before this class, I had never opened a PowerPoint application.  I’m proud of several things regarding my presentation.

• I didn’t feel nearly as uncomfortable speaking to the class has I did doing the personal introduction.  Maybe it’s having a prop.
• My PowerPoint presentation actually ran!
• I felt that at least some of the class learned something new about photography.

What one thing would I like to strengthen?  Where do I start???

• Primarily, I would like to strengthen the visual and sound effects.

I was very impressed with the presentations.  In order for me to catch up with the rest of the class, my learning curve will be very steep.  I plan to use what I saw in the other presentations and the evaluations to improve what I do next time.

There are several suggestions in How to Win Friends and Influence People that would be helpful in strengthening my relationship with a person in my life

• 1.  Start with a question the other person can answer “yes” to.

• 2.  Let the other person feel like the idea is his.

• 3. Give honest and sincere appreciation.

These are important to me because they are capable of making my life more pleasant.  The easiest of the above suggestions is probably number one.  Success in one area makes it more likely that I will continue with the next ones.

        

Thirty minutes is a very long time when it’s 2:00 am, sleeting, and you’re upside down in the bottom of a ravine with a broken neck, shoulder blade and collarbone.

The police quit looking, thinking it was a prank call.  Thank God for the men and women of the LaMarche Fire Station who decided to make one last pass through the area.  – Also for the still working I-Phone GPS.

For paper files which contain a lot of pages, use File Pockets instead of Folders.  They hold more and don’t allow the papers to fall out.