Ideas

Ideas for my scratch project:

• Space Invader Zim (classic Space Invader with space invader zim theme)
• Adventure Time themed where's wally
• Pong
• Racing game

I've decided to do the Invader Zim game. I've already drawn the character.

This is also a character that MIGHT be used:

Key Moves

Key moves are the directions the sprite would be moving using the up, down, and side buttons. Useful for most games, to direct the sprite to where you want it to. The 'move _ steps' can change the speed at which your sprite moves in the direction chosen when you press the correct button.

Follow The Mouse

This script is for the sprite to follow the mouse pointer. This occurs forever after the green flag is clicked and the game begins and until the red button is clicked. The 'move 10 steps' can also change how fast it follows the mouse pointer.

Whirl

This distorts the image of the sprite in a whirl. This happens forever after the green flagged is clicked when the mouse hovers over the sprite. Since the choosen effect is whirl, the sprite will be whirled, you can always change the effect.

Glide

This is to plan the path the ghost in this game. When the green flagged is clicked, it will go where the dimensions/instructions tell it too.The 'glide _ secs' is how long it will wait to glide to the next point in which you have directed it to. Normally used for computer 'intelligent' characters in the game, not the one you use to play.  

 

Animate It

This script is to animate a sprite. In the 2nd photo 'costumes' i had to edit the first ghost and save each change as a new costume. The blocks are forever on repeat, meaning that it'll keep changing when the green flag is clicked and only stop when the red circle is clicked. The 'wait _ secs' block is a timer for when the sprite to change its costume.

Keep Score

This script is to keep score in the game. In this specific game when the bee touches the edge, the score will go up by 1. This is shown in the 6th script (IF) and onwards.

Say Something

This script is to make Nina the cat say 'I eat poo!' for 2 seconds. The orange instruction is a controlled instruction and the purple is a looks instruction. It makes the sprite Nina say 'I eat poo!' when clicked for the limit of time selected in this case, 2 seconds.

Flowchart

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Definitions for computer programming.

1.       Algorithms:  Step by step instructions that are given describes how to reach a goal. Can be used in computers, maths and many more.

2.       Pseudo code: Pseudo means like, pretending to be. Pseudo code means like code, a tool used by programmers to describe an algorithm. It contains standard words like ‘being’, ‘end’ ‘hint’ but it is not, it is not understood by a computer.

3.       Machine Language: Code for an algorithm written in a low level language that only the computer understands. ie; doesn’t have English words.

4.       High Level Computer Language: Contains regular words like ‘if’, ‘then’, ‘else’ etc...

5.       Flowchart: an algorithm described using a diagram. It uses standard symbols eg; diamond symbol is used to selection.

6.       Sequence: is the order in which the steps are carried out.

7.       Selection: In an algorithm is where you have to make a choice, usually between 2 items.

8.       Repetition: Repeating a step again and again until your goal is achieved.

 

1.       Negotiating traffic lights as you drive down a street.

Is the light green? If yes continue driving. If no is the light red? If yes step on the break to stop. If no slow down.

Website Theory

I am doing Jessica Pasco's of VA.2 blog. She has 6 artworks, which are all displayed on her website. Nina and Mary are in my group, each doing their own person's blog.

The sizes for her 5 landscape images are  854 x 570 and her 1 portrait photo is 570 x 854. I edited the size of these images using Microsoft Office Picture Manager by Edit Picture > Resize > Adjust Sizes. If you click a photo (dimensions of 114 x 171)  on the home page, it opens in another tab of the same photo in its original size of 854 x 570. 

There was a comment section and 'Allow Attachments which wasn't suppose to be there but i was able to remove it by More > Page Settings > deselect Allow Attachments and Allow Comments.

Evaluating Web Design

1.     Read through the article and write a one line summary of each principle in your blog.

Don't Make Users Think: The webpage should be obvious and self-explanatory. A clear structure, moderate visual clues and easily recognizable links to reduce cognitive load to viewers.

Don't Squander Users' Patience: Keep user requirments minimal and remove all barriers meaning the user doesn't need to fill out subscriptions or registrations when first using.

Manage To Focus User's Attention: Organised webpage, must provide both static and dynamic content, parts of the sites attracting more attention than others.

Strive For Feature Exposure: Letting the user see clearly what functions they can use, the viewers must understand the content and feel comfortable.

Make Use Of Effective Writing: Use short, sussinct phrases, and use plain objective language.

Strive For Simplicity: Keep it simple and clean, so it's easier for the visitors to navigate.

Don't Be Afraid Of White Space: White Space results as a well-scannable layout giving the content a domniating position,

Communicate Effectivley With A "Visible Language": Organize; provide a clear conceptual structure. Economize; the most with the least amount of cues and visual elements.

Conventions Are Our Friends: They are useful as they reduce learning curve, the need to figure out how things work.

Test Early, Test Often: Provide crucial sights into significant problems and issues related to the given layout.

2.     See if you can locate an example of two poorly designed web sites. Provide the link in your blog and describe why the site has poor design.


www.argren.net Unorginized layout, ugly colour scheme choice, too much text, too many advertisments.

QR Codes

1.       What is a QR code?

A QR code is a unique two-dimensional code which can be read by a QR reader, a mobile phone with a camera and smartphones. QR means 'Quick Response' and it started in Japan.

2.       What can they be used for?

It can be used by businesses promoting to their potential customers to instantly learn about their products (marketing) or to help people who are lost, where they can take photo and it links/shows them their way.

3.       Provide some examples of how they are being used in marketing and education.

Education:  An increasing numbers of schools have started mainly using technology and QR codes are essential to for faster learning such as accessing videos, websites and other helpful sources.

Marketing: Qr codes can be used for promoting a business or a product such as placing it on a poster where the public can take a picture of it and it links them to further infromation about the product. It can be used for business cards, where all your information can just be scanned instead of writing it all down (less time consuming).

4.       What hardware (Device) and software (apps or programs) do you need to scan a QR code?

To scan a QR code, you need either a QR reader, a mobile phone with a camera or a smartphone. For the iphone you can download the 'Scan' app made by QR Code City to read a QR code.

5.       What hardware and software do you need to create a Qr code?

To create a QR code you need a computer or a smart phone (hardware) and a qr code generator (software). You can display it on a poster.

6.    QR code that links Madeon - Finale

Google Sites Demo (Madeon)

For my demo website I chose to base my website on Madeon. The multimedia devices I used were videos, photos, music, links, text and a twitter application. Madeon Link

Changes

Changes while creating this video:

• Nina is the narrator instead of me.
• I am the cameraman replacing Nina.
• Mary joined our group halfway through the assignment.

Problems

• PROBLEMS: At first we couldn't film as the lighting at school wasn't very good so we had to arrange a time where i could go to Nina's house to film.
  
•  Mary was grounded so she couldn't help film.
  
• When we first recorded our voice memo, it didn't fit, so we had to re do it so it would suit the video.
  
• I had a few days off/office monitor when we were working on the assignment.

Synopsis

Mary's blog.

STORYBOARD

Change:

Nina's hands are used in the video instead of Mary's.
I am recording for the video.
Mary is finsihed

Me and Nina filmed when she came over, but we still had a lot to finish so i gave her the remaining part to film, as i fix the storyboard.

Story board is finished. Mary finished the Synopsis. Nina is coming over to film but Mary is grounded so she can't come.

Started planning what is actually going in the video. Started drawing everything with Nina, while Mary finished her speeches.

Gantt Chart

For today's lesson, I created the Gantt chart for my group.

Roles:

Sandy: Team leader. Writing a 2 minute speech about why we want the cloud. Camera person.

Nina: Writing a 2 minute speech about "What is the cloud?" and speaking in video (narrator).

Mary: Writing 2 minute soeech about "What is the advantages and disadvantages about the cloud?" and in the video, is the person moving things around.

DRAFT

Day 1

Today, Me and Nina decided to be a group named 'estalanaaa'h choose the topic of 'What is the cloud and why would you want?' We also registered our group on the student net.

Data Compression

What is data compression?
It is a term for a group of technologies that encodes large files to convert them into a smaller file.

What is a data compression ratio?

Data compression ratio is also known as the compression power, used to count the reduction in data-representation size by a data compression algorithm.

Why is data compression an important technique for the online world?
It is important as it helps compress data to be downloaded/uploaded to anything, from anything.

What is the difference between Lossy and Lossless data compression?

Lossless compression recreates a compressed file as an identical match to its original form. All lossless compression breaks up a file into smaller pieces, for storage or transmission, later on. It uses compression algorithms which allow it to copy the data exactly while Lossy data retrieves data that may be different from the orginal but is still similar to the original without anyone noticing.

Which method offers the greatest compression ratio?

the lossy compression is the offers the greatest compression. the rate or a lossy compression is about 5-6% while the rate of lossless compression ranges from 50-60%.

Why is human psychology and perception an important factor in methods of Lossy compression?
It is an important factor as it allows us to get rid of data that no one notices.

Name Lossy file formats for audio, still image and video format.

Audio:

MP3 - .mp3

WMA - .wma

Still Image:

DjVu - .djvu .djv

JPEG - .jpg .jpeg

Video:

MPEG-1 - .mpg .mpeg .mp2 .mp3 .mpa

MPEG-2 - .mpg .mpeg .mp2 .mp3 .m2v

1. What are some advantages of digital video

There is a reduced sensitivity to noise and interference, digital equipment performs tasks that are difficult or impossible to perform using analog technology efficiently and more economically.

2. What is meant by frame rate in video?

Frame rate can also be called frame frquency. TYhe frame rate is the number of frames or images that are shown per second.

3. Are all videos/movies the same frame rate, explain your answer

No, not all videos/movies have the same frame rate. It depends on what is being filmed, for example a horse race would use more frames than an interview as the horse race has more movement in the video as an interview would be just two people talking.

4. What is meant by resolution, how is it measured.

Resolution is the sharpness and clarity of and image. the resolution is mesaured in pixels.

5. What is the colour system called RGB

Te colour system (RGB) consists of three colours; red, blue and green. the RGB system can also be called an 'additive' system, because it starts as black but then it absorbs light and colour is added

6. Explain the video standards PAL, NTSC, and SECAM, what are the main differences between them.

PAL(Phase Alternating Line), the analogue video format. it shows the way each colour part of information on a video signal is reversed in phase with each line.

NTSC (The National Television Standards Committee). it has 29.97 frames of video a second. each has 480 lines of vertical resolution out of a total of 525.

SECAM: (sequential color with memory) it is an analog television system. it uses memory to store lines of colour information.

7. Which standard do we use in Australia?

Australia uses PAL.

8. What is an IEEE 1394 port

Is like a usb port, which connects firewire connectors to the computer (the entry area of the device).

9. Why do digital video cameras use video compression

Digital video cameras use video compression to compress large amounts of data and to make it easier to handle. It's more clear, like the difference between raw and jpeg.

10. Describe what a codec is.

A codec is a microchip that compressess and decompresses data. Takes a raw file and turns it into a compressed file.

11. What is meant by “generation loss”, where does it happen?

Generation loss is the loss iof quality and potential increase of file size between copies of data.Reducing the quality by photo copying a photo copy that was photo copied is an example of generation loss. The quality isn't as good as trhe original. It happens ion analog systems

Broadband

1.    What is broadband?
A telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, than another standard signal or device.

2. What units are used to measure bandwidth?

Bits per second.

3. How much faster is broadband than dial up?

10 to 20 times faster.

4. What are the speeds that broadband operates at compared to dial up?

5. What are some of the advantages of using a broadband connection to download something like a video compared to dial up?

Broadband operates faster than dial up and this gives it the advantage because it gives a speedy transfer of large data meaning downloading a video or a song may take a few minutes or seconds while on dial up it may take hours.

6. Create an image in paint that illustrates how a high bandwidth connection can move more data compared to a dial up connection at a given time.

A] How has the type of access connection to the internet changed in recent years?

 Over the years, more and more people use  mobile/fixed wireless and less use dial up but almost an equal amount of DSL and cable/fibre/satellite.

B] Can you identify a trend in advertised download speeds?

 

Less people use broadband that is less than 256kbps

1. What is the speed of the connection from your computer to the Sydney location on the map?

 my computer wont let me.

2.  What is the speed of the connection from your computer to the U.S location on the map?

my computer wont let me.

3. Why did the data transfer rates vary? [Hint: think of what happens when an eight lane highway moves into a two lane highway?]

For sydney it's more spaced out, as not many people use it compared to the U.S location which is used more. It's like traffic on a two lane highway which was previously an eight lane highway.

Making Sound

1. Sound moves through what medium?
   Sound move through gases, solids and liquids.  
2. Briefly describe how a microphone works, in particular what does it gather and what does it produce?A microphone consists of a small membrane and a mechanism that translates movements and translates it into electrical waves.
3. What unit is used to measure sample size?Sample size is measured by bits.
4. What unit is used to measure sampling rate?The unit measured in sampliong rates is Hertz (Hz).

5.  How does sound quality vary with sample size and sample rate?If you increase the sample size it's better. If you increase sample rate, it's better. The more the better.

6.   What is another name for sample size?
Another name for sample size is sample format.

7. From the above information which offers better quality sound, FM radio or AM radio?FM Radio.
8. Why not record all sound in extremely high sample sizes and sample rates?Because it's to large of a file.

Ringtone 2



Audacity is an audio editor that is free and easy to use for both Mac OS X, GNU/Linux and Windows. It is one opf very few applications that can be put onto a USB. You can trim, change the speed or pitch of the sound or even record yourself. You can also make a ringtone, which I have done today.

Steps:

1. Open Audacity then go Project > Import Audio then select whatever song you want.
2. Trim the part of the song you want to use for your ringtone by selecting the part you want then going to Edit > Trim.
3. Go to Effects > Equalization
4. Follow the steps on http://manual.audacityteam.org/man/Tutorial_-_Making_Ringtones for Equalization.
5. Go to File > Export WAV and save it.
    
 

Diffuculties 6

I was not aware how to upload my animation to blogger so I asked Nina, who taught me the way to upload it. It took quite some time but I was able to successfully upload it with her help.

Frames per second

My animation has a frame rate of 29 frames per second.

What is the final size of your animation in Mb?

The size of my animation in MB is 2.02 MB.

Difficulties 5

I accidently saved my movie as High Definition. Mr Lennon told me to fix it and make it phone size.

                                                                     Angry Birds

                                                     The size of my Animation is 2.02 MB

Difficulties 4

When it came to converting the video, Mansee helped me change the time of each frame and the order of my frames.

Difficulties 3

I wasn't able to smoothing the lines of some shapes I had outlined so I asked Nina, who taught me that all I had to do was hold down control while using the editing paths by nodes option.

Difficulties that occured while creating my animation 2

I found it difficult to create a specific part of my animation, where the birds are released from the slingshot. The movement of the bird off the canvas makes it difficult for me to move the background and bird to the right spot. I got over this difficulty after several tries of trial and error and eventually succeeded.

What difficulties did you encounter and how did you overcome them? 1

I encountered several difficulties while creating my animation especially the frame work. At first I wasn't able to export my frames as the canvas only, so I asked my classmate Gene, who told me that you had to export using 'Page'.

What frame rate were you aiming for?

The frame rate I was aiming for was 20 frames per second. The preferred amount of frames per second in an animation is 15 per second, though I wished to make my animation clear and not 'bumpy' so it would be a great watch.

What image format did you save your frames as?

The frames for my animation are saved as .png files. PNG files as described in the dictionary are Portable Network Graphics (PNG) is a bitmapped image format that employs lossless data compression. In a simpler description, a PNG is a compressed image file that offers better quality than the usual GIF or JPEG.

What image format were you saving your work in during development of the frames?

The image format I was saving my work in during the development of the frames was SVG File. In the dictionary,it is Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is a family of specifications of an XML-based file format for describing two-dimensional vector graphics, both static and dynamic. Simpler, an SVG File is a file which you can save and edit whenever you need to unlike saving it as a .png file, which you can only edit the whole picture, not separate components, making Inkscape a great software to create animation frames.

Describe what software you used and why you chose it.

To create my animation I chose to use the software Inkscape. Inkscape is a graphics editor software. Not only did I chose it because it was recommended, but also because it's much more easier re-arrange or edit pictures however I please. I can create bitmap images and save them as SVG files so I can always come back and edit them anytime.

It is also very convenient since you can also download it on Mac, as at home, I'm only able to use a Mac computer. Inkscape has a lot of different tools such as edit paths by nodes, zoom, creating shapes, drawing free-hand with a pencil, calligraphy brush, bezier tools, eraser, copy/cut/paste, and many more.

Describe the creation process you followed.

The creation process I followed to create my animation was these steps: Step 1: Open Inkscape then File > Document Properties Then I changed made sure the background was a solid colour and that the size of the canvas was according to the size I wished it to be (14.56 x 11.19 cm).

Step 2: I came up with the idea of doing Angry Birds so I searched on google a background of the game. I saved it as an image and imported i onto Inkscape. I used that as the base of my animation.

Step 3: I started to draw my birds and props for the animation. I drew the Red Bird, Yellow Bird, White Bird, Slingshot, Green Pigs and the bricks using the bezier tool to outline the original copy. By drawing it myself, I can move it's parts to however I want it to.

Step 4: I started to export the frames one by one. File > Export Bitmap > Page > Export. For every time and export a frame, I would change the name of the file so it doesn't save over a previous frame.

Step 5: After saving all the frames I needed, I dragged all my 399 frames into movie maker and changed the speed time to 0.06 seconds per frame. Then I saved it as a standard movie.

Flash Card Definitions

igoogle is a google search engine in which you can design and customize your account for example changing your theme and adding widgets to personalize your igoogle. You also have the oppurtunity to create your own themes and widgets. Examples of some widgets are games, weather, the date and time and many more.

The picutre above shows my personal igoogle account with a choice of my ownn theme and widgets.