Reflection (Practical 4 and 5)

Today, we learnt all about meta search engines and search directories in class. A meta search engine is a website of compiled information from other various search engines like google, yahoo, etc. I never knew such a website existed until I tried it out myself, however, it was not as efficient as I thought it would be. Being a raw database of several other major search engines, I'd expected more relevant results and a more professional approach to the whole 'search engine' interface. The application of the website is similar to ordinary search engines, by accessing multiple web properties for each of my query, it provided me with a mix and match of several links for my results. I personally felt that a meta search engine was not what i prefered when it came to looking for information online, mainly because a wider spectrum of libraries meant more irrelevant search results, which will lead to a harder time filtering for what i wanted to find.

However, as compared to subject directories, it is a tad bit more convenient and user friendly. Although subject directories provide more in-depth information, it had to be on search queries specifically categorized in the website. For instance, if you wanted to search for a topic related to games, you woudn't yield any results unless there is a category stated on the website that listed information on it. Subject directories are for experienced users who know what kind of information they want to look for in relation to the relevance of their search queries. Thus far, it is still not my preferred type of search engine.

Another form of information sharing is through Wiki, where individuals like us could modify and edit information on the website to share with others. This type of informative webpage would only be effective if it consisted of a community of reliable users. Users could easily edit information on the website, which also meant vandals or people with nothing better to do could get their hands on the contribution of other hardworking and dedicated individuals, unruly modifying results to the extend of losing its relevance and authority.

This practical was an eye-opener for me, introducing me to alternative forms of online search engines. It has expanded my options for gathering information online, and this will most definitely help me as research is one of the most important steps in a design process.

Reflection (Practical 3)

Practical 3 was a fairly simple exercise as it was aimed to polish and evaluate our internet understanding and how effectively we used online search engines. Given our research topics, mine being 'trends of spending habits of youth', we had to enter our respective queries into our chosen search engine. As explained in the previous post, I have been using Google whenever I had any research to do.

The class was taught alternative and more efficient ways of entering our search queries, which also meant they were more complicating and troublesome. As the saying goes, ''there's no such thing as a free lunch'', working harder only makes sense when you desire to obtain greater results. The main idea is to find an alternative word with the same meaning, for example, 'youth' has the same meaning as 'adolescence', accompanied by a couple of mandatory commands and you'll be on your way to your requested search results. e.g. Trends of spending habits of youth = (trends OR direction*) AND (spending OR squandering*) AND (habit OR manner*) AND (youth OR adolescence*) 
 

I appreciate what I've learnt from this practical as it is skills like this that we can apply and use in our daily lives, not some useless junk that we're forced to learn, knowing we'd totally forget about it  the next day and never use ever again.

Reflection (Practical 1 and 2)

We had our very first official lesson as a class due to some previous misunderstanding with the lesson timetable. For our first practical, the class learnt how to identify the 5 different purposes of online information sources, 'information, advocacy, news, business/marketing, entertainment'.

We had to use any online search engine of our choice to gather up information about our chosen topics, mine being the trends of spending habits of youths. 'Google' is my preferred search engine as it is one of the most common and recognized search engines on the web.

 For the practical, we had to identify a specific source for each category. Online information can be provided in different forms like journals/e-Magazines, blogs, discussion forums and organisational websites. We had to find information related to our topics and categorize them into their sources, after which we had to identify their purposes.

This excercise is benificial to us as it defines clearer understanding of where our information comes from and whether they are reliable or not, helping us in our research, which is crucial to us design students as it is the early steps of the design process.

$500 Shopping Spree

With $500 in my hands, i'll be at a total loss deciding what to buy as this was a chance to fulfill one of my many dreams. However, the Boss RC-50 Loop Station would most definitely be at the top of my list.

Being a music enthusiast with experience playing a range of musical instruments like the guitar, drums and the  digital keyboard, this addition to my collection of effects pedals and recording equipment opens a whole new world of musical experimentation for me. Even though im pretty sure that expanding my musical interests would be at the expense of my education because i'm sure i'll be spending alot of time with my newly bought effects pedal, its a risk i'm willing to take.

Greetings,

 

              Im Phuay Hao majoring in the Diploma for Product and Industrial Design. I have an incomparable passion for chess and reading. My musical interests are in the likes of celine dion and luciano pavarotti, i feel that their exemplary image and attitude goes hand-in-hand with their apt for musical talent and understanding. 

The oprah winfrey show is one of my favourite television shows as opray winfrey is considerably one of the most down-to-earth celebrities despite her success, wealth and fame. Her attitude towards helping the less fortunate helps her secure a respectable image amongst her fans and compatriots alike.  I favor watching the morning news on channel 5 as well as it keeps me up to date with the latest news on topics like global warming, the status of the global economy, local and international governmental issues, as well as health related epidemics and the latest technological and medical advancements made by scientists.

School is at the top of my list when it comes to hanging out. It is where all my friends are and it is considered a 'checkpoint' in my daily life. Additionally, we are provided with excellent work resources like computers armed with the latest softwares, not forgetting a workshop with a wide range of equipment and a family of amazingly helpful working staff.