Vina+Mistry

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 * Analysis and Reflection - Vina Mistry**

=Summary=

I have made many contributions to the space in regards to content and community building. One of the reasons I worked really hard on this project is because I enjoyed contributing my opinions, research and also making the space aesthetically pleasing. Over the past couple of weeks I have witnessed tremendous development with the progress of the wikispace. I thought to diversify the topics that I have included in this page.

As far as content, I have made eight pages altogether, these include Fair use and Fair dealing, Human Communication and Interaction, E - learning, Wearable Computers 2, History of Communication, Bluetooth, Gadgets, and Film and Technology. I have stayed on topic with the material I have added. I wanted this to also be a fun exercise so I started the Gadgets topic page, where I added interesting technology gadgets some of which include spy tools, I hope my peers may find this of interest. I started most of these pages early because I felt it would allow for greater contribution of ideas. As other students have aided with the editing and additional content of these pages I feel I have still maintained most of my initial information. I constantly review these pages and make additions and corrections.

I spent a lot of time contributing to other pages such as articles on Current Issues 2, Kazaa, SMS, Online Gaming, Influences of Global Media, Culture Jamming, Impact of Media on Stereotypes and India and Digital Gap. Every time I saw something that needed changing I would. I really enjoyed making large or even subtle changes to the space to add to the overall look of the space. I also have made many changes most are aesthetic ones such as, changing the [|CCIT banner] to new colorful one that I created in Photoshop as shown above. I also put the alias names in alphabetic order, changed the table of contents, added the CCIT logo to the bottom of major pages. In addition, I added many links to other internal pages or websites, etc. There many more changes but too many to list as I have made over a **170 edits.**

=Reflection=

I have to admit my initial reaction to this project was not a good one. At first I was very confused with what exactly needed to be submitted. The wiki assignment is not like other projects where you hand in the typical report at the beginning of class. Now I realize that this interactive environment is exactly what we need to enhance our learning process. This assignment has not only allowed people to contribute individual work, but allows others to view and edit pages according to their personal suggestions. The collaborative writing is very beneficial to people who not only want to contribute but also increase their knowledge on a given topic.

We had a guest lecturer, Joan Vinall-Cox who told us that a Wiki is the word "quick" in Hawaiian. This is exactly what a wiki is, it's quick because students can read and edit simultaneously. It defiantly breaks time and space barriers. At first yes it seems very difficult to start but wiki is very fast and easy to use, for example to edit you can simply click on the edit button and authorized members can instantly revise. I really like the fact that each change is tracked for accountability. It creates an atmosphere to allow people to submit as much information as possible, because they are getting marks for their contribution. Also, wikispaces are some what better then traditional class settings because they allow everyone to input information as oppose to only those who feel confident to speak out loud. Those who are shy also can make meaningful contributions without the fear of public attention.

With a slow rocky start, the end result was an incredible vast array of information with lots of diverse topics relating to the common goal of digital innovation. Open editing allows students to start entries and often leave gaps hoping that somebody else will come along to fill them in. I liked the fact that people are forced in a way to start this project early because it allows the collaboration of individuals to make changes. I would recommend using this type of open space in any of my other classes because of its unique collaborative system that is different from every other traditional system used. Although there are many benefits and positive experiences with the wikispace, there is room for improvement.

=Suggestions=

For future CCIT students who get the privilege to work on a wikispace, I would defiantly have to say start early as possible because all the topics get taken very fast. Also the number of edits you do, start to add up if you begin early. For students who are new at this, try starting with the simple stuff first, so you do not get overwhelmed. Along with the idea of starting early make sure you read through what other people have already posted, this will prevent repetition. The people who wait till the last minute cannot duplicate other peoples work because the times and dates are recorded. For example, I was about to start a content page about text messaging, then I realized that text messaging is also called SMS, so I scrolled down and someone had already created that page, so I simply added more information to that page. Also, I'm not sure if anyone else is experiencing this problem but the pages are loading much slower in the last day then they use to at the beginning of the assignment.

Students should respect other pages and not delete entire pieces of work and replace it with their own especially if there was a note stating under construction. On the other hand, one should not start a page with no content and expect others not to contribute. If students absolutely do not want others to edit or delete their work or just want more time to work on it they should not upload it until they have everything completed. In addition to this they shouldn't wait too long because the idea might get taken. Basically write as much as you can and expect it to be edited.

All in all I felt everyone contributed with little disagreement. Some however did contribute more then others. In the future all the students should contribute as much as possible to make it a better learning environment. Also one advice would be to make a list of everything you did. This allows you to go back and keep track of everything for marking purposes and you can see how your ideas have developed. You may want to make a copy of all your work in case it accidentally or intentionally gets erased. I would love to see more picture formatting capabilities in the visual editor. The space would have a better design flow if we were able to crop, alter, or text wrap pictures. Finally just have fun with this unique space and be as imaginative as possible.

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