Tech Tool Evaluation

beta.mural.ly
Three things I like about this tool are:
The site allows users to aggregate links, images, or files and display them in a board that resembles a physical bulletin wall just by dragging and dropping the files. 
Users can invite others to edit murals so it is easy to share the mural with large groups. Completed murals can also be showcased with a full-screen presentation mode. 
It is different from Prezi: Users can include content from around the web, including maps, Dropbox files, Wikipedia entries and more.
Three things that I don't like about this tool are
It does not provide many options in designing my background. 
Instead of sharing the website to other people, I think it is better for people to download the mural as a document so it is easier to evaluate the mural. It would be better if Murally had a printing option, so that people can print their murals after creating it, so that we can display it everywhere without having to save it in our devices and look at it everytime. 
Two ways I can use this tool are:
Publish these murals and learn more about other students' personal interests or ideas. 
I can also use the mural to share and create presentations or interactive classroom settings. 
desmos.com
Three things I like about this tool are:
It is a very easy way to us the website as a graphing calculator because you don't have to download a special hardware, and it is free. 
It is also available at the Google App store, which means we can use this app in our cellphones our at our ipads. 
Desmos can make math more engaging for people who weren't interested in it before because it is   
ifun to play around. 
Three things that I don't like about this tool are:
The tutorial videos are not explaining the website clearly. Students who don't know anything about radicals, trigonometry, graphs or x axis would be very confused at the beginning. 
It is very difficult to create a graph with thousands of difficult equations, especially for people who doesn't have a lot of experience with graphs.
Two ways I can use this tool are: 
create a graph for a school presentation or as a profession scientific graph. I could also email and share my graphs or embed my graphs at a blog post so that everybody else could see how interesting this program is and they would try to start making their own graph too.  

the Cloud

   I don't know anything about the Cloud, but it seems familiar because I have heard about it before.
The several questions I have before researching my topic is

• What is Cloud computing?
• What are the advantages of Cloud computing?
• What are the disadvantages of Cloud computing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ae_DKNwK_ms
This video explains Cloud computing very well. It explains how Cloud computing works.
It mentions that it is fast and it costs less.
http://www.slideshare.net/maikelm/disadvantages-of-cloud-computing
This website explains the disadvantages of cloud computing.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/dell/2011/12/20/the-history-and-future-of-cloud-computing/
This link is very interesting. It explains the origin and the history of cloud computing. It also explains what the people expect in Cloud computing for the future. 
http://dcloudcomputing.com/cloud-computing-facts/
This website includes 10 interesting facts of cloud computing. It is very interesting, and I noticed that Cloud computing is a very impressive and a difficult process.

This picture seems very complicated,
but it explains how cloud computing works
in detail. 

• Traditional business applications and platforms are too complicated and expensive. Cloud computing provides a data center, a complex software stack and a team of experts running it.  Local computers no longer have to do all the heavy lifting when it comes to running applications for cloud computing.
• The disadvantages of Cloud computing include security, loss of control, unstable cost structure, and decreased business flexibility. 
• The concept of Cloud computing was born in the 1960s from J.C.R Licklider envisioning computation in the form of global network. 
• Researchers are predicting that the revenue for cloud services will approach $152.1 billion in 2014 and it will grow constantly.  
• Cloud computing is not a new paradigm. It draws on existing technologies such as utility computing, software-as-a-service, distributed computing, and centralized data centers. 
• A new server is added to the cloud for every 120 tablets or 600 smartphones. 
• 64% of the companies have reduced waste and has low energy consumption levels after shifting to Cloud computing. 
• 65% of the US companies shifted to cloud in 2011. 

Cloud computing relates to my life because although you might face difficulties in your life, such as studies, social and economic problems, you can grow stronger when there is help on your way. Local, weak companies can grow stronger with Cloud computing. To compare that in our lives, you should get help from your parents, friends, and teachers when you are facing obstacles or difficulties. 

The question I still have for Cloud computing is: What are some solutions to shorten the disadvantages of Cloud computing and make it more successful?

College Exploration on Naviance

2 Colleges I have in mind are Yale University and United Nations University. 

2 Colleges I have never heard of but that I am interested are Skidmore College and University of Rochester.

7 areas that interest me about college are: Tuition, Scholarships, whether it has the major diplomacy or international studies in it, organization (MUN, debate team, leadership, International, Orchestra), location, grades(GPA, SAT), programs for foreign students

     

	Yale University	United Nations University	Brown University	Seoul National University
Tuition	$40,500	Each UNU degree programme has a different tuition.	$42,808	$5800
Scholarship	Offers Scholarship	A limited  number of scholarships are awarded to excellent applicants. Scholarship opportunities vary for each degree.	Offers Scholarship	Offers Scholarship
major (diplomacy, international studies, global affairs)	International Development, Environmental studies, International economics, International relation/affairs, International/ Global affairs,	There are a lot of majors which are only related to United Nations. http://unu.edu/research This link shows all the majors of UNU. All the majors interest me.	Development Studies, Environmental Studies, International Relations, Sociology  Office of International Affairs is a conduit  which students and scholars can access Brown’s diverse international programs and internationalization efforts.	Politics and Diplomacy, Sociology, Global economy, International Relations
Organization (debate team, leadership, MUN, International,Orchestra)	MUN, debate team, Orchestra, International	conference, MUN, seminars, debate team, Symposium, Campaigns	MUN, debate team, Orchestra	MUN, debate team, Orchestra
location	New Haven, Connecticut	13 Universities located around the world	New York	Seoul, Korea
grades(GPA, SAT)	requires 3.85, 2080 SAT	*Does not appear -offers outstanding academic records and selection is very competitive.	3.78, 2150 SAT	*Korean system of grading
program for foreign students	OIS is a four-day program designed to introduce new international students to Yale. All Yale  international students are invited to attend OIS.	offers outstanding academic records and selection is very competitive.	more than 1600 international students,representing over 90 countries.

My GPA from the first quarter is a 3.7.
Yale University-3.85
Columbia Universiy-3.78

Google Day 4

My goals for today is to create and design my own cartoon.
I'm not sure if I can finish it today but I'll try my best.
If I don't finish it, I'll present what I did at my presentation.
http://www.howtogeek.com/102351/how-to-make-photoshop-cartoons-in-about-one-minute/
This link describes how to create a cartoon photograph from a real photo.

Using this link, I turned a normal photo to a cartoon.
http://www.laughing-lion-design.com/2008/08/creating-speech-bubbles-in-photoshop-using-the-custom-shape-tool/
Using this website, I created a speech bubble to make a comic.

This is a final version of turning a photo into a comic.










I moved on to creating my own cartoon at Photoshop using this link.
http://webdesignledger.com/tutorials/create-simple-cartoon-characters-in-photoshop
My cartoon didn't turn out as good as I thought because I failed on making a mouth for the character.

This is my final cartoon I created. Next time, I would prepare for my presentation.

Google Day 3

     My 3 goals for the day is finish the typography design I started last week. If I succeed and have more time, I would like to make a new design. I finished filling all the colors for my text and put more blur on the text.
I was planning to place a rope around the texts, but I failed and I got stuck in the middle and I am planning to put another effect. Photoshop has so many functions, so it is very complicated.
Next class, I would like to move on designing my own character.

Google Day2

   My goals for the day are:
1. Review the project I did last time and check whether I remember the information I researched last time.
2. Check websites of how to create my typography and start creating.
3. Try to put color to my typography.
http://blog.templatemonster.com/2012/02/03/40-typography-photoshop-tutorials/
This link shows the types of examples of typographic designs you can use and create.
There are more than 40 types of effects you would like to design.
I chose the Suspended Text effect.
http://www.photoshopstar.com/text-effects/suspended-text-effect//
This link describes accurately the process of designing the typography in rainbow colors. It is very well described and it is easy to understand and follow the directions. 

 The picture in the right is the final image. 

 The picture on the left is the final image I designed today in class. I haven't finished the design yet, but I have put the colors for the word "Computers". I followed all the directions from one link.
I didn't have enough time to explain the whole process of what I had done, sorry. Ms Shawn knows I have worked hard throughout the whole period.



If I finish my design, I'll start creating my own character. 

Search Storres

https://searchstories-intl.appspot.com/en-us/creator/
The purpose of this site is to create a story about a topic and share it to other people. Creating a story through this site makes it easier to present and     show the steps of how to research the topic. 
Steps
1. Open the website and think of a topic you are going to explain and create a story about. 

2. If you are unsure of the topic you are going to present, you can look at the examples by clicking "Watch Search Stories." 



3. Search your terms to create the story. All the terms should be related. You can use images, maps, websites 
to present it. You can preview the results on the bottom of the page.





4. Add music to your story: You can choose 

the type of music you would like to insert.













5. Preview your story before you upload it and share it. You can edit your story if you don't like it. 






6. This is the finished version of my story 
(I made my video, but it won't let me sign in with my Gmail.
I tried two emails, but I couldn't sign in for some strange reason.
I couldn't upload the video on Youtube)

Examples of when you can use it in class:
-When you explain the steps of a research you did
-When you want to upload a video on Youtube of explaining procedures specifically
-It is the easiest and fastest way to display a research process more exciting.