8 June 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
Ok, so I just wrote and handed in my PDP essay which means that I’ve officially finished the second year! 
I put off, and put off, and put off my PDP essay. I’ve know about it for ages but just never bothered to actually sit down and write it. But it got to the point where I HAD to do it and today was that day. Having just worked the the last 5 days and I’m likely to work the next 6 it was a case of today was the only opportunity I had to write it. Once I started though, I found it went pretty quickly, I even went over the word count – which I don’t think has happened once this year! Plus I had to cut loads of stuff out from my essay plan (which didn’t really consist of a plan just a list and a few thoughts).
But hey, its done now!!
Also picked up my Professional Studies unit mark. We got 64 for the presentation which I’m quite pleased with. Mik really like our virtual world idea for Cancer Research UK. And I got 74 for the peer assessment from the Thought Den week. I’m not quite as pleased with that but I can’t complain seeing as I wasn’t actually there for most of it and didn’t really contribute to the presentation as I had committed to specific shifts at work.
I found though that during the year I left a lot of the essay work, if not all of it, to the last minute which is definitely something I am NOT going to do next year, especially with my dissertation. But I don’t think that is possible as I’ll try and break it down into small sections and just complete one bit at a time. Also I’ve decided to try and be more positive about the work that I’m completing to try and help me get through it without difficult…well with less pain anyway!
Bring on Year 3, New House, New Me!
1 June 2009
· Filed under Media Theory
Ok so it was a while ago now that the essay was handed in. Compared to my Identity essay this was definitely a last minute job and I’m not expecting great things from it realistically. I had half the amount of resources as I did to the previous one, but hey ho. I made the word count….JUST.
I would have thought that we had got our marks back by now, so I don’t know whats happened with them. Let’s just hope that I’ve passed both of them so that I don’t have to resit the year *crosses fingers* !!
3 May 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
Woohoo! My 6 week work placement is now sorted. I’ve got 3 placements each of 2 weeks so that I can break up my time. I was really worried that I’d choose to go somewhere for 6 weeks then absolutely hate it after a week.
I start off at a graphic design agency in London called QOTD (as yet I don’t really know what it stands for!)
Then I’ve got 2 placements locally to me back at home in Essex. One is called Rathbone Media and the other Breathe. Both are advertising agency which have there own design departments and cover everything from initial concept to final artwork placement.
I got my placements through family friends and contacts that they knew. I tried the cold calling method about 4 times, but was rejected 3 times, with the 4th offering me freelance work as a photography or reviewer which wasn’t particularly the areas I was interested in.
Still what I have got should be good, I’m looking forward to it!
3 May 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
So, the SUBU awards were the other week. This is basically a night were people who have contributed to the student union get some acknowledgement for the work that they have done over the year. This years awards were different to previous years, with all areas of the SU under the same roof rather than having separate award nights for each.
I wasn’t able to go to the awards (in actual fact I didn’t really know anything about them until the afternoon before!) but as it turns out I won an award for working on Nerve Magazine. I was awarded the “Dedicated Designer” trophy. It’s a really nice glass engraved trophy and has pride of place on my window sill at the moment! haha.
I have designed every issue (barring one where I was on holiday for the deadline – Jan 09 issue) whether I get the articles a week in advance as its suppose to be or the day that its meant to be going to print. I’m a reliable designer! And enjoy the work that I do most of the time…having said that there is only so much that you can do for the sport section (zzzzzz)!!
I’m hoping to continue designing into next year, which will be my final year, and hopefully it will help set me up for a career once I finish. There are new changes coming to Nerve Magazine next year…it should be big and better so watch this space!
2 May 2009
· Filed under Media Theory
Hmm…this seems to be a lot harder to write than it was suppose to be. The questions are too vague to choose which one to do so I don’t know what I’m actually writing. Not started writing yet, but I have started making some notes from the one book that I managed to find in the library.
5 days til hand in.
30 April 2009
· Filed under Dissertation
Just a quick noted about the dissertation…I have no idea what to write about and that lecture on Wednesday about it, really didn’t help!
I wonder if I’ll be better off expanding on my Identity and Diversity essay, but then how comes some current 3rd year IMPs have done things that aren’t related to media theory at all?!
30 April 2009
· Filed under Media Theory
Today is the essay hand in for Media, Identity and Diversity. My chosen essay title was; “Consider the performance of gender, and transgressive possibilities for sexual identities.”
Initially I started writing and really struggled to get words onto the page. I got to 600 words and decided to call it off. I arranged a chat with Chris Pullen as I had asked him to provide me with some documentary films about gender performance. During this chat he was able to suggest other books and films to look at and so I was able to understand the topic a little more, which gave me a better angle to write the essay. I actually understood how things fitted together.
David Gauntlett seems to make Judith Butler talk sense – if anyone has ever tried reading Butlers work, you’ll know its full of long winded and complicated ways of saying things, where as Gauntlett seems to put them into modern context so that you can relate to it. That guy is a dude!
I completed my essay in time of the original deadline before it was moved, which was quite handy really as it means now I have a half week extra to do reading and research for my Media, Censorship and Regulation essay (which is due in on the 6th May). I’m still not entirely sure which title I’m going to choose for this one, but we’ll see.
30 April 2009
· Filed under Game Production
So I have seriously neglected my blog recently, I’m sorry! I had ever intention to update it but hey ho…
The results are in – I collected the assignment feedback sheets for the Interactive Media Production Game unit this week. WOOHOO! I passed with a 2:1…I DON’T HAVE TO RESIT THE YEAR!! That was one of my biggest fears after having handed in the project. Once it was handed in I started spotting small errors that should have been sorted beforehand really.
Our game was a haunted house game with 4 mini games within the house that you had to complete to escape as you have become “Trapped” inside. As the feedback noted, there isn’t actually anyway for you to escape from the house. We were aware of this in the last week, but literally had no time to complete it properly so just made do.
“Trapped” is available here; Universally Challenged – Trapped Game.
There were a number of issues within our group, as a result I’ve clearly found that there are some people to avoid in the future. A few arguments where had in the last week where tempers were fraying but at least it got done. I was quite pleased with my essay mark, which was completed at about 3am the morning it was due in – my body clock did over time that day! Although I’m not too sure why they say that I need to reference properly, I thought I followed the referencing guide correctly – who knows!
I quite like the comment on the feedback sheet “where the work really shone was the game bible. Despite having hacked to pieces a lovely old Atlas the work was really quite impressive.” That was my bit! I poured myself into that part of the task, having taken it from what was being suggested to the finished article and it look ages to find somewhere to print it. I highly recommend the Print Emporium, Northbourne. Independently run local business – it is their life in that place.
Easter was quite a welcome break after the stresses of the project, shame it wasn’t look enough!
25 November 2008
· Filed under Uncategorized
In one of my many procrastinating moments, I came across this website called Name This.
Its basically a company that “rebrand” or come up with names for new companies/enterprises but are too lazy or not creative enough to come up with their own. Or are they? Could they be more intelligent than that and by using the online “world” actually be producing some of the most creative names in commerce?!
Someone had a seriously good idea with this site – but on the topic of Authorship…who is the author of the new name?! After all the people behind ‘Name This’ couldn’t have chosen the best option had it not been for the wider online community contributing to the site.
The site actually marks your suggestions with a comment i.e. Very Unique, Average and Not Unique. There are loads of completed ones as well as those still active. Each has a countdown of how long left there is to post a suggestion.
Pretty amazing stuff – lets just hope that these people aren’t getting paid LOADS of money for the work of other innocent people.
Anyway, I think thats enough for now.
19 November 2008
· Filed under Authorship
PHP project completed and handed in – RELIEF! *phew*
Never again is what I say…!
Check it out in the link below
http://impserver.bournemouth.ac.uk/~cpaveley/
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