August Workshops

Spaces remaining in August Abstract Painting Workshops

August 10 or August 17

Momiji Health Centre, Art Room
3555 Kingston Road, (near Markham Rd.)
1:00pm to 4:00pm

Register for one or both workshops, but sign up soon to avoid course cancellation.
To register, drop by in person or call the Educational Coordinator at: 416-261-6683 ext. 242.
Fee:  $35 per workshop.
For more information:  http://momiji.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/en/courseguide.pdf

Summer shows 2017

My artwork will be on display at two events in July:

Art Square Group Show:  selected pieces of my artwork are on exhibit from July 17 to 31.  Art Square, which is open daily from 9am to 11pm, is located across the street from the Art Gallery of Ontario.  I'll be dropping by the gallery once or twice during the show to demonstrate digital painting.  See you there!

The Guild Alive With Culture:  I'll have a tent full of my limited-edition prints at this free two-day outdoor arts and one-of-a-kind crafts show in the beautiful Guild Park.  This park backs onto the bluffs and offers stunning lake views.  Throughout the gardens and green spaces are statues, columns, relief sculpture and various bits of stone ornamentation rescued from torn-down Toronto buildings of yore.  There's live entertainment on the stage, and activities in the newly renovated Bickford Residence (formerly the Guild Inn).  For more information see:  Guild Alive With Culture 2017


Come Paint with Me!  Remember to sign up for  Summer workshops at Momiji.  Spaces are still available in my Abstract Painting workshops on August 10 and 17.

Happy Summering!

Register Soon

Artists!  Come paint in a sunlit studio by a tranquil koi pond and Japanese garden.  Sign up for summer workshops at Momiji soon! 

Join me for Abstract Painting Workshops on July 6, July 13, August 10 and August 17, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm.  Workshop fee: $35.  Register for one, two, three or all four workshops in person or by phone*:  Momiji Health Care Society, 3555 Kingston Road (near Markham Road), 416-261-6683 ext. 242. 
Visit http://momiji.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/en/courseguide.pdf

*(Online registration is under construction)

Summer 2017 Abstract Painting Workshops at Momiji

Momiji Summer Workshops 2017

Momiji Summer Workshops

Digital Art Workshop

Wednesday June 7th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm

Momiji Heath Centre, Training Room
3555 Kingston Road, (near Markham Rd.)

To register drop by in person or call the Educational Coordinator at: 416-261-6683 ext. 242.
Fee:  $45

Bring your tablet or laptop and create art with pixels and light.  Tablet users please download ArtRage from the google/apple store (for a nominal cost under $10 CAD).  Laptop users download GIMP free graphics software.  Please contact me if you have any difficulties with the download.  (Note:  If you already own a copy of photoshop, you're all set.)  Also remember to pack your adapter, stylus or mouse. 

Coming Soon, Momiji Summer Abstract Painting Workshops!

July 6, July 13, August 10 or August 17

Momiji Health Centre, Art Room
3555 Kingston Road, (near Markham Rd.)
1:00pm to 4:00pm

Sign up for one, two, three or all four workshops

To register drop by in person or call the Educational Coordinator at: 416-261-6683 ext. 242.
Fee:  TBA

Shake up your art!  Kandinsky compared abstract painting to visual poetry.  Use colour, line, texture and form to explore the medium, express yourself and convey meaning.  These four workshops will cover inspiration, composition, paint application alternatives, painting surface treatments, use of mediums and colour theory.  Students should bring their own brushes, paints (acrylics or oils) and painting surfaces, as well as palettes, water containers, etc. 

Flyer to follow soon...

Painting and Digital Art registration winter 2017

Artists!  There's still time to sign up for digital art or painting at Momiji.  Bring your laptop or paints and come make art in a tranquil atmosphere.  For more info:  http://momiji.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/en/courseguide.pdf

Registration for winter 2017 arts programs

Momiji Centre:

January 4th is the deadline to sign up for Winter 2017 arts programs at the beautiful Momiji centre.  I'm teaching painting, digital art and social media on Thursdays this session.  Join up for plenty of one-on-one instruction, inspiration and demonstrations on technique.  For more information:  http://momiji.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/en/courseguide.pdf


Cedar Ridge Creative Centre:

A gentle reminder to register yourself of your child in Winter 2017 arts programs at Cedar Ridge.  Sign up by Thursday morning (January 5th) to avoid waiting lists or program cancellation due to insufficient enrollment.  I teach Sunday Art for Youth programs at Cedar Ridge (drawing, cartooning and painting).  This charming old mansion is a wonderful place to learn or just hang out.  It's dedicated to the arts, with studios and a three-room gallery that exhibits the work of Toronto artists.  http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=2a8fc3513a110410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD

Cedarbrook Community Centre:

There may still be spots available in Wednesday Drawing and Sketching.  This lovely centre, which sits at the top of parkland with a ravine running through it, has an art room with windows along three sides.  Cedarbrook offers fee-free programming.  If you're interested in a course that appears to be full, be sure to put your name on the waiting list regardless.  http://www1.toronto.ca/parks/prd/facilities/complex/600/

Cedarbrook Drawing and Sketching Fall 2016

Registration for city of Toronto programs in Scarborough is September 11th. 

Drawing and Sketching at Cedarbrook CC is a free program, so be sure to register early and sign up for the waiting list if the class is full.  Beginner and experienced artists are welcome.

Momiji classes Fall 2016

Registration for Momiji courses was on Wednesday, August, 31st, but there may be spots remaining.  To avoid waiting lists or course cancellations sign up ASAP.  For more information:  http://momiji.on.ca/wp-content/uploads/publications/en/courseguide.pdf

I'm teaching Painting Workshop from 12:15 to 2:15pm on Thursdays. 

On Thursday mornings from 9:30 to 11:30am I'm teaching Digital art for 4 weeks followed by 4 weeks of Social Media.

Check here for updates and class notes.

Summer Painting Workshops at Momiji 2016

Acrylic Painting Demo

I'm giving a demo/workshop on acrylic painting for the Art Guild of Scarborough this Thursday, February 25th at Cedarbrook Community Ctre. (91 Eastpark, behind Cedarbrae C.I.) from 7:30 to 9:30pm.

All are welcome.

The focus for the evening will be the freedom to experiment with acrylics on canvas. I'll be working on unprimed, partially primed, stretched and unstretched canvas, as well as using various acrylic mediums and additives, novelty paints and open paints. See you there.

M

Cedarbrook Drawing and Sketching course outline Winter 2016

Cedarbrook C.C.

Drawing and Sketching, Winter 2016

Wednesdays 9:30am to 11:30am 

Week 1:  Jan 6th

Course overview.  Review of classroom materials.  The theme this session is the UK.

Demo:  Value.

Exercise: using teacher provided resources draw a celtic knot in pencil, ink or fine-point marker.   

Week 2:  Jan 13^th

Warm-up: Sketches of stones. Demo:  rough textures and discussion on Stonehenge theories. 

Drawing: Create a pencil drawing based on photos of Stonehenge. 

 

Week 3:  Jan 20^th

Warm-up: sketch sky out of the window. Demo:  Basic sky approaches and perspective.

Demo:  Turner light inspired skies in chalk pastel.  “The Sun is God” 

 

Week 4:  Jan 27^th 

Sketch:  sketching to 3 types of music.

Drawing: Develop one sketch into a drawing.

Discussion:  The work of Whistler esp. painting to the Nocturnes.  Discussion on inspiration.

 

Week 5:  Feb 3^rd

Sketches of the skull. Sketches based on Gainsborough and British portrait artists.

Develop either skull or Gainsborough style sketch into a drawing.

 

Week 6:  Feb 10^th

Discussion:  Henry Moore and essence and weight of form.  Demo: Rounding out of forms.  Create stylized Henry Moore style drawings based on photos of figures on large paper in charcoal.

 

Week 7:  Feb 17^th    

Discussion:  The cultural impact of the Victorians and Steampunk style. 

Small drawing inspired by Victorian décor or steampunk style, with metallic sharpies.   

Week 8:  Feb 24^th   

Discussion:  The impact of the computer/internet age on art. 

Drawings based on David Hockney’s iphone flowers using oil pastels, pencil crayons and vegetable oil for blending.    

Week 9:  March 2^nd  

Discussion:  Art with a message, Banksy’s story and graffiti art.

Drawing: inspired by the work of Banksy.

Internet and Smartphone Privacy and Security

INTERNET AND SMARTPHONE PRIVACY and SECURITY

Internet security laws in Canada (an across the globe) are evolving in response to developments in technology, software, and abuses and hacking. 

Digital Privacy Act Canada

http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?nid=988939
Protect yourself by knowing your rights.

Cyberbullying laws Canada
http://www.getcybersafe.gc.ca/cnt/cbrbllng/prnts/lgl-cnsqncs-en.aspx
Note the potential for serious charges for committing cyber crimes. 

Internet hoaxes

Most hoaxes are harmless, but the spread of misinformation occurs far more quickly now than in pre-internet days.  Don’t be a part the problem.  If a news story, image or video that finds its way into your Facebook or Twitter newsfeed seems hard to believe, it may in fact be false or faked.  A good website to verify potential hoaxes is Snopes:

http://www.snopes.com/

Internet fraud
If you suspect fraud or are the victim of fraud on the net report it here.  First search the database to see if what happened to you has already been reported. 
http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/scams-fraudes/index-eng.htm

 SMARTPHONE SECURITY

A year ago, a hacker leaked nude selfies stored in the smart phones of Jennifer Lawrence and other young actresses on the internet. People have a reasonable expectation of privacy when using their phones.   What the hacker did is a crime.  At the time of writing, the FBI is still searching for the culprit.    

Smartphone hacks are a relatively new phenomenon and cell phone manufacturers are responding.  Android phones are at greatest risk at present, mainly because they’re the most popular (like Windows vs Mac).  iphones are subject to the fewest risks also because of Apple’s tight control on apps and services. 

The biggest risk to privacy remains loss or theft of your cell phone.  (The finder can access your texts, emails and photos.)  Don’t leave your phone unattended.  Lock it with a password. If your phone is lost or stolen, report it immediately to your wireless service provider.  Apps are now available to allow you to remotely wipe your phone if it’s lost.  Avoid storing or sharing privileged or sensitive information on your phone.   
http://www.pcworld.com/article/216420/how_much_smartphone_security_do_you_need.html

Linking social media to Smartphones

Linking your email and social media accounts to your smartphone can be a very convenient way to keep on top of your inboxes.  Take precautions and weigh this convenience against the (still relatively small) risk of having a phone hack or infection lead to your computer being hacked or infected too (or vice versa).

Smartphone as Wallet

http://www.cnet.com/how-to/apple-pay-vs-google-wallet-vs-paypal/

Using your Smartphone (or computer) to pay for goods and services is in its infancy, but may be more secure than debit cards in some respects.  The article linked above does a great job of examining the various options currently available. 

 

My recent work and the work of a few of my advanced painting students will be on exhibit for the month of September at Gold's.  Please drop by.

Summer Art at Momiji, 2015

Dear Gentle Students,

My spring session 2015 courses:

Registration for all City of Toronto recreation and culture spring courses in Scarborough is on March 8th, 2015. Register early to avoid course cancellations or waiting lists. You can sign up in person, online http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/contentonly?vgnextoid=5b1619f8602a0410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD or by phone, Cedar Ridge: 416-396-4026, Cedarbrook: 416-396-4028.

Drawing and Sketching for adults at Cedarbrook C.C.

Wednesdays from 9:30am to 11:30am

9-week course

Spring session classes commence on April 1st.

Cedarbrook C.C. courses are offered for FREE

Sketch 2 Draw for youth (8 to 13) at Cedar Ridge C.C.

Sundays from noon to 1:30pm

10-week course

Young Painter's Studio for youth (7 to 12) at Cedar Ridge C.C.

Sundays from 2pm to 3:30pm

10-week course

Spring session Sunday youth arts classes commence on March 29th.

Registration for Momiji Centre spring courses is on or before March 30th, 2015. Sign up in person, by phone or by snail mail. A yearly membership of $25 is required along with your course fee.  For further information, please call the Educational Coordinator at 416-261-6683, ext., 242.  You can find Momiji's Spring course guide (coming soon) at: http://www.momiji.on.ca/programs/courses.html

Acrylic Painting for adults at Momiji Centre

Thursdays from 12:15pm to 2:15pm

8-week course

Spring session classes commence on April 16th.

Social Media Workshop for adults at Momiji Centre

Tuesdays from 9:30am to 11:30am

4-week workshop

Spring session classes commence April 14th.

I also teach art programming with Community Living Toronto on Mondays and Fridays. These courses are offered through CLT for adults with intellectual challenges.

Check this blog in the next couple of weeks for my spring 2015 adult program course outlines.

As always I'm looking forward to working with returning and new artists.

Register early!

Cheers,

--M

Acrylic Painting at Momiji: Winter 2015 course outline

Acrylic Painting

Momiji, Winter 2015

Thursdays, 12:15 to 2:15pm

Instructor, Margaret Chown

 

Week 1 (Jan 15^th)

Course overview. Theme:  Organic geometry. Students are invited to create work based on inspirational materials and demos according to their taste and style. Review of materials list. Demo on methods/mediums for smoothing brushstrokes, value.  Georgia OKeefe bones and flowers. Practice sketches (optional) Undersketch and background layer on small or medium painting surface.

Week 2 (Jan 22^nd)

Complete Georgia Okeefe inspired painting. 

Week 3 (Jan 29^th)

Van Gogh, Monet, practice landscape sketches (optional).  Review of landscape essentials (horizon line, perspective). Demo on clear Gesso (on birchboard) impressionistic brush strokes, impasto, alternative paint application. Undersketch and first layer of Monet etc. inspired landscape/ abstract on medium or large painting surface. 

Week 4 (Feb 5^th)

Complete landscape. 

Week 5 (Feb 12^th)

Klimpt, Matisse, Tim Burton inspired still life/abstract on medium or small painting surface.  Discussion on ‘beau arts, art deco’. Demo on still life, metallic paints, the ellipse, arabesques, stencils.  Contrast. 

Week 6 (Feb 19^th)

Complete still life.

Week 7 (Feb 26^th)

Animals: Rousseau, Franz Marc, painting on small or medium painting surface. Demo on fur/ feather textures, foliage, masking, movement.  

Week 8 (March 5^th)

Complete animal painting.

Optional Workshop (March 12^th)*

Demos and project based on student requests.  

*to be confirmed: room availability and interest permitting.

Social Media at Momiji: Week 4

THE ARTS

When it comes to the internet, one of the biggest issues for artists in all fields is copyright or intellectual property rights. Some social media critics/ academics believe that the claim an artist has to credit for a tune, image or piece of prose, is a thing of the past. While others believe that copyright needs even more protection now. Among Canadian authors, Corey Doctorow would side with abolishing copyright protection, while Robert J. Sawyer represents the opposite point of view. Record and the movie industries have come down hard on copyright protection. They stand to lose millions. You may have heard of Sony’s efforts to prevent piracy of music and films.  Visual artists, who always have the original hand-painted piece, aren’t immune, but some use ‘watermarks’ (a translucent logo superimposed on the image) among other options to protect our intellectual property online.  A program called ‘tineye’ was designed to search an artist’s image or photograph on the net, and turn up any copies including those used without permission.

The internet is jam-packed with artists in every field. More writers, painters, musicians than ever. Hobbyists are there alongside the professionals. It’s so easy to publish your artwork, songs or writing now.

Visual Art and Writing

One large and long-standing social media platform for both art and literature is Deviant Art, www.deviantart.com. ‘Deviant’ in the sense of a pastime or deviation, rather than the other meaning. However, you must be 14 or older to join the site. Marking work as “mature” is left up to the artist. And reporting spam, trolls and pornography (illegal) is up to community members. Artists tend to be more tolerant of those on the fringe than society at large. So this website is home to people with a variety of atypical sexual preferences (consenting/ legal). You can block and/or report any unwanted follower as with Facebook and Twitter.

The site allows you to set up a gallery for your fine art, illustrations, photography, short stories, non-fiction or poetry—and give and receive criticism and ‘favourites’. Daily contests are held by volunteer moderators. I’ve won a few for my writing oddly enough.  Experienced artists mentor new ones.  It was because of this website that I made the leap from traditional art media to digital. I received tremendous moral and technical support from my followers. Techniques are shared in comments, or in ‘tutorials’ put together by individual members. Groups and clubs encourage sharing of ideas and artistic feedback as well. You can designate your art or writing as available for sale via dA (as it’s known for short). The prices are very low, so I don’t participate in this aspect of the site.  Overall I highly recommend the site for emerging artists, or artists trying out new media.

Saatchi is another predominantly visual arts website. I opened an account some time ago, but didn’t fully investigate all of the features. Feedback is possible, but the main activity seems to centre around art contests. Sales are possible as well.

Writing specific social platforms abound. Baen’s bar, http://bar.baen.com/ , is a speculative fiction writing forum, but also a publisher. Members submit work to a ‘slush pile’ for critique. Editing may lead to a piece of writing move to the top of the pile and even possibly to being published in the online magazine or through a traditional publisher.  However, there are many vying for a limited number of spots. 

Fiction writers of almost every genre, freelance non-fiction writers and poets gather in online groups to exchange feedback.  Most writing forums simply offer a place to post your writing and give and receive criticism.  Not surprisingly erotica was one of the earliest forms of writing published on the net to make profits for writers. 

Fan fiction (there’s also fan art) is written by fans of specific authors for fun or as a tribute. Fan writers write continuations of famous series and works, or write stories based on the world and characters depicted in traditionally published novels or graphic novels. Fan work makes up a sizable part of online visual art and literature forums.  It’s doubtful the fan phenomenon could have grown to present proportions without the existence of creative social media. Not sure if this is a good thing or a not-so-good thing.

Writers more than any other artists have to watch being preyed upon by scammers. Some sites on- and off-line take advantage of writer’s eagerness/ desperation to be published by trying to sell them ‘editing’ or vetting services on the promise of hooking them up with agents or publishers.

Videos

Vines allows users, generally young people, to create and publish 6-second videos (including made via cell phone camera). As I mentioned in class, William Shatner had some fun with the idea of extremely short films in a recent talk. I haven’t created a vine, but I encounter other’s vines frequently on Facebook and Twitter. “Best” vines can be found on Youtube, on the Vines video website and elsewhere. They’re often smile- or cringe-inducing. http://vine-videos.com/

Youtube has been around for many years. Anyone can view youtube videos at www.youtube.com, or as links on Facebook, Twitter, blogs and more. Anyone can copy and paste the url of a video… virtually wherever they like. You must have an account to comment on other’s videos, and upload videos you have created.  In addition to countless cat videos, family videos and young musicians strumming and singing their favourite pop tunes, there is a wealth of archival film footage made available by various sources (mostly) with copyright permissions.  This includes organizations such as The National Film Board of Canada. It’s a wonderful resource for favourite film scenes and music old and new.

Music

If you or someone in your family likes to perform and record music, this is a good guide to musian’s platforms out there at present: http://www.socan.ca/content/guide-digital-music-platforms#AffectingCopyright 

Used to be that musicians could showcase their talent, keep fans up-to-date on tours and sell CDs from myspace. A few years ago, myspace inexplicably lost its popularity. You can now find many musical artists, bands using the platforms in the link above, often featured on their own or their distributors’ websites.

Youtube, is also a music platform (see above).  Music lovers can pay to download mp3 tunes or albums from itunes or join Spotify to stream music for a premium.  CBC Radio 3 has taken over “New Music Canada” which used to be a repository or ‘indie’ music (independent (garage) musicians and bands usually not signed to music contracts with big corporations):  http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists?br=1&page=1&q=&parentgenre=&genre=&f=

 Handmade Goods

Pinterest as discussed above is a great place to share recipes, crafts and home décor that suits your taste.

Etsy is a place to buy and sell handmade goods and art: https://www.etsy.com/ca/ It’s like the one-of-a-kind show online.  The idea is to shop directly from crafters, artisans and artists. There are favourites to check out, which differentiates this site from straight shopping sites. The site is divided into ‘shops’. You can register and fill your shopping cart. Sellers are rated by clients. Shipping costs are clearly stated by sellers and can be high depending on your location and the seller’s country of origin.  

Pay Pal is an easy-to-use, secure web-payment service to use when shopping online. The idea is that you do not disclose your credit card information to the seller. Only pay pal has this info and they keep it locked up tight. I haven’t heard of any Pay Pal issues, including hacks and ID theft. That’s better than shopping in the real world.

Sports

I’ve never been much of a sports fan.  But here is a list of social networks where fans can get together to talk about playing sports or following pro sport:  http://mashable.com/2007/10/20/sports-social-networks/  They all appear to be rather manly, like a trip through a series of man caves.  These networks, I’m sure, focus solely on sport played by male athletes. I was unable to find social networks devoted to fans of women’s sport, but I did find many articles (often hopeful) about bringing more attention to women in sport.

Gamers don’t spend all of their time gaming. They too have social networks, often around specific games, game player systems and game-related technology.  Women are fighting for representation on these social networks as well.  Recently threats of rape and violence were issued by males on gaming social media against women. No one has been hurt at time of writing. Legal stuff is ongoing, but the gaming related social networks are working toward total respect for women game developers and female presence.  Cosplay (dressing up as game characters for fun or competitions) is an area of gaming fandom in which both sexes receive equal representation on related social media.

Computers

The best computer software rescue forum is My Bleeping Computer. http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ This site is so good that malware have begun to include in their software instructions on evading the website. The idea is that expert moderators assist registered users with ridding malware from their hard drives. The site has also developed some excellent software for malware removal.  Do not, however, attempt to use advice given to questioners on My Bleeping Computer forums (or other computer forums) unless you have advanced skills.

CNet http://www.cnet.com/ and PCWorld http://www.pcworld.com/ are two great sites for reviews on software and hardware. They offer user review system and comments, but aren’t social media as such. I mention them here because they’re valuable resources for computer owners. Also checkout Tom’s Hardware http://www.tomshardware.com/.

Professional Networking

LinkedIn https://ca.linkedin.com/  is the biggest website for putting your professional credentials out there, and perhaps finding contracts or work. I do not have a LinkedIn page myself, but know people who use it to promote their small business, business skills and, as Steve mentioned in class, to keep in touch with former colleagues.

Facebook Pages offer space to share information about your career, business, events and achievements, to have followers and make new connections.

About.me, https://about.me/ allows you to create a single web page that advertises your skills, cause or interest and is linkable to Twitter, Facebook and other social media. I don’t have an About.me page, but know others who do. It’s for someone who doesn’t want or require a website but would like to network for professional reasons on social media.

 

Setting up your own website

A website is useful for large and small businesses, charitable and other organizations and knowledge bases.  Most individuals don’t require or want one. Facebook and Twitter often serves their needs.  

My website hosted by IX webhosting. This is the platform that I use to manage my website. My code and online content are stored there. I paid a student to create a simple (I hope elegant) space to show off my digital artwork. I use this website as a portfolio. It has four pages and I can update it easily with my limited knowledge of html. I use a free file transfer program called ‘Filezilla’ to upload content from my hard drive to the website. It has served my needs as a freelance artist and art instructor very well.

The first step in setting up a website is deciding on a host. Nowadays, your host will help you purchase (more like rent) a domain. This is the name of your website, usually the name of your business, organization or your name with a “.com” after it for businesses and a “.org” for non-profit organizations. Domains are registered and must be renewed yearly or biannually – or your domain name goes back on the market.

Like most web hosts, IX webhosting charges a nominal fee, but I’d like to think I’m getting extra services for the few bucks/month I pay. I can call IX 24/7 with questions, problems or complaints.  Most important to me: no ads appear on my website.  I felt ads would distract from the art I’m showcasing on my site.

Yes, some website hosts ask you to devote a percentage of your space to ads, which may be tailored to your site. Carrying ads should come at a lower price or greater searchability of your site.  WiX web building host http://www.wix.com/  lets you create your own website using readymade templates. It has both a free and for fee hosting services. Most webhosts offer design services for a price. You can also shop around for a freelance web designer (perhaps an IT student).  There are many web designers to choose from for a range of fees.  Consider what features your website will require, how you feel about sharing your site with ads, and your level of IT skills. Ask friends who have websites for recommendations, shop around.  

Here are reviews and comparisons of several webhosts: http://web-hosting-review.toptenreviews.com/ “Go-Daddy” was brought up in class.  Here’s a review: http://web-hosting-review.toptenreviews.com/godaddy-review.html  

Here’s a review for WiX: http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/web-designer/review-wix-website-builder/

Momiji Fall 2014 Social Media Workshop students,

It was such a pleasure to work with all of you. I applaud your desire to be more computer and internet savvy.  I have finally put up my notes for Week 3 and Week 4 notes will follow shortly. My apologies for the delay in posting this material. I hope it's a useful resource for you as you go forth and seek social media that suits your needs and interests.

Regards

M. Chown

Social Media at Momiji: Week 3

Social media is any website, forum or application that lets you store and share content (text, photos or videos), communicate with others, and/or have followers and follow others.  Beyond Facebook and Twitter there’s a social media for every interest, including, news, career/ business, music, art, photography, creative writing, technology and more.  Over the next two sessions I’ll spotlight some of the most popular. For those of you with children in your life, I’ll highlight what they’re up to on the net these days.

Most of the websites discussed in this workshop can be browsed without joining.  Join only if you want to share your content or express your thoughts.  Take your time, do some research (lurk) particularly for any site you decide to pay to join. Consider your internet footprint. While putting yourself out there may be well worth the risk, personally and/or professionally, get to know your comfort zone. 

Removing your internet footprint:

Before you become active or more active on social media, it’s worthwhile to be informed about your internet footprint and best practices (the legal stuff).  For instance, the first version of this blog was wiped out and renamed due to a rash, misinformed personal attack on my professional reputation and the reputation of supervisory staff at workplace where I’m employed part-time. I followed best practices and yet an individual was able to cause trouble for me in the ‘real world’.  The internet isn’t terribly fair. So, Google yourself, if you haven’t already.  Yahoo yourself too.  Try Facebook’s new privacy tool as well.  You can delete posts and content or close any account, but your stuff will remain searchable for at least 3 weeks and possibly forever.  This wiki-how article does a great job of describing the steps required to attempt to eliminate your internet presence (my apologies for the confusing ads contained in therein): http://www.wikihow.com/Delete-Yourself-from-the-Internet 

Google

It has become much more than just a search engine. This blog, for instance came along with my Google email account (gmail). Google+ is a social network you can personalize.  Google ‘Drive’ offers a range of free online programming for office, home and student use.  This includes Google Docs, a free document creation and sharing program, as well as a shareable spreadsheet software (similar to Window’s Excel) and much more.  Picassa is Google’s photo retouching, sharing and storage service. Most of google’s office-type services can be published to the web as a distinct page accessed by a url (which you can post in a blog, comment or status update).  Yahoo, another search engine offers email, and ‘groups’, which anyone with a yahoo.com or yahoo.ca account can open and administer for free. 

Blogs

Blogging is for those who love to write and want to share information and/or ideas about their personal or business-related interests. Most blog accounts give you the ability to personalize your page display, create posts with links, photos and videos, receive comments from readers and have followers.  Google’s “Blogger” service is just one of many free and for fee blogs available.  Technically Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr are blogs, because they function as platforms for putting your voice and interests out there in the internet ether, and for receiving feedback from followers.  Some blogging ‘hosts’ or platforms are more searchable than others, depending on the host’s blog access and/or your settings (open to all or limited) and popularity, or number of followers.  Some offer fancier options. Wordpress is the most popular and commonly used in business, often as a newsletter and to encourage feedback. Many workplaces expect employees to have at least a basic understanding of Wordpress.

News

Reddit:  This news-oriented website has on occasion made news by applying the critical minds of its users to top stories.  It is sometimes used for live Q & A sessions (ex., author Robert J. Sawyer, politician, David Soknacki). The session is advertised in advance in other social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, so that those interested can read along or join in (if they have a Reddit account). Member posts are rated on the number of responses they receive.  Reddit membership options/ privileges increase with the number of posts you write and scale of discussion they generate. Also relatively new is an option to give ‘gold’ to a poster. Gold is bitcoin, which I believe you can purchase through Reddit. I’m assuming this feature is used to support charitable or political causes.

Of course you can comment directly on articles posted on news websites, such as CTV, CBC, Fox and so on. You can also sign up for news feeds for your internet browser, which will appear on your browser home page. Twitter allows you to follow news media and/or reporters/columnists. Radio used to be the fastest news provider. Twitter now puts you with the reporter and their smartphone at the scene. For in-depth stories, magazines are available on news feeds, twitter, etc. You don’t necessarily need a subscription.  Depending on the media outlet, some are free without limitations (Huffington Post), some allow a set number of free articles per month at no charge, and others restrict select articles.  

Wikipedia

As I mentioned, you and people from across the globe can join Wikipedia and discuss, correct or even write articles, or provide photos. For this reason I include it among social media. About.com and How-it-works, as far as I know (things are always changing on the net!) hire and pay qualified contributors. Wikipedia has expanded to include dictionary and how-to websites. All you need is an email address to sign on. You will be confined to the ‘Sandbox’, that is you’ll be monitored and have limited privileges, until you learn how to format and compose on the site.

Another organically created website is the Urban Dictionary. Warning, it’s x-rated, by and for youth. Young people submit definitions to common and youth-culture words and phrases and the most liked definition rises to the top. I’m letting you know about this site, because besides being an example of crowd sourcing like wiki, it’s an up to the minute window into the often closed to adults world of today’s youth.

Photo Sharing

Tumblr, Imgur, Flickr:  Tumblr is very popular among tweens, teens and the under 25 set.  In addition to functioning like a blog, it’s a place to share and store photos and GIFs (photos often found via Google image search, animated together in short loops so that the subject repeats a usually humorous action over and over).  People on Tumblr (and elsewhere) also use graphics software, including Photoshop, to alter photos for artistic or humorous effect. This is called photomanipulation.  People share a variety of images on photo sharing sites as well as other social media like Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.  Dedicated photo sharing sites such as Flickr, have photo contests and other features attractive to shutterbugs.

Backing up your photo albums on the cloud is wise due to the real possibility loss due to weather, flood or fire.  (Backup as well on your hard drive and external storage such as thumb drives.)  Photo sharing and cloud storage also comes packaged with major operating systems, including Windows and camera software (HP and others) and via Adobe (known for its internet, office and graphics software).  Choosing the photo service that’s right for you may involve trying out a few. 

Pinterest

Pinterest is a unique website. Each person has a ‘board’ or set of pages devoted to ideas, recipes, photos, home décor, art, objects that they find interesting or beautiful. This is a forum on taste, rather than personal/ family/ work life.  You do not have to have the creative rights to items you pin on your board. For example you might display a Martha Stewart cookie recipe.  Anyone can find Pinterest images and links via google or other search engines. Only members can ‘pin’ other members’ posts to their own board. The number of pins or favourites a post receives will bring it to the top in searches. I don’t belong to Pinterest, but find it helpful resource for art and craft ideas for teaching.