Final: Where there is light, there is shadow.

3. Write a blog post that focuses on separate examples of what you feel to be both the best and the worst aspects of the internet. You are welcome to use sources from the Scoop It channels or any other sources you find to be credible. You will be expected to provide two sources for both your best and worst example. If you use a source that is not available online, you will need to cite it at the bottom of your blog post in MLA format. 

 Internet is such a wide world -- maybe greater than the real world we live in. Huge amount of people go online everyday, and a lot of information are added at the same time. I use the Internet almost everyday for research, and getting in contact with my friends. Internet is very useful and convenient that nowadays, most people do not realize the scary part. Just like we say "where there is light, there is shadow", even if the positive aspects are very visible, there are negative aspects of Internet at the same time.

 

 One of the positive aspects that I think of Internet is that we are able to access a lot of information. If there are words we do not know, just go online, and we can get the answer. For example, go to dictionary.com for definitions of words, look up in our friend wikipedia for basic information about anything, or if you want to know how to make french toasts, just type it in google, and you will get the answer. Internet is very useful, that you can access a lot of information. It makes my life easy doing research for essays and papers for school. However, as stated here, if you use the information online in the wrong way, you will definitely get the wrong outcome.

 While being able to access a lot of information can be a positive factor, it can also become a negative factor at the same time. People can research and get information about making and accessing something outlaw. There has been incidents even in the peaceful country, Japan, regarding people sending handmade bombs to other people's houses for revenge. Not only you can find the process and photos, but you can even find videos regarding how to make bombs too. Also, Internet provides address and call numbers to some Japanese yakuza offices and drug dealers. Some teenagers think it is fun to access them without realizing that they are dangerous. Being able to access a lot of information would not always lead to positive outcomes. As stated on this website, although some say it was accidental, have accessed some sites that 'kids' are not allowed. Internet may be a very useful source of a huge amount of information, but they are at the same time, a very dangerous and influential source.

Edward VIII Post Box by Pimlico Badger CC Licencing

 Another positive aspect of Internet is about being about being able to connect with your friend. By using social networking services such as facebook or mixi, you are able to find your friends easily online. One of my professors use facebook for getting in contact with his students and commenting on their works they upload. I thought that this is a very convenient way of getting in contact with a lot of people at the same time. Also, some of my friends use social networking sites such as ameba blog to find new friends with related hobbies and interests. Since her hobby was somehow 'interesting', not much of her friends in school had the same hobby. However, through social networking, she was able to find new friends. This is the 'successful' way of using social networking or Internet world, but this is only one part of examples.

 While being able to connect with friends, it is dangerous that  you are providing personal information online.  For example of facebook, a lot of people show their names, photos, school, and on. Also, My friend once told me that he is worried about using twitter. He said that "if I tweet where I am, wouldn't someone follow me like a stalker?" (It was interesting that the person who said this was a man) I thought this was true. Some people upload photos along their tweets, and that can easily show where he/she was and is there. In addition, as there are websites like this, people must remember that kids who are surfing through Internet just from curiosity are the prey for some strangers online. I remember, back in elementary school, my friends were talking about online chatting with a person named 'stranger' and they were having fun talking to them. My family did not own a computer back then so I did not understand what they were talking about, but as I think back today, I feel very scared. We must rememmber that people you interact online are not always good people.

  Since our family did not own a computer, my thoughts about internet were always 'scary' until I actually used internet for myself. I was surprised to know that there are elementary kids who are already using internet for themselfves and playing whatever games online. Recently, I feel that internet is very useful and full of great information. However, when I research about it like this, I realize that it is a dangerous world. Where there is light, there is shadow -- internet may be very useful and good, there surely are negative points about it.

Why did I even try.

Song Story ds106


Back in 2002.
I was in 4th grade.

It is 2011.
I am 19.

My greatest and darkest history.


Back then, my friends and I were really into this girls group.
called モーニング娘。 (morning musume, morning girls)

((Thinking about it now,
they were like AKB.
But a little bit different.))

I really liked them.
I don't know why.

But we were little kids.
We envied these shiny girls.

Back then, we were always talking about them.

My mother knew how much I liked them.

One day, she brings me this letter
that says that I passed the paper screening of the audition
for kids group (called Hello Project) of MorningMusume.

One of my friends who sent her paper also passed.

So.

I went to the audition.

On the letter, it said that
there is going to be singing and dancing test.
And to wear something that is easy to move.

I knew what I wanted to sing.
It was one of the newest songs they released
and I liked it very much.

However, I didn't know what to wear.

My mother told me to wear something good-looking and cute.

BUT
it said "wear something that is easy to move".

For me,
good-looking (formal) + cute (skirt) = school uniform

My mother rejected my idea.

So, I decided to wear "something easy to move"
which was

my basketball uniform.

My mother rejected again.

But I was like "No no no!"
since I heard from my grandmother that audition = battle.

And there I was.
Among all other girls who are wearing
stage costumes of MorningMusume shrunken to their size,
really frilly skirts,
cool looking pants, ...

I was there,

with my basketball uniform that says
"Jaguars 7" on front and "Kino 7" on the back.

My friends were like ".....haha"

This was the song I sang for the singing test.

I think this is a great song.
I think this song cheers you up.

However, when I listen to this song.
I remember the loneliness at the really crowded place.
I remember the cold smile on my friend's face.

But I do not regret!

It was such a great experience.
I will never forget that day.

(｀=ω=´)ゞ

Japanese is always hard.

Translate Fail
ds106


I saw quite a few people doing this assignment
so I decided to do one too.

I type in:

あなたが社長です。
（anata ga shachou desu)

You are the president.



I took this phrase from a Japanese book I bought the other day.
It looks simple.

But:

Is your president.







It's not even a complete sentence.

I wonder how this worked out.
I think it's like
あなた　＝　your
が　＝　is
社長　＝ president

and it somehow turned out like that.


I found another interesting fail.
Which is this:

やくそく　＝　suk quickly
（yakusoku, promise)


This came through when I was thinking of another sentence.

Type it in kanji, and it works fine.

Maybe the problem was with the hiragana I worked with.
So I try some words in hiragana.

They work fine.

But

doesn't change.

I understand that GoogleTranslate works with patterns of grammar,
but I couldn't understand how this worked.

GoogleTranslate is surely interesting.


(｀=ω=´)ゞ

"ToGetHer" sounds so sweet.

Valentines Alternative ds106
















The assignment was to make a Valentines card
targeted toward a particular person (real or imaginary).


My first plan was to make a card with the word "ToGetHer".
just because it sounds really nice
and it was easy to memorize the spelling back in elementary school.

I used our good old friend, Paint.

I really like Paint, just because it is really simple and easy to use.
Although some people say it's one of those crappy software,
it's really useful once you really know how to use it.

So.

At the top of the card, it says "Together Forever"
since it has to be targeted towards someone.

 Staying together forever must be hard
 unless you really love that person...
 I envy some old grannies who looks happy together.

Then there's that symbol of heart.

Below that are two circular "stuff".
They are stuck together
forever
but they look happy because they love each other.

 My first plan was to draw human boy and girl,
 but I wanted to express in the simplest form as possible.
 I thought of using stick figures too,
 but it became too simple.

The bottom Japanese line says
あいらびゅ。 "airabyu"
Short way of writing "I love you" in ro-maji.

 I chose to write it in this way because
 I thought that writing "I love you" is too formal.
 Since the circular figures are not formal at all,
 I wanted to express their looseness in this last line.



(｀=ω=´)ノ　あいらびゅ。

I might have used more than 4 icons.

the 4 icon challenge ds106



Please say that I only used 4 icons.


This assignment was to take one movie
and represent that movie in 4 simple icons.

The thing is,
I couldn't think of any movie.

The first few movies that came in mind were
all disney movies.
But I couldn't come up with any idea for icons.

I wonder how many times I asked myself:

Are you really majoring in art?


The answer is,
unfortunately,
yes.

I lack idea.

So, I decided to think differently.
Not "art",
but "how to explain".

And I came up with our good old friend,
charades.

When you play charades,
you have to be able to "show" the word in some simple actions.
I somehow thought that charades and this assignment is similar where
you have to be able to "show" the movie in some simple icons.

I playback my memory...
back in middle school...
we played charades (in class, I don't remember why)..
I drew a card...
I read, "Matrix"

Everyone got it when I did the action for the 2nd icon,
but here it is.

I hope everyone understands. haha.


(｀=ω=´)ゞ

'malware' was a new word for me.

According to our friend Wikipedia, Malware is defined like this:

Malware, short for malicious software, consists of programming (code, scripts, active content, and other software) designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, gain unauthorized access to system resources, and other abusive behavior.

First, I am not a computer kind of person.
The first computer I used was WindowsME, from 2002.
Had no idea what Apple and Mac was until high school.
My first interaction with Mac computer: last year (2010).
(didn't even know how to turn that thing on.)

This class was the first time I heard of the term "malware".

Despite the definitions on the web,
I still had a question.

What is the difference between 'malware' and 'virus'?

So I went on google,
type in
'malware virus difference'

and here it is!
Someone had the same question!

The chosen best answer:

Malware is any piece of bad software, like viruses, worms, spyware and trojans. So malware and viruses are the same thing.

Very simple and short.
I really like it!
So, if I was to take notes, I would write it down like

    Malware
      - virus
      - worms
      - spyware
      - trojans

(is this correct?)
Since I have never heard of 'malware',
I have no idea what 'worms', spyware', and 'trojans' are.
Also, I only have stereotypical image of virus (like those on dramas and movies)
so I thought I need a clear definition.

So, I go on google again!
And I find this question:

What's the difference between a virus, worm, malware, spyware, and trojan?

There was a very long, but very well-detailed answer by this person called N Smith.
I wanted to post it up here,
but this blog was going to be really long, so I'll just put the URL.

After doing some research,
I was glad that a lot of people had the same question I had.
They may have heard of these words long before me,
but I was still relieved. haha.

Malware = evil.

Malware is just another dirty word. 

haha.



Question for final exam:
-  Malware, virus, trojan, worms, spyware are basically the same thing. (true/false)
-  "Malware" is short for
     (malnutrition, warehouse) (malicious, spyware) (malicious, software) (malaria, software)



(｀=ω=´)ﾉｼ

I hope I "Haiku it up"ed.

ds106      Haiku it up


boushi

 mom will get angry.

 I'm told not to buy them, but

 ...i love them so much. 

 

← some of my hats I wear in winter.

For some reason,

I LOVE hats.

I'm somewhat addicted to them.

I don't remember when this began,

but when I realized,

I was surrounded by hats.

While my friends check out the clothes that the mannequin is wearing,
I check the hat that the mannequin is wearing.

I collected so much of them
that my mother told me not to buy them anymore.
If I buy a new one, I have to toss one away.

((I know. She is so cruel.

The assignment was to take a simple dailyshoot assignment 
and use that as an inspiration.
Since hats are always around me, 
I thought this would be a good picture (for me).

Writing haiku in English was hard.
I remember doing something similar back in elementary school,
thought it was fun,
but somehow I feel it is very hard.

Maybe this is because I already learned ways to write haiku in Japanese.
I am used to the rhythm of Japanese haiku,
and some words in English changed that rhythm.

Japanese characters each have distinct syllables,
as for English, one word can have 2 or 3 syllables.

While rereading my haiku,
I was always feeling that something is not sounding right
in the first line.

The words I use in the second and third line 
each has one syllables.
But for the word 'angry' in the first line, it has 2.

(I hope this is making some sense)

Also,
What we call haiku must have some seasonal word in it.
i.e winter: ski, snow

I thought about this before writing this blog,
but after looking at other people's works, 
I decided to submit this haiku.

In Japanese, these writings with no seasonal words are called ' senryuu ' (川柳)

Senryuu are very interesting,
because since there are no rules of seasonal words,
it can be based about anything.

I feel like I am going off topic so I guess I should end here.

I had fun doing this assignment.
...I hope I did the right thing. haha.

(｀=ω=´)ﾉｼ