Facebook: A Refined Social Experience

Throughout the history of the growth of technology there have been many innovations. These innovations disrupt the status quo, often times knocking out the forerunners of the field. We’ve seen this many times with businesses like Microsoft dominating home personal computing and Apple dominating both the MP3 player and smartphone arenas.

Humble Beginnings

Most recently this has been seen in the social networking world. It started with the early online community godfathers like Geocities (which is still surprisingly active in Japan!), which focused more on connecting people together with chatrooms or by linking email addresses.

The Era of Myspace

This style of community didn’t really change until the release of Myspace (www.myspace.com), which in itself disrupted the status quo somewhat. With Myspace you were able to make an extensively personalized profile, and by extensive, I mean extensive. You were able to change the Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) of your page, which dictates things like background colors, various images, etc. While this was very fun to do at the time, it simply was too overwhelming for new users of the site. There were people (myself included) that didn’t know how to code and just opted to have a plain-looking profile page.

A Social Networking Powerhouse

While Myspace was a very successful venture into the world of social networking, it was too complex and non-accessible for some people. You could say that it didn’t have a fully polished experience in order to continue growing a user base and retain that user base.

The introduction of Facebook really catapulted social networking into a social phenomena. Instead of being as extensively customizable as Myspace, it allowed just enough customization. Users were able to upload profile pictures, add favorite movies and videos, and follow the pages of people and ideas that were important to them.

Facebook’s ease-of-use also allows anyone and everyone to create a profile and connect with the people that they know. All that is required to create an account is basic information like an email address, phone number, date of birth, etc.

In conclusion, with over 1.59 billion users to date, Facebook’s only trajectory is to get bigger and bigger. Along with this, Facebook is constantly creating new features in order to stay on top of the social networking pile.

A Comparison of Facebook to LinkedIn

For my comparison table I chose to compare Facebook with the professional-oriented social network LinkedIn. I chose to do this mainly because as I’ve started using LinkedIn in order to better network professionally it quickly became apparent that were some very large differences between the two social networks. It was this initial stark contrast of niches between the two services that really intrigues me to find more differences and similarities between them.

Facebook		LinkedIn
Facebook is meant to be a social network for anyone and everyone. User age ranges from 13 to 70+ years old.	Target Audience	LinkedIn is definitely more geared towards industry professionals that are trying to make important networking connections.
Users can add profile and timeline photos, along with a featured photo gallery. Users can also add different interests (favorite movies, music, etc.).	Customization	Users can add profile pictures. Customization is directed more to adding relevant information for job opportunities (skills, past job experience, education, etc.).
1.59 billion registered users.	Number of Users	Over 400 million registered users.
Available through Android Play Store, Apple App Store, Windows Phone Store.	Availability	Available through Android Play Store, Apple App Store, Windows Phone Store.

References

http://techcrunch.com/2016/01/27/facebook-earnings-q4-2015/

http://blog.linkedin.com/2015/10/29/400-million-members/

Spring Break 2016

Hello everyone!

I hope everyone had a great and safe Spring Break. It’s definitely good to be back to the grindstone and being productive. I unfortunately wasn’t able to do any traveling for the duration of the break, mostly in part to having to go to work.

If I were to summarize my Spring break into one word that word would be reconnection. II was able to see and spend time with relatives that I haven’t been able to in the past, either because I was busy with school or work or they weren’t in town.

First of all,  my grandparents who usually come to El Paso around once every couple of years were actually in town!

A big part of why I’m so grateful to be able to see my grandparents this year was that I’ve realized that the older I become the more I wanted to get to know them. Unfortunately I feel that when I was younger I honestly never cared about getting to know any of my family members.

Family gatherings were simply a place to have some food while my parents talked to everyone. The younger I was the more disconnected I felt, especially with the older members of my family (especially my grandparents). There was no middle-ground. They never really understood the things people from my generation liked in just the same way that I didn’t understand things liked by their generation.

Thankfully, the older I became the more I began realizing that they were human too, which definitely made it easier to relate to everyone. This most recent family gathering was by far the easiest. It was awesome to me to be able to actually ask them meaningful questions, like how it was like when they were growing up or when they were working. I also was able to receive hilarious life advice from my grandfather, who is just as rambunctious as he’s ever been.

My Awesome Grandparents

The other person that I was able to see over Spring Break was my dad. He transferred to Arizona about a year and a half ago for work so we haven’t really been able to see him. Luckily he took a week of vacation time which perfectly coincided with our break.

We were able to hang out and catch up, play family board games, and even do mini projects to fix the house, which included painting some rooms. He’s set to retire in August so I can’t wait to be able to spend time like this in the future.

All in all, I’d say that this Spring Break was one of the best. I’ve learned that with major breaks from school like this you don’t necessarily have to go far to find a vacation. All is needed is that you’re with the people that you love and care about.

What I've learned from the Lecture Group Project

We’re a couple of weeks into the lecture group project for Eng 211 and I have to admit, I honestly never thought it would go this well.

First of all, during my entire school career I have never been someone that enjoys group works / projects. Especially during high school (and I’m sure everyone has experienced this) they were always just so disorganized. There were no clear assigned roles, so you would have the people that would take the initiative and try to complete a majority of the work, leaving everyone else to try and catch up.

This in turn would create at least one or two (if you were unlucky) freeloaders that would always mess around, not contributing anything, and still expect a good grade out of it and pretty much all of the time that is what would happen.

Lets face it, we've all been either of these people at least once.

These experiences would put me in a dismal mindset and it was with this mindset that I began the group project for this class. I didn’t expect any work to get done in a timely manner. I expected I would have to worry if the content was good enough; that we wouldn’t creatively mesh well together, which would just increase the stress on the group. All of these factors would in my opinion create an almost hostile work environment.

Thankfully, I’m pleased to say that these past couple of weeks have totally flipped this mindset around. My project team are very hard workers and make sure that every part that needs to be done is done before the deadline, which a huge relief.

We fully utilize Google Hangouts in order to communicate, which is very convenient because I get my notifications on my phone. Along with this we have made good use of both Google Docs and Google Slides in order to collaborate on our collaborative blog post and lecture slideshow, respectively. I have to admit that without these tools there’s a possibility that the work we’ve done so far wouldn’t have gone nearly as smoothly as they have.

In conclusion, this entire project has been a great experience. I enjoy the hard-working group that I get to work with, and I’ve enjoyed not having to worry about meeting deadlines and having that added stress.

I’m also grateful that i was able to learn two important things about creating an effective work group. These are:

• Learn to communicate quickly, effectively, and consistently. Communication is key when it comes to group projects. Try to provide updates on portions of the project at least every couple of days, and increase these updates the closer your group gets to the deadline.
• Collaborate whenever possible. No one should be expected to single-handedly complete a project of this scale alone. Besides, three heads are always better than one.

If you are able to do these two things, the completion of your project will be smooth and painless, allowing you to create something great.

How to Be a Better College Student

Alejandra Delgado, Jerica Gomez, and Christopher Hinojosa

The transition from high school to college can be one of the most daunting that someone can make. In some aspects, they are exactly the same. You have to go to class, finish homework, and study for exams. The thing about college however, is that the stakes are raised exponentially. Your performance in college will dictate the money you make and the career you get.

We’ve all heard the old saying “C’s get degrees”, but in reality this is far from the truth. Realistically speaking, employers are always going to choose a candidate that has a higher GPA because it shows them that you are a competent and hard worker. For these reasons, we have chosen to write this blog and our lecture project about how to become a better college student in order to maintain a high GPA and grow a stronger work ethic.

Jerica - My tips to becoming a better college student including taking your first semester seriously. It’s hard to adjust to the difference of being in highschool and having your hand held once you enter college you are all on your own, it's up to you to take the initiative to do your assignments and to turn them in on time. Professors are there to teach you its up to you if you want to learn. I’ve been in college for a while now and even the little things we didn’t think mattered that much our first few semester come back later when you're trying to get accepted into a program that is very competitive and you tried your best.

My second tip is to use your time wisely. Time management is probably the most important part of being a successful student. We are all busy in our crazy lives outside of school it's important to make time for the assignments and studying we have to do for school. Setting aside a specific time for school work such as studying and doing homework will be beneficial to you because you get to learn the material at your own pace and can be ahead of the game by not having to rush at the last minute.

My third tip is being organized, organization can make all the difference especially if you are taking multiple classes. I personally use different binders for each class with dividers and tabs separating the different kinds of assignments. Using a planner to  lay out your schedule of when your assignment are due and other kinds of techniques to keep yourself organized is the a great tip to be a successful college student.

My last tip to being a successful college student is to have a good support system. We need to surround ourselves with people who want the best of us and want us to succeed, and try our best not to have people who want to push you away from your future to go out and have fun. We all need a little fun in our lives but we have to put what's most important first and having fun come after.

Chris - During my first year at DACC, I was kind of just “winging it”. Whenever we had upcoming assignments I would never write them down, opting to just try to remember them and hope for this best. This would often result in me getting bad grades on quizzes that I would forget to study for.

My current home screen, showing my upcoming assignments.

To combat this, I did some research and realized that I can import my Canvas calendar into my Google Calendar. After this I was able to create a Google Calendar widget on my phone and put it on my home screen so whenever I unlock my phone my agenda of homework is easily view-able.

Along with this, my second tip to become a better college student would be to print out your syllabus’, hole punch them, and then place them into a binder so they are easy to access. This has saved me from having to take the time to log into Canvas, navigate to the class in question, and then click the link to the PDF copy of the syllabus.

Alejandra- I’m a near finishing junior at Arrowhead Park Early College High School, and have been going to DACC classes for two semesters. I’m still not very amazing at it. But I have pulled a few trips out of the little experience as a Duel Credit Student I have.

Number One, DO NOT IGNORE THE WORK. It is not like the rest of the high school classes, you have to keep track of assignments and do the work. The professors are different from high school teachers, and will expect you to pull the same weight as the adults. Let them and your classmates know that you and other kids your age can pull that weight. I have definitely faulted that a few time, and realized how horrible an idea it was. Not only does it project a poor image, it sends your grades spiraling downwards, and that is really hard to repair.

Number Two, spend your free periods wisely. The off-campus college classes are often at different times than the LCPS school schedule, so you’ll have some free time. And yeah, it’s okay to take a little time to talk, there’s also a lot of work to do so that you can graduate with a HS diploma and an Associate’s degree. Spending two or three class periods between classes gossiping and messing around can not only get you in trouble with campus security, but also with your grades.

In conclusion, it's not difficult becoming the best college student you can be. It takes hard work, hours of dedication, and a strong work ethic. We had a great time creating this blog post and lecture, and we hope that the tips we have given you help you get the degree and job that you are working towards.

Chris’ Blog: http://chrish67.blogspot.com/

Alejandra’s Blog: http://acdn240662.blogspot.com/

Jerica’s Blog: http://jericasadventures.blogspot.com/