HTML's not so bad...

My first real experience with HTML came during 504 last summer. I am certainly still a novice, however, to this point find HTML fairly easy to work with and not intimidating. Of course, I'm basing this on the very simple websites we've been required to produce to this point, so my rosy assessment could quickly change if future assignments involve complicated HTML coding. But, so far at least, I'm having some fun with it.

This week I focused on reviewing the Powerpoint from 504, and followed it in creating my unit 6 web page (which looks quite similar to my 504 page). So far in SIRLS, I've been required to produce a web page about every 6 months. This is often enough to remember some basics, but too infrequent to become comfortable with the process - particularly in posting them to the U-System account. I'm sure DigIn will afford many future opportunities to create websites, so the process will undoubtedly become more familiar. Right now, for some reason, I always lack confidence that the transfer of files to the U-System account will go smoothly, and fear the page will be missing elements that are present when viewing the document during creation. Images, especially, I'm afraid won't be transferred properly and I'll be left with a page full of the dreaded "X" symbol.

I also viewed lessons from the w3schools.com website. These are helpful, easy to understand, valuable for reinforcing what I already know, and present new concepts in a manner that is accessible to the layperson. So far I'm sticking to the basic lessons, but plan to revisit the more advanced ones as we proceed through the course. A couple little things surprised me. For instance, future versions of HTML won't allow you to skip certain end tags that can be missing now (although it's not recommended). This only surprised me because I imagined rules might become more flexible as the code evolved, not less. Also, I'm still not clear on the differences between HTML, XHTML, and XML. From what I've seen, the code for each looks fairly similar. I believe XML prioritizes data content over style, although this is certainly an oversimplification.

Someday there will be a pill for this...

During the 2009 winter break I read Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. I have a BA in History (with an emphasis on Ancient Greece) with a Classics minor, so I've read a lot of books like this over the years. Yet I distinctly recall, after finishing the 1500 page volume, holding it closed in my hands and asking myself, "How much of this do you remember?" Of all those pages, what I clearly recall could probably be reduced to 10 pages. All that information, and I likely retained only 1/150th of it - a paltry, and depressing, amount.

But I guess all learning is like that. What we recall is often infinitesimal compared to what we actually encounter. Memories of travel will help illustrate my point. I've been fortunate to visit 21 countries so far, and hope to explore many more, yet if the sum of my memories were transferred onto a DVD, the total running time would be only a couple of hours. Fleeting bits of this; pieces of that. And many still shots.

I enjoyed the Felder and Soloman article because I saw elements of myself in each learning style presented. As they mention, most people incorporate multiple styles in their quest for knowledge. In the above examples, my BA was accomplished primarily through reading, while travel promotes learning by seeing and doing. Although I'm comfortable with various learning strategies, I identify most closely with the reflective-sensing-visual-sequential combination.

The information presented in unit 5 (like many of our units) incorporated visual, verbal, and active learning styles. I especially liked the Warriors of the Net video, which enhanced my understanding of the material through a fun visual presentation. The lecture itself was clear and understandable, as were most of the Wikipedia articles. However, while I never felt lost in the lecture, several of the Wikipedia articles went beyond my current level of understanding. Felder and Soloman suggest that most people learn best with a combination of visual and verbal strategies, and I think the material this week supports their hypothesis. I do, however, look forward to the day when scientists develop a pill which "downloads" information directly into our brains. Imagine learning a new language by simply swallowing a pill! Of course, "downloading" Greek will have predictable side effects including headache, flushing, and delayed back ache. And, if Greek gives you an erection lasting more than four hours, you should see your doctor immediately.

A little information is dangerous...

Thanks to concise and efficient instructions, this week's configuration of users and groups went smoothly. As I reported last week, I have yet to encounter any major installation obstacles (fingers crossed hoping this continues). I was expecting to be able to logout of the TightVNC terminal and login as a different user (like in VM), but understand why this isn't possible. I still prefer GUI platforms for most applications, although I found some value in the CLI this week.

My issue is not with following directions, or installing applications. My issue is the shallow level of understanding I have for all the things we've done to this point. I comprehend the basics of CLI, permissions, commands, VPN, VMware, etc. but lack the confidence that comes with a depth of understanding. Translating the permissions, for example, is still giving me a bit of trouble. I need to spend more time looking at those, but my angst does not end there.

Today is Sunday... I completed the assignments for this unit on Thursday, and already I have to look back at screens and notes to remember what each of the 3 methods even looked like. It reminds me of the kind of haziness one experiences when thinking back to vacations taken as a child, except this was only 3 days ago! So I'm frustrated that I'm not remembering things with more clarity. Practice will help (something I said two weeks ago), but each week presents new information and challenges and I'm not sure I'll ever feel on top of the content. There's an element of fear in this because I don't want to get behind. I apologize if this post is slightly off-topic from the blog instructions for the week, but this sense of anxiety is my primary and overriding concern right now.

Bargaining - the third stage of grief

I hesitate to mention this for fear of jinxing my good luck, but so far all my downloads and installations have worked to perfection. In addition, I'm pleased to report that I have encountered no issues when following the assignment directions, and each command and process presented by Prof. Fulton has worked as advertised. This has been a boon to my 672 morale, as I was quite concerned at the outset about possible system crashes and software failures. Ironically, the only computer problem I've had is with the display driver which, despite a recent update, continues to occasionally fail leaving my screen black and the mouse inoperable.

The CLI commands continue to provoke the most frustration - not because they don't work, but because remembering all of them seems impossible. I mention in my discussion post that I'm still not sure which commands to prioritize, but it may be a non-issue. Continued practice makes each more memorable, and I'm sure practice will likewise reveal which commands are most useful and ubiquitous. At least I'm losing my fear of the command line, which I consider a minor victory.

I enjoyed the VIM tutorial, and was fascinated by how powerful a few simple commands could be. After studying the tutorial, I understand for the first time why CLI advocates believe commands are faster than using a GUI. Of course, I realize the point of the course is not to persuade us to use CLI in our everyday computing, but I am slowly developing a greater appreciation (acceptance?) for CLI. As I alluded to above, however, most of the tutorial commands have already evacuated my short-term memory. Undoubtedly, additional practice will be required to use them proficiently. The hidden files interest me and I find myself asking, "What are they hiding?" Unless I'm missing something, we still haven't opened many files, so I remain curious about their content. For instance, how are text files presented upon opening? In a word-processor type format like Word, or in the same environment that the tutorial utilizes?

The configuration went smoothly although some of it, like the alias', I'm unsure when I'll use. I don't recall consciously configuring a computer before, although I must have each time a got a new one. Perhaps, because I would have used a GUI, I was unaware that my actions qualified as "configuration". In any case, the step-by-step instructions were easy to follow and worked.

All told, everything has worked well during the first three weeks. My biggest question remains, "What relevance does all this have to my future career as a librarian/archivist?" Apparently the answers to such questions will be revealed over the next few weeks, and I anxiously await the coming revelation.