My flash project is done, in terms of layout and outline, however it is very boring since I did not put any button effects or music. Hopefully, during tutorial I will be able to finish and add effects to make it more interesting.

The finished product:

How Has SMASH Affected You?

What’s in a name? Behind every person and their name is a story and an explanation to go with it. In the dictionary on Encarta, a name is defined as a word, term, or phrase by which somebody or something is known and distinguished from other people or things. This definition, in my opinion, is true to some extent; however, I think a name defines much more than this. A name IS a word, term or phrase that defines one from another, however, it also tells a story and describes the person as well. After learning some basic techniques about Photoshop in class, we started on a journey to make a montage about what represented us and set us apart as an individual.

When you hear the name Sojung Diana Park, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Some people may say “Princess Diana” or “the Roman goddess Diana”, while others say my name reminds them of a community park. Ironically, all of these first impressions connect and define me in one way or another.

When first hearing my name, the Princess Diana of Whales is one of the first things that may come to mind; although we are not much alike, i guess both of us have common traits. Like any other girl, I love to go shopping, play dress up, get my nails done and of course, pretend that I’m a princess. I like to get dressed up for no reason and one of my favorite colors is pink. The Disney princess on my montage is a picture of Sleeping Beauty, who is my favorite Disney princess; which is ironic because as a child, I used to sleep 13-14 hours a day. Most princesses sleep in big castles with lots of places in the castle to go to, such as their royal chambers or the library. I, however, prefer to go to the park.

The park, also associated with my name, is like my second home – I love going to the park to have crazy pancake and pizookie piñata parties with my friends, spend time with my sisters, or simply to just take a walk to think about different aspects of my life. Whatever the reason, the park is a place I visit regularly. The background image in my montage is a picture of a park at sunset. It is a picture of the sunset, which also shows that I love photography and finding beauty in everyday things. Other than the park, people also think of the goddess Diana when first hearing my name.

The goddess Diana is generally known as the goddess of hunting, often depicted with a bow and arrow in one hand, as shown on the bottom of my montage. Such as the goddess Diana, I also enjoy archery and it is one of my favorite hobbies; the only difference is that I do not hunt. I have been part of the junior archery team at Stanford University where I have met many new people. Archery is not only a hobby, but it is also a lifestyle. Many believe that archery is an easy “sport”, however, nothing comes without struggle. On the bottom right of my montage is a picture of me shooting with my bow. On the other side, is a picture of me playing lacrosse, my other favorite sport. I used to play on a team and enjoyed it very much since it was such a great stress-reliever, loving all aspects of the sport including the conditioning. Although I do not play as much anymore due to complications with my knee, I still put the picture on my montage because lacrosse will always be a big part of my life.

Alongside archery and lacrosse, music is another big part of my life, which is why I put music on top of my background. I fell in love with music at the age of four when my mom first introduced me to the violin. Form then on, I started to take up other instruments such as the alto saxophone, the bassoon, flute, and others, as shown around my page. Music is one of the ways I use to express myself and to have fun. I also enjoy listening to music as much as I like producing it, however. I can be found listening to everything from classical music to Korean music to alternative and indie genres.

As mentioned earlier, there is a picture of me shooting my bow. If one looks closely, I am actually aiming for the stars at the top right corner of my montage. Each of these stars represents a part of me. The first star is a star with part of the South Korean flag in it; this represents my heritage since both of my parents are from S. Korea. Next is a star-shaped flag of the USA, where I am currently living in. Below that is the flag of California and next to that is a flag of Arkansas. As one may have noticed, these four countries/states are in stars that each represents a dream I have for that region that I am aiming for (Pun intended). In Korea, because of the excessive amount of people living there, is very polluted. One dream I have to somehow come up with a plan and solution to try and reduce some of this pollution. Next up is a personal dream I have that I want to achieve in the United States: I want to be on the Junior USA Archery Team. This, I think, is one the more achievable dreams that I have since I am already ranked as #2 in my age group in the United States already. I only hope that as junior year approaches, I will be able to balance and manage my time so that I can achieve my dream before senior year. Next comes Arkansas, which was the first state I lived in when I came to the States. Although I did not realize it then, living in Arkansas taught me how not to take things and people for granted and to enjoy them while living each day to the fullest. Being in the country, everything was slow and easy-going, and most people were relaxed and did not have to face the stress that most people experience while living in larger cities. Because materials and other things were limited, people were able to appreciate everything they had in life. Unlike in California, where most people are worried about money and other material things, people in Arkansas, at least in my neighborhood, lived for the joys that each day brought, such as the satisfaction of talking and smiling at a stranger as they passed. Someday, although it is almost impossible, I hope to bring this type of atmosphere to California. Living in the Silicon Valley, prices of everything are higher and many of the people only care about the money. I think people should not work 80 hours a day, but instead should enjoy every single day with their loved ones. I hope that one day, the fad of being materialistic will go away.

The final things I have left to explain on my montage is my name. The writing in the top left corner is my name in Korean. My Korean name simply means innocent, honest, and clear like the stream, which is why I put the picture of the angel praying next to my lacrosse picture. I think this describes me pretty well, although I have been corrupted by the society (but who hasn’t)? My English name is Diana, which is written in the middle. All the letters are written in different styles to show my crazy self and to show how unpredictable I am. The D in Diana is written on a brown background because one of my favorite colors is brown. Next is an information sign that represents the “I” in my name. I like to volunteer and help mentally retarded people and other disadvantaged people, so I sometimes consider myself as an information booth from where people can receive help. Next is a stencil of an “a” which represents the neat freak in me. I like to be neat and perfect. Following the “a” is the “n”, which is written in colorful circles. I think I am a bright person with a bright personality. I also love bright colors which is why I picked that image. Finally, the last letter in my name is an a. I chose to put a ladder to represent the “a” because I am short and I sometimes need a ladder or stool to reach things. I may be short, but I believe I can stand tall in this world and achieve my goals and dreams. I hope that through this montage, you have learned many new things about me.

WOW. That was long.

Today in technology, we went on Second Life and made an account. There, we edited our avatars to match our appearances as closely as possible in 3600 seconds. By the end of the 3600 second, I was able to replicate some features, although I ran out of time. This is what I finished with:

As one can see, it does not resemble me very much; though I think the body shape and hair color are similar. It was very hard to make the face of the avatar resemble my own.

The first thing I started to edit was the first thing on the list – which was the head portion. However, I noticed that the head portion was very hard to replicate; so I started on my body shape instead, starting from the feet up. Because most people’s body shape are usually very similar to each others, it was easy to edit my body. The options were general and there weren’t many combinations available.

After working on my body shape, I started to work on my head and face. These features were very hard to replicate, I think, because everyone is different and generally do not look alike. I think it would be hard to generalize these features into a couple of options because there are so many different people with different colors, sizes, shapes, etc. So it was very hard for me to pick and combine these preset facial features to resemble my own. Although I spent the longest time on editing my head portion, I still was not able to get the combinations exactly right, and in my opinion, my avatar does not resemble me at all (which is why my screen shot is not zoomed in).

After working on my head portion, I started working on my clothes and shoes. These were easy to duplicate and was fun at the same time. Overall, I had to modify over 100 features. There were so many choices and things to change and modify to make my avatar. However, I don’t think the 100`s of features second life provides is enough. I think there should be more choices for facial feature and hair. For example, many people have side-swept bangs, such as I do.

Media. What exactly is media? Media can be expressed though text, audio, videos, images, and other interactive ways. It can be used to relay a wide variety of information including advertisements and current events. Most people rely on media these days to learn of everyday events that go on around the world. Broadcast radio and television account for a substantial portion of where people get their news, information, and entertainment. Media has the power to influence what we see and hear about certain world events thereby shaping our perceptions of various happenings and, in many ways, society itself. So as a result, media has a tremendous influence on our lives.

The media I come in contact with most is music and the internet. As a child, I did not watch a lot of television, movies, videos, ect., as I lived I Arkansas. The countryside I lived in was very remote and so as a result, our house did not receive good TV reception. If the children in our community were lucky, an adult would drive us 30 minutes to get to the nearest town to rent a video. Then, back at home, we would all gather and watch the same video repeatedly. I remember the video we watched the most was Mary Poppins. Of course, internet, music, and newspapers were available, however, as a child, I had no interest in those areas.

It was not until I was in fourth grade, when I moved to California, that I became more involved in different types of media. I saw many billboards, advertisements, television, and many other things that were not as widely available in Arkansas. In elementary school, I also became involved in games such as Neopets and Pokemon, and started to listen and download different types of music (legally of course). These last few years, I have had more experience and meetings with different types of medias including magazines such as CosmoGIRL, television shows such as The O.C., AIM, e-mail, the newspaper, Youtube, and internet sites such as Facebook. These interactions have led me to become even more involved in media and have a wanting to know more (which is one reason I joined this class).

Of course, in society nowadays, one cannot be shielded from the media, which is reflected in the way people are affected by the media, since not all media is good. In general terms, the media influences people through effectively deciding what they see and hear. Teenagers are, to a degree, the most vulnerable, because (with all due respect) teenagers lack the same degree of life experience that adults and senior citizens have. I think the media could, in theory, have a stronger influence over teenagers simply because they are less able, through such inexperience, to discern what is and is not worth paying attention to and taking seriously. This makes it even more important that teenagers strive to be active consumers of media and not merely passive viewers and listeners.

Although media could be classified as bad, media can also be used as an agent of positive change in a community. Even a simple website created by amateur creators can provide valuable information, inform, and communicate with the society.

Whichever media is, good or bad, it is everywhere. We will see media as we take a walk, ride a car, fly on an airplane..everything. Next time you go outside, I challenge you to see how many different types of media you can identify.