Hi, my name is Ashley!

Thursday, March 12, 2015

3D Printing

An immersive education summit is an event that take place ever year in different parts of the world. This year, in 2015 it is taking place in Paris, France. Immersion 2015 is a conference like event that will include many famous speakers. These speakers include: Walt Disney, Microsoft, Google, The Smithsonian Institution, and other world- class organizations. The topic that will be presented at this event include: holograms, 3D Printing, game-based learning, virtual reality and personal robotics. For more information on Immersion 2015, held in Paris this year please visit this website: Click Here!

3d Printing is a very complex and complicated innovative process that could possibly change technology forever. First you must select an image that you would like to become 3D. Then a computer scans the image in three dimensions. The program that is used then cuts the file into layer upon layer of two dimensional images. These layers are put together to make the image three dimensional. The final product makes the layers undetectable by the end of the process.

3D Printing is an amazing thing, but it is not very affordable. First of all if you want a 3D printer in your home it costs up to $200,000. Some offices use 3D printing, warehouses use them for mass production. This is very new technology that I feel will be very useful in the future.

Something I find very cool that we use for 3D printing is that it's use to make prosthetic limbs. I recently read an article about a dog who was born without two front limbs. It initially used a wheelchair, but they created prosthetic limbs using 3D Printing. 3D Printing has also been used to give an Eagle a new beak so it can survive. I think they can use this type of 3D printing in such an amazing way.

Here is an image of Derby and his new legs!

Here's a cool video of a 3D Printer in action!

Apple Watch

Over the years, Apple has made great technological advances. I remember when computers had first been put into schools, the was mac computers and the were these big, blue bubbles that took up so much space and now, I have a small laptop that does just as much, if not, more than the big, blue bubbles used to and i can carrying mine around with me. Apples new technology that is sure to wow everyone is called the "Apple Watch", which is due to release April 24 of this year, 2015. This is the first wearable product that Apple has come up with. Everything that you could think you need is placed simply on your wrist to wear throughout the day making it super convenient. You never have to worry about where you put your phone down last and worrying about missing that important phone call or alert, it's all right there on your wrist. You'll never have to worry about being embarrassed when your phone vibrates on the table during a business meeting because the Apple Watch alerts you by tapping your wrist. The tap is very simple and alerts only you and not your entire conference.

Apple is such an innovative company and always seems to come up with ideas before any other company has had the chance to. I think the reason people like apple products so much is because them make them very straight forward and easy to use so anyone of any generation can use their products with ease. People also like the idea of having everything they need right at hand whether it be on their computer, at the hand or on their wrist.

The Apple Watch comes with so many awesome features that a normal watch would never come with. It can make and receive, calls, texts, emails and you can even facetime. It's like a mini phone on your wrist. It does these things by connecting with your Iphone, but you need to have the Iphone 5, 5c, 5S, 6, or 6+ in order to pair it with your phone. If your pair it with your phone it will make an receive the same notifications.

The Apple Watch also comes with many other features. These other features include a camera, music, photo library, stop watch, timer, alarm clock, weather, Siri, maps, apple pay, passbook, fitness pal and most obvious, a clock.

Using this awesome watch you can stay connected with your friends at all times. In order for you to get the same notifications on the watch that you receive on your phone they must be connected. Once they are connected your contacts, photos and music will be synced. You can interact with your friends by tapping on their contact, drawing an image, and sending it their way. Once they receive the image they can draw one back and send it your way as well. I thought that feature was pretty fun!

Here's an awesome video of the Apple Watch in action!

Virtual Reality - Google Cardboard

To use Google Cardboard you first have to download the app and the split screen view then combines into a 3D image when held up to your eyes. Once you get Google Cardboard you then fold your phone inside.You can move your head around and the images will act and move as if your are actually in that place.

A couple of awesome things about this product and it's design is that is super cheap and super easy to use. It takes no special instructions and even for those people who can never seem to get along with technology, but would like to enjoy the experience of a virtual world. This product must be used with a specific app in order for it to function.

How does the product work? With just a few easy steps you'll be in a virtual world in no time! First, Get the specially designed app that was talked about above. Then fold the cardboard and place your phone inside, then hold is up to your eyes. You can use Google Cardboard anywhere, whether you're on a hike in the wilderness or still at home in bed. You can access a virtual world at any time of your choosing and it's an awesome way to take some time to yourself and escape reality. The best part about this product that I really like is that it's cheap! Anyone can afford it! And a plus, it's so easy to use!

Here's a video demo using Google Cardboard!

Holograms - Microsoft Hololens

The Microsoft Hololens is an innovative way of learning, working and playing through the lens of 3D goggles. The goggles show images the wearer can see, everyone else will just the they're wearing really goofy glasses. By adding this to an immersive learning environment it can be a very fun and safe way to learn.

In the 3D Immersive environment it helps that the wearer of the goggles can also see the real world around while viewing the 3D image. The world around the wearer of the glasses is enhanced by what he or she wants to see. For example, if they are working on building a motorcycle. The wearer of the glasses can manipulate the motorcycle however he or she wants, but only the wearer of the glasses can see the motorcycle. It may not physically be there in the real world the the wearer of the goggles can manipulate it.

Microsoft Hololens is a very interactive technology rather than just being all visual. Although it is great for 3D/Hologram use there is a lot more that it can do. It can be very useful in the workplace where someone can use it to suggest new ideas and share them with each other. This photo below shows what it would be like if someone were actually using the goggles. It shows what the wearer would see. In this case the wearer is using the goggles to access all of his favorite applications including Netflix. This shows that one can use the goggle to view his or her favorite TV shows and movies as well. Navigating through the applications as your would on your computer or laptop, but you would use your finger instead. Hololens does this by projecting the images right in front of you.

This product, the Microsoft Hololens is the future, not just for personal use. The future of learning, and working as well. This can be used for visual and hands on learning so students who are visual learners, like myself can learn easier. Instead of students reading through paragraphs and paragraphs of instructions, or listening to 30 minute long audios of instructions, Hololens can show the step by step process right in front of the student, which will help them focus on the task at hand.

Here is a video of how the Microsoft Hololens works!

Class 6, Assignment 9

This article talked about a lot of different things that had to do with technology and culture and the effect they have on people. It talks about how avatars and 3D worlds will create and 4th stage of identity, which will be called "The Distributed Self".

What stood out to me the most was when it talked about how people who participate in 3D worlds or use avatars coordinate multiple personalities, which consists of their physical self and two virtual personalities. This interests me because it makes me think about how this generation is so unhappy with the self image that they feel the need to hind behind avatars in virtual worlds. Many people go online to virtual worlds and create avatars that are nothing like themselves, but rather what they believe will be accepted by other people.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

GIMP TOOLS

This is the use of the rectangle selection tool. I filled it with a salmon color.

This is the use of the ellipse selection tool. I filled it with a purple color.

This was the use of the lasso tool. I drew a heart and filled with with an aqua color.

This is the use of the stroke tool I demonstrated it on the heart. I was able to only color inside the lines of the heart using the stroke with paint tool.

This is my other use of the stoke tool. This time I drew a heart and the used stroke line instead of stroke with paint and filled it in yellow.

Here is the final product after using the selections tools.

Paste Into:

This is my attempt with paste into. First I made a selection and then I right clicked and went to edit-paste into.

This is wheat i go when that happened. I notice the whole picture doesn't show and it doesn't fir the picture to the selection. I was able to move the picture around to get the parts I wanted to show.

This is the final product when exported as a PNG.

Transparency (opacity):

This is me using opacity with layers in GIMP. I chose a base picture.

Then opened this second picture as a new layer and change the opacity of the layer

This is the final product after being exported as a PNG.

Text:

This is experimenting with text, size, color, and opacity. Each time I made the text a different word, size, color and opacity. They are positioned on top of each other so it is easier to tell the difference between the capacities of the 5 words.