A lot of thoughts went through my head seeing Capstones this past Friday. I know I need to bring my "A" game to it next year because this is it, this the last thing I will do at the collegiate level and I need to make sure I leave my mark and make a good impression on future employers, if there are any there that night. I discovered a lot of blood, sweat, and tears go into Capstones and you have to give it your all.
I found it helpful because I got to talk to different people who were presenting and it gave me an insightful look into how people approached Capstones. It was a good thing to go and have a look to see what everybody did.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Capstone Interviews
At Capstone Night yesterday, I interviewed three people there. They were Xian Guan, Lawrence Marshall, and Nate Moody. Here is a recap of what they said.
Xian Guan, Character Modeler
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
She wanted to be a character artist, so she decided to model and texture two high detailed characters for her portfolio.
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
She was going to do 3, but didn’t have enough time, so she had to drop one. She was also going to texture the clothes, but ran out of time, so she put a maya procedural texture on instead.
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
She said it was alright, but she had to overshoot her timeline, so she wouldn’t finish it, but would still get a lot done.
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
She wanted to have a layout made, so she could spend time more correctly and waste less time. If she had a layout, she would of spent more time getting a better pose of the characters for the scene.
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Start now, watch out for scope creep.
Lawrence Marshall, Stereoscopic Scenes
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
I wanted an opportunity to try and use all the different skills I have learned in the master's program.
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
Originally I planned on shooting one 20 second short. Because I used one camera to shoot in stereo, I was very limited in what kinds of shots were possible. I split it into two small videos so that I could cover all the different skills and focus on playing to different strengths.
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
I never bothered with the timeline. There were a few blind alleys that I went down. Quite a bit of my project involved experimentation and incorporating what I discovered along the way.
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
A stereo rig would have allowed me to do more interesting things.
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Having done capstone as an undergrad where I started two years ahead of time and a grad where I started 9 months out, time is everything. That being said having the vision to work so far ahead requires a lot of thought. It also rules out skills you may pickup in the intervening time period.
Nate Moody, Graphic Novel
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
Expand storytelling skills
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
Not many
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
It's a guideline and good way to gauge progress
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
More physical things
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Do something you're familiar with
Xian Guan, Character Modeler
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
She wanted to be a character artist, so she decided to model and texture two high detailed characters for her portfolio.
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
She was going to do 3, but didn’t have enough time, so she had to drop one. She was also going to texture the clothes, but ran out of time, so she put a maya procedural texture on instead.
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
She said it was alright, but she had to overshoot her timeline, so she wouldn’t finish it, but would still get a lot done.
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
She wanted to have a layout made, so she could spend time more correctly and waste less time. If she had a layout, she would of spent more time getting a better pose of the characters for the scene.
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Start now, watch out for scope creep.
Lawrence Marshall, Stereoscopic Scenes
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
I wanted an opportunity to try and use all the different skills I have learned in the master's program.
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
Originally I planned on shooting one 20 second short. Because I used one camera to shoot in stereo, I was very limited in what kinds of shots were possible. I split it into two small videos so that I could cover all the different skills and focus on playing to different strengths.
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
I never bothered with the timeline. There were a few blind alleys that I went down. Quite a bit of my project involved experimentation and incorporating what I discovered along the way.
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
A stereo rig would have allowed me to do more interesting things.
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Having done capstone as an undergrad where I started two years ahead of time and a grad where I started 9 months out, time is everything. That being said having the vision to work so far ahead requires a lot of thought. It also rules out skills you may pickup in the intervening time period.
Nate Moody, Graphic Novel
1. Why did you choose this for your capstone project?
Expand storytelling skills
2. What are some of the changes that you had to make between your original idea and what you are presenting today?
Not many
3. What is your opinion of the timeline for your capstone? Was it helpful or a waste of time? Why?
It's a guideline and good way to gauge progress
4. If you could change anything about your capstone, what would that be?
More physical things
5. What advice would you give me in planning for my capstone?
Do something you're familiar with
Monday, October 8, 2012
Timeline
My timeline was built around me, putting a month of time to building each portion of the level. I really don't have any time to rest in between each section. The good thing is that the demo reel doesn't need to be made, but I'm doing it for extra practice and it will also be a good way to show detail in some objects.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Peer Capstone Support Group
I am making a video game in 3D using maya, photoshop, and the unreal engine for my capstone or at least attempting to. I know there were people who wanted to make a game for there capstone, but it sounded like most of them were going to be in flash. If there are 3D people or game people, I would love to partner up with them and bounce ideas back and forth.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Look at the big picture outside yourself
I was partnered Luago Kasberg and we shared ideas and what the other person could do to make their ideas better. After listening to him share my idea, I realized that I have to go back to the drawing board and flesh it out more. My idea is a good start, but I gotta put a lot more thought into it and plan out everything before I do anything.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Capstone Ideas Left on the Cutting Room Floor
During the past two years, I've been trying to come up with ideas for my capstone. There were some really good ones that had a great story, but I couldn't really figure out where to take it from there.
The 1st Idea:
This idea came from when I was in my Four Horsemen phase. The main character was a kid who thought he was just an ordinary high school student, everything was going great for him until one night he, his girlfriend were attacked by things that didn't seem human. Turns out his family holds a dark secret that his mother tried to keep him from, the men in his family ran hell and they wanted him to take the mantle of the Grim Reaper. He reluctantly agrees to do it to save the souls of his friend and girlfriend. As he takes jobs from them, he finds out that they were never going to bring them back and he was just being groomed to have his heart and soul taken from him s he could be a loyal servant to the family. So he decides to take the fight to him one by one and steal their power from them. At the end of the game, his mind has become so warped by what has happened and what he has become, an angelic figure has come down to try and stop him from killing his father and taking the crown as the new king of hell. So the player would have a choice to kill their father or to let the figure reset everything back to it was before the faithful night, him and his friend, and girlfriend would be protected from what happens.
The 2nd Idea:
This was game idea I almost took the whole way. The kid is coming home from school with his friends when his hated rival shows up. The rival starts something and they end up fighting, the rival pushes him into the street where he is hit by a car. As he is fading in and out of consciousness, he wakes up to being in another world that is made up of the heroes and villains of the games he plays, but everybody he knows has taken the appearance of his real life friends, family, and other people that he has come in contact with. Everything that happens in his mind affects his body in real life. So the player would have to beat the game to get the main character to wake up. This game was going to be a homage and parody of other arcade games from the 80s and 90s.
The 3rd Idea:
This is the idea that I am currently fleshing out for my capstone. This is going to be a level to a side scrolling game that I want to make. The whole game will encompass ideas and philosophies from past games and current games. The level I am doing is going to be a stealth, rogue like section where you have to sneak around and collect jewels and treasures in the haunted Egyptian temple. When you collect and accidentally open up Pandora's Box, this will be the jumping off point for the game and add a supernatural element when King "Tuttin"hamen will wake from his slumber and try to bring back his kingdom and rule the world, by assembling the "8 Evils of the World", which are the "8 Wonders of the World".
The 1st Idea:
This idea came from when I was in my Four Horsemen phase. The main character was a kid who thought he was just an ordinary high school student, everything was going great for him until one night he, his girlfriend were attacked by things that didn't seem human. Turns out his family holds a dark secret that his mother tried to keep him from, the men in his family ran hell and they wanted him to take the mantle of the Grim Reaper. He reluctantly agrees to do it to save the souls of his friend and girlfriend. As he takes jobs from them, he finds out that they were never going to bring them back and he was just being groomed to have his heart and soul taken from him s he could be a loyal servant to the family. So he decides to take the fight to him one by one and steal their power from them. At the end of the game, his mind has become so warped by what has happened and what he has become, an angelic figure has come down to try and stop him from killing his father and taking the crown as the new king of hell. So the player would have a choice to kill their father or to let the figure reset everything back to it was before the faithful night, him and his friend, and girlfriend would be protected from what happens.
The 2nd Idea:
This was game idea I almost took the whole way. The kid is coming home from school with his friends when his hated rival shows up. The rival starts something and they end up fighting, the rival pushes him into the street where he is hit by a car. As he is fading in and out of consciousness, he wakes up to being in another world that is made up of the heroes and villains of the games he plays, but everybody he knows has taken the appearance of his real life friends, family, and other people that he has come in contact with. Everything that happens in his mind affects his body in real life. So the player would have to beat the game to get the main character to wake up. This game was going to be a homage and parody of other arcade games from the 80s and 90s.
The 3rd Idea:
This is the idea that I am currently fleshing out for my capstone. This is going to be a level to a side scrolling game that I want to make. The whole game will encompass ideas and philosophies from past games and current games. The level I am doing is going to be a stealth, rogue like section where you have to sneak around and collect jewels and treasures in the haunted Egyptian temple. When you collect and accidentally open up Pandora's Box, this will be the jumping off point for the game and add a supernatural element when King "Tuttin"hamen will wake from his slumber and try to bring back his kingdom and rule the world, by assembling the "8 Evils of the World", which are the "8 Wonders of the World".
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
What is a damn"Capstone"?
What is a capstone?
To me, a capstone is a final project that shows off all of your skills that you learned over your time at school. It's also a showcase for companies of what you can do. I feel like it's just a hoop to get through, but it's a necessary evil that you have to go through. A capstone is a "trial by fire" that will show if you can come up with an idea from scratch and finish it. It'll test your resolve and force you to make tough decisions on what you should keep and what gets thrown in the trash. If you can come up with an idea and finish it from start to end, then it will show people that you can get a major task done on time and done right.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Role in Final Project
For the Final Project, I am apart of the game making team that consists of Myself, Chewie, Alec, Cabana, and Sean B. Chewie and I are the programmers of the team. We will be making the code that powers the game in flash. Other than that, on the first day of team meetings, I took the lead because I was the only one here, so I assigned roles and wrote out the goals and mission statement that we all would use for the theme of our game.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Blog about class last week
1. Why did class devolve into chaos???
I think class wnet into to chaos last week because of a couple of reasons. One was because everybody thought at first the only thing we could do was just the cards, but once you threw in the possibility of a video getting done, that kind of made everybody think that we had a choice on what we could do. The second reason why things broke down was because everybody became split on what we should do even though the only thing we were suppose to do originally was just the cards.
2. What could you have done to keep that from happening?
If I would have spoke up more, I probably could have told the class during the discussion that really the only thing we can do right now are just the cards, if people want to work on a video for a commercial or something, do that for the final, bur right now, just focus on the task at hand.
3. Regurgitating ideas you have read is all well and good, but if you cannot apply them, then what is the point?
What I think you're asking is that why did people do this? I'm thinking that people weren't really thinking about it when they were doing it. It's all fine and dandy if you can recite things, but if you can't actually use them in situations where you need to, then what's the point.
4. What can you do to be more mindful of your team buidling decisions and how to actually implement the techniques we have been learning all semester?
I can listen to everybody's ideas, then break all of them down to see what we can do and when the team is done listening to what everybody has to offer, we can take one last look at them and then start the decision process on to which ones that we will all use.
5. Is always sticking with people you already know the best solution to forming a good team? Working with people you already know may be human nature and the easiest way to make sure you get a good grade on a project, but remember that you are being assessed in this course not only on the product you create but how you work with your team and apply the techniques we have been covering in class... Unlike other classes, the product in this class is secondary to the process of creating the product.
Sticking with people you already know is a double-edged sword, it can be handy in a pinch when you need somebody to have in a group, but you don't know how they'll act with different people. In my team, I've only worked with one other person before and that was when we worked on kite project. That was a great working experience because both of us worked hard and made sure that we gave equal work to each other to help the other out and we were successful. With the team now everybody has contributed equally and we are always trying to help each other out to make sure everybody is on the same page.
6. What did you learn about yourself and team building as a result of what happened in class today?
I learned that I speak up sometimes, but I have habits of falling into the back of discussions after a while. I learned that I need to stay vocal and stop falling into complacency when things stand still for a while.
7. How should the potential conflict that could erupt based on discussion today be handled in a way that allows for the best teams and personal satisfaction for all people?
If anything like this happens again, we need to let everybody know from the start that the goal needs to be that we get what we were assigned done first and foremost. If everybody likes another idea and still wants to work on it, then everybody can do it when the main assignment is done.
8. Instead of just backing down and saying, "Whatever..." what might be a better way to incorporate and include all ideas and styles?
We can listen to everybody's ideas and see how they fit with the main theme. If they work and fit the main theme, then we can try to incorporate them into the project. If they don't work, we won't just throw them out because you never know if they might work for a future project.
I think class wnet into to chaos last week because of a couple of reasons. One was because everybody thought at first the only thing we could do was just the cards, but once you threw in the possibility of a video getting done, that kind of made everybody think that we had a choice on what we could do. The second reason why things broke down was because everybody became split on what we should do even though the only thing we were suppose to do originally was just the cards.
2. What could you have done to keep that from happening?
If I would have spoke up more, I probably could have told the class during the discussion that really the only thing we can do right now are just the cards, if people want to work on a video for a commercial or something, do that for the final, bur right now, just focus on the task at hand.
3. Regurgitating ideas you have read is all well and good, but if you cannot apply them, then what is the point?
What I think you're asking is that why did people do this? I'm thinking that people weren't really thinking about it when they were doing it. It's all fine and dandy if you can recite things, but if you can't actually use them in situations where you need to, then what's the point.
4. What can you do to be more mindful of your team buidling decisions and how to actually implement the techniques we have been learning all semester?
I can listen to everybody's ideas, then break all of them down to see what we can do and when the team is done listening to what everybody has to offer, we can take one last look at them and then start the decision process on to which ones that we will all use.
5. Is always sticking with people you already know the best solution to forming a good team? Working with people you already know may be human nature and the easiest way to make sure you get a good grade on a project, but remember that you are being assessed in this course not only on the product you create but how you work with your team and apply the techniques we have been covering in class... Unlike other classes, the product in this class is secondary to the process of creating the product.
Sticking with people you already know is a double-edged sword, it can be handy in a pinch when you need somebody to have in a group, but you don't know how they'll act with different people. In my team, I've only worked with one other person before and that was when we worked on kite project. That was a great working experience because both of us worked hard and made sure that we gave equal work to each other to help the other out and we were successful. With the team now everybody has contributed equally and we are always trying to help each other out to make sure everybody is on the same page.
6. What did you learn about yourself and team building as a result of what happened in class today?
I learned that I speak up sometimes, but I have habits of falling into the back of discussions after a while. I learned that I need to stay vocal and stop falling into complacency when things stand still for a while.
7. How should the potential conflict that could erupt based on discussion today be handled in a way that allows for the best teams and personal satisfaction for all people?
If anything like this happens again, we need to let everybody know from the start that the goal needs to be that we get what we were assigned done first and foremost. If everybody likes another idea and still wants to work on it, then everybody can do it when the main assignment is done.
8. Instead of just backing down and saying, "Whatever..." what might be a better way to incorporate and include all ideas and styles?
We can listen to everybody's ideas and see how they fit with the main theme. If they work and fit the main theme, then we can try to incorporate them into the project. If they don't work, we won't just throw them out because you never know if they might work for a future project.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Group Management
Today in class we as a team had to do the simple job of making scrambled eggs and serving them to the class as a team. Sounds easy enough, but Beth decides to throw a little wrench into it, we're broken into teams and the person who is doing anything with the eggs will be blindfolded. I was assigned on the team whose job was to go and gather plates and then we had to set the table doing our job was easy enough. We found containers to put the food in, but when we got back, we were thrown into different teams to do different jobs some more. I had to help direct the person cooking which was hard because I'm so used to being hands on when I help, but now, I can only talk them threw it which was tough. It was successful, but not because of me, it was due more to the team I was put into did a great job. After a while, I was then selected to plate all the food up. It was kinda hard to do because I couldn't really hear my team, but once the noise died down a bit, I was able to follow my team's instructions clearly. The project today was fun, it was difficult at first, but after a while, everybody got into the swing of things. We all tried to make things as easy as could be for the person who was blindfolded and we succeeded. The only bad part was trying the food that we made. Gross stuff. How this relates to working in the real world is that you're gonna be thrown into groups with people you really don't know, so you'll learn on the fly how to get along with your coworkers on any job. In the real world, you'll have to learn to adapt to changes that are going to take place as you work. Personalities will clash, people will have no idea what they are doing, so you are going to have to switch roles constantly to maintain balance and to ensure that everything will be done on time.
Clarification:
My group's first job was to find something to put the eggs on when they were ready to eat. When we were together we talked for a bit to figure out where we could find things we can use for plates. One of the group members remembered that the Law building has plates we can use, so we went over there and grabbed a couple.
The Mouse:
When I was assigned to the directing the cooking team, I became the mouse a bit because I couldn't really figure out how to direct the person who was suppose to be cooking. After a while I kind of figured it out and was able to help out somewhat.
The Loud - Mouth:
I couldn't really recall someone being the loud - mouth whenever I was in a group, but there were probably a time when everybody was talking and it seemed like everybody was being the loud - mouth.
The Written Record:
There was no written record because we were all in the kitchen trying to figure out how to get everything done within the time that we had.
Feedback (Negative):
When the blindfolded person did something wrong, we told them what happened and then we would work as a team to try and fix it, sometimes it worked and sometimes we had to keep trying over and over. The real negative feedback that was consistent was when a half stick of butter was used for the eggs.
Feedback (Positive):
Every time the blindfolded was able to do something right, everybody made sure to give them props for getting the job done, like when I was putting everything on a plate, people said I was doing a good job and telling me to keep going.
Clarification:
My group's first job was to find something to put the eggs on when they were ready to eat. When we were together we talked for a bit to figure out where we could find things we can use for plates. One of the group members remembered that the Law building has plates we can use, so we went over there and grabbed a couple.
The Mouse:
When I was assigned to the directing the cooking team, I became the mouse a bit because I couldn't really figure out how to direct the person who was suppose to be cooking. After a while I kind of figured it out and was able to help out somewhat.
The Loud - Mouth:
I couldn't really recall someone being the loud - mouth whenever I was in a group, but there were probably a time when everybody was talking and it seemed like everybody was being the loud - mouth.
The Written Record:
There was no written record because we were all in the kitchen trying to figure out how to get everything done within the time that we had.
Feedback (Negative):
When the blindfolded person did something wrong, we told them what happened and then we would work as a team to try and fix it, sometimes it worked and sometimes we had to keep trying over and over. The real negative feedback that was consistent was when a half stick of butter was used for the eggs.
Feedback (Positive):
Every time the blindfolded was able to do something right, everybody made sure to give them props for getting the job done, like when I was putting everything on a plate, people said I was doing a good job and telling me to keep going.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Team Building Eggs
Today in class we as a team had to do the simple job of making scrambled eggs and serving them to the class as a team. Sounds easy enough, but Beth decides to throw a little wrench into it, we're broken into teams and the person who is doing anything with the eggs will be blindfolded. I was assigned on the team whose job was to go and gather plates and then we had to set the table doing our job was easy enough. We found containers to put the food in, but when we got back, we were thrown into different teams to do different jobs some more. I had to help direct the person cooking which was hard because I'm so used to being hands on when I help, but now, I can only talk them threw it which was tough. It was successful, but not because of me, it was due more to the team I was put into did a great job. After a while, I was then selected to plate all the food up. It was kinda hard to do because I couldn't really hear my team, but once the noise died down a bit, I was able to follow my team's instructions clearly. The project today was fun, it was difficult at first, but after a while, everybody got into the swing of things. We all tried to make things as easy as could be for the person who was blindfolded and we succeeded. The only bad part was trying the food that we made. Gross stuff. How this relates to working in the real world is that you're gonna be thrown into groups with people you really don't know, so you'll learn on the fly how to get along with your coworkers on any job. In the real world, you'll have to learn to adapt to changes that are going to take place as you work. Personalities will clash, people will have no idea what they are doing, so you are going to have to switch roles constantly to maintain balance and to ensure that everything will be done on time.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Let's Go Fly a Kite!!!
I was partnered up with Sharayah Dawn for the assignment. Today was the day that we actually flied out kites. It was fun seeing everybody run around trying to get their kite to actually fly. Our kite kinda sorta flew around, but couldn't really go that high into the air. This was an actual fun assignment that really worked out for working in a team. Other than getting hit in the head with a kite, today was pretty fun.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Thoughts on Competition
Competition by the book means is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever at least two parties strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment.
To me, Competition is putting your skills up against another person to see how you would fair in something. Competition isn't about winning and losing, but more about how much you've grown and improved on something. I usually view competitions as learning experiences when I am involved in them. Whenever I am in a competition whether it comes to sports or playing video games, I usually try to improve on how I did previously, because I hate to stay stagnant in an area.
When we talked in class about competition and how some people didn't like it because it makes the people that don't win feel bad and like they failed, but others view competition as being necessary because how can you tell who's better if you do not put your skills to the test. I can see both sides, but in my opinion, you shouldn't view competition as the "end all, be all", but as a way to just have fun. Competition is like a double edge sword, it can be the worst thing if you take it to heart, you will not enjoy yourself because you are so focused on winning, rather than having fun. It's about having fun and bettering yourself and meeting new people.
In the Coop vs. Competition article, where John Tauer and his Grad professor were trying to figure out which was better; Cooperation, Competition, or maybe both. They used shooting free throws as the test and used shooting them by themselves, all cooperatively,, in a straight competition, or in a team base competitions. After everything was done, they had the kids fill out a survey and the results were surprising because the kids had the most fun having a competition, but as a team rather than solo. When it comes to competition, I am the same way, but if I'm in a competition by myself, I will still have fun doing it. I, like them, feel you need to have a mix of both because while you're in a group, you have a chance of interacting with other people and making bonds with people rather than being by yourself.
When it comes to building teams, I find that competition usually brings people together, because you and the people that you are with all share a common goal and want to work together to achieve that goal. To me, actually getting to know your team is way more important than getting the job done because knowing how each member acts and reacts to certain situations will make setting roles easier and shows how each persons' strengths and weaknesses will mix together. You want people that will be responsible and respect each others' feelings and opinions, but know when to get the job done.
To me, Competition is putting your skills up against another person to see how you would fair in something. Competition isn't about winning and losing, but more about how much you've grown and improved on something. I usually view competitions as learning experiences when I am involved in them. Whenever I am in a competition whether it comes to sports or playing video games, I usually try to improve on how I did previously, because I hate to stay stagnant in an area.
When we talked in class about competition and how some people didn't like it because it makes the people that don't win feel bad and like they failed, but others view competition as being necessary because how can you tell who's better if you do not put your skills to the test. I can see both sides, but in my opinion, you shouldn't view competition as the "end all, be all", but as a way to just have fun. Competition is like a double edge sword, it can be the worst thing if you take it to heart, you will not enjoy yourself because you are so focused on winning, rather than having fun. It's about having fun and bettering yourself and meeting new people.
In the Coop vs. Competition article, where John Tauer and his Grad professor were trying to figure out which was better; Cooperation, Competition, or maybe both. They used shooting free throws as the test and used shooting them by themselves, all cooperatively,, in a straight competition, or in a team base competitions. After everything was done, they had the kids fill out a survey and the results were surprising because the kids had the most fun having a competition, but as a team rather than solo. When it comes to competition, I am the same way, but if I'm in a competition by myself, I will still have fun doing it. I, like them, feel you need to have a mix of both because while you're in a group, you have a chance of interacting with other people and making bonds with people rather than being by yourself.
When it comes to building teams, I find that competition usually brings people together, because you and the people that you are with all share a common goal and want to work together to achieve that goal. To me, actually getting to know your team is way more important than getting the job done because knowing how each member acts and reacts to certain situations will make setting roles easier and shows how each persons' strengths and weaknesses will mix together. You want people that will be responsible and respect each others' feelings and opinions, but know when to get the job done.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Prisoner's Dilemma
When I first heard the phrase, "Prisoner's Dilemma", the only thing I could really think of was that, if there are prisoners in trouble, whoever tells first, gets the lesser punishment.
When I read what it actually meant, "Two men are arrested, but the police do not possess enough information for a conviction. Following the separation of the two men, the police offer both a similar deal—if one testifies against his partner (defects/betrays), and the other remains silent (cooperates/assists), the betrayer goes free and the cooperator receives the full one-year sentence. If both remain silent, both are sentenced to only one month in jail for a minor charge. If each 'rats out' the other, each receives a three-month sentence. Each prisoner must choose either to betray or remain silent; the decision of each is kept quiet. What should they do?" My thought was kind of close, but not a lot of detail.
You gave us the task of only one person gets an "A" for the semester, how would the class as a team decide who will get the "A". What we did in class was that each person suggested an idea and then everybody voted on which idea would be best for settling how we would decide who gets the "A". After the votes were tallied, the winning option was running an obstacle course. Sean ended up winning, so he received the hypothetical "A".
How it relates to the Prisoner's Dilemma, to be honest, I can't really see how they fit together, but maybe it works like they both have the team come up with who's gonna get whatever the prize or punishment. They differ because one is an agreement between the whole team, while the Prisoner's dilemma, is more about how much do you trust your partner to not tell on you, while you have to choose to either be good to your partner or to yourself.
To me the Prisoner's Dilemma seems more like a Competition, because you're having an internal conflict with yourself trying to figure out who you are gonna be true to, your partner or yourself. While your partner has to figure out the same thing.
When I read what it actually meant, "Two men are arrested, but the police do not possess enough information for a conviction. Following the separation of the two men, the police offer both a similar deal—if one testifies against his partner (defects/betrays), and the other remains silent (cooperates/assists), the betrayer goes free and the cooperator receives the full one-year sentence. If both remain silent, both are sentenced to only one month in jail for a minor charge. If each 'rats out' the other, each receives a three-month sentence. Each prisoner must choose either to betray or remain silent; the decision of each is kept quiet. What should they do?" My thought was kind of close, but not a lot of detail.
You gave us the task of only one person gets an "A" for the semester, how would the class as a team decide who will get the "A". What we did in class was that each person suggested an idea and then everybody voted on which idea would be best for settling how we would decide who gets the "A". After the votes were tallied, the winning option was running an obstacle course. Sean ended up winning, so he received the hypothetical "A".
How it relates to the Prisoner's Dilemma, to be honest, I can't really see how they fit together, but maybe it works like they both have the team come up with who's gonna get whatever the prize or punishment. They differ because one is an agreement between the whole team, while the Prisoner's dilemma, is more about how much do you trust your partner to not tell on you, while you have to choose to either be good to your partner or to yourself.
To me the Prisoner's Dilemma seems more like a Competition, because you're having an internal conflict with yourself trying to figure out who you are gonna be true to, your partner or yourself. While your partner has to figure out the same thing.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Read each others' blogs
What three people do I think I can really work with:
1. Jacob Ritter - Very hard worker that I've seen bust his ass on projects in the past.
2. Lecia Floyd or Meredith - Very good writer that can also work in photoshop and could be a presenter as well.
3. Ryan Stambro or Heather - Both are able to take lead if necessary and each brings something different to the table that can help a team out greatly.
When I'm looking to build a team, I want people who will enjoy working and know when it's time to be serious and do work.
What three people do I think I might not be able to work with:
1. Allison Schwein - I couldn't find her skill assessment so I don't really know what she can offer.
I can usually work with anybody, it takes a lot for me to not want to work with a person.
1. Jacob Ritter - Very hard worker that I've seen bust his ass on projects in the past.
2. Lecia Floyd or Meredith - Very good writer that can also work in photoshop and could be a presenter as well.
3. Ryan Stambro or Heather - Both are able to take lead if necessary and each brings something different to the table that can help a team out greatly.
When I'm looking to build a team, I want people who will enjoy working and know when it's time to be serious and do work.
What three people do I think I might not be able to work with:
1. Allison Schwein - I couldn't find her skill assessment so I don't really know what she can offer.
I can usually work with anybody, it takes a lot for me to not want to work with a person.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Group vs. Team Exercise Reflection
The chair and table exercise that we did in class yesterday to me started out as a group job, but after a while, everybody evolved and we turned into a team. We ended up splitting into two groups and one focused on stacking tables, while the others stacked up chairs. I stacked up chairs. I think it was pretty effective because it taught us how to game plan and split up the job so we can actually succeed when carrying it out. The one thing I would change is that I would of kept everything stacked up, but on a serious note, I would of made random teams and give each team the same task and try to see how many different solutions could each group come up with to solve the problem.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Skill Set Inventory
1. What is your favorite thing to do outside of school?
- My favorite things to do when I am not in school are usually just chill with friends. I play video games when I am with friends because we're all really competitive and really like to rub it in the faces of each other when we beat the other really badly. I like listening to music when I am in school, but when I am out, I just put my Ipod onto full blast and just zone out.
2. What is your favorite class and explain why it is your favorite?
- Hmm, I don't have really have a favorite class, but if I had to pick one it would be any game design class I had like N330 or N485. I like these classes because I love video games and actually going in and making a level really shows me how much hard work goes into making a great game.
3. What are you good at doing in New Media?
- I wouldn't say that I'm good at anything in New Media really, but the one thing that I think that I've made progress in is 3D modeling in Maya or building a level in the Unreal Developers' Kit. I love taking something 2D and trying to recreate it in a three dimensional space. It takes a lot of time, but it's really fun to work with.
4. What are you good at doing outside of New Media?
- That is a really hard question. Somethings I can't really say, but I guess I can go with making people laugh and lifting stuff.
5. What is your favorite area of New Media (you don't have to be good at it, but you have to like whatever you talk about for this one?)
- Same as Number 3, I love to work with 3D Modeling.
6. Do you prefer to work independently or in a group? Please explain why.
- I like to work alone more so than working in a group. I like it more because I fell like the only person affected in the end is me. Working in a group is fine, but if I fuck up, it won't just cost me, it'll cost my group as well.
7.What New Media classes have you had?
- Man, that's a long list, let's see:
INTRO DIGITAL MEDIA PRINCIPLES
VISUALIZING INFORMATION
DESIGN ISSUES IN DIGITAL MEDIA
TOPICS IN INTERACTIVE MEDIA
INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL VIDEO
SCRIPTWRITING
VISUAL PRACTICES
GAME ON!
and more
8. In a group project explain what you usually end up doing.
In a group project, I usually end up doing my part of the work and then I just float around seeing if anybody else in the group need help. I usually ask a lot of questions while in a group because I want to make sure that I know exactly what I am doing.
9. In a perfect group what would you like to end up working on? (i.e. hands-on work, research, presentation, web development, planning, etc.)
I would like to do a little planning, but I really just like doing research and hands-on work. I hate having to talk in front of a large group of people.
10. What is your opinion of group work? Please explain why.
Group work is ok if you have people who are interested in actually working. Group work can be a lot of fun or it can turn into a shit storm real easily.
11. How do you think other people would describe you?
I think other people would describe me as a care free guy who is easy to get along with. I will always put my best foot forward and will be amicable with everybody.
12. How would you describe yourself?
I would describe myself as a friendly guy. A guy who puts work ahead of having fun a lot. I'm a quiet shy dude that likes to keep to himself, but if I have to be around people, I'll make the most of it.
13. What do you do when a group project goes bad?
When a group project goes bad, I try to fix whatever the problem is so the group can get back to working. If things are beyond fixing, then I'll try to get the project done myself with the people who aren't having problems.
14. What is civic engagement in your opinion?
Civic engagement to me is, seeing a problem and trying to figure out a solution to the problem whether that means fixing it individually or being part of a group to fix it.
15. What experience have you had working with community partners, either on your own, through school, church, or in any other capacity?
I can't really remember exact things that I've done, but I do know that I have been apart of food drives and other projects like that.
16. What do you know about Keep Indianapolis Beautiful (KIB?)
I have no idea what KIB is, but from what you told the class about them, I can tell that they want to clean up Indiana and make it clean and beautiful. They want to turn the dull, rundown places into beautiful, lush environments to lift the spirits of the people that live there and who visit there.
17. How do you think New Media (the program and all its resources) could help the community in general, and KIB in particular?
New Media could help KIB in a number of different ways:
- We could make a flash or 3D game that shows people cleaning up parks and different areas around Indiana
- Could make a PSA about KIB that could be broadcasted in schools and television.
- There are more ideas, but those are the only ones that popped up at the moment.
18. How could YOU help the community, and KIB, particularly in terms of New Media?
Hmm, I am okay with Maya and UDK so I could make 3D scene of a park or a 3D game about cleaning up places and making them beautiful and if all else fails, I can help clean up and plant trees.
19. What are your goals for this semester?
My goals are for this semester are to just improve my skills in working in groups and just improve myself overall.
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Haha... If I grow up, I would love to have a job in the video game industry as a modeler or a level designer. Really anything in the video game field, I would love to have.
- My favorite things to do when I am not in school are usually just chill with friends. I play video games when I am with friends because we're all really competitive and really like to rub it in the faces of each other when we beat the other really badly. I like listening to music when I am in school, but when I am out, I just put my Ipod onto full blast and just zone out.
2. What is your favorite class and explain why it is your favorite?
- Hmm, I don't have really have a favorite class, but if I had to pick one it would be any game design class I had like N330 or N485. I like these classes because I love video games and actually going in and making a level really shows me how much hard work goes into making a great game.
3. What are you good at doing in New Media?
- I wouldn't say that I'm good at anything in New Media really, but the one thing that I think that I've made progress in is 3D modeling in Maya or building a level in the Unreal Developers' Kit. I love taking something 2D and trying to recreate it in a three dimensional space. It takes a lot of time, but it's really fun to work with.
4. What are you good at doing outside of New Media?
- That is a really hard question. Somethings I can't really say, but I guess I can go with making people laugh and lifting stuff.
5. What is your favorite area of New Media (you don't have to be good at it, but you have to like whatever you talk about for this one?)
- Same as Number 3, I love to work with 3D Modeling.
6. Do you prefer to work independently or in a group? Please explain why.
- I like to work alone more so than working in a group. I like it more because I fell like the only person affected in the end is me. Working in a group is fine, but if I fuck up, it won't just cost me, it'll cost my group as well.
7.What New Media classes have you had?
- Man, that's a long list, let's see:
INTRO DIGITAL MEDIA PRINCIPLES
VISUALIZING INFORMATION
DESIGN ISSUES IN DIGITAL MEDIA
TOPICS IN INTERACTIVE MEDIA
INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL VIDEO
SCRIPTWRITING
VISUAL PRACTICES
GAME ON!
and more
8. In a group project explain what you usually end up doing.
In a group project, I usually end up doing my part of the work and then I just float around seeing if anybody else in the group need help. I usually ask a lot of questions while in a group because I want to make sure that I know exactly what I am doing.
9. In a perfect group what would you like to end up working on? (i.e. hands-on work, research, presentation, web development, planning, etc.)
I would like to do a little planning, but I really just like doing research and hands-on work. I hate having to talk in front of a large group of people.
10. What is your opinion of group work? Please explain why.
Group work is ok if you have people who are interested in actually working. Group work can be a lot of fun or it can turn into a shit storm real easily.
11. How do you think other people would describe you?
I think other people would describe me as a care free guy who is easy to get along with. I will always put my best foot forward and will be amicable with everybody.
12. How would you describe yourself?
I would describe myself as a friendly guy. A guy who puts work ahead of having fun a lot. I'm a quiet shy dude that likes to keep to himself, but if I have to be around people, I'll make the most of it.
13. What do you do when a group project goes bad?
When a group project goes bad, I try to fix whatever the problem is so the group can get back to working. If things are beyond fixing, then I'll try to get the project done myself with the people who aren't having problems.
14. What is civic engagement in your opinion?
Civic engagement to me is, seeing a problem and trying to figure out a solution to the problem whether that means fixing it individually or being part of a group to fix it.
15. What experience have you had working with community partners, either on your own, through school, church, or in any other capacity?
I can't really remember exact things that I've done, but I do know that I have been apart of food drives and other projects like that.
16. What do you know about Keep Indianapolis Beautiful (KIB?)
I have no idea what KIB is, but from what you told the class about them, I can tell that they want to clean up Indiana and make it clean and beautiful. They want to turn the dull, rundown places into beautiful, lush environments to lift the spirits of the people that live there and who visit there.
17. How do you think New Media (the program and all its resources) could help the community in general, and KIB in particular?
New Media could help KIB in a number of different ways:
- We could make a flash or 3D game that shows people cleaning up parks and different areas around Indiana
- Could make a PSA about KIB that could be broadcasted in schools and television.
- There are more ideas, but those are the only ones that popped up at the moment.
18. How could YOU help the community, and KIB, particularly in terms of New Media?
Hmm, I am okay with Maya and UDK so I could make 3D scene of a park or a 3D game about cleaning up places and making them beautiful and if all else fails, I can help clean up and plant trees.
19. What are your goals for this semester?
My goals are for this semester are to just improve my skills in working in groups and just improve myself overall.
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?
Haha... If I grow up, I would love to have a job in the video game industry as a modeler or a level designer. Really anything in the video game field, I would love to have.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)