Tuesday, June 28, 2005
the eye of the storm
We're in the middle of the fifth week of the ten week Summer Multimedia Institute (SMDI) and I feel eeriely calm. It's too far into the program to be nervous, but not far enough to strike the fear of deadlines into my veins. I have made progress on each of my five projects, but none of them are done. It's the eye of the SMDI storm (growing up near the Gulf Coast, storms mean something). Soon, I'm sure I will begin to obsess and over-stress about my projects. But for now, I can relax and enjoy my projects and my coworkers this week.
There are 6 internsworking in the Summer Multimedia Institute. We all work at one table in the same office, so we have gotten to know each other pretty well in a very short time. Everyone has 4-5 projects each; some individual, some together. It's fascinating to watch each person's design and working style emerge.
My style is the over-planning kind. When we took learning tests at the beginning of the institute, I was classified as a hugely global learner. I've always known that. I have to figure everything out conceptually before I can start to implement a design. My computer is filled with word documents outlining the content of my projects. I have a folder full of hand drawn sketches of what I want the site to look like. The leap from thought to implementation is hard for me.
Other interns do not work this way. Some people have completed whole sites already; learning as they go. Others take a more step-by-step approach, working on one project at a time rather than keeping many in mind. Others still remain blocked by insufficient content or sponsor support.
But no matter how we learn, we all have learned so much!!! Five weeks ago, I had never coded anything in my life. This week, I became so frustrated with Dreamweaver, I started coding in notepad.
Thanks SMDI!
There are 6 internsworking in the Summer Multimedia Institute. We all work at one table in the same office, so we have gotten to know each other pretty well in a very short time. Everyone has 4-5 projects each; some individual, some together. It's fascinating to watch each person's design and working style emerge.
My style is the over-planning kind. When we took learning tests at the beginning of the institute, I was classified as a hugely global learner. I've always known that. I have to figure everything out conceptually before I can start to implement a design. My computer is filled with word documents outlining the content of my projects. I have a folder full of hand drawn sketches of what I want the site to look like. The leap from thought to implementation is hard for me.
Other interns do not work this way. Some people have completed whole sites already; learning as they go. Others take a more step-by-step approach, working on one project at a time rather than keeping many in mind. Others still remain blocked by insufficient content or sponsor support.
But no matter how we learn, we all have learned so much!!! Five weeks ago, I had never coded anything in my life. This week, I became so frustrated with Dreamweaver, I started coding in notepad.
Thanks SMDI!
