Kindle or iPad? Where you read may determine what you buy.

As a reading enthusiast, I have debated buying an e-reader, but have delayed the process due to my love of overflowing bookcases. However, I recently saw an advertisement by Kindle calling out the iPad for its poor outdoor lighting. This led to an investigation into which device operates better under certain environmental conditions. Granted, the Kindle is strictly an e-reader while the iPad is a multimedia device, but for my research I was primarily interested in the results each provided in various reading environments.

Kindle uses e-ink, which show shades of gray and is made up of real ink that is manipulated using tiny electrical charges within the display. The use of this technology allows a reader to go outside and not have any glare issues when looking at the screen, and also allows the reader to not feel an overwhelming amount of eye-strain. Conversely, the iPad uses LEDs to emit light and as a result can produce really vivid colors and are generally very bright, but also creates a mirror like image when used outdoors, making it impossible for the reader to see the text.

When using the iPad and Kindle indoors, one experiences some of the same issues with the iPad, but the screen is not totally un-readable. In night time situations, however, this changes. Because the Kindle relies on external illumination, the screen is dimly lit and one would either need to have the lights on or use a book light. While this is not as inconvenient as the complete ability to read the iPad outdoors, it does present some challenges to the night reader who is sharing space.

The iPad does provide much better back-lighting, which can eliminate the use of room lights or a book light, but it is similar to a computer monitor and the screen can almost become too bright and be too harsh on the eyes. The iPad does offer a text setting that allows a switch to white writing on a black background that lessens the brightness of the screen, but the eye strain problem is still prevalent.

Other factors that may weigh in on ones decision are price, size and memory. The Kindle 3 runs from $139-$189, while the iPad ranges from $499-$829. The iPad is also larger, heavier, and can provide more memory, ranging from 16GB to 64 GB. This device, however, is designed to be used as a multi-media device and is priced and weighted accordingly.

Personally, I will be investing in a Kindle. With trips to the gym, beach, and long car-rides ahead, I believe the benefits of being able to read during the day outweigh those of reading in the dark at night. And besides, I already have my iPod nano, home computer and flat screen television for my multi-media usage.

August 3 Roll Call

Evaluation

This is my evaluation for the course. I blocked everything out creating rectangular boxes and filling them with black paint, because these are supposed to be 100% confidential and i wasn't comfortable with having any information exposed.

Final 6: Future of Immersive Education

Immersive Education is a way to take learning outside of the physical classroom, and create an opportunity for people all over a city, state or nation to join together in learning. The Immersive Education idea opens the door into the cyber world where student and teacher can interact together to learn and create.

Right now, in 2010, Immersive Education is a budding idea. While I had never heard or experienced the initiative before this course, it is clear that this way of learning and teaching is where not only education is headed, but business and trade also. By viewing the videos on the Immersive Education website, I was able to see just how far this initiative can travel, both world wide and virtually. Not only are classrooms able to learn in the virtual classroom, they are able to experience a time and place that could never be reached before.

As you can see in these pictures, through my experiences and learning with Immersive Education, I have been able to do things I never otherwise would of experienced. I built a mailbox, flew up to a rocket ship, and walked on water.

The future for Immersive Education is endless. This initiative has started on the collegiate level, but has infinite potential to reach high schools, middle schools and even early childhood teaching. Students are not only able to connect with students that they would normally see in a classroom, but are able to potentially meet other students from other countries in one place. The Immersive Education initiative can help alleviate some issues of over crowded classrooms and also will help encourage students to use each other as resources for learning. With the rate at which technology grows and creates turnover, the sky--especially in the virtual world, is the limit.

My Gizmo

This is my gizmo. I worked in the website to create my new look and took a drive! Aren't the views "SO CUTE!"

Monocular Depth Cue: Atmospheric Perspective

Circled here are some plants that show how atmospheric perspective is a monocular depth cue. The fern closest to my avatar is clearly defined with seperate leaves and branches. However, the further away the fern is, the less defined it is. You can tell that it is a plant, but the leaves and branches are not as clearly made out.

Monocular Depth Cue: Linear Perspective

Circled in this shot is an example of linear perspective. From where my avatar stands, you can see the defined lines of the base of this building. However, as the building expands out towards the sea, you notice a "vanishing point" or an area where you can no longer clearly define the objects dimensions. The object also looks significantly smaller the further away it is from the avatar, despite being the same size.

Monocular Depth Cue: Texture Density

Circled here you can see an example of a texture density monocular depth cue. Right below me, you can see a pattern of various colored square tiles. However, as you look further down the ship area, you can notice different spots, but not definitive individual tiles.

Monocular Depth Cue: Lighting and Shading

Circled is an example of a lighting and shading monocular depth cue. If you look at the three difference sides of the box, you can see that the top of the box and the left side are very light, the the top being ever so darker. When you look at the right side of the box, you can see it is significantly darker than the other two sides. This shows that the sun is coming fromt the top left area of the screen shot. By observing the lighting and shading, you can tell where the light is coming from.

Monocular Depth Cue: Occlusion

These images provide an example of an occlusion monocular depth cue. Objects that are closer can block objects that are further away, showing the relative position of these objects to one another. The first photo shows the second beam further back than the first one. However, if you walk in front of the beam, you can't see the second one. This allows you to decifer how and from which angles you are viewing objects.

Monocular Depth Cue: Size Difference

Circled in red is an example of a size difference monocular depth cue. You can see that the building closest to my avatar looks much bigger than the mountains in the background. In reality, the mountains are much larger than the building. Here, you can observe that depth cue allows something further away to seem smaller, while and object closer to the avatar looks much larger.

July 29th building in RW

For the group project I was in a group with Paul and John to build a trailer. John did most of the trailer design and Paul built most of the pickup truck. I decided to add to the house by building a mailbox. The group worked together to add suggestions. At the end of class, we all took a picture by the pool on the deck.

Rocketworld plan in 2D

Roll Call 1 and 2, july 27, 2010

Rocket-ish

So, i was logged into RocketWorld but got kicked out 2 times. On the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th times, i was stuck in the water and couldnt get out. When i finally got in again, i took screen shots so i could post to the blog. RocketWorld quit on me again right after. I will try to get in again tonight to delete my rocket.

Midterm 4

For this midterm i was actually unable to log into RocketWorld. Michael Ring helped me out and took a few photos of my avatar in the virtual world for me though. Here's a picture of me hanging out on the basketball court in my NASA suit. Thanks to Michael!

Midterm 8

For this exercise i took a picture of myself from last summer and did some editing. The top photo is the edited copy. First, i smugged out a scar that i have above my left eye. I also smugged a freckle that i have on my chin. I then turn on the blur tool and chose opacity 90% and blurred my smile lines and my forehead where my head was pealing. I didnt want to make drastic changes, but i think espcially with the smile lines on the right side of my face (left side in picture) and with the scar you can see the results.

Midterm 7

Here is and image of Reese Witherspoon as a .jpg file. I used the marquee tool to make her eyes from the image provided, and resized it to about half of the original size. I then used the rectangle tool to add a black rectangle at the bottom. I first added "all your media are belong to us" and selected a bright color. I then added "Web3D Web" in bolder letters but a less bold color. I then added the bottom line and made sure it was not longer than the second line. I tried to upload the .psd file but received a message that blogger does not accept .psd files.

Roll Call #1 #2 July 20, 2010

Assignments 1,2,3,4

For this assignment I started at step one and created and oval image and did a red gradiant background. I then inserted a text box and typed my name, adding a shadow effect and changing the color and font. I then added the "bump in from left" effect.

For assignment two I created a ball image and also a rectangular image. I made the ball image look like a basketball and changed the background to a blue color. I made the line around the ball black and then added the "bounce" effect to it.

For assignment three i changed the background to a purple color and inserted two images. The first image is a wine glass that is animated to shake. Once the glass has finished shaking, the wine bottle swings in for a refill.

For assignment four i started by creating another oval image and using three colors and the gradiant tool to create a pink and purple background. I also changed the background for the whole image. I then typed my name in, changed the color and font, and added the "in from right" effect. I then went to the Page, add a page for the second part. Here, I created a purple square and changed its line to 3point and made it pink. I then added the "horizontal sweep" effect. I then created a text box and put the word BOING in it, and added the "vertical up" effect. For the final part, I added another page, and create a square image and made it grey for ice. I then inserted a hockey puck and added the "rotate out in" effect to it. I then added a text box saying "drop the puck" and made the writing maroon and gave it the colored glow effect.

After each assignment, I exported the image to check it, and then uploaded the file to my google site shown here:

http://sites.google.com/site/cynthiamankecomputergraphics/homework

Midterm 10

For midterm 10 i created a house. I played with the shapes and pattern tools to create the actual house. I then used the drawing and scribble tools to create a sun and a cat. I used the hourglass icon and then copy and pasted it to create a fence effect. I also created individual rectangles with a pattern and then put them in a pattern to create a walk way.

Midterm 9

For this exercise, I followed the instructions to create a diagram. I then played with line colors and fill colors to change the way the diagram looked. when I finished the exercise, I took a snapshot of it in word and then copied and saved it into the paint program.

Midterm 6

For the penguin exercise I opened a new file and made it a transparent layer. I then wrote my name on top of the layer. After i opened, copied, and pasted the penguin image, and then anchored it into my first document. I then used the layers toolbar to move the penguin image to be behind my name. I then save the image as a PNG.

For the second part, using GIMP 2.6, i went to file -> create -> logo -> text circle. In the box that came up, I inserted my name into the "text" area. Then, I created the animation by using the rotation box starting at a 45 degree angle and then anchored it. I then repeated those steps three times, increasing the angle by 10 degrees. I then saved the image as an animation and a GIF file, clicked the loop forever tab, and increased delay to 500 milliseconds.

Midterm 5

JPEG (top), PNG (bottom)
I followed the video and saved this image as a JPEG progressive image. I then saved the image as a PNG interlaced image. This gives both the illusion of downloading faster than they actually are.

Roll call 2 July 13

For the last hour of class I worked on midterm 9. I created a diagram of the lesson from class showing that JPEG, GIF and PNG are all different types of Bitmaps. I also created a box header with the course title and my name in it. At the end of class, i minimized my white board screen and took a snapshot of both my midterm 9 and of roll call. Both are shown here.

Midterm 3

I opened this file and wrote my name on it. Then I saved the file as a GIF, JPEG and PNG.