Bolter, "Writing Space: Computers, hypertext, and the remediation of print"

This article is focusing on the switch of the printed book to more modern forms such a electronic and digital print. Before printed books, handwritten books were the only kind of books, and they were expensive and took a long time to make. The production was usually scare because of the work involved with making just a single book. When printing presses and machines were introduced to the world of books, everything changed. Printed book became more valuable than handwritten books and mass production took off, allowing book circulation to be widespread. Digital printing now also for more creativity-pictures and moving graphics to accompany the texts.
Growing up in an age where technology has become the basis for everything, I am very accustomed to reading text online. While I still personally prefer to purchase actual books, I think that electronic printing is great for reading small articles and such. Electronic and digital printing without a doubt, makes finding a printed text one hundred times easier. Whether you a searching for an actual text to read online or are searching where to purchase a hard (book) copy of the text, the internet makes everything fast and less time consuming.I don't believe that book will ever perish because they still have value and many people like their tangibility.

Balzhiser and McLeod- "The Undergraduate Writing Major"

The emerging and evolving undergrad writing major varies from university to university. The writing major is becoming more popular as it expands and develops a wider variety of "disciplines." Just having a professional writing major and a rhetoric or liberal arts writing major creates more opportunities for students to decide which categories suites them best. When writing majors were knew to colleges, the main kinds of "discipline" was creative writing and journalistic writing. Many writing majors now have no interest in either of those two kinds of writing so having a more versatile major with more concentrations is making this major more popular.
As a writing(EWM) major, I really like how this article talked about the writing major and the fact that is acknowledges the that the major is more complex then simply writing papers. Being enrolled in 2 rhetoric courses and a course that is all about "text", I have learned more about writing then I ever would have by simply taking a writing class. I believe that one needs to know a lot about rhetoric and what text consists of in order to be a skilled writer.

From The Non-Designer's Web Book

This article talks about creating web pages and what constitutes a good or bad web page. Alignment, proximity, repetition, and contrast are 4 key components of designing a web page. The basic design principles serve as a guide or manual for a beginning web page designer. The article is very constructed and gives precise instructions and tips for how to go about the design process. It also points how a web page can be designed poorly and what to avoid from causing that to happen.The examples depicted in the article are also very helpful for visual reference.
This article is important because it explains how to design a web page. It's a very friendly "how to" guide that uses constructive criticisms on bad web pages and offers way to improve them. I, never having designed a web page, found this information to be very useful and easy to follow.

Dan Perkel and Danah Boyd. “Copy, Paste, Remix: Profile Codes on `MySpace.”

This article examines and explains the logistics behind HTML usage on MySpace. Many people have no idea what HTML codes are and decide that they do not even want to know or learn what they are about. People who make fancy MySpace pages often just copy and past images, lyrics, videos, and music onto their profiles without thinking about where they came from. Since they don't own the image and because somebody else created the image, that image is not always guaranteed to remain the same image. When owners of a particular image get mad about people stealing from them, they are free to distort or change the image. This can be unfortunate but may be a good wake-up call for people to be more aware about what they copy and past from the internet.
I used to like to mess around with my MySpace layout when I was younger, and I admit to copying and pasting images without any real knowledge about HTML. I knew that the image came from somewhere, but I never really put any though into the actual process of the creation of the image and the complex coding embedded in it. This article brought awareness to me, and now anytime that I decide to copy and past anything off the internet, I will be wary and acknowledge that the image is not mine.

"Introduction" New Media Design

This article did a very good job explaining what a graphic designer is. Many people usually just think graphic designers work on computers making graphics for computers only but the job is way more broad and widespread than that. I like how the article talked about the importance of graphic design with examples of subway signs and medicine bottle.
It's very true that graphic design guides us through our daily lives. Just think how all of the street signs were graphically designed so people could just quickly glance at them and know exactly what they mean. Graphic design also enhances images or pictures that may have once being old and drab looking. Remolding and old building even involves some elements of graphic design.

"Introduction: The Seventh Sense"

I really like how Truss perceives punctuation. She talks about what other writers think punctuation is and why it's so important for readers. Punctuation is viewed as the stitching and traffic signals of language. Also, punctuation relates to manners, and "punctilious" and "punctuation" are derived from the same root. Punctuation can really affect the whole meaning of a sentence, illustrated with her example of: A woman, without her man, is nothing. AND A woman: without her, man is nothing. Punctuation plays a major role in the meaning of that particular example. One example is stating how a woman is nothing, and the other one is stating how a man is nothing.
I agree that punctuation dictates the way in which we read as well as the meaning of what we read. Truss is right when she says how punctuation is the good manners of writing. I think that punctuation also affects the reader's pace as well as allows room for description for writers. For example, writing a long wordy sentence about a list of things requires commas, and without those commas, the particular sentence would make no sense. I am a grammar fanatic so when I write, I like to make sure I use perfect grammar including variety of punctuation marks.

An Appetite for Coherence: Arousing and Fulfilling Desires

In this article, Fleckenstein explains the importance of coherent writing. She gives many examples of paragraphs that are incoherent. These examples help clarify what she means about writing a coherent paper. While reading the examples, I was unable to decipher the actual context and main meaning of the story. I understood all the of the individual sentences and words, but was unable to find out what the story was actually about. Cohesiveness is very important when writing because if your sentences aren't cohesive then the whole story or message loses meaning or maybe there is simply no way to understand what anything means at all. Fleckenstein's approach to writing in regards to what the reader will think is important because essentially you are writing for some sort of audience. I think that is very crucial to read through a paper keeping in mind how your intended audience will interpret what you wrote.

Sturken and Cartwright on MEDIA

In the article the emergence of media is discussed, and different mediums are highlighted. The article talks about how media has become more and more complex and diverse with new technological advances and "bundling." Media will only become more diverse and complex as time goes on and we discover newer technology. The article also talks about the affects from the different kinds of media. It says how television is a medium that is a great distraction due to the way in which people watch it without always completely tuning in.
I think that this article does a good job at giving a clear overview on past and current media. I agree that today there are so many mediums and everybody can be categorized into a specific target audience of some sort. It's also very interesting to see the different kinds of media that people prefer to use to receive information such as news stories. Some people may like to read a newspaper because it might make them concentrate more than watching tv since tv is deemed to be a distraction. I happen to agree that tv is a distracting medium. Programs are interrupted with commercials and sometimes during new stories the overall images on the screen interfere with the reception of the actual overall message trying to be transmitted.

Material Literacy and Visual Design

This article, or rather compilation of articles, is about the modern day shift into more visual and pictorial depictions of rhetoric and messages. Not all messages and written works need to be in written out words from letters of the alphabet, and it is common now that many works done via the computer are enhanced with fancy graphics and pictures. I think this is a positive shift in technology because it allows for more creativity and can even make a boring piece of text more visual appealing and more enticing to readers/viewers.

-based on "Material Literacy and Visual Design" by Lester Faigley

Understanding Composing

In this article, Sondra Pearl talks about how writers compose their work. She starts out her article by discussing a project that teachers did that helped them realize the way in which they compose their written work. Each person has a unique way of composing his or her work, and many of the things that we do in the composing process are completely oblivious to us because we do them naturally and aren't focusing on them while we write.
I agree with what Pearl says about ways in which we compose and gain motivation to continue composing. She says that some people reread the previous sentence to gain insight for the next sentence and others will reread the entire paragraph or maybe even the entire work from the beginning. I usually am one to reread the previous sentence and try to link my next sentence to ensure flow. However when I get stuck and need motivation for the next bit of writing, I usually reread my entire work from the beginning.

-based on article "Unserstanding Composing" by Sondra Pearl

"Keywords in Composition Studies"

In this article, Vandenburg goes through the important keywords/ elements of composition. He highlights the important facts of each one as well as gives reference and critique to popular concepts of each one. The 9 keywords are audience, coherence, collaboration, form/structure, freshman English, process, revision, rhetoric , and style. Each keyword is its own unique element that comprises composition however all the elements are different and when they are used together they fuse together a well balance composition.
I think that some of the keywords build on each other and are co-dependent in order to create a well written essay/paper/story, for example..freshman English will refresh a student with basic grammar and sentence structure. I agree that it is an essential college course because I think everybody should learn how to write a paper complete with all of the keywords. Whether or not a student plans to major in something in which they will have to do a lot of writing, everybody should not how to compose a piece of written work in a correct and organized manner. Writing is more important that other academic subjects because it is the foundation of everything because it is our language and how we communicate with others.

"What is Rhetoric" and "Glossary of Major Concepts"

The first part of the essay about "What is Rhetoric" discusses how broad of a term rhetoric is. Rhetoric is not just simply conveying one's ideas or beliefs, but also is is how the overall message of rhetor is delivered to the audience. Rhetoric's 3 main goals are to persuade, to please, and to move. The 5 rhetorical cannons(arrangement, memory, delivery, style, and invention) also implement a very important role in the way the rhetor's message is viewed by the audience. Rhetoric is also a very abstract concept because it can be achieved not just through a written document or oral speech, but also through a painting or statue or other kind of art form.
I think that this article clearly depicts what rhetoric is and explain it complexities. Rhetoric does no just have one definition, but is comprised of many different elements and achieves many different goal(most importantly, the 3 main goals mentioned in the above paragraph. I gained a better understanding of the ways in which rhetoric is used as well as the purposed behind it.
The major figures in rhetoric date back to the Athenian and Greek times. Some of the famous rhetors are Plato, Socrates, and Gorgias. These legendary historical figures paved the way for rhetoric as well as established ground rules and concepts which have become universal elements of rhetoric. The roots of rhetoric lie within this ancient culture.

articles written by Covino and Jolliffe

Writing in the 21st Century

Yancey's article briefly describes the time-line and history of writing and writing courses. Years ago, students were only expected to read what their authorities wrote, and it was deemed unnecessary for them to have to undergo proper training in writing. The times have clearly changed, and now lessons and courses in writing are very common and even mandatory. Writing used to hold a negative connotation and was a dreadful task, but now people choose to write for fun and it has become a common extracurricular activity for most people...thanks to Facebook and Myspace.
I found this article to be very interesting because writing is now such a common exercise that students are taught how to do and take courses on improving their writing skills. It is very beneficial in the 21st century to be able to write well. As writing has moved from pen and paper to the computer, it makes it even more fun and involved because it allows for added decorum such as pictures and graphics. Writing composed via computer is usually more visually appealing. With the technology in this day and age, educators come up with many ideas to create new techniques for composing and devising more efficient ways to teach writing.

The Rhetorical Stance

Booth does a good job of explaining the rhetorical stance and the two stances that illustrate a poorly written piece of work. A writer either could care less about the audience understanding his or her written work and just write to get it over with or a writer could be over-attentive to the audience. The main goal of rhetorical stance is to maintain a fair balance amongst each of the 3 communicative elements. A successful writer will naturally do a good job at balancing the elements.
I think Booth's article is important because I have read many essays that have lacked a rhetorical stance. Nothing is more aggravating then reading an essay or article that is overly wordy and full of jumbled information. It only makes it obvious that the writer was in a hurry and not concerned about his or her audience being able to digest the written work. On the other side of the spectrum, it also is annoying to read essays that are too informative and attentive to the audience. If there is no room for discourse than the author lacks skill at achieving good rhetoric.

The Meaning of Audience

In this article, Park talks about the importance of audience and what the actual meaning of the word is. He explains that it is common for writers to always be preoccupied about addressing their audience in the right manner. For writers, writing appropriately to an audience is a key element of their work. They want to fashion their writing in a way which accurately applies to a specific person or people. The type of audience a writer addresses can affect his or her jargon and writing style. Sometimes the audience may be formal and other times it may be as informal as writing to a sibling or a best friend. Also, sometimes the writer needs to invent an audience to write to.
This article helped shape my understanding of the word audience. I didn't know until reading this article that sometimes the audience is invented or is a metaphor. When I write, I know that addressing my audience in the right manner is always a concern of mine. I strive to be articulate and clear in conveying my message. Words on paper do not always hold the same meaning or tone as they do when spoken out loud so every time that I write to an audience whether it be a simple text message to a friend or an email to a professor, I always make sure that my words are effective in giving off the right tone and message.

Rhetorical Situation

Bitzer's article defines what consists of a rhetorical situation. He gives many helpful examples like the fisherman example.Bitzer talks about how a rhetorical situation comes into existence. He explains that there has to be an existing situation, problem, or reason for there to be a rhetorical situation. The rhetor, the place, the topic, and the audience are all important elements that make up a rhetorical situation. Also, a rhetorical situation commonly evokes discourse and a fitting response.
This article gave me a clear understanding about rhetorical situations and how and why they exist. I agree that there is always a specific reason for a rhetorical situation. Unlike most other situations (ex: scary, embarrassing, exciting, etc.), I think that rhetorical situations are the most difficult to understand because they are more complex and don't present a black and white definition. Also, each rhetorical situation is different depending on the preceding topic, event, situation, or reason that brought about the specific rhetorical situation. Although the article gave many precise definitions of a rhetorical situation and the elements that comprise it, I still find myself a little confused if I were to try to pick one or two sentences to sum up what the word rhetorical situation means.