Now it's time for so long...

But we'll sing just one more song! Thanks for doin your part, ya sure are smart! Thanks to me and you, and my dog Blue, we can do anything that we wanna do!

Yeah, I'm pretty excited that this semester is coming to a close. This has been one of the longest semesters of my four years at WVU and I'm thrilled that it is finally over. However, through all of the work I had to do for both capstone classes and both internships I participated in, I would have to say I learned the most from my professional writing capstone. I have been familiar with newsroom work for three years, and while I know I can still learn about it I feel I needed to learn more about my minor before I went job hunting. The things I learned during my internship at the WVU Press made me a more marketable individual as I enter the workforce and I hope that makes it easier for me to get a job soon. I don't know if anyone from the Press is going to actually read this final post, or any for that matter, but I would just like to say thank you, first for all of the experience and patience they offered me throughout this semester. Secondly, I'd like to thank everyone there for the wonderful graduation card they sent me! I especially love the Henry David Thoreau quote on the front:
"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined."

Yeah, H.D.T. knew what he was talking about. Either way, my reflection on this final semester in this final blog post for this final PWE class is that I know now that there is still plenty of room to grow. I know that I can immerse myself in the world of journalism as much as I want for now, but the simple truth is that there aren't a lot of jobs out there and I'm going to have tons of bills to pay shortly. The money-hungry turds of the world will soon be knocking on my door and my only option will be to answer and pay them what I owe simply for existing. The point is I need to keep an open mind to whatever job comes my way, be it journalism or professional writing and editing. Before it was either journalism or no job at all, meaning I'd have to live with my parents for an extended period of time, and that is not something I want to do after living on my own for four years.

This brings me to a final simple, human truth:
A job in professional writing and editing is better than facing an ambiguous future of living in a basement in Martinsburg, WV, which smells funny and has nothing to offer creatively.

I leave you with that and this link to my final portfolio.

Ciao,
amm

http://sites.google.com/site/ambers491aportfolio/

Spring is Sewing Summer's Dress

Not much to report at the ol' WVU Press lately. I've been working to finish up editing those maps of Africa. I would just like to say it is taking me so long to finish them because I can only work with them one day per week. The reason for this is because other interns work at the computer I need to use to edit the maps, which is the only one connected to a scanner. This makes it difficult to get my work done, it is even more difficult when I have to save the work I do in several different places on the computer because the web server is full or something similar. Either way, I only have a few more days left at the Press before it's poster presentation time.

I've been bouncing around a few ideas for my poster presentation in terms of layout. I know I'm going to include the map project and what I did to the website and my image searches for the content, that is a no-brainer. I'll also include a professional statement and an explanation of what goes on the Press because I don't think many people know what it is, exactly. Someone actually said to me the other day, "Oh, so you guys actually publish books there? I didn't know that." I'm not sure what people think the WVU Press does. Either way, I'm going to work on formulating a game plan for how I want my poster to look this week.

Oh, and the title of this post comes from my boss's daughter, who is apparently going to be the next great writer of Elizabethian poetry.

ciao, amm

Devil Program vs. Drupal

I've been working on the WVU Press Website quite a bit recently. We have switched from using Slate, which is what I will from this point on refer to as "devil program" to Drupal. These are both programs that are aimed at website content management, one is far easier than the other, however. I'm sure you can guess which on is easier. I've been converting the web content from devil program's website to the new Drupal website, and it is surprisingly easier than I expected. I'm still learning how to use it, but it is helping me understand the fundamentals of web development, especially in terms of how to use HTML and creating web content in pages, stories, menu items, and so on and so forth.

I must explain why I am to negative about devil program. You see, I have worked to understand how to move content around it for a few weeks now on and off. I've tried to upload pictures of books, as well as content, and something always goes wrong. Not only do things go wrong, but it is usually difficult to figure out what on earth I have done to mess up the entire layout of a page when all I was trying to do what upload a picture of some trees. I was able to figure out at least half of what I was doing with Drupal by watching Than use it for one day, so it is safe to say that this is a much easier program to use. I think this brings back the term "synthetic thinking" that I mentioned earlier this semester. I am able to apply this concept to learning how to use Drupal and figure out some things on my own. However, the other program, which is more evil than Satan himself, made me want to scratch my eyes out in one day when all I wanted to do was instert a panorama of some pretty trees.

Is that really so much to ask?