zbrin

I hate Internet Explorer.  Can I go home now?

http://www.resnet.trinity.edu/zbrin/final/home.html

Here is my fourth installment, working with columns and such.  I did this one on Honda's robotic technologies, I found it pretty interesting, you just might as well.

http://www.resnet.trinity.edu/zbrin/asimo.html

If there is one thing I've learned from my 3 months of experience designing web pages, it's easy to make a website, but not so easy to make a good one.  Like most web users, I generally take most website layouts and designs for granted.  But now that I know how frustrating it can be to spend hours trying to design a site that looks clean and interesting and that works the way you want it to, I feel I've gained more of an appreciation for the whole process.

But really, what makes a good website vs. a bad website?

The Good
http://www.nsmb.com

Maybe not the best, but I like it, a lot actually.  The background image, the color scheme, the layout, are all appealing to me.  Nothing is too spare, or too cluttered, and everything is done in a tasteful, easy to navigate manner.  My head spins thinking about the hours it took to perfect this layout, and it's not even that complicated.


The Bad
http://www.krazykatmusic.com

As much as I love this little gem of a vintage guitar shop, god does their site suck.  Aside from the silly font and bland layout and weird animation.... wait, why is this animation still playing on my screen when I open a new window?  Good God.  Anyway, this is a great example of excess clutter.  Tone it down, clean it up a bit, fix the broken links, and for god's sake, lose that wretched animation.  Sorry Krazy Kat, you're still my favorite.


The Ugly
http://now.sprint.com/widget/

What the hell is going on?  Why are there so many things happening? I honestly feel like this website could be cool if I could just understand what any of it meant.  Eggs? Republicans? Democrats?  How did I even get here?  You would think a huge corporation like Sprint would hire some web designers with a bit more sense than to assault their customers with such an intense barrage of nonsense.

Here's my third site, I definitely think it's my best so far, but I'm having trouble with the ALT tags on images and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. As far as I can tell I'm not doing anything differently than my last site, and they worked just fine then.  Oh well, I guess you can't win them all... SPRING BREAK

http://www.resnet.trinity.edu/zbrin/takingover.html

It's a bit late, but here is my second site.  Working with CSS gave me a bit of grief, but I think i've finally got the hang of it.  Hope you enjoy.

http://www.resnet.trinity.edu/zbrin/education.html

Here is my first website, I choose to do it on some of my favorite films presenting a dystopian view of a technologically advanced future.



http://www.resnet.trinity.edu/zbrin/metropolis.html

hope you enjoy!

    I've always felt a little overwhelmed by the rate of technological growth.  Even as I child I noticed how quickly state of the art equipment and electronics became obsolete.  My first video game console was a thing of the past by the time I beat any of the games!  All my friends had moved on to faster, smarter machines while I was still feeling my system out.  Today, my head still spins when I try to keep up with the latest gadgets and little electronic devices everyone seems to have.  But such is progress, adapt or be left behind.  Now I don't mean to sound so negative about technological progress, it just surprises me, and scares me, how quickly things change.  And I can't help but feel a little uneasy about the year 2026, the year of my 40th birthday.  If I'm feeling left behind now, where will I be then??

    I've always struggled with the ethics of technological progress, especially in the medical field.  There is no denying how amazing the advancements in medicine have been.  Technological progress has improved the quality of life for hundreds of millions of people around the world, and genetic engineering promises to enrich and extend the lives of us all, maybe even indefinitely.  But at what point does it begin to reduce the quality of life for the entire planet.  When do we reach the breaking point?  Are we not, in the long run, creating more problems than solutions?  Are we forgetting that death is population control, and as natural a part of life as birth?  However, how can we sit by idly while people suffer, knowing full well we have the means to ease their pain? 

    Biotechnology, genetic engineering, nanotechnology and technological advancements in general are the proverbial "double edged sword" of our time and for the foreseeable future.  It is crucial that in any and all situations regarding the issue, the possible consequences be measured with incredible scrutiny.  Therefore, I feel the best solution for the world now, and in 2026, is education.  Advancements in technology necessitate regulation, and the extent of the regulation is crucial to the extent of which the advancements effect our society and our world.  Education ensures that we, as a people, are able to make informed decisions regarding the regulation of technology, and hopefully will reduce many of the negative ramifications of unchecked advancement.

It's early.

I'm Zach, a fifth year comm major from the San Antonio area.  I grew up on a ranch about an hour north of San Antonio and went to highschool in Boerne.  I traveled a great deal, but it's been mostly domestic, which I'm hoping to change this summer with a trip to europe.  After I graduate in May I plan on taking a year or two off from school to work and save money before I consider any sort of graduate program. 
I think my primary interest in the field of communication at this point is media literacy in American youth.  I feel that there is a startling gap between the technological ability of young children and their understanding of the messages and content they access.  I think that it is really importnant for media literacy programs should be implemented into American primary schools.

To be honest, i'm a little on the fence when it comes to technology; I absolutely adore my iPod, and my laptop, I check my facebook everday and spend at least a couple hours surfing the web, but at the same time it also really scares me how much control over my life these things have seized. 

Well, it's nap time.