Mr. Hechler's Lecture

Mr. Hechler's lecture was very intersting. He seems to know a lot about computers and handling them. I suppose that's why he's a Dell and a Mac technician. He was well equiped to answer any question we had at that time. And I thought it was really neat to see the inside of a laptop. I can't believe they charge that much for cheap plastic parts! It's incredible! Overall, his lecture and discussion on computers and their proper uses and maintenance procedures was incredibly informative. I learned a lot in that class period. I now know how to clean my computer properly and what to do in case of accidents. It should really help me keep my computer functioning at maximum capacity for the rest of my college career!

Presentation Critique

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PowerPoint Presentation

Krytal Kohler

My Presentation Topic

Since I am planning to major in Drama, I figured I would research the father of Method acting and acting in general as an art form. I am very passionate about Drama, so this should be a fun presentation.


Krystal Kohler

Presentation Tips

The articles that Dr. Semmes has linked to the class page were very helpful. They were all so neat and interesting. For example, the article about choosing color to set the mood was really fascinating. I read once that color affected animal behavior, I suppose it makes sense when applied to humans as well. Nonetheless, the other websites helped a lot in establishing what a good power point presentation consists of and such. I completely agreed with all the articles and what they discussed. This is what I took away from the articles. I think these five traits should be taken into account before presenting:
1. Present information with confidence and a degree of passion. Otherwise, it seems like the presenter just doesn’t care and is uninterested in his own topic.
2. Consider who your audience is. (I.e. do not use a large vocabulary when addressing middle schoolers. This will not hold their interest on account of not being unable to understand you.)
3. Do not put every sentence on the PowerPoint. This just makes it seem that you are not prepared and detracts from total effect of the presentation.
4. Project when presenting. It is unbearable when one cannot hear the speaker.
5. Do not make the presentations too showy. This just make the presentation distracting.

Presentation Tips

Video of what not to do


Krystal Kohler

Chris Nolan's Presentation

Chris Nolan’s presentation was very informative. I definitely learned a lot from him. For one I had no idea Google had a scholar section or that you could limit keywords to better locate what you need. I also now know how Google and other such sources rank the sites. The sites that are at the top are the ones that have the most links to them. I did not know that! Also those examples Mr. Nolan used when he was lecturing on checking the credibility of websites was very entertaining and really interesting. That Martin Luther King site that was really created by a white supremacist group was something I did not expect. Usually sites about such important historical figures are created for informative purposes and as a tribute to their actions. To have a group such as the White Storm do that was just shocking to me! It really shows how racism and prejudice still exists in our country.

Krystal Kohler

Photo Copyright Infringement

They stole and image of my son and only had to pay $4000

I think that what this company did was wrong. And considering that copyright laws here in the U.S. seem to be much stricter, I think they probably would have to pay a lot more than $4000. I completely agree with the man who wrote the article. A simple apology and a little compensation might have been acceptable, but what that company did was still wrong. Even though a photo appears on the internet, you can’t just take it and use it without permission. Stock exchange photos had a really good idea with what they’re doing right now. With more sites like that, copyright infringement would probably decrease.

Krystal Kohler

Powerpoint Presentations

I think an effective PowerPoint consists of paraphrased information with helpful and effective visuals. The speaker should make points, insert them into a presentation, and then elaborate on the material himself of herself. All the information should not be on the presentation. That would only make it dull and would not hold the audience’s attention. Neither should the presentation be flashy and packed with animation. This would detract from the overall effect and prove to be distracting. Also, the PowerPoint presentation should not be very long, but instead be used only as an aid to inform.
I, fortunately, have not had many classes where the professor used only PowerPoints. Only in high school did they appear, and if then only rarely. In my personal experience, I do not enjoy having a class taught purely on PowerPoint. While beneficial in some respects, it is not so in others. For example, since the material is paraphrased and more than likely not very detailed, looking back on such a presentation would force you to fill in the gaps. In doing this, a lot of important information could be left out. On the upside however, a PowerPoint allows you ample space to jot down your own notes. For people who are not good with taking notes, this poses a problem.
Overall, my experience with PowerPoint presentations has not been agreeable. I utilize them only when I am required too. Although they are convenient in and of themselves, they just seem cumbersome to me. I am more of an auditory learner. I’d much rather prefer a boring lecture over an amazing powerpoint.

Krystal Kohler