Just a quick note to say that I’ll continue blogging after this weekend. Husband is going to a “guy” event, so I’ll have plenty of hours to upload WordPress 2.5, and play around with it.
So, I’ll break my silence next week.
I can’t wait because I’m “Always Learning”!
Just before logging off to go to bed, I see this breaking-news post from Yahoo!:
A new, SaaS version of Photoshop, obviously online: Photoshop Express. It’s free!
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080327/adobe_photoshop.html
Here’s Adobe’s “Mac/Apple”-esque Web site for Photoshop Express:
https://www.photoshop.com/express/landing.html
Even when I’m about to log off and hit the pillow with my sleepy head, I’m “Always Learning”.
“I am so excited, I can hardly contain myself!”
My Minnesota born-and-raised mom said that phrase often while I was growing up, and it easily slipped into my DNA. Yet, the “geeky” truth behind my introduction is that I am so excited about WordPress’s latest upgrades, I can’t keep it inside. I have to post about it.
I’m not new to blogging; we have a private family blog created in Blogger that’s a couple of years old. However, one of my pet peeves with Blogger is that I cannot easily upload my custom Flash movies to share with my family “peeps”.
The key word there is: easy.
Sure, Blogger’s developers and fans have created workaround solutions, but that’s not the point. In today’s 21st century, social-networking world, blog software should be flexible enough to adapt to what the admins/bloggers want and need. Today. Now.
So, when I found out that WordPress makes it easy to insert custom SWFs, I told myself,
“Self, I’d rather switch than do workarounds.”
I finally carved out the time, found Tom Johnson’s tutorial (see the “Welcome!” post), and started this blog. When I logged in just now as my blog’s Admin, I saw this link on the Dashboard page:
http://wordpress.org/development/2008/03/wordpress-25-rc2/
If you click to visit, notice the embedded Flash movie!
That’s why I voted with my fingers and chose WordPress. Now I, too, can embed movies easily in my blog. Just think of it: e-Learning “courselets” , Flash demos, screencasts…the blogosphere is now my oyster! Well, maybe not, but WordPress provides the features and functions I want. And, all of us wp-admins will get a new Dashboard UI to boot! As a new wp-admin, I cannot wait to see the “reveal” next time I log in.
Thanks to WordPress, I’m “Always Learning”.
Ah, the title sounds like a martial-arts film. This post gives you a simple, high-level view of me approaching new projects (with nunchucks in hand).
Who is my audience?
I first ask myself this question (”Self, who is this project ultimately for?”). I jot down some notes to create a reader profile. When the reader’s persona lives in my mind’s eye, I meet with at least two SMEs and my key stakeholder to make sure my profile accurately describes the reader they call their “customer”.
What is my content?
First, I create an outline (a skeleton to be fleshed out later) or a Mind Map of the project’s topics. The Outline View inside Word (documentation) or PowerPoint (e-learning) works well most of the time. I also like PowerPoint for creating subsequent thumbnails (or storyboards) of my pages from that initial outline. The Slide Sorter comes in handy as it allows me to rearrange pages if needed. I calculate four hours of development time per page (per JoAnn Hackos) to estimate the project’s time line and potential cost.
What are my questions?
As I begin to research content for the project, I start a Q&A page. I write down the questions I have, then, I try and resolve as many as I can myself, using existing documentation and any other available resources. Once I answer those initial questions, I schedule meetings with targeted SMEs. (If I’m lucky, I get them all in the same room at the same time.) I provide a Q&A list prior to the meeting to minimize the time the SMEs spend in the meeting.
What is my content (Part deux)?
After that SME meeting, I flesh out my Outline/Thumbnails/Storyboards with headers and draft content. My reader firmly in mind, I try and focus on the needs of both the reader (end user, learner, etc.) and the business. Why? Because I have two customers: the client and the end user.
This post is just one of many to come, I’m sure, on the topic of project management.
I’m “Always Learning”.
Wow, looking at the 2008 ASTD conference Web site, and the list of job titles of people who typically attend, I see more than one that describes what I do or what I have done:
* e-Learning Developer
* Instructional Designer
* Curriculum Manager
* Project Manager
* Learning Systems Analyst
* Interface and Multimedia Designer
* Training Coordinator
* e-Learning Analyst
* LMS Administrator
* Training Specialist
* Instructional Content Designer
* Learning Coordinator
Do you think I can get a multiple-registration discount?
Why not? I’m “Always Learning”.
First, my thanks go to Tom for his easy-to-follow tutorial on uploading Wordpress to my site hosted by Bluehost.com. If you want to blog with Wordpress, please view his tutorial:
http://www.idratherbewriting.com/2008/02/06/
answering-questions-on-the-practicalities-of-blogging/
Tom, as “they” say down-undah, you are a won-dah!