Data, Information and Knowledge

Data is processed by computers, the resulting information can then be used to form judgements and make predictions.

Work your way through the tasks below - make a note of your answers in a new Word Document, which you will save into a one drive folder

Semester 1 > Information Literacy > Week 1

Task 1

Read pages 1-5 using the link below

Task 2

Use the internet to find the hidden message in the text below - Make a note of your answer

コンピューティングへようこそ

Task 3

Use the internet to find the hidden message - Make a note of your answer

بلیوں کتے سے بہتر ہیں

Task 4

Use the internet to find the hidden message - Make a note of your answer

Mae'r coleg hwn yn yr Alban

Task 5

Use the internet to find the hidden message - Make a note of your answer

01001100 01100101 01110111 01101001 01110011 00100000 01101100 01101001 01101011 01100101 00100000 01110100 01101111 00100000 01110000 01101100 01100001 01111001 00100000 01100011 01101111 01101101 01110000 01110101 01110100 01100101 01110010 00100000 01100111 01100001 01101101 01100101 01110011

Task 6

Look at the graph below, what does it tell you? - Make a note of your answer

Task 7

Use the internet to find the hidden message - Make a note of your answer

44 6f 6f 6d 20 45 74 65 72 6e 61 6c 20 77 61 73 20 61 20 67 72 65 61 74 20 67 61 6d 65

Task 8

Look at the graph below, which Nintendo Console sold the most units?

Hints

https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/files/nu/H7EB45.pdf

Introduction

This unit will introduce you to the history, impact and issues of social media - you will also demonstrate your ability to communicate using social media

History

Web 2.0

Web 2.0 is the idea that the internet transitions from a largely top down service to a user produced model - including social features like discussion, remix and redistributing. We largely see what used to be consider social features as basic features on all websites.

BBS ( Bulletin-Board System ) - 1978 Bulletin-Board Systems are similar to Forums and predate the World Wide Web. They are still in use. They offer a way for like minded people to get together and discuss topics

IRC ( Internet-Relay Chat ) - 1988 IRC offers chat rooms that where easy to access and could be embedded into websites using javascript. They rose to popularity but, after the dangers for young people where highlighted they returned to a niche following.

MSN - Windows Live Messenger - 1999 Microsft Messenger and also Yahoo Messenger became the primary way for school kids to communicate in the late 90's

Friends Re-united - 1999 Friends re-united had a simple premise, to allow you to get in touch with friends from school, but, never quite got traction

Friendster - 2011 Friendster was the first of the social networks to resemble what we see today, it was a popular website with millions of users.

LinkedIn - 2002 LinkedIn is a business social network, aimed at helping users secure work. It is essentially a replacement for the Rolodex or collection of business cards for yesteryear.

Myspace - 2003 Myspace started as a music platform - success such as Arctic Monkeys and Lilly Allan originated on the service. It became the dominant social platform of the time and was the most used website of 2005. Featuring friends, messages, a wall. It was common to see advertisements that included a Myspace url

Facebook - 2004 Facebook remains the dominant platform - it was initially shunned by many due to it's lack of customization and personality. Ultimately this is what made it easy to understand for new users and now it is predominantly used by boomers and for messenger

Bebo - 2005 Bebo was large in youth communities, it included the customization of MySpace with no musics basis. It allowed users to share out their love once a day.

Twitter - 2006 Twitter allows users to contact celebrities and high profile users directly. It started as a text only services with a maximum of 140 Characters. It now support 280 Characters and allows user to share image and videos. It is considered a good way of allowing large amounts of people to assemble quickly around a single topic.

Weibo - 2009 Weibo is basically the Chinese speaking equivalent of Twitter

VK - 2006 VK is basically the Facebook of the Russian speaking and ex-soviet world/nations

Instagram - 2010 Instagram is a photo sharing social network - it also includes direct messaging.

Google+ - 2011 Googles attempt to break into the social media space never seemed to break through, despite having a high number or users. YouTube briefly integrated with Google+ much to users annoyance.

SnapChat - 2011 SnapChat is a video/photo sharing service where the messages self-destruct. It also includes AR face filters and location sharing. Concerns over the dangers of sharing private sexual images continue.

Tinder - 2012 Tinder is an app that allows users to connect based on location and perceived attractiveness. It is the first time that online dating became totally mainstream

Vine - 2013 Vine was a short lived video sharing platform limited to 6 seconds. You needed Twitter to login to the services. Logan Paul originated on this platform.

TikTok - 2014 TikTok, previously Music.ly is new kid on the block. It features seamless loading to the next video - and, encourages users to act along to a collection of audio samples.

Negative Impact

Mental Health There have been a rise in studies pointing towards a link between a degradation in mental health and Social Media use. FOMO - Fear of Missing Out

Witch hunts Individuals can be targeted by mobs online either because of a difference of opinion, mistaken identity or even honest mistakes. This can lead to malicious bullying and death threats

Facebook/MySpace/Bebo Parties Teenagers arranging houseparties have at time seen huge numbers of people attend their parties. Often - someone else would upload the details of a party. This has led to large scale police deployment and property damage - not to mention the damage to family relations.

Abduction/Vulnerable People Lonely individuals are open to abuses of trust and being befriended by nefarious individuals online. This can lead to financial loss, embarrassment or even abduction

Positive Impact

Charity Social media allows people to organise quickly around a cause and to raise lot's of money. In 2013 we saw an example of this as the Ice Bucket Challenge

Open-Source Open Source Projects are usually developed completely online - notable successes include Chrome - Linux - WordPress

Marketing Social Media is an essential tool for marketing as it allows you to get your message out to a large number of people quicker than traditional methods. For a small fee you can boost your message even further.

https://www.sqa.org.uk/sqa/files/nu/H7E945.pdf

Introduction

In this unit you will learn the difference between data and information

Test

Practice Test

This test will demonstrate your ability to;

• Describe the value of information

• Organize information using information tools

• Solve routine problems using information.

https://www.sqa.org.uk/files/nu/F1KW11.pdf

Introduction

Download Worksheet

Risk Assessment

Completed Risk Example

Completed Example

When this unit is complete you will be able to

Work to a brief Plan the acquisition of Images Identify copyright requirements Complete a Risk Assessment Capture, edit & export finished Images Present Images appropriately

Brief

You have been approached by a music video producer. He represents a well known artist. He requires backdrops for their upcoming music video.

They are interested in the natural beauty of your surrounding area.

A portfolio of at least 10 images to choose from is required.

Care should be given to ensure all images meet the technical requirements for a 1080p video output.

Formats

JPEG PNG BITMAP GIF RAW SVG

JPEG JPEG ( Joint Photographic Experts Group ) .jpg .jpeg Millions of colours, no transparency, lossy compression, can set level of compression.

PNG PNG ( Portable Network Graphics ) .png Millions of colours, transparency, lossless compression

GIF GIF ( Graphics Interchange Format ) .gif 256 Colours, dithering, transparency, animation

BITMAP BITMAP .bmp Uncompressed Image, Large Files

RAW RAW Image file .cr2 .nef .dmg All of the information recorded by the image sensor in a digital camera, Large Files

SVG SVG ( Scalable Vector Graphics ) Vector Graphics Format, Shapes, Paths, Co-ordinates, Great for Logos, Bad for Photos

Resolution

Resolution is the number of pixels recorded in the image. DPI ( Dots per inch ) defines the image detail in print PPI ( Pixel per inch ) define the image detail on a screen

Colour Depth

Colour Depth describes the number of available colours in an image. Colour banding is a result of a low colour depth.

Smart use of dithering can be used to improve the perception of colour.

Data

Raster Raster Image formats record data in a grid. A 1-bit bitmap can be visualized as below. After brief header information ( which will describe how wide and how high the image is ) this image could be written as;

0001111000000100100000010010001111111111111111111101000000101110000111101000010110100001011010000101

Vector Vector Image formats record co-ordinates, shapes, fill colours and curves.

In this example we describe a circle, it's position, it's radius, the outlines, it's width and, it's fill colour.

Copyright

Adhering to copyright law is essential at all times when working with images. Consequences of ignoring copyright includes fines and imprisonment.

If you take the photograph yourself then you will own the image and can sell and licence it.

Royalty Free License Pay Once for an image and then you can use it as much as you like after that.

Rights-Managed License The images must be use for a specific purpose; such as a specific website, magazine or advert. In order to use elsewhere, you would have to negotiate and purchase the rights again.

Creative Commons This license is free to use for non-commercial work but you will still need to attribute the author. There are many types of Creative Commons licences with different rules so it is important to make a note.

Creative Common Zero has no restrictions over how the images can be used.

Important You must be sure of were your images have come from, you must be able to reference them and prove their licence. There are lot's of websites that claim to host free to use images but are actually stolen from elsewhere. Only trustworthy sources can be used. If you are in any doubt then DO NOT USE the image.

Software

Affinity Photo

Help

Primarily a raster image editing tool, this software includes features for touching up photographs and exporting to a range of formats.

Affinity Designer

Help

Primarily a vector graphics image editing tool, this software includes features for layout and design, and, exporting to a range of formats.

Course Code: WHCICDMF

Introduction

Tasks

Test

3D Objects

3D objects are made up of point called vertices. These point are joined together by lines called edges. Two or more edges can be filled to create a Face.

Drawing

3D Modelling

Box Modelling

In box modelling we use a cube and extrude points outwards and inwards to create a rough form, detail is then added using edge loops and tweaking topology

Sculpting

In the Sculpting Workflow we start with a high poly blob and use sculpting tools to define the form - we don't worry about topology until later

Scanning

We can scan objects into the computer by using a laser scanner or an array of photos - Scanned object have poor topology

Texturing

In order to give objects colour and details we need to texture them.

We can use Vertex Painting to apply just colour

We can use an existing image tiled across a surface

We can UV unwrap the model to apply texture detail in specific locations

We can use a texture painting feature

We can use procedural textures

We can layer various materials to create a more realistic surface

We can use normal maps to 'bake' in surface data

We can use specularity maps to simulate reflection

We can use a Physically Based Rendering ( PBR )

Lighting

We always want our subject to be well visible and clear on the screen

Most commonly - a three point lighting system is used

We can use simple real-time lights to illuminate our scene

We can use a ray-tracing system to simulate real light

We can use forced lighting

Animation

3D Animation can be achieved in a number of ways

We can create keyframes at different times to vary the location, scale and rotation of an object

We can control surface topology over time used shape keys

We can control mesh deformation by using a skeletal rig

Rendering

Software

Welcome to NC Computing with Digital Media course

You will be taught by three lecturers on this course

Video Intro

Next please read through the FAQ Section 😁

Introduction

In this unit you will demonstrate your ability to work together in teams - you will design and develop and application/site as a group

Introduction

Useful Links

Technical Specifications

Type

Handheld, games console, phone, tablet.

Processor

To include the manufacturer - speed and architecture.

RAM

To include accurate size and specification ( DDR4 ), older systems will be more difficult to define as system memory is sometimes on a cartridge or could be expanded.

Graphics Configuration

This will include the resolution and colour depth - can also include video capabilities

Backing Storage

Modern systems have large amounts of storage built in and also have different SDKs - older systems had no backing storage. Some included battery backup inside cartridges.

Input Devices

• Microphones

• Cameras

• Joysticks - Analogue

• Buttons

• Triggers

• D-pad - Digital

• Touch pad

• Accelerometer

• Gyroscope

• GPS

• Steering Wheel

• Light Gun

• Keyboard

• Mouse

Output Devices

• Rumble

• Lights

• Display

• Speakers

• Ambi-light

• Haptic Feedback

Design Elements

• Narrative Design

• Character Design

• Level/Environment Design

• Game Mechanics

• User Interface Design

• Audio Design

Flow Charts

Tasks

Test

How do I access my timetable?

You access your timetable information using the Calander in Outlook

Where do I save my work?

All work should be saved in OneDrive - You will create a folder for each unit and week. All of your work will be sent to your tutor at the end of the Semester as Evidence. If you do not organise and submit your work, you will not pass.

You should have folders for each Semester, followed by for each unit, followed by each week.

You can access your OneDrive via Outlook or through Windows.

What is Brightspace?

Brightspace is our online learning platform

How do I open Brightspace?

You can access Brightspace here https://brightspace.uhi.ac.uk/d2l/home. You login with your Student number and password.

What is my Username and Password?

Your username is your student number, your password is your date of birth. the 1st of January 2001 would equal ;

01012001

What is my email?

Your email is your student number followed by @uhi.ac.uk, for example 1240264@uhi.ac.uk

I am totally lost, can you help?

Yes, you can email us any time and we will help. You can schedule a one-to-one call if you need one. Always tryif you can complete the task unaided first, and ask another student before giving up 😁

My Internet is down, what should I do?

Don't worry, it happens. Let us know if you can, and you can pick up the work via Brightspace. You will still need to complete all work in your own time.

What is WebEx?

WebEx Meetings is our video conferencing/calling platform, you will use this to interact with live classes or to speak to your tutor

How do I access WebEx Meetings?

You can access WebEx via Brightspace

How should I name my work?

All of your submitted work should include your name, student number, unit name and any other relevant information. If you have completed work, but do not submit it in an appropriate manner or when requested, you fill fail.

http://www.sqa.org.uk/files/nu/F1KT11.pdf

Introduction

Work Sheet

Audio Notes

Example

Multi-Track Editing Techniques

Traditionally Audio Editing was performed by physically cutting magnetic tape and over-recording.

Non-Linear Editing allows us to easily arrange multiple tracks and temporally adjust the position of audio samples.

Cutting simulates the act of physically cutting magnetic tape with scissors.

Once cut, audio can be easily arranged multiple times with little effort.

DAW ( Digital Audio Workstation )

There are many DAW's available - you will have access to Reaper in class and ProTools in the recording studio.

Effects

Commonly used effects include - Reverb, Dynamic Range Compression, Delay, Equalization ( EQ ), Distortion, Chorus.

In Reaper you can apply and adjust these effects by opening the FX window

Reverb

Reverb is used to smooth over errors in vocal pitch.

It can also be used to make it sound like the audio has been recorded in a different location.

Dynamic Range Compression

Dynamic Range Compression is usually referred to just as compression.

It differs from File Compression in that it reshapes and audio file to make quiet sounds louder, and loud sounds quieter

Delay

Delay is similar to reverb and can be used to create an Echo effect.

Equalization ( EQ )

We use equalization to boost or limit certain frequencies within the audio mix. We can use this to increase Bass or reduce Treble.

Distortion Distortion is when we intentionally push the gain too far - it is commonly associated with the sound of an electric guitar.

Chorus Chorus creates the effect that the same audio is being reproduced from multiple locations.

Mixing

Mixing is the process of balancing audio levels to create a finished audio product.

Audio Formats

There are many types of commonly used audio formats. Some include File Compression.

.wav Uncompressed Waveform

.mp3 MPEG Layer-3, lossy compression and granular control of compression

.ogg Ogg Vorbis - an open source alternative to MP3

.flac A lossless audio format

.aac Apples propriety lossless audio format

Sound Waves We use two-dimensional visualisations to represent the physical phenomena of sound vibrations moving through the air.

The vertical axis of these representations is described as the amplitude, and can be more easily imagined as the volume.

The horizontal axis of these representations is described as the wavelength

Digital Recording

When audio waves are converted from analogue to digital they change from continuous representations to discreet points.

This conversion process creates an artifact called stair-stepping which can be partially mitigated by using a higher bit depth and frequency.

Tasks

Test

Practice Test Level 5

https://www.sqa.org.uk/files/nu/F1KB11.pdf

Introduction

Brief

You have been approached by the UK Government to produce an advert promoting the benefits of healthy eating.

You have been asked to produce a 30 second two-dimensional animated sequence created at 1280*720 resolution. It must be submitted as a .mp4 file under 100mb in size.

Techniques

Squash & Stretch

Objects expanding and contracting, often unrealistically to emphasize a movement.

Anticipation

Before an Object moves, it will signal which direction it is about to move, with a subtle opposite movement.

Follow Through

When an object comes to rest we observe 'follow through', which is essentially the opposite of anticipation

Staging

It should be clear where on the screen the audience should be looking - there should be nothing else to distract them happening elsewhere

Overlapping Action

Momentum being carried through in other parts - eg. hair and clothes

Ease In & Out

Objects take time to accelerate up to speed, and, to decelerate to a stop

Arcs

Smooth Curves that features follow during playback

Secondary Action

Gestures that support the main action to add more dimension - often conveying an emotion

Timing

Great drawings do not equal great animation. It is important to experiment with timing speeds and dropping frames all together

Exaggeration

Even realistic or mechanical motion has exaggeration. In cartoon animation we see actions overshoot to the extreme

Appeal

Appeal is something we like about a character

Pose to Pose

In pose to pose Animation we plan ahead - deciding on the most important poses that the character will assume - we then fill in the smaller details afterwards

Straight Ahead

In straight ahead animation we just keep drawing based on the last image - it can significantly harder to preserve volume using this technique - however, it is easy to create a sense of fluidity

Frame Rates

12 Frames per second - good for beginners - animating on two's

24 Frames per second - Cinema and TV - animating in one's

15 / 30 frames per second - The NTSC standard equivalent of the above

60 frames per second - Video Games Standard

Timing

The closer together frames are the slower the the animation will be

The further apart the frames are the faster the motion will be

We can hold onto frames for a little longer to make them pop.

Often, more less is more

Storyboards

Storyboards are a way to plan out visual information for film

Each panel will show a significant action - along with notes on sound, camera movements and descriptions

It is much more important for a Storyboard to convey an idea than for it to have a finished look

Large arrows can be used to indicate direction of movement

Here is a Blank Template for you to use

Here is an example from an animated Series

Motion Tweening

Motion Tweening is short for 'In Betweening' - We can ask a computer to create the frames between two poses for us. For motion graphics and small movements this is great. For characters however - it tends to create awkward movements

Adobe Animate CC ( Flash )

For your project you will have access to Adobe Animate CC which is used in professional Animation studios. Other professional software includes Toon Boom Harmony, TVPaint & Toonz. Some studios produce their 2D animations entirely in 3D Software.

Keyboard Shortcuts

F5 - Stretch frame

F6 - Duplicate Frame

F7- New Blank Frame

F8 - New Movie

Enter - Play

In order to create a motion tween in animate, we select an object - press F8 to create a new object - press F5 to extend our frame - right-click on the strip and select "Create Motion Tween" - and then click along the strip and then move the object.

Software

There are lot's of free animation tools available - they can be very complicated - so these are my recommendations to focus on the actual art of animation

Working at a low resolution actually ensures strong readability of motion without getting bogged down in the finer details

Tasks

Test

https://www.sqa.org.uk/files/nu/F1KV11.pdf

Introduction

Worksheet

Software

You will have access to DaVinci Resolve in the class

Resolve is a professional NLE ( Non-linear Editing ) suite used across the Film Industry.

You can cut and move footage in a similar way to cutting and moving audio in Reaper.

Formats

MPEG 4 Motion Picture Experts Group

.mp4 H.264 is the most common format for transmission online

H.265 a smaller format but takes more processing power to encode

MPEG 2 Used to master DVD Video ( 4.7 GB ) and Blu-ray Disc ( 50 GB )

WebM An opensource alternative to MP4

Quicktime .mov, Apples propriatry video format

MKV Matroska is an open-source standard mainly used for Blu-Ray rips

Video file are complicated by the facts that we have containers ( file names ) and codecs, which can be different.

For example, you can store a H.264 MP4 inside a .mov

Video containers guarantee compatibility with several codecs.

Codecs compress and decompress video information.

RAW RAW Video can be recorded on high end cameras - RAW files are very large and can be difficult to work with - however, they represent the maximum possible quality and colour depth.

Blackmagic RAW Apple ProRes RAW Cinema DMG Magic Lantern MLV

Resolutions

The resolution is the number of pixels on screen at any one time

720 x 480 NTSC 720 x 576 PAL 1280 x 720 HD 1920 x 1080 FHD 3840 x 2160 4K ( Consumer ) 4096 x 2160 4K ( Pro )

Frame Rates

12 Animation 24 Film 25 PAL 48 HFR 30 NTSC 50 PAL 60 Slow-motion

Filming at a high frame rate allows us to reduce the speed of the played back footage in order to create a slow motion effect.

Slow motion is generally used to increase the emotional impact of a scene or to highlight small details that would ordinarily be missed.

Cameras

Depending on your location you will be exposed to different cameras - the equipment available in class will be

Nikon L340 Bridge Camera Nikon D3300 Canon Legaria HF G40

All Digital Cameras rely on a CCD ( Charge-Coupled Device ) in order to convert light into an electrical signal.

All of these cameras are capable of recording good quality video

A selection of external microphones, lights and cages are available

DSLRs

A Common way to capture video is using a DSLR ( Digital Single-Lens Reflex ) due to their relatively affordable prices and good quality images.

Increasingly Mirrorless and Phone Cameras are becoming viable for good quality video capture.

Common brands for both DSLR and Mirrorless Cameras include;

Nikon Sony Alpha Canon Panasonic Lumix

SD Cards

Not all SD Cards are created equal - contemporary cards are measured in Gigabytes ( GB ).

SD Cards also have different speeds, which can be confusing - SDXC is required for FHD ( Full HD Video ).

Broadcast Cameras Historically broadcast cameras did not need to record footage, only broadcast it.

This has led to them developing independently for news and live television.

Common Broadcast cameras include;

Sony PDW Range Sony EX3 Range Canon XF Range

Dedicated Cinema Cameras

Historically the cameras used for film have been very expensive, however it is now viable for a small company or freelancer to buy or rent a cinema camera. Cinema cameras generally require a lot of additional equipment to use - they are not 'point and shoot'.

Common brands include;

RED Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera Sony CineAlta Arri Alexa Panavision Genesis

Chroma Keying

Chroma Keying ( Green / Blue - Screening ) allows us to replace all the pixels of a certain colour with another image. This is commonly used to switch in a replacement background or overlay.

Transitions

Transitions should be used appropriately. A fade to black or dissolve indicates the passage of time.

Quick cuts maintain location.

An establishing shot ( external ) can be used to cement location.

Framing

The subject of the scene should be on the left looking right. Characters should respect screen direction and move from left to right.

Rule of thirds

The rule of thirds is a simplification of the Golden Ratio, in short it estimates the ratios that human being intrinsically find appealing in nature. By lining our subjects up with one of the cross sections on the above grid we can have confidence that our composition will have appeal.

Symmetry

Symmetry can be tempting - as it can be visually appealing, however, it can also appear mechanical or artificial. If you are unsure it is best to avoid symmetry in film.

POV ( Point of view )

Point of view footage, sometimes called First-Person footage, shows the action from a characters point of view. This can be used to create a sense of authenticity and is often used in found footage movies.

Titles

Titles are graphics and text used to inform the viewer about what the are watching. They commonly include an introduction - location name - Characters name - and credits.

Simple Titles are often more effective than overly complicated Titles.

Colour Grading

Colour grading is the process of balancing the colours on screen to give the best output. This process is similar to adjusting the colour / brightness / exposure in photo editing software.

Compression Techniques

Video compression techniques encompass Image and Audio techniques.

Since some frames, or large areas of frames do not differ significantly from one another there are some compression artifacts unique to video.

As the file expects us the watch the video in linear sequence, unexpected scrubbing can produce unexpected artifacts.

HDMI

These days we only have to worry about one video cable - HDMI ( High-Definition Media Interface ).

However - there are different implementations of HDMI which give different results.

HDMI 1 specification supports 1080p at 60 fps

HDMI 1.4 specification support 4k at 30 fps

HDMI 2.0 specification supports 4k at 60 fps

Rendering

Software Video Editing has many advantages - such as being able to randomly access scenes and video.

However, a large disadvantaged is the need to render your footage when you are finished.

Rendering is a CPU, RAM and GPU intensive process - so in order to edit video we should seek out the highest spec computer we can find.

Script

If you have any spoken elements, it is important to write a script or screenplay.

This could include multiple characters or it could just detail a short voice-over

Storyboard

As part of your planning process it is essential to create a storyboard.

A storyboard is a visual layout of how how expect your film to play out.

Extra information including audio and camera movements must be included.

Video Editing Level 6

https://www.sqa.org.uk/files/nu/F3T612.pdf

Level 5 Page

Worksheet

Tasks

Test

Practice Test Level 5