Monday, April 14, 2014

AIP- The Beaver Coat Visualization Program



            For our project, it is a point-and-click visualization program using the different settings of The Beaver Coat. In sketching out our project proposal, there will be two main settings: the Wolff residence and the courthouse. In each of these settings there will be highlighted items that the user can click on. These will be the important items that appear or are mentioned in The Beaver Coat. Once the item is clicked, the screen is divided into two parts. The left side of the screen zooms in on the object, and the right side of the screen opens a separate window containing textual information that references the item. The textual information will be referenced using the page numbers from the purple copy of The Beaver Coat. Lastly, the quotes and the page numbers referencing the item will be shown.
            In justifying our choice, not only will the scenery and the key items strengthen the reader’s memory of the important items in the story, but it will also locate textual references referring to that item instead of flipping randomly thru the book. By easily locating these textual references, the tie between the items and their stories are easily connected. In clarifying and simplifying it out, our product helps people who understand better by visualization.
            However, our program doesn’t address how The Beaver Coat is so descriptive in their settings. The program will only narrow in on passages about the object that we the creators think are important. Therefore, the users of the program may not be exposed or highly aware of the rich descriptions of the settings through-out the story. Also, since we the creators choose what we think are the important items, thus creating a bias approach towards the book because it’s like we’re telling everyone that THIS so-and-so is important and THAT so-and-so is not. For that reason, does anyone want to pitch in and give us suggestions of what they believe to be the important items? 

Ai Lin Chin
Alice Ta

4 comments:

  1. I really like this idea, and I also think ithis would be a great supplemental resource for a class studying The Beaver Coat. I could see this program catering to many different learning styles, not just visual. For auditory learners, you could attach an audio file to the item clicked on, which plays the meaning of the item in the story. For verbal learners, you could have a description of the item pop up when you click on the item. You could even make a matching game with people and the items if you added people. Great idea!!

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  2. I think with this idea you could really show how Mrs. Wolff was hiding everything out in the open and just distracting people from it.

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  3. We can't argue with the fact that The Beaver Coat was very descriptive. I also can't wait to see how this will turn out.

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  4. I think this is a pretty neat idea. It reminds me a lot of the way Pottermore works. If you've never used it, you should check it out to get some ideas.

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