Response Reviews

Nicolas Feigenbaum’s website incorporates advanced html design which makes it visually appealing, but he also shows good analytical capacity about the topic. Hypertextually his project flows well for the most part, but it is hard to distinguish between links to the media used and links to other pages. Rather than separating sources and discussing them individually, Nicolas blends them together and explains how each may be connected to the specific topic he is analyzing. I like the structure of this project. It is linear in a way, but also hypertextual at the same time. His navigation bar provides an easy way to view all of the pages in any order you wish, but from looking at it you can kind of tell where you should begin and where the project ends; he gives an introduction and concludes with the implications of the issues discussed in his paper.

Craig Benko’s website divides his paper into three main topics and uses the assigned media to assess the current situation. He examines music and the complications it has dealing with copyright law. He also looks at past political movements dealing with free media and its uses, and contemporary activism. His website embeds video which adds a lot to his discussion, but like the previous website it is sometimes hard to distinguish between links to subsequent pages and links to outside sources. Unlike the last project, Benko’s website does not give a nice navigation bar to all of his pages.

Myrna Mungal’s website shows a great deal of engagement like the previous two websites. Her project is simple aesthetically, but she does something which the previous two websites did not. Myrna effectively uses text is various ways to emphasize key points and project important quotes. The previous students must have had previous experience with html and css, while this project uses less artistic design elements and instead uses things like the placement, size, font, and color of text to effectively capture the reader. The tone of the essay is very personal. You get the feeling that this really is the opinion of the author and that she is not simply reiterating what has already been said. I like how thorough Myrna is in explaining each source she used. She introduces you to the organization being used and then proceeds to give examples of what they have done.

In contrast with my website, these websites have implemented a much better variety of design techniques. These websites made good use of pictures and videos, while I focused on making my essay hypertextual and on ensuring good use of multiples sources of relevant information to my key points. While not as visually appealing, I do think that all of these projects, mine included, address the issue of the conflict between copyright and democracy pretty well. I noticed that I divided my essay into more topics than these other projects. However, concerning the overall effectiveness of each website, I don’t think that this had much significance. The combination of quality content and good use of media makes these A projects.