This is the new and hopefully improved blog I now call "PolkRinds." It will consist of my rambling thoughts on the human condition and the nature of the universe. It might not make much sense at times or at all.
But here we go.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Mobile approach
This launches a new era/phase on my blogging effort. While this blend into Facebook. Or is this more of a private interaction. With more than 36 years experience in community/small market journalism, I will post my observations on the state of the profession as I believe it to be still such.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
A little newspaper background
It has been some time since I last made an entry in this blog. I no longer work as the editor of our online newspaper stardem.com. Those duties now belong to another who is called the digital editor.
I now am involved in the production of the print paper by laying out pages for print.
The new duties draw on my experience in the field going back to my roots in Southern Maryland where I was a reporter, photographer and then feature editor of The Enterprise in the 1970s.
As a small paper, I was able to see or take part in, all the phases of newspaper production. That included the layout of the paper. At that time in the evolution of newspaper technology, print outs of columns of text were glued to the page with headlines created in a separate machine, affixed to the top. All was on a full-sized broadsheet page that would be turned into a huge negative and burned onto a metal plate that went onto the press.
Twenty years later, much is the same--only now all the steps leading up to the creating of the plate are done on computer. Every desk now has a computer that are used for various facets of the process.
Now it is important to know how to manipulate the digital pieces to make them fit together in newspaper form.
Newspaper style hasn't changed much. There is much more color, but headline sizes, type styles, etc. are much the same. Knowing how to maneuver them on a computer screen to look proper does take some knowledge.
My duties now do not require me to go out in the field and gather stories, pictures or videos. I sit at a computer. I do take advantage of my one time to keep my video skills (as they are) from going stale. I have Friday's free so I have shot video at several high school football games. I will try to do that most free Fridays.
I now am involved in the production of the print paper by laying out pages for print.
The new duties draw on my experience in the field going back to my roots in Southern Maryland where I was a reporter, photographer and then feature editor of The Enterprise in the 1970s.
As a small paper, I was able to see or take part in, all the phases of newspaper production. That included the layout of the paper. At that time in the evolution of newspaper technology, print outs of columns of text were glued to the page with headlines created in a separate machine, affixed to the top. All was on a full-sized broadsheet page that would be turned into a huge negative and burned onto a metal plate that went onto the press.
Twenty years later, much is the same--only now all the steps leading up to the creating of the plate are done on computer. Every desk now has a computer that are used for various facets of the process.
Now it is important to know how to manipulate the digital pieces to make them fit together in newspaper form.
Newspaper style hasn't changed much. There is much more color, but headline sizes, type styles, etc. are much the same. Knowing how to maneuver them on a computer screen to look proper does take some knowledge.
My duties now do not require me to go out in the field and gather stories, pictures or videos. I sit at a computer. I do take advantage of my one time to keep my video skills (as they are) from going stale. I have Friday's free so I have shot video at several high school football games. I will try to do that most free Fridays.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Google+ing
Yeah, now that I'm on, it does have appeal.
Listened to an interview with Capn Crunch on the TWIT.TV network show Triangulation this morning. John Draper talked about the early days with direct programing and blue boxes.
As a J-school student at UT in Knoxville in the early '70s I rubbed elbows with many of the sons/daughters of scientists at Oak Ridge. They were into the programing. I knew I didn't have the patience to work on lines of code but I also knew I wanted to benefit from the results of their labor.
I wanted to be able to use the programs not create them.
It took a couple more decades but that has come to pass.
Listened to an interview with Capn Crunch on the TWIT.TV network show Triangulation this morning. John Draper talked about the early days with direct programing and blue boxes.
As a J-school student at UT in Knoxville in the early '70s I rubbed elbows with many of the sons/daughters of scientists at Oak Ridge. They were into the programing. I knew I didn't have the patience to work on lines of code but I also knew I wanted to benefit from the results of their labor.
I wanted to be able to use the programs not create them.
It took a couple more decades but that has come to pass.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Tech thoughts from the fringe--Sept. 20, 2011
Well, Google has opened up Google + to the masses today. How long will it be before the first adopters move on to something else.
Now that the club is nolonger exclusive, it won't be so interesting.
Note, this is the last week of daily episodes of CNET's BOL show. Tom's departure to TWIT.TV hurt them more than they are willing to admit. Molly has been paired with BT of late but that hasn't had the smarts of the Tom-led show.
When BT breaks into song or Molly resorts to the nerd voice, I leave.
Twit has become the center of the tech podcast universe. The programing appeals to someone like me who is on the fringes of the tech world. I work running the website of a small market daily newspaper. As such, I am interested in breakthroughs on the tech news front. Twit provides that information without making you think you are sitting in a sandbox.
Just saying.
Now that the club is nolonger exclusive, it won't be so interesting.
Note, this is the last week of daily episodes of CNET's BOL show. Tom's departure to TWIT.TV hurt them more than they are willing to admit. Molly has been paired with BT of late but that hasn't had the smarts of the Tom-led show.
When BT breaks into song or Molly resorts to the nerd voice, I leave.
Twit has become the center of the tech podcast universe. The programing appeals to someone like me who is on the fringes of the tech world. I work running the website of a small market daily newspaper. As such, I am interested in breakthroughs on the tech news front. Twit provides that information without making you think you are sitting in a sandbox.
Just saying.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Notes from an online editor
This will mark a new blog site for me.
I will be using it for my random thoughts on issues involving the net and the state of journalism in general.
More to come.
I will be using it for my random thoughts on issues involving the net and the state of journalism in general.
More to come.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)