Class Reflection 2-22-12

Video Editor from Hell


During my many years in front of the computer, I've never seen such a poor video editor until today. After being instructed to familiarize ourselves with the Youtube Editor during this week's DTSE lesson, Sari and I spent the rest of class filming and attempting to edit our video. The process couldn't have been more difficult.

We saw the warning signs of coming frustration when we saw the small amount of tutorials. The video tutorials were also very outdated. I had to relearn many of the functions when I got to the Youtube video editor. While the layout of the editor seemed pleasing to the eye, the frustration was lurking beneath it all. Importing and combining the videos were simple, changing the length of each clip was challenging. The old layout had small arrows to accurately lengthen and shorten each clip. The new layout relied on the users mouse movements. I found that this was more challenging because of my shaky hands.

Since my partner and I could not finish the editing process in class, I decided to include the final piece (the music) at home. But in order to save our work, we had to publish the video. This was a grave mistake. After taking a break for the day, I picked up the editing process the next morning. I perused through the long list of music tracks until coming across one that was suitable for the video. The importing of the track was simple. I had to click and drag the music to an area located underneath the clip section. But, I couldn't find any tools that would shorten or lengthen the music track. Thinking that I missed something in the tutorial video, I went back to the instructions in hopes of finding any steps on editing music tracks. Several tutorials later, I was stumped. I disappointingly allowed the track to play throughout the whole video. Much of the dialogue in the video was muffled by the background music. I vowed never to use this editor again.

Epic Physics Simulation


For my unit on Kinetic and Potential energy, I will be using a simple pendulum for the video demonstration. Before viewing the video, the simple pendulum simulation will give students an idea of how the mass on the tip of the pendulum reacts to various changes in speed, length of tether, and in different locations (ie Moon, Jupiter, and Planet X).

The option to see the reaction of the pendulum in different environments make this simulation epic. Also, the comprehensiveness of the simulation adds to the "wow" factor. You can see a definite quality in the animation and layout. On the top right corner, the buttons used to alter mass and length seems like something found in a music studio. Also, the ruler found on the right corner of the simulation allows the user to move it all over the viewing area.

It is difficult to find any shortcomings in this great simulation. I've never found such a comprehensive simulation. The main page is loaded with teaching materials and different translations for the simulations. Users can also download or embed it into a different website with ease. It is truly fun to use and very helpful as well. I hope you enjoy it as I have.