Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.
— Oscar Wilde.
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DIGME256 Week 1 – Summary
This week was all about the topic of “hard times”. I thought that this was an interesting topic to explore but I wanted to try something a bit different at first. I know that a lot of people can go through very difficult times alone, whether it be depression, loss of a loved one, rough times at school or work, there are a lot of things in life that can really throw you off your game. So I first just wanted to share a little motivational video on twitter to maybe help some of my peers if the beginning of the semester is a bit stressful for them. Then looking further into the topic I wanted to find something that is out side of human control. Something that even if we knew about it there is not a lot that we can do to prevent it. I feel like these kind of situations are different than wars that happen or economic depressions etc. because those are things that are caused by humans and we simply reap the effects. So I looked into natural disasters and how devastating these events can be. At first you may not think much of it but I sure can remember many times where the nation is in complete heartbreak about many lives that are lost to these events that we simply can not control. Something else that I thought is super interesting about natural disasters is that after they occur we start to see that people put their differences aside to help one another because we are all grieving about what happened. Going forward in the week I decided to write a little short story about a young brother and sister that don’t the best life at first. The duo eventually get out of their situation and learn quite the lesson about the hard times that they experienced. Over all from this week I learned that no matter what time always goes forward and things will get better, you have people around you that support you and all you need to do is get back up when you fall. Sometimes that is hard to do alone but with the community that we can create we can make a huge impact even if it is just within the DIGME256 course. Below are links to my story as well as some of my interactions with my peers on twitter.
https://garrett.tech.blog/2020/08/25/my-hard-times-story/
- Twitter: @A_Nobody_Smith
- SoundCloud: A Nobody
- Email: smithg449@gmail.com/garrett52@ksu.edu
- Fliker: A Nobody Smith
- Vimeo: A Nobody
My “Hard Times” Story
Not everyone is born with the silver spoon in hand, a lot of us are placed in to situations that we had no say in which can make it feel like our whole life is stacked against us before it has even started. My sister and I were apart of the unfortunate I guess you could say. I can’t remember when the last time I wasn’t doing back breaking work. Even as a young child I was working for people who I didn’t even know the names of, but old pops said it was just the way things ran around here. Day in, day out, from dawn to dusk the work never stopped. The worst part is that we never saw anything out of the work we did. It was all taken by pops or the men in white coats would take it straight out of our hands. The only friend I ever had was my sister, always by my side telling me to keep my head up. We never really knew what was out in the big world, it was only in our dreams that we would be able to wake up to the sound of waves crashing on the coast and the smell of fresh crispy bacon. Sis and I would always tell pops about our dreams, fantasies, and goals of getting out of here someday. All he would ever tell us is that dreams is what there are… dreams. We were always told to never get our hopes up and just accept what we have and never ask for anything more, but sis and I were unsatisfied. Both of us knew that we couldn’t stay here forever, this is no place for two kids with dreams as big as ours. My sister came to me one night whispering in my ear saying to be ready to leave by the next night. She wouldn’t answer any of my questions and just reassured me that things were going to get better as she kissed my forehead and tucked me in for bed. The next morning was the same as always, get loaded into a cart with other children that are the same as me and we are taken to some place to do some kind of nasty work. As the day winded down to an end I was slowly getting more and more excited. When I saw my sister when the moon started to rise she told me to grab my things and off we went. I don’t think she knew where we were going but all that mattered is that it wasn’t here. We ran for miles and miles, never stopping just trying to get away from our old life. Eventually we saw the big tall buildings that we hear others talk about. I was given a sense of hope, I saw my life getting better right before my eyes. It may not be imminently better but I knew that hard work and patience can get you very far in this world. Sis and I didn’t have much to offer to this big new world but our working hands but it seemed like that was enough to get us started. There were multiple small business that were looking for some extra help and we were more than happy to help. We would jump from job to job doing what ever was asked of us and the best part was is that we got paid in cash right after our work was done. Before you know it sis and I made quite the name for ourselves. On her eighteenth birthday we were finally able to make so real strides towards success. Since we were already a popular helping hand around the city it was pretty easy to get a hold of sponsors and begin the process of creating out own small business. Through years and years of hard work and experience sis and I were able to make something out of ourselves. We became the very thing that we dreamed of, we were successful, independent, and helping others become what they dreamed of being. The only reason we were able to make it this far is that even if you are born in the most unfortunate of places, you can get yourself anywhere with hard work, dedication, and patience. And remember… dreams do come true, so go out there and chase yours.
-Garrett “A Nobody” Smith
OSI Model – Lab 4
Learning Objectives: Going more in depth of the OSI model and learning more about modern computer networks.
Equipment list: Routers, Switches, CD Drive, Networking Card, Hub
Notes, Observation, and Questions: What is your IP address? 192.168.1.106
What protocol is used to dynamically assign IP addresses? DHCP
What is your MAC address? 18-D6-C7-2A-F8-48
Diagrams, flowcharts, and figures:
References: Lab 4 Handout, physical aspects of the OSI model
Conclusions: In this lab we used different methods to furthermore understand how layers of the OSI model interact with one another. We analyzed different pieces of the layer of the OSI model and discussed their functionality. After identifying aspects of the lower levels we then executed command prompts using the cmd on our devices to identify our ip address, MAC address, and ping other devices on the network.
Layer 7 – Application
Layer 6 – Presentation
Layer 5 – Session
Layer 4 – Transport
Layer 3 – Network
Layer 2 – Data Link
Layer 1 – Physical
Exploring TCP/IP Networks – Lab 5
Learning Objectives: Learn how to change computers IP address and connect them to “B” network or a “C” network.
Equipment list: Computers, Ethernet Cable, Switch, Router
Notes, Observation, and Questions: In this lab I noticed that on a “B” network all of the numbers on a ip address are the same except the last bit, where as a “C” network all numbers are the same except the last two bits. When changing the IP addresses we came to a problem with my laptop, everyone was able to ping off of each other but for some reason my laptop was not being found. After some troubleshooting we found that I needed to disable my windows defender in order for my laptop to be on the network we created.
Diagrams, flowcharts, and figures:
References: Lab 5 Handout
Conclusions: In lab today we separated into two different groups and created two different networks. One team created a “C” network and the other team created a “B” network. We created these networks by changing our IP addresses to correspond with one another and link our computer into a switch. After the class had created two networks we used a router in between us to link our networks together. Once connected to the router everyone was able to ping off of each other meaning the we had created one large network from two small ones. The lab was a success.
Lab 2 – Structured Cabling
Learning Objectives: Learning how to do simple cable work. Making our own Ethernet cables by stripping them, arranging the wires in the right order, splicing the cables, and testing if the cable is correctly connected.
Equipment: CAT5, CAT3, wire cutters, splicers, insulation strippers, cutters, Connection testers
Notes Observations and Questions: I found it difficult to rearrange the cables in the right order and making sure that when you go to splice the cable all of the wires stay in the intended order. Something I learned is that the less lose wire exposed the less interference you will have with your cabling.
Diagrams, Flowcharts, Figures: Provided in class
References: All instruction from – Genereux, B. (2020). CMST 250, Networking Lab
Conclusion: Today in class our main objective was to make our own Ethernet cables by stripping them, arranging the wires in the right order, splicing the cables, and testing if the cable is correctly connected. We also learned about the basics of cabling and different types of cables and their uses.
Lab 3 – Computer Hardware
Learning Objectives: Take the hardware components out of a personal computer to identify them and their functions.
Equipment list: Personal Computers, Screwdriver, Linux system
Notes, Observation, and Questions:
Notes: The internals of the computer appear very similar to my personal build. After taking out some of the components I start to notice some slight differences.
- How many and what type of I/O ports does the computer you examined have?
- Four USB ports, Audio and Video Output
- What is the purpose of the CPU, the HDD and the RAM memory?
- The CPU sends signals to other parts of the PC’s hardware giving them instructions. The HDD is permanent memory where data is saved, this data does not reset when the PC is restarted. RAM memory is temporary memory that the computer stores files for quick and easy access, this memory does reset when the PC restarts.
- What does magnetic core memory look like? (Take a photo and write up a description.) What is the purpose of magnetic core memory?
- Magnetic core memory served the same purpose as RAM.
Diagrams, flowcharts, and figures:
Magnetic Core Memory
References: N/A
Conclusions: In this lab I was able to take apart one of the personal computers and identify all of the hardware parts. I also go to disconnect and reconnect the power supply from all of the hardware components. We were unable to get the computer that I took apart to start up, but we were able to get Linux running on another system as seen above. Some things that I learned in this lab is that older motherboards use different power connectors and video and audio output ports are done differently. Also that the system requires a specific network card in order to gain access to the internet, while current systems are usually embedded in the hardware. I enjoyed the lab in the aspect that I have built computers before but there was still more to learn which is very exciting.
Lab 1 – Make a Website
Learning Objectives:
Equipment list:
Notes, Observation, and Questions:
Diagrams, flowcharts, and figures:
References:
Conclusions:
Introduce Yourself (Example Post)
This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.
You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.
Why do this?
- Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
- Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.
The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.
To help you get started, here are a few questions:
- Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
- What topics do you think you’ll write about?
- Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
- If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?
You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.
Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.
When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.
