Insignificant Wranglings

Today’s Plan:

• Promotional Video Check
• Documentation Project

Promotional Video Check

As discussed last class, I made a Google Drive account for video collected. I have emailed out the account name and password for this site. Remember to bring a microphone to your meetings!

Grad Class group–meeting Dr. Dejardins’ class tomorrow at 11am in the English Department Conference Room. Remember to make sure people are comfortable being recorded.

Dr. Cornish interview–She responded to our email.

Rebecca Bolding interview–meeting tomorrow.

Documentation Project

Today we will be working on a documentation project. This project might carry over into Friday’s class. You’ll be working in groups of three.

Your task is simple. Carefully take apart the object in front of. Create instructions so that another group can put it back together. You should make your instructions as a Google Form. While you can use as many slides as you want, our final production budget will only allow for 5 images.

I’ll give you 30 minutes to work on your documentation. Be mindful of the principles we covered in last class.

On the eve of opening day here’s my annual post on the upcoming season.

A Solid Offseason

Coming into the offseason I had three realistic hopes:

• That the Sox wouldn’t trade Michael Chavis. He’s the only offensive prospect in the system who could make an impact during this window of contention. And, perhaps some will disagree, we need a third baseman. More on this below.
• Don’t sign Eric Hosmer. Because Dombrowski doesn’t traditionally value defense (hi Eduardo Nunez!), I wasn’t too concerned about this (and advanced numbers suggest–gold gloves be damned–that Hosmer isn’t actually a great defender). Hosmer is an ok player, and we needed a first baseman (sort of, see below), but Moreland, Duda, Morrison, etc. all presented much more efficient options.
• Sign JD Martinez. Even though I think the Sox offense was pretty unlucky last season, and destined to be better (full season of Devers), they needed to replace JD Martinez. And they needed to make sure Hanley doesn’t get the 450 or so plate appearances he needs to trigger a 2019 vesting option. Adding a likely 300/400/500 guy to an already potent lineup is what they needed to do. We’ve got a two season championship window. Let’s not waste it by funnelling Ramirez at bats at DH.

The Sox went 3/3. Can’t complain. Given how the offseason played out, I wouldn’t have minded a Lance Lynn signing. But we got the big bat, avoided the big bust, and still have a great prospect in the system.

This Offense is Great

Much has been made of the Yankees offense this offseason. Truly, it is an impressive collection of power hitters and has a realistic chance of breaking the record for team HR’s in a season (the current record is 264 by the 1997 Mariners). But I think people are undervaluing the Red Sox offense. Last season saw a number of quirky, subpar performances. Betts’ season stands out, since his hard hit rates were actually better than those in his 2016 season. Put simply, he was really unlucky. There is no reason to think, in his age 25 season, that he can’t be better than he was in 2016.

Betts’ season is a representative anecdote for the whole Red Sox offense last year. Compare average OPS+ from 2015 and 2016 to 2017 for the following regulars:

• Betts: 125 / 108
• Bradley: 118 / 89
• Pedroia: 115 / 101
• Bogaerts: 108 / 95

That’s about a 18% collective drop in production. So, before they make a move, we can figure that they will regress to the mean and be about 18% better than they were last season. To that, add a full season of Devers and even better expected production from Benintendi. Nunez might be a questionable fielder, but he can hit (at least until Pedroia returns?). And, of course, new addition JD is a beast. In short: this team can hit.

Sale and Pray for Rain

Or at least pray for health. I’ve got some concerns about this rotation. David Price has had a great spring, and is saying all the right things, but the forearm issues he experienced last season don’t just go away. I’m really hoping Cora will monitor his innings and pitches (he should never pitch beyond 6 innings or 100 pitches). Best case, he’s Tanaka, who was able to avoid Tommy John and pitch for a few seasons. But, man, it is going to be stressful waiting to see if he can survive a season.

Speaking of Cora, I also hope he limits Sale’s innings. I was ambivalent about Farrell’s firing–I thought he did a good job getting this team to back-to-back pennants. But he did grind Sale into the ground. Sale has a history of late-season fatigue. I hope Cora channels a little Gregg Popovich and limits Sale early in the year so he is in peak form in October.

The rest of this rotation could feature in an Alka-Selzer commercial. Porcello? Ugh. I hope he gives up on throwing the high four-seam fastball. His Cy Young season was perfect timing–he started surprising hitters up in the zone when they were locked in on looking for low pitches. Guess what–the league has caught up to that strategy. The launch angle revolution has A LOT of hitters looking to swing at balls up in the zone. Porcello is fooling no one. Go back to hammering the bottom of the zone with the two-seamer and just be a productive, if mediocre, ground baller. Please. Pomeranz already has forearm issues. As with Price, those don’t just go away. But Pomeranz survived last season, so maybe he can survive one more? Eduardo Rodriguez can’t stay healthy, and is inconsistent even when he is. Steven Wright only managed to pitch 5 games last season. Hector Valesquez doesn’t look like a guy who should be pitching playoff innings.

But there is Brian Johnson. I’m pulling for Johnson. I don’t think he can be an all-star, but I do think he can give us 160+ innings and a 4.00 ERA. That isn’t great, but, given our lack of organizational depth, it is valuable. This is an issue with a Dombrowski team–he trades away so many lower level prospects that his organizations don’t even have replacement level talent to draw upon. If we are going to win the division, then we need guys like Johnson to perform.

We Have Four First Basemen and No Third Baseman

A bit of a hot take here. Sure Devers is going to play third. But I’ve listened to enough Spring Training games to know that Devers can’t play third. You can hear it in Castiglione’s voice every time he botches a tag or misses a grounder. It is going to be ugly. Dombrowski is the guy who left Miguel Cabrera at 3B for years–even as he assembled a staff of ground ball pitchers. As I said above, defense isn’t his thing. But I think Devers might be a bad enough defender that we are talking about him at first base by next season. I also think he can hit enough that we won’t care where he plays.

The problem is that we have a pile of first basemen. Moreland is signed for two years. Sam Travis had another incredible Spring and might be the best hitter of the bunch. And then there’s Hanley. Fucking Hanley.

So Hanley has been on the TB12 program all offseason and I’m supposed to believe he won’t be another pile of useless this season. OK, I sound mean. I liked the Hanley signing. Unlike Pablo, he was a proven offensive producer and a great athlete. He has had a few rough injuries during his time here. But Hanley is 450 plate appearances away from triggering a 2019 option. THAT CANNOT HAPPEN. Sam Travis is probably a better hitter right now. Moreland is a much better defender. I don’t care how Cora does it, but I don’t want to see Hanley anywhere near that option. My guess is that Dombrowski doesn’t either, and that’s why he resigned Moreland, so the Red Sox have a clear argument for limiting Hanley’s playing time. Because the Sox are in a tricky position–in the past the player’s union has threatened to sue if a team seems to be finagling things to avoid triggering a vesting option. The tacit agreement is that a player with a vesting option gets to play unless there is an injury. Hanley is healthy, but he’s also bad.

Of course, there is the possibility that the TB12 thing works some magic and Hanley hits. Honestly, I’m hoping that doesn’t happen, because I would rather throw Hanley’s option money at a starting pitcher next season–in our last season that the Killer B’s and Sale are under contract.

Eventually, I’d like to see Chavis get a shot at third base and Devers moved to first base. Travis could get at bats against lefties at DH, with Martinez moving into LF and Benintendi and Bradley platooning CF. But I’ll be paying close attention to Dever’s defense this season.

Red Sox Prediction

I’m going to go on a limb and argue that the Sox win 95 games (fewer than last season) and win the division. Yes the Yankees have improved their team, but they also have rotation/injury concerns. If Price is healthy, then the Sox have a clearly better rotation. I think the Blue Jays are a better team–they will cut into the Red Sox/Yankee win totals. I also think the Rays might be better. Yes, they traded away some “big names,” but they got solid returns and made a few smart signings (Carlos Gomez for one year, 4 million might be the steal of the offseason). The Orioles… are terrible. UGH, that pitching staff. I’ll predict that the Sox get 30 starts from Price, 30 HR’s from Betts, and win the AL East by one game over the Yanks.

Other Predictions

Winners:

• AL East: Red Sox
• AL Central: Indians
• AL West: Astros
• Wild Card: Yankees
• Wild Card: Twins

Yup, straight chalk. I wanted to pick the Twins to win the central, but I think Cleveland is just too talented. The Twins are a lot better, though, and I think they will edge out the Angels for that final WC spot. I could also see the Blue Jays making a run if Aaron Sanchez stays healthy.

• NL East: Nationals
• NL Central: Brewers
• NL West: Dodgers
• Wild Card: Cubs
• Wild Card: Phillies

The Cubs have an amazing offense, but I’m not necessarily sold on the rotation. I mean, in Theo we Trust, but maybe not trust enough to win the division. I think the Phillies are a bit like the Twins–they are a non-terrible team in a really terrible division. There’s some hope for the Mets and the Braves (more than, say, for the Royals and the White Sox), but the Marlins are obviously terrible (even worse that the Tigers?). So I could see a competent team in that division grinding out 89 wins and winning the second WC. I suppose the Cardinals are good. There’s also the Diamondbacks. Before Bumgardner’s injury,
I thought the Giants’ veterans committee might be able to put together some vintage seasons and steal a WC spot. Now that seems highly unlikely.

Today’s Plan:

• Promotional Video Check In
• Remaining Schedule
• Documentation / Screencasting Project

Promotional Video Check In

How goes it? What do folks need? Questions for Rebecca Bolding? Dr. Cornish’s availability?

Here’s the questions I sent Rebecca earlier:

• What do you see as the advantages of graduate school?
• What are your favorite parts of UNC’s graduate program?
• How would you describe the transition from the undergraduate program to the graduate program?
• What has your favorite class in the MA been so far? Why?
• What advice would you give to an undergraduate considering graduate school?

Questions for Dr. Cornish:

• What do you see as the benefits of a 4+1 program?
• What course will you be offering in the 4+1 program next year?
• What was your favorite part of graduate school?
• Who should students talk to in they are interested in the program?

Reminds me: we need more nuts and bolts information about the project.

We need to figure out how to share all this material: Google Drive?

Remaining Schedule

Week 11

Today: Intro to Documentation / Record Promotional Video B-Roll
Wednesday: Documentation Experiment / Record Promotional Video Material

Friday: Documentation Planning / Upload Promotional Video Material to Group Google Drive Folder

Week 12

Monday: Promotional Video Project [review uploaded materials, etc, group work day] / Work on Promotional Video
Wednesday: Documentation / Screen capture tutorial / Work on Promotional Video
Friday: Screen capture project / Complete on Promotional Video

Week 13

Monday: Watch Promotional Videos, Just One Thing Research Synthesis Memo, Pitch Proposal Assignment
Wednesday: Screen Capture projects
Friday: Work Day on Just One Thing Pitch Proposals

Week 14

Monday: Just One Thing Pitch Proposals
Wednesday: Screen Capture Test Day, Feedback Memo
Friday: Work Day, Just One Thing Reshoot

Week 15

Monday: Just One Thing video drafts and feedback
Wednesday: Screen Capture revisions
Friday: Just One Thing Work Day

Week 16

Monday: Just One Thing work day
Wednesday: Just One Thing work day
Friday: Just One Thing Viewing Party

Documentation and Screen Casting Project

Before break I asked if there was anything you hoped this class would cover, and a few of you mentioned screencasting–that is, recording video of your computer screen as you use it. I’ve reached out to the University Help Desk regarding screencasting software. That leaves the question of *what* to screencast. I think it would be useful to make the screencasting project a documentation project. In Technical Writing, documentation can refer to a wide range of materials–from the README file in software, to developer/patch notes, to help manuals and instructions. We are going to focus on the later.

Put simply, I want you to create a screencast that helps someone learn how to do something on their computer. This might include, for instance, editing an audio file in Audacity, searching using a library database, registering for classes (etc) online, navigating a UNC online portal, using a blogging site, properly formatting an email, how to set up wifi for a printer, how to beat a video game level, etc. We can spend some time today brainstorming.

As the schedule above indicates, we will be working on this project almost exclusively in class. I did want to highlight Open Broadcaster Software, an open source project for those who want to be able to do this without relying on the University’s proprietary software.

As most people who have attempted to assemble furniture can tell you, writing clear instructions can be quite difficult. What seems obvious to the writer can feel ambiguous to the user. Documentation often requires rounds of testing to identify potential confusions and/or ambiguities and clarify them. While screen capture instructions help improve usability, they can still leave users feeling a bit disoriented. That’s why we will spend some class time testing the efficacy of your instructions.

I wanted to go over a few basic principles for writing instructions. I’ve taken/adapted material from Mike Markel and Stuart Selber’s 12th edition of Technical Communication

1. Make sure you plan out your instructions step by step, ordering them. Think about how you can break them down into a set of larger steps, each composed of smaller steps. Kelly Turner, at the TechSmith.com site, advises making a script, with screen on one side and narration on the other.
2. Make sure your instructions include an introduction that details who should/shouldn’t be able to do the tutorial, any prerequisites, all necessary materials/equipment/tools, and an estimate of how long the process should take (perhaps varying according to experience)
3. Try to present only ONE action per step. Concision makes it easier for a user to follow along and monitor their progress.
4. Use the imperative mood–you don’t need to use the indicative (“you”) and certainly shouldn’t use passive construction
5. Do not confuse STEPS and FEEDBACK statements. Markel and Selber: “A step is an action that the reader is to perform. A feedback statement describes an event that occurs in response to a step. For instance, a step might read “Insert the disk in the drive.” that step’s feedback statement might read “The system will now update your user information.” Do not present a feedback statement as a numbered step. Present it as part of the step to which it refers. Some writers might give all feedback statements their own design” (567).
6. Do not omit articles (a, an, the) to save space. “Omitting articles can make the instructions unclear and hard to read. In the sentence “Locate midpoint and draw line,” for example, the reader cannot tell if “draw line” is a noun (as in “locate the draw line”) or a verb and its object (as in “draw a line”)” (568).

Today’s Plan:

• Conference Sign Ups

Conference Sign Ups

This week we won’t be having class on Wednesday or Friday. In place of class, I will be meeting with you individually to discuss your paper progress. Here’s a link to the sign up sheet.

Homework

Keep working on those drafts!

Today’s Plan:

• Just One Thing
• Promotional Video
• Discussing Video

Just One Thing

Just checking in to see if there are questions or concerns.

Promotional Video

To recap last class:

• Clark, Hayley, and Jarod are shooting Dr. Dejardins’ class. The class takes place in the department conference room.
• Austin, Hannah, and Brenna are scheduled to interview our graduate student. I’ve set up an email to facilitate this.
• Holly, Brittany, and Patrick are set to do the faculty interview.

Let’s nail down the schedule for shooting Dr. Dejardins’ class (Tuesday or Thursday).

Discussing Video

We had two readings for today–first the Schroppell and then the 2009 report on Video Use and Higher Education.

For the Schroppell, I want to emphasize the Shooting Scripts and Storyboards section.

For the Video Use report, I have some questions.

• Claim: “The state of play in higher education is such that the “screen literacy,” “visuality,” and fluency that students bring to the classroom and from their worlds outside the university are barely being serviced inside of it. The ways in which students use, create, and distribute entertainment media differ drastically from the ways in which they use digital media inside the classroom” (5). There’s a few questions to unpack here.
• Claim/Finding: “Despite the lack of video resources/services currently available for higher education, nearly half of the faculty we interviewed anticipate that their video use will accelerate.” Let’s look at anticipated uses and kinds of videos:
  • Faculty will upload more video and use mobile devices or content management systems (7%/10%)
  • More guest performances/public screening of video
  • I want to make video more accessible (17%)
  • I will be using more video overall (43%)
• In courses that use videos, how do you access them? [8] Also, are they videos made by faculty? Are they edited?
• Have you had discussions about copyright and/or academic fair use?
• Conclusion: “Through our discussions, we learned that faculty and librarians are eager to collaborate in the creation of faculty-friendly video resources in a variety of subject areas, from a range of sources (professional, archival, amateur), accessible across formats and platforms, searchable through keywords and metadata, rights-cleared and cataloged, and tested regularly in the classroom with faculty and students” (11).