User:Dillbug/NMAC 5108 Journal

Dillbug (talk) 22:34, 25 March 2019 (UTC)Dillbug (talk) 15:26, 18 March 2019 (UTC)==March 6, 2019: Getting Started On Wikipedia==

What a surprise to learn the entire course was being taught using the Wikipedia website. Working in academia for the past ten years I encouraged students to steer clear of using Wikipedia, as the site was generally considered an unreliable source for research. However, students were able to peruse Wikipedia when searching for peer-reviewed research articles cited within a specific subject. After reviewing this week’s readings, especially the article, Evaluating Wikipedia, I was surprised to learn the collaborative effort that went into every section and the commitment and integrity with which people who share similar interests strive to present quality subject material free of bias and self-interest. Encouraging understanding of how to identify the good or bad quality of articles written in Wikipedia form a foundation for writing and editing Wikipedia articles. Dillbug (talk) 19:59, 7 March 2019 (UTC)


 * It's funny you mention your aversion to Wikipedia in an academic setting — justified in the same way not citing an encyclopedia is justified. However, while articles can be "unreliable," what's stopping us from fixing them? That's the magic of the wiki! Welcome. —Grlucas (talk) 21:50, 7 March 2019 (UTC)

March 7, 2019: 1st Steps to Writing in a Digital World
Even though the information presented this week is a basic introduction to writing and editing on Wikipedia, each area had multiple links to click on providing further significant details about the course and writing requirements. The learning format for this class encourages self-exploration and self-discovery by allowing students the freedom to develop and practice their own method of writing rather than following strict style and format parameters. My “a-ha” moment occurred when I realized every link must be read thoroughly and sometimes more than once to gain the necessary knowledge to complete the assignment. Each link provided additional steps and supporting details on successfully completing tasks. I found most intimidating, writing my first journal post without any template or an example to guide me. I had no clue as to the style of writing the professor is expecting. I found myself trying something new in an unfamiliar environment with only a few questions to guide my writing. Whether I succeeded or failed at my first attempts is yet to be determined. However, I am looking forward to expanding my horizons and facing any challenges that may arise in what is presently unknown territory. Dillbug (talk) 19:59, 7 March 2019 (UTC)


 * Dillbug, I'm glad you mention being a little bit intimidated, because I just now had to search how to respond to a thread in these journals. I'm crossing my fingers right now that this works and shows up the way it's supposed to, in fact. I was just in a conference session this morning in Atlanta (NADE: National Association of Developmental Education) where a presenter said that she embraces these moments of anxiety because they mean we are about to learn something and she's right, I suppose, but I hope my learning curve isn't too steep nonetheless! The session was about the challenges adult learners face and how no matter how successful we are otherwise in our jobs, when we face these new experiences in the academic world, we are going to struggle. She said that the cognitive process for learning in the academic environment is just totally different than the learning environment at work, for example, and our skills there don't necessarily transfer exactly. Here's to not having so much anxiety over not immediately "getting" something, though! By the way, I noticed that if I hovered over the information in the Journal assignment, one suggestion was to use the exercises in our textbook as journal topics. I haven't done that yet, but that's my plan for at least one of the journals each week. Less stress already! JVbird (talk) 20:46, 7 March 2019 (UTC)


 * I think you're both doing great so far — and you have the right attitude. I do agree with the presenter you cite: while anxiety can make us . . . well, anxious, it can also push use enough to discover new things on our own. That's the best way to create new knowledge. I know there are many links on the syllabus and a lot to read, but you'll become experts in no time. All that said, contact me anytime if you get stuck. —Grlucas (talk) 21:50, 7 March 2019 (UTC)


 * It is slightly intimidating navigating Wikipedia. But I think that what you said was really a great point, when you feel a sort of discomfort that is a good clue that you are about to learn something new, and are out of your "comfort zone." DCasper79 (talk) 14:36, 11 March 2019 (UTC)


 * Hi, I am interested to read your posts because I can relate to the learning curve. I am Dana, nice to meet you. I teach ESL in a middle school in a Tennessee suburban district. Project based learning is what I thought of when I read this post and is what I think is effective with who I work with. I am including a peer reviewed article of project based learning in a secondary social studies classroom that supports the effectiveness for the majority of students but does ask questions for further research with the ESL population that I work with. (Dmcgonagill (talk) 20:44, 15 March 2019 (UTC))

March 14, 2019: Evaluating Wikipedia
I had hoped this week would be a little less frustrating, but to my dismay, that was not the case. I struggled for hours trying to respond to the discussion post requirement. I finally had to contact Dr. Lucas for further instruction, only to find out I was posting properly all along (lesson learned). I look forward to the day when I will feel adept at posting a response. On a better note, this week’s reading requirements were very informative, providing explicit steps on proofing, formatting and style tips, organizing layers, and evaluating articles and sources. Wiki training on editing an article using visual editor and source editor was a tremendous help in the layout of my discussion post. The practice sections enabled me to rather quickly learn the fundamental steps for editing in Wikipedia. I finally feel a sense of accomplishment.Dillbug (talk) 15:54, 14 March 2019 (UTC)
 * @Dillbug. It doesn't help that this week's reading basically said that writers/editors have to do so much more than ever before, that they have to deal with not just words but visuals, and format and selling their ideas in a way that will work in various platforms, does it, but I've told myself that this is going to be like anything new. I'm going to feel confused at times and I won't know what to do a lot of the times, but if I just keep pushing, it will happen. I always tell my students that that feeling of confusion is just what happens right before you learn something. I just have to remember to listen to my own advice! JVbird (talk)
 * Hang in there, you’re doing great! Just be sure to practice some each day, and I promise it will get easier and maybe even enjoyable. —Grlucas (talk) 15:46, 15 March 2019 (UTC)
 * JVBird and Grlucas, thank you both so much for the words of encouragement. I may be struggling right now, but I do intend to learn how to navigate and write in the Wikipedia environment.

@Waebo: DillBug trust me you are not alone feeling frustrated with some of these tasks. I have spent hours trying to figure out how does some create a signature when come to find out that it was only 4 squiggly lines. Do not worry though because step by step learning new activities about Wikipedia will help you out. Waebo (talk) 00:33, 18 March 2019 (UTC)

March 16, 2019
Norman Church Mailer was more than just an author; she was a actress, artist, and model. The sources currently used in the article are not considered reliable sources. I would recommend changing the sources to more credible sources such as using her memoir, A Ticket to the Circus: A Memoir, as a credible source for reference #2 and for reference #1, the book by Joseph Berger, Church Mailer, Artist and Ally, Dies. Below is my first attempt at editing an article. However, I did not make any reference changes in my attempt to evaluate the first paragraph of the article.

Norris Church Mailer (born Barbara Jean Davis; January 31, 1949, in Atkins, Arkansas – November 21, 2010, in Brooklyn Heights, New York City, New York)[1][2] was an American novelist, actress, artist, and model. Mailer grew up in Arkansas, married her high school sweetheart, Larry Norris, and together had one son[1]. By 1975, Norris had divorced her first husband and had met her soon to be second husband, acclaimed novelist, Norman Mailer, at a book signing In Russellville, AR.[2] She eventually married Mailer in 1980 and had one son[2]. Upon marrying Mailer, Norris became stepmother to two stepsons and five stepdaughters. Norris began publishing her own works from 2000 to 2010, having spent much of her time in the 1980s to 2000s, raising her children and stepchildren, while working as an actress in various films and television and modeling for Wilhelmina Modeling Agency. Dillbug (talk) 15:53, 16 March 2019 (UTC)


 * @Dillbug What a great idea. I honestly didn't think the original sources were too problematic, but that was an assumption on my part for sure. You dug deep and found that better sources are available to cite information on Norris Church Mailer.JVbird (talk) 20:13, 16 March 2019 (UTC)  talk
 * Ditto to what Josef said. Great job! I noted more cosmetic things, for example I would have liked to see an info box with a photo. And, I was confused with why dates were given in day, month, year in beginning but later in month, day, year form. So, does evaluate mean to edit source?(Dmcgonagill (talk) 23:16, 16 March 2019 (UTC))
 * @dmcgonagill I think I may have misunderstood the assignment. I thought we were supposed to edit the introduction paragraph and that is what I did. Even if we were not supposed to, I think the practice was a good start.2600:8807:A6C2:4600:5118:20BA:1867:ABA (talk) 16:59, 17 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Great work on finding credible sources. I too was very concerned about the NY Times Magazine article. Funny enough, I just created my post and spoke about the order of this whole entry. Great work on revising it. It makes much more sense the way you have it listed in order of her life span.Ssimsjones (talk) 04:35, 17 March 2019 (UTC)
 * We were supposed to evaluate it. After spring break we will edit and revise it. Good idea of going ahead and getting the practice in. Ssimsjones (talk) 00:13, 19 March 2019 (UTC)

March 18, 2019: Lessons Learned
I realize we are all on spring break this week and there are no assignments. However, I intend to reread everything again and organize information for ease of access. Last week was a challenge and at times I was really confused as to how to proceed. I did not find the tag on the Webinar until this morning, which tells me I must look closer at all the information presented. Sometimes it feels like I am looking for needles in a huge haystack. Also,my plan is to keep practicing posting and continue to try to locate my author for approval to edit her post. So far, I have tried Googling her for a phone number or address. I found a LinkedIn account with the same name and am currently awaiting a reply. I did not find an obituary. Hopefully, I will find her if she is still alive.Dillbug (talk) 14:04, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Keep at it. I know there’s a lot of material, but you’ll be able to do it if you work a bit each day. Please send your questions. —Grlucas (talk) 19:11, 19 March 2019 (UTC)

March 18, 2019: I Found Her
I am so happy right now! I finally feel a sense of accomplishment. I found my author and have received permission to use her essay. My author is a professor at the University of South Carolina. I took a chance and emailed her to determine whether she was the author and she was! Now I can begin my work without this hanging over my head! I feel like a kid in a candy store, so excited!

Where did you find the shared drive to pull the essays? Did I miss something in the Wikipedia training documents because I don't recall this? I looked at the link listed on our syllabus but it sent me to an "American Dream Expanded" website. Is this where I should pull the essay from? Do I need to type in a link or something on this page. I also looked at the discussion tab but am thinking I am really missing something. Ssimsjones (talk) 01:04, 19 March 2019 (UTC)


 * Great work! I think you are the first. Please see the project page for the class: An American Dream Expanded. It has instructions for these items. It is also linked pretty prominently on the syllabus under requirements. Let me know if you have more questions. —Grlucas (talk) 19:09, 19 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Can I just say I'm a little jealous. Congratulations. I'm still hunting down permission because my author died a while back and nobody seems to have any information on his literary estate. This does give me hope though! JVbird (talk)

March 22, 2019: Working on Sandbox
I think I finally feel a sense of accomplishment. I have been working on my article in my sandbox and think I am ready to finalize it and move it. I am going to read it one more time to make sure. I spent much of this week reading and rereading sections for clarity. Still not entirely comfortable, but much better off than in the past weeks. This weekend I am going to work on reading my Chapters in Carroll due next week and try my best to stay a little ahead of the game. Thanks to everyone who has sent words of support. I really appreciated it and your words kept me motivated to push through. Writing forces you to focus on the words and their meanings, which can sometime cause a person to over analyze the professors words. At least, that is what happened in my case. I took advantage of the 'break' to review past weeks learning's and prepare for upcoming weeks.


 * Can we see each other's sandbox? I'm definitely curious to see what you're working on. Congratulations for getting a leg up on this assignment! JVbird (talk)
 * Yes, we can see each other's sandbox by clicking on the persons name in the Wiki dashboard. For example, under each name is a box titled 'sandboxes'. If you click on the 'sandboxes' under a persons name it will open up a box where in the bottom section you will see 'Dillbug/sandbox'. Click on that and it will open up my sandbox page. Dillbug (talk) 22:27, 25 March 2019 (UTC)

March 25, 2019: Norris Church Mailer Bio
I am extremely frustrated right now. I don't know how it happened, but I have lost all the work I have spent the past three hours working on. I have spent the past several hours writing my recommendations for editing Ms. Mailer's bio and when I clicked on publish changes, an error popped up and asked if i wanted to correct the issue and if so, click on resume editing. I clicked on resume editing but my work was gone! I should have saved my work elsewhere before publishing....oh what a lesson learned!
 * Sorry about that. I know it's frustrating. I've gotten into the habit of previewing my changes regularly; this saves what you're working on. Also, before hitting publish, copy everything you just wrote to your clipboard, in case there's another glitch. —Grlucas (talk) 11:59, 27 March 2019 (UTC)

March 27, 2019: Finding My Way
Although my week started of quite shaky and disoriented, I am finally beginning to get a handle on posting and writing in Wikipedia, which gives me a sense of accomplishment. However, I spent the first part of the week working on getting my article ready for posting only to realize I used the wrong sandbox account! Every time I think I now know what I am doing something like this happens. It would be really funny if it wasn't so frustrating! Tonight, I plan to finish reading Chapter 5 and will wait until tomorrow to write about my lessons learned. I know I sound like a broken record, complaining about all of the mistakes I am making, but I can honestly say, despite all the trials I am really enjoying this class.

March 28, 2019: Final Draft of Norris Church Mailer
Norris Church Mailer (born Barbara Jean Davis; January 31, 1949 in Atkins, Arkansas – November 21, 2010 in Brooklyn Heights, New York City, New York) was an American novelist, actress, artist, and model. Norris published several novels but is best known for her memoir, A Ticket to the Circus, which offers readers insights into her nearly thirty-three year marriage to acclaimed American novelist, Norman Mailer.

First Novel and Memoir
Norris was interested in writing and wrote about a hundred pages of a novel loosely based on herself as a young girl growing up in Arkansas. Still in the early days of their relationship, Norris showed her rough draft to Mailer for his opinion to which he callously responded, "It's not as bad as I thought it would be", causing Norris to put her work aside for the next several decades. Years later, amidst a successful career as a Wilhelmina model and accomplished artist, Norris reshaped her rough draft into her first novel, Windchill Summer, which was published in 2000. Windchill Summer illustrates the challenges of a young girl struggling to grow up in Arkansas during the Vietnam War era. In 2007, Norris followed with the sequel, Cheap Diamonds, a story about a young woman leaving her small town home and moving to New York to become a model in the tumultuous 1970s. Church's last novel was her own memoir, A Ticket to the Circus, published in 2010, explaining that the title described her life with Mailer, his seven children by his other wives, and her own two children: "Well, I bought a ticket to the circus. I don't know why I was surprised to see elephants".

Life with Norman Mailer
Church read Norman Mailer's biography of Marilyn Monroe and arranged in 1975 to attend a party in Russellville thrown by her former teacher and Mailer's Army buddy Fig Gwaltney. Church and Mailer went to her home after the party. Later, Church mailed Mailer a love poem, which he returned to her, marked up with his compositional criticism.

Four months later, having left her job, Church moved with Mailer's help to a brownstone row house apartment in Brooklyn Heights, and became a model with Wilhelmina Models. She adopted her former married name, Norris, as her first name and took Mailer's suggestion of Church as her surname. Church and Mailer had a son,, born in 1978; they married in 1980. Church said she decided to leave Mailer in the early 1990s because of his many affairs, but he dissuaded her. Mailer died in 2007.

Personal life
Norris came from humble beginnings growing up in Atkins Arkansas, at twenty years of age she married her high school sweetheart, Larry Norris, and together had one son, Matthew. By 1975, Norris at just 25 years old, had divorced her first husband, and had worked several jobs including working in a pickle factory and as a bookeeper. Shortly after her divorce, she claimed to have "had a fling" with Bill Clinton whom she still thinks of with warm regard. . Church lived in Russellville, Arkansas as a single working mother teaching high-school art when she met her soon to be second husband, famed American author, Norman Mailer, at a book signing event. . Norris gave birth to Mailer's son, John Buffalo Mailer, in 1978 and eventually married Mailer in 1980. Upon marrying Mailer, Norris became stepmother to two stepsons and five stepdaughters. Norris spent the next three decades juggling successful careers as an artist/actress/writer, managing her home life, and her husbands career demands. Although, Norris dedicated much of her time during the 1980s to caring for her extended family, she had a keen interest in the arts and was able to hold several successful one woman showings of her art and working as an actress in several films and television. Mailers work as an actress includes 5 films: Jet Lag (1981), Ragtime (1981), The Executioner’s Song (1982), Exposed (1983) and Chinese Coffee (2000). In 2010, Norris portrays herself in the documentary, Norman Mailer: The American. Norris also played in the daytime soap All My Children.

Health Issues and Death
In 2000, Norris was diagnosed with gastrointestinal stromal tumor which was malignant and Norris was told she would probably only live for two more years. Norris beat the odds and over the next eleven years had six major operations to fight the cancer, while taking care of her ailing husband. Norris lost her long battle with cancer and died on 21 November 2010, at aged 61, at her home in Brooklyn Heights.

Wow, I am seriously impressed. I am SO far behind this week because of grading I am doing in my own classes and today is the day to work on revising the Norris Church Mailer material myself. You really did a bang up job here! I need to study the way you have marked it up and make my own contributions today to the bio. Great work, seriously!! JVbird (talk) 10:47, 29 March 2019 (UTC)


 * I have to agree with Josef. Awesome job on this bio. Your order and content makes much more sense compared to the original one we had. Ssimsjones (talk) 05:15, 31 March 2019 (UTC)

March 28, 2019: Project Mailer
I am interested in digitizing the letters and uploading them to Wikipedia. I would like to begin with the year 1965-1966 (in case someone else is working on earlier years). Once completed, I will notify Dr. Lucas and begin adding additional years.
 * That was my question as well, Dillbug. I want to work on the letters as well, but if more than one person can't work on them, I'll be glad to do something else. JVbird (talk) 10:44, 29 March 2019 (UTC)
 * With 76 letters to digitize I would think there is more than enough work for one person. I hope I am not the only one working on getting them all digitized!Dillbug (talk) 14:16, 30 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Funny you should mention that, but Dr. Lucas said that 76 letters was too much for one person and I said I thought I knew someone (ahem, you) who would like to divvy them up. How's that sound? You want to pick which you want to tackle? JVbird (talk) 17:15, 30 March 2019 (UTC)
 * {{reply to|JVbird: How does this sound? You take 1963 and 1966. I will take 1964 and 1965 and we will both work on the year 1969 together. If one of us gets behind we can help each other. Dillbug (talk) 18:41, 1 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Sounds good to me. Have you started working on them already? I definitely want to get started, so maybe we can do a chat for 10 minutes soon and talk about plans for consistency? I still don't quite know what I'm doing with the letters but I'll do it! :) JVbird (talk) 11:52, 2 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Would you two like a third contributing partner? I'm feeling pretty good about digitizing and would love to help...I could take 1969?(Dmcgonagill (talk) 00:24, 2 April 2019 (UTC))
 * {{reply to|Dmcgonagill}} {{reply to|JVbird}} Dmcgonagill we would love to have your help! You can start with 1969 and then let us know when you are done and we would be more than happy to share the other years! I, like JVbird, have similar concerns about how to begin. Maybe, since you are familiar with digitizing, you would not mind sharing with us how to begin. Could we all chat as, JVbird suggested, for about 10 minutes. When would be a good time for you both? We have a sample letter to follow for formatting so that should not be an issue.
 * {{reply to|Dillbug}} {{Reply to|Dmcgonagill}} Oh, that would be great, a quick chat to talk about process. Let's do it! Do you all want to skype? Email me at jvice@purdueglobal.edu and we can set something up? JVbird (talk) 11:51, 2 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Dillbug (talk) 00:33, 2 April 2019 (UTC){{reply to|Dillbug}}{{reply to|JVbird}} I would like to work on the Misc folder or Reviews folder.User:Dmcgonagill|Dmcgonagill]] (talk) 13:47, 30 March 2019 (UTC)) {{reply to|Dillbug}} Awesome additions to the Norris Mailer Church essay but are we not supposed to edit directly on the page? I did!(Dmcgonagill (talk) 13:47, 30 March 2019 (UTC)) {{reply to|Dmcgonagill}} Your are correct, we are supposed to post to directly on the page. I posted the additions to Norris Church Mailer on her page and used this page to edit first before posting.Dillbug (talk) 14:16, 30 March 2019 (UTC)


 * {{reply to|Dmcgonagill}} I worked on the page as well, reorganizing and adding some sources. I do think the section on her writing needs work. It is a little repetitive and still focuses on her relationship with Mailer. If there's a section entitled life with Mailer, I'd say that the section on her writing needs to focus just on her as a writer. What do you think?  JVbird (talk) 17:15, 30 March 2019 (UTC)


 * {{reply to|JVbird}} {{reply to|Dmcgonagill}} I agree with JVbird about the section on her writing should just contain information about her writing and leave her life with Mailer seperate. Also, I know we are all working on straightening up the references. However, I have a question. Should we not be following MLA formatting style or is that for our papers only?Dillbug (talk) 18:41, 1 April 2019 (UTC)
 * {{reply to|Dillbug}} Good question about the references. I think we have to clarify with Grlucas on this because the templates in Wikipedia certainly set them up otherwise, don't they! JVbird (talk) 12:05, 2 April 2019 (UTC)

April 4, 2019: Mailer and More Mailer
This has been a busy week and today is the first chance I have had to write in my journal. Let's see, where to begin....I spent most of Monday posting Norman Mailer's letters to my sandbox. I followed Dr. Lucas's sandbox format and am hoping that was the correct decision as the one in his mailbox has a different format than the example provided. Yesterday, I worked on my citations for my essay I chose. Trying to fix my citations was a chore because Wikipedia kept logging me out. I finally got to the point I would correct a few then post to see if I was still logged in and was finally able to finish (I think). I am going to go back to day and check one more time before letting Dr. Lucas know I am finished. I have two more letters to post and I will be through with the letters and can then work on helping the edits to Norris Church Mailer. Wish me luck, that I will be able to stay logged in long enough to get more accomplished today. Even with the frustrations of trying to post, I find myself really enjoying this class and Dr. Lucas was right, it is getting a little easier each week.

April 4, 2019: Confusing Mailer's
I was finally able to work some more on Norris Church Mailer's bio this evening. My goal is to add more information about her life over the weekend while I waiting on Dr. Lucas to to review my PM letters in the sandbox. I really appreciate everyone getting together on Skype (even if I kept getting kicked out of it) and sorting out what we are all supposed to be doing and assigning tasks to help complete the to-do list for PM. I found the information Jennifer sent in her email to be extremely beneficial following the Skype. I appreciate how we are all in sync in getting PM completed. All in all, a very successful week.


 * Hey, Sandy. I went ahead and posted some content to the NCM bio. It's hard to distill a person's life into 200 words, but I have the thumbnail sketch in, based on our previous NCM entry information. It feels a little flat and needs some more details, perhaps more about the memoir and what it tells us about her relationship with NM. I didn't move the citations over, because I'm just worn out from a day of nonstop grading and taking my 17 year old to the dentist to have his wisdom teeth pulled, but I'll see what I can do tomorrow with the citations and fill in some more blanks in the bio. I need to review a few more of the sources in our Drive to make sure everything I put in is correct too. Then, I need to hit those letters. Sounds like a busy weekend, no? Cheers and see you in the NMC Bio! JVbird (talk) 00:50, 6 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Wow. that is exactly what I have been doing. So far, I am down to 250 words. I will compare what I have done with what you have down and see if we can get there! I have been working on letters for about two hours and still have a lot left to do...Busy busy....Dillbug (talk) 01:45, 6 April 2019 (UTC)
 * I received a response from Dr. Lucas and we are not supposed to be reducing NCM to 200 words, it is our bio's on the PM that is supposed to be reduced to 200 words. I keep getting so confused about what i am supposed to be doing. I think I am going to try and just do one thing at a time. When I finish one task, then I will switch over and try to complete the next one. Hopefully, then I will get something done right!Dillbug (talk) 13:38, 6 April 2019 (UTC)

April 7, 2019: Fighting with Citations
What a week! I do not know what was wrong with me, but I stayed lost and confused all week. Everything I tried to work on caused me issues. The problem is not with the instructions, the problem was me! I finally, (fingers crossed) made some headway on citations for my essay post. Am waiting to hear back from Dr. Lucas. Did anyone else find correcting the citations a bear? I am still not positive if I have done them correctly. I do not have any experience with source editing and spent hours (and I do mean hours) trying to figure out how to use the source code to publish my citations. I was so lost for two days before I finally just did my best. To make matters more frustrating, I would cite four or five authors and go to publish, only to find out Wiki had dropped me and I would have to log back in. I went to several browsers trying to stop being dropped, but nothing has worked. I finally, posted a few citations, then published, and continued until I finished citing this morning. I will not even go into the issues I had with other assignments. I awoke this morning refreshed and more determined than ever to not let the Wiki world get the best of me!
 * Oh, you are not alone, Sandy. I actually (at least according to Lucas) "lucked out" with my Gordon article because it did not have any sources or citations at all, but that means little practice for me with citations, and they are a bugger for sure. You can see that from my struggles on the NCM bio. I figured out (fingers crossed) how to do the short in text citations but the full citations are still giving me heck. I'm having the same trouble with the codes on the NM AAD letters. Even when I copy the sample exactly, it's not creating the reference right. I'm going to just keep working on it until I get it. I'm turning to youtube next, so if I find any tutorial videos that help, I'll send them your way! JVbird (talk) 18:42, 7 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Hay Josef, have you used  under ==Citations== ? That got me at first.(Dmcgonagill (talk) 19:54, 9 April 2019 (UTC))

April 9,2019: Restart and Reboot
Today, I am off to a much better start than this time last week. I finally, completed my article revisions and my letters for PM. I really struggled with citations using code for my article. How ironic that after completing the coding, I realize I had lost the last page of my Editing Wikipedia article, which has a cheat sheet for coding! I spent much of my time looking at the coding in other articles for ideas on how to correctly code my citations. I have no one to blame but myself for not being more thorough. I have read the chapter assignment for this week (which I will comment on in another post) and completed the Peer Review training. I did not waste time this week on uncertainty and checked with Dr. Lucas for clarity on conducting peer reviews. My plan for tomorrow is to attempt to review two articles from the dashboard as outlined. I can honestly say, I am beginning to enjoy this class and am feeling a part of the Wikipedia editor community.Dillbug (talk) 23:23, 9 April 2019 (UTC)

April 10, 2019: Project Mailer Tasks
I decided today to help work on posting the letters for PM, write my permission statement for the PM essay, and tried (unsuccessfully so far) to post to the Gallery one the Misc items in Google Drive. Still working on how to link the picture for the Gallery. I am feeling much less stressed and hope to be able to tomorrow to conduct peer reviews of my wonderful classmates. Everyone has really pulled together and helped each other and I for one, am truly appreciative.Dillbug (talk) 00:05, 11 April 2019 (UTC)


 * What do mean by write your permission statement?

April 11, 2019: Peer Reviews Conducted
I just completed two peer reviews for the week and found it very difficult to offer much criticism. I feel, in my opinion, the two peers I chose are doing quite well in the class and are meeting the requirements of the course. I know there is always room for improvement, so I focused on areas where, even though they are doing a very good job, there are areas where each could still enhance the skill level. Hopefully, each will appreciate my feedback and take away a few opportunity areas for growth.Dillbug (talk) 22:01, 11 April 2019 (UTC)
 * I know I appreciated the feedback tremendously, and even more importantly I appreciate all the advice and help you have given me, whether it was during our Google chat or the many emails I have sent you asking questions. I just finished one peer review and am working on another one now and they are challenging to write. It is good to look at what other folks have done, though, and I know that reviewing Dana's work has helped me to see how she responds to feedback from Lucas and the other person who is in there adding feedback and making corrections. I probably should have been paying more attention to those user history pages all along. It would have helped me avoid a lot of the errors I have made and kept me from making so many mistakes with code! Maybe. JVbird (talk) 11:53, 12 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Be sure to link to the reviews, so others (especially me) can see them. Thanks. —Grlucas (talk) 14:22, 12 April 2019 (UTC)
 * So sorry Dr. Lucas. Here are the links for the two peer reviews. The link to JVbird peer review: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:JVbird/sandbox and the link to Dmcgongagill peer review: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Dmcgonagill/sandbox

April 16,2019: Training, NM Reviews, Galleries, and Snippets
The past two days I have reviewed NM letters, added a review, added miscellaneous items to the gallery, and to the snippet section on Project Mailer. I need to stop and wait for Dr. Lucas to let me know if I am posting everything correctly and will then try to do more in each section. I would also like to review and edit Norris Church Mailer's Wikipedia file once more time to make sure everything is posted properly. In my next post, I will talk about the chapters we are to read this week and an update on helping complete PM. Dillbug (talk) 20:38, 16 April 2019 (UTC)


 * I'm working on that the reviews and letters as well now, Sandy. Do the files need to be JPG rather than PDF files? I know I have missed the detail somewhere and I can't find it, of course. Let me know if you see anything in the NCM file or on PM in general that I can help you with as well. I think I've finally gotten the hang of citations and references, or at least they seem to be easier to create now, so progress! JVbird (talk) 23:24, 17 April 2019 (UTC)
 * I believe Dr. Lucas is going to install a converter in PM. He mentioned doing so on the Talk page of American Dream Expanded. Then we will be able to convert pdf to jpg.Dillbug (talk) 16:33, 18 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Excellent-I'm trying to use my Photoshop program to do it too. I, surprise, struggle with that tech feature. It's really not the most user friendly program, but I know it will convert. Fingers crossed. Josef JVbird (talk) 17:10, 18 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Ditto to what Sandy said. Don't see it up yet, but Dr. Lucas said it would be.(Dmcgonagill (talk) 01:49, 20 April 2019 (UTC))

April 20, 2019: Editing Frenzy
I have spent much of this week trying to get everything not assigned on the priority 2 list completed. I may have, in my efforts to help, bit of more than I should have. I thought we were to post all of the misc information on the google drive under the gallery, but according to Dr. Lucas, the larger articles should have their own page. So, I rush and add the article for Book Week in my sandbox and notify Dr. Lucas the article is ready to be moved, only to find out only the information relative to Mailer should be posted. I take the info on Mailer only and add it back under the gallery post. I really wish the guidelines for what we are supposed to were clearer, so I don't have to rework information so much. I love helping get the site information posted, but reworking information is so very frustrating! Oh well, I will keep plugging along until everything I have contributed to is done right, even if that means I post information over and over and over again.Dillbug (talk) 22:13, 20 April 2019 (UTC)
 * I for one am impressed by how much you got done this week, even though it also served to remind me of how much I have yet to get done and get done right. It looks like I need to get in there this morning and check where I have placed my contributions because I have no doubt put them in the wrong place. I was just happy that I finally had internet back and that I was able to convert the PDFs to JPGs. That alone was several days worth of stress and time. JVbird (talk) 13:24, 21 April 2019 (UTC)

April 20, 2019: The Twitter Bug
I am not really familiar with Twitter, having never used it before (Oops, my age is showing). I see my grandchildren using Twitter all the time, and before I read Chapter 9, really thought Twitter was for kids, celebrities, and Donald Trump. I know our student life at my university uses Twitter quite often to make students aware of upcoming events. I am going to rethink how the Student Success Center can use Twitter as means of making students aware of tutoring services and workshops. Currently, I put out flyers, send emails, post it on our Facebook page, and notify professors who may want their students to attend, but participation is not as high as I would like. Twitter may be a format I can use to increase awareness. I am not too old to learn something new, right. I took this class and it is has definitely taken me out of my comfort zone to learn something new and exciting. Dillbug (talk) 22:41, 20 April 2019 (UTC)
 * We do live in a different world today, don't we, changing by the second. I've stayed away from Twitter and detest the idea that we have to distill everything down to 144 characters and even more detest that a President uses this platform to create "policy" (and more likely convince the masses that his policies and actions are justified). But I guess that's a whole other can of worms, no? I'm with you on the comfort zone issue. Wikipedia posting and editing have really caused me days of frustration and made me aware of my limitations. I just hope that at the end of the class I can indeed say I have built an "acceptable" skill level with it. Happy Easter. Hope you are enjoying the day with children and grandchildren. How many do you have? JVbird (talk) 13:29, 21 April 2019 (UTC)
 * I agree with your assertions about our President using twitter as a platform for policy making. It is truly detestable. The idea of 144 character's is indeed a challenge for content and conciseness. I guess we could look at it as good practice for analyzing each word carefully for its intent. Today is a pretty much family day. I have my two daughters, six grandchildren, and three grand dogs coming for dinner. A real mad house, full of chaos and laughter as we each love to tell the most embarrassing stories about each other. I am so looking forward to my adding my share of reminders (I have the most memories of each and can usually top anything said). Here's wishing you a very Happy Easter to you and your family! Dillbug (talk) 20:18, 21 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Sounds like a wonderful day, a loving bunch who enjoy each other's company, Sandy. JVbird (talk) 16:04, 22 April 2019 (UTC)

April 22, 2019: Clean up ...Clean up...
I feel like an old Barney song, "Clean up, clean up, all we do is clean up..." or something like that. I worked on editing information on two of the gallery edits and have spent much of my time this week so far, helping students with finals. I jump on the computer in between as fast as I can, looking to see what is left. This class has been quite the challenge...at times hair pulling frustrating and at others, extremely interesting, kind of fun, and rewarding. What a first class for me take on my way to earning a certificate! This class has definitely set the bar for my summer classes! Ironic isn't it that now that class is over, I am enjoying being a student editor. Dillbug (talk) 21:33, 23 April 2019 (UTC)

April 25, 2019: The Journey Never Ends
As the semester winds down, I want to take the time to thank each and every one of you for making this journey through Wikipedia with me. I could not have asked for a better group of classmates. Each of you contributed so much to my learning and ability to successfully navigate this course. I could not have done it with you. Thank you so much. I will so miss our almost daily interactions and can only hope in my future classes, I work with people who are as committed and dedicated as each of you have been.Dillbug (talk) 13:02, 25 April 2019 (UTC)
 * Ditto, Sandy. Thanks so much for challenging me, motivating me, and talking me off a ledge or two! You really raised the bar and I learned a great deal every time I read your journal, your discussions, and your contributions to PM! JVbird (talk) 14:20, 25 April 2019 (UTC)

April 25, 2019: Reflections
Critiquing Articles

Critiquing articles can be challenging as there are several specific guidelines editors must follow to properly edit material. First, Wikipedia suggests editors need to create a section in their sandbox titled, “Article Evaluation.” Editors may leave notes in this sandbox about any observations or learning's related to evaluating Wikipedia. Editors are tasked to review the content, sourcing, and tone of the article. Several questions should be asked by editors during the evaluation including 1) relevancy of the information to the topic, 2) is the information provided current (typically referenced information should be within the last five years), 3) are there any areas needing expounding upon, 4) is there any bias in the information presented, and finally, 5) are both sides of the information equally represented. Also, editors should check that the links are working properly, whether the citations support the article and are from reliable sources.  Editors should check the talk pages of the article to find out how other’s view the topics represented, whether the article is part of a WikiProject, and the articles Wiki rating. Lastly, Wikipedia suggests editors should be 'bold ' in their edits and not be afraid to make mistakes, which are very encouraging words for a novice editor.

The article chosen to edit was part of a WikiProject, Project Mailer, and much of the editing of the critical study required digitizing the material, coding the citations, adding links and references, and formatting of headings, italics, and spelling. Coding the citations properly was very challenging and required comparing against other articles for accuracy. Also, the Wiki cheat sheet for coding was an invaluable aid in getting the article ready to be moved from the sandbox to the main page. Another obstacle to completing the task was converting pdf to images. With the aid of team members, the images were converted and added to the project successfully.

Summary of Contributions

There were multiple priority one and priority two tasks available for student editors to choose from to work on Project Mailer in addition to the critical study. A central task in the priority one list included digitizing 76 letters and linking each into the project. The letters were originally broken up by the student, where each student’s task was to digitize and link ten letters each. I was able to help another student editor, completed a total of sixteen letters, and helped to make minor edits to others' contributions. Also, worked as a part of a team with other student editors to develop a Wikipedia page for Norris Church Mailer and a biography page on her for the Project Mailer site.

Other contributions included adding Misc. items to the gallery and to the snippets section of which I contributed eight of the twelve items to the gallery and 1 snippet. I completed one review and added two digitized subsections from items in the gallery. Lastly, I helped to edit contributions from other team members. To help complete the tasks listed in both priorities properly, students collaborated with each other through talk pages, journal posts, emails, and Skype meetings.

Peer Reviews

I completed two peer reviews on which I focused on highlighting areas each peer did well and identified opportunity areas for improvement and growth. I began the peer reviews by looking at the article history, which lists any corrections made to the original post by other editors, and if the article was posted in a timely fashion. Next, I reviewed letters posted by my peers and again reviewed the posting history of each to identify whether either had issues with formatting, citing, and linking relevant items. Suggestions were made to review the citation module training to enhance skill set. A review of the contributions to the Norris Church Mailer bio was primarily positive as each student’s contributions were numerous and designed to enhance the writing. The last area of the peer review detailed evaluation of the student’s journal posts. Although each student could write fluently and effectively, suggestions were made to work on editing for conciseness and relevancy.

Only one peer review was conducted on my work, and the feedback was both helpful and encouraging. The reviewer identified specific areas of work that he considered to be well done. Specifically detailing effectiveness in communicating with others and my diligence in meeting tasks. The peer reviewer suggested I continue to work on consistency in completing the assigned task.

Wikipedia Learning's

The ability to apply concepts learned in a real-world environment was extremely satisfying, although very frustrating in the beginning. I felt a sense of accomplishment knowing that I helped to contribute to the authenticity of a Wikipedia website. Knowing that there are people all over the world working diligently to provide reliable and accurate information to users and gaining an understanding of the effort and work that goes into ensuring Wikipedia accuracy has absolutely altered my opinion of Wikipedia as a source for information. My whole thought process about the validity and use of Wikipedia has changed since starting this class. In just eight short weeks, I have learned many of the fundamental skills required to edit a Wikipedia article. Also, the assigned readings each week have enhanced my knowledge of online writing and helped formed a foundation for future digital writing.

A personal passion of mine is researching the effect and impact of chromosome deficiencies on an individual’s quality of life. Information is extremely limited on this subject as each person born with such a deficiency has different developmental issues. Since Wikipedia is one of the most used websites in the world, the site would be an excellent place to share knowledge on the subject and post well-researched, factual, and relevant information on the topic.


 * And you seriously rock, Sandy. You have been such an inspiration this term. I've watched you work tirelessly and only hoped to do as well with Wikipedia code and productivity as you have done. Impressive! JVbird (talk) 11:19, 26 April 2019 (UTC)


 * Thank you so much for your kind words. It means a lot to me because I feel the same way about you. Your first post was an inspiration to me. I only hoped to be able to keep up with you! I was so lost as to what format to write in, whether casual, formal, semi-casual, etc. and your posts were a guide for me to follow. I will really miss our interactions. This class layout helped to bond us as a team and believe it or not, I am sad to see it come to an end. Wishing you all the best in your future endeavors. I am confident whatever you do, you will do so with confidence, skill, and commitment.Dillbug (talk) 19:56, 27 April 2019 (UTC)