Meliah Macon

Upon hearing the assignment for the final project, I drew a blank. I had no idea what topic or purpose I could make new website for. I was browsing around past student’s project sites trying to find some kind of inspiration to draw from. I thought maybe I could do something over the food trucks in San Marcos, but then I realized that there is already a well established website for that. Ruled that idea out. I asked my friend group for some help on inspiration. One of my best friends responded with the idea of travel and study abroad. As I have already done a PR project for Intro for PR over study abroad, I didn’t really want to do specifically that again. I thought maybe I could focus on foreign exchange and the experiences of living abroad for at least a year or more. International students then came to mind. I thought about all the ones I’ve met and the fact that I was one myself. Then a couple of minutes ago a better idea hit me.

Cultural Appropriation. Realizing how culturally diverse and culturally aware I’ve become, made me realize that there is a majority of Americans who aren’t. Cultural appropriation is a real problem everywhere. It starts with ignorance, turns into cultural appropriation, and then racism. This society and many others are deemed racist simply because one culture hasn’t took the time to understand the other. Texas State claims to excel in diversity. But do they really? I think this is something I can work with.

I think that the next big thing could be 3D printing. It seems more plausible to me than a lot of ideas and concepts going out right now. I was reading that there isn’t much hype for it and that it is still in the very early stages, but I think if people invest enough time into it could be huge in a couple of years. I remember seeing videos and thing about it a while back where a guy had gotten a hold of one or was helping design one and he used it to print a gun. Many people were put off by this, saying that if 3D printing like this becomes available to the general public than it could be bad. People could be printing their own guns and weapons and have complete access to things like that. I tend to see the good in things and don’t have a negative view about this. If anything, I think that society would start to realize the practical use for 3D printing.

It could be bad in that there would be no need for factories anymore or manufacturers of any kind because then anyone with a 3D printer would print things off in their own home whenever they want. I read in an article on digitaltrends.com that 3D printing is still in the early stages and equates it to that of the first Macintosh computer. It has practical uses, but still has a long way to go before it can be as useful and convenient as the iPhone.  But I think there is hope for the future of 3d printing. I think that it has already begun to make a positive impact for some industries, such as the medical field. This video below is so heartwarming and shows that 3D printing could help a lot more people.

The website I chose is not necessarily my favorite, nor do I frequent it. I just think it is simple to use and follows the “10 Principles of Effective Web Design” . The website is for Citizen Potawatomi Nation. CPN is my Native American tribe. Originally, I had problems with this website when I used to visit it. It was hard to navigate and there were not many pictures and it wasn’t up-to-date. Now, they have an effective and informative website that is simple yet not too plain.

The home page greets you with a pleasingly designed banner and our logo at the top with the navigation for the site directly underneath. The navigation has drop down boxes when you hover over each section link, which I think is very effective. When you go to the website to find a scholarship or information on the government you don’t need to search around because it is right there on the home page.

Along with many specific links for navigation, this site is chock full of colorful pictures that catch your eye and influence you to want to know more about that story. It isn’t overwhelming with a ton of information about the tribe and services at first. They mostly use pictures and short blurbs on a scrolling widget that has the top stories for the site. The other portions of the site are just as easy to navigate and pleasing to the eye as the home page. Go take a gander and learn about my heritage.