Chapter 2. Digital Writing

Visuals can do a lot to enhance presentations, papers, and other documents you create, but like any other component of a project, they’ll often need to be edited before they’re suitable to include. This tutorial covers the basics of visual rhetoric and demonstrates several helpful techniques for transforming your photos using GIMP, a free but powerful piece of photo editing software.

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Credits: Image 1: Used by permission of Nick DiBella. Video 1: © 2014 Macmillan, Video by Sherry Mooney. Images 2–11 and 13–16: © 2014 Macmillan, Photos by Regina Tavani. Image 12: Used by permission of Karen Lynn Steele.

After watching Photo Editing Basics with GIMP consider the question below. Then “submit” your response.

Knowing how to work with audio files is a useful skill for creating presentations, podcasts, or multimedia projects. This tutorial demonstrates the basics of using Audacity—a free, open-source program—to record an audio track, make simple edits to it, and export it as an mp3 file.

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Credits: Images 1–2: © Karen Lynn Steele. Images 3 and 10–11: Digital Vision/Media Bakery. Images 4–5 and 7–8: Spring, 2003, mixed media collage © Karen Lynn Steele. Photo © Karen Lynn Steele. Images 6 and 9: © 2014 Macmillan, Photo by Caroline Thompson. Videos 1–2: © 2014 Macmillan, Video by Caroline Thompson.

After watching Audio Recording and Editing with Audacity, consider the questions below. Then “submit” your response.

Creating and delivering presentations is a lifelong skill, one that can often feel overwhelming to develop. This tutorial establishes some basic guidelines for how to create a persuasive and effective presentation and walks you through the steps for using Powerpoint for slide-based delivery and Prezi for a spatial graphic presentation.

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After watching Creating Presentations, consider the question below. Then “submit” your response.

It is becoming increasingly important for students and professionals alike to be able to access their projects across a wide variety of platforms, including laptops, phones, and tablets. This tutorial explores several free or common word processing programs that will work across all of these platforms and what criteria might inform the decision of which program to use.

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Credits: Image of fish by permission of K.E. Hart; Image of flowers by permission of K.E. Hart

After watching Cross-Platform Word Processing, consider the question below. Then “submit” your response.

When working on a research project, keeping track of sources in an organized way can help you avoid plagiarism, cite sources correctly, and create bibliographies more easily. This tutorial demonstrates the basics of using two free programs that can help with these tasks: Evernote and Zotero.

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After watching Tracking Sources with Evernote and Zotero, consider the question below. Then “submit” your response.

Getting hired now involves more than just a stellar resume and cover letter. The most competitive candidates also take care to develop and maintain a strong professional brand online. This tutorial will show you how to harness the best of social media to create an impressive brand that showcases your professional strengths and skills.

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Photos 1 and 6: Used by permission of Joseph Cauteruccio. Photos 2, 3, and 4: © 2014 Macmillan, Photo by Sherry Mooney. Photo 5: © 2014 Macmillan, Photo by Regina Tavani.

After watching Building Your Professional Brand with LinkedIn, Twitter, and More, consider the question below. Then “submit” your response.