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I find it fascinating that up until recently typography was not very accessible on websites. That is a concept that is hard for me to understand, up until now fonts on websites seemed like something very simple. I am amazed by how much work and progress has gone into making fonts more accessible and easier to use on websites.

I wonder what this class would have been like before different fonts were universally used. It seems like coding would be a lot more limited with how you can make a website unique.

It is hard for me to comprehend there being a “first website” as well as someone discovering URLs. How did people access that website if URLs were not commonly known or implemented in computers?

The most interesting part of this article for me was that it used to be someone’s job to make fonts into images so that they can be seen across platforms. These people clearly did their jobs very well as this happened until around 2010 and I was never aware of it nor have I heard anyone discuss it before. It was also very innovative how they hid actual text behind the images so that it could still be searchable and selectable.

I also found it very interesting how web designers do not have the luxor that other designers and artists have by knowing how the audience will see their work. It must be very stressful to not know what dimensions the art will be viewed on any device. These are concepts that I had never thought of before taking this class and I find it very interesting.

This reading was definitely longer than the previous ones have been and there was no color involved in it either. These aspects, especially from an artistic point of view, made it harder for me to keep interest and attention to it.

I always find it very fascinating, yet hard to comprehend, learning about the beginning of the internet. Perhaps it is because I can not remember a time without having access to it. It has clearly become a very important part of our lives very quickly.

This also goes to show how we take the internet for granted. As discussed in the reading, so many different people and companies have made countless contributions to making the internet what it is today yet nobody seems to talk about it. I would say that this is a very important part of our history and this should be taught to more people so it is not lost.

I also found it interesting to learn about antialiasing. This is a word that I have heard before but did not ever think about what it was. I have noticed how oftentimes text online is pixelated and kind of blurred into the background, even with programs like photoshop. Now I will always notice this and think about this article. As shown in the picture, it definitely does make letters look smoother while occupying roughly the same amount of pixels.

Right off the bat I really enjoyed looking at the design of this reading. The rainbow color scheme as well as the use of different fonts and different sections of text made it very visually pleasing to look at. It kept my attention a lot longer than just plain text would have.

When I was reading the article, I found myself playing around with my computer mouse. I was testing the subconscious mental connection that I was unaware that I had with it. I never realize how just like the article says, I reach for the mouse without even looking at it and then control it perfectly with my mind without even thinking about it. It is as if it is an extension of my body.

I wonder how strange it must have been for people once the mouse was first invented. Was it hard to create this subconscious connection?

My favorite lines from this article were when Mark was describing the connection between our hand and the computer mouse. He said that “both [the] part of my body and part of the computer, binding two organisms into one … to simply attach a thin wire to the hand, linking our organic and inorganic circuits.” These descriptions were so vivid that I felt my hand tingle, as if it was actually connecting itself to my computer. The writing was so beautiful in this article.

At first I was wondering why I was reading a story about the components of making a house. Although confused, Jeremy was able to make even what I would consider something very boriging regularly, sound and look very exciting to read about. He was able to do this through his wording as well as formatting and iconography that accompanied each other very well.

Jeremy then flawlessly transitioned from houses to websites by relating the components to each other. This comparison was really mind opening and not only made me just look at how houses are made differently, but also how websites are made (coded)! As I am putting the final touches on my blog I will without a doubt think of it like building a house.

Jeremy also then went on to talk about even more real life examples that he relates to websites. He was able to successfully change the way that I look at and think about websites (in a good way). I love when someone is able to change my perception on something art related so I can better understand and appreciate other people’s work.

One bit of reception that I noticed was when Jeremy talked about how designers worry about their websites looking different for everyone. This is something that has already been discussed a lot in the majority of our readings.

By far my favorite part about this article is the title page at the top, I am absolutely in love with the design of it. The use of different font size and type is genius and very unique from what you would usually find in a reading. The flickering cursor bar at the end of the title is very smart and gives off the impression that this is actually a line of text that someone is in the middle of coding.

What I like even more than this is the background, not only in the title page, but the entire article. It uses very vibrant colors with lots of variations of squares that are very reminiscent of old retro arcade games. I feel like this is very appropriate as I tend to link the two in my head.

The best part of the background is how the more you scroll and the longer you read the text, the more the background changes. This keeps everything new and prevents the website from getting visually boring. It actually motivated me to keep reading.

The text itself is very long and lengthy. If it weren't for the many pictures and colorful background, this would be somewhat of a chore to read.