Thoughts on the WikiHow Page Creation Process.......

             Making a WikiHow page was a really cool, new experience. I really thought that it was a lot more difficult then it was. Especially when it came to coding the page in HTML style. However, this is the part that I found to be the easiest. Literally it all made sense to me, everything has a denomination, that is to say, a symbol that makes it look one way over another way. This I understand; it was like typing regularly albeit a slight change. An example of this, which I found entirely difficult to forget, would be using asterisks in the place of bullet points. I know that this is most likely the most basic form of HTML coding, but I feel as if I have the knowledge necessary at this point, at least, to tackle a harder coding project.

            I almost feel like I could possibly be one of those weird people that would make a Wiki page when bored. It was honestly so simplistic to publish my own work, which was an achievement in and of itself. Why not share my knowledge, no matter how minuscule with the world at large? Honestly, I wrote about Pokemon for heaven’s sake. And although it was something as juvenile as a children’s video game, I really do hope and think that somebody out there in “internet-land” will totally look up my page and be better off because of it. That’s such a cool thought, and that brings my thoughts back to those that we discussed in class especially dealing with Web 2.0 and how innovative an enhancement to the web at large it was.

           
             The action of creating a WikiHow page directly correlates with the idea of Web 2.0. We live in an age where we can just publish something to the web on a whim, if we so choose to. A publication is exactly that: public. I believe that the timing of the WikiHow assignment for class as well as the Web 2.0 discussion was not just a coincidence. Web 2.0 allowed us to connect with one another on a virtual level; it allowed all of this to be possible, including this blog. The fact that people can read the words that I am writing here and can share them if they want to is incredible. It almost feels intrinsic to my generation and that’s almost a scary thought simply because it is such an innovation to everyday life itself. The scariest yet most incredible part of all of this innovation is that the web is still growing and evolving. It has already encroached on Web 3.0 territory and may even be, according to some people, well within the troughs of Web 4.0.

            Coming up with the ideas wasn't too difficult as my previous blog entry alluded to, it was choosing a singular one and thinking of the idea I chose in a step-by-step fashion. This took some getting used to as it meant slowing down my brain slightly to think of a task as a process rather than just diving into it. It can also be said that topics were limited by what one could actually do and get photo proof of. Then once the topic was chosen a series of pictures had to be taken in order to illustrate the step-by-step process.  I was lucky enough to have to only take photos of my video game console as I played through my game. Predominately the topic came to me from my years and years of being a “Poke-geek.” In comparison to something such as a place where a lot of research had to be done, I am pretty well versed within the world of Pokemon. However I did refer to a Wiki site solely created for Pokemon so that I could clarify some things I was murky on, such as a specific time in game that it would be possible to take on the task I was displaying. Other than my personal photos and knowledge, not much else was required to down to business. I think I picked a great topic, although it is a little bit sophomoric.

            I think that creating a Wiki page is totally a great way to breach into other web design and is easy enough to understand as well as being difficult enough, at first, to be considered a challenge. The fact that this was my first stint into the world of web design; and that I understood it and came out of it successfully speaks volumes. This has solidified to me that I will be able to go on to the next level and be successful in this field of expertise. Future projects and job opportunities will be much easier as a result of this experience and that is so invaluable.

            One thing that I don’t like is that people can take my work and change it. What concerns me is that these changes may not be in the best interest of the page and may in turn get it either taken down, which would be awful, or completely change my work to the point of it looking as if I never even wrote any of it myself. That would be worse. Within 10 hours of publishing the page, I was rewarded with an email saying that one of the admins had changed the page slightly to reflect WikiHow format. That was a constructive discretion. I am just scared of that time when it is not constructive in the slightest. But of course that is all the opposite side of the coin known as Web 2.0. It is also pretty much the essence of any wiki page, such as Wikipedia or Bulbapedia, from which I procured some of the information needed for my page. The link to said site and page I used is as follows: http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Ruby_and_Sapphire_Versions.  I understand that this project has its flaws as well as its triumphs. Such is with anything in the entirety of the universe.

            At the end of the day, this project has made me grow as a beginning web designer and this growth will be essential to many of my future endeavors and for those I am excited and ready to begin! Here is the link to my WikiHow page: http://www.wikihow.com/Defeat-the-LV.-100-Battle-Tower-in-Pokemon-Ruby-and-Sapphire.

            

WikiHow--Rewrite

Eventually, I decided to do a WikiHow page on how to defeat the Battle Tower in Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire and the following is the outline for that page:

How To Defeat The LV. 100 Battle Tower in Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire and win the Ribbon in 9 Steps

           

Do you find yourself getting frustrated in the Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire Battle Tower? Never fear because the answer to all your troubles is in the next 9 steps. For all you battle lovers, and for all you ribbon collectors you can finally defeat the Battle Tower that has haunted many since 2003. This guide is a sure fire way for you to finally win

Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire for the Game Boy Advance were released in America in 2003. They were the first game to bring the introduction of ribbons into mainstream Pokemon society and ribbons have been a staple of the franchise ever since. Ribbons can be awarded for special battles, contests, and of course, the Battle Tower.

1. Defeat the main story of the game, by beating the Elite Four and the Champion.

2. In post-game, after defeating the Champion, Professor Birch will award you with a S.S. Ticket, this item allows you to board a cruise ship to the final frontier of the game: the Battle Tower. Take either the cruise ship to the Battle Tower or have a pokemon use fly to the location if you have already taken the ship.

3. Gather a team of strong pokemon. You want to make sure they are each within the LV. 85 - 100 range, otherwise it will most definitely be impossible to beat the Tower. Anything lower will generally result in a one-hit KO from the opposing pokemon. Pokemon eggs and legendary pokemon are forbidden by Tower rules. However, lower-tier legendries are allowed. The lower tier legendries tend to be legendary pokemon that run in trios. The entire list for this game is as follows: Articuno, Moltres, Zapdos, Entei, Raikou, Suicune, Regirock, Registeel, Regice, Latios and Latias.

4. Equip each one of the Pokemon with a hold item (many hold items can be won in the Tower after battle 42, for each consecutive win of 7.) Leftovers, Choice Band, and Focus Band are generally a good three to use. Leftovers, because of the healing properties it has (it will heal some HP (hit points) to your pokemon at the end of every turn), Choice Band because it will significantly raise the attack of one move your pokemon can use, the key here is to attach the band to a pokemon you know only one move is necessary for, (Ex. I used it on my Hariyama and usually had him use Brick Break which is pretty effective universally except for on ghost-types.) Focus Band is a great decision because it will save your pokemon from fainting occasionally when hit by an opponent giving you the extra attack you may need to win. In addition a pokemon specializing in defense, one specializing in special attack, and one specializing in attack are a sure-fire way to win.

5. Choose your team, the order cannot be switched until you either lose or you have won consecutively seven times in a row. Be wary the enemies increase in difficulty as you advance. Their attacks will become more competent, they will target your weaknesses, and the opposing trainer will begin to use specific strategies, for example one being that all three of their pokemon know explosion/self-destruct which is extremely harmful to you and your team.

6. Battle! Pay attention to type match-ups, switch out team members if need be and win. The key during the battle step is to focus, and not make any mistakes such as using ineffective attacks.

7. After winning seven consecutive rounds of seven battles (49 Battles), the desk attendant will tell you that for each seven battles you win from this point on, you will get awarded with a ribbon. Which is of course, the goal you are striving for.

8. Win the next seven matches, be extremely careful, the enemies are ruthless and many are lower-tier legendries like Latios or Regirock. The game at this point especially, is trying to get you to lose as this ribbon is a grand prize of sorts for the game.

9. After winning Battle 56, each one of the three pokemon you used for the last seven matches will each get a ribbon and as long as you don’t lose, each consecutive win of 7 will get the ribbon for other pokemon. Good luck, and remember that it may take more than one try.

Sources:

http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Ruby_and_Sapphire_Versions (research source.)

http://www.serebii.net/pokemon_advance/ (reasearch source.)

Tips:

·       Don’t give up, even when things look bleak! Sometimes, the opponent will use attacks that have no effect on your pokemon. Even when the odds are not in your favor, the computer trainer may command the opposing pokemon to use an attack that makes absolutely no sense. That is when it is your opprutunity to strike back!

·       Sometimes, you may lose during a pivotal battle, or even battle 56, the last battle in a set tends to be more difficult. At that point, “keep on keeping on!” You will have to start from scratch and with how randomized the trainers are each challenge is a completely different challenge.

·       If you have a Gameboy Advance, and a Nintendo GameCube or Nintendo Wii, it may be in your best interest to purchase a copy of either Pokemon Coliseum or Pokemon XD for the GameCube. (Wii is backwards compatible with GameCube.) With a GBA Transfer Cable you can transfer your pokemon from the Ruby cartridge and level them up on the GameCube games. This is also a great way to get other pokemon not native to the Hoenn Region as depicted in Pokemon Ruby and Pokemon Sapphire. The opponents in general in these GameCube games are much higher so beating them will award you with more experience points, there is also an extra boost in experience points from traded pokemon.

Warnings:

·       The LV. 50 and LV.100 challenges are two completely different ballparks. Both will award you ribbons but one (LV. 50) is much easier.

·       It is recommended that if you are a ribbon collector, that you use the same pokemon for both LV. 50 and LV. 100, which obviously has a whole lot of leveling up and training in between the two levels.

·       There are no lower-tier legendaries in LV.50 so be prepared for that going into LV. 100. Bringing your own, such as Articuno or Entei is never a bad idea.

Things You’ll Need:

·       A Pokemon Ruby or Pokemon Sapphire Game Cartridge/ Program

·       A Gameboy Advance, SP, or Nintendo DS or Nintendo DS Lite/ Emulator

·       TIME (Be ready to devote at least 4 hours to this, however you can save in between matches!)

WikiHow Page Outline: BATTLE TOWER

Eventually, I decided to do a WikiHow page on how to defeat the Battle Tower in Pokemon Ruby and the following is the outline for that page:

How To Defeat The LV. 100 Battle Tower and win the Ribbon in 9 Steps
 
Do you find yourself getting frustrated in the Pokemon Ruby Battle Tower? Never fear because the answer to all your troubles is in the next 9 steps. For all you battle lovers, and for all you ribbon collectors you can finally defeat the Battle Tower that has haunted many since 2003.

Pokemon Ruby for the Game Boy Advance was released in America in 2003. This was the first game to bring the introduction of ribbons into mainstream Pokemon society and ribbons have been a staple of the franchise ever since. Ribbons can be awarded for special battles, contests, and of course, the Battle Tower.

1. Defeat the main story of the game, by beating the Elite Four and the Champion
2. In post-game, either take the cruise ship to the Battle Tower or fly if you have already taken the ship.
3. Gather a team of strong Pokemon. You want to make sure they are each within the LV. 85 - 100 range, otherwise it will most definitely be impossible to beat the Tower. Pokemon eggs and Legendary pokemon are forbidden by Tower rules. However, lower-tier legendaries are allowed.
4. Equip each one of the Pokemon with a hold item (many hold items can be won in the Tower after battle 42, for each consecutive win of 7.) Leftovers, Choice Band, and Focus Band are generally a good three to use. In addition a pokemon specializing in defense, one specializing in special attack, and one specializing in attack are a sure-fire way to win.
5. Choose your team, the order cannot be switched until you either lose or you have won consecutively seven times in a row. Be wary the enemies increase in difficulty as you advance.
6. Battle! Pay attention to type match-ups, switch out team members if need be and win.
7. After winning seven consecutive rounds of seven battles, the desk attendant will tell you that for each seven battles you win from this point on, you will get awarded with a ribbon. Which is of course, the goal you are striving for.
8. Win the next seven matches, be extremely careful, the enemies are ruthless and many are lower-tier legendaries like Latios or Regirock.
9. After winning Battle 56, each one of the three pokemon you used for the last seven matches will each get a ribbon and as long as you don’t lose, each consecutive win of 7 will get the ribbon for other pokemon. Good luck, and remember that it may take more than one try.

Sources:
http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Ruby_and_Sapphire_Versions (research source.)
http://www.serebii.net/pokemon_advance/ (reasearch source.)



Tips:
Don’t give up, even when things look bleak! Sometimes, the opponent will use attacks that have no effect on your pokemon.
Sometimes, you may lose during a pivotal battle, or even battle 56, the last battle in a set tends to be more difficult. At that point, “keep on keeping on!”

Warnings:
The LV. 50 and LV.100 challenges are two completely different ballparks. Both will award you ribbons but one (LV. 50) is much easier.
There are no lower-tier legendaries in LV.50 so be prepared for that going into LV. 100. Bringing your own, such as Articuno or Entei is never a bad idea.

Things You’ll Need:

A Pokemon Ruby Game Cartridge/ Program
A Gameboy Advance, SP, or Nintendo DS or Nintendo DS Lite/ Emulator
TIME (Be ready to devote at least 4 hours to this, however you can save in between matches!)

Making A Wiki Page!

         Making a Wiki page of any sort sounds like an easy enough task, but the generation of ideas is, at least for me, the hardest part. I have been mulling and mulling over what to write about for this past long Labor Day weekend, and coming up with just three topics proved to be quite the challenge. I looked at two distinct Wiki websites; BufWiki through LocalWiki which is a specific Wiki dedicated to local places in and around Buffalo, and WikiHow, which is exactly what it sounds like a Wiki website used to learn how to do new things. In weighing my options with both, I came up with a few topics that I could maybe cover, however unable to decide between the two, I came up with a topic for the BufWiki site, as well as two topics for the WikiHow page.
         There is this cafe on the Elmwood Village strip that I frequent named Cafe Aroma. If I were to do a BufWiki article, I would definitely do it on this place. I really like to go here for their good prices, good coffee, and general calming atmosphere. With that being said, I realized that I for sure needed more information on the place and that's partially my own fault for being generally oblivious to most things in everyday life, as well as only ever ordering coffee and not taking an actual look at the menu. Now, as of late I've been pretty busy with my course load and work. Although it's only been a week, I already have work I'm trying to keep up on and so I haven't had much time to go out for coffee. I probably won't until this upcoming weekend and so I thought of alternatives to my predicament. I thought about how I could simply do a Google search and come up with the information I need, but then I thought that's not exactly my style. For a task like this where I can actively go out and take photographs and notes on the café would be preferable. I absolutely love the idea and I will have some time coming up due to cutting my hours at work in an effort to make school my priority, (as it should be) so who knows? With that idea crossed off my list, at least for the time being, I decided to pool my efforts into brainstorming for the WikiHow page, which would be  a lot simpler for me to accomplish at least within this week.
          A national phenomenon at least within the past few weeks has been the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which is one of those "social media movements" used to generate awareness. Anyhow, this challenge details somebody dumping a bucket of ice water on their head to stimulate how someone suffering from ALS feels and then nominating someone else to do the same. If the person nominated fails to do the same within 24 hours then they have to donate $100 dollars to the ALS fund. I was nominated twice and failed to do both within the 24 hours because I was too busy at the times of my nomination. Like, I could've done it and recorded it at night but I doubt anyone would've been able to see it and the point is to show the person's reaction. My mom and I were nominated together and so I also wanted to do it with her. We were just too busy during the day. If it were up to me I would change the rules and teach people HOW to do the challenge according to my rules. SO obviously this got me thinking of the WikiHow website. I would eliminate the deadline and make it so everybody had to donate at least a penny and show proof, this would not only generate awareness, but bring in more money for the ALS researchers. With all that on my backburner I had one more idea.
        As we grow up we all let go of certain childish antics, or at least we should. However, in my case there is one that I haven't given up since I was 6 years old and it's one that I have a sick amount of extensive knowledge on. Pokémon. Yes, Pokémon has been one of my constant companions since elementary school. I don't know why I haven't been able to stop, it's just one of my favorite things. I only play the games though so at least I'm not as bad as collecting cards or anything. Bleghh. *shudders* So recently, in anticipation of a remake of a Pokémon game I got in 2003 called Pokémon Ruby, I've been playing the game on an old Gameboy Advance. I noticed it was extremely hard to get past this ranked battling system in the game called the Battle Tower. I've been trying to beat it all summer and I figured what uncanny timing that as I'm trying to this task, I get the opportunity to create a WikiHow page. Low and behold, there is not a how-to on how to overcome this tower in the game and so I think as I'm finally beating it now, which I have never been able to do in my 15 years of playing, I would be the one to write it.
         After weighing these three topics, I find myself really leaning towards the Pokémon one for obvious reasons. The ice bucket challenge one would be a really cool way to finally do the challenge and get my Facebook friends to shut up, and I just love Café Aroma in general so if I ever do a BufWiki page that's a no brainer. I do still have some time to mull over all of these ideas and I may even come up with one that's not listed above. Knowing myself, this is more than possible. I'm one of the most indecisive people ever so we shall see. But, I am quite confident in my decision as of now. With that being said, stay tuned.

The First Time I Went On The Internet

The first time I accessed the internet that I can remember had to be in the fourth grade. I remember because it was my very first research assignment. Before this point in time, I had only used our very large, clunky desktop computer to play games such as solitare. Anyway, my fourth grade teacher was named Miss Soleki and our class was chosen to do the spring play that year. I remember it was she who gave each of us our roles within the play and I was tasked with bringing Martin Luther King Jr. back to life. I wonder why she gave me such a part in an all white class, besides myself of course. I suppose I'll never know. ;) So with my topic I was set to go. This was the assignment that shaped my entire scholastic career from then until now. I discovered that writing came easy to me;  the more ideas that flowed into my head from my research led to an extremely long paper for a ten-year-old. If I recall correctly that paper was twelve pages. Single spaced. From that point on many of my teachers and professors came to know me as an overachiever when it came to writing. The research was also something that seemed to come quite easily to me, which I remember feeling greatful for. I can remeber my mom coming into the room in which we kept our computer with a dinner plate piled with food and I can remeber her astonishment at how much I had written. It was something that
stuck with the two of us as I can remeber being a freshman in high school and proof-reading my mom's work for her job. And so, I suppose I can say wholeheartedly that my first encounter with the internet was one of extreme positivity. But now this has me thinking, if I was born in a different time by even a few years or an earlier generation perhaps, would I have been as adept as I was initially using the internet? Could it be that being born and raised within this period of technological advancements is what made it possible for me to grasp it so easily. The only reason I think this easy is due to my past experience with people of earlier generations constantly asking questions about technology and especially of the internet. People such as my late grandfather and some of my customers in the electronics department at Target where I work, truly make me question this notion. It seems that no matter how hard you try to teach them, the full capabilities of technology and the internet are lost and only available to the later generations. This entire topic has peaked my interest for quite some time. However, at this point I should think it's fairly obvious that I have strayed from my initial topic which could be attributed to my desire to write, which isn't always apparent to me, but hey that's okay.