weisner

At the beginning of the semester, I was skeptical that I would ever really grasp the tools and skills necessary to build a website. Computers were an intimidating technological advance, and my grasp of internet resources was pretty basic. However, Digital History taught me so much about technology and I feel infinitely more comfortable around computers and the internet. Most importantly, I am proud of the knowledge that I accumulated and the website that I created.

I think Henry’s Diary was a good choice for a final project. I would work on this same project again, although there were certainly some challenges and a good deal of work involved. A large amount of my time was spent on the content of the website. I tape-recorded my interview with Henry so I had to transcribe the tapes into notes. Henry had a very thick German accent and he tended to use a combination of English and German. I often had to look up names, places and objects to clarify exactly what Henry was talking about. Once I completed my transcriptions, I formulated a proper timeline that corresponded with the information Henry gave me. Again, this required some fact checking since his memory on ages and dates was not always reliable. The only real drawback to this project was the lack of photographs or documents from Henry’s life in Poland and Germany. I think family photos or images of war would have greatly strengthened the website and made it even more personal. Sadly, any photographs and documents were lost over time.

On the whole, Henry was fascinating to interview and his story was very memorable. I had always wanted to hear his story, and this project provided me the perfect opportunity to document a small part of his life. It was also a good opportunity to practice writing for a younger audience. Although I think Henry’s story is intriguing to all ages, I also believe his personal narrative is a good way to lend a personal angle to World War II history in the classroom. Finally, the project gave me a chance to experiment with the blog software. While we kept a blog throughout class, I had never really played around with the options or design. After completing this project, I firmly believe it was the right medium.

I wanted this project to be much more interactive than a simple paper. Digital media allowed me to build a project that included photographs, maps and timelines for a more immersive experience than a standard paper. I also knew that I wanted to build a website directed at a younger audience. It would be most successful if the viewers could connect with Henry. I wrote in first person and in an informal style to truly capture Henry’s story and draw in the audience. The only drawback was my lack of experience in working with digital media. This project took more time because much of the learning experience was trial and error. While everything worked out in the end, I had to play around with the Wordpress website and template for awhile before deciding on the look and feel of my site.

There were various aspects of technology I had to figure out while completing this project. Although I was somewhat familiar with Wordpress, I had to figure out how to change the template, arrange the sidebar to showcase the features I wanted, and remove the timestamp to give the blog a more authentic feel. In the end, it was not that difficult and I have learned a lot. However at the time, it took me awhile to design the look of my blog.

I also built about fifteen small webpages that I inserted throughout the blog, containing background information and visuals. Again, figuring out the design took a good deal of time. Now, I feel very comfortable editing and improving images on Adobe Photoshop or building a page on Dreamweaver. Wordpress, Dreamweaver and Adobe were all sufficient in building my webpage. The only aspect of Wordpress that I found to be constraining involved the order or chronology of my blog. I separated out the entries by year on the sidebar, but it is a little difficult to navigate straight through the blog since the posts are listed chronologically. Basically, Henry’s last entry appears on the front page of the blog. It is easiest to navigate by year from the sidebar, but you still have to scroll down to the bottom of the page to read the earliest entry by date. While there were challenges, I feel better equipped in the technological world and this project was definitely a learning process.

I am definitely happy with the final version of my website. The content and basic design lived up to my expectations. However, there were a few additions and changes I would make, given more time. To begin with, I would add more journal entries. While I presented the main events in Henry’s life, there were still large gaps in time. If given the chance, I would love to flesh out his daily life in greater detail. This would include more information about growing up in Poland and Germany, his family and his career. Secondly, I would add more links and background information to each of the entries. I added pages to portions of the diary that called for obvious explanation or imagery, but there are certainly many more opportunities for expansion and visuals.

If given infinite time and resources, I would also add audio and video components to the website. Placing excerpts from Henry’s interview online in an audio format would be an amazing resource. More interactive maps, such as a Google map for the areas of Europe to which Henry traveled, would also greatly strengthen the site. I would also include a lesson plan within the website, with recommendations of where exactly Henry’s Diary could fit into the curriculum. This would hopefully involve working with a teacher to assist in coming up with standards, objectives, and stronger educational components on the site. Finally, if I were to expand the project, I would think about including other oral histories. It would be interesting to present different perspectives from World War II. Ideally, these would be stories that are not often captured in history, just as Henry’s story is a new perspective. Multiple stories would also strengthen the educational aspect and provide great opportunities for comparison and contrast.

Henry’s Diary.