Post Two - Questioning/Research

Erza Scarlet

Aesthetics: Erza Scarlet is a young woman with long, scarlet hair. At first glance she could be seen as an average shounen anime character with long hair, big breasts and a curvacious body yet her personality is nothing like a damsel-in-distress as most at first glance would view her as. Her Fairy Tail guild mark is on her left upper-arm and is coloured blue.  

Colour Palette: Erza's colour range is very wide as her outfit/armour relates to it's specific effect. For example, Erza's flame empress armour usings volcanic-colours such as reds, darks browns and oranges. Her thunder empress armour consists of an electric yellow with a contrasting blue and her heavens wheel armour consists of just silvers and whites basically depicting her hundreds of swords associated with that specific armour.

Personality: Erza is a character who tries to enforce the rules at all times. This can be seen when she stops her fellow guild-mates/childhood friends Natsu and Gray from fighting. She is an S-class mage meaning she is one of the top wizards in the guild which is why many of the younger guild-mates (sometimes even older), always obey her commands as they are afraid of facing her wrath. Erza is a very impatient person who often gets easily aggravated with people who can't answer her questions fast enough. 

Motivation: Erza is motivated through her strong sense of justice and her love for her guild and the people in them. Erza is always empowered by her friendships with her guild-mates that so far there hasn't been a fight she has lost. Erza's strong sense of justice causes her to go all out on her opponents who are usually on the opposing justice side.

Relationships: Erza is friendly towards all of her fellow Fairy Tail guild-mates but shares the strongest bond with her teammates Natsu, Gray, Lucy and Wendy. Natsu has been childhood friends with Natsu and Gray leaving her to treat them like her younger brothers. She is very comfortable around them as she is still willing to take baths with them even though they're not children anymore, to Natsu and Gray's dislike. She is also very close with her other teammates Lucy and Wendy as their team is always together. Erza is viewed by her fellow teammates/guild as a strong wizard which leaves most people afraid of her, yet Natsu shares a competitive bond with Erza as he is always willing to battle her to see who is the strongest.

Backstory: As a child, Erza was taken alongside many other children and adults as slaves to help a dark cult construct the Tower of Heaven also known as the R-system. The dark cult wanted to resurrect the black wizard Zeref and so started constructing the Tower of Heaven which could allow them to do so as The Tower of Heaven allows one life to be resurrected in exchange for the life of someone else. A while after Erza was taken to the tower, she became apart of a revolt resulting in her losing her left eye and her mentor sacrificing his life to save her which awakened her magical power. She was then able to escape on her own and followed the directions of her mentor before he died telling her to find the guild Fairy Tail as they would look after her, in which she did.

This tragic childhood has led Erza to become the powerful person she is today with the strong sense of justice and the will to fight as to escape the tower she had to overcome her fear of hurting people even if it's for the right reasons.

Accesories: Erza Scarlet is seen wearing many different armours throughout the anime Fairy Tail as she uses the magic "requip" which allows multiple outfit/armour changes at any given time. The armour she uses can range from attack armour which allows her to focus all her energy into attacking with the downside of the armour leaving her defenseless, the heaven's wheel armour which is used mainly for when she is facing multiple opponents as it allows her to attack many at a time, etc. These armours have different materials and styles to them which relate to the type of armour they are and also different weapons.

Kirito (Kirigaya Kazuto)

Aesthetics: 

Accessories:

Personality:

Motivation:

Relationships:

Back Story:

Movement:

Chun-Li

Aesthetics

Colour Palette

Style

Accessories

Personality

Motivation

Relationships

Back Story

Movement

Post Six and Seven: Advanced Tools and Techniques

Task One:

Tamera by RangituhiaHollis on Sketchfab

Task Two:
Explain how advanced tools and techniques have been used to create, edit and integrate digital media outcomes.

Advanced Technique One
An advanced technique that I have used to create, edit and integrate my digital media outcome is rigging. Rigging is applying a rig which is basically like a skeleton or "armature" to my model so I am able to move its limbs and give it life-like movements. I did this by placing a single bone in my models torso, and then subdividing that bone into three different bones to control each section of its torso. I also used the same technique when doing the left arm and the left leg of my model by subdividing into the relevant amount of bones needed for the limbs. After creating my models torso and one side of limbs, I then mirrored the limbs to the opposite side so they'd have the exact same size and placing.

Advanced Technique Two
Another technique that I have used to create, edit and integrate my digital media outcome is animating using walk-cycle. Basically, after applying rigging to my model I was able to make it perform life-like movements such as a walk-cycle. I made my model perform the walk-cycle by at first(after adding rigging), parenting my mesh to my rig so that when I move/rotate a bone, the associated body part will move with that bone. I then changed into Pose Mode. Pose Mode is the mode where I am able to move my models body/limbs. With this, I was able to move it to different positions and then record those positions as keyframes to create an animation. Key frames are positions/poses of your model recorded on a timeline that went put with multiple key frames, play out an animation.

Task Three:
Discuss why advanced tools and techniques have been used to create, edit, and integrate digital media, and how their use has enhanced the outcome.

Create
Whilst making my model, I created a rig which would work as a skeleton for my mesh. Rigging is an important advanced tool to use in the creation of a model as this is what grants me access to manipulate my models limbs into different positions once I've parented the mesh to the rig so I could then record multiple key frames which would finally produce a walk-cycle. Animating using walk-cycle is also an important advanced technique to use in the creation of a model as it is basically the aim of what you want your model to do, which is performing life-like movements.

Edit
In editing digital media, advanced tools such as rigging allows different movements in the positioning of a models limbs. Using a specific bone in the rig, you can edit the position of any part of your model. This allows for your model to perform an endless amount of poses to create an endless amount of different animations.
Animating using walk-cycle is also important in editing digital media as editing a walk-cycle allows for different movement of what the model is performing, or maybe even more movement added on to the walk-cycle. The possibilities are endless.

Integrate
I integrated the rig I created with the mesh I created which allowed my model to perform life-like movements. The advanced tool I used to be able to complete this task was parenting. Parenting is basically used to put singular/multiple objects known as children under one object that becomes the parent. What this does is when I move, rotate or scale anything to do with the parental object, it also affects the children of that specific object as well. In my case, when I moved the bones in my rig, the body(mesh) part associated with that certain bone also moves, allowing human-like movements.

Using the previously mentioned tools and techniques has enhanced the outcome of my digital media by giving it life-like movements such as the walk-cycle it successfully performed whilst the other technique rigging allowed me to give my model a human-like skeleton making it able to perform the movements it did. Advanced tools basically allow me to achieve the use of advanced techniques I used in the making of my model.

Task Four:
Student can evaluate how the application of advanced tools and techniques affect the quality of digital media outcomes.

The amount of advanced tools used and your ability in using them to your advantage will greatly determine the outcome of your advanced technique as anyone can perform an advanced technique, but not everyone is able to achieve a high standard of that specific technique due to lack of knowledge on how to use the tools to their maximum ability.

Post Three: Ethical Statement

All the work that I have produced for this project is my own or has been provided for me by my teacher.

Post Five: Conventions of a Digital Animation

Task One
Explain the standards and conventions used to produce digital media outcomes.

The standards and conventions I used to produce digital media outcome includes things as the file-type of imagery I used to render out my object, the resolution used in rendering my model and  the place in which my rendered images are saved.

This screenshot shows the resolution in which my rendered images come out. I kept the resolution to 1920x1080 as that is what the HD preset sets it as to make my animation come out with HD quality.
This screenshot also shows the specified "frame rates per second" which in my case was 24fps. Frame rates basically are the link between the timing of the animation and the timing of the real world. I used 24fps as that is the standard animation value. It just means that 24 frames play of my set animation in the space of one second.

This screenshot shows my choice of folder in which I save all my rendered images for the specific animation I just made my model perform. I use a different folder for every different animation I make my model do as this keeps my animations sorted and I won't mix them up.


This screenshot represents the different file-types I could render my animation out as.
I used the PNG image file-type as this is what I use for final animations as it has a nice quality in comparison to the JPEG file-types.
The PNG image type has lossless compression basically meaning no information is lost in the compression of the file into a smaller size, allowing your image to be left with the original quality it initially had whereas with the JPEG image type, the file has lossy compression meaning it gets rid of irrelevant information to compress the file to a very small size, allowing the file to lose quality.
Rendering my animation out into individual files allows me to have more control over everything.
Image files are used in comparison to just rendering your animation out straight into a video file like an AVI as video files come out with many faults such as skipping and corrupt data.
Also, if something goes wrong whilst rendering, if you render out your animation into images the images you've already rendered won't get lost whereas with a video file, the whole video file will be lost meaning you'll have to start rendering from scratch.

A convention of animation includes the '12 principles of animation' which something applied to most animations whilst in my case, I was only asked to use at least two of these principles.
One of the principles I used was 'Appeal' in which my model had a cute appeal to it. This helps to create a connection with anyone who views my model as it had small, rabbit-like features.
Another principle I used was the "Straight Ahead and Pose to Pose" principle which is basically two different ways of making my animation using key frames. Straight ahead means making your animation exactly how you see it as in each and every frame whereas Pose to pose is a technique used where you do a few key frames of certain movements and fill in the other frames later.

Task Two
Discuss the positive and negative implications of adhering to digital media standards and conventions when developing digital media outcomes.

A positive implication of adhering to digital media standards and conventions when developing digital media outcome is being able to meet the requirement of my brief. For example, I was required to make an animation with HD quality which meant I had to use a resolution that would be able to be played on HD screens. This would make my animation have a nice quality seen on HD screens.

A negative implication of adhering to digital media standards and conventions when developing digital media outcome is not meeting a requirement in the brief. For example, using one of the 12 principles of animation Appeal. You could intend to give a cute appeal to your model, yet the intention does not follow through to your target audience.

Task Three
Evaluate how the application of standards and conventions affect the quality of digital media outcomes

The application of standards and conventions affects the quality of digital media outcomes as they determine the level of standard of which the audience views the animation. If applied correctly, positive implications could include things such as the audience creating a connection with your character. Applying standards such as HD resolutions, frames that flow at a nice rate and rendering out your animation in quality images allows your animation to be viewed at a very high standard. Applying conventions such as principles of the 12 principles of animation not only affects the quality of your animation, but the outcome of the connection with the audience.



Task Four
Discuss the relationship between standards and conventions, in relation to the requirements of digital media outcome.



The relationship between standards and conventions in relation to the requirements of the digital media outcome as when both are used together, it gives off a better quality animation. This is as standards set the actual resolution of what your 3D animation comes out as, and conventions work with mainly the physics behind 3D animation yet also the emotional bond between your animation and the audience.

Post Four - Workflow/File Management

Task: You will need to explain how asset management and file management are applied in the development of digital media outcomes.

Assets

What is an Asset?
An asset is an element that can only be managed whilst using a certain programme.


Assets Used in Blender

• Lamp
• Camera
• Armature
• Cube

How Did I Manage Them in The Development of my Animation?

During the development of my animation, the key assets  I used in the Blender application were the cube, lamp, armature and camera.


Using the Cube was a key element in the creating of my animation as I was able to turn it into a human looking figure. This was achieved by at first, sub-dividing the cube into four, and then deleting half of the cube so I could use the mirror modifier. Adding the mirror modifier basically meant when I moved something on one half of the cube, the opposite of the cube would do exactly the same. This allowed me to create a symmetrical figure meaning all my limbs on both sides were exactly the same(length/width-wise).

Another key element I used was the lamp asset which allows light into the scene of your rendered object. The lamp can either reflect light onto a certain part of your object, mainly a feature you want emphasized or it can add light into the scene of your object.


The camera element was a key object I used during the creation of my animated object as the camera allowed me to view my rendered object from different point of views.

A key element in making my animation do the walk cycle was Armature. Armature is a type of object that is used for rigging. The armature works the same as all other assets in Blender as it has a center, position, can be rotated and also scaled to be bigger or smaller. I used Armature and was able to create my rig which is very similar to a human skeleton as the armature bones work/resemble(not in shape) real-life bones. The rig I created then acted as the skeleton for my model once parented with my mesh.


Files

What is a File?

A file is a document of some sort that is saved outside of the application it was created in usually either in a folder stored on a computer, cloud or external device.

File management is very important in the creation of digital media as the more organised your files are, the more easier it is not only for yourself to access what you need and when you need it, but also for others who may be working on your project as well.



How did I use file management effectively? 

I made sure to maintain a clear, simple structure in my INM folder that separated the completely different categories from each other as shown in the screenshot below. What this shows is that I had my models which were blender files in their own folder, my rendered out images for my animation in its own folder, and screenshots for my blog in its own folder.  This ensured that I was able to find any files I needed efficiently when they were needed.

This is a screenshot of my files for INM. I keep my models separate from my screenshots, and my different models separate as well so there is no confusion such as opening the wrong file due to a mix up.

Task Two

For this you will need to discuss the importance of effective and appropriate asset management and file management in the development of digital media outcome

The importance of effective and appropriate asset management in the development of a digital media outcome is that assets are easy to find and navigate through not only for yourself, but for others who may also work on your project. This also goes for file management as not keeping a logical structure is just asking for a mix up in files and will make it almost impossible to locate what you are looking for.

Post Two - Ethics of Digital Technologies

Copyright

What is Copyright?
Copyright is a basic principle that the expression of an idea is protected by copyright in it's original form. If you create something then the original material's automatically protected by copyright. In New Zealand you don't have to register for copyright for your work to be protected under copyright.

"According to the Copyright Act 1994 the copyright owner can copy, sell copies, perform/play/show or make an adaptation of their work. They can also authorize another to do any one of the above things. Educational, library, and review exceptions in the copyright act enables some passes through the copyright act under strict circumstances."

Creative Commons

What is Creative Commons?
Creative Commons features a number of public copyright licenses that allow people to use works that would usually be protected under copyright. Creative Common licenses require no registration as the user just picks a license that best suits what they will allow done with their work and they then apply it to their work. The benefits of using creative commons is that users don't have to go through the long process of gaining a Copyright license as if they don't mind their work being used under certain restrictions, the Creative Commons license they choose to apply to their work allows them to do this.






Attribution 

CC BY

"This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This is the most accommodating of licenses offered. Recommended for maximum dissemination and use of licensed materials."

Attribution-ShareAlike 

CC BY-SA

"This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work even for commercial purposes, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms. This license is often compared to “copyleft” free and open source software licenses. All new works based on yours will carry the same license, so any derivatives will also allow commercial use. This is the license used by Wikipedia, and is recommended for materials that would benefit from incorporating content from Wikipedia and similarly licensed projects."

Attribution-NoDerivs
CC BY-ND

"This license allows for redistribution, commercial and non-commercial, as long as it is passed along unchanged and in whole, with credit to you."

Attribution-NonCommercial
CC BY-NC

"This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, and although their new works must also acknowledge you and be non-commercial, they don’t have to license their derivative works on the same terms."

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 

CC BY-NC-SA

"This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon your work non-commercially, as long as they credit you and license their new creations under the identical terms."

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs
CC BY-NC-ND

"This license is the most restrictive of our six main licenses, only allowing others to download your works and share them with others as long as they credit you, but they can’t change them in any way or use them commercially."

Piracy

What is Piracy?
Piracy is the unauthorized use of someone else's licensed work also known as Copyright infringement. Examples of piracy include websites like MegaUpload where users uploaded files that infringed Copyright rights.

How are These Three Ethical Considerations Related?

Copyright is the most important out of the three as both Creative Commons and piracy come from Copyright. Piracy is what happens when you break the Copyright law, Creative Commons allows people to work through the Copyright law legally and Copyright is the law. Creative Commons allow users a way to keep their work protected legally whilst also giving people who want to use their work a way to without having to go through the long process of gaining permission from the owner. This is also good for people who want to share their work with others yet still have some control over what happens with their work. Piracy is when people break the Copyright law by not getting permission to use the owners work or giving the correct credit asked by the user. So basically, both piracy and Creative Commons are stems of the Copyright tree.



Mega and MegaUpload
On the popular file-sharing site MegaUpload, many files infringing Copyright were being uploaded and downloaded everyday from millions of users. Basically how Megaupload worked was as an online storage for users files and they were then able to link out those files via URLs to their friends. Obviously this system was taken advantage of as many people used it to share files that infringed Copyright, making it a haven for digital pirates. Megaupload did not take down any Copyright infringing files from their site, leading it to eventually be closed down by the FBI due to it's many piracy issues.


Copyright law has been worked around by in the site Mega, rather than the website controllers having access to decrypt any files a user uploads, now only the user has that ability. Technically, with this new feature instated Mega is no longer breaking any Copyright laws as they do not know what their users are uploading and they have no ability to take down what is wrong either. This is a gray area in Copyright as technically, they can no longer be held eligible for what is on their site as they have "no idea" of what is being uploaded.

MegaUpload was shut down by the FBI and there was also a raid on the founder Kim Dotcom's mansion in New Zealand. The other six people highly involved in the matter became to be known(with Dotcom) the MegaConspiracy.


The difference between MegaUpload and Mega is that on MegaUpload the data is encrypted on their servers and the controllers of the website have the ability to decrypt any data the user uploads whereas in Mega, the data is still encrypted but the controllers of the website have no ability to decrypt any of the data a user uploads.

MegaUpload is deemed illegal whilst Mega isn't as people controlling the servers were able to see what files their users were uploading onto the site, making the controllers take responsibility as they didn't take down the illegal copyright files their users were uploading. Whereas on the site Mega, they no longer have access to decrypt users data giving only the uploader access to these files. This means the people controlling Mega can claim to have no idea as to what their users are uploading.

"A sophisticated encryption system will allow users to encode their files before they upload them on to the site's servers ... Each file will then be issued a unique, sophisticated decryption key which only the file holder will control, allowing them to share the file as they choose 

 (http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/16wwmc/eli5_the_difference_between_mega_and_megaupload/)"

MegaUpload is deemed illegal in comparison to other websites that also hold copyright infringing files such as YouTube(for example), as YouTube is protected by a copyright law known as the DMCA. This law asks YouTube to give access to copyright owners to take down any infringing content.


References
www.legislation.co.nz
http://slingshot.co.nz/products/homeline-and-broadband/slingshot-mega/
http://www.quora.com/YouTube/Isnt-it-illegal-for-youtube-to-host-the-videos-that-contains-some-song-and-their-lyrics-uploaded-by-any-user
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Millennium_Copyright_Act
https://creativecommons.org/#main
http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/16wwmc/eli5_the_difference_between_mega_and_megaupload/

Post One - Ethical Dilemma

Automated Law Enforcement
Group Members: Tamera & Uluaki



In this scenario who  might benefit and who might suffer?
The government will benefit from automated law enforcement as they won't need to pay people for labour because robots work for free.
People that work in law enforcement will suffer as they will no longer have any jobs and also the community as no longer will fellow humans be watching the streets, but heartless/emotionless robots.




Who will hold the power in this scenario?
The creators of the robots will hold the power in this scenario, alongside the government as the government will obviously have a big say in how the robots are programmed, but only the creators of the robot will really be able to know whether the robots are meeting the conditions stated by the government.




Could this new technology help to improve or could it worsen the state of society?
It could improve society as robots are not bias and will give fair punishments to people who break the law.
It will worsen society because there will be a rise in unemployment which will create more poverty and also, since robots are emotionless they will not be able to deal well with cases that need emotional understanding.




Could humanity as we know it change?
Yes, humanity could change because no longer will people be able to confide in the police for comfort during emotional problems and there will be a slight increase in poverty due to all the police force being forced into redundancy.