DS106 Exploration
When professors Waltzer and Harbison first mentioned ds106, it didn’t sound like something I would want to explore in my free time. Upon entering the website, however, my attention was quickly grabbed by the unique design centered around the constantly switching images. Those images are created by users, or rather the students of this online course. Aside from artistic element, the images are based on works of other people, and that is the reason for this post and for ds106 itself. Every assignment for ds106 requires students to make use of the Commons and everything it offers. All of the materials used by the participants are available under Creative Commons licensing, which allows for unrestricted sharing of intellectual property.
The eye-catching design of the page was not the only thing that impressed me. The content of each post shows the high level of research done and reflects the commitment of students. They accomplish a serious amount of work for an online course with optional participation. One way or another, each student specifies the way he/she used the works of others in a legal way. Like others have mentioned already, that is something we are learning to do in Digital History as well.
I was impressed too. Seems like the creators of the site put same thought and creativity into it. Design looks catchy and I think they did a great job.
I’m pleased to hear, Anton, that you were captivated by the engulfing design of the DS106 site. Regarding the Creative Commons licensing that you mention: are you able to specify what type of license is applied to the work of DS106 students (there are many kinds)?
And I am wondering if you can clarify this statement: “One way or another, each student specifies the way he/she used the works of others in a legal way.” Where does this communication happen?
Seems to me that the license used is ShareAlike(copyleft)
To clarify, the posts that I explored had informal references to the borrowed work.
http://virtuallyfoolproof.com/?p=2301 – Plenty of references here, from news articles to movies.
I appreciate the personality of the post. It was convincing to see your initial reaction changed after exploring the site.
Anton, when you mentioned the “high commitment of students”, and how it impressed you, it did the same for me. Its hard to believe that students have such a high desire to participate in a class structure like DS106.