Load it, Check it, Quick - Rewrite it (A Look at Tumblr)

Just like last week, I'd like to take a look at Tumblr, another aspect of new media that I'm not all that familiar with.

But first, let's recap on how things have been going with me regarding how I've been using Instagram since last week.

I've been using Instagram - along with Twitter - to share different pictures, either of mail I've received (picture one), projects I've been working on (picture 3) or more everyday moments (picture 2).

I've been connecting with people I may not have been able to connect with while just using Twitter, getting various likes on photos (especially the one with the crochet squid) and I've begun following other people, mainly other iggles like myself.

And now we come to a whole other for of new media - Tumblr.

Truth be told, unlike Instagram, I have used Tumblr before, but only sparingly - last year me and a classmate used Tumblr for a final project in an English/Medieval and Renaissance Studies course. And the entire time, I had to have my hand held since I didn't have a single clue how the site worked, or what its purpose was. I`d heard of some people doing some roleplaying with Tumblr, and that it was used for blogging - but it still didn't make sense.

Unfortunately, the classmate that I'd worked with was unavailable for an interview - but I did have a backup, somebody that I've known since I was five years old.

4EvaGeek: How would you describe Tumblr to somebody who has never used it before?

mellieeggo: Tumblr was originally made as a blogging site, a place to put original writings and thoughts. As time has worn on, people have used it to band together with like minded individuals over various things, from pop-culture followings, to recipe groups, to celebrity followers. It has also evolved from a site consisting of written entries to things more like photo's, paintings, and artworks.

4EvaGeek: How do you personally use Tumblr?

mellieeggo: I personally use Tumblr to connect with people who have the same interests and obsessions as me. I mostly follow blogs that focus on the actor's Chris Colfer, Darren Criss, and Tom Hiddleston, as well as the TV show Glee. I also use it to publish my own personal written works, including both originals and fanfiction

4EvaGeek: What is it you like about Tumblr?

mellieeggo: I love Tumblr because it is a place where I can connect with people who enjoy the same things as me, and express it in the same ways. Thanks to the anonymity of the internet, I feel no shame or nervousness with expressing my true feelings regarding the things that I enjoy, from my "OTP's" (One True Pairings) to my fandoms (fan groupings around a piece of pop-culture). It also gives me an avenue to publish everything I write to the greater world, without having to jump through the red-tape of any companies. I write not to make money, but to bring people enjoyment, and Tumblr gives me a place I can do that without worry.

4EvaGeek: Any additional comments about Tumblr that you can provide would be appreciated.

mellieeggo: Tumblr is the greatest site ever. It steals almost all my time.

And there, from an old friend of mine, is Tumblr!

I'll be re-vamping the accounts I created for a school project last year and trying to get some use out of Tumblr. To be honest I'm not as confident about Tumblr as I was with Instagram, but I'll still be giving the site an equal shot.

I'll link my own Tumblr account along with my other links on the side bar to the right of these posts once I have it set up. And for anyone that may be interested, mellieeggo's Tumblr can be found here!

So I guess my question for this post is obvious:

Do you use Tumblr? If so, how do you use it?

That's all for now! One more in this series to go! Next week I'll be looking at Pinterest. So until then!

~ 4EvaGeek

Snap it, Work it, Quick - Erase it (A Look at Instagram)

So first off, I apologize that this post is coming late - I had three interviews I wanted to collect and it took me a bit to get the final one.

Alright, so let's get right to it!

I expressed in my very first post that with this blog I wanted to explore things that I wasn't familiar with before, in order to expand my horizons a bit. And I found the perfect way to do that, and it relates directly to media :)

At the same time, it still relates to my overall geek theme, because the people I have chosen to educate me are three lovely women with varying interests that they are passionate about. Having passion doesn't mean a person defines themselves as a geek, as I detailed in my last post, but passion is still an integral part of geek-dom, no matter what that passion happens to be.

Here is my plan for the next three posts: I've interviewed three ladies regarding three separate new media websites; Instagram, Tumblr and Pinterest, none of which I have very much personal experience with.

For each post I'm going to show you the interview I conducted, and then I'm going to give myself a bit of time, using the knowledge they have provided me, to try out this new media for myself.

So let's get started with Instagram! Providing me with her personal experiences is SparkleGirl Jen, co-founder of the International Geek Girls Pen Pal Club, a creative crafter that sells her wares at conventions and on Etsy, as well as a fellow blogger and fellow Canadian.

4EvaGeek: How would you describe Instagram to somebody who has never used it before?

SparklegirlJen: Instagram is an app that you can download where you have the option of sharing photos either with followers on Instagram or through other social media sites that you can connect to your Instagram app. There are some fun and basic photo editing options in the app as well that you can use before publishing your photo. You do have the option to make your account private so no one can see your photos, unless you accept someone's request to follow your feed. Private accounts allow you to take photos, edit them, and then either store them on Instagram or share them through your social media accounts. Hashtags are also very popular on Instagram. You can tag each photo with whatever fits and describes your photo. This allows users to search by a specific tag and your photo will be a part of their search results. I get a lot of 'likes' on my photos from fans of specific fandoms that find my photos through hashtags.

4EvaGeek: How do you personally use Instagram?

SparklegirlJen: My Instagram account is public so anyone can follow me and I use Instagram for a few things. First, I like to share photos of my crafts and finished projects. I can post them publicly on Instagram for everyone to see and I also use Instagram to share the same photo on my Facebook page, tumblr, Flickr account, and/or on my Twitter if I choose. It's an easy way to advertise my creations that I will have at an upcoming show or will be adding to my Etsy shop. Second, I like to share photos from my daily life. I have a lot of family and friends that follow me on Instagram and since I recently moved 5 hours away, it's a great way to share photos of sunsets, my baking, my cats, a new haircut, etc. And third, I enjoy sharing every day joys, whether it's photos from the beach, from a comic convention, a funny book cover, or a new toy I've purchased. 

4EvaGeek: What is it you like about Instagram in general?

SparklegirlJen: I really enjoy seeing peeks of people's everyday lives. I follow some really talented, beautiful, and fun people! Between outfit posts, crafts, art, baking, and other every day pleasures, I find inspiration in these photos. 

I found Jen's insights regarding Instagram to be very helpful, and I'm hoping that I can begin to use Instagram as another media tool in my online tool belt.

So I've set up an account, downloaded the app on my phone, and so far I haven't posted any pictures yet. So far the only people I'm following on Instagram are theashleyclem, who is the actress that played Lizzie Bennet in The Lizzie Bennet Diaries since she takes a lot of interesting pictures, and of course, sparklegirljen.

I'm hoping that in the next week I'll begin to post some more photos, attach a whole lot of hashtags to them, and even use Twitter alongside Instagram to share my photos to even more people!

I won't be able to report any real progress regarding Instagram until some time has passed, so I will start my next post with an update. Stay tuned!

Also, here is my question to wrap things up:

Do you use Instagram? If so, what kind of things do you use it for?

Have a good one, guys! And I owe a big thanks to Jen for allowing me to interview her for this post. I'll let you guys know about my Instagram pursuits next week!

~ 4EvaGeek

I Need This Feeling (Our Passions)

So yeeeeah . . . I think this arrangement of initial .gif's is my weirdest to date.

First off, I apologize for not writing that Halloween-themed post last week like I promised, as well as completely abandoning the idea of writing a post altogether. This class called for a presentation and a case study due for me on the same day, and I was a bit stressed about getting my case study video in on time.

But I'm back now!

Sorry, I might be a little bit .gif happy tonight XD Oh well!

Anyway, I was looking through my old posts and I decided that I haven't really done anything too too personal at this point, so I suppose it couldn't hurt to start now!

As I've mentioned before, it is very difficult to define exactly what a geek is, because it is such an all-encompassing term. Sure, texts such as 'The Geek Handbook' can try and divide people into specific categories, but I can guess all of you are smart enough to know that one book isn't going to cover everything on a single topic.

Even so, I would like to think that there is something that the lot of us have in common, more often than not, and that is that we all have things that we are passionate about.

You aren't labeled as a geek because of the specific things that you are passionate about. You don't even have to be a geek in order to get passionate about something. But I find that more often than not that the people that would call themselves geeks, nerds, dorks, what have you, are people that aren't afraid to share their passions with the world.

Here's an example: I can't count the number of times I've had screaming girls wander into the bookstore where I work. Whether it's to take in our One Direction merchandise . . .

*shudder*

Or when it's girls excitedly explaining to their friends the plot of one of John Green's books.

In fact, I've heard on countless occasions that people refer to that moment when they're "jump-up-and-down-squealing-like-a-little-girl-oh-my-God-I-can't-believe-it-I-don't-even" excited as "geeking out." Of course you could also call that generally just "freaking out" or "fangirling."

After all, who hasn't had a moment where they're involved in some sort of excited discussion or debate with their friends or just with the people around them, not over a class discussion or whatever the current headline is that they find repulsive, but over something that they really enjoy talking to other people about?

I know I'm guilty of this. I'm pretty sure I razzed on a fellow classmate just a couple days ago when I heard that he hadn't seen any episodes of Game of Thrones or read any of the books that the HBO series is based on, and I more or less demanded that he watch it as soon as possible.

I also more or less squealed with a friend of mine when we talked about last week's episode of The Big Bang Theory, and how excited we were to see a substantial figure from our childhood appear on screen, bow tie and all.

I've also noticed that for the past few months that I have declared a personal war against anybody that will not watch the show White Collar after I have expressed the show's many virtues to them: it's well written, it's unlike any of the other crime dramas currently on the air such as NCIS and CSI, it's incredibly funny, and also because I happen to find Matt Bomer to be one of the most gorgeous men alive . . . 

(WHY must he play for the other team?!)

Okay, so maybe that last reason applies only to myself, but still . . . 

My point is, we all have something, and it's not just TV shows that apply here. People are passionate about cooking, about writing, about sports, even about characters that they grow attached to in books they read or in their own writing.

I guess the morale of the story here is: To all the people who are screaming at their television sets when the characters on TV are making bad decisions,

To the people who let out a little squeal when they see a new book by their favorite author out on the shelves,

To those that have fun talking, Facebooking and Tweeting to people about the interests they have in common (or the interests they should have in common because maybe you think everyone should hop on the Duck Dynasty wagon),

To everyone that has one or a multitude of things that they are passionate about that help to motivate them each day,

I salute you.

Okay, now it's officially .gif overkill XD

Guess this would be a good time for me to go. I guess I can end with a simple enough question:

What are you passionate about?

Let me know!

~ 4EvaGeek