Due May 29 Syllabus   MUS 716 At a Glance   William Wieland
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 D2L (Discuss, Dropbox, Grades)
Please don't freak out. Some assignments require just a few minutes of your time. However, try to download the free software early in the week in case you have trouble with, for example, school security systems.
  • Introductions
    1. Welcome! — including a 14 second video   :o)
    2. Read the MUS 716 Syllabus, particularly the two big assignments, Substantial Technology Project and Technology Presentation. If you already have a topic for your Substantial Technology Project, please e-mail it to William.Wieland@northern.edu
    3. As an introduction, read my formal biography — Dr. William Wieland.
    4. To get to know me better, read my family biography at William Wieland's Family.
    5. Add or update a formal and/or informal bio at your public (probably school) webpage and e-mail the url to William.Wieland@northern.edu. If you do not have a public webpage, simply e-mail your biography to me and I will share it with the class.
  • Getting started
    1. Compile a personal list of Resources for Learning Technology and place it in the D2L Dropbox "List of Resources".
    2. Answer the question, "How can I learn technology most efficiently?" at D2L Discuss "Learn Efficiently". Draw upon your own training and experience as well as your personal list of resources. Please contribute a short post like Twitter, but meaningful. We will read one another's responses next week.
    3. Create a list of technology available to you at school as well as technology you own and place it in the D2L Dropbox "Technology I Have".
    4. Learn either Windows or Apple Keyboard Shortcuts for the final exam.
    5. Begin learning about WAV, AIFF, MP3 and MIDI files for the final exam.
  • Downloads — These are both free, a price your students can afford!
    1. Download MuseScore even if you use another music notation program. Input the first several notes of your school song with MuseScore and place the file in the D2L Dropbox "School Songs". The MuseScore Handbook first addresses installation and, soon after, note entry.
    2. Download Audacity even if you are proficient with digital audio. Record yourself saying your full name as well as what I should call you so I can learn the correct pronunciation. Create an MP3 file. (Under the File menu, click Export...) Place the MP3 recording in the D2L Dropbox "Our Names". You may listen to everyone's recordings. The Audacity Manual includes a FAQ for installation, recording and troubleshooting.
  • Finally, it's time to get hip about streaming music services, e.g. plug.dj, Pandora, Rdio, and Spotify to name just a few. First read recent online critiques. Download or bookmark the two you deem best and begin enjoying streaming music. Some are free (with ads) while others have a free trial. During the final week of class we will compare our experiences.