2010年ESL之餐饮娱乐 11 Customizing a Personal Webpage

 

11 Customizing a Personal Webpage

GLOSSARY

layout – the position of text, photos, and graphics on a piece of paper or screen;the way a page has been designed

* When Clarke was hired as the new graphic designer for the magazine, heimmediately changed the layout.

lame – not cool; uninteresting and boring

* Staying home to watch TV on a Friday night is so lame! Let’s go do somethingelse instead.

to customize (something) – to personalize; to change something so that it isunique, unlike anything else, often to reflect the characteristics of a person,company, or brand

* We can customize our software to meet your company’s specific needs.

Why bother? – an informal phrase used to show that one thinks something is awaste of time and doesn’t want to do it*

- Please make your bed.

* - Why bother? I’m just going to sleep in it again tonight.

background – the large area of a piece of paper or screen behind what one isreading or looking at, normally just white, but sometimes with other colors,designs, or photos

* It’s easiest to read black text on a white background.

graphics – small pictures, symbols, or icons used to make printed or electronicinformation more interesting

* Do you prefer the graphics in the old or new version of this software?

profile editor – a tool in a social networking website that allows one to controlwhat information is displayed when people look at one’s page

* The profile editor allows you to select the information other people can seewhen they visit your website, such as your hobbies and your birthday.

hometown – where one is from; the town or city where one was born and raised

* Fran has lived in Atlanta for more than 10 years, but her hometown isFairbanks, Alaska.

relationship status – whether one is single, dating, engaged, married, divorced,or widowed

* When Olivia updated her relationship status from engaged to single, she startedreceiving a lot of emails from men who wanted to date her.

mood – the way one feels at a particular moment in time

* Getting a parking ticket put me in a really bad mood.

to link to – to include a hyperlink (underlined words that, when clicked, takesomeone to another webpage) to another webpage or another part in the currentpage

* Let’s make sure our website includes a link to our email address so thatcustomers know how to contact us.

to upload – to put a file on a server so that it can be accessed from a website oremail and is no longer stored only on one’s own computer

* Don’t forget to upload the attachments to your email before you click “send.”

custom cursor – a special graphic that indicates where the mouse is on awebpage

* Why do you use a boring white arrow as a cursor? You could have a customcursor instead, like a yellow happy face.

scrolling text – words that move across a screen

* I like watching CNN News, because I can read scrolling text at the bottom of thescreen to learn about current events while I’m listening to the reporters talk aboutanother story.

dizzying – making one feel dizzy or disoriented, as if one might fall down or faint

* Don’t you find it dizzying to fly up so high?

animated gifs – small graphics that change or move in a certain way on acomputer screen

* She puts a lot of animated gifs in her emails, mostly using small faces thatsmile or blink their eyes in surprise.

uncluttered – bare; without unnecessary objects or elements; plain

* Their house is surprisingly uncluttered, considering how many people live there.

better spent – used in a better, more productive, or more fulfilling way

* Are you going to spend your entire summer vacation at the swimming pool?

Your time could be better spent working on college applications.

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COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. What does Al mean when he says that Keiko’s page is “kind of dizzying”?

a) There is too much to look at.

b) It is very professional.

c) It looks too childish.

2. What would you expect to see on an uncluttered page?

a) A white background.

b) Scrolling text.

c) Animated gifs.

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WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

background

The word “background,” in this podcast, means the large area of a piece of paperor screen behind what one is reading or looking at: “I like the idea of using aphotograph as the background for this flyer, but I’m afraid it will make it difficult toread the text.” The word “background” also refers to one’s experiences,education, jobs, family, and more: “The company wants to hire someone with abackground in international sales.” Or, “How do you feel about your sonmarrying someone with a different religious background?” The phrase “in thebackground” refers to sounds that one can hear, but are not part of what one istrying to listen to: “Could you please speak more loudly? Your cell phone ispicking up a lot of other sounds in the background.”

mood

In this podcast, the word “mood” means the way one feels at a particular momentin time: “Marsha was in a good mood for weeks after she won the lottery.” Thephrase “mood swings” refers to rapid, unpredictable changes in how one feels: “Alot of teenagers have big mood swings, where they’re happily laughing oneminute, but then angry or depressed just a few minutes later.” The phrase “to bein the mood for (something)” means to want to do something: “I’m in the mood for Chinese food. Let’s go to that new restaurant down the street.” Finally, thephrase “mood-altering” is used to describe drugs that change the way one feels:

“Mood-altering drugs might make you feel good for a while, but they can havesome very dangerous long-term consequences for your health.”

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CULTURE NOTE

Many young children use “social networking sites” (websites that allow people tointeract with each other) to communicate with their friends and “distant” (living inanother place far away) family members. However, they are not always aware ofthe “implications” (what can happen as a result of something) of sharing personalinformation on social networking sites. This makes children “vulnerable” (able tobe hurt by) to “predators” (people who want to hurt children) if nobody is watchingor monitoring how they use social networking sites.

Parents cannot monitor everything their children do on social networking sites,but they can use “parental controls,” or software features that allow parents to setlimits on how the software can be used by their children. For example, theparental controls on many social networking sites let parents “restrict” (limit)access to the information their children put online. They can change the settingsso that anyone who wants to see their child’s page must first be “approved”

(saying that something is okay) by the parents. Parental controls can also let theparents limit what type of information the children can put online. For example,the settings could make it impossible to share email addresses, telephonenumbers, physical addresses, or photographs.

Parental controls “can only go so far” (cannot do everything), so it is alsoimportant for parents to discuss their “concerns” (worries) with their children.

Many parents find it useful to explain the “dangers” (bad things that couldhappen) of social networking sites and encourage their children to let them knowif they “encounter” (find) people who make them feel uncomfortable online orhave other problems.

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Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – a; 2 – a

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 631: Customizing aPersonal Webpage.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 631. I’m your host, Dr.

Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development inbeautiful Los Angeles, California.

Our website is eslpod.com. Go there to download a Learning Guide for thisepisode that will help you improve your English even faster.

This episode is called “Customizing a Personal Webpage.” Many people havetheir own pages – their own websites. We’ll talk about some of the vocabularythat might be related to that, especially on social networking sites such asFacebook. Let’s get started.

[start of dialogue]

Keiko: The layout of your webpage is so lame. Why don’t you customize it?

Al: Why bother? I don’t want to spend the time or the energy.

Keiko: Let me show you my page. Check out this background. Don’t you thinkit’s great?

Al: Yeah, it’s great. Can I get back to my book now?

Keiko: You haven’t even looked at my page. Look at this. You can add all kindsof graphics and you can use the profile editor to list information about yourself:

your hometown, your likes and dislikes, your relationship status, your mood,everything! You can link to or upload photos and videos, too. I even have acustom cursor and this scrolling text across the topAl: Yeah, it’s all great, but kind of dizzying.

Keiko: You haven’t even seen my animated gifs. This funny baby will danceacross the page, look!

Al: Thanks for the suggestions, but I think I’ll stick to a simple, uncluttered page.

How long did it take you to do all of that?

Keiko: How long? Maybe a few hours.

Al: I’d rather spend a few hours reading a good book.

Keiko: Suit yourself. Maybe that’s why you have 22 “friends” and I have 200.

Al: Clearly your time has been better spent.

[end of dialogue]

Our dialogue begins with Keiko saying to Al, “The layout of your webpage is solame.” The “layout” is the position of things either on a piece of paper or here onthe computer screen: where you have your photos, where you have your writing– your text. The position of things on the screen or on a page, in this case awebpage, is the layout. “Lame” (lame) used to mean, and still does, someonewho has injured themselves, someone who is handicapped, who hurt their arm ortheir leg. Now it’s used more informally as meaning uninteresting, boring, notcool. “Lame” is a little bit dated now, it was more popular I think in the 90s, butit’s still used. Keiko says, “Why don’t you customize it?” meaning the webpage.

“To customize (something)” is to change something so that it is unique; it isunlike anything else. Here it means also, I think, to personalize, to make thepage reflect the person behind it. That is, the page will somehow show you whothis person is.

Al says, “Why bother?” “Why bother?” is an informal phrase used to show thatyou think the suggestion that someone is giving you is a waste of time; you don’twant to do it. You can use it by itself, “Why bother?” or you can be more specificand say, “Why bother customizing my website?” Notice that the verb after theword “bother” is an “ing” form. “Why bother going to the movies when you canwatch the movie for free here on television?” Al says, “I don’t want to spend thetime or the energy.”

Keiko says, “Let me show you my page. Check out this background.” “Checkout” means take a look at; investigate. “Background” is the large area of a pieceof paper or a computer screen behind what you are looking at. Normally it’s justwhite, but you could have different colored backgrounds. The background iswhat everything else is on, if you will, in this case. “Background” has a couple ofdifferent meanings, however; take a look at the Learning Guide for someadditional explanations. She says, “Don’t you think it’s great?” Don’t you thinkmy page is great Keiko means. Al says, “Yeah, it’s great. Can I get back to my book now?” “Can I get back to” means I want to return to doing what I was doingbefore. We often say it when we are trying to indicate to the other person thatthey are bothering us, they are taking up our time.

Keiko says, “You haven’t even looked at my page. Look at this. You can add allkinds of graphics and you can use the profile editor to list information aboutyourself.” “Graphics” are small pictures or symbols that are used to makesomething more interesting looking, a design, pattern that also can sometimesmake the writing clearer; it indicates what is going on in the writing part of a pieceof paper or a page on the web. The “profile editor” is something that you will findin social networking websites such as Facebook or Twitter that allows you tocontrol the information that other people see about you. It will allow you to selectinformation that you want to tell other people, and who gets to see thatinformation. The information on this profile editor, according to Keiko, includesyour hometown, your likes and dislikes, your relationship status, and your mood.

Your “hometown” (one word) is the place where you were born, the place whereyou grew up. My hometown is St. Paul, Minnesota. Your “likes and dislikes” are,obviously, the things that you like and the things that you don’t like. Your“relationship status” is whether you are married; whether you are single; whetheryou are dating, you have a boyfriend or a girlfriend; it could that you areengaged, you are going to get married; it could be that you are divorced, youused to be married; or it could be that you are widowed, your husband or wifedied. That’s your relationship status. Your “mood” (mood) is the way you feel ata particular moment in time. I’m in a good mood means I’m happy, I’m in a badmood means I’m sad or angry.

Keiko says, “You can link to or upload photos and videos, too.” “To link to(something)” means to make your webpage – a part of your webpage such thatwhen you click on it, it takes you to a different page or a different part of a page.

We call these “hyperlinks,” usually they are underlined on a website, and often adifferent color, blue is most common. That is to link to something. “To upload”

means to put a file, like a picture or a music file, onto another computer called a“server,” and that server is connected to the Internet so that other people canlook at or download that file. Download is the opposite of upload. Upload youput it up to a server – you put it on a server; to download means you take it off –you make it part of your own computer.

Keiko says, “I even have a custom cursor and this scrolling text across the top.”

Something that is “custom,” as we learned earlier with the verb “customize,” issomething that is special to you, something that is unlike other things. A “cursor”

(cursor) is a special graphic on your computer screen that tells you where the mouse is or where whatever you may be typing will appear. Keiko says she hasa custom cursor and scrolling text. “Text” is just another word for words.

“Scrolling” is something that moves across the screen or up and down thescreen, usually somewhat slowly. At the end of a movie or a television program,for example, there are what are called “credits,” the list of names of all the peoplewho worked on that movie or show, and these usually “scroll,” meaning theymove slowly. Especially for a movie you see this more often, the names will gofrom the bottom of the screen slowly up to the top of the screen almost as if theywere on a wheel, turning around. That’s scrolling text.

Al says, “Yeah, it’s all great, but kind of dizzying.” “Dizzying” (dizzying) meanssomething that makes you feel dizzy. “To feel dizzy” means that your head issort of spinning; you are not exactly sure where you are perhaps. If someonehits you on the back of the head or spins you around in a circle, around andaround, you may get dizzy. You won’t be able to walk straight, at least for a fewminutes. Here, “dizzying” means that it’s too complicated, it’s too much, and it isconfusing to Al.

Keiko says, “You haven’t even seen my animated gifs (or jifs).” The word (gif) isactually an acronym. It is a word that comes from different words – the first letterof three different words; (gif) stands for graphics interchange format. It’spronounced by some people as “jif,” other people pronounce it “gif.” I think “jif” isthe original pronunciation. In any case, it is a small file that is a picture or aphoto or a design of some type. “Animated” means that it is moving somehow;there is movement in the little picture. These were very popular when the webfirst got started in the 1990s. I remember in 1993 or 4 when I first started usingthe Internet you would see a lot of these. They are not quite as common,fortunately, anymore, but that’s what Keiko has on her webpage. She says, “Thisfunny baby will dance across the page, look!”

Al says, “Thanks for the suggestions, but I think I’ll stick to a simple, unclutteredpage.” “To stick to” means I’m going to stay with what I have right now, or I amgoing to only do this. He’s going to stick to an uncluttered page. “Uncluttered”

means that it isn’t messy; it’s the opposite of confusing, it’s the opposite of toomuch, of disorder. Uncluttered would be very simple, without anythingunnecessary on the page.

Al says, “How long did it take you to do all of that?” Keiko says, “How long?

Maybe a few hours.” Al says, “I’d rather spend a few hours reading a goodbook.” Keiko says, “Suit yourself (meaning you do what you want to do; if that’swhat you like). Maybe that’s why you have 22 (quote unquote) ‘friends’ and I have 200.” On Facebook you can get friends, people who are able to look atyour website. A friend isn’t necessarily a friend; it’s often just somebody whoknows who you are. Many people try to get as many friends as they can; that’soften a sign of what we call “narcissism,” which is the belief that you are the mostimportant thing in the world. We have a lot of that nowadays!

Anyway, Keiko has 200 friends on her social networking site, probably Facebook,and Al only has 22. Al says, “Clearly your time has been better spent.” “Betterspent” means used in a better way, in a more productive way. However, Al isbeing sarcastic; he’s making a joke. He means the opposite of what he says.

He’s saying that Keiko has wasted her time getting these webpages customizedand having all of these quote unquote friends. When we say “quote unquote” wemean in this case that they’re not really friends. Once again it’s the opposite, insome ways, of what you are saying.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of dialogue]

Keiko: The layout of your webpage is so lame. Why don’t you customize it?

Al: Why bother? I don’t want to spend the time or the energy.

Keiko: Let me show you my page. Check out this background. Don’t you thinkit’s great?

Al: Yeah, it’s great. Can I get back to my book now?

Keiko: You haven’t even looked at my page. Look at this. You can add all kindsof graphics and you can use the profile editor to list information about yourself:

your hometown, your likes and dislikes, your relationship status, your mood,everything! You can link to or upload photos and videos, too. I even have acustom cursor and this scrolling text across the topAl: Yeah, it’s all great, but kind of dizzying.

Keiko: You haven’t even seen my animated gifs. This funny baby will danceacross the page, look!

Al: Thanks for the suggestions, but I think I’ll stick to a simple, uncluttered page.

How long did it take you to do all of that?

Keiko: How long? Maybe a few hours.

Al: I’d rather spend a few hours reading a good book.

Keiko: Suit yourself. Maybe that’s why you have 22 “friends” and I have 200.

Al: Clearly your time has been better spent.

[end of dialogue]

Why bother listening to other English podcasts when you have the wonderfulscripts by Dr. Lucy Tse?

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thank you for listening. Comeback and listen to us again on ESL Podcast.

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse,hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan, copyright 2010 by the Center for EducationalDevelopment.