Sunday, November 3, 2013

Reading Response 4- Thomas Hinkebein


On Compression was very interesting to me because I send and receive files frequently, but have never really taken time to appreciate what is really going on.  I use technology all the time, having had a Mac throughout my four years of high school and using an IPhone.  Despite being a big technology user, I am still not very educated as to how everything works, and what is going on, so articles like this are great in the fact that I can become more educated about this piece of technology I am using, and therefore, gain a whole new appreciation for it.

We compress files all the time in our class when we have to upload them to Google Drive, but I never really understood what compressing was, and why we had to do it in order to upload them.  Arcangel did a great job of explaining that compressing an item to be reconstructed and sent without having to send all of the data as well.  We are always looking for cheaper and faster ways to send files, and compression comes in handy so we do not have to do what Arcangel claims is the cheapest way to send a file: by installing it on a hard drive and physically mailing it.  I also thought that his description of Lossy and Lossless compression was very simple and easy to understand.

Lastly, I like the way that Arcangel used a lot of visual methods like pictures and mathematical equations in order to help describe compression.  It really helped me pick up the material easier due to the fact that it was being described in words, and with visual methods.  Overall, I think that On Compression was very informative, interesting, and gives me a new appreciation and better understanding of compression and how it works. 

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