Reflection on Bolter presentation

Chapter 5: The Electronic Book on Prezi

Overall, this presentation was a delight to research and produce. I found my fellow presenters to be motivated and intelligent, diligently absorbing their fraction of the chapter and crafting a suite of Bolter quotations that would best describe his intended meaning. I found myself at ease with the thought of presenting the work, not only because I had confidence in our group’s ability to accurately summarize the text, but because I felt I had a grasp of the entire chapter’s assertions that I could effectively speak and answer questions.

The most challenging (yet exciting and rewarding) task was the use of the Prezi software in crafting an accompanying visual. Before we created the presentation, we knew we’d have to establish a logical sequence of thought that complemented the chapter’s form. Due to Prezi’s nature, it was difficult to move the relative position of each textbox after it’s placement, but easy to establish a path through each point. We decided that we should arrange the points in a circle around the main title as a typographic reproduction of the world, in chorus with Dan’s concluding point.

Retrospectively, I would have preferred to break from our group’s sequential presentation and opt for a more impromptu, collaborative relay of the chapter’s content and implications. Yet, this would require a deep understanding of the entire chapter for each presenter and a comfort with improvisational methods—something we did not all possess. I would have also preferred to wean our presentation off of Bolter’s exact words and use short summaries instead.