The changes of motion picture technologies

The changes of motion picture technologies   29/10/2013

In the passage of 40 over years, I see the changes of motion picture technologies from the restrictions of movies could only be shown at the cinemas to be able to watch movies on the smartphone.   What a big change. 

In late 1970s, we had the first TV set and there were so few movies especially the Chinese ones to watch.   I remember there were so few so that we watched “Drama Minggu Ini” too.  Compared with the programmes available now, the increase is by heaps / many folds more.  There are so many at your disposal that I am afraid you might find it hard to choose which one to watch first.

        Then in 1990s or earlier, the scientists found the video tapes for the movie enthusiast / addicts.  In 2000s /earlier , VCDs came into being and then DVDs.  In 2006, I only found out any wonder called Thumbdrive / pen-drive when I went to Open University, Malaysia for Tutors’ interview and orientation.    

        In 1990s/earlier, Play Station /PS also came into being.  My son, Adou played the game on the television.   He earned this gadget from his father for the good results he scored in school when he was in Primary 3 or 4.  In 1998, we had our first desktop and accessed to ……net.my.  I put it in the bedroom.  At that time, only my husband knew how to browse the internet.   He watched the bullish /bearish of the Share market.

My son, Adou played the CD game on the computer.   He really liked it so much so that I had to restrict him.  I even came to the extreme to unplug the cables to stop him.   In 1990s, I wonder if you could watch movies on the computer.

           I only used the computer to compiled grammatical rules & compose grammar exercises, testpapers and the like in 2000 when I started giving my own tuition.  At that time the wonder of internet network was blind to me.  I only used the internet service when I started tutoring in Open University, Malaysia.  At that time, tutors had to forum with the tutees.  Then I would browse sometimes when I found the need
         In 2000s,  laptops also came into existence.  It was amazing to me.  Arh…….. I found that my son, Adou movie addicts could watch movies on the laptop.  

        Now in 2013, he watches movies on the smartphone!   I found that there are many and many functions that the smartphone can perform.  It is thrilling to me to see this advancement.  The technology has advanced so fast and so much.   My husband and I are still using Nokia handphone with few functions.   I am going to get a new one which can do more functions and is now under repair.  It cost RM250. 

      
        M…………I can watch movies over Youtube.  I can’t remember when I last went to the cinema to see a movie, about 20+/ 30 over years ago / so.   Will I go to the theatre to see movies again?   The answer is: Unlikely.   Being a practical person, I will only do things that can really benefit me /and others.  What do I gain watching a movie? 

        Ng ……..what do I gain watching the movies by Charles Chaplin?  Well, I see his movies are lost treasures, so meaningful, inspiring and incomparable.  I might write commentaries about his movies from my perspectives.  I persuaded my son many times to watch his movies but failed.  He does not even care to to find out just like I don’t even want to know what those horror movies are all about.  I can’t watch violent and thrilling movies or they might hit me so much so that I might be affected emotionally  and lose the peace of mind.    

     He likes Tintin and other comedies and other kinds.  He also goes to the cinema with his friends to see movies.   We just cannot understand him as he has so many movies to watch over the Youtube / elsewhere and why he still wants to go to the theatre to see them.   I am puzzled.

        Ya, television, computer, smartphone, printers……….are the wonders/products  of human minds’ focus.  The scientific technology in this respect has advanced amazingly and incredibly fast especially in the turn of the century.     This technology has changed our lifestyle and mind so much.  You are what you are fed and what you focus on.

Movies and I

Movies and I      28/10/2013

        Yesterday I watched a very interesting movie called “The Kid”  by Charlie Chaplin and the little boy made /shot in 1921 over Youtube.  This is the second movie by Charlie Chaplin I watched this year.   Ya, I seldom watch movies unless it is really appealing. 

        The silent movie “The Kid” which I watched 40 over years ago at a movie house.  It was so impressive that I recalled often / had a flash back.  I did not know I could watch this movie over Youtube until my S3 sister told me to watch the documentary “DSM: The Marketing of Madness”.  

 Last Monday,  ya, I spent about an hour / so  watching  “The Circus” and some parts of the Chocolate Factory by Charlie Chaplin.  The movie “The Circus”  is impressive,too but “The Kid” is still the best and most touching.   I searched for this movie “The Kid” yesterday and was willing to spare an hour plus to watch it again. 

        Yes, I enjoyed movies when I was small.  My parents especially my mother brought us to see the movies at the movie house.  I should say I saw quite a few of the Chinese movies depicting the legendary figures in folklores like “Liang San Bo & Zu Yin Tai”, “Wang Bao Chuang” and the like in old costumes.  I also watched the Kungfu movies in which the heroes and heroines had the power to fly about.  They were fascinating to me. 

        But for the movie “The Kid”, I went with my younger siblings without my parents’ knowledge.  It was a frightening adventure, I should say.  I only had 2 tickets for 4 persons/ 1 ticket for 3.  I can't remember what tricks I played to bring in all.  But I held the fear of being driven out halfway.  That was the only Charlie Chaplin’s movie I watched so far until I watched “The Circus”.   I must say I missed the movie “The Kid” so much.  Thus I watched again yesterday.

        When I was in Transition, Form 1 and Form 2, I watched a lot of Bollywood films with my gang of 5.   We even skipped Art classes to go out to see movies.  I remember once when I was cycling to see Bollywood films with my friends, the wind was blowing really hard.  The front wheel of my bicycle just swayed to one side but I persisted to go to see the movie.   Another time, I missed the whole family photographing time to so much anger of my father.  He had the full explosion.  He tore his new shirt and said angry words. 

        Form F3 onwards, I seldom watch /see movies and I do not watch Bollywood films anymore.  Of the all the movies I haven seen/ watched, only the really impressive ones that I can remember.  To recall, the movies/ films I can namely now are:

        The Sounds of Music

        Gone with the Wind

        My Fair Lady

        Ba She Zhuan

          Liu San Jie

        They are good movies but I don’t think I will spend time watching again.  I don’t think I can afford to spend 1 or 2 hours watching them again.  

        When I was studying  in Taiwan in 1980s, ya, I also watched some movies / TV series there.  I enjoyed the TV series “Chu Liu Xiang” then in the lounge with those in the hostel when I was a student.  There were so many cramming there that I often chose to sit cross-legged on the big table to watch like a wild lady.

        In the early 1990s, I watched a few Musical Operas by Yang Li Hua mostly when my mother-in-law was playing video tapes.  Some animated cartoons with my son, Adou.  I enjoyed Disney Mickey cartoons especially Mouse cartoons a lot.  The animated films “Beauty and the Beast”, “Pocahontas”, “Pinochio” and “Snow White and the 7 dwarfs” were appealing that I watched.   

        In the early 2000s, I also watched 2 -3 Korean TV series.  Then no more because I was so busy.  I would rather read newspapers as we had subscribed 2 versions of newspapers.  I had the thirst for knowledge all the time.  From 2005 onwards, I started compiling grammar books, the English phonetics  the Chinese phonetics and phonics for publication. 

        In 2013, I have watched 2 movies and 1 documentary so far.  When I can, I will watch all the movies by Charlie Chaplin.  I just love his movies, “The Kid” and “The Circus” and one day I hope I will write the reasons why I like his movies so much.   Wait until I have watched his movies and I shall find out why I like his movies.

Language Use

Language Use  11/Oct/ 2013

Language use means to use the language actively in creativity and production in speaking and writing / the output.   The input is listening and text reading activities in the passive learning.   If you don’t engage in the active use of your language, it remains dormant /in a sleeping state.   

Therefore to activate your language that you have learnt as a second language /L2, you have to practise it all the time in thought and interaction with yourself and others.

        
In school,  I believe, nowadays, English teachers have the consensus to teach an item /2 not more than 10 minutes and then engage students in the activities of listening, reading, speaking and writing.  Language does not meant for teaching actually.  It is to use the language through different activities with the 4 skills in mind to learn just as how we learnt our L1. Teacher  helps where necessary and steps aside . 

         
Teacher acts as a facilitator, guide, helper, counsellor and leader where needed.     It is a student-centred learning and Teacher as a co-learner.  It is Confucius’s philosophy that teaching and learning takes place at the same time.  Teachers learn and progress in the process of teaching and learning.   

         
Nobody taught us in L1 but in L2, learners only need Teacher to sensitise them with the rules and regulations.   It is to highlight the general rules and key points.   It is to view the articles with the interests of learners in mind to see how the rule(s) are used in the passage.   Through this language exposure/ experience, learners learn the expressions in context. 

         
English is learnt as a second language / L2 in Malaysia.   Reading as much as possible to acquire the language.  For a text,  it is to understand a reading passage with questions asked and answered in class orally first to practise speaking skills before the written answers for the questions.   

Teacher can also go through the structures of the reading passage to teach grammar in general.   It is to reinforce the learning of grammatical items in context. 

If learners are not clear about the forms, for example, “loss, lose and lost”, it is advisable to sort the item to practise to learn the grammar aspect of the language.    Being able to Classify words into 9 classes is an important skill in language learning.    Do you have any idea how to use the words:  loss, lose and lost

       

1.   Due to careless, the businessman _____________ almost half of his 
    fortune once.  (For verbs, you must be alert to tenses.) 

2.    Thomas sold the house at a ______________ of at least RM200,000.

3.    Jim was ____________ in the forest for 2 days when he went jungle-
     trekking last month.

4.    Nowadays, Peter can take ____________ at ease.

5.    Peter always ____________ in 100-metre race.  But he takes part in 
     the race every year.  He is going to take part in the race again this 
     year.  He is not discourage at all.  

Reading resources you with almost 100% fluency and comprehension but not accuracy.  For accuracy, you need to be competent in the language knowledge, ie, grammar, spelling, punctuation and pronunciation.   

You have to use the language to command it.  This Wednesday , my friend Ng SOSed me for help as her daughter studying in Form 2 was in dire straits with the question, “Are you a materialistic person?”.  She was at a loss how to present 3 evidences to show whether she was or not.    She needed to present that afternoon.   As soon as I reached home from marketing,  she called me up for help.  If not due to the press of time, I would ask her to write first before I helped.   

This girl has  good memory and she studies hard and is willing to go for tuition for all her subjects.   Thus she always gets good results with flying colours.  In UPSR, she scored As for all the subjects.  Now what was wrong with her when it came to the activity which required her to be resourceful?    She could blame her past passive exam-oriented education.   Students are what they have been trained to be.   The inputs were dormant/ passive

Our Education Department has just started School Evaluation of students’ performances 40% .   It is  about Hands-on activities to learn.  For the English language, I think they start to engage students in the classroom activities as much as possible.  This is the beginning.    I am happy for her to be one of the pioneers in this new learning arena.

        
You need constant language exposure and experience as well as conscious effort to become proficient be it L1 and L2.   The following is the sample I provided her for reference:

         

        Are you a materialistic person?

        Based on the number of things that I have possessed,  I think I am a  very materialistic person.   Though I am only 14 years old,  the things that I possess are many times more than my age.  

        I have a smartphone of latest model though my 2 other smartphones are still in good condition.

        I also have so many clothes in my wardrobes.   If I wear one suit of clothes a day,   I can do it for 3 months without wearing the same piece twice.

        Look, I am fancy for toys especially Hello Kitty, Barbie dolls and Millions.  I have 70 Hello Kitty toys,  110 Barbie dolls and 52 Millions.

        I wish I could earn a lot of money one day.  Then I would buy a very big and expensive car such as Volvo, Mercedez Benz,  BMW,  Ninja  and the like.   Besides, I would like to live in a mansion with a very big garden and a swimming pool.  Moreover, I would go travelling whenever I could.  Furthermore, I would like to marry to a wealthy man to ensure high /luxurious standard of living.