Podcast Story

College years are the time many students find themselves living on the Ramen Noodle budget.

Pinching pennies and living without become a way of life. Tuition, housing, and sheer lack of time are all contributing factors to the empty pockets, but there is hope if you know where to look for it.

The wonderful world of couponing opens the door to affording all of your favorite name brand commodities be it food, clothing, entertainment, or health and beauty care. Even with all of the obvious benefits and money saving possibilities coupons have to offer, many college students are a bit skeptical about the hobby, one student deeming it “a 35-year-old woman’s job.”

This is a surprising notion considering the recent booming popularity couponing has earned itself during the state of the economy. TLC has even awarded the hobby its own television show called Extreme Couponing, where men and women spend a countless number of hours clipping, strategizing, and pairing up their coupons to achieve the ultimate money saving game plan.

Oftentimes these devoted money savers will leave the store with multiple carriage loads and even more money than what they went in with. That’s right, some people can become so skilled in the ways of couponing that stores will be stuck paying them the difference of their savings versus the actual cost of a transaction.

Between classes, homework, studying, and actually having some form of social life in college, we can’t really expect students to get on such levels of extreme couponing. However, there is no reason why they couldn’t find the time to get a few coupons here and there to save a little extra money on their next grocery run.

This day and age we’re not talking about your mother’s couponing tactics of sifting through flyers with her reading glasses and trusty pair of scissors, no no we have the technology for that! There are a number of websites devoted to bringing the savings straight to you with the simple click of a button.

Couponsuzy.com is a wildly popular website with commercials airing on television informing people all across the country of the great deals awaiting them online. It’s very simple to navigate; you can search by category or brand. Its not limited to just groceries either, there are savings on health and beauty products, entertainment, and they also offer coupon codes that can be used at some of your favorite top name online stores like Sears, JCPenney, American Eagle, Walmart, and the list goes on and on.

On October 10 a few deals up for grabs are a saving of $2.00 on Aveeno hair care products, such as shampoo and conditioner, $1.00 off Smart Ones frozen entrées, or $2.00 off Listerine mouthwash.

The process in getting these coupons is as simple as a few clicks of a mouse. Each coupon has a small box in the lower right hand corner labeled “clip.” Clicking that will put a small check in the box. You can check off as many boxes as you want and when your finished click “print coupons” and watch as your money saving coupons spew out of your printer. Many stores will accept these coupons because the manufacturer makes them.

Couponsuzy.com is great for your everyday shopping needs but another website, Groupon.com, is great for more luxurious savings.

This is a website you need to subscribe to; once subscribed they will send you email alerts on possible savings you may be interested in. They have deals on hotels, jewelry, gym and yoga lessons, dry cleaning, spa treatments, fancy dining, and so much more.

The tricky thing about this website is that it’s a hit or miss. They offer certain deals at certain times and once that time is over the deal has passed. They also are not very Vermont or New Hampshire friendly. Most of the attractions are in large cities like New York.

If you are looking to treat yourself to a little get away, or maybe you need a gift idea for a friend this is definitely an interesting site to check out.

podcasts

The podcasts I chose to subscribe to were ABC news-Nightline-crime and punishment. I chose this one because its main focus is on high profile cases. One particular one that I listened to was the Michael Jackson trial. It outlined what was going on in the case and had courtroom audio as well which I liked. It played audio from Michael Jackson himself when he was supposedly drugged up. One thing I didn't like about it was that it wasn't updated reguarly and I would have liked more recent information on the Amanda Knox trial, however the last date that it was discussed was 9/23 which was more than a week ago.

Another podcast I chose to subscribe to was NPR: All Songs Considered Podcast. The first thing I noticed about it was it was updated frequently. It seems like every separate podcast is different from another, some they play songs in, others they have interviews. When I played the most recent was, there was some discussion but then they played some music that kind of freaked me out and then they critiqued the music. They continued to do that throughout the show, playing newer music (people that are not quite that mainstream yet) and then discuss weather they like them or not.

And the last podcast I chose to subscribe to was Chelsea Lately Video Podcast. I chose this one because shes normally pretty funny. I like it because there is video involved, but they were extremely short (just under two minutes) and I think they are just clips used from the Chelsea Lately show.

Map Project-Crimes on Campus

View Crime on Campus in a larger map

My group and I decided to do our project on the crimes committed on campus. We spoke with public safety and received a list of places on campus that incidents occurred between 9/17/11 and 9/20/11.

The information we got from public safety was very limited and we were not given many details about the crimes. There was eight in total and this shows that Whitelaw, a all-freshman dorm, had the most incidents within the three day period.

Whitelaw

-Smoking violation

-Underage drinking violation

-Underage drinking violation/marijuana usage

-Student injured (student hit head, found dizzy/tired)

Stonehenge Parking Lot

-Destruction of property (vehicle vandalized)

Rita Bole

-Larceny (student reported their PlayStation 3 stolen)

Poland/Rogers

-Failure to comply with directions

News 7

-Fire alarm was set off

Fox44now.com VS. CBSAtlanta.com

VS.

At first glance, I notice that both of the sites have organized drop down categories where one can go and find what they are looking for. I think this tool is useful.

Just looking at both sites, I find that Fox44 is much more appealing to the eye. On the very top of the page is what is called the "conversation room" with links to social media sites. Underneath that is a slideshow of top stories with videos attached. On the top right you notice a slideshow of pictures.

CBS Atlanta is almost the opposite. They have one picture from the top story on the top left, and recent videos on the right, however, you can tell right away that it is very wordy. Unlike Fox44, your going to have to read through the headlines to see what you want to look at. Fox44 has the same, but it is at the bottom of the page, and the most important and top stories are at the top in the form of pictures and video. CBS has "social tools" to link one to the social media but it is off to the right and does not come off as prominent as Fox44. CBS Atlanta also has more ads than Fox44, although they are smaller and more out of the way than they are on the Fox44 site.

I like the writing on both sites. I found the information to be condensed so you only find out whats important and not just a bunch of fluff. I do like how CBS offers local, national and world news on the front page. Fox44 only offers VT, NY and NH news.

Overall, I guess I don't understand whats the point of having an online site if you just have everything in the form of a article. If that's the case, then pick up a newspaper. I think that if you have an online news site you should take advantage of the technology out there and make it interesting, interactive and fun.

Critiquing NSN

The first thing I notice about the site is that its organized. I like things neat and in order so I can appreciate this. On the top of the page, there is tabs on the top directing you to where you want to go, whether it is sports in general, high school, college...etc. This is good for people who get distracted easily and a quick way to find what you are looking for. Also on the top of the page in the right corner is a box telling you when the next live game is. A nice touch.

Looking a little lower, you can't not notice the slide show in the middle of the page with some action shots from recent games. Good pictures. When you click on them, you are brought to an article about the game. Some of the articles were pretty long, but maybe they're supposed to be longer when writing about a game? not sure. I like the upcoming games box though. I like that its informative with the time and date of the game without having to click on it.

Not too many ads. I do notice a ad from LSC though. No comment.

I like that they have a link to like on facebook. Which is good networking. There's not too much I don't like, except maybe the long articles. Overall, I like it.

ONLINE NEWS WRITING 2

The Eatery Closes After a Decade

The Eatery, where special-education students came to work and gain experience in the food industry, is coming to a close after being open for 10 years.

This will save the school system $20,000 to $50,000 a year and is not needed anymore due to having partnerships with 80 other restaurants in the area.