IS101 Blog Post: Third Week of May

I entered this class anticipating that I would learn basic computer skills. However, my experience in IS101 went far beyond my expectations and proved to be both memorable and highly beneficial. I was able to apply many of the Excel techniques I learned in this class to my accounting course, including using the Control and Shift keys to select specific cells and utilizing simple formulas such as the SUM function. I'm certain that I'll be using Excel in many different ways in the future. Although I earned A's in two different English classes and thought I was already familiar with Microsoft Word, this course introduced me to many features I had never used before, including document protection and inspection, references, review tools, and mail merge, just to name a few. After passing all my Microsoft Exams with decent scores, I was actually unaware going into this class that we would all have the opportunity to receive official badges and online certifications, which was really cool, especially for those who went above and beyond to conquer the "expert" exams.

This class was actually the first time I ever used Microsoft PowerPoint for anything, let alone using it for a presentation, which I'm glad to have overcame given my slight fear of public speaking. In that regard, the chapter that resonated with me was 6.9.2 Transitions, which essentially makes a professional PowerPoint presentation look more polished by forming creative and/or appropriate transitions when navigating between slides. A simple tip I learned from the LabSim assignments was to utilize the "Apply To All" button in the Transitions tab of the PowerPoint ribbon, to keep the slideshow presentation consistent. Timing can also be adjusted through editing the duration of the transition and the "Preview" button let's you see how it all ties together.

Not only did I learn all the required material for Microsoft Office, I learned a lot about my classmates, their goals, interests, and achievements. Honestly, I was expecting to dive into this class with a low-key profile at the back of the class, not knowing about anyone and vice versa. I later found out as we continued throughout the semester that I began remembering almost everyone's name and face, which is kind of rare for me, especially in a class where we only see each other once a week. Professor Wu really impressed me with this course, especially having the time and patience to help us remotely and/or in-person throughout every week, including the week before the semester even began. As I graduate next week on May 18th with my Associate of Science degree, I'm truly thankful to have taken this course and hope the rest of my classmates have a bright and successful future.

    

IS101 Blog Post: First Week of May

The beginning of Phase 2 was not too bad because it reminded me a lot of Phase 1, especially the LabSim assignments. There were some things I remembered doing in Word that I applied in Excel, such as the document inspection and properties. However, as we went deeper into Excel, it began getting more and more technical as there was so much attention to detail. Attention to detail, I admit, is something that I need to work on more, because I tend to look things over too fast.

As the Phase continued, I found that the A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer wasn't too bad. However, the individual details of the Excel project were frustrating for me, because there were so many trial-and-error moments that felt like no matter what I did, something was wrong. Even though the functions were all correct, it had to look presentable in a professional workplace, so I understood why I had to keep correcting my mistakes. Eventually, I finished it with flying colors and was also glad to have finished the MO-210 exam with a pretty good grade as well.

It was great to use the features that Excel had to offer when correcting your work, especially the features found in Chapter 5.7.7 - Excel Error Messages. If there was something wrong with the numbers in the cell, Excel would give a green triangle at the corner of the cell and would tell you what was wrong with it, such as an inconsistent formula or an invalid name error. You can also choose to ignore the error message if you know for sure that the contents in the cells are exactly how you want them. This is like "spell-check" from Word, but for Excel.

I will definitely be applying what I learned in Phase 2 in my future career, whether it is business or in the medical field, because Excel is a very useful tool used for many jobs that require lists for inventory, planning, names, fields, numbers, statistics, graphs, and many others. I could also apply what I learned to personal things, such as doing taxes or doing projects for school. Phase 3 is already going by very fast, and honestly, trying to keep up with all my classes and life during the final weeks of the semester has been a little challenging, but so far, I'm enjoying the creativity and actualizing part of the phase. I'll be graduating soon, so I'm ready to finish the last stretch the best I can for this semester.

IS101 Blog Post: Second Week of March

 I thought Phase 1 of IS101 Spring 2026 was pretty good, and I learned a lot about Microsoft Word. At times though it felt pretty loaded, especially with all the LabSims and trying to catch up with the due dates. I was glad to have completed all the LabSims leading up to the MO-110 Word certification exam, and I was happy to have been given the time to finish and make up any incorrect questions or assignments that I missed. What I would have done differently was to complete all the tasks and assignments so I didn't have to go back to them and to study more for the bonus quizes.

Regarding one of the LabSims in Chapter 4, I learned from "4.7.1 Text Wrap Options" that there is a feature where you can actually have the image of your document on Word wrap around the sentences so that it looks more neat and professional. When the image is placed after being inserted to the document, its default option is "In Line with Text" where the cursor was left. However, by going to the "Picture Format" tab under "Arrange" and "Wrap Text", you can change the option to "square" and have the text wrap around the image.

I was happy to have a pretty high score at the MO-110 Word certification exam. What I did to prepare for the exam was to rewatch some of the videos and redo some of the lab exercises and practice exams. What really helped me was when I had to "qualify" for the exam by completing all the LabSims with 100% and this allowed me to understand and remember all the points and tasks that I missed. By redoing the assignments, I was able to get a full grasp of what I had to do to be successful in the exam.

Spring break is near and I'm planning to relax and read more books. I still have a lot of books that I purchased from Amazon and I'm trying to catch up with my new years resoultion by reading at least 3-4 books a month. My favorite book that I read so far was a book called "Atomic Habits" by James Clear and it really made me understand how to build good habits and avoid bad habits. Anyhow, I hope everyone has a wonderful and relaxing spring break!

IS101 Blog Post: First Week of February

Hello world, my name is Jay-R and this is my first time using blogger.com as this is required for my class IS101 which is very interesting so far because the assignments make me think, just like playing chess which is something I enjoy doing. The class is like solving puzzles, doing tasks one by one, and trying to find the next set of instructions in order to continue moving forward. My professor is really knowledgeable about the subject and actually takes the time to help you improve and learn new things.  

I learned how to manage ads that pop up when surfing the web using the Google Chrome browser from one of the LabSim exercises called "Applied Lab: Configure Google Chrome Pop-ups 1.4.18". Essentially all it is was to click on the three dots on the upper right of the Chrome browser, find the "settings", go to "privacy and security", and "site settings" and find the "Pop-ups and redirects" tab to configure whether you want ads and pop-ups to appear in certain websites. The exercises aren't too bad, but it requires a lot of patience because there are a lot of sections, tasks, and videos to cover. However, if you keep at it, the process will all make sense in the end. 

I like how the discussions, assignments, and other tasks are all connected to each other. For example, in order to complete discussion task, you must complete an assignment task. This is actually really clever and sophisticated when you think about it and it all goes together in the end. I'm currently working on getting an Associate of Science degree and this semester is what I need in order to complete this degree. Afterwards, I will continue to a more advanced degree in the same school. Hope everyone is having a wonderful day.