Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Creativity and New Media
Bitstrip is widely used by many of my friends on Facebook. It is supposed to be used as a picture status but a lot of people just use them as quirky posts on other's wall and some of Bit Strip's templates are so humorous. I finally gave it a go and actually amazed by how you can personalize your avatar and scenes. While I was going through the scenes I imagined myself and my friends going through the same sanarios but just more dramatic. Also, some scenes can allow you to be something else like you are in your own virtual world. I have created two below.
Creativity
With so many different accessible technology on the internet, this allows people to become creative and witty with their productions. There are a lot of material on YouTube that are mind blowing creative. Somethings you or your friends have never done but is shown on the internet. In the reading "Disney Tolerates Parody of It's Critters. But Why?" by Brooks Barnes speaks about rapper, Soulja Boy, music "Crank Dat" was paired with Disney's Winnie the Pooh as a parody video. There are many of these parody videos on the internet where people take one or two original products and combine them together. Disney is not happy about it but they will tolerate but Nickelodeon actually found the Spongebob and Crank Dat mash up funny.
Other examples of creativity on the internet are users such as NigaHiga who does parody of movies and summarizes them in under six minutes. WongFu Productions utilizes YouTube as a network to share their movies and short films without using money to actually publishing it on television. Another way that people show creativity is through this application call Instagram, where the users are able to take pictures and videos. These pictures and videos can be cut and edited to their personal liking then shared to the world.
1. Disney Tolerates a Rap Parody of Its Critters. But Why? The New York Times, September 24, 2007: available at http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/24/business/media/24crank.html
Monday, March 17, 2014
Modeling Reality With Virtual Worlds
Virtual worlds allow users to live in a dimension that their imagination create but with the help of the gaming companies of course. Gaming site such as Maple Story of Nexon helps many teenagers and pre-teens live in a 2D virtual world that allows them to dress up their character and level up their account to the point that they can afford all the expensive clothing. Many of my friends use this game to meet new people and "hang-out" during their free times. The game allow them to mask who they really are and portray and identity that they want to have.
Other games such as Mindcraft, created by Mojang a Swedish company. "Minecraft, [a] digital LEGOs if you will, but it's a space for kids to excercis their imagination and to connect with others to also want to build and create things." This is very similar to what Maple Story has to offer, but Maple Story is more focusing on killing monsters and leveling up their accounts. Overall it is like a process of getting stronger to become more powerful. Server games such as Maple Story allows you create the character that you imagine and create virtually. You can have your very own personality online without anyone judging you. The virtual world is used for connecting with people around the world and creating the world that is different from reality.
The virtual world may seem awesome and fun but there are definitely cons. The cons relating to anything that is world wide web can be dangerous. Young children are talking and connecting with strangers who can be masking their actual identity such as age and gender in order to get close to the target they are aiming for. Another con is that when people spend a large amount of time in their virtual world, they disconnect from reality. I had a friend who was addicted to Maple Story, when Maple Story was still popular. She rather spend her day on that game instead of being around her friends in reality. Therefore, the virtual world has its way of disconnecting you from the actual world.
I think the future of virtual world will be very limited, depending on which age segmentation you are speaking about. Pre-teens and teenagers will be the biggest part of the virtual world because they will be more interested in the world that they imagine but adults are more focused on building their life. Older generations spend their time going to college, working and preparing for their future. The virtual world, in my opinion will be very popular in the future. As gaming wise I think the virtual world will have more features and more realistic (graphic wise).
1. After Second Life, Can Virtual Worlds Get a Robot. April 30, 2013. http://www.forbes.com/sites/dianemehta/2013/04/30/after-second-life-can-virtual-worlds-get-a-reboot/
2. Social Influence and the Diffusion of User-Created Content by Eytan Bakshy, Brain Karrer, and Lada A. Adamic. Proceedings of the 10th ACM Conference on Electronic commerce, July 6-10, Stanford CA. http://www-personal.umich.edu/~ladamic/papers/SecondLife/SocialInfluenceEC.pdf
Monday, March 10, 2014
Blog About Twitter
A Twitter discussion is very fast past and to the point. There is nothing much needed since there is limit on how many letters you are able to insert in the box. Conversations are easily held and continued because nothing is being dragged out and lost comparing to a Black Board discussion. On Twitter you can have a discussion in multiple ways such has using the hashtag "#" or the at sign "@". The hashtag is used majorly for categorizing a topic and it allows people to find that topic easily when search. For example if you want to see post related to the Olympics 2014, you can put "#Olympic2014" or even, "#Sochi2014", when this is searched or if the link is clicked you are able to see thousands of other post about the same exact topic, if you post about the same thing you are able to contribute to the trending posts. This is one of the positive sides and use of Twitter, it is very similar to Instagram but Instagram is photos and Twitter is based on word post.
A Blackboard discussion is very similar to a blog post. The reason is because people would submit their post under the thread, or questions that the professor put up and students will answer. Each student can put down their fully written answer and other can reply. The post can be very big depending on how much each student writes. The second post can be pushed to the bottom depending on how many reply the first post get. Therefore it is very hard for students to reach each post. Also, it is hard to distinguish which post is a comment and which post is a reply to those comments. Blackboard discussion is good for those who are not willing to participate in class so it would benefit them by having an online discussion where you can reply to each student's post.
An in class discussion is most likely the most efficient one. The reason is because it is always easier to listen and respond at that point and time than to go home and read a bunch of post that your classmates post up in different times of the week. When you have a discussion in class it is easier to engage in the conversation. Students are able to absorb all the information given and understand each students in put easier. The downside of the Blackboard discussion is that a lot of students may have bad grammar or do not put enough effort into their post to make it meaningful, I am guilty of both. Even though in class discussions are one of the best ways to have students to get involved with the lesson, not everyone is willing to participate. A lot of students are very shy and timid. Therefore they would much rather keep quiet. So a lot of students and their opinions are usually left unnoticed. This is where the difference of Twitter and Blackboard discussions comes into play and is better than in class discussions.
A Blackboard discussion is very similar to a blog post. The reason is because people would submit their post under the thread, or questions that the professor put up and students will answer. Each student can put down their fully written answer and other can reply. The post can be very big depending on how much each student writes. The second post can be pushed to the bottom depending on how many reply the first post get. Therefore it is very hard for students to reach each post. Also, it is hard to distinguish which post is a comment and which post is a reply to those comments. Blackboard discussion is good for those who are not willing to participate in class so it would benefit them by having an online discussion where you can reply to each student's post.
An in class discussion is most likely the most efficient one. The reason is because it is always easier to listen and respond at that point and time than to go home and read a bunch of post that your classmates post up in different times of the week. When you have a discussion in class it is easier to engage in the conversation. Students are able to absorb all the information given and understand each students in put easier. The downside of the Blackboard discussion is that a lot of students may have bad grammar or do not put enough effort into their post to make it meaningful, I am guilty of both. Even though in class discussions are one of the best ways to have students to get involved with the lesson, not everyone is willing to participate. A lot of students are very shy and timid. Therefore they would much rather keep quiet. So a lot of students and their opinions are usually left unnoticed. This is where the difference of Twitter and Blackboard discussions comes into play and is better than in class discussions.
Social Networking Sites
Myspace is a classic, something that everybody has heard of, know of, or even used before. The Myspace era started in the early 2000s, when I was in middle school. It started as a trend for everybody to add each other on their "Top 8" friends list and post little comments on each other walls. I used Myspace mainly to write in the about me section and make it seem sophisticated and full of attitude. Other than that, there is always a feature that allow users to put in layouts and other things such as putting in a slide show of your pictures. This site has its benefits because it challenged in learning HTML and remembering all the codes. Since its been quite a while I have forgotten most of the things I have learned in the few months that I used Myspace.
Facebook is one of the most popular networking site around the world. I have been using Facebook since freshmen year of high school and I still find it quite entertaining. My first impression of Facebook is that it is very confusing since I've just grown out of the Myspace phase. There are a lot more features on Facebook than there is on Myspace, I guess Tom did not put enough work into Myspace (lol). The downside of Facebook is that we are not able to customize our homepage. With Myspace, as users we can put layouts and other HTML related customizable features. Instead on Facebook we can put information in our "About Me" and other categorized sections but Facebook is not about telling people information about us, directly but it is more about interacting with our friends and letting everybody on the internet know where we are going, and where we are at. I personally like Facebook because of it's ease to communicate and share things among friends through their walls and have group chats with 17+ people or making event pages to coordinate an event.
Twitter is most likely one of the most used social media around the world because everybody uses it to update each other and consumers about their business or life. This social media is so widely used that celebrities such as Ellen and business such as, Nike, uses Twitter. When I first used Twitter I found it so pointless because it is so bland. The layout and set up is very bland and boring in my opinion because I am more used to Facebook and Tumblr. I have never even considered using Twitter until I noticed how some companies used it to show release dates of the products. I found this very convenient because you do not have to refresh their homepage every ten minutes to find out news, instead you will get their tweet. I have learned to like Twitter more because it gives you a place to rant about your day and express your feelings. It is not recommended to post a status on Facebook sixteen times a day about what you are currently doing, it gets quite annoying.
Tumblr is one of my all time favorite. This is a blogging site that allows you to publish post and reblog other people's post too! It such an awesome trend in the social media world because it literally brings you to another world that you do not get to see when you are on Facebook or Twitter. On Tumblr you are able to see pictures, A LOT of pictures. You can follow blogs that are dedicated to certain things such as funny post, girly post or blogs dedicated to a celebrity. I love following funny post, girly post and traveling post. Overall, this site is very entertaining and can be used to pass time when you have nothing better to do. It also gives you the opportunity to customize your home page with layouts, just like Myspace did. It gives you a chance to make your Tumblr, yours.
Facebook is one of the most popular networking site around the world. I have been using Facebook since freshmen year of high school and I still find it quite entertaining. My first impression of Facebook is that it is very confusing since I've just grown out of the Myspace phase. There are a lot more features on Facebook than there is on Myspace, I guess Tom did not put enough work into Myspace (lol). The downside of Facebook is that we are not able to customize our homepage. With Myspace, as users we can put layouts and other HTML related customizable features. Instead on Facebook we can put information in our "About Me" and other categorized sections but Facebook is not about telling people information about us, directly but it is more about interacting with our friends and letting everybody on the internet know where we are going, and where we are at. I personally like Facebook because of it's ease to communicate and share things among friends through their walls and have group chats with 17+ people or making event pages to coordinate an event.
Twitter is most likely one of the most used social media around the world because everybody uses it to update each other and consumers about their business or life. This social media is so widely used that celebrities such as Ellen and business such as, Nike, uses Twitter. When I first used Twitter I found it so pointless because it is so bland. The layout and set up is very bland and boring in my opinion because I am more used to Facebook and Tumblr. I have never even considered using Twitter until I noticed how some companies used it to show release dates of the products. I found this very convenient because you do not have to refresh their homepage every ten minutes to find out news, instead you will get their tweet. I have learned to like Twitter more because it gives you a place to rant about your day and express your feelings. It is not recommended to post a status on Facebook sixteen times a day about what you are currently doing, it gets quite annoying.
Tumblr is one of my all time favorite. This is a blogging site that allows you to publish post and reblog other people's post too! It such an awesome trend in the social media world because it literally brings you to another world that you do not get to see when you are on Facebook or Twitter. On Tumblr you are able to see pictures, A LOT of pictures. You can follow blogs that are dedicated to certain things such as funny post, girly post or blogs dedicated to a celebrity. I love following funny post, girly post and traveling post. Overall, this site is very entertaining and can be used to pass time when you have nothing better to do. It also gives you the opportunity to customize your home page with layouts, just like Myspace did. It gives you a chance to make your Tumblr, yours.
Monday, March 3, 2014
Social: Net'g
Social networking has changed significantly since the Xanga and AOL Instant Messaging (AIM). During the early 2000, one of the most popular blog website is Xanga, a blog website where people use to post up entries about their days or random thoughts. Their friends and family are able to give "props" or "double props" to their entries, where it shows that they appreciate their writing. AIM like texting but with internet, when you pay your internet bills you are able to talk with your friends and family constantly. Everybody used this when we were in middle school or high school, it was quite popular. Now, fast forward a few years a few more social media websites have sprang up from the dust. Such as Myspace but the even more popular and recent ones such as Facebook which is mostly for communicating with friends and family. LinkedIn is a professional social media site for people who works in corporate companies and private companies.
Facebook is a place where people talk about what they are doing, where they are going and what they are eating. People make it very easy to show others where they are at the moment with their status updates. For example in the article "Being There: The Subtle Art of Facebook Updates" by Virginia Heffernan speaks about making a successful and popular Facebook update, this is the benefit of having a social media page. Popular updates can get over hundreds of likes and depending on what their privacy settings are, people who are not their friends get to see their status also. When corporations want to market their products it is easier for their advertisement to reach their consumers. Where it will show up on "friend's of friend's" news feeds or "everyone's." If you are not a corporation, a downside to this is privacy, strangers are able to see your every move if you put your every move onto Facebook.
LinkedIn has multiple advantages for those who sign up and actually use the features they have to offer for everyone. This site is used for finding internships and jobs, where your resume or CV are going to reach companies. In the article, "Social Networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting" by Frank Langfitt talks about how LinkedIn benefits people who are searching for jobs. There are also features on LinkedIn where it allows you to be "endorsed" for skills that you may have. It allows the interviewers and companies to know what skills you are able to offer.
1. Social Networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting by Frank Langfitt, NPR, March 16, 2008. available from http://www.npr.org/templates/story.php?storyId=6522523&sc=ema
2. Being There: The subtle art of Facebook update, by Virginia Heffernan. The New York Times Magazine, Feb 15, 2009, p. 25. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15wwln-medium-thtml
Facebook is a place where people talk about what they are doing, where they are going and what they are eating. People make it very easy to show others where they are at the moment with their status updates. For example in the article "Being There: The Subtle Art of Facebook Updates" by Virginia Heffernan speaks about making a successful and popular Facebook update, this is the benefit of having a social media page. Popular updates can get over hundreds of likes and depending on what their privacy settings are, people who are not their friends get to see their status also. When corporations want to market their products it is easier for their advertisement to reach their consumers. Where it will show up on "friend's of friend's" news feeds or "everyone's." If you are not a corporation, a downside to this is privacy, strangers are able to see your every move if you put your every move onto Facebook.
LinkedIn has multiple advantages for those who sign up and actually use the features they have to offer for everyone. This site is used for finding internships and jobs, where your resume or CV are going to reach companies. In the article, "Social Networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting" by Frank Langfitt talks about how LinkedIn benefits people who are searching for jobs. There are also features on LinkedIn where it allows you to be "endorsed" for skills that you may have. It allows the interviewers and companies to know what skills you are able to offer.
1. Social Networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting by Frank Langfitt, NPR, March 16, 2008. available from http://www.npr.org/templates/story.php?storyId=6522523&sc=ema
2. Being There: The subtle art of Facebook update, by Virginia Heffernan. The New York Times Magazine, Feb 15, 2009, p. 25. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15wwln-medium-thtml
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