The Social Network

When I bought my ticket for The Social Network, I was expecting to see
the making of a phenomenon, but instead, I was exposed to the mind of
a genius.

What resonated with me the most is that the guy who created such an
impact for my generation with Facebook is also my peer. My generation
may be the first one where being an “entrepreneur” at age twenty is a
legitimate career. Technology makes it possible for people to surpass
the traditional corporate hierarchy and create something powerful that
will gain momentum through the internet versus a boardroom. Watching
the Social Network, and seeing the confidence of Mark Zuckerberg’s
statements in court made me believe… it made me believe in ideas, and
that even in this tough economic climate it has made me excited to see
how my peers and I will shape the age of technology.

Although some have called Mr. Zuckerberg ruthless, egotistical and
disloyal, I saw him as a person who followed his vision. This vision
may have blinded his senses, but it ultimately led him to the path he
chose at the very beginning, to create the next big thing.

The Social Network was one of the best stories I’ve seen on the big
screen in a long time, and it’s just a bonus that it happens to be
based on someone whose ideas will impact my life for years to come.

Twitter: Discussion

Though I am a little embarrassed to admit it, the first “tweet” I ever made in my life was for an assignment in this class. Having said that, I am already hooked on the idea and can foresee myself continuing to use its services to keep in touch with friends and celebrities. I think class discussions via Twitter have valuable advantages over mediums such as blackboard discussion board or even in class conversation. One major advantage of Twitter is its’ accessibility. With the functionality of being able to tweet on the go from my cell phone, I can easily converse with classmates from anywhere and post updates as they happen. I think these up to the minute notifications are appealing and create interest in the discussion. Additionally, I am an advocate of the 140-character max post limitation on each tweet. I think it forces users to be “short and sweet” which will aide in keeping the interest of the readers. I think the advantage of a twitter discussion compared to one conducted in the classroom is that students have the chance to think and do some research about their responses. In my opinion, this helps to facilitate informed discussions. The big advantage I see in this is that Twitter expands the learning channel from the traditional one-to-many (Professor to students) to many-to-many (Students learning from other students). I am excited to continue tweeting with my classmates and take part in the many intellectual discussions.

Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

As technology is making advances in our society, the use of virtual worlds is becoming more and more prominent. From personal experience, I can tell you that video games often bring users into an addictive virtual world that proves to be extremely difficult to withdraw from. During a few of my teen years I, like many others, was addicted to Blizzard Entertainments “Warcraft III The Frozen Throne”. These types of games bring you into a cyber society that at the time seems much more fun and appealing than the real world. The detrimental effects of this way of thinking are more than apparent. I would fall into this virtual world for hours at a time as the feeling of fatigue and hunger were nonexistent. Extreme examples of this problem prove to be fatal; A 28 year old man died in a Korean PC café in 2005, while playing StarCraft for 50 hours straight. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4137782.stm). The addictive nature of these virtual world games are evident as the man didn’t sleep and had very little to eat during his playing marathon while literally pushing his body in exhaustion.
However, there are many pros to virtual world games and applications as well. Second Life is a good example of how you can bring the social and intellectual aspect of society into the virtual world. The interaction abilities in Second Life are much like that of real life and allow you to connect and mingle with new people. Also, I believe Virtual worlds foster a level of creativity unattainable in the real world. You can let your imagination run wild by having your avatar fly, or be able to live in the ocean as in Second Life or turn into a magical priest as in World of Warcraft. In addition to creating virtual avatars, technology now allows you to relive the virtual experience of a whole neighborhood such as the lower east side in VLES (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/arts/television/06itzk.html ). As people are spending increasingly more time on the Internet, I think that the future of Virtual Worlds is bright. People seem to enjoy socializing in a virtual society just as much if not more than real life. I think software such as Second Life and MMORPG games such as the WarCraft series will continue to boom and become increasingly integrated in real life as the demand is expanding.

Social Networking

Whether in a corporate, social, or educational setting, society has been undoubtedly reaping the benefits of Social Networking technologies for some time now. These services are only getting more advanced and universal as the demand for their use is growing exponentially. My generation has seen Facebook blossom into a multi-billion dollar powerhouse; I believe much of this success is achieved through the sites' practicality and compatibility. Facebook now functions in tandem with many other services such as Pandora and ESPN, to name a few. This functionality is valuable to the user as his likes and interests are diffused over several mediums by means of only one input (Facebook). This resource is also valuable to to other business' as they are able to target their demographic easily and accurately.
Education has garnered the benefits of Social Networking technologies as well. Last semester, my Management professor constructed an aspect of the course called "Blogging in the Classroom". This was a great way for the students to connect through another medium to reflect on our daily lectures and activities. I found the peer to peer feedback very useful as all of the different opinions allowed you to see the material from a different perspective. Additionally, Twitter hasn't been an uncommon name in the realm of education. By means of micro-blogging, twitter aids in higher education by allowing for an easy medium of communication among students and staff. Twitter is also a useful resource in job placement as you can "follow" desired companies and get a better grasp of their business.
Though small, there is a dark side to all of these handy technologies. I think that social skills are on the decline Since people are becoming increasingly accustomed to socializing via the internet and through tweets and text messages rather than face to face communication. This is especially evident in the younger generation as for many of them, e-socializing is all they know. I think that one way these technologies can evolve in the future is by seeing more involvement from government agencies. Bureau's such as the IRS and DEA are often difficult to get a hold of and they seldom make any updates to their websites. With the creation of a Facebook page, for example, these agencies can open two way communication with the public, conveying pertinent information on a timely basis.



http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2009/06/08/50-ways-to-use-twitter-in-the-college-classroom/

Check Out Social Networking Sites

Along with the boom of Information Technology and Web 2.0 in the early 2000's came the upsurge of social networking websites. These websites, from Whimit (not sure how many of you remember this one) to Facebook, serve similiar, yet numerous purposes. From reconnecting with old high school friends, to fraternizing for that sought after job promotion, social networking sites are sure to serve a purpose for any user.
Myspace, which was arguably the first site of its kind to gain tremendous global popularity was, in my opinion, always geared toward the younger generation. The premise of ranking your friends accordingly in a "top 8" format along with the yearn for picture comments and wall posts to settle personal insecurities seemed a bit juvenile to me. However, despite my preconceptions, Myspace did serve its purpose for me and millions of other users during its prime. Myspace was the first website my generation visited the morning after a big party to check out all of the new picture uploads and wall posts. Despite Myspace's massive social popularity, a new competitor entered the market in the mid 2000's that would sweep social networking users off their feet. Serving many similar purposes, and tending to many of the same needs as its global predecessor Myspace, Facebook, in my opinion, was able to gain control of the market through sheer website structure. From the site homepage, to individual user profiles, Facebook visitors are amused with a simple, yet encompassing layout. I believe the intelligence of the news feed system, intuitively broadcasting posts from people whom you speak with the most, along with the easy access to friends' updated photo albums is the reason for Facebook's astonishing success. Contrary to Myspace and Facebook, Linkedin is a social networking site geared more toward the professional user. Along with being able to easily connect with past co workers, the site lets you effortlessly navigate through various contacts to desired professions. In addition to networking within your field, Linkedin.com allows you to find answers from experts to many industry related questions, allowing you to excel in your profession One of Facebook’s biggest competitors right now is Asian favorite Friendster. Similar to the other sites in that it connects you to people through user profiles and networks, Friendster gains it popularity through its intuitive interface and fun features. The site allows you to easily find other users with similar interests by means of hyperlinked profile information.
Although all Social Networking sites share the same common goal of connecting the public to each other and mass culture, they have their differences as well. Some are geared to younger, more self absorbed users, while others are geared toward professionals looking to expand their industrial social network. Overall, I believe they have served their purpose in connecting users worldwide and will only continue to reap their benefits in the near future.

Blogs vs. Wikis

When my parents had an assignment in school they went to the library,
looked up a topic in a card catalog, and pulled books that were
updated a year ago, at best, to begin their research. In fact, their
entire class probably referenced more or less the same sources.
Interestingly enough, all their assignments turned out different.
Every student had their own perspective, analyzed information in a
different way, and generated conclusions that were based on a mix of
their own experiences, morals and beliefs. In class, the professor may
bring up a discussion in which the students shared their perspectives
and a lively debate would ensue.

Well today, a lively debate can be silent; it is conducted all through
hyperlinks, comments, re-tweets and re-posts and measured through page
views (http://faculty.washington.edu/kegill/pub/www2004_blogosphere_gill.pdf)
. It often doesn’t have a moderator, as it’s been said that “the
Internet is like closing time at a blue-collar bar in Boston.
Everyone’s drunk and ugly and they’re going to pass out in a few
minutes.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/opinion/26dowd.html) It
has allowed anyone to be an author, and like a good grade the readers
are earned. It is the human need to debate, share ideas, contemplate
and create that has carved a new category of media– the user generated
content: best known as the blog; and just like the user that generates
the content, it is the readers who determine, by their following, if
the content is good enough to become a real source.
(http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/26280/celebrity_blogs_the_impact_of_new_media_pg5.html?cat=49)

But there is also user generated content that’s simply an aggregator
facts. It is not heated and there are no “flame wars”
(http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/business/media/04link.html?_r=1).
It’s just like the card catalog that my parents used for their school
assignments, but updated – in real time, and even has the modern day
librarian, or editor
(http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/technology/internet/25wikipedia.html?_r=1)

Although both Blogs and wikis comprise new media, they have many
differences and similarities. Both offer people the opportunity to
express themselves, and become authors or contributors to the greater
community. They both rely on organic growth of readership, versus
support of mass distribution like newspapers and magazines. On the
other hand, blogs are a more of an op-ed piece or commentary, where is
a wiki parallels a traditional reference source. Wikis are based on
facts that can be supported through traditional sources, where as
blogs can be a bit more liberal when it comes to journalistic
integrity. One other differentiator is that blogs are very saturated
across the online medium, where as wikis are used more sporadically.
When in fact, there are many more uses for a wiki. For example, a
wiki would be great to use to profile various medical doctors, making
it easier for patients to find a specialist. Or having a wiki for
classes offered in a school instead of using a traditional catalog.

Despite the differences, the convergence of the two forums is
important in today’s world – it unites people from different parts of
the world, different cultures, ages and races, who may have other wise
never benefited from one other’s input. They both have become part of
today’s language – in pop culture, news, and opinion.

Describe New Media

When we think of New Media, or Media of the Information Age, many fairly new, though widespread, mediums come to mind. Wiki's and eBook's are quickly forcing standard texts to become obsolete. Ipod's and other mp3 players have long taken the place of the once trendy and prevalent compact disc and cassette players. VOIP services such as Skype and oovoo are quickly cutting into the profits of telephone companies by offering free international video calling. Although all of these new media technologies may seem to have great benefits such as providing music on the go and zapping information to your portable device in a New York second, I believe our societies' rapid change toward New Media and Web 2.0 has many detrimental effects. Instead of attaining intellect through novels and newspapers, people now lose it by staring into their 55 inch television screens watching prime time reality shows. Randall Stross of the New York Times states that the average American spends over 147 hours a month watching TV and upward of 27 hours staring at the computer screen. New Media differs from Old Media in several ways. I believe that the distinction between Old Media and New Media is fairly simple. In most cases, New Media is just a form of old media that has been simplified, enhanced, or made more easily accessible to the user. For example, as traditional newspapers are a form of Old Media, the New Media counterpart could be the news we receive on our mobile phones. Although the result is the same and the same information is transmitted to the user, New Media has made it easily accessible and efficient. Additionally, I agree with the class notes that New Media are internet based technologies that use at least 3 out of the 5 C's and I think this is a good way to distinguish it from Old Media. For example, the information on Wikipedia relies heavily on Communication, Collaboration, and Community of the users. Contrarily, the process of looking up the same information via an Old Media source such as an encyclopedia would not have any of those characteristics.

Cited:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/technology/personaltech/04basics.html?emc=eta1
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/business/media/08digi.html