The final assessment of New Communication Technology is a written 2000 word limit essay. I have decided to write about two people who have had a significant influence and impact on the development of digital technologies and digital culture.
I will keep you updated on how I go with my research and if I find any interesting books or online articles. Other than that, thank you for reading my blog over the last two weeks. I hope you found it somewhat informative, if so, please leave me some comments or feedback.
Thank you,
Joey Jo Jo
Monday, January 31, 2011
Our Media Ecology
Media is everywhere. Media is all around us. Are we aware of all kinds of media that is influencing our daily life? Probably not!
I've taken the time to think about just what kind of media I encounter throughout an average day. The easiest way to list them would be to start in the morning when I wake up and take you through a typical day of my life.
Around 8am my alarm on my phone goes off to wake me. As I wake up I check my messages, emails and yes, it is sad to admit, but I check my Facebook notifications, too. A while ago I signed up to an email subscription which sends out daily cheap deals on the Gold Coast so I am already facing media early in the morning. On the fridge in the kitchen I have a reminder to feed the fish, which could be counted as a form of media as it's giving me a message. While I'm getting ready for the day I generally watch Sunrise on TV which includes news, social topics and advertisements. Coles and IGA ads especially keep reminding me that I'm either running low on milk, eggs or bread.
Later on when I drive to the shops or uni I always listen to Triple J on the radio, which again has news, musical or other discussions and of course music itself. This affects me because I am in search of new music and listen out to nearby festival. lineups. As I'm driving I see advertising signs along the roads and lunch specials on restaurants. I generally think that $10 all-day breakfast or lunch is a pretty good price and think that it would be nice to try it out some day. To show just how influential media is, this morning a sushi truck was driving next to me and next thing I knew, I was craving sushi!
While I'm shopping for groceries, quite often a little sign is placed next to a product advertising 'buy two and get the third one for free'. My partner and I came across such media yesterday and ended up buying three, well technically two, giant bottles of body-wash. On the way to the car we started laughing, saying those advertisements are constantly making us buy things in bulk.
When I'm at the mall I have to admit that when Valleygirl has a massive sign on their window saying 'Up to 70% Off Storewide' I can't help myself but run into the store ASAP and look through their dresses and tops. Walking through the shopping centre or along the street I always notice people who wear unique shirts or dresses. Some people have band or car shirts on but if there is writing on their clothing I try my best to read it because they are generally pretty amusing.
Media is everywhere. In your home, work, uni, shopping malls, restaurants and other buildings; along the streets, on cars, humans and even sometimes written in the sky on a sunny day.
All the media and other advertisements around you is very influential. However you only notice it's effects when you take a step back and take your time to think about it carefully.
I've taken the time to think about just what kind of media I encounter throughout an average day. The easiest way to list them would be to start in the morning when I wake up and take you through a typical day of my life.
Around 8am my alarm on my phone goes off to wake me. As I wake up I check my messages, emails and yes, it is sad to admit, but I check my Facebook notifications, too. A while ago I signed up to an email subscription which sends out daily cheap deals on the Gold Coast so I am already facing media early in the morning. On the fridge in the kitchen I have a reminder to feed the fish, which could be counted as a form of media as it's giving me a message. While I'm getting ready for the day I generally watch Sunrise on TV which includes news, social topics and advertisements. Coles and IGA ads especially keep reminding me that I'm either running low on milk, eggs or bread.
Later on when I drive to the shops or uni I always listen to Triple J on the radio, which again has news, musical or other discussions and of course music itself. This affects me because I am in search of new music and listen out to nearby festival. lineups. As I'm driving I see advertising signs along the roads and lunch specials on restaurants. I generally think that $10 all-day breakfast or lunch is a pretty good price and think that it would be nice to try it out some day. To show just how influential media is, this morning a sushi truck was driving next to me and next thing I knew, I was craving sushi!
While I'm shopping for groceries, quite often a little sign is placed next to a product advertising 'buy two and get the third one for free'. My partner and I came across such media yesterday and ended up buying three, well technically two, giant bottles of body-wash. On the way to the car we started laughing, saying those advertisements are constantly making us buy things in bulk.
When I'm at the mall I have to admit that when Valleygirl has a massive sign on their window saying 'Up to 70% Off Storewide' I can't help myself but run into the store ASAP and look through their dresses and tops. Walking through the shopping centre or along the street I always notice people who wear unique shirts or dresses. Some people have band or car shirts on but if there is writing on their clothing I try my best to read it because they are generally pretty amusing.
Media is everywhere. In your home, work, uni, shopping malls, restaurants and other buildings; along the streets, on cars, humans and even sometimes written in the sky on a sunny day.
All the media and other advertisements around you is very influential. However you only notice it's effects when you take a step back and take your time to think about it carefully.
'Digital Art and Poetry' - True or False?
A guest lecturer named Jason Nelson came to university to show off his 'Digital Art and Poetry' website called Secret Technology. The computer had to be muted since a distorted tune kept playing over and over again as he was on the site. There are countless images on his website which all link to separate individual sites where he has developed his so called artwork.
Looking over his site I recognized the This is how you will die link as Jason demonstrated that in class. I've decided to try it out for myself so that I'll be able to get a better idea of his work. To play the game I had to click on a grave which was displayed on a separate site. The site was filled with red ink circling words and pointing around the whole page, which I thought looked extremely messy. However when I eventually got to the right page I spun the wheel of death and it came to a stop with the following explanation:
Searching for your breakthrough poetry manuscript thrown out "accidentally", --- Instead of exploding, you are rammed repeatedly by a backing supply truck --- infection is a home on the coast, and you are a garage band filled with smoke --- Your death is used in a lawsuit against manufacturers of hard and fast objects. --- All of our secret ideas are recorded by angels who mischievously erase the vowels.
I decided to spin the wheel several more times just to see what the outcome was. While using this site I tried to tell myself that (according to Jason) this is meant to be 'art' and 'poetry'. The constantly changing border of the game and the fact that you can read sections of other outcomes on the site might be what amazes the creator... But to be honest I could only see it as a pointless time-wasting site which is anything but any sort of art nor poetry.
However as I mentioned before Jason's website has A LOT of 'creations' so before jumping to any conclusions, I decided to try out a couple more. One of his newest creations is called Wittenoom and is explained to be an 'interactive poem centered on an asbestos mining town in Western Australia and its resulting downfall'. On the site is a flickering image of a single house on the corner of the street. There are no other houses around except a stop sign and several electrical power lines. Suddenly lots of little letters fall down the page and when you click on one it shows an extract of a poem. As the computer mouse moves around the site, a thin line appears behind it and floats around the page.
I then decided to view a different image as there are several images in total on this site. The illustration was accompanied with music and when you click the mouse anywhere on the site a section of poetry appears and is stamped across the page on different angles. Comparing this 'creation' with This is how you will die, I admit this site has a more artistic feel to it and I would consider it suitable to be referred to as 'Digital Art and Poetry'.
The third 'creation' I explored is called Play 7: Genetic Code. The site had colourful blocks with words written on them. As you click your mouse and move it around, the blocks and letters move along in a 3D circle; suddenly changing colour and wobbling into place. In my opinion this is entertaining for about a maximum of 5 seconds and then I got bored. Personally I do not consider this amazing Digital Art.
To sum up Jason Nelson's work, he successfully achieved to create digital art and poetry for one out of three of his attempted 'creations'. Not bad, not bad at all!
Looking over his site I recognized the This is how you will die link as Jason demonstrated that in class. I've decided to try it out for myself so that I'll be able to get a better idea of his work. To play the game I had to click on a grave which was displayed on a separate site. The site was filled with red ink circling words and pointing around the whole page, which I thought looked extremely messy. However when I eventually got to the right page I spun the wheel of death and it came to a stop with the following explanation:
Searching for your breakthrough poetry manuscript thrown out "accidentally", --- Instead of exploding, you are rammed repeatedly by a backing supply truck --- infection is a home on the coast, and you are a garage band filled with smoke --- Your death is used in a lawsuit against manufacturers of hard and fast objects. --- All of our secret ideas are recorded by angels who mischievously erase the vowels.
I decided to spin the wheel several more times just to see what the outcome was. While using this site I tried to tell myself that (according to Jason) this is meant to be 'art' and 'poetry'. The constantly changing border of the game and the fact that you can read sections of other outcomes on the site might be what amazes the creator... But to be honest I could only see it as a pointless time-wasting site which is anything but any sort of art nor poetry.
However as I mentioned before Jason's website has A LOT of 'creations' so before jumping to any conclusions, I decided to try out a couple more. One of his newest creations is called Wittenoom and is explained to be an 'interactive poem centered on an asbestos mining town in Western Australia and its resulting downfall'. On the site is a flickering image of a single house on the corner of the street. There are no other houses around except a stop sign and several electrical power lines. Suddenly lots of little letters fall down the page and when you click on one it shows an extract of a poem. As the computer mouse moves around the site, a thin line appears behind it and floats around the page.
I then decided to view a different image as there are several images in total on this site. The illustration was accompanied with music and when you click the mouse anywhere on the site a section of poetry appears and is stamped across the page on different angles. Comparing this 'creation' with This is how you will die, I admit this site has a more artistic feel to it and I would consider it suitable to be referred to as 'Digital Art and Poetry'.
The third 'creation' I explored is called Play 7: Genetic Code. The site had colourful blocks with words written on them. As you click your mouse and move it around, the blocks and letters move along in a 3D circle; suddenly changing colour and wobbling into place. In my opinion this is entertaining for about a maximum of 5 seconds and then I got bored. Personally I do not consider this amazing Digital Art.
To sum up Jason Nelson's work, he successfully achieved to create digital art and poetry for one out of three of his attempted 'creations'. Not bad, not bad at all!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Politics and the Internet
The tutorial regarding Politics and Internet required me to achieve as many of the below displayed directions as possible, while sticking to your political beliefs.
- Sign an e-petition.
- Respond to a professional blogger at a major news site.
- What is Barak Obama up to today?
According to the latest blog from Alex Wagner, who is a white house correspondent 'President Barack Obama will walk into the Capitol building (this afternoon).'
- Find out who your local, state and federal representatives are.
Local representative - Ron Clarke (GCCC)
State representative - The premier is Anna Maria Bligh. There is a list of the members on the Queensland Parliament website.
Federal representative - Member for Labor is Julia Gillard. There is a list of the members on the House of Representatives website.
- Look up the Queensland or Australian hansard to find the last time your local member spoke in parliament.
http://www.peterlawlor.com.au/southport2/index.php/category/parliamentary-speeches/other-speeches/2010-other-speeches/
Personally I believe that theory and practice of politics are two very different things. What might work for a society in theory might not always be the best way in practice. As John Gilmore explained in his article, there has been an ongoing dispute about free speech and censoring the web. Freedom of speech and democracy is great but when it comes to the internet my view changes. The internet itself has a lot of dangerous and harmful websites. Therefore I am happy to have certain offensive and socially inappropriate organizations and other sites censored. This does not mean that it affects the freedom of speech and ruins our democratic society. It simply means that the internet is a safer place for the majority of citizens. You won't have to worry about random very distressing website 'pop ups' as you're going online nor inappropriate advertisements next to a news article.
Some things don't belong on the web.
- Let your local member know what you think about their last speech.
- Read the lecture and the readings, pursue a couple of the topics that you find most interesting and then post your blog with your well-considered thoughts about the theory and practice of politics.
Personally I believe that theory and practice of politics are two very different things. What might work for a society in theory might not always be the best way in practice. As John Gilmore explained in his article, there has been an ongoing dispute about free speech and censoring the web. Freedom of speech and democracy is great but when it comes to the internet my view changes. The internet itself has a lot of dangerous and harmful websites. Therefore I am happy to have certain offensive and socially inappropriate organizations and other sites censored. This does not mean that it affects the freedom of speech and ruins our democratic society. It simply means that the internet is a safer place for the majority of citizens. You won't have to worry about random very distressing website 'pop ups' as you're going online nor inappropriate advertisements next to a news article.
Some things don't belong on the web.
Video games
For most of us video games are just a bit of fun. We play it because it relaxes us, gives us a break from all the work in our daily life or simply because it's fun and/or addictive. However there are many people who actually study video games academically.
According to my lecturer, there are a variety of different types of games that are being studied. Some of these include Arcade Games, Consoles, Computer and Mobile games. Mobile games are especially popular these days because many people are getting smart phones and therefore buy one game after the other. As a result there is a good financial market for it. Research has also shown that the traditional 'male' gamer has changed into a more 'cross-gendered' community. Over the years more females have developed an interest for all different sorts of gaming.
There are three academic approaches to studying video games. The Social Science approach investigates both positive and negative effects of video games on users. Humanities approach examines the meaning and context that the games might have. The third approach is called Industry and Engineering approach, which studies the design and development of various games. Each of these approaches includes an enormous amount of work to be done. Especially if a spectacular and advanced video game is put under study. However another important aspect to keep in mind is the media effects of the game.
In the lecture, I watched a speech of a smart young woman who is on a video game convention. She explained how successful video games have a lot of thought and time behind it. They are designed after what users might want and what is most likely to succeed in today's society. In other words, video games are much more than just a bit of fun.
According to my lecturer, there are a variety of different types of games that are being studied. Some of these include Arcade Games, Consoles, Computer and Mobile games. Mobile games are especially popular these days because many people are getting smart phones and therefore buy one game after the other. As a result there is a good financial market for it. Research has also shown that the traditional 'male' gamer has changed into a more 'cross-gendered' community. Over the years more females have developed an interest for all different sorts of gaming.
There are three academic approaches to studying video games. The Social Science approach investigates both positive and negative effects of video games on users. Humanities approach examines the meaning and context that the games might have. The third approach is called Industry and Engineering approach, which studies the design and development of various games. Each of these approaches includes an enormous amount of work to be done. Especially if a spectacular and advanced video game is put under study. However another important aspect to keep in mind is the media effects of the game.
In the lecture, I watched a speech of a smart young woman who is on a video game convention. She explained how successful video games have a lot of thought and time behind it. They are designed after what users might want and what is most likely to succeed in today's society. In other words, video games are much more than just a bit of fun.
Taken from the Wall Street Journal on http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121460385251911957.html
Monday, January 24, 2011
Searching on the Internet
Today's tutorial was developed to help me learn how to search on the internet. I was given 10 Questions, which I had to answer using several search engines on the web. The main search engine I used was All The Web. The questions and my researched answers are below for you to view.
1. What is the weight of the world’s biggest machine? How much did it cost to build?
The Krupp Digging Machine is the world's largest digging machine and weights 45,500tons. According to Gracie Murano the machine took 5 years to design and manufacture at a cost of $100 million.
2. Find a live webcam in Antarctica. Can you find a place to stay in Antarctica?
The United States Antarctic Program website has several webcams for users to view. The McMurdo Station Webcam refreshes it's image every 9 seconds.
According to Virtual tourist, there are no hotels in Antarctica therefore boats are the only option for accommodation.
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/7a8e1/9/3/
3. When and what was the first example of global digital communication?
3. When and what was the first example of global digital communication?
The first example of global digital communication was the telegraph in the 1860s.
http://cseng.aw.com/catalog/uploads/Glover_Digital%20Comms_C01%20reduced%20file%20size.pdf
4. What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?
4. What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?
Using Tiger Airways, the travel from GC to Melbourne between 2nd Feb - 26th March only costs $38.95.
http://www.tigerairways.com.au/au/en/real_deals.php
5. Who is Douglas Engelbart? What is he know for?
5. Who is Douglas Engelbart? What is he know for?
Douglas Engelbart is an internet pioneer mostly known for inventing the computer mouse in the1960s. He wanted to use technology to further expand the human intellect.
http://www.ibiblio.org/pioneers/englebart.html
6. What is the best way (quickest, most reliable) to contact Stephen Conroy? (who is this guy?)
6. What is the best way (quickest, most reliable) to contact Stephen Conroy? (who is this guy?)
Stephen Conroy is the minister for broadband, communications and the digital economy. He is also the deputy leader of the government in the senate and minister assisting the prime minister on digital productivity. Stephen Conroy can be contacted via the parliamentary office on 02 6277 7480 or the ministerial office on 03 9650 1188.
7. What song was top of the Australian pop charts this week in 1990?
The song 'Love Shack' by B-52 was number one of the Australian pop charts during the last week of January in 1990.
8. How would you define the term 'ontology'? In your own words, what does it really mean?
According to word iQ.com, the term 'ontology' is the most fundamental branch of metaphysics. It is the study of being or existence as well as the basic categories thereof trying to find out what entities and what types of entities exist. In my own words this would mean that ontology is the term describing metaphysics studying the true nature of existence.
http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Ontology
9. What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
9. What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
Immersive Media Cameras, also known as IMC were used to make the Google Street View.
http://google.about.com/od/experimentalgoogletools/ig/SIGGRAPH-2007/Immersive-Media-Camera.htm
10. Name three computer operating systems (not for phones) that are NOT Apple OS or MS-Windows operating systems?
a) who created it and when? b) how can you get a copy of the operating system to use on your computer?
10. Name three computer operating systems (not for phones) that are NOT Apple OS or MS-Windows operating systems?
a) who created it and when? b) how can you get a copy of the operating system to use on your computer?
Three computing operating systems are AIX/AIXL, Sun Solaris 7 and SCO.
AIX/AIXL, which stands for Advanced Interactive eXecutive with Linux was created by IBM in Feburary 1990.
Sun Solaris 7 was created by Sun in 1998.
SCO was created by SCO and the first version of Xenix names SCO Xenix system V came out in 1983.
All these computer operating systems can be downloaded from the web.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Free Software
Our lecturer today explained about free online cultures and societies. These include Creative Commons and Free/Libre, Open Source Software (FLOSS). Creative Commons or CC is a non-profitable organisation which allows artists to upload their work online with a more flexible copyright.
FLOSS was introduced in 1981 by a man named Richard M Stallman. When computers were first created all software was free to share until proprietary software took over the internet. However thanks to Richard M Stallmann a free software foundation named GNU allowed computer users to freely share and edit software again. Later on free software was called 'Open Source' since it sounds more sophisticated and therefore businesses would be more likely to get involved in the free software foundation.
Making good use of free software I have created a short still image slide show. The photos shown in the video are from Black Rocks located in northern NSW. A year ago, my partner and I went camping there for a few days. We took an afternoon just to walk around the absolutely beautiful beach and explore its magnificent sites. I took many pictures throughout this walk which allows you to have a detailed illustrated tour of Black Rocks. The music in the background of the video is by Tymphony and the song is called "At last, Calm". I have found this music on Jamendo, which is a free and legal music downloading website and is CC licensed. I hope you like the video. Enjoy!
FLOSS was introduced in 1981 by a man named Richard M Stallman. When computers were first created all software was free to share until proprietary software took over the internet. However thanks to Richard M Stallmann a free software foundation named GNU allowed computer users to freely share and edit software again. Later on free software was called 'Open Source' since it sounds more sophisticated and therefore businesses would be more likely to get involved in the free software foundation.
Making good use of free software I have created a short still image slide show. The photos shown in the video are from Black Rocks located in northern NSW. A year ago, my partner and I went camping there for a few days. We took an afternoon just to walk around the absolutely beautiful beach and explore its magnificent sites. I took many pictures throughout this walk which allows you to have a detailed illustrated tour of Black Rocks. The music in the background of the video is by Tymphony and the song is called "At last, Calm". I have found this music on Jamendo, which is a free and legal music downloading website and is CC licensed. I hope you like the video. Enjoy!
Thursday, January 20, 2011
''Facebook'' or ''Creepbook''?
Today's lecture was all about social networks and just how private everything we upload really is. The main network discussed was of course, Facebook or as my partner likes to call it - ''Creepbook''. I have just checked out Creepbook's latest statistics and according to this site there are over 500 million active users. Now if you're anything like me, while signing up for this network you probably only skimmed through the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities while searching for the 'Agree' button. So what exactly can Creepbook legally do with over 500 million people's uploaded pictures, videos and other personal information?
Using Creepbook's Help Centre I managed to track down the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities as well as the Privacy Policy. What caught my eye was that all the content you upload, including information about your friends will be stored in the network's system. The Privacy policy states that if you do not want the network to store this kind of information, you need to delete it before physically uploading it. Knowing that Creepbook stores absolutely everything posted online, I come back to my original question about legal rights of users' data.
According to the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, after an image or video is shared online, that includes you being 'tagged' in a photo "you grant us (Facebook) a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content (eg. photos) that you post on or in connection with Facebook". In other words, depending on how you have personally modified your account and privacy settings, using this "IP licence" Creepbook can legally use all your personal information for anything they like. Luckily there is a way to end this licence and that is by either deleting your uploaded photos and videos or deactivating your entire account. However if the information you have posted has been shared between your friends, unless every single one of your friends deletes all contents, Creepbook will still hold legal rights to your personal data. Personally this makes me feel very uncomfortable and I'm hesitating to upload any data onto the social network in future.
A popular aspect of Creepbook is using Applications and other websites through the social network. I have to admit that when I'm really bored I used to do some 'Quizzes' with my friends just to see what our outcome was. For every quiz we did the application sent out a notification asking for permission to access my personal information. Without a second thought I clicked 'agree' and started the quiz.
In today's lecture, my lecturer talked about these Applications and how they can not only access my own information if I accept them but also all my friends' data. As soon as the lecture finished I logged on to Creepbook and deleted all my old Apps using the privacy settings. However afterwards I realised that even if I delete every single App I have ever used, it still does not protect me from strangers creeping through my profile. All the Apps that my friends are using can still access my personal data.
The first time I heard my partner refer to this social network as "Creepbook" I laughed at him and asked why he would call it that. But the more I think about it I realize just how accurate that descriptive name really is. Not only do we need to worry about other active users and Creepbook itself stalking our every move but every single application we have ever used or page we once liked can be creeping through our personal information at any time.
Using Creepbook's Help Centre I managed to track down the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities as well as the Privacy Policy. What caught my eye was that all the content you upload, including information about your friends will be stored in the network's system. The Privacy policy states that if you do not want the network to store this kind of information, you need to delete it before physically uploading it. Knowing that Creepbook stores absolutely everything posted online, I come back to my original question about legal rights of users' data.
According to the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, after an image or video is shared online, that includes you being 'tagged' in a photo "you grant us (Facebook) a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content (eg. photos) that you post on or in connection with Facebook". In other words, depending on how you have personally modified your account and privacy settings, using this "IP licence" Creepbook can legally use all your personal information for anything they like. Luckily there is a way to end this licence and that is by either deleting your uploaded photos and videos or deactivating your entire account. However if the information you have posted has been shared between your friends, unless every single one of your friends deletes all contents, Creepbook will still hold legal rights to your personal data. Personally this makes me feel very uncomfortable and I'm hesitating to upload any data onto the social network in future.
A popular aspect of Creepbook is using Applications and other websites through the social network. I have to admit that when I'm really bored I used to do some 'Quizzes' with my friends just to see what our outcome was. For every quiz we did the application sent out a notification asking for permission to access my personal information. Without a second thought I clicked 'agree' and started the quiz.
In today's lecture, my lecturer talked about these Applications and how they can not only access my own information if I accept them but also all my friends' data. As soon as the lecture finished I logged on to Creepbook and deleted all my old Apps using the privacy settings. However afterwards I realised that even if I delete every single App I have ever used, it still does not protect me from strangers creeping through my profile. All the Apps that my friends are using can still access my personal data.
The first time I heard my partner refer to this social network as "Creepbook" I laughed at him and asked why he would call it that. But the more I think about it I realize just how accurate that descriptive name really is. Not only do we need to worry about other active users and Creepbook itself stalking our every move but every single application we have ever used or page we once liked can be creeping through our personal information at any time.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Old School Media
My lecturer showed us a rather funny short video about how people discovered an old online community. They talked about it just like archaeologists and explained how amazing such a discovery is; hoping that no one will ever change the websites so that they could find out more about the communication between the people who were involved in this social network.
When I think about old social networks or media I vaguely remember using ICQ to chat to my friends. Back in the day I thought it was amazing how it let me put up a little profile, including uploading a picture and writing about my interests. I could also send my offline friends a message and know that they'll receive it next time they logged on. ICQ was pretty much the social network I used for my overseas friends who did not have a MSN account. So when my lecturer asked me to research an old online community I just had to choose good old ICQ.
An article by Ayelet Noff explained that ICQ, which is now owned by AOL was originally created in 1996. So it has been nearly 15 years ago when this social network was the 'it' thing to use for instant messaging and communicating with friends. When I read further into this article I was surprised to find out that first of all ICQ is still a running internet community; and secondly it's trying to make a comeback by competing with Facebook and Twitter. There are several links where you can even become a fan of this article on Facebook!
So ICQ's savior from becoming an extinct social network is the new ICQ 7! According to Ayalet Noff this software is an 'all-in-one social network tool', which allows you to view updates and other social activities from your friends across all networks. ICQ 7 also features additional tools, including status updates, friend's feeds, contact lists, user's profile, pictures and videos from Flickr and YouTube, as well as updates from MySpace.
Personally I have to say "good on 'em" by attempting to take on the fastest growing social network, known as Facebook. However as this software was released a year ago, today and I have never come across ICQ 7, let alone heard of it, I need to say that ICQ 7 is an EPIC FAIL!
When I think about old social networks or media I vaguely remember using ICQ to chat to my friends. Back in the day I thought it was amazing how it let me put up a little profile, including uploading a picture and writing about my interests. I could also send my offline friends a message and know that they'll receive it next time they logged on. ICQ was pretty much the social network I used for my overseas friends who did not have a MSN account. So when my lecturer asked me to research an old online community I just had to choose good old ICQ.
An article by Ayelet Noff explained that ICQ, which is now owned by AOL was originally created in 1996. So it has been nearly 15 years ago when this social network was the 'it' thing to use for instant messaging and communicating with friends. When I read further into this article I was surprised to find out that first of all ICQ is still a running internet community; and secondly it's trying to make a comeback by competing with Facebook and Twitter. There are several links where you can even become a fan of this article on Facebook!
So ICQ's savior from becoming an extinct social network is the new ICQ 7! According to Ayalet Noff this software is an 'all-in-one social network tool', which allows you to view updates and other social activities from your friends across all networks. ICQ 7 also features additional tools, including status updates, friend's feeds, contact lists, user's profile, pictures and videos from Flickr and YouTube, as well as updates from MySpace.
Personally I have to say "good on 'em" by attempting to take on the fastest growing social network, known as Facebook. However as this software was released a year ago, today and I have never come across ICQ 7, let alone heard of it, I need to say that ICQ 7 is an EPIC FAIL!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
The Past and Future of Communication Technology
History of the computer and internet was the main discussion in today's lecture. Origins of today's computer came from the 19th century Difference Engine which was designed by Charles Babbage, who was born in 1791. It calculated and prints mathematical tables. Unfortunately he was never able to actually build the whole machine himself. Later on a woman called Ada Byron, who was born in 1815 created the first computer program as well as other musical machines.
According to our lecturer's notes, the first computers were created in the 1950s mainly for the military, government and corporate work. They were quite large and expensive machines back in the day. However computers were quickly redesigned and became smaller, faster as well as less expensive so that households could afford them, too. Personally I think it is just amazing and am somehow lost for words about how people managed to design and create early machines and computers, which are so complex, hundreds of years ago. Especially nowadays, how quickly the computer is constantly being redesigned and updated for better and easier use.
The internet was created in the 1960s by the RAND corporation. According to my university notes "By applying game theory, RAND developed a scheme for communication, command and control network that would survive a nuclear war because it has no central control, and could reform around communication services left intact". In the 1990s the World Wide Web or the 'Web' was created so that people could use it to communicate from one computer user to another. Let's face it, that creation has been life changing for absolutely everyone online user. It is an amazingly developed communication technology.
Looking through various communication technology videos, I came across "The Future of Communication (technology)" on youtube. It summarizes how communication technology has developed in the past and then shows some interesting ideas about what technology will most likely be like in the near future. I wonder just how many of his ideas will be developed and if any of his theories will come true...
According to our lecturer's notes, the first computers were created in the 1950s mainly for the military, government and corporate work. They were quite large and expensive machines back in the day. However computers were quickly redesigned and became smaller, faster as well as less expensive so that households could afford them, too. Personally I think it is just amazing and am somehow lost for words about how people managed to design and create early machines and computers, which are so complex, hundreds of years ago. Especially nowadays, how quickly the computer is constantly being redesigned and updated for better and easier use.
The internet was created in the 1960s by the RAND corporation. According to my university notes "By applying game theory, RAND developed a scheme for communication, command and control network that would survive a nuclear war because it has no central control, and could reform around communication services left intact". In the 1990s the World Wide Web or the 'Web' was created so that people could use it to communicate from one computer user to another. Let's face it, that creation has been life changing for absolutely everyone online user. It is an amazingly developed communication technology.
Looking through various communication technology videos, I came across "The Future of Communication (technology)" on youtube. It summarizes how communication technology has developed in the past and then shows some interesting ideas about what technology will most likely be like in the near future. I wonder just how many of his ideas will be developed and if any of his theories will come true...
I have also found a rather humorous video about the future of communication technology. The men do speak in another language but English subtitles appear after a little while. Please have a look below and let me know what you think! :-)
The third video I'd like to show you is called 'Technical Communication Today', it illustrates the path that communication technology has taken over our human existence. I especially liked this video because it made me realise just how much communication has changed over the years and what influence it has on the population.
Monday, January 17, 2011
New Communication Technology
Today was the first lecture for my new subject. The lecturer explained how communication technologies have changed over the years. In the olden days, people used to meet up and communicate face to face to transfer information or a 'message'. Eventually radio and then TV were invented, hence it being the leading medium of communication. In the recent years the internet became very popular for sending messages in the form of writing, images, videos and music. This reminded me of a youtube video I stumbled across around Christmas time. It illustrates the story of nativity of Jesus using new communication technology. I found it very amusing!
Welcome to Joey Jo Jo's awesome blog!
I'm Joey Jo Jo and thank you for stopping by!
I'm currently studying a summer semester of New Communication Technologies. I have chosen this subject as an elective for my University studies so that I will be required to only complete three subjects in my second semester this year, instead of four.
I will be continuously blogging about readings and tasks that I will complete for this subject over the next two weeks. Hopefully you will enjoy my blogs. :-)
I'm currently studying a summer semester of New Communication Technologies. I have chosen this subject as an elective for my University studies so that I will be required to only complete three subjects in my second semester this year, instead of four.
I will be continuously blogging about readings and tasks that I will complete for this subject over the next two weeks. Hopefully you will enjoy my blogs. :-)
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