6) How does it differ from web 3.0?
After conducting some research into the concept of semantic web, it seems like the main difference is, unsurprisingly, do to with meaning. Web 3.0 is merely able to present you with preset information, for example the layout of a web-site, links to other sites, the ability to search and then filter your results. However, it doesn’t have an understanding of the meaning behind the information it is presenting, human agency is required to actually make any useful sense of the information.
Semantic web, on the other hand, it is proposed will be able to understand the information it is telling you. In this way the possibilities from the web are dramatically increased. The article I was reading talks of an “agent” within a handheld web browser, this “agent” is able to search for information and marry it with other variables, the example given being able to search through a doctors schedule, and match it with your own to see when you are free to have an appointment, and further to when traffic is best and so on.
Berners-Lee,T., J. Hendler and O. Lassila (2001) ‘The Semantic Web’, Scientific American Volume 284 (Issue 5): P.28–37.
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
9.5- Semantic Web
5) What is the 'semantic web'?
According to Berners-Lee within Scientific American, ‘The Semantic Web’, semantic web will be the next generation of the Web. However, the key difference is that the semantic web will not merely regurgitate pre-programmed information back to you; it will understand the deeper meaning of the data and be able to use it in a similar way which a human would interpret it. No longer will computers think in terms of lists of 0 and 1, instead it will have a much deeper understanding and be able to help us in ways which were previously impossible.
This therefore opens up lots of new possibilities from the web. Things will be able to be synchronized with each other with a lot more logic than previously possible. However, to me this seems like an extremely large task. How can a computer possibly have the same logic and thinking as a human can? To me it seems like there will inevitably be a number of “holes” with this system, as there are just too many possibilities and variables which go through the human mind which a computer cannot replicate. Maybe this is because such technology seems inconceivable to me given the basic problems of technology at the moment (basic things like being unable to filter search results more specifically or by the required number of fields, I am always being told “your search has generated no results, please edit your search and try again”) Although I am reassured that this technology is on its way, to me it seems a long way off before this ideal is put into useful practice in everyday life.
Berners-Lee,T., J. Hendler and O. Lassila (2001) ‘The Semantic Web’, Scientific American Volume 284 (Issue 5): P.28–37.
According to Berners-Lee within Scientific American, ‘The Semantic Web’, semantic web will be the next generation of the Web. However, the key difference is that the semantic web will not merely regurgitate pre-programmed information back to you; it will understand the deeper meaning of the data and be able to use it in a similar way which a human would interpret it. No longer will computers think in terms of lists of 0 and 1, instead it will have a much deeper understanding and be able to help us in ways which were previously impossible.
This therefore opens up lots of new possibilities from the web. Things will be able to be synchronized with each other with a lot more logic than previously possible. However, to me this seems like an extremely large task. How can a computer possibly have the same logic and thinking as a human can? To me it seems like there will inevitably be a number of “holes” with this system, as there are just too many possibilities and variables which go through the human mind which a computer cannot replicate. Maybe this is because such technology seems inconceivable to me given the basic problems of technology at the moment (basic things like being unable to filter search results more specifically or by the required number of fields, I am always being told “your search has generated no results, please edit your search and try again”) Although I am reassured that this technology is on its way, to me it seems a long way off before this ideal is put into useful practice in everyday life.
Berners-Lee,T., J. Hendler and O. Lassila (2001) ‘The Semantic Web’, Scientific American Volume 284 (Issue 5): P.28–37.
9.4 Education and Cultural/Personal Preferences
4) Is there a potential problem being stored up for people if 'education' is tailored to fit into their cultural and personal preferences?
I believe that a potential problem in tailoring education to an individual’s specific needs is that what fits one person may not fit another and we may not have the resources to offer each individual a different set of teaching methods. However, I do not believe this problem to be anything new, as at the moment people can be divided into visual, aural or active learners and therefore will find it easier to learn in different ways.
Some people, like me, may have a more traditional view towards education, and believe that actually writing rather than word processing, and having something explained to you face to face holds many benefits to sitting in front of a computer and having information delivered into your inbox.
I believe that this way the process of socialization is lost, which I see as being one of the main problems with the continuing development of technology and its increasing affect on the way we live our day to day lives. If people’s cultural and personal preferences dictate that learning remotely via the computer is best for them, what will happen to the institution of schooling and the ideologies which are installed into us through this? I doubt a computer will be able to offer the same sets of attitudes and values, and you could be much more open to being influenced by all the nasties which exist on the Internet, for instance pro-anorexia web-sites, pro terrorism web-sites, web sites encouraging odd cults etc. etc. This is made all the more worse by the fact that at the age in which education takes places, young people are attempting to find their own sense of self, so being negatively influenced at this stage could potentially be extremely damaging,
Of course this is an extremely cyber-dystopian view point, as I am only pointing out the potential negatives of this. There is a possibility that eLearning could also bring its fair share of benefits for the individual, as it could open people’s eyes to view points they would not be taught in a school environment and encourage cyber democracy. However, in my eyes the potential threats seem to outweigh the potential benefits to the individual.
I believe that a potential problem in tailoring education to an individual’s specific needs is that what fits one person may not fit another and we may not have the resources to offer each individual a different set of teaching methods. However, I do not believe this problem to be anything new, as at the moment people can be divided into visual, aural or active learners and therefore will find it easier to learn in different ways.
Some people, like me, may have a more traditional view towards education, and believe that actually writing rather than word processing, and having something explained to you face to face holds many benefits to sitting in front of a computer and having information delivered into your inbox.
I believe that this way the process of socialization is lost, which I see as being one of the main problems with the continuing development of technology and its increasing affect on the way we live our day to day lives. If people’s cultural and personal preferences dictate that learning remotely via the computer is best for them, what will happen to the institution of schooling and the ideologies which are installed into us through this? I doubt a computer will be able to offer the same sets of attitudes and values, and you could be much more open to being influenced by all the nasties which exist on the Internet, for instance pro-anorexia web-sites, pro terrorism web-sites, web sites encouraging odd cults etc. etc. This is made all the more worse by the fact that at the age in which education takes places, young people are attempting to find their own sense of self, so being negatively influenced at this stage could potentially be extremely damaging,
Of course this is an extremely cyber-dystopian view point, as I am only pointing out the potential negatives of this. There is a possibility that eLearning could also bring its fair share of benefits for the individual, as it could open people’s eyes to view points they would not be taught in a school environment and encourage cyber democracy. However, in my eyes the potential threats seem to outweigh the potential benefits to the individual.
Tuesday, 24 March 2009
9.2- Digital Divides
2) What difference to all this might the 'digital divide' make? a) To socioeconomically related access issues within a society? b) To global access issues across countries and regions?
I think that the assumption is that the digital divide, certain people being able to afford to have the means to access the Internet and other new technologies, in terms of Prensky’s ideas, will result in digital natives having a better understanding of the things they are taught than those who do not have access to such technologies. As Prensky suggests that natives speaking a new language should be taught through this new language of technology.
However, one commentator on this topic, Henry Jenkins, in his blog writes about the way in which the term digital native is all encompassing and does not allow any room for variations. He states that his research suggests that whilst lots of the children he has worked with do use technology, there were variations in the way in which it affected their lives. For example, although lots of the children did not have Internet access or a computer at home, they were still able to use technology to express themselves, for example through computer games or DVD collections.
Therefore, the digital divide, according to Jenkins, will not necessarily mean that those with Internet access will not benefit from learning by using technology, as those without it still have the means by which to experience many of the same benefits, such as expressing themselves, finding information, and communicating with friends.
The result of this, in terms of global issues across countries and regions, will mean that those with access to the technologies will not be any better equipped or learn the content in an easier way, because, as Jenkins suggests, those who do not necessarily have Internet access at home, still do have a means of expressing themselves through technology as it is so ingrained in modern day life.
I think that the assumption is that the digital divide, certain people being able to afford to have the means to access the Internet and other new technologies, in terms of Prensky’s ideas, will result in digital natives having a better understanding of the things they are taught than those who do not have access to such technologies. As Prensky suggests that natives speaking a new language should be taught through this new language of technology.
However, one commentator on this topic, Henry Jenkins, in his blog writes about the way in which the term digital native is all encompassing and does not allow any room for variations. He states that his research suggests that whilst lots of the children he has worked with do use technology, there were variations in the way in which it affected their lives. For example, although lots of the children did not have Internet access or a computer at home, they were still able to use technology to express themselves, for example through computer games or DVD collections.
Therefore, the digital divide, according to Jenkins, will not necessarily mean that those with Internet access will not benefit from learning by using technology, as those without it still have the means by which to experience many of the same benefits, such as expressing themselves, finding information, and communicating with friends.
The result of this, in terms of global issues across countries and regions, will mean that those with access to the technologies will not be any better equipped or learn the content in an easier way, because, as Jenkins suggests, those who do not necessarily have Internet access at home, still do have a means of expressing themselves through technology as it is so ingrained in modern day life.
9.1- Wenger and Prenksy
1) How might Wenger's notions on practice communities relate to Prensky's on education?
Wenger (2001) came up with the idea of Communities of Practice, referring to the notion that learning benefits from experiencing a sense of community with those around you whom you learn with.
I believe that this related to Prensy’s ideas about education in that it implies that students can benefit by taking advantage of their ability to connect digitally, and so by doing so can form an online Community of Practice which will aid the process of education.
So for example, for digital natives, learning online through online lectures or computer games as Prensky suggests, and having the ability to discuss their thoughts and ideas with peers and tutors remotely through perhaps forums or instant messages, means that they will be able to create an educational community of practice, which according to Wenger, will help them to learn.
Therefore by combining Prenksy’s ideas about digital natives and how to most effectively teach them, and Wenger’s ideas about communities of practice and education, we should, in theory, create an environment which is conjunctive to their learning.
Wenger (2001) came up with the idea of Communities of Practice, referring to the notion that learning benefits from experiencing a sense of community with those around you whom you learn with.
I believe that this related to Prensy’s ideas about education in that it implies that students can benefit by taking advantage of their ability to connect digitally, and so by doing so can form an online Community of Practice which will aid the process of education.
So for example, for digital natives, learning online through online lectures or computer games as Prensky suggests, and having the ability to discuss their thoughts and ideas with peers and tutors remotely through perhaps forums or instant messages, means that they will be able to create an educational community of practice, which according to Wenger, will help them to learn.
Therefore by combining Prenksy’s ideas about digital natives and how to most effectively teach them, and Wenger’s ideas about communities of practice and education, we should, in theory, create an environment which is conjunctive to their learning.
9.1- Wenger and Prenksy Cont.
However, a problem of such a strategy would be plagiarism. Whilst this method would encourage the sharing and discussing of ideas, as the Internet is very much an open resource based on the idea of gift economy and digitality, in that nothing is fixed and is open to be edited and re-edited an infinite number of times with no “owner” as it were.
It does however create problems with grading or marking. If a student were to be graded on their specific contributions to a discussion, would their individual work be being assessed, or would it be more accurate to say that it is their ability to find information on the Internet which was being examined?
It does however create problems with grading or marking. If a student were to be graded on their specific contributions to a discussion, would their individual work be being assessed, or would it be more accurate to say that it is their ability to find information on the Internet which was being examined?
W9. Task c. Person who most threatens the notion of native/immigrant in digital culture
c) A person known to you (could be you, but you don't need to admit it!) who most threatens the notion of native/immigrant in digital culture.
The person I know who most threatens the notion of native/immigrant in digital culture is Mark, as mentioned in a previous post.
I believe this is because technology is so ingrained into his day to day routine, that he would be unable to go about his daily life without it and to remove facebook or his mobile phone from him would leave him completely lost.
I believe him to be a digital native in that the way he uses technology means that he would be unable to return to when he did not use it, both on a professional and a personal level. I don’t see him as having an “accent” as Prensky puts it, in that his use of technology resembles that of someone who has been exposed to it for all of their lives, as opposed to Mark who has only been exposed to it as it began to affect his life, which could not have throughout the duration of his life.
The person I know who most threatens the notion of native/immigrant in digital culture is Mark, as mentioned in a previous post.
I believe this is because technology is so ingrained into his day to day routine, that he would be unable to go about his daily life without it and to remove facebook or his mobile phone from him would leave him completely lost.
I believe him to be a digital native in that the way he uses technology means that he would be unable to return to when he did not use it, both on a professional and a personal level. I don’t see him as having an “accent” as Prensky puts it, in that his use of technology resembles that of someone who has been exposed to it for all of their lives, as opposed to Mark who has only been exposed to it as it began to affect his life, which could not have throughout the duration of his life.
W9. Task b. Youngest digital immigrant
b) The youngest digital immigrant you know.
The youngest digital immigrant I know is a friend from home Natasha. Although she tries to use technology to communicate, like on facebook or on MSN, she doesn’t quite have the same attitude towards it as I think the rest of us digital natives do.
For instance, if something isn’t working the first way she attempts to do it, like trying to change her display picture on facebook, or forwarding an e-mail to me, and she cannot think of any other way to do it, as she will only use the one way she can remember doing it before. If it isn’t working for some reason, she will not attempt to find out why and fix it, instead she’ll just give up and not think of finding an alternative way to do what she wants.
However, I think that the main thing which makes me think she is a digital immigrant is her attitude towards technology. Whilst I will happily sit on facebook or MSN and have a casual conversation with friends about nothing in particular, she will only use these mediums when she has something specific to say or ask, and when she has got this information she’ll log out. In this way I think she sees technology as there for when she needs it, whereas I will use technology as more ingrained in my everyday life, rather than an additional extra.
The youngest digital immigrant I know is a friend from home Natasha. Although she tries to use technology to communicate, like on facebook or on MSN, she doesn’t quite have the same attitude towards it as I think the rest of us digital natives do.
For instance, if something isn’t working the first way she attempts to do it, like trying to change her display picture on facebook, or forwarding an e-mail to me, and she cannot think of any other way to do it, as she will only use the one way she can remember doing it before. If it isn’t working for some reason, she will not attempt to find out why and fix it, instead she’ll just give up and not think of finding an alternative way to do what she wants.
However, I think that the main thing which makes me think she is a digital immigrant is her attitude towards technology. Whilst I will happily sit on facebook or MSN and have a casual conversation with friends about nothing in particular, she will only use these mediums when she has something specific to say or ask, and when she has got this information she’ll log out. In this way I think she sees technology as there for when she needs it, whereas I will use technology as more ingrained in my everyday life, rather than an additional extra.
W9. Task a. Oldest digital native
a) The oldest digital native you know.
I have struggled to think of anyone I would consider “old” who would fall into Marc Prenksy’s definition of a digital native. The only example I can think of is someone who I worked with, Mark, who worked in the I.T. department of an office I was working in over the Summer.
Mark is 26 and would always be on facebook. His primary means of communication was online, through e-mails, facebook or MSN. However, as Mark worked in the I.T. department and his skills lied within computers and other uses of modern technology, I think this would be expected as he has be taught and encouraged, both by himself and in his line of work, to keep up to date with technology and therefore it would be logical for him to use it to the best of his ability.
In this way, surely his ‘digital nativeness’ would have developed along the same lines as a “real” digital natives would be (those who were born after 1980) in that he has learnt his skills through having a need to use them fairly frequently, he would not be able to do his job efficiently if he were not au fait with this technologies.
I have struggled to think of anyone I would consider “old” who would fall into Marc Prenksy’s definition of a digital native. The only example I can think of is someone who I worked with, Mark, who worked in the I.T. department of an office I was working in over the Summer.
Mark is 26 and would always be on facebook. His primary means of communication was online, through e-mails, facebook or MSN. However, as Mark worked in the I.T. department and his skills lied within computers and other uses of modern technology, I think this would be expected as he has be taught and encouraged, both by himself and in his line of work, to keep up to date with technology and therefore it would be logical for him to use it to the best of his ability.
In this way, surely his ‘digital nativeness’ would have developed along the same lines as a “real” digital natives would be (those who were born after 1980) in that he has learnt his skills through having a need to use them fairly frequently, he would not be able to do his job efficiently if he were not au fait with this technologies.
Wednesday, 18 March 2009
W9. Task e. Technophile student in 2020
e) Describe the experience of a fictional technophile student in 2020.
It is difficult to image what the world will be like in 2020, I assume their will be new technology I can’t even conceive at the moment. However, a part of me would like to see it as being not too far removed from today’s lifestyle. It makes me uncomfortable to think of a world where people no longer communicate face-to-face and everything is done electronically.
My prediction is that people will get sick of living electronically after it becomes even more ingrained into everyday life and a breaking point will occur. I predict a typical student will wake up, check their e-mails and Facebook, quickly check the news and their favourite blogs for updates as they wait for their first lecture to arrive on their computer. This will consist of an alert from the computer when a video file arrives, with a lecturer lecturing remotely, they will then transfer this over to their ipod. They will watch the file on the train or bus whilst on their way to actually meat their friends face-to-face as this is something I imagine will still occur. In this way I see technology as giving us increased flexibility, as opposed to the cyber-dystopian view that it will result in us all being social recluses, communicating exclusively through online medias.
Although technology has the potential to make meeting in “meet space” un-necessary, I think humans have a natural instinct to socialise, it is something which separates us from animals; we need physical interaction to feel fulfilled and I don’t think there will be a time when this doesn’t occur on a large scale. In general I think, or is it hope? That technology will enhance our social interactions as opposed to replacing them. I think technological advances will result in a greater amount of choice and ways to work which will result in more freedom to socialize rather than eliminating the need to.
It is difficult to image what the world will be like in 2020, I assume their will be new technology I can’t even conceive at the moment. However, a part of me would like to see it as being not too far removed from today’s lifestyle. It makes me uncomfortable to think of a world where people no longer communicate face-to-face and everything is done electronically.
My prediction is that people will get sick of living electronically after it becomes even more ingrained into everyday life and a breaking point will occur. I predict a typical student will wake up, check their e-mails and Facebook, quickly check the news and their favourite blogs for updates as they wait for their first lecture to arrive on their computer. This will consist of an alert from the computer when a video file arrives, with a lecturer lecturing remotely, they will then transfer this over to their ipod. They will watch the file on the train or bus whilst on their way to actually meat their friends face-to-face as this is something I imagine will still occur. In this way I see technology as giving us increased flexibility, as opposed to the cyber-dystopian view that it will result in us all being social recluses, communicating exclusively through online medias.
Although technology has the potential to make meeting in “meet space” un-necessary, I think humans have a natural instinct to socialise, it is something which separates us from animals; we need physical interaction to feel fulfilled and I don’t think there will be a time when this doesn’t occur on a large scale. In general I think, or is it hope? That technology will enhance our social interactions as opposed to replacing them. I think technological advances will result in a greater amount of choice and ways to work which will result in more freedom to socialize rather than eliminating the need to.
W9. Task d. Neo-Luddite
d) Describe the daily frustrations of a fictional neo-luddite at university now in the UK.
I think a neo-luddite would massively struggle in a modern university environment.
Firstly the entire application process and UCAS I believe is only available online, so this would be vastly complicated if he opposed to even doing this digitally! I think the main consequence would be that he wouldn’t be able to benefit from the immediacy of the Internet. For example, if he has a problem he wouldn’t be able to e-mail a tutor and get an immediate response, instead he’d have to go to their office, they might be busy, and of course he wouldn’t have a permanent record of their answer.
Another advantage he would be missing out on is digitality, the ability to continuously edit and re-edit work. Instead he’d have to even write out essays by hand, something which I can barely comprehend! Cross it out if it were wrong, re-write it if it weren’t neat enough, have a first and second draft, something I’m not used to since school given the convenience of being able to re-word and re-arrange an essay as I go.
However, the problems wouldn’t only be limited to academic issues; I believe they would intrude into his social life as well. How would he know what his friends were doing and where they were going for a drink that evening if it weren’t for Facebook? If he wanted to arrange a group meeting and went as far as to not approve of even mobile phones, how would someone let him know that they’d changed the date, time, place, or that they were going to be late? Or how would he ask his peers if a lecture were cancelled if he weren’t allowed to change his status? Or even let the girl he fancies know about it by poking her?!
Having considered the different ways which being a neo-luddite would hold someone back in a modern university environment, it has lead to me taking a more techno-determinist viewpoint. It is almost as if it is a force of nature, in that it is impossible to resist in today’s society, and actively doing so, as in the case of the neo-luddist, would lead to you missing out as a great deal of features of modern day life are dependant upon technology. It seems as if resisting the effects of technology does you more harm than good. I personally can’t see any logic behind being a neo-luddite!
I think a neo-luddite would massively struggle in a modern university environment.
Firstly the entire application process and UCAS I believe is only available online, so this would be vastly complicated if he opposed to even doing this digitally! I think the main consequence would be that he wouldn’t be able to benefit from the immediacy of the Internet. For example, if he has a problem he wouldn’t be able to e-mail a tutor and get an immediate response, instead he’d have to go to their office, they might be busy, and of course he wouldn’t have a permanent record of their answer.
Another advantage he would be missing out on is digitality, the ability to continuously edit and re-edit work. Instead he’d have to even write out essays by hand, something which I can barely comprehend! Cross it out if it were wrong, re-write it if it weren’t neat enough, have a first and second draft, something I’m not used to since school given the convenience of being able to re-word and re-arrange an essay as I go.
However, the problems wouldn’t only be limited to academic issues; I believe they would intrude into his social life as well. How would he know what his friends were doing and where they were going for a drink that evening if it weren’t for Facebook? If he wanted to arrange a group meeting and went as far as to not approve of even mobile phones, how would someone let him know that they’d changed the date, time, place, or that they were going to be late? Or how would he ask his peers if a lecture were cancelled if he weren’t allowed to change his status? Or even let the girl he fancies know about it by poking her?!
Having considered the different ways which being a neo-luddite would hold someone back in a modern university environment, it has lead to me taking a more techno-determinist viewpoint. It is almost as if it is a force of nature, in that it is impossible to resist in today’s society, and actively doing so, as in the case of the neo-luddist, would lead to you missing out as a great deal of features of modern day life are dependant upon technology. It seems as if resisting the effects of technology does you more harm than good. I personally can’t see any logic behind being a neo-luddite!
W9. Task 3. Should Education Stretch a person?
Yes, I agree that education should stretch someone. By stretch I mean that you should be encouraged to reach your full potential, and if technology is the best way to do this, I think it should be embraced.
For example, lots of people find it difficult to engage with material in certain forms, this may be done to their individual interests, or a genetic disposition like ADHD or simply because they perceive something as not worth learning. If, as Prensky suggests, material were to be presented in a more digestible format for example through computer games, and it was found that this was successful in encouraging people to engage I think it is worth considering.
Within the journal article, ‘Designing and testing a web-based board game for teaching information literacy skills and concepts’ it was found that students who were taught literacy skills via a computer game had accuracy levels 20 points higher than they would have been if the answers were guessed, so there is evidence to suggest that learning via the Internet has merit in teaching students information literacy skills and concepts.
However, a danger of this approach would be that students would come to become reliant upon this type of learning, which would not be helpful for them in their general lives, as it leaves me thinking that people may come to find it impossible to simply sit down with a book and take in information. If education were to do this it would be in no way ‘stretching’ the pupils, rather it would be increasing the effects of the digital divide, in that we’d be left with half of the population learning through traditional methods, and half learning through web based methods.
Marky, K. (2008) “Designing and testing a web-based board game for teaching information literacy skills and concepts” Library Hi Tech, Vol. 26 (Issue 4) P.663-681
For example, lots of people find it difficult to engage with material in certain forms, this may be done to their individual interests, or a genetic disposition like ADHD or simply because they perceive something as not worth learning. If, as Prensky suggests, material were to be presented in a more digestible format for example through computer games, and it was found that this was successful in encouraging people to engage I think it is worth considering.
Within the journal article, ‘Designing and testing a web-based board game for teaching information literacy skills and concepts’ it was found that students who were taught literacy skills via a computer game had accuracy levels 20 points higher than they would have been if the answers were guessed, so there is evidence to suggest that learning via the Internet has merit in teaching students information literacy skills and concepts.
However, a danger of this approach would be that students would come to become reliant upon this type of learning, which would not be helpful for them in their general lives, as it leaves me thinking that people may come to find it impossible to simply sit down with a book and take in information. If education were to do this it would be in no way ‘stretching’ the pupils, rather it would be increasing the effects of the digital divide, in that we’d be left with half of the population learning through traditional methods, and half learning through web based methods.
Marky, K. (2008) “Designing and testing a web-based board game for teaching information literacy skills and concepts” Library Hi Tech, Vol. 26 (Issue 4) P.663-681
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
W8. Abstract: Internet and School Satisfaction
Liu, X. and Robert, L. (2008) “Does using the internet make people more satisfied with their lives? The Effects of the Internet on College Students’ School Life Satisfaction” CyberPsychology & Behaviour, Vol. 11 (Issue 3), p310-320
This research investigates the relationship between Internet use and college students’ level of satisfaction with their school lives. 195 college students took part in the study which accessed their use of the Internet and their resulting school life satisfaction. It was found that Internet use had a direct relationship with levels of self efficacy- your perceived ability to achieve what you want- your level of extroversion and how satisfied the individuals claimed they were with their school lives. This is in line with social cognitive theory, that is, your perceived ability to engage in social interactions will directly affect your ability to maintain social relationships and therefore an implication of this study is that Internet use dictates satisfaction in school. However, we are not able to say they same of general life satisfaction levels.
This research investigates the relationship between Internet use and college students’ level of satisfaction with their school lives. 195 college students took part in the study which accessed their use of the Internet and their resulting school life satisfaction. It was found that Internet use had a direct relationship with levels of self efficacy- your perceived ability to achieve what you want- your level of extroversion and how satisfied the individuals claimed they were with their school lives. This is in line with social cognitive theory, that is, your perceived ability to engage in social interactions will directly affect your ability to maintain social relationships and therefore an implication of this study is that Internet use dictates satisfaction in school. However, we are not able to say they same of general life satisfaction levels.
W8. Abstract: Teenage blogs
Huffaker, D.A. and Calvert S.L. (2005) “Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 10 (Issue 2), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html [Accessed 11/03/09]
This study explores the way in which adolescents use the Internet, in particular blogs, in order to express themselves as well as investigating gender differences on this topic. After conducting a content analysis of 184 randomly selected blogs and looking at them in terms of disclosure of personal information, sexual identity, emotive features and semantic themes, it was found that for the most part males and females conducted themselves similarly through their blogs. Both sexes often revealed personal information such as full names, ages and locations. Males however, in line with traditional gender roles, used more active and purposeful language whereas females did not use passive or accommodating language as expected. Males were also more likely to make use of emoticons and were more likely to openly state that they were gay. The implications of these findings suggest that teenagers stay closer to their real life selves than previously suggested when presenting them online.
This study explores the way in which adolescents use the Internet, in particular blogs, in order to express themselves as well as investigating gender differences on this topic. After conducting a content analysis of 184 randomly selected blogs and looking at them in terms of disclosure of personal information, sexual identity, emotive features and semantic themes, it was found that for the most part males and females conducted themselves similarly through their blogs. Both sexes often revealed personal information such as full names, ages and locations. Males however, in line with traditional gender roles, used more active and purposeful language whereas females did not use passive or accommodating language as expected. Males were also more likely to make use of emoticons and were more likely to openly state that they were gay. The implications of these findings suggest that teenagers stay closer to their real life selves than previously suggested when presenting them online.
W8. Abstract: Identity experimentation online
Valkenburg P.M. et al. (2005) “Adolescents’ identity experiments on the internet” New Media & Society, Vol. 7 (Issue. 3) P383-402
This article examines the prevalence of teenagers conducting internet-based identity experiments, the motives behind this and the methods used. 600 adolescents filled in a questionnaire which assessed their level of introversion, and the methods they used to masquerade as someone else online, if they stated that they had. The most popular ways in which the teenagers adapted themselves was to be older, to be pretend to be an acquaintance, to be more flirtatious and to have an elaborated, fantasy personality. It was found that the largest motive for doing so was to investigate how others would react, followed by attempting to overcome shyness and to facilitate relationship formation. The findings therefore imply that the Internet can facilitate identity formation amongst younger teenagers, which is in line with adolescent identity formation and friendship theories.
This article examines the prevalence of teenagers conducting internet-based identity experiments, the motives behind this and the methods used. 600 adolescents filled in a questionnaire which assessed their level of introversion, and the methods they used to masquerade as someone else online, if they stated that they had. The most popular ways in which the teenagers adapted themselves was to be older, to be pretend to be an acquaintance, to be more flirtatious and to have an elaborated, fantasy personality. It was found that the largest motive for doing so was to investigate how others would react, followed by attempting to overcome shyness and to facilitate relationship formation. The findings therefore imply that the Internet can facilitate identity formation amongst younger teenagers, which is in line with adolescent identity formation and friendship theories.
W8. Abstract: Teenage Internet Use
Gross, E.F. (2004) “Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report” Applied Developmental Psychology, Vol. 25 (Issue 6), P.633-649
This study discusses previous expectations about teenage internet use and then investigates these to discover the degree to which they predict reality. 261 teenagers in the 7th and 10th grade in California public schools completed end of day reports about how they had used the Internet that day. The findings diffused myths that boys spend more time online than girls, particularly playing violent games as it was found that male and female usage was becoming increasingly similar. The idea that adolescents used the Internet for anonymous identity experimentation was also disproved, as it was found that use was mainly limited to private settings with friends who are also part of their daily offline lives and was about ordinary topics, such as mutual friends and gossip. In addition, no link was found between Internet usage and general well being, questioning previous research that the Internet causes depression and social isolation amongst teenagers.
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This study discusses previous expectations about teenage internet use and then investigates these to discover the degree to which they predict reality. 261 teenagers in the 7th and 10th grade in California public schools completed end of day reports about how they had used the Internet that day. The findings diffused myths that boys spend more time online than girls, particularly playing violent games as it was found that male and female usage was becoming increasingly similar. The idea that adolescents used the Internet for anonymous identity experimentation was also disproved, as it was found that use was mainly limited to private settings with friends who are also part of their daily offline lives and was about ordinary topics, such as mutual friends and gossip. In addition, no link was found between Internet usage and general well being, questioning previous research that the Internet causes depression and social isolation amongst teenagers.
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W8. Abstract: Comparison of adult and adolescent gamers.
Griffiths M.D. et al. (2004) “Online Computer Gaming: A Comparison of Adolescent and Adult Gamers” Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 27 (Issue 1), P.87-96
This study focuses upon adult and adolescent players on the popular online game, Everquest. Through a questionnaire, gaming frequency, their opinion about the game and how they played (alone, with friends, as a male character, as a female character etc.) was assessed. Out of 540 players who took part, it was found that females were more likely to be in the adult than the adolescent demographic, and adolescents were more likely to sacrifice education or work in favour of the game. In addition, adolescents were significantly more likely than adults to cite their favourite aspect of the game to be the violence. Findings also showed addictive behaviour towards the game, possibly because it incorporates co-operative and competitive play, which make it more susceptible to addiction, however, this would benefit from further research.
This study focuses upon adult and adolescent players on the popular online game, Everquest. Through a questionnaire, gaming frequency, their opinion about the game and how they played (alone, with friends, as a male character, as a female character etc.) was assessed. Out of 540 players who took part, it was found that females were more likely to be in the adult than the adolescent demographic, and adolescents were more likely to sacrifice education or work in favour of the game. In addition, adolescents were significantly more likely than adults to cite their favourite aspect of the game to be the violence. Findings also showed addictive behaviour towards the game, possibly because it incorporates co-operative and competitive play, which make it more susceptible to addiction, however, this would benefit from further research.
W8. Task 1. What general attitudes have been based on Digital Immgration?
In terms of general attitudes based on the idea of digital immigration, to me it seems as if digital natives only know the digital generation and are only able to conduct their lives online and offline, in that the offline is merged with the online seamlessly and there is no distinction between to two. They are equally as comfortable when offline as when online.
Conversely, a digital immigrant is very aware when they are online that this is separate to offline activities. For example, a digital native might not think twice about conducting their lives on a multiplicity of different formats, arranging an outing on facebook, e-mailing a tutor about not understanding something, texting someone to tell them you’re going to be late. Conversely, a digital immigrant might find conducting their lives in such a way to be completely foreign, preferring a more streamlined existence, using the telephone, looking up a word in a dictionary, reading something to the end before moving on. In this way it is much more linear, and organized, processing one thing before moving onto another.
As a digital native, I prefer things more simultaneously, writing a blog, listening to music, downloading a song, instant messaging someone, all done at the same time. However this does raise the question: am I writing to my best ability if doing so many things at the same time? Maybe a digital immigrant would be inclined to say no, if I were to work on only one thing at a time I’d be better able to concentrate and do it in half the time. But for me, I tend to think, “Why do one thing at a time when you can do four??”
Conversely, a digital immigrant is very aware when they are online that this is separate to offline activities. For example, a digital native might not think twice about conducting their lives on a multiplicity of different formats, arranging an outing on facebook, e-mailing a tutor about not understanding something, texting someone to tell them you’re going to be late. Conversely, a digital immigrant might find conducting their lives in such a way to be completely foreign, preferring a more streamlined existence, using the telephone, looking up a word in a dictionary, reading something to the end before moving on. In this way it is much more linear, and organized, processing one thing before moving onto another.
As a digital native, I prefer things more simultaneously, writing a blog, listening to music, downloading a song, instant messaging someone, all done at the same time. However this does raise the question: am I writing to my best ability if doing so many things at the same time? Maybe a digital immigrant would be inclined to say no, if I were to work on only one thing at a time I’d be better able to concentrate and do it in half the time. But for me, I tend to think, “Why do one thing at a time when you can do four??”
W8. Task 1. Who cares about Digital Immigration? (2)
Another context in which digital immigration was mentioned was by Rupert Murdoch in a speech in 2005.
He made the point that digitality is changing the face of journalism. There is a whole generation who access news in a completely different way, preferring online methods as they are deemed to be more entertaining, flexible and even trustworthy. This is bad news for owners of traditional paper newspapers, like Murdoch himself, as readership is rapidly falling.
To combat this trend Murdoch suggests that digital natives,
His main priority seems to be the re-dsistrubution of advertising revenues, with it now increasingly going to web-sites rather than newspapers. Murdoch has obviously noted this, and true to his reputation as a savvy businessman, will be the first to get his hands on the cash potential that is news online through taking advantage of people’s need to create a cyber society in which thoughts and information can be shared instantaneously across vast distances. (Steve Jones)
He made the point that digitality is changing the face of journalism. There is a whole generation who access news in a completely different way, preferring online methods as they are deemed to be more entertaining, flexible and even trustworthy. This is bad news for owners of traditional paper newspapers, like Murdoch himself, as readership is rapidly falling.
To combat this trend Murdoch suggests that digital natives,
“…want to be able to use the information in a larger community – to talk about, to debate, to question, and even to meet the people who think about the world in similar or different ways.” (http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html)
His main priority seems to be the re-dsistrubution of advertising revenues, with it now increasingly going to web-sites rather than newspapers. Murdoch has obviously noted this, and true to his reputation as a savvy businessman, will be the first to get his hands on the cash potential that is news online through taking advantage of people’s need to create a cyber society in which thoughts and information can be shared instantaneously across vast distances. (Steve Jones)
W8. Task 1. Who cares about Digital Immigration?
Who cares about it?
One of the main things which have resulted from this difference between two generations is that it has changed the way in which people process information.
The term ‘Digital Immigrant’ was first coined by Marc Prency in an article written in 2001 about the effects of this change upon the teaching and learning processes which can be assessed here.
Within this article he makes the point that if digital natives are being taught through digital immigrant methods, they aren’t going to learn as effectively as if they were being taught in a language they are more likely to relate to, the language of digital natives.
For example, he states that,
This raises the issue of the effects of the digital divide. If those who are digital natives have a different way of processing information to those who do not have regular access to the Internet, does this mean that different methods of teaching will be needed for different classes of people as lower class families are less likely to have a family P.C. on which to access the Internet?
One of the main things which have resulted from this difference between two generations is that it has changed the way in which people process information.
The term ‘Digital Immigrant’ was first coined by Marc Prency in an article written in 2001 about the effects of this change upon the teaching and learning processes which can be assessed here.
Within this article he makes the point that if digital natives are being taught through digital immigrant methods, they aren’t going to learn as effectively as if they were being taught in a language they are more likely to relate to, the language of digital natives.
For example, he states that,
“…there is no reason that a generation that can memorize over 100 Pokémon characters with all their characteristics, history and evolution can’t learn the names, populations, capitals and relationships of all the 101 nations in the world. It just depends on how it is presented.”(p. 5)
This raises the issue of the effects of the digital divide. If those who are digital natives have a different way of processing information to those who do not have regular access to the Internet, does this mean that different methods of teaching will be needed for different classes of people as lower class families are less likely to have a family P.C. on which to access the Internet?
Monday, 16 March 2009
W8. Task 1. What Is Digital Immigration?
After doing some research on the topic online, one of the main things which I’ve discovered about digital immigration is that goes hand in hand with digital natives, who are almost the opposite of digital immigrants.
I’ve found that the main thing about digital immigration is that it refers to those people who have learned skills when it comes to conducting themselves online, rather than it being something which is natural, as it is for digital natives. A few sources have told me that the line where you become a native or an immigrant is 1980. If you’re born before this you’ve had to learn skills when it comes to new technologies, whereas if you’re born after 1980 you have these skills naturally as a result of being surrounded by them throughout your life.
I’ve found that the main thing about digital immigration is that it refers to those people who have learned skills when it comes to conducting themselves online, rather than it being something which is natural, as it is for digital natives. A few sources have told me that the line where you become a native or an immigrant is 1980. If you’re born before this you’ve had to learn skills when it comes to new technologies, whereas if you’re born after 1980 you have these skills naturally as a result of being surrounded by them throughout your life.
Week 8. Task 4. Article References
4) In the Harvard manner, name five different academic articles dealing with the notion of young people's facility with the new world of converged media.
1. Liu, X. and Robert, L. (2008) “Does using the internet make people more satisfied with their lives? The Effects of the Internet on College Students’ School Life Satisfaction” CyberPsychology & Behaviour, Vol. 11 (Issue 3), p310-320
2. Huffaker, D.A. and Calvert S.L. (2005) “Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 10 (Issue 2), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html [Accessed 11/03/09]
3. Valkenburg P.M. et al. (2005) “Adolescents’ identity experiments on the internet” New Media & Society, Vol. 7 (Issue. 3), P383-402
4. Gross, E.F. (2004) “Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report” Applied Developmental Psychology, Vol. 25 (Issue 6), P.633-649
5. Griffiths M.D. et al. (2004) “Online Computer Gaming: A Comparison of Adolescent and Adult Gamers” Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 27 (Issue 1), P.87-96
1. Liu, X. and Robert, L. (2008) “Does using the internet make people more satisfied with their lives? The Effects of the Internet on College Students’ School Life Satisfaction” CyberPsychology & Behaviour, Vol. 11 (Issue 3), p310-320
2. Huffaker, D.A. and Calvert S.L. (2005) “Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 10 (Issue 2), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html [Accessed 11/03/09]
3. Valkenburg P.M. et al. (2005) “Adolescents’ identity experiments on the internet” New Media & Society, Vol. 7 (Issue. 3), P383-402
4. Gross, E.F. (2004) “Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report” Applied Developmental Psychology, Vol. 25 (Issue 6), P.633-649
5. Griffiths M.D. et al. (2004) “Online Computer Gaming: A Comparison of Adolescent and Adult Gamers” Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 27 (Issue 1), P.87-96
Week 8. Task 2. Web-site URLs
2) Identify five different websites/five-pages-on-different sites dealing with digital immigration and its counterpart. Give their urls.
1. http://www.borndigitalbook.com/excerpt.php
2. http://www.ascd.org/authors/ed_lead/el200512_prensky.html
3. http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
4. http://www.digitalnative.org/wiki/Main_Page
5. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
1. http://www.borndigitalbook.com/excerpt.php
2. http://www.ascd.org/authors/ed_lead/el200512_prensky.html
3. http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
4. http://www.digitalnative.org/wiki/Main_Page
5. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
Friday, 13 March 2009
W8. Task 6. Disagreements no. 5 Adult Gamers
My next article deals with game playing online, particularly the differences in attitudes towards playing MMORPGs (Massively Multi-player Online Role Playing Games) of adult and adolescent gamers. Results showed that adults were more likely to play as a different gender then were the adolescent players.
My criticism of this would be that rather than the game being completely interactive as the article suggests, perhaps it shows more signs of interpassitivity, that is, the enhanced freedom to choose rather than the freedom to create. In this way, the game is rather a combination of choices than a complete blank slate, and maybe choosing to be a character of the opposite gender is just a representation of this, rather than an indication of the psyche of the player who chooses to do so. I am not familiar with the game but maybe a female character has a set of characteristics which would be beneficial to the game and the same may be true of female players who chose to play as males?
Article: Griffiths M.D. et al. (2004) “Online Computer Gaming: A Comparison of Adolescent and Adult Gamers” Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 27 (Issue 1), P.87-96
My criticism of this would be that rather than the game being completely interactive as the article suggests, perhaps it shows more signs of interpassitivity, that is, the enhanced freedom to choose rather than the freedom to create. In this way, the game is rather a combination of choices than a complete blank slate, and maybe choosing to be a character of the opposite gender is just a representation of this, rather than an indication of the psyche of the player who chooses to do so. I am not familiar with the game but maybe a female character has a set of characteristics which would be beneficial to the game and the same may be true of female players who chose to play as males?
Article: Griffiths M.D. et al. (2004) “Online Computer Gaming: A Comparison of Adolescent and Adult Gamers” Journal of Adolescence, Vol. 27 (Issue 1), P.87-96
W8. Task 6. Disagreements no. 4 Isolation
This article discusses the idea that prolonged use of the Internet by teenagers will result in them becoming isolated from other people, with the research conducted providing strong evidence to the contrary, as it showed that the majority of the time adolescents spent online was spent talking to people they knew offline, about friends and gossip. This therefore implies that online relationships are used to maintain and to build on existing relationships, rather than for identity play and this is something I would agree with.
My criticism of this would be the date that the data was gathered. In 2004, although only five years ago, personally my internet use was much different, perhaps because of my age but also because of the technology available. It is possible that now, after the use of social networking sites such as facebook and myspace has really taken off, and it has therefore become easier to connect with strangers, maybe the evolution of the technology has made it easier for teenagers to spend more of their time online. As a result it is possible that teenagers could become isolated from IRL friends and be more likely to have more online social interactions with strangers as it is more socially acceptable now.
Article: Gross, E.F. (2004) “Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report” Applied Developmental Psychology, Vol. 25 (Issue 6), P.633-649
My criticism of this would be the date that the data was gathered. In 2004, although only five years ago, personally my internet use was much different, perhaps because of my age but also because of the technology available. It is possible that now, after the use of social networking sites such as facebook and myspace has really taken off, and it has therefore become easier to connect with strangers, maybe the evolution of the technology has made it easier for teenagers to spend more of their time online. As a result it is possible that teenagers could become isolated from IRL friends and be more likely to have more online social interactions with strangers as it is more socially acceptable now.
Article: Gross, E.F. (2004) “Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report” Applied Developmental Psychology, Vol. 25 (Issue 6), P.633-649
W8. Task 6. Disagreements no. 3 Identity Experimentation
My criticism of this article is that it does not mention the wider implications of adolescents pretending to be someone else online; instead it focuses on the reasons in terms of identity formation. Whilst I would agree that creating an alter-ego for yourself online can help to facilitate social relationships, to overcome shyness and to see others reactions, if we are lied to online what does this mean for our trust levels in terms of our internet use? Will the amount of adolescents taking part in this type of identity exploration mean that no one is who they say they are online and lead to an even greater lack of trust in the Internet?
Therefore, the message of this article, that the Internet is the ideal place for identity play, to the extent of pretending to be someone completely different to who you actually are, not just in terms of personality (confident when you are really shy) but in terms of the fundamentals of who you are (man when you’re a woman, adult when you’re a child) is in contrast to ideas by Rheingold, that the internet is an ideal place for the exchange of opinions, ideas and support.
In this way the article paints a picture of the internet in a cyber-utopian manner, that there cannot possibly be any problem with identity experimentation if it helps adolescents discover “who they really are”, when this opinion lacks an acknowledgement of the problems which this could result in.
Article: Valkenburg P.M. et al. (2005) “Adolescents’ identity experiments on the internet” New Media & Society, Vol. 7 (Issue. 3) P383-402
Therefore, the message of this article, that the Internet is the ideal place for identity play, to the extent of pretending to be someone completely different to who you actually are, not just in terms of personality (confident when you are really shy) but in terms of the fundamentals of who you are (man when you’re a woman, adult when you’re a child) is in contrast to ideas by Rheingold, that the internet is an ideal place for the exchange of opinions, ideas and support.
In this way the article paints a picture of the internet in a cyber-utopian manner, that there cannot possibly be any problem with identity experimentation if it helps adolescents discover “who they really are”, when this opinion lacks an acknowledgement of the problems which this could result in.
Article: Valkenburg P.M. et al. (2005) “Adolescents’ identity experiments on the internet” New Media & Society, Vol. 7 (Issue. 3) P383-402
W8. Task 6. Disagreements no. 2 Youth blogging
A criticism I have of my second article is that lack of acknowledgement of the risks associated with online communities. The article seems to suggest that creating a blog and then creating a network of blogs with online peers to form a community is nothing but beneficial to the user, suggesting that it allows them to “foster peer group relationships.” However, there is little to no acknowledgement of the problems that this could create, such as the trust you put into others in the community.
The article uses the statistic that 92% of blog users provide a name on their blog and 54% of bloggers provide more detailed information about themselves such as age, occupation or geographical location on the home page of their blogs. (Herring et al., 2004a) exclusively as evidence for the argument that blogs create a sense of empowerment as you are revealing your thoughts and feelings without a mask. Nowhere is there any recognition of the problems that this could bring in terms of sharing very specific information about you with an infinite amount of people online and the trust that they are therefore placing in the hands of strangers.
Article Huffaker, D.A. and Calvert S.L. (2005) “Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 10 (Issue 2), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html [Accessed 11/03/09]
The article uses the statistic that 92% of blog users provide a name on their blog and 54% of bloggers provide more detailed information about themselves such as age, occupation or geographical location on the home page of their blogs. (Herring et al., 2004a) exclusively as evidence for the argument that blogs create a sense of empowerment as you are revealing your thoughts and feelings without a mask. Nowhere is there any recognition of the problems that this could bring in terms of sharing very specific information about you with an infinite amount of people online and the trust that they are therefore placing in the hands of strangers.
Article Huffaker, D.A. and Calvert S.L. (2005) “Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs” Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Vol. 10 (Issue 2), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol10/issue2/huffaker.html [Accessed 11/03/09]
W8. Task 6. Disagreements no. 1 Satisfaction and Internet Use
Whilst for the most part I agree with the points that are made in my first article, one criticism I would add is that I think it is based on the assumption that offline personality and online personality are one in the same. However, as suggested by the work of Sherry Turkle, this is not necessarily the case as online we feel safe to carry out “identity play” where we try out personalities online which are extremely removed to our offline selves. This may be because of the safety which comes from the perception that interactions we have online aren’t as “real” as the ones we have offline, as they aren’t as tangible as a face to face conversation would be.
In arguing for the hypothesis that those who use the internet more will demonstrate a greater degree of satisfaction with their school lives, it suggests that those who have an extroverted personality offline will bring this to their online selves. However, there is little recognition of theories such as Turkle’s that suggest that the Internet provides a safe forum on which people can try out different personalities in the process of identity formation for adolescents. I would argue that an alternative way of looking at it would be to suggest that those who use the Internet to create a second personality for themselves which is a stark contrast to their offline selves may very well experience less satisfaction with their offline school life, as they may feel that the persona and life they have created for themselves online is far superior and more rewarding, perhaps if they have built up a network of online friends. These obviously are not able to be transferred to the individual’s offline life, which may create dissatisfaction to the offline live, and a favouring of the online one. I would suggest that this is evidenced in the case of Stewart I mentioned in a past blog.
Article: Liu, X. and Robert, L. (2008) “Does using the internet make people more satisfied with their lives? The Effects of the Internet on College Students’ School Life Satisfaction” CyberPsychology & Behaviour, Vol. 11 (Issue 3), p310-320
In arguing for the hypothesis that those who use the internet more will demonstrate a greater degree of satisfaction with their school lives, it suggests that those who have an extroverted personality offline will bring this to their online selves. However, there is little recognition of theories such as Turkle’s that suggest that the Internet provides a safe forum on which people can try out different personalities in the process of identity formation for adolescents. I would argue that an alternative way of looking at it would be to suggest that those who use the Internet to create a second personality for themselves which is a stark contrast to their offline selves may very well experience less satisfaction with their offline school life, as they may feel that the persona and life they have created for themselves online is far superior and more rewarding, perhaps if they have built up a network of online friends. These obviously are not able to be transferred to the individual’s offline life, which may create dissatisfaction to the offline live, and a favouring of the online one. I would suggest that this is evidenced in the case of Stewart I mentioned in a past blog.
Article: Liu, X. and Robert, L. (2008) “Does using the internet make people more satisfied with their lives? The Effects of the Internet on College Students’ School Life Satisfaction” CyberPsychology & Behaviour, Vol. 11 (Issue 3), p310-320
Thursday, 12 March 2009
W8. Task 4. Criticism No. 5 Newspaper
As this particular article was placed in the entertainment section of the web site of a popular daily newspaper, entertainment values would therefore play a role in the way in which it is written. I believe this is evident in the way that it name drops more popular and everyday examples that the reader would be able to relate to, such as mentioning Big Brother, 24, and the England World Cup game.
Moreover, whole research papers and academic articles are summarized down to one or two sentences to represent the whole thing, so this implies to me that we are losing some of the finer detail, in favour of a reductionist statement. Whilst this may be easier for the typical reader of the newspaper to comprehend, it also inevitably means that some of the more complex arguments of the articles are omitted.
URL: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
Moreover, whole research papers and academic articles are summarized down to one or two sentences to represent the whole thing, so this implies to me that we are losing some of the finer detail, in favour of a reductionist statement. Whilst this may be easier for the typical reader of the newspaper to comprehend, it also inevitably means that some of the more complex arguments of the articles are omitted.
URL: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
W8. Task 3. Criticism No. 5 Newspaper (cont.)
Whilst in general the site does practice what it is preaching, it has an almost overwhelming amount of hyperlinks taking you to different places, not all of which are even vaguely related to the article. I believe that this represents the way in which our needs from the news are changing: a shift from picking up the newspaper and physically reading it, to a restructure of this format, getting all of our news online and tailoring it to our specific needs, interests and daily routine. Sharing is also encouraged with the ability to bookmark and share on other networking sites. In this way it does practice what it preaches for the digital natives.
However, for the digital immigrants I would think that perhaps it is a bit too over complicated. Initially it seems quite complicated and difficult to use, in that the actual article is surrounded by advertisements, as well as hundreds of other hyperlinks which are organized quite sporadically. In this way it is itself a representation of the different ways in which digital immigrants and digital natives take in information and changes in the way information is presented as a result of this. Whilst a native might read it for a bit, and then move on to a different hyperlink, taking in information quickly until something else which took their interest came along, an immigrant might want to read it through in its entirely, read through all the hyperlinks, and then decide where they want to head off next.
URL: 5. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
However, for the digital immigrants I would think that perhaps it is a bit too over complicated. Initially it seems quite complicated and difficult to use, in that the actual article is surrounded by advertisements, as well as hundreds of other hyperlinks which are organized quite sporadically. In this way it is itself a representation of the different ways in which digital immigrants and digital natives take in information and changes in the way information is presented as a result of this. Whilst a native might read it for a bit, and then move on to a different hyperlink, taking in information quickly until something else which took their interest came along, an immigrant might want to read it through in its entirely, read through all the hyperlinks, and then decide where they want to head off next.
URL: 5. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article683193.ece
W8. Task 3. Criticism No. 4 Wiki
The next web site I am looking at is a wiki abut the concept of digital natives. In this way, it most certainly practices what it preaches in that wikis are a prime example of the way in which digital natives use the internet, allowing them to take part in prod usage, sharing information collaboratively and allowing anyone to edit or develop it without expecting money or any other payment in return.
To me this seems like the perfect way to discuss digital natives and the ways in which the new generation are making use of digital technology in order to communicate, as it is speaking in the same language as it were as the digital natives. In addition, as you can share the pages and sync them with your other networking sites, facebook, Wikipedia twitter etc. and take part in discussion, it seems like by adopting the practices of digital natives, digital immigrants hope to better understand them.
However, one irony is that the site claims to be for teachers and members of the older generation to get together and share ideas about different ways to teach and communicate with the generation of digital natives. This seems ironic in that digital immigrants probably would not initially think of sharing information in this way, perhaps they would prefer to gather information from a book, a reliable source they can trust, rather than anyone who decides to add their two cents to the wiki page. In this way would they really be willing to contribute to a wiki on the subject? From the amount of content there is on the site, and from the fact that it seems as if the majority of the hyperlinks are external rather than internal, it seems not.
URL: http://www.digitalnative.org/wiki/Main_Page
To me this seems like the perfect way to discuss digital natives and the ways in which the new generation are making use of digital technology in order to communicate, as it is speaking in the same language as it were as the digital natives. In addition, as you can share the pages and sync them with your other networking sites, facebook, Wikipedia twitter etc. and take part in discussion, it seems like by adopting the practices of digital natives, digital immigrants hope to better understand them.
However, one irony is that the site claims to be for teachers and members of the older generation to get together and share ideas about different ways to teach and communicate with the generation of digital natives. This seems ironic in that digital immigrants probably would not initially think of sharing information in this way, perhaps they would prefer to gather information from a book, a reliable source they can trust, rather than anyone who decides to add their two cents to the wiki page. In this way would they really be willing to contribute to a wiki on the subject? From the amount of content there is on the site, and from the fact that it seems as if the majority of the hyperlinks are external rather than internal, it seems not.
URL: http://www.digitalnative.org/wiki/Main_Page
W8. Task 3. Criticism No. 3 Speech
As my third web-site is a corporate site, it’s main priority is with giving information and of course I would expect it to have a bias towards the company it represents, and I would not expect it to mention anything negative about this company.
The particular page I am looking at is a transcript of a speech on the topic of what the immergence of the digital native generation means for the newspaper industry. One of the main criticisms I have for the page is the lack of hyperlinks and the formality of it. This is in strike contrast to the web site number 3 I have described in a previous blog, in that there is hardly any hypertextuality at all. For me this means that rather than being directed to something else more relevant, or to something else I am interested in, there is a very low degree of interactivity, put simply you are on your own!
I would consider this very surprising as the company itself I have the impression of being extremely forward thinking and to be the first to encourage more interactivity, this is certainly the impression I get from the speech as it implies that all journalists should jump on the online bandwagon in order to make profits from this new generation.
URL: http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
The particular page I am looking at is a transcript of a speech on the topic of what the immergence of the digital native generation means for the newspaper industry. One of the main criticisms I have for the page is the lack of hyperlinks and the formality of it. This is in strike contrast to the web site number 3 I have described in a previous blog, in that there is hardly any hypertextuality at all. For me this means that rather than being directed to something else more relevant, or to something else I am interested in, there is a very low degree of interactivity, put simply you are on your own!
I would consider this very surprising as the company itself I have the impression of being extremely forward thinking and to be the first to encourage more interactivity, this is certainly the impression I get from the speech as it implies that all journalists should jump on the online bandwagon in order to make profits from this new generation.
URL: http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
W8. Task 3. Criticism No. 3. Speech (cont.)
Moreover, the speech was written in 2005, although this was only 4 years ago, given the rapidly increasing pace of the development of technology, 4 years can mean a lot of change in this field, and the statistics he refers to may no longer be the case, Perhaps the trends described have lost momentum, or have taken a completely different direction by now.
In sum, the way message of the speech and the way in which it is presented seem to juxtapose to one another to create an extremely contradictory message. One the one hand the speech suggests repacking and rebranding of information, with humour and gossip, to make it more digestible by the digital native generation. On the other is an extremely basic web site, which seems to have no much of message to put across other than the surface text.
URL: http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
In sum, the way message of the speech and the way in which it is presented seem to juxtapose to one another to create an extremely contradictory message. One the one hand the speech suggests repacking and rebranding of information, with humour and gossip, to make it more digestible by the digital native generation. On the other is an extremely basic web site, which seems to have no much of message to put across other than the surface text.
URL: http://www.newscorp.com/news/news_247.html
W8. Task 3. Criticism No. 2 Teaching Digital Natives
Here the author describes the problems faced as a result of teachers who are digital immigrants using the types of teaching methods they were taught by in order to teach digital natives. He argues that as a result of this shift digital natives learn in a different way to the previous generation, so teaching methods equally need to change.
My problem with this is that the suggestions the author makes are inevitably flawed in that he himself is a digital immigrant. It is all very well suggesting that digital natives will learn more effectively if they are taught by a video game, and this seems to go with the logic he is describing, but does this necessarily mean that we ought to be using this method to teach spelling, geography, or chemistry? I am tempted to think not, in that school is an environment which lends itself to learning and education, having a teacher stand at the front of the classroom is something I associate with learning, and taking in information. On the other hand, sitting on the Internet is something I associate with my free time, and socializing ahead of taking in facts. I think a clear distinction and set of cultural practices are needed for both in order to prevent learning becoming trivialized.
And in this case, surely to put across his argument in a format which is more relevant to the digital natives, his article should have instead been represented through a “shoot ‘em up” style video game rather than an uninspiring black text on white background with no images?
URL: http://www.ascd.org/authors/ed_lead/el200512_prensky.html
My problem with this is that the suggestions the author makes are inevitably flawed in that he himself is a digital immigrant. It is all very well suggesting that digital natives will learn more effectively if they are taught by a video game, and this seems to go with the logic he is describing, but does this necessarily mean that we ought to be using this method to teach spelling, geography, or chemistry? I am tempted to think not, in that school is an environment which lends itself to learning and education, having a teacher stand at the front of the classroom is something I associate with learning, and taking in information. On the other hand, sitting on the Internet is something I associate with my free time, and socializing ahead of taking in facts. I think a clear distinction and set of cultural practices are needed for both in order to prevent learning becoming trivialized.
And in this case, surely to put across his argument in a format which is more relevant to the digital natives, his article should have instead been represented through a “shoot ‘em up” style video game rather than an uninspiring black text on white background with no images?
URL: http://www.ascd.org/authors/ed_lead/el200512_prensky.html
W8. Task 3. Criticisim No. 1 Book excerpt
This particular web-site is concerned with a book about the subject of digital natives. In order to sell the product they have published a lengthy excerpt of the book on the web-site promoting it.
In terms of up-to-dateness, as the book was published in August of 2008, and having read the excerpt, for the most part the information is up to date and extremely relevant, which I see as a strength given the rapid development of the technology it mentions. Of course, it shouldn’t be very long before even this is out of date and not reflective of the way in which the digital natives use technology.
A criticism I would make of the web-site is the irony in that the excerpt describes the way in which digital natives are able to share information digitally, by posting it to a blog, sharing a URL, e-mailing an online recommendation. However, no where on the site does it enable any of these things to happen. I would have expected a hyperlink, such as in the image I have posted, to share it via facebook, twitter, delicious, myspace or any of the other ways to bookmark or recommend it embedded into the site in order to take advantage of hypertextuality which is a fundamental part of the digital natives understanding of new technologies. However, here it seems that the reader will have to externally log into any of these sites
to be able to tell their friends about it, which to me seems ironic for a book which describes the different, new ways in which the digital natives can easily share information and how important this is. Maybe this was overlooked by the digital immigrants who produced the information!
URL: http://www.borndigitalbook.com/excerpt.php
In terms of up-to-dateness, as the book was published in August of 2008, and having read the excerpt, for the most part the information is up to date and extremely relevant, which I see as a strength given the rapid development of the technology it mentions. Of course, it shouldn’t be very long before even this is out of date and not reflective of the way in which the digital natives use technology.
A criticism I would make of the web-site is the irony in that the excerpt describes the way in which digital natives are able to share information digitally, by posting it to a blog, sharing a URL, e-mailing an online recommendation. However, no where on the site does it enable any of these things to happen. I would have expected a hyperlink, such as in the image I have posted, to share it via facebook, twitter, delicious, myspace or any of the other ways to bookmark or recommend it embedded into the site in order to take advantage of hypertextuality which is a fundamental part of the digital natives understanding of new technologies. However, here it seems that the reader will have to externally log into any of these sites
to be able to tell their friends about it, which to me seems ironic for a book which describes the different, new ways in which the digital natives can easily share information and how important this is. Maybe this was overlooked by the digital immigrants who produced the information!URL: http://www.borndigitalbook.com/excerpt.php
Thursday, 5 March 2009
Week 7- The World’s Cleverest Child and Me
I think an interesting example of distance learning comes from a documentary on Channel 4 called The World’s Cleverest Child and Me (Broadcast 28/01/09). A youtube link is here.
Adora, one of the children mentioned on the programme, follows an online curriculum, I am assuming because she would be too advanced to be in a school with others her age. It therefore provides her with the opportunity to learn at a more appropriate pace for her intelligence. In this way, the dispersal of the concept of education through the Internet allows her to access the materials she needs to learn as much as she can through virtuality, as she is able to be physically in one place but remotely accessing information from another which I see as a large benefit of eLearning.
I believe that this is achieved through gift economy, in that lots of the information online is published without expecting anything in return, and I also suspect that removing her from school and learning exclusively online would mean that she doesn’t have to cope with some of the difficulties which she may face in a traditional school environment, for example feeling like she’s different to everyone else and possibly being bullied. Something which she mentions in the clip, although claiming that she likes being different.
In this way it seems as if online learning works in her favour, in that she is able to get the education she would lack if she were to be placed in the traditional schooling system. However, I would dispute this cyber-utopian view if eLearning as being removed from school might also come with it’s own set of problems, as school is where we learn a great deal about ourselves, and functions to shape who we become as adults, but removing this her family and the Internet are the only way she has to learn about the outside world. Which I would argue does not result in a healthy mental development in terms of social skills.
Adora, one of the children mentioned on the programme, follows an online curriculum, I am assuming because she would be too advanced to be in a school with others her age. It therefore provides her with the opportunity to learn at a more appropriate pace for her intelligence. In this way, the dispersal of the concept of education through the Internet allows her to access the materials she needs to learn as much as she can through virtuality, as she is able to be physically in one place but remotely accessing information from another which I see as a large benefit of eLearning.
I believe that this is achieved through gift economy, in that lots of the information online is published without expecting anything in return, and I also suspect that removing her from school and learning exclusively online would mean that she doesn’t have to cope with some of the difficulties which she may face in a traditional school environment, for example feeling like she’s different to everyone else and possibly being bullied. Something which she mentions in the clip, although claiming that she likes being different.
In this way it seems as if online learning works in her favour, in that she is able to get the education she would lack if she were to be placed in the traditional schooling system. However, I would dispute this cyber-utopian view if eLearning as being removed from school might also come with it’s own set of problems, as school is where we learn a great deal about ourselves, and functions to shape who we become as adults, but removing this her family and the Internet are the only way she has to learn about the outside world. Which I would argue does not result in a healthy mental development in terms of social skills.
Week 7- The World’s Cleverest Child and Me Cont.
In addition, Adora also teaches online lessons to schools in America about writing poetry. In this way she is able to share her knowledge and teach children in a way which they might be able to understand better as it comes from one of their peers. However, I would argue for a more cyber-distopian view of this as much of the motives behind charging for these online lessons are monetary rather than being for the joy of passing on knowledge, working off the gimmick that she is a children genius and it merely being used as a way to make her family more money.
Whilst it does mean that she’s able to teach a larger amount of people, and those who she wouldn’t be able to reach in person through virtuality, I also think that the fact that the Adora “brand” is represented through her web-site, which she coincidentally sells her book via, suggests to me that her parents are almost “cashing in” on her intelligence and the online tutorials she does (from her basement come T.V. studio) are being used to make a profit from her behind the guise of distance learning, the emphasis being on money rather than sharing knowledge with those who wouldn’t be able to have the same opportunities because of location.
Whilst it does mean that she’s able to teach a larger amount of people, and those who she wouldn’t be able to reach in person through virtuality, I also think that the fact that the Adora “brand” is represented through her web-site, which she coincidentally sells her book via, suggests to me that her parents are almost “cashing in” on her intelligence and the online tutorials she does (from her basement come T.V. studio) are being used to make a profit from her behind the guise of distance learning, the emphasis being on money rather than sharing knowledge with those who wouldn’t be able to have the same opportunities because of location.
Week 7- eLearning Africa
From looking at the eLearning Africa web-site it seems that one of the main issues affecting distance learning is problems with the technology “going down”. This is discussed in an interview with the CEO of Fronter, the company which provides the technology for the eLearning programme found here.
If the technology were to be unreliable, and not work effectively, obviously the project would not work, in that students would not be able to effectively get an education. One way in which this is prevented is by providing tools which, although they are taken from schemes in Europe, they have been thoroughly researched to be adapted to be useful for the African ways of learning. In addition, back ups are provided so that students are able to have offline materials they can access when they aren’t able to have access to the Internet for one reason or another.
I personally get the impression that the project has been thoroughly researched in order to allow people with a range of different situations to get the most out of the technology through cultural democratisation. For example, solving the problem of a lack of teachers by taking successful training from other countries and applying it to the situation in Africa, therefore meaning that the chances of the students getting an education are drastically increased, as well as an education which is relevant to their individual situation and needs which they would not be able to receive in such a high quality if it weren’t for online methods. Students are also able to actively participate in discussion of their education so Steve Jones concept of a cybersociety, where people are able to share thought and information instantaneously across vast distances, has here resulted in the technodeterminist, cyber-utopian view that people will get a better education as a result.
http://www.elearning-africa.com/newsportal/english/index.php [Accessed 05/03/09]
If the technology were to be unreliable, and not work effectively, obviously the project would not work, in that students would not be able to effectively get an education. One way in which this is prevented is by providing tools which, although they are taken from schemes in Europe, they have been thoroughly researched to be adapted to be useful for the African ways of learning. In addition, back ups are provided so that students are able to have offline materials they can access when they aren’t able to have access to the Internet for one reason or another.
I personally get the impression that the project has been thoroughly researched in order to allow people with a range of different situations to get the most out of the technology through cultural democratisation. For example, solving the problem of a lack of teachers by taking successful training from other countries and applying it to the situation in Africa, therefore meaning that the chances of the students getting an education are drastically increased, as well as an education which is relevant to their individual situation and needs which they would not be able to receive in such a high quality if it weren’t for online methods. Students are also able to actively participate in discussion of their education so Steve Jones concept of a cybersociety, where people are able to share thought and information instantaneously across vast distances, has here resulted in the technodeterminist, cyber-utopian view that people will get a better education as a result.
http://www.elearning-africa.com/newsportal/english/index.php [Accessed 05/03/09]
Week 7- China: Its Distance Higher-Education System by Zhao Yuhui
One issue which struck me when reading this article was the selection of the presenters who are used to televise lectures over China. The article reads:
Whilst a solid academic background it can be assumed will mean that the presenter has a sound knowledge of their topic, and “knows their stuff”, as it were, does this necessarily justify the numbers of students to whom the lectures are transmitted to given the lack of interactivity, students aren't really able to engage more powerfully with the information which is being presented to them.
I would suggest that although there are opportunities for teachers and students to meet face to face, to ask questions and to have homework marked, in this case as there is a lack of people who are able to actually teach, and there seemed to be a rush to educate people in order to have a thriving economy, using TVU seemed like a perfect way to solve this problem in a temporary way until more individuals who were able to teach others came out the other side of the system.
Whilst I do not personally think that having one person teach masses of people is at all ideal, in the way in which ideologies are encouraged through institutions, the way in which China had dealt with it, for example by providing that face-to-face tuition that the televised lectures lacked, overcome many of the instant problems of it, and therefore allowed education to continue, in circumstances where is possibly would have not.
Zhao Yuhui, China: Its Distance Higher-Education System, http://www1.worldbank.org/disted/Technology/broadcast/tv-02.html [Accessed 05/03/09]
“Presenters are chosen from key universities all over China. In its initial, it is necessary for TVUs to adopt textbooks used in conventional universities and to choose academics with a sound university teaching back-ground as presenters, so that a high standard of tuition can be guaranteed. These two measures have proved to be effective.”
Whilst a solid academic background it can be assumed will mean that the presenter has a sound knowledge of their topic, and “knows their stuff”, as it were, does this necessarily justify the numbers of students to whom the lectures are transmitted to given the lack of interactivity, students aren't really able to engage more powerfully with the information which is being presented to them.
I would suggest that although there are opportunities for teachers and students to meet face to face, to ask questions and to have homework marked, in this case as there is a lack of people who are able to actually teach, and there seemed to be a rush to educate people in order to have a thriving economy, using TVU seemed like a perfect way to solve this problem in a temporary way until more individuals who were able to teach others came out the other side of the system.
Whilst I do not personally think that having one person teach masses of people is at all ideal, in the way in which ideologies are encouraged through institutions, the way in which China had dealt with it, for example by providing that face-to-face tuition that the televised lectures lacked, overcome many of the instant problems of it, and therefore allowed education to continue, in circumstances where is possibly would have not.
Zhao Yuhui, China: Its Distance Higher-Education System, http://www1.worldbank.org/disted/Technology/broadcast/tv-02.html [Accessed 05/03/09]
Friday, 27 February 2009
Web-site Analysis, asos.com
I have chosen to do an analysis of a fashion retail web-site, asos.com
Given the capitalist priority of the site, I would imagine that lots of money and time has been invested into the structure of the site in order to maximize that amount that potential customers would buy on the site and to increase the chances of them doing so. The web-site is therefore a remediation of the more traditional way of buying clothes, which has been renewed from initially simply one shot of the item with a price, to now a much more sophisticated way of displaying the product with multiple shots and other more interactive features such as 360 degree views of some items. For example, the cat walk feature where you can see the item on a model on the cat walk, a zooming in feature to look closer at the garment, and a range of different shots of the items. Therefore, showing that more sophisticated methods are being used to re package the same information in a way which will increase the chances of you buying it.
It is divided off into at first broadly, men’s, women’s, children’s, designer, and then more specifically, down to the type of clothing, and then it is possible to filter by colour, style, price, brand, celebritiy it’s in the style of, or brand. You can also order the clothes by price, therefore providing a greater sense of interactivity on the site, as it is non-linear as you can interupt the section you're looking at to browse another and tailor the structure of the site to suit your specific requirements. I would argue for a techno-deterministic of such new media cultures in that this is making the online shopping experience resemble the IRL shopping experience a lot more, removing some of the early "cons" of this type of shopping (that you don't really know what you're getting), therefore allowing the outside world to come to you, saving you time and effort, which has changed the way in which we look at shopping. For instance, I'll often see a item in a shop and mull it over for a few days, before deciding to buy it from the companies web-site.
The hypertext of this web-site therefore is prioritised with directing me to other items I’m likely to be interested in. For example, when you click on an item you like there is a section of “Other Customers also Brought” directing me to complimentary items. In this way, rather than the hypertext being used in order to help me find new fashion items which would help me express myself in what I wear, I would argue that the purpose of such hypertext is to simply cause me to spend as much money on this web-site as possible. In addition, I am able to “Bookmark and share” the item with friends, which again implies to me that it is being made as simple as possible for me to buy this item, as well as encourage my friends to view it, and as a result the web-site as a whole and buy something. There is therefore a hierarchy of hypertexts, which the author of the web-site directs me to as they sees fit, in a way which maximises their profits. (Bolter p. 35)
Interestingly, the web-site does not use hypertext in a way which will direct me to other fashion retailers who will sell clothes which are able to help me express myself; all the links are internal rather than external. (Lister P. 23) This again suggests to me that the priority is on profit, and this is done by selling a concept alongside with the clothes, which I will discus more in the next section.
b.) What is it about on a cultural level?
On a cultural level I think that this web-site is concerned with the fashion conscious. I think it promotes the ideology that you are able to express who you really are and your personality through your clothing. For example, the features section includes a Top 10 of the newest up and coming trends, a phrase which is a bit of a buzz word on the site. Everything is either “in” or “out” or the “latest trend”. For example, “I’m working the colour block trend to the max by wearing these over coloured tights.” Asos Top 10
In addition, I think another main cultural message of the web-site is rather contradictory to the first, whilst it seems as if individuality through your clothing is encouraged, the title itself (ASOS, As Seen On Stars) suggests an aspirational message. You are encouraged to buy clothes in the style of Victoria Beckham or Agyness Deyn in order to replicate their styles for yourself, selling the types of lifestyles associated with these celebrities along side a handbag or a pair of shoes, hardly the definition of individualism and creating a sense of self. I would argue that this is part of the way in which the Internet is encouraging the Massclusivity trend in that it allows you to feel as if you are part of the exclusivity of this celebrity culture, however in fact this same opportunity is offered to the masses on a web-site everyone can use. Raising the question of whether people are buying into a lie, these clothes really won't make you anything like the celebrities that originally wear them, so why do so many people buy and wear them?
Having said this, I think that this similarly can be seen as being part of the way in which you can try out different selves online, as mentioned by Lister et al. in reference to Sherry Turkle. They talk about the “computer programming’s potential as a therapeutic ‘working through’ of personal concerns, we see instead an ‘identity workshop’.” (Lister et al. p. 248) I think that this can be applied to ASOS.com in that you are able to look at a range of different identities you can create for yourself via the clothes you wear, seeing what is out there, allowing you to make an informed decision about the perception of yourself you can put out buy wearing a particular style of clothing. Therefore allowing you to experiment in a safer environment, for instance if you did not have the confidence to walk into a shop and try on similar items, you are able to virtually do it sitting in front of your computer.
c.) What is the appeal for you as a user?
As a user the appeal of asos.com for me is straight forward, they offer a wide range of fashionable clothes which are usually reasonably priced, and saves me the trouble of marching around the shops.
In addition, the fact that they replicate styles which are seen on celebrities, and are popular amongst the high-priced designers means that you’re able to buy into more fashionable items, which usually you would need to have an extremely large bank balance to get a hold of and are rarely available on the high street.
I think that asos.com is part of the movement which is making fashion more attainable for all, as well as using the web as a tool in which to do this, breaking down the things which would have before made designer clothing exclusively for those who could afford it. In this way it is giving out the message that the images you see in magazines of celebrities dressed well and looking fabulous are achievable for everyone, providing a link between this life style and yourself via online mediums. Something which the internet is proving to achieve in lots of other areas than fashion.
Bolter D. (2001) Writing Space: Computers, Hypertext, and the Remediation of Print
Trendwatching.com http://www.trendwatching.com/trends/MASSCLUSIVITY.htm
6.1 Communities of Practice
6.1 Think of a CofP to which you belong (or have belonged) explain in your seminar forum how your example fits into Wenger's model:
One Community of Practice which I believed I was a member of was whilst I was working as a receptionist for a company called Codian based in Langely which made video conferencing software.
This company was divided into different sections based on function, however also being a fairly modern company you were encouraged to feel like a valued member of the team through various social functions and a “common room” with a pool table and a Wii in allowed people to socialize more freely.
The CofP I believe I was a member of involved me as the receptionist, the Office Manager Emma, the ex-receptionist who’d got a promotion, Anita and Jake, I’m not quite sure how he came to fit into it, possibly because he worked in accounts and his desk was next to Emma and Anita’s…
A reason that I believe it was a CofP is that as Jake wasn’t really involved by his official job description, he was still undoubtedly a member. This therefore follows that “The membership involves whoever participates in and contributes to the practice.” (p. 4, Wenger). Also, it was “defined by knowledge rather than by task” (p. 4, Wenger) in that rather us working together on one task only, it would be more ongoing and we would gain knowledge about each other and the different ways in which we’d go about getting things done.
The joint enterprise of the CofP I believe was organizing the smooth running of the office on a daily basis. For example, we tended to do tasks together, like collecting the food delivery on a Thursday morning and office related other tasks of a similar nature.
We had mutual engagement in that we were all responsible for the same thing, and if something were to have gone wrong we would be jointly responsible (excluding Jake as he tended to help out off his own back, his official role being in accounts).
The shared repertoire of communal resources would have been the things we tended to do, almost unwritten rules of how we “did things”. For example, we would normally help ourselves to left over food we’d order in for conferences, and we’d usually have a game of Mario Kart on the Wii after a particularly taxing task.
I would suggest that our relationship to the official organisation was “Unrecognised” in that we did not have an official role, rather relationships were created as I would spend lots of time with Anita, in that she helped me take over from her and knew a lot about my job, and Emma was my superior. Jake had a good relationship with both Emma and Anita and this is how we came to work together for a lot of tasks. I think a challenge of this type of relationship was that as we all had different official responsibilities, sometimes there would be a mis-match between tasks which “officially” were our responsibility, and those we would do together. Therefore we’d have to individually prioritise and this could mean that sometimes tasks which were part of our job description had to be pushed back.
One Community of Practice which I believed I was a member of was whilst I was working as a receptionist for a company called Codian based in Langely which made video conferencing software.
This company was divided into different sections based on function, however also being a fairly modern company you were encouraged to feel like a valued member of the team through various social functions and a “common room” with a pool table and a Wii in allowed people to socialize more freely.
The CofP I believe I was a member of involved me as the receptionist, the Office Manager Emma, the ex-receptionist who’d got a promotion, Anita and Jake, I’m not quite sure how he came to fit into it, possibly because he worked in accounts and his desk was next to Emma and Anita’s…
A reason that I believe it was a CofP is that as Jake wasn’t really involved by his official job description, he was still undoubtedly a member. This therefore follows that “The membership involves whoever participates in and contributes to the practice.” (p. 4, Wenger). Also, it was “defined by knowledge rather than by task” (p. 4, Wenger) in that rather us working together on one task only, it would be more ongoing and we would gain knowledge about each other and the different ways in which we’d go about getting things done.
The joint enterprise of the CofP I believe was organizing the smooth running of the office on a daily basis. For example, we tended to do tasks together, like collecting the food delivery on a Thursday morning and office related other tasks of a similar nature.
We had mutual engagement in that we were all responsible for the same thing, and if something were to have gone wrong we would be jointly responsible (excluding Jake as he tended to help out off his own back, his official role being in accounts).
The shared repertoire of communal resources would have been the things we tended to do, almost unwritten rules of how we “did things”. For example, we would normally help ourselves to left over food we’d order in for conferences, and we’d usually have a game of Mario Kart on the Wii after a particularly taxing task.
I would suggest that our relationship to the official organisation was “Unrecognised” in that we did not have an official role, rather relationships were created as I would spend lots of time with Anita, in that she helped me take over from her and knew a lot about my job, and Emma was my superior. Jake had a good relationship with both Emma and Anita and this is how we came to work together for a lot of tasks. I think a challenge of this type of relationship was that as we all had different official responsibilities, sometimes there would be a mis-match between tasks which “officially” were our responsibility, and those we would do together. Therefore we’d have to individually prioritise and this could mean that sometimes tasks which were part of our job description had to be pushed back.
Friday, 20 February 2009
5.3 Jezebel
5.3 Find some well read blogs outside of the New Media Cultures community that impress you and analyse how the author respondents use the blog as a forum to represent themselves and share ideas.
One blog I have recently stumbled upon is Jezebel. This blog is targeted at women and the tag line reads “Jezebel: Celebrity, Sex, Fashion for Women”. It very much reminds me of a magazine in the type of stories it blogs about and the informal tone it uses which I would say appeals to women, giving the impression that it is fun and light hearted.
One thing which I think is particularly interesting about this blog is that it has a regular post called “Reader Roundup” where there is a summary of the best and worst comments made on the blog of that day. This sort of acts as a way by which appropriate and inappropriate comments are deemed, and therefore gives a good indication of the “way things are done” in this blog.
Whilst I think that lots of the comments can be a bit bitchy on this blog, lots of the stories also have the same bitchy tone, for example, “Kate Bosworth Is Happy To Be Attacked By Appliqué" and "We're Just Not That Into This Month's Marie Claire". To me it seems as if that in order to be fit in with this blog you have to have strong opinions and not be afraid to tell people about them, especially when it comes to fashion and beauty. People tend to present themselves as having strong opinions, which I think often boarders on bitchy and often disagreements often immerge.
One blog I have recently stumbled upon is Jezebel. This blog is targeted at women and the tag line reads “Jezebel: Celebrity, Sex, Fashion for Women”. It very much reminds me of a magazine in the type of stories it blogs about and the informal tone it uses which I would say appeals to women, giving the impression that it is fun and light hearted.
One thing which I think is particularly interesting about this blog is that it has a regular post called “Reader Roundup” where there is a summary of the best and worst comments made on the blog of that day. This sort of acts as a way by which appropriate and inappropriate comments are deemed, and therefore gives a good indication of the “way things are done” in this blog.
Whilst I think that lots of the comments can be a bit bitchy on this blog, lots of the stories also have the same bitchy tone, for example, “Kate Bosworth Is Happy To Be Attacked By Appliqué" and "We're Just Not That Into This Month's Marie Claire". To me it seems as if that in order to be fit in with this blog you have to have strong opinions and not be afraid to tell people about them, especially when it comes to fashion and beauty. People tend to present themselves as having strong opinions, which I think often boarders on bitchy and often disagreements often immerge.
5.2 Girl With A One Track Mind
5.2 Do some online research into blogs as a new media genre: their origins, development etc. and share your findings in your entries. What forms of expression are they really good for?
A quick google of popular blogs quickly led me to the “Bloggies”, annual awards given out to popular blogs. From here one blog which particularly grabbed my attention was “Girl With a One Track Mind” , which won the award of Best British or Irish Web Blog in 2006 and 2007.
This blog originally was used by author Zie Margolis to discuss the ins and outs of her sex life, often in graphic detail. In her biography she says she wrote the blog because “A sexist double-standard about male vs. female sexuality still exists, and which chastises women if they express sexual wants and needs; I hoped my blog would provide a counter-balance to this old-fashioned attitude.” The blog was intensely popular, with 6 million visitors over the last four and a half years and averaging 150,000 a month.
I would argue that using a blog in order to update this old-fashioned view was incredibly effective, in that the sheer volume of views she had led people to see that female attitudes towards sex were vastly different to how everyone had assumed they were. And Zoe’s blog provided an outlet for this new more empowered attitude to become more mainstream, and for other women to not feel like they should be ashamed for sharing attitudes which would usually be considered to be more masculine with men when it comes to sex.
Other mediums would be extremely difficult to put this view across, as the anonymity of the Internet is what made Zoe feel like she were able to share these feelings online, and the anonymity meant that people were less afraid to admit they agreed with her. Zoe went to great lengths to ensure that no one would find out her identity, and although in the end she was “outed”, I cannot think of other mediums which would have allowed her to continue to share these stories for so long and in such an honest and open manner.
A quick google of popular blogs quickly led me to the “Bloggies”, annual awards given out to popular blogs. From here one blog which particularly grabbed my attention was “Girl With a One Track Mind” , which won the award of Best British or Irish Web Blog in 2006 and 2007.
This blog originally was used by author Zie Margolis to discuss the ins and outs of her sex life, often in graphic detail. In her biography she says she wrote the blog because “A sexist double-standard about male vs. female sexuality still exists, and which chastises women if they express sexual wants and needs; I hoped my blog would provide a counter-balance to this old-fashioned attitude.” The blog was intensely popular, with 6 million visitors over the last four and a half years and averaging 150,000 a month.
I would argue that using a blog in order to update this old-fashioned view was incredibly effective, in that the sheer volume of views she had led people to see that female attitudes towards sex were vastly different to how everyone had assumed they were. And Zoe’s blog provided an outlet for this new more empowered attitude to become more mainstream, and for other women to not feel like they should be ashamed for sharing attitudes which would usually be considered to be more masculine with men when it comes to sex.
Other mediums would be extremely difficult to put this view across, as the anonymity of the Internet is what made Zoe feel like she were able to share these feelings online, and the anonymity meant that people were less afraid to admit they agreed with her. Zoe went to great lengths to ensure that no one would find out her identity, and although in the end she was “outed”, I cannot think of other mediums which would have allowed her to continue to share these stories for so long and in such an honest and open manner.
Moderation
When collaborative sites have moderation functions to prevent a ‘free for all’, does this defeat the purpose?
There are obviously pros and cons to moderation. In my opinion, I would say that although it can be seen to be limit how “free” the Internet and produser content can be, it is a necessary evil. If it weren’t for moderation many of the evils which have arisen on the Internet would go un-noticed, such as hacking, flaming or spam.
Whilst on the one hand it can be seen to limit the extent to which the Internet allows us to execute our right to free speech, one of the key advantages of the Internet, as well as being viewed as a way by which certain opinions and content which is deemed by one individual as inappropriate is not made free and open to the masses, a very subjective view point.
However, if looking at moderation based on the assumption that the moderator is able to decide precisely what is appropriate for all, which of course he/she is not, it serves an important function in protecting individuals from offensive or distasteful content. An example of this would be when flaming or spam starts in a produser content for example a forums. The moderator I would assume, as they are often selected as they have a thorough knowledge of how the particular forum or whatever the case may be, operates and the type of content which would be suitable, is able to judge whether the majority of the users would find the content of any value.
Although to some extent this of course defeats the purpose of collaborative sites, in that content is being mediated by the moderator and therefore selectivity is an issue, it is a necessary evil in order to protect users of any harmful content, and as far as I can see there isn’t a more logical alternative.
There are obviously pros and cons to moderation. In my opinion, I would say that although it can be seen to be limit how “free” the Internet and produser content can be, it is a necessary evil. If it weren’t for moderation many of the evils which have arisen on the Internet would go un-noticed, such as hacking, flaming or spam.
Whilst on the one hand it can be seen to limit the extent to which the Internet allows us to execute our right to free speech, one of the key advantages of the Internet, as well as being viewed as a way by which certain opinions and content which is deemed by one individual as inappropriate is not made free and open to the masses, a very subjective view point.
However, if looking at moderation based on the assumption that the moderator is able to decide precisely what is appropriate for all, which of course he/she is not, it serves an important function in protecting individuals from offensive or distasteful content. An example of this would be when flaming or spam starts in a produser content for example a forums. The moderator I would assume, as they are often selected as they have a thorough knowledge of how the particular forum or whatever the case may be, operates and the type of content which would be suitable, is able to judge whether the majority of the users would find the content of any value.
Although to some extent this of course defeats the purpose of collaborative sites, in that content is being mediated by the moderator and therefore selectivity is an issue, it is a necessary evil in order to protect users of any harmful content, and as far as I can see there isn’t a more logical alternative.
DIY News
Are those who want to make DIY news online, best thought of as part of an alternative culture (that also exists offline) or is it more diverse than that? Think of examples beyond Indymedia.
I think that DIY news is an interesting concept, in that it is left for what would previously be considered the reader to now create the news, or fill the void on their own terms. I think this links back to the concept of the ‘produser’ as the notion of “news” is now what one wants to make it, rather than what happens to be shown on the 10 o’clock news. In this way, news can be tailored to suit the individual’s needs to a greater extent in that I can exclusively read about “news” which I would consider to be most relevant to me and my personal tastes and interests.
For example, if I had more interest in news exclusively about technology, I am able to filter this news out of all of the events which have recently occurred. An example of this for me would be that as I have an interest in graphic design, I can keep up to date with trends and techniques in this field by using the website http://psd.tutsplus.com/ I agree that in this way myself and other members of my generation are able to create our own media networks in order to fulfill the needs of our DIY news.
I think this again links back to the idea that via the Internet we are able to reduce the “only gay in the village” syndrome, as for me certainly, as I know very few people with an interest in this field IRL, I am able to view this web-site and see others who are equally as interested in it, leading to less of a feeling of being isolated in my liking for this topic. In this way I believe that creating DIY news online is part of an alternative culture, as it is more niche than the tastes of the mass culture, and the ideologies that go along with it are more fitting to your own beliefs.
I think that DIY news is an interesting concept, in that it is left for what would previously be considered the reader to now create the news, or fill the void on their own terms. I think this links back to the concept of the ‘produser’ as the notion of “news” is now what one wants to make it, rather than what happens to be shown on the 10 o’clock news. In this way, news can be tailored to suit the individual’s needs to a greater extent in that I can exclusively read about “news” which I would consider to be most relevant to me and my personal tastes and interests.
For example, if I had more interest in news exclusively about technology, I am able to filter this news out of all of the events which have recently occurred. An example of this for me would be that as I have an interest in graphic design, I can keep up to date with trends and techniques in this field by using the website http://psd.tutsplus.com/ I agree that in this way myself and other members of my generation are able to create our own media networks in order to fulfill the needs of our DIY news.
I think this again links back to the idea that via the Internet we are able to reduce the “only gay in the village” syndrome, as for me certainly, as I know very few people with an interest in this field IRL, I am able to view this web-site and see others who are equally as interested in it, leading to less of a feeling of being isolated in my liking for this topic. In this way I believe that creating DIY news online is part of an alternative culture, as it is more niche than the tastes of the mass culture, and the ideologies that go along with it are more fitting to your own beliefs.
Friday, 13 February 2009
Online Distribution
Of late there has been a trend for bands to initially ‘get noticed’ exclusively via online mediums. Obviously this has a number of advantages for the consumer, as they are for the first time able to dictate to the industry rather than the other way around.
To take the Arctic Monkeys as an example of this new type of marketing, the band initially began to be noticed after handing out CDs at gigs. From here, they placed tracks free for download on their web-site where fans were able to recommend to others and discuss their favourite tracks. The band very much made a name for themselves ‘underground’, until eventually there was enough of a buzz around the official release of their album that it was highly anticipated, and Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not became the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history, selling in excess of 360,000 copies in its first week and outselling the rest of the top 20 combined.
I think that one of the advantages of this extremely organic method of promotion is that is isn’t seen as an intrusion in so much as an e-mail from a band you’re assumed to be interested in based on other bands you listen to would be. In this form, marketing can be very pushy, and nowadays I definitely think that this is to the bands detriment. On the other hand, a recommendation through an e-mail to look at a band’s myspace, because that person genuinely thinks the band are good, is much more likely to get my attention as it’s a far more honest and open way of promotion. In this way I think that the Arctic Monkey’s success was also down to the fact that they were plain and simply good. You cannot force an online buzz to happen around something which no one believes in, it’s too forced and not likely to gain any momentum. On the other hand if that band were genuinely making good records, a buzz naturally occurs which takes off off it’s own back.
To take the Arctic Monkeys as an example of this new type of marketing, the band initially began to be noticed after handing out CDs at gigs. From here, they placed tracks free for download on their web-site where fans were able to recommend to others and discuss their favourite tracks. The band very much made a name for themselves ‘underground’, until eventually there was enough of a buzz around the official release of their album that it was highly anticipated, and Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not became the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history, selling in excess of 360,000 copies in its first week and outselling the rest of the top 20 combined.
I think that one of the advantages of this extremely organic method of promotion is that is isn’t seen as an intrusion in so much as an e-mail from a band you’re assumed to be interested in based on other bands you listen to would be. In this form, marketing can be very pushy, and nowadays I definitely think that this is to the bands detriment. On the other hand, a recommendation through an e-mail to look at a band’s myspace, because that person genuinely thinks the band are good, is much more likely to get my attention as it’s a far more honest and open way of promotion. In this way I think that the Arctic Monkey’s success was also down to the fact that they were plain and simply good. You cannot force an online buzz to happen around something which no one believes in, it’s too forced and not likely to gain any momentum. On the other hand if that band were genuinely making good records, a buzz naturally occurs which takes off off it’s own back.
Shultz
From reading Lister this week something which seems to be a prominent topic is the idea that online communication is able to generate democracy. For example, in the case of web journalism, Shultz suggested that the ability to leave a comment about a news piece on your favourite newspaper’s web site marked a change from passive consumption of mass media, to more active participation. (p. 177) Shultz argued that this gives us the opportunity to speak back to the media and have a more participatory role in debate.
However, in a study conducted by Shultz he found that journalists paid little attention to reader online forums, so the ability to comment on news pieces merely created the illusion of being able to participate. I would argue that whilst this may mean that the readers opinions and responses weren’t being used by the journalists themselves, this does not necessarily mean that they are completely redundant and it is not worth contributing at all. Rather, the ability to comment and leave a response means that people are becoming used to more actively consuming the news and offering an opinion about it, rather than not forming an opinion on it at all.
In addition, web journalism does mean that the public are able to gain unadulterated access to documents which previously they would have only seen through the media, in a more condensed and edited form. Therefore giving them the ‘real deal’ without having to wade their way through the changes made by journalists which would inevitably involve a change in the slant of the document in varying degrees.
However, in a study conducted by Shultz he found that journalists paid little attention to reader online forums, so the ability to comment on news pieces merely created the illusion of being able to participate. I would argue that whilst this may mean that the readers opinions and responses weren’t being used by the journalists themselves, this does not necessarily mean that they are completely redundant and it is not worth contributing at all. Rather, the ability to comment and leave a response means that people are becoming used to more actively consuming the news and offering an opinion about it, rather than not forming an opinion on it at all.
In addition, web journalism does mean that the public are able to gain unadulterated access to documents which previously they would have only seen through the media, in a more condensed and edited form. Therefore giving them the ‘real deal’ without having to wade their way through the changes made by journalists which would inevitably involve a change in the slant of the document in varying degrees.
Sense of Community
Blanchard suggests that when participants experience a feeling of community, they are more likely to increase or maintain their participation in the virtual communities. This seems logical as I would expect the same to occur in real life communities. Within Blanchards article there are two lists of characteristics which make up a sense of community in real life communities and in virtual communities, whilst there are subtle differences, I would overall say that there is a strong similarity between the two.
For instance, McMillan and Chavis (1986) suggest that feelings of being supported by others in the community and also supporting them are important, whilst in virtual communities numerous researchers have suggests that exchange of support among members consists a sense of community, for example Bavm, 1995, 1997, Greer, 2000, Preece, 1999, Rheingold, 1993. To me this indicates that there are universal characteristics which create a sense of community, whether this be online or offline. This again reflects the idea that online communication is as worthwhile as offline communication, as feelings created by online communication are equally as “real” as those created offline, as mentioned in a blog last week.
In realtion to an online community I used to use before it shut down due to lack of funding, I would agree that a sense of support was one of the reasons why I felt a sense of community towards this forum. Whilst there were inevitably the few people who'd always attempt to generate controversy, in general and with the users who I mainly had discussions with, there was a strong sense of community in that you would often see the same people posting, and would get an idea of their personalities and who they were from the posts they made and the things they would say and do. As you would always expect to hear from the same people this meant that there was an element on consistency, which I think drew me back to the forum for about a year.
For instance, McMillan and Chavis (1986) suggest that feelings of being supported by others in the community and also supporting them are important, whilst in virtual communities numerous researchers have suggests that exchange of support among members consists a sense of community, for example Bavm, 1995, 1997, Greer, 2000, Preece, 1999, Rheingold, 1993. To me this indicates that there are universal characteristics which create a sense of community, whether this be online or offline. This again reflects the idea that online communication is as worthwhile as offline communication, as feelings created by online communication are equally as “real” as those created offline, as mentioned in a blog last week.
In realtion to an online community I used to use before it shut down due to lack of funding, I would agree that a sense of support was one of the reasons why I felt a sense of community towards this forum. Whilst there were inevitably the few people who'd always attempt to generate controversy, in general and with the users who I mainly had discussions with, there was a strong sense of community in that you would often see the same people posting, and would get an idea of their personalities and who they were from the posts they made and the things they would say and do. As you would always expect to hear from the same people this meant that there was an element on consistency, which I think drew me back to the forum for about a year.
Benefits of CMC
Reading from Anita Blanchard this week has suggested that rather than CMC having negative affects as suggested by the case of Stewart I blooged about last week, rather, there are a plethora of negative effects of such communication. For example, she suggests that CMC groups help replace the relationships which people lose as a result of becoming more isolated from their neighbours. It is a common belief that due to moral panics about who you could be talking to, and “Do you know who your neighbours really are?” that these relationships have deteriorated. She therefore argues that communication online helps replace these feelings on interaction.
In addition, becoming more connected with people online and through virtual communities you have actively chosen to be a member of and contribute to, rather than having your choice of community dictated to you as a result of your geographical location, you reap the benefits of social relationships with like minded others. This, I would assume, would give you the advantage of feeling more of a sense of community in this context , rather than in a real life context where these decisions are made for you.
An interesting finding was that some researchers have shown that participation in virtual communities can increase participation in face-to-face communities, therefore the benefits are not strictly limited to online communication only and can be carried over to improve face-to-face social skills. However, I would argue that this is not the case 100% of the time as shown by the case of Stewart, and I would assume many more like it.
In addition, becoming more connected with people online and through virtual communities you have actively chosen to be a member of and contribute to, rather than having your choice of community dictated to you as a result of your geographical location, you reap the benefits of social relationships with like minded others. This, I would assume, would give you the advantage of feeling more of a sense of community in this context , rather than in a real life context where these decisions are made for you.
An interesting finding was that some researchers have shown that participation in virtual communities can increase participation in face-to-face communities, therefore the benefits are not strictly limited to online communication only and can be carried over to improve face-to-face social skills. However, I would argue that this is not the case 100% of the time as shown by the case of Stewart, and I would assume many more like it.
Friday, 6 February 2009
Hangbag.com
Handbag.com is a forum primarily for women. The web-site consist of fashion, beauty, entertainment, health, relationships and celebrity news with a discussion forums for each of these areas. It is mainly used by younger females, under 40, who I would assume typically have an interest in fashion and like to be up to date. Typical discussions involve people sharing their opinions about a particular trend for people asking for advice about a specific item or outfit.
In general I’d say the tone of the forum is very friendly, with honest advice being given and sensitive topics being dealt with in an appropriate manner, it seems like everyone is just trying to help one another in the best way they can. There are few disagreements and even if someone does disagree they will not express their opinion in a dismissive or deprecating way. For example, one user, BibbityBob in a thread asking for advice about whether a dress suits another user replied saying,
People tend to present themselves as ‘savvy shoppers’, often talking about the latest bargains they have found and recommending places to get fashion bargains, for example, robbysgirl posts saying that she’s brought,
In general I’d say the tone of the forum is very friendly, with honest advice being given and sensitive topics being dealt with in an appropriate manner, it seems like everyone is just trying to help one another in the best way they can. There are few disagreements and even if someone does disagree they will not express their opinion in a dismissive or deprecating way. For example, one user, BibbityBob in a thread asking for advice about whether a dress suits another user replied saying,
“I bought this about a week ago and returned it - it was just on the too short side for me (and that's unusual ) but I thought that the cut out at the back made it look cheap and the fit wasn't all that great. Just my opinion though! If you're happy with the length there's no reason why you shouldn't keep it.”Here although she doesn’t like the dress she still makes the post positive by saying that as long as she felt comfortable in it, it was nice.
People tend to present themselves as ‘savvy shoppers’, often talking about the latest bargains they have found and recommending places to get fashion bargains, for example, robbysgirl posts saying that she’s brought,
"A waistcoat from Karen Millen reduced from £99 to £9.95!! also a Karen Millen embroided cardigan from ebay for £18”I would say that the content of the site definitely influences the kind of communication which takes place as the majority of it seems to be recommendations, which is what the site is mainly prioritises itself with in terms of exchanging recommended brands of make up or styles of clothing etc.
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
Pseudonyms and identity experimentation.
On page 167 Lister argues that having a pseudonym for yourself online serves as something which we are able to hide behind whilst experimenting with different identities as because they are not linked with our real name and therefore the real us, we are more free to take on a different persona whilst this name is representing us. I would have to disagree with this point as the name I always pick for myself when doing anything online is KayleyA. By choosing my real name to represent me online I am therefore not masquerading as anything and not creating a different identity for myself to experiment with.
Whilst perhaps this means that I do not feel the need to experiment with different personas in order to improve myself, being perfectly content with how I am in real life at the moment, I believe it also represents a degree of honesty and having no barriers to hide behind. In comparison to someone who perhaps chooses an ambiguous name for themselves, for example, someone on a forum I post on is called, ElkY, their real name being Bertrand, to me this suggests that they need something to hide behind and suggests an air of dishonesty. By withholding their name I believe it subconsciously causes me to assume that their posts will lack validity.
Whilst perhaps this means that I do not feel the need to experiment with different personas in order to improve myself, being perfectly content with how I am in real life at the moment, I believe it also represents a degree of honesty and having no barriers to hide behind. In comparison to someone who perhaps chooses an ambiguous name for themselves, for example, someone on a forum I post on is called, ElkY, their real name being Bertrand, to me this suggests that they need something to hide behind and suggests an air of dishonesty. By withholding their name I believe it subconsciously causes me to assume that their posts will lack validity.
The story of Stewart
Within Sherry Turkle’s Who am we? She discussed the case study of Stewart, a socially awkward Physics graduate in America who has developed a strong social anxiety. He has had problems with his heart since his childhood and, as a result of living a live “on a small compass” (Who am we? Page 5), he has very few friends, his life revolving around work. However, the identity he created for himself on a MUD was the complete antithesis to this, a confident character named Achelles who had lots of friends and was successful with women.
Whilst this could again be seen as experimenting with different identities, I would argue that in the case of Stewart it was more of an escape. He admits that his online persona was too removed from his offline self for him to be able to apply any of it to his real life, and the improvements were too exaggerated for him to achieve in his awkward, shy offline life. This leads me to the conclusion that whilst experimenting with different selves can has positive effects, as you are able to “test” personalities to see if they work and then apply these to your offline life, this is not the case 100% of the time. In the case of Stewart it is hard to see any benefits that this online MUD had created for him as to me he seems to have spend an awful lot of time creating a rich identity online, which has offered him few benefits when he could’ve spent this time more productively trying to overcome his social anxiety in real life.
Whilst this could again be seen as experimenting with different identities, I would argue that in the case of Stewart it was more of an escape. He admits that his online persona was too removed from his offline self for him to be able to apply any of it to his real life, and the improvements were too exaggerated for him to achieve in his awkward, shy offline life. This leads me to the conclusion that whilst experimenting with different selves can has positive effects, as you are able to “test” personalities to see if they work and then apply these to your offline life, this is not the case 100% of the time. In the case of Stewart it is hard to see any benefits that this online MUD had created for him as to me he seems to have spend an awful lot of time creating a rich identity online, which has offered him few benefits when he could’ve spent this time more productively trying to overcome his social anxiety in real life.
Online and offline relationships
Within Lister page 170 a study by Andrea Barker is outlined. She asked couples who met online questions about their relationship finding that often their relationship was every bit as strong as “normal” and couples who had initially met in real life. She also reported similarities in the patterns of early relationship formation. For example, they cited perceiving someone as having a good sense of humour as one of the initial attractions to them as well as perceiving them to have lots in common with them. However, there were also specifically online traits which played a role in attraction, for example the style in which they wrote their responses and the time they took to reply.
Whilst this study indicates that there are few differences between online and offline relationships, I would argue that fundamentally there are subtle differences which can be significant in the end. Particularly in romantic relationships, there are intangible things which can make two people work or not, and these are impossible to gauge online, let alone through the time it takes them to respond to a message. I would agree that initially meeting on a forum about a common interest would result in you having something in common, the things which you really need to form a longer relationship, let alone a marriage as in Andrea’s study, are impossible to gauge via exclusively online communication. Ultimately I would say that online relationships should be handled with caution given the numerous stories of people meeting online and then being taken from their families, as with the case of the Cleethorpes schoolgirl who was taken to France by someone whom she met on the Internet. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/humber/7843907.stm)
Whilst this study indicates that there are few differences between online and offline relationships, I would argue that fundamentally there are subtle differences which can be significant in the end. Particularly in romantic relationships, there are intangible things which can make two people work or not, and these are impossible to gauge online, let alone through the time it takes them to respond to a message. I would agree that initially meeting on a forum about a common interest would result in you having something in common, the things which you really need to form a longer relationship, let alone a marriage as in Andrea’s study, are impossible to gauge via exclusively online communication. Ultimately I would say that online relationships should be handled with caution given the numerous stories of people meeting online and then being taken from their families, as with the case of the Cleethorpes schoolgirl who was taken to France by someone whom she met on the Internet. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/humber/7843907.stm)
The merging of online and offline
One interesting point I found through reading Lister this week is that our online and offline lives are becoming less separate from each other. On page 168 he suggests that cyberspace is not completely separate from our current social reality; rather it is part of it. There is an extremely complex interplay between our real lives and our online lives and the barrier between the two is very blurred. The upset caused by the story of Mr. Bungle, the therapist who masqueraded as a female online who turned out to be male offline, is evidence of this.
Sherry Turkle seems to reinforce this point (page 10, Who Am We?) as she warns that by dismissing events which happen online as unimportant as they aren’t real life, we are therefore not learning from them and the experience is worthless as it will not be applied to the real world. Therefore if not applied to the real world, experimenting with different online identities is a useless method of self-transformation.
I would have to agree, as although something may have only happened online, and not have any effect on my offline life, this does not mean that it does not cause the same amount of worry or stress as something offline would. Whilst it is tempting to say that it isn’t “real” and therefore shouldn’t matter however, experience has taught me that it is difficult to dismiss something merely because it is online and not in real life. The immediate example that springs to mind is the drama which I have seen created through someone changing their relationship status on Facebook.
Sherry Turkle seems to reinforce this point (page 10, Who Am We?) as she warns that by dismissing events which happen online as unimportant as they aren’t real life, we are therefore not learning from them and the experience is worthless as it will not be applied to the real world. Therefore if not applied to the real world, experimenting with different online identities is a useless method of self-transformation.
I would have to agree, as although something may have only happened online, and not have any effect on my offline life, this does not mean that it does not cause the same amount of worry or stress as something offline would. Whilst it is tempting to say that it isn’t “real” and therefore shouldn’t matter however, experience has taught me that it is difficult to dismiss something merely because it is online and not in real life. The immediate example that springs to mind is the drama which I have seen created through someone changing their relationship status on Facebook.
Friday, 30 January 2009
Ideal Interactivity Topic 1.I
Lippman argued that ideal interactivity could be achieved under three conditions:
- Neither participant could see the direction that the interaction was headed
- There should be no destined route for the conversation to follow
- The participants should believe there would be an infinite number of directions that the conversation could head
(Stone 1995 in Lister p. 42)
However, I firstly don’t quite understand the concept of “Ideal Interactivity”. Surely this is a subjective matter, and what I would consider to be ideal interactivity could be extremely different to what would constitute ideal interactivity to you.
To me, for interactivity to be ideal it doesn’t necessarily have to have a conclusion or an outcome as it were, much online interactivity in my experience is merely discussing for the sake of discussing, or putting out an opinion which may have a purpose, but not lead to any sort of finish. One of the good things about online discussions is the time scales, an interaction can last as long or as be as brief as it needs to be, involving any number of participants and responses. This means that a discussion is completely free and open, to go in any direction it is led and raise any point it pleases. Therefore to me the idea of ideal interactivity doesn’t really exist, the mere presence of it being interactive from the outset means that this isn’t really possible, as I see no distinction between a good or a bad interactivity.
- Neither participant could see the direction that the interaction was headed
- There should be no destined route for the conversation to follow
- The participants should believe there would be an infinite number of directions that the conversation could head
(Stone 1995 in Lister p. 42)
However, I firstly don’t quite understand the concept of “Ideal Interactivity”. Surely this is a subjective matter, and what I would consider to be ideal interactivity could be extremely different to what would constitute ideal interactivity to you.
To me, for interactivity to be ideal it doesn’t necessarily have to have a conclusion or an outcome as it were, much online interactivity in my experience is merely discussing for the sake of discussing, or putting out an opinion which may have a purpose, but not lead to any sort of finish. One of the good things about online discussions is the time scales, an interaction can last as long or as be as brief as it needs to be, involving any number of participants and responses. This means that a discussion is completely free and open, to go in any direction it is led and raise any point it pleases. Therefore to me the idea of ideal interactivity doesn’t really exist, the mere presence of it being interactive from the outset means that this isn’t really possible, as I see no distinction between a good or a bad interactivity.
Hypertext 2.3
To me, hypertext simplifies the process of extracting information from the Internet immensely. I rarely read the entirety of one page without finding something else which is more relevant to the information I’m looking up before I reach the end. Something I find with the Internet is that I’ll be looking for a specific topic, and simply typing vague key words into google doesn’t usually generate exactly what I’m looking for, by going to a web-site which is in the same general area, this allows me to become more and more specific, until I get exactly what I need. I’m sure, given the wealth of information out there, that if I were hoping to type something into google and for exactly what I want to be on the first page of results will rarely ever happen. Through hypertext I can find what I want much more simply as well as allowing me to then find something else relevant, and possibly even more relevant to the purpose than what I was originally looking for.
However, the large amount of hypertext on the Internet can also have a downside. For example, even after you’ve found what you were originally looking for, often more information and questions will still be swimming around in your mind, often doubling the length of time you intended to spend searching. Also, often through following endless hyperlinks you can end up reading about a topic you did not intend to learn about, for example, in looking up some information about what films are coming up recently, I ended up spending far too much time reading about film trivia as well as ruining the endings to films I haven’t seen yet by reading synopsises on the Internet Movie Database!
However, the large amount of hypertext on the Internet can also have a downside. For example, even after you’ve found what you were originally looking for, often more information and questions will still be swimming around in your mind, often doubling the length of time you intended to spend searching. Also, often through following endless hyperlinks you can end up reading about a topic you did not intend to learn about, for example, in looking up some information about what films are coming up recently, I ended up spending far too much time reading about film trivia as well as ruining the endings to films I haven’t seen yet by reading synopsises on the Internet Movie Database!
Interactivity in Online Gaming 2.2
An example of a web-site which invites the user to have an interactive role are gaming web-sites, for example playing poker online. One which I believe would be an interesting example of interactivity is http://www.pkr.com This I believe is interesting because it goes that little bit further in replicating real life, as their mission statement makes clear:
The interactivity of the game is prioritised, in their eyes setting them above the rest of the industry; it is possible to represent yourself in a large number of different ways, for example by selecting different emotions to convey and facial expressions. Moreover, real life is replicated through the 3D game play and ways of interacting with other players. However, I would argue that although it visually replicates real life to a high degree in comparison to its competitors, the interactivity is more limited than you would first assume from their mission statement.
I would argue that instead it is a form of “Consultational Interactivity”, as suggested by Graham Meikle, which is interactivity where the user is able to select and chose different interactions, however, there are a limited number of fixed choices. This could be seen as a form of ‘interpassitivity’, as really there is just a slightly wider choice of options, creating the illusion of being able to interact fully, rather than being able to create.
“PKR is more than just a pretty face. We use our advanced gaming technology to serve the game of poker and enhance our user’s experience in ways no other poker room can. PKR’s unique ‘Emote control’ technology, combined with a number of other one-of-a-kind game features mean players on PKR can interact and engage with the game and each other in way that’s personal, involving and highly entertaining. PKR is bringing the personality into online poker.” PKR website
The interactivity of the game is prioritised, in their eyes setting them above the rest of the industry; it is possible to represent yourself in a large number of different ways, for example by selecting different emotions to convey and facial expressions. Moreover, real life is replicated through the 3D game play and ways of interacting with other players. However, I would argue that although it visually replicates real life to a high degree in comparison to its competitors, the interactivity is more limited than you would first assume from their mission statement.
I would argue that instead it is a form of “Consultational Interactivity”, as suggested by Graham Meikle, which is interactivity where the user is able to select and chose different interactions, however, there are a limited number of fixed choices. This could be seen as a form of ‘interpassitivity’, as really there is just a slightly wider choice of options, creating the illusion of being able to interact fully, rather than being able to create.
Techno-determinism. 2.1
Whilst I would agree that the force of technology is outside of the control of society, I would argue that it isn’t quite on the same level as a ‘force of nature’ in that the force of nature is uninvited; we did not expect hurricane Katrina or the tsunami on Boxing Day in south-east Asia and I don’t think they can be compared to the effects of technology. Conversely, technology and its growth is something which we encourage and is assumed to be helping our lives, evidenced by the prevalence of technology in our day to day lives nowadays and the amount of money invested into developing new technologies. Whilst the individual may be powerless to resist the effects of these technologies, society itself shapes how they manifest themselves and how they are used. For example, the way in which technologies come to replace one another, with CDs replacing cassettes, mp3s replacing CDs and so on.
Socio-determinism seems the logical argument to me as the different technologies which replace one another are determined not by a whim or by chance, but by other social forces such as profit margins, distribution and marketing. For example, to go back to the music format example, mp3s were a more practical way to listen to music in that they weren’t physical in the same way that CDs and cassettes were, you can’t hold them or “give” one to someone as such. Therefore distribution was easier; it could come straight to you on your computer through ITunes, meaning that profit margins could potentially be higher (ignoring illegal file sharing) therefore the popularity of this format came about through social forces, as argued by socio-determinism.
Socio-determinism seems the logical argument to me as the different technologies which replace one another are determined not by a whim or by chance, but by other social forces such as profit margins, distribution and marketing. For example, to go back to the music format example, mp3s were a more practical way to listen to music in that they weren’t physical in the same way that CDs and cassettes were, you can’t hold them or “give” one to someone as such. Therefore distribution was easier; it could come straight to you on your computer through ITunes, meaning that profit margins could potentially be higher (ignoring illegal file sharing) therefore the popularity of this format came about through social forces, as argued by socio-determinism.
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