I’m a Wiki expert!

Wow.  It was hard to find something on Wikipedia that needed to be updated.  However, since I am such a Penn State fanatic, (maybe because that’s where I spent the best four years of my life!) I decided why not add the fact that my school was ranked the number 2 party school in the nation by the Princeton Review.  I think that is a pretty big deal.  Hopefully that wasn’t left out for a reason.  So here is my edit of Penn State’s ranking and reputation.

Don Tapscott Speaks

I found this interesting video of Don Tapscott, the author of “Wikinomics,” speaking at Cambrian House. Cambrian House is a web-based community owned business whose mission is to discover and commercialize software ideas through the participation of crowds. I thought it was rather interesting to hear Tapscott discuss his views on mass collaboration and how lowering collaboration costs have moved us to today’s crowdsourcing movement. I also thought Cambrian House was a good example of the mass collaboration and peering that we have read about. Anyone can submit a software idea and the other users vote on the best one. The company has launched three successful products: Prezzle, RobinHoodFund and Gwabs.  This is peer production at its best.

Great minds think alike

The one thing that the three articles have in common is that communication technology is not only useful for maintaining our social relationships, but it is also severely improving the success of businesses as well.  “Wikinomics” by Anthony Williams and Don Tapscott, focuses on the corporate shift from a hierarchical organization to a more sociable approach.  Companies are now depending on mass collaboration to find internal solutions.  While “Wikinomics” and “The Wealth of Networks” focus on communication technology from a corporate perspective, “Sociable Media” by Judith Donath writes from a more personal level.  “Today, there is growing awareness of the importance of the social uses of media and much more effort is being made to create deliberately sociable media” (Donath, p. 2). 

“Millions of media buffs now use blogs, wikis, chat rooms, and personal broadcasting to add their voices to a vociferous stream of dialogue and debate called the ‘blogosphere’” (Williams,Tapscott p. 1).  Certainly, companies have and will continue to benefit from mass collaboration.  McDonald’s is a well-known example.  After conducting a global contest among design firms, the burger giant chose Lippincott Mercer to redesign the popular eatery.  The redesigned restaurant was met with major success.

 Despite the many success stories, some may argue that these new media forums and “global firms” will devalue expertise.  Now that individuals have the opportunity and means to generate goods, how do I trust the products or services that I receive?  Years ago, you went to the doctor to find out about the pain in your neck; now you go to WebMD, diagnose it yourself and figure out what medicines you want.  Although external scrutiny can protect the public from professionals acting in their own self-interest, we need to figure out a way to separate the amateur from the professional.  “Tens of millions of people share their news, information, and views in the blogosphere, a self-organized network of over 50 million personal commentary sites that are updated every second of the day” (Williams,Tapscott p. 12). 

Benkler, who argues that the economy’s shift from an industrial information economy to a networked information economy provides the consumer with a more active role in production, makes a valid point when he says this creates a more of a democratic society.  External scrutiny does not only protect the public from professionals acting in their own self-interest, but it also intensifies the watch-dog role of the public.  Media forums, such as blogs or chat rooms, serve as a way for people to seek opinions and information that either challenge or develop their own.  Although you can view these media forums as devaluing expertise, they still provide a venue for public debate.  “Missing an opportunity to enrich democracy, freedom, and justice in our society while maintaining or even enhancing our productivity would be unforgivable” (Benkler, p. 28). 

 People now understand the importance of sociable media to our everyday lives.  Although communication technologies were not necessarily built for sociability, by nature people continue to find ways of using communication mediums for social purposes.  From these social uses comes ways of gaining control and becoming active in our economic lives.  Many would think that collaborating with intelligent and skillful people would mean guaranteed success.  After all two heads are better than one.  We need to keep in mind, however, the repercussions of a society where anyone can add their two cents.

Converging teachers,computers and all that other good stuff

Theodore Nelson expresses his aversion to the educational system in his section entitled “No more teachers’ dirty looks” of the “Computer Lib” reading.  “We know virtually nothing of human abilities except as they have been pickled and boxed in schools; we need to ignore all that and start fresh” (Nelson, p.308).  Nelson goes on to suggest how computers can help improve a student’s learning experience by providing a teacherless environment.  Computer-assisted instruction or “CAI”, according to Nelson, is the answer to the many problems of the structure of the way the curriculum is taught.  “The practice of teaching is principally involved with managing the class, keeping up face, and projecting the image of the subject that conforms to the teacher’s own predilections” (Nelson, p. 309).  Nelson believes human achievement has suffered due to lack of motivation held by the students.  Students are unmotivated because of the teaching style of our everyday teachers.  After reading this section for the first time I thought to myself “it is rather silly for Nelson to think computers can give students the support and motivation they need to become high achieving students.”   However, upon further reflection, this became a very interesting point.  As I was contemplating Nelson’s theory, the theory of the self-fulfilling prophecy entered my mind.  The self-fulfilling prophecy is the way a student performs as a result of the teacher’s expectations.  Maybe students are not high-achieving at certain subjects because the teacher does not expect them to be.  When a child does not receive the necessary tools needed in order to succeed, that child does not perform to the best of his ability.    There are gender based differential outcomes in schooling, for example.  It is a known fact that males are considered better at some subjects than females.  While girls are expected to be good at English boys are expected to be good at math and science.  Therefore, girls are encouraged in subjects that have to do with arts and not encouraged to do well in math.  Because there is that stereotype, girls sometimes don’t even bother trying hard at subjects they know they are not expected to be good at.  Hence the different levels of achievement between genders and certain subjects.  Computers, on the other hand, have no predilections, preconceptions or expectations of the student.   The student is then allowed to learn in a pressure-free environment with no false expectations. 

 Negroponte’s article “Soft Architecture Machines” discusses his views on the relationship between man and computer.  Negroponte believes users should be enhanced by computers not taken over by them.  He argues that computers should not be seen as experts, but as a support in aiding a user’s experience.  Negroponte also discusses three levels of model that a computer must follow in order to be as useful as possible.  These models include: 1) a model of the user 2) a model of the user’s model of it, and 3) its model of the user’s model of its model of the user.  How can computers be responsive if it does not contain a model of the user or the user’s contextual needs?  A good computer software design is one which changes with contextual use.  Software designers need to understand that the use of the software will be determined by the way their assumptions are interpreted in varying educational contexts (Educational Software and Learning, p.3).  Negroponte’s idea that software designers ignore this fact is valid and compelling. 

         Henry Jenkins’ article “Worship at the Convergence” talks about the convergence culture.  He describes convergence as “the flow of content across multiple media platforms, the cooperation between multiple media industries, and the migratory behavior of media audiences who will go almost anywhere in search of the kinds of entertainment experiences they want” (Jenkins, p.2).  Jenkins’ views on convergence were rather engaging.  Convergence is something that has been in effect for many years and some may view it as a successful aspect of modern communication.  The convergence of old and new technologies, for instance, have changed the way people get news and information.  Online social networks such as Facebook and Myspace, have intrigued media companies by becoming a symbol of a fast and cost-efficient way of building audiences and attracting advertising online.  Our culture is changing and convergence is merely an example of that.  The many different ways that we now have to get information is increasing.  Today, we do not have to be at home in front of the television or computer to get the latest news or viral videos. “Producers who fail to make their peace with this new participatory culture will face declining goodwill and diminished revenues” (Jenkins, p.24).  It is hard to ignore the popular demand for mediums that serve multiple purposes.  It is within a company’s best interest not to fight convergence, but to embrace it.  “I was told by company after mobile company that they don’t make single-function phones anymore. Nobody wants them” (Jenkins, p.5).

So if you like mashups then you might like this…

So I was searching for mashups and found this. Although it wouldn’t be considered a mashup, I still thought it was kind of mashup-ish. Those of you who are familiar with the move “The Shining” know that it is not a happy, feel-good movie.  Isn’t it amazing how clever editing can change the meaning of anything? Here is the original trailer for those who haven’t seen the movie.

How could you NOT like mashups?!

    Mashups are cool.   After sorting through the endless amounts of mashups available on the web, my favorite has to be musiclovr.com. If you think I’m a little biased because of my love for the arts then your right. However, this amazing new invention not only satisfies an insatiable appetite for music, but this music mashup also allows you to search information from amazon, news from yahoo and most importantly blogs by technorati.

Deep Links

As I was reading “The Long Tail,” another web phenomenon came to me.  In another class we read an article about the deep link.  Deep links are when a user types information into a search engine and gets results to specific articles or products located on different web sites.  Like Long Tails, deep links are more likely to satisfy users’ needs because they bring you to places you might have never thought existed.  There have been hundreds of instances where I found a web site that I am now addicted to as a result of clicking on a deep link.  This web site is a perfect example.  I now visit this web site for the latest entertainment news because I arrived at it by a deep link a couple of months ago.   Web sites benefit tremendously by allowing deep links because it can increase the amount of people that visit their web sites regularly.              

Long Tail, Introduction, Netwars

The first article, “Networks, Netwars and the Fight for the Future,” discusses the emerging use of the internet by social networks in order to achieve their goals.  The authors, David Ronfeldt and John Arquilla, say there are both bright sides and dark sides to the theory of netwar.  The dark side, of course, are the terrorist groups who take advantage of the rising Information age.  The bright sides are social activists who use networks to spread positive messages.  There are five levels that must be met in order to achieve an effective network.  These levels consist of: organizational level, narrative level, doctrinal level, technological infrastructure and social underpinnings.  In order for countries such as the United States to offset the dark side of netwars, they must improve at the organizational and doctrinal levels most importantly.  The organizational level is the starting point and therefore serves as a blueprint for the structure of the organization.  The doctrinal level, serves as a set of “guiding principles and practices” that enable each member to remain working towards the same goal.    

The most interesting level was the social underpinnings.  “The full functioning of a network also depends on how well, and in what ways, the members are personally known and connected to each other.”  I found this level most interesting because it made me think of the success of other social networks such as the Italian mob family.  It is clear to me that the Italian mob family has been rather successful.  Formed in the 1930’s, the Mafia was created by southern Italians who developed a distrust of the government and its extensions.  Because of the mistreatment received, three families joined together creating “La Cosa Nostra” (this thing of ours).  Several decades later the mafia is still going strong.  Along with the other four levels, this success has a lot to do with the strong kinship ties that the members have with each other.  They are all personally connected in some way and have the same goal in mind. 

The second article, “The Long Tail” discussed places where people can go to get items beyond those that are available in mainstream society.  Things that would be hard or even impossible to come across can now be located by Long Tail sites that cater to a variety of audiences.  Chris Anderson talks about websites such as amazon and eBay, which attracted diverse audiences by combining popular culture and buying trends.  Websites like these have made information gathering an easier and more delightful task.  Long Tails are not only a way to find things not available on popular shelves, but also a way to open the minds of otherwise uninformed or closed minded people.

“Control Revolution, Introduction” by James Beniger goes over the problems that accompany technology and its advancements.  Beniger also talked about bureaucracy and its relation to control technologies.  One control technology that he discussed was Max Weber’s rationalization.  Rationalization, according to Weber, is increasing control by increasing the ability to process information and decreasing the amount of information that is to be processed.  This is a way for the government to “control” the actions of people affected by each technological advancement.

“How to write a better weblog” was a very helpful read.  As I was reading it I realized that many of my favorite blogs follow most of these rules and suggestions. The most interesting “rule” was “amuse your readers.”  The best weblogs are the ones that are personal and witty.  The funniest jokes are ones that come from truth, so when a writer includes a personal story or experience, it makes the blog more entertaining.  Taking your audience seriously is also an important part of writing a good blog.  Readers like the idea that you put in a lot of effort into making their reading experience worthwhile.    

            

Google Reader

The aggregator that I chose to use was Google Reader. Because I am so familiar

with google, this was easier for me to use.

The first web site that I added to my RSS feed was energybulletin.net. I found this

site interesting because it shows people the other side of addiction to modern technology.

It is important for people to appreciate information about the effects technology has on

the world. This web site discusses effects such as global warming and the peak oil crisis.

The other blog that I added to my feed was “Scientific Advances of the Future.”

This blog talks about the future of technology. As I was reading, it reminded me of the

first three articles I read for this class. Like Bush, Licklider andEngelbart, the writer

predicted what he saw as the future based on the current technology trends. It would also

be interesting to see if any of his predictions come true as well.

The next blog that I have chosen to add to my aggregator is entitled “Social Networking and Searching are not
Revolutionizing the Web as We Know it.” I chose this

blog because the writer talked about social networks such as facebook and myspace, and

the debate on whether they are revolutionizing the internet or simply a waste of time.

This is an ongoing debate among many people and the author’s opinion was interesting.

The final blog that I chose for my aggregator is called “Modern Technology.”

This blog was interesting to me because the author talked about how far scientists have

come in fifty years. The author discusses how the tools that enable scientists towork has

advanced and significantly improved their research. It is rather interesting to see how the

advancement of technology has improved many aspects of the social world.

 

A convenient relationship

As I was reading this week’s assigned readings about the predicted improvements of technology, it suddenly came to me how technologically dependent most of us are.  For example during the summer I was without a cellular phone for a couple of weeks.  It is rather sad how handicapped I felt. 

I might as well have had my right arm amputated.  Some of you might be saying to yourselves “Wow, Sasha.  I think you are overreacting a little about this cell phone thing.”  Well it wasn’t just a cell phone.  My whole life was on that little device.  The amazing gadget that I am referring to is called a “sidekick.”  With this sidekick, not only can you make and receive calls, but the internet is readily available for your many needs.  I was able to do spur-of-the-moment things such as: look up directions while on the road, make reservations to my favorite restaurants, find out when my favorite movies are beginning, and most of all text or instant message all my friends. 

When my sidekick broke I was unable to do any of that and it was horrible.   Then as time went on I realized what many of you may be thinking.  Cellular phones are a luxury and, surprise, people got along fine thirty years ago when they didn’t exist.  Another revelation that I had was that this little device was in no way enhancing my intellectual abilities.   I wasn’t researching the cure for cancer, and talking to people face to face might actually help my communication skills.

My point of this blog is to show that, even though the advancement of technology helped the human race in many important ways, it is also making our lives more impersonal.  Whether it is cell phones, e-mails or instant messages, we have become ever so dependent on technology to make our lives easier.  Just think.  What would your life be like without modern technology?