Hi Bill,
I Just wanted to let you know that this half of my journal reads backwards from the bottom of the page. You will see that at the bottom of the page is the introduction, and week 16 is displayed at the top of the page. Hope you Enjoy.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Week 16
Monday 11-30
Jefferson Goolsby, professor of New media here at UMaine, came in to speak to us today. He stressed to us that we live in a world of fluidity and that we must take advantage of this train of thought by being more flexible, adaptable, and migratory.
We spoke to Jeff about how we had been learning a lot about collaboration and the importance of being able to work well in groups. His response to this was something that is always stressed in my CMJ courses. He stressed the importance of a partner that will challenge you. It makes sense. If everyone gets along and no one disagrees then no one is being pushed to be better.
On a fun note, towards the end of his talk he told us not to take our 20's too seriously. It is an extremely hard thing to do. We that our in our 20's have no perspective to look back on but listening to people like Jeff really helps put everything into place.
Wednesday 12-2
Owen Smith came in to speak to class again today. But this was different. It was not his usual faculty position of informing us about our paths through the program. Today he simply told us of his life through his artwork. he showed us all the different phases he went through as he grew up and experimented with all sorts of mediums. the concept that i took away from Owen's passion for art is that art can be whatever you want it to be. All art is, is a form of expression. It just takes an idea and a passion to create any form of art a person can think of.
Friday 12-4
And here it is... the very last journal entry for the semester. It has been quite the semester and I can say with knowledge and confidence that this class offered more insight and reflection than any other introductory level class I have ever experienced.
An important "wrap-up" concept we talked over was "show the people your view". We talked about expressing our ideas through our creativity. As designers, artists and creators of any sort, it is imperative to success that we make our audience feel what we feel.
If we can figure out how to consistently reach human emotions throughout our careers, we will be successful in creating whatever it is we will need to.
Thanks for the semester Bill. Taking a class like this gave me just what I needed in terms of getting my feet wet into the waters of the ever challenging and vast field of New Media.
Readings
"Living in Exponential Times"- I had seen this video a few times before and it is just as staggering every time. It really gives us Americans perspective on just how far behind we may be. It is my feeling that we as Americans have this attitude that we are the biggest, the strongest, the smartest, and the best.... It is simply not the case.
Not only does this video stagger me in terms of national comparison, it is staggering in terms of global consumption and exponential growth as well. Although it may be extremely alarming and startling to see these facts and numbers, it is also nice to see just because it gives you perspective on how you see the world. So often people can get stuck in their little bubble. This forces you to see the bigger picture.
Jefferson Goolsby, professor of New media here at UMaine, came in to speak to us today. He stressed to us that we live in a world of fluidity and that we must take advantage of this train of thought by being more flexible, adaptable, and migratory.
We spoke to Jeff about how we had been learning a lot about collaboration and the importance of being able to work well in groups. His response to this was something that is always stressed in my CMJ courses. He stressed the importance of a partner that will challenge you. It makes sense. If everyone gets along and no one disagrees then no one is being pushed to be better.
On a fun note, towards the end of his talk he told us not to take our 20's too seriously. It is an extremely hard thing to do. We that our in our 20's have no perspective to look back on but listening to people like Jeff really helps put everything into place.
Wednesday 12-2
Owen Smith came in to speak to class again today. But this was different. It was not his usual faculty position of informing us about our paths through the program. Today he simply told us of his life through his artwork. he showed us all the different phases he went through as he grew up and experimented with all sorts of mediums. the concept that i took away from Owen's passion for art is that art can be whatever you want it to be. All art is, is a form of expression. It just takes an idea and a passion to create any form of art a person can think of.
Friday 12-4
And here it is... the very last journal entry for the semester. It has been quite the semester and I can say with knowledge and confidence that this class offered more insight and reflection than any other introductory level class I have ever experienced.
An important "wrap-up" concept we talked over was "show the people your view". We talked about expressing our ideas through our creativity. As designers, artists and creators of any sort, it is imperative to success that we make our audience feel what we feel.
If we can figure out how to consistently reach human emotions throughout our careers, we will be successful in creating whatever it is we will need to.
Thanks for the semester Bill. Taking a class like this gave me just what I needed in terms of getting my feet wet into the waters of the ever challenging and vast field of New Media.
Readings
"Living in Exponential Times"- I had seen this video a few times before and it is just as staggering every time. It really gives us Americans perspective on just how far behind we may be. It is my feeling that we as Americans have this attitude that we are the biggest, the strongest, the smartest, and the best.... It is simply not the case.
Not only does this video stagger me in terms of national comparison, it is staggering in terms of global consumption and exponential growth as well. Although it may be extremely alarming and startling to see these facts and numbers, it is also nice to see just because it gives you perspective on how you see the world. So often people can get stuck in their little bubble. This forces you to see the bigger picture.
Week 15
Monday 11-23
Today was our only class of the week before we left for Thanksgiving break. We used it as a review day for what we had discussed thus far in the preexisting weeks.
Maine topics we covered included:
Editing can be seen as an art form
How can architecture effect the future of New Media?
Technological advancements are fundamentally a non-green system
Today was our only class of the week before we left for Thanksgiving break. We used it as a review day for what we had discussed thus far in the preexisting weeks.
Maine topics we covered included:
- importance of using skills in applicable communication projects
- editing to tell stories
- man with the movie camera
- Grillo
- Blais
Editing can be seen as an art form
How can architecture effect the future of New Media?
Technological advancements are fundamentally a non-green system
Week 14
Monday 11-16
So now that we have discussed the word, the image, and sound, it is only natural that we next discussed video and television. We started this talk with a historical look at important television events such as "All in the Family", Nixon's "Checkers" Speech, Kennedy vs Nixon Debate, OJ Simpson car chase, and 9-11,
In all these instances, television gave the public something they had never seen before. All in the Family deflated cultural backgrounds using satire and over the top comedy. In terms of politics, it put a personality with the candidates. No longer could you become president of this country unless you were personable, likable, and charismatic. OJ gave us the ability to become obsessed with instant news and reality TV. The coverage of 9-11 galvanized attitudes of patriotism and created sympathy for the US all over the world.
Wednesday 11-18
For the next two classes we watched a video titled, "The Cutting Edge". This film brought to light the impact of the editor on the film industry. They labeled this character as the unsung hero behind the world of film and video.
The one quote i most took away from the first half of this film is "wouldn't you like to edit your own life?" It is a bizarre concept that really requires some reflection. the process of editing really does have that power. In film, the editor has the power to play god, to emphasize whatever they want, to make people feel whatever they want them to feel. It is a power that I'm sure, only people of the profession could properly understand.
Friday 11-20
The second half of this video focused on the responsibility of the editor. They must focus on the emotional response of the film by separating the scenes and disassociating from the direction of the film.
In this sense it must be extremely difficult to do what they do. Emphasized in this portion was the notion that it is just as important to know when not to cut as it is to know when to cut. Without the editing that we see today, there is no way films could be as persuasive, as emotional, and as powerful as they have become.
Readings
"Open Source as a Model for business is Elusive"- According to this article there is only one real successful open source company that exists today. And then why is it that this one company did not cash in on their opportunity to monopolize the opensource network? Well that's a complicated issue, but Red Hat certainly had the opportunity, and did not react fast enough before they could not keep up with the bidding wars of the larger companies.
It is an unfortunate truth of business, but it is most certainly a truth. Open Source cannot dominate the market like a major corporation can. It is simple economics.
"The Fall and Rise of Media"- The message throughout this article has exemplified a main theme that we have discussed continuous times throughout class and in my CMJ classes as well. The idea that journalism as a whole is a dying breed is one that is not only realistic but down right horrifyingly apparent.
Many of my professors in CMJ have since stressed the importance of being diverse in our talents. this is actually one of the main reasons why i have branched out to the field of new media here in my senior year. I do not want to get stuck behind saying what if. I want to be the one who makes decisions for myself.
"Free Speech and the Internet. Wikipedia Runs Afoul of German Legal System"- I am split on my feelings in this argument. On one side, the freedom of speech means a freedom of speech. We should have every right to print whatever it is we feel fit as long as it falls within the boundaries of our journalistic code of ethics.
And this story most certainly would.
But on the other side of the debate I can see how future publications of their names relating to the crimes could and would result in unwarranted and unfair punishment.
To this end I could also argue the point that these two men waived their rights to this privilege upon the slaying of another man's life.
As a student involved in the mainstream media, I would have to say I, above all else, will fight to protect the liberty of free speech.
So now that we have discussed the word, the image, and sound, it is only natural that we next discussed video and television. We started this talk with a historical look at important television events such as "All in the Family", Nixon's "Checkers" Speech, Kennedy vs Nixon Debate, OJ Simpson car chase, and 9-11,
In all these instances, television gave the public something they had never seen before. All in the Family deflated cultural backgrounds using satire and over the top comedy. In terms of politics, it put a personality with the candidates. No longer could you become president of this country unless you were personable, likable, and charismatic. OJ gave us the ability to become obsessed with instant news and reality TV. The coverage of 9-11 galvanized attitudes of patriotism and created sympathy for the US all over the world.
Wednesday 11-18
For the next two classes we watched a video titled, "The Cutting Edge". This film brought to light the impact of the editor on the film industry. They labeled this character as the unsung hero behind the world of film and video.
The one quote i most took away from the first half of this film is "wouldn't you like to edit your own life?" It is a bizarre concept that really requires some reflection. the process of editing really does have that power. In film, the editor has the power to play god, to emphasize whatever they want, to make people feel whatever they want them to feel. It is a power that I'm sure, only people of the profession could properly understand.
Friday 11-20
The second half of this video focused on the responsibility of the editor. They must focus on the emotional response of the film by separating the scenes and disassociating from the direction of the film.
In this sense it must be extremely difficult to do what they do. Emphasized in this portion was the notion that it is just as important to know when not to cut as it is to know when to cut. Without the editing that we see today, there is no way films could be as persuasive, as emotional, and as powerful as they have become.
Readings
"Open Source as a Model for business is Elusive"- According to this article there is only one real successful open source company that exists today. And then why is it that this one company did not cash in on their opportunity to monopolize the opensource network? Well that's a complicated issue, but Red Hat certainly had the opportunity, and did not react fast enough before they could not keep up with the bidding wars of the larger companies.
It is an unfortunate truth of business, but it is most certainly a truth. Open Source cannot dominate the market like a major corporation can. It is simple economics.
"The Fall and Rise of Media"- The message throughout this article has exemplified a main theme that we have discussed continuous times throughout class and in my CMJ classes as well. The idea that journalism as a whole is a dying breed is one that is not only realistic but down right horrifyingly apparent.
Many of my professors in CMJ have since stressed the importance of being diverse in our talents. this is actually one of the main reasons why i have branched out to the field of new media here in my senior year. I do not want to get stuck behind saying what if. I want to be the one who makes decisions for myself.
"Free Speech and the Internet. Wikipedia Runs Afoul of German Legal System"- I am split on my feelings in this argument. On one side, the freedom of speech means a freedom of speech. We should have every right to print whatever it is we feel fit as long as it falls within the boundaries of our journalistic code of ethics.
And this story most certainly would.
But on the other side of the debate I can see how future publications of their names relating to the crimes could and would result in unwarranted and unfair punishment.
To this end I could also argue the point that these two men waived their rights to this privilege upon the slaying of another man's life.
As a student involved in the mainstream media, I would have to say I, above all else, will fight to protect the liberty of free speech.
Week 13
Monday 11-9
Today we took the next step in talking about the advancement of photography. With new technologies, comes new skepticism and controversy. Photo manipulation and photo ethics are no different.
This powerful tool can shape culture in a way that was previously unheard of. The female body image is a perfectly disgusting example of this extremely dangerous practice. Culture has this distorted image of what true beauty really is. Is it even humanly possible to look like the women we see through the media? The simple answer is no. Not even these women look as "perfect" as they appear.
National Geographic experienced a different harm in photo manipulation. After it was revealed that they altered one of their covers, readers lost trust in the entire magazine as a whole. In business, trust is everything, and if your customers lose trust and faith in your business, you are going to have a hard time succeeding.
Wednesday 11-11
Today we were graced with the presence of Michael Grillo. He laid out the opinion that new media is relative and he used his knowledge of art history to prove this point. Whenever there was a limitation or inadequacy in the culture of current art, new media would be used to enhance the profession and continue pushing forward.
The second key point he mentioned is that it is not just the intended consequences that make new media what it is... it is often the unintended consequences of our imaginations that shape culture in ways we never could have imagined.
Take for instance the internet. In no way could they have predicted it to be taken the direction it has come.
Friday 11-13
To finish off this week, we focused on sound. It is amazing to think of something as simple as sound having such an impact of our world. Imagine what it would be like to not have the bits and pieces of sound clips we have from the past.... imagine what it would be like to have sound bites from ancient times... When thought of this way, one can really understand the importance of this technology.
Even more than the word and image, sound conveys personality, and it is that personality that we do not know of the ancient Romans, of the Egyptians, the pilgrims...
When sound first became used as entertainment it allowed for people to escape their lives and their troubles. they could live in imagination more easily than ever before.
Readings
"Google Chrome Cloud Computing"- I'm not sure how I feel about the future in cloud computing. I guess it is just me being resistant to something I am comfortable with. i like the idea of my stuff being mine and i don't quite trust the Internet enough to rely on them for all of my file storage.
Often I have found that the Internet and WIFI are down here in Orono Maine. If I need an important file, I don't want to have to rely on this unreliable medium.
but I will not deny that it is a trend and that the future lies in it's hands. With picture storage, and file storage via email being relied on so frequently it is only inevitable that more is to come.
"Online Wiki Mapping"- this story reminds me of just about every other medium that has come and gone. Upon first implementation, only the professionals know how to access and use the technology.... but as information leaks and technological advancements are made, they become more available for the general public.
You name it, photography, film, the web, music... nearly everything that exists today is better off in the hands of the general public. We are smart, we are passionate, we care. it is not about money for us. We do it because we love to do it. that is the difference. That is why I too am a supporter of civic journalism and citizen media. Competition breeds excellence and it shows when one group is making products for the profit, and one is doing it for the love of the game... so to speak.
Today we took the next step in talking about the advancement of photography. With new technologies, comes new skepticism and controversy. Photo manipulation and photo ethics are no different.
This powerful tool can shape culture in a way that was previously unheard of. The female body image is a perfectly disgusting example of this extremely dangerous practice. Culture has this distorted image of what true beauty really is. Is it even humanly possible to look like the women we see through the media? The simple answer is no. Not even these women look as "perfect" as they appear.
National Geographic experienced a different harm in photo manipulation. After it was revealed that they altered one of their covers, readers lost trust in the entire magazine as a whole. In business, trust is everything, and if your customers lose trust and faith in your business, you are going to have a hard time succeeding.
Wednesday 11-11
Today we were graced with the presence of Michael Grillo. He laid out the opinion that new media is relative and he used his knowledge of art history to prove this point. Whenever there was a limitation or inadequacy in the culture of current art, new media would be used to enhance the profession and continue pushing forward.
The second key point he mentioned is that it is not just the intended consequences that make new media what it is... it is often the unintended consequences of our imaginations that shape culture in ways we never could have imagined.
Take for instance the internet. In no way could they have predicted it to be taken the direction it has come.
Friday 11-13
To finish off this week, we focused on sound. It is amazing to think of something as simple as sound having such an impact of our world. Imagine what it would be like to not have the bits and pieces of sound clips we have from the past.... imagine what it would be like to have sound bites from ancient times... When thought of this way, one can really understand the importance of this technology.
Even more than the word and image, sound conveys personality, and it is that personality that we do not know of the ancient Romans, of the Egyptians, the pilgrims...
When sound first became used as entertainment it allowed for people to escape their lives and their troubles. they could live in imagination more easily than ever before.
Readings
"Google Chrome Cloud Computing"- I'm not sure how I feel about the future in cloud computing. I guess it is just me being resistant to something I am comfortable with. i like the idea of my stuff being mine and i don't quite trust the Internet enough to rely on them for all of my file storage.
Often I have found that the Internet and WIFI are down here in Orono Maine. If I need an important file, I don't want to have to rely on this unreliable medium.
but I will not deny that it is a trend and that the future lies in it's hands. With picture storage, and file storage via email being relied on so frequently it is only inevitable that more is to come.
"Online Wiki Mapping"- this story reminds me of just about every other medium that has come and gone. Upon first implementation, only the professionals know how to access and use the technology.... but as information leaks and technological advancements are made, they become more available for the general public.
You name it, photography, film, the web, music... nearly everything that exists today is better off in the hands of the general public. We are smart, we are passionate, we care. it is not about money for us. We do it because we love to do it. that is the difference. That is why I too am a supporter of civic journalism and citizen media. Competition breeds excellence and it shows when one group is making products for the profit, and one is doing it for the love of the game... so to speak.
Week 12
Monday 11-2
Today we continued our discussion on the spoken word. But instead of focusing on Story Corps and the notion of storytelling, we focused on pod casting and the art form we know as documentary. it was emphasized that in order to create a successful documentary one must extend themselves out of their comfort Zone; tap into the experiences and knowledge of their community.
Key points that were emphasized were the ability of the creator to show people doing what makes them newsworthy; and show the impact of their lives on their community.
The last point we stressed as a class was that we are inheriting the power to communicate through new media. Since I am a mass communication major, I have been immersed in the subject of communication my entire college career. And it is definitely true, we have been transformed by our new media. There are so many more expressive and diverse ways we can communicate than even 4 short years ago when I arrived here on campus.
Wednesday 11-4
Today we transformed our discussion from the spoken word to the photograph. As this was your area of specific expertise I was expecting to be shown moments in photography that i had never experienced before.
Although we eventually got to that point, I found the precluding lectures extremely dry and hard to focus on. For the most part we studied past historical advances in the technology behind photography. From camera obscura to camera lucida to the Daguerre Camera to the collodion process and the stereopticon, I struggled to maintain my interest in the subject.
But eventually we made it through the background information and we got to the point of what made photography as powerful as it could be. We talked about how photography was used as a maker of myths, and a righter of wrongs in terms of child labor.
in this way, the media of the time transformed how society functioned. It showed the world it's injustice and unbiased views of the world's corruption and problems.
Friday 11-6
Today was a direct continuation on our discussion about how photography transformed society. Subtopics covered in this discussion included realism, war photography and amateur photography.
Alfred Steiglitz showed the world how no one had even seen before in photographs. his photos focused on the honest and real approach to capturing history. Andre Kertesz continued this vision by not sugarcoating his view of the world. No matter how gruesome or horrible it may be, these photographers showed the world what they saw.
War photography soon had a huge impact on popular opinion. Journalists were allowed to capture the footage from the front lines of the offensive. Without these photographs, the people could only imagine what it was like. This technological advancement helped citizens understand what exactly was happening across the world.
The last topic we covered was amateur photography. Culture had never experienced this before and with the advancement and production of new technologies in the field of photography, it became a big issue in the world of professional photography.
Readings
"The Price of Free"- This is unfortunately true and proves to be the ugly truth that will only get less and less attractive as more and more people jump onto the streaming of entertainment rather than buying direct from production. this article is all about warning us that yes, it may be cheaper now, but in the long run, we will pay.
How will the excellent shows continue to run? Quite simply they won't. The well of money will eventually run dry if we continue to exponentially stop pouring money into it. It is true what they say, you pay for what you get. Right now we are cheating the system and not paying for our quality. Soon enough we will have no choice but to pay cheap for a cheap product. And we will have no one to blame but ourselves.
"Pay Day for Virtual Goods"- 100% margins.... That is all that needs to be said. It makes perfect sense. The product costs virtually nothing to produce, the profits are unmistakably growing each year.
I am skeptic however. I see this as more of a fad than a trend. There are not currently enough avenues that this market can be taken. They exist in social networks and games.... but where else. I do not see the magnitude of possible avenues that I would need to in order to completely endorse a product like this. It is extremely limited and will remain so and will eventually die out as consumers will see these limitations.
What they do have going for them though is that these are so cheap for the consumer to purchase that even during these tough financial times, this artwork should fall under a category that is not effected because the price range is so reasonably low.
"Envying the Multitasker"- I pride myself in being able to multitask. It saves me a lot of stress that I unfortunately see many other non MT'ers go through. I ask the same question that this article asks... Why isn't it taught? It is a skill just as is writing and reading. What we need to do is figure out how to tangibly teach and understand what goes into productive mulitasking. What are the deterrents to an effective multitasker?
The sooner we can accept this as a viable skill, the sooner we can take advantage of its various uses, and make the best of it we can.
"Swiss Sue"- "The service allows people to view street-level pictures over the Internet and already has been criticized in several European countries for allowing individuals to be identified without their knowledge or consent - potentially exposing embarrassing facts about their private lives to the world."
Really? Really? .... Private lives? They are in public streets aren't they? How can they expect full privacy? I don't understand that at all. What exactly is it that they are doing in the streets of a European City that they wouldn't want some random person from Madagascar to know about? I don't get it. Why do people care about privacy to this extent? Shouldn't you being conducting yourself responsibly enough in public that even if you were photographed, it wouldn't matter?
I say get over yourself and realize that no one really cares about your life. they don't know you, they don't care. they care about the business'. they care about the streets. They care about the cities. They care about the people as a mass... not as individuals.
Today we continued our discussion on the spoken word. But instead of focusing on Story Corps and the notion of storytelling, we focused on pod casting and the art form we know as documentary. it was emphasized that in order to create a successful documentary one must extend themselves out of their comfort Zone; tap into the experiences and knowledge of their community.
Key points that were emphasized were the ability of the creator to show people doing what makes them newsworthy; and show the impact of their lives on their community.
The last point we stressed as a class was that we are inheriting the power to communicate through new media. Since I am a mass communication major, I have been immersed in the subject of communication my entire college career. And it is definitely true, we have been transformed by our new media. There are so many more expressive and diverse ways we can communicate than even 4 short years ago when I arrived here on campus.
Wednesday 11-4
Today we transformed our discussion from the spoken word to the photograph. As this was your area of specific expertise I was expecting to be shown moments in photography that i had never experienced before.
Although we eventually got to that point, I found the precluding lectures extremely dry and hard to focus on. For the most part we studied past historical advances in the technology behind photography. From camera obscura to camera lucida to the Daguerre Camera to the collodion process and the stereopticon, I struggled to maintain my interest in the subject.
But eventually we made it through the background information and we got to the point of what made photography as powerful as it could be. We talked about how photography was used as a maker of myths, and a righter of wrongs in terms of child labor.
in this way, the media of the time transformed how society functioned. It showed the world it's injustice and unbiased views of the world's corruption and problems.
Friday 11-6
Today was a direct continuation on our discussion about how photography transformed society. Subtopics covered in this discussion included realism, war photography and amateur photography.
Alfred Steiglitz showed the world how no one had even seen before in photographs. his photos focused on the honest and real approach to capturing history. Andre Kertesz continued this vision by not sugarcoating his view of the world. No matter how gruesome or horrible it may be, these photographers showed the world what they saw.
War photography soon had a huge impact on popular opinion. Journalists were allowed to capture the footage from the front lines of the offensive. Without these photographs, the people could only imagine what it was like. This technological advancement helped citizens understand what exactly was happening across the world.
The last topic we covered was amateur photography. Culture had never experienced this before and with the advancement and production of new technologies in the field of photography, it became a big issue in the world of professional photography.
Readings
"The Price of Free"- This is unfortunately true and proves to be the ugly truth that will only get less and less attractive as more and more people jump onto the streaming of entertainment rather than buying direct from production. this article is all about warning us that yes, it may be cheaper now, but in the long run, we will pay.
How will the excellent shows continue to run? Quite simply they won't. The well of money will eventually run dry if we continue to exponentially stop pouring money into it. It is true what they say, you pay for what you get. Right now we are cheating the system and not paying for our quality. Soon enough we will have no choice but to pay cheap for a cheap product. And we will have no one to blame but ourselves.
"Pay Day for Virtual Goods"- 100% margins.... That is all that needs to be said. It makes perfect sense. The product costs virtually nothing to produce, the profits are unmistakably growing each year.
I am skeptic however. I see this as more of a fad than a trend. There are not currently enough avenues that this market can be taken. They exist in social networks and games.... but where else. I do not see the magnitude of possible avenues that I would need to in order to completely endorse a product like this. It is extremely limited and will remain so and will eventually die out as consumers will see these limitations.
What they do have going for them though is that these are so cheap for the consumer to purchase that even during these tough financial times, this artwork should fall under a category that is not effected because the price range is so reasonably low.
"Envying the Multitasker"- I pride myself in being able to multitask. It saves me a lot of stress that I unfortunately see many other non MT'ers go through. I ask the same question that this article asks... Why isn't it taught? It is a skill just as is writing and reading. What we need to do is figure out how to tangibly teach and understand what goes into productive mulitasking. What are the deterrents to an effective multitasker?
The sooner we can accept this as a viable skill, the sooner we can take advantage of its various uses, and make the best of it we can.
"Swiss Sue"- "The service allows people to view street-level pictures over the Internet and already has been criticized in several European countries for allowing individuals to be identified without their knowledge or consent - potentially exposing embarrassing facts about their private lives to the world."
Really? Really? .... Private lives? They are in public streets aren't they? How can they expect full privacy? I don't understand that at all. What exactly is it that they are doing in the streets of a European City that they wouldn't want some random person from Madagascar to know about? I don't get it. Why do people care about privacy to this extent? Shouldn't you being conducting yourself responsibly enough in public that even if you were photographed, it wouldn't matter?
I say get over yourself and realize that no one really cares about your life. they don't know you, they don't care. they care about the business'. they care about the streets. They care about the cities. They care about the people as a mass... not as individuals.
Week 11
Monday 10-26
Today we were delighted to have the ever engaging and enthralling Joline Blais come in and talk to us about home. It was confusing at first because none of us were expecting to hear what she was talking about. I found myself writing down notes that I wasn't sure I would ever use. But now as I look back on them I realize where she was going with her presentation. It is the importance of realizing how much home means to us.
It is scary to see how much we are advancing as a culture, and at the same time as we delve exponentially into this endless future, we must keep our hearts in the place in which we came from. Most technologies today don't appreciate and use the advantages that our indigenous roots can give us.
The portion of her talk that really hit home for me was her discussion on touching and the importance of physical contact. it seems that we have gone away from these important values. We fear touch. It makes us uncomfortable and sexually, it is harming our culture. Sex is seen as something taboo and is not to be talked about. In terms of sexual education, this is the main reason we are struggling as a country.
Friday 10-30
Today we talked about the spoken word. I loved today's class. The first thing we did was check out Story Corps. What an ingenious idea! People have the most amazing stories and insights to share but for the most part, they are unable to share these experiences with mankind.
New Media gives these people that opportunity. That is the key point I took away from today's lecture. This documentary art form gives us access to stories that the general public would never else have heard. It is a teaching tool that is used for the betterment of mankind, and I couldn't think of something much more useful and effective as this.
Readings
"Privacy is Dead and Social Media Hold Smoking Gun"- Interesting concept. I don't entirely see the reason for it, or would in no way want it to be part of my life but I can see how some people are obsessed with their daily lives enough to want this. During the article they mention Flickr, and mention how it was initially ambitious of them to make pictures public by default. And how we look back on it now and it is a no-brainer... that is how we see pictures now-a-days... they are useless unless other people can see them.
This makes us think of privacy... is it such a bad thing that it is dead? Sure, there are places you can go for privacy. I choose not to be a member of a social networking site. the choice to keep your life private is still yours. That right has not been taken away from us. It is still our choice what we choose to involve ourselves with.
"Augmented Reality"-"We need to run and fall and get up again and get going." In other
words, get ready for augmented reality everywhere. And after that, we'll see AR where it
makes sense.
This quote makes complete sense to me. I have seen AR in many places and particularly during football games that I watch on TV. It works there. It serves a purpose. But in order to get people aware of, and truly appreciate it, I agree with the article. We need to be integrated into it. I would call it awareness through submersion. Put AR in any place you can, once we can all recognize it and associate with it, we can find where we need it most, and it will flourish in those spots.
This certainly may not be the model for all emerging technologies out there but it certainly has its place in AR.
"Decline of the Hollywood System"- Since I have taken such classes as the history of mass communication, and various other communication history classes, I have heard and read through this time in history before. the times of the 1940's seemed too good to be true. We had come out of the depression so fast and so furiously that there just had to be someone out there who was cheating and getting an unfair advantage.
Given that the Nickelodeons had just came out during the 20's, it is no surprise that the American Film Industry were the ones to take the bait in terms of cashing in on an opportunity to completely monopolize the arena of film.
Although the FTC sent them into a downward spiral that it seems they still will never recover from, it is all for the best as others have risen to the occasion without the need to use dirty tactics such as were used before by the Hollywood system.
"Sony to offer film on Internet TV, then DVD"- I love this article. this is just what I want to see in terms of the future of entertainment. New Releases for movies, games, music... it should all be made available online. We have a culture that obsesses with getting things as quickly as we possibly can. This allows for those users to be fully satisfied. We all have busy lives. We can't afford to take a trip out into the city to go buy the latest entertainment.
Not even to mention the possible traffic. No one wants to deal with that anymore. Our world is hectic and many would like to avoid the hectic city as much as they possibly can. I can't remember the last time I've actually sat in a movie theater... it is relatively unheard of now-a-days in my generation. We can stream everything as fast as we want, whenever we want, wherever we want.
it's everything we have had in the past, except personalized. Sony is hitting on this, and that is precisely what everyone else should be doing.
Today we continued our viewing of the last powerpoint presentation from the first portion of the semester. We covered topics such as historical people in the media, concentration of ownership, "MoJo's" (mobile journalists), corporate journalism and citizen media. These topics really hit home for me given my background in the CMJ department here at UMaine.
Mainly we discussed the pros and cons of the debate between corporate journalism and citizen media. While corporate media can give you expertise and strong professional values, you can get a more diverse range of coverage and enthusiasm from citizen based media coverage.
It is imperative to realize that both kinds of media have there drawbacks and selling points, but together, they create a competitive environment that can only benefit readership in the future.
Two key points were brought up at the end of the lecture; the first being that peer to peer will dominate the future of journalism and the second was posed in the form of a question: How are the forces of media effecting us?
To answer this question I would refer back 4 years ago to my freshman year here in cmj 100 with Paul Grosswiler. In that class we underwent a 24 hour media free experience. For an entire 24 hours students were required to not use any form of electronics, print, or technological devices such as laptops, cellphones, email, newspapers, books... It was a wild experience because most of us realized we simply couldn't. Our technology runs our life, and the media uses that technology to influence our daily decisions.
Wednesday 10-28Mainly we discussed the pros and cons of the debate between corporate journalism and citizen media. While corporate media can give you expertise and strong professional values, you can get a more diverse range of coverage and enthusiasm from citizen based media coverage.
It is imperative to realize that both kinds of media have there drawbacks and selling points, but together, they create a competitive environment that can only benefit readership in the future.
Two key points were brought up at the end of the lecture; the first being that peer to peer will dominate the future of journalism and the second was posed in the form of a question: How are the forces of media effecting us?
To answer this question I would refer back 4 years ago to my freshman year here in cmj 100 with Paul Grosswiler. In that class we underwent a 24 hour media free experience. For an entire 24 hours students were required to not use any form of electronics, print, or technological devices such as laptops, cellphones, email, newspapers, books... It was a wild experience because most of us realized we simply couldn't. Our technology runs our life, and the media uses that technology to influence our daily decisions.
Today we were delighted to have the ever engaging and enthralling Joline Blais come in and talk to us about home. It was confusing at first because none of us were expecting to hear what she was talking about. I found myself writing down notes that I wasn't sure I would ever use. But now as I look back on them I realize where she was going with her presentation. It is the importance of realizing how much home means to us.
It is scary to see how much we are advancing as a culture, and at the same time as we delve exponentially into this endless future, we must keep our hearts in the place in which we came from. Most technologies today don't appreciate and use the advantages that our indigenous roots can give us.
The portion of her talk that really hit home for me was her discussion on touching and the importance of physical contact. it seems that we have gone away from these important values. We fear touch. It makes us uncomfortable and sexually, it is harming our culture. Sex is seen as something taboo and is not to be talked about. In terms of sexual education, this is the main reason we are struggling as a country.
Friday 10-30
Today we talked about the spoken word. I loved today's class. The first thing we did was check out Story Corps. What an ingenious idea! People have the most amazing stories and insights to share but for the most part, they are unable to share these experiences with mankind.
New Media gives these people that opportunity. That is the key point I took away from today's lecture. This documentary art form gives us access to stories that the general public would never else have heard. It is a teaching tool that is used for the betterment of mankind, and I couldn't think of something much more useful and effective as this.
Readings
"Privacy is Dead and Social Media Hold Smoking Gun"- Interesting concept. I don't entirely see the reason for it, or would in no way want it to be part of my life but I can see how some people are obsessed with their daily lives enough to want this. During the article they mention Flickr, and mention how it was initially ambitious of them to make pictures public by default. And how we look back on it now and it is a no-brainer... that is how we see pictures now-a-days... they are useless unless other people can see them.
This makes us think of privacy... is it such a bad thing that it is dead? Sure, there are places you can go for privacy. I choose not to be a member of a social networking site. the choice to keep your life private is still yours. That right has not been taken away from us. It is still our choice what we choose to involve ourselves with.
"Augmented Reality"-"We need to run and fall and get up again and get going." In other
words, get ready for augmented reality everywhere. And after that, we'll see AR where it
makes sense.
This quote makes complete sense to me. I have seen AR in many places and particularly during football games that I watch on TV. It works there. It serves a purpose. But in order to get people aware of, and truly appreciate it, I agree with the article. We need to be integrated into it. I would call it awareness through submersion. Put AR in any place you can, once we can all recognize it and associate with it, we can find where we need it most, and it will flourish in those spots.
This certainly may not be the model for all emerging technologies out there but it certainly has its place in AR.
"Decline of the Hollywood System"- Since I have taken such classes as the history of mass communication, and various other communication history classes, I have heard and read through this time in history before. the times of the 1940's seemed too good to be true. We had come out of the depression so fast and so furiously that there just had to be someone out there who was cheating and getting an unfair advantage.
Given that the Nickelodeons had just came out during the 20's, it is no surprise that the American Film Industry were the ones to take the bait in terms of cashing in on an opportunity to completely monopolize the arena of film.
Although the FTC sent them into a downward spiral that it seems they still will never recover from, it is all for the best as others have risen to the occasion without the need to use dirty tactics such as were used before by the Hollywood system.
"Sony to offer film on Internet TV, then DVD"- I love this article. this is just what I want to see in terms of the future of entertainment. New Releases for movies, games, music... it should all be made available online. We have a culture that obsesses with getting things as quickly as we possibly can. This allows for those users to be fully satisfied. We all have busy lives. We can't afford to take a trip out into the city to go buy the latest entertainment.
Not even to mention the possible traffic. No one wants to deal with that anymore. Our world is hectic and many would like to avoid the hectic city as much as they possibly can. I can't remember the last time I've actually sat in a movie theater... it is relatively unheard of now-a-days in my generation. We can stream everything as fast as we want, whenever we want, wherever we want.
it's everything we have had in the past, except personalized. Sony is hitting on this, and that is precisely what everyone else should be doing.
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