Lecture
-We all have a choice to know
-If technology is available we should be able to use it
ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATIONS (Based in US)
Rights for Internet
They insure we don’t get bullied by companies etc over the internet
Defend some issues
Internet neutral - so anyone can go on there
Networking Intellectuality - internet should be free -form of censorship
NSA SPYING - Through filters e.g. Myspace, Messenger, Facebook etc.
WHAT IS EFF?
The leading civil liberties group defending your rights in the digital world
CREATIVE COMMONS
C - Copy right
CC - Creative Commons - available to use it as long as it’s not used commercially (making money from it) “some rights reserved”
PD - Public Domain (freely available)
RO - Read Only
Source Code - Language - Instructions for programming
Proprietary Software - Software that you cannot change.
We also watched a presentation by Lawrence Lessig about the need for the law to change, and the reasons why he started the Creative Commons
_____________________________________________
READING: Why Software Should Not Have Owners
By Richard Stallman
Digital information technology contributes to the world by making it easier to copy and modify information. Computers promise to make this easier for all of us.
However, not everyone wants it to be easier. The system of copyright gives software programs “owners”.
The copyright system grew up with printing—a technology for mass production copying.
Four practices of the Software Publishers Association (SPA):
-Massive propaganda saying it is wrong to disobey the owners to help your friend.
-Solicitation for stool pigeons to inform on their coworkers and colleagues.
-Raids (with police help) on offices and schools, in which people are told they must prove they are innocent of illegal copying.
-Prosecution (by the US government, at the SPA's request) of people such as MIT's David LaMacchia, not for copying software (he is not accused of copying any), but merely for leaving copying facilities unguarded and failing to censor their use.
All four practices resemble those used in the former Soviet Union
We deserve free software.
READING: FLOSS Is Not Just Good For Teeth
'FLOSS is not just good for teeth' is a collaboratively produced introduction to the concepts that underlie free and open source software.
While open source software proponents believe that this methodology of
software creation tends to create the best software, proponents of free software believe that
even as a “mere user”, the freedom to be a co-creator and co-sharer of software you use
should be protected and sustained.
READING: Cory Doctorow: Creative Commons
Since 2003, the Creative Commons movement has ridden a worldwide revolution in creativity and sharing, inspiring the authors of over 160 million copyrighted works to adopt a "some rights reserved" approach that encourages sharing, remix, and re-use of their works.
Copyright's scope has expanded through technology — the PC and the Internet.
_____________________________________________
TUTE
Spent time on essays
Told where to post our assignmnet - both on our blog and email to tutor with our blog address
Revision for exam
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Assesment Item 3: What affect do video games have on young people?
Video games are prominent in many households both nationally and internationally. However, there is a concern in today society on ‘What affect do video games have on young people?’ whether it is a positive or negative affect? Originally games began with very simple ideas. However, as society develops so do the graphics and story behind the games of today. These changes have effects on our youth in society. Some of these changes are violence within games, which many children become addicted to, and followed with anti-social behavior. However, video games don’t always have a negative effect on young people, as there are many educational games available.
Video games were first introduced in the 1970s (Digest, 1994).These games have changed society in the similar way in which television did. Society once again has adapted to new technologies and with it has come concerns whether it is a positive or negative change. Until the recent resurgence in interest in video games in the past decade, research on the topic was minimal (Kooijmans, 2004). The first generation of video games involved simple geometric shapes and had little interaction. Now however, games involve better graphics and more capabilities. These changes have eventuated in graphics that appear extremely similar to reality, with the added effect to choose from equipment and weapons, skills and techniques. All of which generally involve violence within the games. The impact of the multi-million dollar video game culture on children and young adults is now clearly acknowledged – but generally its impact is viewed negatively (Howard, 1998, p.95).
Anti-social behavior is just one of the concerns when discussing video games and their effect on children. Social isolation occurs in some cases with children spending majority of their time playing video games rather then playing sport or with other children. This becomes a large concern because it harms their social skills and ability to interact with peers which are necessary to develop at a young age. According to Cahill, Elkin, and Handel (2007, p233), the simulating world that is experienced in video games and on the Internet can prove so seductive that the real world comes to seem so boring that it loses appeal.
Addiction to video games is another cause for anti-social behavior, and according to the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry (2006), children and adolescents can become overly involved and even obsessed with videogames. It has been suggested that ‘computer game addiction’ is like any other behavioral addiction, in that it consist of compulsive behavioral involvement, a lack of interest in other activities, association mainly with other addicts, and physical and mental symptoms when attempting to stop the behavior – e.g. the ‘shakes’ (Soper & Millar in Harris, 2001, p.2). This is of large concern when a child constantly chooses to play a video game at the expense of other activities, then becoming distraught if they are unable to play the games. Another major concern has been the question of whether heavy viewing of violent content causes or contributes to anti-social behavior (Jones, 2007, p.212)
Marketing violent games to children appears to be common. In the September 2000 Report, the Commission found that game companies’ marketing documents revealed plans to advertise M-rated games repeatedly in magazines with substantial readership under 17 (Jones, 2007, p.33). There is a system for rating games and that is known as ESRB. This system is designed to give parents the information they need to evaluate a computer or video game before making a purchase (KCTS, 2008). However according to research, in some cases the children themselves purchase the software and generally are accepted even when underage. The commissions prior nationwide undercover surveys in 2000 and 2001 found that unaccompanied children ages 13-16 were able to buy M-rated games 85% (2000) and 75% (2001) of the time (Jones, 2007, p.40).
Many of the most popular games emphasize negative themes and promote criminal behavior and disrespect. Some studies have shown that the playing or observing of violent games does affect young children negatively as they show increased levels of aggressive behavior – at least in the short term (Harris, 2001, p.v). The level of aggression and violence in the games of today is astonishing. A whole game will surround the intention and object to kill and destroy. Characters can consist of a human figure, extremely lifelike and having the target to kill another human character. Studies have also shown that the more realistic and repeated the exposure to violence, the greater the impact on children (American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 2006). The concern with children playing violent games is that it can give them the idea that violence is an acceptable way to solve a problem.
Some video games however, may promote learning, problem solving and help with the development of fine motor skills and coordination (American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 2006). There are many programs that are directed to children as young as three years of age, which contain fun and interactive learning programs for children. These programs promote learning in an enjoyable way for those who struggle with perhaps English or Math. Kids also get to learn new skills or experience something that their own personal skills or the laws of gravity won’t allow them to do (Martin & Oppenhiem, 2007). Research has found that in general among most youth, there is no significant impairment in psychological functioning caused by game playing (Barnett, 2005).
In conclusion there are both negative and positive factors when considering the question ‘What affect do video games have on young people?’ however, evidence provided suggest that long-term gaming for young children have a negative effect towards their development. The confusion is between the gaming world and reality, when children become obsessed and involved in the gaming world it causes in some cases anti-social behavior and violence. According to Poole (2002, p.109), videogames manipulate the imaginative involvement for the player, in the ruses and paradigms of their unreal worlds.
Video games were first introduced in the 1970s (Digest, 1994).These games have changed society in the similar way in which television did. Society once again has adapted to new technologies and with it has come concerns whether it is a positive or negative change. Until the recent resurgence in interest in video games in the past decade, research on the topic was minimal (Kooijmans, 2004). The first generation of video games involved simple geometric shapes and had little interaction. Now however, games involve better graphics and more capabilities. These changes have eventuated in graphics that appear extremely similar to reality, with the added effect to choose from equipment and weapons, skills and techniques. All of which generally involve violence within the games. The impact of the multi-million dollar video game culture on children and young adults is now clearly acknowledged – but generally its impact is viewed negatively (Howard, 1998, p.95).
Anti-social behavior is just one of the concerns when discussing video games and their effect on children. Social isolation occurs in some cases with children spending majority of their time playing video games rather then playing sport or with other children. This becomes a large concern because it harms their social skills and ability to interact with peers which are necessary to develop at a young age. According to Cahill, Elkin, and Handel (2007, p233), the simulating world that is experienced in video games and on the Internet can prove so seductive that the real world comes to seem so boring that it loses appeal.
Addiction to video games is another cause for anti-social behavior, and according to the American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry (2006), children and adolescents can become overly involved and even obsessed with videogames. It has been suggested that ‘computer game addiction’ is like any other behavioral addiction, in that it consist of compulsive behavioral involvement, a lack of interest in other activities, association mainly with other addicts, and physical and mental symptoms when attempting to stop the behavior – e.g. the ‘shakes’ (Soper & Millar in Harris, 2001, p.2). This is of large concern when a child constantly chooses to play a video game at the expense of other activities, then becoming distraught if they are unable to play the games. Another major concern has been the question of whether heavy viewing of violent content causes or contributes to anti-social behavior (Jones, 2007, p.212)
Marketing violent games to children appears to be common. In the September 2000 Report, the Commission found that game companies’ marketing documents revealed plans to advertise M-rated games repeatedly in magazines with substantial readership under 17 (Jones, 2007, p.33). There is a system for rating games and that is known as ESRB. This system is designed to give parents the information they need to evaluate a computer or video game before making a purchase (KCTS, 2008). However according to research, in some cases the children themselves purchase the software and generally are accepted even when underage. The commissions prior nationwide undercover surveys in 2000 and 2001 found that unaccompanied children ages 13-16 were able to buy M-rated games 85% (2000) and 75% (2001) of the time (Jones, 2007, p.40).
Many of the most popular games emphasize negative themes and promote criminal behavior and disrespect. Some studies have shown that the playing or observing of violent games does affect young children negatively as they show increased levels of aggressive behavior – at least in the short term (Harris, 2001, p.v). The level of aggression and violence in the games of today is astonishing. A whole game will surround the intention and object to kill and destroy. Characters can consist of a human figure, extremely lifelike and having the target to kill another human character. Studies have also shown that the more realistic and repeated the exposure to violence, the greater the impact on children (American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 2006). The concern with children playing violent games is that it can give them the idea that violence is an acceptable way to solve a problem.
Some video games however, may promote learning, problem solving and help with the development of fine motor skills and coordination (American Academy of Child Adolescent Psychiatry, 2006). There are many programs that are directed to children as young as three years of age, which contain fun and interactive learning programs for children. These programs promote learning in an enjoyable way for those who struggle with perhaps English or Math. Kids also get to learn new skills or experience something that their own personal skills or the laws of gravity won’t allow them to do (Martin & Oppenhiem, 2007). Research has found that in general among most youth, there is no significant impairment in psychological functioning caused by game playing (Barnett, 2005).
In conclusion there are both negative and positive factors when considering the question ‘What affect do video games have on young people?’ however, evidence provided suggest that long-term gaming for young children have a negative effect towards their development. The confusion is between the gaming world and reality, when children become obsessed and involved in the gaming world it causes in some cases anti-social behavior and violence. According to Poole (2002, p.109), videogames manipulate the imaginative involvement for the player, in the ruses and paradigms of their unreal worlds.
By April Turnbull
30 May 2008
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
11th Week - The Ethics of Peer-to-Peer Filesharing...
Lecture
Steal This Film 2
Nabster - global party- everyone suddenly had access to the largest music library in the world
Entertainment industry now go after individuals who download - tens of thousands are getting sued
Printing:
Printers were hunted down - associated with rebellion
Printing was considered un-holey work of the devil
Printing threatened the ideas and protection of literature
During the 1970s, printing was distributed underground
Urge to communicate - ideas pushed to the limit - and then becoming even better
ARPA net
Each machine shares resources
Joseph Lickliter - created the concept of networking computers
Networking: no hierarchy - all equal - no body in charge
Reproduction and distribution of data in milliseconds
Information copied from one network to the other
Copying on information is out of control - to many people involved to be able to shut everything down
Companies might be shut down, but there are still networks
Human’s are constantly sharing information and wanting to communicate
We all reproduce and distribute information
_____________________________________________
READING; When Pigs Fly: The Death of Oink, the Birth of Dissent, and a Brief History of Record Industry Suicide.
In 1999 he began working for a major recording label, it was hear he realized how many people are involved in creating a CD and that is why they cost approximately $18.
When music became available to download for free, musicians and the companies who help create their fame lost money. People lose interest in buying their CDs and having a stack of CDs piled up; instead downloading is cheaper and can be stored on small mp3 players etc.
Unlike newspapers, record companies own the distribution and the product being distributed, so you can't just start your own website where you give out music that they own - and that's what this is all about: distribution.
Oink- a fast downloading site with access to music. World’s largest music store. Gives viewers the opportunity to listen to music they wouldn’t have listened to in the beginning. Maybe taking the money out of music is the only way to get money back into it.
_____________________________________________
Tute
This week we continued working on our essay's and blogs.
At half time we were showed how to use Windows Movie Maker, using the basic tools we had available. Windows Movie Maker is a basic program that would be best used for beginers and simple movies that can be posted on you tube.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
10th Week – Blade Runner
Lecture
The lecture for this week was watching the movie Blade Runner. The movie took up the whole of the lecture, with no time to discuss the movie.
Blade Runner –
Science Fiction Film
It is an examination of the impact of technology on human society, existence, and the very nature of humanity itself.
Blade Runners are specialized police who are trained to kill escaped replicates on earth.
Phillip K Dick - Common themes in Dick's work include artificial intelligence, cities out of control and post-industrial dystopia dissected with a film noir sensibility.
_____________________________________________
READING; An exploration of what it is to be human.
Dick urges that to be human, one has to relate to all humans, not just one particular political segment.
These people in the future judge themselves on empathy, yet they cannot identify with the experiences of others, and so are less human themselves.
Some of the androids are examples of what it is to be human, or rather what Dicks impressions of what humans should be as opposed to what we are.
All of the androids have an innate desire to survive, even though they only have a limited lifespan.
In 'Bladerunner' Dick offers the view that our society as a whole assesses people by what is known about them, instead of finding out about them. The people who know you, your personality, your job, the stereotype of what you are makes you human to the rest of society.
'Bladerunner' is not just 'an exploration' of humanity, it examines our pathetic qualities at present, mistakes in the past and our tragedy in the future. The sum of these is what it is to be 'human'.
_____________________________________________
Tute;
The Assessment Item 2: Essay Outline Presentations where due this week so there was no tutorial task.
In the tute our class spent time finalizing their Essay Outline, in preparation to discuss with class, followed by emailing it to our tutor.
The lecture for this week was watching the movie Blade Runner. The movie took up the whole of the lecture, with no time to discuss the movie.
Blade Runner –
Science Fiction Film
It is an examination of the impact of technology on human society, existence, and the very nature of humanity itself.
Blade Runners are specialized police who are trained to kill escaped replicates on earth.
Phillip K Dick - Common themes in Dick's work include artificial intelligence, cities out of control and post-industrial dystopia dissected with a film noir sensibility.
_____________________________________________
READING; An exploration of what it is to be human.
Dick urges that to be human, one has to relate to all humans, not just one particular political segment.
These people in the future judge themselves on empathy, yet they cannot identify with the experiences of others, and so are less human themselves.
Some of the androids are examples of what it is to be human, or rather what Dicks impressions of what humans should be as opposed to what we are.
All of the androids have an innate desire to survive, even though they only have a limited lifespan.
In 'Bladerunner' Dick offers the view that our society as a whole assesses people by what is known about them, instead of finding out about them. The people who know you, your personality, your job, the stereotype of what you are makes you human to the rest of society.
'Bladerunner' is not just 'an exploration' of humanity, it examines our pathetic qualities at present, mistakes in the past and our tragedy in the future. The sum of these is what it is to be 'human'.
_____________________________________________
Tute;
The Assessment Item 2: Essay Outline Presentations where due this week so there was no tutorial task.
In the tute our class spent time finalizing their Essay Outline, in preparation to discuss with class, followed by emailing it to our tutor.
9th Week – Cyberpunk
Lecture Notes:
Cyberpunk is a science fiction genre based in the possibilities inherent in computers, genetics, body modifications and corporate developments in the near future.
The term cybernetics comes from the Greek kybernetes which means steersman or pilot and the concept developed during and after WWII to indicate the use of a systematic approach to complex issues such as managing a large number of computers at distributed sites or understanding the operations of the brain.
Cyberpunk developed as a reaction against the over-blown and predominantly safe stories pf 'space opera' such as Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy and George Lucas's Star Wars.
William Gibson is a US/Canadian writer whose fictional work has spawned a number of key concepts like 'cyberspace' and 'virtual reality'. His work sits uncomfortably in the sci-fi genre because its gritty realism about the near future makes it too close to the truth.
Matrix pushes the boundaries of computer-generated effects as it explores apossible future world where machines dominate humans but keep them inignorant bliss of their real state.
Cyberpunk Themes
1.Technology & Mythology
2.Utopia & Dystopia
3.Cites as Machines
4.Technological change
5.Modernism to Postmodernism
___________________________________________________
READING; The Allegory of the Cave
Prisoners would mistake appearance for reality. They would think the things they see on the wall (the shadows) were real; they would know nothing of the real causes of the shadows.
Plato’s point: the general terms of our language are not “names” of the physical objects that we can see. They are actually names of things that we cannot see, things that we can only grasp with the mind.
We would be mistaken if we thought that the concepts that we grasp were on the same level as the things we perceive.
_______________________________________________
Tute:
This week was revision of content and working on assignment.
Cyberpunk is a science fiction genre based in the possibilities inherent in computers, genetics, body modifications and corporate developments in the near future.
The term cybernetics comes from the Greek kybernetes which means steersman or pilot and the concept developed during and after WWII to indicate the use of a systematic approach to complex issues such as managing a large number of computers at distributed sites or understanding the operations of the brain.
Cyberpunk developed as a reaction against the over-blown and predominantly safe stories pf 'space opera' such as Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy and George Lucas's Star Wars.
William Gibson is a US/Canadian writer whose fictional work has spawned a number of key concepts like 'cyberspace' and 'virtual reality'. His work sits uncomfortably in the sci-fi genre because its gritty realism about the near future makes it too close to the truth.
Matrix pushes the boundaries of computer-generated effects as it explores apossible future world where machines dominate humans but keep them inignorant bliss of their real state.
Cyberpunk Themes
1.Technology & Mythology
2.Utopia & Dystopia
3.Cites as Machines
4.Technological change
5.Modernism to Postmodernism
___________________________________________________
READING; The Allegory of the Cave
Prisoners would mistake appearance for reality. They would think the things they see on the wall (the shadows) were real; they would know nothing of the real causes of the shadows.Plato’s point: the general terms of our language are not “names” of the physical objects that we can see. They are actually names of things that we cannot see, things that we can only grasp with the mind.
We would be mistaken if we thought that the concepts that we grasp were on the same level as the things we perceive.
_______________________________________________
Tute:
This week was revision of content and working on assignment.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
8th Week - "Are Games a Waste of Time?"
Notes on Lecture:
Spacewar – one of the first games, mid 1960s
Games are part of our Cultural life – we all at least know about games
Games are now influencing movies, as in the past movies would influence a game
Moral Panics – games influencing young children, Violence in Games. However, people are influenced by many things
Some games have STORIES
LUDOLOGY – the study of games, they don’t play games to hear stories but play for fun
NARRATOLOGY – the study of games – Story Element
Some game players would argue that story is just decoration to a game
History of video games might help us move forward
SEMIOTICS – Games as media – Cinema & Technology
In a video games world rules can change, different to everyday life
Aesthetics in a game – what makes a game fun?
Design – Virtual Reality
Fun doesn’t always equal real.
_______________________________________
READING; Trigger Happy
Notes
Video games aren’t always realistic
E.g., shooting lasers in a game are slow and if the target moves the laser will miss it, however in real life lasers are as fast as 300 million meters per second.
Why, then, do videogames get it so wrong? The answer is they get it wrong deliberately, because with “real” laser behavior it wouldn’t be much of a game. It would be far too easy to blow things up. The challenge of accounting for an enemy craft’s direction and speed, of aiming appropriately off-target, and the concomitant satisfaction of scoring a fiery hit, are artifacts of this unrealism.
______________________________________
Tutorial-
There was two parts to this tutorial.
The first was a Microsoft Office and Excel task. The task was a set of instructions within the programs that may not be known by many people. E.g. Mail Merge, Formulas and graphs. The task was interesting and re visited the skills I was taught during Business class at school.
The second part was comparing chat rooms such as msn to a 3D environment.
Q. What is different about the kinds of socialising that happens in these spaces? Does the 3D aspect make much difference?
There is a noticeable difference with the two types of socialising.
Socialising with someone through chat rooms can be deceiving. People don’t have to be themselves.
Whereas in a 3D environment, although it can be challenging for some to be open with new people, I believe it is important to socialise in person and learn how to deal with different situations.
Spacewar – one of the first games, mid 1960s
Games are part of our Cultural life – we all at least know about games
Games are now influencing movies, as in the past movies would influence a game
Moral Panics – games influencing young children, Violence in Games. However, people are influenced by many things
Some games have STORIES
LUDOLOGY – the study of games, they don’t play games to hear stories but play for fun
NARRATOLOGY – the study of games – Story Element
Some game players would argue that story is just decoration to a game
History of video games might help us move forward
SEMIOTICS – Games as media – Cinema & Technology
In a video games world rules can change, different to everyday life
Aesthetics in a game – what makes a game fun?
Design – Virtual Reality
Fun doesn’t always equal real.
_______________________________________
READING; Trigger Happy
Notes
Video games aren’t always realistic
E.g., shooting lasers in a game are slow and if the target moves the laser will miss it, however in real life lasers are as fast as 300 million meters per second.
Why, then, do videogames get it so wrong? The answer is they get it wrong deliberately, because with “real” laser behavior it wouldn’t be much of a game. It would be far too easy to blow things up. The challenge of accounting for an enemy craft’s direction and speed, of aiming appropriately off-target, and the concomitant satisfaction of scoring a fiery hit, are artifacts of this unrealism.
______________________________________
Tutorial-
There was two parts to this tutorial.
The first was a Microsoft Office and Excel task. The task was a set of instructions within the programs that may not be known by many people. E.g. Mail Merge, Formulas and graphs. The task was interesting and re visited the skills I was taught during Business class at school.
The second part was comparing chat rooms such as msn to a 3D environment.
Q. What is different about the kinds of socialising that happens in these spaces? Does the 3D aspect make much difference?
There is a noticeable difference with the two types of socialising.
Socialising with someone through chat rooms can be deceiving. People don’t have to be themselves.
Whereas in a 3D environment, although it can be challenging for some to be open with new people, I believe it is important to socialise in person and learn how to deal with different situations.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
7th Week - Cronenberg: Cinema & Technology
Unfortunately I couldn’t attend this lecture, but after reading through lecture notes and watching in my own time the movie eXistenZ I have a few notes myself…
David Cronenberg was the director of many films that melded horror and ski-fiction with a deep inquiry into the human body’s interaction with technology and how that affects our description of reality.
eXistenZ is a film that explores the difference between reality and games. The film suggests that because of the addiction to a game that creates another world sometimes reality can be blurred and eventually the knowledge of what is real and what isn’t becomes lost.
The film begins with the invention of a new game, in this world when you enter a game you are no longer awake in reality. There is a group in the film that are against the game makers and there is an attempt for assassination towards one. This then forces the game maker to hide out, while doing this she enters the game world with her protector. Eventually both worlds become out of control and it is almost impossible to distinguish what is reality.
_________________________________________________
READING; The Military - Entertainment Complex: A New Facet of Information Warfare.
Notes:
The words of one senior White House official sums up the approach: 'Boom, boom, we're going in hard and fast,' the official said. 'By this time next week, sit by your TV and get ready to watch the fireworks' (Coorey and Schlink, 2003).
The military have always found a use for entertainment. Recruiting songs and marching songs prepared the soldier's mind to over-ride the self-preservation mechanism in the heat of battle. Propaganda has always been best served as entertainment.
The military also used the entertainment industry's radio broadcast and marketing expertise in psychological operations (PSYOPS) to build support for the Allied war effort behind enemy lines.
Satellites gave the military the opportunity to gather signals intelligence (SIGINT) including radio and television signals from anywhere in the world.
By the first Gulf War, the military had re-exerted control so effectively that journalists were physically constrained from approaching the front lines and had no option but to cover the prepared story.
The military are very familiar with the reality of simulation, particularly as games – they have been part of their training about strategy as long as commanders have coordinated groups of people for large-scale combat.
During the twentieth century, air crew training came to depend on the use of simulators that allowed pilots to practice flying without putting their lives, or more importantly, their expensive aircraft in danger.
The historic relationship between the military and the entertainment industry has firm foundations in an economic-ideological trade that both sides find mutually beneficial.
The second Gulf War saw the military-entertainment complex move to an even more heightened level of information war that seeks to use mass media channels systematically to massage reality not only for home consumption but also, and most significantly, as part of an integrated weapons system aimed at the enemy.
One of the most significant developments in the mediasphere between the first and second Gulf Wars was the emergence of reality television.
_____________________________________________________
Tute for this week was cancelled due to public holiday on Friday.
David Cronenberg was the director of many films that melded horror and ski-fiction with a deep inquiry into the human body’s interaction with technology and how that affects our description of reality.
eXistenZ is a film that explores the difference between reality and games. The film suggests that because of the addiction to a game that creates another world sometimes reality can be blurred and eventually the knowledge of what is real and what isn’t becomes lost.
The film begins with the invention of a new game, in this world when you enter a game you are no longer awake in reality. There is a group in the film that are against the game makers and there is an attempt for assassination towards one. This then forces the game maker to hide out, while doing this she enters the game world with her protector. Eventually both worlds become out of control and it is almost impossible to distinguish what is reality.
_________________________________________________
READING; The Military - Entertainment Complex: A New Facet of Information Warfare.
Notes:
The words of one senior White House official sums up the approach: 'Boom, boom, we're going in hard and fast,' the official said. 'By this time next week, sit by your TV and get ready to watch the fireworks' (Coorey and Schlink, 2003).
The military have always found a use for entertainment. Recruiting songs and marching songs prepared the soldier's mind to over-ride the self-preservation mechanism in the heat of battle. Propaganda has always been best served as entertainment.
The military also used the entertainment industry's radio broadcast and marketing expertise in psychological operations (PSYOPS) to build support for the Allied war effort behind enemy lines.
Satellites gave the military the opportunity to gather signals intelligence (SIGINT) including radio and television signals from anywhere in the world.
By the first Gulf War, the military had re-exerted control so effectively that journalists were physically constrained from approaching the front lines and had no option but to cover the prepared story.
The military are very familiar with the reality of simulation, particularly as games – they have been part of their training about strategy as long as commanders have coordinated groups of people for large-scale combat.
During the twentieth century, air crew training came to depend on the use of simulators that allowed pilots to practice flying without putting their lives, or more importantly, their expensive aircraft in danger.
The historic relationship between the military and the entertainment industry has firm foundations in an economic-ideological trade that both sides find mutually beneficial.
The second Gulf War saw the military-entertainment complex move to an even more heightened level of information war that seeks to use mass media channels systematically to massage reality not only for home consumption but also, and most significantly, as part of an integrated weapons system aimed at the enemy.
One of the most significant developments in the mediasphere between the first and second Gulf Wars was the emergence of reality television.
_____________________________________________________
Tute for this week was cancelled due to public holiday on Friday.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
6th Week; A BREIF HISTORY OF THE COMPUTER AND INTERNET
We began the lecture by watching a scene out of the movie Johnny Mnemonic. It showed some of the early ideas of a computer.
Babbage.
He was the man who created the first computer machine.
The engine was designed to calculate & print mathematical tables.
Xerox PRAC in the early 70s, a think tank (group of people) developed ideas to make the computer better, e.g. Mouse, the graphical user interface (GUI) & pull-down menus.
Steve Jobs & Steve Wozniak were the inventors of Apple.
‘Killer application’ (accounting program) was brought about in 1979.
IBM – International Business Machine.
In the lecture we also watched an animated short film about the internet, and how it works. It showed how one computer can read another computer through cables.
__________________________________________________
READING; What’s new about ‘New Media’?
It is hard to determine what is ‘new’ in technology, because the rate of change in media is so rapid, a list of new technologies quickly becomes dated.
Three interrelated social and technological process;
digitisation and convergence
interactivity
networks and networking.
We can define new media as those forms that combine the three Cs:
computing and information technology (IT), communications networks, and
digitised media and information content (Miles 1997; Rice 1999; Barr
2000)
Lievrouw and Livingstone (2002: 7) in their observation that any approach to thinking about new media needs to take account of three elements: he artefacts or devices that enable and extend our ability to communicate the communication activities and practices we engage in to develop and use these devices the social arrangements and organisations that form around these devices and practices.
The Internet represents the newest, most widely discussed, and perliaps most significant manifestation of new media.
The Internet constitutes the electronic network of networks that link people and information through computers, and increasingly through other digital media technologies, and allow for both interpersonal communication and information retrieval (DiMaggio et al. 2001).
INTERNET HISTORY, three elements;
1st - Established in 1957, Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA), electronic mail being perhaps the major communications innovation
2nd - development of a common set of networking protocols, which enabled researchers in the various local area networks (LANs)
(Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf develop in 1974 a common switching protocol that could meet the needs of an open-architecture network environment, which came to be known as TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/internet Protocol).)
3rd - 1990s, development of the World Wide Web (www).
FOUR FEATURES OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB;
1st - Colour, pictures, music, audio, as well as data & text
2nd - Hypertext (allows point-to-click access)
3rd - Hypertext then became more apparent with the development of web browsers
4th - Hypertext Transfer Protocol (http), websites.
The telecommunications industry experienced rapid change in the 1980s and 199Os, moving from being public monopolies or highly regulated companies providing ‘plain old telephone services’ (POTS), to becoming a sector involved in the delivery of a complex range of value-added network services (VANS).
Interactive media forms are those that give users a degree of choice in the information
system, both in terms of choice of access to information sources and control over the outcomes of using that system and making those choice. Interactivity is a central concept in understanding new media, but different media forms possess different degrees of interactivity, and some forms of digitised and converged media are not in fact interactive at all.
Interactive - ‘the extent to which Communication reflects back on itself feeds on and responds to the past’
Interactive - two components; interconnectivity and interoperability
_________________________________________________
In the tute we discussed writing our essay, and how to do so in a structured way.
Intro (what essay is about, what way essay is heading)
Body (Justify argument, 3 topics, with 3 paragraphs each topic)
Conclusion (sum up argument)
We also discussed the lecture, a few points taken;
The main servers are in America
Internet is a network of networks
Babbage.
He was the man who created the first computer machine.
The engine was designed to calculate & print mathematical tables.
Xerox PRAC in the early 70s, a think tank (group of people) developed ideas to make the computer better, e.g. Mouse, the graphical user interface (GUI) & pull-down menus.
Steve Jobs & Steve Wozniak were the inventors of Apple.
‘Killer application’ (accounting program) was brought about in 1979.
IBM – International Business Machine.
In the lecture we also watched an animated short film about the internet, and how it works. It showed how one computer can read another computer through cables.
__________________________________________________
READING; What’s new about ‘New Media’?
It is hard to determine what is ‘new’ in technology, because the rate of change in media is so rapid, a list of new technologies quickly becomes dated.
Three interrelated social and technological process;
digitisation and convergence
interactivity
networks and networking.
We can define new media as those forms that combine the three Cs:
computing and information technology (IT), communications networks, and
digitised media and information content (Miles 1997; Rice 1999; Barr
2000)
Lievrouw and Livingstone (2002: 7) in their observation that any approach to thinking about new media needs to take account of three elements: he artefacts or devices that enable and extend our ability to communicate the communication activities and practices we engage in to develop and use these devices the social arrangements and organisations that form around these devices and practices.
The Internet represents the newest, most widely discussed, and perliaps most significant manifestation of new media.
The Internet constitutes the electronic network of networks that link people and information through computers, and increasingly through other digital media technologies, and allow for both interpersonal communication and information retrieval (DiMaggio et al. 2001).
INTERNET HISTORY, three elements;
1st - Established in 1957, Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA), electronic mail being perhaps the major communications innovation
2nd - development of a common set of networking protocols, which enabled researchers in the various local area networks (LANs)
(Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf develop in 1974 a common switching protocol that could meet the needs of an open-architecture network environment, which came to be known as TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/internet Protocol).)
3rd - 1990s, development of the World Wide Web (www).
FOUR FEATURES OF THE WORLD WIDE WEB;
1st - Colour, pictures, music, audio, as well as data & text
2nd - Hypertext (allows point-to-click access)
3rd - Hypertext then became more apparent with the development of web browsers
4th - Hypertext Transfer Protocol (http), websites.
The telecommunications industry experienced rapid change in the 1980s and 199Os, moving from being public monopolies or highly regulated companies providing ‘plain old telephone services’ (POTS), to becoming a sector involved in the delivery of a complex range of value-added network services (VANS).
Interactive media forms are those that give users a degree of choice in the information
system, both in terms of choice of access to information sources and control over the outcomes of using that system and making those choice. Interactivity is a central concept in understanding new media, but different media forms possess different degrees of interactivity, and some forms of digitised and converged media are not in fact interactive at all.
Interactive - ‘the extent to which Communication reflects back on itself feeds on and responds to the past’
Interactive - two components; interconnectivity and interoperability
_________________________________________________
In the tute we discussed writing our essay, and how to do so in a structured way.
Intro (what essay is about, what way essay is heading)
Body (Justify argument, 3 topics, with 3 paragraphs each topic)
Conclusion (sum up argument)
We also discussed the lecture, a few points taken;
The main servers are in America
Internet is a network of networks
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
5th Week; WHY I HATE WIKIPEDIA
At the beginning of the lecture we viewed some Wikipedia sites. It is obvious that is not a reliable source as anyone can log in and change or add information. You can view the history of a page, and this shows how many changes have occurred since the site was created. Wikipedia isn’t necessarily useless, as it does contain a lot of information, however it shouldn’t be used as a primary resource when researching.
Matrix Problem; how can we be sure that what we’re reading is the truth?
‘There are facts that we absolutely know are true e.g. it’s raining, and then there are other facts that we can’t always be sure’.
In the lecture we also discussed searching reliable information. Library Catalogue Journals are a good source of information, found on the Griffith site.
____________________________________________________
Reading for the week Jorge Luis Borges.
1940, short story, Tale.
Presented in English & Spanish.
Searching for the truth about Uqbar.
Matrix Problem; how can we be sure that what we’re reading is the truth?
‘There are facts that we absolutely know are true e.g. it’s raining, and then there are other facts that we can’t always be sure’.
In the lecture we also discussed searching reliable information. Library Catalogue Journals are a good source of information, found on the Griffith site.
____________________________________________________
Reading for the week Jorge Luis Borges.
1940, short story, Tale.
Presented in English & Spanish.
Searching for the truth about Uqbar.
Notes taken…
- Volume XLVI of the Angelo-American Cyclopaedia, instead of 917, it concealed 921 pages. These fourteen additional pages made up the article of Uqbar. (not in alphabetical marking).
- The passage recalled by Bioy was perhaps the only surprising one,
For one of those gnostics, the visible universe was an illusion or (more precisely) a sophism. Mirrors and fatherhood are abominable because they multiply and disseminate that universe.
The rest of it seemed very plausible, quite in keeping with the general tone of the work and (as is natural) a bit boring. - Reading over it again they realized that amongst the fourteen names which figured in the geographical part, they only recognized three - Khorasan, Armenia, Erzerum.
- A friend Herbet Ashe died, leaving behind a certified package from Brazil. It contained ‘not the story of my emotions but of Uqbar and Tlön and Orbis Tertius’
On Tuesday, X crosses a deserted road and loses nine copper coins. On Thursday, Y finds in the road four coins, somewhat rusted by Wednesday's rain. On Friday, Z discovers three coins in the road. On Friday morning, X finds two coins in the corridor of his house. The heresiarch would deduce from this story the reality - i.e., the continuity - of the nine coins which were recovered. It is absurd (he affirmed) to imagine that four of the coins have not existed between Tuesday and Thursday, three between Tuesday and Friday afternoon, two between Tuesday and Friday morning. It is logical to think that they have existed - at least in some secret way, hidden from the comprehension of men - at every moment of those three periods.
- Equality is one thing and identity another. They then argued: if equality implies identity, one would also have to admit that the nine coins are one
- Books were not signed. Plagiarism did not exist, it was established that all works were from one author. Often critics invented authors.
___________________________________________________
Tutorial:
I couldn’t make it to the first half of the lecture so I missed all discussion at the beginning, however the time I did spend in class I started work on the tutorial task about Walter Benjamin. The class also had to choose what our assignment for the end of the semester was going to focus on.
Tutorial Task - Q's considering the reading by Walter Benjamin
How do the ideas from Walter Benjamin's "Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" apply to contemporary digital media?
The ability to reproduce contemporary digital media such as newspapers to a large audience and at a fast rate.
There was a time when "Art" was made by artists who were skilled professionals. Now that anyone with a computer can create things digitally (music, images, videos, etc), what does that mean for "art"?
I guess it can be good and bad in some ways, because we loose tradition, however I think as our world advances not everything can stay the same, and creating art digitally gives artists more room for imagination and creation.
Is a photoshopped image "authentic"?
I probably wouldn’t say authentic. I think photoshopped images can be beautiful, so why shouldn’t that be considered as art? However, when a photographer can capture an image without photoshopping it is more spectacular.
Do digital "things" have an "aura" (in Benjamin's terms)?
The ability to reproduce contemporary digital media such as newspapers to a large audience and at a fast rate.
There was a time when "Art" was made by artists who were skilled professionals. Now that anyone with a computer can create things digitally (music, images, videos, etc), what does that mean for "art"?
I guess it can be good and bad in some ways, because we loose tradition, however I think as our world advances not everything can stay the same, and creating art digitally gives artists more room for imagination and creation.
Is a photoshopped image "authentic"?
I probably wouldn’t say authentic. I think photoshopped images can be beautiful, so why shouldn’t that be considered as art? However, when a photographer can capture an image without photoshopping it is more spectacular.
Do digital "things" have an "aura" (in Benjamin's terms)?
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
4th Week; OLD COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES
The discussion in weeks 4 lecture surrounded the history of communication.
Some of the earlier forms of communication include;
- Rock Art
- Telegraph & Telephone (Point to point communication)
- Newspaper
- Radio
- Cinema
- Television
- Video
Semiotics: Understanding signs.
20th century saw a massive increase in communication technology.
We spoke about some theorists.
Walter Benjamin. Louis Althusser. Raymond Williams. Stanley Cohen.
The Lecturer then spoke about Walter Benjamin and his history:
During the 1st World War he was a peace activist.
Had a PHD that explored German Drama.
He was always trying to understand society.
Worked at a children radio explaining culture, influenced the minds of the young.
Went to Paris and wrote a book about Arcades.
Studied Jewish Documents.
He wasn’t a straight forward thinker.
He committed suicide when captured, so the others could get away.
TIMELINE - Understand where communication comes from and the new forms of communication.
___________________________________________________
Reading for the week was Walter Benjamin; The Work and Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.
- The Greeks only knew two technical methods of reproducing, founding and stamping. Now we can re-print the same thing over again, and art such as wood sculptures can be mechanically reproduced. No longer unique,
- Photography soon took over sculpting, as the eye is quicker then the hand .
- Manual reproduction example;
- Photography can capture better then what the eye can see, enlarge etc as well.
- Technical reproduction can reach further then what an original could.
- Works of art are received and valued on different plans. Cult value & exhibition value.
- Film industry is trying hard to spur the interest of the masses through illusion-promoting spectacles and dubious speculations.
- Mechanical reproduction of art changes the reaction of the masses toward art.
- Evidently a different nature opens itself to the camera than opens to the naked eye
Additional notes on the reading…
- Says, the old forms of communication used to be the domain of the rich and power (ones who could afford to read)
- What is the original work of art in a photo?… The negative? The produced photo?
- Work of art is how society functions
- The article was hidden by a librarian at the library when Benjamin was wanted
___________________________________________________
In the tute we then spoke about the lecture to help us gain further understand. We discussed some theorists. However, majority of the tute surrounded research towards our tutorial task scavenger hunt.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Tutorial Task; Search Engines
How do search engines rank the stuff they find on the internet?
Who, or what, makes one page (that you might get in your search results) more useful than another one, so that it is put at the top of your search results?
Reliable source and Keywords
What are some of your favourite search engines? why do you like one more than others?
Google, because it is the most popluar and one of the biggest. I find I almost always am supplied with links to the information I was searching for. With some search engines, the links don't always give black and white answers.
- Keywords
- Graphics
- Links
- Information contnent
- Amount of Information/Pages
Who, or what, makes one page (that you might get in your search results) more useful than another one, so that it is put at the top of your search results?
Reliable source and Keywords
What are some of your favourite search engines? why do you like one more than others?
Google, because it is the most popluar and one of the biggest. I find I almost always am supplied with links to the information I was searching for. With some search engines, the links don't always give black and white answers.
Tutorial Task; Scavenger Hunt
1. Who was the creator of the infamous "lovebug" computer virus?
Onel De Guzman, a 23-year old man living in a middle-class Manila suburb.
Website - http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewBusiness.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\1998-2000\CUL20000505b.html
2. Who invented the paper clip?
Norwegian Johan Vaaler
Website - http://ask.yahoo.com/20031120.html
3. How did the Ebola virus get its name?
From a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it was first recognized.
Website - http://ebola.emedtv.com/ebola-virus/from-what-place-did-the-ebola-virus-get-its-name.html
4. What country had the largest recorded earthquake?
Chile 1960 May 22 19:11:14 UTC Magnitude 9.5
Website - http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/world/events/1960_05_22.php
5. In computer memory/storage terms, how many kilobytes in a terabyte?
?
6. Who is the creator of email?
Ray Tomlinson
Website - http://inventors.about.com/od/estartinventions/a/email.html
7. What is the storm worm, and how many computers are infected by it?
It begins through email, and once the email is opened the virus then spreads quietly through the computer. Because it is so quick this virus effected millions of computers.
Website - http://www.hothardware.com/News/What_Is_The_Storm_Worm_For/
8. If you wanted to contact the prime minister of australia directly, what is the most efficient way?
Through this site…
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=200637520
9. Which Brisbane-based punk band is Stephen Stockwell (Head of the School of Arts) a member of?
The Black Assassins.
Website - http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/art/staff/stockwell.htm
10. What does the term "Web 2.0" mean in your own words?
Web 2.0 is the second generation of services available on the World Wide Web that lets people collaborate and share information online. Example; Wikipedia.
Onel De Guzman, a 23-year old man living in a middle-class Manila suburb.
Website - http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewBusiness.asp?Page=\Culture\archive\1998-2000\CUL20000505b.html
2. Who invented the paper clip?
Norwegian Johan Vaaler
Website - http://ask.yahoo.com/20031120.html
3. How did the Ebola virus get its name?
From a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it was first recognized.
Website - http://ebola.emedtv.com/ebola-virus/from-what-place-did-the-ebola-virus-get-its-name.html
4. What country had the largest recorded earthquake?
Chile 1960 May 22 19:11:14 UTC Magnitude 9.5
Website - http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/world/events/1960_05_22.php
5. In computer memory/storage terms, how many kilobytes in a terabyte?
?
6. Who is the creator of email?
Ray Tomlinson
Website - http://inventors.about.com/od/estartinventions/a/email.html
7. What is the storm worm, and how many computers are infected by it?
It begins through email, and once the email is opened the virus then spreads quietly through the computer. Because it is so quick this virus effected millions of computers.
Website - http://www.hothardware.com/News/What_Is_The_Storm_Worm_For/
8. If you wanted to contact the prime minister of australia directly, what is the most efficient way?
Through this site…
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=200637520
9. Which Brisbane-based punk band is Stephen Stockwell (Head of the School of Arts) a member of?
The Black Assassins.
Website - http://www.griffith.edu.au/school/art/staff/stockwell.htm
10. What does the term "Web 2.0" mean in your own words?
Web 2.0 is the second generation of services available on the World Wide Web that lets people collaborate and share information online. Example; Wikipedia.
3rd Week; ALPHAVILLE
In week 3 we watched the film Alphaville. The film was created in 1965, the language was French, it was viewed in black and white and had no special effects. The film was set in the future, on another planet. The super computer Alpha 60 is what controls this world, and when tough guy Lemmy Caution is sent on a mission to Alphaville he is approached with many obscure things. The computer didn’t like emotion, this demonstrated that in the future technology will have a great hold on us. In 1965 this filmed would have amazed people, seeing a step into the possible future. Today technology has come along way and our films are much more advanced, we can see the differences instantly. However, society still views films that are similar in the fact that we enjoy watching futuristic films because it creates an imagination of what our world could be like in the future.
Readings for the week involved a few articles, one of which was about the French new wave. French new wave was an artistic movement that had influence on film especially between 1958 and 1964. They were normally low budget films, with natural lighting, shooting on location, direct sound recording and more. In the 1950’s this was all very groundbreaking.
During the tute we had a discussion about the film Alphaville. The class shared their thoughts about the film, people said; it was funny, it jumped straight into the story without creating complete understanding of what is happening, leaving the viewer to make their own sense of it. Throughout the rest of the tute the class added and viewed peoples blogs. We were then taught how to make our blogs private if we wanted that as an option.
Readings for the week involved a few articles, one of which was about the French new wave. French new wave was an artistic movement that had influence on film especially between 1958 and 1964. They were normally low budget films, with natural lighting, shooting on location, direct sound recording and more. In the 1950’s this was all very groundbreaking.
During the tute we had a discussion about the film Alphaville. The class shared their thoughts about the film, people said; it was funny, it jumped straight into the story without creating complete understanding of what is happening, leaving the viewer to make their own sense of it. Throughout the rest of the tute the class added and viewed peoples blogs. We were then taught how to make our blogs private if we wanted that as an option.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
1st week; INTRO. 2nd Week; IS EMAIL DEAD?
My name is April. I’m in my first year of university doing bachelor of communication. My long term goal is to become a graphic designer.
I’m interested in advertising and design. My dream job is to work in a fashion magazine designing the layout (Art Director). I love the colour pink; I tend to be drawn to anything pink. I want to travel one day, going to places like Italy, Rome, Paris and London.
First weeks lecture and tute was an introduction into the course. We did an overview of our course outline and the learning@griffith site. We also watched a short film on the new computer game that is becoming increasingly popular – second life. This film discussed opportunities within the game, such as owning your own business and actually making money of it. However, how much can you own a property or business in a cyber space when the company who created it have the power to control the game?
New Communication Technologies, week 2 consisted of discussion surrounding ‘Is email dead?’ within this discussion topics were brought up such as spam email. It was discovered that within our lecture class not everybody receives spam emails and this brought about the question ‘why do some people receive it and others don’t?’ reason for this could be that some people’s email isn’t seen through the internet as much. For example; lecturer Stephen Stockwell receives large amounts of spam each day, and his email is advertised on the Griffith website, therefore making it easier for spam to find his email.
In the lecture of week 2 the class reviewed the survey results that all we students filled out in the first week. The results showed interesting statistics. A question that was spoken about was ‘does technology make our lives easier?’ the largest percentage voted for more. However, as students pointed out that technology can make our lives easier with internet and organisers but at the same time it can make us dependent on technology which could be a negative problem.
Blogging was also discussed in the lecture. The class discussed the concern of journalism and if blogging is accepted as journalism. Another concern was how reliable the information on a blog is.
The reading “The Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber Dissidents” contained content that discussed blogging and what it is, as well as examples and tips on creating a better, more safe blog.
Week 2 tutorial task was to set up and create my own blog. Discussion surrounded all the problems that people in our class were having. I learnt that on the computers at Griffith campus I have my own space in which I can save documents. We were told that every time we do something on our computer we should save a backup into this folder.
I’m interested in advertising and design. My dream job is to work in a fashion magazine designing the layout (Art Director). I love the colour pink; I tend to be drawn to anything pink. I want to travel one day, going to places like Italy, Rome, Paris and London.
First weeks lecture and tute was an introduction into the course. We did an overview of our course outline and the learning@griffith site. We also watched a short film on the new computer game that is becoming increasingly popular – second life. This film discussed opportunities within the game, such as owning your own business and actually making money of it. However, how much can you own a property or business in a cyber space when the company who created it have the power to control the game?
New Communication Technologies, week 2 consisted of discussion surrounding ‘Is email dead?’ within this discussion topics were brought up such as spam email. It was discovered that within our lecture class not everybody receives spam emails and this brought about the question ‘why do some people receive it and others don’t?’ reason for this could be that some people’s email isn’t seen through the internet as much. For example; lecturer Stephen Stockwell receives large amounts of spam each day, and his email is advertised on the Griffith website, therefore making it easier for spam to find his email.
In the lecture of week 2 the class reviewed the survey results that all we students filled out in the first week. The results showed interesting statistics. A question that was spoken about was ‘does technology make our lives easier?’ the largest percentage voted for more. However, as students pointed out that technology can make our lives easier with internet and organisers but at the same time it can make us dependent on technology which could be a negative problem.
Blogging was also discussed in the lecture. The class discussed the concern of journalism and if blogging is accepted as journalism. Another concern was how reliable the information on a blog is.
The reading “The Handbook for Bloggers and Cyber Dissidents” contained content that discussed blogging and what it is, as well as examples and tips on creating a better, more safe blog.
Week 2 tutorial task was to set up and create my own blog. Discussion surrounded all the problems that people in our class were having. I learnt that on the computers at Griffith campus I have my own space in which I can save documents. We were told that every time we do something on our computer we should save a backup into this folder.
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