Friday, May 22, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Conceptual Research & Reflection Project part 4
Concept 8. The invisibility of difference
When you meet someone who you can see is hearing impaired, you tend to compensate (sometimes too much) for the mismatch between your 'communicative systems' – speech and hearing on both parts. But if you cannot see that the person you are emailing is using a low resolution, slow older computer running a simple ASCII text email program, then you tend to forget that there are such users out there and do not compensate. There are many differences between computers and computer users, but we tend to forget them when, positioned in front of our own computers, we are able to communicate rapidly and - apparently – effectively across time and distance.
One can see this effect most clearly in some websites that have been developed by people with more powerful / different computers to others. Screen sizes and resolutions, for example, differ widely between Macintoshes and PCs and the effect can sometimes be seen in websites that require too large a screen or assume too small a screen as the only possibility
The daily practice of electronic communication is shaped by over-familiarity with one's own computer system, and a tendency to assume that – as with much more established forms of communication – everyone is operating within compatible and similar systems. When in doubt, seek to communicate in ways that are readable and effective for all users, regardless of their particular systems.
All forms of Internet communication are affected, to some degree, by the invisibility of difference. While, at base, the protocols that run the Internet are (and must be) identical, their specific implementation in programs can vary widely. This variation is, however, very hard to see: hence, the ‘invisibility’ of difference. Fundamentally, we need to recognise that Internet communication can trap users into seeing no further than their own monitor, almost as if they are communicating by speaking to a mirror. Certainly, in online relationships, it appears easier for people to see what they want to see (rather than what they ought to see) displayed on their screen. Advanced Internet users are mindful of the way in which communications lose some or much of their original context and appear on their screens ‘as if’ they are coming from the user themselves, rather than the person with whom they are communicating. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
Accessibility issues are not just for the disabled
Back in the early days of the Internet when bandwidth was expensive and the tools used to communicate were a speedy 4 bits per second modem, sites were usually text based with little or no images. This has been called the golden age of accessibility. (Goggin, 2004, p58) Today with the intense graphical-user interface, heavy image based sites and ultrafast bandwidth; accessibility standards are seen as an essential bridge to span the divide between different operating systems and new and old computer technology. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has coined the phrase “Web interoperability” (Jacobs, 2007) which translates into—web technologies must be compatible with both hardware and software to gain full access on the web. W3C promote the use of Open Source Software (OSS) to achieve this goal to ultimately enhance user experience. “Open source is a development method for software that harnesses the power of distributed peer review and transparency of process” (Home, 2009).
It’s all too easy for software developers to forget about fringe community groups when developing new software applications. A significant example of this is when Microsoft introduced the Window operating platform. The change from DOS-based to a graphics-based system, rendered the screenreaders inoperable, as a consequence the blind society was left out in the cold (Goggin, 2004, p63).
“The benefits of OSS are better quality, higher reliability, more flexibility, lower cost, and an end to predatory vendor lock-in” (Home, 2009). These key principles are to promote innovation at a grass roots level that is driven by Darwinistic community development. Open source by its very nature is open to public use without cost, such as PHP, HTML, SQL and many others (Wheeler, 2009). There have been many arguments that OSS has no place in a commercial world (Perens, 2005) but you only need to look at the success the Adobes Portable Document Format (PDF) has revolutionised the way documents are exchanged. PDF was once proprietary software but is now accepted as an open standard, “Adobe has received approval of PDF 1.7 to become the ISO 32000 Standard” (King, 2007)—a truly altruistic act? That can’t be said about other software manufactures. Look no further than the troubled history of HTML and how developers’, through their commercial interests have de-railed the progress by introducing discrepancies in the code and how this has affected accessibility and given web site developers’ major headaches. The idea of OSS is the software can be modified to enable improvements in the code, which essentially encompass a whole community of developers in creating an accountable standard. “Accountability as a guideline for answerability, which motivates precautionary behavior that, in turn, caters social welfare” (Nuvolari, 2005).
Open source software is not the only solution to increase accessibility standards on the web, it’s only part of the battle. In a world where time is money we are always weighing up our commitment verses quality of communication. Where there is always someone demanding your attention, and with a tendency to rush though familiar jobs without taking the diligent care required—we do because we can, not because we should. (450 word)
Site1:
W3C: World Wide Web. (2009). Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.w3.org/
W3C site has a wealth of information for the would-be site designer where it has claims to have published more than 110 web standards and guidelines that can be downloaded free. The site also has numerous active members list for peer-to-peer discussions where you can get involved in developers community. W3C is seen as a peak body to ensure that the development and accountability standards are maintained of open source software for the benefit of the community. The Consortium is represented by over 400 organization form 40 countries to encourage diversity. Surly a wining combinations!
Site2:
Sorry not time to finish this.
References
Concept Document: 8. The invisibility of difference. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
David, S. (2004). Opening the sources of accountability. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1185/1105
Goggin, G. (2004). Net acceleration: The advent of everyday Internet. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Jacobs, I. (2007). W3C Develops Web Standards and Guidelines. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.w3.org/Consortium/
Home, (2009), Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.opensource.org/
King, J. (2007). Inside PDF. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://blogs.adobe.com/insidepdf/2007/12/iso_ballot_for_pdf_17_passed.html
Nuvolari, A. (2005). Open source development: Some historical perspectives. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1284/1204
Perens, B. (2005) The emerging economic paradigm of Open Source. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1470/1385
Wheeler, D. (2009). The Most Important Software Innovations. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.dwheeler.com/innovation/innovation.html
When you meet someone who you can see is hearing impaired, you tend to compensate (sometimes too much) for the mismatch between your 'communicative systems' – speech and hearing on both parts. But if you cannot see that the person you are emailing is using a low resolution, slow older computer running a simple ASCII text email program, then you tend to forget that there are such users out there and do not compensate. There are many differences between computers and computer users, but we tend to forget them when, positioned in front of our own computers, we are able to communicate rapidly and - apparently – effectively across time and distance.
One can see this effect most clearly in some websites that have been developed by people with more powerful / different computers to others. Screen sizes and resolutions, for example, differ widely between Macintoshes and PCs and the effect can sometimes be seen in websites that require too large a screen or assume too small a screen as the only possibility
The daily practice of electronic communication is shaped by over-familiarity with one's own computer system, and a tendency to assume that – as with much more established forms of communication – everyone is operating within compatible and similar systems. When in doubt, seek to communicate in ways that are readable and effective for all users, regardless of their particular systems.
All forms of Internet communication are affected, to some degree, by the invisibility of difference. While, at base, the protocols that run the Internet are (and must be) identical, their specific implementation in programs can vary widely. This variation is, however, very hard to see: hence, the ‘invisibility’ of difference. Fundamentally, we need to recognise that Internet communication can trap users into seeing no further than their own monitor, almost as if they are communicating by speaking to a mirror. Certainly, in online relationships, it appears easier for people to see what they want to see (rather than what they ought to see) displayed on their screen. Advanced Internet users are mindful of the way in which communications lose some or much of their original context and appear on their screens ‘as if’ they are coming from the user themselves, rather than the person with whom they are communicating. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
Accessibility issues are not just for the disabled
Back in the early days of the Internet when bandwidth was expensive and the tools used to communicate were a speedy 4 bits per second modem, sites were usually text based with little or no images. This has been called the golden age of accessibility. (Goggin, 2004, p58) Today with the intense graphical-user interface, heavy image based sites and ultrafast bandwidth; accessibility standards are seen as an essential bridge to span the divide between different operating systems and new and old computer technology. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has coined the phrase “Web interoperability” (Jacobs, 2007) which translates into—web technologies must be compatible with both hardware and software to gain full access on the web. W3C promote the use of Open Source Software (OSS) to achieve this goal to ultimately enhance user experience. “Open source is a development method for software that harnesses the power of distributed peer review and transparency of process” (Home, 2009).
It’s all too easy for software developers to forget about fringe community groups when developing new software applications. A significant example of this is when Microsoft introduced the Window operating platform. The change from DOS-based to a graphics-based system, rendered the screenreaders inoperable, as a consequence the blind society was left out in the cold (Goggin, 2004, p63).
“The benefits of OSS are better quality, higher reliability, more flexibility, lower cost, and an end to predatory vendor lock-in” (Home, 2009). These key principles are to promote innovation at a grass roots level that is driven by Darwinistic community development. Open source by its very nature is open to public use without cost, such as PHP, HTML, SQL and many others (Wheeler, 2009). There have been many arguments that OSS has no place in a commercial world (Perens, 2005) but you only need to look at the success the Adobes Portable Document Format (PDF) has revolutionised the way documents are exchanged. PDF was once proprietary software but is now accepted as an open standard, “Adobe has received approval of PDF 1.7 to become the ISO 32000 Standard” (King, 2007)—a truly altruistic act? That can’t be said about other software manufactures. Look no further than the troubled history of HTML and how developers’, through their commercial interests have de-railed the progress by introducing discrepancies in the code and how this has affected accessibility and given web site developers’ major headaches. The idea of OSS is the software can be modified to enable improvements in the code, which essentially encompass a whole community of developers in creating an accountable standard. “Accountability as a guideline for answerability, which motivates precautionary behavior that, in turn, caters social welfare” (Nuvolari, 2005).
Open source software is not the only solution to increase accessibility standards on the web, it’s only part of the battle. In a world where time is money we are always weighing up our commitment verses quality of communication. Where there is always someone demanding your attention, and with a tendency to rush though familiar jobs without taking the diligent care required—we do because we can, not because we should. (450 word)
Site1:
W3C: World Wide Web. (2009). Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.w3.org/
W3C site has a wealth of information for the would-be site designer where it has claims to have published more than 110 web standards and guidelines that can be downloaded free. The site also has numerous active members list for peer-to-peer discussions where you can get involved in developers community. W3C is seen as a peak body to ensure that the development and accountability standards are maintained of open source software for the benefit of the community. The Consortium is represented by over 400 organization form 40 countries to encourage diversity. Surly a wining combinations!
Site2:
Sorry not time to finish this.
References
Concept Document: 8. The invisibility of difference. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
David, S. (2004). Opening the sources of accountability. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1185/1105
Goggin, G. (2004). Net acceleration: The advent of everyday Internet. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Jacobs, I. (2007). W3C Develops Web Standards and Guidelines. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.w3.org/Consortium/
Home, (2009), Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.opensource.org/
King, J. (2007). Inside PDF. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://blogs.adobe.com/insidepdf/2007/12/iso_ballot_for_pdf_17_passed.html
Nuvolari, A. (2005). Open source development: Some historical perspectives. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1284/1204
Perens, B. (2005) The emerging economic paradigm of Open Source. First Monday. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1470/1385
Wheeler, D. (2009). The Most Important Software Innovations. Retrieved May 16, 2009, from http://www.dwheeler.com/innovation/innovation.html
Conceptual Research & Reflection Project part 3
Concept 5. The mobility of electronic digital data
Email and similar forms of asynchronous communication carry with them the possibility for rapid, efficient, almost invisible 'multiplication' of the addresses to which communication is being sent. Functions such as carbon copying, forwarding and so on enable the most rapid form of communication 'expansion' - bringing other people into communicative circuits - yet seen. It is very easy, with forward for example, to simply 'pass on' information without processing it or, without processing the dynamics of the communicative relationship between you and the forwardee or without realising that you are establishing a third relationship - between the original sender and the final recipient.
Moreover, once people begin to use email and realise that information can be copied and forwarded very easily, there is a tendency for this 'mobility of data' to become a cultural given in which, routinely, we include more people within circuits of communication than are necessary; or include them in ways that are inappropriate.
Advanced Internet communicators always think about the ways in which their own exploitation of the technological ease of mobile data can impact on other Internet users, seeking to ensure that technical possibility is not simply substituted for effective communication requirements.
Another complex aspect of the ‘mobility of data’ can be seen in the way internet users routinely send each other URLs. The addresses, or reference points, of Internet information are incredibly mobile, then. But, to exploit this mobility requires a little work prior to sending, or after receipt. For example, sending URLs to work colleagues without any ‘contextualising’ information is not very useful. You can assist recipients of your URLs by briefly indicating why it is being sent, what is ‘behind’ the URL, and how useful it might be. You should also recognise that passing URLs around may be less effective than passing around summaries of information or comments. For example, would you prefer to receive a short precis of an important article 9and the URL) or just the bare URL? While the ability to move data rapidly and simply, and the cultural sensibility of constantly forwarding and sharing information, is to be valued, it does have certain problems. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
The affects of mobile data on journalism
It is estimated that there will be over two billion users in the Asia-Pacific region who use telecommunication technologies to connect to the Internet in 2010 (MacManus, 2004). This explosion in popularity will be from a direct result of the “Portable Internet” as a communication tool which efficiently relays information to the masses. With an estimated 80,000 Wi-Fi hotspots (Perez, 2008) and the low cost of mobile phones with cameras anyone can embrace the technology and become a citizen journalist. A combination of this new technology and the amount of people accessing the Internet has forced a shift in the way big corporation news publishers will function in the future "our Internet site will have to do still more to be competitive. For some, it may have to become the place for conversation [...] We need to be the destination for those bloggers." (Murdoch, 2005) Empowering the community as contributors, not just Internet users will “revitalize citizen-based democracy” (Rheingold, 1993). The immediate access through mobile phones to the Internet gives the means for people upload stories faster than CCN can get there. A recent example was of the plane crash into the Hudson River, images were posted onto the web within minutes of the plane crash and were being viewed around the world before any of the major news networks were able to broadcast (Silitoe, 2009). It’s also evident that professional journalists are sourcing their stories from social networking sites to aid their work, "On Wednesday evening, I was traveling home from a night out, glanced at my phone and saw one of the people I follow on Twitter talking about Apple's new statement on Steve Jobs' health. That meant I could get straight to work on filing a radio piece." (Cellan-Jones, 2009).
Citizen journalist are everywhere, remote parts of the world can now bring international attention into trouble spots where before government control was absolute (Ehrlich, 2007). The down side to citizen journalism is stories like the 9/11 World Trade Center terrorist attacks in New York where voyeuristic scenes of people falling from the towers were shown around the world without consideration of the people involved (9/11 The Falling Man, 2009). Without the usual “gatekeepers” of professional journalists and editors this approach encourages a wide panorama of public views far greater than the main networks could or would broadcast. This effectively stops news being filtered, censored or news networks putting their political pervasive views on the topic (Brun, 2004, p179–188). This has changed journalism from a “top-down storyteller” to “bottom-up facilitators” (Deuze, 2005).
YouTube and CNN have now started to take advantage of this mobile data revolution to engage would-be journalists to participate in their new ventures of “Citizen News”. The Internet is changing the media industry by encouraging a participation culture. Criticism has been raised about the accuracy of the blogging news but there have been many stories of bloggers uncovering news that may have been overlooked. Senators have been forced to resign from office, movie stars embarrassed by their anti-semitic views and major news outlets have been caught doctoring photos to make a bigger impact (Usher, 2008).
Power to the people—the affects have been wide spread, news bloggers are the new online vigilantes that will continue to demand accountability and transparency through their actions as citizen journalism. The professional media has labeled new bloggers as “anti-globalisation activists” but bloggers are the “gatekeepers” for professional news outlets by enforcing a type of industry self-mediation to “keep the bastards honest” (Chipp, 2004). (510 words)
I have purposely cited both referenced material and news outlets to try and receive a broad picture on the topic. Most of the news outlets do not reference their work but that’s the nature of the media. Never reveal your source.
Annotation
Site 1:
Usher, N. (2008). Reviewing Fauxtography: A blog-driven challage to mass media power without the promises of network publicity. Retrieved 15 May, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2158/2055
Nikki Usher reports on the blog news media to highlight the potential for ‘new opportunities for openness’ in the media industry. It’s a timely reminder that propaganda still flourishes in the media and bloggers are acting as public informers. The report goes on to warn the aim of news bloggers is to increase the amount of traffic to their site and monetise their products, which just makes them a competitor supplying an alternative source to mainstream news. However, Usher users well know examples to convince the reader that there is a place for this type of reverse investigative journalism.
Site 2:
Little Green Footballs. (2009). Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/
Little Green Footballs is a citizen journalist news blog site that relies on controversial news stories to keep up the hits on their site. Most of the stories are not necessarily mainstream news items but are design to grab your attention with keys words like Fascist, Synagogue Bombing and Torture. The blog also acts as an aggregate, featuring news from other sites and blogs. The success of the site depends on people looking for sensationalism and a shock factor. The site fills a niche news market but fails to appeal to the greater audience unless it hits on a once in a life-time major story.
Reference:
9/11 The Falling Man. (2009). Retrieved April 6, 2009, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXnA9FjvLSU
Brun, A. (2004). Reconfiguring journalism: Syndication, gatewatching and mulitperspectival news. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Concept Document: 5. The mobility of electronic digital data. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
Cellan-Jones, R. (2009). Twitter and a classic picture. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/01/twitter_and_a_classic_picture.html
Chipp, D. (2004). Keep the bastards Honest. Don Chipp Enterprises
Deuze, M. (2005). Towards professional participatory storytelling in journalism and advertising. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1257/1177
Deuze, M. (2005). Online Journalism: Modelling the First Generation of News Media on the World Wide Web. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/893/802
Ehrlich, R. (2007). Bloggers in Burma keep world informed during military crackdown. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/28/MN8QSFFUD.DTL
Silitoe, D. (2009, January 16). Hudson plane crash. BBC News, Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/01/twitter_and_a_classic_picture.html.
Perez, S. (2008). Mobile Web Use Growing Faster than Ever. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/mobile_web_use_growing_faster_than_ever.php
Perez, S. (2008). YouTube Launches Citizen Journalism Channel, Citizen News. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/youtube_launches_citizen_news.php
MacManus, R. (2004). Portable Internet. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/portable_intern.php
Murdoch, R. (2005, April 13). Speech by Rupert Murdoch to the American Society of Newspaper Editors. [Press release] Retrieved May 17, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1257/1177
Rheingold, H. (1993). The virtual community: homesteading on the electronic frontier. Reading: Addison-Wesley
Usher, N. (2008). Reviewing Fauxtography: A blog-driven challage to mass media power without the promises of network publicity. Retrieved 15 May, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2158/2055
Email and similar forms of asynchronous communication carry with them the possibility for rapid, efficient, almost invisible 'multiplication' of the addresses to which communication is being sent. Functions such as carbon copying, forwarding and so on enable the most rapid form of communication 'expansion' - bringing other people into communicative circuits - yet seen. It is very easy, with forward for example, to simply 'pass on' information without processing it or, without processing the dynamics of the communicative relationship between you and the forwardee or without realising that you are establishing a third relationship - between the original sender and the final recipient.
Moreover, once people begin to use email and realise that information can be copied and forwarded very easily, there is a tendency for this 'mobility of data' to become a cultural given in which, routinely, we include more people within circuits of communication than are necessary; or include them in ways that are inappropriate.
Advanced Internet communicators always think about the ways in which their own exploitation of the technological ease of mobile data can impact on other Internet users, seeking to ensure that technical possibility is not simply substituted for effective communication requirements.
Another complex aspect of the ‘mobility of data’ can be seen in the way internet users routinely send each other URLs. The addresses, or reference points, of Internet information are incredibly mobile, then. But, to exploit this mobility requires a little work prior to sending, or after receipt. For example, sending URLs to work colleagues without any ‘contextualising’ information is not very useful. You can assist recipients of your URLs by briefly indicating why it is being sent, what is ‘behind’ the URL, and how useful it might be. You should also recognise that passing URLs around may be less effective than passing around summaries of information or comments. For example, would you prefer to receive a short precis of an important article 9and the URL) or just the bare URL? While the ability to move data rapidly and simply, and the cultural sensibility of constantly forwarding and sharing information, is to be valued, it does have certain problems. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
The affects of mobile data on journalism
It is estimated that there will be over two billion users in the Asia-Pacific region who use telecommunication technologies to connect to the Internet in 2010 (MacManus, 2004). This explosion in popularity will be from a direct result of the “Portable Internet” as a communication tool which efficiently relays information to the masses. With an estimated 80,000 Wi-Fi hotspots (Perez, 2008) and the low cost of mobile phones with cameras anyone can embrace the technology and become a citizen journalist. A combination of this new technology and the amount of people accessing the Internet has forced a shift in the way big corporation news publishers will function in the future "our Internet site will have to do still more to be competitive. For some, it may have to become the place for conversation [...] We need to be the destination for those bloggers." (Murdoch, 2005) Empowering the community as contributors, not just Internet users will “revitalize citizen-based democracy” (Rheingold, 1993). The immediate access through mobile phones to the Internet gives the means for people upload stories faster than CCN can get there. A recent example was of the plane crash into the Hudson River, images were posted onto the web within minutes of the plane crash and were being viewed around the world before any of the major news networks were able to broadcast (Silitoe, 2009). It’s also evident that professional journalists are sourcing their stories from social networking sites to aid their work, "On Wednesday evening, I was traveling home from a night out, glanced at my phone and saw one of the people I follow on Twitter talking about Apple's new statement on Steve Jobs' health. That meant I could get straight to work on filing a radio piece." (Cellan-Jones, 2009).
Citizen journalist are everywhere, remote parts of the world can now bring international attention into trouble spots where before government control was absolute (Ehrlich, 2007). The down side to citizen journalism is stories like the 9/11 World Trade Center terrorist attacks in New York where voyeuristic scenes of people falling from the towers were shown around the world without consideration of the people involved (9/11 The Falling Man, 2009). Without the usual “gatekeepers” of professional journalists and editors this approach encourages a wide panorama of public views far greater than the main networks could or would broadcast. This effectively stops news being filtered, censored or news networks putting their political pervasive views on the topic (Brun, 2004, p179–188). This has changed journalism from a “top-down storyteller” to “bottom-up facilitators” (Deuze, 2005).
YouTube and CNN have now started to take advantage of this mobile data revolution to engage would-be journalists to participate in their new ventures of “Citizen News”. The Internet is changing the media industry by encouraging a participation culture. Criticism has been raised about the accuracy of the blogging news but there have been many stories of bloggers uncovering news that may have been overlooked. Senators have been forced to resign from office, movie stars embarrassed by their anti-semitic views and major news outlets have been caught doctoring photos to make a bigger impact (Usher, 2008).
Power to the people—the affects have been wide spread, news bloggers are the new online vigilantes that will continue to demand accountability and transparency through their actions as citizen journalism. The professional media has labeled new bloggers as “anti-globalisation activists” but bloggers are the “gatekeepers” for professional news outlets by enforcing a type of industry self-mediation to “keep the bastards honest” (Chipp, 2004). (510 words)
I have purposely cited both referenced material and news outlets to try and receive a broad picture on the topic. Most of the news outlets do not reference their work but that’s the nature of the media. Never reveal your source.
Annotation
Site 1:
Usher, N. (2008). Reviewing Fauxtography: A blog-driven challage to mass media power without the promises of network publicity. Retrieved 15 May, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2158/2055
Nikki Usher reports on the blog news media to highlight the potential for ‘new opportunities for openness’ in the media industry. It’s a timely reminder that propaganda still flourishes in the media and bloggers are acting as public informers. The report goes on to warn the aim of news bloggers is to increase the amount of traffic to their site and monetise their products, which just makes them a competitor supplying an alternative source to mainstream news. However, Usher users well know examples to convince the reader that there is a place for this type of reverse investigative journalism.
Site 2:
Little Green Footballs. (2009). Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/
Little Green Footballs is a citizen journalist news blog site that relies on controversial news stories to keep up the hits on their site. Most of the stories are not necessarily mainstream news items but are design to grab your attention with keys words like Fascist, Synagogue Bombing and Torture. The blog also acts as an aggregate, featuring news from other sites and blogs. The success of the site depends on people looking for sensationalism and a shock factor. The site fills a niche news market but fails to appeal to the greater audience unless it hits on a once in a life-time major story.
Reference:
9/11 The Falling Man. (2009). Retrieved April 6, 2009, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXnA9FjvLSU
Brun, A. (2004). Reconfiguring journalism: Syndication, gatewatching and mulitperspectival news. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Concept Document: 5. The mobility of electronic digital data. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
Cellan-Jones, R. (2009). Twitter and a classic picture. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/01/twitter_and_a_classic_picture.html
Chipp, D. (2004). Keep the bastards Honest. Don Chipp Enterprises
Deuze, M. (2005). Towards professional participatory storytelling in journalism and advertising. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1257/1177
Deuze, M. (2005). Online Journalism: Modelling the First Generation of News Media on the World Wide Web. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/893/802
Ehrlich, R. (2007). Bloggers in Burma keep world informed during military crackdown. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/28/MN8QSFFUD.DTL
Silitoe, D. (2009, January 16). Hudson plane crash. BBC News, Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/01/twitter_and_a_classic_picture.html.
Perez, S. (2008). Mobile Web Use Growing Faster than Ever. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/mobile_web_use_growing_faster_than_ever.php
Perez, S. (2008). YouTube Launches Citizen Journalism Channel, Citizen News. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/youtube_launches_citizen_news.php
MacManus, R. (2004). Portable Internet. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/portable_intern.php
Murdoch, R. (2005, April 13). Speech by Rupert Murdoch to the American Society of Newspaper Editors. [Press release] Retrieved May 17, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1257/1177
Rheingold, H. (1993). The virtual community: homesteading on the electronic frontier. Reading: Addison-Wesley
Usher, N. (2008). Reviewing Fauxtography: A blog-driven challage to mass media power without the promises of network publicity. Retrieved 15 May, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2158/2055
Conceptual Research & Reflection Project part 2
14. Cyberspace is informationally created 'space'
MUDs (and derivative graphical worlds) are the pre-eminent form of 'spatialising' on the Internet: they are not merely about communication, but about the construction of a 'shared hallucination' of spatial context. This sense of space, and the capacity of the talking human body to be represented within it, is formed out of descriptions and word-pictures (real pictures in the case of graphical worlds).
The sense of space is essential for humans - or at least many humans - to be able to express their identities in special and rich ways.
In most online, realtime communications (IRC, even ICQ) people tend to make ‘spatialising’ comments: they don’t just communicate, they also provide cues to an imagined physical space around them. For example, someone will, in an IRC chat, occasionally comment that they are ‘doing’ something (not in the physical world, but in the virtual space of wherever they are on IRC). Websites, indeed the Web generally, tend to work most effectively when they consciously declaim themselves as a space through which you move. However, we should also be alert to the way that the metaphors of navigation, moving, visiting, etc which make the web a ‘space’ can also mislead us: metaphors do not describe an experience but, rather, are one aspect of trying to understand it. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
Conceptualising interaction in a conceptual space.
George Berkeley claimed, “the world is nothing more than an idea in the mind of God”, (Stangroom, 2006, p.20) so virtual reality (VR) or informationally created space is nothing more than an idea in the mind of man. However, Immanuel Kant suggested the mind shapes and structures the known world—we impose forms of space and time upon sensation (Kemerling, 2006), which takes form, and manifests itself in VR.
Vivid fantasies, daydreaming, movies and books are all forms VR, but online VR has dramatically increased in popularity because we can interact with other people online. “The tyranny of distance” (Blainey, 1975) is no longer an obstacle, “science annihilates distance” (Waugh, 1949, p52) by giving us tools to interact and communicate with people around the globe. The ‘space’ has no physical boundaries or real world geographical location to identify with our being, but we perceive and interact with the surrounding and inhabitants as part of our normal online lives. Avatars symbolise these disembodied narcissistic online selves that reside in a “City of Bits” (Mitchell, 2000), and portray us through a technological extension of our consciousness (McLuhan, 2001, p63). However, even though these spectral identities are free to move without physical borders we still envisage spatial constraint by moving in and out of technologically induced theatres and follow similar social mannerisms to external life. It was found when people using Second Life, a VR world, they still needed to position their avatars face-to-face when communicating with others. The web feels more depersonalised and our face-to-face interaction is weakening by the increased time spent alone on the computer. Children are creating their idea world with beautiful images of them-selves and the environment—they don't deal with personal physical differences so hiding behind deception. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p20–53) If they experience problems in one ‘space’ they simply move into the next or generate a new personality. Research has shown that our children have greater skills in analysing spatial information but at a cost of greater social anxiety. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p46–57) Research also has shown that children learn behaviour through media and technology (Okita, 2004, p471) and by playing violent VR games they are significantly more likely to shoot another human offline. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p124)
As the line blurs between realities, our perception of ourselves becomes more fluid, we create ‘liquid identities’ (Tofts, 2004, p147) online to experiment with self-expression that personifies our hidden nature, ideas or our most desperate desires. (Fink, 1999, p25) Berkeley also said, “to be, is to be perceived”, but this perception of ‘space’ is a type of sensory deception where the non-existent becomes reality that affects our physical life deeper than we understand. If we immerse ourselves in a fantasy world we may eventually “rewire our brains” and evolve through the use of VR by generating controlled schizophrenia. As people congregating in a metaphysical world the place become more important than the method of communication for people to relate to and identify a place for human habitation (Kalay & Marx, 2005). Descartes said, “We should concern ourselves only with those objects for which our minds seem capable of certain and indubitable cognition” (as cited by Garber, 1949, p31). Cyberspace exists by design, our surroundings identity who we are, so where will the next generation come from?
Maybe the only way to safely use VR is to compared the space with to a religious experience—only by have faith can you believe in an object that has no physical form, and with faith comes physical benefits of contentment. (Fink, 1999, p35) However, I don't think I will find enlightenment through a computer screen.
(540 words)
Annotation
Site 1:
Kalay. E., & Marx, J. (2005). Architecture and the Internet: Designing places in cyberspace. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1563
This article suggest virtual reality has become such an integral part of our lives that cyberspace is more that just a communication tool but an extension of our temporal existence. The authors’ argue that users of cyberspace have a fundamental need to connect with the space culturally is needed to maintain a socially acceptable environment. By looking at how we interact in the physical world of architecture and landscape we maybe able to design cyberspace that “give meaning to our actions and behaviours”. Making these connections clearer, cyberspaces will enrich our lives and stop the rot, which has infected our face-to-face social communication skills.
I found it difficult to decide whether this would make a significant difference in distinguishing reality from imaginary, given that the study of Ontology since Pythagoras times have not resulted in enlightenment. But off course it’s always useful to see the flip side of the argument.
Site 2:
Fink, J. (1999). Cyberseduction. New York: Prometheus Books
Dr Jerri Fink summarises a number of problems concerning the effect of living online and places it in context of how man has developed. The book investigates how our actions online relate to actions offline— being in “another place” while sitting in front of the computer has confused our sense of perception that may leads to multi-personalities. The book then discusses where cyberspace, who is in there and how these culminate into a postmodern world of social anarchy. Fink cites numerous case studies and references research into the affect of cyberspace on our subconscious.
Reference:
Blainey, J. (1975). The Tyranny of Distance. London: Macmillan.
Concept Document: 14. Cyberspace is informationally created 'space'. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
Fink, J. (1999). Cyberseduction. New York: Prometheus Books
Garber, D. (1949). Descartes’ Metaphysical Physics. Chicago: University of Chicago. Retrieved May 15, 2009 from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=fWmQUbsPedUC&pg=PA31&lpg=PA31&dq=metaphysical+direction&source=bl&ots=N7qk1O6SyB&sig=SS8QwumAF-IB126kNbH1-dEjK_U&hl=en&ei=4lMRSpfvHpS-tAOD7ujmAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10#PPA31,M1
Gillispie, J., & Gackenbach, J. (2007). cyber.rules. New York: .W. Norton & Company.
Kalay. E., & Marx, J. (2005). Architecture and the Internet: Designing places in cyberspace. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1563
Kemerling, G. (2006). Immanuel Kant: 1724–1804. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.philosophypages.com/ph/kant.htm
McLuhan, M. (2001). Understanding Media. Retrieved May 15, 2009 from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=R2bqSaC5TlkC&printsec=frontcover&dq=understanding+media:+the+extensions+of+man&client=firefox-a
Mitchell, W. (2000). City of Bits. Cambridge: MIT Press
Okita, S. (2004). Effects of Age on Associating Virtual and Embodied Toys. Retreived May 15, 2009, from http://faculty.tc.columbia.edu/upload/so2269/Okita_embodied_toys.pdf
Stangroom, J. (2006). Philosophy. Sydney: ABC books
Tofts, D. (2004). Cyphers of the virtual. Australian Net art and the metaphysics of telepresence. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Waugh, E. (1949). Brideshead revisited. London: Chapman & Hall.
eshead revisited. London: Chapman & Hall.
MUDs (and derivative graphical worlds) are the pre-eminent form of 'spatialising' on the Internet: they are not merely about communication, but about the construction of a 'shared hallucination' of spatial context. This sense of space, and the capacity of the talking human body to be represented within it, is formed out of descriptions and word-pictures (real pictures in the case of graphical worlds).
The sense of space is essential for humans - or at least many humans - to be able to express their identities in special and rich ways.
In most online, realtime communications (IRC, even ICQ) people tend to make ‘spatialising’ comments: they don’t just communicate, they also provide cues to an imagined physical space around them. For example, someone will, in an IRC chat, occasionally comment that they are ‘doing’ something (not in the physical world, but in the virtual space of wherever they are on IRC). Websites, indeed the Web generally, tend to work most effectively when they consciously declaim themselves as a space through which you move. However, we should also be alert to the way that the metaphors of navigation, moving, visiting, etc which make the web a ‘space’ can also mislead us: metaphors do not describe an experience but, rather, are one aspect of trying to understand it. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
Conceptualising interaction in a conceptual space.
George Berkeley claimed, “the world is nothing more than an idea in the mind of God”, (Stangroom, 2006, p.20) so virtual reality (VR) or informationally created space is nothing more than an idea in the mind of man. However, Immanuel Kant suggested the mind shapes and structures the known world—we impose forms of space and time upon sensation (Kemerling, 2006), which takes form, and manifests itself in VR.
Vivid fantasies, daydreaming, movies and books are all forms VR, but online VR has dramatically increased in popularity because we can interact with other people online. “The tyranny of distance” (Blainey, 1975) is no longer an obstacle, “science annihilates distance” (Waugh, 1949, p52) by giving us tools to interact and communicate with people around the globe. The ‘space’ has no physical boundaries or real world geographical location to identify with our being, but we perceive and interact with the surrounding and inhabitants as part of our normal online lives. Avatars symbolise these disembodied narcissistic online selves that reside in a “City of Bits” (Mitchell, 2000), and portray us through a technological extension of our consciousness (McLuhan, 2001, p63). However, even though these spectral identities are free to move without physical borders we still envisage spatial constraint by moving in and out of technologically induced theatres and follow similar social mannerisms to external life. It was found when people using Second Life, a VR world, they still needed to position their avatars face-to-face when communicating with others. The web feels more depersonalised and our face-to-face interaction is weakening by the increased time spent alone on the computer. Children are creating their idea world with beautiful images of them-selves and the environment—they don't deal with personal physical differences so hiding behind deception. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p20–53) If they experience problems in one ‘space’ they simply move into the next or generate a new personality. Research has shown that our children have greater skills in analysing spatial information but at a cost of greater social anxiety. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p46–57) Research also has shown that children learn behaviour through media and technology (Okita, 2004, p471) and by playing violent VR games they are significantly more likely to shoot another human offline. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p124)
As the line blurs between realities, our perception of ourselves becomes more fluid, we create ‘liquid identities’ (Tofts, 2004, p147) online to experiment with self-expression that personifies our hidden nature, ideas or our most desperate desires. (Fink, 1999, p25) Berkeley also said, “to be, is to be perceived”, but this perception of ‘space’ is a type of sensory deception where the non-existent becomes reality that affects our physical life deeper than we understand. If we immerse ourselves in a fantasy world we may eventually “rewire our brains” and evolve through the use of VR by generating controlled schizophrenia. As people congregating in a metaphysical world the place become more important than the method of communication for people to relate to and identify a place for human habitation (Kalay & Marx, 2005). Descartes said, “We should concern ourselves only with those objects for which our minds seem capable of certain and indubitable cognition” (as cited by Garber, 1949, p31). Cyberspace exists by design, our surroundings identity who we are, so where will the next generation come from?
Maybe the only way to safely use VR is to compared the space with to a religious experience—only by have faith can you believe in an object that has no physical form, and with faith comes physical benefits of contentment. (Fink, 1999, p35) However, I don't think I will find enlightenment through a computer screen.
(540 words)
Annotation
Site 1:
Kalay. E., & Marx, J. (2005). Architecture and the Internet: Designing places in cyberspace. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1563
This article suggest virtual reality has become such an integral part of our lives that cyberspace is more that just a communication tool but an extension of our temporal existence. The authors’ argue that users of cyberspace have a fundamental need to connect with the space culturally is needed to maintain a socially acceptable environment. By looking at how we interact in the physical world of architecture and landscape we maybe able to design cyberspace that “give meaning to our actions and behaviours”. Making these connections clearer, cyberspaces will enrich our lives and stop the rot, which has infected our face-to-face social communication skills.
I found it difficult to decide whether this would make a significant difference in distinguishing reality from imaginary, given that the study of Ontology since Pythagoras times have not resulted in enlightenment. But off course it’s always useful to see the flip side of the argument.
Site 2:
Fink, J. (1999). Cyberseduction. New York: Prometheus Books
Dr Jerri Fink summarises a number of problems concerning the effect of living online and places it in context of how man has developed. The book investigates how our actions online relate to actions offline— being in “another place” while sitting in front of the computer has confused our sense of perception that may leads to multi-personalities. The book then discusses where cyberspace, who is in there and how these culminate into a postmodern world of social anarchy. Fink cites numerous case studies and references research into the affect of cyberspace on our subconscious.
Reference:
Blainey, J. (1975). The Tyranny of Distance. London: Macmillan.
Concept Document: 14. Cyberspace is informationally created 'space'. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_
Fink, J. (1999). Cyberseduction. New York: Prometheus Books
Garber, D. (1949). Descartes’ Metaphysical Physics. Chicago: University of Chicago. Retrieved May 15, 2009 from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=fWmQUbsPedUC&pg=PA31&lpg=PA31&dq=metaphysical+direction&source=bl&ots=N7qk1O6SyB&sig=SS8QwumAF-IB126kNbH1-dEjK_U&hl=en&ei=4lMRSpfvHpS-tAOD7ujmAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10#PPA31,M1
Gillispie, J., & Gackenbach, J. (2007). cyber.rules. New York: .W. Norton & Company.
Kalay. E., & Marx, J. (2005). Architecture and the Internet: Designing places in cyberspace. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1563
Kemerling, G. (2006). Immanuel Kant: 1724–1804. Retrieved May 15, 2009, from http://www.philosophypages.com/ph/kant.htm
McLuhan, M. (2001). Understanding Media. Retrieved May 15, 2009 from http://books.google.com.au/books?id=R2bqSaC5TlkC&printsec=frontcover&dq=understanding+media:+the+extensions+of+man&client=firefox-a
Mitchell, W. (2000). City of Bits. Cambridge: MIT Press
Okita, S. (2004). Effects of Age on Associating Virtual and Embodied Toys. Retreived May 15, 2009, from http://faculty.tc.columbia.edu/upload/so2269/Okita_embodied_toys.pdf
Stangroom, J. (2006). Philosophy. Sydney: ABC books
Tofts, D. (2004). Cyphers of the virtual. Australian Net art and the metaphysics of telepresence. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Waugh, E. (1949). Brideshead revisited. London: Chapman & Hall.
eshead revisited. London: Chapman & Hall.
Conceptual Research & Reflection Project part 1
22. Public space and regulation
Originally, Usenet was a very useful place for shared communication because the only people using it were, by and large, committed to the maintenance of the system and were careful (mostly) to observe rules of good practice. As the size of the Internet grew however, Usenet has become increasingly 'uselessnet' with its news groups deluged by spam and inconsequential 'noise'.
What we can learn from this history is that public spaces often operate best when there is some form of regulation: who can speak, what sorts of things can be said etc. For example, binary files (mostly pictures) are very much larger than text files. Hence, some newsgroups ban binaries so as to ensure that people downloading the newsgroup's contents are not paying for very large data transmissions. These bans are only partly successful, but indicate that - in pursuit of a useable communication system in public, regulation is sometimes appropriate. Of course, the question then becomes: who decides and how. (Something for you to think about).
Advanced Internet users are alert to regulatory processes in public discussion and ensure that they do not break them without good cause
One could make similar comments about the vast number of websites: who is regulating all that content to see if it is acceptable, accurate, up-to-date etc. No one is, frankly. Aside from some regulation of ‘obscene’ or ‘illegal’ content in some countries, the Internet is a very unregulated publishing space. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Originally, Usenet was a very useful place for shared communication because the only people using it were, by and large, committed to the maintenance of the system and were careful (mostly) to observe rules of good practice. As the size of the Internet grew however, Usenet has become increasingly 'uselessnet' with its news groups deluged by spam and inconsequential 'noise'.
What we can learn from this history is that public spaces often operate best when there is some form of regulation: who can speak, what sorts of things can be said etc. For example, binary files (mostly pictures) are very much larger than text files. Hence, some newsgroups ban binaries so as to ensure that people downloading the newsgroup's contents are not paying for very large data transmissions. These bans are only partly successful, but indicate that - in pursuit of a useable communication system in public, regulation is sometimes appropriate. Of course, the question then becomes: who decides and how. (Something for you to think about).
Advanced Internet users are alert to regulatory processes in public discussion and ensure that they do not break them without good cause
One could make similar comments about the vast number of websites: who is regulating all that content to see if it is acceptable, accurate, up-to-date etc. No one is, frankly. Aside from some regulation of ‘obscene’ or ‘illegal’ content in some countries, the Internet is a very unregulated publishing space. (Concepts Document n.d.)
Response
John Perry Barlow, an American poet and co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation wrote the paper The Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace, believing that no government has sovereignty or moral right to rule cyberspace. (Barlow, 1996) The notion that “Big Brother is watching you” (Orwell, 1977, p7) is intimidating but the Internet without regulation is fraught with dangers. The Internet is littered with online hate groups, fraudulent scams, Flames, Trolls, Spammers, Spoofs and Cybersmears. Most techno-geeks understand the traps, but the average user ‘Joe Citizen’ needs protection. (Allen & Long, 2004, p.233) Research has shown Australians want the Internet policed (Given, 2004, p.220) to protect children against inappropriate material, but this would appear impossible while nations like America oppose any restriction to their freedom of speech as claimed in the Bill of Rights, first amendments. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p73) The right to free speech has created a septic tank of deception—regulation is aimed at encouraging confidence and certainty for consumers and users. It’s a simple matter to hide behind a computer screen and be abusive and defamatory with little risk and inconvenience to yourself. (Dare, 2005) A major stumbling block to upholding legislation in this truly globalised environment is enforcing laws outside governments' jurisdiction. (Given, 2004, p.218) However, without regulation the Internet makes it all too easy to evade the law. (Goggin, 2004, p.209). The answer may be self-regulation by the users, but the danger to this system would be to quell differences of opinion which results in sites with like minds, no fresh ideas and stifled communications if the mediators becomes vigilantes. (Dare, 2005) A stable and safe Internet environment needs to be balance innovation and free thought against regulation. (Rennie & Young, 2004, p253) ‘Free thought’ and sharing ideas and information is the foundation of the Internet. (Lessig, n.d.)
More work needs to be done in protecting children from inappropriate content. Games like Postal 2 advocate virtual reality scenarios where characters can make sexist and racist comments, urinate or pour petrol on women and children and then set fire to them. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p47) Research has shown that young children cannot differentiate between advertising and programming content on television, similar results have suggested the link for virtual reality games. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p122–123)
Once the Internet came into the average family room it needed to fit into our social systems of values and acceptable behaviours. So under the banner of morality the Australian Government has tried to regulate content in a vain effort to clean up the anarchist space. (Rennie & Young, 2004, p251) Laws have been created to try and control content from gambling and offensive material, give consumers protection, encourage open and free information exchange by strengthening copyright laws and protection against defamation, but general privacy laws have skirted around directly protecting individual’s rights. (Given, 2004, p.222–225) So was there any surprise when the CEO of Sun Microsystems Scott McNealy said, "You have zero privacy anyway". (Sprenger, 1999) Privacy becomes a bigger problem when the user doesn’t understand it’s intrinsic value. Research has shown that children are particularly vulnerable in supplying to much detail online; half of all blogs are by children of whom 70% give their name, age and contact information usually without parent’s knowledge. (Gillispie & Gackenbach, 2007, p54–55)
I think regulation unites our social beliefs and creates a safe environment online and off. Regulating will place some restriction on using the Internet but will ultimately bring “liberty in cyberspace” to people who use the web constructively. (Lessig, 2006) The question is how much before regulation inhibits the creative process. (540 words)
Annotation
Site 1:
Dare, J. (2005). Cyberharassment and Online Defamation: a Default Form of Regulations? Retrieved May 13 2009, from http://www.transformationsjournal.org/journal/issue_11/article_04.shtmlIn this journal Dare explores the justification given by advocate groups to the right for freedom of expression on the Internet and how this has developed through the history of the web into an aggressive, confrontational style of communication in which "libertarianism favours the most aggressive individuals". Dare suggest that this form of abusive malice is in itself a form of regulation that impacts on the very nature of democratic online society where only the strongest survive. Dare cites a number of well know authors, respected websites and case studies that give an unbiased view of the fight for freedom and its social cost.
Site 2:
http://homes.eff.org/~barlow/Declaration-Final.html
John Barlow argues in verse that cyberspace has no boundaries or physical constraints, and is growing by an organic process of natural selection through the contributors’ collective actions. He advocates for a cyberspace free from regulation and government control and portrays “lovers of freedom and self-determination” as enslaved freedom fighters, fighting the virus of government authoritarian rule. Barlow claims freedom will lead to a Utopian cyberspace where everyone is welcome without fear of persecution and self-expression is of the utmost importance. He has based his ideas on ideology and uses emotive language to impose fear if the fight for freedom is lost.
Reference:
Allen, M., & Long, J. (2004). Domesticating the Internet. Content regulation, virtual nation-building and the family. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Barlow, J. (1996). A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace. Retrieved May 11, 2009, from http://homes.eff.org/~barlow/Declaration-Final.html
Concept Document: 22. Public space and regulation. (n.d.) Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_1%2526forum_id%253d_47938_1%2526message_id%253d_558527_1%2526thread_id%253d552622%2526nav%253ddiscussion_board%2526course_id%253d_14736_1
Dare, J. (2005). Cyberharassment and Online Defamation: a Default Form of Regulations? Retreived May 13, 2009, from http://www.transformationsjournal.org/journal/issue_11/article_04.shtml
Given, J. (2004). Evolutionary Constitutionalism: Australian Law and the Internet. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Gillispie, J., & Gackenbach, J. (2007). cyber.rules. New York: .W. Norton & Company.
Lessig, L. (n.d.). Code. Retreived May 13, 2009, from http://codev2.cc/
Lessig, L. (2006). The Future of Ideas. Retrieved May 13, 2009, from http://www.the-future-of-ideas.com/
Orwell, G. (1977). Nineteen Eighty Four. New York: Signet Classic
Rennie, E., & Young, S. (2004). Park Life: The commons and communications policy. Virtual Nation: The Internet in Australia. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press.
Sprenger, P. (1999). Sun on Privacy: Get Over It. Retrieved May 13 2009, from http://www.wired.com/politics/law/news/1999/01/17538
Monday, May 4, 2009
Software Development
This links back the the question of application development in Module Three citizen journalism. My comments were directed at how unforeseen circumstances can have a huge influence on the development of communication methods. I'm adding further comment to back this up.
The accessibility of pornography on the web has seen sales of printed magazine decline at a rate of 10% a year since the mid-1990s. (Flamm, 2002) "Pornography has been an important driving force in the development and uptake of many modern communication technologies" (McKee 2004)
The development of the web was for exchange of scientific information, but has also been an efficient tool to satisfy some peoples urges.
References:
Flamm, M. (2002). A Demimonde in Twilight. Retrieved May 4, 2009 from http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/02/nyregion/02FEAT.html?pagewanted=1
McKee, A. (2004). Virtual Nation. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press Ltd.
The accessibility of pornography on the web has seen sales of printed magazine decline at a rate of 10% a year since the mid-1990s. (Flamm, 2002) "Pornography has been an important driving force in the development and uptake of many modern communication technologies" (McKee 2004)
The development of the web was for exchange of scientific information, but has also been an efficient tool to satisfy some peoples urges.
References:
Flamm, M. (2002). A Demimonde in Twilight. Retrieved May 4, 2009 from http://www.nytimes.com/2002/06/02/nyregion/02FEAT.html?pagewanted=1
McKee, A. (2004). Virtual Nation. Sydney: University of New South Wales Press Ltd.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Annotated site
Photo of the week. (2009). Retrieved May 2, 2009, from http://www.ausphotography.net.au/
This site is for members to showcase their photographic skills and become involved in a community of like mind people. The photos are beautiful, provocative and stunning. The site is run by enthusiast that also host a mediated members list forum were ideas and knowledge can be exchanged. You can rent space to upload your special shots that gives you exposure to a broader audience for critiquing your work, which may eventually lead to publishing your work.
This site is for members to showcase their photographic skills and become involved in a community of like mind people. The photos are beautiful, provocative and stunning. The site is run by enthusiast that also host a mediated members list forum were ideas and knowledge can be exchanged. You can rent space to upload your special shots that gives you exposure to a broader audience for critiquing your work, which may eventually lead to publishing your work.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Shit in, shit out
You know the saying, you get out what you put in.
By including Boolean logic into search methods and spending more time in the advance search options I have rediscovered the hidden gems of the web.
Yes, I'm guilty of bad searches over the years I've been using the web to such an extent that I avoid searching unless I have to. It has become a major frustration to constantly receive pointless and useless hits on the searches that I generally walk away without the information. So you can guess from that last statement that I have my favorite web site that I visit regularly and forget about the rest. I did know you could use Boolean in the search tool but it was down that long lost memory, it needed a spark to blow the dust away.
By including Boolean logic into search methods and spending more time in the advance search options I have rediscovered the hidden gems of the web.
Yes, I'm guilty of bad searches over the years I've been using the web to such an extent that I avoid searching unless I have to. It has become a major frustration to constantly receive pointless and useless hits on the searches that I generally walk away without the information. So you can guess from that last statement that I have my favorite web site that I visit regularly and forget about the rest. I did know you could use Boolean in the search tool but it was down that long lost memory, it needed a spark to blow the dust away.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Boolean search tools
(Notess, 2007)Just found this chart at Search Engine Showdown, that shows the Boolean phrases in an easy chart.
Reference:
Notess, G. (2007). Search Engine Features Chart. Retreived April 29, 2009, from http://searchengineshowdown.com/features/
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Organising search information task
Searching with Acrobat
Anything that I want to archive or just have a copy I save a pdf version—anything at all, search queries, emails, invoices, receipts. I can even scan a paper copy and convert the text to OCR and then search that if needed. For me it's the most convent way to store information for later retrieval.
For this task I just created a pdf file of the search results and save it on my computer. I can then search for that information through Acrobat.
The two reason for using Acrobat are:
Full Text Search of PDF using Adobe Acrobat. (2007). Retrieved April 28, 2009, from http://blogs.adobe.com/acrolaw/2007/06/full_text_search_of_pdf_using_ad.html
Liberating information and the flow of ideas. (2008). Retrieved April 28, 2009 , from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/adobepdf.html
Anything that I want to archive or just have a copy I save a pdf version—anything at all, search queries, emails, invoices, receipts. I can even scan a paper copy and convert the text to OCR and then search that if needed. For me it's the most convent way to store information for later retrieval.
For this task I just created a pdf file of the search results and save it on my computer. I can then search for that information through Acrobat.
The two reason for using Acrobat are:
- I can search the contents of the pdf file without having the pdf open. (Full Text Search of PDF using Adobe Acrobat, 2007)
- "PDF is now a formal open standard known as ISO 32000. Maintained by the International Organization for Standardization"—so I know my document will be accessible in the future ( Liberating information and the flow of ideas, 2008)
Full Text Search of PDF using Adobe Acrobat. (2007). Retrieved April 28, 2009, from http://blogs.adobe.com/acrolaw/2007/06/full_text_search_of_pdf_using_ad.html
Liberating information and the flow of ideas. (2008). Retrieved April 28, 2009 , from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/adobepdf.html
Monday, April 27, 2009
Boolean search
"It's not what one puts in, it's what one leaves out" (Davies, Esmonde & Larbey, 1975)
Or in the case of searching the web, using Boolean logic to exclude unwanted hits on the search.
Biggest number of 'hits' for Australian photography using the Boolean logic between the words as such, Australian 'or' photography returned over 9 million hits.
Using Boolean logic to narrow the search to find information most relevant to my search. For this I added a word (Australian landscape) AND (photography or photos) and
Information coming only from university sources.
Answer: not sure—I tried a number of sources, Google, Dogpile, Yahoo Directory and searched databases like ERIC and WorldCat.
The best result I had was using Google Scholar and using the advance search function only searching in publication published in universities. WorldCat was also successful but only returned book searches.
Davies, J. ( Producer), Esmonde, J & Larbey, B. (Writers). (1975). The Good Life [Television Series]. United Kingdom, BBC
Or in the case of searching the web, using Boolean logic to exclude unwanted hits on the search.
Biggest number of 'hits' for Australian photography using the Boolean logic between the words as such, Australian 'or' photography returned over 9 million hits.
Using Boolean logic to narrow the search to find information most relevant to my search. For this I added a word (Australian landscape) AND (photography or photos) and
Information coming only from university sources.
Answer: not sure—I tried a number of sources, Google, Dogpile, Yahoo Directory and searched databases like ERIC and WorldCat.
The best result I had was using Google Scholar and using the advance search function only searching in publication published in universities. WorldCat was also successful but only returned book searches.
Davies, J. ( Producer), Esmonde, J & Larbey, B. (Writers). (1975). The Good Life [Television Series]. United Kingdom, BBC
Sunday, April 26, 2009
five tips for blogging
This is a video I found giving 5 tips for bloggers on ProBlogger.
Remember our first blog post way back in the early days of NET11.
Watch the video to see if you were correct in your top tips—I could have done better, I was very green. I know it's only one mans advise but it sounds good to me!
Reference:
Rowse, D. (Presenter). (2008). How to Create Great First Impressions on New Readers and Convert Them Into Loyal Readers. Retrieved April 26, 2009, from http://www.problogger.net/
Remember our first blog post way back in the early days of NET11.
Watch the video to see if you were correct in your top tips—I could have done better, I was very green. I know it's only one mans advise but it sounds good to me!
Reference:
Rowse, D. (Presenter). (2008). How to Create Great First Impressions on New Readers and Convert Them Into Loyal Readers. Retrieved April 26, 2009, from http://www.problogger.net/
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Difference between searches
The three sets of searches posted earlier shows how different the results can be. Out of the three searches, there was not one overlap of sites—all sites were unique. According to research commissioned by Dogpile "Different Engines, Different Results" most search engines return unique results. They sugest "the top search engines have built and developed proprietary methods for indexing the web and their ranking of keyword driven search differs greatly", which I think are driven by their account department to return the highest profit for the company by returning sponsored adds as search results.
Dogpile argues by combining search methods from several search sites they arer able to deliver a "comprehensive result set that bring the best results from the top engines to the first results page". (Different Engines, Different Results, 2007)
At first glance all search methods were equal in returning valid results but none were particularly exciting. I suspect this maybe due to the broad nature of the topic I chose to search.
Overall, the searches from these three did not result in better quality information, it just a gave a broader response. (Are "Smarter" Meta-Searchers Still Smarter?, 2009)
Reference:
Are "Smarter" Meta-Searchers Still Smarter? (2008). Retrieved April 25, 2009, from http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/MetaSearch.html
Different Engines, Different Results. (2007). Retrieved April 20, 2009 from http://www.dogpile.com/rescuefctb/ws/metasearch/_iceUrlFlag=11?_IceUrl=true
Dogpile argues by combining search methods from several search sites they arer able to deliver a "comprehensive result set that bring the best results from the top engines to the first results page". (Different Engines, Different Results, 2007)
At first glance all search methods were equal in returning valid results but none were particularly exciting. I suspect this maybe due to the broad nature of the topic I chose to search.
- The meta search tools returned significantly less results that Google
- Dogpiles 4 out of the top 5 returns were paid ads on Goggle searches
- Clusty did not use the Google data base but returned very similar results
Overall, the searches from these three did not result in better quality information, it just a gave a broader response. (Are "Smarter" Meta-Searchers Still Smarter?, 2009)
Reference:
Are "Smarter" Meta-Searchers Still Smarter? (2008). Retrieved April 25, 2009, from http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/MetaSearch.html
Different Engines, Different Results. (2007). Retrieved April 20, 2009 from http://www.dogpile.com/rescuefctb/ws/metasearch/_iceUrlFlag=11?_IceUrl=true
Friday, April 24, 2009
Meta search results
Using a single search engine
Searching with Google on the words 'Australian photography' returned of about 2,680,000 results.
Using a meta search tool
Searching with Dogpile on the same words 'Australian photography' returned 65 results.
David Photo Video Sydney
12 yrs exp studio close to city Best price Top quality 02 95696666
Sponsored by: www.davidphotovideo.com.au/ • Found on Ads by Google
Aust Photography Magazine
Subscribe to Australian Photography and Save from Your Home of Mags
Sponsored by: www.MagNation.com/ • Found on Ads by Google
Gavin Blue Photography
17 years award winning experience Australia's corporate specialist
Sponsored by: www.gavinblue.com/ • Found on Ads by Google
Free and amazing nature photography from Australia
Unique and amazing Australian nature and landscape photography, stock photos, buy amazing Australian photography and photos. Some free.
www.photoshopaustralia.com/ • Found on Google, Yahoo! Search
Lachlan Burrell
Award-winning photography weddings portraits interiors
Sponsored by: lachlanburrell.com.au/ • Found on Ads by Google
Another meta search
Searching with Clusty on the same words 'Australian photography' returned top 223 of at least 434,500 results.
Sorry about the inconstancy of the design in this page, I just copy an paste the information from the search engines and only did minimum tidy up.
Searching with Google on the words 'Australian photography' returned of about 2,680,000 results.
- Australian Photography - Australia's Premier Photography Forum.www.ausphotography.net.au/
- AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY MAGAZINE : Australian Photography is Australia's top-selling photographic magazine and its readers are increasingly skilled, ...www.isubscribe.com.au/title_info.cfm?prodID=241
- The Australian Centre for Photography is a not-for-profit organisation that promotes photomedia-based art in Australia.www.acp.org.au/
- Ken Duncan is famous for his landscape photography of Australia, panoramic photo & limited edition prints. Order from the online photo gallery or choose ...www.kenduncan.com/
- Photography Forum, photo forum, Discuss Photography, Cameras,Australian Photographers and Photos.www.photoforum.com.au/
Using a meta search tool
Searching with Dogpile on the same words 'Australian photography' returned 65 results.
David Photo Video Sydney
12 yrs exp studio close to city Best price Top quality 02 95696666
Sponsored by: www.davidphotovideo.com.au/ • Found on Ads by Google
Aust Photography Magazine
Subscribe to Australian Photography and Save from Your Home of Mags
Sponsored by: www.MagNation.com/ • Found on Ads by Google
Gavin Blue Photography
17 years award winning experience Australia's corporate specialist
Sponsored by: www.gavinblue.com/ • Found on Ads by Google
Free and amazing nature photography from Australia
Unique and amazing Australian nature and landscape photography, stock photos, buy amazing Australian photography and photos. Some free.
www.photoshopaustralia.com/ • Found on Google, Yahoo! Search
Lachlan Burrell
Award-winning photography weddings portraits interiors
Sponsored by: lachlanburrell.com.au/ • Found on Ads by Google
Another meta search
Searching with Clusty on the same words 'Australian photography' returned top 223 of at least 434,500 results.
- The Australian Centre for Photography is a not-for-profit organisation that promotes photomedia-based art in Australia.
- Ken Duncan is famous for his landscape photography of Australia, panoramic photo & limited edition prints. Order from the online photo gallery or choose corporate gifts to make a ...
- Port Douglas wedding and commercial photographer Steve Brennan is available for wedding and bridal photography in Port Douglas and Cairns as well as commercial photography ...
- You might have seen pictures present in photography magazines or have watched movies, all of these pictures and videos are taken either form a digital camera or from ... Australian Early Warning Network
- Your unique & frequently updated collection of Australian Nature Photography taken by Christopher Prins.
Sorry about the inconstancy of the design in this page, I just copy an paste the information from the search engines and only did minimum tidy up.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Meta search
Boy have my eyes been opened.
I thought all search engines were basically the same with the only recognisable difference of the branding.
After reading about Meta search at UC Berkeley and then doing a Goggle search on 'Meta search' I found that Meta search combines search engines to refine your search. I had no idea that searching in different search engines gave different results and that these results very rarely overlap. (Different Engines, Different Results, 2007)
These results are still only as good as the search engines used by the meta search tool, and if the "underlying databases aren't good" then the results from the search will still be poor and waste your time. (Vine, 2004)
I like the idea of using these combined searches engines to give better results through a meta search and have now been converted to using these tools but I would still classified this as 'fast' data. (Curtin University of Technology, n.d.)
Recognizing the difference between searching methods is half the battle to locating information on the web quickly—I'm surprised searching skills are not taught at school.
Reference:
Different Engines, Different Results. (2007). Retrieved April 20, 2009 from http://www.dogpile.com/rescuefctb/ws/metasearch/_iceUrlFlag=11?_IceUrl=true
Vine, R. (2004). Some Cautionary Notes on Vivisimo. Retrieved 20 April, 2009, from http://www.workingfaster.com/sitelines/archives/2004_07.html#000222
Curtin University of Technology (n.d.). The challenge of 'fast' data. Retrieved April, 20, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_1%2526forum_id%253d_47938_1%2526message_id%253d_558527_1%2526thread_id%253d552622%2526nav%253ddiscussion_board%2526course_id%253d_14736_1
I thought all search engines were basically the same with the only recognisable difference of the branding.
After reading about Meta search at UC Berkeley and then doing a Goggle search on 'Meta search' I found that Meta search combines search engines to refine your search. I had no idea that searching in different search engines gave different results and that these results very rarely overlap. (Different Engines, Different Results, 2007)
These results are still only as good as the search engines used by the meta search tool, and if the "underlying databases aren't good" then the results from the search will still be poor and waste your time. (Vine, 2004)
I like the idea of using these combined searches engines to give better results through a meta search and have now been converted to using these tools but I would still classified this as 'fast' data. (Curtin University of Technology, n.d.)
Recognizing the difference between searching methods is half the battle to locating information on the web quickly—I'm surprised searching skills are not taught at school.
Reference:
Different Engines, Different Results. (2007). Retrieved April 20, 2009 from http://www.dogpile.com/rescuefctb/ws/metasearch/_iceUrlFlag=11?_IceUrl=true
Vine, R. (2004). Some Cautionary Notes on Vivisimo. Retrieved 20 April, 2009, from http://www.workingfaster.com/sitelines/archives/2004_07.html#000222
Curtin University of Technology (n.d.). The challenge of 'fast' data. Retrieved April, 20, 2009, from http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_1%2526forum_id%253d_47938_1%2526message_id%253d_558527_1%2526thread_id%253d552622%2526nav%253ddiscussion_board%2526course_id%253d_14736_1
Friday, April 17, 2009
No Sherlock, No Copernic
What do you do when the software is not available?
Thinking time required.
The first question to ask is what is Sherlock and Copernic used for?
They appear to be a type of search engine. Metasearch?
Thinking time required.
The first question to ask is what is Sherlock and Copernic used for?
They appear to be a type of search engine. Metasearch?
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Java, the history of
Who said that Java didn't make it into consumer electronics? (Sol, n.d.)
You just need to view episode 4, series 4 of Red Dwarf to see an example of intelligent consumer electronics, Talkie Toaster.
(Talkie Toaster, n.d.)
Reference:
Sol, S. (n.d.). Introduction to Java. Retrieved April 15, 2009, from http://javaboutique.internet.com/articles/ITJ/part01/
Talkie Toaster [Image] (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2009, from http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/features/reports/for-arts-sake/index.cfm
You just need to view episode 4, series 4 of Red Dwarf to see an example of intelligent consumer electronics, Talkie Toaster.
(Talkie Toaster, n.d.)Reference:
Sol, S. (n.d.). Introduction to Java. Retrieved April 15, 2009, from http://javaboutique.internet.com/articles/ITJ/part01/
Talkie Toaster [Image] (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2009, from http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/features/reports/for-arts-sake/index.cfm
HTML part 8, remember that name
It's finally come to me, down that long term memory recall. The open source software for developing web pages within your browser is called Plone.
This refers to my post more differences
just tying up loose ends.
This refers to my post more differences
just tying up loose ends.
If you don't use it
I'm back from a small vacation from blogging—it's been like walking in a desert, once you stop to have a rest it's hard to start up again. don't lay down and die, keep on blogging.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Thursday, April 9, 2009
PageSucker
What a cool name, that's about the only thing cool about it.
This is another one of those trick questions—linking students to an application that was last updated in July 2003 and only offering software that's obviously for an older operating system that's almost completely vanished. Why do they do this? I did not download this.
At first, I couldn't think why you would want to work offline, download speeds getting quicker and cheaper so there doesn't appear to be a reason to bother with this application. That's assuming all things being equal—your internet connection is working as it should be.
BUT then the thought struck me—what if your at work and you don't want your boss to know how much time your spending on the web and not working. You could download the sites without clocking up those hours on the server and read to your hearts content without the boss being any the wiser.
So it is cool after all!
But wait there's more.
The reason this has died
I keep reading the lifeblood of the web is the links, the fact that you can hop onto the web on one site and end up almost anywhere by following the links on the pages. PageSucker would then appear to have a very limited appeal, once the site is downloaded to your computer are the external links still active? I don't know, but if PageSucker needs to keep going out to the web to bring down more sites the whole thing seems pointless. And then there's the problem with filling up your hard disk space with offline web sites. I have a freind working in the Department of Health in Canberra and he said the government site had about 27,000 pages—downloading that site and reading offline might be a bit problematic.
This is another one of those trick questions—linking students to an application that was last updated in July 2003 and only offering software that's obviously for an older operating system that's almost completely vanished. Why do they do this? I did not download this.
At first, I couldn't think why you would want to work offline, download speeds getting quicker and cheaper so there doesn't appear to be a reason to bother with this application. That's assuming all things being equal—your internet connection is working as it should be.
BUT then the thought struck me—what if your at work and you don't want your boss to know how much time your spending on the web and not working. You could download the sites without clocking up those hours on the server and read to your hearts content without the boss being any the wiser.
So it is cool after all!
But wait there's more.
The reason this has died
I keep reading the lifeblood of the web is the links, the fact that you can hop onto the web on one site and end up almost anywhere by following the links on the pages. PageSucker would then appear to have a very limited appeal, once the site is downloaded to your computer are the external links still active? I don't know, but if PageSucker needs to keep going out to the web to bring down more sites the whole thing seems pointless. And then there's the problem with filling up your hard disk space with offline web sites. I have a freind working in the Department of Health in Canberra and he said the government site had about 27,000 pages—downloading that site and reading offline might be a bit problematic.
bookmark managers
I tried URL Manager Pro 3.5 and I just can't see the value in paying almost $40 for a product that comes for fee in Firefox. There may be some extra bits that I haven't found that could justify the expense but they would have to have some seriously good automation tools to save time to make it worthwhile.
Also why would you take the trouble to use such a system when there are online bookmarking system for free that are not restricted to one computer. Most of us now have home and work computers so why restrict your self to a fixed system when you can have freedom.
Delicious really is Delicious.
Also why would you take the trouble to use such a system when there are online bookmarking system for free that are not restricted to one computer. Most of us now have home and work computers so why restrict your self to a fixed system when you can have freedom.
Delicious really is Delicious.
Search manager
Not sure if I'm going mad here but as far as I can figure, Sherlock was a search engine for the old OS9 system, I can't find any reference to it on the Apple site under the current operating system.
And as for Glooton, which you have to say in a French accent, won't help—I can't speak French.
It's not going too well is it.
Now for Copernic Meta, a NET11er gave me a url where she found the application but I must say that was also a bum steer. The date on the site was listed as 'Friday, August 20, 1999', even if I did download it it won't work on the new operating system.
It's look like I'm stuck! Better go back to the 'Blackboard' and ask.
No luck, see post http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_1%2526forum_id%253d_47938_1%2526message_id%253d_558527_1%2526thread_id%253d552622%2526nav%253ddiscussion_board%2526course_id%253d_14736_1
Is this a trick question?
And as for Glooton, which you have to say in a French accent, won't help—I can't speak French.
It's not going too well is it.
Now for Copernic Meta, a NET11er gave me a url where she found the application but I must say that was also a bum steer. The date on the site was listed as 'Friday, August 20, 1999', even if I did download it it won't work on the new operating system.
It's look like I'm stuck! Better go back to the 'Blackboard' and ask.
No luck, see post http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=%2Fbin%2Fcommon%2Fcourse.pl%3Fcourse_id%3D_14736_1%26sc%3D%252fwebapps%252fdiscussionboard%252fdo%252fmessage%253faction%253dlist_messages%2526conf_id%253d_23724_1%2526forum_id%253d_47938_1%2526message_id%253d_558527_1%2526thread_id%253d552622%2526nav%253ddiscussion_board%2526course_id%253d_14736_1
Is this a trick question?
Media Players
I already have Apple Quick Time player and have used the Windows version Flip4Mac, but I haven't needed RealPlayer before but I still downloaded it anyway. I find these types of applications are all very similar so I tend to stay with the one that most suites. I get most of my kicks with iTunes. I think it fits into the concept of "Your audience's use of communication" (Concept 2, 2009), in this case I'm the audience and my mode of communication is Apple's iTunes or Apple Quick Time player.
If I have time I'll investigate the others further.
If I have time I'll investigate the others further.
Flash
It's found everywhere
This is another application that I didn't have to download, yes it comes with CS4 but in most cases it's already loaded onto your new computer.
(Flash Player Penetration, 2008)
The thing I really hate about fancy Flash based web sites is the waiting time while you download their introduction that shows you how good the developers of the web site are. I usually skip it if I can or just avoid the site altogether. However, Flash is a fantastic tool for adding interactivity to a web site that enriches the experience.
There are two trains of thought about flash:
My view
The tool can enhance the communication by incorporating animation and video in the web page and can be lots of fun to use. Although I do admit I hate the adds that keep moving and distracting me from reading the text.
Jakob Nielsen view
Flash: 99% Bad (Nielsen, 2000). Nielsen goes on to say that reduces the usability by encouraging design abuse, breaks web fundamentals and distracts from a site's core values. You just need to look at Nielsens web site useit.com it get a feel of his views on web site design. It's not mine!
Outcome
I concede to Nielsen, Flash is probably not a good for web sites and generally interferes with web design, but I find if employed wisely, it can be great fun to use and view.
References:
Flash Player Penetration [image]. (2008). Retrieved April 9 2009, from http://www.adobe.com/products/player_census/flashplayer/
Nielsen, J. (2000). Flash:99% Bad. Retrieved April 9, 2009, from http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20001029.html
This is another application that I didn't have to download, yes it comes with CS4 but in most cases it's already loaded onto your new computer.
(Flash Player Penetration, 2008)The thing I really hate about fancy Flash based web sites is the waiting time while you download their introduction that shows you how good the developers of the web site are. I usually skip it if I can or just avoid the site altogether. However, Flash is a fantastic tool for adding interactivity to a web site that enriches the experience.
There are two trains of thought about flash:
My view
The tool can enhance the communication by incorporating animation and video in the web page and can be lots of fun to use. Although I do admit I hate the adds that keep moving and distracting me from reading the text.
Jakob Nielsen view
Flash: 99% Bad (Nielsen, 2000). Nielsen goes on to say that reduces the usability by encouraging design abuse, breaks web fundamentals and distracts from a site's core values. You just need to look at Nielsens web site useit.com it get a feel of his views on web site design. It's not mine!
Outcome
I concede to Nielsen, Flash is probably not a good for web sites and generally interferes with web design, but I find if employed wisely, it can be great fun to use and view.
References:
Flash Player Penetration [image]. (2008). Retrieved April 9 2009, from http://www.adobe.com/products/player_census/flashplayer/
Nielsen, J. (2000). Flash:99% Bad. Retrieved April 9, 2009, from http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20001029.html
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Adobe Acrobat
I have used Adobe Acrobat Read in the past but now use Acrobat Pro 9—it came with my copy of CS4. I've used Acrobat since version 3 and although I don't claim to be fully versed with the current version and I'm sure there are practical uses I have not explored yet, I feel comfortable with my level of understanding of this product.
Acrobat has had a extraordinary effect in the printing industry, it has greatly enhanced the mobility of documents, enabling anyone to access the files independent of the platform or the original software that created the document. Previously, printers were required to hold a variety of the most common graphic design tools which was expensive to purchase and even more expensive to train people to use. Now printers only require the professional version of Acrobat and some extra plug-in to fully service the customer. This versatility has extended into general public use and has become the open standard tool for document management for a growing number of industries. (Adobe and industry standards, 2009)
References:
Adobe and industry standards. (2009). Retrieved April 8, 2009, from http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/standards/
Document Management application. (2009). Retrieved April 8, 2009, from http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=51502
Acrobat has had a extraordinary effect in the printing industry, it has greatly enhanced the mobility of documents, enabling anyone to access the files independent of the platform or the original software that created the document. Previously, printers were required to hold a variety of the most common graphic design tools which was expensive to purchase and even more expensive to train people to use. Now printers only require the professional version of Acrobat and some extra plug-in to fully service the customer. This versatility has extended into general public use and has become the open standard tool for document management for a growing number of industries. (Adobe and industry standards, 2009)
References:
Adobe and industry standards. (2009). Retrieved April 8, 2009, from http://www.adobe.com/enterprise/standards/
Document Management application. (2009). Retrieved April 8, 2009, from http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=51502
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
furl vs html
Let the fight begin
furl pros
When assessing the html version I have had to assume that the site has no user interaction and therefore is just a linked page generated by the web site manager.
html pros
The outcome
The social bookmarking site furl wins this round, but there is still a use for the html version. I think the question was, from the outset, bias towards the furl site—the comparison might not have been so much in favor of furl if some effort was put into the html code.
Anyway, I sent too much time on this and I'm not sure if I've hit the nail on the head, so it's time to move on.
Next step Module 4
furl pros
- attractive GUI
- easy to add new links
- bookmark management system that can be accessed on any computer that has web access
- user rating showing the likely interest in the story
- can group the posts by the tags in an organised list
- can view or contribute to discussion entries
- anyone that's a member of the group can add links to the list—the sites maybe interesting but not relevant to the subject matter.
When assessing the html version I have had to assume that the site has no user interaction and therefore is just a linked page generated by the web site manager.
html pros
- quick download therefore better if your on a mobile device
- easy to navigate
- information appears to be relevant to the unit—the web manager has used some sort of criteria to assess if the information is relevant and should be on the list
- lists web address under main post so you have some warning to where your heading
- no user rating
- design outdated and looks unprofessional—could question the validity of the whole site
- link tend to meld into one another—should have a short description as to the post
- no user interaction
The outcome
The social bookmarking site furl wins this round, but there is still a use for the html version. I think the question was, from the outset, bias towards the furl site—the comparison might not have been so much in favor of furl if some effort was put into the html code.
Anyway, I sent too much time on this and I'm not sure if I've hit the nail on the head, so it's time to move on.
Next step Module 4
A furly one
Web 2.0 is all about giving the user the ability to contribute to an online community.
Some web 2.0 indicative sites are:
The idea of this new way to search the web is for people to tag sites that will allow the site to be more easily found via a popularity link. This in effect "harnesses collective intelligence" (Ibid) by "a style of collaborative categorization of sites using freely chosen keyword" (Ibid) which acts "as a kind of filter" to produce better search results through "the wisdom of crowds"(Ibid).
Putting it into practical use—I work in the design industry for print, when I search for new ideas I like to see other designers work for inspiration. One way to find these sites would be to do a Google search which would return over 300 million results when searching for common words or phrases.
A better way for me to search is to use a service like design float or delicious which other users have already tagged content to a common theme and then use these tags such as 'graphic design' to quickly navigate to view these sites and see any current design trends.
The gain in efficiency by using the collective conscious far out ways the effectiveness of the Google search.
Problems with users content
User contribution can be a bit dodgy sometimes if people feel inclined to mislead or if they think they're hero's on a subject and boast about their knowledge without substantial proof. These people just end up being villains that should leave well enough alone.
(Folksonomy, 2009)
Yes I like web 2.0, but use it with caution!
Reference:
O'Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0. Retrieved April 7, 2009, from http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html?page=1
Folksonomy [image] (2009). Retrieved April 7, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folksonomy
Some web 2.0 indicative sites are:
- furl
- delicious
- design float
- Wikipedia
- Flickr
- StumbleUpon
- blogging
- and more..........
The idea of this new way to search the web is for people to tag sites that will allow the site to be more easily found via a popularity link. This in effect "harnesses collective intelligence" (Ibid) by "a style of collaborative categorization of sites using freely chosen keyword" (Ibid) which acts "as a kind of filter" to produce better search results through "the wisdom of crowds"(Ibid).
Putting it into practical use—I work in the design industry for print, when I search for new ideas I like to see other designers work for inspiration. One way to find these sites would be to do a Google search which would return over 300 million results when searching for common words or phrases.
A better way for me to search is to use a service like design float or delicious which other users have already tagged content to a common theme and then use these tags such as 'graphic design' to quickly navigate to view these sites and see any current design trends.
The gain in efficiency by using the collective conscious far out ways the effectiveness of the Google search.
Problems with users content
User contribution can be a bit dodgy sometimes if people feel inclined to mislead or if they think they're hero's on a subject and boast about their knowledge without substantial proof. These people just end up being villains that should leave well enough alone.
(Folksonomy, 2009)Yes I like web 2.0, but use it with caution!
Reference:
O'Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0. Retrieved April 7, 2009, from http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html?page=1
Folksonomy [image] (2009). Retrieved April 7, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folksonomy
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