IM programs vs 3D Enviroments

Hello again bloggers,

this weeks tutorial task was to compare the 'qualitative' differences between regular IM programs and a 3D enviroment. Firstly I had to make a quick google search for the definition of qualitative and I hope I managed to get a somewhat accurate idea of what it means. So here goes.

I guess the question really is what is different about the kinds of socialising that happens in these spaces? Does the 3D aspect make much difference? Or in more simple terms are there things that are possible in the 3D world but not in an instant messenger program?

I think that a 3D enviroments such as second life or active worlds is completly different to instant messenger such as msn. Often because people seem to escape into these worlds to become somthing that they are not in real life. They have the ability to change their appearance to create someone that probhably doesnt even look like them. Not only that but they can choose where they go in these worlds, meet all kinds of new people that are also playing the game, in saying that I guess it could be viewed more from a game aspect rather than a communication tool.

In msn messenger one would generaly come accross as themselves not another person and these days we have display pictures where most people generally uplaod a recent photo of themselves. The are not really pretending to be someone else as opposed to second life where many people are. Also in msn the contacts must be added they do not just appear this generally means that one knows all the contacts on their list where as in second life alot of the other characters are just strangers.

I think that in the end both programs are still doing the same thing. Allowing their users to communicate with other. However second life tries to make it a little more realistic and life like by intruducing worlds and characters, in that sense its a little more interactive and fun.

I was highly amused at the fact that I was able to fly around in second life and communicate with people from all over the world, I even chatted to a character who was a dog! So yes I think essentially both programs are acomplishing the same thing however 3D enviroments may be more exciting and interactive.

Thats all for today folks :)

Microsoft Excel...

This weeks tutorial task was to create a spreadsheet in exel, and create a letter in microsoft word by following the instructions provided on the learning at griffith website. I found the exercise very helpful though a little difficult. I also had trouble deciding how to show what I had done in the blog but I got there in the end as you can see from the image on the left. Overall a very helpful exercise :) I wasnt to sure about how to post the letter so I just coppied and pasted it below:


Dear Mr Johnston,

I am writing to apply for a position within Mass Media Inc.

I have recently completed a Bachelor of Communications degree at Griffith University and feel that I have the suitable skills and experience to be a valuable asset to your company. During this degree I have completed subjects in:

· New Communications Technologies,

· Styles and Genres of Journalism,

· Youth and Society,

· and Effective Writing.


Please find attached a copy of my resume.

Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Jessie Hunt

Walter Benjamin's "Art in the Age of Mechanial Reproduction

Hello there bloggers,

This weeks tutorial task asks us to consider the following questions in relation to Walter Benjamin's "Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction."

• How do the ideas from Walter Benjamin's "Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction" apply to contemporary digital media
• There was a time when "Art" was made by artists who were skilled professionals. Now that anyone with a computer can create things digitally (music, images, videos, etc), what does that mean for "art"?
• Is a photoshopped image "authentic"? Do digital "things" have an "aura" (in Benjamin's terms)?

Benjamins ideas are relative to contemporary digital media as art was, is and will be in the future, open to replication. Benjamin suggests that recreating orginal artworks takes away from their originality or their 'aura,' I believe the opposite. Technology today allows us to touch up, or even recreate damaged artworks, whith out these technologies the artwork itself would deteriorate and no longer exist. I supose that the recreated art work could even been seen as a fake or a plagiarised work, perhaps even a different work altogether. So I would have to say that while the recreation of artworks does keep them alive and allow us to repair damaged works it is possible to understand how a recreation causes the orginal to losse its 'aura' or orginiality.

There are many different types of art in todays society, however I do not think that is it fair the say that one artist is more skilled than the other. One artist may be a magnificant portrait painter while they may not be able to take an edit a photo to save their lives or vice a versa. Even dating back to 1887 artists such as Marcel Duchamp has some pretty out there ideas as to what could be considered art. I do not beleive that placing a a wheel upside down on a stool could be seen any more 'art worthy' than the digitally created images or music created today. Not to mention that you still have to have a knack for choosing what to take a photo of or how to create a song its not as simple as some make it out to be.

As for whether or not a photoshopped image is 'authentic' or in Benajmins terms has an 'aura' I believe it does. If someone takes a photo and edits it on photoshop they are still creating something new and authentic. However I doubt Walter Benjamin would see it that way!

Well thats all for today bloggers :)

Essay, 'Email, alive and well.'

Email, Alive and Well.

By Jessie Hunt


“Despite common belief, E-mail actually pre-dates the widespread use of the Internet. It was invented by Ray Tomlinson in 1971.” (Search web guide, encyclopaedia.) Today e-mails are sent almost instantly through internet connected hosts. “Information races back and forth over the net in the form of tiny ‘packets’ of digital data. When you send an e-mail, it is split into many of these digital packets. These packets make separate journeys through the network, sometimes by very different routes – going across different continents or up and down satellites. At the destination the packets are put back together again.”(Woodford, C. ‘Digital Technology’ 2006; 30.) Email allows people to communicate with each other from the comfort of their computer chairs and serves many different and useful purposes.

The basis of this essay is to prove that e-mail is still alive and social networks such as My Space are not taking it’s place. This will be done by discussing the following points;
Email is still used by large companies.
Able to send large attachments through e-mail.
Spam is now becoming just as common on My Space as it is on e-mail e.g. spam comments.
My Space is “a place for friends.”
E-mail is seen as a more professional way of contacting people.
My Space is not seen as very professional in the business world.
Must have an e-mail address to be a member of My Space.

Although many online articles today argue that email is dead many of them are basing their arguments on the opinions of children for example an online article on C Net News.com featured the headline “Kids say e-mail is, like soooo dead.” Surely it is fair to say that young children grow up, become adults and start jobs, it is very unlikely that when they are managing a company, sending attachments to colleagues that they will sign in to My Space and post it through a comment or message. Of course young people prefer to use social networks such as My Space to connect with their friends however when looking at it from a business perspective My Space is not seen as a very ‘professional’ way of contacting colleagues. Perhaps it could be said that email may be used less often by young people as a source of communicating with friends however the majority of us use e-mail on a day to day basis. The following quote from Peter Jordan supports this statement, “Everyone is doing it, from big business and not-for-profits to 15 year olds.” (Jordan, P. ‘Digital Media, access an emerging career.’ 2007;55.)

Most Internet users worldwide use the Web primarily for e-mail and search, according to a global survey conducted by Gartner in 2007. Only one demographic group surveyed, however, did not follow these trends. Teens aged 13 to 18 showed a wide range of Internet interests, varying from downloading music and playing games to blogging and social networks. This statistic shows that while young people prefer social networking to communicate with friends the rest of society doesn’t necessarily follow. In fact it appears that while many adults are at work personal email use often takes preference. The Pew Internet Project has released a report on e-mail usage in the workplace, which presents the results from a recent US survey. The survey results showed that 98% of Americans used personal email on the job. (New Internet Users: What They Do Online, What They Don’t, and Implications for the ‘Net’s Future, march 2000 poll.) This statistic proves that not only is email still being used as a business tool but also as a way to connect with friends.

Another important factor to consider is that in order to sign up to a social network such as My Space it is compulsory to have an e-mail address. Not only that but My Space itself employs the help of email to let its users know when they have a new comment, message or friend request.

E-mail also seems to be continually beat down on for the amount of spam that fills user’s inboxes. Many believe this is the reason that young people have conformed to social networks rather than sifting through spam to find the relevant e-mails. While email engines such as hotmail and yahoo are continually finding ways to prevent spam coming through hackers and spammers are now turning to social networks, such as My Space to post their spam.

An example of My Space spam featured in an online article in The Register. “Kristina Bartley, who in early 2005 started the My Space group Brunettes Kick Ass. For a while, it was a vibrant place for people to gather to discuss all kinds of stuff, be it word associations, haiku games or their favorite booze. Then it was hit by a blizzard of spam that Bartley has never successfully been able to dig out from underneath. One day a spammer posted 15 pages worth of crap. My Space eventually canceled the spammer's account and also deleted the text contained in the mass messages, but unfortunately, the postings remained in the group's index. That meant members had to sift through 15 pages of blank postings before finding legit ones.
A few days later, a new spammer left 500 pages worth of postings. Bartley eventually converted the group to private, so people would have to receive her explicit permission before being able to post messages. But even this has done nothing to stem the viral wave of crap, which in many cases includes postings of some of the vilest porn known to man. To make matters worse, the vandals have figured out a way to ban her most vocal supporters from accessing the group, so they are unable to participate in any meaningful way.”
"A few months ago there would be a post a minute in this group and now it's sometimes one every hour," Bartley says. "It's sad to see something I've worked on so hard fall apart in the hands of a spammer and no help from My Space." (My Space users snowed in by new blizzard of spam. May. 2007)

Viagra marketers, pedophiles and hackers have latched onto My Space causing it to become as ineffective as most other net based forums. Its not only My Space groups being attacked either many users find their friends account have been hacked resulting in many fake comments regarding free Macies gift vouchers and free ring tones.

While it is almost impossible to avoid spam on a personal e-mail account there are some web mail accounts that have such tight security barley any spam leaks through the users inboxes. For example g-mail is known to be a very tough against spam. Griffith University student Chris Larder quotes, “I have a gmail account as well as hotmail however I find that gmail is far more successful at keeping out spam, I might get only one or two spam e-mails in a week as opposed to 10 or 15 from hotmail. E-mail is still a great tool, you just need to know which web mail to choose.”

While My Space might be used relentlessly by the younger generations to communicate with school or university friends it is unlikely that it will take over from e-mail. Not only does e-mail allow the user to send long messages, but also attachment files, pictures and send the e-mail to a large number of contacts. E-mail is seen as a professional and very effective business tool weather it be e-mailing a colleague or marketing through e-mail it is used every single day. From the evidence provided it is clear the email is definitely here to stay.












References:

· Search Web Guide. Accessed on 22/05/08[http://www.ebroadcast.com.au/lookup/encyclopedia/e-/E-mail.html]
· eMarketer. ‘Teens signal shift in internet usage.’ Accessed on 22/05/08 [http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1006243&src=article_head_sitesearch]
· cNet, News.com. ‘Kids say email is like soooo dead.’ S. Olsen. 2007.
· EmailStatCenter.com. ‘Email usage/ penetration.’ Accessed on 22/05/08 [http://www.emailstatcenter.com/Usage.html]
· John B. Horrigan. ‘New Internet Users: What They Do Online, What They Don’t, and Implications for the ‘Net’s Future’ March. 2007. Accessed on 22/05/08 [http://www.pewinternet.org/pdfs/new_user_report.pdf]
· ‘IFA Email Usage 2007’. Stone Shot. Accessed on 22/05/08 [http://www.stoneshot.com/pdf/ifa-survey-2007.pdf]
· Jordan, P. ‘Digital Media, access an emerging career.’ Published by Career FAQs PTY LTD. 2007)
· Woodford, C. ‘Digital Technology’ Published by Evans Brothers. 2007.)
· Weaver, B. ‘Catch The Wave’ Published by RMIT University Press. 2003

Evaluating Wikipedia

Wikipedia, I never really knew much about it before the lecture last week, although from what I gathered it seems to be one of the most often used resources around the world. After reading a few of the links Adam posted I became a little weary of Wikipedia and using it as a resource. The idea that anyone can just go and change another persons work or even delete the entire thing seems very odd. I guess it's good that others able to correct information or add it but how do we know if its correct? The task today was to pick two articles that I am an expert one which is quite difficult as I dont really believe myself to be an expert on anything.

The first article I chose was about the greyhound. Owning a greyhound myself was what promted me to choose this topic as I know quite alot about them. I found the information in the article to be very true and relevant to the topic. It covered all the general facts you would need or want to know about greyhounds from their size, appearance and personality. It stuck to the Wikipedia guidelines fairly well, referenceing all the statements, breaking up the information into seperate pages, the grammar was correct and well punctuated and it avoided the not-to-do content. I would have to say that it seemed to be a very informative and correct article.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greyhounds)

The second article that I decided to look up was about bi-polar disorder which I chose because a member of my family suffers from it. After reading the article I learnt some new fact myself and found everything I knew on the subject was in the article. Again it was a very accurate article using relevant facts and references. It covered all the basic facts needed to understand the topic also adding extra indepth information. I believe it followed the Wikipedia guidelines I mentioned in the above paragrpah. The article was not really debating an issue but rather explaining it so it was not really biased in anyway but it did seem fair and accurate.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bi-polar_disorder)

Perhaps I was just lucky to choose two articles that were factual. I also found this task a little hard not knowing enough about the articles I chose. I agree that there is probably many articles out there in Wikipedia that are incorrect or not entirely true. I don't think I will be using in the future for any assignments but it does seem to have some reliable information.

Well, I think thats all I've got for today now I'm off to fill up my 4 hour gap with much procrastination about the two paragrpahs I have due in tomorrow!

Farewell bloggers :)

Searching without Wikipeda or Google

Here I am back from my short but memorable easter break. 9am starts are beggining to get old. None the less I am here attempting to answer the questions set out with out using wikipedia or google. The search engine used was yahoo.

• The infamous creater of the 'love bug' virus was Onel de Guzman, a twenty four year old computer school student. He wrote the password stealing program as a school project.(http://archives.cnn.com/2000/TECH/computing/06/29/philippines.lovebug.02/index.html)
• The first paper clip was invented in 1867 by Samuel Fay.(
• The Ebola virus got it's name from the Ebola river in Zaire, Africa where it was first discovered.(http://www.lycos.com/info/ebola--ebola-river.html)
• America ia the country with the largest earthquake recorded.It was located on the eastern Pacific Ocean about 100 miles off the west coast of Chile, South America on May 22, 1960There is one terabyte (Tb) = 1000 gigabytes (Gb) = 1000 000 megabytes (Mb) = 1000 000 000 kilobytes (kb) = 1 000 000 000 000 bytes or one thousand billion bytes of information.(http://www.riverland.net.au/text/look_first/gloss2.html)
• E-mail actually pre-dates the widespread use of the Internet. It was invented by Ray Tomlimson in 1971.(http://www.ebroadcast.com.au/lookup/encyclopedia/e-/E-mail.html_
• The spread of the "storm worm" started via e-mails purporting to provide information on some dangerous storms in Europe at the close of January. Users who fell for it were directed to a web site containing malicious code aimed at turning Windows PCs into spam bots. Just how many computers are part of the botnet is anyone's guess, but estimates from some security firms are reaching as high as 10 million.( http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070902-storm-worm-adds-millions-of-computers-to-botnet.html)
• Community Cabinet meetings are part of the Prime Minister’s commitment to ensure close consultation with the Australian people on the things that concern them, whether they are national or local matters.These meetings give people in the community an opportunity to meet with Cabinet members in person and ask questions directly about issues which are important to them.phone the Community Cabinet Secretariat at the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet on 1800 088 323.(http://www.pm.gov.au/community_cabinet/index.cfm)
• Steve Stockwell was in the band The Black Assassins. They were a vital part of the Brisbane Punk scene which developed in the late 1970's and early 1980's. They played at every major venue at one time or another. Sometimes they got banned for outrageous behaviour.(http://members.optusnet.com.au/~toxicoh/blackas.htm)
• Web 2.0 is the elovution over time of the web and how everyday people can post and put information out there, a platform we can all contribute to.(http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;430415830;fp;2;fpid;1)

Thats all for now so I'm off to have at go at the 'Guess the Google' game online.

THE SECOND WEEK

Well hello again bloggers,

Im back...This week I was directed to write a blog on how I use New Communication Techniques to communicate with my friends and family. Well I guess my main source of online communication to my friends and family would be msn messenger or myspace. I rarely chat to family online as most of my relatives are computer illiterate and would barely manage to find the power switch on a computer so I'll just stick to friends.

Of my msn contacts I only know about 20% as I used to add anyone and everyone when I first was intoduced to the amazing chat program at 13 years of age. Now I just can be bothered to go through the hundred and something contacts and delete the ones I dont chat to. I believe it is very different chatting to someone you have never met in real life compared to a friend you have known for years as you have so many things to ask or tell that they dont know where as chatting to someone you already know usually entails deciding what to do on the weekend or telling them anything exciting that happened during the day.

My most common use of communicating through the internet would be myspace which is made up from people that I was friends with from school or work along with the occasional band. Myspace was sort of a phenomenon at high school and was something to do between cramming for tests or finishing assignments at 1 in the morning. Posting photos and recieveing comments or messages was exciting.

My main use for msn or myspace is only social and is generally something I do when im bored at home or am procrastinating about assignments. I was influenced to join them mainly because it was considered "cool" at the time. These days I see it as more of a convenient way to communicate to my friends and share photos.

I think thats enough writing for now hopefully I have answered the required questions somewhere in those paragraphs.

Goodbye for now :)

About Me

Grettings Fellow Bloggers,

My name is Jess and this is my firt time blogging. Well here I am in my first tutorial of new communication technologies at griffith university. I missed last weeks tutorial because I assumed they weren't on in the first week, i was wrong although most of the first week tutes I went to involved reading the course outline so I dont think I have missed too much.

I am enrolled in a bachelor of communications and chose this subject because I hope to better my internet and computer skills, also because my second year friend said it was a simple subject. Well thats all I can think to write for now I'm not sure that anyone out there will find this particularly interesting but at least I have met my requirements for the tutorial.

Watch out for more exciting blogs next week.