Robyn Week 3

This week's material and assignment really got me to think. Our team found a social networking site that allows you to lead a second life. Who would've thought. I have heard about it but never really looked into it in depth. This is crazy to me how someone would be so into it that there is a possiblity that the lines of reality and this second life would blur together.  But in a digital world it is what you make of it. When you enter a digital world if it is a game, social network or just surfing the web you have the choice of what to believe and what to look at. So this social network is perfect for a digital world. You make your own reality. It would be interesting to find out how many people prefer this life instead of their own and how many people this preference effects their own lives. I think the digital world is amazing and there is so much potential,  but I can also see the harm in it too.

Robyn's Aha Moment

My aha moment this week was when I took my daughter's trick or treating tonight. It was the usual get the costumes on and they get very excited to be dressed up as something different then what they want to be every day. However, this one was different. My cousin is leaving for Iraq next week on his second tour of duty. This was the last time he will get to see his family. In this situation social networking is very important. He will look at my Facebook page and be able to see my children grow through pictures and updates. Without social networking he would not be able to do this. The is one of the "Good" benefits to social networking. Now if we can just keep working to tone down the bad and the ugly we will be on to something.

Week 3: Social Networking

I am unsure if the topic for this week is Social Networking or Digital Culture, so I am going with Social Networking. The idea of social networking is intriguing to me. It is a way for people to interact globally; to remove geographical boundaries and to create an open dialog with the world. Here is a video showing one person's perception of social networking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a_KF7TYKVc

The idea of social networking is constantly changing. Facebook has become a massive force in the social networking scene, but it is an ever-evolving idea. During its many "hackathons" members of the Facebook team come together to invent and create a new project. Once such project is the new "Friendship Page." An article discussing this new page is below. What I love about this article is not the information about the Friendship Page, it is the discussions that follow. That is what social networking is all about, people from all over the world having a voice.

http://mashable.com/2010/10/28/facebook-friendship-pages/

Other than Facebook I am not a part of social networking sites. I had a My Space page for a while, but switched to Facebook when everyone moved. I am intrigued by the idea of Second Life, but mostly in a psychological evaluation kind of way. There are people who "live" more in Second Life than in their actual lives. That is both crazy and fascinating at the same time. The idea that there is a virtual reality where people go to live while they are spending their life in front of a computer. Amazing......

Here is an article about Second Life. In this article the author is talking about the legal issues behind using real currency in a virtual world. Enjoy...

http://money.cnn.com/blogs/legalpad/2006/11/anshe-chung-first-virtual-millionaire.html

Shayna's Week 3 A-ha.....

My a-ha for this week started off a little sad. I lost one of my grandparents this week. Moving through the motions of the funeral, and hearing all the stories that people had to talk about, I started thinking about how my grandparents spent their time. My grandparents LOVED the Internet....but in a different way than I do. My train of thought then veered off to thinking about how different generations use the Internet and what it means for them. I'm going to discuss my interpretation of generational Internet use...this is based from my point of view only, and not taken from any facts or research.

1. Grandparents - my grandparents use the Internet as a tool for forwarding chain e-mails. They spend hours clogging up people's e-mail accounts with pictures of dogs in costumes, words of enlightenment and promises of fortune (if you forward the e-mail to 10 people in the next 2 minutes).

2. Parents - my parents have recently discovered Facebook. My father is not so much attached, but my mother is obsessed. She had to go out and purchase a top-of-the-line laptop so she can get on Facebook from anywhere in the house. She has found the majority of her high school class, and proceeds to to comment on every post they make. She has now taken to posting old pictures of me and my family. My parents will accept texts and respond, but never initiate them.

3. Me - I use my Internet for necessity, as well as to keep up with friends. I take online courses and do research online. My job has me using IM, e-mail and online training on a daily basis. I am on Facebook to keep up with what my friends are doing, but do not post that often. I often wonder what I would do without texting. I am not very fast at it, but love that I can communicate with my husband while he is at work and not able to take calls.

4. Everyone younger than me - They are insane. The amount of technology that the younger generation is using is mind-boggeling. They text as fast as I type and have an entire language for texting. Technology has become a part of their lives, and it is ingrained in all that they do. My four year old son is able to play Star Wars Legos better than me. He asks me to play with him and then has to teach me how to beat the levels. (I felt really old when that happened)

I really have no point to this blog other than showing differences between generations. Hopefully someone finds this interesting.....

Nancy's Week 3 A-Ha Moment

Ok....I'm learning....learning that I'm not with the majority who use a social network. But that is ok....CLICK HERE to link to an article that talks about a survey from MIT about how often people update their social network sites (Facebook,Twitter) and what are the most common questions people ask their network friends.

Many questions are "philosophical or open-ended" or others are "practical". The survey found technology questions were very popular. I have to say that when I have a tech question, I call my son or husband, both of whom can spout out the answer. I was surprised too to learn that the average Facebook account has 209 friends...that seems exceedingly large...I read the article and was properly impressed. Then...the ball dropped. The survey was mostly of Microsoft employees......OF COURSE THEY WOULD HAVE A FACEBOOK ACCOUNT!

Aha! Week 2

I'm becoming overwhelmed with thechnology!  At age 42, not having a techno background, so many digital phenomena are new and foriegn to me, but as I keep plugging away, I recognize my vocabulary slowly changing and, if I look closely enough, my comfort level expanding to include things I thought were voodoo a month or two ago. 

I had a conversation with a friend last week who I'd always thought was fairly wired in -- he has a job in a technologically oriented field and I'd always relied on him to help me with techh problems in the past.  I was describing some of our class projects, specifically the creation of blogs and the challenges I've had appending video, RSS, etc.  I was taken aback when he told me he really didn't know much about blogs, and that he'd always wondered what an RSS feed was.  Aha!  All of a sudden I wasn't the dumbest guy in the room -- at least it didn't seem like it for a few minutes. 

I've come to understand that there are many people (in my age group anyway) who've privately felt uncomfortable and perhaps just a little bit inferior because of the gap in thier technological aptitude.  Once I've expanded my knowledge and ability, even just a little, with technology, I've increasingly noticed a great number of people for whom technology, and especially the alarming rate of its increasing complexity and ubiquity, has become scary.  I've long been kind of ashamed of my technological inexperience, and I've held the notion that I'm way too far behind the curve to ever catch up.  What I've found, though, is that's not even a little bit true.  Undoubtedly I have a long, long way to go, but even in a few short weeks I've seen just the slightest glimmer of promise that, some day, I'll get it. 

Am I Unlocked?

What is Digital Culture? As I began this assignment of defining “digital culture”, I found this video by Chris Pirillo. I really liked his “plain terms” and I easily understood what he was trying to say. Digital culture is a part of ourselves that allows you and me to connect…and I don’t even know you! Chris uses the term “pervasive technology”. This term did throw me for a loop…then I understood. Pervasive technology is believing that there is an answer to all questions somewhere through technology. Humans have evolved so much in the world of communication that when we need an answer to anything, we simply go to the Net…and someone, somewhere will have the answer. Now, when the answer comes, what if I don’t like it? No big deal….search again. Chris Pirillo said that digital technology “unlocked” him. I don’t think technology unlocks me…The pieces that I do indulge in such as e-mail or very, very limited texting don’t take up a lot of my time. I really don’t feel any more free when e-mailing or texting. Just getting on the Internet to search for material for my classes at school is where I spend my time….and that is a lot of time! Could I get the same info elsewhere such as the library…sure…but how could I do that in my pajamas?
Nancy

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25 things . . .

I know we're moving on from FaceBook this week, but I thought this video was a) hilarious, b) still topical as we continue to explore digital media and communities, and c) well . . . I just now figured out (with some help from my teammates) how to embed video and I thought I'd give it a try.  Anyway, this is a great video, and I think it's right on target.  Enjoy!

Nancy's A-Ha Moment

For me, the a-ha moment was obvious.....I had absolutely no idea Facebook was so large. Large, encompassing, social, but with a dangerous aspect...that of losing your privacy.  After this segment of the class will I get a Facebook page? No, probably not, but I will certainly respect even more all of those that do consider themselves a Facebook "user".  When a friend mentions their "wall", or "Farmville" or their number of "friends", I will now be able to at least intelligently participate in the conversation. It seems like every time I see an advertisement, visit a restaurant or watch a television ad, I either see the Facebook logo somewhere or hear the Facebook word.  The other night my husband and I were out for dinner at a moderately upscale restaurant.  On the coaster for our beverage was an ad for the restaurant saying to "check them out on Facebook".  Before this class, I guarantee I would have never even given it a second glance. So I've learned that the social network of Facebook is absolutely huge and I am glad I learned about it.  My students certainly talk about it and now I will feel more connection to their world.  Reading the articles about Facebook provided great up-to-date information about the privacy problems. I guess I thought that such a big, successful enterprise such as Facebook would not have this type of problem. Even though I don't have an account, I will probably continue to read about the improvements that are constantly being made to Facebook. 500 million users.....WOW.

Nancy

Week 2

I am proud of our blog…to think we could put this together and have never seen each other face to face or have never actually heard the other’s voices. However, we have communicated in a way that seems to be the most popular way in today’s society…by the internet.

I am glad that we did this in a way other than Facebook. I do not have a Facebook account and am one of the few family members and my friends who do not have a Facebook account. Do I feel I am missing out on something fantastic? Not in the least. I consider myself a “people person” and would rather communicate DIRECTLY with those people when I want to say something. A direct e-mail (like our team used) worked perfectly. I have no desire to have people who I have not seen in 20+ years read my e-mail. It seems a little weird to all of a sudden have “good” friends that you haven’t seen or spoken to since high school (I will not mention how long ago that could be for me!!!!!!!) see what you have written about a subject that has nothing to do with them.

Check out this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5gtN16gOr8 . It is a basic “how-to” tool about the Facebook concept. As a newbie to the Facebook world, I found it interesting. It is not a comedy like the class video (which by the way was hysterical) but a basic “this is what it is”.
So Team 3 is off and running. There is more to come.
Nancy

Facebook

I joined FaceBook a few years ago when my oldest son spent a year in Germany as an exchange student.  One of the other parents started a Facebook group so we could all keep in touch and share information while our kids were overseas.  I really didn't know what I was doing, and my account sat dormant for over a year. 

One day, though, I thought I'd check it out and see what all the fuss was about.  One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I was friends with hundreds of people, some of whom I'd never really met, some whom I wouldn't consider spending time with in real life, and others I hadn't spoken to or thought of for decades.  Interspersed with all the noise of superficial relationships, though, I found a neat way to reconnect with lots of really good friends with whom I could share experiences, memories, and pictures as I wouldn't have been able without FaceBook. 

Still, though, I think it's kind of silly.  I know people who spend hours each day FaceBooking (when did it become a verb?) and who seem absolutely addicted to the virtual social interaction.  I got a big kick out of the FaceBook manners video, and I also watched The Social Network last night with my wife.  What a hoot! 

I must admit, though, that I usually check in at least once a day to see what everyone is up to, and I've also noticed a disturbing, recurring phenomenon: At least once a week I read or experience something that makes me think, "Now THAT would be a great status update!"

The Aha! moment . . .

Hi, folks.  Week 2 has been quite a challenge so far.  I'm getting slowly up to speed with Blogger and the rest of the technology we've recently jumped headlong into, but the biggest challenge for me has been the collaborative process. 

When I began reading the assignments for week 2 I thought, "Oh, cool.  I've always been kind of curious about blogging; looks like now's the time to figure it out."  Then I saw we'd been divided into teams.  I usually prefer to work on projects alone, and the introduction of other people often makes things much more complicated

Let me be clear: that's not the case with Team 3.  They're AWESOME!  Here's an example:  I puzzled over a technical problem yesterday afternoon for about an hour.  I'd finally had enough, and found other things to do for awhile.  By the time I got back, one of my partners had figured out the problem, fixed it, and taken our blog live.  Fantastic!

I'm a lot smarter about blogs today than I was at the beginning of the week, but the most profound Aha! moment came when I realized that Team 3 rocks!  --Scott

Week 2: A-Ha....

The instructions say that we should post an “a-ha” response to something we learn or experience each week. I should warn everyone that I tend to be a sarcastic person by nature, and the majority of the things that I learn begin with something that I find annoying. So, here goes…learning/venting week 2. I have come to a couple of realizations in the past few days. The first, is that if improvement is to happen in an organization, there must be at least one person in each department who cares enough (or is mad enough) to initiate change. My second realization is that the majority of change initiatives begin while these individuals are taking breaks together.
I find it amazing how much more work can get done during a break than during a meeting. I have had to sit through so many meetings in the past few weeks and I don’t think a single thing has been completed. However, during the course of four 15 minute breaks this week a co-worker and I sorted out two process problems and implemented solutions. This process begins with venting. Each member of the “break team” gets an opportunity to complain about something that is going on. Then, after the initial “You’re kidding me!” and “What were they thinking?” and “How do they function like that?!” we come up with a solution to the problem. To be honest, not all of our solutions are ones that we can present to the company without fear of unemployment, but some of our ideas are great, and get the job done. I find it so frustrating that this type of efficiency cannot happen in meetings, where everyone invited “should” have a vested interest in the topic. However, what I find more often is that the individuals only attend the meeting in an attempt to divert attention from them and leave the meeting with the fewest action items.

So – here is what I propose. All employees who are capable of rational thought and action should start our own social networking site; one that is underground and requires special membership by invitation only. This site could be dedicated to venting and working out solutions regardless of job description or company market. Anyone who would like to join let me know.

Week 2: Facebook

I admit that I am not super tech-savvy. However, I do have a Facebook account, which I keep posted with adorable pictures of my son. For me, that is all Facebook is, a large photo album with comments. I love it. I do not post as much as I should (according to some), but I love to people watch on Facebook. I think that is what the site is for a lot of people…a forum for people watching without being obvious.

I am posting a couple of videos that I found, each relating to Facebook. The first video, “Sharing Around the World,” the producers of Facebook give a visualization of the actions/interaction that take place on Facebook. It is pretty interesting to see how much is happing on this one blog. I was especially interested in the massive amount of people on Facebook in the northeastern states in the US. Apparently that part of the country is very networked.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=37403547074

My second video is a fun video, and I hope everyone has a sense of humor. This video is a parody of the movie “The Social Network.” I really like this video because it points out the crazy things that people do on Facebook. If you ask someone why they use Facebook, their answer is probably not going to be “I’m on Facebook to see cats playing piano!” Those cats, however, are extremely popular. People do things on Facebook that they would not do in person, they say things they would never say out loud, and they friend people that are not their friends. I am fascinated by the behaviors that suddenly seem acceptable. Ok, so I will get off of my soapbox now…I hope you enjoy these videos.

http://vodpod.com/watch/4163247-the-video-website-social-network-parody-hah-

Team 3

Go Team 3- we are up and running.
Nancy