Creativity and New Media

New Media is definitely a lot easier to access for young adults and teenagers compared to an old elder who was not familiar with all the advance technologies that we have now. Facebook for example, has been constantly changing their format and making small changes all the time. It is even hard for me to keep up with everything, but because of all the constant changes, it has definitely formed a sense of creativity for new media. I have never heard of Second Life but I was able to Google it. The sign up process was simple so I only had to wait for the file to download. When I signed onto the page, there were different options on the top corner where I can pick which person, animal, and car that I want. I decided to pick a pink pony riding in a blue car since blue is my favorite color.

 

Creativity

There are many perks to having new media in our lives. New media provide convenience in our lives and foster creativity. In the article “The New Math of Mashups” by Sasha Frere-Jones, it states, “One of the thrills of the mash up is identifying two well-known artists unwittingly complementing each other’s strengths and limitations.” Technology can improvise work that human beings are unable to do. Soft wares can sync two artists together in tune when they sound completely different. With the technology, it can mix the two voices together in harmony. In recent times, almost every popular song is made into a remix. Because of the advance media, creativity is bound to park. 

Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

Virtual worlds are also known as “digital worlds” where many different people come together and form their own imagination. There are many different ways virtual worlds can be used. According to the article “After Second Life, Can Virtual Worlds get a Reboot” by Jacki Morie, it is stated that “You can use virtual worlds in education, in delivery services, or as an advanced form of telehealthcare that offers so much more than videoconferencing.” Although there are cons to virtual worlds, such as decreasing human interaction in the real world and high cost of creating a virtual system, there are also many pros that come along with it. Virtual worlds provide a comforting environment with social connectivity, built-in support groups without having to worry about being alone with no friends because of how people would judge you, and will make communications more enjoyable. In the CNN article, “Going to the virtual office in Second Life” by Mark Tutton, the virtual world has foster creativity such as “creating a new tool that allows businesses to have virtual meetings on their own computer networks” and the “ability to collaborate effectively using virtual tools may now become an increasingly important skill as technology offers more options than, say, video conferencing.” Virtual worlds has made our lives a lot more efficient and effective. Although virtual worlds are consisted of mainly children now, I believe many more adults will be on virtual worlds in the future when there are more tools available for access for company workers.

Blog about Twitter

A twitter discussion is very different from a blackboard discussion because there is a certain amount of characters we can post post on twitter. A twitter discussion has to be really short and concise each time we post something. On blackboard discussion, we can write as much as we want and it will show us how many times it was viewed. Twitter doesn't work the same way. On Twitter, we have to use @ to tag the person we are talking, but on blackboard discussion, people just write the post down and anyone can click on it. Compare to an in class discussion, both twitter and blackboard discussions are online where as a class discussion is in person. The feeling is definitely different when discussions are held in class. Most of the time, we don't praise others for the comments they make in class. We would either say something in addition to what they have said or say something different. On twitter, the comments are less formal, although we are still friendly with each other. On blackboard, it is more like a post. These are my viewpoints on the differences between Twitter, Blackboard discussions, and in-class discussions.

Social Networking Sites

To be very honest, I'm not good with social media so it takes me a while to adapt to changes. Especially with all the changes that Facebook has been having over the past few years, I am not familiar with the privacy settings anymore. Even though I have been a Facebook user for a while now, I am still adjusting to the timeline changes. If I had to compare the simplicity of Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and Myspace, I would think Facebook is most complicated. When I made an account for Myspace, I thought the layout was really simply. Everything was out on the dashboard. Everything I needed to make changes to the myspace was on the left and right side. The "post" button was in blue so it stood out to me. It was easier to figure out where to click to post a blog. I have never used Tumblr so I don't know how it works. When I came to the page, I mainly saw the search button on the top to find friends and to reblog their post. Twitter on the other hand, was overwhelming at first, but then it was easy after playing around with it. I realize it is kind of like Instagram with the # symbol and @ symbol. In general, all these networking sites are similar but different to me in terms of complicity, but I am sure everyone can get the hang of it once they play around with it.

Social Networking

Although social networking can occur in person at places such as school or workplace, it is most common through online websites. Social networking websites function like a small community for users to come together and share their thoughts and common interest. Companies can use social network websites like Facebook and LinkedIn to get a better understanding of their employees. These technologies are beneficial to the society because it is easier to access then meeting up in person. Through the networking websites, a lot of information is provided. An article written by Frank Langfitt “Social Networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting” a recruiter for Osram Sylvania, Maureen Crawford-Hentz claims that “Social networking technology is absolutely the best thing to happen to recruiting — ever." While she was searching for a product-marketing manager, Maureen came upon Alfred LaSpina’s LinkedIn profile and messaged him saying there might be a fit position for him. These sites help both job hunters and employers. Social Networking provides a place for job hunters to market themselves while employers can browse online and search for candidates they see fit for their company.

         As good as everything may sound, there is also a “dark side” to social networking. There are many scammers online that try to get information from online sites. According to “BBB: New Wave of Phishing Scams Uses Facebook Info for Personalized Spam,” it states “Scammers find your information through Facebook or other social media accounts. Some set up fake accounts and send out friend requests. When you accept the request, they can view your friends and personal and contact information.” Before you realize it, you click a link that will lead you to a virus. To prevent these issues from occurring, people have to be more cautious of unfamiliar emails and messages.

         In my opinion, I believe these technologies will be improvised in the near future. Because of the frequent privacy complaints on Facebook and the reoccurring scams, I believe people will find a way to stop these issues from happening one day. It can be a stricter privacy setting or control on the account users and then things they post.