The Next New Thing

The next new thing in new media can be a revamped page that lost its followers such as Myspace or Fantasy Football taken to another level such as incorporating social networking.  Both have so much potential and have exceeded what many have taken as simple things.  Myspace has targeted music artists and their fanbase endorsing pop stars and the works to showcase a different method of social networking while sports fantasy leagues have evolved to huge events that have become organized and paid services.  As technology continues to move at a fast pace, I can also imagine virtual worlds going beyond jagged pixels and tap into senses.

Privacy and Confidentiality

Many people blame new media for the breach in their privacy and confidentiality, but I blame those people for their laziness to read before agreeing to something.  Whether it is Facebook or a free email account, users should always read what terms they are agreeing to.  These businesses do not ask users to scroll through documents and pages or confirm emails for no reason.  This also falls into play with blogs, twitter feeds, uploaded photos and more.  There are ways to protect oneself, but if anything personal is being shared there is no iron clad way to secure what was said stupidly or posted without thinking thoroughly.  I think new media is fantastic and people need to be more familiar and responsible with how they present themselves even online.

P2P File Sharing

File sharing is the process of sharing digital files either received directly from a file transfer service(FTP) or between users.

When sharing files between users, this would fall under P2P(peer to peer) sharing which cuts out the requirement of the middle man which would be the server.

P2P sharing is the most popular form of file sharing because the servers cost money and use more resources to maintain.  Some examples of P2P sharing were through torrents and now magnets which utilize clients such as Bit-torrent and U torrent.  Files can be searched on torrent sites compiled into different categories and downloaded while being shared simultaneously into small parts that make up an entire file.

File sharing is popular and all people to share things all over the world at download speeds that can range from horrible to extremely fast depending on how many people are sharing the file(s) which in a sense makes them a server in themselves.  Their have been outcry against the use of P2P because of pirated content usually being shared.  In many cases, those being sued by the owners of the pirated content look to make examples and use the legal battles they have won as scarecrows ($1.5 Million Fine for Downloading 24 Songs).  Despite such things, millions of users still consistently use P2P file sharing whether pirated or not.

Creativity

The potential of creativity is incredible within new media.  It allows people to showcase their ideas to a global audience in the comfort of their home.  With media being widely available nowadays, especially via the internet artists can take their pick from vast resources such as music.  A popular musical creation are mash ups.  In the article “1 + 1 + 1 = 1“, it explains how “mash ups” are created.  Users produce music by blending two songs together to create a new sound adding in a user’s vocals/music or both with another.  The result can be artistic or distasteful depending on the listener.  Such innovations can be applied to other business ventures such as short skits, parodies, etc. to bring a broader approach to new media.

Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

Imagine being able to experience a place or event without physically being there.  This is what a virtual world can accomplish for you.  While virtualization is still small, it can be found being used in many places.  In the article “In Room 100, It’s Sid and Nancy All Over Again“, a hotel is recreated in Second Life eerily similar to it’s real world counterpart with a few twists.  The creator adds in some nostalgia (i.e. Nacy’s murder by Sid) for rooms and certain recognizable areas that no longer existed as time went on.

In another article, “At Hearing, Real and Virtual Worlds Collide” the author describes how virtualization was used for workers to attend a live congressional hearing in which the room was projected with users being given the ability to input comments and questions.  Such a connection can allow users to have access to such events that are typically limited because of space issues.

The proposed articles demonstrate just how much creativity can be fostered from the use of virtual worlds.  Users can recreate historical monuments and locations with a little more flair or touch exactly on the thoughts and memories many people search or long for when a past place is gone.  These things bring people together whether physically or online.  The only problem that can be seen from the expanded use of virtualization is how much people may depend on it and actually lose out on socializing with people physically.  I see virtual worlds as a way for people to connect easily through shared interests globally and nationally in how pen pals were made popular growing up without the internet.

Social Networking Sites

My experience with social networking sites date back to high school where I signed up for forums based on shared interests and one of the most well known names: MySpace.  MySpace was free, allowed you to connect with others across the nation, and provided what almost every teen desired: almost instant updates of what was happening in other people’s lives.  As much as people hate to admit it, knowing what went on in other people’s lives is the main reason why such sites have so many users.  MySpace gave users a static, but customizable webpage, bulletin reports(similar to status updates),online chatting, forum creation, access to other people’s friends list and exposure for those seeking it.  At the time, MySpace was a giant and everyone had one.  After an overload of users, affinity of spam and viruses, and web pages that took forever to load because of all the embedded graphics people would use MySpace lost its glitz and glamor as people flocked to Facebook.

Since entering College, I was already immersed in Facebook and very familiar with the website.  At the time, only users with valid and supported college/university emails could register which made the social networking site almost feel exclusive.  It allowed dorm mates to leave reminders, parties to be mentioned, and for new people to be met or connect because of their busy schedules.  With so much popularity budding from Myspace and within Facebook’s circle of users, their open invitation to the world was similar to that of opening a flood gate during a storm.  Users made a mad dash to the next place that was happening, tired of their MySpace pages.  The format was different, while not as flashy it was appreciated.  Similar to an exotic yet subtle automobile.  Facebook expanded from simple notifications to chats and forums all like MySpace but still stands as the top Contender with it’s IPO.  I still use Facebook myself but like many others have customized my own page to be secretive and away from prying eyes.  Friends list is hidden, pictures always set to who I prefer to see, and my update status is not as updated as many others.  I still like Facebook and understand the hate, but still feel that its MySpace fall is fore coming early on.  As long as Facebook keeps their tactics simple, they should continue to hang in there until the next generation deems something else worthy of its mantle.

For Linkedin, I shared the same feelings as Facebook: starting to become a mess.  I enjoy simplistic layouts, but the site has begun to face a lot of clutter now also.  Despite what is being posted is something user should be concerned about, I don’t think such things are needed.  It is simple to register, check updates, update your updates and search for others but it is still something a user has to be careful about because information should not be so easy to obtain even if you are looking for a job.  Job searching has pitfalls and recruiters care only for their cut and not your well being a majority of the time.

The most convenient and simplistic of all that I do not use despite having used the top three is Twitter.  It can be confusing at first, but following and tweeting along with re tweeting what others have tweeted is all part of a small list of what is only needed.  I think the hash tags and list of terms are drab.  I don’t see tweets as being any different than a Facebook update nor as easy since characters are limited and often people are criticized by a simple typo that they are trying to update on a phone’s tiny keyboard or touchscreen.

Out of the four, Facebook is the most attractive and full featured.  It can do everything the other sites can do except for Linkedin since jobs and job connections are what Linkedin is known and looks to basically only used for.  Social networking will continue to be a search such as when an agent is always looking for fresh talent.

Social Networking

 

 

 

 

Social networking can be just as successful and popular in the corporate world as it is socially.  Networking has always been about connecting with other professionals and what better way than to do so in the same manner as friends and family?  There is always a line to be drawn between the formalities of those we know, but staying connected can be even easier than meeting at conventions or struggling to get an email out as fast enough to keep a conversation fresh.

Such a convenience has already been created: Linkedin.  Similar to facebook: users can post status updates, follow companies/media, add associates and friends, and most importantly stay connected!  Profiles consist of professional work such as accomplishments and work background which benefits users in meeting other users through relevance and those they are connected to.  Looking for a prospective employee?  It may be possible that someone within your network knows or even recommends someone that could fill that spot.  In Langfitt’s article “Social networking Technology Boosts Job Recruiting” he mentions one user who was able to recruit through such ways.  Recently, she went trolling for a product marketing manager and unearthed Alfred LaSpina, who was doing a related job for another company.

“I ended up looking for consumer product marketing,” Crawford-Hentz says. “And I hit upon his profile, and I sent him this e-mail saying: ‘Hi, Alfred, I found your profile on line. And we have a position that I think may be of interest to you.‘”

Concerned for privacy?  Linkedin allows you to customize settings for whatever you may choose whether its catching up with old friends/employers or looking for a new job but trying to stay off the grid to avoid your manager from finding out.  Even Nissan created a social networking site for its own employees.  In Hall’s article “ Why is Nissan Mimicking Myspace?”, he describes how the huge company is creating such a comparable site to keep employees connected and ideas fresh.  “N-Square will connect up to 50,000 of the company’s 180,000 employees worldwide, letting them create online profiles and blogs, form online communities and discussion groups, and swap data files.”

Such technical creations can benefit society greatly in that the job market, something extremely difficult to stay on top of, will be more convenient for job seekers and career changers alike.  Such convenience can come at a cost since jobs aren’t given simply based on a user’s online presence.  People can still be unsocial in person or they may create so many fake backgrounds to make themselves look good, but this is only a stepping stone.  Users should always work on their professional and social skills and be prepared for what comes after an invitation to connect.

Blogs vs Wikis

Blogs and wikis are great tools for generating and sharing information on the web.  While both serve a different purpose, they both create a community of users that work together for a similar goal.

A common form of a wiki is an “open style” that allows users to add and edit information that may pertain useful to the selected topic.  A wiki’s content varies depending on what it will be used for.  The popular website “Wikipedia” acts as a sort of encyclopedia containing almost everything from definitions to historic events or even movie synopsis.  A majority of wikis are open to the public, but wikis can also be helpful to the workplace.  Using a wiki in the workplace can provide employees with an easier way to access something as simple as a health form to providing a shared space for work projects between colleagues.  Not only can everything be centralized, but described and noted in a way that no one will be questioning what is the most recent power point that will be used for tomorrows meeting or when is the company’s picnic (Goodnoe.  “How To Use Wikis For Business).

Blogs differ from wikis in the sense that it is typically used to voice an opinion and\or generate discussion.  The owner would post a topic or some type of content to elicit responses provided by anyone viewing their blog with an open comment box.  Like wikis, blogs also have many different uses.  In one instance, a community used a blog to help their communities physically by posting their complaints of the increase in neighborhood crime.  Realizing that they shared more than an online community, they banded together offline to make their complaints known to the police giving them victory over their complaints as police cracked down on the crime (Wilson.  “Brooklyn Blog Helps Lead to Drug Raid“).

As you can see, Blogs and Wikis are great online tools for the purpose of sharing information and even bringing users together.  They can be used for much more than entertainment, proving why they are so popular and being used outside of their typical roles.

Newbie here.

I’ve been a reader of a few blogs, but I have never considered creating one myself.  Thanks to a class project, I have given birth to one.  I will try to post a variety of things that I consider interesting and updates on my research project: The Future of Old Media.

The title “The Future of Old Media” can bring a number of thoughts such as an ironic death but I envision old media to evolve and match new media standards in an old fashioned way.  While it definitely cannot match the speed that new media travels at, I still see the demographic growing.  A majority of new media depends on trends which can meet dead ends and die.  With the right research, I hope to lay out a realistic future for old media during these fast changing times.