This is it!

The last blog. Wow, we've been through a lot Blogger. You'll RMA and I'll do the same. KIT with me so we can be BFF4E ok?

Anyone understand those acronyms? I was thinking about it and when I was in grade school and high school, we didn't have text messages to pass on cell phones because the only people who had cell phones were the cool business people who had to carry it in and out of their car in something the size of a Trapper Keeper. We (and I am sure people before me as well) used all those texting acronyms in the 55 notes we wrote everyday. Just a random thought I wanted to get out.

I love the Dooce blog. She's got that tinge of smartass-like sarcasm I enjoy but seems to draw you into the blog and make you read it even if you didn't want to. I would love to make money like that. I started to blog a little on my MySpace (if anyone wants to read it) when I was on vacation last week. If I had anything interesting to blog everyday I would. Actually if I watch enough daytime television I could blog everyday but then my mind would be mush. I actuall like the links on her blog too like the one to the guy who collects pencils. I sent hm a message about a pencil I have but he already has it. There is another one that goes to some conspiracy theories that is pretty good too.

So overall, I highly enjoyed the class. The reading was up and down but I think the book was good and well suited. I would take it again if I could. Good job David.

Chapters 13-15 (still working on it)

Whew, we are finished with the book! Let me hear a heck yeah! It's been an up and down ride with this text. One minute I understood it and the next I was confused. After reading it, I see the Internet and World Wide Web as a whole new entity. I never thought of it as a communication device even though that's primarily how I use it. I've even gotten into conversations with people about things mentioned in the text using the knowledge I learned from reading and class discussions.

Privacy and anonymity are two things that will be an issue as long as the web is around. You might be able to make a fake profile on something like MySpace or Louisville Mojo but someone will know who you are be it the site admins or some super hacker that can track you through your IP address. No matter what "they" want us to think, I think someone always has an eye on people online and here's why: I have a friend who was researching for a presentation at nursing school on the subject of what would happen in the event of a WMD type attack medical wise. My brother, who is a retired 20+ year Army vet, gave her a few websites to lookup for info. After she was finished, the computer would not turn on for a few days. The power button would light up and the fan was on but no action in the guts of the system. It never acted like that before and after the few days passed it hasn't done it since. We laughed when discussing it among ourselves and with my brother, making jokes that the government was checking her computer out since she was digging around researching for school. I really think that was the case even though we can't prove whether it was coincidence or not.

I found it interesting when it mentioned the man who found a fellow serviceman online and turned him in for being gay. The question I have for that is this: was the man that turned in his co-worker purposely searching people online to get in trouble and whatnot or did he randomly stumble upon the profile? I am just curious.

I remember when Napster first was up and running. I was part of the large amounts of people that would download everything from music to SNL clips to sound effects off of it. I loved it. I did stop using it because I became obsessive after a while trying to find obscure things and decided to stop. Not long after that is when they got in trouble by Metallica. I have 3 views on the piracy issue. First, Metallica is not going to go broke if their albums are downloaded illegally. I understand they took the time to write, record and pay for all the services to release a cd and I know it's not cheap being in a band and having recorded 2 cds ourselves. Copyright is there for a reason - to keep your works protected so someone else can't record them and claim them as their own. If you have more money than God then who cares if some stuff is downloaded illegally? Second, as a lover of music when I downloaded a song or a few songs off of Napster they were usually not the best quality and if I liked it enough, I'd go buy the cd. I like to have liner notes and lyrics and pictures to look at. The same holds true today when I get songs off of iTunes. I might download one or two but if I like it enough I am going to buy it. Third as a musician I am not banking in on merch and cd sales like Metallica. We have actually told people if they want to burn the cd that's cool. They are going to share it with someone and it'll go from there. Someone actually brought us money once because they burned a cd for a friend and we didn't accept it. I've even burned our cds for someone. We are all about sharing the music and making people happy with our product and obviously Metallica and the others who sued Napster are all about the money. There is a great South Park episode about illegal downloads called "Christian Rock Hard".

When MoveOn.org was still in baby steps, I signed up for e-mail and updates on political issues back in 2004. I got a sticker from them which referenced Bush's "Mission Accomplished" banner he gave a speech in front of. I used to make fun of those with old political stickers on their cars but I am now one of them. I have thought about taking it off but even though it's from 2004, it still rings true to me today so I'll leave it until he's gone (sorry to the Bush loyals). Even though I am not as active on the site anymore, I love the fact that there was a place I could sign up and get involved in issues that affected me. I electronically signed petitions and things that were emailed and faxed to Northup and McConnell's offices and would then get a letter from their office with a stamped signature thanking me for my concern.

When I read the section about Internet voting I imagined a nation of chaos. For real, if Floria loses cast ballots and has to recount and the polls in Bullitt County were botched (for a local election nonetheless) then how can we be expected to vote online? It might only be an addition to the system already out there but I don't see it being a good idea. My 80 some odd year old neighbor can make it to the polling place up the street so everyone else should be able to as well.

Chapters 11-12

As I started Second Life I was immediately approached by a "man" from Malaysia. He kept following me around while I was going through the initial tutorial stuff asking if I needed help. I told him I could figure it out and he just kept on following. As I was getting a little peeved I decided maybe if I talked to him he'd wonder off to someone else after a minute. He asked where I was from and I told him the U.S. and he said everyone here is rich. I made sure he knew that wasn't true by telling him so. He told me I was because I have a computer and I laughed to myself. I told him I was using the computer at school not wanting to get into a conversation about whether I have my own computer or not. He was using the only computer at the Internet cafe where he was and then proceeded to tell me there are no black people in Malaysia. After that, I told him I had to go and maybe I would "see" him later on. Wow, I really want to play that again. Why can't a girl explore without being bugged? Geez.

Even though I am a member of the MySpace online community, the Facebook community and the Louisville Mojo community I always remember they are virtual. The last two of the three are the ones I get on the most and talk to people I see often. I see how people become almost obsessed with their virtual community by waiting for replies and comments from people because I have been there before. I've sent people messages and have been overly excited for the reply and checked the inbox over and over even checking to see if they've even been online. Maybe I am a little crazy but I can admit I've done it. Mostly, it was before I had the person's phone number and had no other way of contacting them.

After reading and then thinking about it, when it says real communities are dying I have to agree. People are spending more time online with their online friends and forgetting to come out for sunlight every once in a while. It's easy to get caught up in the virtual world and lose all sense of time (going to the mall and to Target are like that too) thinking you've been there for a few minutes but it's really been 2 hours. If people start to only talk to their online friends and stay in the virtual communities they will look like this guy below. Scary.

One of my most favorite things about chapter 12 is Figure 12.1. For those who forgot, it's the how to be annoying online tips. I love the one about making up your own acronyms...it's priceless. The all caps one was funny too and I have seen it many times. It's usually in the forwarded emails you get that have pictures of angels or cute baby animals with a prayer or some best friend message. The other thing is the alt.syntax.tactical example. It's kind of funny and I actually looked it up to see what it's all about but I found nothing. Well I didn't find the actual site but I did find this http://www.tacticalsyntax.com/ which claims to be the grown-up version and is by invitation only. Hmm, what's going on in there? I'd love to know.

As far as spam goes I am over it. I don't need erectile dysfunction medicine, free Coach purses, iPhones or any other of that crap. I know I never entered any contests so how could I have won a free trip to Disneyworld or overseas? I have a wonderful website everyone needs to see just for laughs. These people reply back to spam and some letters are longer than others but needless to say they're a hoot. Here is the link for your enjoyment http://www.thespamletters.com/.

Just as in real life, there are going to be people who bully and annoy online. The best thing is just to ignore it, delete it or report it. I generally don't open email from unknown senders because I don't want a virus or 500 screens of porn to pop up on my computer while I am typing at a coffee shop.

OK FORWARD THIS TO 7 OF YOUR FRIENDS IN THE NEXT 20 MINUTES OR ELSE YOU WILL HAVE BAD LUCK FOR THE NEXT WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ISN'T THIS ANNOYING IT IS HARD TRYING TO READ SOMETHING WITHOUT PERIODS OR COMMAS AND FINALLY HERE ARE A FEW NEW ACRONYMS FOR YOU TO ENJOY ffiiks, rikf, ombaign.

Chapters 8-10

The first thing I want to say is I love the picture of the cell phone on page 167. Oh analog phones, where have you gone?


With that said, I will proceed on with my thoughts on Chapter 8. It was interesting to read about the change in the business world with the modernization of technology. Back before laptops, Blackberries, Treos and other PDAs, the computer was only in the office. Email might have been used but the only way to get a hold of someone was to call and leave a message with the secretary. The reply would be the same day or a few days later depending on what it was. Documents were exchanged physically through the in/out box on the desk. Now with all of the technology we have today, all of these things can be done in the office, at the coffee shop or at home. Email, teleconferencing and groupware are a few things that make life in the business world a little easier and more accessible to associates on the other side of the country or the globe.

On to my favorite chapter so far...online games. I love to play games online and and video games in general and reading a short history about it was cool. I still have our Atari 2600 and it works. I remember playing games like "Pitfall", "Ice Hockey", "Barnstormer" and so on for hours and hours. We eventually got a Nintendo (which I still have and it works too). I plugged in my Atari for fun a few years ago and I was blown away at how basic everything was. I then appreciated the fact that that's where my gaming started and how I've seen gaming progress like older folks have seen cars go from the Model T to what we have today. OK, maybe it was a bad comparison but it makes sense to me.

Besides games like "Slingo", I haven't played too many multi-player online games. It's been a while since I've played it but when I would spend hours playing it, I got to know the people in the chat below the game. We we courteous to each other when someone won or got a lot of points taken away by the devil guy. It was like I made new friends just for that time I played. I would love to play a multi-player game in which I could choose an avatar and be in a whole different world communicating to others. I think I would probably take on a different persona using an avatar.

It was funny when I read about the personality types and found myself identifying with the Explorers. I am all about it. Whether it's "Grand Theft Auto: Vice City", "Chibi Robo" or "Tony Hawk's Underground" I find myself roaming around more than I am actually completing the tasks. I love to explore and find the hidden things. It might annoy some but eventually I get around to actually playing the game. If I ever played "WoW" or something similar, that's where you'd find me - out and about not caring about killing or being killed, I'd be exploring.

Chapter 10 made me think of a few friends who used the computer as a learning tool. I have a friend who is either taking classes or finished taking classes online and she really liked it. I really didn't understand at first how one can take online classes and actually keep on task but after she explained it to me it sounded like a pretty cool thing. My other friend used a program during nursing school to test herself on the NCLEX information. It kept time and your score during all of the practice tests giving you feedback and answers for the incorrect ones. It really prepared her for the actual test by going over questions that were similar to the actual ones she would be presented with. I like the idea of being connected with my classmates through the MySpace exercise. Even though it is a temporary thing, we can help each other out and talk about school things and such with the bulletin board.

The idea of the Internet not being the best place to research made me want to spend more time at the library. I like books. I like research. I prefer researching with actual physical books because I know my sources are trusted and credible. I have researched online before while trying to write papers and it's easy and at the same time it's hard. I get easily distracted if I am trying to do homework while online. For instance right now I have 3 tabs open in Firefox. I might pause while typing and check MySpace, Facebook or watch a video on YouTube. Some could say I have a short attention span while I say I like to play online while conducting my business.

When I read the section about plagiarism I recall my early college days of staying up late and getting up early to finish a paper. I knew people who copied papers or used someone else's and I have seen my share of websites offering papers to people for a fee and even at my most rushed moment to type a paper, I would never consider doing it for fear of being busted. With technology getting better and better and the chance of the professor seeing the paper at one previous time, I would rather type it myself and know what is in the contents of the paper instead of turning in something I have no clue what it says.

Even if this blog stinks and everyone leaves hate comments, at least I wrote it. For all it's worth you read it and it's you fault for reading a horrible blog. ;)

Marshall McLuhanisms

IF IT WORKS, IT’S OBSOLETE Marshall McLuhanisms The story of modern America begins With the discovery of the white man by The Indians. Only puny secrets need protection. Big discoveries are protected by public incredulity. Whereas convictions depend on speed-ups, justice requires delay. The nature of people demands that most of them be engaged in the most frivolous possible activities—like making money. With telephone and TV it is not so much the message as the sender that is “sent.” Money is the poor man’s credit card. We look at the present through a rear-view mirror. We march backwards into the future. Spaceship earth is still operated by railway conductors, just as NASA is managed by men with Newtonian goals. Invention is the mother of necessities. You mean my whole fallacy’s wrong? Mud sometimes gives the illusion of depth. The car has become the carapace, the protective and aggressive shell, of urban and suburban man. Why is it so easy to acquire the solutions of past problems and so difficult to solve current ones? The trouble with a cheap, specialized education is that you never stop paying for it. People don’t actually read newspapers. They step into them every morning like a hot bath. The road is our major architectural form. Today each of us lives several hundred years in a decade. Today the business of business is becoming the constant invention of new business. The price of eternal vigilance is indifference. News, far more than art, is artifact. When you are on the phone or on the air, you have no body. Tomorrow is our permanent address. All advertising advertises advertising. The answers are always inside the problem, not outside. “Camp” is popular because it gives people a sense of reality to see a replay of their lives. This information is top security. When you have read it, destroy yourself. The specialist is one who never makes small mistakes while moving toward the grand fallacy. One of the nicest things about being big is the luxury of thinking little. Politics offers yesterday’s answers to today’s questions. The missing link created far more interest than all the chains and explanations of being. In big industry new ideas are invited to rear their heads so they can be clobbered at once. The idea department of a big firm is a sort of lab for isolating dangerous viruses. When a thing is current, it creates currency. Food for the mind is like food for the body: the inputs are never the same as the outputs. Men on frontiers, whether of time or space, abandon their previous identities. Neighborhood gives identity. Frontiers snatch it away. The future of the book is the blurb. The ignorance of how to use new knowledge stockpiles exponentially. A road is a flattened-out wheel, rolled up in the belly of an airplane. At the speed of light, policies and political parties yield place to charismatic images. “I may be wrong, but I’m never in doubt.” —Copyright © 1986, McLuhan Associates, Ltd.

Response to chapters 5-7

I try not to dwell on the reading to much and focus more on what I take from it but alas, I will start out with a comment about the book. Chapter 5 was not too bad, chapter 6 I understood completely and chapter 7 kind of went over my head a little. Maybe I was kind of tired or maybe it was because I was sitting on the back porch reading and started thinking things like, "What does a tree think?" or "Do butterflies get tired from flapping their wings so much?". But I digress and apologize for it.

I find myself using the type of language described in the book quite often when I am communicating online and even when I am texting with my phone. I don't really get into all of the "r u there" or "2 kewl 4 school" kind of typing because it annoys me but I do use the "lol" and "brb" acronyms when I am on MSN Messenger. It's easy to type and saves a little time. I think it is so cool how in the past decade (or however long it's been in use) that communicating via the Internet has spawned a whole new language. Emoticons have gone from just using plain symbols to something fancy like typing in the symbol and when you hit the send button it turns it into a moving happy face or sad face with tears coming out of it. Commercials have popped up using the language such as the cell phone commercial with the mother and daughter in a quibble about how much she texts. The daughter talks in all acronyms and the mother argues back in regular English, so to speak, understanding every word (or letter) her daughter said. As convenient as it is, I still prefer to type the complete thought most of the time.

Presenting myself online has always been a truthful approach. What I mean is I have never set up a profile in which I make something up or represent myself other than I really am. I think it would be fun though. I have thought of this idea when I look around MySpace or Louisville Mojo. Who is faking it and who is real? I assume if there is not a picture of the person being represented or it is a cartoon, inanimate object or their dog/cat then the profile is not completely legitimate. I have learned over the years to be skeptical of what I read unless it is from a credible source or if I actually know the person in some fashion.

I have experienced the anxiety that comes with revealing something online that maybe I didn't want to or didn't mind revealing but then was a little nervous for the response. I had been chatting with a friend on my messenger and we got into a very detailed and "deep" conversation. She was asking me about certain things in my personal life and even though I told her it was okay and to ask whatever she wanted, I still felt weird and nervous for the rely to what I said. I am also guilty of firing off an email I knew would cause some reason for argument but at the time I didn't care. A little while after I sent it, I got worried. It caused a big ruckus and temporarily damaged a friendship but it was resolved and through a little time everything went back to normal. It's hard to do that knowing what the repercussions will be and even thought I knew what I did, I was hoping the friend wouldn't read the message but I was not so lucky. Needless to say, I won't do that again.

If one is going to form an online friendship then it is important to keep the doors of communication open so it doesn't die out. I found that out with a friend I met online. We chatted online a lot and it was fun. We shared funny websites and pictures with each other and the meeting was based on the fact we both liked Chewbacca and went to Catholic schools. Strange I know but it worked. We met each other once but mostly talked via messenger. It slowly came to a halt when the lines of communication fizzled out. We stopped sending messages and email then just kind of quit talking. I wasn't really upset about it because we didn't get close or anything. I use the Internet as a means of connection to family and friends first then for entertainment next. I occasionally use it to research or read about news and events but not very often.

I, along with everyone else, never really think about people other than the recipient reading the messages I send. I know that messages and communication can be retrieved off of a computer long after it has been deleted but I don't worry about it. I have thought about what if I misspell the email address and my thoughts and feelings email goes to Joe Schmo instead of Sally McFriend? Nothing I can do about it once I hit the send button. One of the great things about sending messages online is waiting for the response. Just like when I used to write letters to my cousins across the country before anyone I knew had a computer with any kind of email, I wait in anticipation for the response and check whatever medium I used to send the message often for the return message. Response is a form of being accepted and validation of the message one sends and whether it's positive or negative, it needs to be there so the sender of the original message has feedback to go off of.

As I read I am thinking of CMC as a more and more complex thing. It's putting the actions I do everyday online in a different perspective and making me think more about why I do them and how it will affect the person on the other end.

holla back on the test blog

testing one two three...check check.