04/04/2011-The future of digital cultures?

Could we have really have guessed how technology dependent we would have been 10 years ago?

From the invention of the Ipod in 2001,music devices have changed for the best from the convenience of being able to listen to your favourite album wherever whenever you please.From the accessibility of upload video's with click of a button to a device which know seems the norm in the 21st Century.Apple has undoubtably taken us through the 'boom' of the 21st century with technology taking a turn from a thinking which is used during leisure to the manipulating the world to become dependent on technology.From the diagram you can see the ways in which apple has adapted their first ever Ipod in 2001 to the what know seems old Iphone in 2007 but undoubtably in the space of 6 years over 22 music devices have been produced from the bog standard music playing ipod to the newly improved Iphone 4 which was released in 2011 with the magnificent ability of recording,watching live stream television,checking emails,to even ordering your weekly shop with a Tesco App,but undoubtedly the main priority still stands with playing music. (www.iskysoft.com)


But Music devices isn't all that has changed in the past ten years.From portable computers to the invention of 3D televisions being accessible what is the future for technology,or have we reached a point where there is nothing else which can be invented to create us more reliant on technology?


When thinking about schooling ten years ago,it seems that going on a computer which took a good part of an hour to load was the highlight of your week,but ten years on logging onto your portable to computer it just a daily necessity.But what will be happen in the future for digital cultures? And will we still be travelling 26 miles to get into university for just an hour of lectures.


Years ago,it was predicted that books would be dead and the kindle would take over our libraries for good whereby thousands of books will be compatible on such a small electric device.But years on,thousands of libraries holding generations of books still exist.but thats not only whats predicted for the future.Will we still have human lecturers babbling on about a topic which doesn't seem to be going on for an hour or will technology take over the art of teaching for good.With the evolvement of technology on teaching,a classroom is no longer needed.Online classrooms now seem part of the 'uni experience' with lectures being posted on the university website for students which overslept their alarms to video feeds of on going classes to educate people of topics which have not been raised in face to face classes.But will electronic lectures be the thing of the future or will in ten or twenty year times will the social aspect of university be no more,and we are able to complete a degree within the comfort of our own homes without commuting for an hour or two for what seems such a minute of human contact with tutors.But from the books are dead idea to the interactivity of university being online...will we still have lecturers,or will we have some sort of robot or Avatar controlling our educational needs?





Wherever you turn it seems technology has taken over a job which would used to have been worked by a human,but with the astounding improvement on robots.


"UK researchers are preparing one of the nation's first teams to compete in the 2011 robot football world cup.Researchers at the University of Edinburgh are currently refining the smart systems that control the team of three humanoid robots on the pitch"
(www.saidaonline.com)


So if robots are being invented to become the next footballing stars,who is to say that lecturers and teachers will be honestly needed in the future,or will it be the same scenario of the 'book is dead' that it will al it a myth and as libraries have pointed out,paper form has been used through generations of people why change a good invention to technology which could result in glitches and viruses?


I robot is a great way of showing us the way in which we will be living in years to come,with accessibility of technology with the evolvement of Robots taking over the jobs in which we hate to do,Eg.Cleaning,hanging the washing out and Boring office jobs.But is this film a crystal Ball of what is about to come.Or are human still going to be able to control these 'robots' which will be living in our societies with three simple rules which revolve around the fact that Humans have complete control and power over the robot,or will the tables turn in years to come with the invention of new technology always appearing on our television screens.


From previous blog's its been proven that technology in the 21st century is not always reliable from the glitches in X box games to hackers and Cookies tracking and destroying the database on our computers without use even being aware of the consequences.but where there is a fault there is always a solution,whether its in ten or twenty years someone is bound to create a computer or even a software,whereby our identity and private information is able to be kept confidential even when on the world wide web,and to what extent will the internet have laws and regulations to what information must be bought and what software can be downloaded legally for free.Copyright laws are undoubtably the most annoying invention to be put on the internet,we spend all the money on buying the computer to then be informed you need to spend more money in programmes to enable your computer to work.But are we living in a world whereby pirate sites are the only answer to our prays of free software or will digital cultures in the future enable us the access everything on the internet without putting our hand in our pocket.

29/3/2011 Digital divide.

It seems wherever you go technology and the internet is evolving in front of our eyes.When the internet was created it seemed as it was limited.You either had the choice of using your landline or the internet,and even when accessing the internet sights were limited and lifeless.



In previous blogs i have talked about web 2.0,this is where the 21st century really began with the creativity of the users are expressing themselves in ways which didn't seem the norm in web 1.0.Whereby over the top graphics and bright colouring was used to draw in various target audiences.As we live in a society whereby the internet plays a huge way in the way we live our lives from social to running a business.We don't think twice about logging onto the internet to check out emails either on a computer or on our smart phones.But how has such a great creation divided the world in such a way.


Raymond Williams stated the three idea's of culture are;

1. A general process of intellectual, spiritual and aesthetic development

2. A particular way of life

3. The works and practices of intellectual and especially artistic activity

(Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction John Storey)

but when looking at the present climate can we really complain about the boom of the internet.It has allowed us to access such great and wider products.From shares all over the world for businesses to communication with long distance relatives for free.

                                         But without the internet what would we miss?

(www.dailymail.com 8.4.2011)

12th March 2011,the day the world sat in front of their televisions and watched of what could only be called the worst earthquake in the history.Whereby thousands of innocent people were swept away from their homes for miles on end.But what does technology have to do with this natural disaster?

'A powerful 8.9 magnitude earthquake struck the coast of Japan on Friday, causing widespread power outages, fires and a severe tsunami that was reported to be up to 10 meters high in places. It was the seventh most powerful earthquake in recorded history.The reaction on Twitter, quickly becoming the go-to service in emergencies, was immediate and intense. Less than an hour after the quake, with the country’s phone system knocked out, the number of tweets coming from Tokyo were topping 1,200 per minute, according to Tweet-o-Meter.' (www.mashable.com 8.4.2011)

This just shows the impact the internet has on the society that we live in,with the ability to update a status just to assure family and friends that after such a disaster that we are safe,is mind blowing.What would have happened if this earthquake his before the invention of twitter? 

Citizen journalism is whereby the public has their say on topics,this is mainly down to blogging and status updates.Citizen journalism played a huge part in the broadcasting of the earth quake on the 12th march,mainly down to the fact that it happened so quickly that the only news feed was eye witnesses account.This would have also not been possible without the use of technology and the internet.So is the internet a positive or a negative? and are we being controlled or are controlling?

Social change also plays a huge role in the way that we think about the internet.As the growing popularity of technology lovers,why is there really any need to school the digital divide from happened?

We are living in a society where the norm of reading a book is being taken over by an electronic tablet and that we don't have to meet up with friends anymore we can just log onto a social networking site and communicate with no emotion or sense of satisfaction of meeting loved ones anymore.With the majority of people know using Facebook, is the divide really make much affect from the society that we live in or is the only impact that is happening is the way in which we think about ourselves.

22/03/2011-Privacy and Surveillance.

echnology is all around us,from you reading this blog you are already using two.But no doubt you have the TV talking to itself and your mobile phone by the side,Thats already 3 things not to mention the basic living arrangements in which technology plays a huge part.But where would we be without it? Living in a dark room bored out of our brains.There is no doubt,we are dependent and whoever denies it they are lying.From checking your emails in the morning to listening to the radio on the way in uni,technology has created the person we are today.

But where does privacy come into such a great invention,shopping is stereotypically a girls best friend.But shopping in the comfort of your own home has become a world wide success.With the accessibility of products being at a click of a finger is a bonus,without even stepping out of your front door.But where there are such great inventions,there must be falls.

Fraud and Identity theft is at an all time high with the increasing amount of personal data being on put on the internet on a daily basis.But are these Paypals really all that they are cracked out to be or are we still putting ourselves in any real anger?

Cookies are the main corporate of lack of privacy on your computer,many people are unaware of them building up until your banging your keyboard to make the computer go that little bit quicker.But they are easy and quick to remove just by deleting them you are removing all of your information and personal details that you are putting on your computer on a daily bases,but what exactly do they do?

Cookies track the websites and pages which you have been on everyday,from browsing Facebook on a cold winter evening to book your 2011 summer holiday abroad.Cookies are that little stalker you love to hate lodged into your computers mechanism.But on the Apple mac this is where it gets even more simpler. In previous blogs i have talked about the way in which Apple have adapted their desktop to icons which can be represented in the real world.For example,The bin where all unwanted files and documents are disposed of.

Most people have adapted themselves to technology in day to day events,such as checking emails the weather and traffic updates.But whats the next step,Online banking!

its great,no more waiting in line to talk to a grumpy cashier and being embarrassed with your horrific student loan balance...the simple,quick and affective solution is online banking.With the ability to swap around your money on the comfort of your own home.But how does it really work and is it safe?

Barclays is a great example of online banking,the bank sends you a keypad whereby you enter your pin and every time you use it a new 8 figured code appears to allow access to your account online....As simple as that.But should people really put their hard earned money in the hands of a computer chip or should we continue spending our days in hot sweaty banks.

But with the invention of the Iphone, the use of surveillance is a positive. With the ability to have an application which will track where you are so you never loose a car to be able to have the map of the world for your random adventures to a new destination.There is no doubt that surveillance is sometimes a pain but on the other hand,can be very helpful in unpleasant situations.

So,from looking at the way in which technology has adapted our humanly nature to only be confident using paper and pen technology has beaten us again with the fascinating capability of change our humanly instinct to keep our personal details to ourselves and that bank tender rather than putting important information on the corrupted source,we call the internet.

18/03/2011 The Open Source Movement.

Free Source,is a great way of accessing information without putting your hand into your wallet.But should we take on the role of Brazil and ensure that every information which is set on the internet is free,or should we stick to the old fashion ways of copyright and regulation?


So many websites in the 21st Century have become free source,maybe its the manufacturers accepting that whether there are copyright laws put in place,we can still get around them.For example,music download.Musicians plea to their audiences to ensure that they buy their music rather than illegally downloading their albums for free.But in an economic state that we are living in,does the average working person opt for the free 'illegal' download or to log onto their Itunes account to purchase an album which would isn't even a hardcopy.

 2.bp.blogspot.com

Facebook,the biggest social networking site of today.But why?  is it because it is an Open source,whereby the target audience don't have to pay to access or use the site or is it just mainly down to the convenience that 1 in 4 people state that they communicate more online than they do in person.It seems in the way in which we live our lives in the 21st Century that technology has taken over our ability of communication.From the simple ways of communication from talking to a friend to automatically picking up your phone and texting,technology has adapted us into being dependent on them.

Have you ever read the small print on your facebook page,and when you upload that drunken picture of your best friend on a night out,is that picture still infact yours by the time that little bar reaches 100%?

                                                          The answer is NO!

Facebook states, 'You retain the copyright to your content. When you upload your content you grant us a license to use and display your content. For more information please visit our Terms of Use, which contain a link to our Copyright Policy and other important information about your privileges and responsibilities as a Facebook user.' (www.broadstuff.com)

This basically states in simple terms that when you put information and pictures on the internet,the internet owns it.For example,if you put your name into google images,there will at least be a picture of you from your Facebook account.This is mainly down to the fact that Facebook and being the biggest social networking site,there could potentially be a few.

                                                         

                                                      (www.geekologie.com)

Steven Levey stated in his book 'the birth of hacker culture' that all software should be free and that computers can change your life for the better' but is this really true,and does the accessibility of new and advanced software achieve that?                                        

 But wherever there is a great invention there are always faults,in softwares case this is bugs and viruses.Microsoft is the most used software in the competing world,but if its so popular with the audience then why is there still hackers picking away at the genius invention to corrupt files.and with the increasing likability of Apple,But why are macs so immune from these viruses?

Richard Stallman stated a great quote in defining what free source really is,to the concept that free source is like free speech not free beer?  This pinpoints the main aspiration of Stallman in the ways in which he speaks about free source,that the industry of competing is just money hungry.With the exceeding costs of Microsoft Word costing around £80,which is hardly a small cost to students.But this is where free source comes in,with the ability to access software with just a click of a button.

11/3/2011-Nobody likes a cheat.

As presented before in previous,the magic circle is a pretty bizarre place,with the ability to capture the imaginations of the target audience into a game which to me frank,would never be able to happen in the real world.But what happens when these 'magic circles' get invaded with glitches and cheats which wish to destroy their perfectly designed stories.


“A glitch, or a ‘bug’ as it is sometimes known, is a generic term for the result of a programming error. Glitches vary significantly in their scale and severity and range from graphical artefacts or anomalies that do not dramatically affect or alter gameplay to those that can crash the game, and even the system on which it is running, or corrupt save data, thereby eliminating a gamer’s recorded progress" P. 114 –Playing with Videogames, James Newman, Routledge, 2009


Glitches are a great way of indicating that not everything is perfect in the realm of gaming,whereby the game is of such a detail with a huge platform resulting in substantial problems.A prime example of this is Fall out New Vegas.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMa-CGhXahw)

But forget about the moonwalking dogs or the floating Dr.Mitchells head in Fall out New Vegas,why are people creating cheats and why cant we all just learn to play a game without having to thrive for victory.Many may say that we are living in a society where top dog is all that matters and that we all will take the easiest route to get to the destination the quickest,but are these rules still followed the same in the gaming world?

Thousands of webpages appear with crafty cheats to complete a level on search engines,But to what extreme do these gamers go to defeat the gaming world.Whereever you go few games are being produced whether its the latest call of duty game to lego harry potter,there are always parts that you feel are not humanly possible.

Steven Poole stated in his book of Videogame Incoherence that there were three main types of incoherences in the gaming world.

          Incoherence of Causality.                                     Incoherence of Function. 

   

                                                         Incoherence of Space.

But what do all these games have in common......glitches and thousands of cheats which are created by the so called 'gaming fan'.But to what expect is gaming now about the enjoyment and satisfying feeling that you have completed a game.Many people would say that they do it for the experience,but truthfully,its all about winning.But still there are cheats and glitches being created to show that the human kind are trying not to be sucked in by the gaming world,with the time and brain power that technology lacks.With the conclusion that We can think we are winning,but really its a loosing battle.

22/2/2011-The Magic Circle.

Johan Huizinga stated that when in a gaming environment we are sucked into a 'magic circle' whereby everything around us does not exist and we are immersed into an environment where either single or multi player gaming will commence.

A prime example of being immersed into a magic circle is a football pitch,if you remove the goal posts the 22 footballers and the football,the area is just a ordinary playing field.By involving the elements of a ball and the goal posts,the area evolves into a magic circle where an event will take place.In gaming terms these opponents on making a magic circle varies slightly,from where the game is being player and what you are actually playing,The nintendo wii can push the boundaries of the magic circle,and to what extent are we in a magic circle?

When talking about the nintendo wii,you have to be careful in identifying the purpose of the game,are you immersing yourself into the avatar in the game or are you being the controller of the game.This could be questioned against the Xbox as you are being immersed into a game as you are either an individual on mario Kart or are a set group of soldiers in world of war craft.So,what what extent are we being immersed into the magic circle,and is there any real way of being involved in digital games without being in the circle?

                          

                     Johan Huizinga states in his book Homo Ludens.

'A play-community generally tends to become permanent even after the game is

over..the feeling of being 'apart together' in an exceptional situation,of sharing

something important,of mutually withdrawing from the rest of the world and

rejecting the usual norms,retains its magic beyond the duration of the individual

game.' (page 12)

     So can the magic circle immerse us when playing a non digital game?

Video games are hands down more popular know in the 20th century rather

than the typical monopoly board game which is only bought out at christmas,but

can board games still have the same affect on the gamers,or do you have to

enter a realm of cyberspace?

                                                           www.homemademech.com


Mario kart is a  great example of how we are put into a magic circle when playing a game,it
has the key components of Roger Caillois idea of the magic circle which is stated in his book
Man,play and games.

Roger caillois says that there are four basic types of play in digital gaming?

1) Agon- The game is competition (World of War Craft)

2) Alea-The game is by Chance (Card games)

3) Mimicry-Identity changes (you are playing a particular person-Lara Croft)

4) Ilinx-Whereby perception has been changed (out of the norm)

But can these four types be used in a board game,or has technology and the human
imagination and involvement needed to create the perfect magic circle?

Rules of Monopoly.

Whoever finishes the game with the most amount of money WINS!
Jenga

Whoever removes the most amount of bricks without knocking over the tower WINS

Four in a row

Whoever gets four coins in a row WINS

These three non digital games are a great example of roger caillois's idea of agon,whereby the person who lasts the longest or gains the most points is the winner.An example of an agon game in digital gaming is mario kart,whereby time,speed,size and kart matters to whether you will be top of the leader board.this isa  prim example of what the magic circle really is,whereby the aspiration of becoming 1st and therefore being the winner takes on the needs of the target audience.

15/2/2011-Is there really a Beginning,Middle and an End or are we living in a fairytale?

Aristotle stated that every good piece of work should include a beginning middle and end,but is this non linearity approach used in hypertext?


Everywhere in the media it seems that Aristotle's approach is still used,from in blockbuster movies with the happy ever after endings to a good piece of journalism printed on the local tabloid.This is mainly down to the crucial fact that without a beginning middle or an end,the piece of writing is pointless as the viewing public crave for a piece of text to be located on one page not over several.

Cybertext is a great way of adapting Aristotle's poetics approach is the beginning middle and end sequences by adapting the endings to the roots in which the reader chooses to take.Whether its reading your latest blog on blogger or reading the newspaper on the sun website,Hypertext has enabled the target audience to adapt Aristotle's approach whereby structures must have a  beginning,Middle and End.Whereby the audience's are able to access whatever piece of information they wish rather than having to go through page by page.

www.einet.net

The sun website is a great example of whereby they do not following the linear way of thinking,whereby there is not a beginning middle and End,and whereby the hypertext enabled the public to view various parts of information by simply clicking on various topics down the left hand side of the screen.This shows that once a piece of text has been published the author has no control and the information is in the hands of the viewing public,

“A cybernetic system that generates a different sequence of signs every time the work is experienced”

Marie-Laure Ryan-1999:16

With the invention of the kindle in 2007,the world has gone digital crazy with more and more people using technology rather than the reliable paperback,but the what extent has the kindle damaged the nations love for a paperback and is there really any disadvantages of the kindle?

                                                            the.taoofmac.com

Annie Proulx stated in 1994 

'Nobody is going to sit down and read a novel on a twitchy little screen.ever!' 

This is not the case in 2011 whereby wherever you are,either on a train to the big city or in a local library,a percentage of the public will be reading a book electronically,but why has the kindle created so much distress to the book lovers.Although the kindle is a quick and affective way of reading a book on the go,there are a few downfalls to the great invention,Many books are unable to be accessible on the kindle,therefore a paperback may be the only option.Although the kindle is an affective and light way of carrying around a library of your favourite books,the cost way vary.An electronic book can cost up to the same amount of any hardback book,so why extinct the hardcopy when your kindle may crash one day and you be without your favourite read.


The twilight sager is a great example of showing where aristotle's theories does not adapt well with cultural aspects and the way that we know live our day to day lives.Whereby Stephanie Meyer has adapted Aristotle's approach and created a beginning,middle and an End over a sequence of four books.This is a clever way of gritting a target audience into a book,whereby the reader is guaranteed to want to read the following books to get to the romantic storyline's of the love struck teenagers,Edward and Bella.And have the need to carry on reading the following books to find out whether they do indeed live happily ever after,and stick to Aristotle approach or whether jacob ruins Aristotle's hard work. 

www.moviesonline.ca

7/02/2011-Tagging.

With the invention of search engines in 1991, the world has gone internet crazy.With the increasing use of technology for research aswell as leisure,no wonder the evolvement of tagging and archives came about.


From celeb gossip citizen journalists publishing blogs about how Paris Hilton once again has flashes her underwear on the red carpet,to the media students posting blogs once a week to ensure that they pass their degree's.With the use of tagging on search engines it has allowed our lives to become that little bit easier.

Google is the most famous search engine on the internet,it is a great way of capturing information within a click of a mouse.But whats really behind all of the hypertexts and keywords?

                                                      'www.google.com'

                                                  

As seen in the picture by typing in a keyword such as 'tagging' the webpage will show various examples.This a great example of the way spiders 'software programme' works and how a word can be linked to thousands of other webpages.

Archie-Search by filename

Veronica-allowed multiple word search (including and and or)

By allowing multiple word searches and 'spiders' on the internet it has allowed various other webpages which may not be viewed a lot to be accessible much easier.


Spiders are a computer software,which passes itself through thousands of webpages in gathering information which links to a specific keyword,this ensuring that all alternative weblinks are guaranteed to be relevant to the users needs.

In the 20th Century there are many alternative ways in which tagging is used either by tagging your drunken friend on Facebook or your favourite websites on Delicious.Delicious is a website whereby it plays a role of an archive in storing all of your most used webpages in which can be accessible on any computer.
                     'A walking library of your favourite webpages'

                                            
                                                     ' http://www.facebook.com'


Facebook is a great way of defining tagging,it is simply whereby another user is able to tag a mutual friend in either an event,image or a status update.By allowing us to do this on social networking sites its allowing us the produce hyperlinks on search engines.For example,if you type in your name into google images an image which you may have been tagged on a social networking website will appear,this will also allow the user to access the image as well as the hyperlink,this is a form of tagging and a Folksonomy.

A folksonomy is a type of distributed classification system. It is usually created by a group of individuals, typically the resource users. Users add tags to online items, such as images, videos, bookmarks and text. These tags are then shared and sometimes refined

 'http://www.dlib.org/dlib/january06/guy/01guy.html'

By allowing us to tag information and pictures on the internet,it has expanded the internet dramatically with the use of various websites being joined together by either links or key words,whereby folksonomies are able to categories information in to relevant settings and groups.

1/02/2011-Avatar's and how our identity changes?

Avatars are a great way of immersing the gamer into a latest crazes.From the longing hours of producing an avatar or being your favourite heroin,there is no doubt that the virtual world has captured the emotions of all gamers around the world.But is the 'mii' really an avatar on does the nintendo wii trick the gamers into being immersed by the virtual interaction of the gaming world?

The nintendo wii allows the user to edit the appearance of their avatar to ensure the feeling of acceptance in the gaming world.   

'www.mrcloud.com'

Staffan Björk stated the four stages of immersion whilst in a gaming experience;

-Spatial Immersion

-Emotional  Immersion

-Cognitive Immersion

-Sensory-Motoric Immersion

'Staffan Björk and Jussi Holopainen,Patterns in Game Design-2004'

These four immersions link well into showing the ways in which users are able to immerse themselves into the experience,and whether games are now created to immerse the user rather than entertain?

'www.treehugger.com'

The Omaticaya clan (Na'vi name: Omatikaya meaning "Blue Flute clan") is a Na'vi tribe of the forest. They formerly lived in a Hometreein one of Pandora's huge jungles.

'james-camerons-avatar.wikia.com'

Immersion is a great way of targeting various audiences,whether it is the latest gaming craze,such as World of War Craft or the virtual world of Second life.In 2009 James Cameron's showed us what immersion really is in his phenomenal blockbuster,Avatar.The fascinating thing about the film Avatar is the way in which the body of the real life person to remain is able to stay in real world but enabling them to control the avatar with their mind rather than body,by doing this it enables the human to be immersed into the avatar's natural habitat.Although this immersion is able in the movie,this type of immersion is unable to happen in video games mainly down to the gamer only being able to interact with the gaming world via the controller rather than their body and minds.

But are there any other ways of immersing ourselves into becoming an avatar?

From researching identity in previous blogs and seeing how it plays a huge role in the way social networking sites are portrayed online.Is our identities really showing our try colours or are we moulding ourselves into an 'avatar' on social networks.
'http://katyredmond.blogspot.com/2010/11/does-our-identity-change-in-cyberspace.html'


From posing for your latest display picture to ensuring that every minor detail of your personal life is portrays correctly on the internet seems to be the concern of the majority of social networking users .From checking in to your destination on Facebook to updating your micro-blog on twitter.The social networking scene have consumed all modern day human beings.

But are we really showing our true colours or are our avatars talking for us?