Blog 20: MCS 370 Overall

Last blog...finally. Anyway, coming to the end of the semester, I wanted to blog a little about what I thought of MCS 370 as a whole. At first, I was a little skeptical about taking the class at night because I did not know if I would be able to sit in a classroom for two and a half hours. I thought the class would consist mainly of topics concerning facebook. I was surprised when we started learning about other technologies and found myself more and more interested with the course texts. I had never thought about half the stuff we learned about until this class. For instance, I had never wondered how powerful a crowd could be or actually how much we are under surveillance in our every day routines. I thought our teacher was a huge help in making the classes go by faster. She could draw our attention and get us on interesting topics we were willing to discuss. Watching Charlie Wilson’s War was a bonus. I had not seen the entire movie from start to finish until the class. I had never had a course that I was required to have a facebook account. It was interesting how our teacher communicated through messages on facebook, as well as Blackboard. The class challenged us to compare and contrast the differences in the media from the past and present. It is impossible to dictate where technology will go in the future, but I found it an interesting topic to discuss. I would definitely recommend MCS 370 to students at UMBC.

Blog 19: Online Shopping/Ebay

Ebay was a website that started out small and eventually took off. This goes to show how far we’ve come with safety and satisfaction on the Internet. I remember my first purchase off Ebay. I was skeptical at first because I did not want to get scammed and send money to a stranger receiving nothing back. I also did not want to purchase something and have the sender send me something in poor condition. Now, I am not afraid to purchase something on Ebay because the websites have added applications to make the buyer more confident in their buy. We can now rate the people we buy or sell to and they receive a score for their exchange. I am surprised how fast the online shopping has become today. I rarely leave my house to go shopping because it’s just as easy to do it online. We can now get the same stuff in stores, sent to us in the mail. We may have to pay a shipping and handling fee but if we drove to the mall, we’d be paying for gas money anyway. I usually don’t like giving my credit card information to strangers but feel that most sites are reliable. I have yet to have someone take my money without sending me my purchase in return (knock on wood). It would just be a hassle to track someone down on the Internet to get your money back. Unlike malls, online shopping never has a line. Most of the time, we can find what we’re looking for the same price or even cheaper than it is in stores. Online shopping is one of the best technologies I use regularly.

Blog 18: Ipods in Cars

Ipods are one of the most popular technologies in our society today. Not only do the younger generations have them, but our parents as well. I bought my mom an Ipod for her last birthday and she won’t stop asking me to put new songs on it for her. One of the problems with the Ipod is that Apple now makes devices for the car. We can now listen to our Ipods while driving. Although Ipods have playlists and other hands free accessories, many of us today do not use them. Personally, I had to stop listening to my Ipod in my car because I could not keep my hands off it while driving. I would hear a song and want to change it, forcing me to look down at my Ipod. I was in a lot of close call accidents because of this. I now only use CD’s in my car and control other driver’s Ipod’s while they drive. Also, I have seen many people with Ipod headphones in while driving. Is this really a good idea? I think it may even be against the law but I saw at least two people today with them in while driving. What if the driver has the music on so loud he or she cannot hear an ambulance trying to pass? I think Ipods are dangerous in cars and we should not be allowed to play with them while driving.

Blog 17: Texting/AIM Problems

Cell phones are now more popular than ever. Everyone has one, from children to grandparents. This technology has grown so fast that we are no longer able to function without one. Personally, I know whenever I leave my cell phone behind I feel like I am naked. I’ve become so used to texting my friends that I can now do it without looking. The problem with cell phone texting is that many of the words are misspelled. Children are loosing their vocabulary and spelling techniques. I believe a lot of it has to do with our new technologies like cell phones and AIM. I can remember growing up and abbreviating every word I typed online. The numbers even show SAT scores going down and students no longer writing legibly. This is a major problem that we tend to overlook because of how advanced our technologies are. We have become so accustomed to the devices we use daily that we now do things without thinking. The majority of us can now type on the computer much faster than writing with a pen and paper. I think this is an interesting problem we are facing because it won’t be good when the young generations can now longer spell words with spellcheck.

Blog 16: YouTube

What we fail to look at pertaining websites like YouTube are the dangers these sites create. Anyone can create a fake account and post whatever they feel like. On the other hand, anyone can also create an account to view videos they should not be watching. In other words, would you want your ten-year-old child looking at street fights or videos of girls dancing? Although there are parental ways of canceling the account, it is just as easy to jump on a friend’s computer to watch them. I am not saying YouTube is a bad thing because I understand it is a way for people to express themselves to the public. Like many technologies we have in the world today, we often fail to look at the negatives sides and only focus on the good that comes out of them. Most children are more advanced with computer than their parents. What does this say about parental control that cannot even be used by many adults? We have to be more safe on the computer and make sure young children are not viewing things they shouldn’t be. The Internet is not the safest place and I think parents allow their children way too much freedom surfing the web.

Blog 15: Facebook

What is the purpose of Facebook now? It started as a means of connecting people outside their social groups. We could now be in contact with people we would have never seen again before the website. Personally, I did not have a Facebook site until college and only joined because of peer pressure. Now, I find myself on it at least once a day. But what is the market doing with sites like Facebook and MySpace pages? Companies no longer have to step outside their office to figure out the interests of their intended audience. These sites contain so much personal information that the media can now maximize their time attracting specific people interested in their products. Companies have jumped on the chance to market their products and cut out wasted time bothering people who are uninterested in their sales. All age groups and generations have personal sites like these and are still growing in population each day. We now see different tools and advertisements on the side when logging into our accounts. It is important to be careful of what information we are putting out on the Internet because it can be easily accessed by anyone.

Blog 14: Technology in College

College students share many of the same habits involving the media. The majority of us all have televisions next to our beds and computers at our desks. I am surprised how important my laptop has come in handy throughout my college career. Before college, I rarely used to the computer unless it was to occasionally check and email or chat online. Today, I find myself surfing the web constantly every time I get bored. Another technology that has become very popular among college campuses is the iPod. Personally, I do not use mine as much as the other students unless I am exercising. I see hundreds of students walking to class with the apple headphones in their ears. The apple headphones have become somewhat like a fashion and easily recognizable. Our technology is growing rapidly and forcing us to adapt at the same pace. If we do not own these technologies, we will be left behind and in the past.

Blog 13: Last Required Blog

Throughout the semester, we have read various texts challenging the media and pushing the reader to take another look at our society. I found Millennial Makeover: MySpace, YouTube, and the Future of American Politics the most relevant this semester. It was perfect timing with the 2008 Presidential Election at hand. The class could relate to the book because it focused on our generation, the Millennial generation. The text focused on how technology would influence our generation and the upcoming elections. We have so many useful technologies at hand that we rarely think about life without them.

The text I would most likely not recommend again was James Surowiecki’s The Wisdom of Crowds. I did not find this text as interesting as the rest because I often disagreed with his arguments. There is a social structure that involves education for a reason and I believe than an expert will have more knowledge about his studied field than a group of diverse individuals. I had a hard time agreeing with many of his points throughout the book.

I think it would be interesting to learn about the dangers our technology possesses. We rarely admit to these flaws because we are generally scared of confrontation with technology. I would have like to read more about crimes and scandals that the Internet entails and see more of the dangers that come with the positives.

Blog 12: Too Much Surveillance?

After reading iSpy, I find myself online remembering how many companies are collecting information about me without me even knowing. Whether I’m purchasing a song on iTunes or voting for my favorite Pro-Bowl players, I am putting my interests out into the world. I found it disturbing that in our era we are constantly secretly monitored. Emailing and Internet surfing are the two technologies that stood out the most serving as models of surveillance and control. The author of iSpy, Mark Andrejevic, argues that these and other highly touted benefits are accompanied by hidden risks and potential threats that tend to be ignored by mainstream society. Before reading the book, I did not think twice about what I was doing online because I figured nobody cared. It will be interesting to see where our technologies takes us next and if our lack of privacy will become an issue down the road.

Blog 11: Blackberries

(New Blackberry Storm)

We see them everyday walking throughout campus. They are becoming more and more popular in every age group in the country. It is now longer a phone that only business men have, but college students, high school students, and just regular people. Cell phones have allowed us to be contacted via voice or text messaging. Blackberries brings unique features that create an office like atmosphere. It is scary in a way that we can carry our office wherever we go now. These smart phones are like little computers allowing us to access the Internet at a touch of a button or sending an email to co-workers. The media sees the rapid growth in Blackberries and advertises them to all people now, not only larger companies. Many of my friends have Blackberries and receive information faster than me. We see touch screens on cell phones more now and is only one step our technology has made. Technology will continue to grow as well as putting out smarter phones each year. It will be interesting to see some of the new cell phones that come out in the future and what features they will have.

Blog 10: Charlie Wilson's War

I was excited when I found out we would be watching "Charlie Wilson's War" in class because I had never seen it yet only heard good reviews. It was set in the 1980s without certain technologies that we have today. Charlie Wilson would not get away with half the stunts he pulled today. I believe that he would be thrown out of office is the public knew the other side. Charlie Wilson was a womanizer and heavy drinker. The media would be able to capture this easily with the cameras on our cell phones. Anybody could take a picture of this and simply use it as black male. Charlie Wilson was partying with the wrong people and would have gotten him into trouble today. We see many professional athletes today hanging around bad crowds and eventually getting caught up. The movie opened up with Charlie in a hot tub surround by strippers and cocaine. In the end, it would be interesting to see a person in the United States House of Representatives act like Charlie Wilson today.

Blog 9: Obama and Technology

(http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wypr/local-wypr-792818.mp3)

After listening to this podcast, the main question is what will change technology wise for the presidents down the road, especially with Barack Obama? It was interesting to listen to how a Blackberry cannot be own by the president. I understand this because Blackberries contain so much information and would be too risky to have floating around. These Blackberries can receive emails and IM's with other Blackberries. I could not imagine what kind of information would be on a president's Blackberry but if somebody got a hold of it somehow or could tap into it, we would be giving up a lot of important information.

Blackberries are becoming more popular each day. Not only companies are giving them to their employees but also students who want to keep organized. These Blackberries are like an office or computer and helps store information. Our technology will continue to grow and I believe we will continue to have to make new rules for presidents because of technology. Even four years ago, Blackberries were not around or as popular. That was just four years. I could not begin to imagine what we will be capable of further down the road. It is important to realize how strong our technological growth is and must be careful in what we put out in the world.

Blog 8: Webcam Suicide

After reading the article about the 19-year old college student who killed himself on the Internet last week, all I could do was shake my head. It is a sad thing when people take their lives but I do not blame this on anyone. It is not the fault of the viewers who were trying to contact somebody to let them know what was going on. Even though viewers may have got in touch with an authority to find his location, police get pranks all the time and do not want to waste their efforts. It's sad but I do not think it is fair to blame someone else or technology for a suicide. People commit suicide all the time, it was just a unique way of doing so.

This incident reminded me of the movie "Untraceable". The movie was about a murderer who would kill people on a website. He did it live and the more viewers watching, the more poison would go into the body. I did not think it was a good movie but the idea was interesting. I do not know if our media could control something like this because people always want to see it for themselves. Even if police officers are waving you on to pass an accident, it is almost impossible to drive by without slowing down to look, knowing that it is only going to slow down traffic. In the end, it is a sad story but I do not think we can blame other people for trying to help. Even if the court wanted everyone who was online at that time, it would be impossible to trace down everyone with anonymous screen names.

Untraceable Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLYo5tMylQM

Blog 7: Required Blog for iSpy

After googling myself, it was sad to see that nothing came up about me. There were many links with “Mike Burch”, but none of them were actually I. I have done this experiment before and noticed I had to add “lacrosse” to find something. If I added lacrosse, I had some player profiles come up from high school and college. I found it interesting to find many Mike Burch’s with facebook and myspace pages that came up (still none that were actually me).

I would not like to be one of many “John Smiths” because I would not feel as unique. Although Michael is a common name, I have never met anyone with the same last name. More than half of my friends from high school were named Mike but we all had nicknames to help separate us. If someone called out “John Smith”, more than half the room would answer. I think diversity is important in finding out who you really are. Our culture magnifies our diversity and allows us to show people who we really are inside. Clothing and music are just two examples of how we can define ourselves to strangers. We can usually make pretty good judgments on people and their beliefs just by the way they dress.

Surveillance operates in everyone’s life. Every store we go into now days have cameras throughout watching your every move. I do not use it because I think it would be creepy and would be arrested. You hear many stories of people getting into trouble for spying on people who do not know they are being filmed. Every time I go into a fast food restaurant, I look up to see myself on the camera above the register. Sometimes I make a face or act oddly because I know I am on camera. Surveillance in stores helps catch criminals and usually makes them think twice before committing the crime. If I were going to rob a store under surveillance, I would have to wear a mask to hide my face.

Blog 6: A Historical Election

It was very interesting to be a part of the 2008 presidential election. We all had a chance to witness a historical moment in our country. I had never really been interested in politics until this year.

Although it ended up being a landslide, it was great to see the first African American to be elected into presidency. I stayed up all night watching the two speeches. I found it interesting how the media portrayed the race throughout. One thing I did not understand was why we had to wait so late to see the speeches. Certain channels delayed the speech because they knew people were willing to wait up to watch. This gave companies the chance to advertise their products more since they knew people were going to stay up to be a part of history.

This generation had certain tools and technologies other generations did not. Youtube and MySpace pages were full of personal opinions that could be accessed easily by all users. The public could now post their ideas and beliefs without any hesitation. I believe this gave our nation more power as we felt more vocal and could influence the election more.

Personally, it was fascinating to see all the support for Obama on my facebook. Everyone had changed their statuses to show who they were voting for last Tuesday. I did not have to ask anyone whom he or she was voting for because more than 50% of my friends had it online. It will be interesting to see how new technologies continue influencing people and helping our country grow stronger. I for one cannot wait to see what happens in our future with this historical election. No matter whom we voted for, we all had to take a step back this election.

Blog 5: the cult of the amateur

The root of the word "amateur" comes from the Latin word "to love". Amateurs are those who do something because they love to, not for external motivators. I personally, am an amateur of music. I enjoy listening to all types of music and find myself listening to music throughout daily routines. I listen to music when I am bored, stressed, and happy. We do not value our work done for love as much as required love because it does not pay as much. Working for enjoyment is not the same as working for money. I am passionate when I can be of some assistance to someone because it makes me feel better about myself. I am involved in multiple community service groups that fulfill my passion of helping people. I do not think it is right for people to live with useless money when others could use it to survive. I wish I could find a career with my passion but many of the community service jobs are volunteer work. I will certainly continue doing community service on the side of my career. I would love to focus my entire life on things I am passionate about but in reality, it would not fulfill the lifestyle I intend to have.

One of Keen's frequent targets in Cult of the Amateur is Lawrence Lessig, professor of law at Stanford and one of the frequent proponents of ideas like Creative Commons licensing and other ways to think about copyrighting in the digital age. I found Lessig's arguments against Keen's book more convincing. I found the argument of people telling me what is good or bad was terrible. I do not need my culture to tell me what movies or songs I like. I did not agree with Keen's argument in this scenario.

Blog 4: Millennial Generation & The Election

Reading Millennial Makeover: MySpace, YouTube and the Future of American Politics could not have come at a better time. With the upcoming election around the corner, it will be interesting to see how our new generation (The Millennial Generation) is influenced through internet-based communications. Our generation has newer technologies that will help change the way we look at voting. We can now upload personal videos and can voice our opinions more easily.

Personally, I watched many of the debates on the Internet compared to the television. Since a couple of the debates were held on Friday night, when most of the Millennial Generation should be out enjoying their night, it was common for us to watch it the next day on our laptops. Many of the videos were taking right from the debates itself; it was like we never missed a thing. Not only did our generation have the debates recorded for us, but many other political videos on a more personal base. People posted comments and blogs to voice opinions that varied throughout the country. I know these new technologies and ways of communication helped influence my decisions on the presidential election. I think it will be interesting to see which party favored from the Millennial Generation’s newer ways of voting and to see where we will go from here. Technology grows each day resulting in more ways of attaining our information. Who knows, maybe one day we will be able to vote online.

Blog 3: Millennial Makeover Blog

Most of the YouTube videos from the presidential election were straight from the debates. I did not come across any videos that looked like ads but rather organic. These two candidates were not trying to sell anything as they debated. Most of the videos were debates between the two about various world issues. The videos were taken straight from CBS and other news channels. These videos were not amateur since they were taken right off the television. These videos were not tampered with in any way making them polished videos.

Many people throughout the world voiced their opinions about the election in a more amateur way. These people had a camera on their computers and just spoke about the debates. These videos were user-generated political videos and were more convincing to me. I felt I could relate to these videos more as they were simplified. Many times, when watching the two candidates debate, I find myself lost in the translation of what the two are arguing for or against. These people could analyze the debate and take their time rather than responding without any time.

Many of the arguments formulated in Millennial Makeover are built on generational theory, and the authors make much generalization about the philosophy, preferences, and cultural touchstones of my generation. I agree that my generation relies on internet and continues to grow in this direction. I would call my generation the “Internet bums” because that is all we do now. It has become a way of life rather than informative. We can get our information a lot faster than the past. Our generation is caught up in the popular shows and music as we see the top rated videos first. Even iTunes lists the top songs each day.

Here are some of the videos I watched on YouTube for my blog:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioy90nF2anI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7C-2-jtKFM
http://www.youtube.com/user/johnmccaindotcom?ob=4

Blog 2: The Wisdom of Crowds

After having time to think about the whole concept of “The Wisdom of Crowds”, I cannot completely agree with the idea. I can see where James Surowiecki is coming from, but in the end, there is a reason somebody is an expert. I think certain people who go through intensive training will be better off than a group of complete strangers because he or she has the expert and experience. For example, if I was in a serious car accident and needed medical help right away in order to survive, I would put my fate in the hands of a doctor who has been practicing for years rather than in the hands of ten complete strangers. I think experience and hard work pays off in the end and there is a reason people go to college to attain a degree.

On the other hand, the jellybean example is different. A crowd will most likely be closer in determining how many jellybeans are in the jar compared to one person’s guess. This is not important to me. I do not personally care about how many jellybeans are in the jar. In the end, Surowiecki makes a good argument but I do not buy into it. I would much rather trust a trained expert when my life is on the line.

Blog 1: Wisdom of Crowds

The major idea behind the wisdom of crowds is that a group of diverse people will come up with a better solution to a problem than an expert would. I find that crowd sourcing can be effective in many cases. The sense of anonymously posting one's ideas and thoughts is in large thanks to the Internet. People who are giving their thoughts about a product really have no reason to lie. If they are willing to take the time to post their thoughts, it may help someone else in determining whether or not to purchase an item.

I have used crowd-sourcing sites and find them to be effective. I constantly look at people's reviews especially on eBay. If someone continues to get bad reviews, it will most likely lead me into not purchasing what he or she is selling (vise versa with a clean record). Buying products online can be easy and effective as well as dangerous. The only problem with the Internet is you can never be too sure who is trying to scam you.

I would rather take advice from a crowd over a columnist. This way, you can see multiple perspectives on a topic opposed to a single columnist's. It also allows one to have his or her own views on the topic instead of possibly being influenced by one person.