The Next New Thing

Even though self driving cars are not to far away from becoming a reality, for those who still enjoy manually driving their cars and rely on traditional GPS systems, I would love to see a merge between GPS, hologram and smartphones.

Most people use their cell phones for GPS purposes trough applications such as Waze and Google Maps so the smartphone component in the merge is essential. I was recently reading an article that claimed a small number of car accidents were caused by staring long at your GPS and not concentrating on the road. So with this technology, we can use our smartphones to project directions on a small section of our windshield so that we can easily switch glances between directions and the road a lot faster than looking down. When not using GPS it can project other things such as weather, speedometer and for safety measures it will not be able to project video content.

Another use of that same technology can be used when making video calls trough our smartphones or other applications such as Skype. Using face recognition technology it would be cool to see the hologram of the person your speaking with. It could also be used for watching videos and so many other things. Holographic in general have not been developed to their full potential even thou its clear there are many applications and uses for it.

Our Class Wiki - So Far

Although I have not yet fully contributed to our class wiki, I have been researching areas that interest me while relating it back to new media. One of those areas is the politics and new media page that needs a little more content, especially this years election section and how social media has played a huge role in it's outcome. Another topic that interest me and also needs more content in the page is the relation between sports and new media, specifically in regards to soccer and use of social media during sporting events.

I also plan on adding some sections of my research paper that I did on YouTube and it's advertising aspect just to add more information to the already popular YouTube page. In addition, I also plan to browse around different pages and try to standardize it to look like other pages and work on grammatical correction if I come across it. I will try to research other areas of my interest as well and should have by the end of this week significant amount of content posted.

P2P File Sharing

File sharing in the most simplest of definitions is the concept of sharing digital information such as documents, multimedia, etc., through a shared network like the Internet. File sharing can be done in many different ways such as a removable storage device like a USB stick or memory card. The most popular method and the subject of this lecture is done trough peer to peer networks.

P2P file sharing simply means transferring digital content from your computer to another user (peer). The process is done through a shared network, usually the Internet via sites like BitTorrent or The Pirate Bay. An early example of P2P file sharing and one most people are familiar with is Napster. Napster was the pioneer in P2P technology and primarily focused on sharing audio files and copyrighted music which ironically was the main reason for its eventual downfall.

A common example of P2P file sharing and one that has been in the spotlight recently is the sharing of audio and video content. According to Brian Stelter's article "Digital Pirates Winning Battle With Studios" illegally downloaded and streamed movies has cost the industry 40% of their annual revenue.  A simple concept has the potential to threaten a multi billion dollar industry and with increased access to the internet there is no telling how much more damage P2P networks can inflict on Hollywood. There had been a lot of controversy surrounding this issue but rather than fighting it, companies such as Spotify and Pandora are using it to their advantage by giving free access to users and generating ad revenue instead.

Another example of P2P technology being used efficiently can be seen in the banking industry with companies such as Lending Club. Wendy Kaufman from NPR describes how Lending Club is using P2P technology to match potential investors with those looking for loans. P2P technology has not only distributed the business models of musicians and actors but the banking system as well which shows the incredible power the technology possess.

Privacy & Confidentiality

With cybersecurity and cyber crime on a rapid rise in the last few years, its more important than ever to keep information safe and private. Hackers are gaining access to peoples personal and professional lives via their email, phone and especially social media.

As the popular saying goes "whatever you put on the internet will be there permanently" and it's something that I take in to consideration whenever I upload any personal information on the internet. The biggest concern regarding privacy and new media has to deal with social media. People feel the need to post a picture of their private lives without taking into consideration the different people that might be able to see it. Individuals are even inclined to share personal information such as their address and even current location. This can lead to many complications ranging from identity theft to attracting unwanted guests. Just like any other new invention, if not used properly can have damaging consequences.  

Another aspect of privacy regarding new media is whats called a cyber footprint where certain websites track your browsing and search history to recommend products for you to purchase. For example, when someone searches for a used car online that individual is most likely to start seeing supplementary products or services such as car insurance, windshield wipers and even new set of tires for sale. Privacy advocates have heavily criticized companies such as Google and Yahoo for engaging in such activities and even see as violation of one's privacy.

As mentioned before, I take real caution when uploading pictures on the internet as I know they will stay there forever. The obvious reason is to protect my privacy but also to protect myself from future employers who might just Google my name when doing a background check. People tend to act different on social media then they do in real life so one needs to be careful with what they say and post and make sure its in line with their professional lives.

Privacy and security is a huge concern when it comes to new media which is why all the the parties involved must work together to combat this issue.

Advice to Baruch College

The concept of new media has taken the 21st century by storm and while some organizations have taken full advantage of it, others are still catching up. Baruch College is one of those organizations that fully embraces new media and technology but still has a long way to go.

One way Baruch can utilize new media is by finding an alternative to their mass campus information distribution system. As someone who likes to stay up to date on things happening on campus from club events to corporate presentations, it seems that I find out about great opportunities a couple of days late. One way to would be to subscribe to one of the clubs weekly newsletter but they primary display events that pertains only to their clubs. That means that I have to look through at least 4 to 5 different newsletters to find an event I'm interested in. In addition, when it comes to issues such as registration dates, campus security updates or even entrance closure notices, I'm usually the last person to find out.

A solution to this problem would be to combine all events and campus information into one centralized system or even a website. That way students can look through info all in one webpage rather than multiple and can even customize it to their preference. If someone is interested only in corporate and professional events they can set that as their favorites and won't have to scroll though tons of unwanted information. Since it's for the students, it should also be run by the students as they are more likely to know better what other students want to know more than administrators. 

Another idea would be to create a Baruch only forum/discussion board where students can discuss topics like which classes to take, where is the best place to study or even buy used textbooks all in one place. Last but not least, Baruch desperately needs a centralized place to get feedback on professors since third party websites such as RateMyProfessor.com are not accurate most of the times. The new system would make sure that the student rating the professor has actually taken the class and is qualified to rate.

Creativity and New Media

Just as I mentioned in my last post, new media gives users the necessary tools to create new and exciting content. The link all the way on the bottom of this blog post was something that I created for one of my classes as a semester long group project. 

We were assigned to create a fictitious business and then be as creative as we can be to present to our class. Our group decided to start a sporting goods company called SportsThrone.com since most of us were into various sports. My assignment was to create a marketing campaign for one of our best selling running shoes and to make an advert that goes along with it. Although the video you will see looks very generic, it is 100% my own work and contains snips and bits from at least 8 to 9 different videos and commercials and the background voice was also found separately. This was my first ever attempt at creating and editing videos so some of the transitions from one scene to another wasn't well timed. Nonetheless, it was really fun to make and turned out decent for a newbie. To reiterate, new media tools such as editing software's and YouTube in general not only fosters creativity, but also promotes it.

Link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQcjXXVvsOg

(Please watch till the end to see closing statement)

Creativity

New media has given a whole new meaning to creativity and imagination. With easy to use editing software's such as Windows Movie Maker and Photoshop, creators are able to design and produce new and exciting content. As I mentioned in my previous post, games like Minecraft let's kids use their imagination in infinite number or ways. It emulates a world without boundaries and limitations and that mindset carries over to the real world where amazing new discoveries and inventions can be made.

In regards to new media, one of those tools is Mashups. Mashup's let the user to put together snips and bits of different videos and music into one condensed end product. According to Brook Barnes's article in the New York Times "Disney Tolerates a Rap Parody of Its Critters. But Why?" users are mixing and matching viral rap music with some of Disney's sense creating the impression that the characters are rapping the lyrics. As an active YouTube user, I confirm that there are thousands of videos with that idea and they are somewhat entertaining. Some Mashup's doesn't require much technical skills but rather creativity and imagination. So in one way, new media technologies has made being creative "easy" in one way.

In conclusion, new media tools such as Mashups and YouTube fosters creativity buy providing the tools necessary for creators to come up with creative content like the Disney character's rapping and has opened the doors for many more ideas to come.

Modeling Reality With Virtual Worlds

The use of virtual technology can be applied to so many different areas than just gaming. One of those areas is the educational system both in schools and most importantly trade schools and hands on programs. The idea of online classes like this class for example might have sounded bizarre a few years ago but with the advancement of technology and the internet , all of that is now possible. Taking that concept to the next step would be to use virtual reality to simulate a real classroom from the comfort of your own home. By connecting with fellow classmates, virtual reality simulations will make class discussions and interaction with the professor so much more realistic than just sending an email. In regards to trade school such as medical schools and automotive technical institutes, rather than just reading about the profession from the textbook and imagining what the field would look like, its always better to experience it hands on. With that being said, equipment like cadavers can be very expensive for some colleges but virtual worlds is a great and cheap alternative to that. This concept applies to other professions such as pilot training, truck driving even for psychologist to help traumatized veterans according to the Forbes article " After Second Life, Can Virtual Worlds Get a Reboot?"

Some of the pros of virtual reality is the fact that it simulates actual environments without any of the dangers that are involved such the case with military training. It allows for people to improve their skills in various professions like mentioned before. The example of helping traumatized veterans can be expanded to other forms of trauma such as depression and anxiety. Another advantage many people overlook is the fact that it can help children with Autism since Autistic kids interact well with technology. One of the cons is the fact that children might end up spending too much time with VR that they loose the sense of reality. They might even end up becoming very anti social and lazy when they can play a sport in VR rather than real life. Another con is the fact that it hasn't been fully magnetizable yet so the cost of producing is somewhat high. Virtual crime might also be an issue as the technology becomes available to many people.

Virtual worlds can foster creativity especially in an educational setting for young children. Games like Minecraft lets you use your imagination and build so many different things. If we replace the same concept to other things like building virtual robots from virtual parts, it might lead to so many other great inventions.  It also creates a world without any boundaries and limitations in their capabilities which will motivate them to have the same mentality in the real world. Guy Posey's piece "The Advantages and Disadvantages of the Virtual Classroom and the Role of the Teacher" states that " with virtual reality both the educator and the student are inspired and captivated, new ideas are sparked, and barriers crumble" (pg.7). The future of VR is very bright since there is so many uses for it. The only problem is the fact that no one is yet to fully monetize on the idea on a large scale but companies like Oculus Rift are changing all of that. Within a few years, the technology should be readily available to everyone to enjoy.

Blog About Twitter

Unlike the first BlackBoard discussion we had as a class, Twitter limits us to only 140 characters where we have to keep our discussions and reply's very concise and brief. Twitter organizes our discussions by using hashtags where in BlackBoard, everything goes on the forum. When it comes to replying to someone, Twitter has enables us to use the @ sign to respond directly to someone or use the re-tweet function to "quote" them just like in many forums. Although Twitters reply and respond system is much more disorganized than Facebook, it is however a lot better than Discussion Board since it shows arrows and links to the original post. Twitter is obviously the more modern choice of having a discussion about a particular subject but Discussion Boards are somewhat more private since only a certain people can gain access. There is also no picture boxes next to replies in BD which makes it somewhat more inconvenient where you can tell who's replying instantly by the picture icon on Twitter.

In class discussions on the other hand is probably the best form of discussion in my opinion. Everything happens instantaneously and you don't have to wait for someone to reply on the computer and it's face to face. Speaking of face to face, body language also plays an important role in in class discussion where in an online discussion be it Twitter or DB you can't really tell what that person is doing. It's also more "organic" and natural to have an in person discussion as ideas and thoughts flow continuously where in online you have the chance to think for a while and even edit/delete your comment. Overall, everyone has their own preferences but me personally, I like the traditional and old fashioned way of having a discussion, in person.

Social Networking Sites

All though Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn all have the common concept of connecting people and sharing content, they are different in their core purpose. 

Facebook is the social media platform that I use most frequently. My first impressions of the website is it's easy to navigate homepage and user friendly navigation. One of the assigned articles mentioned that Facebook is being flooded with older demographics and it's easy to see why. Like mentioned before, it's very user friendly, everything is organized in block shaped content boxes and it's easy to understand for a first timer. There is endless amount of content as you scroll through your "timeline" and even gives you the ability to share it on your "wall". When logged in, the first thing that catches your attention is the top right corner that indicates with red marking whether or not you have any new notifications. You can also like peoples status updates to stay connected and like pages that interest you ranging from funny videos to political discussions. My personal favorite is the Trending box that shows some of the most searched topics or breaking news that happening at the moment.     

As a first time Twitter user, I'm still getting used to some of the features even though I've spent a couple of days on it by now. It took me significantly less time to master Facebook 5 years ago, but I can definitely see why Twitter has overtaken Facebook. For one thing, people are more active in their Twitter account than their Facebook. I conducted my own little experiment and found that athletes and celebrities in particular have more "tweets" in one day than "status updates". In regards to user friendliness, Twitter seems a bit more disorganized especially when it comes to replying and re tweeting. In contrast, Facebook replies are all organized "under" the status updates and is easier to follow who is replying to who. The notification and new message bar is similar to that of Facebook and I especially like the trending box in both. I also like the fact that Twitter is less crowded with adverts and promotional pages.  They both have the same color scheme which I find very interesting. 

Although some might argue that YouTube is not a social media site, it's features and functions say so otherwise. I personally spend more time on YouTube than anything other website as well as traditional television. It super easy to navigate and well organized. The "thumbnails" shows a sip of the video and has all the small info about the video in the little video box. Once clicked on a video it shows all the other information such as the number of views and likes/dislikes. Just like Facebook and Twitter rather than liking a page or following someone, you subscribe to a channel and all their new videos in your feed. Rather than trending topics of the previous two websites, YouTube has trending videos as you would expect from a video content website. It's my go to place for any videos or music.

LinkedIn is a social media platform aimed at working professionals as well as students for networking purposes. As a student trying to break into the professional working world, I use LinkedIn frequently as well to connect and stay in touch with some of the professional I meet at corporate events. It's awkward and unprofessional to ask them to add you on Facebook but LinkedIn solves that issue. It's also a great platform to land open jobs and to connect with HR professionals to see if there is an opening in their firm. It's also very easy to navigate and is somewhat similar to Facebook in regards to the way the content is organized. You scroll down to see what people are up to and see some of the things that they liked or commented on. It also has the notification bar on the top right corner and a search bar in the middle. Only other difference I could see is that rather than friends, you have connections and it's reply and comment function is exactly like that of Facebook. You can also follow influential people and like pages that interest you such as "Accounting Changes in the Industry" and so on.

Social Networking

Social networking has revolutionized our world in the last two decades and had made us more connected than ever before. What started out a way to stay connected with friends and family has turned into a multi-billion dollar industry. Although it has many positives for individuals and businesses, it also comes with problems and concerns but is continuously evolving to address these issues.

One obvious way social networking can be utilized is for businesses to promote their products and services. Small businesses in particular who are not in the position to spend thousands of dollars on their marketing campaigns greatly benefit from websites such as Facebook and Twitter. Some of these platforms have managed to integrated different marketing and selling features into one website. For example, instead of going to Yelp to read reviews on restaurants and then going to another website for their special, you can access it all on Facebook's user friendly business pages. Going back to the idea of reviews, you can also use the feature to track customer service and satisfaction. Rather than setting up a toll free number or a hotline to intake customer feedback, customers can share either positive or negative feedback online. Its overall a great tool to create and raise brand awareness for little to no cost. Targeted ads can also be purchased to increase traffic to your website and lead to higher customer conversion rates.

The major benefit of social networking is obviously the power to stay connected with friends and family from anywhere in the world. Many people are regaining lost connections all the way back to their early childhood. It's also being used in emergency situations and to break breaking news to a wide range of audience. It's even being heavily used in the current election to engage young voters to go out there and vote. Another major contribution to society is the fact that websites like Twitter and YouTube have been credited with helping topple oppressive regimes in parts of the world when people shared videos and pictures of their uprising.

Like the old saying goes, "everything good comes with a price" and social networking and social media in general has some negative aspects or "dark side" that needs to be addressed. One major concern is of-course privacy. When something is uploaded to the internet, it's usually close to impossible to erase it. You can try deleting the content all you want but once its out there its out there forever. Bringing it back to our class and relating it to the corporate environment, one negative aspect is that many firms and employers now include looking up your social networking sites as part of the background check. This is why every time you upload something about your personal life, you need to think twice about who might be able to see it. I have read many stories on people being denied job offers because of controversial statements or photos they posted on Facebook that was eventually seen by the hiring manager. There are now even paid services that try to "hide" your illicit uploads on to the last pages of major search engines because even experts know it cannot be permanently deleted. Another major concern, especially among the younger generation is the fact that increased amount of time spent on social networking websites can cause social anxiety and lack of social skills as stated by Hillary Stout in her piece, Antisocial Networking? In addition, cyberbullying has also increased in the last decade to the point even government officials are stepping in and setting up programs in schools and universities to combat the issue. Websites such as JuicyCampus that is mentioned in Jeffery Young's article titled They're Back, and They're Bad: Campus-Gossip Web Sites shares rumors and gossip about fellow classmates that can have a detrimental impact on their self esteem and confidence.

However with new challenges come new opportunities to combat these obstacles and even profit from them. The field of cybersecurity has gained a lot of momentum with the concern of privacy and better technologies are being created to make the internet safer both for the individual user and government entities. With increased funds to technology programs in schools and campuses, the next generation can work together to make the internet a safer place.

Blog vs. Wiki

Although Blogs and Wikis have somewhat the same idea in terms of sharing information and content many people make the false assumption that they are exactly the same thing. However, the way information is shared as well as the platforms used are very different.

A Wiki is defined as a website that allows many individuals to work in a collaborative manner on a certain web page. Wikis usually link information to other wikis where blogs link to external webpages. Blogs on the other hand are more informal web pages that share ideas and opinions on wide range of topics and is usually edited by one person. The informality of information makes it seem almost like a social media platform where you can give updates about a recent trip or teach your followers on how to bake a cake.

The similarities between Blogs and Wikis is the fact that you do not need advanced coding or computer skills to use them. For example, many blogging platforms such as Blogger and WordPress have already sorted the technical side for you and all you need to do is choose the layout and add your content to your blog.

Collaboration in today's world especially the workplace is very crucial in running a successful organization. Even accountant who are know for keeping to themselves and crunching numbers in a cubical have to work in a collaborative environment. Having said that, its important to understand and use the technologies that help in collaboration such as wikis. According to Margaret Locher's article "More on How to Build Your Own Wiki" she states that Wikis make is easier for diverse organizations to gather and share information on a project to ensure everyone is up to date. In a world thats heading towards telecommuting and working from home, Wikis are an immense asset.

Blogs can also be used for collaboration such as posting relevant information or videos on a certain topic. For example, accounting professionals can use blogs to post and comment about the changes in industry, profession and even discuss job opportunities  among one another. They can even be used by authorities to track and stop crime as discussed in the New York Times Article "Brooklyn Blog Helps Lead to a Drug Raid".

Although some professors use wikis to enhance the learning process, such as this class, its a shame many don't take advantage of it. One way wikis can be used is in collaborative classrooms. Yes its not a new way for using wikis but like mentioned before, many people don't understand the power of it and it's advantage over traditional teaching style.

How Effective are YouTube Ads?

For my semester long project, I plan on researching the effectiveness of YouTube video content advertisement vs some of the more common traditional advertising methods such as newspaper, billboards and flyers. This ties in to our recent lecture on old media vs. new and includes a bit of marketing as well. I want to focus more on the economic and financial aspect such as how much more or less revenue is brought in and the cost associated with each. That will be the basis of my research but I will expand my research to other aspects such as difference and similarities including other perspectives mentioned in the assignment description. I plan on using a lot of sources in my research including scholarly approved articles as required.