F is for Friends

After reading "Friends, Friendsters, and Top 8," I wanted to discuss my own opinion on friendship on and offline. Being friends with someone on a social network site is not the same as being friends with someone in person. Being friends with someone face to face requires a mutual feeling of respect and likeness whereas the Internet does not. Online, one does not have to put forth any effort in a "friendship" other than accepting, declining, or sending a friend request.
While this article is slightly outdated, most of us have experienced the MySpace phenomenon. Posting photos, posting bulletins, and making profile changes were all part of daily Internet life. But what about your Top 8 Friends? Did this affect you at all? Was there drama in your real life friend circle because of MySpace? Personally, I was not negatively affected by any Top 8 Friends drama, but I've certainly heard some stories. I find the idea of posting your Top 8 Friends to be ridiculous and find it even more ridiculous that people chose to get worked up about it. Why did it matter? This topic was taken far too seriously by many. Popular social networks today such as Facebook and Twitter have eliminated the idea of a Top Friends group. Regardless of this, many social network users, including myself, still are Internet Friends with people they do not speak with in person. I believe this is because just as the article suggests, "it is easier to say yes than no" when presented with an Internet Friend Request.

Politics and Facebook

As I hope we all know, this year is a presidential election year. As if the campaign commercials aren't enough, every time I log onto Facebook I am bombarded by uneducated status updates and ridiculous propaganda regarding this election. First of all, if you simply cannot resist the need to post your political opinion on Facebook, please do some research first. The amount of times I have read false information is countless. This is not the way to get people to agree with you! Instead of looking intelligent about the election, you are appearing ignorant. Second, enough with sharing the photos and articles from propaganda websites. Once again, the information is usually false, and if it is not, it is extremely biased. Also, excessively sharing these types of photos, videos, and articles is simply obnoxious. Instead of getting your point across, your Facebook friends will be quick to block your posts from entering their news feeds.
Clearly, I disagree with posting political opinions on Facebook. More often than not they initiate arguments and sometimes lead to a loss of friend or acquaintanceship. While a post that is educated is more tolerable than one that is not, neither one should be posted. Facebook is not the place to share this kind of information. There is an old phrase that suggests there are three things that should not be talked about: politics, religion, and money. Certainly, times have changed and these topics are discussed on a daily basis, but perhaps this phrase should hold true for the social networking world.

Facebook & Social Capital

For those of you who read "Connection Strategies: Social Capital Implications of Facebook-enabled Communication Practices" I think we can all agree that it was very interesting. I found myself reflecting  on my own Facebook usage and how it correlated with what the study suggested. I can certainly agree that the amount of friends one has on this site makes a difference. Whether said friends be close or just acquaintances, having a numerous amount increases both the bonding and bridging of social capital. For example, by having a higher friend count, each status or photo posted is more likely to receive feedback. With close friends, this feedback may be more personal and emotional, therefore helping to bond social capital. As for acquaintances, feedback is likely to be less personal and emotional, but can still help to bridge social capital by "breaking the ice" in a way. It establishes a common ground and possibly will increase the chances of contact offline. This often has been the case for my Facebook experiences. The study goes far more in depth on the topic, but I felt as though I or someone I know could relate. How has Facebook affected social capital in your opinion?

Solve the Issues Website

            The purpose of the Solve the Issues site is to promote awareness of what is going on in the world today.  The site highlights domestic issues, most of which are politically based.  Each user can then reply in a comment to each topic posted on the website.  The site is intended to inform the younger generations, mostly college and high school students.  Reading over some of the headlines and questions, I do feel as though the site is properly reaching out to its intended audience.  There are no long articles, only tidbits of information that the reader can comment on with his or her own opinion.  Essentially, what the site is doing is providing each user with a simplified base of knowledge.  In order to fully understand each issue being highlighted, the user would have to do some research on his or her own.  This would then accomplish just what the site has set out to do, which is to inform. 

Personally, I do not find the site to be useful.  I would rather start at a legitimate news website rather than start at the Solve the Issues website.  Solve the Issues is the middleman between the reader and the actual facts of a situation.  However, some of what is listed on the site is interesting.  One question I found to be interesting was “Should the UN and world powers step in and remove the Syrian leadership that is massacring its people?”  I found this to be interesting because this is such a basic question to ask.  There is so much additional information that is needed in order to provide a valid answer.  Overall, I would encourage certain people I know to visit this site.  The site is simple, but yet still informative.  It may spark an interest in a user who generally does not follow these types of issues.  That person could then choose to do some additional research and become more aware of a topic. 

As for improving this website, several things should be done.  First of all, each question listed on the site should include a short summary of the issue being asked about.  This would provide more information to the user and result in more knowledgeable comments.  Aside from the information on the site, the site could also be improved aesthetically.  The heading on the page is outdated and bland.  The rest of the site is also lacking color and organization.  There is no “flow” on this website.  With these improvements, I feel as though “Solve the Issues” could become a much better website.

http://solvetheissues.com

CompuServe

As I was recently reading through my Twitter feed, I came across a tweet from Mental Floss. Mental Floss, in addition to being a bi-monthly magazine, is also an Internet blog of random facts, trivia, and interesting articles. The tweet read "On this date in 1979, CompuServe began offering its dial-up service to consumers." I felt as though this tweet related to the articles we have been reading and discussing in class and decided to do a little more research. CompuServe "...was the first major commercial online service in the United States." Its popularity flourished in the 80s and was still big in the 90s. It was eventually purchased by AOL, and finally after 30 years, was shut down. CompuServe was initially created in 1969, but it took ten years to release it to the public. In 1989, CompuServe became the first online service to offer Internet connectivity.
I was intrigued by this topic, because once again, like many of the other topics we have discussed, this simply shows how long ago certain things were developed. I was completely unaware that dial-up was being used in 1969. It is not something generally known because often more recent technology is spoken about.
Another aspect I found to be interesting regarding CompuServe how much it charged its users. In the early 90s, it cost ten dollars an hour to use the Internet. Soon, this decreased to $1.95 an hour. AOL (before it purchased CompuServe) was constantly competing with CompuServe, an offered a cheaper service to consumers that consisted of a flat-rate with unlimited access.  While I do remember my father paying for AOL several years back, I know now that the Internet itself is essentially free. Yes, we are responsible paying for the connection, but we are not charged by the hour or month by an additional company.
Overall, I just found it interesting to see how the Internet and connecting to it has changed over time. I saw it significantly change throughout my life, but not nearly as drastically as it has changed from its start to the present day.

My Own Experience

Within the past week or so, I got a waitressing job at the Heritage House restaurant.  That same day, I posted about it on Facebook.  I had not yet called to tell my parents about it, but the next day I received a phone call from them congratulating me on getting the job.  It turns out, my aunt (who has a Facebook) spoke to my mother (who does not have a Facebook) on the phone and told her about the job before I had the chance to.  This experience simply shows how quickly information on social networks spreads.  While I had wanted to be the first to tell my parents about the job, by posting about it on Facebook, I should have known better than to expect them not to find out.  This experience obviously had no negative consequences, but it made me think about all the posts I see from others that could have negative consequences.  If my little piece of information was spread that fast, I cannot imagine the gossip surrounding certain posts by others.  All in all, it is important to be careful about posting anything on the Internet, because as soon as it is sent, more people probably know about it than you think.

The Lessons of Lucasfilm's Habitat

Assuming the class has read the article about The Habitat project, I would like to share my thoughts on the topic.  First, I was intrigued by the fact that this game came about in the mid-80s and I had never heard about it until I read this article.  Second, this game reminded me of so many games that are available today, and third, it made me think about how virtual communities affect people in real life.

Created in 1985 and lasting until 1988, the Habitat virtual community game "was arguably one of the first attempts to create a very large scale commercial multi-user virtual environment."  The game was certainly not played by many and used technologies that are obviously outdated today.  So why haven't we heard of this game?  I kept asking myself this question as I read the article and decided that not many people know about it simply because it was not popular and has been replaced with many new technologies.

Since the 1980s, what games have developed that resemble The Habitat? This was another question that came to me as I read the article.  I came up with The Sims, World of Warcraft, The Tycoon games, Farmville, and a few others.  Is The Habitat the main reason these games exist today?  While I do not know the answer to that question, I am sure The Habitat provided inspiration for these virtual community games.

If people could act as freely as they do in virtual communities in real life, would they?  For example, if violent acts could be committed in real life as easily as they can in virtual communities, would people commit them?  This is a question in which the answer is simply a matter of opinion.  In a virtual community, actions have no real consequences.  In real life, there are clearly rules and laws.  Do people avoid certain actions only because there will be legal consequences or because of moral and ethical reasoning?  I personally believe most people choose to obey certain morals regardless of the rules of society.

Bruckman Article

As I was reading the article by Amy Bruckman, I was reminded of the discussion we had in our first class regarding community. After splitting the class into groups, we each came up with a different definition, yet we all focused on the same concepts; communities are structured, have similar wants and needs, and work together to benefit as a whole. The Bruckman article suggests an alternate outlook on the idea of community. Instead of our in class definition, Bruckman defines community as being a "prototype-based category." What this means is that there are set examples of community members that make up the basis of said community. In the article, Bruckman uses the example of a robin being an ideal prototype of the bird community as opposed to a less clear example such as a penguin. This example definitely intrigued me. I never thought of a community as being prototype-based, but it makes sense. There is a reason people sometimes get the notion of not "fitting in." I believe this is because we do not fit the mold of an outside community when we are abruptly placed into it.
When referring to online communities, the article mentions that people tend to replace real life communities with virtual ones. People are taking the general idea of community but taking out many of the key aspects such as being geographically close and being connected face to face. While some say these aspects do not matter, I personally think they do. A strong community that actually achieves their goals is going to be much more successful when gathering in person instead of gathering virtually. This statement certainly only reflects my opinion and personal experiences, but I feel as though many of you will agree.

In Class Video: Connected, but alone?

On September 4 of this past week, we watched a TEDtalk in class.  This talk was given by a woman named Sherry Turkle who focused on how much technology has affected us over the years.  "...those little devices in our pockets, are so psychologically powerful that they don't only change what we do, they change who we are."  Turkle is certainly right with this statement.  People all over the world are obsessed with technology.  We wake up and immediately check our phones, we go to dinner and keep our phones on the table, and we keep our phones in our hands just anticipating a ring or vibration. Turkle also makes several points describing how people today are so afraid of being alone.  She states that once people are alone they become anxious, panic, and in turn reach for technology.  With technology, people feel as if they always are with someone else, when in reality, this may not be the case. 
My question is why? Why do millions of people today feel the need to be virtually connected to people at all times?  What is wrong with enjoying time alone?  I of course do not know the answer to these questions, but I feel as though it may be because people are afraid.  Afraid of missing something important, afraid of not "keeping up with the Joneses," and maybe even afraid of their own thoughts.  Being connected is a distraction from the real world, but maybe a dose of reality is what we all need.

First Day of Class

As a transfer student to Bloomsburg University, I was nervous about starting my first day.  Fortunately, everything as gone smoothly so far.  I like my classes and expect to do well in them.