Evaluation

I think the blogs were helpful. They were an effective way to generate a thinkng process about the lectures and readings. I found it easy to write about the topics because they were topics I easily understood. They also had relation to my life and how I personally communicate. I understand the lesson each blog topic was trying to teach. And in my thinking process it was easy to see how the topics related so closely to my life.

The cyberspace abstinence blog made me really think about how much I depend on technology and the internet. Trying to abstain from the internet was not hard but did not allow me to get my homework done. So in a sense yes I rely on the internet to go to school. Tehchnology has made it so we can go to school online. So I guess education is another one of those things that would suffer if technology were to go bad.

The you've got mail blog made me think about how online profiles could be deceiving and how much should we really rely on the internet to get to know people. Some people use the internet to establish relationships. But you have to be careful what type of relationships you are forming over the internet.

The facebook/ myspace blog made me think about how much I reveal about myself to other people over the internet, about how secure I feel on the internet. In creating an online profile it is fun to let people know about you and get to know you. But in allowing these people your information, you have to rememeber what you are giving away.

The influences blog made me think about how I communicate with the people in my life. I realize that I use the internet more to communicate with my peers and while I use other medias for my parents. It also made me think about how personal or impersonal different modes of communication are. I find that it is obvious that a hand written letter would be more persoanl than an email. In my case I wrote my mother the handwritten letter only because she doe snot email, not necessarily because I wanted it to be more personal. But it works out because I think maybe my mom deserves a personal letter.

The internet community blog made me think about how people use the internet for a sense of belonging. They join groups on the internet in order to establish relationships. I have felt connected to some communities. Myspace and facebook are communities that I feel a part of. I am also a member of a coupe other site. I do not think it is a bad thing to establish online relationships you just have to be aware of how personal you get. But I like some of the relationships I have online, and it keeps me connected to my friends miles away when I do not feel close to them. The internet give me that sense of belonging when I cannot physically be there.

The interviews blog allowed me to establish a trend in the line of communication. The trend is that as the generations get older, the use of the internet and other technologies decreases. This shows how reliant on the internet our generation has become. It it wierd to think that one day technology could surpass us and we won't be able to rely on it anymore.

The wild card communication mishap blog allowed me to analyxe a current event in the news about Kyron Horman in Portland who was kidnapped and is currently missing. This blog makes you think about little control anyone has over the internet. People can say whatever or do whatever they want over the internet. Discretion should always be taken when posting opinions on the internet.

So I would keep each of these blog ideas. They generated my thinking a lot. I really would not know what to tell you to change, because I rather enjoyed it the way it is. I think the blogs sparked creative thinking and was beneficial to my learning.

Wild Card: Internet Communication Mishap

This situation is confusing to explain, especially in writing, but I hope you all understand it. I am a student at Oregon State University. I am moving out of state and so wll not be able to finish my last couple of classes at the campus. There is a specific course I need for graduation that is only offered on campus during one specific term. This is very inconvenient for me. So I ahve been looking for the class to take online at another university, this is what I was told to do. But in the process there was a miscommunication that may have been prevented if the interaction was in person. I have been emailng the head of my department back and forth for some time now to send her the course descriptions to see if I can use the class to substitute for the class I need for graduation. The problem was, the entire time I was emailing her the descriptions and her telling me no the class does not match or it is the rong level, it all could have been avoided. See, the situation with this specific course is that there is another option for it. And the way these courses are set up is, one class is consecutive to the other in time period, but they both teach the same content. Basically, both classes teach the same thing but in different time periods. This means that if one course description's time period did not match one course it could possibyly match the other, and then I would be able to substitute it for the class I need. The problem was that the whole time I was emailing the head of my department the descriptions, she was only comparing them to one of the two options I had not the other. So I had o go back and email her the same descriptions again. I did not understand why, if she is the head of the department therfore she should know what my options are to fulfill the requirement, why she did not tell me to look for courses to match the other descrption as well. I hope this all made sense to you. I know it may not have because every time I try to explain this siutation to someone it is always hard to explain. But the moral of it is that if I had went in and spoken to the head of my department instead of emailing her, she may have suggested to me to check for matching courses for both options rather than one. Time would have been saved. It would have been hard because of how many time I emailed her and she emailed me back. I could not possibly hve gone in to her office that many times, but it would have taken care of the little miscommunication. I feel face to face may have taken care of the situation in that if I were speaking to the head my department face to face she may have been more inclined to make suggestions for me. This reflects the idea that we hae been discussing about how virtual communication makes things less personal. I think if were having a face to face conversation with her I may have gotten more personal help.

Interviews

For my 18-35 generation I interviewed my best friend. She is curretnly 21. Her primary uses for the internet include facebook and myspace, as well as emailing, job searching, and other methods of keeping in touch with friend such as skype or oovoo. Skype and oovoo are web chat programs that you can download from the internet and video chat with. She is very confortable with using the internet to communicate. She is your typical young adult that uses virtual communities and communities like facebook and myspace to communicate. She feels the same way alot of us probably do, that we rely on the internet for so many things. She feels she would be lost without the internet and her life would be so much harder. She gave me an example. She told me previously that she was looking for a job. She said that without the internet it would have been way harder to geta job because the job she was applying for was quite a drive away. If it wasn't for the internet she would number one not have found the job, and number two have had to drive their to fill out an application. The internet makes it easy for us to find jobs and submit a resume or application. Also as further discussed in lecture, we become naturally accustomed tot he order of things. I feel this is true and is why we fall accustomed to relying on technology to do a lot of our work for us.

For my 36-60 generation I interviewed my mother. She is currently 45. She said he primary uses for the internet is banking. She banks online to check her balances, make tansfers and many other things. She doe snot use the internet much. She is a very old fashioned kind of woman. Whenthe intenet became more and more widely used, she did not follow the trend. She does not feel comfortable coomunicating over the internet. She said she does not even use email. I believe he only because I have never even emailed my mom a picture before. I know how old fashioned she is. She uses her phone to communicate or face to face conversation. She thinks the internet is very useful and understands why it is so widely used, but does not prefer to use it. My mom is a simple person, and she says the internet is too complicated. We use the internet like it is nothing new, but some of our parents generation have fallen out of the loop as far as knwowing how to use technology. I know my mom is not that old to the point where she cannot use the internet, but I think she can she just doesn't want to and finds no need to unless she has to.

For my 61 and up generation I interviewed my grandmother. She is prett much on the same page as my mother, after all, she is my mom's mom. It makes sense. But she said she never uses the internet. She does not do anything on the computer at all. She and my grandfather never used the internet. They payed bills by delivering them or mailing them, they communicate by phone, and they have no other need to use the internet. So it is a given that she does not communicate over the internet, but she said that if she did use the internet for other things she would still probably not communicate with it she would still use the phone. She thinks young people these days misuse the internet and abuse it. She undertsands that kids have homework and research to do on the internet, but as for everything else she does not see the big fuss about the internet.

From comparing the three generations, it is obvious that the more recent the generation the more vigorous internet use. This trend is parallel with when the internet began to be popular. The internet was not really around in our grandparents generation. Our parents saw the beginnings of the internet, and our generation saw the popularity of the internet. I remember when I was trying t use my father's computer when he had dial up because that was all that was offered. I remember how long it would take. I would harly use the internet because it took so long. Once I got my first computer I was always on there. By the time I got my first computer the internet was faster. But the internet has been growing steadily and rapidly sinse it first started. With the rate at which the internet and other technologies have taken over the different parts of our lives, it would be safe to assume that more technologies are coming and will be at a rapid pace. I have always wondered if and when we willreach that day when technology has taken over to the point of where humans are fat and lazy,as portrayed in Wall-E. In the movie, humans have relied on technology so long they have become lazy too the point where they float around on mobile units because they are not even able to walk. I am scared for the day this may come due to our current reliance on technology. As discussed in the Postman lecture, “In a technopoly, we tend to believe that only through the autonomy of techniques (and machinery) can we achieve our goals” (p. 142)." We are becoming so reliant on technology that one day it may surpass us and we may find ourselves more reliant on technology then we want to be.

Virtual Community

I joined a fashion community for fashion students online. It is basically for fashion students to get together an communicate about different fashion events, the things they are involved in and where fashion students can get advice for their future. I first posted a blog about myself moving to Los Angeles to start my career and asked if anyone had any suggestions for me. I received no responses. I dis receive a couple of friend requests but other than that the community of not so mucha community for me. I did not feel like I belonged as discussed by Wood and Smith. I still enjoy checking it every once and a while though to see if their has been any new activity. I have even posted pictures of a recent fashion show I helped put together for Oregon State this past Spring to see if I would get some repsonses. No responses. I guess maybe I was not active enough possibly. I also joined some other groups on there that were for certain organizations, such as the FIDM group. I joined this group because I plan on attending the Fashion Insistute in LA once I touch down. I am going to continue using this site as a resource for my future because it seems it may be helpful. I can research companies and I think maybe I can even put my resume up just to see what happend. It is basically a resource for any fashion student interested in actively pursuing their future. So I guess I was not accepted to the group yet, but I plan on getting in there. As I receive more friend request and more responses to my postings, I will know I have been accepted. Once I feel like other students in the community are taking me seriously through the type of responses they give me, then I will know I am accepted. As discussed in lecture, "We just don’t get together in our communities like we used to. Consequently, the authors suggest we seek other places to fulfill our need for belonging. Enter the internet." I feel this is very true. For many, the internet and virtual communication as I have stated previously throughout this class, that these days, many are relying on the internet. It sometimes seems that online communities are replacing people's real lives. And they come to rely on the internet as their idenity. I think the concern is that we do not let our virtual communiations overtake our real lives. Society has made us so relint on machines, as discussed by Postman. Postman says that with the increasing mechanization of life, Postman argues that “Machines eliminate complexity, doubt and ambiguity” (p. 93). Technology has made it so we are allowed to create these virtual worlds and blog with each other and exchange ideas with ease. Technology has connected people in exciting ways and the evolution is not stopping. Technology has made it possible for me ti apply fo jobs online, in fact I am waiting to get to LA for an interview already.

Influences

I wrote a letter to my mother via long hand and one to my best friends via email. I chose to write my mother long hand because she is not completely up to date with technology. Technology has almost passed her, she does not even use text messaging. So email is not one of her better communication methods. My best friend however, I communicate with her online all the time. Ususally it is facebook or myspace. The letter I wrote to my mother was shorter only because I have less things to talk about with her. I know that sounds bad but you all know you have a lot to talk about with your best friend. C'mon ladie you all kno you have a lot to say to your best friend. Well I do. But My best friend's letter was longer. The tone to my mother was different in that it may have been more proper sounding. I speak differently with my parents and friends because they each understand me differently. I speak with my best friend in a more leisurely tone because she is my best friend and we normally speak to our friends in an informal way. I also noticed I would get off track in what i was thanking my best friend for while I was writing. I would go off on tangents talking about this time and that time and remember when we did this. But i do have a lot to thank my bestfriend for.

The differences in what and how I wrote to my mother and best friend I feel were not due to the method I was writing in, long hand vs. email, but more in simply who I was writing to. I do have to say though, that I got some wird responses because I do not just thank the people in my life everyday, though I know I should. But I got wierd responses because I normally call my mom and call my best friend. Writing letter like those are not typically how I communicate I guess. This relates back to what was discussed in lecture, Some research suggests that an overreliance on online communication can have detrimental effects on real life communication." The way I am used to communicating with the people in my life I noticed is, the people closest to me or that I need to communicate with a lot I call by phone, and the internet comes in when I need to communicate less with someone or at an asyncronous pace. But I do feel like there are those days when I am lazy and I wish my mom knew how to text message because I do not really feel like talking. Or those days that I do not feel like being on the phone so I write my best friend over the internet rather than calling her. This is where I think online communication becomes detrimental to everyday communication, when we replace everyday communication with online communication. I think the problem is that online communication is replacing rather than supplementing at certain times due to certain needs.

Facebook or Myspace

I have facebook and myspace. I had a xanga and a black planet before that. I reveal pretty much all the same things in my profiles. I say my name, nickname, age, where I am from, birthday, hobbies, likes, diskikes, etc. I post pictures a lot. Myspace lets you even decorate your profile in a personal way through background themes and other codes. Sites like these make it easy for people to hide who they really are. “CMC contexts, like no other person-to-person media before them, offer communicators the ability to manipulate their personal identities in ways that call into question assumptions about what is possible and what is appropriate in the presentation of self” (Wood and Smith p. 51). This was dicussed in past discussions. People may distort their identity. I reveal the whole truth. I tell you all the facts I mentioned before, as well as express my personality through the design of my page. I like using hello kitty and Nicki Minaj on my page, as well as fashion backgrounds and other things. As discussed in the lecture, "Identity is a complex personal and social construct, consisting in part of who we think ourselves to be, how we wish others to perceive us, and how they actually perceive us. Self-presentation is the process of setting forth an image we want others to perceive." Basically we manipulate the medium of the internet in order to express ourselves in such a way that others perceive us in the way we want them to. This how people create alternate identities. I am careful not to reveal too much. People should only know so much about you through the internet. This relates to the Social Presence theory. As discussed in lecture, "Social presence is the degree to which we as individuals perceive another as a real person and any interaction between the two us as a relationship. Social presence theory suggests that different media convey different degrees of perceived substance to an interaction. The degree of the connection is based on the amount of nonverbal information available to the receiver through any particular channel." These sites even warn you when you about revealing too persoanl information and warns yoou not to say or post certain things. In anonymous communication it is important to remember you do not necessariy know everyone that finds you on the internet. It may be convenient to communicate with your family and friends, but others see you as well. Anonymous communication also allows for people to try to contact you and possibly say false things to you to mislead you. Be careful what you say and do on the internet. Also in lecture it was said that, "We choose the channel of communication based on our perceptions of what will be the most successful for the desired outcome of the communication. So, if we just want to touch base with someone, email is appropriate. However, if we want a raise, email is probably not the way to go." This relates back to the idea I spoke about in a previous blog about sites like facebook being a more informal form of communication. This type of communication should be used depending on what content you are communicating about. Personally I feel these sites are informal and a means of social communicatioin rather than formal business. But there has also been an issue about jobs logging on to these sites and looking at their potential employees' pages. I do not think employers should look at sites that are techinically social sites and are not meant to be used to judge a person. For that matter I think it would be wise to be careful what you post on your pages folks.

You've Got Mail

In the movie You've Got Mail, we observe Wood and Smith's idea about technology taking over nature. Wood and Smith discuss that, "Technological Determinism assumes that our growing ability to alter or replace nature provides a central reason for most personal and social trends. The book goes on to suggest that 'the history of computers is a narrative of human beings seeking to employ technology to alter their worlds (p.30).'" It is implied that people may use the computer and the internet to alter their worlds, and in the case of, "You've Got Mail," alter their worlds by creating false identities. Both parties in the movie played certain identities when they spoke with each other over the internet and grew fond of each other. When they met face-to-face, their relationship was completely different, in fact, they did not get along at all. Here we want to focus on the fact that online, they have alterbate identities, and they get along great, while face-to-face, they do not get along. Their alternate identities allowed them to get along and get to know each other. All the while the two are not even aware that they are actually conversating with a person they cannot stand. They did not know that they were in fact getting along with their very real life rival.

I think it is important to realize and understand that Wood and Smith's idea of "interactivity (pg.41-42)" make alternate identities like these possible. The internet does allow interaction among ints communicators, but we must remember that though there is interactivity, does not mean the identities of the people interacting are real. The internet could be all fake for all we know. These alternate identities are real and some people in real life do make them up. That is why your mom and dad tell you not to talk to people on the internet, because a young girl may think she is talking to this handsome guy and it turns out when she meets him in person he is an ugly 55 years old man with a beer belly. This is your typical example you hear all the time. The basic idea is that people can be a completely different person through the internet. And we need to be aware of this in real life. We need to be aware that any relationship or emotions we form over the internet may not be accurate.

Postman discussess the nineteenth century and the "Communications Revolution." He mentions that a man named, Matthew Arnold, warned us that, "'Faith in machinery' was mankind's greatest menace." He says that among the basic principles of technopoly is the idea that technique of any kind can do our thinkin for us (pg.52)He also puts the thoughts of Frederick Taylor out there stating that, "Society is best served when human beings are placed at the disposal of their techniques and technology, that human beings are, in a sense, worth less than their machinery (pg.52)." By all this Postman is relaying the idea that technology is taking over out lives. We rely on technology so much for need like communication that there is going to be a point when technology is going to rule us because we are so dependent on it. And as Frederick Taylor decsribed it, machines are going to outworth us.