CCT205-Labs

What "digital innovation" do you feel best deserves the title of "revolutionary" and why?
 * January 13, 2011

I believe that Facebook best deserves the title of revolutionary. This is due to the fact that it has allowed us to connect ourselves through this new era of online social networking. It has become the new ground where one may personalize the information that they choose to share to their friends. This may include anything from personal interests, education, photos, and so on. Facebook has allowed users to reconnect with old friends as well as acquire new friends in the process. This grants users the ability to stay connected continuously with their friends rather than having to constantly maintaining conversations between both parties. A very useful aspect of Facebook is the usage of applications. In which a user may connect other social networks such as Twitter or Tumblr to appear on their Facebook feed. Thus making it more convenient for users to keep up-to-date on their friend’s status, since all the information posted on different networking sites may be viewed and accessed on Facebook. As a result, Facebook can be seen as the overall central social networking site favoured by society.

January 20, 2011 What do you think of the App store?

I believe that the App store concept is considered to be a valuable tool towards Apple's overall brand. In regards to convenience, it gives users the ability to obtain software, games, music and so on without the need of physically purchasing the software from the Apple store. It is also an intelligent move on Apples part since it does cut much of the most of manufacturing the devices needed to embed the software. This allows for a much greater profit since they are only required to maintain their website as well as developing the programs and not any other obscure costs. The downfall to this type of change is the fact that machines have the tendency to crash. Since users are beginning to buy these programs online, they risk the fact of not having a physical copy on a CD in the case something happens. Now I am not certain if Apple holds records of what you purchase and allow a reissue of the program, though if they do not, then it becomes a problem towards the users trust towards his own machine. As a result, there are advantages and disadvantages towards this new approach by Apple - which if users do not agree with, could hurt the Apple brand.

* January 27, 2011 Choose one of the six senses (design, story, meaning, play, empathy, symphony) and discuss a real-world example.

I believe that Pink's notion of story as a sense is crucial in today’s society. The ability to tell a well thought-out and compelling story has become effect in our creative society than that of presenting facts. The entire process is to engage the person that one is speaking to. For example, Microsoft Windows 7 commercials tell a story by showing the satisfaction of its customers, in which they all say “Windows 7 was my idea.” This commercial caters to the needs of the people in everyday life, rather than strictly listing the benefits of this operating system. It allows the viewer to connect with the individuals in the commercial, by which the individuals present a problem they’ve had and how Microsoft is the solution to that problem. The ability to tell a story has become the primary tool in convincing one to either purchase a product or convince a multi-million dollar corporation to fund/sponsor your idea.

* February 3, 2011 Respond to the article with your own contextualized opinion.

I believe the article on Sherry Turkle’s book, “Along Together,” introduces some validation to technological obsessions in society. Sherry spends time explaining how email and Facebook have become a tools where you’re “continually looking for your next message, and to have a sense of approval and validation.” I can relate to this since Facebook is a platform where I can collaborate with my fellow friends. Though Facebook does have its advantages, it also has its disadvantages. It has become a place of convenience, where we are able to plan events, keep in contact with others, update our status rather than notifying every individual, and so on. However, this convenience has drawn us away from face-to-face interactions. We have become so adapted by social networking, that we no longer “require” or “have the need” to advise someone in person about an event for example, because it is expected that the person will have checked their Facebook status for the invite. Sherry also gives the example of the red light on a blackberry that notifies when you have received a message. Though I myself do not have a blackberry, I can relate to having my phone screen light up when a message is received. She explains that it gives us a sense of hope and makes us feel connected. This is true since many of us cannot go a day without our cell phones because it will cause us to feel uneasy, lonely, or even “naked.” Sherry later explains how many individuals attend meetings but must have their phones on. This action shows that though we are physically present in a meeting, our mind is somewhere else virtually. I can relate to this and so can many others in a university classroom. The use of laptops and cell phones has become a necessity for many students to remove the feeling of loneliness. I have witnessed several students in class with a split screen on their laptop – a document for note taking and usually twitter, Facebook or some other social networking site. Doing this has become irrational but has become a technique to stay connected, which to say, if you are not connected virtually then it is equivalent to not breathing in the real world. Much of the technologies we use have allowed us to stay connected virtually with the world but it has disconnected us physically from the world.

* February 10, 2011 Talk about your views/concerns about the future of privacy.

I believe that people should not complain about the information they post on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr or on the internet in general. I can understand the concern users may have that the information posted on the net could be used maliciously, but that is just the more reason for users to be cautious of what they post. For example, if you post a drunken picture of yourself on Facebook may result in you losing your job if your boss sees it. Now people would argue that it is an invasion of privacy since their boss may not be a friend. Though, the fact that you posted the picture for everyone who is a friend to see it does not mean that others do not have access through other means. This may be through viewing the photo from a mutual friend’s account and so on. Other users are asking for their privacy to be invaded through posting too much personal information on their social networking sites. Many individuals post their phone numbers, address, postal code, etc. Then these users become frustrated when their privacy is corrupted when they receive a credit card that is issued under their name. I know that this would suck, but the matter of the fact is, that you provided all the information needed for this to occur to you.So in the end... if you don’t want people to see you personal information, then don’t post it in the first place.

* February 17, 2011 Using the website [] Choose a topic that inspires you.

Saul Alinsky discusses eleven rules that one must do in order to effect change in the world. Rule six states that: A good tactic is one your people enjoy. “If your people aren’t having a ball doing it, there is something very wrong with the tactic.” This rule brings up the notion of going from left-side brain to the right-side of the brain. In the world today, various corporations have begun to realize that consumerism is now based on the creativity and innovation of marketing as well as focusing more on group participation in decision-making. For example, previously, a company would have delegate to a team to perform a task in an organized and serious fashion in order to meet specific deadlines. However, in today’s society, corporate teams are focused on coming up with new creative ideas without the fear of being ridiculed for their “extreme ideas.” Companies have realized that these “extreme ideas” do open up the creative discussion to then turn that idea into a plausible marketing campaign for consumers. This allows people to have fun when coming up with these ideas since their objective is to use the right-side of the brain rather than coming up with logical ideas that have no originality or uniqueness. This rule can also apply to any situation in which an approach must be made to solve a problem. This can be found primarily in schools as a means of getting students to actively participate in their creative thinking processes. By turning a boring tactic such as solving a math problem, into something fun and relatable to students; it allows them to become more involved with the problem. This inevitably allows students to challenge and approach a problem through various perspectives and gives them the ability to solve in a much shorter time. As a result, by developing a tactic that one can enjoy allows the individual to not feel threatened when solving a dilemma. Instead, it allows people to challenge the problem in manners that would not logically emerge by simply using the left-side of the brain. Thus by engaging the right-side of the brain, people have fun with a tactic while subconsciously approaching in a logical fashion later on.

* March 3, 2011 The Classroom: virtual versus physical (thoughts on e-learning)

I believe that the virtual classroom demonstrated in class seems dim to me. I like the concept of incorporating a virtual atmosphere as though one is in an actual classroom. I believe this causes or problems than it solves. For instance, by incorporating virtual classrooms, there is a lack of face-to-face interactions with the teacher. We are a species that needs physical interactions and by only having virtual classrooms, we are separating our minds from the physical world. I also don’t believe that a text-box is the most sufficient way to communicate effectively with students. Also many students usually play games or go on Facebook during class, so what’s to say that by having an entire class online, won’t increase the use of these miscellaneous distractions. In order for the virtual classroom to work, there must be more than just a laptop you are communicating with. There must be other technologies incorporated into this idea. For example, webcams, microphones, etc., are necessary in order to keep the students attention focused on the subject and not wonder off to other distractions. But in the end, I believe the virtual classroom is not an effective idea especially when you are studying an academic subject while surrounded by your television, game consoles, etc., and not in an academic environment.

* March 10, 2011 Rough Poster Idea.



* March 17, 2011 What will/should web 3.0 be about?

Web 3.0 should be based around the use of artificial intelligence to mediate information on the semantic web. In which AI bots retrieve information that is uniquely suited to your personality and characteristics through correlating metadata to tailor to your needs. The semantic web as Tim Berners-Lee states is to integrate data across the web in a different perspective that has not yet been accomplished. Though for this to occur, issues of privacy cannot be considered a roadblock in this process. However, in order for the web to reach its full potential, it must be a place where data is shared and processed openly with other software’s as well as with other data. This will allow the web to transform its data and metadata into “smart data” that carries increased amounts of information about its own significance, arrangement, context and importance within itself (the data) rather through the use of an application.

March 24, 2011 how should it be handled? ... or if it shouldn't be done, then what instead?