Final Post

What is the most important thing you learned in this course? Why?

The most important thing I learned in this course was being more aware of people in third world countries and even rural people in my own country. I kinda knew that third world populations would have dramatically lower accessibility rates but I didn't know that it was so dramatic in rural America. This is important to critical thinking skills when analying information or studying communications. We all filter based on our own socioeconomic status, age, ethnicity, etc. but when we try to keep ourselves open to all options, we can then start to grasp solutions or help bigger problems.

What would you like to have had more time to study? Why?

I would have liked to have more time to study the effects of technology on society; specifically electronic communication. Having a slight interest in sociology, I would have liked to also covered some research on what sociologists think the impact means for our race in the future.

Also, being an avid gamer I would have liked to have covered online games just like text messaging since it's a new, growing trend.

What topic was the least interesting to you? Why?

The open source software movement was least interesting to me because I didn't see the practical benefit of using such programs like Linux now. Perhaps when it becomes more user friendly, but until then, it seems like a non issue for an UW student.

Reflection #8

Article #1 "How VoIP Works" By Robert Valdes

After reading this article, I just love VoIP. :P I didn't know it was totally free... Next, I 'm gonna go to www.skype.com and download some free VoIP software. I wonder why everyone doesn't just switch. I know I have been frustrated with phone companies and their charges before so using VoIP to by pass them would be awesome. But, if I were a phone company, I would hate VoIP because it would take more business away which equals less money!

My prediction of VoIP on cable and telephone networks is that they will cease to exist perhaps by 2020. The easiest way to use VoIP is to call computer-to-computer. (You just need the software, microphone, speakers, a sound card, and internet connection.) Most VoIP offer features like caller ID, call waiting, etc. for free that phone companies charge for.

I think the pros outweigh the cons and the cons can even be worked on.

Reflection #7

Article #1: "Wireless Revolution and Universal Access" from Trends in Telecommunications Reform 2003 by Michael L. Best, MIT (nd) [PDF]

This article touches on an issue I am becoming very interested in; accessibility of Wi-Fi for the developing world. Everyone likes to think of the world wide web as being just that-a world wide web but in reality, it's not yet. This article expresses the idea to grant universal access by using small entrepreneurs to provide internet by transmitting on unlicensed radio frequencies. But in order to make universal access profitable, three innovations have to occur.

1- New and low-cost technologies (especially terrestrial wireless infrastructure)
2- Micro and small enterprises that provide locally tailored value-added services
3- Supportive public policy

I think that this approach/concept is quite a ways off in the future. The reason why I think this is because most people are not concerned with helping rural/low income populations. The core group of people who have lots of power don't seem jumping for joy on this idea. It's not like we don't have the technology to create universal access already... :) Things like uneducation, discrimination, hegemony, and socioeconomic status hinder universal access in my opinion.

Discussion Questions:
* Why hasn't universal access happened yet?
* How do you think people can create policies for accessibility standards?
* Does hegemony prevent universal access from completely happening?

In-Class Cantwell vs. McGavick Exercise

Maria Cantwell's website was pleasing to my eye with good colors and layout. The blue and green theme was more appealing than McGavric's red, white and blue theme. When I try to find Maria's position on issues there is no organized link to separate each issue. There is one large textual essay which mentions Maria's stance on some issues. The best facet of Maria's website is how inviting it is. The site makes it easy for citizens to get involved or provide their information. The photo gallery is almost like a myspace gallery. I could find Maria's position on the issue of the environment but I wish it went deeper into each issue separately somewhere in the site. McGavric's explaination was more thorough.

McGavric's website was very cheesy and almost looked like pop up ads were coming at me. But the link to issues was great. The issues were organized and the environment had it's on section. Even a link to a video of a speech pertaining to the environment. However, it was easier to get lost in his site. It didn't seem inviting to a citizen to become as involved as Cantwell's site. But it was the most "high tech" and even had its own blog.

In the end, I trust Maria Cantwell more than Mike McGavric. This opinion might be biased on the fact that I am a female and also because my boyfriend is pursuing biotech as his career but it is also based on how the websites communicated to me that I am important as a citizen.

In Class Lab Assignment Part #2

I choose www.seattletimes.com and www.pbs.org because I am already a registered user of the Seattle Times and I like PBS on TV. The Seattle Times site does require registration to read archive articles but not front page articles. Clicking on their RSS link, they have adopted RSS a LOT. They have RSS feeds ranging from Business to Travel to Health to the Arts. The stories range from biotech (my boyfriends field) to the Huskies to Wine to Microsoft. A total of 17 RSS links are currently listed. They are no linked blogs on the Seattle Times website to access. The PBS site also has RSS feeds. It did not prompt me to register to view front page articles/reviews of shows. Their RSS feeds included "FRONTLINE-Public affairs documentaries that don't shy away from complex stories or controversial issues", "NerdTV-A weekly online series from PBS.org technology columnist Robert X. Cringely, interviewing guests from the world of technology" (my favorite), and "Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly-News coverage and analysis of religion and ethics" just to name a few. PBS currently has 22 RSS feeds. PBS is sponsering blogs from their site. 3 to be exact; www.typepad.com, www.squarespace.com, and www.apple.com/smallbusiness/store/. RSS readers collect feeds into one place that you can manage and this organization is impacting mainstream media more and more. As we learned in class, the blogosphere has direct impact on what inflitrates mainstream media. Didn't have time to post part 2.

I visited www.technorati.com and found 1,166 posts containing "Steven Colbert". Using the quotes searching for his name as a whole. When I sorted by truthiness, I found 0 blogs and when I sorted by funny stuff, I found 0 blogs. Until I changed the authority slider, then I found lots. :)

Then I searched for "online games" and found 15,959 blogs so then I changed my search to "MMORPG addiction" and found awesome 51 posts.
I am going to use the following blogs:
*Why do 6 million people play World Of Warcraft ? Posted by Ali on July 30th 2005
*"This world will be shutting down in 1 minute. Please log out." Posted by Les
*The gifts that keep on giving? Daily Life, 333 words Posted by: Roulette
*Substitute For Crack

After checking www.blogcritics.org I saw that I found more authoritative blogs than on www.technorati.com.

Reflection #6

Article #1: "Organization Man: Joe Trippi Reinvents Campaigning" from The New Republican Online by Noem Scheiber (10 November 2003) http://tinyurl.com/3leu3

This article, which made me register to view it, opened with a funny story from 1983. I think it was so cool how they were in a panic and made their buses look like supporters of the opposite political group thus taking most of their tickets. LMAO! :P

Trippi's logic was undeniable. I mean, come on... Lemonade in 100 degree weather. :) Grin. But in the end, society has to act. Millions of people can access a website or blog but how many will show up on election day? It's hard enough to get American's to act on their own health concerns, imagine political concerns...

In the 90's, information technology has really helped narrow down the demographics of groups so that they can be targeted. This seems to be the most effective was to influence politics.

Article #2: “The Role of the Internet in National and Local News Media Use” from Journal of Online Behavior (2003) http://www.behavior.net/JOB/v1n3/riedel.html

This article/study showed how the internet news sources predict national political knowledge well but leaves out the local political knowledge because the audience is so wide. The solution of course it to have news sources consumed more locally but the flipside would be getting enough people to do this.

Since the statistics in the study show that over 90% of Americans regularly consume local newspapers in comparison to 13% who do so on the internet, getting that 90% to have internet access to their local newspapers is where I think politicians should turn to.

Discussion Questions:
*How soon will America vote online? Explain.
*Which news source is most regularly read and why is this important to politicians?
*As each generation becomes more computer/internet capable, will print media eventually take the back seat to political campaigns? How so?

In Class Lab Assignment

I choose www.seattletimes.com and www.pbs.org because I am already a registered user of the Seattle Times and I like PBS on TV.

The Seattle Times site does require registration to read archive articles but not front page articles. Clicking on their RSS link, they have adopted RSS a LOT. They have RSS feeds ranging from Business to Travel to Health to the Arts. The stories range from biotech (my boyfriends field) to the Huskies to Wine to Microsoft. A total of 17 RSS links are currently listed. They are no linked blogs on the Seattle Times website to access.

The PBS site also has RSS feeds. It did not prompt me to register to view front page articles/reviews of shows. Their RSS feeds included "FRONTLINE-Public affairs documentaries that don't shy away from complex stories or controversial issues", "NerdTV-A weekly online series from PBS.org technology columnist Robert X. Cringely, interviewing guests from the world of technology" (my favorite), and "Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly-News coverage and analysis of religion and ethics" just to name a few. PBS currently has 22 RSS feeds. PBS is sponsering blogs from their site. 3 to be exact; www.typepad.com, www.squarespace.com, and www.apple.com/smallbusiness/store/.

RSS readers collect feeds into one place that you can manage and this organization is impacting mainstream media more and more. As we learned in class, the blogosphere has direct impact on what inflitrates mainstream media.

Didn't have time to post part 2.

Reflection Discussion Questions

Forgot to post these with the blog...

Discussion Questions:

*Will the trend of radio squash out stations that don't podcast?

*Is podcasting the new open source software movement? And, if so, how will it contribute to democracy?

*Can a monopoly form to control most radio stations and their podcasts?

Reflection #5

Week 6 Reflection:

Article “Will NPR's podcasts birth a new business model for public radio?” from Online Journalism Review (29 Nov 2005) http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/051129glaser/

This article showed how NPR became a leading podcaster in just two months. I like the idea that NPR listened to the "people" because they wanted it, they got it. Because the public demanded portable audio, NPR birthed a new busniess model for public radio.

Podcast listeners like shorter content and the original content. Personally, I have no experience with podcasting and I am pretty resistant to change so I am going to continue to have no podcasting experience for a while... :) Hehe

I think the same type of business model can be applied to blogging technology/print media as we see in the second article:

Chapter 1, "From Tom Paine to Blogs and Beyond" from We the Media by Dan Gillmor (2004)

As we learned in class last week, monopolies are illegal. "The economics of newspaper publishing favored bigness, and local monopolies came about because, in most communities,
readers would support only one daily newspaper of any size." Those monopolies no longer exist. I also think blogging is breaking down journalistic hegemony.

Acccording to the article, "Newsrooms are becoming more diverse. Major media companies have launched or bought popular ethnic publications and broadcasters. But independent ethnic media has continued to grow in size, quality, and credibility: grassroots journalism ascendant."

Open sourcing the news has and continues to transform the industry. Our blogs that we are doing in this class are contributing to the "blogosphere." :)