The End of Books

In the article, “The End of Books”, Robert Coover discusses how books, print media, and the traditional novel are all losing its value. I found it interesting how it discussed how in the past a novel was “the epic of the middle-class world”. It is true though that the end of print media is becoming less popular in comparison to media available through technology on our phones or laptops.

I learned more about what “hypertext” is and the history of how it influences technology. I didn’t know that the term was created before there could be hypertext in reality. I learned that hypertext was discussed in many novels before we used it everyday. A quote I found interesting was “Hypertext reader and writer are said to become co-learners or co-writers, as it were fellow-travelers in the mapping and remapping of textual components, not all of which are provided by what used to be called the author.”

"Smart is the New Sexy"

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/27/tech/social-media/newspapers-smart-sexy-campaign/index.html

I found that this article caught my eye because of its interesting title. It made me want to know what newspapers are doing to say that ‘smart is the new sexy’. Newspapers are using social media to get attention from younger readers that turn to electronic sources to get their news. The Newspaper Association of America is hoping to promote the value newspaper have through social media and digital outlets.

The campaign uses the word “sexy” to appeal to people without promoting sex. The advertising campaign is promoting newspapers to a younger generation because by using social media they are hoping to increase newspaper readership. They are also encouraging newspaper readers to submit videos on YouTube and Facebook that explain a readers favorite thing about newspapers. This campaign is allowing newspapers to embrace the main cause for the decrease of newspaper subscriptions.

This new approach for the newspapers can make newspaper readership increase if people follow through. The mind of readers has to believe that “smart is the new sexy.”

Technomedia

Dynabook: Personal Dynamic Media

This article had a lot of interesting information about what a personal notebook can do for an individual. I found that it was informative on how such a device would can affect an individual and how we would communicate based on using a 'dynabook'. For things we do everyday it would be able to do for us. This idea is applied to us today through ipads and netbooks and tablets.

This article really pointed how technology could impact an individuals life. There are so many parts of one object that can be shaped and designed to make our lives easier. I do not personally own a tablet or an ipad but I feel that these are sources that help us communicate even more quickly. If a person didn’t have their laptops, smart phones or computers they could use a portable notebook to communicate.

I found it useful to learn from page 393 that “the interactions of humans with their media have been primarily nonconversational and passive...”. Media like books, magazines, and newspapers where you read the information and got the message and didn’t really have to convey a message back immediately after reading it. Text messaging, social media, email are types of communication where instant response is practically mandatory.

Facebook Turning Purple for LGBT Spirit Day: How to Change your Profile Picture

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/19/facebook-turning-purple-for-spirit-day_n_1020086.html?view=print&comm_ref=false

For years, LGBT activists have been in the news fighting for their rights. They have a history of using social media to raise awareness and break down barriers set by society. On October 20 Facebook will be showing its support to the LGBT community by changing its best known blue hue to purple. They have partered with GLAAD, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, to show their support for Spirit Day. GLAAD is encouraging users of Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc. to change their profile pictures where they are wearing purple showing that they support LGBT activists. Other companies will be doing similar things to show their support. For example, AT&T will be lighting up their headquarters purple and Yahoo! employees will be dressing in purple to work.

Social media is important for this cause because it is the fastest most efficient way of getting information out to people. Working with the social media companies like GLAAD is doing with Facebook is a good step. They will be able to reach millions this way because Facebook users will wonder why Facebook is purple instead of the usual blue.

From Computer Power and Human Reason

The first main idea from the article, “From Computer Power and Human Reason: From Judgment to Calculation”, is about how humanity is now closely related to the computer era through our cognitive and emotional functions. It was understanding that computers are imitating man processes performing tasks man used to do with out the aid of technology specifically communication. The article didn’t really discuss how much technology does affect our communication but how we rely on technology to communicate.

The second main idea I found in the article focuses on how a computer can be therapy for a person. I didn’t understand the importance of this at first so I read it a few times to get a better understanding. Some believed that Eliza could be a form of psychotherapy but it was blown out of proportion according to Weizenbaum. He believed that it would not be the same as a real-life experience. No matter how “private” it may seem to have a computer doctor.

Second Life

This article about second life is about gender in virtual worlds. It explores how you pick the gender you want to be in Second Life and that shapes how you act in the game. I found it interesting that in second life its all about “the breasts, the legs and the pectorals”. How your body looks and what you are wearing determines how much attention you will get when you are in second life.

Its interesting that in second life the stereotypes of what beautiful stays true. the girl with a filled out waist, smaller breasts said the following: “I felt like such a loser. In a virtual world!” There is still a need to ‘fit in’ in the virtual world of second life which is very disheartening. I always thought second life is a place for no judgement but there obviously is the need of approval similar to the one we may need in reality.

“Using Twitter to track people’s moods”

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/29/health/la-he-twitter-mood-20110930
This article from the Los Angeles times describes the analysis of two years work of tweets. It concluded that people start the day being happy and get grumpier as the day goes on. They analyzed a couple million people’s Twitter accounts. They analyzed multiple points about users “tweets”. A lot of the conclusions the study found involved emotions and particular things tweets were about. My favorite finding was that Twitter users prefer bacon over sausage. The analysis looked at emotions and activities and when they “tweeted” about it. I find that this article was informative about how people use their twitters tos hare how they feel at a certain time during the day. I think the analysis is kind of limited because we do not the location of where the tweets come from. They did learn that the season does affect people’s moods because of how short or how long the day is. I find that this study is very informative for those using Twitter because it made me think of how I used my Twitter and what my “tweets” say about me.