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Up one levelSunny day reminder
Yesterday was sunny - after what seemed like weeks of rain - and I posted an optimistic note to Twitter. My sister-in-law commented back about people getting more "Safety oriented" as they age. I responded with a bit of a rant...
I'm mad as hell... and I'm not going to take it any more!
The Olympics in Vancouver are starting to annoy people more and more. I think some of it relates to what is perceived as relentless protection of the corporate side of the games - the logo, the picture that the TV cameras will see - and relatively little focus on the human side. Recently this has been thrown into profile by the various plans for protesters and how surveillance will affect people's civil rights.
What is it with twitter?
Is twitter the latest thing? Or is it an ancient thing, writ new? I argue the latter.
Everyday life, Web 2.0, and Maria Bakardjieva
A talk by Maria Bakardjieva is always a highlight in my life but today's short overview of her current probe into the "everyday life" of Web 2.0 "produsers" (Facebook and bloggers, so far) was particularly interesting, and though provoking, as usual. I have some notes from my attendance as well as my reaction to some of her comments about Facebook, below:
Advising graduate students
A highlight of my recent trip to Montreal occurred when each of the members of the research advisory committee took a turn acting as a respondent to one of the grad student's papers. The students presented for about 15 minutes and then the RAC members, at least four of whom are editors of scholarly journals, provided their constructive comments and feedback. Many of their suggestions were generic and would be useful for anyone, and so I took a lot of notes, thinking they would be useful "graduate student advising" tips. I provide them below for your consideration.
Social networking dividend - the privacy angle
When will my social networking dividend cheque show up? If you think about it, participating in a social networking website, like Facebook or Flickr or even Google, is like working for (almost) nothing. When will they start paying us for a) creating all that content, and b) learning what to buy? The time is coming, I predict. And privacy concerns and legislation may hasten its arrival.
Education talks?
I teach large undergraduate lecture courses in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University. I have been using a range of “voice over IP” technologies for the past decade to extend my teaching to reach more students, to enrich the experience of those students, and expand the types and modalities of teaching. This post has my notes to a recent presentation on the topic.
Communication Transformed?
Communication is being “transformed” by digital, internet protocol based networks. Or is it? I think it depends on how we gauge transformation of communication.
Are Some Technologies Biased Toward Sociability?
The iPod has been vilified as an "anti-social" technology but it sometimes doesn't hurt to look at actual use by actual users. I report on a counter example, where my iPod was the spur for social interaction.
Do you watch movies on your iPod?
I do. I realize that watching movies on a handheld device is not only a source of jokes (i.e., Jon Stewart’s reference, during the Oscars, to watching Lawrence of Arabia on his iPhone) but also some stinging and sharp criticism (e.g., David Lynch’s rant about the subject). I can accept the snide remarks and acknowledge the thrust of Lynch’s argument - that watching on an iPhone isn’t really watching a movie at all, and misses the point - but think there is also another side to the story.