Expanding horizons

Week 8: Applicable technologies

2006-02-19T23:42:00.000-08:00

Reading: Web Redesign, Chapter 6, Phase 4 : Production and Quality Assessment
The article provided a detailed overview of the production workflow with some practical business and time management tips.
Introduced me to new concepts like client spec sheet, slicing, splicing, backend & front-end integration, guerilla testing … I liked that, especially the house-building/web design analogy (Pg 14). I thought it worked!
However, at times I felt I am reading something abstract without getting my hands dirty; like too much theory without practice. Now, I am raring to actually build a website and implement some of what I am learning.
As for the website design itself, I am not sure if the interspersed profiles (Kassirer, Zeldman) helped or distracted me. Though, I liked the content of these interviews, I think they interrupted my flow of thought. I guess, in a real (as opposed to virtual) magazine format, this would not have been an issue as the scrolling function would not have been vital to reading. But wait, maybe I am wrong. Maybe this is a chapter from a book that’s been scanned in? Is it?

Week 7: Color and Typography

2006-02-13T14:12:00.000-08:00

Readings:
a) Information Design in Technical Communication: (http://orange.eserver.org/issues/1-1/)
b) Web 2.0: http://www.gotomedia.com/gotoreport/january2006/news_0106_forest.html
c) Give Customers Short Paths To What They Want: Brief Series September 29, 2003. “Best Practices For Designing Site Navigation Series” By Moira Dorsey With Harley Manning Michelle Amato, Forrester Research, Inc. (www.forrester.com)

Synthesis from my readings makes me think website design and navigation depend on two primary factors: Who is your audience and what is your site’s purpose?
Clearly, users value content and functionality above all else. Also, the website’s goal or purpose is essential to the design.
To illustrate my point, I’ll offer my experience trying to locate our class reading this week.
“Give Customers Short Paths To What They Want” proved to be an ironical header for an article that was difficult to locate on the EReserves site. Since that was the only article that could not have a live link, (I’m guessing because it is paid for content, copyright issues) it would have been helpful to not have it hidden inside a generic folder called “Groups.” Since I had some time on hand and also because I like to think of myself as a diligent student, I persisted and opened all the other article links till I hit upon the folder and found the assigned reading. From a user perspective, that was definitely a six-level hierarchy. J
Anyway, my point is, I plowed through the navigational issues only because I really wanted to read the article. So the audience needs and wants matters as does the value of the content. But this doesn’t mean websites should take users for granted and not pay attention to functionality and design. This becomes even more critical when you are trying to sell products/services. If users cannot locate what they want to buy in two/three clicks they are bound to look elsewhere. But if the website caters to student researchers/ academic journals, the design aspects take a bit of a backseat over content. At least that’s been my experience. It may change in the future.
Web 2.0 sounds like it may be that harbinger of that change. It says it will have a profound impact on how websites are designed. I'm fascinated by the concept, though, I don’t think I really understand how it all works.

Week 6: The book I plan to review

2006-02-06T23:17:00.000-08:00

I’ve chosen Alan Cooper’s “The Inmates Are Running The Asylum” partly because it was the most attention-grabbing title of all the suggested books and partly because I had heard about Cooper and his concept of GOAL-DIRECTED (BTW, the concept is a registered trademark — putting COM 558 learning to use J) methodology through the Cooper U educational program (http://www.cooper.com/). His idea is “when you start your design and development work with the goals of users in mind, you achieve clarity, and your engagements go smoothly.”
This resonated with me and my COM 585 readings, so I decided to pick up this book. So far I am enjoying the humor, the examples and conversational style of writing. Waiting to see how Cooper ties all the parts and chapters together.

Book title: The Inmates Are Running The Asylum — Why high-tech products drive us crazy and how to restore the sanity
ISBN: 0-672-31649-8

Week 5: What is Good Design?

2006-01-30T05:40:00.000-08:00

Reading: Blueprints for the Web: Organization for the Masses by Christina Wodtke
http://www.informit.com/articles/printerfriendly.asp?p=30289&rl=1

Hierarchy And Contrast: The Basis of Good Design by Margo Halverson
http://www.presentation-pointers.com/printarticle.asp?articleid=399

I thought good design was about creativity, intuitive action and something that grabs your attention. But after this week’s readings, I realize I am wrong. It seems design, at least user-friendly design, is about predictability. It’s about organizing, hierarchy and structure. It is NOT breaking from the norm or conventional way of thinking. I wonder how we can build creativity into something so structured. Or maybe that’s why we precisely need creativity: to make all the structures blend?

Also, another thought that is disturbing. My readings indicate that a design is effective if it meets user expectations. In other words it is about estimating/guessing your users/target audience’s needs or habits. But then, do people really think alike? I find this question the hardest to answer: How can one website/design serve or satisfy the needs of different people. By different I mean, people who are different in terms of age, education, culture, exposure, maturity? Are we then designing for the lowest common denominator?

Week 4: Cluetrain/HCI

2006-01-23T14:33:00.000-08:00

Cluetrain Manifesto

Like a lot of manifestos, this one is passionate and hammers its philosophy over and over again, till you feel flattened and overwhelmed. Though, I liked the over-the-top funny expressions and sarcasm and also identified at some levels with the anti-corporate overtones of the writing, I could not appreciate the length and verbosity. “Life is too short, we die,” Chapter 1 says. Wish the author had kept true to this idea and cut out some of his “magic-mushroom enthusiasm.”
I think the Cluetrain is on the right track as far as the basic idea the writers are trying to make:

“A powerful global conversation has begun. Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed. As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies.”

The Web has helped people from all the over world connect at some levels. This is certainly true in case of mass media. The rise of UseNet, chats, and blogs have all helped people converse outside the Big Media box.
However, I must say these connections are very fragile and not as widespread as the authors would like us to believe.

Here is why I disagree:
There are many who are still outside the conversation even after many decades of the hyperlink.
Also, instead of being a connected whole, the market is getting increasingly demassified and people are mostly looking for their custom experience.
Another aspect overlooked by the writers is that not all conversation is productive. There is still a lot of spamming and flaming and snooping. I’m not too sure if left to ourselves, people/users will be able continue a civil and productive conversation for too long.
I think the writers were disillusioned by the corporate culture (and sometime rightly so). Therefore their agenda is to discredit corporate management as bumbling idiots that just get in the way of innovation and real human conversations.

Gestalt theory and HCI (human-computer interface)

The Gestalt approach emphasizes that we perceive objects as well-organized patterns rather than separate component parts. Even if the perception is based on an optical illusion, the brain sees it as a “whole,” structured, cohesive picture.
The challenge for designers of (products or Web designs) is to translate these natural, built-in perceptions (affordances) we have into the product so that we can interact with that product with natural ease.
The problem with screen-based, graphical web designs is that we don’t always have a natural built-in perception about it since it is so new and our senses have not yet developed a relationship with it. So designers have to rely on ‘perceived affordances’ or what the user perceives as possible. Therefore, a lot of good design relies on observing how people actually use the product/interface.
In some cases, cultural conventions come into play. That makes me wonder, whether designs developed in certain parts of the world may not resonate with other world citizens. Then how do we standardize? Who gets to standardize? Countries with the most bandwidth and technology resources?

Week 3: User Centered Design/Standards

2006-01-23T12:37:00.000-08:00

Week 3: User-Centered Design/Standards
Boy! Those were a lot of acronyms in the “Internet Standards, Protocols, and Languages” write-up. I didn’t know there were some many out there. I’m impressed that despite all that jargon we have been able to keep the Web universal. I’m all in favor of standardization, but I’m not too sure if that is practical. A recent Wall Street journal article talked about how some countries are starting their own alternatives to the Internet.
Here are a few graphs from the article (published Jan 19) since WSJ is subscription based and you may not get to read the full article.

German computer engineers are building an alternative to the Internet to make a political statement. A Dutch company has built one to make money. China has created three suffixes in Chinese characters substituting for .com and the like, resulting in Web sites and email addresses inaccessible to users outside of China...

The Internet...uses a so-called domain-name system, also called the "root," that consists of 264 suffixes. These include .com, .net, .org and country codes such as .jp for Japan.
Having a single root is central to the universality of the Internet and critical to its power and appeal...

...some are uneasy with the notion that a U.S.-based body (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers or Icann) overseen by the U.S. government has sole power over what domain names are used and who controls each name. Other countries such as China also say Icann is too slow in forming domain names in non-Roman languages, hindering the development of an Internet culture in those countries...

As for Nathan Shedroff’s article on Unified Design Theory, I thoroughly enjoyed it and felt that understanding your audience’s needs and offering them a holistic experience is a the key to good design theory.

Refined goal, some websites and ideas

2006-01-10T21:45:00.000-08:00

To refine my goal:
Work with the process of content creation with a strong focus on design. Would like to learn Dreamweaver and Flash (if not too technically hard).

Refining ideas:
I think we probably will need two projects. In my opinion, the immigration website can have a great purpose if we steer clear of bureaucracy and instead focus on personal stories, experiences and provide value-add in terms of real people (some of us in class, others I know personally) offering tips on immigration issues/job searches, ideas. That way we can avoid duplication with government/legal websites.

Also, NGO site sounds promising, but I agree with Drew. We need to find an organization that will trust us with its image/content. Otherwise, very effective in driving the class toward a goal within set parameters.

Jyotsna’s generation idea and Brian’s ‘I remember’ idea are the two safest bets and will give us enough control over content and structure. Also both are good ideas in their own rights. Though, not too sure about the larger social value.

Some websites:

I am drawn to interactive websites which are a little off-beat. I think the home page, as we all know, is critical in terms of presentation, content and ease of navigation. But then so are the related link pages. Here are some examples.

http://www.jkrowling.com/
The UK site has a lot of fun stuff. I love the way there is a sense of organized chaos. There are a bunch of interactive icons which lead to more interactive sites. Goes with the theme/tone of her books. Layers within layers.

http://www.alhirschfeld.com/

Almost all of Al Hirschfeld’s original drawings, paintings, etchings and lithographs are on exhibit at this virtual gallery. Website has a sense of drama and is consistent with the artist’s style of drawing. Also, a pretty comprehensive collection.

http://www.spl.org/
Also, Seattle public library link is quite good. Nothing fancy, but serves a useful purpose. Has links in multiple languages. Haven’t seen that before in area library links. Also, has all the relevant details. I like it a lot.

Good night all. My first experience with online class was not bad at all! Some direct input from Kathy would have been even better. It would be nice if Delta allowed inflight Web service. :) Or do they already?

Week 2: Online class

2006-01-10T19:02:00.000-08:00

My background and goals:

My background has been in print journalism and I am skilled at designing news pages (using QuarkXpress), editing stories (Word), writing headlines (creative skills) and working with other editors (collaborative skills) in deciding what is important enough to be put on the front page of the daily newspaper.
Of course, storytelling and how to design stories relevant to our readers was a major part of my job. In all of these endeavors, the managing editor played a critical role. He steered the meetings and set the agenda and once in a while (when there was a BIG story) suggested how we play the story in terms of design and headline.

I have joined this course to equip myself technically, so that I can perform similar and related functions on the Web. I want to develop my skills in these two areas:
1. Information architect: I want to learn some hard technical skills so that I can incorporate audio/video with web design. I’d like to learn Flash and basics of DreamWeaver.

2. Writer/author: I have written stories for newspapers. I want to know how to tailor my writing for Websites in terms of style, tone.

I am fairly confident of my skills in editor/ copyeditor roles, but need to brush up on the technical skills required of a copy editor (entering metadata), editor (how to edit Web content, graphics).

Project idea:
I liked Drew and Co.'s immigration website idea. I think our class and this area (Seattle) may offer many good resources. It may have good social value and can be used as a resource by many immigrant families if designed thoughtfully.

Winter 2006: Week 2: Thoughts on readings

2006-01-10T09:35:00.000-08:00

Thoughts on readings: ‘Notes on Design Practice: Stories and Prototypes as Catalysts for Communication and ‘The Publishing Team’

After reading the Design Practice chapter, I was surprised at the complexity of the design process itself. The amount of detailed planning and interaction with designers from different disciplines boggled my mind. Also, the fact that a tech-based product has so much of social and user interface is refreshing and reassuring.
What I’d like to understand further in class, is how much of this is driven by business needs and how the role of the publisher, managing editor, information architect etc (as discussed in ‘The Publishing Team’ chapter) fits into the design process. How do these different roles fit into the design life cycle?

Week 8: We the Media (Dan Gillmor, 2004) Chapt 1: From Tom Paine to Blogs and Beyond

2005-11-21T10:17:00.000-08:00

Rise of 21st century blogs rooted in late 18th century American history

In this chapter, Dan Gillmor traces the rise of ‘personal journalism’ or ‘citizen journalism’ in America.
He provides a succinct overview of the history of American journalism by weaving the thread of grassroots journalism right through the narrative. He starts off with late 18th century and early 19th century pamphleteers like Tom Paine, authors of the Federalist Papers and the ‘muckrakers,’ all of whom served as voices of the common man, safeguarding against ‘yellow journalism’ and mercantile/business interests of those times.

After describing a host of historical and technical developments, he comes full circle by likening the early pamphleteers to the ‘citizen journalists’ and bloggers of today who are questioning the authority of the ‘Big Media.’
According to Gillmor, corporatization of journalism which led to the birth of ‘Big Media’ is inevitable in a capitalistic society and has not boded well for the audience or consumers of news. Apart from a few laudable, investigative scoops like Watergate and Iran Contra Crisis, mainstream journalism has practiced the one-to-many model of communication where journalists exercise exclusive sovereignty over the news and its interpretations and “lecture” their ideas and opinions to the public at large. The consolidation of media also bred arrogance and an excessive sense of self-importance which led to public disenchantment with mainstream media, Gillmor adds.
However, this traditional model of communication has come under considerable fire with the advent of the Internet and the Hypertext. With the interactive and easy to use technology, blogging has offered a way for every person to be the news consumer as well as the new audience. According to some estimates, there a about 8 million blogs in the exploding blogosphere.
Anyway, I think this accessibility and ease of use of blogs have had a dual effect, a simultaneous erosion and improvement of quality. There are some rock stars of blogging like Glenn Renoyld of Instapundit.com, Joshua Marshall of Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall and the DRUDGE REPORT 2005®.
They have all garnered a large and loyal following and their writing has had a significant impact on public opinion.
Then there are some bloggers whose motives are being questioned for accepting payments to push a product via their blogs.
Then there are some who just rave and rant about Hollywood gossip or personal issues.
This lack of uniformity of product and multiplicity of motives makes me wonder about the future of blogs, especially when it is touted as the replacement for mainstream media channels.
There is no doubt the influence and power of political blogs and citizen journalist is on the rise and I, who has been part of the newspaper industry for the past 5 years, welcome it. I think it is always good to have a system of checks and balances and channels through which a cross-section of voices can be heard.
However, as blogging evolves from a personal to a professional writing mode, I think we need to pay attention to what models can be put in place to support it? I don’t want ‘Big Media’ to cunningly draft bloggers into their payrolls. I think it is important to have independent voices in democracy. So, is there a sustainable business model for blogging that will not compromise its integrity? How might free market or commercial models such as advertising-supported funding alter the spirit of blogging? Are there alternative models such as cooperatives that might sustain and extend blogging? As Gillmor would say: The conversation has just begun.

Additional reading for Group 3

The role of the Internet in National and Local News Media use (Journal of Online Behavior, 2003)
http://www.behavior.net/JOB/v1n3/riedel.html

This study tries to find out the sources of people’s political information or news. It begins by showing newspaper dominance as the main source of political news diminished when TV came along. However, the study points out newspapers are still more effective as tools of political learning. I suspect that has something to do with the way we learn. We need ‘the word’ to learn not just visual images.
Anyhow, the study goes on to prove that with the emergence of the Internet, questions are being raised about the role of the print versions of newspapers as source of political information. It goes on to enumerate the various reasons for rise of online versions of print newspapers. In the U.S., 3,400 general circulation newspapers are currently online and provide free, regularly updated, in-depth news with multi-digital, interactive experience compared to their print counterpart. It also notes the surge in online news demand after 9/11. However, the authors go on to test the proposition that even though there has been a dramatic increase in the use of the Internet as a news source, (just like it had been the case with TV), can it be linked as the source of to people’s political education/knowledge? The authors pose three hypotheses describing the relationship of the Internet to political knowledge.

· Hypothesis 1: National and local political knowledge cover different domains and national and local sources of news will also fall into different patterns of usage.

· Hypothesis II: Internet news sources will tend to be associated with more national news sources than with local news sources

· Hypothesis III: Controlling for relevant demographic and political characteristics, use of Internet news sources will predict gains in national political knowledge but not local political knowledge.

To test these hypotheses, the authors drew upon survey data collected in 1997 and 1999 from respondents in two Minnesota communites.

The results revealed that the Internet remains one of the least utilized news sources, with only 13.7 percent using it when compared to the large majorities using local (91.4 percent) and regional (64.7 percent) newspapers. National news sources in the form of newspapers (28 percent) and national news magazines (22.5 percent) ranked substantially lower than local news sources, but higher than the Internet.

The results also showed that more people used the Internet as a supplement for national news rather than local.

However, the authors conclude with the suggestions that Internet news is a significant predictor of national political knowledge and its impact is growing if we are cognizant of the digital divide and take steps to broaden access.

Week 7: The Tragedy of the Commons

2005-11-14T22:47:00.000-08:00

How does the theory of Commons relate to the Internet, community or politics?

In many ways, the Internet can be likened to the ‘commons’ that Garrett Hardin refers to in the ‘Tragedy of the Commons’ (1968). The cyber world is like an ‘open pasture’ free to be used by all. Everyone is free to partake of its seemingly infinite resources.
If Hardin were writing today, the explosive growth of the Internet would have really worried him and he would have promptly put it in the ‘no technical solution problem’ category.
He would advocate immediate legislation to avoid the tragedy of the cyber-commons. It seems like Hardin is no fan of human goodness or conscience. He would have turned down the idea of a self-regulated Internet where everyone has the freedom to access and use it as a resource. By everyone, I mean, the tech-savvy, economically viable section of the human populace, which is still small in number. I guess that is why we haven’t yet seen the ‘overgrazing’ syndrome afflict the Net. But once economic wealth is distributed equitably across nations and Thomas Friedman’s ‘flatteners’ really come into effect, the Internet will become ‘overpopulated’ and witness the ‘horrors of the commons’ as each person will try to maximize his/her gain. Freedom of the commons will indeed bring ruin to all. Hardin would likely have sought coercive laws or some sort of taxation that would have regulated the World Wide Web.
I think the key idea is this: The commons if justifiable at all, is justifiable only under conditions of low-population density. As the human population increases, the commons has had to be abandoned in one aspect after another. So right now, the Web can be justified as a commons because the entire human race has not been ‘enabled’ to use it. But the moment a global social/economic equilibrium is attained, Internet use or access will have to be restricted.
I’m personally conflicted on this issue. I like to believe in human judgment and goodness and feel we can regulate our lives and resources and therefore dislike the idea of forcing people to give up/regulate their reproductive rights among other things. But I know this can be a utopian ideal. Today, India is suffering because of delayed/lack of/ misdirected efforts to control population. We have systematically exhausted our natural resources and eroded our environment due to ‘overgrazing.’.
Hardin’s pessimistic view does have merit especially in the way he views overpopulation.
In terms of community and politics, such regulations would have a divisive effect and polarize the population among ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots.’ Also if Hardin had his way, we would have a much curtailed commons in matters of pleasure and entertainment.

Week 6: Communities

2005-11-07T06:02:00.000-08:00

Communities in cyberspace: Marc Smith and Peter Kollock

Reading “Communities in cyberspace” I am struck by how much of a laggard I am in terms of technology adoption. I am yet to take advantage of the new social spaces computer networks have created where people can talk to each other. I think it is because I am somehow not comfortable with the anonymity of chat rooms or discussion lists. I can’t see myself exchanging personal details with a faceless stranger. I need to meet people at some personal/professional level before carrying on a meaningful conversation. I guess that is why I don’t really enjoy reality TV either.
However, I do understand the convenience and flexibility of online interaction and have lurked around a few NewsGroups for work-related stuff, but I am not too sure about finding “community” on the ether, unless the participants have some common background or have had some prior interaction in person. Anyway, I appreciate the authors’ attempt to not value judge online interaction as “good” or “bad,” but try and analyze the patterns of interaction and organization as they exist
Also, the conservatism of cyberspace was something I found thought-provoking. Gender and Race are central features in most cyber-interaction, specially gender. “‘RUIMF’ (are u male or female) was such a commonly asked question that it was long abbreviated” No such abbreviations exist for age, weight, nationality etc. Isn’t it ironic that even so called “modern” media users can't break free of stereotypes.

Week 5: Is the world really flat?

2005-10-31T13:27:00.000-08:00

Reaction to Friedman:

In a true journalistic fashion, Friedman has offered vivid and lively anecdotes about the people creating and riding the technology wave in an easy to read, conversational style. I am enjoying the book immensely. My favorite: Want Fries with Outsourcing? (page 40-41) about a McDonald’s franchise owner’s effort to link his businesses with one call center in Colorado to take drive-thru orders.
I thought it was amazing to note that the fast food orders traversed two states before the customer even reaches the pickup window. We are indeed talking time warp speed!
It also reveals that whether it is ‘insourcing’ or outsourcing,’ there will be a relentless push by corporate America to lower costs and increase efficiency. So either way, with better technology tools, the global job market will see a change in the way we work and how/who we employ.
My only beef with Friedman is the way he makes it sound (at least in the initial chapters, I haven’t read the entire book) that billions of people from India, China and former Soviet Russia are ALL converging as the third force in the level playing field created by the 10 flatteners. I don’t think this is accurate. At least not in India, (where I come from). The playing field may have been leveled, but not all players are equally equipped. Some players, mostly U.S and Europe, have bigger and better technology tools, infrastructure and huge wealth with powerful dollars and Euros. There is no way competition can be equal. What India and China are leveraging is their immense human/labor capital. That’s our only tool. Also, a very important point to note is that India’s English-speaking elite (only 10-15 percent of the population) can actually speak English proficient enough to be employable by the tech boom or afford the very expensive and very competitive education in the elite IITs and IIMs that Friedman mentions. So my point is that the technology has definitely helped jumpstart the economy and the Indian tech market grew 59 percent to $2.3 billion between 2002 and 2003 and Indian call centers currently employ about 160,000 professionals, according to a CNet report.
So the rural majority in India still struggles to make ends meet and there are no safety nets like Social Security or 401K. The divide between the rich and the poor has grown even wider. But I am hopeless optimist and I think some of these economic and technical benefits will filter down. I am hopeful socially-conscious citizens and NRIs will pressure the government to improve the quality of life for everyone. This article I read yesterday is a tiny example of what gives me hope.

Rural India takes a byte of e-smartness [Sunday, October 30, 2005)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-1279533,curpg-1.cms

The report talks about the benefits of E-governance and how it is becoming popular in rural India. Villagers in certain Indian states can have access to financial statements of the panchayat (local government), and can learn agriculture management through CDs as well as download applications and get information on house taxes, trade licenses, old age and widow pension schemes and land record maintenance. All this was unthinkable 10 years ago.

Also, a point to note: Indian call centers have a 30-35 percent rate of attrition. This shows that most youngsters use that mindless, grunt job, as a stepping stone. Majority of them use the good money (by Indian standard) to either pay for a better education or learn a new skill during the day. This may take a toll on their health, but I think it is a short-term effect as they move on to more challenging and satisfying jobs.
I have also heard stories about how call center workers unionizing for even better wages and transparency between what their Indian bosses are charging the American/European clients and what they are paying the workers. Anyway, I am glad the call centers are not run like sweat shops and the workers are taken care of.
I recently saw a very interesting documentary about outsourcing and call centers in New Delhi at the recent Independent South Asian Film Festival in Seattle titled “Nalini by Day, Nancy by Night” (Sonali Gulati, New Delhi, India, 2005, DV, 22 min). It raised some pertinent questions about cultural and social costs of outsourcing, but ended on a very hopeful note. If you are interested in this topic, watch it. I have requested KCLS to get a copy.

Week 3: Synthesis of readings

2005-10-31T13:25:00.000-08:00

Neil Postman etc

The broad overview I took away from all the readings was this:
Present day technology/Internet has come about due to the supervening social necessity of our times. Just as the telegraph and the telephone moved out of the ideation and prototype phase from the labs to the world at large due to the demands/needs (read supervening necessity) of early 19th and 20th century society.
This is the way human race has progressed from ideation to prototypes to performance and invented the wheel, the spinning jenny, steam engines, ships and planes, automatic weapons and the hydrogen bomb. Such invention are a collective process and take many years to come to fruition and are always being refined and improved upon by better ideas by a newer generation.
So the new media we are studying today is a phase in our ever-evolving existence. It is best studies in its historical context that Brian Winston offers in his book.

Such inventions/progress always has ‘unintended consequences.’ Neil Postman’s evocative examples are a case in point: From the Benedictine monks’ invention of the mechanical clock in the 13th century which led to the growth of capitalism to Gutenberg’s press that destroyed the monopoly of the church.
Similarly, the World Wide Web developed due to the needs of the military, is being used today for a many different functions (emails/games/news) and these can also be viewed as ‘unintended consequences.’
In essence I agree with some of Postman’s views, especially how the computer is wrongly being touted as the ‘technological messiah’ of our times. It is, as he says, a toy or a tool that helps us do many things efficiently. But it does not address the social ills/problems of our society. Therefore he calls all this technological development a “monumental waste of human energy and talent.”
Here is where I disagree with Postman. I think the only way we can create meaning in our lives and our society is by being cognizant and taking steps to rectify the negatives. It is up to us as a race, as people to do something about it. It is not the fault of computers/technology. For example, a modern day farmer has more time to spend with his family and improving his community life today due to the technological implements like hi-tech irrigation/harvesting technology. Now, whether he chooses to spend that extra time with family or community issues or fritter it away in drunken brawls at the local tavern is up to him. One can’t blame the computer for that! So our worst enemy is ourselves, not technology.
Also I don’t agree with Postman that life in the Middle Ages was better because people had a spiritual and social structure. He forgets to mention that it was also a time of feudal lords and papal authority and the common man was a mere serf and lived life in fear.
Id’ rather have the democracy of technology as pointed in “Around the World Wide Web in 80 ways.” It tries to track the diffusion curve and points out that more and more common people are using the Internet. Of course their motives define what kind of online activity they participate in.

Supplemental reading:
After reading Neil Postman, I immediately drew parallels with something I had read a while ago on a similar theme. The author, Knute Berger, talks about how to make sense of the media deluge and to listen to the media within us. He says, “while you may draw your data from the outside world, it is your internal processes that give it personal value.” The article was posted on the website of the non-profit, Context Institute, based in Langley, WA. One of its aim is creating a humane sustainable culture.

Surviving & Thriving In The Information Age: Ten suggestions for finding meaning in the chaos of the Information Age. By Knute Berger
http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC23/Berger2.htm

Expanding horizons

2005-10-31T13:24:00.000-08:00

Social aspects of new media technologies

2005-10-12T03:43:00.000-07:00

Under the Uses and Gratification theory, it was interesting to note the two dominant styles of watching TV: a) ritualized viewing which is habitual and implies frequent consumption and b) instrumental viewing which is highly selective and purposeful.
It seems to me the plethora of choices on cable networks and the convenience of remote control has probably put more people in the instrumental viewer category. But I’m not sure if the frequent consumption has been cut back. I think more choices mean more TV.

Also noteworthy, was the research (page 467) on the impact of cable services on presumably entrenched news viewing habits. The study showed that most people who regularly watched local news identified with community and issues and paid scant attention to news on larger networks like CNN/NBC. But ironically, they always turned to these big networks during breaking new coverage. I guess, the logic might be that viewers instinctively know that a local station/newspaper has less resources/staff to cover bigger events and therefore the coverage may not be as comprehensive. I think the only way the small guys can keep the viewers engaged is by offering some local angle/report on the larger issue at hand.

Has the Internet killed the phone business?

2005-10-11T04:50:00.000-07:00

I am very excited by the VOIP technology. I have used it on and off in the past and saved money on international calls to my family in India. However, I noticed one drawback. You need cable/DSL high speed internet connection for the data packets to be transferred smoothly: on both ends if you are going to use the internet to make free calls or at least on one end if you call a traditional phone line.
This is probably not an issue in the Western world with the easy accessibility of high-speed connection (though, I still think paying $37 per month is expensive, especially for students/low-income households). As far as India is concerned, I know only 2% of the population has access to high speed internet connection. On the other hand, at least 80% of the urban population has access to a phone. So I think telephony is not in any kind of immediate jeopardy in India. Also the cell phone boom is at its peak, as is the case in China and Japan.
But what I found helpful about the article is how the writer has used Skype as a case in point to illustrate the changes within the telecom industry. It is interesting to note how VOIP is riding the already existing Internet infrastructure wave to challenge traditional telephony, but at the same time allowing the flexibility to use telephone connections when required. Therefore, the AT&T/MCI hegemony may be in trouble but not the telephone as a communication device. Infact, the ease of using a handset is unquestionable, especially since it provides flexibility of movement. You can talk from the privacy of your bedroom or the sunny porch. This can only be possible if you have a wireless headset/laptop when using an Internet connection.

Driven by deadline!

2005-10-08T04:08:00.000-07:00

Finally here! I needed to get this blog going for the UW Masters class before Sunday. Kathy's email was a wakeup call! :)
I had kept putting it off thinking it was another intimidating technology. But the steps were a piece of cake and I actually enjoyed the process, specially coming up with a blog name!
So finally, here I am, "A blogger." Makes me feel like a little star in cyberspace. :)