The Connected Life

I don't know your opinion but to me the whole concept of the internet of things scares me! After watching the Sony Ericsson video in the lecture it has really got me thinking.. Is the internet of things the future.. or is it the present? and is this wired world really that necessary?

Really the internet of things is no new concept.. as much as you may have been unaware the internet of things is happening around us, and has been for quite some time now. According to the GSMA there are already 9 billion total connected devices worldwide that's more devices connected to the internet than people on earth! and that number is "going to explode to 24 billion devices by 2020" according to new statistics released by GSMA. 

What do you make of the:

Top 10 Internet of Things Products of 2009

Top 10 Internet of Things Developments of 2010

What about all of the avenues that it would open up for hackers. Pachube has developed a 24hour hackathon purely devoted to the internet of things apps and think about it if there were 24billion internet of things devices out there how easy it would be for hacking to take place. Already we are aware of the risks associated with hacking but being able to hack a door lock to open, a car to crash or an oven to burn is a great concern to me and it makes me wonder is it all that necessary why cant we just do it all ourselves? 

I have really enjoyed blogging this semester and may even continue to do so in the future I guess ill have to see. One thing that I do know is that prior to DIGC202 I swore I would never get a Twitter Account but I will admit I actually don't mind twitter at all and I WILL continue to tweet in days, weeks and months to come. I never thought I would be followed by people like Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd, Blackberry Australia or The McGrath Foundation. 

Goodbye Iraq War.. Hello Technology War

Hi I'm Elise and I'm not a massive apple fan and yep you heard me right.. I'm not a massive apple fan. You know when you look around class and you see that one token PC user.. Yep that's me! and it's not that I have my laptop from High School and it just needs upgrading.. I just bought a new laptop that wasnt a Mac. Ok so yes I know how to use a PC better than I do a Mac but I honestly have little interest in purchasing a Mac.

So you ask what about my phone...? I swore I would never get an iPhone but yes I do have an iPhone and the only reason that I have one is that I wasn't given an option... Why did I have no option you ask...? Long story short.. My phone company had to pay out my contract but the terms was that I couldn't change mobile companies and my only option for a phone (other than my old one that cause them to have to pay out the plan in the first place) was an iPhone. So I was definitely forced into this one.

Having said that I'm not a massive Mac user I do own an iPod touch (couldnt tell you the last time I used it as I now use my Phone) and I do use iTunes and without these the way in which we listen to music would be so different.. We may still even use our discmans (Haha in writing this my computer has not recognised the word 'discman' and thinks its spelled incorrectly) that are pushed up the back of our wardrobes somewhere.

But enough about my ranting... (and if you think I'm ranting this guy takes ranting to a whole new level... I just came across this when searching for info on Macs and PCs) {WARNING.. Explicit language used and may offend some of the Mac users out there..}

We all know about the "technology wars" between Google and Apple and even Microsoft where it is really a battle of the technologies and companies in order to be number one in the digital world.

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Yes its great to have that healthy competition and to further company goals and objectives but  if they are all coming up with the technologies, selling the proposed number of products and making a profit does it matter so much? At the end of the day it comes down to our opinions and preferences as the users!

Are you more of a Mac or PC user? iPhone or Android user? Why do you have these preferences and what is your opinion on the technology wars?

Social Networks spark flames

We all know that information that is posted on Facebook, Twitter or other social networking sites can go viral and as we saw in Ted's lecture the impact that this sort of information can have. Yes I had heard about the protests and demonstrations that were going on in the #mena region however I did not understand the impact that social networks had on these events.

Another great example of the impact that social networks can have on specific events is the London riots. We all saw reports or news bulletins with information regarding the riots and the part that social networks played but how much of an impact did social networks?

It was the shooting of Mark Duggan on the 4th of August that sparked a series of riots (which can be followed on this interactive timeline) The first form of social media recognised was the use of Blackberry messenger which was named as a "key tool in the organisation of activities" and it was later released that Police would be investigating and would be able to track down and arrest those whom had been organising and communicating via BBM. Like what happened in Egypt (but in relation to phone networks not the internet) the government shut off phone communication networks in order to stop/ prevent protests which only seemed to spark more!

After the phone networks were turned off the blame for the riots was next shifted to social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.. The Guardian complied a unique database with over 2.5million tweets with relation to the riots which have been presented in a time line "Twitter traffic during the riots" (Definitely worth a look) which shows patterns with relation to events which occurred.

Although social networks and other forms of modern day technology had a lot to blame they also had a major affect on the clean up from the riots. What do you think about the affects of social networking and new media technology and the effect that it has on riots and events (mena, Cronulla riots etc)? Could more have been done to prevent this sort of affect?

I also found this interesting fact.. (Seems appropriate as my assignment is on e-retail and it also relates to this blog post...)
During the riots Amazon.co.uk's top sports and leisure sellers included police batons and baseball bats..

Search "Hack" and prepare to be hacked!

Sure we all know what hacking and viruses are and the majority of us have been hacked or had viruses on our computers whether we know it or not (Yes I am also including the friend/siblings etc that 'hack' your facebook page!)

So while thinking about last weeks lecture topic and how I would go about it, I looked at some information about hacking, the history of hacking and what information was actually out there on hacking (including websites recommended in the lecture). Being a bit of a smart arse I posted a twitter comment...

and do you know what?!

Today when I received my monthly security report sure enough on the 19th of September I had 3 web threats ...

When I had a closer look at the web threats sure enough they were all from websites which provided information on hacking. (Not happy!.. so don't expect too much external research in this blog!)

I guess this goes to show how easy it is to be exposed to threats on the internet considering I was being so careful as well. Thank goodness to virus protection I say!

Sticking to what I know I was reading through the news as I do on a daily basis and I came across the following article "Googling Heidi Klum? Prepare for a virus or two" (don't worry this link has no viruses!). Sure enough we all know there are viruses out there but for there to be a list of the Top 10 list of the Most Dangerous Celebrities to Google is a worry! 

In a way I guess I respect hackers as I know that what they are able to do is so very clever and I would never be able to do it myself, however what I question is whether their uses or purpose behind the hacking is... 

What is your opinion on hacking? Prior to this weeks topic were you aware of viruses and hacking to its true extent? 

 

News Flash! Elise Boonstra says.....

Facebook is now not only a SNS but it is now turning into a mass convergence platform which provides chat, messaging, video sharing and even citizen journalism providing information on local, national and international events. Who needs the news when you have Facebook?!

I am the type of person to read the paper/the news online to find out what's going on around the world. I personally don't rely on Facebook to find out what's going on in the world however how many of you do?  Each month more than 30 billion pieces of content (including weblinks, news stories etc) are uploaded to Facebook news feeds with this excessive number its no wonder that people are now relying on Facebook to feed them with the latest news and 'goss'.

Honestly I found out about the death of Osama Bin Laden after logging into Facebook (I had been to uni and straight to work and hadn't checked the newspaper), thinking it was some sort of joke I searched the internet in order to confirm what was posted left, right and centre on Facebook. Yes there might be somethings that you can believe that are posted on Facebook but in terms of the news would you rely on status updates feeding you information on the world around you.
Would you believe what is posted on a status in regard to the news? or Would you believe it if it is linked to a reliable source?

Research has shown that "Facebook as a traffic driver to top news sites are on the up" meaning that people are beginning to externally research what they read on Facebook. "On five of the top 25 websites, Facebook was the second or third biggest driver of traffic" and it is interesting to note that "Twitter, barely registers as a referring source,” Facebook is really becoming a platform of convergence I wonder whether it will ever overtake news sites as an informer for news!

What do you think about Facebook as a news source?

Retail and its Long tailllllllllllllllll

Think about this... You walk into Sportsgirl (for boys lets say... Roger David) you have your standard styles, colours and brands in order to cater for the mass market. What happens when you like something a little different?

At present we live in a market of generic clothing which is produced in mass quantities with the introduction of the internet and online shopping we have seen a recent trend in custom clothing and offbeat styles which allow for individualism therefore introducing the long tail concept into the shopping and retail industry.

Zappos.com is an online store which is and has been very popular in the US and UK. The larger the variety of styles that were added to the website the faster the online company grew, as the new variety of styles allowed for people in search of off beat styles and individualism. Now Zappos top 20% of products only account for half of the revenue, indicating that the long tail effect is also present in the retail industry.

How many of you agree that the introduction of internet shopping has allowed for more individualism and 'off beat styles' when shopping for clothing? 

Phone Death...

I remember the first phone I had. It had the capabilities to answer phone calls and write text messages and that is about it.. not to mention the fact it weighed about a kilo and had a nice big antenna out the top. Not the flashiest phone I know, however I had to call mum when I was walking home to let her know I was safe and no this was not 20 odd years ago but about 10.

I found it amusing to find a picture of the phone with the caption "Nokia Shit Brick"

When I went into year 7 my phone got promoted to a phone which had monochrome graphics, call and message features, clock and alarm and the best game ever on phones "Snake". In just 2 years the convergence of alarm and games were able to be incorporated into the "Nokia 2100".




Nokia 2100


From there technology seemed to take off as phones were being made with colour screens and cameras and radio and bluetooth and GPS and.. and.. and.. and.. and.. the list goes on... Fast forward to today some 7-8 years later. The convergence of media technology has enabled us to now carry 'smart phones' which have sometimes too much technology for us to handle from GPS to Facetime to Voice Control and HD Video editing...

Seriously, stop and think about all of the information and technology stored in your smartphone in your pocket.. How much of that do you actually use? and how many of you think that you would be able to cope with a Nokia 2100 or a Nokia "Shit brick"? Personally I feel like I could quite happily use a Nokia 2100 or similiar model.. (bricks are just too heavy for my liking). I recently went away with no phone or internet connection and actually felt quite good knowing that I didnt have to check to see if my phone had gone off or check facebook to see what Joe down the street is up to..

The convergence of media technology has allowed for this phenomenal change in the way in which we conduct our daily lives (we are now almost totally consumed by the media). Now we rely on this media convergence and what im interested to know is what happens when we reach "phone death".. I mean the Vinyl Record was replaced by CDs which have been replaced by iPods and Mp3 players. What is going to replace smartphones? Is it that smart phones have replaced the 'traditional phone' or will there be another technology that will replace these already complex smart phones?

Kookaburra sits in the old court room...

Where do we draw the line at copyright? If you are the creator of an idea then YES you should be acknowledged for coming up with the idea, however there are some aspects of copyright that just don't seem 'just'.

What happens when a DJ takes LMFAOs new song adds a few new sound effects to it, speeds it up 10% and publishes it on their new album as 'their' new track. Who owns the copyright to that..? Technically its LMFAOs song as they put the hard work into the creation of the track, melodies, words etc but a slight change in the beat and it no longer belongs to them...

I work as a dance teacher and I know that for my current production we actually had to receive permission from the record companies to use their tracks as we would be 'acting dj' and mixing them, speeding them up as well as adding our own sound effects to the tracks to fit our particular theme and this was all necessary in order for us to avoid being penalised for breaching copyright laws.
I understand copyright but just don't see how DJs don't get into trouble for copyright breaching when we had to ask for permission to use the tracks to do the exact same thing that a DJ does... (Anyone that understands this please feel free to explain)

Speaking of copyright associated with music use... A recent copyright case involved the 1980' band Men at Work and Larrikin Music. It look 28 years for the similarities to be noticed between Men at Works hit song "Down under" and Marion Sinclair 1934 girl guides jamboree song "Kookaburra sits in the Old Gum Tree". Men at Work were found guilty of a copyright infringement and were ruled to pay 5% of all profits made from May 2002 to Larrikin Music (Originally Larrikin was asking to 40-60% of profits which was ruled unrealistic). Who would have thought that the sort of 'unofficial' Australian anthem would be in the middle of a copyright infringement case!

What do you think about the Men at Work copyright case.. Have a listen to the tracks! Do you think that Men at Work stole the tune to the song?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-02-04/listen-to-a-mix-of-both-songs-and-compare/321638

Wired to Work!

It's becoming more and more prevalent  in todays society that technology is blurring the lines between what is work and what is leisure as current forms of communication allow us to be contacted at various hours outside of our work place. After reading Greggs "Function Creep" reading it really emphasised to me and got me thinking that technology really does blur the line between work and leisure.

With the introduction of iPhones, iPads and other smart phones or communication the number of hours being worked by employees is being increased and sa mentioned in Greggs reading but Towers et. al. 2006 "New media devices enable increase work hours for many employees by invading personal and leisure time".

At present being a full time uni student I dont usually 'bring my work home with me' as I dont allow for my work emails to be accessed via my phone. However I will sometimes have my boss contact me via text, call or to my personal email to discuss some aspects of work for the following day. However for my Dad ALWAYS had work or readings or email answering or phone calls or late night meetings that need to be made or answered outside of work hours. It used to get quite frustrating cause what used to be 'family time' or 'a family dinner' was often disrupted due to this additional work outside of work hours. Not only does this disrupt leisure time but it adds to work stress levels.

A good read for communication students is a book called 'The Winter of our Disconnect' but Susan Maushart where it follows Maushart and her families 'disconnect' from technology. In the book she looks at the busyness of her families chaotic lives and points out the blurring of the line between work and leisure in todays culture due to digital devices (which are intended to make lives easier). She notes that "The constant mixture of the two (being work and digital technology) has led to a true misunderstanding of what leisure should be".

Do you think that the blurring of work and leisure is right? Where do we draw the line?

All the Private Parts Exposed!

After starting uni this semester and joining all of the new media platforms that are required for the subject it got me thinking I wonder just how much information is available about me on the internet and how much is set to private. So I decided to conduct a little test.. 

Just using Google I 'Googled myself' just to see how much information was readily available for the world to view! 

 

As seen in my Google screen shots above all of the information available from the 1st page of Google and Google Images was mainly from Social Networking sites, Blogs from another subjects and a job application I was a finalist for. This specific example shows how easily it is to loose control of your privacy and how easy it would be for strangers to get their hands on information about you. Each of my social networking sites are set as private and it is frustrating to know all my private information is still being advertised if searched and exposed for the world to see. I dont even have a Myspace account any more however all the images and information is stored on their servers and still out there for the world to view!! 

Privacy is a main concern especially when it comes to how much is readily available about you on the internet and what really concerns me is the number of young children who fake their age in order to make themselves a Facebook page when they don't completely understand the effects that it may have on them. 

Already some bosses or companies will view or request to view your Facebook profile before they employ you as a part of their company. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for all the 13-16 year olds who post obscenities, rude images and offensive language on their Facebook on a daily basis when they go to get a job and they are denied as a result of their immaturity as a teenager. 

Last week it was announced that Germany has made the Facebook Facial Recognition service on tagging photos illegal. In relation to the issue Johannes Caspar (2011) said "that this feature allows Facebook to gather data and this can only threaten the anonimity of Facebook users". 

What do you think about privacy on the internet and what is your opinion on Facebook's facial recognition service being banned in Germany? 

To the Internet and Beyond....

As a primary school student I remember studying the invention of the Telegraph, Radio and the Telephone and presenting my findings on a piece of prettied up cardboard with ‘cut and paste’ information from books and encyclopaedia’s not to mention the fact it was mainly done with the help of mum and dad! That was only 12-13years ago but boy has my understanding of communication and technologies changed since then!

Today I think we all underestimate the complexity of the communications that we use on a daily basis and in many cases take for granted. I could not think of anything worse than having to rely or use a horse to communicate to those that ‘aren’t in my line of sight’, and I don’t know about the rest of you but I know if that was how it works today it would be a long time in between communicating with some of my family and friends.

Before this weeks readings and lecture I was honestly oblivious to the fact the military first developed the concept of the internet or that there are undersea cables linking us to the rest of the world, call me dumb but I never thought about it that hard. I was always a curious kid but as I mentioned obviously took the internet and communications for granted!

This week I particularly liked Sterling, 1993 reading. It amused me as to the fact it discussed the possibilities for the internet however some 18 years later it has achieved these and gone above and beyond the expectations, as it failed to mention the possibility for: 

• Smartphones/ iPhones
• Social networking
• Skype 
• Or even wireless networks

What I found most interesting about this week’s discussion is the fact that with the internet and worldwide communication, “The world becomes a single body, wires and cables as its nerves”. I feel that is a good comparison as it assists with our understanding of how complex the internet is.

The image below of the global Facebook usage shows us the extent to which our usage of communication systems forms an electrical nervous system, whereby the lights signify the connection hubs.

The question is where can our technologies progress to from here? 

This is who I am....

Hi Everyone!

Just a bit about me..
I'm 19 and I am currently studying a Bachelor of Communication and Media at UOW where I am a 2nd year student. My majors include Advertising and Markering as well as Digital Communication. I have 2 jobs, I work as a doctors secretary and I also work at an Aquarium ( I <3 Fish) where I run the online business, organise seminars & special events, work on the businesses advertising & marketing as well as I work on the accounts/invoicing.

There are many words in which I could describe myself, but the following 3 words pretty much sums me up!

I LOVE to Dance.. I have done so for the last 16 and a half years! Yes it's a while but its what I love to do. I now teach dancing as well at my old high school. Any style and everystyle I do/ have done love it all!

As well as dancing, I play oztag, run (specifically enjoy hurdles) however do just go for a jog to clear my head.. Actually you rarely catch me sitting around doing nothing as I have wayy too much energy!

I HATE Noses.. Seriously the most disgusting things ever! They really make me cringe. Dont sniffle.. GET A TISSUE and if your gonna sneeze the whole AAAAAHHHHHHH CHOOOO thing is not necessary.

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Twitter: EliseBoonstra

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