The Internet Adventure

Final Blog

2005-02-22T23:58:00.000-08:00

How my perspective of blogs changed? When i first encountered the blog, i really had no idea what it was. I couldn't understand why people would post a personal diary on the internet for everyone to see. My view of the blog as a personal diary has changed significantly from then. I no longer think of a blog as one person's voice to the world. My view of blogs changed as i began to interact more and more with them. Interestingly enough, i ended up writing my research hypertext on the use of blogs. From my research, which is based in the use of blogs for business purposes, i realized what the blog really is. To me, the blog is simply a way to distribute information. This simple definition encompasses every aspect of the blog because essentially the blog is writing posted on the internet. It just happens that they are easy to setup, easy to use, and are easily accessible which is good for people who like to distribute information whether personal, corporate, or political. As i researched the use of blogs in business, i found that the blog can be used for many purposes. In the business, the blog is good for advertising, communication within the business, and for customer service. This all boils down to communication and interaction which its sole purpose is to distribute information. So my view of blogs has changed dramatically. However, my view is not the opposite of what it was before, it just expanded the blogs' definition enormously. I have really enjoyed having my own blog, and i want to continue using it whether for school or my own personal use. Many people think that the blog is just a fad. I think that it is possible, but not likely because the essential part of the blog is the purpose of the internet. This purpose is the distribution of information, and as long as there is not a better way to communicate ideas then i think that the blog will continue in its popularity.

what i liked in the midterm presentations

2005-02-18T09:33:00.000-08:00

I really liked when people used powerpoint, but didn't rely strictly on powerpoint to guide their presentation. I am still a big fan of confidence and interest of the topic. I think both of these can make almost any subject interesting. I liked Derrick's powerpoint. I thought that it was interesting and captivating. I also liked Fred's presentation. He just gave an example from his research, but it was relevent to all of us. He also aded a little bit of humor. I thought that Yi lang's presentation was much better than the last one.

Response to Blogging as Form of Jounalism

2005-02-08T22:57:00.000-08:00

I have really been getting into blogs lately especially because i'm doing my research on blogs. The concept of a blog is really fascinating for many reasons. They can be about anything and be written by anybody. The range of topics and personalities that are shown on blogs is really astounding. Some blogs are very specific and some are very broad. This is the beauty of the blog. It really has no limitations and it gives everybody a chance to be heard. This article addresses this idea that blogs can be written by everybody. It talks about how a blog gives anybody and everybody the capability to be a journalist. The debate is whether blogging is truly a form of journalism. To those who work for big newspapers and companies, blogging is not a type of journalism. This makes sense because the qualifications for their jobs would be non-existent. However, many people argue that blogging is journalism because it bypasses all of the filters of corporate America, and it allows people who have minority opinions to be heard. Not only can these people be heard, but they can be heard in their own words with their own ideas and their own motives. This is almost an impossiblity with newspapers and other forms of traditional journalism. One writer in this article says that the WTO protesters in Quebec were not truthfully represented in the paper. Blogging gives people like these an opportunity to be heard for what they are actually saying. I personally agree with blogging as journalism. Blogs allow for anybody to be heard, and the fact that everybody is given an equal chance is truly what matters. The best bloggers, in the end, will be the most highly viewed and read, but these won't necessarily be those who are the biggest or the richest. This is the way it should be. Everybody should have an equal chance to be heard, and the result of this is that the best of the best will get what they deserve.

after conversation

2005-02-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

The conversation helped me because it got me thinking of my topic in terms of other people. By talking to Justin about my topic, I realized that some things that i thought were interesting weren't necessarily interesting to him. So when i present, i need to keep the audience's interest in mind.

Plans for Next Presentation

2005-02-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

I'm not exactly sure how i want to present my research for the next oral. I think that i will use a powerpoint and maybe go to the internet sites that i'm studying. This would be a different type of presentation than my last, and I think that if i could show the class what i am doing, it will be more interesting. I could maybe visit some of the blog sites and read a few blogs from those sites. I could use a powerpoint slide to again raise the important questions. I could also display statistics on the frequency of the use of blogs. I could also list quotes of what companies and bloggers are saying about this marketing relationship.

Responding to Hyptertext theory and Webdev

2005-01-30T15:54:00.000-08:00

"Both writing and reading on the Web are defined by the expectation of interaction. To design a website, the writer must conceive of the pages as a structure that might be explored in a variety of orders by different readers with different needs"
This quote was taken from the transparency part of the theory section. The idea that a hypertext can be explored in many different ways is very intriquing. Unlike a traditional paper, hypertext is not linear, so this allows for more freedom in reading the topic. In some ways, this freedom can allow for a better understanding by the reader because they choose what to read when. However, this freedom can also cause problems. With the freedom to roam wherever, it is possible for the reader to have a disjointed understanding of the different topics which are presented. I am think this is interesting because I experienced this while i was reading this website. I was going from link to link reading the different sections when i stopped for a moment and thought about what they all were saying collectively, and i was lost. As a reader of this text, I felt that the overload of options made it harder for me to comprehend the argument of the site. This confusion does not arise with a well-written traditional document because the only option to take is the option given to you by the writer. I found this problem interesting because i want to know how much freedom to give my readers. This section talked about how this freedom is a good thing because it draws differnt types of people in by letting them experience the topic how they want. I don't know if i agree with this because if the reader is only experiencing things the ways he or she wants, then is he or she really learning? I'll have to put a lot of thought into this while creating my hypertext.

Powerpoint Reply

2005-01-24T10:06:00.000-08:00

I read the first article about how rockstar David Byrne uses powerpoint as art. I think that powerpoint as art is a pretty ridiculous idea. From my experience, powerpoint is the furthest from art than almost anything that i can think of. I've seen it mainly in my PWR classes and in big lectures. However, I don't fully agree with the article. I think that powerpoint is useful. The article said that it is easy to use and easy to learn, and I agree. I think that powerpoint gives the main ideas in a limited about of time. If you are speaking, it is a good way to have an outline that you can see and use. I also agree with the article though when it describes how powerpoint takes away from many topics. Some lectures and ideas are not best expressed with the main ideas highlighted and the fillers thrown out. I have experienced many lectures on topics that were really interesting but where the use of powerpoint killed the lecture. It seems to simplify the ideas so much that the ideas no longer need to be thought about. That is my feeling towards powerpoint in many situations. Overall, I think that powerpoint is not such a bad thing. I think that it is good when you just need to lay down the facts. For example, I think for a business setting, powerpoint can be very good. Sometimes the topic is really dry, so just laying out the facts is all you need. In this case, the only information that is needed is that which is highlighted on the screen. However, in other cases, it is not the best way. Many of my professors rely on powerpoint to direct their lecture, but this only makes it boring. I think it is good to use to show the structure of a lecture, but i don't think that it should be used as the main source of a lecture. Well, these are my ideas on powerpoint. I think that no matter what I say, I will still have a long relationship with powerpoint wherever I go.

Research Topics

2005-01-09T22:24:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about my research topics, and i think i would either like to research a topic in e-commerce or gaming. I think that internet marketing, internet advertisement, and internet gambling sound interesting. If i had to choose one topic now i would probably choose internet advertising. I would like to learn which topics are effective and why. I would also like to learn how to create advertisements because i think that would be a useful tool to know. Internet gambling also looks interesting. Texas Hold'em has exploded in recent years and online gambling has become much more popular. I, personally, like to gamble, so this topic may be interesting. In the area of gaming, i think that internet connections for console systems such as XBOX, Gamecube, and PS2 is pretty interesting. Games like Halo 2 are extremely popular. Many people like to hook up to the internet to play with and against other students. This internet experience allows people all over the world to play against each other with the most popular games. I would like to see where this technology is going. I am more interested in console gaming rather than internet gaming. If i had to choose two topics i would most likely choose internet console gaming and internet advertisement. I think that these would be the most interesting.
The website for internet gaming would be www.xbox.com.
A website for internet advertising is www.iab.net
If i had to choose one like the blog prompt says, then i would pick internet advertising. I would like to learn more about this. It seems interesting, as well as, useful.

What is a blog?

2005-01-05T21:30:00.000-08:00

I don't actually know if i had heard of a blog before this class. I took PWR1 and i think that i might have written a blog in that, but i'm not sure. The writings we did were on Panfora, so i don't think they classify as a blog. Anyway, I have never really heard of a blog before i sat down and created one. The concept of a blog makes some sense even though it does seem a bit weird that people put thier intimate feelings or actions all over the place for people to read. I read the article on blogs that accompanied the Oct. 4 blog entry. The article was about the girl who worked for a government official and how people found out that she was writing the blog. I didn't really understand how people found out that it was her. That was one question I have about blogs. How would somebody know that I am writing this? That seems to defeat the purpose of writing anonymously. I really enjoyed creating the blog. It was easy, but it was new. I never go online. I hardly use my AIM, and i have never taken a real computer class. This is one reason that I'm excited to be taking a class about all this stuff even though I'm being forced to take it. My roommate is having a little anxiety over his blog. He's worried that people will read his and think that he is stupid. He keeps asking me to check his and make sure it is grammatically correct. It sounds like an essay. He took 3 or 4 hours writing his blog. I told him he didn't have to, but he is obsessive compulsive, so whatever. So, in conclusion, blogs are pretty cool. You feel like you are talking to a lot of people about really interesting and scandalous things when you really nobody is listening, and the only person who is going to read this is your professor and maybe, just maybe, another student in your pwr class.