Reality and Identity Chat from Group 3 September 30, 2007

There were two main points from this chat that I thought were extremely interesting. The first one being the fact that people are relying too much on the Internet. I feel as though this an extremely true statement and as stated in the chat, people are even using the computer to do things as easy as food shopping. As technology is continuing to grow people are going to take advantage of everything that is offered to them. Unfortunately this becomes a bigger problem. People are relying too much on the Internet. For one thing if people continue to think that computers can do anything that they want them too as stated in the chat, “people won’t leave their houses anymore”. The Internet and computers are not a realistic life saver. Computers crash and although they can be fixed they can’t be totally relied on. If people continue to live off the Internet more and more of this country will become obese and their will be more problems then we need to deal with at this point in time.

Another aspect of the chat that I thought was a little scary was the fact that anyone is capable of using the computer. It’s interesting to think that in reality nothing is ever really private once it is put on the Internet because so many people can find ways to gain access to anything nowadays. It is unfortunate to think that their are so many creepy people out their trying to steal identity’s and other aspects of peoples lives. As stated in the chat, even things that are deleted can be found almost anywhere on the Internet. Technology has advanced so much in the last few years that smart people who know their ways around computers can find anything they want whether it be private or not their are leaks within the system. Hopefully as time passes the Internet will be able to fix these few unfortunate kinks and people will realize that the Internet isn’t yet as reliable as people make it look or actually would like it to be.

-lisa

Second Life September 29, 2007

Another type of writing space that I was introduced to in one of my other teaching classes is Second Life. Second Life is a place where you can totally change your identity. With this you can become a totally different person and have a totally different name. Second Life allows you to chat with other people who are in the system without knowing who they are. You can be totally anonymous and say what ever you feel without being judged.

In some ways Second Life is a great concept that technology has given us. It allows people to say what they feel without the pressure of others knowing where it came from. It is an interesting way to meet face to face with others who could possibly be in another country so to speak. Unfortunately like all other networking sites their are always downsides. You never know who you are talking to and people are able to change their appearances to trick others into thinking they could be great matches. Second Life is a new and interesting writing space that people should get aquainted with to see where technology has brought us today.

-Lisa

Class matters September 29, 2007

Today we talked a lot about authorship in our chat session. It made me wonder about those who don’t sign their names to their works.  Could it be  they feel their work is not good enough to let everyone know  that it came from them.  If it’s a really important piece of work that will benefit others in some way why not own up to it.  If we’re talking about chatting, I can understand people signing on anonymously.  Going to places like MUD could be  embarrassing especially if they are on their doing things they shouldn’t be doing.Chatting was something I’ve never done.  I’m glad I had the opportunity to experience it. It’s not something I would otherwise be interested in, although it did make the class go fast. There were times when I felt completely like the turtles on that commercial. HaHa. Well, I’ll see you all next week. Have a great weekend.  Petisa

Class Overview September 28, 2007

Class this morning was a really neat experience. When first hearing that we would be chatting on the computer instead of having a class discussion, I was wondering what the point of that was. Automatically, I came to the realization that having a discussion in a chatroom with other classmates opened up a world of possibility. Instead of having to raise your hand to share your thoughts, everyone could be talking at the same time. Also, it allowed us to withhold our identities and create a different name, so other people wouldn’t know who exactly they were talking to. Not only this, but the class went by so much faster!

            My group focused our conversation on authorship. What is that exactly? I would come to the conclusion that it is the writing one produces and claims ownership to. On terms of authorship on the internet, that is a bit of a different story. With so many people blogging anonymously these days, sometimes it is hard to tell who a true author is. If people blog anonymously they are risking the chance of someone else stealing their work and claiming it as their own. With the digital world producing so many possibilities, it is hard to come up with a clear cut definition of what authorship really is. What does authorship mean to you?

                                                                                                -Amanda

I Write. September 28, 2007

At the long-awaited conclusion of DeVoss’ article, “Why Napster Matters to Writing”, reasons are given as to why people write:

 

“People write because they want to interact, to share, to learn, to play, and to help others. They engage others for connection, compatibility, love, sex, desire, self-fullfillment (or egomania), the thirst for justice, the thirst for freedom, out of boredom, out of need for interaction, to make their lives more comfortable…”

             This got me thinking. I am a Writing Arts major. When first applying to Rowan I declared undecided because I was torn between education and journalism. After taking some education courses, I found that I really do want to be a teacher. My College Comp I course, though very challenging, was the most writing-intensive course I have ever been involved in. The articles we read and topics we wrote about were very intriguing and even though it was difficult to master, I was always pleased with the final drafts of my writing. I was writing at a level I didn’t know I was capable of achieving. Reaching desired goals on terms of grades, I found self-fullfillement. My professor was very informative and thus I requested her for College Comp II. So what am I rambling on about here? I have always had a desire for writing, and for conquering seemingly difficult tasks. That’s why I came to declare Writing Arts as my dual-major. 

            On more personal terms, I write because I can. I write because I want to. I write because I have to. I write because I need to. I write to relieve stress. I write to remember. I write to study. I write to inform. I write to understand. I write to vent. I write to impress. I write for the fulfillment I feel after producing something valuable and worth reading. Ultimately, I write for me. So far this course has introduced me to ways in which I can write freely, publish my own thoughts, and receive feedback on my own written words. Stories of bloggers being recognized for blogs they post provide me with the motivation to start doing the same. I can write what I want, when I want, at the convenience of my own home. This suits me perfectly, since my main profession will be in teaching. I don’t know what I want to do with writing when I “grow up”, but I do know that it is something I will always have a desire for. With the advancements of writing in digital spaces, who knows what I will get myself into. Whatever it may be, I am looking forward to it.

                                                                                                -Amanda

Lonely Girl 15 September 28, 2007

Wow! Prior to this assignment, I never had any idea about LonelyGirl15 and the amount of attention she drew from viewers across the nation. After reading “The Secret World of Lonely Girl” I was anxious to watch some of the videos. It seemed really neat to me that some kid just wrote a little series, decorated his room as if it were a girl’s, and found an actress to play the role of a geeky girl in a lonely town. It leaves the impression that anyone can make it big in this world. The videos that I watched were pretty good. I never really just go on YouTube and browse for videos so this was kind of a new experience for me. I have watched videos on YouTube, but I never viewed a series quite like this.

Honestly, I think her videos are cute. She comes off as a typical girl just bored in her room, venting her emotions. The only difference: she’s talking to the entire world. In my opinion, it makes no difference whether she is pretending to be someone else or if she is acting as herself. The only thing that matters is that she is entertaining and keeps the viewers’ interest. After all, we all watch a multitude of shows on TV and those people are not acting as their true selves. I guess the only problem here was that she posed as if it really was her, when really it wasn’t. But oh well, that’s how it is these days. Anything online can deceive you, especially with the technology that is out there and on the advance. Kind of gets me thinking…what’s in store for Lonely Girl now?

                                                                                                         -Amanda

Lonelygirl September 27, 2007

I had never heard of Lonelygirl before taking this class. I even asked my daughter about it and she was clueless. She mainly focuses on MySpace. If I hadn’t know any better, I would have believed this was a real teenager doing teenage things. The one thing that did strike me as being a little strange was that her father allowed her to be in the room with a young man…with the doors closed. The issues surrounding the reality of this show doesn’t really surprise me. Why would they hide the facts? Maybe to create more interest in the show. Also, how do we know a lot of the new shows that we watch on television are real. For example Flavor Flav’s show. Who would date, let alone kiss him unless they knew they were getting some kind of incentive to do so? The television has been bombarded with these types of shows and though I’m not a big fan of them, I do check them out every now and then for the laughs — or the drama. I’m always questioning their authenticity, because certain things  that happen in these shows just don’t make sense.  I’ve even heard that some of the game shows are rigged in certain ways.  Petisa    

Why Napster Matters September 27, 2007

In the article “Why Napster Matters to writing: Filesharing as a new ethic of digital delivery.  DeVoss and Porter explain why they feel that teachers of writing need to change their thinking about the way writing  and plagarism can be incorporated, in new ways, into technology.Their belief is that with the right guidelines of the Fiar Use Act and others, students will benefit from being able to use others’ works in their favor.  This in turn will lend to more creativity among students.  They note that Walt Disney stole a character  from Buster Keaton, and that otheres like Martin Luther King, Jr.,Thomas Jefferson and Mark Twain were also plagiarists in one way or another.In my opinion, they make valid points.  You can only say the same thing about a situation in so many ways.  What we learn is always built on what those before us put into the world around us. Technology allows us to build on those ideas and concepts and create better, more productive ones.

For the education majors, What are some ways that you can help your students stay within the guidelines of filesharing? - Petisa

Hey guys September 26, 2007

I  spent the entire weekend trying to figure out what to do with this page. Anyway I did read the article “A rape in cyberspace.”  It was pretty strange. I felt I was reading a sci-fi novel. No way this could be a real scenario.  But it is. I think it crosses a lot of greyish lines.  For example when a physical rape takes place, a lot of times the woman is blamed or accused of lying. I felt that a lot of that was going on in this article.    

My First Blog! September 26, 2007

Hey my name is Lisa and I am an Elementary Education/Writing Arts Major. This is my forst blog ever and I definately have to say this is an interesting assignment. I think blogging in general is a weird yet interesting idea that people have come up with. I mean, I think it’s great that people are able to post their opinions and hope that other people share the same view or have another side of ones view. It is also a great way to meet new people with the same interests or even learn about others interests. I for one after researching blogs may actual look into it when I get to be a teacher. As a teacher it is important to understand what you want to do in the classroom and how you are going to incorporate your own goals and feelings within the job. Blogging is a great way to find out ideas of what other teachers around the world are actually doing and and find out similiar problems that others have so that I wont feel alone. It is a great place to find new activities and solve problems that might occur within the classroom with other teachers opinions and views.

As great as blogging sounds there are some downfalls to it. For example, I would never be one to blog about my life as a whole. Although many people do want to share their hopes, dreams, and activities, I would never read one or write one myself. Too many creepy people get involved in blogs and stalk people out and don’t understand the dangers of what blogging could cause. Nobody should be stupid enough to put all their information online for the world too see. Unfortunately as I am writing this I think about other sites that people use that are doing just that. Facebook is an excellent example of this. People need to learn how to keep most information to themselves or else they are just asking for trouble.