Interesting Websites

Just saw this post sitting in my draft section. Woops!

Interesting websites that I like to use are:

hypem.com: this website allows you to search your favorite artists, displays new songs by them or remixes and lets you to listen to them as well; it also links you to certain blogs that have posted these songs; i enjoy this website because I like finding new remixes to my favorite songs

stumbleupon.com: I cannot tell you how addicting this site is, I could literally spend hours browsing through all these random websites that come up; when you sign up there's a section where you check of your interests, such as photography, music, art, travel, world news, etc; after that, then you just click "stumble upon" and it redirects you to a website pertaining to one of the interests you selected; what I like most about this site is that there are billions of websites on the internet, some that you may never come across, but this feature allows you to be exposed to an eclectic array of websites geared towards your interests.

I don't really know any other interesting websites that I go on. These two are the most unique; others are just normal websites such as Gmail, listening to music on Grooveshark, Facebook, BBC news, Yahoo.com, myRutgers, Sakai, clothing store websites, and probably a few more.

Final Paper Blog 3

So after getting all my ideas together, I finally finished writing my final draft of my paper on Technopoly. The key arguments that I discussed were about generational gaps caused by technology, how everyday students use technology, and how universities and businesses have integrated technology into their everyday routines. Postman's book Technopoly was very biased against technology, saying that America has become too reliant on these advanced tools, and believes that our culture should take a step back and realize what we are losing by becoming so dependent on these tools, such as computers, internet, cell phones, televisions, and etc. I do believe that our world has integrated technology into all aspects of our lives. Today's generation is completely defined by technology. However, there is no way for us to revert back to the days where we didn't use technology for schools, colleges, and the workforce. There is no doubt that technology gives us convenience, it makes our lives easier. We can do things faster, and because of that we can accomplish even more tasks. Because of these changes, technology also alters the way teachers present and teach to students, and it also affects how students learn. The internet and television have redefined the way not only students, but how people use these media outlets in acquiring knowledge. I don't think that technological advances detract from a university's mission to give their students higher education, it just redefines the way students go about in learning it.

Final Paper Blog 2

So after skimming through Technopoly I realized that I can definitely relate to it more, being that we all are students in this technology era, and have decided to write my final paper on it. The question if modern day college campuses are technopolies can be answered in a few ways. By being at Rutgers, a state university, for four years now I can without a doubt say that our campus is a technopoly. I've started writing my first draft of my paper, and come up with several ideas to support my stand on college campuses being technopolies. Universities today are very keen on presenting themselves as a "state-of-the-art institution" and having many resources available for their students. Students need to have easy access to computers and printers to complete homework assignments and obtain class notes. Online school emails and class websites are also created for conveniently sending out mass messages to the student body. The emergency text system is also another technological resource our school uses, knowing very well that the quickest way to contact students in a campus-wide emergency is by cell phone text messaging. Then I began to think about schools that specifically specialize in certain fields of study, such as architecture, engineering, computer programming, and etc. Students attend these schools because they are well known for their programs, and offer students the latest technology and software to learn about the specific area of study they have chosen. As universities and colleges gain more technological advances and apply them in their school, it increases their standards as a higher education institution. They become more publicized, and the need to uphold their reputation is increased as well. There are many consequences to all this technology. Because everything is so convenient, the effort that students put into actually learning seems to be decreasing. Postman even talks about how many of the jobs on the market today are looking for people with "skills" and not just a well-rounded education. Most jobs require people to use technology in some way, and if a recent graduate isn't familiar with a certain program or software in his or her field, it is unlikely that they would be the first one picked to get that job. Those are some of the ideas I have for now, and hopefully I'll have a more concrete flow of thoughts when I start editing my paper.

Final Paper Blog 1

At first, when I read the topics for the final I immediately decided that I wanted to write my paper on Made to Break. One reason being that I enjoyed the points that Giles Slade made about Americans being accustomed to the idea of obsolescence in many aspects of their lives. American society had invented the idea of disposability themselves, and in doing that there have been benefits, but many consequences as well. As new technologies emerge, faster and more convenient products are made. Americans have become obsessed with having all these new tools, whether it be for entertainment or some actual useful purpose. However, not many of us consider what happens to the older tools that we all have replaced with new ones. Personally, I do believe in the Green Movement, and definitely feel that many of us take for granted all the technological tools we are exposed to. People in other countries can barely afford to feed themselves, and here we are buying new computers, cell phones, iPods, and whatever else, when many of our old products are still in perfect working condition. Now we have to come up with solutions to store or dispose of these unwanted products. It seems that the more advanced technology becomes, along with it comes problems that we as a country must deal with and find solutions for.
I'm still undecided if I want to write my final paper on this topic though, because I find it interesting but the idea is  very broad. I can still relate to it, but the other topic about college campuses being technopolies is directly related to all students. By being at Rutgers University for the past four years, it's easy to analyze firsthand how the school itself, students, and faculty all use technology. In my opinion, I do believe that Rutgers is a technopoly, students and faculty rely on several technological tools for every single class that I have taken at this university. Even though I find Made to Break more interesting, I think Technopoly can be more related to my personal experiences which is why I will most likely choose to do my paper on it.

The Facebook Effect Part III

In the last section of The Facebook Effect, Kirkpatrick continues to discuss the many programs being implemented on Facebook. "Why were photos and events so good?...It was because despite all their shortcomings they had one thing no one else had" (pg. 217). The website had created simple concepts, but unique to their site because other competitors did not have them. Zuckerberg stated that "we have the most powerful distribution mechanism that's been created in a generation" (pg. 217). There is definitely no arguing that statement. This social "distribution mechanism" allowed users to use applications, play games, create notes, upload photos, update personal statuses, message and connect with people from all over the world, and all on one site. "Facebook was becoming it's own self-contained universe" (pg. 227). Facebook did tackle some problems, a major one being Beacon, which was an alert service that affiliated itself with many consumer driven websites. Many people who purchased items on these Beacon affiliated sites would be asked very briefly if they would want their purchases published onto Facebook. Several cases of users that were unaware of this had their private purchases published in the mini-feeds of their friend's on Facebook, and hence caused much controversy. Beacon was invasive and misused personal information, and was completely shut down.
Companies have also begun to market themselves on Facebook, by creating their own pages that users can become "fans" of. It's almost like a new form of advertising, and in this case, many consumers can interact with the companies. For example, Mazda asked fans to help design a car for 2018. Ben & Jerry's asked the people on their Facebook page what their new flavor should be. Facebook users that interact and "like" or write on these fan pages, their activity is published into their friend's mini feeds. This allows however many friends you have on Facebook to see that you "liked" or wrote on Ben & Jerry's page, and sometimes might even lead others to go to that webpage as well. This new form of interactive marketing seems much more efficient in getting consumers to recognize companies. Just recently I went to a wedding, and my mom had asked the photographer for his business card. He handed her a card and also said that you could find them on Facebook as well, if she wanted to see pictures of other functions they have done. Companies and even small businesses seem to be putting more emphasis on promoting and building up their Facebook page, even more so than their actual company webpage.
In all honesty, I really do believe Facebook has good intentions. I'll be the first to admit that I have wasted several hours on it doing nothing but chatting or going through people's profiles. However, with all the programs and interactions that it allows us to accomplish it essentially connects our world, and if we don't abuse it for unproductive or wrong reasons, it can really be a beneficial aspect of our lives.

Solo Current Event Presentation

 I found my current event article on the Wall Street Journal's website, and was titled "Sites Feed Personal Details To New Tracking Industry." The link for the article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703977004575393173432219064.html

The article goes on to tell us that some of the United States major websites such as Google.com, MSN.com, Dictionary.com, and several others are installing tracking tools on the computers of people visiting their websites. When we use the internet, we are supposedly accessing "free content" that the websites provide us with, but in return without our consent, tracking devices are installed to our computers by the websites we visit. The tracking tools that are installed come from companies that are in the business to gather data and create consumer profiles that can be sold, and then use that information to target specific advertisements to people online. The ad industry says that tracking does not violate people's privacy because the data being sold is anonymous. Tracking technology has begun to raise concerns, and Congress is even considering on implementing laws to limit and regulate tracking. 


In my opinion, I don't see the harm in tracking devices so far. The advertisements that come up when I visit websites are definitely related to my interests, but I never seem to click on them. I don't find them helpful at all, but don't mind if they are there either. Although, I can definitely see why other people would be concerned about tracking files being installed into their computers without their consent. Personally, I'm not too worried or affected by it, so I don't really mind. 

The Facebook Effect - Part 2

After Accel invested in Facebook, it was finally a real company, and could now afford to build a real staff. In 2005, from June to October alone, Facebook's users went from 3 million to 5 million. With the increasing number of people using the website, the company had to find ways to maintain the servers for the huge influx of users coming in everyday and the more that were to come in the future. Now that Facebook was a legitimate company, Zuckerberg faced the many challenging tasks of hiring people to work for the company, but also keeping it a fun and hip place to work. Facebook was initially biased toward the youth of today's generation, but as we see today, it has become a social network for all ages. There were many innovative features and ideas that Facebook implemented over the years, which helped in keeping its users interacting with the site. One of the many features that Facebook had that I believe a lot of people enjoy, including myself, is the photo tagging. The idea seems so simple, allowing users to put pictures on a website, and then "tagging" their friends in the photos so it would show up on their pages as well. However, the Facebook team made an important decision, in that to see the next picture all you had to do was click anywhere on the photo you were looking at. "They were attempting to encourage that 'Facebook trance' that kept people clicking through pages on the service. It made looking at photos simple and addictive" (pg. 155). Simple and addictive is definitely the right way to put it. I can't even fathom how many hours I might have spent looking through pictures and photo albums, sometimes of people that I barely even know. Although, what's interesting to note is that while reading, Kirkpatrick mentions how  Zuckerberg was not interested in increasing the company's revenue or making money with advertisements on the website. I personally don't know if I believe that completely, but I'm sure Zuckerberg had good intentions when starting the site and wanting to create a social network. However, after some time I'm sure there was pressure and somewhat of a desire to keep the success of Facebook going strong, and soon advertisements were put into effect, along with other programs as well. The "News Feed" was also another program that Facebook decided to try out. At first, users did not like it all, and there was a high negative feedback. Although, ever since the News Feed was put into effect, there was an increase in the use of the website, clearly showing that people did use it. Therefore it stayed, people became used to it, and Facebook increased its use of the service. What I enjoyed most about reading this section of The Facebook Effect was that it gave you a slight inside story on what and how the programs that we use on Facebook came into play. I always seem to forget that someone had to come up with these ideas over time, and lots of work and hardship was put into making something so successful.