We’ve gone meta!
Oh yeah! Ten-weeks of communication about communication (W/S 208)—specifically the computer mediated communication that happens when we login, click here, and hit enter or scroll the mouse. I took this class, not because its helping me graduate faster (actually, it doesn’t help me credit-wise at all) but when I decided to return to OSU and finally complete my degree, I was drawn to this course. It was my goal to take it, embrace it and ask myself these big questions about how the Internet plays a role in my life and in my communication with others, myself and within the world. Originally, I was a Communications student, so I thought, hey, one last hurrah in COMM-land.
I considered myself a bit of a cybernerd already, and to be quite honest, I assumed my classmates would all be major cybernerds as well. Why I thought this? Perhaps because it’s an online course about online culture? What I have discovered, however, is that I felt like the black sheep of the class. I struggled not using the internet for 24 hours. I could not do my job without the Internet. Some of my favorite hobbies use the Internet. I prefer sending and receiving emails—except with good friends. I like the convenience dropping a message to a friend or buying a book online or reading up-to-the-minute news or Hollywood gossip whenever I want. I frequently update my Facebook status! I use Twitter! I like that I have met people online who are now good friends. I like how good friends have remained good friends because of the Internet. IT’S A GOOD TOOL FOR ME.
Many times I wanted to throw Technopoly across the room in frustration. My hands in the air because either he was too right or I was all wrong or both? No one likes being told that a tool that has become a normal part of your life, to others is a pest, a tool for anti-privacy and perverts. Not that Postman argues this, but well, these are my own negative conclusions.
I decided to watch the movie “Untraceable” (this movie made in Portland), last week because after a course on the perils and plusses of the Internet in relationships, I thought a movie that was supposed to be a suspenseful drama that made you rethink the Internet. Wow. And boy did it ever. It was one of those movies that I would recommend anyone dumb enough to think that the Internet is this safe, cozy place and nothing bad happens ever. It would change their minds. I think old W/S or Postman would have a field day talking about the social implications of a serial killer using the Internet to literally kill his victims. All to prove a point… (watch the movie to learn what…)
This class, these blogs, the discussions, the books, the general opening of eyes of other ways of thinking of the Internet…have shown me that taking days or nights off “unplugged” is a good thing. A healthy thing. I have learned that my own parents are quite the Internet pros, and that no matter how much you can argue, you will never change the mind of someone who believes the Internet single-handedly crippling the people skills and relationships of young people today. No, don’t waste your breath.
I don’t know why… but I found it so odd that because of the topic of this class, I never really got to know anyone in the class outside of a few who commented on my blog and vice versa. I am surprised there wasn’t more effort to engage with one another. An assigned chat room/classroom experience where “real life” conversation could be practiced online may have helped. We were our own social experiment: did the online classroom serve to teach and engage as well as or better than the “real” classroom. We all have our own thoughts.
I wonder now taking this class, what is the main thing I have learned… the big lesson, how I would summarize my overall classroom experience. And I have to say: I have learned that the Internet is changing our lives… regardless if we recognize it or not. We say with airs of confidence we can go without it… but its an invisible reality everywhere we go… the Internet is used everywhere, technology is everywhere. Even Quakers have cell phones now.
What we can decide is how much this tool, this world of unknown limits, is going to control us. Like W/S asks: are we going to control the machine, or will we let it control us?
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Pimp This Bum. Really?
Now, you can drop your quarters and nickels to help the man with the cardboard sign… online. The website is called “pimpthisbum” and I chose this idea of “panhandling on the internet” as a potential misuse of the Internet.
Its a website to “fundraise” or offer a “hand up” to a homeless man, Tim. The website, www.pimpthisbum.com (Clever? Offensive? Would you check it out?) is currently raising money to send him to Seattle to start a 5-week alcohol recovery program, which was donated for his recovery. He needs plane fare.
The website collects money for his care and recovery, and as I understand, is motivated to rehabilitate this man to a place where he is healthy and living on his own. He offers a voice for the homeless community: this is who I am, this where I came from, the mistakes I made. But I want more. There are videos on the website that accounts his story (which is very interesting) and other peeks inside the life of a homeless man. In a sense, he is “representing” for his community… and as he says, if I don’t mess up, others can follow me and do the same.
The intent for this website seems to be do more good than harm, especially for this man. The cynic in me wonders if it will become a new craze in charity works: will I now sponsor homeless like children in third world countries, for $30 a month. Will I see their faces now on pop ups and facebook ads. Will I feel guilt or shame when I ignore their pleas as I do when I drive past them on the street corners.
I hear more and more how “average” people are using the internet to raise money for things- pay off mortgages, go on trips, etc. Is this website an example of panhandling gone high tech?
The compassion, merciful side of me wants to click on the donate here button. To see if my help will make a difference in this man’s life. Or will I just click to the next site… because its easy to move along on the web?
Would people be more likely, more motivated to give to this man because they can hear his story, be more involved in life because he is documenting it for this website? Would someone who would never give to a man on the street, be more or even less inclined to support this venture? It seems people are.
This article not only covers the idea of the Internet and its use of space, but also covers ideas of panhandling, giving, motivations, fundraising, role of the media, care of the poor… ultimately a new age of philanthrophy and charity in a technological age… “Tim” found a voice for himself… finding hope and help in the world, using “Internet communication to carve alterntative spaces” for himself and for others who have no voice or home living on the streets. (W/S 180) Caring for the homeless, online or not, is an example of an intentional community. When a group of people come together with a shared objective and goal. Pimp this Bum hopes to being together people who would want to help Tim and other homeless people from a life living on the streets.
To me, overall, its a good way to use the Internet.
I found this website when I ran across this article from “The Daily Star” when perusing the Associated Press website for an article on “potential misuse of the internet.”
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Back before relationships were so00 easily defined by Facebook and myspace statuses and back before webcams, skype and other online tools entered the online scene enabling communication to be so much better with faraway sweethearts (I hope you can sense some of the sarcasm I have just poured into the last sentence…) Yes, back before online interpersonal communication had become so much clearer, back when there was email and AOL Instant Messenger. Oh, the memories. Okay, so I think there were other online communities like ICQ and livejournal, but for me: there was AOL Instant Messanger and my hotmail account… and, of course, there was The Man From New York.
I won’t go into (too many of) the oh-s0-dramatic details of my first attempt to find online romance (because we have covered the movie You’ve Got Mail already…) rather this assignment is meant to discuss an incident of communication that took place online… and how the cyberspace context either made the communication worse or better. I was drawn to this example, “my first online foray into love”, because its a good reminder for me to be wary of how I portray my feelings online and how something innocent can snowball into something embarassing, hurtful, and avoidable.
I was 20, he was 26. We met while chatting on AOL Instant Messenger. He found me while I was goofing off online when I supposed to be studying my freshman year at Seattle Pacific. He was (and still remains to be) a good guy. So, if you assume this story will get into gory, sordid details of potentional Nightline drama, than, no. Nothing like that. Think: PG. Or maybe even G.
We chatted and chatted and chatted. We had so much in common. I look back on the conversations (yes, I still have some of them somewhere) and I wonder, really, what we were talking about. What we spent hours and hour and hours talking about with the 3 hour time difference and thousands of miles between us. We must have talked about something or, perhaps to quote some You’ve Got Mail, “all those nothings meant something.” After awhile, after all this online bonding we both came to our fantastic ideas of “our future together.” Persumingly, we’d date somehow, singing that song “I’d walk 5000 miles just to be with you,” and, then, with stars in our eyes and with hearts overflowing, I’d move there and, well, we’d be the epitome of online love. Perhaps we thought this because when you are young and naive you don’t know better than to let yourself get caught up in some crazy fantasy. Perhaps it was too many Sleepless in Seattle movies?
While I was fantsizing the perfect love story, he would ask to “hold my hand” online, tell me that I beautiful (I sent pictures, and contrary to the myth, they were real pictures of me!) and he would plan his day to chat with me. I was in la-la-la land.
I was flattered. Even twitterpatted. He was a nice guy, but he lived so far away and the likelihood we would ever meet seemed so farfetched to me. (I was clearly in denial.) I was, by then, a sophomore and had no idea how to communicate online to him my feelings, or lack of shared feelings. They always came out messed up, jarbled, or he’d read into whatever I said to be what he wanted. He told me I was his girlfriend. I was floored.
It seemed easy to just keep him on the computer, literally turn him on and off at will. He would want to talk serious relationship stuff all the time, asking if he could come to see me, and FINALLY I realized that this guy had real feelings for me. I had to face the music. Just because it was online, didn’t mean there weren’t feeling involved.
I freaked out.
I read through all our chats and seemingly innocent conversations and his flirtations… and I realized I had a boyfriend. Sorta. I had an online boyfriend.
Did I like him? Sure, I liked the image I had created in my head of who he was… he was perfect. Everything I wanted him to be. So, I said he could come visit.
And he did.
I remember I had to excuse myself out of my Interpersonal Communication class (which I felt was incredibly ironic) to leave for the airport to meet my online boyfriend. (Don’t worry, I did not go alone.)
Did he and I have an instant chemistry? Did the online communication that took place between us make us closer than ever, moving us to meet in real life and know each other perfectly?
No. Not for us.
I was a scared wreck. The weekend he visited is packed with hilarious stories, and fortunately, does not reveal anything dangerous. I was lucky. He was a nice guy, but when you spend a year and half in computer mediated conversation, little things like LISTENING TO ONE ANOTHER is difficult when suddenly you are in real life. You are used to being able to read when you want and the respond when you want. In real life, communication is instant. I wasn’t prepared. He wanted to really hold my hand, and tell me I was beautiful while looking in my eyes “because I can” (as he said)… and our online commucation did not prepare me for our short real life relationship. I looked at this man across from me and I missed the man I created in my head.
This was eight years ago. Shockingly after all that, he and I actually remain online friends, currently exclusive to Facebook super pokes or status comments. It took us eight years, a dozen or so highly emotional online/telephone conversations (and a lot of growing up on my part!) to determine that is what our “relationship” was going to be. This relationship, to me, is a prime example to me of how the cyberspace has changed and continues to change the potentional formation of relationships… there is a whole, new world out there… online. As more women entered the online world “by 2000, the ratio had evened to 50:50″ (W/S 168) the gender gap decreased. As more women entered cyberspace the likelihood a man and woman would have an online encounter increased as well. Its good odds.
As people depend on CMC to be the foundation of their relationships, however, communication disaster is inevitable UNLESS real life, old-fashioned communication can take place… with non-verbals cues and everything. Of course, this is my opinion.
Now, is there miscommunication in ”real life” interpersonal relationships? Certainly. All the time. But the digital divide is more than a difference in demographic accessibility to the computer or the web– its a the divide that is created between people when trying to communicate and form relationships online.
(With all that said… I still want to challenge its truth. When will I ever learn?)
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Internet Interviews
It feels as though I’ve been working on this assignment since the first day of this class. Every time I mentioned to someone I am taking an online class about “communication and culture on the Internet” a lengthly conversation follows packed with their opinions and own use of the world wide web.
For example, I met a nurse (late forties) at OHSU. Through conversation I learned tht she was appalled that so many young people spent their time on the Internet and that she personally can’t stand to use it outside of work. It being the computer at work that she says all the younger nurses say is sooo slooow but she says they just don’t have patience anymore. “They want things so fast, right now.”
One of my favorite conversations over the course of this classes was with a man named Rob C. He’s one of the guys you want to talk to becase he has good stuff to share. He is 71. He is the epitome of cool grandpa. I knew from prevous conversations he’d be a good choice to interview.
Rob C., phone interview
Me: What do you use the Internet for?
RC: Oh, email a little. Or I look something up every once in awhile… though usually, I’d have Sharon [his wife] do it for me. She’s my secretary. *laughs*
Me: Are you very comfortable using the Internet?
RC: Oh, on a scale from 1-10 (10 being comfortable), I’d say I am a 3 or 4. I can do it, but I just don’t want to waste my time on it. Technology has taken away personal contact.
Me: How so?
RC: In business [he owns a his own real estate-type business] you don’t see a lot of business letters. The formality is gone. Everything is done in emails and the response time is nice. But I’d rather meet with someone face-to-face. You learn more about a people. A computer can’t think for you, it just computes what you typed in. It can’t read expression.
Me: So, has the Internet generally been good or bad in your life?
RC: Oh, good things can come out of it. I have mixed feelings. I just don’t want to interact online. But my grandson, well, he’s 16 now, but when he was four he was asking me to play games online with him. So, there are good things. It can be crutch or a tool.
Me: How’s it a crutch?
RC: When people replace relationships with the internet. I think most young people couldn’t live without it. They go to the Internet for all the answers, and its just not same. They aren’t really working for it.
Me: Anything else?
RC: Y’know. My mom saw the world move from a time where no one had cars to everyone having their own car. She saw airplanes become a mode of travel, and she saw the rocket go to the moon. Its amazing how much technology changes and evolves.
Rob C. brings up something important. The advancement of technology and change has been happening for years, decades, centuries. We as a people are always advancing and trying new things, even at the cost of the old ways. Rob C. also mentions the cost of the Internet: face-to-face relationships and lack of formality in business. Each of these “good things” have been replaced by efficiency.
Steve K. is one of my best guy friends. He and I met in high school (in real life), and proceeded to stay friends with the aid of AOL Instant Messanger when he and I were at separate colleges. We have stayed “connected” online, but do see each other several times a year. Because I found it fitting, I “facebooked” his interview questions to him.
Steve K, 28, online interview
Primary uses: reading news articles, social networking, work-related use.
Comfort with online communication: more comfortable than communicating by phone
Has tech changed my life: tech has made some areas of my life much more efficent and convenient, but in other ways it has robbed me of time that would be better spent in the real world.
What do I think: I think the internet is like a lot of things in life, it’s great if used with the right balance.
I Facebook chatted him back:
Me: So, overall, is the Internet an important part of your life?
SK: Yeah, I’d have to pay for a newspaper without it.
Me: About how much time do you spend online?
SK: *laughter* Well, I don’t know, I only have internet access here at work, but between work use and my laptop I’m online fairly consistently throughout the day.
Me: So, its just a part of your life. Nothing spectacularly exciting about it really. Its just there for you to use?
SK: Sure, that sounds good
You’re like my publicist.
Steve K. is much like many young 20-somethings. The Internet is not this crazy-mysterious-scary thing. We began using it in school, and really, grew up with it. We remember the days before the Internet… the days of super slow, super loud AOL dial up Internet, and now we move around without lap tops and wi-fi like we own the world. We have multiple email addresses (Steve K has 3- two personal, one for work and I have four – three personal, one work), we know the best search engines, the worst news sources, and are bloggin’ fools.
The Internet is not something “checked out” a couple times a week. Based on my interview with Steve K, and my own personal testimony, the Internet is a part of our lives like the radio, cable tv, and cell phones. Its there. We use it. We make it work for us. Postman refers the invisibility of language as a technology, for younger generations, the Internet is so enmeshed in lives that it appears invisible to us. We don’t even seen its affect on us and its influence in how we relate unless we lay our lives under a microscope. If language shapes how we name things and how we identify what needs to be named at all… then the Internet has given us a a new tool to play with language. Rob C. warned, we have to be careful not to allow the Internet to be a crutch. We must keep Internet as a tool to be used for our needs, our purposes.
After my chat with Steve K., I decided my parents would be fun to interview for this assignment. To be honest, I was really curious how my parents felt about the Internet and how they used it. I interviewed my dad first.
Matthew F., 56 & Melody F., 56, in-person interview
Me: So, dad, what do you use the internet for the most?
Dad: To get information. Look stuff up. Craigslist, Ebay. Online banking. Oh,and I downloaded an Adam Corell Podcast this evening.
Me: My dad just said podcast! So, would you say you were pretty comfortable on the Internet? Do you email?
Dad: Oh, on a scale of 1-10, I am like a 7 or 8. I don’t chat or use any of those social media sites. Too many weirdos out there with their own ulterior motives. Scams. Sex scams.
Me: Sex scams? Divert conversation now! So, how do you use email?
Dad: For business only. Only receive them, I don’t send them myself. [My dad is famous for his frequent use of all caps. He'd probably scare people away with his yelling emails.]
Me: Do you think technology, specifically the Internet, has made things better or worse in your life?
Dad: For the better. I never used the computer before the Internet. So, for the past 3-4 years I have been online so I have learned how to use the computer. Although people need to be careful… they can spend too much time on there with games, chatting, gambling. You have to be careful.
Me: So, you have to be careful not to get too dependent? Have you ever felt dependent on the Internet?
Dad: Oh yeah, for our online banking. When the computer goes down, or like during the snow storms and we lost power, we couldn’t check our accounts or pay our bills. It created a mess.
So about now, my mom joins the conversation.
Me: So mom, how do you use the Internet?
Mom: I go online and look up resources for kid’s craft projects for work. Oh, and I like looking for cool stuff on Ebay.
Me: Do you buy things online?
Mom: I just like to look and find things I like. Sometimes if its something I really like, I will make a bid. I also like to look up Soap Opera spoilers. Or look up news stories that I am following.
Me: Oh yeah? I am actually shocked that my mom knows how to do all this stuff!
Mom: Yeah, but I don’t like reading the comments (on news stories.) People can be jerks. I also do my classes for work online… First Aid, CPR, my CARE courses. I like to look up music videos on YouTube.
Me: You know what YouTube is?Dad: Yeah, we have an account.
Mom: We do!? (She looks at Dad like he’s been hiding a big secret.)
Me: So, mom, do you ever use email?Mom: No. I never send emails. Just read them. Oh, I also like to look up medical stuff for me, and well, for the cats.
Me: How do you search for the medical advice?
Mom: Oh, Google. I like Google. Or Yahoo.
Dad: I used “Ask.com” before. Its a good one.
Mom: Although I don’t like using the Internet anymore for medical advice. They usually diagnose me a fatal disease. And that makes me anxious.
Me: How do you evaluate if its a credible website?
Mom: Well, if its boring enough, it probably means its real. I also like to look my favorite magazines and read Hollywood gossip.
Me: So, would you ever have a Facebook account? You could chat with other women from church.
Mom: *Look of fear fills face* No! I am scared of Identity theft. And I don’t want some pervert looking at me. I don’t like anything too technical either. Besides I don’t want to chat online. A friend of mine met a man online and she left her husband. Its terrible.
Me: Where do you get your information?
Mom: The news. They are always telling terrible stories of people who met criminals online and then were raped or killed and I don’t want that.
(Okay, at this point I started teasing my mom about how she thinks if she chats online it means shes going to fall in love with another man, probably a prisoner, and will leave Dad. Which is actually not that funny, because it DOES happen.)
Dad: Why do people blog?
Mom: I think its because they can edit what they say.
Dad: I think they tend to be less inhibited, more real. They are more apt to say whats in their heads.
Me: Have either of you read my blog? (this lead to some other random chatter)
Me: So, overall, what is the main thing you use the Internet for?
Mom: Online banking. Oh, it was such a mess when we didn’t have the computer for two weeks. We actually had to go to the bank! In public! Leave the house and everything!
Dad: So, whats this assignment for?
Mom: Its about computers right?
Dad: No, its about change.
The conversation with my parents was not only really fun, but it surprised me. I had no idea my parents used the computer that much. On average they each guesstimated they spent an hour or so on the Internet. They don’t use any of the communication tools the Internet offers, because they have fear of “the bad things that can happen.” They are afraid of things that are too technical, but yet, they have found Internet to be a source of entertainment and have successfully navigated sites like YouTube, Ebay, and Craigslist.
Dad summarizes it best when he says this assignment is about “change.” We are always changing. Generationally. We are advancing. Technologically. Yet, we still need the same things.
In each age category, the people I interviewed have experienced the Internet differently, but they all agree that without proper balance, the Internet like anything else, can be a negative thing in one’s life. They each use the Internet to meet their own needs.
(To be honest, I struggled applying the reading of Chapter 8, Postman to this assignment. Even the chapter in W/S was a shaky application as it related to business communication, convergence and the diffusion of innovation theory seemed like a big strectch. Too big of a stretch. I enjoyed this assignment, and found it useful and interesting to connect dots of how different people use the Interent, how different people communicate or choose not to, online.)
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Virtual Communities
I searched the web for great communities to jump in and join, and each left me disappointed. Because I couldn’t very well LIE about the online communities I am already apart of ie the flowerdust.net blog community, where each day the author, Anne Jackson, follows the quote on the first page of chapter six in W/S that “without a sense of caring, there can be no sense of community. (Anthony J D’Angelo)” Since I met Anne in real life two years ago, and discovered her blog, I have been a faithful visitor. Sometimes I comment, sometimes I don’t. But I find myself recognizing frequent commentors, learning so much from their responses to Anne’s blogs (which already had me laughing, learning or something). I find myself giving advice or quoting from her blog or from the comments of others. There is a genuine virtual community present.
I find this same community in the blog by Penelope Trunk about career advice (and other fun stuff.) I get hooked on what she writes and how her many commentators will respond. Her blog can be found at: blog.penelopetrunk.com.
But I was already apart of those groups… so I kept searching.
I love listening to The Buzz (105.1 FM) and if we were talking about non-online virtual communties… I could go on and on about the community the radio personalities the BUZZ has formed. But again, not the assignment. However, listening the Buzz I heard a commercial advertizing for “Balance PDX” a new virtual community for women in Portland… which hoped to engage women in conversation about relationships, health, business, money, family… all the topics women love to talk about. I thought to myself, “PERFECT” — this would be the new virtual community I would jump in and engage in.
So I did. To fully embrace the site, on must create a user name. So I did.
I then explored the site to find ways to become a part of the community. I read articles and searched for ways to get involved.
I think I failed. I kept going back and looking for ways I would want to get involved and I didn’t feel “it.” The spark. The connection that would inspire me to reveal something about me. Virtual communities “provide individuals with a means for aquiring that feeling of inclusion, especially among those individuals who seek the company of like-minded people. (W/S 124)” Balance PDX has the potential to be a great place for women to come and feel connected to others in Portland. One of the discussion posts was from a woman seeking a referral for a good ob-gyn, as she was new to the area. Some women responded with recommendations. But I wondered if without a understanding of who everyone is… how much value the referral is.
I also find that I have SO MUCH community in my life (with working at a church and helping coordinate small groups) I find that online community takes a time and effort just as consuming as in real life. I find that I would rather have a “real life community” than all online ones… but the ones I already have, the blogs I follow… I definitely appreciate their impact and influence in my life.
And I will keep working on the Balance PDX group. Perhaps I can help it grow?
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Topic
What is Twitter and its function in online communication, culture and cyberspace.
Sources
The Twitter homepage. http://twitter.com/ (a given)
“Twitter for Churches” http://www.twitterforchurches.com/ promotional website for the ebook, The Reason Your Church Must Twitter, by Anthony Coppedge, 2009.
Twitter Company Profile on “CrunchBase.” http://www.crunchbase.com/company/twitter (visited 2/8/09)
Evolution of Communication: From Email to Twitter to Beyond. Blog. Written by Alex Iskold / May 30, 2007 2:11 PM http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/evolution_of_communication.phptorch (visited 2/8/09)
Credibility/Value
Okay, so perhaps this is where the “TMI” and “Everyone is an expert” factor comes to play. The above sources represent an initital research attempt. A firmer thesis with support may bring in research from other sources showing the evolution of mass/online communication or the trend habits of a group of people. The ebook, “The Reason Your Church Must Twitter” would first be credible in the “church world” as the author and the forward is written by well-known church leaders from well-known large churches. Would this source be credible to someone unfamiliar with the “online church world”? Perhaps. If I were performing research on Twitter, for my job (which is for a church) this ebook would be helpful actually. However, if I were writing a research paper I would use this source as appropriate, being careful not to use this ebook as a foundation to my research as it caters to one social institution.
The CrunchBase profile represents a basic overview of Twitter, the company including value, milestones, and the “people” who make it happen. These numbers would be helpful for showing the value to Twitter and its place in the online timeline. But what is “CrunchBase”? According to its website profile, “CrunchBase is the free database of technology companies, people, and investors that anyone can edit. Here, you can learn and edit everything about companies like YouTube, Facebook, Bebo, Twitter and Digg.”
And the blog provides data that is obviously not of the “scientific journal” quality, but could provide insight in the look of the evolution of online communication mediums. Do we know who the author is, and why should I trust the words of “Alex Iskold”? His online profile aids in the assumption that he writes about technology and has experience with technological advancement. At this point, I am unfamilair with his “status” and qualifications beyond what is written, possibly by his ownself. You never know.
Are theses sources believable?
Yes. It is doubtful any of these are fictional, but, of course, with the craftiness of technology, you never know what you can truly trust.
If I were the professor…
I would assume this person was a genius. (Haha!) No, I would assume this person had begin an initial look at the online tool and needed to firm her thesis and research plan. Of course this assignment was broad enough, that this was not needed at the time. I would encourage her to look at the value of such a online tool, perhaps digging deeper on WHO uses it and why there is such a pull for people to “follow” others. Possibly linking issues of Internet Addiction Disorder (W/Spg 102-3) including the attraction to “access the Internet more than they intend to.” Twitter (and other such online feature) also could be seen as an advancement of technological arrogance. As Postman begins in Chapter 5 (71), “Those who feel most comfortable in Technopoly are those who are convinced that technical progress is humanity’s supreme achievement and the instrument by which our most profound delimma’s may be solved.”
Depending on the assignment, I as the professor, would look at the sources and how they used in context, and how they support the thesis. There must be caution when using online sources, but also an understanding and knowledge of how to find and read what is “good” and “not-so-good” when doing any kind of research. It is my contention that good research is detailed, thorough, and takes into account the topic and the history of the field is lies in. It would be almost inappropriate to not use online-based research when covering a topic that resides in the technical world so deeply.
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Tags: twitter
Letters and Emails
"Letter writing is talking on paper. ... Individuality is the greatest charm of a letter. The most cherished letters are those in which the writer's soul has been poured out on paper. So, write a letter that no one else could write." (How to Write Love Letters by Michelle Lovric)
I wrote two letters. One was pretty, tangible and smelled of ink, with my handwriting scrolled across a white paper slate. One looked like any other email sent and delivered with a point-and-a-click.
Both took the same amount of time to compose (though, admittedly it took me longer to pick out which card to use to write on and send!) Both expressed the same feelings of gratitude and appreciation. Both were heart felt. Both possessed a tone that showed me, my voice.
I wrote two letters to two very special people in my life. I chose to handwrite the letter to an old friend, whom I know loves getting real mail and sees the art of letter writing as romantic and intimate. I felt like she would take my letter, and read it while cuddled on her couch with a cup of coffee beside her. When writing her letter, I thought over each word as I pressed them onto the paper. There was connection with each word and my feelings. If I messed up; I couldn’t hit delete. I could start over, yes; but there is a certain challenge to keep the words flowing. (I love when you write and the words come easy, and the words flow on the paper like magic.)
I emailed a letter to a co-worker. It was a shorter letter in length, but the message was clear. Just as I love to see my handwriting fill a page, I love to hear my fingers type away, clicking away letters and characters that translate into meaning and life. I love it.
In my email, I expressed my appreciation for her role in my life. I had the luxuary of analyzing each word and phrase to make them perfect. If I messed up, I could go back and try again. A new word, a new phrase, brainstorming the best way to express what I wanted to express. I imagine she read it admist her other emails in the morning, with a cup of coffee beside her as well. She was probably at work. She probably couldn’t digest each word with time like my long-time friend. But I know my email began her day on a postive and encouraging start. I know my words were not diminished by the digitalness of them.
I know because I heard back right away from my co-worker. All she had to was hit “reply.” She said thank you. Said I made her morning. Said she was glad she got to work with me too. When I saw her later in the day, she gave me a hug and said thanks again.
I didn’t hear back right away from my snail-mail friend (who lives out-of-state). Finally, she called me and said she had been thinking of me too. She said she got my letter, and she expressed how “fun it was” to get mail, real mail. We proceeded to talk and catch up and I loved that my letter led to a fun conversation with my friend.
When writing a letter to anyone– friend, business, romantic, etc– you determine the function of the letter and the intended recipient and proceed accordingly. I am still surprised when I get thank-you letters from friends for bridal shower presents or birthday presents. Their thoughtfulness in taking the time to write a card and mail it to me is appreciated. Even if the note is generic, and the writing appears rushed… the tactile abilites a simple letter has beats all. Will someday thank-you letters go online as well? Perhaps. Perhaps they have already. How much easier it would be to mail merge a thank you letter!
I think the choice of letter versus email demonstrates a change in how we communicate, yes, but it also shows that their is a level of romanticism is doing things the old-fashioned way. We try so hard to convey ourselves online, with the use of happy faces and bold/italics/(parenthesis)/ALL CAPS, hoping we are showing a “social presence” that is real and vivid and articulate. And we don’t always fail. For me, the end result of both letters was an intimate, meaningful exchange with the recipient of my letter. Ironically, the email led to a real-life hug, and the letter led an hour-or-so long telephone conversation. Each specialized channel leds to the fullfilment of paricular needs (W/S 81). And each, in its own way, plays a role in how I related to the special people in my life.
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my FACEbook
HEADLAMPS ARE AWESOME. This was me during the big winter storm that knocked our power out for hours and hours! I posted this picture when "everyone" was posting their own pictures on Facebook from the big storm. I still haven't changed my picture. I should probably get on that.
Facebook has changed my life. Whether its for the better… well, that is still up for debate.
Even though it is blocked at work (which is probably a good thing!) I am able to update my “facebook status” via a cool, very nerdy-chic tool called Twitter. (There are many other ways to update statuses, this is my favorite.) I can also update my status via my phone. Pretty much, I could give people play-by-plays of my life all the time. If I were to have a great idea, something un/usual happened, or I was just bored, I could communicate these thoughts to my facebook community. I don’t know who will read it (well, most likely one of my “facebook friends) or who will comment… or who even cares… I just like doing it. I like having an outlet to share myself.
My facebook status is just one way I reveal myself (create an identity) to others. My guess is that if you followed my “Tweets” or facebook statuses, afterawhile, you’d have an interesting impression of “me.” Its part of my “language… as primary vehicle for establishing one’s own (or another’s) online persona.” (60)
My last couple statuses read:
home from a great day of work and service with the lifegroup leaders at church.
one of the best parts of my job! about 4 hours ago from web
switching between water and a Diet Coke. I was told to drink a lot of water.
This prob isn’t what they meant. Oh well. about 12 hours ago from web
is working on a take home test for her “Giving and Volunteerism” class. Very interesting!
Its essay-writing time now! 8:04 PM Jan 25th from web
took some kiddos to see the narnia play tonight and had no idea so many abundant
life kids were in it! how exciting! 11:29 PM Jan 24th from web
is that snow? hail? mini ice balls? weird. 2:45 PM Jan 24th from txt
made it to FREE GEEK to donate old computer junk!
awesome! 12:45 PM Jan 24th from txt
killing about several forests with my printing jobs. Hmm. *sweep aside guilt*
ALSO, PRAYING FOR LIFEGROUPS! 3:24 PM Jan 23rd from web
having a very nerdy moment. am setting up a webcam + skype + all things that make me even cooler. (laughing) 10:14 PM Jan 22nd
Okay, so I am not so arrogant, to think anyone would be so overly fascinated by these statuses. But y’know. This is me. This is my life. Well, my life since 10:14pm on January 22nd.
Facebook is planning my 10-year high school reunion.
Well, maybe its just providing the method for us to contact one another and find out who is planning what. Facebook, however, has changed the “mystery and drama” of the classic reunion. Now, if I am curious about an old classmate, I can search for her facebook/myspace profile. Chances are, it will be there. Likewise, my old classmates can find me. The reputation I had in high school, is now compared to the self-presentation of my facebook page. Am I the same Cori they remember from high school? I am presenting myself to a group of people, and opening myself up for judgement.
It make connecting with people… easy.
I work/attend a large church. Many of my facebook friends attend my church. I love the ability to get to know the people I go to church with a little better. A former lifegroup leader named Amy ended up being a facebook friend. (I help coordinate lifegroups (small groups) at my church.) When Amy stepped down from leading her group, I was still her friend, and got to see pictures of her new baby… on facebook. For the last couple weeks, I gotten to see Amy, her husband, and her little, baby girl IN REAL LIFE. We laugh that its “so weird” see each other in real life. (Her baby is so sweet!)
I don’t know how many times, I have needed to connect with someone for some reason or another, and I can’t reach them on their phone or email… but a quick facebook message and I am responded to right away. Because I know many of the people on my facebook friend list in real life… I don’t have to worry about gender-swapping and misrepresntation of who they are. It would be hard for them to lie. Likewise, I have to be careful about how I portray myself. Because the eyes on me are many, posting a pictures of me that could be scandalous or writing things that could be negative against another or too “open” is a “no.”
Are these just ways I am controlling my identity, the perception others view me? Maybe. I am an open person in real life, so online I am going to be open too. Do I distort the truth of who I am? I don’t know. Maybe? Probably a little but not with an evil intention. I don’t reveal the secrets of my heart online. Well, not too often.
Facebook has also made the quality of friendships… sorely lacking.
Not too long ago, if I wanted to talk to a friend, I would give them a call or we would hang out and chat. Now, a series of “computer mediated communications” replace a good long talk with a friend. I miss these times with friends. Facebook, and such social media services, can take what was once a friendship based on hugs and laughter and tears together and make it quick. Convenient. Public. I realized this past weekend that I haven’t SEEN any of my best gal pals (well the ones I don’t work with) in weeks! But yet, we have chatted and kept up with each other Facebook and quick text messages.
What is the world coming to? No wonder people feel lonely.
Facebook has changed the dynamics of how people relate… or it can, if you let it (take over.) While the “playing field” (60) may be leveled out for others to engage without the threat of “judgement” with the flexibility of commenting when desired or able… this mode of social engagement must be balanced with real-life, real-people interactions. For me personally, I can’t live on Facebook alone.
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You’ve Got Mail
There was no need for me to rent this movie. There was no need for me to even re-watch this movie.
This movie and its characters and messages are embedded in me as much as any movie repeatedly watched and enjoyed over the ages.
What drew me to this tech-inspired romance between Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan? Was it the love story or the message you can meet your own Tom Hanks via an online chat room? Breaking the social rules and norms of the time (when saying you met someone online brought up judgement and misunderstanding) You’ve Got Mail spoke into the reality that our coming age was bringing new ways of meeting others. Gone perhaps the ways of my grandparents, writing letters while Grandpa served in World War II? Or maybe gone the days of Mail Order Brides? Perhaps not. Perhaps we’ve just evolutionized our methods with the times. (Just as we’ve always done. We move from the theory of a Thinking Machine to the reality of me sitting right now with my laptop typing this post. Just as we move forward in our technological advancements, we see examples of new ways people find friendship and companionship and even love.
But the question wasn’t whether or not it happened: the movie says asmuch as that. The storyline may have altered a bit. Boy meets girl, but not reallybecause they are hiding behind the illuminating screens of laptops and AOL. They meet their online personas. Identities created (but not out of lies, but to protect their own self for hurt) to chat with other over 30s New Yorkers, or perhaps a chance to escape the unhappiness and dissatisfaction of their current relationships. Parker Posie’s character’s insensivities and love of sleep aids, and “The Nut’s” love of the typewriter and idyllic ways. The comparisons are not missed. The laptops and the typewriter. The little, personal Children’s book shop and the big, discounted bookstore. The rise of things improved, faster, bigger, but not always better.
For one, we already love Meg Ryan and Tim Hank together in movies. This movie allowed to finally see Meg and Tom “date”– after the just as crazy and stalkerish love story of Sleepless in Seattle where they met via a radio show and Meg’s character’s ability to hire a P.I. and use her job to gain footing. No love story, especially in the movies, appears completely realistic, but we fall for the idealism.
These characters were fortunate, because they broke the ice of developing on online friendship before their love/hate relationship in the real world. Online, rather than add a mask, they took off masks to reveal thoughts and feelings of who they really where. As Meg’s character says, “all these nothings mean something.” Sure, Tom found out the truth first, and his actions can be described as deceptive and manipulative. He knew Meg’s true feelings, and he hoped to develop something real and good between them anyways, all the hope to find something who brings him joy, something his marrying father never could find. He was never a bad guy. As he says, “its business.” His attaction for Meg is not just online, but in real life (well, real “movie” life) and I believe that went both ways. As Meg says in the end, with Somewhere over the Rainbow in the background, “I hope it was you.”
Is this situation likely in real life? Well, I doubt very much every person in a chat room are Megs and Toms, but love can and does begin in the cyberworld today. We can share our stories of triumph and joys– perhaps the wedding I went to last summer where the couple met on eharmony– they played the eharmony music as they walked down the aisle after they were introduced. There are also the stories of evil and disappointment. The use of Craiglist personals to find hookers, or the lying of those married to find quick flings or porn addiction or well, there’s a lot of bad things that can happen, and does happen. In my own experiences with online dating, I have yet to find my own “Mr. Darcy” in the end, but then my own story continues…
The “ease of use” (Wood/Smith 37) of the Internet has evolved and simplifed and now allows just about anyone with an intent and openess to search for love in the chatrooms and the online dating sites. You can type in “online dating advice” and pages and pages of stories and suggestions will abound for anyone willing and wanting to play it safe, be smart, and find Mr. Right. It has become a part of life. A natural part of life for singletons. The newest movie to depict this clash of technology and love, He’s Just Not Into You even in the promotions, reminds us (as mentioned as well in You’ve Got Mail) the Internet has brought forth new ways for people to be rejected too.
Is it right though? Who is to say. But Shopgirl and NY152 certainly has opened the doors to others to stroll down this avenue. They revealed that one can find a friend online, and something more in real life. Everybody’s love story is different. Thats the beauty of it.
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As pathetic it is to write this next sentence, it is true:
“Hi, my name is Cori and I am addicted to the Internet.” This assignment proves it.
As “memberjoe” (fellow Internet Junkie – whom I do know from “real life” aka high school ten years ago) wrote when I twittered about the assignment: “what kind of homework is that? Is that like not drinking water or breathing for a day?”
I took the assignment seriously. (Thus, I had the most boring weekend ever.) Here are some of the lessons I learned:
Lesson #1: You must plan ahead.
As my classmates will no doubt comment upon, it is very difficult to give up 24 hours of Internet time when you are an online student. Yes, it’s only one day, but when you work full-time and have limited time to get homework done…its difficult.
I completed all my errands the day before. Banks can’t process my deposits and stores can’t run my debit card without the Internet. I also made sure to pay my bills earlier in the week as they are all paid online, of course.
Lesson #2: You can’t do your job without Internet.
This is sad because my job is working for a church. Jesus didn’t have an email and He got a lot done, right? I met with my boss about this assignment, asking her for advice on HOW IN THE WORLD to complete my responsibilities and not get “in trouble.” She offered her support, and said she’d be interested to see how it all worked out. (She’s just as addicted as I am.)
There was NO WAY I could participate in this little web fast during office hours. I rely on emails and the online database to perform my job. This week was the BIG week for me. I created our catalogue of open small groups (lots of communication with our group leaders) and updated the online small group finder (a little hard without the online part.)
I had to do this 24-hour fast during non-work hours. Unfortunately for me, that cut into my personal time. Since my only non-work day this past week was Friday night and Saturday, it became the golden time slot.
Lesson#3: You aren’t as popular as you thought, and that’s okay.
I thought (arrogantly) I would have lots and lots of emails, Facebook updates, blog comments, the works, waiting for me. The reality: about a dozen spam emails, one twitter comment, and six work related emails. That’s it.
Apparently, one needs to be gone a lot longer than 24 hours.
Lesson#4: There is life outside the Internet. (You knew this already. Really.)
While I have done many things online (shopping, dating, banking, work, school) the real good stuff happens when the laptop is shut. Dinner with the family. Conversations with friends. Reading a book while listening to the rain. Cuddling with the cat. Unfortunately, for many, the Internet has saturated our daily existence and these simple pleasures require the conscious decision to unplug from the online world.
My conclusion: you can’t live in the modern world without the Internet. Unless you are a mountain man. (Even then…) Yes, we lived without wi-fi and Google 12 or so years ago, but we are way too dependent on it now.
Perhaps I speak only for myself.
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