I will be very honest.
At the very beginning I thought, "Introduction to the Internet? I took a Business IT diploma in Polytechnic, this module can't get too difficult can it?"
And gradually over the weeks I realized my folly.
It CAN be difficult beyond my initial imaginations, simply because there are so many more aspects to the Internet than one can grasp offhand.
Through the weeks, we have learnt of the Internet's prevalence in different aspects of our lives.
Youngsters have come to be highly reliant on social media to maintain their interpersonal relationships, we have seen how this can be beneficial yet detrimental to them at the same time. Through social media such as second life, we caught a glimpse of the future, when virtual worlds will likely rise in importance parallel to the real world.
In the working world, e-commerce have already carved a niche for itself by proving to be effective in bringing success to companies. Similarly, e-learning is proving itself a valuable asset to the education sector as students now learn through various other mediums that do not require them to be in a physical classroom setting.
We have learnt to create our own movies with Windows Movie Maker and come to appreciate the numerous tools of Google. Tools such as Google trends and Google scholar will serve us well as we continue our journey as students. We learnt about Bloom's Taxonomy and fixed and growth mindset, knowledge that would inspire us to keep ourselves geared towards the geared mindset so as to ensure constant mental growth.
We have been instructed on the various threats our poor computers face on a daily basis, and taught to arm and protect ourselves against these threats, a knowledge that will benefit us in the future years to come as reliance and dependence on the Internet grows.
Multimedia applications that we have been using often but taking for granted were highlighted to us as we witness how much multimedia can aid us in various aspects, in work, education and entertainment.
Finally, an apathetic me was introduced to the impacts Internet has on politics and journalism. I learned how traditional ways and methods were being overturned as the Internet proved itself more valuable in reaching out to the masses.
The future of the Internet is definitely something to look forward to, as intricate wonders made possible by this evolution in technology fills our minds and imaginations. However, it is worrying to see this growing dependence and reliance on the Internet as it brings to mind the inevitable question, "What if something should happen some day in the future that would cut humans off from the Internet and its likes totally?"
The course has been made enjoyable by the influx of videos shown in class and the various stories told to us by Mr Abel Choy. It was only as I struggled with the blog posts, as I tried to make sense of the complicated Bloom's Taxonomy definitions, as I read about the mind boggling ways Internet has influenced politics and journalism, that I realized I have learnt alot. =)
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Looking Ahead: Future of the Internet
Having already lived with the Internet for so many years of our life, one can only envision the boundless potentials that could come in time for the Internet. Where is it all going?
In future, we can only imagine how everything can be made simpler and more convenient by the Internet.
In 2019, for students, the e-learning we are doing now would be a thing of the old. Perhaps even this scenario would be considered outdated.
Learning in the future might even consist of projections of each individual involved in the teaching and learning process right to the sides of each participant, where students from different countries and spanning different national boundaries could interact and learn from each other as though they were right beside each other.
In other aspects of everyday life, this could be what we will be seeing and using in the future.
Information about anyone and everyone can probably be easily obtained through the Internet in future as more and more of us as individuals get 'stored' in the everlasting database of the Internet. In current times, we have employers checking facebook accounts of their employees. In the future, anyone might be able to check up on details of every other person through the Internet, if the situation is not carefully controlled. Interpersonal relations may be affected beyond our recognition as social media essentially promotes interaction through a medium instead of in person.
The Internet will become a place where everyone is trying to grasp a piece of every Internet users attention, be it for commercial, political, or other purposes. The Internet will be like a free market where users are 'up for grabs'.
Privacy and Internet security issues will be abundant as despite any obvious risks, the importance of the Internet in our everyday lives will only increase with time as we ourselves, and the young children that come after us, are taught to be dependent on the convenience and functionality of the Internet.
In future, we can only imagine how everything can be made simpler and more convenient by the Internet.
In 2019, for students, the e-learning we are doing now would be a thing of the old. Perhaps even this scenario would be considered outdated.
Learning in the future might even consist of projections of each individual involved in the teaching and learning process right to the sides of each participant, where students from different countries and spanning different national boundaries could interact and learn from each other as though they were right beside each other.
In other aspects of everyday life, this could be what we will be seeing and using in the future.
Information about anyone and everyone can probably be easily obtained through the Internet in future as more and more of us as individuals get 'stored' in the everlasting database of the Internet. In current times, we have employers checking facebook accounts of their employees. In the future, anyone might be able to check up on details of every other person through the Internet, if the situation is not carefully controlled. Interpersonal relations may be affected beyond our recognition as social media essentially promotes interaction through a medium instead of in person.
The Internet will become a place where everyone is trying to grasp a piece of every Internet users attention, be it for commercial, political, or other purposes. The Internet will be like a free market where users are 'up for grabs'.
Privacy and Internet security issues will be abundant as despite any obvious risks, the importance of the Internet in our everyday lives will only increase with time as we ourselves, and the young children that come after us, are taught to be dependent on the convenience and functionality of the Internet.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Journalism Online
The Internet's easy usage by anyone and everyone has led to a change in journalism.
No longer do the public have to rely stoically on traditional news medium to get information.
Not only can news be read online, all the major and minor newspapers out there have their own websites, news of all sorts can be obtained through various sources on the Internet.
The Internet is the catalyst to the evolution and improvement of various branches of journalism. It has given rise to civic, civilian and community journalism, and even played a part in saving investigative journalism.
It is through the Internet that many investigative journalism organizations make themselves known and accessible to the public. For example: Center for Investigative Reporting
The easy methods of posting materials on the Internet has created an extreme ease whereby civilians are able to input their two cents worth on current matters and issues around them. In many cases, civilians are even encouraged to contribute their opinions on news matters.
On news websites such as Channel NewsAsia, viewers are encouraged to send in their own contributions.
And blogs are featured and highlighted to showcase civilian attempts at journalistic articles. These provide the public with not just views of professional journalists, but also views of average citizens just like themselves.
Furthermore, websites such as Hardwarezone forms journalism for a niche market as it provides reviews and articles on a particular area of interest, in this case, electronics.
In the main page itself, you will find news articles on various electronics and relevant incidences. There are features on product highlights and recommendations for viewers to pore over and consider.
Such information, which used to be gleaned from newspaper reviews, are now easily found online. Just like the blogs and online article contributions that provide more views and opinions than those featured in the traditional news medium.
However, the way Internet is contributing to Journalism might be detrimental as the credibility of these 'online journalists' can be hard to determine. Contributors to such online forms of journalism could be biased or have a hidden agenda, yet there are no editors to keep them in check and ensure the accuracy of news reported.
No longer do the public have to rely stoically on traditional news medium to get information.
Not only can news be read online, all the major and minor newspapers out there have their own websites, news of all sorts can be obtained through various sources on the Internet.The Internet is the catalyst to the evolution and improvement of various branches of journalism. It has given rise to civic, civilian and community journalism, and even played a part in saving investigative journalism.
It is through the Internet that many investigative journalism organizations make themselves known and accessible to the public. For example: Center for Investigative Reporting
The easy methods of posting materials on the Internet has created an extreme ease whereby civilians are able to input their two cents worth on current matters and issues around them. In many cases, civilians are even encouraged to contribute their opinions on news matters.
On news websites such as Channel NewsAsia, viewers are encouraged to send in their own contributions.
And blogs are featured and highlighted to showcase civilian attempts at journalistic articles. These provide the public with not just views of professional journalists, but also views of average citizens just like themselves.
Furthermore, websites such as Hardwarezone forms journalism for a niche market as it provides reviews and articles on a particular area of interest, in this case, electronics.
In the main page itself, you will find news articles on various electronics and relevant incidences. There are features on product highlights and recommendations for viewers to pore over and consider.Such information, which used to be gleaned from newspaper reviews, are now easily found online. Just like the blogs and online article contributions that provide more views and opinions than those featured in the traditional news medium.
However, the way Internet is contributing to Journalism might be detrimental as the credibility of these 'online journalists' can be hard to determine. Contributors to such online forms of journalism could be biased or have a hidden agenda, yet there are no editors to keep them in check and ensure the accuracy of news reported.
Political Blues
Politicians have to reach out to the masses. Over the years, different forms of medium played different roles in helping politicians reach out to the people and garner support. After radio, after televisions, the Internet, if used efficiently, has the ability to help politicians along in their quest in campaigns.
“Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not be president. Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not have been the nominee,” said Arianna Huffington, editor in chief of The Huffington Post.
Here, is a politician who knew how to make use of a new medium to reach out to the masses and secure his own route to the white house.
The main advantage the Internet has over other mediums is the ability to reach out to the masses, people who voluntarily go around seeking for information, and people who unwittingly stumble on information whilst surfing online. Obama's efficient usage of the Internet helped him mobilize and organize his supporters, provide him with free advertising, drum his words and speeches into the ears of the public, and maintain a form of constant contact with potential voters.
Obama made use of his website to organize supporters, advertise to voters, defend against attacks and communicate with constituents.
On his website is also a link to a wide variety of website accounts of Obama, from popular websites like Facebook and Twitter, to other less known sites. All these sites are there to serve one purpose, to reach out to the masses, keeping the public in the loop and in the know.
Anyone can add Barack Obama to their friends list on facebook and keep themselves constantly updated with the political scene.
Obamas youtube page also serves as a form of free advertising for Obama. All videos related to Barack Obama's campaign can be found in this website to be viewed and reviewed by Internet users. According to a political consultant, Mr Joe Trippi, on New York Times, “The campaign’s official stuff they created for YouTube was watched for 14.5 million hours. To buy 14.5 million hours on broadcast TV is $47 million.” My lecture mates and I can probably resonate most with this when an assignment we were given a few semesters back consisted of listening to Barack Obama's speech on race, A More Perfect Union, again and again on youtube just to pick out its main points and arguments for extra credit.
The downside to the prevalence in the Interenet's ability to aid in political campaigns would be that the Internet immortalizes everything. Every little mistake politicians make, every wrong move, every wrong word they say, will be logged somewhere on the Internet, to be viewed and reviewed by Internet users, to be broken down, analyzed and criticized. Also, the Internet reaches out to a certain audience demographic, excluding voters or potential voters which do not have Internet access or regularly use the Internet to acquire sources of information.
The Internet is thus a double edged sword which politicians can wield to their advantage, if wielded correctly, yet they should always be aware of the different repercussions and negative traits associated with every medium they try to use for their purpose.
Resources: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/how-obamas-internet-campaign-changed-politics/
“Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not be president. Were it not for the Internet, Barack Obama would not have been the nominee,” said Arianna Huffington, editor in chief of The Huffington Post.
Here, is a politician who knew how to make use of a new medium to reach out to the masses and secure his own route to the white house.
The main advantage the Internet has over other mediums is the ability to reach out to the masses, people who voluntarily go around seeking for information, and people who unwittingly stumble on information whilst surfing online. Obama's efficient usage of the Internet helped him mobilize and organize his supporters, provide him with free advertising, drum his words and speeches into the ears of the public, and maintain a form of constant contact with potential voters.
Obama made use of his website to organize supporters, advertise to voters, defend against attacks and communicate with constituents.
On his website is also a link to a wide variety of website accounts of Obama, from popular websites like Facebook and Twitter, to other less known sites. All these sites are there to serve one purpose, to reach out to the masses, keeping the public in the loop and in the know.
Anyone can add Barack Obama to their friends list on facebook and keep themselves constantly updated with the political scene.
Obamas youtube page also serves as a form of free advertising for Obama. All videos related to Barack Obama's campaign can be found in this website to be viewed and reviewed by Internet users. According to a political consultant, Mr Joe Trippi, on New York Times, “The campaign’s official stuff they created for YouTube was watched for 14.5 million hours. To buy 14.5 million hours on broadcast TV is $47 million.” My lecture mates and I can probably resonate most with this when an assignment we were given a few semesters back consisted of listening to Barack Obama's speech on race, A More Perfect Union, again and again on youtube just to pick out its main points and arguments for extra credit.The downside to the prevalence in the Interenet's ability to aid in political campaigns would be that the Internet immortalizes everything. Every little mistake politicians make, every wrong move, every wrong word they say, will be logged somewhere on the Internet, to be viewed and reviewed by Internet users, to be broken down, analyzed and criticized. Also, the Internet reaches out to a certain audience demographic, excluding voters or potential voters which do not have Internet access or regularly use the Internet to acquire sources of information.
The Internet is thus a double edged sword which politicians can wield to their advantage, if wielded correctly, yet they should always be aware of the different repercussions and negative traits associated with every medium they try to use for their purpose.
Resources: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/how-obamas-internet-campaign-changed-politics/
Monday, April 13, 2009
Leading in the Multimedia
Multimedia tools are being employed everywhere, at school, work, for entertainment, education, and a variety of other purposes.
Out of all these purposes, perhaps the usage of multimedia for education is most evidently seen in schools today.
Lead stands for LEArning eDvantage, a multimedia portal that primary schools employ to engage their students in interactive learning.
In the LEAD website, students are able to learn their various subjects through games, stories, and interactive learning materials.
For example, when learning about the Digestive System, students are directed to an animation where a professor explains the different aspects of the digestive system to his daughter. The explanations are accompanied by animated pictures and lively voiceovers that speak directly to the audience as well. Students are able to navigate back and forth between the different segments of explanations.
After learning through the animations, students are able to test their acquired knowledge through the quizzes and activity links provided. These quizzes and activities are designed like games to increase students' interests and engagement.
For subjects such as English and Chinese, the stories and texts found in the students' textbooks are also animated and read aloud to them through the LEAD portal.
Through stations such as the Story Corner, Game Station and Learn station, students' interests are sparked and maintained as they get to interact with the learning materials.
However, the downside of this multimedia function of learning is that students are unable to reflect to the 'instructors' when they do not understand the materials. The learning materials are fixed and inflexible, and even if students repeat the learning process, they will still be getting the same materials and explanations instead of further elaborations. Thus this form of multimedia still has to be monitored closely by teachers to ensure that students are gleaning the most out of this learning experience.
Out of all these purposes, perhaps the usage of multimedia for education is most evidently seen in schools today.
Lead stands for LEArning eDvantage, a multimedia portal that primary schools employ to engage their students in interactive learning.
In the LEAD website, students are able to learn their various subjects through games, stories, and interactive learning materials.
For example, when learning about the Digestive System, students are directed to an animation where a professor explains the different aspects of the digestive system to his daughter. The explanations are accompanied by animated pictures and lively voiceovers that speak directly to the audience as well. Students are able to navigate back and forth between the different segments of explanations.
After learning through the animations, students are able to test their acquired knowledge through the quizzes and activity links provided. These quizzes and activities are designed like games to increase students' interests and engagement.
For subjects such as English and Chinese, the stories and texts found in the students' textbooks are also animated and read aloud to them through the LEAD portal.
Through stations such as the Story Corner, Game Station and Learn station, students' interests are sparked and maintained as they get to interact with the learning materials.
However, the downside of this multimedia function of learning is that students are unable to reflect to the 'instructors' when they do not understand the materials. The learning materials are fixed and inflexible, and even if students repeat the learning process, they will still be getting the same materials and explanations instead of further elaborations. Thus this form of multimedia still has to be monitored closely by teachers to ensure that students are gleaning the most out of this learning experience.
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