One of my adult passions has to been to invest and manage real estate, notably in the city in which I reside: Hong Kong. I decided for this assignment to become active in one of the online expat website’s forum related to buying, selling, investing, and managing real estate in the city.
Assimilation into the forum was fairly simple. I created an account and began posting and commenting on topics I found interesting or just had something to say. Most of the topics can be divided into two main areas: predicting the future, and asking advice. I tended to start first in the advice category, commenting on various posters’ questions concerning the buying process, tips to rent out their flat, how to deal with a bad tenant, and so on. As I became more comfortable with the forum, I started to explore posting in the “prediction” topics. These topics tended to be much more emotional and tense than the simple advice topics. I believe this was due to the fact that many of the posters were heavily invested, and their net worth was closely tied to the outcome of their prediction.
To me, it is very clear which posters are accepted, and which ones are ignored or discounted from the responses that are posted. Whether or not posters agree or disagree, the manner in which they do represents whether or not someone is accepted. An outright rejection, personal flaming or ignoring a post can mean that the poster is not accepted, while a cogent response (even an emotional one) which relates to the topic can indicate acceptance.
Disagreements could get nasty and personal on the forum, as the topics dealt with personal wealth and possibly vast sums of money. People don’t generally respond well when they are told they poorly invested hundreds of thousands of dollars. As a result, emotions tended to run high and flames and insults abounded. These disagreements typically either ended in compromise, a person withdrawing from the thread, or didn’t really end at all. The audience of this forum is somewhat more mature and educated than the average forum, so these arguments tended to resolve fairly quickly, but the anonymous nature of the internet tends to inflame rather than contain emotional outbursts.
The Wood and Smith reading from this week talks about how important the community is to an individual, be it real or virtual. One interesting aspect of this particular community is the fact that posters valued the anonymous ability to ask advice without fear of loaded advice or the responder having an agenda. Traditionally, many financial advisors who offer tips on property have a specific agenda, or are selling something. The online community solved this issue for the posters in a unique way.
The forum I joined contained people from across the city, content to discuss a highly specific topic, a commonly shared passion for real estate. This suggests that culture at large is continuing to use the internet as a source of knowledge, advice and community as opposed to traditional networks. If people are willing to debate serious financial topics in a forum that can determine long term wealth, is there anything people won’t discuss online?
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Emails and letters - Topic 4
I chose to compose an email to my wife, and a letter to my Grandma.
When choosing the two people, I had a difficult time thinking of someone I still communicate with through snail mail. I do send occasional letters to my grandma on her birthday and holidays and such, but I felt that using my grandma as an example was a tired cliche, and very likely many other students would choose the same. Alas, I was not able to find any other suitable choice. I have moved towards email to such a degree that I use it nearly exclusively.
Comparing the two letters
Both letters were to family members, and the content of both centered on updating what was going on in my life (and theirs at the time). However, there were stark differences between the two. The letter to my grandma took some time to conceive, mostly because I had to recall where exactly we left off. I would say that I speak to my grandma once every couple of weeks (on the phone), and receive updates from other family members perhaps once a week. My wife on the other hand I speak to many times per day through various channels. The biggest difference between the letters was the length. With my grandma, was there much more content that could be discussed, and I had much more to ask since the frequency of communication is much less. With my wife, I already keep fairly well abreast of what is going on in her life, and she does the same for mine, thus there was less content.
Another facet of the email to my wife that I found interesting was that I put far less thought into composing the email, even considering the reduced content. After examining why this was so, I came to the conclusion that I felt that I could just send another email at any moment should a thought occur to me. For the snail mail, this ease of communication did not exist, thus I made sure and gave extra thought to include all that I wanted to convey.
Wood and Smith note that a large part of the attraction of the internet is the ease in which people are able to instantly find others and have interesting conversations (p.102). This point is particularly salient because I felt that I can more easily stay in contact with my wife (above and beyond the fact that she is in closer proximity to me than my grandma) and that information flowed much more efficiently.
I think that culture at large will benefit greatly from the increase and ease of communication between people. We are living in an increasingly globalized world, and the fact that we can easily communicate as a global community enriches and educates all of us. Face to face and interpersonal communication still have their place and time, but these two modes are not mutually exclusive.
When choosing the two people, I had a difficult time thinking of someone I still communicate with through snail mail. I do send occasional letters to my grandma on her birthday and holidays and such, but I felt that using my grandma as an example was a tired cliche, and very likely many other students would choose the same. Alas, I was not able to find any other suitable choice. I have moved towards email to such a degree that I use it nearly exclusively.
Comparing the two letters
Both letters were to family members, and the content of both centered on updating what was going on in my life (and theirs at the time). However, there were stark differences between the two. The letter to my grandma took some time to conceive, mostly because I had to recall where exactly we left off. I would say that I speak to my grandma once every couple of weeks (on the phone), and receive updates from other family members perhaps once a week. My wife on the other hand I speak to many times per day through various channels. The biggest difference between the letters was the length. With my grandma, was there much more content that could be discussed, and I had much more to ask since the frequency of communication is much less. With my wife, I already keep fairly well abreast of what is going on in her life, and she does the same for mine, thus there was less content.
Another facet of the email to my wife that I found interesting was that I put far less thought into composing the email, even considering the reduced content. After examining why this was so, I came to the conclusion that I felt that I could just send another email at any moment should a thought occur to me. For the snail mail, this ease of communication did not exist, thus I made sure and gave extra thought to include all that I wanted to convey.
Wood and Smith note that a large part of the attraction of the internet is the ease in which people are able to instantly find others and have interesting conversations (p.102). This point is particularly salient because I felt that I can more easily stay in contact with my wife (above and beyond the fact that she is in closer proximity to me than my grandma) and that information flowed much more efficiently.
I think that culture at large will benefit greatly from the increase and ease of communication between people. We are living in an increasingly globalized world, and the fact that we can easily communicate as a global community enriches and educates all of us. Face to face and interpersonal communication still have their place and time, but these two modes are not mutually exclusive.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Musings on Facebook
I was never very enthusiastic about signing up for facebook. I was previously a part of a social networking site called Friendster, and I quickly learned the benefits and detriments of these sites through that experience. Social networking sites allow you efficient and widespread access to people’s daily lives. However, these sites expose users to an incredible amount of information, most of which (I feel) is unimportant or unrelated to the specific relationship. Eventually I relented to peer pressure and created a face book account. My own personal communication preferences generally tend towards phone calls and emails, rather than text messaging or online messaging. I am what you would call a low frequency user of facebook, I reluctantly log in for very short periods of time to check essential sections (like the inbox).
One of the most interesting areas of facebook is the photo section. It provides a quick and easy way to checkup on what’s going on in the lives of my friends. Additionally, the tagging system allows people to connect photos with facebook users. I normally am aware of what photos I am being tagged, and which ones I am not. Like most people, I am sensitive to how I am portrayed in public. If I do not like a photo of me, I will generally un tag it. Conversely, if there is a good photo and I am not tagged, I will add the tag if I wish to share it. The photo section of facebook is an ideal example of what is referred to as “telepresence” (Wood and Smith p.54). Not only does it provide additional sensory information, but the leveling of interactivity contributes to the feelings of connectedness.
I generally do not post general message or “shoutouts”, as I find this information boring and attention seeking. I mostly withhold the minute by minute posts, and do not generally share intimate, sensitive, or family only details. One of my facebook friends was going to give birth to twins, and one of the twins looked as If it wouldn’t survive. She posted every detail, every trial, and every tribulation of the ordeal on her facebook page. Through this emotional roller coaster her friends commiserated and gave her support. While I understand the need for a support system, I draw a line between a more intimate family oriented support system able of coping with difficult issues, to a more public inclusion of mostly acquaintances and school friends. I found myself wondering why she felt the need to constantly update us of every little progression to people who hardly knew her. When creating identities online, each of us uses the social network for possibly different purposes. Our intended purpose can affect what type of identity we form, and what information we consequently share. In Wood and Smith, the authors claim that “some people feel relationships formed online are more qualitative and real than those formed in real life” (p.78).
In culture at large, facebook, and other sites like it, have become a global cross cultural phenomenon. This continually expanding network as a byproduct of the internet has permeated our lives so fully that now that many feel it is required to participate in order to function within society. Increasingly it is becoming bizarre to encounter someone with no email address. The hilarious south park episode, “you have 0 friends” explores how the characters struggle with this permeation of social networking, and makes a funny yet spot on commentary on the identities, communication, and relationships formed through social networking sites.
One of the most interesting areas of facebook is the photo section. It provides a quick and easy way to checkup on what’s going on in the lives of my friends. Additionally, the tagging system allows people to connect photos with facebook users. I normally am aware of what photos I am being tagged, and which ones I am not. Like most people, I am sensitive to how I am portrayed in public. If I do not like a photo of me, I will generally un tag it. Conversely, if there is a good photo and I am not tagged, I will add the tag if I wish to share it. The photo section of facebook is an ideal example of what is referred to as “telepresence” (Wood and Smith p.54). Not only does it provide additional sensory information, but the leveling of interactivity contributes to the feelings of connectedness.
I generally do not post general message or “shoutouts”, as I find this information boring and attention seeking. I mostly withhold the minute by minute posts, and do not generally share intimate, sensitive, or family only details. One of my facebook friends was going to give birth to twins, and one of the twins looked as If it wouldn’t survive. She posted every detail, every trial, and every tribulation of the ordeal on her facebook page. Through this emotional roller coaster her friends commiserated and gave her support. While I understand the need for a support system, I draw a line between a more intimate family oriented support system able of coping with difficult issues, to a more public inclusion of mostly acquaintances and school friends. I found myself wondering why she felt the need to constantly update us of every little progression to people who hardly knew her. When creating identities online, each of us uses the social network for possibly different purposes. Our intended purpose can affect what type of identity we form, and what information we consequently share. In Wood and Smith, the authors claim that “some people feel relationships formed online are more qualitative and real than those formed in real life” (p.78).
In culture at large, facebook, and other sites like it, have become a global cross cultural phenomenon. This continually expanding network as a byproduct of the internet has permeated our lives so fully that now that many feel it is required to participate in order to function within society. Increasingly it is becoming bizarre to encounter someone with no email address. The hilarious south park episode, “you have 0 friends” explores how the characters struggle with this permeation of social networking, and makes a funny yet spot on commentary on the identities, communication, and relationships formed through social networking sites.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wall E and Cybercommunication
The animated film Wall - E presents a humorous but poignant view of the future of earth and humanity. In this pseudo dsytopic portrayal the future, the earth has been polluted to such a degree as it has become a desolate wasteland no longer able to support life. Humanity is able to persist as a result of technological advances, existing in perpetuity upon a space vessel which provided all of their needs.
Technology in the film is portrayed as both a blessing and a bane to humanity. On one hand, the irresponsible use of technology was the cause of the pollution on earth, but on the other hand it was due to technology that humanity survived this calamity.
The characters in Wall E are intrinsically tied to technology, be they robots or humans. Three major relationship pairs explore how cybercommunication may develop in the future: human to human, captain to copilot, and Wall E to Eve.
The first relationship, human to human, has the most immediate application to our daily lives. The humans in Wall E are portrayed as fat, lazy, and generally coddled by the technology that surrounds them. They spend the majority of their time sitting in a hover chair, having all needs attended to by various robots. The outlet of nearly all communication is a computer screen, through which they learn, work, gossip, entertain themselves, and otherwise function. The implications for the future imply that we will increasingly rely on technology and computers to experience our lives virtually rather than physically.
The second relation explored is that of the captain and the copilot. The copilot, a machine that is essentially the artificial intelligence (brain) of the ship, controls and maintains the day to day goings on of the ship. The captain himself is generally unnecessary, and not involved in much decision making. At one point he remarks "let me do the announcements, it’s the one thing I get to do on the ship". This relationship explores the growing dependency/reliance on technology in order to run our daily lives. Even more so, it explores the control that this technology can exert over our lives. In the movie, the captain and copilot disagree on whether or not to return to earth. The copilot then takes drastic steps to conceal and subvert the protagonists’ efforts to communicate with the rest of the crew. The main characters fight back against the technology and eventually manage to toggle the ship to "manual control", symbolically and literally ending the dependence on technology. In the readings, Postman discusses a somewhat similar situation in which windmills become a locus for prostitutes in the middle ages, and the local authorities’ attempts to shut it down due to the harm it was causing (Postman p.27). Ultimately, these efforts failed as the economy had become too dependent on the mills to function.
The third relationship explored, between Wall E and Eve, has long term implications for how technology and cybercommunication will develop in the future. This relationship is unique in that it displays how technology ceases to become a medium of communication used by humans, and instead becomes an origin of communication by the technology itself. Messages are generated, sent and received without the participation or knowledge of humans. The implications of this relationship highlight the premise for how technology grows beyond our control. Postman speaks directly to this point when he refers to a “technopoly”, whereby society has become so integrated and reliant on technology to function that the technology itself overrides the traditional societal norms and exerts its own influence.
The portrayals of Wall E bear remarkable similarities to trends that are occurring in society at large. The immediate implications explored in the human to human interaction, whereby endless hours are spent in from of computer screens, experiencing life virtually rather than physically can be seen today. Computer literacy, internet penetration, and internet related activities are increasingly becoming necessary to function, (email, e banking, knowledge, work etc.). The second relationship, between captain and copilot, also bears resemblance to how pilots fly aircraft today. Most of the computation and calculation is left to computers, with the pilots on standby in case something severe occurs. Although we have clearly not reached the level of dependency seen in the film, many critical flight tasks such as landing, takeoff, and navigation are entirely automated via computers. The efficiency, exactitude, and removal of the possibility of human error present several advantages.
In summary, the film presents a multi dimensional approach to how technology and communication intertwine in a possible human future resulting in startling benefits or detriments depending on how the technology is utilized. The underlying message of the film is also clear: technology is here to stay; how we choose to interact and manage it will ultimately determine the future of how we communicate.
Technology in the film is portrayed as both a blessing and a bane to humanity. On one hand, the irresponsible use of technology was the cause of the pollution on earth, but on the other hand it was due to technology that humanity survived this calamity.
The characters in Wall E are intrinsically tied to technology, be they robots or humans. Three major relationship pairs explore how cybercommunication may develop in the future: human to human, captain to copilot, and Wall E to Eve.
The first relationship, human to human, has the most immediate application to our daily lives. The humans in Wall E are portrayed as fat, lazy, and generally coddled by the technology that surrounds them. They spend the majority of their time sitting in a hover chair, having all needs attended to by various robots. The outlet of nearly all communication is a computer screen, through which they learn, work, gossip, entertain themselves, and otherwise function. The implications for the future imply that we will increasingly rely on technology and computers to experience our lives virtually rather than physically.
The second relation explored is that of the captain and the copilot. The copilot, a machine that is essentially the artificial intelligence (brain) of the ship, controls and maintains the day to day goings on of the ship. The captain himself is generally unnecessary, and not involved in much decision making. At one point he remarks "let me do the announcements, it’s the one thing I get to do on the ship". This relationship explores the growing dependency/reliance on technology in order to run our daily lives. Even more so, it explores the control that this technology can exert over our lives. In the movie, the captain and copilot disagree on whether or not to return to earth. The copilot then takes drastic steps to conceal and subvert the protagonists’ efforts to communicate with the rest of the crew. The main characters fight back against the technology and eventually manage to toggle the ship to "manual control", symbolically and literally ending the dependence on technology. In the readings, Postman discusses a somewhat similar situation in which windmills become a locus for prostitutes in the middle ages, and the local authorities’ attempts to shut it down due to the harm it was causing (Postman p.27). Ultimately, these efforts failed as the economy had become too dependent on the mills to function.
The third relationship explored, between Wall E and Eve, has long term implications for how technology and cybercommunication will develop in the future. This relationship is unique in that it displays how technology ceases to become a medium of communication used by humans, and instead becomes an origin of communication by the technology itself. Messages are generated, sent and received without the participation or knowledge of humans. The implications of this relationship highlight the premise for how technology grows beyond our control. Postman speaks directly to this point when he refers to a “technopoly”, whereby society has become so integrated and reliant on technology to function that the technology itself overrides the traditional societal norms and exerts its own influence.
The portrayals of Wall E bear remarkable similarities to trends that are occurring in society at large. The immediate implications explored in the human to human interaction, whereby endless hours are spent in from of computer screens, experiencing life virtually rather than physically can be seen today. Computer literacy, internet penetration, and internet related activities are increasingly becoming necessary to function, (email, e banking, knowledge, work etc.). The second relationship, between captain and copilot, also bears resemblance to how pilots fly aircraft today. Most of the computation and calculation is left to computers, with the pilots on standby in case something severe occurs. Although we have clearly not reached the level of dependency seen in the film, many critical flight tasks such as landing, takeoff, and navigation are entirely automated via computers. The efficiency, exactitude, and removal of the possibility of human error present several advantages.
In summary, the film presents a multi dimensional approach to how technology and communication intertwine in a possible human future resulting in startling benefits or detriments depending on how the technology is utilized. The underlying message of the film is also clear: technology is here to stay; how we choose to interact and manage it will ultimately determine the future of how we communicate.
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