Blogs, Facebook and YouTube . . . OH MY!
As my journey through English 252 began, I was assigned my very first assignment of the year; blogs. I was not at all nervous about blogging because by now I was fairly familiar with what it entailed. In high school I had my own blog for English class and now I had a chance to experience one in college. Below are a few of my comments from our class blog page.
Piracy & Plagiarism
As I sit here and listen to the music I have purchased off of iTunes, I cannot help but ask why people can listen to the same music for free? I have always been an avid supporter and consumer of iTunes and can honestly say I have never used a file sharing website in my entire life. However, I do not believe these “file sharers’” should be placed in the same category as thieves. The same person, who downloads Lady GaGa’s latest hit today, is not the same person who is going to rob your bank tomorrow. Thousands of people are downloading illegal movies, music and TV shows every day, it is a reality about the World Wide Web that cannot be erased. Why is it that so many people choose free and illegal over purchasing and authorized? It isn’t because people are too broke to spare $1.29 or $.99 cents a song, it’s simply because of how easy and available everything is made. Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, reiterated what we all ready know. He may have been blunt but he stated the truth, privacy is no longer an option. Instead of having the movie and music industry crack down on these so called “thieves”, they should focus all their energy on finding a better way to appreciate people who do not illegally download. How about a free song with every purchase off iTunes? Or maybe sneaking in a few scenes from the latest romantic comedy? Illegal downloading is never going to end as long as there is a website to support it. So it is time to accept that and move on because there really isn’t any other option.
Lets face it; Facebook is a part of our generation. It is unavoidable and like many have already pointed out it is addictive. It is so addictive that many of us find ourselves procrastinating finishing that essay or reading our latest text book assignment just to update our status or accept a new friend. The sad thing is that we do it to ourselves.
At first I did not want a Facebook, my friends made one for me. I never checked it until I realized it was becoming a huge part of everyone's high school life. So I caved in and 3 years later, I am avidly checking mine everyday. On the plus side I have watched this creation develop over the years into what it is now. Derek made a good point by questioning what we really know about this site any ways. Up until this class I never really though about it and I am now glad that I read about Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of this website. He is some what of an evil genius and started an incredible networking revolution.
As for what I put on my Facebook all depends on who I know is going to see it. All of my privacy settings are personalized for my own comfort zone. I only allow my friends to see what I want them to see and I never accept a request unless I know who the person is. I probably shouldn't share as much as I do but like I said I am fully aware of what I am putting on Facebook and should be responsible for my own actions.
Wikipedia
Throughout high school, I was always advised by my teachers to stay away from Wikipedia. I had heard the horror stories from other students too who had sited Wiki and ended up with a failing grade. Therefore, it was in my best interest to avoid using Wikipedia all together and for the most part I did. Then, in 12th grade my world at war teacher did the unspeakable. He asked us to use wiki, no literally told us to use it on all of our homework and projects. Convinced that it was a trap, I tried my hardest not too until I realized how hard the HW was and caved. The very next day I received a 100 on my HW grade. Now, my W@W teacher was a very smart man so I knew if any information was inaccurate he would let us know and he never did. From that point on Wikipedia became my new best friend. I still use it to this very day and have yet to see and negative affects of it. I know that it is completely unrealistic of me to use that as my only source of information so I don't but I definitely use it as a general reference guide. Also, the prank that Stephen Colbert tried to play on Wikipedia and failed just proves that it is not as inaccurate as everyone believes. So stop giving Wikipedia a bad name and start using it.
YouTube
YouTube; the name of the website says it all. Essentially, when visiting the site, we are all just logging on and "tubing". Any time you think of a video to watch, need to learn how to do something visually or are just plain bored, YouTube is the site to visit. I definitely think it is the most popular of all the video sites, in fact I cannot think of another site that is strictly used as a video-network. The fact that Google, bought out the company, makes the site even more accessible.
When you first visit YouTube, it doesn't hit you that millions of people from all over the world are able to post almost anything they want on the site. It is even more crazy to think of how famous people can get from a funny video. For example, the David After the dentist video, now has over 53 million views! That is incredible. Now the entire family has their own website and David even has his own T-shirt.
Besides the whole Viral-Video craze, YouTube has been the gateway to some talented people's careers. For instance, Pricilla Renea, pop hit star, started her career posting videos of her singing and now is on the radio.
As for bullying, I agree with dereck, this is bound to happen on any website. So if you are going to post a video on YouTube for millions to see prepare to be picked on or in Pricilla's case, prepare for fame.
Twitter
I recently (as in today) just joined twitter. I never really looked into opening a twitter account simply because I never really knew what it was. I learned a lot of useful information in class today about twitter that made me want to join.
First off, who wouldn't want to know about what John Mayer's next move is or what President Barack Obama is about to propose next? It give us normal people a look at into the life of a celebrity or a famous figure. It makes us feel more "connected" to them, even if it is through a simple tweet.
Also, it is a great way to stay connected with friends from all over the world. Sure you are only allowed to express your day in 140 characters or less but most people don't have time to read more than that anyways. Especially if you are someone who is always up on the latest news or current event, tweeting is the fastest way to keep in-touch with the world.
The only complaint that I have about twitter is the accuracy of it. Not everything that is "tweeted" is always 100% true. With that being said, people shouldn't always believe everything they read on twitter.
Over all I am impressed with the response to twitter. At first I thought the whole idea of it was dumb, but now I realize it is just another modern way to say "hi I am a person who wants to share more with the world" and what is so wrong about that?
