Virtual Scavenger Hunt

This was a practice in patience and determination. We set off on our scavenger hunt and found a majority of the items requested with quiet persistence. I was responsible for finding all the sites on the first page and my one challenge was the Disney Resort airfare and hotel package. For some reason it kept giving me only the one way airfare and when I'd go back and start over the cost would increase for the hotel rooms, quite frustrating. The other items were pretty easy, though we did not have a twitter account and our group wasn't as social media savvy as some of the other groups.

I did manage to find a blog from prior Scavenger hunts that posted an answer to the Chickadee question, though I have no idea if the answer was correct. Guess I'll find out soon enough! It was a fun exercise, yet it would have been better if we had more real examples of what was expected. Thankfully, one of the members of my group knew how to do screen savers, I wasn't as clear on the process. Hopefully, that all came through to our professor, otherwise I guess the exercise will be chalked up to a work in progress.

Erik our guest speaker.

     Erik, was our guest speaker on Oct. 8, 2014. He was very interesting and informative about the web and the virtues of self publishing. I found a lot of what he said, to be true and somewhat scary about the internet. For instance, "if it's not on the internet it does not exist or it didn't happen," I find this challenging for those people interested in maintaining a low profile and not wanting undue attention. Or the scarier version of having "swatters",  calling you out and really dismantling your life and career as well. To think that there are people out there that take it upon themselves, perhaps because of a perceived slight, or that they just flat out don't like you and what you represent, that they could ruin your life by calling the police and turning a lie into unwanted attention.

     This is where I find the web unwelcome. If someone wants to try and control and maintain their web identity or image, yet, they don't have outright control of what others post about them, whether true or not. Your privacy, your home life can be spread all over the place! I do not welcome that possibility! Maybe, because I'm not from the internet generation, I'm not a fan of unwanted attention and the potential for having my privacy and image ruined in a matter of seconds. I recognize these are the worst case scenarios and the thousands who use the web to great success is admirable.

     The fact that Erik, was able to publish several books and continues to do so. As well as, create several online businesses is very exciting. I've known many writers that have achieved some success due to the opportunities the web provides. I guess with anything there is give and take, good and bad. I hope to get over my fear and concerns and be one of those people that takes advantage of the online tools and world wide web. Hopefully, our class, Virtual World, will continue to enlighten and alleviate my concerns?

The Web is Using Us

     I thought Michael Wesch's video was very interesting. Is the web using us or are we using the web; the machine is us, was a clever and somewhat confusing creation. It moves quickly so it was hard to follow all that he was trying to convey, which is true of the virtual world wide web as well. Trying to keep up with technology and all the latest advancements is a challenge, and for someone who isn't a follower it can be even more so. The web has evolved so much over the years and it can be overwhelming. I especially related to the words that popped up towards the end of the video, which were, "commerce, privacy, family, love, aesthetics, copyright, authorship etc."

     All of these words have certain meanings that definitely affect our lives, well they are our lives. They portray many of the aspects that are us and the web. We seek privacy in our personal lives and in our virtual life. Family, love are all important to most of us. Commerce effects all of us on numerous levels, socially, economically and culturally. For aesthetics, we regard something that is aesthetically pleasing as good, therefore if what the web promotes is aesthetically interesting we might be more inclined to look, buy or spend time there. Certainly, being aware of copyright issues and who is the author, creator of a piece is important. I would think managing the millions of articles, papers, images etc., would be incredibly impossible. I'm not really sure how that works on the web?

     Over all. the video did make me think about the complexities and challenges that face us on the world wide web. It is a great question," Is the web using us or are we using the Web?"

   

What do I want out of this class?

     Wow, this is a whole new world to me! Fun, exciting and a bit intimidating! I'm looking forward to learning a lot more about the world wide web and the virtual world we live in. Initially, I took this class because it was the only 3 credit class available. However, after looking over the syllabus and spending a few days in class, I really believe this class will benefit me. The professor, Andrew Fry has  a great sense of humor, knowledge and background in the technology industry and has lots of energy to share with his students.

     Historically, I was not clear on how or when the internet came to be. The technological aspect, such as HTML, FTP, TCP/IP, is a foreign language to me, but, one I think I can tackle. It is a vast world of information and I'm hopeful by the end of this course I will certainly have more clarity and understanding of the Virtual World. I'm interested in learning more about e-commerce and how that all came about. It has grown so exponentially through out the years, which is also interesting, will it at some point phase out or slow down?

The security of the internet and our privacy is also interesting to me. Are there really people observing us, certainly our actions are being observed? I am concerned that more securities will be breached, more hackers will be successful and our private information will be leaked causing more problems than I care to imagine. Can the internet really be kept safe? With social media, it presents so many opportunities and potential conflicts. Internet bullying, psychological and emotional concerns, do you have enough face book friends, being constantly aware of what others are doing, saying and sharing. It is a whole world unto itself, the virtual world, very exciting and complex. I hope to be more competent and aware of the internet and all it's potential after this class ends.