How Obama Won The Election (Extra)

      Barack Obama ran one of the best campaigns in recent memory. Many people will say Obama won the election because people did not want a Republican in office after having George W. Bush for eight years. People do not realize that Barack Obama and his administrators did an excellent job in connecting to young people. In class we watched video's of Howard Dean and how he became an internet sensation. Even though he failed when it came to actual debates because of his lack of public speaking, Obama administration used Dean's internet idea as a way to connect to young people. Obama knew that getting the young adult vote from ages eighteen to twenty-five would be crucial if he wanted to win the election. His administration knew that young people are very big on social networking, so Obama's administration decided to use social networking as a way to attract young voters. The 2008 election had the biggest turnout from young voters in recent memory. Instead, of using the typical ways to campaign Obama decided to connect and try and become "cool" with the young adults. His plan worked to perfection because young voters felt they had a connection with this president because he did the same things that they did when it came to social networking. No president before Obama used social networking as a way to attract voters. Now, all candidates have Twitter and Facebook accounts because they know if they win the young adult vote they are most likely to win the election. Obama's staff ran a brilliant campaign and they were the first to use social networking as an advantage. Barack Obama won the election because he used Howard Dean's strategy to connect to young voters. Unlike Howard Dean, Barack Obama has an extraordinary talent when it comes to giving speeches. Barack Obama administration ran a perfect campaign, which lead him to winning the 2008 election.

Words Do Hurt (Extra)

     What an individual says to somebody can change an individual's life forever. Many people use their fist as a way to harm an individual, but for most the words an individual says hurts them the most. Recently, in our society we have had a lot of issues occur when it comes to cyber-bullying. This is when individuals bully somebody through social networking sites. Now, many would say, if the individual does not like what they are hearing then they should sign off and ignore them. The problem is that is a lot easier said than done. If an individual ignores them online then they have to see them at school and get picked on there. There is no easy solution out of cyber- bullying and people need to realize the effects it has on people. Personally, if an individual has to make fun of a person through a computer and cannot do it to their face, then that individual is a coward. If an individual really believes something about a person, then they should be willing to say it to the person's face. For the most part cyber-bullying occurs with children and young adults. When we had to read a story about a Mother pretending to be a cute boy to get back at one of her daughter's ex-friends, it made me sick to my stomach. When a Mother stoops to this level and harms a teenager, then she has serious issues. The fact that a mom pretended to be a cute guy to a girl who had serious self-esteem problems is very disturbing. Clearly, this mom knew the girl had issues because her daughter use to be her friend. As the girl began to trust this guy, the mother then decided to insult her and turn her back on the girl. This devastated the girl and eventually led her to committing suicide. Mother's are suppose to be role models to children and this mother was a big factor in why this girl decided to end her life. People need to be careful on what they say about others on the internet because you never know who else may read them and how somebody will take them. Nobody wants to be at fault for an individual ending their life. The words a person says to an individual can be a very powerful thing. More powerful at times than a person getting physically beaten up. Harsh words can make a person's life go to a downward spiral. Nobody wants to the be the reason why an individual ended his life so be careful on what you say on social networking sites.

The Power of YouTube (Extra)

     YouTube has become a hit sensation around the world. It allows individuals the ability to become a star. YouTube gives individuals the opportunity to post videos about themselves and let the entire world see it. When YouTube was first established the creators never thought that this site was going to become this popular. People have the ability to make music mixes, create funny videos, and replay sports clips. Now, YouTube is more than those features it allows individuals to display their talents and become professionals.YouTube gives an individual the chance to follow their dreams. Rather than going to meet with a professional across the country a person can showcase their talents on YouTube and let viewers be the judges. For example, a basketball player that I played against last year is now world-wide famous for his dunking ability. This kid is named Jacob Tucker and he is only 5'10 and has a 50' vertical. This kid came from a small division three school and now he is playing for the Harlem Globetrotters, one of the most historic franchises around the world. Without YouTube nobody would be able to find out this kids amazing talent. The crazy thing about this entire story was that the only reason why Jacob Tucker made a video so he could get invited to the NCAA slam dunk contest. He would have never imagined in a million years that he would be getting asked to participate in slam dunk contest across the country and now is a member of the Harlem Globetrotters. YouTube gives an average Joe the chance to become famous. YouTube is not just about posting funny videos or posting sports clips. It allows an individual the opportunity to follow and pursue their dreams that they thought was never possible.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEgcml1Wx1w

Google the Best Invention of My Time Period? (Extra)

     Google is one of the most powerful tools accessible for an individual. Literally, an individual has the ability to find anything they are searching for on this website. Google has expanded over the years. Originally, we were only able to find information through text, now we have the ability to look at maps and actual locations on Google Earth. If I needed to find a building where my interview for a job was located, I would type the address into Google Maps and they can zoom in on how the building looks. Also, if I wanted to show an individual my house I could type in my house and they have the ability to show exactly how my house looks from the outside. Many people argue that Google has gone too far and there is no privacy anymore. In Siva Vaidhynathan's "Googlization of Us" he talks about how some people dislike that if something bad occurred to an individual anybody has the ability to find it on Google. Nothing can be hidden now because Google finds all information possible on a certain category. Also, Siva Vaidhynathan talked about how Google now remembers all the things you have searched so when you type in the first letter it pops up for you. People dislike this because they find it weird that Google remembers every possible thing you have searched. The only negative about Google is the lack of privacy that an individual has now.People need to realize that we live in a society where privacy does not exist especially if an individual uses social networking sites. Personally, I am an optimistic guy who likes to see the positives and Google has way more positives than negatives. Being able to find a location online visually is something that is incredibly useful and helpful. Also, if you ever need to search for a topic all you have to do is type your subject and thousands and even millions of websites will pop up about your information. The role that Google plays on individuals is enormous. I have grown up with Google my whole life and I feel I could not live without this website. Even though there have been many great inventions in my time period, it is impossible to think that there is one greater than Google. People around the world would have a very hard time going through life without having this incredible resource. Google continues to grow and it has yet to reach its full potential. I look forward to seeing how Google works in twenty years and by the time I grow old we may be saying Google is the greatest invention ever and not just during my time period.

Facebook Privacy or Is There? (Extra)

     Every individual is different when it comes to setting up their privacy on Facebook. All my settings are public on Facebook. The only setting I have is that I need to accept the friend request. Many people ask me why I do not set any privacy settings and that is because I have nothing to hide. I believe this kind of shows who I am as a person and that I am a very outgoing person who likes to meet people. In Danah Boyd's article "Facebook Privacy Settings: Who Cares?" She talks about how people need to be more alert and protective on what they show to certain people. Another point, which I found very interesting that she mentioned was that all the changes Facebook does, people forget to reset their privacy settings. This was something that really stunned me that when Facebook does its updates the original privacy settings do not always automatically update. People just assume that their privacy settings are the same when the new updates occur, but that is not always the case. Personally, I feel privacy does not really exist on the web. There are always going to be people who have the ability to find ways to hack into your information. Obviously, if you keep your settings private there is going to be a better chance your information in private, but there is no guarantee. If you are the type who likes to keep their Facebook's private then make sure you do. I am willing to accept the potential risk of being public because I know I will make good judgment on what to have on Facebook. People can make their Facebook's private,but unfortunately there is no complete privacy when it comes to social networking. Facebook and all social networking sites are great things except people need to remember nothing is completely private in the social networking world!

The Benefits of Music Sharing (Extra)

     There have been a lot of artist today who take original work and create their music based off it. There is nothing wrong with an artist doing this. All great people have learned from others or copied their works. In order to be the best you need to learn from the best. These artists are taking work from the best and making it their own. In a way the artist is honoring the original artist. This benefits the original artist more than anything. Anytime an artist decides to play somebody's work they need to pay them for using their work. In Ian Janis "Online Music Sharing May Benefit Artists" he talks about how these original artists are in a great situation and have many benefits for being willing to share their work. People pay them to use their work, while they do not need to do any of the work. Also, whenever the song is played on the radio they get a percentage of that. Allowing your music to be used by the new generations is a great honor and a great way to make easy money. It is one thing if an artist does not ask permission first and tries to make it their own. That is unacceptable, but if a person is willing to do all the work and all you have to do is give permission, why would you not accept? Original artists should be honored if an artist wants to use his or her work. That means that it is still good and popular after multiple decades. Being an original artist and having others use your work is one of the easiest ways to make money.

The Disturbance of Hackers (Extra)

     Hackers in today's society are a lot different compared to the original hackers in the 60's. In the 1960's when hackers began to change computers, they did things in a more positive way. They would find ways to get information to be free for individuals. In today's society hackers bring a lot of harm to individuals with computers or laptops. Hackers are brilliant people who have a special gift when it comes to being able to change how computers work. Rather than improving technology with their gifts, hackers now would rather cause harm to people by putting in viruses. Ever since the 1990's when punk rock got popular, people have always felt the need to rebel against their parents or higher authorities. These people who hack computers do this because either they want to get back at people or because they are just bored and they find this fun. What hackers do not realize is how much they can ruin people's lives with the viruses they spread. Last year I experienced a virus because I thought that what I was clicking on was a professional site. I realized right away that I was wrong when my computer completely shut down and it took 3 weeks for Information Technology Services to get rid of the virus. Hackers are intelligent people and they have the ability to make a virus website and a professional website look identical. Hackers bother me greatly because they have such incredible minds and their way of taking advantage of their gifts is to ruin others lives and bring harm. There is nothing worse than a person wasting his or her potential.

How George Orwell's "1984" Connects to Today (Extra)

      What makes a book a classic is that no matter how long it was written ago, it still connects to today. George Orwell's book "1984" is about a government that watches peoples' every move. There saying in the book is "Big Brother is Watching You" (Orwell). This is one of my favorite books because it was so interesting reading about a government that was this controlling. Then when I was reading an article about how all public transportation in New York has surveillance cameras monitoring people's every move a connect occurred to me. I thought to myself, George Orwell's book has some connections to today's society. There is always individuals watching our every move in public making sure we are acting appropriate. Privacy does not exist anymore in our society and there is always a "big brother" watching us. People have the ability now to find ways to search our Facebook's and find things that we thought we deleted online. George Orwell is brilliant in the fact that he created a society in his book, that in some aspects is similar to what we live in now. Obviously, we are not living in a Communist country thankfully, but the lack of privacy that individuals have is similar to what people faced in the book "1984". Also, people have the ability to manipulate others into believe something. Government and higher authority figures have the ability to convince somebody to believe something in our society. In the book the government convinced the individual that "2+2=5" (Orwell). This connects to our society because if you convince and manipulate somebody enough an individual can believe the craziest things. Now, our society is no way near the extremes that the people had to face in the book "1984", but an individual could argue that there are some similarities that do occur between our society and the story. George Orwell is a brilliant writer and his story is a classic because of how some parts connect to us today.

The Power of Twitter (Extra)

     Twitter is site where an individual can post a short statement on what is going on in their world or how they feel about a current event. Well, last year during the Chicago Bears game against the Packers, many individuals were expressing how they felt about the current situation. Last year in the NFC championship game Jay Cutler the quarterback from the Bears got injured and had to sit out the entire second half. Bears fans all over the world were expressing their anger that he was not able to overcome his injury and play. Nobody really knew his exact injury so it was hard to make a judgment on whether or not his injury was a serious one or minor. Individuals could not wait to hear the explanation because many believe you play in a playoff unless you physically cannot move. People were bashing Jay Cutler and it got so bad that even other NFL players were beginning to rip him. ESPN television shows could not stop talking about the Twitter madness that occurred for Jay Cutler during the game. After the doctor received the X-Ray they found out that he had a torn MCL and he physically was not able to apply any pressure on his leg.
     Thanks to Twitter Jay Cutler received a reputation for being a quitter and for not being tough. Yet, this was the complete opposite of what Jay Cutler truly is. Last year Jay Cutler got sacked 52 times in the season and yet never complained about it for a second. He even got sacked 9 times in half. This guy has proven his toughness, but the tweets people were saying about him had change the perception of him. Some people have moved on from last year and realized he is tough, but there are some people because of the words being said on Twitter will forever believe Jay Cutler is soft. The people who tweeted all of this negativity on Cutler have no consequences because they have the right to express themselves. The only consequence they have is the feeling of guilt because the words being said on Twitter really hurt Cutler and because of their words he has to try and prove to people that he is tough again. People need to be careful on what they post on Twitter and make sure they have all the facts first. These people making a judgment before knowing the results have effect Jay Cutler's reputation possibly forever.

Wikipedia is a Reliable Source Revision

Wikipedia was created in 2001 by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger. The goal of Wikipedia was to give people a free-encyclopedia. Thousands of volunteers around the world help provide accurate information onto Wikipedia. One of the concerns people have with Wikipedia is that anybody is able to go on and edit information. The information will not always be correct with what they put on, but there is a committee who tries to correct the information to make sure it is accurate. In Andrew Keen's "The Noble Amateur" Keen talks about how these people that work for Wikipedia are amateurs and are not professionals so they should not be publishing information. Keen believes an amateur is, "A hobbyist, knowledgeable or otherwise someone who does not make a living from his or her field of interest"(Keen). Keen believes these people who are not professionals should not be providing information and pretending to be an encyclopedia. Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia and because it is free it is not always going to be the best quality. Most of Wikipedia is valuable information and it can be a reliable source as long as an individual does not use Wikipedia as their only source.

Wikipedia has great tools that can be extremely helpful to an individual. Wikipedia is a great website if an individual wants to look for a quick answer. On the bottom of every page there will be the work cited page. This shows where the people who created Wikipedia received their information. The sources that are on the bottom of the page are reliable and are from professionals. An individual should not use Wikipedia for a research paper right now, unless they use it to look for professional sources on the bottom. Wikipedia is free so people need to expect that things that are free are sometimes not going to be the best quality. Keen stated, "Democratic consequence of digital revolution is dictatorship of idiots"(Keen). The idiots Keen is talking about is the amateurs who post information on Wikipedia. What Keen does not realize is Wikipedia has been occurring for ten years now and they have improved in cleaning up the inaccurate information. Another reading we read called "Wikipedia" by Clay Shirky, Shirky talks about how Wikipedia's content in not trash and people are not vandalizing Wikipedia like they did in the past. Wikipedia is cleaning up their information and trying to make their information accurate. People around the world are beginning to respect that and are not posting inaccurate information. Reasons they are respecting Wikipedia more because they do not want to go through all the trouble to get blocked or maybe because they use Wikipedia for research papers and want to use the accurate information for their paper. Wikipedia has enormous potential and they continue to improve the website every year.  Wikipedia is becoming a more reliable tool for information.

Wikipedia is Realiable Revision

Wikipedia was created in 2001 by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger. The goal of Wikipedia was to give people a free-encyclopedia. Thousands of volunteers around the world help provide accurate information onto Wikipedia. One of the concerns people have with Wikipedia is that anybody is able to go on and edit information. The information will not always be correct with what they put on, but there is a committee who tries to correct the information to make sure it is accurate. In Andrew Keen's "The Noble Amateur" Keen talks about how these people that work for Wikipedia are amateurs and are not professionals so they should not be publishing information. Keen believes an amateur is, "A hobbyist, knowledgeable or otherwise someone who does not make a living from his or her field of interest"(Keen). Keen believes these people who are not professionals should not be providing information and pretending to be an encyclopedia. Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia and because it is free it is not always going to be the best quality. Most of Wikipedia is valuable information and it can be a reliable source as long as an individual does not use Wikipedia as their only source.

      Wikipedia has great tools that can be extremely helpful to an individual. Wikipedia is a great website if an individual wants to look for a quick answer. On the bottom of every page there will be the work cited page. This shows where the people who created Wikipedia received their information. The sources that are on the bottom of the page are reliable and are from professionals. An individual should not use Wikipedia for a research paper right now, unless they use it to look for professional sources on the bottom. Wikipedia is free so people need to expect that things that are free are sometimes not going to be the best quality. Keen stated, "Democratic consequence of digital revolution is dictatorship of idiots"(Keen). The idiots Keen is talking about is the amateurs who post information on Wikipedia. What Keen does not realize is Wikipedia has been occurring for ten years now and they have improved in cleaning up the inaccurate information. Another reading we read called "Wikipedia" by Clay Shirky, Shirky talks about how Wikipedia's content in not trash and people are not vandalizing Wikipedia like they did in the past. Wikipedia is cleaning up their information and trying to make their information accurate. People around the world are beginning to respect that and are not posting inaccurate information. Reasons they are respecting Wikipedia more because they do not want to go through all the trouble to get blocked or maybe because they use Wikipedia for research papers and want to use the accurate information for their paper. Wikipedia has enormous potential and they continue to improve the website every year.  Wikipedia is becoming a more reliable tool for information.

The Scary World of Social Networking Revision

During this week we had a project, which was to create a made up AIM account and talk to a classmate. The point of this project was to be somebody opposite of what we truly are. I pretended to be a girl named Hannah Weinstein from UCLA. I enjoyed doing the project because this was an accurate picture of what occurs on social networking sites. But at the same time, while I was doing this project I thought to myself do we really know who we are talking too on these social networking sites? It is important that people do not get too emotionally attached to the person on social networking sites if they do not know them. People need to look for red flags when they are talking to an individual. It is important that people use their imagination to express themselves, as long as they do this in a positive way. In Sherry Turkle's "Aspect of the Self" she expressed her beliefs when it comes to people making up identities by saying, "In its virtual reality, we self-fashion and self-create, what kind of personae do we make?"(Turkle) She values people using their imaginations and living in these fantasy worlds. Yet, people need to make sure they are being appropriate and mature when they pretend to be somebody else. There are many people in this world who use self- creation on social networking sites in a negative way and we need to make sure these people get stopped before they damage an individual’s life forever.
          Sherry Turkle stated in "Aspects of the Self" "MUDs provide worlds for anonymous social interaction in which you can play a role as close to or as far away from your real self as you choose." (Turkle) This is important that people are able to get away from society for a little and not have to be themselves all the time. The problem is that too many people try and be somebody who is inappropriate. It bothers me when people act differently than they really are and act immature online. It is disturbing hearing what people have done to others online. Obviously, there are people who are very responsible and can handle being somebody else online, but when I hear stories like this, it makes me sick to my stomach.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/52383/cybersex-victims-to-get-counseling
Children as young as 11 years old are now damaged for the rest of their lives because of creepy adults pretending to be somebody their not.  This is the problem with creating a screen persona. In Sherry Turkle’s article she said, "Creating screen personae is thus an opportunity for self-expression, leading to her feeling more like her true self when decked out in an array of virtual masks."(Turkle) Well these adults are sure expressing their true feelings and now they have ruined two innocent girls’ lives forever. People have the right to be whoever they want online as long as they are mature and responsible. This world is too scary now to be talking to somebody that you do not know because we have no evidence that the person we are talking too really is who they say they are. It is important for individuals to look for red flags when they are talking to somebody they have never met in person.  Social networking is an incredible feature we have today as long as we use it in the right ways.
      This AIM experience really taught me that it is so easy to pretend that you are somebody else. It makes me sick to my stomach hearing about the horrific stories that have occurred through online interaction. It is a great feature that an individual is allowed to be somebody else for some time, but please make sure that the individual does not stay too long in his new world. Meeting people through the internet is a great thing that individuals in our society were not able to do before. Just make sure that when we meet people through the internet we are careful with what we say and always check for red flags. For the most part, people are well behaved online except for the few individuals who make social networking a scary world.
Thanks for reading and I love to hear some feedback on my Blog. Hope you enjoyed and everybody is always welcomed to return to Max's World.

Smart Mobs Influence on Society

     Information is not the only spread through television and the computers anymore. Our mobile devices now play a huge role in how information and gossip gets across the world. Individuals have the ability to create videos with their phones and spread them to friends. Smart phones now have all the technology services an individual needs so therefore a person does not need to watch television or look on their computer to find out what is occurring in the world. Smarts Mobs are individuals who spread information and gossip through their phones. People have the ability to access all their information on mobile devices now. Also, it is cheaper to use mobile devices compared to a computer. In Rheingold's article "Smart Mobs: The Power of the Mobile Many" he talked about how a computer is 20x more expensive than a mobile telephone. If an individual can find his information on mobile devices then why spend all that money on a computer. This is where Smart Mobs have such a huge influence on the society because they are the ones who are spreading the news and gossip on mobile devices.
     Smart Mobs play a huge influence in our society because of how fast they spread information. Our society is very fast pace and is always moving and people want everything in a hurry. Smart Mobs now allow individuals to receive their information at the fast pace and not have to wait to watch it on television. There are some negatives to Smart Mobs, especially when it comes to privacy. In the article Rheingold talked about how the mobile communities stalk celebrities. People now are able to take their cell phones out so quickly and catch a video of a celebrity that walks by. Celebrities have a hard time getting privacy in today's society because anywhere they go they never know who is taking a video of them. Also, they never know what an individual may send about them. Even though that is one of the negatives of Smart Mobs, overall they are very good for society. They have given people a new way to express media and to invent new forms of sex, commerce, entertainment, and communion. (Rheingold) Smart Mobs have made a huge influence on society today and they will only make a greater impact in the near future.

The Power of Cyber Bullying

     Social networking is how people interact in today's society. There are many different programs an individual can use for social networking such as Instant Messenger, Facebook, and Twitter. What makes these sites a positive is that an individual is able to connect with friends from far away distances. But the problem with these social networking sites is an individual does not always know who they are speaking too. Unfortunately, a tragedy occurred in 2006 that led to a thirteen year old girl committing suicide because of an individual she met on the internet.
     In 2006 a thirteen year old girl by the name of Megan Meier commited suicide because of the verbal abuse she was receiving on the web. Megan had low self-esteem and was on mediciation during the time of her death. When Megan was on the internet she began talking to an attracitive sixteen year old boy. Or she believed she was talking to a sixteen year old boy. Unfortnately, she was talking to one of her ex-friends Mom. The Mom would send comments to Megan saying, " Megan Meier is a slut. Megan Meier is fat" (ABC News). To a girl with low self-esteem this really affected her and these harsh comments lead to herself committing suicide. Originally, the "guy" acted all nice to Megan, but as the individual gained Megan's trust that was when all things took a serious turn for the worst. "When emotionally vulnerable young people get online, they can very easily be manipulated" (ABC News). Young people let their guard down quickly on the internet and trust somebody too easily. Unfortunately, Megan trusted this person too much and it lead to her feeling even worse about herself and ending her life.
      In today's society, things being said on the internet are much more damaging to an individual than physical contact. People build these relationships without knowing somebody online and that can lead to serious issues in the future. Ron Meier who is Megan's Father stated, "Be as watchful as you can be" (ABC News). This is referring to parents who have children that go on the internet. There are some evil people out there and when they cyber bully an individual on the internet, they can do serious damage to a person's self-esteem. Sadly, Megan Meier is not the only person who has faced cyber- bullying in her life, this occurs all around the world. Parents need to be careful and aware of the people their kids talk too because the comments that could be said about them on the internet, could effect their child's life and also yours.