Living and Working in a Virtual World in-class presentation

The book our group will be presenting in Professor Fry's class is titled "Against the machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob" by Lee Siegel. As you can probably tell from the title alone Mr. Siegel is a critic who views the Internet, and its impact on our culture, as something that needs further examination. He views modern day culture as being infected and the Internet simply as the carrier for spreading the "virus" of illogical human patterns and thoughts. As you will likely gather from the following, he is a critic in the truest sense of the word.

I am responsible for presenting Part 2 of 3 parts. Kei Corbett and Samantha Huoth will be presenting parts 1 and 3 respectively. Part 2 includes chapters 4, 5, and 6. These chapters are respectively titled "The Context of Participatory Culture", "Down with Popular Culture", and "Participatory Culture". In the chapter titled "Context of Participatory Culture" his main focus is bashing the book "The Tipping Point" (#42 all time bestseller on Amazon) for encouraging, and strengthening, the behavior of those seeking "high school" style popularity online. Siegel says "The Tipping Point is a how-to book for Homo interneticus." He also goes on to say "In The Tipping Point, human existence is wholly driven by commercial concerns. Life is divided into manipulating winners and manipulating losers: there are people who know 'Connectors', possess a 'sticky' concept, and have the capacity to use their environment and then there is everyone else." With that being said, I guess I would like to hear how Mr. Siegel would respond to such quotes like "All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players" from Shakespeare, and this quote, "It is better to be making the news than taking it; to be an actor rather than a critic." from Winston Churchill. I would argue that the search for popularity is not a new concept and that authors like Malcolm Gladwell, author of the "The Tipping Point", are only playing their role in enabling those whose role is to be "Connectors" the ability to do what they do more effectively.

Chapter 5 titled "Down with Popular Culture" continues down this path of ripping on popular culture. His target in Chapter 5, the popular reality-television show "American Idol." Siegel says that "in the race for popularity-that is, fame without accomplishment- the self is left behind. They (American Idol contestants) just want to be liked. They just want to be big." Personally, I think this is selling these kids, who have been working for years at honing their skills as singers and entertainers, way too short. We can't all be starving artists like it seems Siegel would hope, some of us need to make a living. I just wonder where Siegel got his first break? Did he do it by pointing out to his boss and consumers (his audience) how they just want to be liked and how unoriginal they are? I doubt it! These contestants are just giving the people what they want. Isn't that the way the world works for most of us outside the critical literary realm? I appreciate that Siegel is just doing his job, but at the same time I wish he would just appreciate the fact that these contestants on American Idol are also just doing their jobs as well.

Now is a good time to point out, once you get past all the bashing, that Siegel does actually make one interesting argument along the way that our culture has changed from being "passively" to "actively" entertained. Examples of this are voting for contestants, going to TV show websites and participating in online surveys and games, virtual communities like Second Life, and video games like the Wii. We now demand to be part of the action, instead of just spectators.

Chapter 6 titled "Participatory Culture" continues where Chapter 5, "Down with Popular Culture", leaves off. "Down with Popular Culture" spoke to how "passive" entertainment is being phased out in favor of more "active" entertainment options. This is illustrated when Siegel says "these days, thanks to movieoke and video games, a spectator now has various opportunities to play his favorite actor performing his favorite role. The director James Cameron is even reportedly working on a new 3-D film called Avatar - also a term for an anonymous Internet user's alias - which will offer to spectators the experience of actually being in the film". To me that sounds kind of interesting and weird at the same time, like a modern day "Choose your own adventure" book perhaps.

From my perspective, I see Siegel as being the type that if he can't be original he'll just rip on everyone else for their unoriginality until he brings them down to his level. Siegel is like the "high school" bully, insecure in his popularity building abilities, that goes around making everyone who is popular feel like they are being fake. The way I see it, we are all individuals and products of our own personal experiences and environments. I didn't find much originality in Seigel's book, which is ironic considering, I am sure if you were to ask him he would point out that his point-of -view is unique and enlightened. To this I would respond with another quote, this from Alison Boulter, "Always remember you're unique, just like everyone else”.

Using the Internet to travel, virtually or otherwise

Whether it is traveling to a virtual space like Second Life or a real place like Las Vegas the internet is an essential tool to experiencing both. Nowadays most people can easily be their own travel agents. Information regarding destinations is readily available online as is the availability to book reservations and tickets. Customer reviews are also extremely helpful when it comes to making a decision between different choices, whether it be destinations or accomodations. The internet has created an environment for travelers that is convenient and full of information from many various sources.

I have had nothing but positive experiences with all of the above points. From my experience travelling both domestically and internationally is relatively easy. Because of this fact, competition between companies has lowered prices and forced these industries to become more open with information and options to consumers. The internet has created a new marketplace where the consumer is far less reliant on travel agents, airlines, hotels and the like. Shopping around between choices is so quick and easy that an entire trip can be booked in a single afternoon.

While the aforementioned discussion has revolved around the topic of traveling in the real world, the internet is now also offering the option of virtual travel to its users. Websites such as Second Life, are online virtual communities where people spend leisure time. Similar to a real world vacation, avatars (your online persona) travel, shop, and enjoy all kinds of recreational activities. While this seems a little strange to me, I have to admit that it may serve a valuable purpose for some; like marketers, entrepreneurs, and obviously those who enjoy escaping from the realities of day-to-day life.

Kevin Freitas and Feed >> Tacoma

Kevin Freitas, the developer of Feed >> Tacoma, came and spoke to our class Monday. He spoke at length about Feed >> Tacoma; a hyper local news feed thread similar to the AP news feed but just on a local scale. It was obvious that Kevin not only has vision, but also the skills to see his vision through to fruition. It is also pretty obvious that Feed >> Tacoma could very well be the next big thing; not only competing with local newspapers but "feeding" them as well.

Feed >> Tacoma is similar to Exit 133 from the standpoint that both are hyperlocal in nature. However, the similarities sort of end there. Feed Tacoma >> Tacoma has no staff, no ads, and seemingly no moderator. It is simply a forum for those, who granted have been approved by Kevin, to voice their opinions without any sort of editorial fact-checking filter. In Kevin's own words, a very "organic" creation where the users monitor themselves and contribute whatever they want, when they want.

I am sure Kevin has a bright future! The question in mind is where will he go with Feed >> Tacoma from here? Will he continue down the "utopian" and "organic" path, or not. This is just the sort of thing that could easily take-off in a pre-packaged form and passed along to other communities outside of the South Sound area. Will he resist the temptation to turn this into a money maker, or continue "doing the right thing". I am not sure if this were my idea I would be able to show as much self-constraint towards getting involved as Kevin has to date. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this attributable to the fact that he probably has an even grander idea stewing on the back burner. Only time will tell, but until then it is still cool knowing that we have such great minds in our midst here in South Sound!

Cost-Benefit analysis of online financing

Many things in life can be boiled down to a simple cost-benefit analysis. My opinion is that in the case of online financing the pros outweigh the cons. The pros like convenience, accessibility, and flexibility far outweigh the possible negatives like online security concerns.

While I am hesitant to discuss some of the particulars regarding my involvement with online financing I will say that I am pretty heavily involved at this point. Automated services like like direct deposit and bill pay are amazing. Saving time paying bills and depositing paychecks is very helpful in itself; however, beyond that I would also point of the fact that I haven't paid a single bill late since signing up for these services. No late payment penalties since signing up for auto bill payment is reason enough for me to think these services are worth running the risk of having my finances online.

While the aforementioned examples are smaller picture, I have also considered some of the bigger picture issues as well. As far as security goes, what is really safer, going to a bank where you can be physically robbed or banking online and having your personal information stolen? Now, would also be a good time to point out that I think most bank's online security is better than many store's or governmental organizations online security protection. Whether any of these opinions are statistically proven or not, I do not know. I guess my thinking is just that I believe banks have the most to lose if their online presence is compromised, and relative to other organizations banks are very organized and proactive when it comes to protecting their customers against those who prey on them.

Basically, what I am trying to say is that unless I plan to stop shopping online, I don't plan to stop banking online anytime soon. Additionally, how is a bank teller, salesperson, or waiter stealing your credit card number any different that someone stealing it online? I would actually argue that the chances of this happening are more likely than the same thing happening online. Just ask my parents about their the experience with this while vacationing in Mexico.

While I wouldn't currently take out a home mortgage loan with an online bank, that is about the only thing that I probably would not do online at this point. But you never know, even my opinion about this, like many things in life, may change over time.