Okay, I am just having some fun with the title of this blog. I swear to you I get no sexual satisfaction nor am I looking for the frustrating episodes in other peoples' lives.
On Friday, I created a Facebook account and was amazed at how quickly I connected with people. The most bizarre was chatting, via messages, with a friend from my middle school years and is now located in Portland Oregon.
On Saturday and Sunday, I found myself looking at the photos my new "friends" posted on Facebook. I am definitely jealous of others who have taken a vacation recently, sorry I need a vacation to some warm weather beach with umbrella drinks! It was also interesting to see how many people went to Washington DC in the last couple of years!
I have looked at the profiles of other people and they have some really interesting things on their profiles. I am looking for ways to further develop my Facebook profile page so if anyone has some ideas please let me know.
Dave
Monday, July 28, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
Facebook!
Well holy ****! I am completely knocked off my rocker by Facebook. I set up a profile and decided to let it search my e-mail address book for friends and before I knew it I found a lot of people I knew at one time or another on Facebook. One was a friend from middle school and I completely lost touch with him and he is now located in Portland Oregon. It was unbelievable to make so much contact with people so quickly.
I expressed my feelings on the IAS Facebook page! I am definitely ready to head back into my "cave" for the weekend. Although I understand the security precautions, it is strange to ask someone if you could be their friend. It almost feels like I am back in second grade and just starting at a new school and asking someone to be my friend.
I am going to add more to my blog about this as I am really overwhelemed right now.
Dave
I expressed my feelings on the IAS Facebook page! I am definitely ready to head back into my "cave" for the weekend. Although I understand the security precautions, it is strange to ask someone if you could be their friend. It almost feels like I am back in second grade and just starting at a new school and asking someone to be my friend.
I am going to add more to my blog about this as I am really overwhelemed right now.
Dave
Google Docs
Wow, creating and sharing a document via Google docs is quite easy. I can definitely see how this will be an advantageous way to collaborate with others. It makes working on a research proposal or journal publication (those who have been around me for the last two weeks know how I am struggling with making revisions to a journal submission).
The educational dynamic is also quite open as well! I like the idea of small group projects and students can each work on their own component part to the document without having to wait for an e-mail. Furthermore, they can use Google docs to share work instantly and others in the group can offer input almost immediately.
Is it easy to copy/paste this a Google document into a Word document so it can be printed with proper margins, fonts, spacing etc.? As an instructor, I really don't want to be given a paper that is only on Google docs. I may still be a bit "old fashioned" about that.
David
The educational dynamic is also quite open as well! I like the idea of small group projects and students can each work on their own component part to the document without having to wait for an e-mail. Furthermore, they can use Google docs to share work instantly and others in the group can offer input almost immediately.
Is it easy to copy/paste this a Google document into a Word document so it can be printed with proper margins, fonts, spacing etc.? As an instructor, I really don't want to be given a paper that is only on Google docs. I may still be a bit "old fashioned" about that.
David
Monday, July 21, 2008
Podcasting assignment part 2
Thank you Patsy for replying to my previous post and providing me with an alternative to creating a pod-cast of my own voice. I was able to get to your suggested site and download a piece of music. It is rather New Age sounding so just deal with it!
The location of my podcast is http://dfsacks.podbean.com/
Please feel free to listen to this music and let me know your thoughts.
Regarding the educational implications of this idea, I do support the idea of podcasting. I think it is a great way for students to download and listen to a talk about a particular topic. It certainly fits in with one of my dynamics for education, "Repeat, repeat, repeat!" to help student learn something.
I wish there were a way to limit students who downloaded the material. I fear that students would just download the podcast and not attend class. What could realistically be done to help ensure students who attended class could retrieve this information and not share it with others? I know I can always structure the class so that students who attend can benefit more than students who did not, but there is still something missing.
Also, is it possible for someone to take my podcast and manipulate it so it completely changes my intent and then repost it as my work and I end up in a heap of issues?
Something's to consider.
Dave
The location of my podcast is http://dfsacks.podbean.com/
Please feel free to listen to this music and let me know your thoughts.
Regarding the educational implications of this idea, I do support the idea of podcasting. I think it is a great way for students to download and listen to a talk about a particular topic. It certainly fits in with one of my dynamics for education, "Repeat, repeat, repeat!" to help student learn something.
I wish there were a way to limit students who downloaded the material. I fear that students would just download the podcast and not attend class. What could realistically be done to help ensure students who attended class could retrieve this information and not share it with others? I know I can always structure the class so that students who attend can benefit more than students who did not, but there is still something missing.
Also, is it possible for someone to take my podcast and manipulate it so it completely changes my intent and then repost it as my work and I end up in a heap of issues?
Something's to consider.
Dave
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Halfway through the Podcasting assignment
There is a joke somewhere about Podcasting and fishing, it just isn't coming to me yet.
I have completed the first half of the Podcasting assignment. Meaning I think I subscribed to the Harvard at Home on my Bloglines, but I just don't trust my technical abilities with this stuff to be supremely confident.
I admit to some hesitancy to record my voice on a podcast, I just don't like to hear the sound of my recorded voice. If I really liked that I would have gone into the performing arts profession and not teaching (yes, I am now aware of the similarities between the two!). Also the idea of broadcasting my voice to the world (although 99.99999% of the world's population won't hear it), just intimidates the hell out of me.
I will get back to the second half of this assignment later.
David
I have completed the first half of the Podcasting assignment. Meaning I think I subscribed to the Harvard at Home on my Bloglines, but I just don't trust my technical abilities with this stuff to be supremely confident.
I admit to some hesitancy to record my voice on a podcast, I just don't like to hear the sound of my recorded voice. If I really liked that I would have gone into the performing arts profession and not teaching (yes, I am now aware of the similarities between the two!). Also the idea of broadcasting my voice to the world (although 99.99999% of the world's population won't hear it), just intimidates the hell out of me.
I will get back to the second half of this assignment later.
David
Thursday, July 10, 2008
My Heart is a Twitter
Okay the title for this post is not very original, but hey it is Thursday morning!
Well, I started my Twitter page and I am not sure about the use of this technology. Yes, it can be fun to stay connected using this, but I the educational prospects are not clear. I did watch the Chronicle of Higher Ed video, but I didn't see the connection the professor was making about it adding value to student learning. I still view this as an extension of IM (that has can stay around longer) or text messaging. Of course this may be related to my desire to express my thoughts out in a longer format that is provided using a Blog and does not work well with a 140 character limit per post.
How many posts would I have to make to get my feelings about Twitter posted on Twitter? I think it would be about 7-10 posts without taking the time to count characters.
I suppose that I am just tenative about this and it will take some time. I am not sure if it will work for me, but I am willing to give it a try for awhile. Putting Darwin's theory of only the strong survive, I suppose time will tell, if people really find it useful, it will survive, if not it will attrophy and die out.
Well, I started my Twitter page and I am not sure about the use of this technology. Yes, it can be fun to stay connected using this, but I the educational prospects are not clear. I did watch the Chronicle of Higher Ed video, but I didn't see the connection the professor was making about it adding value to student learning. I still view this as an extension of IM (that has can stay around longer) or text messaging. Of course this may be related to my desire to express my thoughts out in a longer format that is provided using a Blog and does not work well with a 140 character limit per post.
How many posts would I have to make to get my feelings about Twitter posted on Twitter? I think it would be about 7-10 posts without taking the time to count characters.
I suppose that I am just tenative about this and it will take some time. I am not sure if it will work for me, but I am willing to give it a try for awhile. Putting Darwin's theory of only the strong survive, I suppose time will tell, if people really find it useful, it will survive, if not it will attrophy and die out.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Google Street View
Late last week I was introduced to something that was both really cool and really disturbing, the street view function on Google maps. I was amazed that Google was able to upload a street view of the streets in many cities around the United States and Europe. If you have not seen this function, it provides you with a view of the street like you were driving in a car. This can be quite helpful if looking for directions to a friends house and you want to know what to look for, so it is a nice extension of what Google maps was able to provide. I suppose this function was completed by having a car with a camera mounted on the roof drive around the city taking a 360 degree photograph of the street every 15 feet or so. This function is quite impressive when you consider all of the storage space required to maintain this data.
However, I find this function a little disturbing and after some soul searching I think it is connected with the fact that it is one thing to locate your house or apartment from zooming in on a satellite photo. The satellite photo feels "safer" because we recognize it as a satellite photo and there is some distance involved. The street view function is rather disturbing because it means someone drove past my residence and took pictures without my knowledge and personal approval. This leads me to feel a sense of violation because it shows my residence, yet I had no sense of providing permission to show my house in this format for the world to see!
I am not suggesting that Google did anything illegal, because they were on public land and it really is not all that different from providing a satellite photo in which you can zoom into your own residence. It just feels like a violation of my space and it is just a little "oogie" (sorry no technical defintion exists for this 'word').
What do you think of this function?
David
However, I find this function a little disturbing and after some soul searching I think it is connected with the fact that it is one thing to locate your house or apartment from zooming in on a satellite photo. The satellite photo feels "safer" because we recognize it as a satellite photo and there is some distance involved. The street view function is rather disturbing because it means someone drove past my residence and took pictures without my knowledge and personal approval. This leads me to feel a sense of violation because it shows my residence, yet I had no sense of providing permission to show my house in this format for the world to see!
I am not suggesting that Google did anything illegal, because they were on public land and it really is not all that different from providing a satellite photo in which you can zoom into your own residence. It just feels like a violation of my space and it is just a little "oogie" (sorry no technical defintion exists for this 'word').
What do you think of this function?
David
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Play Week Yip Yahooee!
So if this is play time....what is work like?
Sorry for some reason I decided to start with a rhetorical question.
Alright for play week (two weeks/session) I opened up a Meebo account for instant messaging. I can definitely see the benefits of using IM to communicate quickly with others. Unfortunately, I don't know who has a Meebo account. I know Patsy and Laura have one because I have them listed on my Meebo friends, but that is it. If you have set up a Meebo account and you are a member of the Blue 2.0 project please let me know.
Also, I have set up a Google task bar on my desk top so I can monitor the weather, keep some quick notes and have instant access to news headlines. These are all useful and handy devices that I find quite beneficial. Admittedly, the weather thing is rather geeky, but so what. I have used Google Scholar and Google Earth on several occasions and found them to be intuitive in design and able to provide me with good information.
That is all for now. I will provide you with additional updates as I continue with some of the additional choices for this play week (weeks/session).
Dave
Sorry for some reason I decided to start with a rhetorical question.
Alright for play week (two weeks/session) I opened up a Meebo account for instant messaging. I can definitely see the benefits of using IM to communicate quickly with others. Unfortunately, I don't know who has a Meebo account. I know Patsy and Laura have one because I have them listed on my Meebo friends, but that is it. If you have set up a Meebo account and you are a member of the Blue 2.0 project please let me know.
Also, I have set up a Google task bar on my desk top so I can monitor the weather, keep some quick notes and have instant access to news headlines. These are all useful and handy devices that I find quite beneficial. Admittedly, the weather thing is rather geeky, but so what. I have used Google Scholar and Google Earth on several occasions and found them to be intuitive in design and able to provide me with good information.
That is all for now. I will provide you with additional updates as I continue with some of the additional choices for this play week (weeks/session).
Dave
Friday, June 20, 2008
What are the core principles of education?
I was reading the article “Incubating Next-Gen.Edu” from Campus Technology June 2008 this morning; it was one of the articles Patsy provided at yesterday’s Blue 2.0 Party. I enjoyed the article but it made me think about something’s related to education. I should note that I am impressed with the resources that UC – Riverside has committed to technology on their campus and in particular to the classroom discussed in the article. However, (you knew this was coming) it also made me think about whether or not similar gains in student learning could be completed in a more cost effective, lower technology format.
The article describes how the classroom was completely reconstructed and implemented several unique pieces of technology, but also integrated other lower tech ideas as well , for example using different colored carpet squares to assign people to groups, using white boards around the room and flexible classroom design of moveable tables and chairs. One of the pieces of technology that was discussed included a remote control that would enable a student or group of students to revise and edit another group’s work being shown on the screen. While this is really cool, my question is whether or not this same idea could be implemented using the white boards and different colored markers? Does so much money need to be invested into a single piece of technology when something already exists that does the same basic thing?
I do tend to be conservative, being defined here as more contemplative about change, regarding education than others who are likely to read this post. I do wish to squelch the creativity for developing new technologies, because I realize the benefits they can provide because I recognize the need to have people around me who are more progressive, being defined as more willing to promote change, by increasing technology use in the classroom. I am very happy to work with people, some progressive and some conservative, with differing views on implementation of technology. By working together, and occasionally butting heads, we are able to develop ideas, programs, and good efficient uses of technology to make the instructional practices more effective for student learning.
One part of the article that deserves overwhelming support was that UC – Riverside had developed a unified approach to technology. This makes things easier for faculty and students as all technology systems are similar and thus easier to use, once the system is understood by the user.
On a different topic, this article also made me think about what are some of the most important things we want our students to take away in order to be productive citizens 5, 10, and 15 years into the future. This brought about the title of this particular blog, “What are the core principles of education?” One thought that came to mind was the importance of good writing skills, and it is not just the act of writing but being able to express one’s thoughts in a clear and organized manner, that takes into account different opinions and ideas, and argues for a particular idea based upon evidence. I also see that it is important to learn to work well in small groups, to take into account different ideas and incorporate them with those ideas already formed in your mind. It is also important to be willing to build upon what is already known and understood. The final point is to set up student learning so that they know that it is important to be flexible in their learning and that people learn things in different ways and it may be necessary to adapt their position in order to accommodate someone else.
Some will argue that it is important to teach how to use technology and other things, but at the rate at which technology changes, is that a good use of resources? How often do I spend time now using Basic to program a computer, yet I spent a great deal of time doing that in high school.
My conservative nature says not to change for the sake of change, but to change for the sake of improved learning opportunities!
The article describes how the classroom was completely reconstructed and implemented several unique pieces of technology, but also integrated other lower tech ideas as well , for example using different colored carpet squares to assign people to groups, using white boards around the room and flexible classroom design of moveable tables and chairs. One of the pieces of technology that was discussed included a remote control that would enable a student or group of students to revise and edit another group’s work being shown on the screen. While this is really cool, my question is whether or not this same idea could be implemented using the white boards and different colored markers? Does so much money need to be invested into a single piece of technology when something already exists that does the same basic thing?
I do tend to be conservative, being defined here as more contemplative about change, regarding education than others who are likely to read this post. I do wish to squelch the creativity for developing new technologies, because I realize the benefits they can provide because I recognize the need to have people around me who are more progressive, being defined as more willing to promote change, by increasing technology use in the classroom. I am very happy to work with people, some progressive and some conservative, with differing views on implementation of technology. By working together, and occasionally butting heads, we are able to develop ideas, programs, and good efficient uses of technology to make the instructional practices more effective for student learning.
One part of the article that deserves overwhelming support was that UC – Riverside had developed a unified approach to technology. This makes things easier for faculty and students as all technology systems are similar and thus easier to use, once the system is understood by the user.
On a different topic, this article also made me think about what are some of the most important things we want our students to take away in order to be productive citizens 5, 10, and 15 years into the future. This brought about the title of this particular blog, “What are the core principles of education?” One thought that came to mind was the importance of good writing skills, and it is not just the act of writing but being able to express one’s thoughts in a clear and organized manner, that takes into account different opinions and ideas, and argues for a particular idea based upon evidence. I also see that it is important to learn to work well in small groups, to take into account different ideas and incorporate them with those ideas already formed in your mind. It is also important to be willing to build upon what is already known and understood. The final point is to set up student learning so that they know that it is important to be flexible in their learning and that people learn things in different ways and it may be necessary to adapt their position in order to accommodate someone else.
Some will argue that it is important to teach how to use technology and other things, but at the rate at which technology changes, is that a good use of resources? How often do I spend time now using Basic to program a computer, yet I spent a great deal of time doing that in high school.
My conservative nature says not to change for the sake of change, but to change for the sake of improved learning opportunities!
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Wiki, wiki, wiki whaaa!
Alright the title of this post is a very lame attempt at putting the "scratching" sound of rap music in the 80's into words.
On to the important part of this post, I did successfully create a wiki for myself. I do wonder if I did something wrong though. I created an initial post with my question, "Why is it so difficult for me to accept the idea of people desiring to be in constant communication with one another?" On another page titled "My New Page" I typed in my response to this question. My concern is around the idea that it doesn't look anything like Wikipedia and how people are able to read and respond to that. I have noticed that I have had 11 visitors, but no one wrote a comment.
For those of you looking to help me out my wiki title is "fromgenxtomillenial" found on pbwiki. Any advice and input would be greatly appreciated.
On to the important part of this post, I did successfully create a wiki for myself. I do wonder if I did something wrong though. I created an initial post with my question, "Why is it so difficult for me to accept the idea of people desiring to be in constant communication with one another?" On another page titled "My New Page" I typed in my response to this question. My concern is around the idea that it doesn't look anything like Wikipedia and how people are able to read and respond to that. I have noticed that I have had 11 visitors, but no one wrote a comment.
For those of you looking to help me out my wiki title is "fromgenxtomillenial" found on pbwiki. Any advice and input would be greatly appreciated.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Module 2 Part 2
Well, I just completed Module 2 assignment 2 without crashing the net! Whoo Hoo! I found the directions easy to follow. I successfully subscribed to the Blue 2.0 web page and then tried unsuccessfully to subscribe to another blog. So I tried again, and again, and again. Not being completely stupid, I tried a different blog and was successful and then tried another blog and was successful. Whew!
Well I don't know how much I will use this new updater feature, but I will give it a try. I am not sure if it will make my life more complete or compel me to stay more connected to the internet and sitting at a computer. Please see my comment to Kirk about the new Apple I-Phone!
David
Well I don't know how much I will use this new updater feature, but I will give it a try. I am not sure if it will make my life more complete or compel me to stay more connected to the internet and sitting at a computer. Please see my comment to Kirk about the new Apple I-Phone!
David
Module 2 Part 1
Well, I finally got around to completing this assignment. I was able to tag my blog and comment on someone elses blog. Both of these were very easy to complete. The biggest difficulty for me was to follow the directions. Not like that! After I completed the tagging part of the assignment, I was losing track of the the step number to begin the comment part. I wonder if it would be helpful to break this up into two small assignments so it is easier for the participant to follow the directions.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Comfort level increased
I suppose one of my issues is my paranoia. I now feel comfortable enough to include my real name on this blog. It took a couple of postings for me to realize that it is okay to not use an alias.
Without doing any research, I wonder if my distrust of others, or paranoia, is related to being part of Generation X. I hope it is not a sense of maturity, because that can't be, I will grow old but I refuse to grow up!
It has been documented that Millenials are used to putting all sorts of information about themselves up on the web. I am not there yet and I don't know if I want to be there. There is something to commend those who are willing to put all parts of themselves out there for the world to see, it doesn't fit into me and who I am now.
After watching some of the videos people have posted, and visiting the UK Art Museum this past weekend, I can't help but think of Andy Warhol and his famous phrase, "In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes." I doubt if I am the first person to consider this idea, and I highly doubt I will be the last, but by posting things to the web and trying to be outrageous really make you famous? Does posting a video of you doing something completely moronic, like jumping onto a trampoline from the roof of your house and flying into another building, fulfill this need? Does using a social networking site to brag about your weekend or other activities matter?
If you are still one of millions of people trying to out do everyone else in some form, and not succeeding, is that really different from sitting in a large lecture hall and raising your hand at the same time as 300 other people? What are the chances of getting noticed (aka famous for a moment)?
This idea of posting all aspects of my life so people will pay attention to me and make me "famous" may be a barrier I am not willing to make and as a result inhibit my ability to be a Millenial.
Of course there is a flaw to all of this...I am writing out my inner most thoughts and ideas about this on the web for the whole world to see...am I seeking to become famous by demeaning the idea of becoming famous????
David
Without doing any research, I wonder if my distrust of others, or paranoia, is related to being part of Generation X. I hope it is not a sense of maturity, because that can't be, I will grow old but I refuse to grow up!
It has been documented that Millenials are used to putting all sorts of information about themselves up on the web. I am not there yet and I don't know if I want to be there. There is something to commend those who are willing to put all parts of themselves out there for the world to see, it doesn't fit into me and who I am now.
After watching some of the videos people have posted, and visiting the UK Art Museum this past weekend, I can't help but think of Andy Warhol and his famous phrase, "In the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes." I doubt if I am the first person to consider this idea, and I highly doubt I will be the last, but by posting things to the web and trying to be outrageous really make you famous? Does posting a video of you doing something completely moronic, like jumping onto a trampoline from the roof of your house and flying into another building, fulfill this need? Does using a social networking site to brag about your weekend or other activities matter?
If you are still one of millions of people trying to out do everyone else in some form, and not succeeding, is that really different from sitting in a large lecture hall and raising your hand at the same time as 300 other people? What are the chances of getting noticed (aka famous for a moment)?
This idea of posting all aspects of my life so people will pay attention to me and make me "famous" may be a barrier I am not willing to make and as a result inhibit my ability to be a Millenial.
Of course there is a flaw to all of this...I am writing out my inner most thoughts and ideas about this on the web for the whole world to see...am I seeking to become famous by demeaning the idea of becoming famous????
David
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
The Millennial Generation Video
I chose this You Tube video because it quickly highlights several things I mentioned in my previous post. In particular I like how the video starts with the sounds of a dial up modem connecting to the internet. It makes me wonder how many millennial's will remember this sound by the time they graduate due to the increased reliance on wireless and high speed internet connections?
The video also bring into to mind some of the things I didn't mention. I suppose this is due to my advanced age after all I am almost 40! :) (note the primitive use of emoticons! Actually, that is the only one I am able to successfully replicate on a regular basis)
I did have a bear of a time locating an appropriate video to attach. I was hoping to find an episode of the Simpsons titled "Homerpalooza" in which Homer joins one of the big social things of the early nineties, Lalapalooza. Unfortunately, this could not happen. I then typed in "Gen X college students" and while some were okay, as I perused the video selections, I found some very inappropriate videos. I couldn't figure out how they appeared in my search until I thought a bit more about my search term, then it dawned on me.
I suppose this will be another growth opportunity for me!
Due to my lack of prior success, I typed in the search term "Millennial college students" and came across this video.
Damien Simpson
The video also bring into to mind some of the things I didn't mention. I suppose this is due to my advanced age after all I am almost 40! :) (note the primitive use of emoticons! Actually, that is the only one I am able to successfully replicate on a regular basis)
I did have a bear of a time locating an appropriate video to attach. I was hoping to find an episode of the Simpsons titled "Homerpalooza" in which Homer joins one of the big social things of the early nineties, Lalapalooza. Unfortunately, this could not happen. I then typed in "Gen X college students" and while some were okay, as I perused the video selections, I found some very inappropriate videos. I couldn't figure out how they appeared in my search until I thought a bit more about my search term, then it dawned on me.
I suppose this will be another growth opportunity for me!
Due to my lack of prior success, I typed in the search term "Millennial college students" and came across this video.
Damien Simpson
What is up with the title of my blog?!
Now that I have spent some time inspecting other blogs and becoming more comfortable with posting my thoughts and ideas to the web, I admit to being easily overwhelmed by this thought, it is now time for me to explain the title of my blog and the vast changes in technology that have occurred in my life.
I am a Gen X'er. I was an undergraduate student from 1988 to 1992. While the techie devotee's will say that I had access to the Internet, I really didn't. I was one of the first people to have a Macintosh in his college room, purchased through the university bookstore at about $1,300. Mine was so fancy it used two floppy disk drives and one disk drive was needed to run the start up system, yup, no hard drive! I purchased a 20 megabyte hard drive about a year later as I was sick and tired of playing with the damn floppies at the whopping cost of $300.
To put things in perspective, my current cell phone (mobile phone) has a two gigabyte flash memory card that set me back about $20. Wow!
While the computer was useful, I was one of the few people that owned a PC, much less a Macintosh which was much more user friendly than the clunky Windows operating system....wait a minute on that thought, something is occurring to me about how similar that is to today. Anyway, the computer became a nuisance as my friends wanted to borrow it at all hours of the night towards the end of the quarter when papers were due. They seemed to have difficulty understanding why I was reluctant to let them take this very expensive piece of equipment out of my room to work.
Now, most students have a computer when they arrive on campus and the campus computer labs are better staffed and have increased hours of operation. Not to mention the increased computing power and decreased costs of said items.
My time as an undergrad was also before the Internet was able to take hold on society. This was well before You Tube, Google (any common search engine for that matter), AOL, and e-mail. In fact, a couple of years after graduation, I ended up overseas and was mailing letters to my family and friends stateside. It took 3 weeks for a letter to get home and an additional 3 weeks for a letter to be returned. Even though I had upgraded to a Mac Powerbook 100, there was no Internet service capability and this new computer did not even have a modem, although it came complete with a 20 megabyte hard drive built in and cost about $800. Quite a savings from the first Mac I purchased about three years previously!
Lets put this in comparison to life now, a mere 14 years later. I can now call friends overseas for as little as 10 cents a minute (back then it was over a dollar a minute). I can now publish my thoughts and ideas and get feedback from people around the world in minutes. An e-mail takes moments to arrive at the destination and costs nothing (I forget the postage but I think it was over a dollar per letter).
Lets flash forward to the life of an undergrad now. They have ready access to family and friends using a cell phone that is attached to their hip (mine sits in my pocket as I can't stand the idea of using a holster). They can use their phone for e-mail, text messaging, surfing the Internet, and listening to MP3's, all activities that never existed while I was an undergrad about twenty years ago.
My ambition during this time is to express my growth process as I transition from my life as an undergrad during the age of Gen X to understand undergrad life as a Millennial. One of the ideas that is quite apparent is the easy access to information and the near constant inundation to all things in the world.
Damien Simpson
I am a Gen X'er. I was an undergraduate student from 1988 to 1992. While the techie devotee's will say that I had access to the Internet, I really didn't. I was one of the first people to have a Macintosh in his college room, purchased through the university bookstore at about $1,300. Mine was so fancy it used two floppy disk drives and one disk drive was needed to run the start up system, yup, no hard drive! I purchased a 20 megabyte hard drive about a year later as I was sick and tired of playing with the damn floppies at the whopping cost of $300.
To put things in perspective, my current cell phone (mobile phone) has a two gigabyte flash memory card that set me back about $20. Wow!
While the computer was useful, I was one of the few people that owned a PC, much less a Macintosh which was much more user friendly than the clunky Windows operating system....wait a minute on that thought, something is occurring to me about how similar that is to today. Anyway, the computer became a nuisance as my friends wanted to borrow it at all hours of the night towards the end of the quarter when papers were due. They seemed to have difficulty understanding why I was reluctant to let them take this very expensive piece of equipment out of my room to work.
Now, most students have a computer when they arrive on campus and the campus computer labs are better staffed and have increased hours of operation. Not to mention the increased computing power and decreased costs of said items.
My time as an undergrad was also before the Internet was able to take hold on society. This was well before You Tube, Google (any common search engine for that matter), AOL, and e-mail. In fact, a couple of years after graduation, I ended up overseas and was mailing letters to my family and friends stateside. It took 3 weeks for a letter to get home and an additional 3 weeks for a letter to be returned. Even though I had upgraded to a Mac Powerbook 100, there was no Internet service capability and this new computer did not even have a modem, although it came complete with a 20 megabyte hard drive built in and cost about $800. Quite a savings from the first Mac I purchased about three years previously!
Lets put this in comparison to life now, a mere 14 years later. I can now call friends overseas for as little as 10 cents a minute (back then it was over a dollar a minute). I can now publish my thoughts and ideas and get feedback from people around the world in minutes. An e-mail takes moments to arrive at the destination and costs nothing (I forget the postage but I think it was over a dollar per letter).
Lets flash forward to the life of an undergrad now. They have ready access to family and friends using a cell phone that is attached to their hip (mine sits in my pocket as I can't stand the idea of using a holster). They can use their phone for e-mail, text messaging, surfing the Internet, and listening to MP3's, all activities that never existed while I was an undergrad about twenty years ago.
My ambition during this time is to express my growth process as I transition from my life as an undergrad during the age of Gen X to understand undergrad life as a Millennial. One of the ideas that is quite apparent is the easy access to information and the near constant inundation to all things in the world.
Damien Simpson
Following the Assignment
I realized after my post yesterday that I really didn't follow the request of the assignment so I have copied/pasted the assignment to this page and will address each question. Yup, I am anal rententive, enjoy making jokes at my expense.
Is this new for you?
Yup. I have never done a blog before and I admit I am getting more used to this with each post. Alright two posts are not much to talk about, but it is a start.
If so was it difficult?
No I found the directions on the website for Blue 2.0 to be very helpful and that since I had already set up a Google account, Blogger was incredbily easy. So far so good, my anxiety levels are reducing.
Did you use any other resources to help you set it up?
No, I did not use any other resources the directions were great. Although, it might be useful to include some directions for people on how to set up a Google account. This could be a pre-activity to the start of a course.
Do you think you might use your blog once Blue 2.0 has ended and, if so, what sorts of professional or personal uses can you imagine?
At this time, I really don't know. I think it depends on my willingness to share my ideas with the world and those who would stumble upon my blog. I am not against the idea, I really just don't know at this time.
Is this new for you?
Yup. I have never done a blog before and I admit I am getting more used to this with each post. Alright two posts are not much to talk about, but it is a start.
If so was it difficult?
No I found the directions on the website for Blue 2.0 to be very helpful and that since I had already set up a Google account, Blogger was incredbily easy. So far so good, my anxiety levels are reducing.
Did you use any other resources to help you set it up?
No, I did not use any other resources the directions were great. Although, it might be useful to include some directions for people on how to set up a Google account. This could be a pre-activity to the start of a course.
Do you think you might use your blog once Blue 2.0 has ended and, if so, what sorts of professional or personal uses can you imagine?
At this time, I really don't know. I think it depends on my willingness to share my ideas with the world and those who would stumble upon my blog. I am not against the idea, I really just don't know at this time.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
First Blog Ever
Wow! Am I really doing this?! Creating a blog for the first time ever for the whole internet to read! ....
Okay so far this really feels like I am typing an e-mail, so nothing that special.
I am using an alias so that if I publish something that I later regret (akin to sticking my foot in my mouth, a rather common occurence to those who know me), I have decided to use the name of Damien Simpson. This makes it easy for me to remember and yet distant enough from my real name so that anyone doing an internet search for me will not come across this blog. At least so I hope. Yup, I have some paranoia issues.
Signing off for now,
Damien Simpson
Okay so far this really feels like I am typing an e-mail, so nothing that special.
I am using an alias so that if I publish something that I later regret (akin to sticking my foot in my mouth, a rather common occurence to those who know me), I have decided to use the name of Damien Simpson. This makes it easy for me to remember and yet distant enough from my real name so that anyone doing an internet search for me will not come across this blog. At least so I hope. Yup, I have some paranoia issues.
Signing off for now,
Damien Simpson
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