Conceptual Research and Reflection Project

Conceptual Research & Reflection Project

17. The impact of text based real time chat

Communicating in real-time with text enables a form of 'authoring of the self' that is similar to the processes of face-to-face speech but which is much more amenable to authorial control, experimentation and reflection. Further, text-based communication carries with it the possibility for multiple, differing conversations occurring simultaneously, relying on the ability of the human brain to deal with text much better than speech.



Real time text based chat has been around for almost 15 years with its birth in IRC and now mainly utilized in programs such as MSN Messenger. But what is real time chat and what impact does it have on our society? Real time chat is the method of communication where users send text based (or with today’s programs more content is available) messages to one another. Some of the plus sides of this is you can talk to people from anywhere in the world and be chatting to them as if they are next to you, and all this is done freely, no cost to the user. A user can have any number of conversations simultaneously and not seem rude to other users by doing so. Or even a multiple number of people can enter a ‘chat room’ and have a discussion amongst each other. Some might say that this can be done via a telephone. Which is true, but it requires more effort and it costs you.
Users have the freedom to reply to messages when they deem fit, thus it is quite acceptable to take your time when replying. This gives you time to formulate your reply and revise it before sending it. This eliminates the issue with thinking before speaking. And in the event information that is valuable is mentioned the information can very easily be saved as opposed to writing it to another medium.
In most real time chat programs files can be transferred from one user to another. This can assist in getting a point across by supporting a message with a document or picture. Or it could generally be used to show off a new song that you heard. Hyperlinks could also come in handy this regard. Unlike a phone conversation where someone would tell you to visit a webpage and you have to physically write down and access it yourself, a simple link that just has to be clicked could accompany the message.
In real time chat users adopt a social identity. Requiring a username in order to chat most people adopt a fake nickname which people will come to be familiar with. In some cases they may also pick an avatar or picture to represent them or symbolize them or their beliefs or interests.
But as with everything, there are pros and cons. Some of the cons have been raised in the schooling environment, with many schools feeling the need to raise an alarm for students learning bad spelling and punctuation habits from chatting online.
At times it can rather difficult to distinguish tone in real time chat. As you don’t have body language and voice to get across how you want your interpreted, it is common practice to include emoticons with your message. These emoticons usually represent and determine the context of which the message should be written, being a smiley face or a laughing face. They can also be used to splice up the conversation.
Another point which may be viewed as both a pro and con, is the ability to keep your identity a secret. This could be useful with people who have difficulty socializing due to a number a reasons, say a physical deformation. Thus it allows these people to form somewhat meaningful relationships. But on the other side of the fence, is the fact that sexual predators may prey on children as such by pretending to be someone they are not.
Overall all things in life have there ups and downs, and real time chat is just another one of those things. It is becoming more common practice and I feel that the pros far outweigh the cons.

Site 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_chat
The Wikipedia page for Online Chat just gives a general description of chat, and links to most of the online chat programs. There is no page for real time chat, so one would need to have prior knowledge in the topic and click the appropriate links for more information. The site is credible, although it has very little information. I feel it didn’t give much help to the reflection but did find a few useful links. None of Wikipedia gave any insight really into the impact of real time chat, but gave insight into the basics and understanding of real time chat.

Site 2: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/554265/the_introverted_college_student_online.html
I felt this site was a good read and gave a good insight into the effects that online chat has on students in their studies. It was biased, so it was most likely written by a teacher or something similar. The Author is named but no other information is given, so determining if the information is credible or not is hard. Some of the points are valid and have been used in my reflection. I would recommend this to anyone researching the topic as its always good to read the most sources as possible to have a better understanding of both sides of the issue being discussed.

Bibliography:
http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/0/9/0/0/6/p90067_index.html
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS133610+26-Mar-2009+MW20090326






26. Privacy and Security

The Internet is a profoundly ‘open’ system and advanced Internet users are cautious about either accepting or sending material from and to unknown sources and are careful in releasing information about themselves in any form. Conceptually, the Internet challenges us to take greater responsibility for the protection of privacy and security than perhaps we are used to when dealing with the media.
Privacy and Security have become a big issue in today’s society with identity theft. With today’s technology we have vast advancements in both hardware and software which enables us to do things we never thought would have been possible 20 years ago. We have software to read the weather, software to chat to people on the other side of the world, software to manage our bank accounts. But with all these great developments some people go out of their way to create software that can damage our computer and steal our personal information. I remember back when I first started using the internet, I guess you could say it was considered relatively safe. There was no such thing as a firewall, if you told someone you had a virus, people would tell you to go to the doctor.
But those times soon changed. These days the word virus encompasses a number of sub divisions namely Spyware, Adware, Malware and Worms. Depending on the viruses particular objective places them into one of these categories. Viruses can be contracted by a number of means, they can be attached to files that are downloaded and opened. They can be imbedded in web pages and thus considered a ‘drive by’ attack, where by just visiting the web page you have been infected.
There are things to protect the user from such things. Virus protection such as AVG or Kaspersky offers not only the capabilities to scan your computer but also real time protection which scans all incoming files for viruses. And this brings about a type of virtual ‘arms race’ where hackers are trying to release new viruses undetectable by the virus scanners. And the companies that create this virus protection are racing to release almost daily updates to their software which detects all the latest viruses and ways in which they can detect new viruses yet to be released.
Identity theft can be a direct result of contracting a virus. Some Viruses known as Spyware have the capabilities to record and transmit sensitive data that you input such as your usernames and password to your bank account or credit card numbers. Even data from a social networking site such as Myspace could lead to one opening a bank account in the stolen users personal information.
Another security threat is Hackers. Hackers come in two forms, ‘Script Kiddies’ who utilize software written by other hackers and generally have very little knowledge in hacking. And then there are genuine Hackers who have a vast understanding of computers and software and ways to get around protection and infiltrate ones computer. This is where a Firewall comes in. A Firewall protects a user by being a virtual wall blocking access to the users computers via different ports and letting the user decide who and what has access to your computer and what software is allowed to send outgoing data from your computer.
Overall we need to be careful with what information we use online. We have to ensure that we have adequate protection and try not to access questionable material. Ultimately it doesn’t matter how much protection you have, it all comes down to the user and how he uses it.


Site 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_virus
Usually when I do assignments I go to seek out Wikipedia first. Wikipedia contains quite a lot of useful information, although some of the information may not be verified. This page has several sections which are both verified, but several also need citations therefore making them not verified. But on a good note it provides external links to either other wikipedia pages relating to the topic or other pages where the contained information has been drawn from. It came in handy for determining the different types of viruses around and their nature. Generally being updated as required, it is usually up to date with the latest threats etc. of computer security.

Site 2: http://all.net/books/virus/index.html
This site although outdated was quite useful in understanding the nature of a virus. It has generic structure codes outlining the general purpose or flow of code that a virus contains. Being outdated it is understood that some aspects of the essay are irrelevant to the topic of today’s Security. But most of the principles still hold true. Although the writer doesn’t say much about himself, a quick google search shows that he is rather credible writing essays on information protection for quite some time now. This site would be a good start for people who want to know more on the issues of a virus.

Bibliography:
http://www.kaspersky.com/
http://www.avg.com/
http://www.windowsecurity.com/articles/Protecting_Email_Viruses_Malware.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antivirus_software
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_insecurity





23. Human Computer Interfaces

The Internet lessens the recognition of difference between humans and computers because, at a distance, it is often feels similar to communicate and act on the Internet regardless of whether one is speaking with a human or a machine.

For years, Science Fiction has portrayed a sense of Artificial Intelligence in Robots, Computer Systems and from this a vision has stemmed a future with intelligent artificial beings. With advances in AI and Robotics this vision appears to be getting closer and closer. In Japan they plan to have a robot in every household by the year 2012. And further down the track teaching in schools.
Already today you can see human-computer interfaces in every day life. Whether it be a self serve checkout at your local supermarket, or when you ring a company and must go through their automated phone system which incorporates voice recognition technology. In all these sorts of instances you are interacting with a computer interface.
Another form of computer interface that has been created are ‘bots’. Bots generally reside in chat rooms and are meant to represent real chatters or perform a certain function. The earliest form of a chat bot was created in 1966 by Joseph Weizenbaum. This chat bot was name ELIZA. These days one of the more popular ones and also more advanced is called A.L.I.C.E. A collaborative AI entity for whom you can chat with. On IRC in certain rooms bots exist for whom you can request and download files from. On MSN messenger bots are sometimes employed to promote particular websites or even try to spread viruses.
In the 1950’s a question was posed, ‘Can machines think?’ by a man known as Alan Turing. His thoughts and questions regarding the matter brought about what is known today as the ‘Turing Test’. The ‘Turing Test’ is used as a benchmark to determine the intelligence of a computer system. A user would speak with the artificial intelligence and if after 5 minutes he couldn’t determine what he was speaking to was human or machine, the AI was considered intelligent and the test was passed.
But chat bots aren’t the only aspect of AI. In computer games we see varying degrees of AI. Most have a particular purpose, say attacking the player. But in a lot of games of the First Person Shooter genre, there are bots which resemble human players which the player can play against, or with. Some of them even chat to the player in the game or give them orders to simulate playing the game with other human players. These so called ‘gaming bots’ vary in difficulty, and some far surpass the skills of a human player whilst sticking to the confines of the gaming engine.
Overall at this point in time in relation to conversations of human like dialogue
and responses with a chatter bot, the technology can be perceived as being in the distant future. But we have come a long way with technology in the last few decades, so maybe this future may not be so distant. And with advances in this technology, more questions will be posed, as to how people will react to having conversations with these artificial ‘entities’? And how one can turn a ‘logical’ computer program in a ‘randomly’ thinking ‘mind’.


Site 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-computer_interaction
Once again I seeked out wikipedia for information. This page although related to human computer interaction, has a nice segment of actual human computer interfaces. All information in this article is cited and thus credible due to wikipedia standards. Many external links are present on the site, thus giving the user many different aspects of the topic to look at. I’d say this article and other articles linking from this page has helped me most with my assignment. Also having prior knowledge in the topic assisted in finding some other materials that were useful and also hosted by wikipedia.

Site 2: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~amulet/papers/uihistory.tr.html
This site is rather outdated, but if you are looking at human computer interfaces at the broader aspect of human-computer interactions, this site gives a nice overview of technologies used to interact with a computer. It didn’t really come in handy with my reflection as I stuck to the more concise topic of human computer interfaces. But for someone who has no knowledge of the topic might want to take a look at this first before moving onto more detailed stuff. The author is credible being part of Carnegie Mellon University.

Bibliography:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatterbot
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ELIZA
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_turing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_engine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_game_bot



7. Netiquette

Good communication practice on the Internet is not something one 'learns', but something one 'practices' so as to teach others, less familiar than yourself, how it is done. (Allen, n.d.)

To put it simply, the definition of Netiquette can be derived from the name itself, the etiquette of the Net. It is a term used for posting messages on boards, sending emails, instant text messages. It can be seen as the correct way of communicating via the internet.
When someone is perceived to be new to something, be it a message board, or an online game, and they are asking questions, they will be often referred to as a ‘noob’ or ‘newbie’. This term is seen as an insult in the online world and relates to ones intelligence, even though one is just unfamiliar with such an environment. Netiquette principles are often talked about to educate these so called ‘newbies’ and help to make the internet a friendlier place for everyone. Is it right to belittle someone for simply asking a question or just simply making a mistake? The answer is no. So what’s the difference if this occurs on the internet? There is no difference.
The internet can be seen as a culture. And if we were to travel to another country we soon begin to learn the customs and rules of this new culture we are experiencing. But we don’t learn this on our own. We are shown by the natives of that culture what is right and what is wrong and the same is with the internet. If someone makes a mistake or asks a question, it is proper Netiquette to politely respond telling them of their mistake or assisting them with seeking an answer to their problem.
But unlike the real world, these rules are rarely enforced. And this brings about the arrival of ‘trolls’. ‘Trolls’ are people who generally post irrelevant, inflammatory, derogatory messages to people on message boards. They get a kick out of it and have nothing better to do with their time then to aggravate other users of the Internet. While many message boards and online games ban such users for this behavior, many don’t. And its these people that disrupt many of the friendly online communities that inhabit the internet.
But Netiquette doesn’t just relate to how you treat other people or how you behave online. It is Netiquette when sending an email attachment to generally ensure that the receiver is capable of using such attachment. And if not, then to provide details or software required to do so. It is bad Netiquette to send large files via email as different people have varying internet plans which determine the speed and download limit they have on a month to month basis.
Overall Netiquette is the concept of communicative practices on the Internet. And it is the advanced internet users which must show the way to the newcomers of the wonder which is the Internet. With the pace of new technology we all at some stage will fall under the category of ‘newbie’, and will seek answers to the questions we ask. And we would hope that someone with proper Netiquette could assist us with our dilemmas.



Site 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netiquette
The Wikipedia page of Netiquette doesn’t have the greatest volume of information, but provides many external links which expand on the topic. The information is cited and thus credible. It gives a general insight into the topic so I believe this would be a great start for anyone looking to read up on Netiquette. This page hasn’t been the greatest of help in relation to my assignment due to the lack of information. But a few of the external links provided have assisted in making me more knowledgeable in the area.

Site 2: http://www.albion.com/netiquette/
This site has a wealth of information relating to the topic. I’m unsure about how credible it is as it does not really say much about the author. But really, who decides what netiquette is, so how can you really be credible? This page would be a great place to expand your knowledge on the topic. It has a quiz which helps you to learn the information contained which could be helpful if someone is wishing to practice the art of netiquette. The site doesn’t offer any external links and thus doesn’t offer much more to expand on knowledge. But I felt it was a good read before writing my assignment.
Bibliography:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll
http://www.albury.net.au/new-users/netiquet.htm
http://www.netalert.gov.au/advice/behaviour/netiquette_emoticons/What_is_netiquette.html
http://online.mq.edu.au/docs/neti.html
http://www.dtcc.edu/cs/rfc1855.html
http://www.studygs.net/netiquette.htm

Module 5 conclusion

wow, thats it for module 5? "looks through material again" YEP! that was short, I guess it felt the most in depth though, with the questions it put forward in relation to the technological ecosystem. Only 1 last assessment to complete now, the hardest of them all, the concept project. So my time here is nearing its end. its going to be sad to let it go. :( but its not over yet.

The Ecology of Technology

1) How might the metaphor of an ‘ecology’ impact on the way you think about, understand or use the Internet?

In all honesty I feel it doesn't affect the way I think about the internet. But I can see how it can be viewed as such. All the different domains could be viewed as the countries of the world. All the different online communities could be the flora and fauna of this technological environment. How just like an ecosystem where certain species survival depends on other species, certain services on the internet require other hardware and services to be active in order to survive. A simple example would be you need a modem in order to have a basic internet connection, in order to have a working web browser in order to view this blog. In a way I guess the Darwinian theory could be applied to these view of an internet ecology. Survival of the fittest, a simple example could be MSN Messenger, certain versions won't work due to the release of newer versions and in a way the older versions are obsolete or extinct.



2) How are the concepts ‘information’ and ‘communication’ understood within the framework of an ‘information ecology’?

From my understanding using an analogy of a vehicle such as a car and its occupants, information is the occupants and communication is the car which transports them to their destination. Information can be in any form, be it a simple string of text or data packets for a particular file. See a deeper understanding could be that these data packets of information are the atoms of the 'organism'/file in the information ecosystem.



3) Why don’t we talk of a ‘communication ecology’?

We don't talk about a communication ecology as from the material provided to read it is understood that communication is the means by which information travels. So thus being important inside a information or technological ecosystem, it cannot survive on its own. An analogy of what communication can be percieved as is a particular species inside the ecology. Lets say dogs for example, you have poodles, german sheperds, siberian huskies, in communication you have phones, chat software, television. They are 'subspecies' of the superclass species.

Conclusion of Module 4

Well that concludes module 4, better move on and get a nice head start into Module 5, I think ive got a long night ahead of me. So I guess I can say this post is my commencement of Module 5 also. :) enjoy!

In Comparison

Well in terms of my own future use I feel my annotation would be the thing id most likely refer back to, because it is shorter, it has all the relevant information I require. If I felt I required more information I know I could always refer back to the original page.

In terms of external users If they are asking the exact same question as I did, then I feel my annotation would be an quicker and easier read for them. If on the other hand they had a more in depth question relating to the topic then I suggest that they seek the original source of the information.

snapshot of site

I thought I might post a snapshot of the site I am referring to in relation to happy meals

Annotation

after working through the tutorial I decided to complete this task. Obviously considering there was only 1 site relevant to my needs I guess thats the site I am going to choose.

The Article describes when the happy meal was released for the first time in 1979 and the first toys you recieved with it. The toys being "a McDoodler stencil, a puzzle book, a McWrist wallet, an ID bracelet or McDonaldland character erasers" (quoted from wikipedia). But as it turns out Happy meals weren't the birth of the first McDonalds toy, and it was infact called Treat of the Week (although this aspect of the article isn't cited) where children would get a ball or a frisbee as their toy.

The host of the web page is Wikipedia, so information is taken from many number of sources cited at the bottom of the article itself. No Author is listed, and there is a possibility that the information may be false due to the disclaimer at the top

"Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2008)"

But who would want to lie about a maccas toy?? :P anywho....

The main ideas discussed in the article is about the birth of the happy meal and its toys. The purpose of this article is informative, theres no two sides to the issue!!!!