First Dell had to get into the mp3 market and failed to an ipod, now they are back to try and take out the iphone. I think they should stick to computers. The phone looks like every other one on the market and it will most likely be overpriced. I’m predicting failure, what do you guys think?
This holiday season isn’t the first time I’ve thought about getting a blu ray player. I have had a 52 inch tv for awhile now and it is clear that the picture quality of a dvd diminishes with a huge tv. I came across a story about the dual format discs that contain dvd on one side and blu ray on the other. Why didn’t anyone think of that sooner? I do remember seeing that you would get the full package when looking for movies but they must have had 2 separate discs in the box. I am still not convinced I need a new expensive blu ray player and paying 30 bucks for a movie seems like throwing away money to me. Now that my cable provider has most of my channels in hd, I can certainly wait 2 years for my favorite movie to be on tv in hd. So once again I am undecided about the blu ray revolution this year. Maybe the price will be sliced in half next year.
This week a new downloadable update surfaced for my Xbox 360 system. Its new features include integrating social networks into the interface where Xbox Live users can access their Facebook and Twitter Accounts. Xbox’s goal is to make the 360 the ultimate way to connect to your friends.
Many drawbacks are immediately seen with these new features. If you want to type something, it is the biggest pain because you are doing it with a controller. It is like old school texting without a keyboard. Also it has a watered down feel to it. Since the Xbox system has no web browsing, you are looking at Facebook on their terms. This means that when you want to follow Facebook links or other features, it just won’t do it. Twitter is built off being able to share links and the closed sense of Facebook on here is even worse when using Twitter.
The best part of Facebook on Xbox is the viewing of photos. This is easily done but most guys can live without it.
I would say so far these new features are pretty useless. Most people have their phone or computer near by to do exactly what the Xbox is trying to get you to do. I know I wont be using Facebook or Twitter on my Xbox, will you?
After going through the Jing-like video on Zotero’s main website, I have learned some of the many features of their program. The interface of Zotero looks very familiar. From what I can see, it is a cross between itunes and windows explorer. The familiarity of this interface is a plus when it comes to hooking someone in like me who is skeptical of using a new program to do something that I have done for many years in a different way.
One of the features of Zotero that I really liked was the ability to open websites and pdfs all in one area. I cannot tell you how frustrating it is to have 100 windows open and having to click out of something to find what I was looking for. Zotero makes this easy with the ability to add comments and notes to your sources to remember what exactly you want yourself to remember that it contains.
One downfall or problem that could arise is with the sharing function and the ability to access your sources from anywhere. It kind of reminded me of orb, a program to access your music and video files from anywhere. When I tried out that program, I found it very difficult to get a fluid connection. An external program like that could require the most stable internet connections out there and we all know not everyone has that.
I am sold on Zotero’s features and will give it a try. I have at least 5 research papers due at the end of the semester and I will attempt to use this program on at least one of them. The initial getting used to the program could be time consuming but the organization, notes and instant formatting could make up for it in the long run.
In Assignment 9, I looked at the implications of violent video games. This was relevant because my favorite video game to play is Halo 3, a mature rated game (17+ older).
This year one of Xbox 360’s big Christmas sellers will be Left 4 Dead 2. It is the sequel to last years extremely popular Left 4 Dead, which I own. When I came across this story about Left 4 Dead 2 being banned in Australia, I thought it links perfectly to my assignment on the implications of violent video games.
The reason for the banning:
“The game contains realistic, frenetic and unrelenting violence which is inflicted upon ‘the Infected’ who are living humans infected with a rabies-like virus that causes them to act violently… However, it is the use of the ‘melee’ weapons such as the crowbar, axe, chainsaw and Samurai sword which inflict the most damage. These close in attacks cause copious amounts of blood spray and splatter, decapitations and limb dismemberment as well as locational damage where contact is made to the enemy which may reveal skeletal bits and gore.”
Last years game was not that bad compared to other games I have seen. You are aware that you are killing unrealistic zombies and the action happens very fast.
http://www.cnet.com.au/left-4-dead-2-banned-in-australia-339298590.htm
Facebook won a court case against Sanford Wallace who accessed Facebook user’s accounts without permission and would send out fake messages to people.
Sanford was sued before by Myspace for doing the same thing.
Facebook doesn’t expect to get much money out Wallace because he is bankrupt but would love to see him behind bars.
There is nothing I can’t stand more when it comes to new media. Spamming can get out of control and can turn many people off to new technologies. It is hard for me to find new media without spam. Even twitter has spammed users now that friend 10000 people at one time.
On October 25th, Scottish author Peter Urpeth began posting his novel Mackenzie’s Issue on Twitter, 140 characters at a time.
Explaining his decision to tweet his latest book, Urpeth said: “As a novelist, I am intrigued by the opportunities, challenges and limitations the digital world generates, and I want to explore and experience new digital media from the viewpoint of a writer of long fiction.”
If he continues at the one tweet a day pace, he should finish in about 14 years. Will Twitter even be around that long or will it evolve into something else?
I love to play online poker from time to time. Everyone that plays usually complains about how the programs try to set up hands so the sites make more money. I do play a lot of poker offline and there is definitely a difference in the percentage of when hands come out online. I go in knowing this and never usually play for a lot of money.
All my background in the poker world made me interested in this story I came across. Full Tilt, a gambling poker program that I have used in the past was accused of using programmed bots to control hands and steal people’s money. Full Tilt has many of the top poker pros under contract and this story is having an effect on not only the programs credibility but the pros that endorse it.
http://www.onlinecasinoadvisory.com/casino-news/online/online-poker-room-sued-for-cheating-43322.htm
While I was critical about the use of Twitter as an educational tool, it has definitely gotten better as the semester has gone on. People are feeling more comfortable with their classmates and the system and it has become a blog-like atmosphere. Each student is sending helpful discoveries from the internet and even advice on stuff going on during their jobs. There has yet to be an extension onto the course however. It has become more of a way for the students to get away from the readings besides saying “great read this week” because we already have a message board in place for that on angel.
My week 4 assignment dealt with online communities and problems that could arise from them. I wrote “Social networks like Myspace and Facebook have so many users with fewer constrictions that they have come to the point where privacy is a major issue”. I saw this first hand last week on Facebook. Without knowing, one of my friends downloaded an application that was a “Facebook virus” that took information from other people’s accounts. In this case, it took birthday information and sent a message to everyone that had a birthday in the same month as my friend. I fell under this and that led to a message to me saying I was tagged in a photo that I really wasn’t.
In the “All Facebook” blog I found this:
“This aggressive application has successfully grown to over 8.4 million users. While most users don’t realize that the application is spamming the profiles of all their friends, it’s clear that the application has reached critical mass. A large percentage of my friends have now been tagged in photos by friends they don’t event have strong ties to. This form of growth through loose connections makes me think the Friend.ly application has crossed a line”.
For more go to:
http://www.allfacebook.com/2009/09/friendly-photo-app-spreading-through-facebook-like-a-virus/
