A Reflection & Look to the Future

Today's hard-hitting winter weather gave me a shivering reminder of the impending end to the semester. It is hard to believe that this semester is already winding down, and that this is my final assigned blog post. As I write this entry I will not only reflect on my brief experience as a blogger but I will also take a look at the future of new media. My initial reaction to this class's blog requirement was worry, anxiety and curiosity. As I sat down to write my first post I remember having a hard time coming up with a topic, but eventually decided to look at Wikipedia. Looking back, the length of my first post seems puny and trivial. As the weeks flew by I became more familiar and engaged with the posts. As I started to incorporate my own interests into my posts, they started to become enjoyable to write. I can now look back at the experience as a worthwhile and illuminating one.

Now for a look to the future. The world of new media is currently in a very interesting place with the release of a number of new concepts. The most hyped project is Google Wave, an all-encompassing social networking hub. Google calls it a "personal communication and collaboration tool." Google Wave combines e-mail, instant messaging, wikis, and social networking. As more users join the "wave" its cutting edge features will become more relevant and useful to daily life. The three main components of Google Wave are its combination of conversation and document so that users can both chat, and work while integrating text, photos, video, maps and other media. The ability to share the conversation/document combos, which also allows others to reply, edit, invite and review changes is also a central feature. The live aspects of Google Wave also set it apart as it allows for faster conversations, and real-time edits and interactions. Google Wave has the potential to revolutionize everything about the way we work, play and communicate.

Vevo, the cutting-edge music video website from Google, Sony Music Group and Universal Music Group is another recently launched technology. Vevo is an online premium music and entertainment site that utilizes breakthrough video technology with a user-friendly community. It has been called a Hulu for music videos that may eventually include editorials, and user-created content. It is expected to eventually become the biggest and most innovative music-oriented site in the world.

Although these new technologies have bounds of possibilities, I believe the future of new media lies in projects like the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative which aims to create and distribute affordable XO-1 laptops to every child in the world, especially those in third-world and developing countries. The mission statement of the organization is to "create educational opportunities for the world's poorest children by providing each child with a rugged, low-cost, low-power, connected laptop with content and software designed for collaborative, joyful, self-empowered learning" in the hopes that they will "become connected to each other, to the world and to a brighter future. Ambitious and optimistic initiatives such as these place the future of new media in the hands of bright, but disconnected youth who would otherwise be left in the dark, not able to contribute their fresh ideas to the greater good. With my newfound interest in new media I look forward to observing and participating in the fascinating future of this always-evolving field.

Death of the Network

When I logged onto my Facebook account this morning I noticed a message from founder Mark Zuckerberg above my news feed. Because of its prominent placement, I decided to see what the 'open letter' had to say. In the letter, Zuckerberg acknowledges the ever growing and changing population of Facebook. In order to comply with the needs and privacy desires of this population, Zuckerberg has decided to carry out a number of changes with the site.

Zuckerberg first acknowledges the shift the site has seen in its population from being dominated by students to a population now encompassing many different demographics. When the site was first created it was used primarily students. Its division by 'networks' (i.e. Harvard or Stanford) was useful to users who wanted to share their profile, information, and pictures with those in their network, under the notion that they would be familiar with this relatively small group of people. The group was comprised of only other users with an email address from that institution to ensure the composition of the network.

As Facebook grew and users who were not students started becoming more and more relevant, regional networks started popping up so that these new users could also join a network, but one determined by their location rather than their learning institution. As time went by and Facebook continued to expand these networks became larger and larger and their purpose in terms of privacy became worthless. Networks like New York City contained hundreds of thousands of users. Many users would leave their profile, information and pictures open to their entire network, creating many privacy issues.

Facebook is now in the process of dismembering most of its large regional networks while at the same time adding more privacy settings so that users have even more control over the information they share with friends and others. Networks like New York City have already been taken down. As these networks are being removed, groups are being created to serve similar purposes as the regional networks once did, purposes that some users still enjoyed. This indicates that this removal of regional networks is not being welcomed with open arms by all Facebook users.

Facebook is taking a strong stance on the issue of privacy as it becomes more and more relevant with its continuously growing and changing population. If Facebook continues to grow it will be interesting to observe the other changes they enforce to conform with the wishes of its new members.