Computer-Based Interactive Applications - Essay Example

Reflective Journal Computer-based, interactive applications having multiple media elements, including text, graphics, animations, video, and sound [is multimedia technology]” (“Multimedia Technology,” 2010, p. 1). Emerging multimedia technologies such as Facebook and Twitter are all the rage now. These are considered multimedia because of the fact that they are computer-based, interactive, and have multiple media elements. There are two multimedia technologies which are going to be reflected upon in this journal, then, which this writer has much knowledge about: Facebook, the iPhone, the iPad, texting, and Twitter. On Facebook, there are elements such as text, graphics, animations, and videos which can be played on the web site directly such as YouTube videos (which can be posted on one’s profile). In some cases, sound can be accessed as well in the music section of Facebook. The interesting thing about today’s social media is that it is very much multimedia in that all of these aspects are included. Facebook is very much a multimedia tool that has been rumored to soon take over the Internet. Facebook is dynamic in the fact that it allows users to post status updates whenever they want on their account. Then this status update is visible at the top of their Walls, where their status updates are kept. Then, people who are the user’s “friends” can comment on the status update. Friends are also allowed to press the “Like” button if they like the person’s status. Facebook is a revolutionary type of multimedia. People can share information, thoughts, ideas, comments, questions, and suggestions. On Facebook people can also create fan clubs. They can play games as well, which include audio. Facebook is a revolutionary technology because it allows people who may have once known each other at some point in time to reconnect. For example, if someone wanted to get in touch with their childhood friends or people they knew from high school or college, they can use Facebook as a social networking tool in order to reconnect with those people again. Also, Facebook is a generally easy interface to use, and is user-friendly. Many people are worried that they won’t find Facebook interesting. However, the caveat to that is that usually, people do find Facebook interesting. In fact, they find it so engaging that they spend one hour, two hours, sometimes several hours a day—in fact—on Facebook. Facebook has become such a revolutionary form of multimedia that there are not many people nowadays who are not on Facebook. There are still many people who are not interested in this phenomena—however, it is quickly catching on. Facebook is now getting to the point where there are conferences being held in San Francisco about its progress. People who are regular Facebook users have said that they will stop using Facebook if it is no longer a free service. However, Facebook is such a useful tool, that it may occur to the people who are in charge of Facebook to have some kind of a fee for using it because it is so useful. Although people are not charging for it now, it could happen in the future that Facebook users might be charged to use it. This would drastically reduce, most likely, the usage of Facebook, although personally, it is very feasible that people would pay whatever kind of fee they have to in order to stay in contact with their friends and family in other places. One of the unique features about Facebook is that you can search from various schools and things and find out who is on Facebook. There are certain unique features about Facebook that also make it endearing. There is also something called Catbook on Facebook. On Catbook, if one has a cat, one can register one’s cat and then create a personal Catbook page for him or her. This is definitely one very nice user feature about Facebook. The games that one is able to play on Facebook abound. There are MafiaWars, there is FarmVille, there is Sorority Life, there is YoVille, and so much more. In fact, many people tend to think these games are somewhat useless. However, there is one game which helps one improve one’s typing speed, called Typing Maniac. Facebook could be seen, perhaps, as a type of multimedia that encourages idleness. However, contrary to that fact, some people actually see Facebook as motivating people to communicate and stay in touch, which takes time. Facebook is considered a valuable tool in terms of allowing people to keep in touch. People that one hasn’t seen in years can be contacted through using a system very much like e-mail, but which doesn’t have an e-mail address. This way, peoples’ privacy is ensured. There is no “selling” someone’s e-mail address through Facebook, because Facebook doesn’t use e-mail addresses. The uniqueness of Facebook is a very good topic about which one can speak. There are lots of quizzes on Facebook, which make it even more of an interactive tool. Sometimes, when people post comments on Facebook, it sets the stage for people to talk about a particular topic. Then different people can post more comments on the topic. Pretty soon these comments evolve into a sort of discussion. It is interesting how these sorts of discussions for social media evolve. Unlike a real conversation, the buffer here is the Internet. People can’t talk face to face on the computer, unless they are using Skype. Skype is another type of multimedia outlet that will not be touched upon here. However, suffice it to say that Skype allows people to communicate across a great amount of distance on the PC or laptop—it is telecommuting in the purest sense of the word. Facebook truly has some good things going for it. For one, it has a high user base. Secondly, Facebook has an inordinate amount of young users. Most of Facebook’s users are in their 20’s, which has made the site no less popular. Facebook, in many ways, is what the iPhone was to smartphones. It is so revolutionary, that it practically shuts out the competition. Speaking of which, the iPhone has been popular ever since it hit stores about six years ago. The iPhone is really revolutionary. If Facebook is a game-changer, the iPhone is the game. As virtually anyone who has the iPhone knows, the iPhone is indeed a unique item. There are several available features on the iPhone that blow away its competition in terms of smartphones. iPhones usually come with an e-mail feature, a phone feature, an iPod feature, and an Internet (Safari) feature. All these features are main icons which are viewed at the bottom of the main screen. Included on the main screen are icons for text messaging, a calendar, an alarm, Google maps (which is based on GPS), settings, notes, iTunes, an app (application) store, a YouTube icon, an icon for photos, an icon for a camera, an icon for stocks, and any other additional applications that one wants on one’s phone. iPhones have several possible applications that can be downloaded. For the purposes of this paper, a few will be discussed. A few of the more interesting apps include the ability to read the Bible and the Qur’an on the iPhone. One can also find Aztec names on the iPhone. One can use software to detect whether someone’s lying or not (the Lie Detector app). Then there is an application one can use to fake a person calling them on the phone. There is an application for almost everything. One can draw on one’s iPhone. Now one can save documents, spreadsheets, text files, and other kinds of files on the iPhone. Also, one can get inspirational quotes on one’s phone if one wishes. There are so many things one can do with the iPhone. One of the great aspects is that one can get Internet access from almost anywhere. That means, if one needs the Internet, it is available almost anywhere on the planet where there is a phone tower. Having the Internet available anyplace and anytime is a true asset. If one thinks about it, there is a serious deleteriousness to this fact. The only thing less deleterious than the iPhone, however, is the iPad. The iPad is Apple’s new blockbuster product. There were over four million pre-orders for the iPad. Basically, the iPad can have all the applications that the iPhone does, and more. Basically the iPad can access wireless Internet connection from anywhere. Not to mention that, but it is also highly portable. One can fit the iPad into one’s backback without having to have a special laptop bag if one wants. Many people are excited about the prospect of having a laptop that is able to access the Internet from wherever one is. Obviously, this is certainly a new feature which is to be lauded on the iPad. Texting is another multimedia feature which not only appears in text on one’s phone screen. It also usually appears with some kind of sound. Texting is a unique feature because one doesn’t necessarily have to call someone in order to get in touch with them. This is a wonderful feature because calling someone might interrupt him or her in the middle of his or her business. However, texting is a novel feature because it’s kind of like communicating almost telepathically—but with the full knowledge that one is doing so. Texting is a great feature to have on one’s phone because one can communicate with another person without having to call them, which is a desirable feature in a phone, and in communications generally. Another interesting multimedia tool is the social networking site Twitter. One thing that Twitter was concerned about initially in the beginning was a user named @HackerKroll, who subsequently hacked the web site and then broke into the e-mails of a bunch of higher-ups on Twitter, including the CEO of Twitter himself. Twitter has been a sensation from the start. Basically people make statements, or posts—much like on Facebook. However, on Twitter, the catch of writing posts is that they can only be 140 characters or less. Many people in the tweeting world see this as a similarly unique feature of Twitter. One must be short and sweet and to the point. Another useful feature about Twitter is that there are hashtags, starting with the pound key. For example, if one wanted to make breakfast a hashtag, one would use the word #breakfast. If one wanted to tweet about breakfast as a topic, one could write something along the lines of: #breakfast Today I ate steak and eggs with my best friend at a local IHOP. That is just one example of a tweet. Sometimes various things will be trending, including sports figures when the basketball playoffs are on. Sometimes people talk about relationships. On Twitter, people talk about all kinds of things. Some people talk about their personal lives, what goes on in other peoples’ lives, or whatever comes to their mind. Some people talk about all kinds of stuff which is rather inappropriate. They talk about bodily functions, swear, use other inappropriate language, and in general break a lot of rules of netiquette. This is probably most likely precipitated by the fact that many people on Twitter don’t personally know their followers, unlike on Facebook. People on Twitter are much less likely to care as much about what people are saying because they don’t really know their followers. If they really did know their followers, most likely they would not just say whatever they wanted. One good rule of thumb that has been heard is that, if one couldn’t say it to one’s grandmother or mother, it’s not advisable to put it on the Internet. What is interesting about Twitter as a social media and multimedia tool is that people can add photos. This is using TwitPic. Another thing that Twitter users can do is re-tweet (or RT) other user’s comments. For example, let’s pretend FunnyJana said: I absolutely love Perez Hilton’s new haircut! Then, someone who see’s FunnyJana’s comment could re-post her comment as a re-tweet: CindySweetness RT @FunnyJana: I absolutely love Perez Hilton’s new haircut! Hopefully this is self-explanatory. Basically, Twitter was a relative unknown to this writer until this writer found out about it almost a year ago. The ability to post almost whatever one wants (within reason) on Twitter has gotten the attention of many politicians. In fact, many politicians chose to follow the account of this writer. However, it is not necessarily who is following you, but who you are following. Twitter is unique like that. Twitter can also be a scary place. Sometimes people make comments in order so that one won’t want to follow them anymore. Sometimes people will make random or outrageous comments. Another interesting aspect of Twitter is the issue of whether or not one should follow people who have verified accounts (a.k.a. celebrities). Celebrities tweeting on Twitter is an altogether different issue. Some celebrities happen to be very informational tweeters, such as Alyssa Milano—who, by all standards is somewhat of a B-movie actress. However, her value and influence as a tweeter is immeasurable. The same can be said of Ashton Kutcher, who is really known for more comedic roles than anything. Celebrity tweeters are not few and far in-between, and there are several who have made a positive contribution to society. Drew Carey donated a few million dollars to cancer research due to the efforts of one guy named Drew Olanoff, now @thatdrew, who at one point found out he had cancer and then decided to start the #beatcancer hashtag which has now become rather famous. There was a company that was saying it would donate a couple of cents to cancer research every time the hashtag #beatcancer was mentioned in a blog post or online. This writer personally started a blog for the #beatcancer hashtag. A few other celebrity tweeters who do things for charity include Wyclef Jean, who sparked the Yele movement when Haiti got hit with an enormous earthquake. Although the national media coverage of Haiti has lessened, Wyclef continues to be a force to be reckoned with in terms of finding help for his own people with regard to the earthquake. He, like many others, continue to be an inspiration to us all. Ashton Kutcher, along with his wife Demi Moore, are continually in the media spotlight for supporting such causes that lend support to ending human trafficking, and, most recently, for ending malaria. Chad Ochocinco has not done much that has been publicized in the way of charity, but he has his own iPhone app. Currently he is on Dancing With the Stars, and his influence continues to spread as he becomes more interactive with social media and the like. Other figures—such as Perez Hilton (who reports celebrity news) and Keith Olbermann (who is an anchor on MSNBC)—routinely put out quality tweets based on what’s happening in the world today. Then, there are certain celebrity tweeters that everyone wants to hear from, like Denise Richards, Kirstie Alley, and Lindsay Lohan, to name a few. Many people want to have their day in the spotlight. Twitter provides a forum for all of that. In turn, what does all this—Facebook, the iPhone, the iPad, texting, and Twitter—say about our country as a collective whole? It tells us that, as a world, we are getting more interconnected and interrelated everyday. With the advent of the Internet in virtually all aspects of our everyday lives, pretty soon we will be knowing what each other had for lunch if we want that to let it be known. One of the obvious ethical questions that comes up is, “Where does it stop?” Where do we let the unknown be unknown? When do we stop tweeting, when do we stop facebooking, texting, and the like? The answer is, we probably don’t. Just as the scientists of yesteryear were fond of pushing the experimental envelope, so too is it possible to plumb the depths of licentiousness. It is possible to push limits. In the end, that is what the Internet age is getting us to do—to push the envelope of what is acceptable, what is good taste, and in general what is possible to do through multimedia networks. This then brings us to the next question. Are we becoming too interrelated as a society? At what point do we stop probing each others’ consciousnesses to the point that we are bereft of words? When is enough enough? Basically one of the challenges that having social media at our every beck and call makes us face is that we must realize how we affect one another. If we don’t realize how we affect one another, we could end up hurting one another. Sometimes people say mean things, or things they don’t mean. On the Internet, that can be blown out of proportion because it’s not talking face-to-face. Most likely, interaction that occurs on a level that is more interactive is better. As we all know, talking face-to-face is much more interactive than sitting at a computer and typing away at the keys. It is the quality of our interactions that determine how we live our lives. If we only have low-quality interactions, then our lives will in return be low-quality. However, if we have high-quality interactions with other people, we can expect a good quality of life. Really, what one’s life is is what one makes it. However, with the advent of multimedia technologies such as these, it is easy to see how the richness that is life can be taken away from our lives. On the other hand, it is most likely necessary that one needs this richness of multimedia in order to add some dimension to our lives which are becoming increasingly interconnected in the Internet Age. Surely, just as much as the television was a novelty back when it was introduced in the 1950’s, the same is true for the Internet, which was launched in the 1980’s. Pretty soon there will be a feature that might be better than the Internet. It’s possible that someone will create a phone, or a gadget, or something, that is even more revolutionary as a multimedia tool. This writer has several ideas about how technology could be improved upon or developed. Yes, Facebook and Twitter may soon rule the Internet. But the one thing that must remind us of the fact that we are in the Internet Age is that it is the humans behind technology that control the technology. It is the human element that will always make people interested in the Internet and any multimedia applications that it has to offer. Ultimately, this is what makes life enjoyable. It is what gives life personality. It is what gives life its zing, its zap, its interesting nature. Ultimately, we are only as good as our social networking and multimedia tools. We must use these tools to the benefit of our society and our nation. May this be our most noble goal. REFERENCES Multimedia Technology. (2010). [Online Article]. http://www.answers.com/topic/multimedia-technology Read More