We always think that development of technology is so advanced that has eased our life and bring it moving forward. Nevertheless, I have encountered several circumstances that oppose to this idea. Often, when we discuss the old media and new media, we are not analysing the technology itself. Rather, its content inside and form of information being distributed.
While the real world which we carry our daily activities, people still possess the ‘old’ form of hierarchical ideas in their mind. In work place, we are bounded in top down position; The way of information transmission is from one source to many ends. On the other hand, in the virtual space of flow, it enables information to be transmitted in decentralised form, which means user collaboration and collective intelligence of user.
Thus, there is phenomena when people in society incompetence to follow up the advanced development pace of technology. For my own experience, I used to encounter several times that when I get information online and would like to ask for further details in certain outlet of that brand, the service person always couldn’t answer my question or even blame that they have never been or have not yet been informed of such knowledge. Hence, it has revealed that there are communication difficulties between the top management and the lower workers which means the process of dissemination of information in house and to the public is not working simultaneously. It will then trouble those who need the information which means us, as the receiver.
When we were asked to come out with own life hack which related to development of technology in tutorial class, I have found a lot of new knowledge that I would not know if my classmates didn’t share it with the class. Again, it’s the power of collaboration of internet user and participatory culture in the current era which emphasize on interaction between users.
Several life hacks sites that have listed for example Lifehacker. Com, 43 folders or habitualist.com are the result and also a platform for information sharing. People who used to deal with or currently confronting certain problems can always search for solutions in these sites.
It’s the power of sharing, which we always know the technology itself is no longer important in contemporary society. It just acts as an access point to somewhere enable for interactivity with available of information. To some extend, we can say that new media technology has provide a virtual space for flow of information has ease our life and strengthen relationship of people among the society. It has broken the concept of time and space as physical attendance is not essential.
Paradoxically, as what I have discussed in “The Paperless Office” post which is the disenchantment of technology, life hacks is opposing this idea. Perhaps, I should say that society and technology development is the effect of interaction happened between both side. Thus, there is blurring line in distinguish the development of society and technology and their impact on each other.
Do new media technology leading us to a life of utopia? Or, it has burdened us in fact? What I would like to emphasis here is about the idea of electronic office, which refers to paperless office.
Are we following the desired idea in current trend? Before I draw my own point of view, I would like to quote statistic that have been provided in our lecture notes that “In the US paper consumption has increased 350% over the past 30 years.” Within the decades, the mainstream has delivered a message about the advanced development of technology has ease our life to the public. We tend to perceive technology as an ultimate solution to anything that is hardly solved in the past. When the use of personal computer getting common in work place, the ruling class claimed that it will increase efficiency in handling information. In fact, we are just doing double job now. We are not actually more efficient, but just provided with an alternative choice of method to deal with task.
To be honest, new technology has indeed speeded up the information transmission from one individual to another. However, when we going further in a communication with another party, paper are still needed as the safest way for record storing for example contract in black and white. In contrast, the validity of what have been promised via extension of new technology devices such as mobile phone, e-mail or during the online conference are still questionable without record in black and white printed in paper as a prove.
In my own experience, as what I have mentioned in previous post, I will still prefer to print out whatever needed with holding a pen to take down notes. Although the serious issue of global warming is always been reminded, I hope I can put effort in other aspect to protect the environment but not sacrifice the feeling of comfort in dealing with printed materials instead of monitor screen.
During the tutorial class, we were assigned to define the term “collaboration”. Each of us was required to come out with a vocabulary to define “collaboration” which every word was not allowed to be repeated. It’s a mind mapping task to show us how collaboration related to contemporary game culture and help us to know more about it. I would like to list out a few words that were provided by my classmates which are community, think togetherness, participation and volunteers, merge, joint venture and etc.
Well, I don’t want to go any further since we have discussed about that in class. I just want to say that collaboration seems has become more important in Web 2.0 which emphasizes on participatory culture and horizontal form of communication.
Users of Web 2.0 have always been defined as active prod-user or prod-Sumer. Nevertheless, we seems like overlook the minority group, which they just receive information without any contribution in the web culture. Feedbacks, comments and other sort of interaction with other users are categorized as kind of contribution. What if an individual does not do any of above but just surf the net for information that he want? Try to recall, website like YouTube, Facebook, Wikipedia or even game culture rely very much on interaction among users for further development and improvement. How if all these users stop contributing but expecting something back in return? Would all these sites be interesting without such participation involved? Likewise, would new media technology seem interesting for us if there’s no interaction allowed inside? Would user still willing to accept new media technology as attachment in their life if that is just a device like calculator ONLY?
“Would the traditional form of solid newspaper be eliminated and replace by new form of contemporary mediums such as online newspaper” is an issue that has been discussed over the decade.
Nevertheless, the emergence of new media technologies does not as though replace the traditional newspaper. Many people argue that they would still prefer flip over the newspaper in the morning while having their breakfast. This is also what I think. Although we may subscribe to mobile alert to update us with the latest news or subscribe these news feed online through RSS feed, I would still rather approach to all sort of information manually by myself. Well, it doesn’t mean that I refuse the information for being pushed to me, however, I just couldn’t neglected how important is newspaper in my life. For example, I am feeling not comfortable this morning just because I couldn’t find today’s newspaper on the table which I would never find it because it’s a Diwali public holiday.
We have also discussed about how these subscription would bound up information that we have chosen earlier on only to be pushed to us. Nonetheless, that information received is limited and surrounding within certain aspects that the subscriber interested only. Instead, I demand more than that by flipping over the newspaper.
This is a very example to show that although new media technologies has impacted our life but there are still certain sort of practices or traditions we never give up. So let’s pray there’s newspaper for me when I wake up by tomorrow morning!!
Attachment of new media technology devices on us has become one of the indispensable elements in our life. Sometimes, we tend to judge people based on what or how many technological products they have. This judging behaviour practised by most of the people in contemporary society that we almost simply neglect it. We don’t know why would we practise in such way but we did it!
For example, we may judge those who carry sophisticated high technology devices as people that work in Information Technology field or businessman. Automatically, we may assume that they always receive up-to-date information and full of knowledge about new media technology. Nevertheless, we wouldn’t know if they are just too rich to pay for those latest devices. So, the measurement of judging inside us has changed due to the impact of new media technology.
Hence, we shouldn’t undervalue someone who is still carrying very old model cellular mobile phone. XD
I wonder which stage are we actually at in the progress of new media technology development?
There are “latest” technologies being invented and introduced to us almost everyday, but do we know where the end of the journey is or where’s our final destination?
How far can we still move on?
As we can see, we rely so much on new media technology and some even couldn’t live without it. We know the impacts that have created from such products to the society, but we are doing nothing. As a mass communication degree student, we are required to just analyse the phenomena, but nothing beyond has been done. Since we don’t know what we can contribute to the society, so we can just TRY to predict what is going to happen next. It’s just an act to console ourselves in order to kick off worries of the unknown future.
I would like to show you a video clip which is talking about how is one of the activities that we usually do going to change in future-shopping!
I really hope that the future would be like this; So that we won’t have to queue up for the fitting room during mega sales; So that we won’t have to grab things that are not suitable us and waste money because all we have to do is just subscribe to the shop’s latest released, and fit it on the “virtual-self”, using mobile phone perhaps.
Perhaps, we don’t have to wear anyting in future since we are not going to have any physical contact with the others but just the virtual you using the “real-time rendering technology” to travel in between the real and virtual world.
Just would like to show you guys a picture that i snapped last time when i hung out with my friends.
Interesting?
They are actually close friends and know each other so well. What I would like to mention is try to focus on what they are doing. One of them was checking out photos gallery inside the phone while another was checking out pictures inside the camera; at the same time, another one was playing Solitaire with application stored inside the phone.
Once again I would like to mention they are close friends. They were not trying to escape from each other or stop anyone to approach them but just couldn’t wait to check out stuff with the attached new media technologies in everyone’s life. When we come to theory that we have discussed, we can say that they were present in public but stayed within the “personal media’s bubbles”. It is sort of example of shell culture that we have discussed. They were inter-switching between physically present but mentally absent while still stay aware of what’s happening outside their personal devices.
Most of us practise such behaviour in today’s culture, aren’t you?
Sometimes we are just so used to multi tasking when we apply new media technology in our life. Don’t you think so? We never satisfy on doing particular task only. Often, “we need something to pre-occupy our time when we are doing something”, this is Mr. Benedict mentioned in tutorial class. I am so agree so this phrase. To some extend, we just feel so empty concentrate in doing a task. For example, while you are watching TV, you will still surf around internet or using handheld devices like mobile phone or PSP to occupy your time. It’s just a sense of satisfaction mentally so that we feel that we are doing something but actually nothing. It is so-called time filling.
Perhaps, as what we have learned in this week lecture, many contemporary media contexts just don’t offer enough immersive experience for people to fully focus on only one thing. It is so “dry” to just listen to your MP3 Player only or surf the internet pointlessly. However, when we are already too used to such phenomena, there’s a changing in our behaviour that we will never put our full focus on particular thing only which sometimes we have to really pay attention on. For example, it’s too dangerous for a drive to multitask while driving or a student to multitask while doing assignment.
Since young, we were educated by elders on most of the general knowledge, for example, how should we behave, how to dress up nicely, how to show respectful or even how to speak well. We have already used to these hierarchy type of educations and naturally we assume education should be running in hierarchy form.
In fact, along with the advanced development of new media technology and ours increase dependency on it; the so-called traditional way of education has been altered. The younger generation is now more educated of up-to-date information than the older. In order to catch up the global trend so that they won’t be left out by the society, the older generation is now learning the “new” knowledge from the younger generation. For instance, my parents learn the functions of complicated buttons of product of convergence intelligence, mobile phone, or way of accessing to internet from me.
The way of information transmitted online is now being applied in real life. The attitude that we possess while apply new media technology in our life getting more and more important and affect our social norms. The age, background or gender is no longer taken into consideration on how information or knowledge should be imparted or received. Sometimes, I can even debate with my dad on current issue! That’s interesting!
