Citizen Mojo's

It is no secret – the mobile phone is developing at an alarming rate. In less than a century, the cellular device has developed from a box weighing kilograms and having the soul function of making calls within a few kilometres of its position, into a hand-held device, capable of making calls to anywhere around the world and taking photographs among many other amazing functions. With this great advance, journalism becomes possible for the everyday citizen. This essay will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this advance in technology as well as how this might impact journalistic practices, news values and ethics.



Since the popularisation of the mobile in the late 1980s, firms have been struggling to keep up with the great demand (Steinbock, 2007). Today, a mobile phone is capable not only of making calls, they take photographs, video recordings, voice recordings and can even access the internet – all the essential tools needed to be a amateur journalist. “With the capabilities of today’s mobile phones, mobile journalists – or ‘mojos’ – can put together their story in the field, complete with images and sound, and upload it to the web within seconds of it being finished,” (Quinn, 2010) .

Citizen mobile journalists or ‘mojos’ as they are more commonly known, are on the rise. “We used to call them innocent bystanders. Or victims. Now, those “bystanders” can broadcast news… everybody is a potential citizen journalist” (Campbell, 2010). In recent years, professional journalists have almost relied on these ‘mojos’ for crucial information.

This phenomenon brings with it great advantages as well as great disadvantages in the journalism world. Without a doubt one of the greatest advantages is the faster release of information and the diminishing of gaps and silences. The public used to only be able to see the footage of an incident from when the news van arrived – often missing what may have happened prior to their arrival or having to rely on a witness for information. When everyone is a journalist, no information is missed and every bit of footage is able to be captured and broadcast immediately (Quinn, 2010). No longer are there missing links that don’t add up.

Although this is great for the general public, it has proven to be a problem for authorities. Often classified information is leaked through mobile journalists before the police or other organisations can prevent it (Myron, 2006). When previously privacy was limited, privacy has become non-existent. This shows the falling ethics of journalism in this new digital age. Citizen journalists can report on anything and everything without thinking about the consequences it may have on themselves and others. This means that un-ethical journalist practises are far more common as journalists have become far more common.



Similarly, because citizens seem to be capturing more information than professional journalists, there becomes a rise in chequebook journalism – where a journalist pays to use a person’s stories or material. This is considered un-ethical both from the buyer and seller. People used to be more than happy to tell their story free of charge to anyone who would listen (McLeod, 2005). This meant far more coverage and information on stories. When a journalist pays a citizen to use their material or story, they ask for exclusivity in return for cash. Many describe this act as the loss of good journalism.

Citizen journalism has often been said to be the future of journalism. It could mean the loss of an entire industry of career opportunities. Instead of people seeing a clip on television and buying a newspaper for information, they’re going on the internet and viewing blogs from citizen journalists. Citizen journalists could very well be the downfall of newspapers, magazines and any other journalist related material. On the plus side of this, however, it could also mean decrease in prices of information or even the obliteration of payed information meaning that gaining information would be as it should – free.

News values are yet another factor of journalism which the current digital age has impacted. With far more information being streamed, media is adopting a ‘local first’ attitude (Myron, 2006). Determining whether this is a step forward or a step back is up to personal opinion. Some believe that we need to keep an eye on what is happening all around the world, while other prefer to know what is happening in their area of residence. Whichever the preference, there is no denying the movement in news values.



The advance in digital age has had a huge impact on the journalism industry. Everything from news values to ethics is changing with technology. It is not clear whether change in journalistic style is for better or worse with many arguments being made on each side. It is clear, however, that the future of journalism is being defined by ever changing technology and there is no stopping it.

References:

Myron, Chuck 2006. Mobile journalists are getting back to their grass roots. News press. Washington post. Viewed 21/10/2010 http://www.editorsweblog.org/analysis/2006/12/mobile_journalists_mojos_are_g.php



Professor Quinn, Stephen 2010. Mojo rising - the journalist, the mobile phone and the prescient poet. Deakin Research. Viewed 21/10/2010

http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/stories/2010/04/13/mojo-rising---the-journalist-the-mobile-phone-and-the-prescient-poet



Campbell, Tiffany 2010. Mobile journalism. Mobile active. Viewed 21/10/2010

http://mobileactive.org/tagging/mobile-journalism



Steinbock, Dan 2007. The mobile revolution: The making of mobile services worldwide. pp18-22. viewed 21/10/2010

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=qRhYjAX6-JUC&pg=PA24&lpg=PA24&dq=dan+steinbock+mobile+service+re&source=bl&ots=-G4sM-MJMz&sig=M7SWc-wEqbqRZT7aze5IkYu_xK8&hl=en&ei=RO_ETNCNK4XGvQPoh-2xCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CBUQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false



McLeod, Chris 2005. Paying for the news: Chequebook journalism. Australian Press Council. Viewed 21/10/2010

http://www.presscouncil.org.au/pcsite/apcnews/feb05/chequebook.html





Bibliography:

Eisenman, Bonnie 2010. Mobile Journalism: CNN’s Panel Discusses Smartphones’ Role in Reporting. CNN. Viewed 21/10/2010

http://www.148apps.com/news/mobile-journalism-cnns-panel-discusses-smartphones-role-reporting/#ixzz13QFmiCF0

week 7 - lecture

So this weeks lecture was based around the term 'free'.

xThis began with the introduction of creative commons which is basically a free copyright license. It's the notion of a creation having some rights reserved as opposed to all rights reserved. This is great for both people who want to get their creations out there without losing credit for it as well as people who wish to collaborate other pieces of work to create their own.

The next part of the lecture was about free software. I personally think that Richard M Stallman is a legend for wanting to create a whole system comprised of free software. I especially loved his 3 freedoms regarding software. This guy really had morals when it comes to computer sofware.

I really liked the quote at the end of the slides which said 'you paid for your computer with your hard earned money, don't let companies tell you how to use your computer'.

And on that great note, I shall leave you to your thoughts.

Week 7- tutetask

This weeks task was to broaden our use of free internet software over a few days. 
I tried mozilla firefox and it's ok I guess. Nothing special. I still like internet explorer better though. Not because it's better, I just feel more familiar with it. I kind of feel like I've been on a journey with it over the many years that I've used internet.

I also tried audacity and it was fun to use but honestly, I don't have much use for it.

I did find one free program which I use all the time. It's called anyvideoconverter. Basically, it converts my files into different formats. So, for example, if I wanted to put just the audio of one of my videos onto my ipod, it converts the video into an mp3 format. The other great feature of the program is that I can download videos from youtube and save them onto my computer. I used this program for my cinespeak, cyberbullying videos. This program is pretty much the angel of free software in my eyes. It makes media project possible.

Week 7 tutorial task

Research and provide short answers to the following questions. Provide references where applicable.

1. What is creative commons and how could this licensing framework be relevant to your own experience at university?



Creative commons is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting reasonable copyright. So basically, it allows people to share their work but still be able to claim it as their own.


This is relevant for any university student who may need to research something for an assignment. I often find something brilliant that just a normal person has said and may want to quote it in an assignment. Creative commons allows me to do this providing I properly reference to original author.


This also means that if I publish something on the internet, these blogs as a great example, others are able to utilize my information without me losing the credit for it.

2. Find 3 examples of works created by creative commons and embed them in your blog.
I found a really easy way to search for images that hold the cc license. You just hit advanced search on the yahoo page and click the box that says you only want to search cc licensed images.
1)

2)

3)

3. Find an academic article which discusses creative commons using a database or online journal. Provide a link to and a summary of the article.
There's no other summary I can give on this article apart from the fact that it discusses (in detail) creative commons. From what creative commons is to how to obtain a creative commons license. It's all there. Perhaps that explains why the article is called 'a review of creative commons'- by Mia Garlick.

http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Review/EDUCAUSEReviewMagazineVolume40/AReviewofCreativeCommonsandSci/158002

4. Have a look at Portable Apps (a pc based application) – provide a brief description of what it is and how you think this is useful. 

I typed portable app into google and came up with a great website which gave me these definitions:
Portable - moved with ease
App - a computer program like a web browser or word processor

A portable app is a computer program that you can carry around with you on a portable device and use on any Windows computer. When your USB flash drive, portable hard drive, iPod or other portable device is plugged in, you have access to your software and personal data just as you would on your own PC. And when you unplug the device, none of your personal data is left behind. - http://portableapps.com/about/what_is_a_portable_app

So basically, how I see it, is if you save say a document to microsoft 2007 and connect your usb to a computer that has Microsoft 2003, you will be able to open your Microsoft 2007 document in its original form. Honestly, I don't see how this is such a great invention. On the website it talks about how great it would be to carry around your calendar on a usb or save your favourite websites to it and show all you buddies and you can even carry around all your msn friends so you don't have to re-add them when you go onto another computer... Um... That's what a laptop is for. I suppose it would be good for those who can't afford a laptop but seriously, why is it soooo important to carry around all your msn friends on a usb???? Whatever...

So that's it... See you next time.

Week 6- lecture

Media
New Media 
Social media
This lecture was a real eye-opener in terms of the way in which internet has allowed people to be whoever they want. It is the ultimate fantasy world. People can pretend they are someone they're not and form friendships with people they normally wouldn't. In fact, people can spend all day socializing without even leaving the computer.

The lecture bought up the terms virtual community and individual identity. Virtual community just that, a virtual community. The group of friends we have over the internet. And virtual identity being the way that a person can look however they wish to look and have the personality they've always wanted through the internet. I really liked this photo which appeared on one of the slides of a dog at a computer with the caption 'On the internet, nobody knows you're a dog'. This picture really brought home the fact that internet is ruining our sense of reality. Everything is done via the internet these days: Dating, social networking, even job applications are done over the internet. We have almost completely emerged ourselves in the fantasy realm. It's really quite sad. Instead of people getting out in the world, experiencing things and meeting new people, they're doing it all without even leaving their seats. It's really lazy.

On another note, it does allow the isolated a chance to meet people of common interests and views on things. But then there's always the chance that the other person has created an individual identity which is completely different from their actual identity. For example, I once went into a student chat room thinking that I would have a decent chat with another student when I was really bored. From the second I signed in, I was bombarded with men claiming that they had the perfect body. Apparently all the good looking men are hiding behind their computer screens. Not one of them said that their nose was a little too big or they had a bit of belly, they were all perfect faced body-builders. Hah, yeah right. You can never believe a person with all of your heart that you meet on the internet. Well that's my opinion anyway.

The next segment of the lecture was devoted to Web 2.0 which is our current era in web history. Who knows, maybe one day instead of being defined by how many years after Christ's death it's been, we will be defined by our internet age. "What age are we in again, oh yeah, Web 5.7". So basically Web 2.0 is the notion that now allows the ordinary citizen to have their own vlog or facebook profile where they can tag people or chat, whatever their heart desires. It's hard to imagine how much further we can push technology before it takes over the world.

The lecture then went into questioning who owns what we post on the internet which you can read in further depth in my previous blog.

So anyways, that's about it for this week.
:)

week 6- tutespark

Who owns the content you put on the internet on various sites?
This includes pictures, video, text, etc?
Think about all the content you upload onto social networking sites - Do you own it?
Who has the right to use your creations?


I must admit, I've never really thought about these crucial questions before. I'm guessing that most people who use social networking websites or blog sites don't give a second thought to who owns the things that they are publishing. 

As I was pondering over these questions, the only term that came to mind was copyright. So I decided to look up this term and found the following information:

In Australia, The Copyright Act of 1968 ensures that copyright protection is granted automatically from the time that a work is created, until 50 years after the author's death. During this period, the copyright can be passed to others and bequeathed in a will. After copyright protection expires, the literary work is open to the public domain for use. The public can then use the works in any manner they choose.

The website went on to say that for Australia, there are no forms or fees to pay for a copyright. As long as your idea is original, nobody can steal it from you. In fact, you don't even need a copyright logo stamped to your work.

However, the website then went on to say that if you create something for someone else, say an employer, the rights to that piece belong solely to the employer and not yourself. That got me thinking that perhaps in the situation of say, facebook, you are creating or publishing work for facebook itself. Facebook becomes the employer. If you published your work on your own website, then it would belong to you. But when you publish something on another website, the rights belong to them. This would be the same for other sites such as youtube, myspace, blogspot, etc. Ok, so I thought that my thoughts on this employer thing were genius, but after reading through the slides for week six, there is one slide that plain and simply says that when you put "stuff" on someones site, you are working for them. So there you go, I was right.

In saying this, I once made a youtube video for a competition which could land your movie in a feature film. With this, I had to sign a form which handed the rights to my movie over to them. They did not ask youtube for these rights, they asked me. This then re-opens the question, who really owns the stuff you place on the internet.

I believe that you ultimately own your own stuff; however, when you publish your stuff on a website for free discretion, you are giving permission for others to utilize your creations. It still belongs to you, the creator, however, others will use it.

I was going to leave my personal copyright debate at that, but then I read the slide which put forth questions like, if you found a photo of yourself or something you wrote in a magazine and were given no credit for it, how would you feel. Honestly, like many others I'm sure, I would be furious. I would find any way I possibly could to sue the company for all its money. This means that the debate does not end here.

I found another copyright website called 'the ten myths of copyright'. The third myth was that when you publish something on the internet, you automatically hand over rights to the public. The website said that this myth is in fact false and that if you wish for something to be able to be used in the public domain, you must somewhere have typed the words 'I grant this to the public domain', or something similar.

So there you have it. It is in fact illegal for someone to use your original work unless you clearly state that you consent to it. In saying this, if you publish something in a place where it can be copied, you run the risk of someone copying it - illegally of course.

References:
ACS distance education, 2010, http://www.acs.edu.au/info/21st-century-education/arts-and-media/copyright.aspx

10 big myths about copyright explained, DMCA, 2008,http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html
 

week 5

Tute task - week five

So I completely misinterpreted this tute task. I didn't read that all we had to do was research our topic. I instead went ahead and made my video. But now as I re-read the instructions, I'm thinking that maybe I may also have mis-interpreted what this assessment is all about. That's what you get for missing a tutorial I suppose. So here's the finish product anyway. Aside from not knowing if it's what we were actually meant to do, I think it turned out quite well.

Tutespark - week five

Culture jamming:
The first culuture jam: I'm sure there is much debate on which was the very first culture jam. I found one website that said that the first account of a culture jam occured Just after World War 2 when the South Pacific islanders created mock B-17's out of coke and spam cans to represent the garbage that dominated their skies during war-times. I wish I could find a photo of this interesting art work but unfortunately I was limited to showing you a real picture of a B-17.

Most influential Jam:
I'm sure this question is also highly debated. I couldn't find a website that told me point blank what the most influential culture jam was. I did, however, find a site that gave me the name of a group of highly influential jammists. So that will have to do. They are the Situationists, led by Guy Debord who debuted in the 60's.

The situationalists began as a group af artists who merged controvertial poem lyrics into song. From here they went on to establishing their own magazine. This wasn't enough for the situationalists, however; they then formed an eternal festival. From here emerged, movies, books, journals, etc. Guy Debord is said to be one of the most influential men of all time. The following is telegram the situationalists sent to the Communist Party of the USSR...

SHAKE IN YOUR SHOES BUREAUCRATS STOP THE INTERNATIONAL POWER OF THE WORKERS' COUNCILS WILL SOON WIPE YOU OUT STOP HUMANITY WILL NOT BE HAPPY UNTIL THE LAST BUREAU- CRAT IS HUNG WITH THE GUTS OF THE LAST CAPITALIST STOP LONG LIVE THE STRUGGLE OF THE KRONSTADT SAILORS AND OF THE MAKHNOVSCHINA AGAINST TROTSKY AND LENIN STOP LONG LIVE THE 1956 COUNCILIST INSURRECTION OF BUDAPEST STOP DOWN WITH THE STATE STOP

 The most damaging:

I typed this into google and one of the first things that came up were McDonalds culture jam. And now that I think about it, the most of culture jams that I've ever seen were targeting Maccas.

 Isn't it funny that even though this is the most damaged company in terms of culture jamming, it remains the most popular fast food place in all  of the world. Gets you thinking, is there even a point to cultutre jamming?

Reference list:
1. Sam Williams, New York. (1999). Culture jamming 2.0 retrieved from
http://www2.inow.com/~sam/cultjam2.html
2. Peter Marshell, Demanding the impossible. (1992). A history of Anarchism retrieved from
http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/obituary/debord.html

Lecture - week four

Tute exercise - week four

More questions... my favourite...
Q1) Where and when did usable online video start?

Big screen to small screen

Find three short films. Explain what makes them good or what made them good at the time. And why they became popular or why they will become popular.


Video one: Kiwi


I absolutely adore this video. I can’t remember where I first saw it but when I read this week’s task, I instantly thought of Kiwi. I think what makes this video so good is that it stirs so many emotions. The first being confusion. We have no idea what is going on with this weird bird. Why on earth is he pulling a rope? The next emotion is interest. We have the split-second thought to watch something else as this seems stupid, but we are too interested to know what happens next. Then we have the u-huh moment. Where we finally understand what he’s trying to do. Then there’s pride. Pride in knowing that we guessed what happened before it happened. The next is humour. It’s hilariously brilliant what this funny-looking bird is trying to do. But then, the bird sheds a tear and suddenly, we feel despair. This bird is finally flying, but he’s going to die. Finally comes the ‘nooooo’ moment, as the movie comes to an abrupt end. By the end of the movie, we almost feel drained by all the emotions that have occurred in us in the last few minutes.



The other this that makes this movie so great is the meanings behind it – or at least the meanings I got from it. The funny thing about the two meanings that I got is that one is almost contradicting of the other. The first being that anything is possible when you put your mind to it; this kiwi bird made the impossible, possible. The second being that living the dream comes at a cost; his few moments of absolute bliss, cost him his life.





I had no knowledge of this movie until I typed ‘short movie’ into the great youtube.

The main perk of this movie, obviously, is that it is absolutely hilarious for several reasons:
1. People love watching the elderly act like teenagers. It’s so rare to see people that are so, um, how to put this… wise… that they choose to act this way. It’s almost as strange as watching a talking dog; which might I add, youtube also showcases.

2. It’s so unexpected. When the black and white long/wide shot of a fishing boat, with music that seems boring, we don’t expect it to be funny.

3. Laughter is contagious. Especially such a laugh as this. I’m not sure what it is about his particular laugh. Maybe that it’s just so genuine that it makes us want to laugh as well.



Video three: For the birds


For the birds was one of Pixar’s attempts at a short film to be played at the commencement of a feature-length, cinema animation. It surely set the standard for the future of short animations. Pixar are pure genius when it comes to capturing human emotions in animals or objects. Again, the perk of this film is its humour.

Well that's all for this post. See you next time :)

Lecture - week three

Ok, so I, unfortunately, could not make it to this weeks lecture. Badddd I know. So I will explain to you my thoughts on the lecture notes.

So from what I gather, this week was about the history of computing and the internet.

So obviously, the notes go through the development of the computer through the 19th Century. There was also the introduction of a timeline.

And that's about all I got out of the notes. I get easily bored when reading through pages and pages of history on the computer. That'll learn me for missing a lecture!

Tutespark - week three

This week we are to find three digital devices which are not electronic.
In order to accomplish this, I am first going to define a few terms:

1.  Digital - Princeton University (2010) states that digital is a circuit or device that represents magnitudes in digits.
2. Analogue - Our community (2010) describes analogue as a conventional method of transmitting data. It is the method that standard telephones operate as distinct from digital which provides for greater quality and speed of transmission.
3. Communication - Princeton University (2010) defines communication as the activity of conveying information.
4. Electronic - An electronic device that converts electrical current to the optimal voltage (The energy alternative, 2004).

Now that the basic are out of the way, it's time to move on to the nitty gritty and find for you three communicative devices which are not electronic. Let me tell you, this as NOT an easy task! It proved extremely hard to find  device on the Internet that fit all of this criteria.

The first example I found did fit the criteria. This was no other than the good old typewriter.

I can't even convey to you just how glad I am that the typewriter was before my time. The amount of typing mistakes I make on the computer is ridiculous. Having to start over every time I made a mistake would be hell.

The next example I stole from our tutor who showed us this amazing video.

I suppose music counts as communication. And if not, then the sheer 'coolness' of this pianola makes up for it.

The third and final non-electric digital device I found was the old Morse code. I applaud anyone who can speak fluent Morse. It would be quite a task learning all the short and long notes of it. I'm actually quite saddened by the phasing out of this old school device.

Alright, that's all for this task. It was quite a good experience going back in time  to see all the cool technology people once operated.
See you next time.
Reference list
1. Princeton University. (2010). Wordnet search retrieved from
http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=digital
2. Our community. (2010). The A-Z technology terms. Retrieved from http://www.ourcommunity.com.au/tech/tech_article.jsp?articleId=74
3. Princeton University. (2010). Wordnet search retrieved from
http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=communication
4. The energy alternative. (2004). Glossary retrieved from
http://www.theenergyalternative.com/glossary.html

Week three- Treasure Hunt

Answer these questions without using Google or Wikipedia, and then write your answers in an entry in your blog. Provide the URL (with the date you accessed it) of where you found the answer, and include extras like images, embedded videos, etc.

Arrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhh!!!!

And away we go...

Q1) 1. What is the weight of the world’s biggest machine? How much did it cost to build?

The Bagger 288

The bagger 288 is a mine-digging, coal-harvesting machine almost 2.5 football fields in length. Amazing right! And of course something of this magnitude belongs to the Germans. To transport this mega machine from one location to another, a new road was needed to be built. Ok, so lets skip to the chase...

Weight: So there was dispute among websites as to the correct weight of this monster. Some said  45, 500 tonnes while other say 13, 500 tonnes. I am going to go with 45, 500 tonnes as it seemed to be the majority among websites.

Cost: $100 million

Retrieved  25/08/2010 from

http://www.yourdiscovery.com/greatest_ever/construction_machines/index.shtml

Q2) What is the best way (quickest, most reliable) to contact Ozzy Osborne?
I wasn't too keen on paying money to sign up to a website in order to retrieve this answer so I was forced to find information on a normal site.

I found one that claimed to have information on his agents and managers but when I tried calling, I was alerted by optus that the number I had dialled was incomplete or incorrect (Although I was sort of relieved as it would have been awkward explaining that I only needed to call them for a university assignment and not to propose a job offer). So ill add the details listed on this site as perhaps they are old contacts or maybe I have to be in America. Although I'm quite sure that these are merely fake numbers to excite crazy fans just to be massively let down.

 Sharon Osbourne

Sharon Osbourne Management
9292 Civic Center Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Phone: 310-859-7761

Ari Emanuel or Ari Greenburg

Endeavor Agency
9601 Wilshire Boulevard
3rd Floor
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Phone: 310-248-2000
Rob Light

Creative Artists Agency
2000 Avenue Of The Stars
Los Angeles, CA 90067
Phone: 424-288-2000

Manatt Phelps & Phillips

11355 West Olympic Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90064
Phone: 310-312-4000

Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
http://famous-relationships.topsynergy.com/Ozzy_Osbourne/Contact.asp

Ozzy Osbourne choking Kurmit the frog

I then found another site in which fans had written to this address:

Ozzy Osbourne
5535 Dixon Trail Road
Hidden Hills, CA 91302
USA

There were countless fan comments on this site claiming to have received signed photos back when they wrote to this address. And I suppose it makes more sense for a fan to be able to write to Ozzy rather than his poor agents being flooded with fan calls. So although this process may not be quick, or reliable, it was the most plausible answer I could find.

 Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
//www.fanmail.biz/1050.html

Q3) When and what was the first example of global digital communication?

Wow, this is as hard one. I found this website which provides a timeline of communication starting at 3500BC to 1994. I'm sure that the answer is one of these is the correct answer although it's hard to determine which of these most fits the description of first global digital communication. So I'm just going to take a stab and say that I think it is the electric telegraph invented by Joseph Henry, 1881.

The electric telegraph- Joseph Henry, 1881

Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/bl_history_of_communication.htm

Q4) What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?
So the first thing that popped into my head was 'walk'. But other then that option being slightly unrealistic, the more I thought about it, the more expenses such as food, water and accommodation popped into my head. In the end, it would be far cheaper to fly.

The cheapest offer I could find on the Internet was provided by the dodgiest airline company ever- Tiger airlines, who offered to fly from Brisbane to Melbourne's for the low price of $58.95.
Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
http://www.tigerairways.com.au/au/en/real_deals.php

Then I found a statement from Flight Centre saying that they would beat any airfare or let you fly there free. Unfortunately, after reading the fine print, it wasn't quite as good as it sounded. Flight centre would fly you to any destination for $1 cheaper than the original price. On the upside, they also give you a $20 voucher for your next trip. Woohoo.... So that makes it $57.95 plus a $20 voucher.
Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
http://www3.flightcentre.com.au/lowest-airfare-guarantee/

I could leave it there, however, this offer was from Brisbane to Melbourne and the question says Gold Coast to Melbourne. So I guess we have to add in expenses from Gold Coast to Brisbane. I suppose it would be more realistic to walk or hitch-hike in this instance... But who wants to do that. A concession train ticket (me being a student means I hold concession- so may be different for a non-student) from Gold Coast to Brisbane costs $23.40. That means that my journey from Gold Coast to Brisbane to Melbourne would cost a total of $81.45 and includes a $20 voucher. Therefore, my final answer for what the cheapest form of travel from Gold Coast to Melbourne: Train to Plane.

Retrieved 25/08/2010 from
http://jp.translink.com.au/TransLinkIntegratedFareProducts.asp?IntegratedFareToken=98,116;F;2;26/08/2010&AllZonesTravelled=&NumberZonesTravelled=0&ServiceProviderList=Queensland+Rail

Q5)Who is Hatsune Miku? What company does she belong to? What is her birthday?

Who is Hatsune Miku: She is the baby of the Yamaha corporation and is  part of a voice synthesizer program that allows users to create music using her specific voice. So basically, it is a program in which the user can punch in lyrics and a melody which then becomes manipulated by the program and eventuates into Hatsune Miku singing whatever it is that the user punched in.

What company does she belong to: Yamaha
http://www.ani.me/zine/lifestyle/article/70/

What is her birthday: She came out August 31, 2007. Some fans like to refer to this date as her birthday.
http://www.vocaloidism.com/2009/08/31/happy-2nd-birthday-to-hatsune-miku/



Q6)Find a live web cam in Antarctica. Find a place to stay in Antarctica.
Live Antarctica web cams can be found on http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/live-antarctica. This site shows webcams on Casey, Davis, Macquarie Island and Mawson.

As for accommodation,
Much of your Antarctic experience will be had on a ship. Although, it is possible to stay at one of the stations mentioned above.

Q7) What song was top of the Australian pop charts this week in 1980?
It was tricky, but I finally found the perrrfect website for Australian pop charts. And number one that week was.... Who other than Olivia Newton-John with her song Magic. Gotta love the 80's.


Retrieved 31/08/10 from
http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1980/08-09.htm

Q8) How would you define the term 'nanotechnology'? In your own words, what does it really mean?
Putting nanotechnology into my own words... Could you have thought of a more horrible to describe word?
Ok, so I'm going to break it down for both myself and you. From what I gather, a 'nanometer' is a billionth of a metre. Therefore, 'Nanotechnology' is technology which is the size of a 'nanometer'. So if I were to put the term 'nanotechnology' into my very own words then I would say:

Nano technology = very very small (nano-sized) devices.

Retrieved 01/09/10 from
http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/sam-sfp.nsf/eng/sa02103.html

Q9) What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
My brother saw this type of camera first hand one day. He said that he saw a van driving up the road taking heaps of really fast photos.

The website I found gave me the same answer as well as this great controvery over whether this type of camera is an invasion of people's privacy. I liked the example they used... 'people could be caught in compromising situations such as stepping out of an adult store'. I suppose they have a point. However, if one chooses to venture into an adult store, then there's always going to be a risk of being caught. Ok, so I hope you werent expecting an answer of what model camera they use. All I know and can find is that they use a camera mouted on a van.

Retrieved 01/09/10 from

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100811/tc_afp/usgermanyskoreaitinternetrightsgoogle

Q10) Translate these questions into Klingon.
nuq 'oH [the] [weight] vo' [the] [world’s] [biggest] [machine] chay' 'ar ta'ta' 'oH [cost] Daq chen
nuq 'oH [the] [best] [way] [quickest] HochHom [reliable] Daq [contact] [Ozzy] [Osborne]
ghorgh 'ej nuq ghaHta' [the] wa'DIch [example] vo' [global] [digital] [communication
nuq 'oH [the] [cheapest] [form] vo' [travel] vo' [the] SuD baS [Coast] Daq [Melbourne]
'Iv 'oH [Hatsune] [Miku] nuq [company] ta'taH ghaH [belong] Daq nuq 'oH Daj qoS
tu' [a] yIn [webcam] Daq [Antarctica] tu' [a] Daq Daq [stay] Daq [Antarctica]
nuq bom ghaHta' [top] vo' [the] [Australian] [pop] [charts] vam [week] Daq
 chay' [would] SoH [define] [the] [term] ['nano] [technology'] Daq lIj ghaj mu'mey nuq ta'taH 'oH [really] [mean]
nuq [type] vo' [camera] 'oH [used] Daq chenmoH [‘Google] [Street] [View’]
[Translate] Dochvammey [questions] Daq tlhIngan

Do you think the creators of Star Trek would have second thoughts about its release if they had've known people like this would waste their life on it???
Retrieved 01/09/2010 from
http://www.mrklingon.org/


Finished finished finished. Ahhhhhh.....

Week two- Lecture notes

Cine-speak

The language of the cinema

I'm extremely glad we had this lecture straight away as shot-sized proved to be extremely useful in another of my subjects - Communication performance.

In this subject, I was able to use a proper camera to produce a mid-shot in preparation for a mock television interview. So having pre-knowledge of the different shot sizes, head room and other factors involved in this lecture was a real bonus. Here an example of these mock interviews. Unfortunately the only example I own is that of when I was the interviewer. I much prefer to be behind the camera. 

 Through these mock interviews, we were able to try our hand at aligning cameras in such a way that the were mid shots giving enough head room but not too much. As you can see, there is not too much head room, enough talking room and in terms of the rule of thirds, my eyes are in line with the top of the three imaginary lines.

I was contemplated a way in which I could show that I understood what this lecture was about. At first I was going to provide a series of photos for you and write next to them what shot size I believe them to be. But then I decided that was slightly boring. So with that in mind, I used my new found movie making knowledge to produce this movie for you. I took me a fair while so you better enjoy it...

So obviously this week wasn't all about shot sizes... We also learnt the who, what, when, where, why and how of cine-speak. It was interesting to learn that often it is the shot sizes in films which tell us the five W's and H. I always hate learning the technicalities of things as it often leads me to over-analysing. My normal movie watching days are over already. I find that I now notice the shot sizes in films and what they are trying to convey through them rather than enjoying the movie. That's just from one lecture on cine-speak. I would hate to know what it is like for someone such as a director.

That's all for this post. So until next time, have a lovely week.

Week two- 30 shot film

Ahhhh... Problems problems problems....

So here's the story. I was in a group of three making this 30 shot film. Unfortunately I had to change classes, so I never saw my group members again and was unable to get the movie from them. Solution... Make a new film. A friend of mine missed the class for this film so the logical thing to do was team up and make an entirely new film. So I will explain the two processes of making the films.

The first time around was a mix of pure devistation, embarrassment and entertainment and we were given possibly the most painful subject in the room - Waiting for romance.

Unfortuantely, as we were an all-girl trio, we were forced to venture out into the world and, very nicely, ask some kind boys to pose for us.
It was awkward, it was funny, it put us out of our confort zone and in the end we captured thirty priceless photos.
Regretfully, I am unable to show you the final results as I have absolutely no idea how to find the video.

The second time around was a slightly better subject - Late assignment.

We dicided to go for the most obvious story-line. A girl who forgets that an assignment is due and is forced to write an entire essay in just a few hours. Here is is...

My likes and dislikes on our film...
Like:

• I liked the way the lyrics in the song seemed to perfectly match what was happening in the movie at the time.
• I like how we figured out how to slow the music down right at the point that she fell asleep. I thought that was quite clever.
• I like how the clock showing the time was normal until a few minutes before it was due when it became red. It sortof empahsised panic.
• I also like the way the clock became black and white when her assignment became late which brought across that all hope was lost.

Dislike:

• I wasn't a huge fan of our story-line. I think we could have done something a little more original.
• I didn't like that none of us had a watch so Dominique had to look to her bare wrist hoping that the viewers would know there was supposed to be a watch there.
• I did not like the way all of our photos were taken in the one place (griffith library). I think it would have turned out a great deal better if we had've ventured out into the world.
• The photo quality wasn't the best but I suppose there isn't much you can do about that unless you have a million dollar camera.
• Our photos also seemed a tad repetitive. I suppose that would have been different if our story line had some edge to it.

All-in-all, I had a great deal of fun making these two films and, although I believe there is room for improvement, I think we did an ok job.

Week one- some thoughts on this week's lecture

This week was all about explaining communication and the different mediums (technologies) in which one can communicate.
I liked how it began by defining the term "communication" in the most basic way possible. Definitions are designed to help people to understand a term. It really urks me these days, most definitions are worded in such a way that they leave you more confused with the term you are looking up then you were before. I loved this definition of communication...

"The speaker produces a message that is heard by the listener."

Then, as per usual, this definition became out-dated and so the confusion begins...

"The speaker produces an effect on the transmitter which sends a message (which is degraded by the noise of the transmission process) that is intercepted by the receiver which converts it into an effect that is heard by the listener."

This definition then verges into metaphors and other confusion so I've decided to produce my own definition of communication...

"Communication is the act of transferring information to a person/s."

It then verged into the lovely word 'technology'.This, too, was accompanied by a definition... This time not so confusing:

"Technology is the scientific study of mechanical arts and their application to the world."

It was brought up how often technology is used in everyday life. Although we know it is possible to survive without technology, as proven by our ancestors, it's hard to imagine a life without mobile phones and internet.

It's actually quite scary how much we rely on technology to get us through our everyday lives. It would be very interesting to see how we would handle technology being taken away from us. I think the entire world would go into mortal panic.

Just from this one lecture, I have a new appreciation for communication technology.

So that sums up my thoughts on week one. All in all, I can truly say that I have a new appreciation for communication technology.

So until next week,
Peace :)

Week one- Questions for thought

Q) How do we distinguish between old and new communication technologies?

Hmmm... Hard question or what?! I tried researching this question and found a site devoted to comparing ‘old’ and ‘new’ technology. In this they compared video tapes to DVD players, paper maps to GPS, snail mail to e-mail, etc. So I suppose that this particular site was inferring that old technology was anything before the digital advance.

I, however, have a different view of old and new communication technology.

I believe the answer is subject to a variety of different circumstances.

• 
  
  The first of these being personal opinion. For example, after a long and excruciating begging period to my parents, I finally received my first mobile phone around the time that myspace became incredibly popular. This meant that while my friends had moved on from constant texting to the ‘you’re not cool unless you have a myspace’ phase, I was only beginning the ‘running up my parents phone bill’ stage. My mobile was the bees knees to me because it was a new technology in my life. Of course, this could mean not that new communication technology is different for everyone but in fact, I am constantly one step behind the rest of the world. But I truly think I’m on to something here. I mean, obviously, the creator of the 3D television would have known about this new technology far before the rest of the world. Hence, 3D television was the new technology to him while high-definition television was a huge step for us.

• 
  
  Perhaps another factor to consider is social class. On the Gold Coast, for example, long gone are the days when school assignments were accomplished through countless hours of searching for the perfect book in the public library. Today, every piece of information you could ever imagine is a click on your nearest computer away. Not that I can quote through experience, but it is my guess that people in poorer communities do not have this luxury. Their new technology could be far behind that of the Gold Coast.

 

• 
  
  The final point (I promise this is the final point!) I would like to make on the subject is media influence. For example, a person living in a community which cannot afford the newest technology may see an advertisement for it on the television or internet. Hence, they would know it is the latest technology, even if nobody in their community were able to afford it.

In answer to the original question of how to distinguish between old and new communication technologies, I believe it comes down to area of residence, media influence, wealth and personal preference.

Week one- Introduction and thoughts

My name is Renee Hemara. I am currently enroled at Griffith university, Gold Coast and I am studying Bachelor of Communication.

Interestingly, I have never tried my hand at blog writing dispite studing a communcation course. Well I found it interesting anyway.

So my thoughts on tutespark... Well, I am currently a little confused. I created my blog account less than two minutes ago and I am supposed to be giving some sort of introduction. At this point I am hoping that my diary-like blogging will suffice.  I suppose this is a pretty neat way of communicatuing to whoever it is that I am communicating to though.

And that is the extent of my thoughts on tutespark at the current time. I am hoping, as you (whoever you are) probably are, that over the period of this semester, my blogging will improve. I suppose only time will tell.

Renee