When I heard the term Gold Farming in class, the first thing I thought of was when Annie's husband came and presented, and mentioned the crowdsourcing event of the people looking for gold. After doing the readings, I then realized how off I was, but then again how the two were similar.
The Gold Farmers are actually farming make believe gold on the internet while the people in the contest were finding actual physical gold.
Both have people doing work for other people for a smaller cost, while the people in charge make all of the profit.
So in that way, they are similar.
Now, back to Gold Farming...
The idea itself goes back to the beginning of time - have someone else do the hard work for you while you reap the benefits. In this case, instead of having someone you know do it, you are having someone in another country do it for you, which is a fine display of how far society has come technologically. Outsourcing to other countries that will work for minimal wages is pretty common these days.
Personally, I would never do this. I see it as cheating. If you are playing a game, you should be following the guidelines that everyone else is following. Otherwise, you enter a cheat code. There is a reason cheat codes are called cheat codes... because it is CHEATING. You enter cheat codes when you just want to mess around, or get far without trying. When you apply it to an MMO, it just isn't fair.
The analogy that I thought of during the discussion in class was customizing a car. A lot of time and effort - and money - goes into building up a car. Some people spend months or years getting their cars exactly the way they want them. People of like minds - car enthusiasts - will get together and talk about their cars, show them off, go on cruises, etc. They all share the appreciation.
Then there are the people that just want to fit in. They will do what it takes to make those people like them, or accept them. The most common case that I have seen is someone buying a car that is already fixed up, and then talking about it like they did it themselves, or actually know anything about the car. When you ask them a question about how long the motor took to build, or what type of turbo they decided to go with, they just reply "I donno, it came like that..." and they still want credit. It seems to be the same thing as just buying a fixed up character on world of warcraft. When they get it, will they even know how to use it? ...which can be said about the car or the character.
If that doesn't apply to this at all, let me know. That is just the first thing that came to me.
I think in the future, it will be worse than it is today. Everyone that has money will be paying people to do things for them, so they can take the credit for it. It comes with the 'better, faster, stronger' mindset that society seems to have. Nothing is ever good enough, and everything needs to be done faster. It is kind of sad that people wont take the time to enjoy things.
"Life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
- Ferris Bueller
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Smart Phones
I have had a BlackBerry for about 8 months now, and I must say, I probably couldn't live without it. I definitely cannot go back to a conventional phone - it would be like going from an automobile to a bicycle.
Smart Phones have pretty much revolutionized the mobile phone world by converging your everyday tasks into one device. Aside from your phone calls, text messages, emails, mp3s, videos, and appointments are all in the palm of your hand.
A Smart Phone makes life a lot easier, especially in this day and age where every ones lives revolve around computers. With a full keyboard, high quality display, and full internet capabilities, it is no wonder why they are gaining such a fan base. Maintaining your interpersonal relationships is another perk of a smart phone. You can access your Myspace or Facebook right there in the palm of your hand, as well as your email account. In theory, you are constantly connected to your social network.
Aside from keeping up with your friends and such on a personal level, you can still keep up with them on the material level as well. But these days it may cost you a little more than it has in the past...
I was having a conversation with a friend of mine today about cell phones, when we passed the "tricked out cell phone accessory" cart. 5 or 6 years ago, during high school, the craze were the Nokia candybar phones and various flip phones, that would allow you to change the faceplates, add decorations, and personalize them. Now everyone has a BlackBerry or an iPhone, and the only customization you can really do to them is some sort of protective case - the gel skins being the most popular. I dont know if it is just becuase of the age difference, and subtlety comes with age, or Smart Phones are just cool how they are. One thing that came of the conversation though, is that those accessory booths probably do not get nearly as much business as they used to, and probably never will with the way things are going.
Smart Phones have pretty much revolutionized the mobile phone world by converging your everyday tasks into one device. Aside from your phone calls, text messages, emails, mp3s, videos, and appointments are all in the palm of your hand.
A Smart Phone makes life a lot easier, especially in this day and age where every ones lives revolve around computers. With a full keyboard, high quality display, and full internet capabilities, it is no wonder why they are gaining such a fan base. Maintaining your interpersonal relationships is another perk of a smart phone. You can access your Myspace or Facebook right there in the palm of your hand, as well as your email account. In theory, you are constantly connected to your social network.
Aside from keeping up with your friends and such on a personal level, you can still keep up with them on the material level as well. But these days it may cost you a little more than it has in the past...
I was having a conversation with a friend of mine today about cell phones, when we passed the "tricked out cell phone accessory" cart. 5 or 6 years ago, during high school, the craze were the Nokia candybar phones and various flip phones, that would allow you to change the faceplates, add decorations, and personalize them. Now everyone has a BlackBerry or an iPhone, and the only customization you can really do to them is some sort of protective case - the gel skins being the most popular. I dont know if it is just becuase of the age difference, and subtlety comes with age, or Smart Phones are just cool how they are. One thing that came of the conversation though, is that those accessory booths probably do not get nearly as much business as they used to, and probably never will with the way things are going.
People these days want designer stuff. If you are spending hundreds of dollars on a phone, you want the best case for it as well.
For example, this Louis Vuitton case for the iPhone. $250. This is the future of cell phone accessories. Be prepared.
By now, if you do not have a smart phone then within the next year or two you will. They are making things like day planners and mp3 players obsolete. With capabilities of a laptop computer in the palm of your hand, why have anything else?
My questions to you are: What kind of phone do you use? Why did you choose that particular model? and What accessories do you have/want to have for it.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Convergence...
Mash-ups are awesome
Media Convergence is an amazing thing. I love the fact that I can do so many things on just my computer alone - check email, watch tv, watch movies, listen to music, and talk to people through video, audio, and text. What is even cooler, is that it is all free. I can't even imagine what it will be like 10 years from now, or even 5.
Jenkins says that "Convergence alters the relationship between existing technologies, industries, markets, genres and audiences..."
I want to elaborate on that, how I see the alterations in each of those subjects...
Existing Technologies
I have seen the relationship between existing technologies altered in more than one way. First of all, televisions and computers. HDTV's are becoming the standard now, and in turn, High Definition monitors for computers and laptops have too. Now you can watch your HD TV shows online, for free - without a special cable box. Monitors are getting larger too, so they seem just like a TV. Personally, I have an iMac desktop with a 19" screen and I use it to watch dvd's and tv shows on. It works just like a TV, so I have no need for one in my bedroom, which in turn saves me space.
Industries
An industry that comes to mind that has recently converged is digital online music with physical online music. For instance, Amazon.com. You generally go to their web-site to look up products to purchase, like cd's, dvd's, etc. Now, while browsing cd's you might potentially buy from them, you can sample the songs in mp3 format. If you like the song or album, you can save more time and just buy the digital version, and download it to your computer - no waiting for it to ship to your house. The only downside to this, is you dont get the physical cd to have, but really...who collects cds anymore?
Markets
A market that I think has changed their relationship due to media convergence, is Advertising. All of the different markets within advertising have converged - television, radio, online, etc. You cannot go anywhere without being subject to at least some form of advertising. Televisions were practically made for advertising, the shows are just there to keep us watching until the next commercial comes on. Radio pretty much lives on advertising, like tv, with constant commercials. Now that the internet is available on your cell phone, so is more advertising - and not only through the internet, text messages as well. Online advertising has taken advantage of the convergence with television by placing more and more ads that you are forced to watch during the episodes of your favorite online tv shows (hulu, sidereel, youtube, etc.)
Genres
This is the one that caught my attention the most, because it is the one that I enjoy the most. I love music, and hip-hop is my favorite genre. Hip-hop was born by converging different genres of music together to come up with something new, and eventually became what it is today. It is constantly evolving too, with different remixes and collaborations. I was introduced to Mash-up's back in 2005 when I heard about "The Grey Album". The Grey Album is a mash-up of Jay-Z's Black Album, and The Beatles White Album. There was a lot of controversy over it, because DJ Danger Mouse didn't clear any of the samples or beats, but it put him on the map. Now he is one of the most successful producers in the industry (Gnarles Barkley, Gorillaz, etc.) The next one I learned about was in 2006; "Blue eyes meets Bed stuy" in an issue of GQ - John Legend had mentioned it during an interview - anyway, the album is a mash-up Notorious B.I.G. and Frank Sinatra. DJ Chapel & Smitty put it together, and I was blown away with it. Biggie's rhymes combined with Sinatra's melody and big band sound, was the perfect mix.
Audiences
Audiences have altered their relationships as everything else has. Music and Television are all gaining new followers, from all age groups. "old" people are now listening to the likes of Radiohead and Kanye West, where as 10 years ago you would never see a person over 50 listening to an artist like West. Television shows like Deal or No Deal are bringing people of all ages together as well - even though it is one of the dumbest shows in the history of television. It is something everyone can understand, and the suspense is something people of all ages can feel. Audiences are always going to be separated, but they are slowly coming together more and more. I wouldn't be surprised to see families watching an entire night of tv together, or all listening to the same "popular" music together, and not having to ask each other questions.
Media Convergence is an amazing thing. I love the fact that I can do so many things on just my computer alone - check email, watch tv, watch movies, listen to music, and talk to people through video, audio, and text. What is even cooler, is that it is all free. I can't even imagine what it will be like 10 years from now, or even 5.
Jenkins says that "Convergence alters the relationship between existing technologies, industries, markets, genres and audiences..."
I want to elaborate on that, how I see the alterations in each of those subjects...
Existing Technologies
I have seen the relationship between existing technologies altered in more than one way. First of all, televisions and computers. HDTV's are becoming the standard now, and in turn, High Definition monitors for computers and laptops have too. Now you can watch your HD TV shows online, for free - without a special cable box. Monitors are getting larger too, so they seem just like a TV. Personally, I have an iMac desktop with a 19" screen and I use it to watch dvd's and tv shows on. It works just like a TV, so I have no need for one in my bedroom, which in turn saves me space.
Industries
An industry that comes to mind that has recently converged is digital online music with physical online music. For instance, Amazon.com. You generally go to their web-site to look up products to purchase, like cd's, dvd's, etc. Now, while browsing cd's you might potentially buy from them, you can sample the songs in mp3 format. If you like the song or album, you can save more time and just buy the digital version, and download it to your computer - no waiting for it to ship to your house. The only downside to this, is you dont get the physical cd to have, but really...who collects cds anymore?
Markets
A market that I think has changed their relationship due to media convergence, is Advertising. All of the different markets within advertising have converged - television, radio, online, etc. You cannot go anywhere without being subject to at least some form of advertising. Televisions were practically made for advertising, the shows are just there to keep us watching until the next commercial comes on. Radio pretty much lives on advertising, like tv, with constant commercials. Now that the internet is available on your cell phone, so is more advertising - and not only through the internet, text messages as well. Online advertising has taken advantage of the convergence with television by placing more and more ads that you are forced to watch during the episodes of your favorite online tv shows (hulu, sidereel, youtube, etc.)
Genres
This is the one that caught my attention the most, because it is the one that I enjoy the most. I love music, and hip-hop is my favorite genre. Hip-hop was born by converging different genres of music together to come up with something new, and eventually became what it is today. It is constantly evolving too, with different remixes and collaborations. I was introduced to Mash-up's back in 2005 when I heard about "The Grey Album". The Grey Album is a mash-up of Jay-Z's Black Album, and The Beatles White Album. There was a lot of controversy over it, because DJ Danger Mouse didn't clear any of the samples or beats, but it put him on the map. Now he is one of the most successful producers in the industry (Gnarles Barkley, Gorillaz, etc.) The next one I learned about was in 2006; "Blue eyes meets Bed stuy" in an issue of GQ - John Legend had mentioned it during an interview - anyway, the album is a mash-up Notorious B.I.G. and Frank Sinatra. DJ Chapel & Smitty put it together, and I was blown away with it. Biggie's rhymes combined with Sinatra's melody and big band sound, was the perfect mix.
Audiences
Audiences have altered their relationships as everything else has. Music and Television are all gaining new followers, from all age groups. "old" people are now listening to the likes of Radiohead and Kanye West, where as 10 years ago you would never see a person over 50 listening to an artist like West. Television shows like Deal or No Deal are bringing people of all ages together as well - even though it is one of the dumbest shows in the history of television. It is something everyone can understand, and the suspense is something people of all ages can feel. Audiences are always going to be separated, but they are slowly coming together more and more. I wouldn't be surprised to see families watching an entire night of tv together, or all listening to the same "popular" music together, and not having to ask each other questions.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
First post of the semester!
Finally...
After contemplating a topic for this blog over the last few weeks, one finally came to me - describing what the "e-life" is, to me, and how it is changing our lives, and everything around us.
The first thing that came to my mind was Youtube.
Everyone has spent at least some part of their day killing time on Youtube watching videos. Some people spend a couple of minutes, and some spend a couple of hours - it all depends on the situation, especially if something like alcohol is involved.
Watching ridiculous videos of people falling down, or babies making funny faces are favorite past times of people of all types. Just check the view counts... "Charlie bit my finger" has over 77 million views...
If you were a big company, or even the people responsible for the video, wouldn't you want some money for those 77 million views? I know I would...
Lately, I have seen a lot of advertising on the sidebars of those videos, as well as pop-ups that go over the videos themselves - advertising a t-shirt or something that references the video. My initial reaction to the advertisements was, "wow, this is pretty annoying" but now that I think about it, the idea is genius. The videos already get watched more than most TV shows, and are constantly visited thousands of times a day, so why wouldn't you want to advertise on them? The same goes for the video makers. If that many people are watching your videos, you have an opportunity to get them to buy things - and that is what television exists for in the first place; to show you advertisements so you can buy things.
Sure it takes the fun away from it, but cash does rule everything around us, so we don't really have a choice.
This relates to McLuhans famous quote, "The medium is the message." If you are trying to market video making software you can use at home, what better medium to use than a web site where people post home made videos? There are plenty of different ads on Youtube, and every other video site on the web as well, so try and notice them next time you are watching one and see how it relates to the site or video.
After contemplating a topic for this blog over the last few weeks, one finally came to me - describing what the "e-life" is, to me, and how it is changing our lives, and everything around us.
The first thing that came to my mind was Youtube.
Everyone has spent at least some part of their day killing time on Youtube watching videos. Some people spend a couple of minutes, and some spend a couple of hours - it all depends on the situation, especially if something like alcohol is involved.
Watching ridiculous videos of people falling down, or babies making funny faces are favorite past times of people of all types. Just check the view counts... "Charlie bit my finger" has over 77 million views...
If you were a big company, or even the people responsible for the video, wouldn't you want some money for those 77 million views? I know I would...
Lately, I have seen a lot of advertising on the sidebars of those videos, as well as pop-ups that go over the videos themselves - advertising a t-shirt or something that references the video. My initial reaction to the advertisements was, "wow, this is pretty annoying" but now that I think about it, the idea is genius. The videos already get watched more than most TV shows, and are constantly visited thousands of times a day, so why wouldn't you want to advertise on them? The same goes for the video makers. If that many people are watching your videos, you have an opportunity to get them to buy things - and that is what television exists for in the first place; to show you advertisements so you can buy things.
Sure it takes the fun away from it, but cash does rule everything around us, so we don't really have a choice.
This relates to McLuhans famous quote, "The medium is the message." If you are trying to market video making software you can use at home, what better medium to use than a web site where people post home made videos? There are plenty of different ads on Youtube, and every other video site on the web as well, so try and notice them next time you are watching one and see how it relates to the site or video.
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