Reading Assignment # 10

The readings for assignment # 10 talk about how technology has effected the Presidential election. I thought this very relevant, because there have been a few political analysts who have said that the media elected President elect Obama. I think this statement was true, because as supported in the articles Obama’s campaign seemed to make much better use of the media, as well as current technology in gaining support. President Elect Obama, had very little experience, but the use of the media in his campaign seemed to help get over that fact, and build him up towards a celebrity persona.

Questions:

What impact do you feel the media had on the election?

Would this election have been different, if the media exposure for both candidates had been the same?

How Online Poker Changed Poker in Real Life

                Today, if you talk to someone about online poker, they will most likely instantly, begin to share a plethora of bad beat stories. If you are not aware of what a bad beat is, it is simply when someone got lucky against you in a hand of poker. That term along with many other poker terms have become common knowledge lately, because of the surge of online poker. In recent years, online poker has become a worldwide sensation pinning millions of people from all over the world against each other for real and fake money. If you don’t believe me, simply open up Google and type in online poker. You will instantly receive links for many different online poker sites.

                This however, was not always the case. There was once a time believe it or not, that in order to play poker you had to be of legal age, and play in a casino or underground cash games. The only way to gain knowledge in the game of poker, was to play and see what worked and what did not. If you had told professional poker players back then that poker would be televised, they would have readily taken that bet. In fact, the first ever World Series of Poker only had only, “thirty of so gamblers.” (Daia n.d.)

                In this year’s World Series of Poker, there were almost 7,000 entrants in the main event. The World Series of Poker is now a series of events as opposed to just the one, and the majority of its events are now televised on major networks such as ESPN. But what could have caused this surge? In just thirty-eight years, there has been such an amazing evolution of the game. What could have caused this?

                It is impossible to give credit to just one source, but it is clear, that online poker has a had a huge impact on the game. With literally millions of people playing on a multitude of sites, there is no question of the diversity in players playing. On these sites, are players of all different backgrounds, age, social status, and financial capabilities. Although they are all playing for different motives, they do play for online for one main reason. Accessibility!

                Online poker makes it possible for someone to log on to their computer, and experience a real poker game with real benefits as well as consequences.  Take for instance, professional poker player Eric Liu. He got his start as a freshman in college playing over winter break online. He started out playing for as little as $5 or $10 at a time. After playing now, for several years online, he now plays much higher stakes. “From December to around April this year, I was playing $200-$400 pot-limit Omaha as my main game. I won a lot of money in those games, but then I went on a massive downswing. I lost about $1.3 million in two weeks, which really shocked me.”

                Although Liu is an example of a  person who has been able to carve out a living from online poker, there are many other people who play it simply to experience the casino without leaving the home. To think about it, why not? Playing online, you can sit at a table without traveling anywhere (saves money on gas), checking into a hotel, and you can play at any time of the day. Online poker has brought the casinos into the computer rooms of millions of people and let them decide if they want to play for actual money, or “play” money, and if so, how much.

                Aside from bringing interest to the game from many new players, that otherwise might not have been able to play at a casino, online poker has changed the economy around the game as well. Card Player magazine for instance, would never had been able to survive before the boom of online play. Now, it has an interactive website, and has expanded to Europe.  Its product for the most part, is articles by professionals, or about poker theory have evolved into a majority being about online play. So much interest in online play has been expressed, that there is even a part of their site dedicated just to rating the best places to play online poker. Going along with this theme, poker players, are now being offered sponsorships, and sites compete with money and benefits to get top pros to endorse their poker site. It is nearly impossible to watch a poker tournament on tv, and now see someone with a Full Tilt Poker hat one, or a Poker Stars shirt.

                Finally, I would like to express one more point of how online poker has changed the game of poker in real life. As Doyle Brunson discussed in his book Super System, considered by many , “The Poker Bible,” poker used to be played very conservatively. Players waited for strong hands, and otherwise, did not risk their money with weaker hands. However, aggression has become the style of choice these days, and players seem almost cutthroat at the tables, often putting all their chips into the middle with marginal hands. The reason this ties into online poker, is where this style comes from. Aggression and this type of poker play style, is most popular in Europe. It only developed in the United States as a mainstay, when American players began playing millions of hands with their overseas counterparts online.

                It is very clear, that online poker has led to an evolution in the game of poker itself. Millions of people aged 18 (sometimes younger) and up, are able to meet and play for all kinds of stakes at any hour everyday because of online play. Although there are downsides to online poker just like any new technology, the benefits to the game of poker have been amazing. The next time you flip by ESPN and see the final table of some event, remember where the game has come from. An event that once only was able to muster 30 people, now hosts thousands every year. This is in large part because of the development of online poker.

Sources Used For This Article:

   Websites:

Article on Eric Liu

Card Player Magazine

World Series of Poker

History of Online Poker

Books:

• Super System by Doyle Brunson
• Play Poker Like the Pros by Phil Helmuth

Reading # 9 Assignment

The readings started out with talks about the space time continuum and moved into talks about relativity. This connected well with the other articles, especially if you think about it, the virtual hunting. In the virtual hunting, you are technically hunting. Your actions still result in the death of an animal, by the use of a weapon you control. This however, when given as an example to someone who hunts in the traditional way, is blasphemous. Hunting is about the experience. It is about being outside, sensing the animal. All the little factors that make hunting, well….. hunting are not present in this new form of virtual hunting. Perhaps, this is a great example for relativity. Because although in the regular hunter’s wilderness, their definition of hunting includes all these things, in the virtual user’s definition, what they are doing, is hunting.

Questions:

What are some other examples to show relativity?

Do you feel virtual hunting is “hunting,” in its definition?

Readings # 8

The overall theme of these articles seemed to be the negative aspects of overuse of the new digital world. I do no want to say the negative aspects of the digital world simply because it is the people that are bringing these aspects about. Without the abuse of the technologies there would not be a problem. I do not feel these technologies are a bad thing, just that they simply like all things must be taken with moderation. For instance, most people love ice cream, but if you ate ice cream for 17 hours straight everyday you would obviously suffer consequences. The short term might be something small like a stomach ache, but as time progressed it would get worse. I feel like this is the problem that people are seeing nowadays from over use of these technologies. I also feel, that smart use should also be applied when people are using these technologies. The man that proposed to his virtual girlfriend was obviously not using his brain, when he put at risk his entire relationship in his actual life. It is obvious that his rational had been effected if he did not consider that his actual wife would not be happy with that decision. If it was the game, or just his skewed perception I do not know.

Questions:

Would you consider addiction to gaming to be similar to a drug ?

Is rehab really a necessary approach to computer gaming?

If not, what other alternatives could be offered?

Reading Assignment #7

Camera Phones:

This article shows the invention of the camera phone in a bad light. It describes it as an invention for “stalker, perverts and vigilantes,” and in some ways I agreed. I do feel that the invention of the camera phone has increased what i feel has become people’s excessive need to feel connected to the world. Why is it that everytime we go out somewhere we have to have our phones? Why is it that people need internet for email, youtube, and google, on their phones? It seems to me that people can not go more than a few hours without connectivity to the rest of the world. However, I do understand that camera phones although can be used for bad have a tremendous upside, and it is handy to be able to use a camera for last resort pictures. It is uncertain what we will eventually think about the camera phone, but for now, it seems to be a good thing.

A World of Witnesses:

This article in contrast to the previous article shows the noble uses of constant connectivity. The use of text messaging to help monitor the legitamacy of an election, shows how useful cell phones and other new technology can be. Without this technology, that election in Nigeria most likely would have fallen apart, and violence may have ensued or even civil war. It is very clear, that new technologies can serve a purpose for the greater good. This possibility seems to justify the negativities that can be brought out about these technologies.  It is important that we remember the possibilities these technologies provide us with.

Always On:

This article discusseda topic I mentioned earlier, which is constant connectivity. When we leave the house, we have our cells on, and we are able to be reached wherever we are. This article reminded me of a co-worker my father once had. I remember him telling me that he did not own a cell phone, because he believed that people did not always need to be connected with him. He believed that there was a time and a place for work issues, and that if he was away, it was not necessary for people to reach him. Although I did not feel this was a practical ideal, I did agree with some of the issues he brought up.

Questions:

Do you believe in constant connectivity?

What issues can constant connectivity bring about?

Is it possible that people today are too into the latest technologies?

Remix Project

Picture # 1

Picture #2

The Remix:

Readings #6

On the Record:

The article was about a man who decides to walk around with a digital tape recorder around his neck at all times. He does this in order to constantly record every conversation and activity he participates in each day. His reasoning for why he did this, was because some day everyone would be “lifelogging,” and he wanted to see how it was. The argument this article makes, is that “lifelogging” is the way of the future and someday people will use their daily lives to gather information. I disagree however, and do not think that this will happen. I did not find it very practical, and found that it would be tedious and uneccessary to go back and search through hours and hours of tape everyday.

Question:

Do you believe “lifelogging,” will become as big of a hit as this article claims in the future?

Facebook Privacy

The article deeply disturbed me. I was honestly surprised when I read how Facebook was tracking its users, and what they did on the computer. To me, once I leave the Facebook website, my relationship with Facebook is done until I return to the site again. I do not want it following me, and recording what I do over the internet. I certainly do not want them sending that information to other people. To be honest, this article bothered me so much that I am considering getting rid of my Facebook account. It is one thing when people want privacy from government interference. To have a company with no power over you trying to track and log what you do seems obsurd.

Question:

What do you think about Facebook’s Beacon Ad system?

Readings # 5

Cell Phone Novels:

This article showed that even mediums such as books are changing in today’s digital culture. I did not know before this article about cell phone novels, and it sounds like an amazing idea. People are able to add chapters to their books during lunch break, and it gives everyone the chance to be a popular writer. I found this idea fascinating, and I am surprised it has not taken off in the United States yet. If it has, I am surprised I have not heard of it. It is amazing all the different ideas that people come up with, and I find it intriguing to see what will be the next breakthrough. I did however, disagree with the argument that Japanese literary people were making that these novels should stay on the web and not be found in book form. Limiting any type of literary movenment is unnecessary and is detrimental to expression.

Question: Do you feel that web novels do not belong in book form? or do you feel popularity should determine that?

Cross Platform Storytelling:

This article talks about new ways TV producers are trying to find to incorporate its audeience into its shows. Although, there has yet to be a way to fully incorporate audiences into their shows, a few shows have found various ways to at least further include them. The abilities of interactive TV certainly do seem endless, and I could picture somday, that the plots of TV shows will change simply because their fan base calls for it. Interactive TV reminds me of the Goosebumps books R.L. Stine used to write, where you could choose what the character did next by flipping to a different page. With those books, the endings were always different and you always had the power to determine what happened. I would not be surprised if a more sophisticaed, but similar system were developed for TV.

Question: Where do you see interactive Television taking us in the next 10 years?

Lost:

This article talked about how the creators and producers of the show have not only paid attention to fan feedback of the show, they have facilitated it. They have done this, by providing forums, real websites for fictional characters and companies, and even are publishing a book from the show. This connects with the earlier article we read on interactive TV. Lost is at the forefront of interactive TV, and the author of this article believes that it would not be surprising, if the writer’s of the show were using some of the fan’s theories as to what is going to happen. If so, this would be a major breakthrough in interactive TV, because fans would actually be determining major events that took place in their show.

Question: What other examples can you think of where a show or event facilitated fan feedback and community?

Readings #4 Assignment

On Plagiarism:

I thought this article put an interestijng spin on plagiarism. Although taking from some one else’s work is considered plagiarism, it is often a great way to add a significant or important piece to one’s work. It was interesting to see all the famous examples of different artists, and writer’s who took one another’s work to use as their own. I find this found very often in today’s rap music, because it has become very common for artists to take old songs and turn them into rap songs. For instance, Jay Z used its a hard knock life from Annie. It has also become very common for these artisits to sample other artists music in their own works. Kanye West has literally made a living off of this.

Question:

When is it ok to use someone else’s work, and where is the line drawn?

Copy Rights:

This article did not surpise me and I found it very amusing. Today’s youth are believers that movies and music belognt o us, because they are made for us. I know many people who hardly ever buy DVD’s or music, and with services such as NetFlix they never have to. They can simply rent and burn movies as much as they would like. It is no surprise today that many people do not buy their music, being as at 1 dollar per song, it would cost thousands of dollars to fill an I-pod. At the same time, users can Download those thousands of songs for free, and with very little risk to that user as well.

Question:

How do you feel the file-share problem can be solved?

Larry Lessig

This presentation was a very intelligent way of explaining the differences between piracy and recreating. I found that the presenter used his first three stories well to describe why  today’s copy right laws are at times ridiculous. It does seem dumb, for someone who uses a piece of someone else’s work, or incorporates that work into their art to have to pay to use it. In today’s world, creativity is limited if this happens.

Question:

What is your stance on today’s copyright laws?

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