The Next New Thing

A new type of new media that I am thinking of will replace the need for cell phones and tablets. This technology will allow us to project a virtual screen right in front of our eyes and be able to access the internet as well as other applications. For example, we could see and add friends to Facebook by just looking at them. We could also get directions to places while we were en route to the target without having to lift a finger. This new media will allow people to connect with each other in a unique way that has never been done before. The sharing of information will become almost instantaneous, and we will have access to the entire world right before our eyes. This new media will allow for people to be linked together and for a quicker and easier experience as an alternative to physical input, that is on phones and tablets.

Our Class Wiki - So Far

One of the pages I have started researching and am planning on editing is the the "New Media and Video Game Consoles" section within the wiki. More specifically, I am going to be adding to the Future of New Media and Video Game Consoles section, when I will be talking about the recent news that Apple CEO Tim Cook has met up with founded of Valve Games in order to discuss working together to create a video game system to fit in with the upcoming Apple TV. According to speculation the device will be similar to Xbox Kinect and be a fully motion sensor input device. Although this is just a rumor there is some solid evidence and facts  that Tim Cook has interest in working with software company Valve in creating a hardware device.

I will also be adding another console to the list of devices already shown. The PS Vita. The PS Vita is another hand held gaming system added to the play station line up that was just released this year. It is the successor to the PSP or Play station portable.

P2P File Sharing

File sharing is the basic idea of sharing a certain file, whether it be a song, image, video, or any other document with another person. There are many ways that file sharing can take place,  both including and excluding the use of the internet. The use of external storage such as flash drives can help to allow others to access information, as well as sending files via the internet by email or other messaging services.

P2P File sharing, or Peer to Peer file sharing requires the use of a special software to share information with other users, usually random people.While using P2P file sharing it is usually hard to tell who is providing the information from a legal standpoint since the download is coming in bits and pieces from everyone's computer that has it. For example when using BitTorrent,  the more popular the file is the faster it downloads - because more people are pitching in"

Some popular exampels of P2P file sharing  as previously mentioned is BitTorrent, which allows users to seamlessly download and upload data. Another popular site that also allows users to do this is ThePirateBay. There has been many questions about the legality of these sites as of lately, since they are often providing users with illegal content. Some older P2P file sharing programs include Kazan and Bearshare, which let users download mainly music, but also other files.

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.01/bittorrent.html

Privacy and Confidentiality

Privacy and confidentiality are both extremely important in regard to new media, and become even more important as time passes. Since we are in an information era, anything we do or say online is stored in what is called a digital fingerprint, available for our future employers, friends, and others to find withe the click of a button. In order to keep our information and personal life safe, one must be very careful about what information they choose to put on the web.


Another very important issue is the issue of identity theft. Since the use of devices like smartphones and tablets, we are storing information like credit card numbers, ban accounts, and social security numbers in these online devices. If these devices are lost or stole, they pose a threat to being stolen and hacked. Also if a user connects to an open network, one can easily swoop in and steal their personal information. 


With the ever growing use of these devices and websites, we need to be careful to always have strong privacy settings if we want to stay safe in the future, since it is almost impossible to get rid of what we post on the web once it is already posted.

Advice to Baruch College

I think there could be many things done to benefit Baruch College in the realm of New Media. Firstly, I think the school should better try to integrate the use of Facebook with all classes.  Perhaps a teacher could create a class group via Facebook, so all the class mates could get to know each other before and during the class. Also it would be much easier to speak and communicate in regards to projects and homework. Another way that classes could benefit from new media is if professors were to record each lecture on provide them on youtube. I think this would allow for students to better study for exams, since they could go back and replay what had happened in class that particular day.
Lastly, I think Baruch could use a combination of Twitter and Facebook to inform students of certain things, such as whether your class is cancelled that day or for a discussion board for more general questions, like a large forum where current students could seek advice from others.

Creativity and New Media

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB23TSo69hQ

This is a video that I made which originally started as a joke between my brother and I. It was posted on reddit and has gotten over 35,000 views since then. The video is pretty odd, but I think that says a lot about what new media allows us to share and what people like to watch on the internet. Enjoy.

Creativity

New media has played a vital role in fostering creativity all across the internet. It allows for users to create any video or idea imaginable and share it with the rest of the world. Sites like YouTube allow for this content to be spread, and that is directly seen when one views viral videos. Viral videos can range from ideas that were planned to complete accidents caught on tape, but the concept gives anything a chance to become "viral". Many users creatively make a web series, episodes of certain videos, blogs, and perform other unique stunts. New media has also allowed other websites to generate content and ideas, such as twitter. The concept of mentioning someone using an @ symbol was put into place because users just started doing it.  Twitters CEO Evan Williams even said “That one really took us by surprise” but since that moment the @ sign has been a vital feature of twitter. The same goes with the hashtag symbol # and how it is used, and now that is a wide spread phenomenon. New media has allowed for both users to create viral videos for themselves but also for users to shape the product they are using, and that wouldn't be possible without the use of the internet.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/26/technology/internet/26twitter.html