Next New

          I think a cool idea for the next new media is a device that allows us to enter into a virtual world that is exactly like the real world.  The device would look like a helmet and it will be plugged into a computer so that it is able to connect the user with the internet.  After wearing the helmet the user should be able to move his virtual self with just his thoughts and it will simulate all five senses.  This can be used for gaming and also a way for people who aren’t physically capable of doing what they wish to do to be able to accomplish they wishes.  I think it can serve as great entertainment and also very good for testing new ideas before testing on human subjects.

Wiki So Far

          I have not contributed to our class wiki, but I would like to write about a topic that interests me: technological singularity and the relevance of conscious artificial intelligence. My goal is to provide the historical context behind this theory, who formed this theory, how it applies to society and why we should care. As our technology improves, we will invent things of the unimaginable, things we thought that would only exist in our imagination.

P2P

      File sharing allows digital media (programs, software, movies, music, photos, games, etc.) to be transferred from one computer over another through a network or the internet. Although file-sharing may not be illegal, the content users tend to share can be illegal and questionable. What had seemed to be a convenient way in transferring files have created loopholes that allows users to share copyrighted content, but at a cost. The infamous file sharing website Megaupload was shut down by the government because it was profiting from offering file transferring service of illegal pirated digital media.

         A peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing is a network in which computer systems are connected to each other via the internet. Any type of file can be shared between these computer systems. Think of the P2P network as your home network connected through a modem and a router. Any user or device in that network can share files to any connected system. Each system can be a file server and a client. In other words, every system share the same responsibilities when data is processed. P2P file sharing is limited to what files users allow to share. P2P file sharing has led to the inevitable illegal software and music piracy. Piracy has caused the music, software and gaming industries to lose billions of downloads due to illegal distributed copyright content.

        An example of P2P file sharing network is BitTorrent. BitTorrent is a program that allows many users to connect and download a file. According to Brian Stelter in a New York Times article, "people have swapped illegal copies of songs, television shows and movies on the Internet for years...peer-to-peer technology called BitTorrent, required patience and a modicum of sophistication by users". BitTorrent programs or client allows users to download through their protocol. The protocol enables and distributes the file across users that have downloaded or are in the process of downloading the file. The file breaks up into many small parts and unique part to this is that you do not need to full file in order to start sharing. Once you have the small part, you share it to others in the peer network. Tee torrent file is somewhat different in that it does not contain the file. Instead it contains directions to where you can find peers and seeders. BitTorrent has caused many profit losses and although there are actions being taken to mitigate illegal activity, there are far too many loopholes to take preventative measures. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/13/technology/internet/13iht-piracy13.html?_r=0

Privacy

      
         Privacy and Confidentiality may be one of the most important aspects of safety when it comes to using New Media. Privacy and confidentiality IS the most important aspect of safety when it comes to using New Media! New Media is all around us, non-stop, 24 hours a day, constantly running and never powering down. It is a network that is spread all across the globe and everyone is able to see  what is going on, what is trending and what is making news. Recently, with New Media there has been a number of breaches such as in Target, University of Maryland and even Turbo Tax. All of these instances, gave access to personal information from millions of people. This information was stolen from a credit card or identification card which hides your identity, and other personal information. Online however, such as a social networking website, your personal information is put on display to the extent you make is ready and available to others. Many fear for internet security and this is just one of the concerns of an ever changing technological world. Privacy and confidentiality in terms of New Media, is very important and in some cases can ruin the lives of an individual. What you make private on the internet, is made private for a reason. However with many advancements, change in privacy rules on social networking sites, or even network servers, not everything meant to be private, stays private. Additionally, information that is posted online or sent into a network even if privatized, has the potential to been seen my many, even everyone with a few clicks of a button. 

            Another privacy concern when using social media is that businesses that are transparent are more prone to sophisticated social engineered hacks. An employer or employee may post something on social media but little did they know hackers can use that information to their advantage. Any type of information can provide these hackers with leads. Huge data breaches would be costly for companies to take preventative measures. Furthermore, Cyber-bullying has become an issue affecting teenagers worldwide. Although the government and many organizations are running awareness campaigns, they are not effective in preventing bullies from posting nasty and threatening comments to their victims. Victims are bullied physically and mentally, from school to a screen in their home. Social media poses many privacy issue to young teenagers when they post user content online. Bullies may steal personal photos of victims and post them online anonymously to ruin their reputation. Moreover, information technology may have made our lives more convenient in many ways, but many of the problems it poses are often ignored, or very little is done about it. Information technology is only at the early stages of development and as we progress, we should think about potential future risks and how to solve current problems, rather than allowing them to occur.

         
          If something is meant to be private and you wouldn’t want many people to view it, then it probably would be best to keep it off the internet or a network so you control who really see’s it or not.

Advice

       Information technology has improved and made significant impacts on our daily lives. It is fascinating to see how more and more users are using the internet as a medium for communication and information as technology evolves rapidly. Although technology is changing our behaviors, ideas and the way we think. I believe information technology has not been effectively incorporated into higher education.

       If I were hired by Brooklyn College to use new media to improve the college, I would suggest them to use the virtual world to give a virtual tour around Brooklyn College. They can upload the virtual tours to platforms like YouTube and to make it even more accessible, I might suggest them to create a Brooklyn College application for smart phone users. These applications will allow them to find places around Brooklyn College easier.


      In addition, for the virtual tour, I would suggest to give a tour around the main buildings and the Library building. The virtual tour should also include the neighborhood around Brooklyn College and a number of restaurants or convenient drug stores.  For freshmen who came from a small high school making a transition to a big and unfamiliar college, it might take some time to adapt. The virtual tour would allow them to learn more about the surroundings of Brooklyn College and also to become more comfortable.

CREATIVITY AND NEW MEDIA

Below is an original picture of one of my favorite super-cars. I decided to use this photo to show an example of how new media and digital technology tools can alter a photo. I used the edit feature from the phone galery as a tool to change the original image into a sketch. I turned the original image into a sketch by changing the saturation, blend mode, Gaussian blur, and inverting the original image.

crEATIVITY

         Before the introduction of new media, old media was used as a medium to transfer information to the audiences. As technologies become more and more advance, new media fosters creativity in a way that it provides users digital technologies that enhances their ideas and creativity. Digital technology encourages users to generate content. Computers are not just a medium to process information. It is also a medium that helps in creative expression and design. Through videos, blogs, music, databases, and generated content online, users can express their creativity and imagination in many ways. Without digital technologies, many of these imagination and ideas would not come true.New Media. In today’s world, the media is living and thriving at all hours of the day. As time progresses, more and more media outlets are created with newer and fresher ideas being innovated to make simple tasks even easier. With the creation of new media, creativity is increased to higher levels. This is mainly caused by the interaction of media, new and old to create fresher ideas, or to put a new twist on an old event. This can be seen clearly in the NYTimes.com article, “Disney Tolerates a Rap Parody of Its Critters. But Why?”. By using newer forms of media such as popular songs and music videos, artist if you may call them, are able to create mash-ups using older forms of media such as cartoon characters to replicate music videos, songs, dances and even movies that appeal to mass audiences. With this use of old and new media, ideas and thoughts from all around the globe are spread to one another, through various media outlets. This in turn, improves creativity and fosters growth and insight. According to the article, this may also lead to new platforms in different areas outside of media, such as law, policy analysis, and many other areas which may be effected by the ever-changing landscape created by New Media.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/24/business/media/24crank.html?_r=0