Holiday E-Cards

So I find the concept of ecards fine.... just not for around the holidays. Recently I received one via email. Not only did I find it lazy but I also found it extremely insincere and impersonal. At least when a card is sent by mail you know the person spent time to write down the name of your family, and truly thought of you. Christmas cards are a sort of loving tradition, and by clicking a few buttons and selecting all the contacts on your email account makes the entire process less heart warming. I find these ecards lazy, but who am I to judge.. people lead busy lives these days. Maybe, if this alternative existed years ago, people would have used them and they wouldn't seem like a modern thing. I love technology but sometimes I do not like the changes it brings.

(photo: http://ecards.hallmarkcards.com.au/ecardsCaption.aspx?cat=679)

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Crazy Christmas Gifts

Today I was in the holiday spirit and decided that I would blog about all the crazy things I've been seeing online that have been advertised as gifts during this holiday season. Before I head into the list I'd just like to point out that this weekend I was sick and sitting around my house. I decided to watch TV for the first time in quite a while. I went to turn on the TV and it took about ten minutes as we have about ten remotes and I am completely incompetent. After about ten minutes of sitting around lazily on the couch I realized that all I had seen were perfume ads... I don't understand why there are so many. I honestly would prefer any of these over a bottle of perfume:
- PoGo Instant Photo Printer- Quick prints that dry instantly. No more smudge risk sounds like a plan to me!

- Apple's Magic Mouse- At only $69 this wireless mouse is innovated and super useful.

- Refresh Charging Station- Similar to the amazing gadget Young shared with the class, but for less! I find these things amazing, especially since I travel so often.

- AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/2.8G ED VR II- This lens is abs

olutely crazy... Just thinking about the images I could capture makes me want to run out and buy it (too bad the price isn't great!).

- Blackberry Bold 9700- I'll admit it, I love Blackberrys. I have had one since I started high school and cant see myself leaving the smartphone world (for a dumbphone, can we say that?).... Anyway, this new Blackberry is great, and would be an amazing gift.

- The Kindle 2- The more I read online, the more this Kindle keeps popping up as the "King" of eBooks. Defiantly would be a great gift for all of those who enjoy literature.

- USB Negative Scanner- OMG! Yes, OMG. I try to refrain from saying it, but this is one of the greatest ideas I've seen for some time. I do a ton of film photography, and honestly I don't trust the people at Snappy Snaps. I am reluctant to let them develop my film, as I prefer to do it on my own (but sometimes I cant take the risk of burning off my epidermis with film chemicals). I never get the CD of my photos, I always get the negatives and manually scan the ones I want. The process is long and tedious, and this seems like an angel to me.

This list could go on forever.... but I'll leave you all here. Hope you enjoyed my Christmas tech gift list! Have a great holiday season :)

(photo: http://www.firebox.com/product/2234/USB-Negative-Scanner?via=cat)

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Bionic Body Parts

Its amazing how technology can help human life so directly. Recently I was reading a blog and found this:

I found it so impressive and useful. Technology is truly helping us when it comes to things like this.

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the Hype Machine

I have a question for all those reading my blog, and it pertains to music. Is it legal for this music site/blog to post links to downloads for the music they speak about in their articles? I know the site is quite popular and has been around a while and has never run into trouble... I just dont understand how people like Kevin Cogill can get into legal trouble for sharing music, and then sites like this can have no trouble. Not to get my wrong, I love free music and music blogs, but often times I wonder if I am breaking the law in some way. Until then, I think I will stick with http://www.hypem.com/. I highly recomend checking it out, it offers a way to build a playlist and find new music without wondering if you doing something that isnt permitted. Hypem, or the Hype Machine, does not allow the user to download the music they place on their playlist but it is a portal to millions of other music blogs (under each song is an article that discusses the song, the blogs vary) where one can find the links to the download for the song. In addition, it allows you to have a playlist you can access from any computer, unlike things like iTunes which are specific to private computers, so you can remember the names of the songs you found. This eliminates the annoying possibility of remembering a song, but not remembering the name of the artist or song. We all hate when we really want to download (..or buy) a song that we cant specifically remember any defining characteristics about. Hypem prevents this from happening while allowing you to enjoy music without the question of whether what you are doing is legal or not.

(photo credit)

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Google Search Results

Here is a quick video that I found interesting. Recently, we were discussing the fact that Google may know too much about us, and this is proof to back up this theory.

Many may not find this to be a negative thing, but I prefer not to have Google track my Internet use... Its really a matter of privacy to me.

If you click here you can turn off this personalization setting...

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Vogue Italia vs. Twitpic?

You know the world is a changing place thanks to techonology when a classic fashion magazine, Vogue Italia, does a Twitpic inspired spread. Vogue Italia has always been known as the inspiration Vogue. It is the Vogue that designers and artists alike look to for artistic reasons, not the Vogue the average woman would pick up before a shopping spree. Vogue Italia has been known for its highly creative group of staff. It is more than a fashion magazine, it is a collection of the greatest works done by people in their own artistic fields.

Recently I went to a street art exhibition. The eighteen year old guy who put the entire thing together came up to me and told me he had just been interviewed by Vogue Italia. Naturally, the Italian interviews were four hours late to the show and did not reply to any of his messages, but in the end it all worked out. This kid knew what it meant to be interviewed by Vogue Italia, he knew that he had made it. Vogue Italia's standards are extremely high, and to be interviewed by them is to be told that you are someone who will inspire thousands of others.

The Twitpic spread in the issue was slightly aggravating to me. I had always loved to look through the pages, which are primarily ads and spreads (Vogue Italia is less text than say, American Vogue which is more celebrity centered), and admire the almost weird editorial work that some of the best designers, models and photographers come together to create. Normally, these shoots are like pieces of art, so unique and inspiring. I found some comfort in the fact that, of course, the Twitpic spread featured primarily angst ridden looking half naked models... I guess even Vogue Italia cannot leave its comfort zone.

(Photos: http://gizmodo.com/5419381/twitter-vogue-gallery/gallery/1)

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Hermes

Recently I saw an article online that was discussing how technology can be used to sell a product in real life. As I wondered how this was possible I came across a video. Hermes, the French fashion house, recently used the combination of video and timed wind (possibly small fans or vents) to create the illusion that the female in the video was literally moving the silk Hermes scarf draped in front of the screen. The affect is beautiful and highly appealing, giving the product this dreamy and desirable quality. If you were to ask me, I would say that this form of advertisement is genius. I think that designers will soon be incorporating technology into their design methods more as time passes.

This installment will run until January 19th and was created by renowned Japanesse artist, Tokujin Yoshioka.

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Facebook, Violence and Red Heads

Recently I read an article that made me think about how the internet can once again, get you into quite a load of trouble. The article was discussing a Facebook event, Kick a Ginger Day. First, I'd like to say that I do not understand the obsession with red heads that the people of my generation seem to have. The article mentions that South Park, a show I have never seen, has something to do with this hatred for gingers urging people to kick gingers on November 20th. Many people (as far as I know most people) are all joking when it comes down to making a ginger joke, but one Canadian student is said to have taken it too far.

This past Thursday was marked to be Kick a Ginger Day. Ironically enough, it fell right in the middle of international Ant

i Bullying Week. People all around the world had joined to Facebook event, and the majority thought little of it. Little did the student who created know that he could soon be facing charges, “We do treat this sort of thing seriously,” she said. “This is sort of inciting hate. It’s a hate crime really.” News of this event traveled quickly, and people began to react:

In St. John’s, N.L., schools warned students they’d be disciplined if they acted on the joke.

Tony Stack, principal of St. Peter’s, a grades 7 to 9 school near St. John’s, said they were told about the event by parents of red-headed kids.
In Flin Flon, Man., an elementary school sent a letter home to parents alerting them and their children to the possibility of disturbances.

And in Sylvan Lake, Alta., one red-haired student said she and her 13-year-old sister were punched and kicked by their peers when they got to school.

It is amazing how the Internet can cause such a reaction from the public, and cause so much to happen internationally with just a couple minutes and a few clicks of the mouse. One poor red headed student left school that day covered in bruises. He had no idea what was going on when he was moving through the halls on the way to his next class, as he had only heard of the Facebook event in passing, thinking nothing of it: “Three people saw me and they decided they would kick me. They were much older than me, maybe like 15, 16 years old,” he said. “I became trapped trying to get through this press of people. And that’s when they kicked me from behind and I fell over.” Although this is a rare case, we must still consider the consequences of our actions on the Internet. The group leader has been apologizing profusely, as he did not realize that this would lead him into so much trouble: “It was a joke,” he said. “I’ll message everybody and say I’m sorry that this offended people.” Unfortunately, this joke was taken a step too far, and may lead to punishment by law.

I feel that this goes to show that even something as small as a Facebook joke could lead an Internet user into more trouble than they could have ever dreamt of, and that the Internet is just as close to reality as any other open forum.

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Sports and the Virtual World

Tony Hawk, the renowned skateboarder, has recently been working with X-Games to create something entirely unique. Hawk, who is known for the "900" he maneuvered a decade ago is working on a way to bring the movements of skateboarding to video games. Tony Hawk has collaborated with video game companies for 10 years now, and his name has already been franchised. What's unique about this new game he is working on is the fact that an actual skateboard will be incorporated into playing the game. Work is being done to integrate a wheel-less skateboard that will stimulate skateboarding on the screen as you play. The question is whether this new addition will be able to revive Hawk's ten year old series. Tony Hawk's games have generated $1.5 billion worldwide, selling 43.5 million units for its publisher, Acitivision Blizzard. Sales have slipped in the past two years, and Hawk is hoping this will be the solution to the drop in sales. I find it really interesting (as a girl who does not play video games) that many games are going out of their way to make virtual gaming feel real. I feel that Guitar Hero started this trend, which has now exploded. Tony Hawk has a bit to say about the creation of this new type of skateboarding game and how it compares to similar things on the market:

On the creation of the actual skateboard:

"We have a graveyard of prototypes. The first version was a blank skateboard with the equivalent of a Wii remote. We tried roller balls that you could slide your foot on and digital compasses that can tell which direction your board is pointed in. We also tried adding a camera. We also had a board with buttons that you could step on, like with Dance Dance Revolution. With one of our first prototypes, I tried to do a kick flip on it. It’s a maneuver where you jump in the air and make the board do a full rotation. The board snapped in half."

On how his skateboard compares to other virtual games that have real life interactions (such as Wii Fit Balance Board):

"The Balance Board only measures weight distribution. Our controller captures every motion. Every time you..."

(image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/geeewocka/3377730175/sizes/o/)

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Loose Words

"Computers are the devils work! Praise Jesus!"

"Technology is against my religious beliefs."

"Technology bores me. Mobile phones bore me. Connectivity bores me. Accessibility bores me. Television bores me. Survey monkey both bores me and tires me, and reminds me that connectivity demands accessibilty and inaccessibility is inconcievable in this little world of ours. I think I'm going to move to the country and each peaches. Though that may bore me."

These are just a few of the many "interesting" responses and comments I receieved when a classmate and I emailed a short survey to our school. If you were to walk into the school I attend you would find that the students are polite and intelligent people, but when they take to the internet the case is entirely different. I feel this is the case for most people, not just my classmates. Take chat rooms for example. Many debates and arguments that have taken place online would have never occured had these people had actually been together. The people that are the most outspoken on the Internet, at least to me, are most commonly timid in person. Although they may thinking things that are not polite they refrain from speaking their minds due to the fact that they knows it rude or they are just plain intimidated by other people.

The Internet is a place where these shy people can thrive. In addition, it is like a blank canvas for the aggressive, waiting to be voilently splashed with paint. All types of people seem to grow a spine when posting their thoughts on the Internet. I can almost gaurantee you that 95% of the rude comments I received on my survey would have never been said to be in person. This is becasue people know better, and most likely know who I am. I am not saying I intimidate people, but I know that people have more respect for as a person offline rather than on.

Ask yourself this: if you were to express negative feedback would you rather do it in person or through writing? To most the answer is simple, and it is through writing. Not only is it less awkward, but your thoughts flow more easily as you feel no restraint. What I wonder is whether this theory I have is true. I want to know how people feel about things when it come to the Internet. Do they feel stronger when seen as an anonymous Internet user, giving them the drive to say things they would normally keep to themselves? To be honest, I have been that aggresive person before. I feel that we have all had out lashing outs on the Internet whether it be a disagreement with an arat review to an argument with a friend via instant messenger. The Internet is like a fair ground to anger in some sense, and while it is a place to express honest opinions, should this be restricted?

The comments I received were mildly rude. Being the person I am, I was able to laugh them off with little shock. It was the initial receiving of these messages that triggered these feelings I am blogging about, as I never could have predicted such reactions from my peers. What I wonder is this: what if the level of the comments had escalated? What if they were a hundred times more intimidating? Honestly, I would have become extremely upset. What people have to understand is that on the other side of this Internet relationship is another REAL person with REAL emotions. I react to anger in the same way, whether it is written or verbal and believe that the Internet should not be open grounds to aggression. If someone wants to disagree with something, be my guest but do it in an educated and well stated way. As people we have to respect boundaries, even if they may be hard to define when they are not visible.

(photo credit: http://www.electronichouse.com/images/uploads/kids-computer.jpg)

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Exploitation

Should people be able to control what is said about them on the internet? Should media be controlled, or is this against the basic rights of people? It can be argued that sometimes the Internet provides people with a great amount of information that isn't correct in any way, but purely the opinions of the person who wrote them. Other things that may be found on the Internet are the harsh reality that people rather hide from revelation. Recently in Argentina, a powerful court judge and Diego Maradona, the legendary footballer, worked together to limit what large search engines such as Yahoo! and Google may show in their results. Maradona had been fed up with the amount of information circulating on the Internet about his troubled past (ranging from women, cocaine and his exile from Italy, where he is seen almost as a god in some areas). Maradona wanted to stop people from reading about his past, and attained this right. If one were to search his name on Yahoo! they would find a page containing a disclamer, stating that the search was unable to be performed at the time. While this seems like an affective result, the reality is that there are hundreds of smaller search engines availible on the net, including in Argentina, that do not have a restriction on this particular case. One can argue that Maradona's case was completely pointless as all the information could easily be found even without major search engines, but I disagree. I feel that what Maradona did in Argentina is exremely important. Although the results were not perfect, Maradona is making a point. Americans may argue that banning the freedom of speech and press but limiting what can appear on the Internet is against the first amendment. This is true, but the bigger picture is this: should journalists and bloggers be able to post anything they like about others without the slightest consequence for lying? I believe that there should be a consequence, but this information should not be fully limited. I find myself somewhere inbetween the two extremes: one being jail time for journalists who casue trouble (this can be seen in countries such as South Korea) and complete freedom to write whatever one may desire. I believe people like Diego Maradona should have their rights, as it is their own reputation and name being exploited and put at risk. To conclude, I feel that what is written on the Internet shouldn't have heavy ristrictions, but rather be completely avoided with a law that punishes those who post things that are false.

(photo 1: Maradona by pierodemarchis on Flickr.com)

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The Risks of Blogging

Can blogging be riskier than we think, or is truly an issue of understanding the limits? For one man, house arrest was the consequence of his blogging habits.

Kevin Cogill, a Los Angeles area blogger, was sentenced to two months on house arrests after leaking a Guns N' Roses album online. Cogill, a big fan of their music had commonly posted songs and shared music with those who read his blog. Cogill took it a step too far with the unreleased album, breaking federal copyright laws.

The conflict began in late June, as Cogill posted several tracks from the unreleased album Chinesse Democracy. These tracks were not due out for another five months. These tracks were the first recordings of the band in seventeen years, and highly anticipated by fans. The news of the postings spread like wild fire, and soon Axl Rose, the band leader, had to interfere.

Rose demanded that the tracks be removed. Cogill quickly followed his intrusctions, but it was already too late. He was quickly arrested and charged for the incident. Cogill's stance was clearly stated: "I never meant to hurt the artist. I intended to promote the artist because I'm a fan."

Many people fight this case, but those in the music industry believe that what these people are doing is piracy. For the past two days, "Lil Wayne No Cieling" has been one of the top ten searches. People are hungry to find the unoffical mixtape, searchign madly. These people are super fans, but is what they are doing illegal? If posting this music is illegal, should listening to it also be considered against the law?

(photo credit: user ctrl84 on flickr.com)

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Ralph Lauren Takes It A Step Too Far

Recently, an ad for Ralph Lauren has left many speechless. Blogs have been going crazy, asking its readers: is this normal? Is it healthy?



A long time model for the Ralph Lauren label, Filippa Hamilton-Palmstierna, has the appearance of a bobble head in her latest ad campaign for Ralph Lauren. One blog points out, "Dude, her head is bigger than her hips." The emancipated state of the model can only be answered by the work of the photoshoppers. It is rumored that the model has recently been fired for being too large in size (about 120lb at 5'10in). Even she is outraged, she told the Today show: "I saw my face on this super-extremely skinny girl, which is not me; it's not healthy, it's not right." This distorted image seems to be her final run with Raplh Lauren. This, however, is not slipping by without scandal. People are outraged by this altered idea of beauty and believe that the model and the public are all being hurt by this act of technology altering reality.



Recently, the company has released their versoin of an apology stating,

"The image in question was mistakenly released and used in a department store in Japan and was not the approved image which ran in the U.S. We take full responsibility. This error has absolutely no connection to our relationship with Filippa Hamilton."



Still, the effects of technology are begining to bring outrage to the fashion industry and demands for thinner and thinner models continue. The question to ask is this, will there ever be change?

(Photo property of Ralph Lauren)
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Volunteering and the Speed of Digital

About a week ago I spent the day traveling in a tiny car around the city. The heads of several departments, my camera and I went from site to site for the school's annual Volunteer Day. I documented everything I saw along the way. After about five hours I had seen an amazing amount of effort and time put in by hundreds of volunteers, all the while taking pictures of everything I found interesting. The school community did an amazing job in making a change, but what I found especially amazing was the speed that my images traveled at. Once I went home, I uploaded about two hundred photographs to my computer. I edited several, and broke it down to about twenty final images. I quickly emailed out these hours, and within two hours I was recieving emails of thanks and being told that they had already hit the internet. Just five hours prior, the event had still been taking place. I was shocked and impressed by how quickly media and information can travel in this new digital world. I feel that what I did by taking photographs allowed for news to travel more efficiently as it can be said that images speak a thousand words.

(Photographs are my property.)

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David Bailey's Nokia Experiment

Recently Nokia came out with its N86. THe N86 contains one of the most advanced cell phone cameras with a megapixel sensor, large-aperture (f/2.4) Carl Zeiss Tessar lens, mechanical shutter speeds of up to 1/1000th of a second, automatic motion blur reduction and built-in flash. Nokia soon commissioned David Bailey, a world class photographer, to use their new camera phone to produce an exhibition of photographs creating "Alive At Night". The results are surprising, as the quality of the photographs is extremely high.

Bailey's opinion on technology? Well, in a recent interview he jokingly comments on Flickr saying he doesn't even know what it is. Although this may seem like he opposes technology, in reality he finds it quite useful, "To me, digital is the best thing that's happened because it's made what I do more unique," says Bailey. "Everybody else's pictures look the same." These new excellent camera phones leave consumer the questioning one thing: Will camera phones take the place of the basic camera?

(Photo credit: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gallery/2009/aug/27/mobilephones-photography?picture=352212260)

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The Photoshop Evolution

People may wonder why in this day and age the image of beauty is so twisted. The answer to me is simple, its because this image is not real and is completely unattainable. Many blame to media for causing young girls to develop eating disorders and feel as though they are never good enough. In part this is true, the media can be blamed, but without technology the media would have never been able to do what it has done. Below I have posted a short video of a photoshop "evolution". As you watch you see a perfectly normal woman transform into something fake but "beautiful". Whether this is fair to everyday people can be challenged. This is proof that technology changes the way people see and feel about themselves. I believe that this sort of high level of photo shopping should be banned from being printed, as it only causes harm. Photography should be shown in its true form, as should people's appearances. Technology is the root cause of this high standard of beauty.

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The Beauty of Adobe CS4

Ever wish you knew how to use every possible tool on Adobe Photoshop? I have, and have always found it aggravating when attempting to work on a photograph and barely knowing how to do a sufficient crop. Adobe Photoshop can be irritating in the sense that editing a photograph can be difficult. If one were to change the saturation of a photograph they would have to open to option, adjust the number, hit enter, and then repeat until the desired affect is attained. With Adobe C

S4 one can edit the saturation and watch how it affects their work as they do it. Not only does this speed the process, but it also makes it much more efficient. This theory is can be applied to several affects on both Photoshop and Adobe CS4. Posted are two photographs, one is the raw image and the other is edited using Adobe CS4, see if you can spot the improvements.

(Photos are my property.)

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Extreme ISO

Night time photography will never be the same. For years people who were looking to take photographs while on the go in the dark of night either had to carry a large and inconvenient tripod or find a makeshift area to lean their camera on. With the new ISO technologies (ISO is the equivalent of a roll of film's speed) one can make night turn to day. ISO affects the amount of light that enters the lens and affects the brightness of the photograph. Before digital technology a fast film speed would have been something around 800, but now with digital photography's advancements one can shoot with a 12,800 ISO. Recently, the Nikon D3S has been released. Its innovative ISO capabilities were seemingly unseen to most who have worked with different ISO levels. The range of this new camera is not only impressive but also expansive. One can use anything from a 200 speed to a 12,800 speed. This affect would allow one to shoot at night holding the camera, ridding the photographer of the need for a tripod and sturdy surface to place the camera on. The ISO capabilities are so reliable that risking producing a blurry or much too dark photograph are virtually gone, and losing a unique image to underexposure can be solved with these new ISO capabilities. Technology is assisting artists to further the convenience and ability of what the are able to produce, expanding the world of art and furthering the affect of technology in the arts.

(photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/marvos/3991262382/ "Black Cat" taken with Nikon D3S ISO capabilities)

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Goal of My Blog

I find the affect technology has on the arts, culture and social networking extremely interesting. I plan to explore and share what I find, whether that be in the form of text or media. Technology is changing the world around us each and every day, and documenting this change will open the reader's eyes to things they may have never heard of otherwise. This blog will help readers see technology through the eyes of someone who has never known what the world was like before technology became such a great influence. I plan to share opinions, media and interesting stories of what I experience and find in my daily life, along with what I read about on the news. Technology is changing how things in our world are done, and whether this is for better or worse can be argued.

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