Tweet, Not To Be Confused With a Twit

Over the weekend, I was curious to see if anyone would actually use their Twitter account. Jasmine, Gin, Steve, and Margaret tweeted a few times and I personally tweeted Steve and Jasmine. We were primarily concerned with our assignment that is due tomorrow. It made me think that students and teachers would benefit tremendously by having a twitter network to discuss classwork. If more classes had the ability to communicate in such a networked way, it would build a camaraderie amongst the students. The teacher would also be able to see what the students are talking about and how they are progressing in their studies.

In a weekend that I spent thinking about literacy and technology, I couldn't help but realize how attached I am to technology. I sleep with my iPod, phone, and computer all right next to me on the dresser. I hope I don't have some sort of psychological complex regarding technology. While technology has made my life a little more colorful, I am more than ok with not answering the phone or emails. I know some people that would be absolutely devastated if they couldn't check their myspace, twitter, facebook, email, and text messages. Heaven forbid we go off-line. Imagine a situation where we have to go without power for 24 hours. How would we be able to survive if there was no way for us to charge our electronic devices? For me, it'd be even worse since we have an electric range (not a gas stove), so I might starve without the ability to make Mac n' Cheese (Blue box style). The idea of starving is definitely a lot scarier than going off-line. I hope everyone would agree.

Because Everyone Could Use A Laugh

Embedding a video. Snarf snarf. If it works, you'll get to see a hilarious Muppet video! If it doesn't, I will attempt tomorrow. Technology has worn me away on this evening.

Ownershipless

Now that I look at that title, it is pretty ambiguous; I'm referring to the conversation that we had in class on Wednesday. I find myself in a bit of a predicament. I want to put together a picture book that shows grammatical faux pas, blunders, and other acts of language misuse. It may sound like a relatively uncomplicated matter, but [even I had to] think again. I know that there are sites (such as engrish.com, failblog, and unnecessaryquotes.com) that I could go to and I would find an abundance of photos I could use. I am no thief, however, so that's not realy an option--not to mention I'm pretty sure it would be illegal!

I would like to create a blog where I can upload the photos that I find and other people can post photos that they have found. I have a vision of this glorious blog that is run by me and is composed of contributions by many. If the photos make it into my (currently hypothetical) book, I would put the person's name underneath the photo they submitted because I wouldn't want to take all the credit for something they provided me with. The problem is that if I made my own page on blogspot or some other blog, I'm sure that they already have some sort of legalities that you agree to that says they own the content of your page. Ok, so becoming a member and posting my photos on those sites wouldn't work for me.

Time for Plan B.

I was just about to create a photo album on facebook, when I remembered that there was some talk about facebook owning your pictures even if you have deleted them off of your account. Although I only have 2 pictures so far, I feel like there is nothing I can do with them. If I can't even post them anywhere, how can I get people to submit the photos that they find to me? Would have to get my own website that isn't part of a pre-existing site? I want to make sure that I own my photos and not some faceless corporation. Everything needs to be done through legally-proper channels. It's a little defeating, honestly. Technology and I get along fantastically until technicalities and legalities [inevitably] show up uninvited.

Thoughts, Courtesy of Faigley

I've noticed that an electronic piece of writing compared to an actual physical copy is considered to be less reliable or valid. I could very easily go and print out the material that I find on a website; does my printed copy somehow gain credibility once it is printed out on a sheet of paper or is it still lacking because it was not mass produced and bound in a factory?

The assumption that a book found in a bookstore/library has gone through the proper channels to ensure that it contains accurate (and verified) information. Instances where research was not conducted and information was falsified are less frequent(as in the case of the Oprah fiasco with A Million Little Pieces by James Frey). Online, however, there is no system of checks and balances in most cases because anyone is able to be a publisher of content (i.g. wikipedia).

Relevance in Selfe

Technology and Literacy in the Twenty-First Century (or as I like to call it, Techno and Lit) may have been written approximately ten years ago, but the issues and concerns that it raises are still relevant. The children that I interact with cannot fathom the idea of not having personal computers, DVDs, or cell phones. The books of The Berenstein Bears, Fraggle Rock, and Goosebumps have seen their prime and have been replaced by online video games, Disney Princess DVDs, and MySpace. As Selfe says, "Young people... are becoming prisoners of electronic media" (Selfe 33). My boss's five-year-old daughter--although she cannot read--knows how to go online and play educational games and not-so-educational games. "Did you used to play Barbie games when you were a little girl?" she asked me as I stared at the unnecessarily pink page. "When I was a little girl, the only games we had were on Atari and the original 8-bit Nintendo. Back in the stone age, we used to have to read books or watch old episodes of The Muppet Show." I showed her this Muppet video because I wanted to show her what real comedy is. I soon regretted doing so when her little brother's first words were: "Mannah Mannah," followed by his next learned words, "Doo doo doo doo doo!" Digital books, online "coloring" books, and seemingly educational internet games seem to have replaced the traditional books of my childhood. I deeply hope that the number of children who aren't attached to electronic devices are a minority to those who read stories before bed after a long day of rolling around in the mud and playing hide and seek.

Fringe English: A Thing of the Future

"Proper" English is a thing of the past. I must have missed that embarrassingly accurate memo somewhere along the way. I just heard my sister's mother-in-law tell the dog, "You belong in a KETTLE!" As tempted as I may have been, I refrained from making my usual sarcastic remarks that would have undoubtedly lead to unresponsive blank stares in my general direction. Once I gathered my bearings, I spent the rest of my evening re-reading the Faigley article. Now it's time to go to bed to prepare for work and school tomorrow!