Archives for posts with tag: computer
Well we are approaching the end of another year and I must say this year has been the most enjoyable for me. This semester we got to modules that were interesting and interactive. To be honest at the first NTFM class I was apprehensive and a bit cautious about creating blogs. However from these weeks I have enjoyed the experience. I enjoyed the topics of conversation especially ‘Is Facebook taking over our lives’ It allowed me to express my own thoughts on the matter and share these views with others. If you haven’t yet read this blog you can check it out on this link.
I also enjoyed learning about new topics. For instance I had never heard of the filter bubble until I did research on it. I found it extremely interesting and have even told many others that hadn’t heard about it what it was and how it affects us all. Blogs are an excellent communication medium that I believe from doing this module can prove essential to business in terms of marketing and to individuals who like to express themselves and are open to reading other people’s views on issues.
I have also learned a lot more in terms of how technology affects everyone and everything both directly and indirectly. Some of the statistics about people’s dependency on social media is interesting but a little bit shocking to believe. When I began my marketing course in first year I didn’t realise how technology in whatever job I get in the future will play significant role. However from doing this module. I have learned about linkdIn, pinterest and instagram, social media sites which I never heard of. We are living in the ‘ Century of Technology’ and this module has taught me of the importance of technology in the marketing world and how important it is for us marketers to keep up with changing and new technology. Here is a YouTube clip which I enjoyed watching.
So the end is near and I have thoroughly enjoyed this module. I have enjoyed creating blogs, learning about different types of social media, people’s dependency of social media, watching TED videos and most of all giving me the opportunity to express my views and open my mind to those of others.
On that note I bid farewell, but don’t go far, never mind becoming addicted to Facebook and Twitter I think I have become a ‘blogaholic’ ( yes I made up this ‘original’ word ) Thanks NTFM!!!
Statistics show that more than 460k new twitter accounts are created every day and 177 million tweets are sent daily. An estimated 24% of twitter users check their twitter several times a day.
I joined twitter around five months ago. The main reason I joined was because while reading OK magazine it mentioned celebrities arguing over tweets. So I decided to join to see what the hype was about. I was disappointed as I was expecting to see fireworks and drama between celebrities, instead they had tweets saying that they went to the gym or that they just came home from the hair dressers. It was bizarre to see people tweeting every few minutes updating the world of their activities, and when I say activities I mean making a cup of tea, making a sandwich. Do we really care if someone is making a cup of tea?.. Well I cannot say I do.
I have read an article which you can access on this link. A joint study by researchers at Carnegie Mellon, the Georgia Institute of Technology and MIT found that most people are only interested in about a third of the tweets they read, the rest are either instantly ignored or disliked.
So are we a nation addicted to twitter?… I read an article from the Guardian in which results show tweeting may be harder to resist than cigarettes and alcohol, according to researchers who tried to measure how well people could resist their desires. Hofmann told the Guardian: “Desires for media may be comparatively harder to resist because of their high availability and also because it feels like it does not ‘cost much’ to engage in these activities, even though one wants to resist” In contrast to this “With cigarettes and alcohol there are more costs – long-term as well as monetary – and the opportunity may not always be the right one. So, even though giving in to media desires is certainly less consequential, the frequent use may still ‘steal’ a lot of people’s time.”
I came across a site that measures ‘How addicted to twitter’ you are. My result was 12% which I think is an accurate result. So if you are reading this blog a think you are becoming a ‘Tweetaholic’ then you may want to check out this site.
We need the internet to be that thing that we all dreamed of it being. We need it to connect us all together, to introduce us to new ideas and new people and different perspectives and it’s not going to do that if it leaves us all isolated on a web of one’ ( Eli Pariser). If you had asked me what I thought the main purpose of the internet is I would have said exactly this.However from watching Eli Pariser’s presentation it has opened my eyes to the term ‘filter bubbles’ and I have found out how this has a huge significance on what the internet exposes to us but more importantly what it doesn’t expose. If you click on this link you can watch the presentation for yourself.
Defined by Wikipedia, ‘a filter bubble is a result state in which a website algorithm selectively guesses what information a user would like to see based on information about the user (such as location, past click behaviour and search history) and, as a result, users become separated from information that disagrees with their viewpoints, effectively isolating them in their own cultural or ideological bubbles’. Prime examples are Google’s personalised search results and Facebook’s personalised news stream.
As Eric Schmidt stated ‘The internet is showing us what it thinks we want to see but not necessarily what we need to see’. So this makes me question, how is he internet is going to benefit us if it only exposes us to what it thinks ‘we want to see but not necessarily what we need to see’?. We have entered a new era of personalization. With little notice, our online experience is changing, as the websites we visit are increasingly tailoring themselves to us. Some people argue that this this filtering system is a positive step. However I feel that this filtering system deprives our viewing power and closes us off from the rest of the world. Here is an article that may have interest to you. For example more and more people discover news and content through Facebook-like personalized feeds, the stuff that really matters falls out of the picture. In the Darwinian environment of the hyper-relevant news feed, content about issues like homelessness or climate change can’t compete with goofy viral videos, celebrity news, and kittens. The public sphere falls out of view. And that matters, because while we can lose sight of our common problems, they don’t lose sight of us.
I have become fascinated with this whole filter bubble term. To date I have looked at snippets of Pariser’s book in which discusses the idea of collaborating filtering which tracks what users like. Amazon, Facebook and Google engage in this filtering system. Google uses check signals which puts information in order of relevance and importance to the user. Facebook also uses goggles approach. The newsfeed feature of Facebook is a way of filtering through lots of social information and ordering based on affinity with each person and importance of news. This gives advertisers an opportunity to gain information. Advertisers spend their money on the website that can provide them the most return on advertising. This filtering system shifts the power to the advertising companies. The personalisation of Google and Facebook present large companies with access to valuable information about the individual.
Here is an interesting piece that Eli Pariser has written. Himself and Peter Koechley have togther created a website to overcome this ‘filter buble’ phenomena. Their aim is to help bring attention and focus to stuff that really matters in a viral format that can reach millions. For example, they have an inspiring video about gay marraige on the website. This helped draw attention to at MoveOn got seen by over a million people who are against gay marriage. So there’s real bubble-popping potential here.
I for one will not be clicking into the first thing that pops up on Google. Does Google really know what I want to see?? I don’t think so!
We are a world becoming more and more controlled by this filter bubble. How far will we allow this go on?! It is about time we burst this buble!
Is Facebook ruining our lives?
I joined Facebook in 2007. I can only imagine how many hours of my life I have wasted on it. It became a part of my lifestyle and I checked it regularly (by regularly I mean hourly). However last summer I decided to test myself. I deactivated my account. YES I DEACTICATED MY ACCOUNT! When told people this they looked at me with an expression of shock.
I am now off Facebook for the last nine months and counting. I did have a slip up and did reactivate my account at one point. I was only on for an hour and I was getting mail from people asking me ‘Where had I gone?’ It made me question why these people are talking to me now!? If I haven’t spoken to them in the last six months did they really care ‘where I had gone?’ and since when did mobile phones, email, and landlines stop working?!
According to a spokesman from Nielsen Online, the company which conducted the research, the average person who used Facebook in each of the last 12 months has spent 70 hours 26 minutes on the site during that period.They also calculated that the most addicted users have spent over 125 hours on the site during the last year which is the equivalent of more than a whole working week. Here is an interesting article you should check out.
Since I have come off Facebook I have missed some events and I have been told that I am missing out on all the ‘juicy gossip’. Facebook has become a site used to ‘creep’ on people, break up with people, meet new people….the list goes on. This makes me question is it more of a burden to society than anything.
Facebook users are becoming younger by the year, research has shown that more than a third of children aged between nine and 12 are thought to be on Facebook, despite the social network’s rule that users must be over 13. Is Facebook not only taking our lives, but our children’s? I have read an article on this which can be seen on this link. I find it interesting to read in this article how facebook can have an impact on a childs academic and social behavoir. Also below is a youtube clip that shows young kids speaking about their knowledge of facebook. I think it is quiet bizzare to think that these young children know so much about this site at such a young age.
I can imagine many people who will read this may disagree with my negative view of Facebook but I for one am a happier person for it. I get a proper sleep and now make my nine o’clock lectures (now that may a little white lie)
When I got my smartphone I was over the moon. I quickly downloaded a variety of apps, from food, fitness, shopping, TV, movie etc… However from doing this blog it has made me think, how many apps have I actually used since I have downloaded them?? From a quick look at my phone I realise that I have downloaded the most bizarre apps which I don’t intend to use. I stumble upon an Indian recipe app which I must have downloaded at some point. As a college student and a part time worker I barely have the time to make beans on toast never mind try to cook up some new Indian dish. I think a clear out is definitely in order…Have a look at this blog
Technology is evolving at such a fast speed which makes me question, is it time to wave good bye to our mobile apps, and wave hello to mobile websites?!…. I think so.
With an increase in mobile traffic, mobile websites will start to be the face of a business that consumers see. Therefore, a mobile website should not be looked at as some support tool, but as the potential future of businesses online. Mobile websites are available to users across a variety of devices via Internet browser however app users must access app stores specific to their operating system in order to download and install apps prior to being able to access the content. As times are changing and technology is developing faster than a blink of an eye, I think as a society we are becoming more demanding and want access with the click of our fingers. We no longer want to have to download an app and have to update it constantly, do we?… I for one don’t. Therefore I believe it is time for business’s to step up to the mark and provide efficient mobile websites to its customers. As the saying goes ‘The customer is always right’.
In a report by Morgan Stanley analysts have charted ‘the most important online trends and predicted the future of the Internet. In addition to forecasting more online shopping and showing the geographical distribution of Internet users’, the study also shows a dramatic shift toward mobile web use. check this mashable link
From doing research I found out that Google is promoting and accommodating business in the shift from app to mobile. As Google has been big on mobile for a while now, predicting for some time that mobile will grow to be a huge way that people interact with the internet and so far all statistics suggest that Google is right on the money. Google has cleverly taken their mobile ideals a step further, launching a new site, HowToGoMo.com. The site’s purpose is to convince people that they need a mobile version of their site. HowToGoMo is full with the latest data on how people are using mobile devices to interact with the web. It also has a mobile emulator so you can see what your site/ your competitors looks like on a smartphone. There’s a list of agencies and DIY tools for building a mobile site, and finally a download complete with best practices on mobile site design. Check out this website.
I for one trust Google and as the saying goes ‘If Google says it, it must be true’ (quote from marketing professional to be Laura O’Regan)
In this instance, I think Google is on the ball believing that most businesses will need a mobile version of their site. This is particularly true if your business is local and you expect customers to find you, or if you sell products online.
Change is inevitable, and the shift from apps to mobile is happening as you read this. Soon we will have the world in our palm, what more could we ask for. RIP to the App.
Hi my name is Laura O’Regan. I am a third year marketing student in Cork Institute of Technology. I am looking forward to my first blogging experience. I hope to get my head around it fast, and post blogs that interest and amuse my fellow followers. I have chosen to blog because it allows me to express my thoughts and opinions on different issues. Blogging brings like-minded people together. Starting a blog can help you find those people and share your opinions and thoughts. Blogs also provide a simple way for family and friends to stay connected from different parts of the world by sharing stories, photos, videos and more. I am enthusiastic to the thought of reading other peoples blogs and opening my mind to the opinions of others. I hope to make my blogs as informative and entertaining as possible. Happy Blogging people!
laura's Social Media Blog 