What's All the Buzz?

Adobe’s Buzzword®

“Buzzword offers powerful, intuitive features, without the complexity of other authoring tools” (Ballentine, 2010).

©Adobe Systems Incorporated is a company that all of us have become quite acquainted and accustomed with using. Adobe Buzzword® is built on the Adobe Flash® Platform and, is an online word processor which allows one to write, edit, and print exactly what is written, while collaborating online.

Buzzword has two views that have the ability to create a document in real-time, “several people can work on a document at the same time—in multiple locations” (Erikson, 2007). There is the organizing view and the editing view and, both can be open at the same time. If you are the creator of the initial document, you have total control over who can access what portion of the online work and what changes they are allowed to make to the document. Each contributor to the document can be distinguished by using a specific color to easily identify what was said, by whom and, with just a few clicks on the toolbar, the program allows for more efficient organization and simultaneous editing.

One doesn’t need an Acrobat account to publish a document and, “online workspaces can be developed to help avoid large, bulky emails” (Adobe Buzzword, 2010) to and fro. These workspaces also allow for easier collaboration with people outside your own organization (2010).

Accessing and sharing files while using another feature, Adobe ConnectNow, a web conferencing feature (Adobe Buzzword, 2010), allows one to connect and see the same screen from anywhere, including your mobile phone. The document your team is working on becomes a viable, working document in real-time so that the original creator can view whether the team members are viewing or editing. Throw in the ease and ability to place and size images into the document, one has a wonderful tool at their disposal for making magnificent documents that pop.

In conclusion, specific capabilities of Buzzword will bring an easier, more efficient way to develop, organize, edit and collaborate on documents with colleagues; it allows for smoother, quicker completion of projects. Buzzword documents are easy to track as to who has added text. The enhanced collaboration helps incorporate and build from the ideas of its contributors while learning from others on the project.

Adobe Buzzword, (2010). Top features. Retrieved April 25, 2010 from
http://www.adobe.com/acom/buzzword/

Ballentine, B. (2010). Adobe Success Story. Retrieved April 25, 2010 from
http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/showcase/index.cfm?event=casestudydetail&casestudyid=597863&loc=en_us

Erikson, P. (2007, October 7). Suite101®.com. Insightful writers. Informed readers. Retrieved April 25, 2010 from
http://office-software.suite101.com/article.cfm/buzzword_closest_yet_to_word

New Technology: Project Natal

"It detects the motions of your hands, arms, legs, and body. It then inputs them into the game as if you were using a controller."







Project Natal will change the video game industry dramatically by taking interactive gaming to a new level. Currently the Nintendo Wii is the only true interactive gaming system where you move your arms to play instead of just pushing buttons. The Wii uses a controller that senses the motion of your hands as you move it through the air. The Wii then projects the controller's movement into the game. However, the problem with this system is the controller. People mistakenly throw the controller into their TV's and break the screen. The movie, Alvin and the Chipmunks Squeakquel showed a perfect example of this happing when Alvin was playing bowling on the Wii and threw the control into Dave's LCD TV cracking the screen. However, Microsoft has found the solution to the problem with their next generation console under the code name Project Natal. Natal will eliminate the use of a controller its games. This will be done by using a sophisticated motion sensor that detects the motion of your hands, arms, legs and body. It will then process those movements into the game as if you were using a controller. It can also use the built in microphone and can even scan pictures to display on the TV. One example of this was during a demo of Natal. They had a boy named Milo, who is a part of a game by Lionhead studio. Milo can talk to the woman doing the demo and interact with her. Milo also notices facial expressions and held a conversation with the woman. The woman was also able to draw a picture and hand it to Milo who took the picture and described the picture back to the woman. As of right now, there is no interactive gaming system capable of doing what Natal plans to due this fall. The games on Natal will be fun, tiring and much more interactive. They will actually make the person-playing feel as if they are in the game. All the jumping, kicking, driving and shooting done without having to worry about throwing a controller threw a TV screen. However, now players will have to worry about getting to excited and hitting the TV by hand or feet. Natal will bring us one-step closer to true virtual reality.

Project Natal (2010) Retrived April 23, 2010, from Xbox Offical Site
website: http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/projectnatal/

Throw Away Your Cordless Phone and Get a Television

“Imagine being able to see the sparkle of your grandchild’s eyes or the setting of your best friend’s engagement ring,” said Josh Silverman, CEO of Skype.

How would you like to flip on your television and talk to a loved one or a friend from across town? Skype has just announced in 2010 that they are going to offer high definition (HD) quality video calling to the people of the world. Skype now has a new HD web cam that will remove the need for a high performing computer to encode the video before viewing it on your screen. Not only are they developing better web cams, they are forming an alliance with companies like LG and Panasonic to produce Skype ready televisions. The new Skype plasmas won’t be ready until mid-2010.

The plasmas will offer free Skype to Skype calls and low rate Skype to landline, if they still exist, calls as well as voice mail and conference calling. The web cam will have to be purchased as an accessory for Skype to work on the new lines of plasmas, but the HD quality and special microphones will allow the user to maintain a couch distance from the TV and still have perfect communication. Now is all we need is Skype and Samsung get together and make a 3-D version of Skype, bringing the appearance of callers being right in your living room.

Skype Press Release

No More Ugly Sweaters from Aunt Myrtle

I did a Twitter poll on the ugliest/worst gift you have ever received. My favorites were: a gift card to a weight loss program from a mother-in-law, a box of Proactiv and a bottle of Nair for Valentine’s Day from a Grandmother (so the grand-daughter could have a better Valentine’s Day next year), and dirty (used) diamond earrings. Were the gift givers intentionally trying to insult or hurt the recipient? They probably weren’t, chances are the gift given just didn’t know what to give. We’ve all received a gift equivalent to Aunt Myrtle’s ugly sweater, but those days are now gone!



My latest web-find treasure offers Grandma an alternative to giving socks and underwear. It’s a new social media website with a catch. Gimmepleez is similar to Facebook, in that you create an account and add “friends” to you online social circle. What makes GimmePleez different is that when you sign up, a goal of something that you’re saving for is also established. You enter the cost of the desired item and then friends and family can donate money directly to that goal. Your account is linked with your savings account, so as money is donated, it flows through GimmePleez directly into your bank account, allowing your dreams to become a reality.

The site is used primarily by college students, but non-profits are getting involved now too. Routine college requests are additional funds for books or meals. On the website, I also found a little league team earning money for their team party. The team could send out a request to its parents, but as a member I had the opportunity to donate as well once I saw it in the list of featured requests.

Kids and adults alike are sending out these GimmePleez.com requests for birthdays and holidays. Aunt Myrtle will have a choice to put the money she would have spent on a sweater into a fund for your designated dream. Dreams can be as small as the latest CD to as extravagant as a new car or college fund. Another nice feature of GimmePleez is if you’re close to your goal, is an option of sending out updates to the people who have donated in the past, giving them an additional opportunity to “get you to the finish line”. Top Gimmegories include, dating, gaming, clothes, auto, computer, vacation, wedding and music. Anyone can request money for any reason; it’s just a matter whether someone is willing to pay for it.

Wayne Weber, CEO of GimmePleez came up with this idea in college and seems to really have found his niche! As this idea trickles from college in the mainstream the more functionality it will have. Wayne said in a meeting, that his favorite response to GimmePleez was from a dad who could finally see how much money his daughter was receiving between he and his wife. Once it recordable, it opened the lines of communication for budgeting. The dad went so far as to research other college GimmePleez accounts and watch how much other students were getting. The possibilities of usage are endless. Thank goodness Aunt Myrtle has an alternative now!

Weber, W, GimmePleez, retrieved April 23, 2010 from http://www.gimmepleez.com/

Video Conferencing in the Palm of Your Hand

Video Conferencing in the Palm of Your Hand

Video conferencing is an amazing tool that has encouraged and improved collaborative communication. It brings people together without the cost and time needed for travel to face to face meetings. Video conferencing adds an element to communication that cannot be achieved when using regular conference calls. While video conferencing tools are an asset to many companies, they have their limitations since the equipment is often expensive and stationary. That was until now; Global IP Solutions has created a technology that makes video conferencing easy and accessible to the masses. The technology is available for devices such as the Android and the iPhone. "GIPS VideoEngine allows application developers to support two-way video chat on a variety of IP devices…The addition of iPhone support to the GIPS stable of products allows solution providers and mobile carriers to provide videoconferencing, including one-way video and two-way synchronized audio, to an even larger audience." (Tierney, 2009). This technology will allow businesses to go virtual and still stay connected. Easy to use video conferencing at the touch of a button no matter where a person is will foster effective communication between parties whether they are across town from one another or across the country. Communication and collaboration will now be easier than ever before.

Tierney, A. (2009, February). New Technology Brings Video Conferencing Service to the iPhone. Retrieved from http://unified-communications.tmcnet.com/topics/unified-communications/articles/74920-new-technology-brings-video-conferencing-service-the-iphone.htm

When you need to work together, all you have to do is Wave.

Google Wave is a new technology that allows for synchronous and asynchronous collaboration via the internet. From the video about Wave, it appears as though this has the ability to replace the need for email and IM as Wave can do everything these technologies do and more. One of the features that is beyond the capabilities of IM or email is the ability to collaboratively work on the same document at the same time from different places in real time. This reduces the need for people to update a document and email it back and forth. Another example of additional features beyond that of IM and email is the ability to type like an IM and have the screen update for others in the Wave character by character in near realtime. This reduces wasted time due to waiting to see what someone is going to type. Another cool feature that I saw was Wave's ability to handle things like pictures. The Wave can take all of the pictures from everyone and quickly turn them all into a photo album. I believe this is going to greatly change the way people work together remotely. I have asked to be a trial user for this and I think everyone should try it.

References:
(n.d.). About Google Wave. Retrieved April 23, 2010 from http://wave.google.com/about.html

Live your life without leaving your computer.

"Could anything do more to confirm our fears of technology disconnecting us from reality?" - Author unknown

After reading the article "Virtually the same as normal" about Second Life, I had find out more about it. This article was written before Second Life had become available, but it appears to be fairly accurate today. It describes Second Life as being a virtual world in which you can do just about anything you can do in real life. I do have some experience with a similar application, Playstation Home, that is available on the Playstation 3. After researching Second Life it looks it is an advanced implementation of the same concept.

It appears that you can have a second life in this environment that simulates your real life or you can virtually find out what it would be like to live a completely different life. I am still skeptical as to how well it implements things like working in this virtual world. I do think that since this is designed to be an enjoyable environment, they would focus on the fun parts of anything you do and leave the boring details out of the user experience.

Second Life is an amazing technology that has plenty of entertainment potential, but as with everything else it needs to be regulated by the user so that it doesn't become an addiction.

References:
(2006). Virtually the same as normal. New Statesman, 135(4816), 50. Retrieved from MasterFILE Elite database.

(n.d.). What is Second Life? Second Life. Retrieved April 25th, 2010, from http://secondlife.com/whatis/?lang=en-US

In looking at a high tech company to profile, I took a look at the new Android operating system, run by Google. We all know Google, a simply designed search engine with magnificent results. Google allows for the functionality of most search engines, but eliminates the front page advertising and news links. What users get when they use Google is search results compiled using a proprietary algorithm to offer targeted search results and advertising. It is through this targeted advertising that Google has in the past generated their revenue. Until now, enter the Android Operating System for new smart phones. In response to the Apple iPhone, many companies such as Motorolla and HTC needed to come up with similar results, without having to use the slower and more cumbersome Microsoft OS.

Google siezed this opportunity, and began developing and marketing the new Android OS. The Android delivers a complete set of software for mobile devices. Built on the more efficient Linux Kernel, Droid is a custom virtual machine designed to optimize memory and hardware resources in a mobile environment. The Droid does not differentiate between the phone's core applications, and those developed by a third party, this means that all of the phones applications can run equally and smoothly. The Android software alls devices to communicate with one another, this enables collaboration through peer to peer social applications.

In the end, it appears as though Google has allowed mobile device manufacturers to catch up to the momentum and popularity of the Apple iPhone. What that has done is forced Apple to continue to innovate, while lowering prices to stay competitive with the Android devices offered up by Motorolla and HTC. Apple has responded by developing a 4G version of the iPhone, and lowering the prices on the last version the iPhone 3GS. This will surely prompt an update of the current Droid offerings, and the winner will ultimately be the consumer. Who can now do just about anything out of the office or away from the home computer that once forced them to be in one spot. Allowing for a more productive and efficient workplace.

Nick

Information used in this blog came from:

www.finance.yahoo.com

www.android.com

Finding the Right Info on the Net for Your Pet

“Who knew that hip dysplasia [in dogs] is caused by global warming?” (Kay, 2010).

Everyone with a pet such as a dog, cat, or any other pet has ravaged the web when an issue has arisen for your furry little friend. While searching the internet for a quick remedy of a torn off nail or a bad case of emesis sounds like a good idea for a lot of people before consulting a vet, yet sometimes it is not the best idea. Using unaccounted for guidance can endanger your pet and yourself, not to mention your family. Clearly, great care should be taken when following medical advice about your pet’s problem on the internet.

Kay’s article, in my opinion, does a very good job in outlining creditable areas and searching tactics on the net for valid research on your pet. As the quote above suggests, vets are obviously vulnerable to being befuddled with customers finding extremely ridiculous information. Being keen on looking for creditable websites does not come easy for some internet users, but just looking at the physical web address can be a good indicator of its validity. For example going on web sites with top-level domains such as “.edu”, “.org” and “.gov” for information is safer for good information because they correspond to educational, nonprofit and government websites (Kay, 2010).

As one could tell, bad information will always find its way on the internet. The responsible pet owner nowadays should know where to find respectable information on their pets. The same advice given for pets can also be used for humans!

Kay, Nancy. "Gone surfin': how can you know what online information is credible?." Whole Dog Journal 13.3 (March 2010): 20(3). Academic OneFile. Gale. BCR Regis University. 10 Apr. 2010
.

Are Our Instincts Failing Us In Virtual Reality?

“Humans are biologically wired to make trust judgments through attunement to faces, gestures, and verbal intonations. Social networking sites strip away these primal cues.” (Juels, 2010)

I found an intriguing article subtitled “Cybersecurity Depends on the Human Dimension.” It discusses the change that we must make to stay safe while communicating on the internet. So much of our communication is non verbal and when interacting with others through a computer some if not most of these non verbal cues are lost. The author explains that virtual worlds are becoming intertwined with the real world and our usual idea of security is no longer enough. “Cybersecurity education often fails because it doesn’t teach fundamental principles that can be grafted onto our instincts.” (Juels, 2010) Even the most experienced internet users are vulnerable because our instincts have not fully adjusted to the risks and consequences of a virtual world.

This hit home with me because I am just getting out of a long term relationship and many people are suggesting that I try meeting people online. When meeting someone in person we are programmed to trust our intuition or gut instincts that develop. Online, however; we are not able to use our other senses to make these important first impressions. For instance, if you are chatting with someone on a social networking site, a profile may state that he is a 30 year old man from Chicago. In reality you have no idea if this is true or false because you are relying on the assumption that he has been truthful on his profile- you are putting your trust in someone you don’t know. This can be dangerous on many different levels because everyone, from your grandparents and children, to felons and pedophiles have access to the internet which is largely unregulated and undiscriminating. As pioneers in cyberspace, it will take a conscious effort to train our instincts as to what and who can be trusted. As the virtual world expands so to must our intuition and perception of security online.

Laura GB

Works Cited
Juels, Ari. "Future Tense: The Primal Cue." Communications of the ACM 53.3 (2010): 120-119. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web.

Facebook and its influence

Facebook just like Twitter and MySpace has become a big tool for communication worldwide. Working for the government, it is using this means of communication among returning veterans from overseas, especially those leaving the military. They find that the younger generation of veterans are savy with the latest technology, so the VA is taking advantage of it to reach out to those in need of assistance for health and educational reasons. President Obama used it to push his candidacy for president and it worked rather well.

I find that my children are very smart when it comes to using a computer and navigating throughout the internet. They are being taught in school how to be careful when going onto places like Facebook and MySpace. I believe that in the future it will get more advanced than what it is right now. I find it amazing how far we have come with this emerging technology.


Rigo

How to Meet New People, Make Friends and Facebook Them

"Facebook.com has become our social bible for definitive information on our classmates, crushes, and high school peers we have not spoken to in who-knows-how long." Withall



I read a manuscript that Pavica Sheldon wrote in 2007 for the Southwest Symposium of the Southwest Education Council for Journalism and Mass Communication that detailed the motives for using Facebook.com. It was based on a study of 172 students at Louisiana State University for her doctorial dissertation. The study built on the foundation that one's demographic was a key motivating factor in why one uses Facebook As a parent of four children I try to be as tech-savvy as I can be. I created a Facebook.com account in New Years Day 2009. In the year I've had the account, I've "farmed" all I ever need to, I've reconnected with old friends, kept in touch with current ones, denied people who saw my picture and wanted to be my friend without knowing me, found out my husband was a girl in a play in college and made the decision that my fifteen year old son would not be allowed to be my Facebook "friend". I fall in line with the majority of women who flock to Facebook.com. Women are more likely to go to Facebook to maintain existing relationships, pass time and be entertained. My husband became a Facebook.com member after months of me complaining that at least fifty of my “friends”, were people who were looking to connect with him. He tends to use Facebook for the same reasons I do, however according to Ms. Sheldon's study, men tend to go to Facebook to develop new relationships or meet new people. (In this case our age demographic no doubt, skewed the data!)

In the manuscript, Ms. Sheldon suggested that the Uses and Gratifications Theory which is a theory from 1959 that suggests that people differ in the gratifications they seek from mass media is especially applicable. The needs seem to fall into certain categories: diversion, personal relationship, personal identity, surveillance and media exposure. What the theory fails to include is the interpersonal dynamic that I am guilty of; people will "post" something electronically that they may not say to someone face-to face. I find it particularly important to ensure that my kids understand that their "online identity" needs to be in-line with their "personal identity", but to also understand in equal measure that not everyone else's is. Being true to one’s self is difficult enough without the component of social media, the ability to hide behind an online medium is as much of an attraction as a danger. Facebook and other social media sites are the standard in communication now for the school-age and college-age set. It's important to know why people approach it the way they do and just what they expect to get out of it.

Sheldon, P. (2007) Student Favorite: Facebook and Motives For Its Use, Southwest Symposium of the Southwest Education Council for Journalism and Mass Communication

Withall, R. (18 November 2005). Facing the Facts about Facebook. The Villanovan

Kori DeLeon

Internet's Influence on Politics

"Had it not been for the Internet, Barack Obama would not have become the Democratic nominee" ~John Edwards

The 2008 election is proof of the influence the Internet has over the outcome of an election; the 2008 primaries/election was amazing for many reasons. They were an opportunity to watch history in the making. The chance for American's to see one of three firsts in American history, the first African American president or the first female president or possibly the oldest president in American history. However, with so many possibilities the winner was the first African American president Barack Obama. The main reason for Obama's win was that he engaged the largest audience. In the 2008 primaries, Obama had over 1.2 million Facebook members and Obama's YouTube videos had been watched more than 56 million times by July 2008 (Anstead & Chadwick, 2008). Although these numbers are impressive, what makes them important is that these numbers helped Obama become the first African American president. In 2007 Obama was supposed to be nothing more than a long shot candidate or a potential 2012 candidate. But, due to his success online he was able to bridge the gap between him and Hilary Clinton in just a year's time. Obama having a connection to millions of followers on the Internet, allowed him to compete financially with the money Clinton had raised from her fundraiser, by having his followers make small donations.

     The 2008 election was not the only proof of the influence the Internet has over the outcome of an election. According to Anstead and Chadwick, "Over the last decade, Internet campaigning has become deeply embedded in American electoral politics (Anstead & Chadwick, 2008)." An example was Jesse Ventura who won the Minnesota Gubernatorial contest. Ventura used the net to organize rallies quickly hours before polls closed to secure his win. Other notable uses of the Internet to gain political favor were John McCain's online fundraising in 2000, Mike Huckabee's sophisticated online campaign in 2008 and Howard Dean used a lot of fundraising techniques that Obama used in 2008 to raise money in 2004 (Anstead & Chadwick, 2008). The Internet's ability to raise money gives candidates who use wisely a clear advantage. Obama raised 745 million dollars in the 2008 campaign that is more than double McCain's 368 million, who rose the second most in 2008 (Banking on Becoming President, 2008). This is proof of the influence the Internet has over the outcome of an election.

Anstead, N., & Chadwick, A. (Autumn-Winter 2008). Lessons of the US digital campaign. Renewal, 16, 3-4. p.103(8). Retrieved April 09, 2010, from Academic OneFile via Gale:
http://find.galegroup.com.dml.regis.edu/gtx/start.do?prodId=AONE&userGroupName=regis

Banking on Becoming President. (2008, October 27). Retrieved April 14, 2010, from

OpenSecrets.org: http://63.e5bed1.client.atlantech.net/pres08/index.php