Web 2.0 and Mary Zajicek's Whiny Attitude

The elderly can't aren't going to be able to bedazzle their names for their myspace pages! oh heavens!

that was certainly a rude, cheap shot, but in all seriousness Mary Zajicek does bring up some valid points about the recent explosion of web 2.0 services and those being left behind. Her main overarching theme is accessibility, something we as media studies students have never had to worry about. After reading her article, It was a bit eye opening to sit down and think about how many groups are being excluded from this new phenomenon because of circumstances of accessibility. While Zajicek does discuss the influence of web 2.0 applications in regards to certain groups like the visually and physically impaired, she tends to focus a lot of her paper on the elderly and their ability to adapt to these new technologies.

To be brutally honest, and this is going to sound very mean, so I apologize, I really don't think there are many web 2.0 services that are worth teaching to old people (sometimes I impress myself with how subtle i am). Her excerpt on Skype was interesting, as I think this is one of the only applications that could prove useful for the elderly. It's a fairly simple program, and it has astounding money saving potential. No elderly person is going to find solace in the depths of myspace or facebook, I don't think. Now, I'm sure there are more than few tech-savvy grannies out there chalking up the friends, but for the most part, it's not worth teaching these people through the accessibility barrier just so they can wonder what the hell tagging a picture means. It would be more trouble than its worth to instruct the elderly on what these applications are let alone how to use them, and even if we did, there is no real positive that could become of their new knowledge.

Videocast!

For my videocast, I will be attempting to educate the internet population on what a fixed gear bicycle is and why so many damn hipsters ride them.

Research and Creativity Expo

On Thursday I got to check out the Research and Creativity expo over at the convo. My first reaction after walking through the door was "holy crap there's pizza." my second reaction after walking through the door was "man, i suck compared to these people." The expo itself was very well organized and way more impressive than I had initially imagined. Every college present had a clearly marked section of the pie that is the convo, and there was so much to look at that I ate my complimentary slice of pizza and spent enough time walking around that I got hungry again.

I spent most of my time gawking at the Media Arts & Studies and Viscom sections, but there was so much to look at I still feel like I didn't get to see it all. Of particular interest to me were the games and animations developed by the MDIA groups. I'm an animation major and after seeing what those groups have done, I definitely want to become more involved with these projects. If I were a prospective student looking at OU for the first time, I would be way more than impressed.

Overall the event was well organized, and the creative and research majors were well represented and showed some amazing work. I feel as though this type of event can do nothing but help OU's name, and furthermore, that pizza was soooo good man. sooo good.

The Greatest Story Ever Told

Longevity is not something my music taste really lends itself too. More often than not, I listen to a band so much that I get sick of them and move on to something else pretty rapidly. One exception to that rule however is The Lawrence Arms from Chicago, IL. They have stood the test of time in my album rack, and I almost feel as though I've grown with them as they progress as a band. Their music and lyrics are something I can truly relate to and have gotten me more into the music I love and play today. Thats why I chose to do my podcast on their most renowned album, The Greatest Story Ever Told.