PodCast Project

The PodCast is done.

I am posting it here

The script has been turned in 2 weeks ago, and the annotated bibliography will be turned it through e-submit

Course Reflection

The Most Important Thing I’ve Learned …

I guess the overview of technology, or the general idea for each technology we went over in class was a good learning experience. It made me look into the technology more when I’m by myself, and I’m more open-minded to some technology that I thought I’d never lay my hands on.

I was thinking about opening a business on the web with the service being the key theme, now I’m kind of skeptical about it, since a lot of things we’ve learned in class are free. I’m a bit scared to put my foot forward, that could be a good thing in saving myself from going through debt, or preventing me from attaining my goal :-p

Oh, and I REALLY like how we can access to all of our reading online. No coursepack, and no textbook. Thank you

What I’d like to have more time to study …

I guess some of the technology in class, I’d like to actually spend time to know how it works and learn them in detail, but that’s not the design for this class, and I am sure that I can do that on my own time. So I believe that everything on here gave me enough time to get familiar with each technology

Least Interesting Thing to Me …

Blogs… but then again, I don’t read much and I don’t like writing about something I don’t want to read… so that’s just me, don’t listen to my comment on this one :-p

Vonage & SpeakEasy

Both of them will not let me see the price.

Vonage sign up is for someone who is ready and really determine that they will use Vonage.

SpeakEasy is just trying to have the customers call and speak to their representative. Feel like they are trying to have some add-ons sales.

I will have services to both companies if I happen to decide for these services. The assignment is easy, but I still don’t think I’d do it… for now

Week 9: Reflection

I have heard of VoIP for such a long time, but have never really looked into it. I think I actually had a subscription with ComCast for their IP Phone before. It was pretty cheap compared to what my mom would spend on Qwest, since she’d make some long distance calls. The problem we encounter was that the connector outside the building between cables were bad, so it made the calls dropped frequently, and not clear at all as advertised. Then again…. why did my parents or I ever trust the advertisement? :-p So we ended up switching back to Qwest and paying outrageous rate again… wonderful.

What bugs me about this article is that we don’t really know when it was written. I’m not sure if some of the “disadvantages” actually have been improved or not. Also, if there are more ways to use VoIP or not.

VoIP is definitely good in bringing us the variety to keep connected with our friends/family through the old service of telephone, but with different technology that gives the very similar outcome, or product. Then again, how often do we really use the phone now? So I guess to us, it wouldn’t matter so much. It might be useful to companies, I assume. The small companies would save a lot of money in their regular telephone service. The giant corporate will save some pennies for themselves. I guess it works all around.

The disadvantage does not seem too big for me. I guess the 911 is a big thing, but then again, who reads this post has no cell phone? I guess there might be one or two, but I think it’s safe to assume that you don’t make many phone calls either. Therefore, for those of you without cell phones are still safe and cheap to use the regular telephone. For those who has the cell phone… why would it really matter that you need to call 911 from your VoIP when your power failed? Maybe the security system for Brink (home security system) or something.

What do I think VoIP will impact the telephone and cable networks? I would assume that it will be big for businesses but small in normal population. The phone service will be the same, may not get richer, but I am sure they will be OK. Also, the cable infrastructure may grow a bit more if some people here and there want it. They need a cable to get there, eh? So overall, I guses it is a good system, but it just comes out a bit too late to be as useful as it could have been a decade ago.

Questions:

1. Will the VoIP make cable network expand their infrastructure?

2. Will VoIP save big companies some bucks? or will they find a way to screw the businesses anyway?

3. If the VoIP break through and became the telephone service of choice, will the developers work on them more regularly?

Week 8: Reflection

Wireless, the technology that gives more freedom to those with laptop. It also gives tenderness to the ears of people with mothers complaining why are there wires running everywhere from the cable to the son’s room. Well, I guess that was a good invention.

Maybe it is even better when this infrastructure makes other technology cheaper. Best yet, it provides more access to other people in the “out reach area”. I remember our professor, K. Gill, told us that she almost went nuts when she visited her family and they only had dial-up. She had to drive all the way in town to go to a coffee shop to use their Wireless Network.

The speed for Wireless is so much more efficient than dial-ups’ speed. While on the internet, obviously if things load faster, you’ll stay longer on the page, which makes more sense to research information on whatever topic even more. I know that it’s not necessary true that they will always be research for some useful information, but when the time comes, it makes things easier, takes less time. Overall a good technology, no?

Anyway, I don’t really know what to say but to mention that (according to my friend, who’s from Japan) the Japanese government is trying to make metropolitan areas of Japan Wireless. Wouldn’t that be cool? Imagine if that happens in the US, and imagine if it’s FREE … oh man, what I would do for free fast-speed internet….

Questions:

1. Is there a chance that the US governemtn will make wireless connection accesible in metropolitan area?

2. Will US ranking in internet access get higher? Or will we continue to drop down like we are now?

3. The wireless technology keeps on improving, how long will the one we’re using last? and once it grows even further, how long will the “popular” technology last until it dies?

Qualitative Feedback (newspaper inventory)

Man… the project that was supposed to be hard turned harder than I thought it would be. It turned to be so hard that the professor decided to cancel it…. SCORED! (just kidding)

So the project was actually kind of fun. To see how each newspaper are like. I was doing the paper from Portland (OR), Tulsa (OK),  Miami (FL), and Birminham (AL).  It was very interesting when I was asked to complete a short (truly short, bless them) from the Oregonian (Portland’s newspaper) before I can access anything (finding number of blogs and all that stuff) then I was asked again by Miami Heralds. Same screen, same questions. Either they have the same owner, or they have the same webmaster.

Anyway, the surprising things in this assignments were couple of things.

1. The Oregonian’s website is consisted of a lot of newspaper around Oregon. So the blogs are very confusing on where the bloggers are writing about/from. Also, their citizen blogs are in the same page but at least not mixed with the journalists’ blogs.

2. The Tulsa World has no blogs, The Birmingham News has no RSS details… wow

PodCast Update

Right now, I’m writing an outline of where things are going to be at (pictures, sounds, footage). I’m also going through what shots I can be making for the University, since I cannot bring a camera into the Hec Ed, and I will be missing a lot of some nice shots because it is such a small window to make a commercial for the University.

At the same time, I am also doing a project for a competition of online securities awareness. I am also thinking maybe I will use that instead for my PodCast to raise the awareness, and what to do. I think I can make it 6 minutes.

Week 7: Reflection

I remember hearing from Prof. David Domke in COM 201 that Internet played a very large role during elections. Jesse Ventura used it very well. It did not matter that he was a professional wrestler, he won it. He had screw-ups along the way like any candidates, but he pulled it off by usiung the internet “defending” himself or “saving face”. Howard Dean also used it well, according to Noam Scheiber, too bad he had this little mixed up :-p

As for the article that K. Gill wrote, that was a bit surprising to me. I guess I never would have thought that I was going to read a critique of how the candidates websites were. But the most surprising thing was the mistakes that these candidates make. How Bush’s site designed for people with up-to-date technology while many of his supporters are not there yet. And how Kerry asked for sign-up information right off the bat when anyone is thinking of volunteering. Speaking of invasion of privacy…

Anyway, I thought both readings were good, except I had to find Joe Trippi Reinvents Campaigning, because you forgot to post the link Oh, and I do agree with the authors of these articles, since one of them is you, and I really like the conclusion of the authors I picked for my presentation.

Questions:

1. Can we go back to 85% of voters coming out again? Or at least have higher increase in voters since we are only at 50.7%

2. Can internet really hurt the elections because of socioeconomic classes? Or will technology catch up and provide access to everyone on time before that day comes?

3. What can the candidates do to make their websites even more powerful of tools to gather more supporters?

Presentation

Article: Unraveling the Effects of the Internet on Political Participation?

Tolbert, C, & McNeal, Ramona (2003). Unraveling the Effects of the Internet on Political Participation?. Political Research Quarterly, 56, Retrieved February 12, 2007, from http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=1065-9129%28200306%2956%3A2%3C175%3AUTEOTI%3E2.0.CO%3B2-6.

PowerPoint Link:

http://students.washington.edu/shogun16/COM300/disc.ppt

Summary:

The participations among voters are declining the past century. From nearly 85 percent of eligible voters to 50.7 percent. The internet is providing a means of updating American political institutions to improve citizens’ perceptions and trust in government. Even though the internet seems likely to increase the participation, it also could decrease and create a segregation through socioeconomy class.

The internet has a lot to offer to improve the elctions of years to come, but it also has a setback.

Experience:

It was OK. Some audience were nice enough to pretend that they are listening and “interested” in the topic. Some were just sitting there and showing how bored they are. It’s quite uncomfortable to say the least.

Week 6: Reflection

Wow… time flies.

I guess if it wasn’t for this class, I would not have known that this is the 6th week of school. Kind of scary since I’m graduating at the end of next quarter. Also hindering because I realized I need one more 400 level class :-p lame-o

I didn’t read as thoroughly as I would usually, mainly because I have a midterm coming up, but they both are still interesting reads.  I especially like the “Will NPR’s Podcasts Birth a New Business Model for Public Radio?” by Mark Glaser. The post sorts of asking the question for me already “Can the podcast make a lot of money out of it?” I guess you can if you’re very popular and also charging them like a dollar a download or something. But what if you’re popular and free? I guess noone has really thought about that yet, but I’m sure some ideas have popped up. I mean Ihave some ideas about it already, so why won’t anyone else, right?  Some of my ideas are just maybe “print” ads, but actually just a picture that plays on the screen while the listeners listen to the iPod. I know that noone reads the screen religiously, but it will get some attention. You can earn some money that way.

For blogging, I guess I will always wonder how far this will go. I remember seeing the video during like the second or third lecture. Our professor shows the video about the battle between Google and MSN (on search engines, and NEWS) and eventually Google will win (in 2013, or something like that?) but if that actually happens, I think it’d be kind of funny… and very bad. Leaving NEWS reporters jobless, invading EVERYONE’s privacy (not that we have much of it anyway) because they will win the NEWS war and getting NEWS and sources from listening people’s conversation, taking pictures from MMS… freaky. Anyway, I hope that’s not the future. I guess in those times, maybe the bloggers will be very famous and popular. But then how reliable can they be? Since bloggers also are relying on NEWS sources quite a lot. Without the NEWS sources, except Google, I don’t think things will be much details nor people will be much informed anymore. Or it will be a lot of assumption, which of course… how do you spell “ASSUME”? (ASS, U and ME)… (get it? make an ass of you and me)

I guess NEWS Sources will be safe, for a long time

Questions:

1. Can you make money out of free podcast?

2. How much bias, if at all, are the blogs with advertisers paying them?

3. The popularity in Blogs are growing, how can that hurt NEWS sources?