Rue's View Digital

Blogs I have to write...

[ruedigital-blog]

#5Billion

[ruedigital-blog]

[ruedigital-blog]

Social Gaming

Open Facebook. Yay I have like 7 notifications, I wonder what they are! I feel loved! “John has invited you to play candy crush.” “Lisa has invited you to play FarmVille.” “Bob has invited you to play candy crush.”… and so on. Social Gaming. The term 'social games' has come to refer to those games specially made for, and profiting from, social network sites like Facebook (Swinburne Online 2016). They use the platforms to grow and game more users by encouraging players to share with their friends for rewards. It is pretty smart actually. Can be annoying though to non-gamers like myself.

What makes a social game a social game? “A social game is not social unless you are playing with another person” (O'Neill, 2008). The main thing is being able to compete with your social media community on relatively simple games. Most social games are designed to be played on the move. When you on the train, bus or any other transportation (besides bikes, you can’t play it on a bike) or just relaxed at home. “Social gaming is not really for so called hardcore gamers” (O'Neill, 2008).

“An average of 365 million daily users were playing Facebook games” (Leonov, 2016) in 2014, which is 5% higher compared to the previous year. The growth is incredible. What is most incredible is that proportion of male vs female users. You would generally expect the males to be more than females (stereotyping a little bit) when it comes to gaming. But the number tell a different story. “Female players dominate the male ones: it’s 57% vs. 43%” (Leonov, 2016). “The biggest proportion of social gamers (50%) are parents, whose children no longer live at home with them” (Think Management, 2014). Well, thats a bit depressing… someone should really look into that. Like seriously!

The social gaming industry doesn't mind though. They expect revenue of over $5 billion. At $5 billion I wouldn't mind either.

References

Leonov, I., 2016. Gamasutra: Ievgen Leonov's Blog - Mobile and Social Gaming Industry: 2014 Highlights. [online] Gamasutra.com. Available at: <http://gamasutra.com/blogs/IevgenLeonov/20141229/233307/Mobile_and_Social_Gaming_Industry_2014_Highlights.php> [Accessed 10 Feb. 2016].

O'Neill, N., 2008. What Exactly are Social Games?. [online] Adweek.com. Available at: <http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/social-games/1695> [Accessed 10 Feb. 2016].

Swinburne Online, 2016. Social gaming: playing the crowd. [online] Available at: <https://ilearn.swin.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-5190915-dt-content-rid-26655220_2/courses/2015-SO3-MDA20009-210404/UnitLearningMaterials/week-10.html> [Accessed 10 Feb. 2016].

Think Management, 2014. Social Gaming Statistics 2014 | Think Management. [online] Available at: <http://www.thinkmanagement.com/social-gaming-statistics-2014-revenues-purchasing-demographics/> [Accessed 10 Feb. 2016].

[sayitisntsojo-blog]

Week 10: Social gaming: playing the crowd

Source: https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/04/pc-gaming-spend-on-the-rise-despite-release-drought-report/

As technology has advanced, online games have evolved into a number of genre, the most well-known being the MMOG (Massive Multiplayer Online Game). This is a computer game that enables hundreds or thousands of players to simultaneously interact in a game world. Typically this kind of game is played in an online, multiplayer-only persistent world. (Kirriemuir 2005).

Online Gaming

The online gaming community affords users the opportunity to build a community of like minded ‘gamers’ who all communicate through gaming platforms. Interaction and online codes of conduct all form part of the gamers experience. EVE Online, a space-themed massively multiplayer online game (MMOG), with over half a million subscribers, actively encourages player participation in game  management, with a player council, the Council of Stellar Management (CSM), and active fan forums,(deZwart & Humphreys 2014).

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3418888/Mother-boy-14-murdered-sadistic-sex-killer-met-online-gaming-furious-killer-posted-rambling-open-letters-jail-cell-bemoaning-lot.html

While gaming has its positives and negatives a negative. One such instance of negativity surrounding the gaming world. But not exclusive to just gaming - the same tragic outcome could as easily be done through social media platforms - was the murder of Breck Bednar, a 14 year old gamer who was groomed and befriended through an online gaming forum and lured from his home and murdered by what he thought, was his online friend. 

Taken from the Office of the Children’ s eSafety Commissioner website, it offers this for children online.

Protect yourself

If another player is behaving badly or making you uncomfortable, block them from your players list.

Report poor behaviour to the game site operator.

Keep personal details private.

Respect others in the game.

Be aware of game classifications and age restrictions

Gaming Stats

Assuming that social gamers are all male teenagers with nothing better to do with their time is about as far from the truth as you can get. Over half (54%) of the social gaming population are female and the biggest proportion of social gamers (50%) are parents, whose children no longer live at home with them. 36% of them have some level of college experience, and a further 28% have a Bachelor’s degree (Think Management 2014). 

Source: http://www.thinkmanagement.com/social-gaming-statistics-2014-revenues-purchasing-demographics/

References

PC gaming spend on the rise despite release drought – report, viewed 5 February 2016, https://www.vg247.com/2014/02/04/pc-gaming-spend-on-the-rise-despite-release-drought-report/

Kirriemuir, J 2005, Online Games and Digital Information Services, D-Lib Magazine ,viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.dlib.org/dlib/december05/kirriemuir/12kirriemuir.html

De Zwart, M & Humphreys, S, The lawless frontier of deep space: Code as law in EVE online [online]. Cultural Studies Review, Vol. 20, No. 1, Mar 2014: 77-99. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=225934593111540;res=IELAPA> ISSN: 1446-8123. [cited 08 Feb 16].

My son’s killer is taunting me from jail: Mother of boy, 14, murdered by sadistic sex killer he met through online gaming says the murderer has sent vicious notes blaming her for the crime, viewed 5 February 2016, {image},  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3418888/Mother-boy-14-murdered-sadistic-sex-killer-met-online-gaming-furious-killer-posted-rambling-open-letters-jail-cell-bemoaning-lot.html#ixzz3zWfOc9le

Social Gaming Statistics 2014 – Revenues, Purchasing & Demographics {image},viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.thinkmanagement.com/social-gaming-statistics-2014-revenues-purchasing-demographics/

Office of the childrens eSafety commissioner, Games, apps and social networking, Quick guide to popular social media sites and apps, viewed 5 February 2016,https://www.esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/games-apps-and-social-networking

[ruedigital-blog]

Women? I would have never guessed! Great blog

[my-digital-world-blog]

WEEK 10: SOCIAL GAMING: PLAYING THE CROWD

This week we look at social gaming.  As a non-gamer I’m the first to admit I’m way out of my league here, join me as I enter this world of gaming for the first time.  

Social gaming is a term used to describe games that are created specifically for social media platforms such as Facebook. With the portability of technologies such as mobile phones and tablets, gaming has become more accessible than ever before.

Source: https://40.media.tumblr.com/11253c80294cf9f27a9f61aad7c2d8dc/tumblr_inline_o1fkd0GZGY1th774r_540.jpg

So who are social gamers? You could be forgiven for thinking it’s predominantly prepubescent boys. Here are some interesting statistics about Australian gamers from the Digital Australia Report 2016 (Brand & Todhunter 2015):

·      Average age 33 years

·      68 per cent of Australians are gamers

·      78 per cent of gamers are over 18 years

·      47 per cent of gamers are female

·      Average time spent – 88 minutes a day

To understand gaming it is beneficial to look at the various roles or frames we each play out in any given day. De Zwart & Humphreys (2014, p.81) explain: a teacher commutes to and from work and performs tasks at home, in doing so they take on roles such as commuter, teacher, cook and are able to transition between each role seamlessly. A gamer also has many roles; primarily a gamer is a real person who also takes on roles as a game player and a character inside a game.

One point of division between gamers is the exchange of real world currency to purchase game-time. I had trouble understanding this concept so consulted a friend who is a gamer. She said some games will only allow you to play a certain number of times each day and to play any more a player must pay for games. She had never paid for games but it was her opinion that people that people think, “it’s only a few dollars” and happily pay the money to keep playing. She also said that some games have an option to pay to unlock levels or gain further powers in the game.

Source: http://media.techeblog.com/images/social_gaming.jpg

If you think “it’s just a game” think again, gamers take this virtual world fun quite seriously. A wide range of discussion takes place outside of the game on official and unofficial forums, community blogs and bot developer forums (Suzor, N & Woodford, D 2013, p.8). Game developers feel under pressure to conform to the requests of players. For example, many of the new players entering the EVE community had migrated from WORLD OF WARCRAFT and as such brought expectations and norms from the previous environment with them (Suzor, N & Woodford, D 2013, p.7).  My friend told me how on a recent holiday her friend, a Farmville 2 player, was concerned that she didn’t have in-room WiFi as she needed to ‘tend to her farm’ – very serious business indeed.

So concludes my first look inside the world of gaming. Are you a gamer? Do you pay to play? What advice would you have for a novice like me?

REFERENCES:

de Zwart, M & Humphreys, S 2014,’ The Lawless Frontier of Deep Space: Code as Law in EVE Online’, Cultural Studies Review, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 77-99.

Suzor, N & Woodford, D 2013, ‘Evaluating consent and legitimacy amongst shifting community norms: An EVE Online case study’, Journal of Virtual Worlds Research, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 1-14.

Brand, J & Todhunter, S 2015, Digital Australia Report 2016, viewed 8 February 2016, < http://www.igea.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Digital-Australia-2016-DA16-Final.pdf>

IMAGE SOURCES:

Gamer Psychology, Who are social gamers?, Tumblr, viewed 7 February 2016 <https://40.media.tumblr.com/11253c80294cf9f27a9f61aad7c2d8dc/tumblr_inline_o1fkd0GZGY1th774r_540.jpg>

Social Gaming, 2010, TechEBlog, viewed 9 February 2016, < http://media.techeblog.com/images/social_gaming.jpg>

[ruedigital-blog]

Wow! Those number are crazy! Would have never guessed that the average age of social gamers is 33! Great blog with lots of insight 

[digicomk-blog]

The invention of the ‘selfie stick’

With new applications and social media platforms, we share different information, images, videos and experiences with the people we choose to. With this, of course, came the rise of the selfie - a picture taken of a person, by that person. I have to admit I am not a fan of selfies, and think they are quite ridiculous. When I am traveling, I like to get a picture of myself and the person i’m with in front of a monument or particularly significant building or landscape. But when it comes to my Instagram feed, I think I have posted 2 selfies in the 4 years I’ve had it.

I read an interesting article recently on 21st Century Wire (2014) and here is a snippet from it which I found to be very true. “Everyone is taking selfies now. Should we really be worried about this trend, or is it just a case of people being empowered on a microblogging platform like Twitter, or Instagram? Writer Donna Highfill explains, “I have run into at least 10 people recently who have stopped on fast-moving, heavily-populated sidewalks to take a #selfie. There is no historical building behind them, no beautiful landscape, no real reason to take a picture of themselves other than the fact that they can reverse the camera on the phone, gaze at their own visage, and then share it on social media so the rest of the world can gaze upon it as well.” Does that make ‘us’ narcissistic? I’m not sure I would go that far, but some people certainly think so. I overheard my 7 year-old niece saying to her mum today, after her mum took a video of her playing the trumpet and said she was going to put it on Instagram, “No, don’t put it on Instagram and don’t tag me I look silly”. Guess she doesn’t want that to be seen by her friends…

So not only has the selfie established itself as a thing people do, there is now a TOOL to assist in the picture taking of ones self. Founder of iStabilizer sold 15,000 sticks last January alone, and thats just one company. I can’t stand selfies, but self sticks are on another level of tolerable. I was glad to read that New York museums are banning the selfie stick (Shilo, 2015). The reason for the restriction is the threat of accidental damage to museum exhibits and art work and that stopping to position for a selfie can also lead to congestion in already crowded museums. I encountered this negative experience when I was visiting Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi over New Years, where I wanted to get a picture taken with the mosque in the background, but the space was quite small due to the pillars on either side, and there was a couple standing there for a good 10 minutes taking so many pictures at so many angles and heights with their damn selfie stick. The sooner they ban them at more places, the better in my opinion.

I love this last image of a “selfie stick”.

References: The ‘Selfie’ Obsession: A Chronic, Narcissistic Mental Disorder. (2014). [Blog] 21st Century Wire. Available at: http://21stcenturywire.com/2014/12/13/selfie-obsession-a-chronicnarcissistic- mental-disorder/ [Accessed 6 Feb. 2016].

Agonistica, (2014). [image] Available at: http://agonistica.com/wpcontent/ uploads/2014/01/Schermata-01-2456659-alle-07.54.44.png [Accessed 6 Feb. 2016].

Shilo, M. (2015). New York Museums Are Officially Banning Selfie Sticks. Observer. [online] Available at: http://observer.com/2015/02/new-yorkmuseums-are-officially-banning-selfie-sticks/ [Accessed 7 Feb. 2016].

The Oatmeal, (2015). [image] Available at: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/selfie_stick [Accessed 7 Feb. 2016].

[sayitisntsojo-blog]

I love this post! I used to think who on earth would ever buy a selfie stick…..then we did! And we love it! It takes the best group photos!

[my-digital-world-blog]

I was never a fan of selfies, but have to say the other day my sister and I (we are 47 & 60 years old) wanted a photo on the beach, so we took a selfie… we laughed so much trying to take it and in the end the photo was great! If for no other reason it gave my sister and I a reason to laugh together, I like selfies now. 

[ruedigital-blog]

I really enjoyed the read! “have you completely given up on life?” haha. I can’t get past how funny that is! lol 

[studentmedia-blog]

Blog 7: Visual communities and social imaging

Technology, through the use of mobile cameras and image sharing has created a culture obsessed with appearances. According to Hermans (2014), traditional social media required that we live experiences in the offline world, record those experiences, and then post them online to recreate the experience and talk about it. The new digital culture is now living the opposite lifestyle in attempt to compete with the new ‘selfie culture’. According to Awani (2014), the ‘selfie’, a popular trend among many is now linked to mental and low self-esteem disorders. Just how dangerous has the trend of social imaging become?

According to Walker (2013), due to an influx of ‘model’ images online it has resulted in posting selfies is an empowering act for another reason: It allows you to control your image online. With this being said, how does social image impact one’s self esteem. In Malaysia alone, experts from the Thai Mental Health Department are warning, that ‘such behavior could lead to mental health problems in future, especially related to self-confidence, and this could unexpectedly cause a negative effect on a person’s everyday life, future career and even the country’s development’ (Awani 2014). This means that the ‘selfie craze’ could result in a future with more eating disorders and mental health issues including self harm. According to Woda (2014), a poll from The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found that 30% of plastic surgeons reported that they’ve seen an increase in demand for plastic surgery… because patients aren’t happy with how they look in selfies and other social media pictures!

It is important to think about the consequences of posting a selfie. Potential employers and professional connections often research a potential candidate’s social media page. This can result in a negative outcome, even if the image is outdated. However, potential employers are not the only ones checking out individual’s selfies. According to Woda (2014), explicit oversharing is an obvious digital danger for teens when it comes to posting phone numbers, geotags, and home addresses. It is important that individuals are aware of public accessibility to their profiles. Woda (2014), has highlighted safety tips for parents to teach their children in order to be safe online;

Teach teens early on that selfies, social media posts, and the feedback they receive on social media should not be tied to their self-worth

Ensure privacy settings are on throughout all social media accounts.

Instruct your child about the importance of personal settings.

Advise teens to only post selfies (or anything on social media) that they would be comfortable sharing with the world.

The ‘selfie’ craze is on the rise, and despite social and health related repercussions it is going nowhere. It is therefore important that young people are educated about the dangers of social imaging in order to avoid negative consequences.

Have you checked your privacy settings? Should you be concerned? These are questions that all social media users should ask themselves regularly.

Just remember… a photo is forever.

References

Awani, A 2014, ‘’Selfie’ addiction brings negative impact’, Astro Awani, 11 February, viewed 30 December 2015, <http://english.astroawani.com/lifestyle/selfie-addiction-brings-negative-impact-29905>

Daze, D 2015, ‘Selfie’ [image], Doris life, viewed 30 December 2015, <https://dorislife.wordpress.com/tag/selfie-culture/>

Herrman, J 2014, ‘Meet the Man Who Got Inside Snapchat’s Head’, BuzzFeed, 28 January, viewed 24 September 2015, <http://www.buzzfeed.com/jwherrman/meet-the-unlikely-academic-behind-snapchats-new-pitch#3dlvjg2>.

Walker, M 2013, ‘The good, the bad, and the unexpected consequences of selfie obsession’,  Teen Vogue, 6 August, viewed 30 December 2015, <http://www.teenvogue.com/story/selfie-obsession>

Woda, S 2014, ‘The selfie culture: should we be worried?’, U know kids, 16 October, viewed 29 December 2015, <http://resources.uknowkids.com/blog/the-selfie-culture-should-we-be-worried>

[digicomk-blog]

Agree with your views of the dangers of taking a selfie. I also think it makes people more self conscious. The amount of photo editing apps that are available to totally change certain features about a photo, particularly a selfie, makes people, particularly females, feel like what they look like in real life is not good enough to be posted. I think it is very important for parents to teach teens early on that selfies, social media posts, and the feedback they receive on social media should not be tied to their self-worth. Great post.

[sayitisntsojo-blog]

Being able to control my image as a teen would have done wonders for my self esteem! - I feel blessed that I didn’t have to tie in my self worth to my social media posts or the feedback I did or didn’t receive…but as a grown woman I do love a good selfie now under key lighting!

[my-digital-world-blog]

I have to say I think the selfie is pretty harmless. People these days are so quick to blame others for how they feel. If a person feels threatened by another person’s selfie that’s the problem of the person who feels threatened, not the person who posted the selfie. Well that’s my opinion.

[ruedigital-blog]

That is an important point about employers. I know of a person from my previous job that lost their job because of images they posted on social media! 

[tanyasdigitalcommsblog-blog]

#4 (wk 6) Activism online: a platform for change.

Image: ‘birds on wire picture holder’ licensed under creative commons 

Digital Citizenship and the online activist…

“Information technologies have become indispensable to reformers, revolutionaries, and contemporary democracy movements. They serve as venues for the shared expression of dissent, dissemination of information, and collective action.” (Youmans & York  2012)

Digital citizenship refers to how we engage with other members of society online; particularly the ways in which we can be involved in political processes and issues which affect our social communities.

By re-posting, commenting or even just ‘liking’ social media posts we are on some level engaging with others; sharing information, being inspired or seeking to inspire. 

Whilst social media platforms have made it easier for activists and social justice advocates to raise awareness on issues and to develop protest campaigns, it is also important to remember that the same technology is available to everyone “ reformers, revolutionaries and authoritarian regimes” (Youmans & York 2012 p.315).  

Does Activism and Advocacy have to involve confrontation?

“The times they are a-changing.” - Bob Dylan

There have been many life-changing protest marches and acts of activism in our history, online activism is in many ways less confrontational than taking to the streets.  However, the battle is same although online activist do not necessarily find themselves in physically threatening situations, learning to control and confront dominant views and power structures on social media remains a crucial part of activism.

Activism is about power and opposition and whilst social media platforms provide a cost effective avenue for reaching the masses, the opposition is often well prepared (Community Tool Box 2015). 

Advocacy and activism do not always involve conflict or confrontation, it is about instigating change and sometimes that change is a slow journey to shift people’s attitudes and mindsets. For consumer organisations change can take effect as simply as having people refuse to buy their products.

Does advocating online actually inform change?

“Sub-activism has to be recognised as an important dimension of democracy grounded in individuals…” (Bakardjieva 2009 p.103)

Social Justice advocates will tell you that the results of campaigning on social media are often a mile wide and only an inch deep. In other words, social media is great for spreading awareness but this doesn’t always result in action.

It seems that the participatory nature of the internet is what drives citizens to become involved rather than the issues at heart (Christensen, 2012) and in online activism there is a huge gap between drawing people’s attention to issues and generating action.

Organisations such as Change.org (2016) can be important for activists, providing information, support from like-minded people and finding allies and the people-power to boost campaigns.

References AZ Quotes 2014, Bob Dylan quotes political, viewed 12 December 2015, <http://www.azquotes.com/quote/797897>.

Bakardjieva, M 2009, ‘Subactivism: Lifeworld and Politics in the Age of the Internet’, Information Society, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 91-104.

Christensen, H 2012, Simply Slacktivism?, ResearchGate: Journal of Democracy, viewed 30 December <http://www.reasearcgate.net/profile/Henrik_Christensen4/publication/261638212_Simply_slacktivism_Internet_participation_in_finland/links/00b7d534e7b9cc0d6f000000.pdf>

Community Tool Box 2015, “Section 1. Overview: Getting an Advocacy Campaign Off the Ground”, cbt.ku.edu, viewed 12 Dec 2015 <http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/advocacy/advocacy-principles/overview/main>

Youmans, W, & York, J 2012, ‘Social Media and the Activist Toolkit: User Agreements, Corporate Interests, and the Information Infrastructure of Modern Social Movements’, Journal Of Communication, vol. 62, no. 2, pp. 315-329.

Image Source 

‘birds on wire picture holder’ <gadgetsandgear.com> licensed under creative commons 

[digicomk-blog]

I think that huge gap between drawing people’s attention to issues and generating action is partly due to the fact that people think their one signature, or share can’t do much to create change, and that is where I think people underestimate the power of creating awareness. Even if just one more person shares the message, it creates a domino effect. 

[my-digital-world-blog]

I love that line “results of campaigning on social media are often a mile wide and only an inch deep.” It’s so true, people jump on the band wagon but never follow through with the action which eventuates in change. Some might say that’s because the forms of activism launched on social media also tend to have shallow roots, hence results only an inch deep. Great blog, thank you. 

[ruedigital-blog]

I think digital citizenship is now part of our general responsibilities as world citizens! Like you said in your blog, liking, reposting commenting etc are things we do all the time and are part of our daily lives now! great blog 

[mysocialmediafan-deactivated201]

Week 7: Digital Citizenship 3: Trolling and social media conflict

This week we learn about Trolling and social media.  Trolling really means the peer to peer abuse or bullying forms of harassment or stalking.

In this weeks readings i especially found the article by Danah Boyd interesting as the different people interviewed had different perspectives of the word “bullying” for example some teens didn’t think spreading gossip and rumors or pranking other students. She also makes a good point that social media has complicated the dynamics of social sharing and gossip as it provides a larger audience for information to be spread

As the picture above states trollers gonna troll, however do we accept it and what is the government doing about it?.

In 2014 Charlotte Dawson took her own life after a series of hate posts, however it is to be noted that this was only a contributing factor as Charlotte had other mental issues.  Her situation started a petition called #Charlotte Law

In Australia cyber bullying laws have been in effect since 2014.  The scheme is a 2 step monitoring system for social media giants like Facebook and Twitter.  The scheme allows for companies to voluntary address cyber bullying, but if they don’t they will face civil penalties. The new laws will create an e-Safety Commission that will be empowered to ensure that cyber bullies take down harmful posts or face court and police penalties.

The problem with this however it is complaint based, and that the action can only be taken after the harm has occurred. Second it can take a while before the post can be taken down. Third the law is inadequate and therefore the sanctions are inadequate.While these laws may be imperfect it is still the best option.  There are other criminal laws in place for other online abuse for example section 474.17 of the criminal code act 1995 makes it an offense to use a carriage service (such as the internet, email, social media) in a way that reasonable persons would regard as being, in all the circumstances, menacing, harassing or offensive.

While the above is good first step we need to do more as we are way behind the laws of the UK & US

[adamdigital-blog]

Trollers are gonna troll! I spend way to much time on games myself and there is literally nothing you can do to stop them. Just can’t give in! Good work!

[digicomk-blog]

Great blog about trollers. I see it more and more these days just reading the comment section on Facebook posts and Instagram pictures of more famous people. It’s sad that people say the things they do and think it doesn’t have an effect on others. I’ve heard of people actively engaging in arguments and causing hurt to others. Sad. 

[my-digital-world-blog]

I really like Danah Boyd’s commentaries on this topic and have to agree with her about some students truly believing they are not bullying. But trolls like those who pursued Charlotte Dawson, they have to know that their behaviour is totally out of line. I follow a fashion blogger who I know personally to be a  really lovely person, she had a really bad experience with a troll. Her ‘community’ helped and encouraged her through the rough patch she had. Today she is one of Australia’s leading fashion bloggers and I bet she doesn’t let mere trolls rock her confidence. 

[ruedigital-blog]

I didn't know about the e-Security Commission... I think thats a brilliant idea from the gov. I have heard of a few cases where Facebook has taken action against people for bullying... so I think we are going in the right direction in the fight against the trolls lol 

[aleksnajd-blog]

Week 6: Digital citizenship 2 - Activism and protest.

What is Digital Citizenship? Digital citizenship is used to refer the potential benefit for society as a whole that comes from new digital and social media tools and their ability to ‘facilitate the membership and participation of individuals within society’ (Mossberger, 2008, p. 1). It helps technology leaders, teachers and parents to understand what children/students/technology users should know how to use technology in the appropriate way. It is more than just a teaching tool, it was a way to prepare users for a society full of technology (Mike Ribble, 2015).

The cyber activists who want to shut down ISIS:

In August 2014, a Twitter account that was affiliated with the hacker group Anonymous, declared a full scale cyber war against ISIS. Anonymous will do its part in combating ISIS’s influence in social media and shut them down (Simon Cottee, 2015).

Anonymous is believed to be setting up protest in a number of major cities across the globe for masked members to show unity against the Islamic State.

When the terrorist attacks happened in Paris, a group that were associated with the hackers’ known as Anonymous had announced #OpParis, a social media campaign against ISIS (Brian Mastroianni, 2015).

“This is only the beginning, ISIS. We will hunt you, take down your sites, accounts, emails and expose you … You will be treated like a virus and we are the cure,” stated a masked activist in a video posted on YouTube. “We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. ISIS, it is too late to expect us” (Brian Mastroianni, 2015).

While French, Russia and the United States bombers are targeting Islamic Sate areas from the sky, Anonymous are making their own devastating campaign against the terrorist origination. They are using computer codes rather than a high-powered weapons and say that the hacktivist group has built tools that might be a better approach than the world governments tool to combat ISIS (The Daily Sheeple, 2015).

In a YouTube video by Anonymous, the group had said: “More than 20,000 Twitter account belonging to ISIS were taken down by Anonymous.” They have provided a whole list of accounts that have been taken down (The Daily Sheeple, 2015). But answer this, how effective has the web-based operation really been counteracting the terrorist group effective reach?  

References:

Mike Ribble, 2015, Digital citizenship, using technology appropriately, Retrieved 8 December, 2015, from http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/

Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C., & McNeal, R 2008, Digital Citizenship: The Internet, Society, and Participation, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.

Simon Cottee, October 8th 2015, Can Cyber Activists Chase ISIS off Twitter? [Weblog], Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/10/anonymous-activists-isis-twitter/409312/

Brian Mastroianni, November 24th 2015, Anonymous vs ISIS: Who has the upper hand in social media war? [Weblog], Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/anonymous-vs-isis-social-media-war/

The Daily Sheeple, 2015, YOU’RE A VIRUS, WE’RE THE CURE’: ANONYMOUS TAKES DOWN 20,000 ISIS TWITTER ACCOUNTS. [Weblog]. Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.thedailysheeple.com/youre-a-virus-were-the-cure-anonymous-takes-down-20000-isis-twitter-accounts_112015

Anonymous protest: http://blogs.ft.com/photo-diary/files/2013/11/anonymous.jpg

Keep calm: http://data.whicdn.com/images/64595778/large.png

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice post aleksnajd. I follow the activist groups on social media, myself. A pity that some posts by these groups are just randomly shared, and not always checked for facts. I feel they waste my time in reading all the hype comments debating on what is and isn’t true. I think activists should be active in confirming the truth from the lies. It’s the reason I’ll take time out in my busy schedule to hear what they have to say :-)

[my-digital-world-blog]

Really good post, lots of interesting information presented in a non-biased tone.  Thank you, an enjoyable read. I think we will see more of this type of activism in the future regarding terrorist groups. 

[ruedigital-blog]

I think because we are all so connected, its amazing that a person in their room can actually have war with a terrorist group... and actually hurt them, by disconnecting them! great blog

[ruedigital-blog]

[ruedigital-blog]

We can share from anywhere!

[ruedigital-blog]

Visual communities and social imaging

Gone are the days of sitting around an album with the family around the fire, with father telling tales about each photo. Photos used to be an intimate thing that was only shared with family and close friends. Now in this visual community, we share photos at will, instantly, and it doesn't even have to be a significant moment.

“Mobile cameras and image sharing platforms; from YouTube to Snapchat via Facebook, Instagram, Flickr as well as Tumblr and Pinterest have enabled new visual modes of expression, sharing and communication” (Swinburne Online). And its not only a one way communication, people can comment instantly on the photos we share. The problem is, it can be both negative and positive comments. Individuals can then forward and share your photos to other groups which you had not shared with. This is why these platforms have also “raised a number of anxieties and difficult ethical and even legal issues regarding our control over our own image” Week 9.

Having said that, studies have shown that people prefer images and videos over text and therefore interact with them more. On Facebook in 2014, they were over “12.3 billion video views” (Oursocialtimes.com, 2014). We also note that the 12.3 billion is just talking about videos views only and NOT looking at the image views. Its incredible. This preference to interact with visuals and images is also highlighted by the growth of Instagram. Instagram grew by 50% between March and December 2014 and exceeded the 300 million user mark.

New culture and trends such as the Selfie culture and Vines have grown so quickly as we have become more and more engaged with visuals. The advances in technology have allowed us to increase social circles and now improved the way we can communicate. I travel a lot, so being able to share moments with my girlfriend, not just explaining, but for her to see and almost experience what I'm experiencing is incredible. We can share the food we are eating, the clothes are are wearing and much more. The world have become a massive visual community.

References Digital Responsibility, 2016. Sharing Inappropriate Photos or Information Online. [online] Available at: <http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/sharing-inappropriate-photos-or-information-online/> [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Oursocialtimes.com, 2014. 8 useful social media statistics for 2015 | Our Social Times - Social Media Agency, Social Media Training. [online] Available at: <http://oursocialtimes.com/8-useful-social-media-statistics-for-2015/> [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

Swinburne Online, 2016. Visual communities and social imaging. [online] Available at: <https://ilearn.swin.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-5190914-dt-content-rid-26655219_2/courses/2015-SO3-MDA20009-210404/UnitLearningMaterials/week-09.html> [Accessed 1 Feb. 2016].

[ruedigital-blog]

Get information from as many people as.....

[ruedigital-blog]

Crowdsourcing

Opening Statement:

“In times of crisis - natural disaster and the like - our communication systems very often go down, just as they are needed most. In the response to crisis, our media and communication technologies are vital in delivering precise, timely information, and for organising action. They are also important in the process of recovery. At these times we also see a great deal of innovation in use of communication tools, including social media” (Swinburne Online 2016).

Crowdsourcing is a new way of utilising social media to gather information. A lot of emergency services have invested in systems to allow them to “crowdsource” information. Generally “crowdsourcing is the process of getting work or funding, usually online, from a crowd of people. The word is a combination of the words 'crowd' and 'sourcing'. The idea is to take work and outsource it to a crowd of workers” (Bratvold, 2016), or in the case of emergencies, general people. What you will be outsourcing is the information gathering, which would then assist in formulating an appropriate response.

A lot of systems have been developed to use the data from users in various ways. The Ushahidi Crowdmapping software for example, has the “ability to synthesize and geotag user-generated content. It’s been used to map casualties in South Sudan, provide critical humanitarian information during the earthquake in Haiti and, most recently, to map out casualties in the Syrian war” (Plucinska, 2014).

Crowdsourcing gathers information being posted and shared on social media platforms. It is reliant on people communicating and sharing information in crisis. “In Australia during disasters such as the 2011 Queensland floods, and the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, emergency services made some use of social media tools to both distribute and gather information” (Swinburne Online 2016). However, Australian emergency services have been criticised for underutilising the tool.

Check out this Prezi Presentation we created on Crowdsourcing:

https://prezi.com/wyfa8y-eq4nw/victoria-bush-fires/

References

Bratvold, D., 2016. What is Crowdsourcing - Daily Crowdsource. [online] Daily Crowdsource. Available at: <http://dailycrowdsource.com/training/crowdsourcing/what-is-crowdsourcing> [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

Plucinska, J., 2014. Crowdsourcing during a crisis has its drawbacks. [online] Poynter. Available at: <http://www.poynter.org/2014/crowdsourcing-during-a-crisis-has-its-drawbacks/268581/> [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

Swinburne Online, 2016. Crowdsourcing in times of crisis. [online] Available at: <https://ilearn.swin.edu.au/bbcswebdav/pid-5190913-dt-content-rid-26655218_2/courses/2015-SO3-MDA20009-210404/UnitLearningMaterials/week-08.html> [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

[discoveringdigital-blog]

Week 7: Digital citizenship 3: Trolling and social media conflict

According the online blog, Mamamia (2015), “one in five Australian children aged eight to 15 has experienced cyberbullying” and there is little doubt that this could dramatically increase as the number and prevalence of social media platforms increases.

Even adults are susceptible to trolling on social media with often significant consequences. In February 2014 Charlotte Dawson committed suicide (SMH 2014). The prolific social media user had many battles but also had to fight against constant negativity and trolling on Twitter and Instagram.

International celebrities have also been victims with much publicised cases of Zelda Williams (Robin Williams’ daughter), Matt Lucas (comedian), Stephen Fry (author) and Tom Clarke (singer) all having been on the receiving end of such significant social media abuse that they stopped using their Twitter accounts (The UK Telegraph 2014). Interestingly, all but one have resumed their usage of Twitter, perhaps because of a social media addiction, perhaps due to commercial interests. Whatever the reason, there is a gravitational pull that social media has that is no doubt amplified if you have over 12 million follower like Stephen Fry (2016) has.

Social media sites have various age restrictions in place to help protect users. Facebook Instagram, YouTube, Tumblr, Twitter, Ask.fm and Google+ have all settled on a minimum age requirement of 13 according to the Australian Government’s Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner’s website. However this doesn’t necessarily stop children using the sites as a different birth date will provide access. This is where adult supervision and monitoring is required to not only educate children and warn them of the dangers, but also to verify that they are not subject to cyberbullying, trolling, flaming or other aggressive or predatory behaviour from people they know, or perhaps more scarily, people they don’t.

The very nature of social media means that cyberbullying can escalate quickly and spread rapidly through a multitude of networks.  Not only can these leave severe mental scars, it can also never really be erased as electronic records can be restored and screen captures remain – long after the event has subsided.

In an interview with Paul Fletcher (2014), the Parliamentary Secretary for Communications, said the Government was proposing a ‘Children’s eSafety Commissioner’ that would have power to force social media platforms to remove content if it was directed to. This was in response to a lack of action when users report inappropriate behaviour using the platform’s own functionality.

It’s clear that social media is here to stay and that society needs to catch up with the technology to educate, prevent and stop any cyberbullying or related activity that can have such a dramatically negative impact on all people, particularly the young.

References

Mamamia 2015, 1 in 5 Australian kids have experienced this. And the consequences can be devastating, viewed 12th January 2016, <http://www.mamamia.com.au/cyberbullying-statistics-in-australia/>

Sunday Morning Herald 2014, Charlotte Dawson found dead, viewed 12th January 2016, <http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/charlotte-dawson-found-dead-20140222-338j6.html>

 The Telegraph 2014, Twitter trolls: The celebrities who’ve been driven off social media by abuse, <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11238018/Celebrity-Twitter-trolls-The-famous-people-whove-been-driven-off-social-media-by-abuse.html>

Twitter 2016, Stephen fry, viewed 12th January 2016, <https://twitter.com/stephenfry>

Australian Government’s Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner, Games, apps and social networking, viewed 12th January, <https://esafety.gov.au/esafety-information/games-apps-and-social-networking>

ABC Law Report 2014, Can a cyber-bullying commissioner protect our kids?, viewed 12th January, <http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lawreport/5286036>

[ruedigital-blog]

Nice Blog! It really does bring thins into light. Most people think its just teens that suffer cyberbullying but obviously not!

[ruedigital-blog]

#TrollFrustrations