Here is a great tongue in cheek video created by GetUp.org.au. Worth watching...
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
The study of Gaming and Gamers.
I am beginning to accept that this course reduces my comments to "I must admit I had not considered/thought of/realised etc". I must be the most naive person on the planet when it comes to technology and any offshoots of such technology. That something that is so pervasive could be so unnoticeable is staggering. OR, is it that it is because it is so entrenched into my everyday world that I do not notice it? Today is a case in point. People have jobs that study gamers and games??? What the....I must admit that I had never thought.....here I go....that games were of any value to society other than a huge time waster for teenage boys. Evidently not! After listening to the lecture today, I realise that not only is the gaming industry possibly bigger than the movie industry, but is has run parallel with and influenced the development of the internet too. Before gaming 'took off' the military were engaging people to design 'games' to train and prepare their soldiers in the 'art' of war. The gaming industry attracts many different study approaches, such as:
- the demographics of the users (are they all really geeky teenage boys or in fact 25-40 year olds)
- the humanities approach (what are the meanings that are made from the games?)
- the engineering approach (the actual craft of designing games).
As far back as 1903, W.H. Holmes wrote:
There are many more approaches, but one cannot ignore the fact that only through studying and understanding the effect of games on the gamer can we begin to accept games as drivers of technological change and advancement.
References:
The repeatedly lost art of studying games. Retrieved 25 January 2011, from: http://www.gamestudies.org/0101/juul-review/
- the demographics of the users (are they all really geeky teenage boys or in fact 25-40 year olds)
- the humanities approach (what are the meanings that are made from the games?)
- the engineering approach (the actual craft of designing games).
As far back as 1903, W.H. Holmes wrote:
The popular notion that games ... are trivial in nature and of no particular significance as a subject of research soon gave way, under the well-conducted studies of Mr. Culin, to an adequate appreciation of their importance as an integral part of human culture. (p.57)
References:
The repeatedly lost art of studying games. Retrieved 25 January 2011, from: http://www.gamestudies.org/0101/juul-review/
Monday, January 24, 2011
Tutorial 6 answers to questions...
Q1. What is the weight of the world’s biggest machine? How much did it cost to build?
A: Knock Nevi's: World's Largest Ship Ever Constructed. It weighs 564,763 tons. It cost $9 billion dollars
http://www.knock-nevis.com/
Q2. Find a live webcam in Antarctica. Can you find a place to stay in Antarctica?
Q4. What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?
A. Using Tiger Airways - $38.95.
Q5. Who is Douglas Engelbart? What is he know for?
A Douglas Engelbart is an American computer scientist and inventor born January 30, 1925 in Portland, Oregon. He is known for inventing the computer mouse.
http://iae-pedia.org/Douglas_Engelbart
Q6. What is the best way (quickest, most reliable) to contact Stephen Conroy? (who is this guy?)
A: Senator Stephen Conroy is the Australian Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. You can either telephone him on 03 9408 0190 or email him at minister@dbcde.gov.au, but be sure to add your postal address if you do.
Q7. What song was top of the Australian pop charts this week in 1990?
A: "How am I supposed to live without you" - Michael Bolton. (I loved this song...how sad am I).
http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1990/main.htm
Q8. How would you define the term 'ontology'? In your own words, what does it really mean?
A The branch of metaphysics that deals with the nature of being. The study and categorising of things that may or may not exist.
http://www.answers.com/topic/ontology
Q9. What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
A: A camera created by Immersive Media.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9724604-1.html
Q10. Name three computer operating systems (not for phones) that are NOT Apple OS or MS-Windows operating systems?
1a. Linux - created in 1991d by Linus Torvalds
1b. You can get a copy of it from http://www.linux.org/
http://www.computerhope.com/unix.htm
2a. BSDUnix (This is a subgroup of Unix) - Unix was developed by some of the members of the Multics team at the bell labs starting in the late 1960's. 2b. You can get a copy of it from: http://www.tech-faq.com/where-to-download-unix.html
3a. Inferno - Inferno was first made in 1995 by members of Bell Labs' Computer Science Research division.
3b. Can be downloaded from here: http://www.vitanuova.com/inferno/downloads.html
A: Knock Nevi's: World's Largest Ship Ever Constructed. It weighs 564,763 tons. It cost $9 billion dollars
http://www.knock-nevis.com/
Q2. Find a live webcam in Antarctica. Can you find a place to stay in Antarctica?
Aboard an expedition vessel - http://www.selectlatinamerica.co.uk/destinations/antarctica/accommodation
Q3. When and what was the first example of global digital communication?
A:1931 Teletype. http://vig.pearsoned.co.uk/catalog/uploads/Glover_Digital%20Comms_C01%20reduced%20file%20size.pdf
Q4. What is the cheapest form of travel from the Gold Coast to Melbourne?
A. Using Tiger Airways - $38.95.
Q5. Who is Douglas Engelbart? What is he know for?
A Douglas Engelbart is an American computer scientist and inventor born January 30, 1925 in Portland, Oregon. He is known for inventing the computer mouse.
Q6. What is the best way (quickest, most reliable) to contact Stephen Conroy? (who is this guy?)
A: Senator Stephen Conroy is the Australian Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. You can either telephone him on 03 9408 0190 or email him at minister@dbcde.gov.au, but be sure to add your postal address if you do.
Q7. What song was top of the Australian pop charts this week in 1990?
A: "How am I supposed to live without you" - Michael Bolton. (I loved this song...how sad am I).
http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1990/main.htm
Q8. How would you define the term 'ontology'? In your own words, what does it really mean?
A The branch of metaphysics that deals with the nature of being. The study and categorising of things that may or may not exist.
http://www.answers.com/topic/ontology
Q9. What type of camera is used to make ‘Google Street View’?
A: A camera created by Immersive Media.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9724604-1.html
Q10. Name three computer operating systems (not for phones) that are NOT Apple OS or MS-Windows operating systems?
1a. Linux - created in 1991d by Linus Torvalds
1b. You can get a copy of it from http://www.linux.org/
http://www.computerhope.com/unix.htm
2a. BSDUnix (This is a subgroup of Unix) - Unix was developed by some of the members of the Multics team at the bell labs starting in the late 1960's. 2b. You can get a copy of it from: http://www.tech-faq.com/where-to-download-unix.html
3a. Inferno - Inferno was first made in 1995 by members of Bell Labs' Computer Science Research division.
3b. Can be downloaded from here: http://www.vitanuova.com/inferno/downloads.html
Free derivatives of Unix can be easily downloaded via the Internet. This sets Unix apart from other proprietary operating systems like Microsoft Windows.
The different versions of Unix and Unix-like operating systems available for download include FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Red Hat Fedora Linux, Debian Linux, Ubuntu Linux, and Sun Solaris
Ohhhh, look at me on Second Life...
Jusie Shilling (aka Julie Prinsloo). My avatar in Second Life whilst visiting Princeton University. Not quite the typical sort of clothing I would wear.
Jusie is interacting with some fellow avatars in GNC world.
Internet Privacy - what is that?
The lecture today talked about internet privacy and the fact that there is very little of it. Facebook is a necessary evil in my life as without it I sadly feel isolated from the world. I do not post comments, status updates or use the apps on Facebook as I I have always steered away from putting much information about myself on the internet as I did not want colleauges or friends to see. However, what concerned me greatly was the fact that apps that my friends use can form a 'trail' of information relating to ME! University student groups only use Facebook to post possible PD's for teachers and this forces me to remain 'in touch' with the world by continuing to be a Facebook stalker. I gleen through countless mundane and useless bits of information about what was eaten for lunch, bad hair and pets gone mad just in case I may miss that one bit of information that a lecturer may have given, a PD worth attending or a change in someone's status (my cousin's way of announcing to the world he had just got engaged...nice personal touch - still waiting for the PERSONAL phone call, email, sms etc etc). On these desperate reconnaissance activities that I balk in horror at the comments of fellow students considering the ramafications such actions could have. Case in point - Rauchy teachers on Facebook. Two female Warwick high school teachers uploaded raunchy photos of themselves on Facebook and are awaiting further action from Education Queensland.
The code of conduct for teachers states:
"You must not use internet social networks such as Face Book, My Space or YouTube to contact or access present students enrolled in any school or institute. If you use internet social networks in your personal time you must ensure that the content is appropriate and private, and that you restrict access to specific people who are not students" (EQ Code of conduct, Retrieved 22 January 2011, from: http://education.qld.gov.au/corporate/codeofconduct/pdfs/code_of_conduct.pdf).
"Content is appropriate and private"...is there such a thing on Facebook. There is an illusion of privacy on the internet; it is just you and the screen as there is no other physical presence with you at the time of posting comments etc, yet it is not so. Facebook teaches you to undervalue privacy…it conditions you. Content can be seen out of context and affect future careers. The site should come with a warning 'use of this site may be hazardous to your privacy, health, career, love life and even your sanity'.
I realise now how important it is for me as a teacher to teach students about the importance of privacy and that it should not be traded for a slice of Facebook, Twitter or any other social media. Privacy is not only important for your reputation, it can sometimes be essential for your personal safety too. As in the real world, the virtual environment is home to many sexual predators who glean information from sites such as Facebook. Organisations such as ThinkUKnow have been set up to teach of these dangers. "ThinkUKnow is an Internet safety program delivering interactive training to parents, carers and teachers through primary and secondary schools across Australia using a network of accredited trainers.
Created by the UK Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre, ThinkUKnow Australia has been developed by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Microsoft Australia" (ThinkUKNow website, retrieved 22 January 2011).
Teaching students critical thinking skills pertaining to the internet and WWW will become crutial now and in the future. The world is certainly not WYSIWYG (What-you-see-is-what-you-get) anymore.
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