WEEK 5: DISNEY - Genius or piracy?

A world without copyright, can you imagine that?



Well, lets face it, we are all criminals. I'm sure we have all accessed files illegally at least once in our lives.

I never knew (until the lecture) the publishing industry bloomed through piracy. It just amazes me to see that there have been such significant changes since the implementation of copyright laws.


I also wonder if some of the famous academics we recognize today are actually not what we make them out to be. Maybe they have stolen someone else's work and claimed it as their own. As an example of this idea Lawrence Lessig (2004) argues that Walt Disney's creativity was "built upon the works of others".


To think that a little part of our childhood was derived from someone else's 'genius' really makes me question of all the other content that we have ever been exposed to.


I'm really hoping Aladdin wasn't stolen or derived from someone else.


Piracy really makes me question whether the content we access these days are actually original or just a stolen copy of someone else's work.

Do you think you can trust all the sources you come across? Do you believe it to be the original source?




Lessig, L. (2004). Creators. In Free Culture: How Big Media uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Strangle Creativity (pp. 21-30). New York: Penguin, URL: http://www.authorama.com/free-culture-4.html

WEEK 4: FACEBOOK at work? YES PLEASE.. WORK at the beach? NO THANKS

I think we have all found ourselves in a position where we are out with friends having dinner and find ourselves switching back and forth from Facebook or Twitter. I did not know that this habit could be defined in a term, that is, presence bleed.


We have evolved from liquid labour to presence bleed. Technology is so evolved that we have it at our dinning table, but let's face it, how many of us actually sit at the dinner table and don't give any attention to our phone? It's not about what information we access, it's actually about where and how we access it. 


The reading by Bradwell & Reeves explores organisational thinking in terms of social media. Bradwell and Reeves (2008) note that "more manually intensive employment has moved out" and evidently workers are now dependent on technology to complete the days tasks. With the evolution of technology it now means that a one can simply work from home. But does this not evade the total concept of leisure?  Isn't home our sanctuary, where we not need any stress or tension? We don't have to be at work to engage in work, we can be at home or even at the beach like this guy:

Hang on! Would we not then be blurring the lines between leisure and work? 

Well, yes we would. But I believe that it is now becoming more and more evident to not just employees but employers too that there is now an overlapping of both work and leisure. 

Bradwell and Reeves (2008) also discuss the way in which that some business have "begun to embrace the way social networks work". Bradwell and Reeves (2008) also mention that now employers are offering values that "match those of potential employees".  Does this mean that employers are now going to allow their employees to access Facebook or twitter through their work computer at any given time of the day? or even more extraordinary, that is, working from home?

Bradwell, P., and Reeves, R. (2008) Economies. In Networked Citizens (pp. 25-31). London: Demos. Accessed 18th August, 2011, http://www.demos.co.uk/files/Network%20citizens%20-%20web.pdf


Image sourced from: http://thevecciblog.files.wordpress.com

WEEK 3: CYBERSPACE; an act of nature

In the reading by Barlow (1996) lead me to consider our internet usage. Barlow (1996) explores issues concerning the sharing of information in cyberspace. 


Barlow (1996) defines Cyberspace as '...an act of nature that grows itself through our collective actions'. I believe this to be true, it is so evident even now after 15 years. The internet has become such a large platform for expression and sharing of information. It is larger than ever with consistent activity and information flow. I believe most of the information shared on the internet comes from "our collective efforts", that is sharing information through platforms such as Facebook pages, Youtube, blog posts, comments, Tweets and other uploads.

Barlow (1996) also states in the reading that online we have no 'elected government or greater authority'. I find this statement to be true to an extent, for example at the moment users are provided with options for reporting and blocking content. In this sense we are our own allocated authority. However, this statement is also untrue in the sense that we also have constant online monitoring and regulation of information and websites by authorities. 

I believe online information is freely shared to an extent as well. However,  there are still underlying issues such as plagiarism and piracy that concern sharing of content. As user of the internet I also believe that it is our "collective efforts" that make the internet so plentiful in information and it is only natural that is grows.

Barlow, JP 1996, 'A Declaration of the independence of Cyberspace', https://projects.eff.org/~barlow/Declaration-Final.html, Accessed 11/8/11

WEEK 2: THE FINELINES AND IMPLICATIONS OF VIRTUAL REALITY

In the lecture this week we spoke about the influence of the invention of the telegraph on other technologies and inventions. I however was more interested by this week’s reading by Lawrence Lessig, “Four puzzles from cyber space”. In the reading Lessig (2006) discusses cyberspace and the fine lines between it and reality.

There are a number of stories or scenarios given in the reading. Some describe situations where neighbours are fighting over land, ‘deadly flowers and dogs that can easily be replaced’ (Lessig, L 2006, pg. 10). Before reaching the midsection of the scenario I had realised that it was not something that had taken place in real life. This was a scenario taken from an MMOG or “massively multiplayer online game” (Lessig, L 2006, pg. 9). 

Lessig (2006) further draws on the borders and fine lines between reality itself and virtual reality. He states that “virtual spaces let the user control the characters on screen in real time” (Lessig, L 2006, pg. 11). When you think about factors such as real time and effort being dedicated for an online accomplishment it may not make really any sense.  However, I believe that other factors such as real life characteristics within the game truly engage the player i.e., being able to build a house, garden, have pets and most of all alter your physical appearance.

To further support my blog I wanted to share a video that I originally saw on Today Tonight – 4/8/2011. I have sourced it from the Today Tonight website, the video shows some of the implications of online gaming on teenagers. The video discusses they way in which the young gamer: 

• Quit her job
• Stopped seeing friends
• Stopped going to school 
• Would not eat or sleep

Lessig, L 2006, "Four puzzles from cyber space”, Code version 2.0, New York

Today Tonight, 2011, Television program, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Sydney, 4^th August.

WEEK 1: WHO AM I?!

Oh hai. 

 Who am I you ask? 

Well... My name is Varsha, I'm 20 years old soon to be 21 in October (YAY). I am Fijian-Indian, I was born in Fiji and moved to Australia when I was 9 years old. I am currently studying a BA in Media and Communications with a major in Advertising and marketing. It is my final semester, hopefully. I LOVE baking (especially cupcakes, YUM), travelling, sleeping (come on who doesn't love sleep?) and I LOVE my family and friends. 

I don't have many hates..


My experience of massively multi player online games would be on sites such as IMVU  and Second Life. I however prefer the Sims over online mutli player gaming - it's funner that way. :) 



The end.