Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Social Networking. The key to Obama's success.
In this article the Obama administration displayed many effective techniques and strategy in placing Barack Obama as one of the top Presidential candidates. One of the most known and new strategy in this presidential Campaign is Social networking. The Obama Administration uses social networking to their advantage to gain more supporters and voters to their side. The article briefly describes how each team raised money for each campaign. An example below shows the Comparison of money raised by each team.
"In April the Obama team had raised a further $31m (£15.8m) for its campaign. TheClintons
"In April the Obama team had raised a further $31m (£15.8m) for its campaign. The
Barack Obama now has close to $38m cash in hand for the remaining campaign, compared with
As you can see the Obama administration gains the advantage over the Clinton campaign. But the key to Obama's success is social networking. Some big social networks used to the Obama administration advantage is FaceBook. FaceBook is one of the biggest social networking system in the world and most popular now. By putting up dozen of pages on FaceBook asking people for support, the Obama administration now have an estimate of 6,796,009 people supporting the Obama administration on FaceBook.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Smart Mobs Flash Mobs Politics Performance
What is a Smart Mob?
Smart Mobs as defined by Howard Rheingold
Recent news about Smart Mobs from Rheingold's Smart Mob site:
http://www.smartmobs.com/category/smart-mobs-and-the-power-of-the-mobile-many/
Smart Mob Videos:
Smart mobs del 13M en España: noche de los mensajes cortos (ciberperiodismoblog)
Este video ejemplifica lo que el pueblo español logró hacer a través de un Smart Mob tras los atentados del 11 de marzo: dar un vuelco a las elecciones.
La noche del 13 de marzo de 2004, "cientos de personas sin un mismo convocante que las uniera, coincidieron protestando frente a la sede del Partido Popular. En ese momento en España se jugaba el destino de las elecciones".
Check out this clip posted by ciberperiodismoblog as well: "Multitudes Inteligentes Smart Mobs"
Les Flash Mobs (mobuzzFR):
Frozen Grand Central ( 2008, ImprovEverywhere )
Supermarket Flashmob (Freeze Frame, tomcuz84)
flash mob stary browar poznań 12.05.07 (Poland, pajksel)
"Vote the Bastards Out" (Australia, 2007, nekonoir)
"Stephen Taberner leads an impromptu choir , instructing Australian voters in the appropriate action to take on Saturday the 24th of November."
Biggest Flash Mob Ever (2007, youcanawesome)
Howcast: "How To Smart Mob" (February, 2009)
Smart Mobs have become so common place that there are even generic how-to YouTube videos explaining in very simple terms exactly what you need to do to create your very own smart mob:
Howard Rheingold: "Address to Korean smart mobs How to become smarter, not mobbier PART 1 OF 2" (August, 2009.)
Howard Rheingold: "Address to Korean smart mobs How to become smarter, not mobbier PART 1 OF 2" (August, 2009.)
Smart Mobs as defined by Howard Rheingold
Recent news about Smart Mobs from Rheingold's Smart Mob site:
http://www.smartmobs.com/category/smart-mobs-and-the-power-of-the-mobile-many/
Smart Mob Videos:
Smart mobs del 13M en España: noche de los mensajes cortos (ciberperiodismoblog)
Este video ejemplifica lo que el pueblo español logró hacer a través de un Smart Mob tras los atentados del 11 de marzo: dar un vuelco a las elecciones.
La noche del 13 de marzo de 2004, "cientos de personas sin un mismo convocante que las uniera, coincidieron protestando frente a la sede del Partido Popular. En ese momento en España se jugaba el destino de las elecciones".
Check out this clip posted by ciberperiodismoblog as well: "Multitudes Inteligentes Smart Mobs"
Les Flash Mobs (mobuzzFR):
Frozen Grand Central ( 2008, ImprovEverywhere )
Supermarket Flashmob (Freeze Frame, tomcuz84)
flash mob stary browar poznań 12.05.07 (Poland, pajksel)
"Vote the Bastards Out" (Australia, 2007, nekonoir)
"Stephen Taberner leads an impromptu choir , instructing Australian voters in the appropriate action to take on Saturday the 24th of November."
Biggest Flash Mob Ever (2007, youcanawesome)
Howcast: "How To Smart Mob" (February, 2009)
Smart Mobs have become so common place that there are even generic how-to YouTube videos explaining in very simple terms exactly what you need to do to create your very own smart mob:
Howard Rheingold: "Address to Korean smart mobs How to become smarter, not mobbier PART 1 OF 2" (August, 2009.)
Howard Rheingold: "Address to Korean smart mobs How to become smarter, not mobbier PART 1 OF 2" (August, 2009.)
Labels: Digital Democracy, flash mobs, smart mobs
Morozov on Moldova's Twitter Revolution
Evgeny Morozov, is a "Yahoo Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University." He writes about the effect of the internet on politics. Check out his blog net.effect which is hosted by Foreign Policy magazine.
There was a political uprising in Moldova in April of 2009 [read: Ellen Barry, “Protests in Moldova Explode, With Help of Twitter,” 2009.]
Check out Morozov's analysis of this rebellion: Moldova's Twitter Revolution followed by two updates: #1 "More analysis of Twitter's role in Moldova," & #2 "Moldova's Twitter revolution is NOT a myth."
Evgeny Morozov gave a TED Talk on "How the Net aids dictatorships" in July, 2009.
Labels: Digital Democracy, Moldova, social networks, Twitter
"New political tool: text messaging,"
According to the article "New political tool: text messaging" Cathy Hong describes how text messaging is one of the best ways to spread information. She speaks about how text messaging can bring together a rally,
"I don't think the rally would have been big if we didn't have cellphones," says Im Soon-jae, one of the organizers. "We would not have been able to spread the information about this as quickly."help in presidential elections,
"With the support of alternative news websites like OhMyNews and SMS messaging, Roh won the presidency by a slim 2 percent margin. "I heard stories where Koreans would interrupt their ski trips and come into the city to vote because of panicked text messages from friends," says Jean Min, OhMyNews international director."
and can land in the hands of terrorist groups.
"Al Qaeda has been using mobile communication to organize."In nations such as China, where the internet is censored, cellphones are more important. It is the easiest way to spread information, without being monitored.
"It's like the poor person's Internet," Rheingold says. "A fisherman in China might not have a computer, but he has a mobile phone which tells him which port to fish, the market prices, and so on."When dealing with every day text messaging, I think it's ridiculous. In my opinion, text messaging is just an easy way out. It can make you forget how to talk to someone in real life; because you write down your feelings, instead of expressing them through speech. You might take a text message the wrong way by thinking "oh, so and so is giving me an attitude" but how can you tell? you can't hear their voice. They can lead to meaningless fights, which can be avoidable.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Outsourcing Workers Stressed
India, not the first place you think of when you think of jobs, is becoming one of the leading regions in respect to employment. Outsourcing now a days is very common especially in the technology industry. Once happy and grateful employees of American outsourcing are becoming less pleased with their current positions. As stated in the article India outsourcing workers stressed to the limit,
The people that work/ live on these campuses are all suffering from similar problems, such as “obesity, sleep disorders, depression and broken relationships”, all which can lead to greater problems in the future. Due to the economic collapse in the rest of the world, more stress has been placed on the employees in order to manage work and meet goals set by the companies in order to keep their jobs.
Although the outsourcing worker may benefit from all the opportunities one encounters while working for these business, they also have to be ready to face all the obstacles that come along with the job.
“People in India's outsourcing industry are beginning to discover, underneath
the heady promise of an exciting job, a good paycheck and attractive career
prospects lie long spells of night shifts, ruthless targets and the dreadful
monotony of writing code or pacifying angry customers.”
The people that work/ live on these campuses are all suffering from similar problems, such as “obesity, sleep disorders, depression and broken relationships”, all which can lead to greater problems in the future. Due to the economic collapse in the rest of the world, more stress has been placed on the employees in order to manage work and meet goals set by the companies in order to keep their jobs.
Although the outsourcing worker may benefit from all the opportunities one encounters while working for these business, they also have to be ready to face all the obstacles that come along with the job.
Clay Shirky on New Media and Democracy (TED, 2009)
Clay Shirky on "How Social Media Can Make History", June 2009. [TED Talks]
Labels: Digital Democracy
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Our CTO on Net Neutrality
Did you know that the Federal Government has a CTO? His name is Aneesh Chopra Listen to him discuss Net Neutrality and other tech issues in this CNET interview with Molly Wood (CNET) and Declan McCullagh (CBS News):
Net Neutrality?
The PBS news show "NOW" created a 14 minute report on the net neutrality question:
PBS NOW Episode: Tangled Web (June 2, 2006.)
Watch Tim Berners-Lee warning about about this serious threat to the future of the internet:
Tim Berners Lee, "Net Neutrality: This is serious" (June, 2006.)
Jon Stewart's Daily Show on Net Neutrality (July 19,2006.)
Savetheinternet.com Video explaining Net Neutrality
"Free Press General Counsel Marvin Ammori speaks on Capitol Hill about Comcast's ongoing blocking of content-sharing applications such as BitTorrent. " (February, 2008.)
PBS NOW Episode: Tangled Web (June 2, 2006.)
Watch Tim Berners-Lee warning about about this serious threat to the future of the internet:
Tim Berners Lee, "Net Neutrality: This is serious" (June, 2006.)
Jon Stewart's Daily Show on Net Neutrality (July 19,2006.)
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Net Neutrality Act | ||||
| ||||
Savetheinternet.com Video explaining Net Neutrality
"Free Press General Counsel Marvin Ammori speaks on Capitol Hill about Comcast's ongoing blocking of content-sharing applications such as BitTorrent. " (February, 2008.)
Labels: net neutrality
One (underpowered) Laptop Per Child.
Bringing technology to places around the world where it just does not exist sounds like a great idea. There are many people who either are not aware it actually exists, or just can not afford the luxury of things like Internet, hard drives, and touch pads. Nicholas Negroponte, the founding director of M.I.T's media lab wants to help alleviate this problem. He has introduced a laptop computer which only costs $100. The hope is that the computer cost will be so low that governments in developing nations will buy them in bulk and turn them over to children who live in remote and poor areas of the world.
It is Negropontes hope that this revolutionizes the way children learn around the world. This program is under some criticism however. There are those that state the laptop is se
verely underpowered and has more in common with a toy, rather than a computer. Bill Gates states "Geez, get a decent computer where you can actually read the text and you're not sitting there cranking the thing while you're trying to type."
The computer includes such amenities as word processing, WI-FI access, and a Linux operating system. (perhaps why Gates is not in favor)
I believe that while, yes, the computer may be underpowered, and rely on a crank to generate power for itself, it is in fact only $100, expected to drop to less than $50 by 2010. This computer in my opinion is a great tool for inspiring the minds of children around the world who do not as of current, have access to such technology. Out of 100 children who receive this computer, if 1 is inspired to learn more, go to college, and become part of the new, growing digital world, i believe that this program is worth saving.
For more information on the one laptop/one child program. Click here.
It is Negropontes hope that this revolutionizes the way children learn around the world. This program is under some criticism however. There are those that state the laptop is se
verely underpowered and has more in common with a toy, rather than a computer. Bill Gates states "Geez, get a decent computer where you can actually read the text and you're not sitting there cranking the thing while you're trying to type."The computer includes such amenities as word processing, WI-FI access, and a Linux operating system. (perhaps why Gates is not in favor)
I believe that while, yes, the computer may be underpowered, and rely on a crank to generate power for itself, it is in fact only $100, expected to drop to less than $50 by 2010. This computer in my opinion is a great tool for inspiring the minds of children around the world who do not as of current, have access to such technology. Out of 100 children who receive this computer, if 1 is inspired to learn more, go to college, and become part of the new, growing digital world, i believe that this program is worth saving.
For more information on the one laptop/one child program. Click here.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Indian call-centers losses its appeal
The Indian call centers have been an integral part of their economy for over a decade. Recently the appeal for young people to work in these centers have been dealt a serious blow due to the economic development in the country and the need for economic mobility, "
As recently as four years back, the choice was pretty clear, either you got a high-paying, good job at a call center or no job at all. Today, not only are there other options, but they are pretty close to the call centers [in terms of salaries]."Although the call centers have been very popular in the country the negative sides to it have been another reason for its decline over the years. For one it can get very tedious dealing with people form all over the world for long hours into the night. The workers also have to deal with racial and cultural abuse from unsatisfied customers. It is also known to have health risks like high blood pressure.
Today, Indian students strive to excel in order to avoid the pitfall of working in the call centers,
"Earlier it was considered cool to work at a call center," said Nishant Thakur, 19, after the group had dispersed. "That died out quite quickly." Added Thakur's friend, Vishal Lathwal, 19, "If you work at a call center today people will think you don't have anything else to do or were a bad student."
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Welcome to Bangalore
An overview of India as a rising economic power from ABC News:
Some stops on our virtual tour of Bangalore:
"Jeremy Goes to Bangalore"
Infosys Global Internship Program in Bangalore:
Cisco Globalisation Centre Unveiled in Bangalore: ["Cisco Chief Globalisation Officer Wim Elfrink answers some questions about the new Globalisation Centre in Bangalore, India."]
Some stops on our virtual tour of Bangalore:
"Jeremy Goes to Bangalore"
Infosys Global Internship Program in Bangalore:
Cisco Globalisation Centre Unveiled in Bangalore: ["Cisco Chief Globalisation Officer Wim Elfrink answers some questions about the new Globalisation Centre in Bangalore, India."]
Labels: bangalore, outsourcing
Monday, September 21, 2009
India’s software Silicon Valley, Bangalore
Bangalore is the capital of the Karnatake state located on the Deccan Plateau in the southeast. Before the development of the IT industry, it was the place renown as the leisure for the honeymoon and retiree.
In the book, “The World is Flat”, by Thomas L. Friedman, I found out the name of the city “Bangalore” which is renown as India’s software Silicon Valley. The author discovered an ideological theory, “ The World is Flat” when he return from Bangalore, India.
There are three big companies, which are Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro to lead software technology in the industry of Bangalore, India. The article, “Bangalore” by Richard Rapaport describes the present feature of Bangalore:
“Over the last quarter century, as hundreds of corporations have
moved in to take advantage of Bangalore’s temperate and dust-free
climate, cheap housing, and work force educated in information
technology, economic growth has bred a new set of woes. In that
time , the city has quadrupled in size, real estate prices have
quintupled, and a once gracious metropolis has began to choke
on its own pollution and gridlock.”
Also another article, “India’s Tech Renaissance, 2005” by Michael Kanellos explains well about the origin of the outsourcing industry in Bangalore. Fixing the Y2K problem, the Tata’s outsourced service made a tremendous product. From this burgeoning technology industry, India started to draw new phases in its economic evolution.
In India, there are problems that are in the way of developing the IT industry such as lack of infrastructure, authoritative government‘s restriction and India’s tax system etc. However, outsourcing could be the key to solve the problems because much of India’s population possesses well-educated young mind and people who work for relatively low wages. Bangalore has been presiding the global high-tech hot spot in the world through its geographic and human resources. I believe “the world is Flat”, this means that there will be no more guarantees that Americans or Western Europeans will be able to continue leading the way.
Networking to the World
The popularity of the internet has revolutionized the way in which information is sent out across the globe. It really does seem like a smaller world due to the technologies that enables people to have access to an enormous amount of information from the comfort of their homes.
An article in the New York Times by Thomas L. Freidman, examines the extent of the revolution.
His article explores the way different technological companies measure their power. Microsoft, one of the leading software development companies in the world measures its power by how many how many computers they have sold,
"Microsoft measured power by one ratio: personal computers per household. And on Microsoft's power map South Korea ranked highest in the world, with the U.S. and Japan also near the top; Europe was all on the rise, except for France; but the Middle East, save for Israel, was a black hole".
On the other hand, networking companies like Cisco Systems say that their power is measured by the amount of computers using their products that are connected to the internet. He also mentions the three factors that distinguish companies and countries, "
One is whether you have a business culture where your people are comfortable exploiting networks and sharing their knowledge. The second is whether you have a competitive culture in which big companies have to either constantly reinvent themselves or be overtaken by start-up companies, which is the essence of Silicon Valley. And the third factor is whether your company is good at creating strategic partnerships".
Friday, September 18, 2009
Join the Innovation Fray
It was a surprising news that globalization has been started since the discovery of the North America by Christopher Columbus in 1492. Through the lecture, we learned how digital revolution transformed our society, especially politics, economics and even an individual’s life.
The author, Thomas L. Freidman’s idea of flattened world by digital revolution has consisted of significant elements that go in a chronological order such as the collapsing of Berlin Wall, World Wide Web browser-Netscape, Workflow software, uploading, outsourcing, off-shoring, and supply-chaining.
The author, Thomas L. Freidman explains well about flattened world by the following statement;
“This created a global, Web-enabled playing field that allows for multiple
forms of collaboration on research and work in real time, without regard
to geography, distance or, in the near future, even language. “It is the cre-
ation of this platform with these unique attributes, that is the truly impor-
tant sustainable breakthrough that made what you call the flattening of the
world possible.”
Wal-Mart
With a combination of low prices and large selection, how is this once super giant of a business scrambling to keep up with other business around them? Because of Wal-Mart’s inability to provide consumers with the qualities they're looking for, consumers are now turning to these other retailers and choosing quality over price. Competitor retailers have been luring in consumers by offering them “greater convenience, more selection, higher quality, or better service”,causing people to shop at these other stores over Wal-Mart. (Wal-Mart Era Wanes Amid Big Shifts in Retail, Gary Mcwilliams)
As a result of these consumers looking for qualities that Wal-Mart doesn’t posses, companies that once played a role in Wal-Marts climb to the top have also been passing up opportunities and deals to sell their products here. For example Pepsi Co, who once played a big part in the Wal-Marts climb to the top a decade ago, choose not to let Wal-Mart participate in the launch of their new energy drink.
Digital Divide: One Laptop Per Child Project
World Focus Video on the One Laptop Per Child Project. in Rwanda (December 12, 2008):
Watch Nicholas Negroponte describe the One Laptop Per Child project in Columbia at the TED Conference in December of 2008.
Watch Nicholas Negroponte describe the One Laptop Per Child project in Columbia at the TED Conference in December of 2008.
Labels: Digital Divide, Microsoft, One Laptop Per Child, XO
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Save Money. Live Better.
Walmart, a company name many of us are familiar with. Walmart offers anything from school supplies, house hold cleaning products, to even jewelry. Walmart is there when many middle class families turn to for great products, at low prices. But is it really helping? For years there have been debates that large company such as Walmart, destroy small business due to there unbeatable low prices.
"Walmart loves to shock and awe. City-sized stores, absurdly low prices ($8 jeans) ad everything from milk to match box toys on its shelves" - USN News
Is this fair? Well, many argue that Walmart is too cheap for other smaller local markets to compete. Walmart, however does donate a fair share towards philanthropy. I guess that makes up for it...
PBS Frontline: Is Wal-Mart Good for America?
The PBS investigative news series Frontline has a great episode on Wal-Mart. Check out the accompanying web site for supporting materials. You can watch the show online.
Also check out this Friedman interview with Nayan Chanda, editor of YaleGlobal Online, from April of 2005. Friedman spends a lot of time discussing the role of Wal-Mart and the global supply chain.
Also check out this Friedman interview with Nayan Chanda, editor of YaleGlobal Online, from April of 2005. Friedman spends a lot of time discussing the role of Wal-Mart and the global supply chain.
Labels: Wal-Mart
The Golden Triangle
"The world in the ipod" discusses the thought of a golden triangle. Which it uses to describe the way a micro-chip is manufactured from the design in the U.S., engineering in India and the manufacturing in China. the author speaks about India being competitive with the U.S. as far as developmental work and the skill level of the technicians.
I believe soon or later the Indian technicians are going to realise they do not need U.S. companies. it is only a matter of time before Indian and Chinese companies form an alliance.
from the article 'Chip Designers Should Collaborate' i get the sense this has already started.
Where does this leave America? jobless and even more dependent on Asia?
I believe soon or later the Indian technicians are going to realise they do not need U.S. companies. it is only a matter of time before Indian and Chinese companies form an alliance.
from the article 'Chip Designers Should Collaborate' i get the sense this has already started.
Where does this leave America? jobless and even more dependent on Asia?
"where is wal-mart's fancy stuff? Try online".
Walmart is a store that sells a variety of things, such as food, electronics, things for your house, and more. Now they also sell jewelry, and that where this article comes in. this article is talkin about the fancy things that walmart has started to sell. They have started to sell more high priced platnum and diamond jewelry, cashmere sweaters and other goods designed to appeal more to the tiffany crowd(the more expensive shoppers) than to the bargain shoppers(the more cheaper shoppers) who browse the companys terrestrial store.
Walmart has a thing where they carry different items online than they do in their stores. They entertain that concept because"they do not want the website to divert sales from walmart stores. they also have good ratings. Many people visit their website and many people visit their stores, but more people visit their website than their stores because they get more online and thats the purpose of this article. Personally i purchase things from walmart, everything except for their clothes. Overall its apretty good store and their website is even better. I would recommend it for anyone.
Walmart has a thing where they carry different items online than they do in their stores. They entertain that concept because"they do not want the website to divert sales from walmart stores. they also have good ratings. Many people visit their website and many people visit their stores, but more people visit their website than their stores because they get more online and thats the purpose of this article. Personally i purchase things from walmart, everything except for their clothes. Overall its apretty good store and their website is even better. I would recommend it for anyone.
Wal-Mart Is Losing Its Technological Edge
Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart was sort of old school. He didn't care much for computer or any technology. Sam Walton said, "Truthfully, I never viewed computers as anything more than necessary overhead. A computer is not—and will never be—a substitute for getting out in your stores and learning what's going on."
It's hard to imagine Wal-Mart not being this $349 billion dollar leviathan, but in the 1960's and 70's Wal-Mart was just a scrappy underdog. Sam Walton was often thought of as the modern day Robin Hood, building his retail discount chain for the cost conscious citizens.
Wal-Mart today is caught between two worlds: Sam Walton's, where a zealous commitment to "everyday low prices" is enforced(despiteWalton's skepticism about "computers") by IT-assisted decisions made in Bentonville, and a new global marketplace in which the retailer's sheer size is not as big an advantage as it once was. Competitors such as Target and Tesco can match Wal-Mart in technological sophistication
and surpass it by innovating in new retailing segments with higher margin
goods.
Wal-Mart was making their margins on sourcing and great technology systems, but everyone has got that now," says Patricia Edwards, a portfolio manager and
managing director at Wentworth, Hauser and Violich who focuses on
retail.
Will Wal-Mart be able to regain that technological edge? Or will up coming super companies like Target or Amazon.com rise to the top?
At One Point, Wal-Mart was not so freindly to employees working there
At one point, particulary 2005, Wal-Mart may have been the biggest company in America in terms of revenue, but wasn't one where the employees enjoyed working for their company. It is well documented the way employees of Wal-Mart were mistreated by the coorporation, with one of the most publicized complaints coming from six female employees who filed a lawsuit against the company claiming discrimination within the company. The case, also knowned as the Keane's Case, nicknamed after one of the employees, was brought to court on the behalf of 1.6 million females employees of Wal-Marts past and present and since has picked up a trial date.
Wal-Marts employee discrimination is not only limited to women, as it effected all of the hourly employees working at the company. The company only started off at wages of 8.50 and no benefits, which in today's world of recession is not to bad, but when you can work up the block with an opposing company for around 13 dollars and get benefits, something isn't right.
The sad part is that this trend shows no sign of slowing down, as Wal-Mart would not like to raise wages because of profits.
"For Wal-Mart the Dukes case women were therefore troublemakers who had somehow managed to get past Wal-Mart's digital gatekeeper and had ended up where they didn't belong. Wal-Mart management has been prepared to go to considerable lengths to discourage the women from making complaints, and to stop them from pursuing the Dukes case. The purpose of this management offensive was not simply to maintain discipline at Wal-Mart, but also to protect the corporation's pattern of sex discrimination. Since lower wages and salaries paid to female employees have added significantly to profits, the company's profit margin was threatened by the Dukes women's demands for fair promotion and for equal pay"
This statement shows the evil side to capatilism, with the salary, coorporated workers getting a lions' share of the benefits, while the blue collar, hard working people are treated like slaves.
Wal-Marts employee discrimination is not only limited to women, as it effected all of the hourly employees working at the company. The company only started off at wages of 8.50 and no benefits, which in today's world of recession is not to bad, but when you can work up the block with an opposing company for around 13 dollars and get benefits, something isn't right.
The sad part is that this trend shows no sign of slowing down, as Wal-Mart would not like to raise wages because of profits.
"For Wal-Mart the Dukes case women were therefore troublemakers who had somehow managed to get past Wal-Mart's digital gatekeeper and had ended up where they didn't belong. Wal-Mart management has been prepared to go to considerable lengths to discourage the women from making complaints, and to stop them from pursuing the Dukes case. The purpose of this management offensive was not simply to maintain discipline at Wal-Mart, but also to protect the corporation's pattern of sex discrimination. Since lower wages and salaries paid to female employees have added significantly to profits, the company's profit margin was threatened by the Dukes women's demands for fair promotion and for equal pay"
This statement shows the evil side to capatilism, with the salary, coorporated workers getting a lions' share of the benefits, while the blue collar, hard working people are treated like slaves.
"Where is Wal-Mart's Fancy Stuff? Try Online
In the article 'Where is Wal-Mart's Fancy Stuff? Try Online' by Bob Tedeschi, he speaks about how Wal-Mart has added luxury items on the it's website. The website is selling anything from $18 six-packs of boxer shorts to 18-karat white gold ring ("IGI Certified") for $9,988. Online shopping is a big phenonomen, which I can admit, I am apart of.
"Wal-mart.com certainly does not lack for attention. According to Nielsen//NetRatings, an Internet research firm, more than 16 million people visited Walmart.com last month, or nearly 11 percent of the active Internet audience in the United States. The average visitor spent nearly 14 minutes on the site during each visit. By contrast, 130 million customers visit Wal-Mart stores each week in the United States."We all know that Wal-Mart is a discount store; which means, we only look for bargains. On their online store, Wal-Mart was testing luxury items.
"Companies can only misfire by selling items that are not related to their overall brand message, Mr. Schubart said. In that context, Walmart.com should be fine as long as it convinces customers that a $10,000 ring is a bargain. (Indeed, late last week, the ring was sold out, although Walmart.com did not say how many were offered.)"In my opinion, it's hard to take Wal-Mart seriously with the selling of diamond rings. I don't know what the cost of a diamond ring is else where, but If my fiancee bought me an engagement ring from Wal-Mart, I don't think I would be too pleased.
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart was founded in 1962 by Sam Walton, and by 1969 it was incoporated. 3 years later it was listed on the NYSE. Since then the company has not stopped growing. Using new technology is what pushed Wal-Mart over the top as a Fortune 500 company.
Technology
Technology
- Universal Bar Code- Wal-Mart was one of the first companies to use the bar code to track it's inventory using the bar code. Using the bar code it "cut the fat out of its supply chain"; meaning since the bar code kept track of the supplies then, Wal-mart did not have to spend excessive money on supplies in which they already had.
- Internet- Wal-Mart has used the internet as sort of a test dummy for its products. It puts items on the internet that one can not buy at the stores to see how well it sells. If the item sells well then it has the opportunity to make it to the stores; if not then the item will either remain online or be completely taken off the Wal-Mart product list.
- EDI-(Electronic Data Interchange) This is another new technology Wal-Mart implemented in its company. This is the use of basically e-mail to interchange information between organizations. This can be very helpful because by sharing information between organizations, the company can learn more about what is working and what is not in certain areas.
After reading several articles on Wal-Mart I came to believe that the technology they used is very much responsible for their success as a company. The companies use of Internet and Bar Code helped it successfully supply their customers.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Losing your job and asked to reapply again?!
In the worst turns of events, the employees of the Journal News, a Westchester daily owned by Gannett, are forced to leave their jobs and reapply again?! What a shock to employees. Especially a even bigger shock for employees who worked for the company 1o years and above. It's an outrage for most of these employees who put the time and money to work hard for the company. In the article an anonymous employee expresses their feeling on the rehiring process.
“How is the fact that I don’t have a Twitter or Facebook account relevant to what I do?” he said. “After many years of great work here, I have to go into some office and tell a person who I have never met why I deserve to work at The Journal. I probably didn’t do a good enough job of hiding my disgust.”
With all the controversy going on, the majority of employees decided to go along with the process and most did not and decided to leave for good. For most people who got their job back didn't feel to happy. For an employee to who was forced to be removed and tested to get back in really doesn't feel like a victory. And for Ernie Garcia it was no victory. Below Ernie Garcia gives his reaction to the process.
“I don’t feel like a winner even though I still have my job,” said Ernie Garcia, a staff writer who covers Yonkers who credited his management with being straightforward and honest throughout the process. Still, he said: “I wish there had been a straight-up layoff. This was very nerve-racking and agonizing. And everyone in our business has to live with this uncertainty going forward. “
In response to the employees opinions Ken Doctor gave his insides in responds to what Gannett did to the company.
“It just makes sense that ‘restaffing’ the operation there is another step on the road to reshaping Gannett — print and broadcast — across the country.”
At the end of the day business is business.
Indians Doing Our White-Collar Jobs !
Its very shocking to me how someone in a whole different country, atmosphere, can be answering the phones for U.S. firms, providing technical support for U.S. computer giants or trying to sell me a credit card. Its mind-boggling how as Thomas Friedman says in his article “How can it be good for America to have all these Indians doing our white-collar jobs?” Friedman describes how the outsourcing of jobs to India have resulted from globalization and how its leaving all these Americans without any white collar jobs like answering phones for US Firms.
Because of globalization Americans are not the only ones being outsourced from their jobs but also Asian countries like Japan and the Philippines. As How Freidman describes in his article “What Goes Around…2004” jobs like animation that these Asian countries used to do are now the newest products to be outsourced to India. This is because as explained by Ashish Kulkarni ''They spoke English, so they could take instruction from the American directors easily, and they were comfortable doing coloring digitally."
Nonetheless, what goes around simply means that it will come around! With outsourcing all American white collar jobs are being done in countries like India, however these countries are also creating jobs for the American people. Like the company JadooWorks deciding to produce its own animated epic and using American writers to produce it.
Because of globalization Americans are not the only ones being outsourced from their jobs but also Asian countries like Japan and the Philippines. As How Freidman describes in his article “What Goes Around…2004” jobs like animation that these Asian countries used to do are now the newest products to be outsourced to India. This is because as explained by Ashish Kulkarni ''They spoke English, so they could take instruction from the American directors easily, and they were comfortable doing coloring digitally."
Nonetheless, what goes around simply means that it will come around! With outsourcing all American white collar jobs are being done in countries like India, however these countries are also creating jobs for the American people. Like the company JadooWorks deciding to produce its own animated epic and using American writers to produce it.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Thomas Friedman Lecture on Flat World at MIT 2005
Here is a lecture given by Thomas Friedman about his book the World is Flat at MIT in 2005.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Perks of the Virtual World
People have praised the creation of cyberspace as a new world were one can be themselves and do what they could not do in the real world. Others have criticized it saying it is a way for people to escape the life they are to afraid to cope with. Regardless of what is said about cyberspace the fact is that it has become an expansion of our society.
In the article by Sherry Turkle, she gives various examples on how cyberspace have changed peoples interactions with society. Dred's Bar is a virtual bar in which people can have all the interactions they have in a real bar without the risks. It also allows the player to do the things they have always wanted to do, approaching a group of attractive girls might be a feat to great to some people but in the virtual world it is not nearly as intimidating.
In found it interesting the article how she says that instead of people stressing of the differences between the real world and the virtual world, that people should see the virtual world as part of the real world,
"We don't have to reject life on the screen, but we don't have to treat it as an alternative life either. Virtual personae can be a resource for self-reflection and self-transformation. Having literally written our on-line worlds into existence, we can use the communities we build inside our machines to improve the ones outside of them".
Bible vs Mainstream
In the article entitled ''Bible Games' instead of 'Grand Theft Auto?'' by Jennifer London discusses how, Christian video game developers like, Tom Bean, President and CEO of Digital Praise wants to change how the mainstream video game market impacts young children and young adults. Games such as Grand Theft Auto displays a very raunchy image of violence, sex, and drugs. When Grand Theft Auto first came out, I have to say I was very entertained by the graphics and to see how far technology has come in such a short amount of time. However I have to agree with the idea of children playing wholesome, fun, and educational video games. We're in this era where children are lacking in communication skills, so why not have them learn from the Bible. Grand Theft Auto happens to be in the majority of American family household and young kids are playing this game.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Real School of Rock
New York University aka NYU is taking a different approach to education. Professor Gary Marcus is teaching a class Guitar Heroes (and Heroines): Music, Video Games and the Nature of Human Cognition. NYU students pay around $50,000 per year for an education. According to Marcus "Video games are an understudied area". Professor Marcus is normally a psychology professor says "People dismiss them unfairly, but 'Guitar Hero' is a good tool for teaching and I'm interested in the nature of learning."
According to this article "The course will tackle the finer points of video games and human cognition and it already has a waiting list".
This course might be a step in the right direction for education but not in college. It would be great as a rehabilitation process for children with problems with basic motor skills and also autistic children for response and emotion as well as children with accidental brain injuries and paralysis.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
The Virtual World vs. The Real World
How is it that people from all over the world, use the Internet as a way to communicate with others, not as themselves but as a fictional person, someone who they wish they were. "Virtual Communities" or so they are called are places where one can go and express their feelings with others, feelings they may have normally hidden from friends and family. In the article Lonely Gay Teen Seeking Same by Jennifer Egan, Jeffrey who is a part of this online community expresses what it is like to have live a life where he is two different people, his online self and the person he is in the real world.
"The Internet is the thing that has kept me sane," he told me. "I live
constantly in fear. I can't be my true self. My mom complains: 'I can see
you becoming more detached from us. You're always spending time on the computer.' But the Internet is my refuge."Jeffrey is able to use these communities as a way to communicate and share
his ideas/thoughts with others who are have similar ideas and feelings. Having the ability to to be a part of this world, Jeff has no reason to hesitate on being who he really is. He is able to meet others that claim to have the same interests. He is also able to explore the different communities which may suit his interests such as the gay online community in his case.Unfortunately not all people that are found in these virtual communities are real. Some choose to use these places as a way to be something they are not, just for fun. Although this may be the case in many situations, it also provides those who cant be themselves in real life with a place to go where they feel welcomed and wanted.
The Internet and these "virtual communities" allow people to be whomever they want to. It allows them to explore without exposing them to criticism or judgment but at the same time you never know if others in the virtual community have the feelings or views they claim or are just pretending. The virtual world is a complicated place, not unlike the real world but instead of interacting with an actual human being you are interacting with someone hidden behind their computer.
Lonely Girl Jessica "Bree" Rose
New York Film Accademy graduate Jessica Rose recently starred in one of cyber spaces most popular video blog followings. Rose played a home schooled girl in her young 20's by the name of "Bree."
Bree portrayed the image of a good looking girl oppressed in her home by her very strict religious parents. Her post name on Youtube.com was "lonleygirl15." The drama story obtained such a large following that an independent site with more than a thousand members surfaced.
The story was fabricated by filmmakers Ramesh Flinders, and Miles Beckett. With such a vast following the phony drama finally was exposed by computer savy fans of the blog.
The story displays how the web community can bring a halt to even the most well articulated prefabrications. http://www.youtube.com/user/lonelygirl15
Bree portrayed the image of a good looking girl oppressed in her home by her very strict religious parents. Her post name on Youtube.com was "lonleygirl15." The drama story obtained such a large following that an independent site with more than a thousand members surfaced.
The story was fabricated by filmmakers Ramesh Flinders, and Miles Beckett. With such a vast following the phony drama finally was exposed by computer savy fans of the blog.
The story displays how the web community can bring a halt to even the most well articulated prefabrications. http://www.youtube.com/user/lonelygirl15
Gone too far
The idea of a virtual identity and an online community is very liberating. It allows you be who you want to be, and where you want to be at your convenience. This is a two faced coin that has created many tragedies and has authorities and parents asking for the creation of laws to protect the users.
In the case of Megan Meier this was an unfortunate tragedy of a parent creating an identity to immaturely protect her daughter, but took the situation out of control. Megan's mother had suspicions about the person her daughter was conversing with on Myspace. The article stated:
In the case of Megan Meier this was an unfortunate tragedy of a parent creating an identity to immaturely protect her daughter, but took the situation out of control. Megan's mother had suspicions about the person her daughter was conversing with on Myspace. The article stated:
" She called police to find out if they could determine if a MySpace
account was real. They couldn't"It was just that nervous mom," Tina Meier said.
She called police to find out if they could determine if a MySpace account was
real. They couldn't."This is the terrible side of virtual identity it can be used to harm and bully others. many efforts have been made since Megan Meire death to amend the cyberbullying prevention act.
When Should You Stop Playing Video Games?
Many people feel that video-games are a younger crowd. Others just enjoy the act of playing a video-game, and some make it a full-time hobby. The federal CDC conducted a survery to find out the body mass of an avid video-gamer, and thier mental states. They were curious to see if a regular gamer was heavier compared to someone who doesn't play video games, and if there was any connection to poor mental health. The CDC found thier hypothesis to be correct.
"...Video-game players also reported lower extraversion, consistent with research on adolescents that linked
video-game playing to a sedentary lifestyle and overweight status, and to
mental-health concerns." (Dr. James B. Weaver III of the CDC for Health
Marketing)
They also mentioned in the article that they found that females were more likely to distract themselves from reality by playing video-games. I feel that that could be a major reason why many people play video-games. They said that they also found that the behaviors demonstrated by spending time play video-games often becomes habit and follows them into thier adulthood.
Lets Get Live!
Video games have evolved! From the sixteen bit systems I grew up with, to large multimedia platforms that allow you to interact with users from all over the world. One great example of the evolution of the gaming in virtual reality is Xbox Live!
"One of the amazing things about the Xbox LIVE experience is that its always getting better"
(Xbox.com)
Xbox LIVE has evolved from playing with multiple users online, to having an actual online identity. Microsoft, the manufacturer of the Xbox console is finding new innovative way to drive there product for the many years to come. You can share the gaming experience online, shop, get user manuals, and even game on demand!
One thing that's for certain, gaming will never be the same again!
"One of the amazing things about the Xbox LIVE experience is that its always getting better"
(Xbox.com)
Xbox LIVE has evolved from playing with multiple users online, to having an actual online identity. Microsoft, the manufacturer of the Xbox console is finding new innovative way to drive there product for the many years to come. You can share the gaming experience online, shop, get user manuals, and even game on demand!
One thing that's for certain, gaming will never be the same again!
Gaming Resources
Gaming News Links:
GameCritics.com ["Games, Culture, Criticism]
Wired Game/Life
GamePolitics
WomenGamers.com
Games & Articles about Gaming:
America's Army Official Website [U.S. Army]
"Study: Average gamer is 35, fat and bummed" [Suzanne Choney, MSNBC.com]
"Interview with Henry Jenkins" [Dale Weir, GameCritics.com]
"Women aren't Vending Machines: How video games perpetuate the commodity model of sex" [Alex Raymond, Gamecritics.com]
"E3 2004 Report: Booth Babe Dialogues" [Erin Bell, GameCritics.com]
"Ridiculous Life Lessons From New Girl Games" [Tracey John, Wired Game/Life]
The Friendship of Bodies
The Cyberspace world has become a world where you are free to be whom ever you please and a place of where your identity and real life can be put on hold until you find the right time and confidence to uncover yourself. The WELL (Whole Earth ‘Lectronic Link) is the perfect place where you could carry on public conversations and exchange your reality with that of your fake identity.
Like in the article “Daily Life in Cyberspace” by Howard Rheingold, we can acknowledge how a person’s everyday life revolves around this WELL. As Rheingold himself says
“The WELL felt like an authentic community to me from the start because it was grounded in my everyday physical world.”
He felt attached to these virtual communities where shared alliances formed by simply the use of words on screens to exchange pleasantries, knowledge, emotions, love, and support. In virtual communities all that has to be done is the same as you would do in real life, but with the difference of leaving your body behind.
This bondage that the virtual community has created can turn into reality when you decide to confront those friends that you’ve spoken for years without seeing their body. As Rheingold describes when the time of virtual and reality to meet; it could be a drastic moment. Just as he attended those parties where all his WELL friends were, the reality was that when he entered through that door there wasn’t a decipherable face in the house.
Nonetheless the bondage of friendship in the virtual community has developed into a medium so desired by many like Rheingold whom only wish to help each other through hard times, solve (and fail to solve) vexing interpersonal problems together and in the end when the time comes only hope to meet each others bodies.
Like in the article “Daily Life in Cyberspace” by Howard Rheingold, we can acknowledge how a person’s everyday life revolves around this WELL. As Rheingold himself says
“The WELL felt like an authentic community to me from the start because it was grounded in my everyday physical world.”
He felt attached to these virtual communities where shared alliances formed by simply the use of words on screens to exchange pleasantries, knowledge, emotions, love, and support. In virtual communities all that has to be done is the same as you would do in real life, but with the difference of leaving your body behind.
This bondage that the virtual community has created can turn into reality when you decide to confront those friends that you’ve spoken for years without seeing their body. As Rheingold describes when the time of virtual and reality to meet; it could be a drastic moment. Just as he attended those parties where all his WELL friends were, the reality was that when he entered through that door there wasn’t a decipherable face in the house.
Nonetheless the bondage of friendship in the virtual community has developed into a medium so desired by many like Rheingold whom only wish to help each other through hard times, solve (and fail to solve) vexing interpersonal problems together and in the end when the time comes only hope to meet each others bodies.
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Senator's comments and concern on video game violence.
Senator Hillary Clinton expresses her comments and concerns on Violent video gaming. One of the main games discussed in this is the famous "Grand theft Auto". Grand theft auto is a game of crime, stealing, killing, and sexually activities. On top of what Hillary states, Steven believes that Hillary should encourage children to not play Violent games. But preferably play educational games and sports games. Also another type of method to avoid game violence is playing family games such as monopoly, uno, sorry and etc.
At the end of the day children have been educated not to be influenced by these violent games but learn to not reenact these games in the real world.
Virtuality and Its Discontents
Why Must Virtuality And Real Life Compete—Why Can’t We Have Both?
“Some people are trying to fill the gap with neighborhoods in cyberspace.
Take Dred’s Bar, for example, a watering hole on the MUD LambdaMOO.
Mud’s, which originally stood for “multi-user dungeons,” are destinations on
The Internet where players who have logged in from computers around the
world join an online virtual community. Through typed commands, they can
converse privately or in large groups, creating and playing characters and even
earning and spending imaginary funds in the MUD’s virtual economy.”
MMORPG Having RL Impact
At first glance the title of this blog post may not seem to make any sense. MMORPG stands for Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game. Often times within an MMORPG, RL is used as an acronym for real life. World of Warcraft is one such MMO which has garnered a massive following. As of this wri
ting, the population of the community is closing in on 12 million active subscribers.World of Warcraft or WoW allows players to assume the role of one of several different races of beings. The player is given many options to create the character to his or her liking. Once you create your player, you start at level 1 and make the long, arduous trek to the current level cap of 80. Considerable play time is required to reach the level cap. The game consists of exploring new areas, killing various in game characters, and completing quests to earn experience. Experience is like a sort of currency which allows you to reach the next level.
Many people are wondering, what is causing this game to become so popular? Many other MMO's have existed, but none have even come close to approaching the popularity of WoW. I believe, Blizzard Entertainment, the developer of WoW have found a near perfect formula of game play. Often times, the next big upgrade for your character is just around the corner, so you keep playing to reach it. This pattern repeats itself numerous times, and as you put forth more effort into your character, the desire to attain more power becomes stronger. Addiction has been a real problem for many people who play WoW. There are many websites dedicated to helping people break their addiction to WoW. WoWDetox.com is just one example.
Financially speaking, WoW is an absolute beast. With close to 12 million subscribers, it generates over $150 million per month. This is not including the amount of money generated from software sales.World of Warcraft is approaching its 5th anniversary and there are no signs of slowing down. This virtual community of WoW is diverse and still growing. For example, in my current Guild ( a band of players who commonly group together) the members range in age from 6 to 80. WoW's appeal is seemingly growing amongst a very broad range of people. If you are interested in seeing what the phenomenon is about, i suggest giving the 10 day free trial a spin over here.
Official Trailer
