The Next New Thing

I think the next "new media" that currently doesn't exist is using augmented reality to learn how to cook and interact with other cooks.  This could be done by using special data goggles similar to the ones that BMW uses for its research projects.  (More information about the BMW special data goggles can be found here.  If special data goggles were used and wirelessly connected to the Internet, then someone would be able to virtually "connect" with other people who are learning and teaching to cook one another.  This would also be a great way for individuals to meet new people and socialize with people who have the common interest of cooking and such.

P2P File Sharing

File sharing is defined as the distribution and sharing of digital content by through peer-to-peer file sharing or file hosting services.  P2P file sharing is also known as Peer-to-Peer file sharing.  Peer-to-Peer file sharing is done through a software that  connects users to a network.  Through this network, users can search for and download the share files that are available by other users. The shared files can be downloaded by multiple users who are on the same network.  According to the article "Take Advantage of P2P - not fear it" by Jamie King, examples of P2P file sharing are: The Pirate Bay and BitTorrent.

Our Class: Wiki So Far

I am contributing to the New Media in Food, Beverage & Hospitality Industry.  I am the editor and Jessica Ibanez is a contributor.  I am contributing to the wiki by adding content about food trucks and how people can follow them via Twitter and Zagat.  I have also provided a list of food trucks that people can follow.  I will also be adding more food related mobile applications used on Smartphones and I will discuss food bloggers who use new media.  Furthermore, I will also be trying to edit the layout of the page since some images (contributed by previous semesters) are not aligned properly.

Privacy & Confidentiality

There are issues of privacy and confidentiality that are related to new media today.  More and more people are concerned about how their personal information is utilized by websites that collect their information, whether or not consumers are aware of this.  If consumers are actively providing websites with personal information (i.e., when shopping online, using social networking websites), they should read the privacy policies of websites carefully before providing personal information.  In addition, if a consumer wants to be extremely cautious of their privacy when using new media today, then they should turn-off and block cookies in their web browsers so that they may surf the web without being tracked and having their personal information taken and shared without their knowledge.

Advice to Baruch College

If I were hired by Baruch College to use new media to improve the College, I would suggest the use of Facebook, Twitter, and Wiki.  Even though Baruch College already has an existing Facebook and Twitter page, it would also be a good idea for the Baruch Computing and Technology Center (BCTC) to have Facebook Twitter pages too so that students are kept up to date on which computer labs are currently open.  The current webpage that the BCTC posted online shows a list of the hours of the computing labs for the Spring 2011 semester, but the hours are not accurate.  In addition, Baruch College could use their Facebook and Twitter page to update students and faculty on daily events going on at school.  The Baruch College Undergraduate Student Government (USG) already has a Facebook and Twitter page, which is utilized well.

About My Term Research Paper

My research paper was about the topic of Analysis of the Effects of New Media on Society.  I did my research by searching for articles and publications that related to the positive and negative effects of new media on society.  I also provided examples of real world events that have are effected by the new media on society.  I chose this topic because new media is prevalent and a significant part of the lives of many people today.  It has both pros and cons and has effected society economically, politically, and culturally.  My paper contributes to the field of new media because I discuss forms of new media that are used today that have a significant impact on society, especially with recent global events.

Creativity and New Media

New media fosters creativity because individuals can now play virtual reality games.  For example, I play Restaurant City and FarmVille on Facebook with my friends and I have my own virtual restaurant and virtual farm.  These virtual reality games are interactive and fun.  Users can be creative in terms of how they want to layout their virtual reality items and they can level up when they have earned a certain number of points.  Below are snapshots from Restaurant City and FarmVille.  Users can also invite their friends to be "neighbors" and add new "neighbors".

Restaurant City

FarmVille