The Terrifying Idea of Getting Older

            The article by Daniel H. Wilson called “ The Terrifying Thing About Technology” it reminds me about my lessons with my grandmother on how to use Facebook. Technology is getting better and better each day, but for old people like my grandmother it’s hard to understand it. Young people tend to grasp technology much easier and faster than any adult. Wilson says in the article that “technology was made for young people” and I couldn’t agree more with him. For us technology its part of our daily lives, and it is as important as in having food in the table. In my situation if I don’t have the latest technology in my hands I feel like I’m behind or that I’m not cool at all.

            As young adults we tend to adapt easier and faster to anything that they put us in our way. That is why you see that young adults always find their way to master the newest devices, no matter how hard is it to use. For an adult, it is going to be much harder because they were raised with different technology, and almost most of the adults that I know they are pretty sentimental about their technology back in their days. For example, when I taught my grandmother how to use Skype at first she was yelling at people through the computer, because since they were in different countries she supposed that she had to yell in order for the other person to hear her. After hours of explanation, she understood that she didn’t had to yell in order for people to hear her and she said that back in her days the telephone didn’t exist either and that she had to yell to call her neighbor. Then I understood why was so natural for her to yell at the computer, she was raised with different ways of communication.

            As Wilson said in his article, I also believe that adults can get to manage new technological devices if they put a lot of effort into it. Unlike young people, adults have to put much more effort to get to know how to use new devices.  It is true that adults have to start putting more interest into new technological advances, because in the future it is possible that the way that they are used to do things are going to change drastically due to technology and they will have to adapt in order to be independent. For example, not so long ago my mom begged me to teach her how to use Facebook. It was really funny why she was so excited to learn how to use it. She said that she had to learn how to use Facebook, because her friends were using it and since she is one of the oldest ones in her group of friends it was difficult for her to understand Facebook on her own.  My lessons with her were about an hour everyday, now she manages Facebook perfectly. Now I don’t know if I did good teaching her, because now all she does is go to my profile to spy on me. My mom is a good example of how adults can adapt to new technology if hey really want to understand it.

            To finalize, I believe that technology was made for young adults because it is easier for us to adapt to new devices. Even thought it is hard for old folks to adapt to new technology, I am sure that they can adapt to them just that it will take them more work. Now, to be honest I am scared of getting old, because then I’ll not have the same skills to adapt to new technology. But as Wilson said, I will do my best to keep updated with new technological devices and I will work hard in order to get to master them as I do now. 

A new way of expressing yourself...

            Home video shooting technology has become so popular over the years, because it is the newest way on how people are expressing themselves. These new devices that are used to shoot home videos are indeed very practical and much cheaper than the professional ones. Besides all of this, these new devices to shoot and edit video allow to work at your own pace, without having to worry about using somebody else’s time. Now days, role home video production plays a big role in the communications environment, because it allows people to either show their skills or share their topics with a vivid image and audio of the person.

           

            Certain webpages have been created for this matter, with YouTube being the most popular one today.  Allowing each user to create and customize their own channel and upload as much videos as desired. Also, YouTube allows these people to publish whatever they filmed and edited without any cost. Today, you don’t exactly need to be a professional in order to shoot and edit videos. These new devices are so easy to use that you can learn how to master it pretty quickly in the comfort of your own home.

           

            This easily permits people to show their skills on video editing and also lets them to express their feelings on a certain matter or they may also create different channels and label them according to topic. I strongly believe that, home video production will certainly impact the communications environment, because it has become a popular way, which people use to gain publicity and recognition around the world within minutes. I believe that people with a communications degree should know how to record and edit a video, because it will not only help them develop hidden skills, but also it will help them to be more creative and proactive. 

            Finally, I think that this will continue to grow by the second, because technology makes it easier on us simply by getting any of the latest devices which all have video recording incorporated in their systems. In my opinion this will continue to be a big part of the communications environment, because it has become a new way of sharing thoughts and skills in a more interactive way. 

The Principle of Relative Constancy and its effects on TV...

   As I mentioned in my first post, I like to be on top of technology and I can assure you that I spend all of my money just trying to buy every newest technology that comes out.  The Principle of Relative Constancy is the principle that I can relate to and this is why it is my favorite one. In comparison with the other theories and principles that we have studied in class, The Principle of Relative Constancy explains why people tend to spend the same percent of their income in new media technologies. This principle also talks about how sales of old technologies tend to fall when new improved artifacts come out.

           

Now, I would like to talk about this principle’s effect on TV.  As I can remember, back when I was little my family used to own a big-boxed TV, which in my opinion was way too big. Also, we used to have a big antenna in our roof so we could watch the channels that were available at that time.  Like 10 years ago or more, my dad came home with five new TVs, which were pretty slim in comparison with the old one that we used to own.  I remember this new TV offered the audiences a much better resolution and audio. It really had clear advantages over the old TV, because everything was better and also cable TV came around and it offered 100+ different channels from all over the world.  When these TVs came out they were worth thousands of dollars, and after a while I believe that the people who made them noticed that the sales were not as good as they thought they were going to be so they had to do something about it. After two or three years, the prices started to drop because there was a new invention, the Plasma and LCD TVs. This new invention was mind-blowing; you could literally see movies and feel like you were in them. The Home theater surround system came around, so the sound quality was amazing as well. 

As these new technologies come around, I started to notice that the old ones were starting to lose value.  My grandma’s TV is one of those real old boxed TVs, and I remember that she wanted a new one and she was selling it at the full retail price, which was like two hundred dollars, but nobody would pay that kind of money. The most she could get out of it was fifty dollars, and this is where you can see that the principle of relative constancy comes up. 

Nowadays we have a new technology, the 3D LCD and LED TVs. I haven’t had the chance to own one of these yet, but believe me I will purchase one really soon. The TV is my best friend, I can’t go to sleep without my TV on, and that is why I always need the latest technology in order to feel all the excitement that these new devices have to offer.