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. 

Music's rhythm is my hear beat!

Music has been a big part of my life since I was born. Before I could speak, I was already humming songs because my aunt is a famous salsa singer and I supposed I copied her all the time. Since then, music has become a really important aspect of my life and I wouldn’t be the person that I am today if it wasn’t for music. Music to me is life; it is the rhythm of our hearts and without out it we would all be numb. When I am mad or sad I use music to reflect and try to fix the problem that I have and if I am happy I use it to celebrate my happiness.

I was about 7 years old when I got my first CD player. I can still remember how excited I was, because it had better audio quality than audiocassettes. I even remember my dad got a CD burner in order to give my family copies of the CDs we bought.  You might not know, but back in Panama coping music and sharing it is not big deal as it is in the US. When I was 12, I got my first IPod and I was jumping all over the place, because I could download 1,000 songs in it. Besides that I couldn’t believe it could contain 1,000 songs and still be so small, I was just too excited. Now days, I use an IPod touch, which is an MP3 player and it is the most amazing thing ever. Besides importing music, you can also import photos and even videos. I also have games and it is amazing how you can play and listen to your music at the same time. The only thing I could agree with is that it takes away your interpersonal communications skills away, because you are in a bubble just listening to your music.

As I said before music is always present in my life, so you can imagine how much time I spend listening to music. Since the moment I wake up, I turn on my IPod and speakers and start listening to music. Even when I am taking a bath I am listening to music and of course before to go to sleep I have to listen to music if not I can’t go to sleep. So I would say that I spend like 10 hours listening to music, because even when I do my homework I have to listen to music.

Since I am Panamanian I listen to Latin music, such as salsa, merengue and conga. I also like techno, pop and other types of music, but my preference is Latin music. It is funny because the first day that I went to class, I was walking on 3^rd street and I started dancing and people looked at me like I was crazy. Back in my country you will see that I mean not everyone, but you will see people in their cars dancing, it is funny!

To finalize, music is everything to me. As I said before, I grew up listening to music all day long and it is something I will never stop doing. Sometimes I listen to music to just relax or to express what I am feeling at that moment. Music to me is what keeps me going in the world with a smile everyday. 

Here is a video of the type of music I love!  --- I hope you like it!

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMjqh3fIXWc 

My life with Radio!

Hi everyone my name is Isabel Lopez and I am a communications major. I am originally from Panama. I like to be aware of the progress in technology as well as always seeking for new electronic toys. This is a part of my everyday life, I always like being up top date with the latest technology news.

The word spins by the second and technology improves by the second as well. Now days we even have video calling services and wireless devices, but lets go back a couple of decades when the radio was the latest invention and was in its prime. The radio was the first device that let us know about what was going on in the world and one of the most important media devices still used today. Without the radio the world of communications would not be the one we have today, since everything was handled and transmitted through radio. As we know the radio has been around for somewhat 100 years now and in my opinion it will continue to be a major asset in the communications industry. We use this media everyday. What is the first thing we do when we get in our cars? (Of course after fastening our seatbelts) we turn our radios on, whether it is to listen to the news or even listen to music, we would not go a day without the radio in our everyday routine and it would be very hard to adjust to a non-radio day, week, month and year eventually.

For example, I use the radio every single day. When I get in to my car or wake up in the morning I listen to the radio. Some of my friends back at home they use the radio to express their thoughts about various topics. My family to be honest they only use it to listen to music or to entertain themselves; if they want to listen to the news they will watch it on TV.  In the case of my grandmother, I have noticed that the only music she listens to comes from the radio, even though I gave her an iPod with songs that she likes, she told me that she prefers her radio. Some people like me will still use the radio and at the same time will get new technological toys to be more updated, but in the case of my grandmother she only knows the radio as her communication tool, like she got stuck in the 1930’s.

My thoughts on the future days for the radio are that it will continue to be what it is today and despite all the great inventions that we have now days, it will stand besides them as an essential part of communications and technology overall. Also, I believe that the radio will be used by people of all ages, because it is easier to use and people of my age are raised with the radio around them. In the case of elderly people, they would also use the radio even more, because it is the most popular way of knowing what is going on around the world, because for them is what they grew up with and it will be easier to familiarize with.