The Advantages and Disadvantages of Blogging

            Thinking back to when I was a child most individuals often keep journals written down on paper.  In today’s society many individuals are still keeping journals but now there online for everyone to see.  The first blogs were created in online discussion forums where individuals often wrote articles about companies, products and services they were familiar with.  Now blogs are often written about everyday occurrences or about events in the news.  Searching through some of the blogs found online I came across three that poised some serious thought.

The first article I blog I read was entitled Shutdown: Snakes in the House written by John Willis.  This article was written in response to the United States government shutting down due to a political dispute.  Although some of the information is useful in this article one must remember that what the individual is writing is his own personal opinion and not that of the general American public.  With that being said it is interesting to see how an “average” American views the political battle that has shut down government offices for three days.  Being rather familiar with the current situation I am able to distinguish the facts and what are the writers own opinions but those who are unfamiliar with the situation might not be able to distinguish these. 

The second blog was written by Andrew Miller entitled Virtual Schooling: Where Are We Now? Where Are We Headed?  This was a very interesting blog written about the future of online learning.  Andrew writes about shift from the old way of learning through textbooks to newer technological approach that allows students to learn at their own pace from home.  This allows more students to take courses they are interested in at universities across the world without ever having to leave their house.  There are some disadvantages to this idea is not all universities are going to have the same rigorous standards as others.  Also those who do not do well without physical interaction with professors will not effectively learn the information.

            The last blog I am going to write about was written by John Quelch entitled “How General Motors Violated your trust.  This article goes back to the 2008 meltdown and bankruptcy of General Motors and explains in detail how General Motors became so disconnected from its customers. Although General Motors may have lost a valuable connection with consumers it is not the only reason behind the failure of the company.  There are many other factors that were left out of this blog which include having too much debt and more importantly the American subprime mortgage crises.  It is still an interesting view point but there is much to be said about what information individuals are choosing to publish in articles and what information they chose to leave out.

             Blogging plays an important role in our lives today with regards to the amount of information that is available to you. Either though consumer or blogging websites or other social media websites much of the information we view today is in blog form.  Many individuals write consumer reviews about products or services online to share their opinions about certain products.  With so many individuals taking to blogging on social media websites it’s become hard to find products that don’t have consumer reviews written about them online.  It also becomes useful for news information because individuals are always blogging about current news events.

            There are also some disadvantages with regards to blogging and information posted online.  The individual reading the blog has to understand that what he or she is reading is the opinion of that particular writer.  Some individuals writing blogs about products or services may have an affiliation with that organization and may be receiving compensation for their work.  There have been many incidents where individuals post false claims online.  The problem now is with our society becoming so connected with social media and blogging it’s possible for this misinformation to spread like wildfire.   Although there is ample information available at our fingertips it is getting harder to sift through which information is valid and relevant and which is not.  We are in an age where information is available at our fingertips but misinformation is also available as well.

Will Twitter Kill the News-Paper?

               Twitter is a collection of blogs or “tweets” written by individuals with a 140 characters or less. Its ability to get news across to individuals is so popular it may one day replace the paper edition of the news.  Many news-papers are in decline because individuals are often evolving to newer ways of receiving the news.  They are often going to online sources where the information is current and various stories are available to them without having to turn a page.  Many news organizations are setting up twitter accounts to service this need.  They are catering to individuals who want to feel connected to the news when it happens.  It also allows you to connect with your friends to share your opinions with them.  Twitter uses a feed to show you what the individuals you are following are tweeting about which allows you to customize the type of content that you are viewing.

            The main difference between Twitter and setting up a blog on the internet is the size of the message that you are able to get across to your audience.  With Twitter you are only able to write 140 characters or less which means your message will have to be cut down to the main points.  Where blogging gives you the ability to write as much as you would like to get your information across to your audience.

Twitter is useful because it allows you to connect to various news sources at the same time. For individuals who want more news information at their fingertips they can always choose to follow different news outlets Twitter accounts to get up to date information.  Many different newspapers understand how society has changed and are taking advantage of this new way of communicating with subscribers.  It can also be used as a promotional tool for organizations wanting to get new or more information out to consumers.  Using various social media sources is an excellent way to ensure that your message is received by a large audience.

                        There are many examples of misuse of Twitter with the most notable one being a tweet from the associated press which stated there had been an attack on the White House and the president was injured.  This Tweet caused a ripple effect through stock markets world-wide.  They markets recovered moments later when individuals realized the tweet was fake but the damage was already done.  The ability of a tweet to wipe out millions of dollars in assets in a couple of minutes is profound; it shows the power of social media has over aspects in our lives.  There have also been other incidents where misinformation was spread on Twitter such Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath.  There were individuals who tweeted about The New York Stock Exchange being under three feet of water which in the end proved to be untrue.

 It is really amazing how quickly information can spread over social media sites such as Twitter and how this information has the ability exponentially spread to individuals is something we should not be taking for granted.  There are some individuals who have promoted stocks on Twitter which can be construed as insider trading.  Police are often monitoring Twitter sites and some police forces are using Twitter to get information across to individuals living in their jurisdiction.  It will be interesting to watch going forward how individuals use Twitter and how the wold changes because of Twitter. 

The Future of the Internet

            The internet has evolved greatly since the 1960’s when it was first created to send messages between computers.  The internet allows us to carry out many different functions such as banking, shopping, meeting people and ordering food.  Advancements in the internet have created online banking which eliminates the need for individuals to travel to bank branches.  Social networking has evolved in a way to keep individuals connected with acquaintances, friends and family.  Just as the internet has evolved into what it is today it will continue to evolve further to improve functionality and access.

 The internet will continue to evolve and allow easier access to information and a wider availability though devices such as glasses and watches.  The internet will evolve to the point where almost every device has the ability to connect to the internet.  You will no longer access the internet though routers and servers but rather though a wireless connection to your service provider.

            Technological items are constantly being created to evolve with the consumers taste’s.  Many items that were invented 20 even 10 years ago have already become obsolete.  Items such as the VCR and cassette players have become a thing of the past with the creation of i-pods and on demanding televisions.  There are several items today at risk of becoming obsolete because of the changing times which include the desktop computer, internet routers and smart phones.

            The desktop computer has fallen on hard times in the past few years with the creation of the tablet and advancements in cellphone technology.  A couple of years ago the desktop computer’s only source of competition was the laptop which were often big, bulky and slow machines.  As technology advanced the laptops became more efficient, smaller and easier to use.  Also the creation of the tablet has caused a sharp drop in the demand for desktop computers.  Cell phones have also had a major play in the downfall of the computer.  Many individuals are now able to access information online via their cell phone which greatly reduces the need for a home computer.

            The wireless router is also an object that may become obsolete as the way individuals are able to connect to the internet changes.  When the internet was first introduced the only way to connect was through phone lines..  This was an ineffective way to connect to the internet because it was often slow and command the use of the phone line.  This changed with the introduction of cable internet.  Having the internet flow through the same cable as your television provider freed up the phone lines and allowed for faster internet connections.  I believe the next phase in this process is to go completely wireless.  Having the ability to connect multiple devices to the internet  wireless without the use of modems or routers.  Devices will be able to connect to the internet using the same technology as cell phones with much greater speed.

            I also believe the smart phone will become obsolete within the next ten years as our society evolves and switches to newer technologies.  Organizations such as Google and Apple have started to venture down the path of creating these objects that will eventually eliminate modern devices.  Items such as the IWatch and Google Glass are inventions that will change the way individuals connect to the internet going forward.  Google’s Glass which is a set of glasses that can connect to the internet, share photos and videos, make phone calls and store information is going to be the future for devices that connect to the internet.  These devices have the power to change our futures by allowing people to get creative when thinking about new ways to be able to connect to the internet.

            The evolution of the internet has created things such as online banking and social media and it has also evolved the way individuals shop.  The future of the internet will continue to change the way we communicate with each other, purchase food, and even watching television.  The future of the internet may eliminate cable television. With individuals having such complicated and busy lives they often want to watch their favourite television shows on demand when they want. This technology will become available to them by viewing content online rather than viewing it through their service provider.  Wherever the internet goes from here it is clear that the gamers will lead the evolution into the new internet.