Tammy Texter Goes on a Date

Imagine being on a date at a fancy restaurant with someone that you hardly know, but seem quite fond of so far. The conversation is going well and you seem to share some interests and are having fun learning about the other. Your date then pulls out their cell phone to respond to a text message. As this dream date clicks away, it creates an awkward feeling and a silence that generates uneasiness. Have you even been on a date with a texter? Have you even been the texter on the date? The article that I read for this week talked about how Computer Mediated Communication, especially text messaging and instant messager, is sometimes a third wheel in some relationships. Me and my friends always nicknamed the person that could not stop texting in any situation the Tammy Texter of the group.

It told some stories of the rocky times that couples had when the ways that they liked to communicate differed. It seemed that most of the males in the relationships preferred less personal ways of interacting such as texting and IMing. The females on the other hand, found that talking on the phone was a better and more personal way to communicate. Both male and female though, found that the best way for them to communicate was face to face.

It also talked about ending relationships via texting and IMing. I think that this is a very frowned upon thing to do after graduation of middle school but apparently some people still do it. Although breaking up with someone is never a great experience, it is general knowledge that you should be respectful and do it in person. I think county super stat Taylor Swift would agree with me on this one after being recently dumped by Jonas Brother in a twenty seven second phone conversation. No one likes being dumped, but come on; there are some better ways to go about this one.

Since there is no real written technology etiquette as there is for table manners and etiquette, another section in the article dealt with proper texting etiquette. I think that the general consensus on the first one; No texting on a date, would be frowned upon by most people. The second rule is to use texting only for sweet nothings. This is sweet and all but I would say that texting is certainly useful in many other circumstances. For instance, “what time will you be here?” or “when is it okay to call you?” The last rule is that serious matters and breakups should only be addressed via phone conversation and in person. Thank you MSNBC for those rules. I think anyone who reads this that did not have common sense or respect for others will really benefit from these rules.

Following Politics Second Life

Are you too afraid to leave your dorm room on Election Day? Don’t want to get information about the polls on the television? Well many people seem to feel this way but luckily, they can once again hide from the real world, log onto Second Life, and virtually experience their ideal reality. On Second Life, there are different places set up for each of the two presidential candidates where they pass out free political tee-shirts and buttons for presidential supporters. Much like at the polls in real life, there are volunteers available to explain their candidate’s policies and try and sway votes in the last few moments.

Well when I read this all, I thought that this is nice but why not just go out and vote? So I logged onto Second Life and teleported to Barrack Obama’s campaign headquarters. I was immediately approached by a man in an Obama ’08 Tee-shirt who asked me if I was registered to vote and if I voted yet. I told him that I indeed did vote and thanked me and went on to encourage others to log off of Second Life and get out to the polls. Then I eavesdropped on some other conversations near me. A few people were talking about Sarah Palin. Some liked her while others most certainly expressed a negative and harsh opinion towards her. Others were discussing the Presidential Bash on Saturday Night Live last night and I did not add into the conversation but I directed my avatar to laugh.

I was not surprised at all at the political environments on Second Life. I think it is actually a wonderful environment for the mere fact that discussing politics with people that you actually know can prove to be not such a wonderful situation. We tend to often have much different opinions that people that we care about so conversations concerning politics are often avoided. Lately, I have been constantly watching it on the television but that does not provide me with any means to talk or ask questions to the people who are voicing their opinions. However, if I log onto Second Life, I can ask questions to people and tell them what I think without the fear of being reprimanded. Will we soon not even have to leave the house to vote? I project that in the near future, there will be a way to cast your vote from your desk.

References:

SecondLife.com

Virtual voters follow election in cyberspace

A Picture Messages is Worth a Life

In class, we are constantly debating the pros and cons of Computer Mediated Communication and a general consensus that we have developed is that CMC can be good or bad and it all depends on the way you use it. Well, it seems as if Verizon has found a new way to use CMC for the good. Their new feature on all of their cell phones is called My Mobile Wireless and it is designed to help protect their users. I learned about this information in an article on MSNBC called "Picture messaging as personal protection tool." As far as I understand, you would snap a photo of someone you may be unsure about. You would then sent it either to My Mobile Wireless or to another cell phone and that person would then know that it would be easier for them to be caught for anything they were about to do because Verizon had their photo in their collection. The service seems a bit unreliable but I see how it could come in handy for many users. A positive about the service is that if you are ever into any kind of trouble, Verizon gives law enforcement access to your vault of picture messages and it may give clues or hints in the case. They also suggest snapping shots of license plates, faces, or places whenever you feel threatened by any means. If the person knows that you already have prerecorded evidence then they may be less likely to harm you in any way.

I do think that this service can come in handy, but I guess that I just do not see how it will really impact or prevent crime in any significant form. It certainly does not replace the Emergency 911 phone call but it may prove to be protected in the long run. It makes me consider where CMC is headed in the next few years. We will eventually text 911 instead of calling because we fear phone conversation?