Mashable.com!

Mashable.com was a very cool social media marketing website. It offers plenty of articles having to do with social media. Their articles range from Facebook’s new email accounts to their own contests. I liked that it offered different types of articles too, one article had to do with marketing social media that was not on the Internet. It gave descriptions and examples of marketing, along with pictures to show you what they were talking about. One example was a food truck, which had a advertisement saying to find them on Facebook and “Like” them. The website also gave you a list of the popular articles that day. And of course you were able to sign on to Facebook and “Like” certain articles, this of course is the best marketing that social media has to offer because they don’t have to do much anymore except to have it be on Facebook because then you advertise for them.

Surfing the Inter-NED

On November 1, 2010 Ned Sublette came to our Real World class and told his about his life. This man had done almost everything in the media world. He’s written books, recorded a song or two and a bunch of albums, he’s even set up his own record label in Havana, Cuba. The record label was originally supposed to be a film production studio but it ended up being in music, which defiantly sits to his style of life. Along with doing a lot in the music business he was his own radio boss as a radio producer for his own segment. As we quickly learned he loved Cuban music, it was more his passion then anything else. He wanted to experience the deepest Afro-African Music, which translated into Cuban Salsa. He had plenty of issues when it came to Cuban laws; one of the biggest issues was getting around them, which fortunately he was able to do. He also created this website called Ned’s List which people sign up for and sends articles and public appearances. It allows his voice to be heard without outselling himself.

We learned one of his books was about his childhood and growing up in a white supremacy area of Louisiana. It mostly focused on New Orleans, having written it a year before Hurricane Katrina hit. Then calling it “The Year Before the Flood, A Story of New Orleans.” He had some major issues in Cuba when his inventory company in Cuba basically told him he no longer could get his inventory. He explained how in 1997 there was music that was sold back to companies because the public was not buying bad music. When someone asked how he ended up where he is, he told us timing is everything and you have to be aware and on top of your stuff or you may lose it. He also told his media never disappears it just gets repurposed. In radio, as I previously mentioned he worked for National Public Radio where he was able to do his segments on what he wanted, which was music history. This out of everything was most important because he found his voice on live television, which empowered him to do plenty more. I have joined “Ned’s List” and enjoy reading what he writes and articles he sends my way

Books are an obsolete medium???!!!!

Books will never be obsolete, maybe they will become less popular but they will always be around. I argue this with great intension. I can understand why people believe this since new technology makes it possible to have hundreds of books at one time in one place but I still do not think that books will disappear, at least not for a few hundred years or something. I can not imagine being a child and having my Mom or Dad read a book to me on the iPad, it just does not have that nice feeling to it. I understand having electric textbooks, students would not have to carry them around but what happens if you want to highlight something and be able to flip back to a page easily, you would be difficult to do that with a Kindle or iPad. The cost of some books is expensive and I am not saying how nice it would be to get a book for half the price of a hard case novel, but I simply do not like that reading is becoming more technological. I like the idea of a book being a book and a machine being a machine. Imagine reading a book outside on the beach, it may get a little wet but they pages will dry but what happens when your Kindle gets wet? It dies and is gone. I do not agree with the technology I do think it is pretty cool but I just do not know how the world could live without books.

How do conglomerates affect print publishing? Are there positives and negatives?

Conglomerates affect print publishing because now there is more of it. By allowing a large company they have more power over what they publish and have the rights to them. In the past four or five years big companies have taken over smaller companies and have focused on different ideas such as sports, home improvement and lifestyle. It’s positive because people have been able to get what they need without any problem. It creates more money for these companies because they are doing different things and gaining interest from different groups of people. The negative aspects have to do with other companies. They also have to power to be able to put it on television or the Internet since they know that they have viewers who would follow them. With bigger companies comes bigger staff so they are able to make more things happen and get things done quicker. Smaller companies may not be able to handle the competition from these large companies. In addition these other companies may be able to put personal opinions in their print while these larger companies may not like that and cut it out.

New Trends and Main Issues

What are the main trends in book publishing?

The main trends recently have to be E-Publishing. Allowing the reader to get their book electronically, either on their iPhone and iPod or on their Kindle. These electric books have made plenty of money for book publishers. People do not have to wait in line to order a book; they can simply download it right on to their devices in a fast and quick way. In addition, online bookstores can “remember” what you purchased and recommend other books the reader may like.

What are the main copyright issues for print media?

There are plenty of copyright issues for print media. There is such a thing called intellectual property, which means a person owns the right to their creative work that has not been published. People do not like the idea that someone is borrowing their idea or story and making money out of it. J.K. Rowling had this problem when someone claimed that she had stolen her idea, but as we know Rowling had though up Harry Potter on her own. A person must get permission in order to use a picture or an idea that is clearly someone else’s.

Online Privacy and Security Practices and My Plan for Making Myself Safer Online

I consider myself to be very safe on the Internet. Scams are probably the biggest security problem we encounter and people should know that they aren’t going to get a free iPad for answer one question. Giving our names, emails, phone numbers and even credit card numbers is how people usually get into trouble. Places such as cafes or airports, anywhere where a person can access the Internet for free is a big place for people to spread infection among computers or devises. By opening up emails from an unknown sender can also expose your computer to a virus or Spyware. There are programs that can remember all that we write in like our credit card numbers and passwords that can get into our personal accounts and cause damage.

A few simple ways to stop this is to install virus protection software on your computer. Just make sure if you download it from an Internet source that it is not going to give you a virus and always be aware of who you are downloading it from. For my personal benefit I have already downloaded an anti-virus software that makes sure all the websites I go onto are safe and checked for bugs. But half of the problem is if I don’t continue to update it, something may break through. I try to make sure that I trust the website I am using and websites like Facebook have been helping people stay safe.

Questions about the Interent

1. List the major types of content on the Web?

There is plenty of different content on the Internet these days. One is the electric publishing that many magazines and newspapers are doing. They are posting their articles or pictures online. Some are even making a person pay a fee for different articles. Entertainment is another, where we can view our favorite shows and movies online. Plenty of online games are also a big part of the Internet content. The game World of Warcraft is big example that allows gamers to sign up online and play. The obvious answer to content on the Internet is search engines. We use Google’s search engine to fine videos on YouTube or articles on the New York Times.

2. What makes a good Web page design?

A good Web page design must have good background graphics so it’s attractive for the person to view it. In addition, the title of a Web page makes all the difference, a person is not going to create a small and unclear title, they want their customer to be able to see it. People posting content on their website may also make their articles or blogs smaller so a person doesn’t get overwhelmed with information. Framing is a big practice for people who are designing a website. With interactive programs it expands what we are used to so its new and exciting.

3. Who are the leading makers of computer software and hardware?

As anyone could have guessed it Apple is a major leader of computer hardware and software. Along with Apple, there is also IBM and Microsoft. Apple has great computers but where would we be if there were no such thing as Microsoft Word? There is also Dell and Hewlett-Packard among these companies. Not only do they make our computers but many of them make the software that we use too. MSN also known as Microsoft Network is used as a major email network. A big software company is Cisco Systems has recently become a big network equipment manufacture.

4. What is the difference between a content provider and an Internet service?

Internet service allows users to connect to the Internet and provide different communications such as email. A few companies that are big in Internet services are AT&T, Comcast and TimeWarner. They lease the connections to phone companies and allow customers their own personal service. Content providers are what you see on the website. It is what makes up the information and graphics most companies have graphic design departments that make up their own content. The main difference between the two is the Internet service gives you with the power to go onto the Internet while the content provider shows you information once you are already on the Internet.

5. Who runs the Internet?

I think anyone who has an influence runs the Internet. In recent years and with Facebook and other community sites it has helped people from around the world interact and rule the Internet. Professionals like to think they run the Internet because of the new advertisements they set use up with but I think people who going a the same website everyday and talk about it in their daily lives makes the Internet what it is. As new websites pop up like bloggers there are different communities on the Internet such as gamers or people interested in pop culture, either way we the public own the Internet.