Assessing our beloved Wikipedia- Does it really know best?

Two topics i consider myself with sound knowledge in.......... Firstly would be my beloved Bjork. So here goes on the evaluation of Wikipedia and if justice is well served in her name.

The article called "Bjork" (rightfully so) is relatively detailed with information, which is not to say that it is all correct. Minor details (which to a dedicated fan means...THE WORLD) are incorrect and sometimes in different order as to their real relevance within her life. My knowledge and understanding comes from documented interviews and published books I myself have of hers. When considering the basics, i would deem the site relatively informative. Generally, Bjork and her eccentric style of music and voice is referred to throughout the article allowing insight into her practises and a general overview of her influence within the culture of "Popular" music. The article flows in a neutral manner and carries a non-biased approach to Bjork and her position within the music Industry. I myself would rectify the minor glitches within the contents and further spice up the article. The clause seemed long winded and at times difficult to completely comprehend. Having a great understanding of Bjork allowed me to follow the direction of the prose yet dimininshing confusion may than appeal to a wider audience.

My Second inquisition for exploration is according to the French Film Amelie. Wikipedia seems to evaluate the movie with great detail exploring the characters and their persona in an imaginative fashion. This method of summary seems to fit perfectly with the film's quirky twist on Parsain life and draws attention and immediate curiosity. Basic facts are considered and covered effectively with additional background information that seems extremely relivant. I would leave this article as it appears currently as i consider it to be spot on in the evaluation of the socially introverted Amelie and the exuding of extroverted imagination.

Wikipedia is undoubtably one of the most recognised and sited means of information retrieval currently on the Internet. Although it proves itself to be extremely useful it should be noted and recognised that all information is not rock solid. DO RESEARCH! Being fed information acessible on the internet will always provide you with answers but their sincerity is questionable.

Walter Benjamin- Is Digital Media Authentic?

Walter Benjamin was a reseach syndicate as one of many homepages dedicated to his endeavours have clearly stated. "The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction" is a piece exploring the present direction of Art and the Sphere of authenticity outside technical reproducibility. Benjamin questions the immediate understanding of artistic representation and the bounds to which we apply and render objects authentic. The text gives detailed insight into the drastic movement of Digital media within Art and where he believes the direction may lead us in the near future. What Art work deems more authentistic than others? I am yet to determine. If it is one thing i have learned it's that Art cannot be defined by limitations. Who should stand to reason the categorizing of skilled professionals within the Art Industry? True, artists before the likes of digital media were working solely with hands on talent and experience but Art demands change, it is with growth that makes us aspire to infinate possiblities. Digital media is anything but childs play. Individuals working within the confines of digital media (audio, visual, performance etc) definately deserve the recognition and title of artist along side the rest of creative practioners. When considering a photoshopped image and its value according to authenticity I am of two standings. If photoshop is used in a manner of process reproduction I find it holds very little authenticity to the original print. This method works on bringing out that unattained by the naked eye. If it is manual reproduction for example enlarging the item and
making minor adjustments to the original than i would consider it to hold all authenticity as to when it was captured. As noted in "The work of art in the age of Mechanical Reproduction" the presence of the original is a prerequisite to the concept of authenticity. I guess when considering Walter Benjamin's term of 'aura,' digital art work would not be possessive of such quality. According to Benjamin, the 'aura' is that which withers in the age of mechanical reproduction. It is of Benjamin's belief that the technique of reproduction detaches the reproducted object from its tradtional domain. The authenticity of a thing is the essence of all that is transmissible from its beginning, ranging from its substantive duration to its testimony to the history which it has experienced.

My Personal use of what we call NCT

New communications technology has become vital and extremely impressionable upon my daily requirements. The communication of friends, family and colleagues is inevitable with the use of my trusthy companion; the mobile phone (the one item I never leave home without). Which i'm sure rings true to many of you. It has become an extremely crucial necessity for effectively maintaining regular contact. I would undoubtably consider myself a textamaholic and continually use this as a basis for keeping updated.

Another means of communication, which until now, I was using on a frequent basis, is that of instant messaging. I found and continue to find it an effective means to communicate with friends I tend to see little of. Here I maintain my privacy and speak only to contacts I wish to add. I am aware that some may use the service as a means to establish communcation with unfamiliar individuals but I consider it extremely important to uphold and maintain my confidentiality. Who is to know the nature of an individual's search for chat? Perhaps innocent banter is the reason for interaction but such naievity can at times, lead to disasterous ends. It is of my understanding that if you dont set yourself up for a fall your less likely to be confronted with one. Hence, my friends list consists only with that of friends. The use of MSN Messenger and Email on a weekly basis is an adequate amount of internet interaction for me. I find these technologies to allow me sufficient communication with the world outside my immediate without the weight of worrying. Personally, I consider the concept of MySpace quite unnerving. Upon browsing through different unknown individuals it became evident that, although monitored to a certain degree, this may be relatively dangerous. Without subconsciously realising, the personalized accounts sometimes show vulnerability. I understand you may privatize your account but i found in many instances a great deal of personal information and pictures posted just created open invitation for those we wish to deter. I find the concept of not always getting what you see very unnatural. Its considerably easy to infiltrate unsuspecting victims with the capability of metamorphising personal identity. Each to their own of course. I'm sure MySpace, when used with precausion, enables a high level of communication amongst friends. I haven't entirely erracticated the idea of me being a completely paranoid pesimist and am aware i may be flying solo in my Anti-MySpace campaigns.

I became familiar and dependant upon the internet; MSN Messenging/ Email and my mobile phone at the start of highschool. My mobile phone was instigated the first day of riding the school bus.....ALONE. My mother freaked as mother's tend to do and I was issued a mobile phone and a portable alarm box (if the box didn't grap the attention of bystanders 2km way the noise was sure to deafen the perpetrator). MSN Messenger was purely to talk to those u'd been at school all day with to gossip about what went on at school that day. Very straightforward yet enticing stuff. And email, well that was my means to send school work and check out messages from school pals during school where MSN was blocked on the servers for very good reason. Today, with a schedule making face to face contact very difficult, these communication technologies creates an extremely easy and efficient way of obtaining contact with those we deem cheerished.

Search Engines

Search Engines are designed to create index throughout the web, resulting in a more efficient and effective search result. The Page Ranking system allows the links according to importance be located immediately at the top. This process is done so by the use of the Web's link structure. The link structure allows quality rank calculation of each individual site according to keywords used within the search. http://infolab.stanford.edu/~backrub/google.html

Google is continually my preferred search engine for obtaining information. Consistently delivering a high quality of search results and navigation. Becoming very familiar with this particular method of information retrieval over the last few years has made me comfortable with its use.

Tutorial Questionaire

Question 1- Who was the creator of the infamous "lovebug" computer virus? ANSWER: The creator of the infamous "lovebug" was De Guzman.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2001/02/11/BU193239.DTL&type=printable

Question 2- Who invented the paper clip? ANSWER: Norwegian inventor Johan Vaaler http://ask.yahoo.com/ask/20031120.html

Question 3- How did the Ebola virus get its name? ANSWER: The virus gets its name from a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it was first recognized. http://ebola.emedtv.com/ebola-virus/from-what-place-did-the-ebola-virus-get-its-name.html

Question 4- What country had the largest recorded earthquake? ANSWER: Chilli holds the largest recorded earthquake 1960.
http://www.earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/kids/facts.php

Question 5- In computer memory/storage terms, how many kilobytes in a terabyte? ANSWER: 1073741834 kilobytes is in a single terabyte
http://www.t1shopper.com/

Question 6- Who is the creator of email? ANSWER: Ray Tomlinson is considered the father of electronic mail, at least for Email sent from one computer to another. http://www.livinginternet.com/e/ei.htm

Question 7- What is the storm worm, and how many computers are infected by it? ANSWER: The Storm Worm attempts to link up with other infected hosts via peer-to-peer networking. Through this conduit it gets a URL which points to a second-stage executable, which in turn downloads additional stages onto the infected system. Estimates establish that the Storm Worm has infected between 1 to 50 million computers worldwide.
http://www.secureworks.com/research/threats/view.html?threat=storm-worm

Question 8- If you wanted to contact the prime minister of australia directly, what is the most efficient way? ANSWER: Electronic Mail is an option but as established on the Prime Minister of Australia Webpage Internet and email are not secure mediums to transfer information. Communication via post was futher advised:
The Hon Kevin Rudd
MPPrime Minister
Parliament House
CANBERRA ACT 2600
http://pm.gov.au/contact/index.cfm


Question 9- Which Brisbane-based punk band is Stephen Stockwell (Head of the School of Arts) a member of? ANSWER: Stephen Stockwell plays keyboard for the Black Assassins


http://blackassassins.net/

Question 10- What does the term "Web 2.0" mean in your own words? ANSWER: The term "Web 2.0" means the ability to share online information. Web 2.0 differs as it is a transition and platform for any person to add information. Example; MySpace
http://www.paulgraham.com/web20.html

Lets talk introductions

To whom may feel it of great interest to read my blog or for some reason or another has seemingly taken a wrong turn and stumbled across this particular post i welcome you with open arms. My name, first and foremost is Ondi and before you question to ask, for no particular reason did my mother come to such a conclusion. One in which brought me great anguish in the days of the old school yard as to the seemingly destructive and original nickname of Undies? Further fuelling the situation was my partnering up with my best friend Nelly, or as she was formally known in the Quadrangle SMELLY. Her being SMELLY and I UNDIES....Lets face it, we were DAMNED BEFORE THE GET GO.



Why didn't that wretched woman call me something socially exceptable or just down right cool like Princess Jasmine, I continually questioned after endless amounts of little lunches cram-packed with NAR NAR KNEE NAR NARS and giggles from the girls with their skirts around their heads on the monkey bars. HEY! I was like every other Tom, Dick and Harry. I liked Snack Packs and playing Paper, Scissors Rock for fun with nothing really at stake but perhaps my position in the tuckshop line.



I've come along way from the sand box i'll have you know. That is to say I'm thinking a little less each day of wisping away, Aladdin by my side and have taken a somewhat warmth to the name in which i have been assigned.



So what brought me, Ondi, here to 1501 ART-New Communication Technologies one might ask? Did each and every individual understand the meaning of such a course title when creating our timetable? I know I sure as hell didn't, stumped on day one 3/3/08 in a 9.00AM tutorial asking myself "What the hell? How the hell and why the hell might I be in a subject to which I know little to nothing about the course content?"

But as the tutorial commenced and conversation flourished, a certain realisation and perhaps a degree of stability came over me and I found myself saying

"Ondi you do alright at life." A course that delves into Technology as we know it and analytically questions that in which we take for granted on a daily basis. I'm particularly interested in familiarising myself with theoretical debates that may be attached with New Communication Technologies.



To synopsise.....A not to shabby subject selection for Semester 1, if I do say so myself.

Signing Off

Onzilla