Bcm112 – Comfort Zone Begone

~Privacy & Big Data~

Our information, more so privacy of it was a concern for everyone when social media platforms first launched but within the time frame of 5 to 10 years, the concerns over the load of information made available on social media, online in general has been forgotten by the average user.

People believe they have right to privacy but in a world so heavily reliant on social media that is nigh impossible. For having such a fear of their privacy invaded users are now ignorant to the copious amount of personal data that is collected at every moment.

The data you create when harness correctly is extremely powerful. Take for example Big Data, a mass collection of data that when analysed can reveal patterns and trends of human behavior. Tufekci brought up how is allows a “deeper and direct insight into a person’s opinions, dispositions and behaviors”.

Why does this matter? Because when these datasets that contain your online and networking behavior are compiled and analysed they can then predict attritbutes unique to yourself. Not just generally a large group similar to yourself but you! An individual and they’re scarily accurate.

Big Data is incredibly interesting but ultimately, terrifying.

~Until Next Time~

~Intellectual Property and the Content Control Industry~

Copyright is a term many are familiar with. It is a creators right the authorised production, distribution and commercial use of their creations, protected against unauthorised use.

Nintendo, who by far in terms of copyright laws and general use guideline take the cake in being the strictest gaming company. Their rules cover the use of, creators, theme songs and until recently even game footage if you weren’t apart of their Nintendo Creator’s Program, controversial as it attempted to control user creations on YouTube.

Time after time they have claimed copyright over their products, so much so that they have been called out in abusing YouTubes copyright feature. In fact it wasn’t until recently that they allowed users to monetize their uploaded footage of game play without needing to join Nintendo Creator’s Program that ceased operations in March 2019, a massive win after being attacked by continuous copyright claims.

Nintendo is just one of many that have plans in place protecting their intellectual property and although they have lightened the reigns slightly, it’s very doubtful they will so again.

~Until Next Time~

~Hyper-reality~

When asked the question, what is reality? Can you answer it? do you have a clear idea of what reality is? Westerhoff describes it as “everything that appears to our five senses”– smell, touch etc.

Rolling into Hyper-reality. What is it? In simply terms in is a heightened version of the world around us, created with layer of simulation that become so proficient, it is often hard to consciously tell apart true reality.

In todays world we are being shown more and more examples of hyper-reality. For example, Deepfake. Human image synthesis based on artificial intelligence that as of a few days ago, can create videos from one an image. A single image. The implications behind this technology is incredibly exciting yet also unsettling.

A program able to create fairly accurate and extremely believable depictions of individuals within the wrong hands can cause a very dangerous chain of events.

~DA Beta~

As mentioned in my video, my Beta is nowhere where I want it to be. That is entirely due to myself changing my idea last minute and having gotten sick. In saying that my DA has changed from a blog archive of cosplay tutorials to an educational YouTube series on Australian cosplay essentially targeting conventions, reviews and videos on where to get and buy cosplay materials. The reason for this was simple, I wasn’t getting anywhere with the blog, it pretty much flopped and I was no longer interested in it. In terms of cosplay, it feels like Australia has very little to offer in terms of stores dedicated to supplying cosplay materials, unlike many overseas.

My DA is across both YouTube and Instagram. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to edit two of the videos I planned to post having instead posted a very minor DIY just to get some content rolling. Instagram however, I’ve immersed myself more into the cosplay community meaning I’ve been interacting and socialising with other cosplayers, creating polls and posts on my story and from that I’ve noticed two things. My follower count had increased, although a very minor increase, with other cosplayers so obviously I must be doing something right. Probably the best thing to have happen as mentioned in the video was my interaction with an online American pop-culture apparel store, Mynerdyneeds. I’d notice them liking some of my previous posts after interacting my some of their own, which is great as I have plans of a product review video so to be on their radar is awesome. They also do a lot of mutual promotion with cosplayers, something I forgot to mention in the video.

Although the amount of feedback I have is little, it makes it even more precious. Clearly, I know I need to increase my online presence and increase my uploads which I kind of already knew. I’ve decided to stick with project. There is a gap for what I want to make, and I believe once I’m able to truly upload what I want, it’ll be good.

~Meme Warfare~

The good old humble meme you’d never guess how much of a tool it could be. Memes are the language of the Internet, so simple yet so rememberable and that simple fact makes them dangerous and easily manipulated.

Siegel, for, one believes them to be the “stuff by which reality is made and manipulated” and “natural tools of an insurgency” points I wholeheartedly agree in. What better way to manipulate the perception of others than in a format they are already familiar and comfortable with?

Politically, memes have been used often to mock the opposition, push agenda’s and after the 2016 American election, the Internet was flooded with them, sparking mass debate that stretched internationally! Something so simple as a meme generated hundreds of conversations and instigated and fair bit of public discourse.

Whatever you’re general opinion is on the significance of meme use, personally I believe memes have and are working quite successfully as modern day propaganda.

~Until Next Time~

~New Age Media~

In this day and age digitalisation has broken the barrier between production and consumption. No longer is the consumer a passive member of media, having instead embraced the emergence of digital technologies, they are taking an active role in the production and distribution of content across the web.

In terms of economy, legacy media content is expensive to produce and allows a higher risk of failure compared to emergent media which has low cost of production, virtually free and a low risk of failure.

One such example is the rise of Vaporwave and the new a e s t h e t i c, subcultures that run hand in hand. Vaporwave is a genre of music identifiable by its remediation of 80s-90s mood music vibes whilst the a e s t h e t i c is an art form often exhibiting low quality visuals of retro electronics, Japanese lettering and classic statues all tied together in vibrant colours or clean pastels.

Kevinwong in his web post believes that Vaporwave is a product of “exponential technologies” and that its popularity is due to its lack of cost to create and the abundant range of free programs to do. Thus, making it one of the many forms of media to arise within digital production.

Think back to McLuhan’s ‘the medium is the message”. Would Vaporwave and the a e s t h e t i c art form be just as popular and have such a wide audience if it wasn’t free to create and view? More than likely not.

~Until next time~

~Digital Artefact Pitch~

Alright then, let’s get down to business. Here is my Digital Artefact Pitch.

It’s simple. I want to supply information about cosplay and make something helpful to the cosplay community surrounding topics on tutorials, conventions and experiences of those involved. I want to do this with a master link blog of costume & prop tutorials categorised under the specific thing of what they’re from and I want to create videos where I tell of my own experiences and ideally that of others in the cosplay community.

I plan to do this on WordPress/Tumblr and YouTube and collect the data of the views, comments and converse with my audience to gather feedback on what they liked, what they didn’t etc.

I’m doing this because I love it and I want to help those in the community and hopefully one day build a career within the cosplay scene. Thanks!

~Until next time~

~Convergence~

The internet is something that is a part of our daily lives so much so that we don’t even realise just how extraordinary it is and how much it has developed over the last 30 or so years, how media has developed in general. A move from analog to digital media has revolutionised the way in which media is produced, distributed and consumed.

Take a look at the timeline above. How many of these devices do you know? Better yet, which ones have you used? It would appear that many of these technologies have become obsolete as what happens. Technology improves, new devices are created and the old is shoved in a box for the day it can be sold on Ebay for a pretty buck. But have old media types truly been forgotten?

Jenkins considered that “Old media are not being displaced. Rather, their functions and status are shifted by the introduction of new technologies,”. It’s interesting, in a way the internet and other modern media technologies are a reflection and combination of their predecessors. A convergence. Email was once post. We’ve seen (some of us) the rise and fall of record, cassette and disc music, now in which is dominantly streamed or downloaded online. Television has ascended to various online streaming services and so on.

Yes, many of these devices still exist and are still in use today. But looking deeper. Can any of these devices do the job of another? Can any single one of them do as much as the internet can?

~Until next time~

~DA? What to do? What to do indeed~

For many sharing ideas across the internet is daunting. I am both fearful and excited as this is something I have wanted to do and have finally been given the push to go ahead and do it with creating a Digital Artefact.

My likes and interest span across a wide variety of things from cooking to gardening, music and movies but the one thing I have always wanted to share is my love for creating costumes and props for cosplay, whether for myself or others. I’ve been in the cosplay community since I was young, ten maybe eleven years old, thanks to my nerdy family who’ve loved all things pop-culture and it’s something I can see myself still involved in later in life. So it’d be great to build my digital artefact around it.

Cosplay for those who don’t know is costume creation of characters from pretty much anything and is generally the area I want to focus my DA around. Whether it’s tutorial based videos, commission based projects or CMV’s (cosplay music videos. Don’t judge me, people love them), it’s pretty much an idea I can throw anything into and defiantly focus on it being more than just an assignment. Still working out the tweaks. The few drawbacks that I can see from this idea is that any content I create will more than likely depend on what’s popular in the community at the time but I won’t until I jump on in.

-Until next time-

~A Step Forward~

Welcome!

Well hello there I see you’ve found yourself in my little corner of the web. This is meant to be an introduction to my blog and I tend to ramble a bit so I’m gonna go with it and see where it takes me. This is pretty much trial and error and as of today this is my first ever blog post and I am both nervous and excited for what is to follow.

I am Madi, from South-Western Sydney and I am studying a Bachelor of Communication and Media at the University of Wollongong. This blog will be contributing towards pretty much all my media subjects as well as many of my interests and I really want to highlight the journey and experiences that I, an introvert, have when facing something that is completely out of my comfort zone in the hopes that it will help others who share they same feelings of doubt and insecurity when being thrown in the deep end. I’ve never made YouTube videos, podcasts or even really ran a social media page regularly but I’m enthusiastic to learn and do so.

I won’t lie, when I started my first day at Uni I was absolutely terrified and honestly, I still am. But I came to the realisation that I’m not the only one feeling this and that I’m not expected to know it all straight away. Why else would I be taking the course. Many others that I have spoken have felt the same and that alone brings me comfort. I’m excited to get to know as many as I can in my subjects and see the awesome content that I’m sure they’re going to create. I wish them and you all the best of luck.

-Until next time-