Going into this class, I was hella stressed. I had Beth's Photoshop class and it was one of the most creatively and technically-challenging courses I've had in my entire college career. So I was pretty much shaking in my boots before the semester even started.
At the beginning of the semester, I was still nervous about the free-form nature of the class. However, by the second or third meeting, I was anxious to get to class and see what would happen next, rather than be bracing myself for it.
All in all, I really enjoyed this class. We covered all nature and manner of topics. It served as a creative outlet free of the technical constraints so many of the New Media classes tend to employ. I think this type of class is just what the New Media program needs to balance out some of the software/hardware driven curriculum.
Plus, Beth is just cool. I'm gonna miss this class big time. Maybe you could fail me so I could take it again? :D
Monday, December 14, 2009
Research/Final Project
For my research project, I chose the FarmVille application. This is an online virtual farming game created by Zynga. It is hosted on Facebook, and recently branched out to its own independent site. The Zynga company also offers other virtual games such as FishVille (virtual aquariums), YoVille (virtual town residents), PetVille (virtual pets) and many other popular games such as MafiaWars and online poker.
I won't spend a ton of space describing the game here, as my presentation includes full visuals of all different aspects of playing it. A link to this website can be found here:
http://www.wix.com/janleo79/N385-Final-Presentation. I thought that free flash-based website builder at www.wix.com was too cool to pass up, so I also used this tool to compile my information.
The reason I chose this topic is that I was thinking about how does New Media most affect my daily life. As much as I hate to admit it, but online apps such as FarmVille take up a huge chunk of my free time. It reminded me of a guest speaker in one of my New Media courses a couple semesters back who was talking about online gaming communities such as www.pogo.com, and the huge opportunity this market creates for New Media professionals. I don't know if anyone had even conceived of this next level of gaming, as these apps create a virtual community within a community.
I'm sure this type of gaming and application development will only continue to grow. In fact, Zynga's website is worth checking out, especially the About page, as it looks like a New Media professional's dream gig.
Anyhow, I started playing FarmVille about two months ago. I've gradually grown more consumed with it, and now pretty much addicted to it. In a good way, not in a junkie way. During the discussion on SecondLife, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty not mentioning my secret farming life, but I didn't want to discuss my topic in advance.
However, I've noticed that my virtual farm life has crept into my real life in many ways. I often see a tree when driving and think, "That looks like my fig trees in FarmVille." I saw a field of crows the other day and my first thought was of scaring the FarmVille crows away from a neighbor's field.
Like a true farmer, my crops are often the first and last thing I tend to during the day. I've had many farming dreams, surely because my farm was the last thing I looked at before bed.
One embarrassing discovery I stumbled upon recently was a discussion forum posting I submitted in my Legal Informatics class. I included a snapshot below as it was just too hilarious to pass up:
There are many features of FarmVille that add to it's appeal (and pervasiveness). First, its hosted on Facebook, so the application is readily available whenever I'm on for social reasons. Second, your fellow Facebook friends who farm become your neighbors, so you frequently exchange gifts and bonuses, so there is always something new to hope for from your friends. I've built stronger bonds with new and past friends as we frequently chat about our farms than I would have if not for this game.
I can totally see how people can 'lose time' to their online hobbies. It's amazing how much time can be consumed with maintaining a virtual farm. Not only does it require maintenance, but many of the tasks are time-driven. It's a real bitch when my poinsettias come due for harvest and I have an advertising deadline due for work at the same time. Do I harvest my crops so they don't wither, or do I work on that ad...tough call!
I've included a recent funny Facebook post that kind of says it all...
I look forward to the presentations tomorrow!
Citations: www.farmville.com, www.wix.com, www.zynga.com
I won't spend a ton of space describing the game here, as my presentation includes full visuals of all different aspects of playing it. A link to this website can be found here:
http://www.wix.com/janleo79/N385-Final-Presentation. I thought that free flash-based website builder at www.wix.com was too cool to pass up, so I also used this tool to compile my information.
The reason I chose this topic is that I was thinking about how does New Media most affect my daily life. As much as I hate to admit it, but online apps such as FarmVille take up a huge chunk of my free time. It reminded me of a guest speaker in one of my New Media courses a couple semesters back who was talking about online gaming communities such as www.pogo.com, and the huge opportunity this market creates for New Media professionals. I don't know if anyone had even conceived of this next level of gaming, as these apps create a virtual community within a community.
I'm sure this type of gaming and application development will only continue to grow. In fact, Zynga's website is worth checking out, especially the About page, as it looks like a New Media professional's dream gig.
Anyhow, I started playing FarmVille about two months ago. I've gradually grown more consumed with it, and now pretty much addicted to it. In a good way, not in a junkie way. During the discussion on SecondLife, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty not mentioning my secret farming life, but I didn't want to discuss my topic in advance.
However, I've noticed that my virtual farm life has crept into my real life in many ways. I often see a tree when driving and think, "That looks like my fig trees in FarmVille." I saw a field of crows the other day and my first thought was of scaring the FarmVille crows away from a neighbor's field.
Like a true farmer, my crops are often the first and last thing I tend to during the day. I've had many farming dreams, surely because my farm was the last thing I looked at before bed.
One embarrassing discovery I stumbled upon recently was a discussion forum posting I submitted in my Legal Informatics class. I included a snapshot below as it was just too hilarious to pass up:
There are many features of FarmVille that add to it's appeal (and pervasiveness). First, its hosted on Facebook, so the application is readily available whenever I'm on for social reasons. Second, your fellow Facebook friends who farm become your neighbors, so you frequently exchange gifts and bonuses, so there is always something new to hope for from your friends. I've built stronger bonds with new and past friends as we frequently chat about our farms than I would have if not for this game.
I can totally see how people can 'lose time' to their online hobbies. It's amazing how much time can be consumed with maintaining a virtual farm. Not only does it require maintenance, but many of the tasks are time-driven. It's a real bitch when my poinsettias come due for harvest and I have an advertising deadline due for work at the same time. Do I harvest my crops so they don't wither, or do I work on that ad...tough call!
I've included a recent funny Facebook post that kind of says it all...
I look forward to the presentations tomorrow!
Citations: www.farmville.com, www.wix.com, www.zynga.com
Monday, December 7, 2009
Second Life
If I had a second life, I would seek the opposite of what I my 'first' life. As a twin, I've spent my whole life known as a double. I've been one of two. I have always wondered what it would be like to be a singleton. It seems like I would enjoy some anonymity, as people tend to notice twins. I also feel like as a twin, I've always had someone who always knows what I'm up to, what I'm doing, every last detail of every last thing. I think a second life would be an opportunity to not answer to anyone who isn't going to see through me anyway. Answering to someone who knows you about as well as two people can know each other sometimes leaves no room for escape.
For me, this sounds like a reprieve from my real life. It's not just that I would shake my twin, I could live with some freedom. I like the idea of being a traveler, without close bonds to any one place in the world. It would be liberating to be able to pack up and move on when a particular place no longer serves me. That's not possible in my life, but maybe in a second one.
For me, this sounds like a reprieve from my real life. It's not just that I would shake my twin, I could live with some freedom. I like the idea of being a traveler, without close bonds to any one place in the world. It would be liberating to be able to pack up and move on when a particular place no longer serves me. That's not possible in my life, but maybe in a second one.
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