gabriellagabriellachan - Tumblr blog

[gabriellagabriellachan]

Remix and Licensing

“Everything is a remix” or so Ferguson (20120) says, but is the concept of remixing avoidable in today’s society? When everything has been thought of before, can anything really ever be truly original?

To discuss the themes from this topic, I created an audiovisual presentation which addresses; remix and licensing in different media forms, copyright and compares some examples as well.

To see my original thoughts and reflections on the topic follow this link;

http://gabriellagabriellachan.tumblr.com/post/180996434048/remix-and-licensing

[gabriellagabriellachan]

The Internet is for...?

Technology has come a long way since the creation of what is now known as the web/internet. The advancements in technology now allow us to interact with one another in ways we never dreamed possible. However, it must be taken into consideration, what we gained and what have we lost as a result?

To expand on my learnings and reflections from week 1 - conceiving the net, I created an audio discussion that addresses some of the ideas I came up with in my original textual post.

To see my original thoughts on the topic follow this link;

http://gabriellagabriellachan.tumblr.com/post/180080411278/the-internet-is-for

[gabriellagabriellachan]

The all knowing, all mighty and all powerful ‘GOOGLE’.

What is Google’s greatest product? 

Looking back on the evolution of Google, especially looking at how far the logo has come its safe to say that the greatest product is the company itself. Just think of what life would be like without it, one would be forced to use Internet Explorer or Firefox there would also be no Youtube, Gmail, Google Home, Apps and much much more. Life would be meaningless? 

In today’s society, we are blessed with the ability to access an almost endless amount of information at the snap of our fingers. 

But how has Google impacted and changed our lives and what have we lost as a result to all that we have gained from Google and the ever-advancing changes in technology? In an article entitled ‘Is Google Making Us Stupid? What the Internet is doing to our brains’ written by Nicholas Carr, he discusses the tech giant and how that even though we have more access to information now than ever before we are not actually ‘reading’ in the traditional way. Are we really learning and processing information or is it safe to assume we have become mindless zombies who take in surface information only.  

It is clear to see that there has been a distinct change in how each generation processes information, for example, the older generations prefer to read books and newspapers. Whereas I like a combination of both I enjoy reading books but I do enjoy using Google to search the web for news and interesting articles. In comparison, I see the younger generations who struggle to read books or have their heads stuck to digital screens all the time. As stated in the article it is becoming ever more evident that users are “not reading online in the traditional sense” as they are too often obsessed with “quick wins“ (Carr, 2008). All too often people will now skim over an article or the news headlines to get all the latest happenings and gossip from around the world. Instead of actually delving into an article and reading up on an issue that may be occurring.

Whether we like it or not technology is shaping our society and Google is just one of the technology companies that dominate the world wide web. Without them, we wouldn’t have all the cool gadgets and access to all the latest trends and happenings of the world. They have changed how we interact with each other but also how we go about our everyday lives and I do not think that we should be scared of these changes but learn to embrace them.

References

Carr, N. (2008). Is Google Making Us Stupid? The Atlantic. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/306868/

Image

Unknown. (Unknown). History Of Googles Logo Changes And Thought Process Behind Their Creation! Retrieved from https://techstory.in/google-logo-history/

[gabriellagabriellachan]

What do I believe is Google's greatest product? (An internal conversation with myself).

Me: The Google home!

Also Me: No that is so millennial, I need to think of something better.

Me: But with the Google home you can control your whole house! You can change your lights, create mood lighting, play music and also talk to Google because you have no real friends to talk to.

Also Me: Well that is just sad, I think you need to get out more.

Me: Well I think you need to keep up with the times.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

In today’s digital society it is nice to see little treasures like this street library in my local town!

[gabriellagabriellachan]

I always feel like somebody’s watching me...

Digital Ethics - Data Tracking and Surveillance

In today’s technology-reliant society it is important to remember that data tracking and surveillance exist and that they are used in various ways; from monitoring citizens movements, storing data to allow for a more personalised online experience and even cyberstalking. In the discussion of digital ethics in digital media, there are a few points to address and reflect on. As individuals we need to ask ourselves;

Is our privacy really be invaded, is there cause for concern? 

Is it now just an everyday part of our lives and something that we all have become used to?  

A good starting point for this topic is a famous lyric which states that “I always feel like somebody's watching me, and I have no privacy” (Rockwell, 1984). Is there cause for concern when it is a well-known fact that these days major technology and web giants like Facebook and Google collect and store data for various purposes. However, most people are oblivious to just how much data is being collected and kept. 

When addressing the topic of digital ethics, both the positive and negative impacts of data tracking and surveillance must be taken into consideration. In an article written by Brian Chen, he discusses just how intricate companies like Facebook and Google’s data collection goes. Chen goes on to state that “tech companies like Google and Facebook have an incredible amount of power over us that only increases with the more that they know” (Chen, 2008).

In fact, there are individuals who believe that mobile devices such as your mobile phone and tablet can be listening to what is being said. Some individuals believe this is why you can see an advertisement on television and then a little while later that advertisement will then show up on Facebook.

As a society we now have access to personalised advertisements and targeted marketing our Facebooks, Instagrams and Twitters are now more personal than ever. Also, it must be remembered that certain companies and agencies need to retain certain metadata and information for purposes like personalised bills for telecommunications or even to retain information that may help assist in stopping illegal and criminal activities.

My Digital Traces

As an experiment, I decided to track my digital traces for a 24 hour period. By using Google’s My Activity service and searching back through my Facebook activity log I was surprised and intrigued to see the information and data that was being retained. The biggest eye-opener was finding out the activity that Google keeps track of and how they even track the usage of your various Android devices. As a result of this experiement I have decided to look into my digital activities and aim to rely less on my digital devices.

As a society, we have become reliant on technology and thrive off having everything we could possibly want at our fingertips. When does it become too much? You can say that you delete anything you do not want people seeing or that you are cyber-safe but in his article, Chen raises a good point by stating, “what does it mean to delete something from Google? Is it just hidden from plain sight or actually expunged?” (Chen, 2018). This question is an interesting concept to reflect on because the saying always goes, once something is on the world wide web/internet it is there forever.

So in conclusion, is data tracking and surveillance good or bad and is it something we can avoid? What would our lives be like if companies and agencies did not track and store data? These questions have a multitude of answers but in this day and age, it seems that data tracking and surveillance is an unavoidable part of our everyday lives.

References

Chen, B. (2008, May 16). Here's why it wasn't as creepy as my Facebook data. New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/16/technology/personaltech/google-personal-data-facebook.html

RockwellVEVO. (2009, October 7). Rockwell - Somebody's Watching Me. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YvAYIJSSZY

[gabriellagabriellachan]

New wave.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

The ‘Big 5′ and my life.

So I wanted to dig a little deeper and see how the big 5 influenced my life and also my online behaviour, and I was honestly very surprised with just how much I seem to rely on them.

After taking the New York Times quiz “Which Tech Giant Would You Drop?”, I was really shocked to see the differences in my choices compared to others. My choices on who to drop were; Amazon, Apple, Alphabet, Facebook then lastly Microsoft.

In my choice to drop Amazon first, I was not overly surprised or affected by what would happen with that choice, as currently I do not use many Amazon services or do I purchase goods from them. So, I was safe for now. Again, by losing Apple I was not to affected as I am a Samsung user so saying sayonara to the iPhone, Macbook and Ipad was not a big loss for me.

However, in dropping my third company is when I started to realise how much I’d struggle, especially because of how much we as a society rely on this companies services and goods. In choosing to drop Alphabet I was choosing to abandon all the wonderful things like; Google search and Youtube. But for me, the biggest hit was losing access to the Android software so my Samsung phone would now be a useless paperweight.

As a direct result of my previous choice, the last two choices were not as big of a hit due to the fact I’d have no working phone or tablet to use Facebook on, which means I’d be forced to use social media on a laptop like some sort of basic human! Whatever would I do? 

However, I always surprise myself on how much I do actually rely on Facebook to keep in contact with those around me, so in dropping it I lost almost 70% of human contact unless I wanted to drive a hell of a lot more. Lastly, in dropping Microsoft I would lose all access to the entire Mircosoft office suite which I could probably live without, to be honest, but the one I couldn’t live without would be XBOX! I mean gaming is my life!

So, this quiz proved to be a real eye-opener for me and I now appreciate my access to technology much more especially to see how much we as a society have become so reliant on these big 5 companies.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

Although I find this image quite cool and funny, I also find it a bit scary at the same time. How reliant on social/digital media have we become these days? Are they like drugs for us?

My questions are, is digital media controlling our lives? or are we in control? and is is it having a positive or negative effect?

Favourite 🎨

[gabriellagabriellachan]

📱🚺📱🚺📱🚺

[gabriellagabriellachan]

STACKS!

Before you get excited, when I mention the work stacks I am not talking about playing stacks on someone, no. We are talking about five of the world's biggest companies in terms of value which are; Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook.

However, there is another way of looking at it is by using the FAANGs principle; Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google.

These companies own and ‘control’? almost every aspect of our lives when you think about it. Our technology, internet, the way we communicate with each other and much more is now associated with one or more of these companies.

So what are the features of the ‘Big 5′?

- They are all predominantly technology companies and they are almost all companies that deal with social media and communication in some shape or form.

- Apple and Microsoft supply the world with the bulk of is technology goods, buy creating and supplying goods like computers, mobile phones, gaming machines, tablets and much more.

These companies are the biggest and most valuable corporations and they have become a part of our everyday lives, especially for those connected to the internet and digital media. Even though these companies like Apple and Microsoft compete against each other in certain ways they all also work together to create the digital reliant society that we have become today.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

Here are some examples of how you can remix images to make a new one.

These are some photo montages that I created during my first year of studies. These images are made up of multiple different images that I found.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

Remix and Licensing

How can someone be original these days? With so much stuff out there is everything just a remix now? 

Check out this video by Kirby Ferguson to learn all about the idea of remixing.

https://vimeo.com/139094998

It has been said that these days “anybody can remix anything, you don’t need expensive tools, you don’t need a distributor, you don’t even need skills” (Ferguson, 2015). In his video, Ferguson also stated that “everything is a remix”, and the more that you watch through the truth within the video becomes ever more apparent.

Now take a look at these examples, and compare the two videos. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=46&v=BBgghnQF6E4

(Walt Disney Animation Studios' Steamboat Willie)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=19&v=H-BgOC39NM8

(Steamboat Itchy)

We must ask ourselves, what must you consider regarding 'copyright' when 'remixing'?

The iconic Walt Disney video features Mickey Mouse on his little steamboat, and in comparison, the Simpsons video features their well-known itchy and scratchy characters in a video. Now although the videos having a fairly similar style, colour and overall aesthetic, when you actually watch the videos side by side you see that the stores are very different. Even though they share some commonalities there is no issue of plagiarism or copyright here I believe.

When it comes to remixing I believe that if you are not using a substantial amount of content or a critical element from something there should be no copyright issues. In comparison, if you are to use something that is so widely recognised, etc you must ensure that the content you are creating is substantially different or is not used for commercial intent.

Take this Harry Potter remix for example, 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93WA44nvnzE

(Asadi, 2017)

The creator clearly is using lines from the Harry Potter movies, however, he has turned them into something entirely new and different.

Princess Mononoke (1997) vs Avatar (2009)

Images retrieved from;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Mononoke#Plot

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_(2009_film)

Finally, something that I found interesting while searching for movies, music or tv shows that shared similar themes or plot lines was this. Again, these two movies share commonalities and reflect not only how everything is a remix, but how the American film industry takes a lot of its influence from the Japanese film industry.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

This relates to me way too much... haha oops.

[gabriellagabriellachan]

The all knowing and all powerful ‘Meme’.

Memes are everywhere and they play such a key part in how we interact with one another these days. They are a quick and easy way to address relevant issues/topics that are happening around the world and they are also a way to make serious and often confronting issues a little less serious. We all see them, read them and know what they are, but do we really know what makes a meme and what it takes to make a good meme?

So what exactly makes a meme?

Usually, a meme will be made with two crucial parts a visual part (image or video) and then a written part (text or phrase). The memes that are popular, go viral and remain in our memory are the ones that are;

- Easy to relate to

A good meme is something that you see and you instantly laugh at because you can relate to it on a basic level. Like those memes about starting a diet then eating a whole cake 5 minutes later... oops my bad.

- Simple and not overly complicated

Memes that have miles and miles of text aren’t good and people get bored with reading to a good meme will keep the text short and sweet.

- Relevant and almost timeless

Although memes come and go like trends a good meme will be one that is timeless and can be related to almost anytime and by anyone.

To finish this post off I thought I would share one of my favourite memes as of late. Now even though I enjoyed and loved Avengers Infinity War this meme is just so accurate! 

[gabriellagabriellachan]

It’s all about the aesthetic!

Bath House Design - Spirited Away

[gabriellagabriellachan]

Just sharing a few shots from earlier this year that I took for a photography subject.