Assignment: Howard 43-79
Even though the chapter on remuneration was long in Howard's book Design To Thrive, I found it very interesting and informative. Comparing search engines is a perfect example of how user experience will either keep people coming back or drive them away. Websites that are both easy to use and pretty to look at will do better than those with lots of words and hard-to-find information. I think Facebook has done a great job with remuneration. I'm thinking back to around 2005, 2006 when I first joined Facebook and comparing it with today's version. Completely different. But the programmers made little changes over the years to get it where it was today so that people didn't get confused or lose interest when their friends list was located in a different place. Facebook also informed users and guided them through the changes, keeping the user experience as positive as possible.
The next section discusses what remuneration is specifically. As mentioned throughout the book, it is the psychological or emotional gratification that brings people back to an online community. When Howard advises website programmers to give users an "incentive," he does not mean financially. However, a great deal of companies have a main focus on their business model and revenue stream. Mark Zuckerberg became so famous initially because he didn't focus on making money; he was interested in creating a website that his peers would be interested in and therefore provide "a positive return on their investment of time and energy." He had no idea that his idea would end up being a worldwide revolution.
The remainder of this chapter talks about a checklist of techniques to use when creating a social network that will provide remuneration and a positive user experience. Some are obvious (make the text editor fun) while some not so obvious and interesting points to consider. For example, discourage attempts to send conversations to other blogs, Web sites, or discussion groups. Thinking about it, this is a smart idea, but I wouldn't have thought of it on my own.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Week Five
Assignment: Howard 199-223
The reading for this week grabbed my attention right away with the title "Technology Changes Rapidly; Humans Don't" because how true it is! My generation is supposed to be tech-savvy, but honestly, I already feel left in the dust. I probably haven't tried very hard to keep up, but in the past few years I have felt overwhelmed by the amount of changes in technology. My iPod is about eight years old and I definitely don't have an iPhone or an iPad. I don't know much about my laptop, just how to use the internet, write a paper, and do a few things on Excel. The only reason I have a Blu-Ray player is because my parents bought me one; I don't know the difference between it and my old DVD player. And I'm only 21 years old. I can't imagine what it's going to be like when I'm 30!
Anyway, the reading for this week points out that "online communities are going to change everything." I agree with this completely and can also say that I think they already have. Any product, service, idea, or anything else you could imagine is represented in an online community. However, as Howard points out, this internet revolution will cause a "social networking battlefield" which has already begun.
The issue of copyrights and intellectual property has been present for several years with people illegally downloading files. Also, the dilemma of control versus creativity is important to look at. Firms need control over their employees while at work in order to maximize productivity. On the other side, creativity is vital in many markets and can be attributed to multiple online community membership. The next issue that Howard studies is visual, technological, and new media literacies. Because the internet is expected to be 50 times larger in 2015 than 2006 (Wow!), institutions need to keep up with the literacies that are becoming so popular, like online videos for example. The last area to consider is decision-making contexts for future markets. Howard relates this back to RIBS. I agree that online media is going to have to "sell a quality user experience" that will create a context to "help a person make smart decisions."
After reading this final chapter of Design to Thrive, I am grasping just how much technology affects our everyday lives. Technology is growing and changing exponentially with new things happening everyday. I think back to ten years ago when I was in middle school; I did not have a cell phone, I liked playing outside, and I didn't really know what the Internet was. Today, my 12 year old sister has a cell phone, a Facebook, an iPod, and spends half her time on the Internet. I'm actually really happy that I was born when I was and enjoyed life before the technological revolution.
The reading for this week grabbed my attention right away with the title "Technology Changes Rapidly; Humans Don't" because how true it is! My generation is supposed to be tech-savvy, but honestly, I already feel left in the dust. I probably haven't tried very hard to keep up, but in the past few years I have felt overwhelmed by the amount of changes in technology. My iPod is about eight years old and I definitely don't have an iPhone or an iPad. I don't know much about my laptop, just how to use the internet, write a paper, and do a few things on Excel. The only reason I have a Blu-Ray player is because my parents bought me one; I don't know the difference between it and my old DVD player. And I'm only 21 years old. I can't imagine what it's going to be like when I'm 30!
Anyway, the reading for this week points out that "online communities are going to change everything." I agree with this completely and can also say that I think they already have. Any product, service, idea, or anything else you could imagine is represented in an online community. However, as Howard points out, this internet revolution will cause a "social networking battlefield" which has already begun.
The issue of copyrights and intellectual property has been present for several years with people illegally downloading files. Also, the dilemma of control versus creativity is important to look at. Firms need control over their employees while at work in order to maximize productivity. On the other side, creativity is vital in many markets and can be attributed to multiple online community membership. The next issue that Howard studies is visual, technological, and new media literacies. Because the internet is expected to be 50 times larger in 2015 than 2006 (Wow!), institutions need to keep up with the literacies that are becoming so popular, like online videos for example. The last area to consider is decision-making contexts for future markets. Howard relates this back to RIBS. I agree that online media is going to have to "sell a quality user experience" that will create a context to "help a person make smart decisions."
After reading this final chapter of Design to Thrive, I am grasping just how much technology affects our everyday lives. Technology is growing and changing exponentially with new things happening everyday. I think back to ten years ago when I was in middle school; I did not have a cell phone, I liked playing outside, and I didn't really know what the Internet was. Today, my 12 year old sister has a cell phone, a Facebook, an iPod, and spends half her time on the Internet. I'm actually really happy that I was born when I was and enjoyed life before the technological revolution.
Monday, September 10, 2012
Week Four
Assignment: Heath & Heath 204-227
While we only had one section of reading this week, I really enjoyed it. The reading this week in the book Made to Stick was about stories. Stories inspire, simulate, teach important lessons, and ultimately lead people to take action. While many people believe stories are merely for entertainment, Heath and Heath discuss the psychology behind stories and the effect they have on their audiences. I really like the point they make about “passive” audiences and the idea that when people read a story, their mind follows it as if they are actually a part of it.
Stories evoke emotions, thought, and simulation. As Heath and Heath describe it, stories “put knowledge into a framework that is more lifelike, more true to our day-to-day existence.” People enjoy stories because they can usually relate in some way to the author or protagonist. I think Heath and Heath chose the best story to describe in their book; the story of Jared that led to a healthy Subway revolution. What made Jared’s story so famous was that he was a normal guy who decided to eat more Subway as a tasty way to lose weight. Subway didn’t have to pay Jared to promote their name; he actually proclaimed that their sub sandwiches saved his life. However, it was the person who “spotted” the story who actually made it famous. What if the reporter from Men’s Health magazine hadn’t read that article in Indiana Daily? What if Bob Ocwieja hadn’t seen the article? Jared’s story would’ve never made it past his college town and made Subway an icon for healthy fast-food eating. In this case, the people who found the story and made it publicly known are the real people to thank. Even with others’ doubts, they made a campaign out of Jared’s success.
As well as the Jared story, I never really considered the people behind the Chicken Soup books; the authors’ job is literally to find inspiring stories that will fit in with the focus of the specific book. All in all, If written correctly, stories can get people to act on a certain idea. As the title of the book implies, some stories can make ideas “stick” while others “die.”
While we only had one section of reading this week, I really enjoyed it. The reading this week in the book Made to Stick was about stories. Stories inspire, simulate, teach important lessons, and ultimately lead people to take action. While many people believe stories are merely for entertainment, Heath and Heath discuss the psychology behind stories and the effect they have on their audiences. I really like the point they make about “passive” audiences and the idea that when people read a story, their mind follows it as if they are actually a part of it.
Stories evoke emotions, thought, and simulation. As Heath and Heath describe it, stories “put knowledge into a framework that is more lifelike, more true to our day-to-day existence.” People enjoy stories because they can usually relate in some way to the author or protagonist. I think Heath and Heath chose the best story to describe in their book; the story of Jared that led to a healthy Subway revolution. What made Jared’s story so famous was that he was a normal guy who decided to eat more Subway as a tasty way to lose weight. Subway didn’t have to pay Jared to promote their name; he actually proclaimed that their sub sandwiches saved his life. However, it was the person who “spotted” the story who actually made it famous. What if the reporter from Men’s Health magazine hadn’t read that article in Indiana Daily? What if Bob Ocwieja hadn’t seen the article? Jared’s story would’ve never made it past his college town and made Subway an icon for healthy fast-food eating. In this case, the people who found the story and made it publicly known are the real people to thank. Even with others’ doubts, they made a campaign out of Jared’s success.
As well as the Jared story, I never really considered the people behind the Chicken Soup books; the authors’ job is literally to find inspiring stories that will fit in with the focus of the specific book. All in all, If written correctly, stories can get people to act on a certain idea. As the title of the book implies, some stories can make ideas “stick” while others “die.”
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