I recently watched a video on Miro called "X-Play Game Previews" (I looked under video games) and I watched the video, and it sprung a thought, "Hang on a minute, Beatles Rock Band?" The important word is Beatles, because it made me wonder why there are so many celebrity endorsements for video games these days?

In my younger years I used to play alot of games, enjoyed making it one of my single activities until the miricle of LAN-gaming and System-Linkage came along where I could share a social experience with my friends. Now, you might be wondering where this is going? Well, among some of these games, they were given some sort indirect endorsement to the games. Back then, the main 'people' behind the titles were things like Tom Clancy who had games such as Ghost Recon & Rainbow Six with his name tagged along with it. This means that the consumer buying it will think along the lines of "oh look, Tom Clancy who has made Military novels has added his knowledge to this game".

Despite this, now celebrity endorsements seem to be very popular in games, the "Beatles: Rockband" seems to be just the beginning of the trail. For Guitar Hero, they've released games  such as Metallica and Aerosmith as full retail price games, the difference? Nothing, the gameplay is exactly the same, the graphics are the same, the only difference is that they've added songs which could be easily covered in DLC (Downloadable Content) along with tagging a well known band to the front. My point simply, is there a need to have a celebrity endorsement back up franchise ? Does it necessarily make the franchise much more authentic by having addition names like "The Beatles" or "Metallica" to make it seem better? Have a look at the image below and think besides the game, is there only a difference with the title, or are there any new features?

My case in point, there is no difference to what you are seeing up there. In my personal perspective, I believe it is unnecessary, simply because games were able to function without endorsements from celebrity's. You might say there is nothing wrong with it, however, my point wasn't that it was wrong, my point is that is it necessary to add important or 'big' names to make something seem better then it is. While this hasn't put me off gaming in general, it does make me wonder sometimes whether I should bother to buy certain games when they might not be as good as they as seem they are.

-Nabsuh

P.S
I'm totally new to this blogging articles thing, so apologies if this was a long and boring read. I'll try make these shorter in the future!

• 1 Comment

We have looked over Web2.0, a big step in Internet functionality, but Web3.0 may be the next significant advance in the reasonably near future.

The 20-year anniversary of the World Wide Web was celebrated at a gathering in Geneva recently on the 14th of March. Tim Berners-Lee, acclaimed inventor of the Internet, attended this celebration and delivered his next proposition for a further advance in Internet functionality.

His idea is not farfetched; he is moreso publicizing the concept rather than inventing it. The concept is to advance the Internet into a web of data. The combination and correlation of raw data would aid scientific research and development.

A widespread effort to materialize this concept has been taken on by a group of European computer scientists through DBPedia. This system obtains key information from the popular site, Wikipedia, and retains the information in a database. e.g. Historical figures' dates of birth/death, hometowns, heights, etc. An obvious Social & Ethical Issue arises from this idea. How can one authenticate the data derived from a publicly edited domain like Wikipedia? Automatic testing methods to validate and verify derived information have been looked into to ensure the authenticity of these databases, but problems can be expected to follow alike Web3.0's predecessors.

Source: http://www.nzz.ch/nachrichten/medien/das_grosse_aufraeumen_im_hypertext-haufen_1.2216427.html

• 3 Comments

Well you will have the pleasure of playing around with Photoshop CS3 over the next two weeks , and will understand  many of the processes and tools that you have access to that enable you to alter photographs in may ways. These should include the use of the following tools:-

1. Clone Stamp Tool
2. Masks
3. Layers / Layer Masks
4. Lasso Tools
5. Blur Filter
6. Layer Blending Modes
7. Free Transform
8. Healing Brush
9. Brush Selection
10. Defining/Creating a Brush
11. Dodge Tool

As usual Dr Tech will provide you with a set of basic printed tutorials. You should also use Miro to download the following shows as they have excellent video tutorials on so many different skills:-

• Pixel Perfect - How to Give Someone Bruises -  April 21st, 2008, Secrets of Cloning Tool -  March 31st, 2008
• Photoshop for Digital Photographers - How to Whiten Teeth - March 2nd 2008, Taking a Few Pounds Off - June 06th 2008
• Photoshop Killer Tips - Quick Hairtouch, December 14th, 2008, Crop and Rotate - September 17th 2008
• Undertstanding Adobe Photoshop - Healing and Patch Tools - September 23rd 2008, Blend Modes and Filters - February 28th, 2008

More tools than you thought..huh. You should at least watch and trial the 8 videos suggested above - to get a better understanding of the abilities of Photoshop. For some of you this will take longer than others to come to terms with the basics of Photoshop. When you have practiced with them (Dr Tech will ask for samples for different skills) it is time to use them to change some photos to see what you believe is the difference between ethical and unethical. You must first take your own digital pictures of as many teachers and students around the campus as possible. This could be group photos, portraits, action in fact whatever you would like to take. As a group from the photographs, choose three that you will all use to manipulate. From these photos you need to change and manipulate at least two photos in an ethical and then unethical way according to your researched ideas on the ethics of photographic manipulation. Pheww that is more complicated than it seems:-

• Place the teachers/students selected within a setting, scam, position etc that would be considered unethical in YOUR UNDERSTANDING of the way you have manipulated them.
• Manipulate a photo subtly so that it changes mood, style etc which you would consider enhances a photo but does not impinge on the integrity/authenticity of the photo according to YOUR RESEARCH and definitions.
• Write an explanation of the photoshop manipulations explaining how they sit within YOUR UNDERSTANDING of the ethics of photo editing, and then link this to your rules for how to control or provide policies and standards for digital photography. To help you please read Ethics in the Age of Digital Photography and Digital Imaging Ethics along with NPAA Code of Ethic.
• Present your work, showing before and after photographs, along with a discussion of the ethics with conclusions. All works used should be cited correctly.

You will need to use as many of the skills that you have practiced that are listed above ad maybe need to practice or improve with new skills. Remember Photoshop has untold features and power. Both the photos should on initial glance look untouched, the more professional the better grade you will receive. Be original and creative...and have fun!

P.S. To get you thinking further take the hoax test, and then think about which stakeholders of these photographs might have found the fakes as unethical (thanks to Coolness 16 (who is she you ask?) for the website)?

• 0 Comments

After about six years of transforming the concept into its product form, Microsoft Surface has now come to be an amazing new interactive product released only last year in 2007, officially becoming the first surface computer on the market. The basic concept behind this product is to turn an ordinary table top into a vibrant, interactive surface that provides effortless access and manipulation to a truly unique digital experience. Also it push forward to a future with no mice, key boards, or buttons in general. A push for technology that's all hands on, with nothing but interactive screening that can do whatever its programed for

One of the greatest aspects of microsoft surface is its capability to make everything wireless, including transfering music, pictures, video, gps routs or any sort of files from any compact devise such as digital cameras, mobiles, or mp3 players. When you set the devises on the table, the table surface recognizes the digital chip, envelopes the whole devise through sensors, and pops out the files automatically in an interactive visual display that you can flip, rotate, resize, and then drag them into another devises with a simple flick of a rist, and only have to then pick up the devise to take with you. The surface can even sence a credit, or debit card's information and act in the same sort of way. so when your at restaurant lookin at its digital menu, its person in a group can lay down their card drag what they want to order into whichever card wants to pay for what, and then adjust a percentage bar for tip.

Here are some great videos to get an awsome understanding of what Microsoft Surface really is.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/industry/4217348.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKgU6ubBgJA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP5y7yp06n0

• 1 Comment

Title: Intro

Excuse the dodgy video introduction above...but hopefully it will have intoduced you to your one-stop-shop, of information for your Information Technology in a Global Society course. Whether you are in the first or second year of your course I will be posting news stories, homework items, research help, video resources and much more to help with the course. Hopefully you will also be able to post to this weblog, upload podcasts and most definitely comment on posts to enable interesting discussion around your studies. Make sure you place this as a bookmark in your web-browser of choice(hopefully Firefox) and if you are a little lazy at checking websites for the latest information then you can  sign up to have every post emailed to you. Until August the 23rd, enjoy your summer.

• 0 Comments