Flutter was an effective, humorous parody of microblogging and Twitter. The video mocked how trivial each microblog post is by shortening the posts to a mere 26 characters. The quality of the posts was unimportant (for example, Flutter would take "keywords" from Twitter posts to shorten them to 26 characters, which resulted in jumbled, nonsensical mess); the value was placed on sheer quantity and the ability to read as many posts as quickly as possible. The concept is laughable, but also disturbing, as it calls attention to the reality of very popular Twitter. A Twitter user is simply bombarded with a massive amount of trivial tweets to the point that many tweets are ignored. The fact that users don't pay attention to all of the tweets of the people they care about shows the insignificance of each individual tweet. Compare this to other media of communication: can you imagine flat out ignoring a letter from a friend?
The problem is that the shortening of posts to only 140 (or even 26) characters is inefficient. The ability to make posts so quickly and easily only frees more time such that more posts can be made, which results in several equally meaningless posts in the same amount of time that a personal and informative email could have been written. The focus of Twitter is not to communicate significant or valuable information to the people who follow a user, but rather to offer short blurbs that are entertaining. And such is the goal of Twitter (and Flutter): not to intimately exchange information or connect people to one's personal life (as email, letters, etc. do), but rather to provide entertainment to followers.

Flutter Response

While flutter represents a gross over exaggeration of twitter, I enjoyed and agreed with many of the statements made in the video about the website's absurdity. What stood out most was the iphone application that stated at all times where a person is. This shows the unimportance of the numerous, trivial activities that people partake in everyday, which is meant to illustrate the point that most tweets themselves carry the same value. It begs the question of why someone should care if their friend is at starbucks or in the bathroom, especially if they find out in such an impersonal way. The application also shows the advancement of technology, which many argue can be making our personal lives more and more public.

Despite such criticism towards the seemingly unimportant tweets, the matter is one of opinion as someone may indeed be interested by such updates. The limited number of texts can also be an advantage as one can quickly update and be updated on the lives of family members and friends. The video's criticisms stem from a bias opinion about twitter in general, yet many of its statements do prove true and perhaps eye opening.

Flutter

While I enjoyed the flutter video and the joke that it presented I agree completely with the argument that they were making about how we keep getting lazier with our technology. Every new technology that comes out these days seems to make something faster which to us automatically makes it better. However, I think that if we really paid attention we would see that even though our technology is making things like informing people of what is going on in our lives faster and more efficient through tools like twitter, we are not spending any less time using them. Now the digital tools that we use we can get sent straight to our phones so we are constantly checking them. Instead of spending less time on digital tools like facebook or email by using twitter we spend more time on it looking at everyone's tweets and posting our own. The parts of the video where they were talking about how long it takes to read a twitter was very ironic because twitter is supposed to be the quickest way to update your current status and read about everyone else's. However, in all reality it does take a long time to use twitter, not because the tweets are too long, but because we spend so much time reading everyone's tweets and getting tweets from companies and celebrities who tweet constantly. Twitter has not made keeping up with everyone's lives faster, instead it has just given us another place to do that same thing that we do with myspace and facebook.
This video was very entertaining and I very much enjoyed watching it. It made me think about how all of these new digital tools are not at all limiting the amount of time that we spend using them. They just give us another tool to obsess over and check every 10 minutes. It made me realize that although I don't use twitter, I still spend way too much time on my emails and facebook and other online tools. It also really made me see how ironic all of our new "more efficient" tools are.

Now following Flutter on Twitter

The video which was created by V Slate in an attempt to mock the American people and their use of twitter. They are trying to say that society is always looking and developing faster ways to communicate. They are using an example that completely exaggerates the advancement of technology and the benefit people can get from it. The video is making many assumptions in its argument. First off they are implying that people abuse Twitter to a large degree. Although Twitter has become a huge phenomenon and somewhat of a popularity contest it is not true that all people use to Twitter for this purpose. Most users of Twitter actually use the tool for beneficial reasons such as receiving news or quick updates from friends. The video is also poking fun at how quickly technology is advancing. As technology grows information has definitely become easier to access. However it is not our fault that new tools with quick information are being developed. Why wouldn't we want to use a tool that is faster and more advanced than a previous tool? It is not that the American people are greedy or needy of faster information it is that this technology is constantly being developed and placed in front of us.

Flttr

The "mockumentary" put on by Slate V is comedically demonstrating how Twitter along with many other sites are continuing to try to make our lives more efficient. The basis of Flutter is to make online communication even shorter than Twitter's 140 character limit. The message presented here is how short can it get before it becomes completely pointless to even make a post? The Iphone application that automatically updates for a user telling where the person is or what the person is doing is meant to prove how obsolete and insignificant many posts are. Additionally, the choice of using the "Kim in bathroom" example of a post proves how Twitter and other social networking sites are opening people's private lives to the world. Although posts are chosen to be posted, people will post such comments that are truly irrelevant.

Another argument is that if posts are so short and are meant to save people time, what is the point in posting in the first place? Is it really important to let the world know what you're doing when you have all of 10 minutes to spare? It ridicules how ridiculous people have become in needing to inform everyone in their lives about their present location or activity. Also, the intern mentions how she plans to make a site of her own and "make buck" by making the posts even shorter. The world of new Internet sites are money driven. A more efficient site is likely to bring in big money if it becomes exceedingly popular such as Twitter. It is almost expected that eventually people will learn there is no need to make posts telling every personal detail and the limit will be 0 characters.

Flutter: The New Twitter

"I hate what I've become" were the last words spoken by the host of the video Flutter: The New Twitter, after admitting that he finally caved in to Twitter. For some reason the phrase resonates in my mind and really struck a chord with me. I suppose it is because I can completely identify. I was against getting a Twitter account just because everyone else was getting one, and when I had to make one for class I was opposed but intrigued at the same time. I loved the humerus yet truthful way they addressed and made fun of the Twitter craze. Many people look down upon Twitter because it is just a shortened version of Facebook, which is just a shortened version of email. But why do we need everything to be so quick? It is comical how technology allows us to be more and more lazy, demanding shortcuts for everything even when they are not needed. I particularly enjoyed at the end of the clip, when the intern admits that she is going to split from the company and make a new even shorter version of Flutter. It reminds me how obsessed our culture is with finding the next bigger, better, quicker version of something. It's very interesting how the video points out the flaws in our society while at the same time admits that they too are following the trends. I think that simple fact says so much.

My one problem with the video was that they assumed that everyone was well versed in and used Twitter. I think that this is simply not true. Many more people are hooked on Facebook than Twitter, because Twitter is still so new. Regardless, the message still prevails. 

"Writing a blog post for English 125" - 1:25 pm

With the twitter craze reaching new levels of absurdity, SlateV has set out to satirize Twitter and the whole concept of micro-blogging. Flutter mocks the entire institution of Twitter, from its ridiculous terminology (“tweeting”), to its absurd 140 character limit. Flutter instead proposes a new form of “flapping”, and limiting the user to only 26 characters – hardly enough for anyone to post anything meaningful other than “in the bathroom” or “drinking coffee”. Twitter’s 140 character limit is used to stress the triviality of the daily things in our lives; this concept of reporting little things in a micro-blog, rather than maintaining a normal blog (which we all know is way too time consuming for our busy lives) is just a testament to how lazy we have become.

I agree with the way that “Flutter” mocks the premises behind twitter. With new forms of technology that allow us to access the internet, anywhere and at any time, we have become so digitally wired, that we feel the need to utilize this technology. Why else did we pay extra for that iPhone, or for that internet access on our cell phone?

“Going to the game this Saturday. Go Blue!” – 1:30 pm
“I’m hungry” – 1:34 pm
“Game is about to start!” – 2:55 pm
“OSU sucks.” – 3:01 pm
“Tate Forcier is a god.” – 3:30 pm

We are flooded with a wall of information that we don’t necessarily need to know, or that we already know, and that is precisely what micro-blogging is. Whereas normal blogging can be insightful and spark creative discussions, micro-blogging can not. What type of information are we going to take from updates such as “this bio lecture is SOO boring” or “I’m studying at the UGLi”? There is nothing to discuss, nothing to debate. I already know that person A thinks bio is boring, and that person B likes to study at the UGLi in between classes – I don’t need twitter to remind me of that. Twitter banks on the fact that we love to update our current status, no matter where we are. So far, it has been successful, with celebrities and the media embracing it with open arms. However, after taking one look at the “Flutter” mockumentary, we have to ask ourselves – just how far are we willing to go?

Flutter

Flutter makes two assumptions. It assumes that people think that Tweets are too long, and it assumes that people actually want others to know exactly what they are doing every minute of the day. First of all, one of the reasons that people like Twitter is because of the length of the Tweets. Twitter encourages users to make smaller posts, as opposed to blogs, which generally call for closer to article-length posts. The length of Tweets is encouraging because it is a short message that does not take too much time to write. But to say that people would be happier writing only 26 characters is absurd. You can cannot say all that much in 26 characters. Although it only takes a glance to read a Flap, during that glance you have gained little to zero information. At least a Tweet gives the user some room to write a full sentence.

Secondly, people do not actually want to know what others are doing every minute of the day. Additionally, most people do not care enough to post what they are doing at every minute of everyday. So, to say that having an application that automatically writes tweets for the user would be useful is wrong. Many people have concerns about internet privacy. For example, some people really do not like it that Google's ads in Gmail are, or used to be, based on actual email content. Such a Flutter application would eliminate internet privacy on a whole new level. Now, not only would ads be targeted at your browsing habits, but also at your daily habits. Furthermore, there are some activities that others just do not need to know about. For example, the fact that a user went to the bathroom at 10:30 pm does not need to be made public. Flutter is ridiculous.

Flutter-nutter, playing devil's advocate

How dare SlateV make fun of Twitter like this! Their conclusions about why people use twitter can not be any further from the truth! Twitter is a tool designed so that people can get better understanding of each other's lives, interests, and activities without the awkwardness in people's lives. That is far from caring about speed, or shortness of the messages. the 140 character limit is not necessarily just to make blogging shorter, its so that the messages are simple and short expressions of themselves. Reading these messages is a matter of being interested in the person or organization that tweeted and having an idea of what they are doing or thinking.

Enough playing devils advocate. What I really think though is that a tool is what the user makes of it. Twitter is a tool to broadcast your thoughts or information easily and get to other's easily and quickly. But it becomes too much if people start recording every insignificant moment of their lives on it. Flutter is basically what will happen if people become to obsessed with twittering and sharing these things to the point where they can't discriminate what and when to share.

Flutter: The Nano-Blogging Era Begins

With the twitter obsession sweeping the global, Andy Bouvé and cast of less than ten made a mockumentary of the addiction associated with twitter. The short film is a satire making fun of society’s need to know what everybody is doing at all times. In addition, the film is making fun of the speed at which people need to receive this information, and with this they suggest, “Flutter”. Flutter is a shorthand version of Twitter, where users are limited to displaying their “flaps” (status updates) to 26 characters – the length of the alphabet. In short, the film presents a more exaggerated version of the microblogging application they are making fun of. They call Flutter nanoblogging.

Clearly this film is directed at a somewhat media-enlightened audience. It requires that people have background knowledge on Twitter and that they understand its basic concepts. Also, the film is located on youtube.com, which suggests some blogging knowledge. Andy Bouvé's film is based on the central argument that people spend way too much time being obsessed over Twitter. Evidence of this argument can be found in several places. For example, the iPhone Application suggests that “Kim” wants people to know every time she’s getting coffee or even going to the bathroom. Furthermore, the Flutter user says he doesn’t like Twitter because it takes “too long” to get information. He is obviously spoofing on the high-speed of communication involved in microblogging.

Fluttering Away

The video "Flutter: The New Twitter" depicts, from their view, how ridiculous Twitter is. Their product, Flutter, has a maximum 'flap' of 26 characters, while Twitter has 140 characters. However, their claim is that since Twitters max length is already short, why not make Flutters length shorter? It assumes that people actually want to make their messages shorter, even though 26 characters in actuality is too short to be feasible. They want to create 'the next big thing', probably in a means to get rich, but fail to think through it. They assume people don't have enough time to write 140 characters or reach 140 characters, so they reduce it to 26 characters because they feel like it will save time. However, even if someone is busy and wants to tweet something, they are free to not use all 140 characters of Twitter. They feel limiting their character count to 26 will allow people to post faster, which in actuality, will be the same amount of time if someone was using Twitter.

Flutter

The video "Flutter: The New Twitter" takes a stab at micro-blogging websites. Through a mock documentary, the video demonstrates that Twitter is ridiculous. However, it is a little far fetched to assume that a site like Flutter will exist one day. The video claims that micro-blogging is too time consuming and nano-blogging is the new idea. It argues that people do not have time to type out 140 characters to describe what they are doing. Instead, they type a short 26 characters. This is hardly enough to get any message across. Flutter claims it will develop new technology such as the Flutter Glasses that show live updates inside your glasses. It also gives the example of the possibility of transmitting Flutter's "flaps" right to your brain. While Twitter may seem ridiculous to some, a website such as Flutter goes a little too far in its assumptions. Even though some of these ideas are possible, I do not think it is likely people will go this far because most of the video's claims are absurd.

Flutter: A Satire

"Flutter: The New Twitter" is a particularly effective satire of Twitter. To start, it takes the 140 character limit of Twitter to an even further extreme by now limiting it to a clever 26 characters, or "one full English alphabet." Although this sounds reasonable at first, it becomes clear how ridiculous a 26 character limit truly is. In 26 characters, it is nearly impossible to portray anything but the simplest of ideas. This exaggeration, in addition to others such as the auto-updating iPhone App, satirize Twitter and modern society. Nowadays, people expect instant gratification. Twitter is a perfect medium to update yourself on your friends, family, and celebrities in mere seconds, which is the major appeal.

In general, I find Slate V's mockumentary provides a substantial argument to the absurdity known as the Twitter phenomenon. It is great to know what is going on in your friend's life, but to what extent? Personally, I think that the practice of Tweeting status updates to the rest of the world is rather narcissistic. If I did not know that my friend ate roast beef for dinner, it would have no effect on my life. In a world where there are so many fresh, creative high-tech ideas, it can be difficult to distinguish the brilliant from the boneheaded, and I think the mockumentary and I agree the category where Twitter falls.

The Mistaken Assumption of Flutter

"Flutter" is an effective satire of the micro-blogging fad because it highlights the ridiculousness of twitter through exaggeration (or reduction, depending on how one looks at it). Why must we know the minute details of peoples' lives? What is private? Why are people too lazy to communicate in full sentences about their daily lives? The video attempted to answer these questions with a statement communicated through their mockumentary--their point being that we are traveling down a slippery slope towards a world without privacy and without communication as we know it today.

In particular, the flutter video mocks the way that people write updates to alert people that they, for example, are going to the bathroom, and that people have limits to the size of their communications. Their gripes are spot on--it has become ridiculous the way that people have ruined our concept of conversation and have divulged details of their lives that no one really cares to know. But many people find it enjoyable to chat in such a manner, and who is it to judge whether twitter is really a good and pure form of communication? The makers of the video assume a number of things about twitter which I find incorrect--first, they make twitter seem like a form of communication and not a form of self expression. I don't think that most twitterers tweet to communicate on an individual level with their followers, they tweet because they want to broadcast information about their daily lives. Thus, implementing character limits does not really affect conversation and human interaction--rather, it affects how we broadcast and present ourselves. And as for privacy, who are the makers of the video to determine what is private to some people and not private to others? People are free to tweet what they want when they want--and others are by no means required to follow their feeds. So who cares if someone tweets about going to the bathroom for instance--if the tweeter doesn't mind, and the follower has the option to leave?

I think that there are obvious drawbacks to twitter and micro-blogging in general, which the flutter video identified very effectively. But I also think there is value in understanding the motives for people to micro-blog--and saying that interpersonal conversation is a casualty of twitter is a misunderstanding of the essence of tweeting--self expression.

Critical Response to Flutter

Although I found the Flutter video very creative and quite humorous, I do not think their argument is that far-fetched. The intent of the video was to make Twitter look ridiculous, and for right now it succeeded, but I will not be surprised when a nano-blogging site such as Flutter comes out. The ideas they introduced in the video such as updates on your glasses or automatic updating seem like a complete joke at first glance, but neither of these are by any means impossible. I think people who use Twitter would welcome a site that seemed to communicate what they were doing to others even faster. Sadly, the only part of the video that I immediately rejected as being possible was the "electronic diodes transmitting posts directly to the brain" idea that the intern had. Everything else was plausible in my opinion, which goes to show where the world of technology is headed.

Flutter...parody or prophet?

After watching this parody of Twitter, I had two thoughts enter my head. The first was that at least there’s no possible way that it would ever happen in reality and that Twitter is the lowest we shall ever sink into this pit of useless micro-blogging. There’s no way that the average viewer of this video – I’m guessing a 16 to 26year old Internet geek – would ever think that this is a good idea. No one could possibly want a world in which his or her micro-blogger of choice would automatically update. No one really wants to read blogs using the bottom of their glasses. No one really wants to write out his entire day using just 26 characters right? No one really wants to look as dumb as the users of this stuff in the video...right?

This video today reminded me of an old Saturday Night Live skit from the first season of the show. I had only recently watched it all and found the commercial parodies to be extremely funny. The commercial in question was an ad for a “4 bladed razor… Guaranteed to give you an extra close shave that you just couldn’t get with a 2-blade razor. The 4 blade razor... because you will believe anything…” The razor I now use daily is a Gillette Fusion Razor with 4 main blades and a trimming blade for details. This means at some time during the past 34 years that SNL has been on the air, we have now met and surpassed the parody. This fear was hinted at the end of the Flutter video when the intern was going to make an even crazier system that even outdoes the parody. So after coming to terms with the fact that this WILL happen at some point I decided to find out how close this is to becoming reality. Well...first let’s see if people could write stuff with the limit of 26 characters.


“playd rockband all day LOL”

“got really drunk at party!”

“failed blu book test :’-( “

Each of these are 26 characters with the spaces…..


This sadly seems like something a person who twitters would not mind doing. After just a quick search on Google I quickly found the reading glasses and instant update systems already in the works. There are glasses with video screens built in, and there are apps that add your GPS to Twitter. The parody seems more like a sad prophecy now. I guess some questions about why we need such things could be asked. I personally have to just rationalize it as the way things progress. We are going to continue to learn of new inventions coming from older ideas. We will not always see why they were created and if they were needed. It will just happen.

Flutter: Critical Thinking

It is obvious that the Flutter video is slamming Twitter because of their 140 character limit status update. They try to get the point across that we, as social network users, want the fastest option available to us. The typical reason for this is because we want convenience and simplicity. By posting short comments and quick Tweets we get our point across without wasting time. I agree that when I log on to Facebook or Twitter I want convenience, but I, like the Flutter producers, think that limiting the amount of characters in a status is ridiculous. I argue that even though these social networks are supposed to cut down the amount of time we waste, we in fact waste more time on them then we do anywhere else. Between updating our status, checking our friends profiles, and chatting we spend vast amounts of precious time on websites such as Twitter. I find it ironic how we engage in the very behavior on social networks that those networks are supposed to prevent.

Digital Literacy

Because I joined out English class a week late, I’m still not quite sure how to define digital literacies but I’ll take a stab at it anyways. For my other two sources, I looked at Wikipedia and the Illinois definition library for ideas for my own definition.

         Digital literacy is the ability to find, comprehend, create, evaluate or do anything you possibly can with a piece of information using any kind of digital technology. Basically, digital literacy is any action having to do with the internet. Digital literacy can begin at any age. They began teaching digital literacy to us when I was in kindergarten. Now it seems so basic to know how to use a computer, but a while ago they didn’t even teach that. Now it seems that kids don’t even need to be taught digital literacy, because they learn it so young inevitably. Digital literacy is a vast concept that can be defined in many ways. 

Email Strategy

Email has just recently become an essential part of my life. Now that I am in college it seems as though everything I do, and everything that I am involved in centers around my email. I am on my computer for a large part of my day and every time I start up the internet the first thing I do is check my email inbox. Most of the time I am able to just skim over the messages because I get a lot of mass emails and junk mail, but that is not always the case. Every once in a while I am required to carefully read and respond to emails from friends, family, and/or professors.

When I really stop and look at it I realize that email is taking over my life in a way. Like I said my whole life revolves around email now that I am at college. Generally speaking email does not bother me, but when I reflect on how much time I spend looking at email, responding to email, and sorting through the useful and non-useful messages I start to resent the process. I begin to think of all the time I spend on email and what I could be doing with that time. If it were not for email I could probably get to bed at least a little bit earlier every night, I could spend more time with friends, or I could read a book that I "haven't had time for". I love the advantages of email, but sometimes I think that I spend way too much time on it.

Email strategy

When I wake up in the morning, I check my email. When I’m about to leave for class, I check my email. When I go to the library, I check my email. When I go back to my dorm, I check my email. When I’m about to start my homework, I check my email. When I’m about to go to bed, I check my email. Bottom line? My email will inevitably be open one way or another. Although email may seem like an unhealthy addiction to some, it is a necessity for me in order to keep up with all the latest updates as soon as they arrive. Ever since I created my first gmail account in 10th grade, email has become such a prevalent force in my life, that whenever I see a computer around, my first thought is to open up my email. Since then, I have created several other accounts for different purposes, but they all filter into my one gmail account for ease of access. Although I receive many emails from different people and organizations, I tend to read and reply to all of them in the same manner. Whether it is from a family member, a close friend, a teacher, a stranger, or a club organization, the way in which I approach the email does not change. After briefly scanning the subject title, I will open the message to assess its importance, and whether or not I need to respond quickly. When I do decide to respond, I will open with a simple “Hello ”, if it is for an informal response, or “Dear ” for more formal responses. However, the way in which I compose the message is always proper, just as if I was writing an essay for class. Everything I say in an email has a purpose and a tone, whether it is serious, sarcastic, informative, or silly; I constantly check and re-read my message before sending it to make sure each point gets across clearly, especially since it is very easy for messages to be misinterpreted online.

I make sure that I don’t discriminate against any email, no matter what the subject title says, or who it is from. Although this strategy may be a bit more time consuming than just reading the subject head and clicking “delete”, it is also very beneficial because I begin to develop a sense about which emails will be important before I even read the message. By reading each email, I make sure that I will not accidentally delete an email that contains important information (we’ve all been there at least once). In addition, I try to be cautious when I respond to emails, especially if it is with people I am not too familiar with, or have only spoken to a few times in person. Because of this, I tend to always reply with proper grammar and punctuation, so I don’t make a bad impression or look like a fool in the process. With text messaging and online messaging, there is a constant influx of new phrases and abbreviations to keep up with that not everyone may be familiar with. As a result, saying something like “gtg” or “ttyl” may lose its entire meaning if the other person is not knowledgeable in internet slang. In the end, proper email etiquette is something I adhere to closely as I tend to stress formality over convenience.

Email: Friend or FOE

The most commonly used email portal for many years has been – the famous or infamous (you decide) – America Online (AOL). Before the release of AOL Instant Messanger (AIM), instant messaging was strictly a feature of an AOL account; therefore, it was preferential to access email through AOL. I currently have two AOL accounts that are active, in addition to a yahoo account and University of Michigan account. The yahoo account and my first AOL account have been rendered useless, due to the fact that all of my email is relayed to my blackberry PDA, via my current AOL account and University of Michigan account. Through this strategy I am able to engage in my email with the same tactics as I attack texts and blackberry messages. I am more apt to respond to an email that delivers directly to my pocket because the vibration and alert tone beckon me to respond instantaneously. As far as grammar and short hand abbreviations are concerned – i.e. lol, lmao, ur, ttyl – the audience has the major deciding factor. I will refrain from using these abbreviations and ensure correct grammar when addressing professors or a more sophisticated, formal audience. When talking to friends or family it is much more comfortable to forget about grammar and to use convenient abbreviations.

Email has evoked both my happiness and my rage. On the happy side it has kept me in touch with many people, places, and organizations. I received my first email account in order to keep in touch with camp friends who live as far as California, Florida, and even France. I receive updates for my favorite sports teams like the Jets, Mets, and Knicks. The University of Michigan sends much very important email keeping me up to date on daily events. However, on a day-to-day basis I find myself frustrated with Spam emails that take up my time and overload my Blackberry PDA. On average, I would say that close to 50% of the emails I receive daily are of no concern to me and are merely Spam. I need not be bothered by low prices in the Canadian pharmaceutical market, stocks that are on the up rise, or some girl named Candy who would like to have a ‘chat’. Email has revolutionized the way people interact over distances and has had a significant positive impact on the world; however, it is the dark side of email – Spam – that causes many people, including myself, unfair amounts of stress and utter disapproval.

My Email Strategies

Since I went to college a year ago, the way I use my email has completely changed. Yes it was important in high school, but now I feel actually addicted to checking my email. First, I check it in the morning when I wake up just to make sure I don't miss anything about the oncoming day. I check it in between classes, and always before I go to sleep. In lectures I check my mail on my phone just because it is there. My iphone has also changed my email checking habits. Because my email is always at my disposal, I find myself checking more and more frequently, even when I know that I just checked and there probably is nothing new. I feel anxiety when I haven't checked my email in a long time, because convince myself I'm going to miss something important if I don't. I always check emails from the heads of my department first, because those normally are the most important. I delete spam right away and don't even open things that don't look important or are mass emails. Then I go to the less important things that I usually wait longer to respond to because they are less urgent. I don't think my strategies really differ from those of my peers.

Upon reflecting about my email process, I  have come to realize how unhealthily obsessed we all are with email and the internet. These habits that we are developing will not be good in the long run. The need to check my email all the time has made me pay less attention in my classes and more attention to all the things I can do with the internet on my phone. Yes it is convenient to have it there all the time, but I think it is teaching me and younger kids the wrong values. The hours we spend checking and rechecking out email should be spent being productive. However, even after reflecting on my own email tendencies, I know that I will not change my ways any time soon.

My experience with email has changed a lot since I got an iphone. This device is great because it alerts me when I receive emails, thus I never really have to actively check my inbox, per se. I receive emails as if I am receiving a text message, but I usually wait until I get to a computer before I reply, simply because it is much easier to use correct grammar when using a keyboard than on a mobile phone keypad. My strategy when writing emails is to tailor my writing to the audience--for example, I will always write very formal emails to professors and internship coordinators, and the like. I always make sure to use good punctuation and grammar, and I always review my emails many times before I send them. I am very well aware that it is hard to communicate tone of voice in emails and thus I avoid sarcasm and try to read my emails from the perspective of a third party. By trying to objectively analyze my emails, I can more easily tell what works in different settings. In more informal emails, I still tend to use correct English grammar because it visually looks much better to me, but I don't review what I write. I figure that my friends and family know my sense of humor and will understand what I mean in different contexts.

I guess that my situation with email is not that much different from many other peoples'. I am always very concerned that my emails will not be formal enough, and so I always try and err on the side of caution before I hit the send button. I have never really been the type of person to shorten every word in the English language because I actually view that as somewhat of a hassle. I like writing emails with complete sentences because I think that communication is much more smooth--it takes extra time trying to decipher an email written in coded abbreviations, and I don't like burdening people with that task. Also, frankly, I am somewhat of a organization freak and I care to see that my emails look crisp and clean. It makes me feel better about what I am sending. Many people use convenience as the rationality for sending abbreviated casual emails, but I think that often the most convenient emails are those that are in crisp English and take the least amount of time to decode.

My Email Strategy

I got my first email account in third grade with the once-common America Online. Since then, I have become more versed in the realm of online communication and my email habits have evolved as well. While I used to use shortened expressions like "ur" for "you're" or "thx" for "thanks," I now almost always use correct spelling and grammar. I currently have three email accounts, one of which is for personal use, one for schoolwork, and another for a combination professional and personal email. When I write personal emails, I commonly leave out capitalization but still try to use periods, apostrophes, and any other useful grammatical techniques. For the first email, I usually use a greeting such as "Hi (insert name)" and some sort of closing but as the correspondence continues over multiple emails I will probably leave them out. As for professional or school-related email, I almost always use proper greetings such as "Dear (insert name)" and a closing. In addition, I keep my writing at a level on par with that of my formal writing, like I would for essays or any other schoolwork.

When I reflect on my old email techniques, I find it funny and also somewhat pathetic. I'm all for using technology to make us more efficient, but to what degree can we let our language decay? The English language is unique in the fact that we have so many words that may have similar meanings, but their denotations may differ slighty and their connotations can differ vastly. By resorting to the commonly used acronyms "g2g," "lol," and "smf," we effectively block out the majority of other words and phrases that can better describe what we're doing and how we're feeling. As for lack of periods, commas, and other grammar, I understand that it is faster to compose the message, but I think that the time saved comes at the expense of the reader who has to decipher where certain thoughts begin and others end. Again, maybe it is hypocritical of me to say these things since in personal emails I take certain shortcuts, but I think that's why I have recrafted the way I communicate over the web.

Now, since we're starting to use Twitter, brevity is almost more important than proper grammar since you have a character limit, but that's another topic entirely.

Email Strategies

As has become increasingly evident in class, I am not one to use the computer frequently. In the case of email, my trend continues. I did not even create a formal email until senior year for the sole purpose of applying to school and contacting teachers, advisors, and alumni for interviews. However, after coming to college, my email usage has increased significantly. I check my university email daily to see if I have important updates from professors or graduate student instructors. As for my email strategy, I am currently trying to get a grasp on the proper etiquette and format for emailing professors in a more formal fashion.

My emailing strategies have greatly improved since classes have commenced. I was sick and had to contact professors letting them know and I struggled with how to approach beginning the email. Do I use a heading? Do I use “sincerely” or “thank you for you time” at the end? These were all questions that plagued me when I was trying to compose these messages. However, I have now realized that email is supposed to be convenient for all users; therefore, after the formalities have subsided, many professors have begun to email me just as friends would at home. In short, there is a time and place for etiquette, but after all is said and done it is about convenience and formalities are unnecessary in the email forum.

Every time I get on a computer or turn on my laptop, checking my email is nearly reflex. It's a daily routine that has become as habitual and natural as brushing my teeth or taking a shower. As a matter of fact, in the same way I feel dirty and unsanitary if I ever miss the opportunity to shower or brush my teeth, I feel anxious about not checking my email. I always worried that the one time I forget to check my email before class will be the time the professor emails a last minute homework assignment. For this reason, I check my email once or twice daily. Each time I check it, I read all the messages before replying to any of them. This way I can prioritize which emails are urgent or important and necessitate a prompt response, and can save time to reply to emails from my friends later if need be. I can never start an email and save it as a draft to finish up later; for some reason I insist on finishing an email once I start it, even if it means I have to rush.
I suppose that the strategy I approach email with is much like how I approach my schoolwork or other jobs. Although I always want to respond to my friends' emails first, I force myself to prioritize. This strategy causes me to view email as more of a task than a recreational means of communication, but I know it is the most pragmatic and efficient way for me to operate. By the time I finished sending emails to friends, I would never want to handle other emails that required more effort (use of proper grammar, punctuation, capitalization, etc.). I doubt that my professors would ever receive a response. Overall, I feel that email is a wonderfully efficient way to communicate, but is not the most desirable way to keep up with friends.

Email Strat

Many things in life require elaborate strategies. Chess, war, standardized exams, but fortunately responding e-mails is not one of them. Being a busy college student with much to do, I need to save as much time as possible. I quickly look at the newest emails on my page and see which have interesting subject names. For the most part they don't, but if its on a subject that I happen to care about, have to do with work, a request from my colleagues, or a personal message I just leave it alone. I quickly open relevant emails in new tabs and briefly look over them. If I have to respond, I would write a response ASAP so I don't have to deal with it later. Then simply close my browser and head off to do whatever needs to be done.

I only check my emails 3-4 times a day at most, and usually only takes a minute or so. Although the neglect on my part on deleting emails, or reading them for that matter has resulted in a amusing inbox of 2734 unread emails out of 3915 emails. One can only wonder how much more my inbox can take. My strategy really maximized the email as a tool for receiving relevant information quickly without becoming an obsession or taking too much of my time. Since most of my personal contacts are maintained through the phone, person to person, or text, I never need to spend too much time on my mail.

Emailing Strategies

How I engage with email definitely varies depending on who I am communicating with. When talking to people I am very close with such as family and friends I feel I do not need to be very formal. My writing does not have to be fluid just comprehendible and I am a big user of abbreviations, slang, and write with a lack of punctuation. On the other hand when communicating with people of higher importance such as bosses, teachers or coaches my emailing strategies are completely opposite. I feel etiquette is very important and I want to come off in an appropriate manner. The format of my emails is essential when writing to these types of people as I want my email to be well organized with a proper subject, greeting, and closing. Unlike when emailing people close to me, I check my grammar more than once and make sure the email flows smoothly.

I do feel like there should be a difference in my emails when talking to different people. Since tone and expression cannot be felt by the recipient I feel the way an email is put together can represent this. Writing to friends or family in a non-proper way represents a friendly tone and the recipient feels more comfortable. When writing to people of higher importance the recipient should feel like I am writing in a professional matter with a serious purpose.

Whenever I open a new page on the internet, I am presented with yahoo as my homepage, which shows me, as soon as it loads, if I have any new messages. If there is nothing in my inbox I will quickly go on with what I am doing, but if anything new has arrived, I find the need to scroll over the link that reads "mail," which allows me to see who sent the message and what the subject is. Depending on the urgency of the messages, the sender, or the subject's interest in general, I will either continue what I was doing or click on one of the new messages to read it in full. After I have finished reading, I decide whether or not I have to reply to any of my messages, which I then also determine what kind of etiquette I will use while typing depending on the recipient.

I find that being able to scroll over the link for my mail to view the sender and subject is especially important for me because of its speed and easy use. This becomes useful as I find myself looking at the yahoo homepage at least a dozen times a day due to its status as my homepage. However, I never really use e-mail in the sense that I send electronic letters to friends and family. Since I only really use it to receive informational messages or notifications from facebook, I rarely have to reply to any messages, which keeps my e-mail experience rather one-sided and brief.

Email

A good strategy for reading email is important in order to get through the numerous messages that fill my inbox. Email had become a part of everyday life, and I check it almost every time I go on the internet. When I first log on to one of my many email accounts, I quickly scan my inbox. I look to see who the messages are from and what the subject says. Then I begin deleting what is not important, which is most of the messages. After I have deleted what is not wanted, I open the remaining emails. If the message is from an organization or the university, I read it quickly, searching for pertinent information. If the email is from a family member or friend, I read it slowly and then reply if necessary. I check my two main email accounts everyday in order to keep my inbox from overflowing and doing so has become a habit.

Reading through email quickly is important to my strategy. It allows me to find what is needed and delete what is not without spending too much time doing so. I find myself checking my email everyday out of habit. My strategy focuses on important messages and deletes what is not needed. I find that checking the sender and the subject allows me to decide if I need to read the message at all. Spam can often be spotted right away just by looking at the sender. Looking at the subject also gives me an idea as to what the email is about, which can help me decide if I need to respond now or later. While some people spend hours checking and replying to emails, I like to spend as little time as possible.

How I E-mail

When I use e-mail, the strategy I use depends on who I am sending a message to or who sent a message to me. For example when I receive automated e-mails from the school, my strategy is to make a note of whatever information they are giving me, but not respond. On the other hand when I receive e-mails from friends and family I make sure to respond every time. I try to reply with a message that is similar in length to the message that was sent to me. Also, if I am e-mailing someone who I don't personally know like a teacher or fellow student in a study group, I use much more formal writing. I use complete sentences that are grammatically correct and are punctuated well. However if I am writing a friend my writing will be much less formal.

My e-mailing strategy is influenced almost entirely by necessity. I simply reply to what I need to reply to and ignore what I can afford to ignore. I check my e-mail multiple times daily to ensure that I don't miss an important notice from the school or a teacher. I also need to keep in touch with friends in family, so my strategy for e-mailing them is influenced by this necessity as well. My e-mailing strategy is sufficient for the e-mailing that I have to do at this point in my life, but I'm sure it will change as time goes on. I will need to use e-mail for different things and will most likely rely on it much more in the future than I do now.

Email 4 Me

As it has become such a typical part of my everyday life, emailing is something that I hardly notice. However, after pausing to think about it, I realize that there is a definite pattern that I follow when checking my email. It has become a habit that I check my email just about every time I get online. My university email always receives a tremendous amount of junk mail and looking through and deleting these is always the first thing that I do. Following this, I read through all of the important emails and last I respond to those that require it. I also have a personal hotmail account that I check every couple days. This account I only use for family and friends so I receive fewer emails and therefore do not check it as often. When I do check it though, I spend much more time because the emails are generally longer and my responses likewise longer and more personal.

This has been my routine for so long that until this assignment it never occurred to me that I even have a certain procedure to reading and answering my email let alone that there are reasons behind what I do. However, upon reflection, I discover that there are very specific reasons for my routine. My intense dislike of junk mail causes me to immediately delete these before I do anything else. Along with wanting to respond quickly to any important emails, this pointed dislike contributes to the number of times I check my email every day. Not wanting to miss anything, I read through all of my emails before responding to any. This allows me to be certain that I know everything that is going on before I answer. Finally I proceed to respond to those emails that need it. This process is very effective for me and allows me to read and answer my emails in the manner that suits me best.

How I deal with email

I had in the past one absolute rule for email accounts. If the amount of spam is greater than you can delete, and is also greater than the amount of emails that are important, then you must let the account rot. This rule had served me well until I had finally bothered to get a gmail account. since then I have not bothered to delete most of the amazon and other company spam I receive. Instead I never open them and use their bold titles to break up the list of emails so it's easier to find a past email of interest. These days I first check with the new mail is involved with art and design. If the email seems very important I will instantly move it to my custom folder before touching it. This way I can save it from being shuffled lower on the pile of various oddities. I also do this so I don't have to mix pleasure and work on the same screen. I don't spend that much time on writing emails to friends because most of the time we are already in voice chat with each over. And if we are not, we soon will be. This of course leads to a even more broken etiquette system between us. Most of the time with friends I am just sending a couple of sentences and a picture, link or attachment. When the email deals with work however I definitely make sure I come off as an intelligent professional. Therefore I try to form a clean and error free email that answers all of the questions that the other party had for me. These types of emails are not my strong suit because they are rather too stiff and punctual even for me. In the end I try to only really use email as a way to transfer documents and unlike a text message is more likely to be saved.


I really prefer to take care of serious work using other forms of electronic communications. This comes from my desire to see an instant response to what my correspondent has said so I can gather ideas and see what the other person is thinking. Because my friends and I are usually able to voice chat daily we tend to wait and share by voice whatever would have been written. Even when working with other artists on our personal video game project this summer, I only used email in order to give my artists a design document that they could continue to reference. In return I was sent concept art to critique. This I did do in an email. All other parts of the project where done over group AIM meetings. I think that since I don't have to use email as my only form of communication with distant people that my etiquette might be a little loose. I make sure to spell everything right, but other details like capitalizing and run-on sentences do get overlooked. Email to me is more of a quick way to get a idea from a friend and a user-name from a site. I am sure that my preference to voice chat systems like skype might not be everyone's method for online communication. I am also sure that it leaves my methods for dealing with email a little basic and unsophisticated. But email is just a minor tool for me. I go in, get up-to-date and leave. Important interactions can be handled in a better system of communication most of the time. I do what works.

Email

I like keeping my email organized. I have a couple of different email addresses, so my inbox can get quite full. Email from all of my accounts comes into my Gmail account and is then automatically filtered into folders. When I check my email, I start by scanning the headings of my emails. Then, I read and reply to the ones that seem the most urgent in order of priority. Finally, I go back and read and reply to my other less important emails in no particular order, deleting junk mail as needed. When sending my replies, I simply start at the from line and work my way down. I proofread and sign my email when I'm done.

Let's review my process. Keeping my email organized now is important for efficiency when checking my email later. It helps separate out the junk mail, as any important emails are generally sent to my Gmail address. Being able to quickly identify important emails allows for the most efficient use of my email, as I can then prioritize accordingly. When I write an email, I generally try to keep my subject line succinct. When I'm finished writing my email, I proofread and sign my email. I always proofread my emails to make sure that my email will make sense to the person on the receiving end. And the signature will let people know who sent the email, in case I'm not in that person's address book. And that's my email process.

Engaging E-mails

Gmail - the beautiful, intoxicating, addictive, fun product of Google, Inc. - encompasses my world. Once originally a simple email client, Google has added a multitude of goodies and features to attract future users. I for one, always have Gmail, my primary email client, open on my computer. I am not the type of person to 'open my email'; mine is always open. A taskbar window is dedicated to Gmail, and once I have a new email (shown as "Inbox (1)" in my taskbar), I immediately check to see the new message. I open and skim/read the message, and if a response is needed, I actually don't immediately respond (unless its an urgent email). I'll let it sit in my inbox for a while until I feel like responding. Many times I'll categorize the email into separate folders after reading, in an attempt to reduce my inbox size to the least it can go. Many times though, the quickest action is to press "Delete". When writing an email, I will always have a greeting, usually "Hi John Doe," and then will continue with the message. I usually always try to use proper grammar, making sure to also have proper punctuation. However, with friends, I will use 'IM speak' (eg. lol, rofl, ur, w/e). When finished, I will end with a salutation or a simple "Thanks!" and sign my name. With friends, I usually sign "- K" but a more formal email requires me to sign my full name.

I am pretty addicted to my email. My phone (iPhone) constantly updates so I always know whats going on. A difference I have noticed, compared to other people, is that I tend to put off writing important emails because they are important emails and require time for me to write and contemplate about. In a way, I get nervous about what to write and I procrastinate. When composing an email, I always try to act jovial and try to convey my personality through my words. Abruptly entering the main topic of the email seems rash, and a simple "Hi" icebreaker seems necessary to begin an email. Also, being an organized person in general, my inbox tends to be very small and my email account very organized. Unnecessary emails will always be deleted to keep my inbox small and organized, such is a way my life has influenced my email.

Digital Literacy Defined

What is Digital Literacy? When I hear the word, I think of someone able to understand how to use the internet, how to create a Gmail account, or someone capable of defining what 'Web 2.0' means. In another sense, it is also someone who knows of the current trends and fads in the digital world. I think of myself as an extremely digital literate person. I spend hours of each of my days online; checking my email, talking with friends on Gchat, or reading Michigan sporting blogs.

Many people of today's technological world cannot live without the internet; everyone must be up-to-date with their emails, their statuses on Facebook must always show where or what they are currently doing at that moment (as a result, platforms such as Twitter have spawned from this idea). The news on TV (particularly ESPN) constantly talk about celebrities 'tweeting', informing the news watchers of the current new digital trends.

Digital literacy at its simplest form, such as the literacy my 65 year-old grandma possess, is the ability to access the internet (double-click the Firefox icon) and type in a website (in my grandma's case, TimesOfIndia.com). The older generation must adapt to keep up with the changing times. My grandma, even though the idea of digital literacy is new to her, now spends hours of her day reading and surfing the internet.

Learning about the digital world from an early age is important. When I entered middle school, my school (private) forced us to buy laptops, and its use was integrated into our curriculum. We each received an email address and our worlds revolved around the use of this new technology. I owe my digital prowess to the fact I was trained to use digital technology at such an early age. Many schools now are following suit, properly preparing their students for the digital world which they will enter.

Engaging with e-mail/E-mailing strategy

When I open my email account, the first thing I do is look for new emails which are presented in bold lettering. From that point, I proceed to look at who is sending the email and what the subject is. Depending upon that, I choose which to open first based upon what I believe is the most important or most intriguing to me. Messages from the University or other mass emails I tend to open then quickly look over to see if I need to place my attention to what they are sharing and read the first sentence. If I decide it is not important or relevant, I will either leave it to deal with later or immediately delete it from my inbox. As far as replying to emails, I try to reply as quickly as possible if the request in the email is a simple one, such as "Will you have lunch with me at noon today?" It takes less than a minute to send a response of "yes" or "no." Emails necessitating a longer response or an attachment I will generally leave for when I have more time to actually structure the email correctly and do what they are asking of me. E-mail has recently become much more important to me. Before college, I would check my Charter.net email account maybe once a week; here at Michigan I check my umich.edu at least twice a day in worry that I will miss an important message.

My process of e-mail checking and replying is common I believe. Of course new emails will be the first thing everyone checks because is that not why they are checking their account? Also, I highly doubt that people would fully read an e-mail they feel is not relevant or important to them. Nor would they reply to something not needing a reply to at a time they are doing other things. My compulsiveness to check the emails is not necessarily so common as some people do not place such an emphasis on keeping in touch or informed. Additionally, in my opinion, email is one of the simpler, more straight-forward technical devices we have. There are not too many additions or side options to it like there are in other services or products. Therefore, I can not see how someone else's strategy will differ too much from my own.

What is Digital Literacy?

In the past, literacy strictly referred to a person’s ability to read and write; it defined the progress and stability of nations young and old. In today’s world where instant communication is a given and technology supercedes most processes of earlier times, a modern aspect of literacy has arisen. This is the technological factor commonly regarded as “digital literacy.” However, this poses questions such as: what is digital literacy? What qualifications make a person digitally literate?

Generally defined, digital literacy is the comprehension of technological discourse and the ability to use it. Barbara R. Jones-Kavalier and Suzanne L. Flannigan – authors of the piece Connecting the Digital Dots: Literacy of the 21st Century – define it as a person’s ability to perform tasks effectively in a digital environment. The Global Digital Literacy Council (GDLC) has set actual qualifications. Their latest standard was signed into effect on August 1, 2008. More than 400 technological experts from over 30 countries collaborated over a 9-month period to create the digital literacy standard known as, Global Standard 3. This standard contains all the qualifications and knowledge needed to be certified as digitally literate. Digital Literacy in everyday life involves several high-tech mediums, be it the Internet, cell phones, PDAs, television, and many more.

Digital Literacy Defined

In order to properly define “digital literacy”, one must first separate the two words that make the term. Digital refers to the world of digital technology, which ranges from use of computers to the internet or any other high-tech media. Furthermore, literacy can be described as the ability of one to read and interpret a type of media. Together, digital literacy can then be defined as the ability to read and interpret high-tech media. In order to be considered literate in the technological world, a vast number of skills are needed, and everyday there are new products, ideas, and technologies that one must familiarize his/her self with in order to be digitally literate. Just a few of these relatively new ideas include cell phones, MP3 players, Facebook, Twitter, Google, and blogging.

One of the main advantages of being digitally literate is the ability to communicate with almost anyone in the world through a vast number of channels. Email, websites, text messages, blogs, instant messaging and music are all different ways to connect to the people and is made possible by technology like the internet, cell phones, and computers. Because the information is digitized, it can be accessed at anytime or anywhere. The list of benefits of digital communication is growing everyday, making the need to be digitally literate continuously more imperative to effectively interact with others around the world.

Defining Digital Literacy

Digital literacy can be defined as communication through modern technology. This communication includes the ability to locate, organize, understand, evaluate and create information using digital technology. The use of digital literacy has become a powerful source not only in the field of education but also in the workforce and society. Digital literacy has created a plentiful flow of accessible resources online to bolster the work of students, teachers, researches, writers and investors.

Although one may believe the term digital literacy came into use as the computer era initiated it was actually well before then. When the digital age sprouted, digital literacy was only known as the ability to deal with hypertextual information. As the variety of media formats increased the definition of digital literacy became much broader. It became more about understanding the skills necessary to communicate information and knowledge effectively; hence literate in the digital field.

Digital Literacy

Digital literacy, which is the comprehension of technological discourse, as well as the ability to utilize digital information, is an essential skill to have in today’s technologically enhanced society. This ability is not purely exclusive to the younger generation, but it must be something that anyone can understand, whether they are young or old, white or black, Asian or American; digital literacy should have no boundaries. Someone in India can easily communicate with someone in China with programs such as Skype or AIM, and a twenty four year old medical student in America can access the same information as a thirty nine year old doctor in Australia. With our ever-changing and modernizing world, there is a greater need for a digitally literate population, which can easily and readily access any information that is available to them from various forms of digital media. Because of the internet, any sort of information, big or small, can be disseminated out to the masses in forms of blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Wikipedia, and more. The internet is a digital frontier that must be explored and conquered, but the only way to utilize it to its fullest potential and meet up with the challenges of the twenty-first century is to become digitally literate.

Nowadays, schools are becoming more wired with utilities such as smart boards and online wikis in order to aid with the students’ learning experience. Because of this, there is a greater need for both students and teachers to become digitally literate. It is up to the teacher to learn how to utilize the technology (smart boards and wikis), but it is up to the student to learn how to access the information. However, classrooms are not the only environment in which digital literacy is a crucial skill. Even typical working class adults can find the internet to contain a heap of information. Want to hear the latest news, but you have no access to a TV or radio? Just go on www.cnn.com, and all the information will be right at your fingertips. As long as one knows how to navigate around the site and understand how to use all the tabs, hyperlinks, and videos, then it is no different than watching the news on TV. Have a medical question, but you have no time to visit a doctor? Simply use Google, Wikipedia, or WebMD, and a myriad of information will appear about what the problem is, and how to alleviate it. Want to write a letter to an old friend, but you have no pen or paper around? Just write an email. It’s as simple as that, as long as one is digitally literate. As digital media begins to take precedence over our lives, digital literacy will no longer be an option; rather, it will be a necessity.

When the term digital literacy was first introduced in class, I was not sure I would be unable to understand the concept; however, as I have done more research and it has been discussed further in class, I believe I have found some clarity. Digital literacy, as I view it, is one’s ability to comprehend the technological era in which we live today. It is accumulating a skill set that will further one’s ability to function in the technological age. One who is digitally literate can utilize all of the copious tools available through digital and electronic media to further their personal endeavors.

To truly comprehend the term digital literacy, one must understand the times in which we live. The digital era has created new opportunities for the free flow of information. It has greatly enhanced the educational field with online textbooks, “hyper textual information,” and the availability of resources with which a print library could never possibly compete. However, not only has furthered education but it is now branching out into the professional and personal worlds. Personal networking sites such as Facebook and others have been instrumental in linking people all over the world; more importantly, however, are the professional networking sites such as Linkedin and Plaxo are making the world we live in smaller everyday. In short, becoming digitally literate in these times is imperative to one’s success in their personal, educational, and professional life. Although I do not consider myself digitally literate yet, I hope this class will help facilitate my growth in this area.

Digital Literacies--A Definition

Digital literacies are the media through which people communicate in the sphere of modern technology. Someone who is digitally literate has harnessed the ability to understand technological discourse and to communicate in such forums as email, text message, or the internet. Literacy, in any sense of the word, deals with the understanding and capability of an individual to communicate--thus digital literacy deals with the individual's understanding of how to communicate in technological contexts. To be digitally literate, one must understand the language of technology, which has arisen through a worldwide push for efficiency, expediency, and immediacy.

Scanning the text messages on any cell phone would uncover a new set of words and language that someone without a cell phone might not comprehend. For example, many people from earlier generations would not understand the acronym "lol", simply because they have not been exposed to digital dialogue. Ultimately, such digital dialogue is the result of people's efforts to make themselves and their communications more efficient--and digital literacy is the ability to understand said language and utilize it. A prerequisite for digital literacy is a understanding and ability to use the language of efficiency.

I use the term language in a broad sense--I refer not only to the daily communications of individuals but also with a person's ability to interact with technology. The ability to word-process, for example, presents an understanding of modern technological language because it is an instrument of efficiency. By the same token, a knowledge of how to play computer games is not essential to becoming digitally literate, because games do not exist for the purpose of efficiency or expediency.

Digital literacies refers to participation in the modern world, where over the past 25 years there has been a shift in values to accommodate rapid communication and information. One who is digitally literate has embraced these values and puts them to practice through technology.

Digital Literacy

If you understand the picture above (all credits to folks at XKCD) then you must have had some experience with computers, and specifically being asked by other people to help. You show some aptitude to work with computers and electronics, and use communicate what you know, via electronically or verbally.

Digital literacy is as simple as that. A person is simply familiar with words and terms used to refer to tools used in the digital era and is good enough not just by knowing, but able to use and interact with the tools. Just as there is spoken language, there is the language used for the digital world, lingos simple as internet, e-mail, and googling (which is now found in several major dictionaries) to terms like usenet, GITHUB, and IRC which are used in the more technical circles, and its own slangs and jokes, such as the infamous rickroll. Like how a person does not need to know all of the words in english to know english, you don't have to know everything about computers to be digitally literate. Rather you must be able to understand enough to be able to understand more when necessary and communicate it to others.

Defining Digital Literacy

Digital literacy is a modern term whose meaning has grown and changed in unison with new technology. In today's world there are two fundamental parts to the definition: the understanding of the digital world and the ability to effectively use digital technology. Understanding digital literacy requires a comprehension of the digital technology that exists as well as how they function. This technology can be anything that is used to digitally transmits information, files, objects, forms of entertainment, etc. Internet, cell phones, PDA's, and other similar devices are today's major digital devices. A complete understanding of what they are and how they function to transmit information or other objects is a large part of being digitally literate.

The second requirement of digital literacy is the ability to effectively use these technological and digital devices. It means the capability to find desired information or other objects and transmit or otherwise use them in a manner that effectively communicates that information to the desired person or persons or to effectively use them for one's personal motives. This ability to use digital technology allows for faster, more effective communication over further distances and through most obstacles. In combination with an understanding of the digital devices that are available, this ability is the definition of digital literacy and the cause of the existence of the digital world today.

Digital Literacies in this Century

Digital literacy is the understanding and effective use of digital technology throughout one’s daily life. As implied by this definition, the first step to digital literacy is to understand digital technology. One should know how to turn on the computer, send an email, and even create a PowerPoint presentation. However, digital technology is not solely limited to the personal computer, as digital technology has many mobile applications. As an example, one should know how to send email, send text messages, and take pictures with a cell phone. One should also know how Bluetooth and Wi-Fi apply to mobile devices such as cell phones. Finally, one should have a basic understanding of how social networking platforms such as Facebook and Twitter apply to both mobile and non-mobile computing. As it is impossible to encompass every inch of digital technology, having a solid conceptual understanding of all or most of the above can be considered having some degree of digital literacy.

While understanding all of these things is important, one should be able to utilize these tools effectively. Digital literacy should not be confused with computer literacy. Yes, it is true that someone who is extremely computer-literate can do all sorts of fancy things with a computer. But someone who is computer-literate may not necessarily be considered digitally literate. For example, today getting somebody’s phone number can be brought to the “digital level.” One could transfer his or her contact information via Bluetooth. But, the process of sending a contact card via Bluetooth is far to lengthy for doing something as simple as getting a single person’s phone number. The better solution would be to just speak the phone number aloud while the other person types it into his or her phone. In short, digital literacy is not only understanding how to use technology, but it is also knowing how to best employ it to suit the needs of the given situation effectively.

Educause Quarterly

Techlearning.com

Defining Digital Literacies

Digital literacy is the ability to understand and affectively use the digital media. To achieve such a status, one must be able to operate many forms of hardware and software as well as digital means of communication like cell phones and the internet. The importance of this knowledge is growing by the day as schools, companies, and many other institutions begin to switch from a world of paper to one of keyboards and wires. Perhaps the most important of these digital tools is the internet, which has become a portal through which most of today’s daily activities can be carried, such as communicating with one another, shopping, and acquiring information.

The increased use of these technological advancements has brought the world to be more connected than ever before, showing the vital importance of the ability to use such devices. Digital literacy can thus be used to inform new generations, as well as everyone now, how to connect using blogs, e-mails, or personal pages like facebook and how to operate the myriad systems of software that can be used for work or entertainment.

Digital Literacy in Our Technological World

The term “digital literacy” was nonexistent a mere 25 years ago. The world of technology has continued to expand and improve necessitating the term to arise. In recent years, the term has grown to define itself-the ability to operate and comprehend the digital world. If one wanted to operate such electronic devices as the iPod, the Kindle or DVR they must have the ability to understand the material placed before them. Especially in our current economy, the price of technology causes one to think twice before purchasing. If one does not know how to operate a device (and operate correctly) they are about to surrender $100+ for, it becomes wasteful as well as illogical. Therefore, when commercials or promotions put a spotlight on new products, it is imperative that one grasps the basic concept that the device is meant to serve before venturing to purchase the product.

Essentially, the most important digital tool necessary to begin exploring the digital world is the Internet. The links it provides to people around the world is one no other function can provide. Additionally, the information accessible at one’s fingertips is useless unless one has the literacy to take in what is before them. As 18, 19 and 20 year olds, we have grown up in an era of technology. I can’t remember a time when the Internet was not accessible to me, even if it was through a dial up connection. The fact that we have been around technology from a young age gives us, as young adults, an advantage to our parents and elders. Our brain has learned to understand and appreciate the products and services placed before us. Therefore, the world of technology has been speaking a language we have unconsciously becomes fluent in. This unconscious ability has actually placed us in a position to improve our workforce as we grow to become a part of it.

Defining Digital Literacy

Digital literacy is the capability to use modern, digital technology to communicate, share, and learn information. From school assignments that require a basic knowledge of the Internet in order to do research, to the daily use of an email account to converse with family, friends, and coworkers, digital literacy enables people to communicate and work quickly and efficiently. In fact, many jobs absolutely require at minimum a simplistic knowledge of computers, for both white and blue collar workers. And with the rate of growth and prevalence of digital technology worldwide, digital literacy is fast becoming a necessity for those who wish to have a secure, well-paying job. Companies now have more than local rivals to compete with; the economy is globalized by revolutionary, interconnecting digital technology that introduces competitors from across the planet.
As a result of its widespread use in the workplace, digital literacy is also becoming a building block of curricula in education. As a result, educators must acquire this skill and students are instructed in the use of such digital technology as computers from a young age. And students especiallyuse these skills recreationally to blog, maintain on online profile such as a Facebook or MySpace account, and keep up with other social trends. Although this is the most popular amongst younger generations, adults also utilize these same resources to catch up with friends, follow the latest trends, and even to monitor their children's online activities. In short, digital literacy is fast becoming as essential and vital a skill as reading and writing in our technology-based, rapidly growing society.

Digital literacy is just what it sounds like. It is the ability to read, write and comprehend information using digital tools. Digital literacy allows a person to communicate his/her ideas in a more efficient manner through the use of technological advancements. This blog is a perfect example of a venue for digital literacy. If my classmates and I were not digitally literate, then we would not be able to carry on a competent blog about this topic on this website. Digital literacy is an ability that will soon be essential as we are forced to adapt and evolve in this highly advanced, ever changing society.

Blogs, email, and other forms of electronic media are rapidly becoming the primary communication device not only in social circles, but also in the job force and the academic realm. The ability to access and manipulate technology is becoming just as vital to success as reading and writing. The vast majority of people in this day and age have access to the internet, which is why digital literacy is so key in many aspects of life. The capability to utilize and evaluate information using the digital tools at our disposal today is a priceless one.

Digital Literacies

Digital literacies are essential aspects of the modern world. They deal with technology and language in a comprehensive way. People who desire to expand their knowledge through resources on-line will often come across digital literacies. Since the internet offers many different opportunities to gather new information, it is important for one to understand the concept of digital literacies. Search engines, e-mail, blogs, and social networking websites all increase the speed at which ideas and digital literacies are spread.
In general, digital literacies are modern ways to comprehend information through devices such as the internet. They help to transfer ideas quickly across the globe. This speeds up the process of communications while increasing the rate at which information travels from person to person. This makes understanding digital literacies important because they can be found anywhere on the internet. Digital literacies involve reading and writing for an audience that is educated in technology. They are becoming very popular in the modern world.

Digital Literacies Definition

In general, digital literacy refers to one's overall ability to work with digital technology. However, there are many different digital literacies that make up one's overall digital literacy. These digital literacies can be broken up into three main types: the ability to communicate with digital technology, the ability to locate, understand, evaluate, and create information using digital technology, and the ability to entertain oneself using digital technology.
Digital technology is composed of a variety of media, such as computers, cell phones, the Internet, PDAs, and other digital devices. The implementation of these devices contributes greatly to one's digital literacy. To obtain digital literacy means to have a reasonable understanding of how to use many different forms of digital technology to perform tasks. In today's world, digital literacies are nearly essential skills to have to accomplish one's goals.

What is digital literacy?

Digital literacy means having some knowledge of the full scope of digital media. To be digitally literate is to have an understanding, or at least awareness, of all the digital forms of communication, entertainment and also of ways to locate information. One should have some knowledge of Google, Youtube, Twitter, Wikipedia, gamer terms, text lingo, and the general rules of forums, not to mention certain key applications like Microsoft Word and Itunes to name a few important ones. This does not mean that the digitally literate person must actually use all the forms of digital media. Their knowledge can be limited to a basic awareness of what the system does and how people use it.


With this general idea, that literacy is not merely the ability to use an aspect of a medium but a general understanding of all the parts and forms of the entire medium, we can easily see why there is a gap between the generations on the digital front. We likely all have parents that have learned some part of the digital medium. Our fathers may know how to email with ease and our mothers may be able to Facebook and Myspace like the best of us, but that might be the extent of their digital literacy. They might know nothing of gaming, or virtual worlds like Second Life and World of Warcraft. Therefore they turn to their children, who are more likely to be digitally literate, for help. I think that if our parents wanted to they could learn to become more digitally literate; certainly Microsoft and other companies think so, since they teach classes on the subject matter, but like all illiteracies it is a skill that maybe not everyone can grasp instantly. Time must be taken to learn how to plug in a computer of course...

links to
Microsoft
and
ITC Digital Literacy

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