Nook Mania

My earlier entries have indicated that I've been all about the preservation of books despite technology's desperate attempt to make anything and everything completely digital. However, a recent article was distributed in my Communications class, and my opinion drastically changed. Created to compete with Amazon's 'Kindle', the 'Nook' was thought up by Barnes & Noble. Some general information was learned when reading this article, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/21/technology/21nook.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=nook&st=cse, but the article doesn't do this amazing new product any justice. Reading the article, I automatically assimilated the Nook with other electronic readers that are out there already. But when I saw the advertisement on a YouTube clip, my mind was changed forever.

Sure, this new contraption doesn't exactly help in the area of preserving books, but it's the new frontier of reading. It contains millions of texts and publications to choose from and allows readers to make text larger, book mark pages, and even annotate with notes on the pages. And with one charge, the battery life of a Nook lasts for 10 days! Fashionable covers are also available for separate purchase, and pictures can be downloaded to make the Nook more personal.
Ok, so how did I go from fighting for preservation of books in class to rooting for the Nook? The answer is simple, and I cant honestly say that college life has deeply affected my change in opinion. I keep thinking how inconvenient it is when I leave one of my books all the way in Brookhaven, and how much easier it would be if all my books were in the same place. Being the owner of the Apple iPhone, I'm used to having multiple technology outlets available to me whenever I need them, so I think I could quickly get used to everything the Nook has to offer. The one issue I had initially was that I love highlighting texts and annotating all over the margins, but then I found out that this was able to be done on the Nook as well.
The way I see it, we can either fight this new wave of exceptional technology or we can embrace it. A recent site I found, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/25/nook-review-8-reasons-you_n_333048.html, is discussing different people's views on what will be successful and what won't, and the Nook seems to be doing pretty well in comparison to other existing e-readers out there.
Personally, the Nook changed my views on electronic reading. Instead of cramming valuable texts into a database on a computer, the Nook seems to have personalized electronic reading to a point where I am convinced it is going to be successful. For Christmas this year, the first thing on my list to Santa is a Nook. Is it on your list?

Is Balloon Boy Hoax the Way to Go?

It's a bird, it's a plane...nope, it's actually a poorly constructed aircraft designed by Richard Heene, a Colorado father who has apparently been scheming ways to get his family a reality television show. On Thursday, October 15, news stations were frantically covering the story of the six-year old boy that was supposedly trapped in this balloon. Many viewers across the country, including myself and all my roommates, tuned in as we waited for the balloon to land on the ground and see if little Falcon Heene was all right. When the balloon landed, the initial reaction was relief that no one was injured. However, the reaction that followed was suspicion. Why did newscasters spend all afternoon following a homemade UFO with nothing inside it? Why were the media outlets so eager to cover a story with absolutely no solid evidence? All valid questions...and questions were still burning when the Heene family appeared on Larry King Live.
Everything seemed so scripted, and Falcon dropped the bomb that the whole thing was for 'the show'. The Heene's desperate attempt for publicity worked surprisingly well, minus little Falcon's slip. I mean, think about it. They may or may not get a reality show out of it, but for at least a few days they had everyone in America talking about how ridiculous they were. Personally, that isn't exactly the way I'd like to be talked about, but in their minds, being in the public sphere in a negative light is better than being left alone. So I am reminded of the Kanye West/Taylor Swift incident at the VMA's earlier this year. It seems like people are going out of their way to make fools out of themselves just to get publicity. So my question is, why are we letting them win? We're essentially enabling them to get what they want. Sure, it gives us a source of entertainment...we're amazed how far some people will go and we get a kick out of watching them make fools out of themselves. But keep in mind that these same people who we are 'supporting' by showing interest are the same people who were aiming to manipulate us in the first place. I say we stop this most recent media trend in it's tracks and stop batting an eye at people trying to promote themselves and focus on giving our attention to people who deserve the attention.

Print Is Not Dead! Thank You, Advertising!

Finally, magazine companies have found a way to be somewhat successful by using unique advertising techniques to make their issues seem special and rare. In a recent article in the New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/business/media/12adco.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=espn%20body%20issue&st=cse, ESPN the magazine is featured. It's no secret that print journalism has been suffering lately, so workers at ESPN took it upon themselves to come up with a new technique to attract more readers. They were quite successful when they stumbled upon critiquing their Body Issue by having the athletes pose in the nude. Although nudity can be known as an attention grabber, it wasn't the only surprise the body issue had in store for us readers. It also featured athletes who had been injured and close up shots of their injured body parts. Disgusting? For some. But seemingly interesting, refreshingly different, and 'awesome' for stereotypical male ESPN Body Issue readers. This issue was a success, and the company claims that it's just another ordinary issue with some added bonuses, and that advertisers should know that every magazine could get this circulation as well. Good try, but we all know that the October Body Issue is the most popular issue of the year, and advertisement agencies aren't stupid...they know that this issue receives more attention than a regular issue. My advice to ESPN: don't push away the only thing thing that is helping you stay afloat right now by trying to fool them. And my advice to advertisement agencies: keep promoting magazines that you feel have an opportunity to be successful, because I think we're underestimating the print industry. I don't think it's going down without a fight.

So...This Is A Felony?

After reading a recent article in the NY Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/06/business/media/06adco.html?_r=1&ref=business, I was actually afraid to post this entry. Apparently, I have such a huge impact on the web that every single comment I leave on Facebook or every tweet I make about Brett Favre being a traitor could be dangerous and drastically affect the good of all mankind. Oops, my bad. But really? Don't get me wrong, it's one thing if someone is explaining how to make a weapon over YouTube and buying thousands of pounds of nail polish remover, that I completely understand censoring. But what about plain janes like me, college students who are doing a class assignment? Or, God forbid, young adults that want to make a difference and want their voice to be heard? Are they going to be punished or constantly monitored? That's a little creepy. So beware viewers of my blog, you are being watched right now...
Wait, I thought technology was the new marketing strategy of this generation? Sounds to me like we're holding the future of our business endeavors in shaky circumstances if that's the case.

Who Needs TV? Not Me.

With the combination of being a full time college student, a college volleyball player, and a college kid hoping to have SOME social life, it's difficult to sit down and take an hour to watch my desired TV shows. In high school it was so easy with the luxury of DVR...if I was busy, it was easy to just record the show and watch it some other time when I wasn't busy. Well, here at Dowling, I am always busy, so I have literally watched zero shows since I have been in New York. Sure, it's been a little difficult not watching Gossip Girl every week, but I grew to accept that since we had practice every single night until late, I'd have to get over it. Wow, was I wrong. While doing some aimless web surfing on our weekend off from volleyball, I stumbled across sites where you can watch episodes online! For some people, this is old news. But for me, it seemed to temporarily fix all my problems. In a few hours, I was able to catch up on every episode of 3 shows that I haven't seen in about 2 months. I loved it, and TV is becoming less and less of a factor for me, so I wonder if this transition is affecting other people as well. I mean, I'm sure I'm not the only busy college student in Long Island who can't afford DVR...well scratch that, Long Island kids probably can. But what is becoming of TV? If it's this difficult to arrange watching show times, are people going to stick with their computers instead of buying TV's? Sure, I was against the conversion of books and computers, but I'm actually in full support of TV episodes and movies being played online. In browsing some of my fellow bloggers on the web, I came across a blog that also promotes online television and even takes the promotion a step further. This blog, http://www.tvchannelsfree.com/blog/2009/10/free-tv-shows-online/, discusses the numerous benefits of watching television online and helped to further convince me that online television is the next big thing.