Posts Tagged: freedom

I really dislike money. I have often wondered what the world would do if money just didn’t exist. Humans survived once upon a time with just the bartering system, why can’t we do it again? Sure, we might be a little bit simpler, but would it be for the better? Sometimes I think so. A simple life is a humble life.

Anderson says “free is almost always a choice”. I don’t think I agree with him, not completely at least. We always have a choice yes, but those choices can be severely limited by our surroundings, culture, and upbringing. In the end, where we are born, where we live, have severe impacts on our abilities to make choices for ourselves. Then we have to rely on others to make the free choices for us.

I grew up learning that nothing is free. Is that true?

If so, how can we change that?

And, is there an abundance of free?

Week 5: Amateurization

You Are Not A Gadget
– Jaron Lanier

1. Lanier introduces his book by referring to “open culture.”  He explains that web 2.0 promotes freedoms people have never experienced through technology until the twenty-first century.  But who is this freedom benefiting most?  Humans or machines?

2.  According to “You are not a Gadget,” the most important thing about a technology is how it changes people and society.  It seems that every 5 years we are learning to use new technologies that we never knew we needed or would make such a large difference in our lives.  But is all this new technology being developed too quickly and negatively changing people?  Is the pace causing these new gadgets to hurt us in the end?

3.  Of all our outlets, advertising has been able to hold strong during the digital transition.  What type of power will advertising hold in the digital future?

4.  We have become accustomed to free access for most Internet information.  Lanier asks if it’s too late to go back and write new rules.  Once society knows they are at an advantage they will not accept change that seems like a step back.  Did we goof up during the development of the web by allowing free access or is this exactly what the web is designed to do (otherwise we would be going against the logical model)?

Quentin Tarantino’s Star Wars
– Henry Jenkins

1. As I was skimming the article, I began to wonder if some of the media listed (books, cable, film, magazines, etc) would eventually be completely wiped out.  Do you think society will come to a point in the future when everything will be digital?  Radio, newspapers, television have all had to settle into new niches over time as new mediums became available.  Would it be easier to scrap all the old and promote one platform that includes everything?

2. At the end of the article, Jenkins asks what we can expect for the future of digital cinema.  Do amateur filmmakers have a chance at becoming the majority and will big movie producers go by the wayside?

Week 4: The Rise of the Network

Here Comes Everybody! – Clay Shirkey

1. If markets are such a good idea, why do we have organizations at all?  Why can’t all exchanges and value happen in the market?

2. Is company growth always a good idea?  Why are big companies failing?

3. Our world used to be a one-way flow of information: Messages were developed and then we consumed them.  Content was filtered and there was no interaction.  How were we able to switch to a two-way interactive approach?

4. What is non-financial motivation and how has it shaped digital information collection?  Are traditional business theories in danger?

5. How does the internet play into money and company growth today?  Have companies become smaller or have they gotten smarter?

The Wealth of Networks – Yochai Benkler
Ch. 1-4, 10

1.  What are some characteristics of information production as an economic phenomenon?

2. How do we know that the content produced by widely distributed individuals is accurate and trustworthy (Wikipedia)?

3.  Should society be concerned that our new freedom will fray social ties and fragment social relations?