Cross-fertilisation

Cross-fertilisation.

I noticed with interest that "Live for the outdoors" (Trail/Country Walking) have an advert in a photography magazine (Digital Photo, March 08). It's not great, as it isn't tailored to that market especially, and the graphic used is badly pixilated....but, in the same way that Bob's TOS allowed him to move away from 'just' being sticky content for BPL.co.uk, so this rebranding allows L4dO them to market their online content to people who are interested in the outdoors, but not the magazines.

As this involves a lot of user-generated content, I wonder how people who participate in it feel about being 'used' in this manner. No doubt, so long as there are still meets and competitions, and a feeling of community, they are happy that the hosting of photos, and cross-fertilisation of ideas and gaining of new ones is worth it. Of course, as magazine sales drop in favour of online content, one also wonders how long it will take before revenue generation becomes a bigger part of online companies. The usual way of doing this is to have basic (free) access, and additional (subscription) content. Just look at BPL.com for this model.

The fight is on, not for you to buy their magazine, but for them to get you going to their one-stop-shop for all your <insert interest here> needs. If you take photographs of the outdoors, go to <insert name of site> and you'll find content that you can customise to give you the information that you want and need. Of course, there'll be advertising tailored to this, but it will not be spam, because you might find some of it interesting.

The hunt is on. The customer is the prey. You can always switch off, escape from it all, but you'd better not go near a digital media service of any sort. Artificial intelligence and marketing. All for your benefit. Just don't eat the soylent green.

CES 08

The Consumer Electrical Show is on over 7th-10th January in Las Vegas. I didn't get a chance to see the news yesterday, so haven't heard much about it. Here's a mediasplurge.

Official website - complete with RSS feed, and media coverage pages, including Bill Gates' final keynote speech (link to his QnA session on BBC website).

The BBC is blogging the Show, and has a page of gadgets to look at.

FWIW, I'd be happy with a half-hour programme on mainstream tv from each day of the show. If we truly live in a technological age, what happened to our "Tomorrows World" type of programmes? But I suppose it gives people a chance to create solutions and sell you them on dvd or on niche channels. I class Freeview as niche channels, until the digital switchover forces us plebs to update our systems, and forces the 'service providers' to improve the signals and coverage. I foresee a lot of people walking away from mainstream television unless the digital authorities get their act together.

In the meantime, and back OT, the channel that has the BBC scared, YouTube, has plenty of coverage. Here's the results for a search on CES 2008. Share and enjoy.

I Shot A Moose Once

I shot a moose once in my pyjamas, how it got there, I have no idea. (Allan Konigsberg/Groucho Marx).

Here's the recent warnings:

• 7 Deadly Sins of Blogging
• Convergence 2.0
• Blogito, ergo sum

Plus all the talks in class about the College's discussions and concerns about Web2.0 and potential misuse and liability (ours and yours).

I hide little from you concerning these issues. I've pointed you towards the "soft skills" that employers look for. As classes, you have done things that few (if any) students in Scottish further education have done before. Part of this has been to develop the soft skills that employers look for. Part of it is under the remit of student-centred learning, where your desire to learn and better yourself is the focus of the education system, and staff are here to support and develop your learning.

I've spent the last few days building up quotes for a budget spend for multimedia kit for students. It is tedious. Locating shops that sell the gear, find the item, take a pdf print and note the price in a spreadsheet, and then repeat for two other stores. Then move on to the next item. I have 5 windows open, and move between them.

This is the sort of soft skill that people need to develop - just using IT to do their jobs. It isn't difficult, it isn't exciting, it is just online paperwork. It isn't separate from the multimedia or hardware or programming or whatever job you eventually get, it is a natural part of it. The same with your online presence - if you want a private social network, create one, don't link to it from your professional blog, keep it separate.

I went through the "7 deadly sins of blogging" with 2 classes last week. Today, I filled in an disciplinary form for a blogger. I know in my heart that it won't be the last, and that eternal vigilance is the price of developing your online citizenship. But would your employer take the same view? There have been dismissals out in the real world over employees' online antics. Just look at the full version of the Clearswift leaflet summarised in "7 Deadly Sins of Blogging".

Good night, and good luck.

Something about Web2.0

From The Herald (6 Nov 07):

I can't report on it for the following reason:

© All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

Yup, if it was on paper, I could transcribe part of the document here. But not their webpage unless I email to the address listed. Does the word "ironic" cover this?

Read the article for yourself to discover what the "   " about the "    " is all about. It involves a former HM Inspector for Education, a trip to Finland, and the future of ICT in Scottish schools.

>>Originally linked in from the SQA Blog