Web 2.0 and Podcasting: Where is this heading?

Since the development of the Web 2.0 theory, created by Tim O'Reilly, the Internet has taken on certain qualities that can be described as a second generation of the web. More and more web-based communities are being developed which include social-networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace, as well as thousands of blogs created by any average user of the web. Through these types of websites, people are able to use their creativity to create and share information with other users. While this may appear to be a beneficial use of networking, there are potential downsides to it.

Sharing one's thoughts and feelings via the various means of communication of the web, including blogs and Podcasting, has become increasingly popular over the past few years. Sites such as Youtube have members posting videos daily, sharing various aspects of their lives such as likes and dislikes, or even sharing their feelings with complete strangers. This issue of privacy is a little unsettling. Although these types of technology connect us with people from parts of the world that used to be inaccessible, there are also people watching these videos at the same time who you may not want watching. Privacy settings can be adjusted, however, it is difficult to completely aware of who it is observing and reading into you.

There are many perks to the Web 2.0 concept. The more software development and programming that is done, the faster the Internet can progress, making the world even more accessible to the average person. One should really be careful about what they choose to share with the world though, because someone will always be watching.

My Blog Review of Postsecret.com

Blogs can vary in many different aspects. Sometimes it's even hard to classify what genre a blog may be a part of. Millions of blogs are active all over the Internet at any given time, and there are many we choose to read and be a part of for various reasons. One of my favourite blogs is a site called Postsecret.com.

Postsecret was started by a man named Frank Warren, who gave out 3,000 self-addressed postcards and asked people to write their secrets on them and send them back to him anonymously. Little did he know he would receive thousands upon thousands of postcards, with secrets of all sorts written on them.

This type of blog easily connects with its readers. With such a broad spectrum of secrets that are displayed each week, there is no single topic for discussion. The readers can comment on the postcards and create threads on the discussion boards. The main page simply laid out, making it easy to read. It contains the pictures of the postcards which draws in the readers' attention. Although it is only updated once a week, the secrets, written so creatively on the postcards, let the reader reflect on their own lives. Sometimes even if they have not sent in a secret, they can see they share the same secrets as other people. The blog inspires hope and allows people in this world being separated by the growing distance in social interaction to remind themselves that they are truly not alone.

*Pictures taken directly from Postsecret.com*

What is the biggest issue facing blogging, citizenship and the future of media?

There are millions of people blogging everyday. Each person expresses their opinions and shares them with anyone else willing to read what they have to say. Sometimes it seems like having such an enormous wealth of free-flowing information can be a bad thing. Not everyone in this world has the right intentions, and we are greeted almost every time we log onto the Internet with ads and propaganda from a million other sites that exist out there about sex, gambling, and profit making. There are some good qualities that do come with blogging, whether it be in type, audio or video. I use the example from a while back when there were several cases of extreme bullying and fighting going on in schools. Students would videotape the fights and post them on You Tube for peoples' viewing "pleasure". In order to catch the individuals who were taking part in these fights, the OPP also placed copies of the videos on their own file on You Tube and asked anyone who viewed them if they could identify those in the videos. Within days the individuals were caught and charged. Using the help of the public, blogs can help bring justice to society. They may not work in every single case, but they are a good start to bringing back that sense of community that evidently still does exist in a vast world of millions.