User talk:Misslouisepark

Hi. This user discussion page is being used as part of a class project and will be graded as such. I will be using this page to reflect on my work and to prepare my project.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 13:17, 7 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Wikipedia and other seemingly similar mediums encourage a collaborative online community. Wikipedia, blogs and social media companies like Twitter all encourage worldwide debates and a chance for everyone to have their say on whatever the topic of discussion is. Every medium mentioned has differences which make it stand out from the others.

Wikipedia is an online encyclopaedia that allows everyone to add information and edit pages, within reason, on every imaginable topic. This makes for an inclusive online experience, however, it does have some downsides. This availability for public editing invites people to make a mockery of the subject and ultimately become 'trolls.' Wikipedia is quite strict with the policing of its site and does not accept disrespectful posts. The site requires neutrality from the users. It often disallows edits that are deemed as inappropriate and the popular website is known for banning members who misuse their editing powers. This shows that they do encourage a worldwide collaborative experience from their users but they want their website to stay true to its purpose, stating facts and education.

Blogging is another collaborative medium. It is quite different compared to Wikipedia. A Blogger will have their own Blog, usually with a specific theme. The Blog, hosted on a site like WordPress or Blogspot, is moderated by the single Blogger. They contribute articles, edit their page aesthetic and usually encourage comments from their readers. This is a writer-reader relationship but is still collaborative in nature. The Blogger dictates what is posted to their site but often alters what they publish to suit their audience. The readers comment, indicating what they liked and did not like about the post. They offer feedback and constructive criticism rather than being able to edit the blog posts themselves.

Social media is arguably the largest platform for collaboration online. Twitter is one of the largest social media platforms available. It has the option for users to hashtag to see the other users discussing the same topics as them. There is also the trending section. This is where the world can see what is the most discussed topics on the app. Twitter also introduced the highlights section which is a way for users to catch up with various topics, mostly the issues frequenting the news. Anyone can join Twitter and tweet. Twitter, however, only allows for 140 characters per tweet. This can be a problem for a lengthy thought or joke. Twitter offers better security measures than the previously mentioned platforms. Users can protect their tweets, making their profiles private. This allows them to prevent strangers messaging them. However, this disadvantages them in the collaborative community that Twitter offers.

I have used Wikipedia, Blogs and Twitter. I appreciate the differences that they all offer but identify that they all share that user-friendly collaboration. I prefer the personal feel and more in-depth discussion that Twitter offers, compared to the factual nature of Wikipedia.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 21:00, 7 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 13:25, 7 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark:

Posts and comments on other people’s work, of this standard, roughly corresponds to the following grade descriptor. Depending on where your actual mark is in relation to Understanding and Engagement elements, it should give you an idea of strengths and weaknesses within the achieved grade band overall.

Good. Among other things, good entries will make a clear point in a clear way. They will relate concepts to original examples in a straightforward fashion. They will make effective use of the possibilities of the form (including links, as well as perhaps copyright-free videos and images, linked to from Wiki Commons). They may also demonstrate a broader understanding of the module's themes and concerns, and are likely to show evidence of reading and thinking about the subject material. The wiki markup formatting will be very clear.

This post is at the lower end of this grade band, so there’s clearly room for improvement here. I think in order to engage with the wiki exercises a bit more, it might be useful for you to look at the Grade Descriptors and (especially for this, perhaps, the Understanding) criteria in the module handbook to get more of an idea of how to hit those targets. Less instrumentally, and more in relation to this particular post, it does tend to be a little descriptive. Referring explicitly to reading around particular concepts (e.g. in relation to your post, authorship, or cyberbullying/trolling) might extend your critical engagement a little and provide the opportunity for better quality discussions as the project unfolds.

Re: responses to other people’s posts – these are fairly good, if a little brief. Remember that the comments are "worth" as much as posts themselves. The reason for this is not only to help encourage discussion (a key element of wiki collaboration!) but also to get you to reflect upon your own work. This can all, of course be used to fuel ideas that might form part of your project work. I like that you have framed some of your responses as questions to solicit discussion (this is, arguably, what discussion pages are all about!) and also that you are beginning to discuss in an open and critical way (that is to say, you've responded to what other people are saying and are contributing meaningfully to discussion - arguably the civic element of wiki that you ought to be thinking about, which you clearly are). Although these questions may not have solicited responses this time, this is clearly the way to go, to encourage opportunities for you to engage with other users, and with the process. Keep this up!

GregXenon01 (discuss • contribs) 13:19, 13 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Thank you for your in-depth feedback and mark Greg. I will definitely take the points you made on board when making entries in the future. I will be sure to start using images and videos in my work in the future, instead of just thoughts and writings. I will be happy to look at the Grade Descriptor as I do think that will be helpful to not only me but the rest of the class in boosting our grades. It will allow us to know what aspects of the project we are performing well at and where we need to improve. Thank you for your feedback on my comments. I do understand that there is room for improvement there. I do agree that posing the comments as questions was a good idea. It not only allows my fellow students to think about their work and learn more about the subject they are writing about but I also find it to be a useful tool in furthering my own knowledge by getting feedback from others.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 09:39, 15 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

My online presence and visibility is something that I have always found a worrying subject to think about. I am not very active on social media anymore. I only have a Twitter account and an Instagram account now. In the past, I did have a Facebook page and I did blog as well. I deleted my Facebook page as I believed it to be quite a toxic place. I did not engage with people on that social media site but I saw people posting images and personal information like their phone numbers and did not see that as a private, friendly place to spend time anymore. I did enjoy the blogging experience and found myself engaging with new people. However, I am a very private person and found the act of sharing personal information quite strange. I also used to do collaborations with companies like Boots. I did find that to be great work experience but felt wary of giving out my personal information, like my address, to strangers at the companies.

I have deleted my Facebook and my Blog posts, however, I do think the old belief that when something is online it stays there forever. I have searched my username and blog name before and even after the deletion of material, images still appear online. This is a worrying prospect. I wanted to delete these images which was why I deleted the posts, the original source material, but they still appear on the world wide web. This is not an individual experience as it is known to happen to everyone. I am now very cautious of what I post online, if I ever post anything. When I realised that I could see images of myself online by simply searching my online username, I typed in my legal name and went on the hunt for information that anyone across the globe could read about me. The first few pages of Google are filled with articles about an author of the same name. I then came across old links to Blog posts with expired pages as there is no content on them anymore. It seems odd to me the empty links still appear. Worryingly, my address is online. It is not only my home address, however. Everyone who is on the Electoral Register is on 192.com. This was not something I was aware of as it is information that is gained legally from the Electoral Register. This is terrifying as anyone could gain access to my address without my knowledge or will.

The Independent released an article discussing online date trails "We live in the age of Big Brother. Every day, our personal paper-trails – transactions, applications, made or missed payments, shopping trolley contents, even where and when we "touch in" with electronic travel passes – build up to a detailed picture of our lives. Information on the average "economically active" person in the developed world is held on more than 700 databases, according to the think-tank Demos." (Hughes, 2009). Everything about this statement rings true. Another aspect of the data trail fiasco that strikes horror into me is that my purchases are known by Google, and other websites. When I have purchase something, I am repeatedly told by Google that I have recently purchased the item. I would prefer that my spending habits were not known by the Internet but this is the way we are expected to use the Internet. I am also not a fan of adverts. If I have been looking for something to purchase online, I do not want to see an advert for it the next day. I find that to be an unbelievable intrusion of my privacy.

It feels like the Internet has turned into a modern day version of Big Brother. All of our information is stored there and is out there for anyone who wants to have a look. We happily enter our bank details when purchasing something. Is that truly safe? Many of us tag the location that we are currently at? Is that truly safe? I recently put a computer screen up for sale on Gumtree. The automatic setting is for your location to be shown on a map. That is not safe. I disabled that setting. I wonder how many people are selling items without knowing that they are alerting robbers to their exact location. I think companies who deal online should have their customers and users safety at the top of their priorities list. I think there should be regulations online to allow people to post freely without their information being out there for the world to see. This is a problematic though, however. We could be too far into the Internet's evolution to ever bring about such security measures. There is also the timeless question about freedom and no interference online, which outweighs our right to withhold any information that we have put out there. "Collective intelligence is born with a culture and grows with it." (Levy, 1999). It can be argued that we are all to blame for our information being online due to out continued quest for online recognition and validity.

References: Hughes, K. (2009). The Independent. Retrieved 14 February, 2017, from http://www.independent.co.uk/money/spend-save/the-data-trails-that-reveal-every-detail-of-our-lives-1650473.html

Levy, P. (1999). What Is Collective Intelligence?. In Bononno, R (Ed), Collective Intelligence: Mankind's Emerging World In Cyberspace.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 20:16, 14 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hello @Misslouisepark: I find your post interesting, especially when you talked about entering our bank details online. I am a keen online shopper and it has crossed my mind multiple times that when I purchase something online I have to have an account to do so and that when I have an account it stores my information such as my address and card details. This makes it easy for me to then purchase again from the same site, which can be handy, but it also makes me wonder where the information is actually being kept. I don't know if there's any ways around this as, like you've said, we may be too far into the internet's evolution to take back information that we've already given different sites. --Tinytalia (discuss • contribs) 20:30, 15 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi @Tinytalia: Thank you for your comment. I am also a frequent online shopper which is why the thoughts of safety and data trails online are worrying to me. I am not sure if there is any way around the situation you outlined either. You would think that safety was a priority! One thing that seems to be available to prevent any data trails or fraud, are the small card readers and special computer software provided by banks. Banks claim that using these is the safest way to online bank and will protect their customers. This is a move on their part that I appreciate but I do wish we could tackle the source, the Internet, so that we do not have to take precautionary measures to ensure our own safety.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 17:49, 16 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi, @Misslouisepark: great post! I really enjoyed reading this and you raised a lot of points that I have often thought about myself. I too find it a bit odd seeing people share their phone numbers etc on Facebook, and I also can feel a bit uneasy about putting certain info on websites (i.e. my address) as I know this must all be stored somewhere and I worry about the wrong people having access to it. I admit I may be a little old fashioned in my thinking, but I cannot help get a little anxious about sharing such personal information online and it seems you feel the same! Another thing that I wanted to bring up was how relevant some of the info we store online actually is? I've often found that I will try and make an account on a website and it will ask for my phone number, but I never feel comfortable putting it in as I don't understand the need! I wondered what you thought of this/had any comments on perhaps why they do this? I do feel we differ in the sense that I am slightly more positive (if you don't mind me saying) about the internet/online experience so I wanted to hopefully discuss this with you! I do understand that it is completely daunting sometimes that a simple google of our name can reveal personal information that we did not necessarily want to be free for all - however I wonder that even if the internet did not exist, do you think this information would still be out there for people to find? I would argue that there is a fairly large chance it could be, but I am a little undecided. I personally use the internet very often. I have a facebook page (which I use least out of my social media platforms), Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Flikr and Pintrest account. I do work online, so this is partly the reason but I also have friends around the country and our main form of communication is online. I edit videos and am a keen photographer, so I use the internet to aid this passion also. I love using social media to discuss politics/human rights etc and this is primarily what I use my Twitter for. There are a lot of things that I can find quite scary about the internet and social media, however I find that I would rather embrace it than avoid it. Liaa13 (discuss • contribs) 15:08, 16 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi @Liaa13: Thank you for your comment. I am glad you enjoyed reading my thoughts on this subject. When writing about the issues we face online with Visibility and Data Trails, I realised that I did hold some strong feelings about the subject. I am glad you feel the same as me also. It can feel quite isolating knowing that everyone is so open and nonchalant about their own security and visibility online, whereas I hold quite a bit of paranoia about it all. In regards to your question about websites asking for your phone number, I believe different types of websites do it for different reasons. If you are purchasing something online, your number is required incase you need to be contacted about the delivery. For example, I just ordered some furniture online and the delivery men phoned my mobile an hour before they arrived to ensure I would be in to accept the packages. This is useful as it ensures that there is no miscommunication, however, its does mean that complete strangers have the ability to contact you. This is not something that I am okay with. Other websites that ask for your phone number is social media sites and companies like Apple. This is for security reasons. It is to allow the ability of two-step verification when signing in. This battles hackers and ensures a safer experience online. However, if someone was able to get access to your social media site, they would have access to your mobile number so it is a double edged sword. I will be happy to discuss our differences of opinions of online experiences. I think the reason I am pretty wary of data trails and online visibility and security is because my parents were victim to cash machine fraud. Where the criminal tampers with the cash machine and empties your account. Thankfully, the banks fraud team were on the case and retrieved their money for them but I became very concerned and searched online of how to better protect myself electronically. This is where I discovered just how easy it was for someone to gain information on you, against your will. I find it interesting that you also work online and use it for your pastimes. Do you think your experience of working online has altered the way in which you view your other uses of the Internet?

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 18:43, 16 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hello again, @Misslouisepark: thank you for responding! And for sharing some answers on why companies may ask for your number, I appreciate that. I think the fact that anyone accessing your account (as of course it does happen, I have been hacked multiple times) can then access personal info like your address/phone number is what really scares me. I suppose we are in a way putting our trust in other strangers on the internet!! Sorry to hear about what happened to your parents, that's really scary and definitely one of my biggest fears, although thank you for sharing as it is rather fascinating to hear about, especially how it spurred you to find out more details about the process. Do you feel that in some ways you can draw positives from it since it is due to this incident that allowed you to fully become educated on internet safety? I know that a lot of the time we as a society can switch ourselves off to (for example) the countless talks we were given in school about staying safe online etc. It's quite scary that it can maybe takes something like that to make us more aware! In response to your question about my working online: Yes, I definitely think it has altered the way I view others on the Internet. I work in web design, so I rely on people using/needing the internet. I also manage some clients social media accounts so again it is all built on people using/interacting with this. I think being involved in the Internet in this way has made me see people more as acquaintances rather than being wary of them. It's my job to approach and help them, and essentially be nice to them even if I don't personally know them. So I suppose it has made me a bit more trusting of strangers. And so far I haven't actually had a negative experience working in this field! But I know plenty others who have. I do hope that all makes sense. Sometimes I find it hard to get all my thoughts across coherently - oops! Liaa13 (discuss • contribs) 19:49, 16 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Thank you for getting back to me @Liaa13: I definitely did find some positives from the experience. I found that there are some very experienced professionals available to help protect us and help with our security issues. It makes me feel that even though I am wary of online data trails, that there is some back up for us Internet users. Thank you for giving me a bit of background on your career. It is very interesting! I think your job sounds great as you will be knowledgable in all aspects of Internet and which security measures to take. As you manage social media pages you will also be conscious of what you post for people, bringing your comments back to the issue of visibility. Thank you for your input.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 20:15, 16 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark: Hi Louise, I think it's really interesting that you have deleted your profiles and your reasons why. I haven't thought about the amount of times I have shared my address online through online shopping and even over emails to companies too. The information is coded into the systems and then they are always traceable by hackers. It's a scary thought. But do you find you miss out on information while not having a facebook page? Littlekatie1 (discuss • contribs) 13:54, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Littlekatie1: Thank you for your comment, Katie. I think companies are just incredibly unreliable. Well, the technology that is used is anyway. You even hear of banks having their databases hacked and they should be the most secure. I often have call centres calling me asking about PPI enquiries and Accident Claims, none of which I have ever enquired about or have anything to do with so I question where they get my information from. I actually had to make a Facebook page for the purpose of the Wikibooks project. Facebook messenger is where my group communicates. Since making the Facebook page, I have found it useful to keep in contact with my group mates but other than that I do not see Facebook as a useful tool. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 15:28, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

In my wiki project, I had intended to make it filled with multimedia content, especially images. After trying and failing at getting an image to appear in my second post 'WIKI EXERCISE #2 - VISIBILITY AND DATA TRAILS,' I researched the topic further. I searched on Google for the answer of 'how to add an image into wikibooks?' I then searched for the answer on Wikibooks and discovered the right answer. However, the image would still not appear. I did get confirmation from different pages that I was using the correct method, however. For my next addition of the project I will be sure to seek a demonstration from one of my fellow classmates to ensure that I am using the right method for including images in posts.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 16:36, 15 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

I am in a group called the Gregheads. We were assigned the task of writing about 'News, Evidence and Memory in Online Communications.' I had to create a Facebook page to be able to communicate with my fellow group members. Having talked in a group chat, we all took a few days to do our own research into the topic that we were tasked to write about. Having all communicated with each other that we found tremendous difficulty in finding enough information to each write enough to contribute to the project, we collectively agreed that we should enquire about changing topics. We want to create the best project that we possibly can and do not feel that this would be possible if we wrote about our original topic. We are currently enquiring as to whether we can write about 'Digital Labour.'

This has been a great start to the project as I feel like we really do work well as a group. We are all communicating well and planning each step as we go. It shows that we collectively are overcoming any hurdles that we may face in this project.

Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 22:33, 19 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

All issues with my group project have now been resolved. Everyone in my group knows what they are writing about and what is required of them. This issue was resolved by the group meeting in person, discussing our issues in the assigned Computer Lab time. This was extremely helpful and showed us all how well we work together, highlighting the importance of problem solving in this task. I will be writing about 'Evidence and the Unreliability of Online Sources.' This is a topic that I feel most confident in and have made a lot of notes to guide me through the writing process. All that has to be completed for the group project now is for each member to add their passages into the Wikibook page. When I have finalised my word document, I will copy and paste my work into my designated section on the page. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 18:47, 28 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

Information overload is very much the best way to describe the modern Internet. There is so much information available online, making it hard to choose the correct information for you. It is overwhelming! There are countless blogposts and articles relating to the same issue, meaning that it could take hours to find the information that best suits you. For example, when looking for information about a topic covered by myself in a recent critical essay, I found it incredibly difficult to wade through all of the different articles and journals available. I was looking for facts and quotes but found myself closing tabs more often than I found pages that were actually useful. Yes, it is a great thing that we have so much information at out fingertips. Generations of the past would have had a much easier life if they experienced this, being able to search something online and be faced with the answer to their question. However, the Internet has become se diluted with misinformation and garbage that it has become more difficult to confidently use the Internet.

The overwhelming amount of information available also means that distraction is bound to happen. To continue on from my previous example, when researching for an essay, I often find myself getting distracted by everything that the web has to offer. I could mindlessly click on links relating to the subject that I am researching or I could become distracted by the word 'Netflix' that stares at me from my bookmarks bar in Safari. This is a habit that I wish I could break but procrastination and the Internet go hand in hand.

When completing this Wikibooks project, I have found myself being more disciplined compared to a typical essay. I believe that this is because of the Wiki-orientated nature of this project and the collaboration that is required. I am not doing this work independently, I am keeping in touch with my group members. This means that I do not have the freedom to take the time I want to complete a project, I have other people reliant on me completing my work in good timing. This means that I do not click on the Netflix button. I am also a bit more questioning of links that I click, I do not open everything that Google offers, I only open the relevant looking pages. I am coping well with my workload for this project as are my fellow group members. We have all been making sure that we know what we are doing for the project and ensuring that we will all be able to keep up with the deadline, which we all will thus far. Thinking about information overload in terms of the group project, it is applicable to my group. We did have an issue at the beginning deciding on what we would all write about. This is due to the fact that there has been a lot of information on this module. However, I re-read all of the recommended readings to help pick my topic. I then recommended that my group members do this as it was useful. It allows you to choose your quotes, gain any information that you may have missed in first reading and gain a greater understanding. Information overload is a fact of Internet life now but it up to us Internet users to fight against the distractions available. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 19:27, 28 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

I have had two rather large essays due recently, one was due today and the other was due the week before. I have been doing my project around this other work but I can now put all of my effort into the group project. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 20:14, 28 February 2017 (UTC)Reply

comment:

• Hi Louise, I found your post very interesting and relatable. You mentioned the fact there is so much information online, it can make it hard for us to choose the correct information. If I relate this point to my own experiences I would use the example of looking for online academic sources when doing an essay; There are so many topics and areas around the point we may be looking for which makes it hard for us to find a suitable source, we also need to make sure it is classed as an academic source, since there are so many other articles online which isn’t.

  

I also found your point on the older generation interesting, everyone knows the older generation didn’t have the technology and access to information which we do today, but I don’t think people in our generation even considers the drastic change which would occur in our society if all the technology and internet was taken away. This idea can be linked to McLuhan’s work where he would state “Media technologies brought about big cultural shifts." Although we could go deeper into discussion and think about the idea that technology changed culture not society. How do you think our society would react if we didn’t have all the information available online to us?

I also agree with your point on some information being total rubbish which makes it hard to decide what to believe and what not to. I think the most suitable example of this for me would be seeing links on social media pages about different stories and events happening around the world, although most of them seem total rubbish before even clicking on them. In regards to the wikibook project, I’m aware your part of the other group which my group is working with. As I wrote on the discussion page, we too found it difficult to decide which area of our topics each of us would talk about. I enjoyed reading your post and found it very relatable to my own experiences! So, thanks! ArianneStirling (discuss • contribs) 17:05, 1 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

Thank you for your comment Arianne. Making sure what I am reading and researching for an essay is an academic source is my biggest issue also. It can often be hard to tell. Thank you for the thought provoking question. I think our society would be drastically different if we did not have information available to us online. We could look at it in two ways, if the Internet was to magically disappear overnight, I think our world would fall apart. We would not know how to communicate, do many of the jobs that are tech reliant and generally not function correctly. This is due to our addiction to tech. If we imagined that technology and the Internet did not evolve at all, society would still be very different. I think much of our jobs would be held by people rather than be replaced by robots or tech. We would rely more on natural resources like farming and would have to make more trips to the library than we do right now. We would not be a spoiled society if this was our reality. I cannot wait to read what you will write for your part of the group project. I think we will learn a lot from each other as we will be covering the same topic. Thank you. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 18:31, 1 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi Louise, I agree and relate to a lot of points you made in your Wiki Excercise about how information on the internet can be overwhelming and distracting. There is certainly a lot of information out there that has to sometimes be combed through in order to find the content we need, but I suppose this is a sacrifice that has to be made if we desire open access to information. I know I would prefer that to the limited information in China due to censorship that was mentioned in the lecture. I agree that the internet is a big distraction, and it is so easy to end up looking at content just because it's there. Your comment about the Netflix button rings true with me as well, especially when you are only one click away from it. I have all my favourite and most used sites bookmarked apart from Facebook. I found when it was bookmarked I would just click on it when I was bored without really thinking about it, and then I would become further distracted while on the site. Removing Facebook from my bookmarks made a surprising difference to how much I visit it, just from the fact that I have to consciously type it into the search bar rather than subconcsiously clicking on the icon. I am glad that your work for the Wikibooks Project means you are not getting so distracted. GailZWiki (discuss • contribs) 12:53, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@GailZWiki: Hi Gail. Thank you for your comment. I agree. We do have to make that sacrifice in order to have access to have the vast amount of information at our fingertips. I too agree with you about your comment on China. If we were to have the same rules enforced on us as the people of China have to endure, we would not be able to cope. So I do think we have the better end of the deal. The comments of China from the lecture were striking to me too. It makes you think how different the experience of the Internet will be across the globe. How are you getting on with your Wikibooks project? Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 14:16, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark:

Your argument about difficulties in distinguishing between facts and myths in the sea of digital information is very useful. The availability of information and the fact that it is so easy to produce makes the academic online research quite challenging. It refers also to shaping our perception of the surrounding us reality as the availability and amount of various news makes gathering the fact more difficult. In order to find the 'truth' we have to go through multiple resources and even then we can't be sure that we can believe in what we read. Therefore, as you said, we waste vast amount of the time by going through tons of information in order to find the facts and build our critical opinion on given topic.

Another point you made is digital distraction. I can relate to it complete. For me Facebook break from writing my essay is comparable to a nice cup of tea - it gives the sense of gratification and escape. I suffer from the similar habit of 'clicking' on appealing links while I work on digital devices.

However... Aren't there still more benefits than harms from this freedom of creating and consuming information? And even if this vast availability of information is sometimes overwhelming shouldn't we be grateful that we can instantly access it? In case of terrorist attack, natural disaster or war, the world can be instantly informed through social media. We are also able to discuss and give our opinion on available information. Maybe the key is the patience to double check our online research and ability to take a break from social media in order to stay sane.

Pola 2607 (discuss • contribs) 20:40, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Pola 2607: Thank you for your comment. I agree with you! I do think there are advantages to being able to freely contribute content, however, this does still mean that there will be useless information available. I do think we are lucky that we are able to communicate the news to one another and have an intellectual conversation though the various social media sites available. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 21:50, 2 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi Louise! I thought your response was really interesting, as mentioning that generations from the past would have had a much easier life if they had been able to access such vast amounts of information at once was not only a good point; but also highlighted to me the biased nature of the questions we were posed in this exercise. In my experiences of responding to questions in an academic sense, I am far more used to questions which ask me to agree or disagree with an idea - i.e. 'Do you feel that there is such information out there that it becomes easy to get distracted?' opposed to 'How do you deal with the fact that there is so much information out there and that it is easy to be distracted?' I do not think that it is necessarily a bad thing the question was posed to us in this way, as it seems unlikely any of us would disagree, though I think it would be interesting to consider how our responses would have been written differently if we had formed our own conclusions. Was this something you were conscious of when forming your response, and did you attempt to briefly consider the positives of our 'information overload' in vein of this? Either way, I think you showed very good critical thinking skills.

I also think your use of language is quite colourful, and especially enjoyed lines such as 'diluted with misinformation and garbage'; and that the word Netflix 'stares' at you. Though I think that it made your exercise very enjoyable to read, maybe you should be conscious of its detriment to the conciseness of your contribution to your Wikibook project. I only bring it up because writing formally and concisely is something I personally find quite challenging, but maybe you disagree. Great work, regardless! Lucystewpid (discuss • contribs) 09:55, 3 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Lucystewpid: Thank you for your contribution. Your point on the way in which the question was posed to us is very interesting to me. I did not think of it until you asked me in your comment. My opinion would very much stay the same but the way I laid out my answer may have been different, if that was the case. Thank you for your generous compliments! I do agree with you about the formality of my writing, however, it is a habit for me at this point. I always find myself writing much more eloquently and formally for course work than I would in another setting. I enjoyed your comment as you did bring up a few points that made me think not only about the task at hand but also my work in general. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 18:24, 3 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

I have found the Wikibook Project to be an enlightening task. It allowed me to identify some of my strengths and weaknesses, whilst building upon my team working skills. I have found University to be more focussed on individual work and tasks, so I enjoyed the variety of individual and team work that this task offered. My team did work well together for the most part. I, as an individual, could have improved on a few points.

For the first three tasks of the Wikibook Project, they was predominantly independent work. I, as well as my fellow classmates, wrote out our answers in passages under the headings 'What Makes a Good Wiki?', 'Visibility and Data Trails' and 'Information Overload.' Writing out our own answers was independent work, however, the task also required us to leave comments under the passages of two other students. This was a task that I not only enjoyed every week but really did believe was beneficial. I believed it to be a great builder upon critical thinking skills as we had to engage with a variety of work, critiquing and complimenting. I enjoyed reading the work of other students and engaging in conversation with them via Wikibooks. This truly did show the collaborative nature of Wiki. It also showed me how much knowledge the class have on the syllabus. We clearly all have different strengths on this module, knowing one topic more in depth than the other, and it made for an educational task. It allowed us students to teach each other and have better engagement with the themes of the module than an essay would allow. This is because we tackled a variety of topics and shared knowledge and ideas with one another.

Evaluating my own performance in the first half of the Wikibooks task, I do realise that I have some room for improvement. I recognise that I should have included more quotes and references in this project as this would have shown a greater understanding of the reading. However, I did feel some panic due to being absent for health reasons. Even though I did not include a large list of references, I feel like explaining my answers and feelings in-depth would have shown understanding. As for problems with the Wiki platform, I did experience one. I had tremendous difficulty in adding images. I even included a small section in my WIkibooks page explaining this issue. I followed the instructions set out by Wiki and I Googled the issue. I even downloaded images and tried uploading them in this way but nothing would work. The only thing that would appear was red writing as an error message. This happened on my Wikibooks page and on the group page, even after asking advice from a fellow student. I am not sure if this is in issue with my laptop but I will be investigating it further. Adding images to my project was something that I wanted to do and I enjoyed seeing images on the other student's pages.

The second half of the Wikibooks Project was the group task. We did have some bumps in the road in the beginning but turned into a great team. At the start of the group task, we were quite confused as to what to write about. After thorough debate and discussion, we did decide on the right topics for us to write about. The other difficulty that occurred in this task was that another group from a different class was writing about the same issue as us and had to share a Wikibooks page with us. Making sure that we all had our own topics was the difficulty here but after there was a clear communication between both groups, everything was fine. My group discussed through all of our remaining issues (e.g. someone was unclear how to use the discussion page, someone was unclear of the deadline, someone was unclear of how to word their title) in an hour and a half slot. This slot was actually a Computer Lab prescribed class but this class was used for work on the Wikibooks projects. This time was invaluable as we could all plan our own work and make sure it fitted in with the group topic as a whole. The group discussion moved from Facebook Messenger to the discussion page, where both groups communicated with each other and realised that both groups could compliment each others work. The only issue that proves challenging is that everyone in the group is working to a different schedule, with different workloads. This means that the passages are being uploaded at drastically different rates.

The group task is where I did include references to show my engagement with the reading. This is due to the larger timescale for this portion of the project. I did not panic about the time limit like I did with the first half of the project. I included a lot of Jaron Lanier's work for my passage in the group task. For the module, I felt like I was just reading his work but I felt like I could truly analyse his writing in this task. This is something I enjoyed and I do appreciate his work more now. A greater appreciation of the work on this module is what I think this project offered. That and the collaboration involved are the two greatest things about undertaking these tasks. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 17:07, 6 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark: Hi Louise, thanks for your in depth reflection on the Wikibook project and exercises. I like your point that the engagement we were encouraged to have with other classmates through comments and on the discussion pages was a good way of learning. It was interesting to see different people's perspectives, and perhaps they had picked up on something different from the reading or the lecture that they could enlighten others with. I enjoyed this because sometimes it is hard to know if you are getting the same learning experience as others in your class, so it's helpful to hear things from their point of view and compare it with your own. It sounds as though the Wikibook project was a good learning experience for you as your group managed to work together to tackle the issues that you were facing. I had similar difficulties as well when we realised we needed to work with the group from the other class, as we had to re-work some of our plans. However, this was a good experience for learning how to work with a big group where there are so many different opinions and ideas. GailZWiki (discuss • contribs) 17:47, 16 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@GailZWiki: Thank you for your comment, Gail. Yes, I do think that the Wikibook project did offer a huge amount of engaging tasks, all of which we did benefit from. I agree with you! This project was a great way to identify my strengths and weaknesses on the course. I could see where I need to do some further reading based on the advanced knowledge of some students on some topics. However, I could also identify my strengths by comparing my work with others and conversing with students on the Wiki platform. It was a good experience, like you said. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 18:51, 16 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark:Hi Louise, I liked reading your post. I particularly enjoyed your point about how we all bring something new to the discussion from our individual posts. I too really enjoyed responding to other students work and engaging with new ideas which I may not have considered. This aspect of the Wikibooks assessment was really good in encouraging engagement with the themes of the lectures through expanding our knowledge of topics through debate and discussion. I personally feel I benefitted from this as students often explained or simplified theories which I was struggling to understand. A fellow student wrote about how the hive mind and collective intelligence was displayed through the assessment, which I agree with as we all came together to try and understand not only the platform of Wikibooks but the very content we were producing. Would you agree with the point of the collective being "remarkably intelligent, and are often smarter than the smartest people in them." ^[1]

I too struggled with the formatting of the site, particularly inserting images. It took me up until the last day or so to the deadline to figure out how to insert them. It was quite time-consuming to understand and took a few attempts but I eventually got there. If you are still interested in finding out how to insert an image, I could offer my help, however, it may just be the same advice that you’ve already heard from several sources.

I also agree with the points you make about making the most progress in a face-to-face environment, my group struggled to get the ball rolling and we really got to grips with the task in the lab time. The discussion page was valuable in sharing information but it did become a bit of work to navigate and I and other members of my group would wait hours for a reply due to having to log into Wikibooks in order to check notifications. Hence, making our different working schedules a problem in completing the book at a similar rate.

Finally, I can relate to the feeling of being rushed and lacking sources during our individual posts each week. I too found that I had more time in the Wikibook project itself to read and analyse the work of several theorists, something which I struggled to do within our individual posts.CaitlinCarbury (discuss • contribs) 19:47, 16 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@CaitlinCarbury: Thank you for your comment, Caitlin! I agree with you. I think this project has been beneficial to us all in expanding our knowledge base in regards to the content of this module. Thank you for your intelligent question and yes, I do agree with that. I think it is evident from everyone's contributions to Wikibooks that we all played an equal part, no one more important than anyone else. No one contributed information that was more intelligent or more important than anyone else as we all contributed something different. I think the issue with adding images is something to do with my laptop as what I was advised by different sources did not work. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 21:38, 16 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

Hi @Misslouisepark:, I read your Wiki exercise and I totally agree with the fact that working in team is much more interesting and require even more commitment. By reading some Wiki exercise I have been able to figure out the relationship between my classmate and the internet: their viewpoints, and how some topics are discussed differently depending on the classmate. However, I think this kind of exercise is more than a « team project », during my semester in Stirling, I had to work on group projects but tasks weren’t as individual as with the Wiki Book. I felt being assessed on how I am invested and how I work in a project group rather than the final result of the work team. --Sarahsarah22 (discuss • contribs) 11:34, 17 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Sarahsarah22: Thank you for your comment. Yes, I think the same way as well. The information and knowledge we required week to week was dependent on whose Wikibook page we engaged with. I think this project does have some great advantages seeing that you are required to work as an individual and as part of a team. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 11:55, 17 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark: I find your posts very interesting and I have to admit that I've got impression about Wikibook projects. I definitely agree that the discussion on our individual posts was highly beneficial. It helped us to ground out knowledge and see the aspects of the module from different perspectives. I found this part the most enjoyable as it helped me to understand the very notion of collective intelligence. I also appreciate your self - reflection on the quality of your posts. I also benefited from the fact that I was able to see how others manage their Wikibook pages. By reading posts of different students helped me also with understanding the technical site of the platform. I was able to learn how to insert pictures or headlines. And I also share your view on difficulties with organization between the groups. Therefore, being able to use the discussion page for making the plan of work was invaluable. Pola 2607 (discuss • contribs) 11:44, 17 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Pola2607: Thank you for your comment. I agree. This is why I thoroughly enjoyed this project, it did expand my knowledge on this module. Reading everyone's work helped me fit together all of the information that we have learned on the course and understand it as a whole. I agree with you also about other students helping you with the technical side of the Wikibooks site. This was the case for me. Unfortunately, I was unable to add images due to a technical difficulty but the help from other students and online sources was very much appreciated. Misslouisepark (discuss • contribs) 12:02, 17 March 2017 (UTC)Reply

@Misslouisepark:

The Introduction to this chapter is rather odd – it includes user signatures which do not belong on the book page. A couple of sentences as contribs from different users, with very different styles, and this creates a jarring, almost Brechtian feel to the start of the chapter – I can’t imagine that this is deliberate, but I may be incorrect about this. There is little evidence to suggest that this effect serves a critical function for the remainder of the chapter.

Very unusual way of citing sources in-text. However, there is something really useful about including live links to actual reading – it engages the reader in proper hypertext reading, and arguably makes a lot of the platform, its functionality, and how it can be used as a knowledge-building peer-assisted learning platform. This seems deliberate, and works!

Some problems with links that appear red (i.e. not live) and one or two typos dotted throughout.

The section “Evidence and the Unreliability of Online Sources” is a little text-heavy. It’s a fairly heavy-going section to read. Use of wiki commons images to illustrate the argument would help to not only break up the text, but to make more of the platform’s functionality. The following section on “Evidence Available Online and in Social Media” is problematic – there are a few assertions that do not make anything of available conceptual frameworks to build an argument, and entire paragraphs drawing from a source (Mayfield) that go to a dead link. Additionally, whole chucks of text seem superfluous to the overall drive of the chapter, or seem anecdotal or conversational, rather than forming a critically-engaged argument. Finally, in this section, there seems to be an overreliance on a superficial pros vs. cons presentation – this is rarely if ever a good idea because such structures fail to engage the very tensions at the heart of the conceptual framework (in this case – notions of security, and age appropriate context).

Some very useful sections on photojournalism and citizen journalism. There is some repetition of work found in other chapters – a more deliberative, joined-up approach would have enabled you to add interwiki links to a number of relevant places in the wikibook, thereby considerably improving the book overall (e.g. the subsection on “theories” mentions Habermas – where critical theory, the Frankfurt School, and aspects of public sphere are discussed at length in other parts of the book).

The glossary is rather short! The reference list is worryingly so. Some very useful reading and research in evidence, but at this level, and with this number of students working on the project over a period of 3+ weeks, one would expect more.

Poor. Your contribution to the book page gives an acceptable brief overview of the subject under discussion in your chosen themed chapter. There is a qualified familiarity with concepts associated with your subject, and although there is an effort to deliver critical definitions, the grasp of conceptual and analytical issues although reasonable, tends to be a little limited and insecure. There is evidence that you draw from relevant literature and scholarship, however your own critical voice in the building of a robust argument is slightly lost, perhaps due to a limited depth of understanding the subject matter or over reliance on rote learning. The primary and secondary sources you found about the chapter’s themes cover a minimally sufficient range and depth of subject matter.

Posts and comments on other people’s work, of this standard, roughly corresponds to the following grade descriptor. Depending on where your actual mark is overall (and particularly in relation to Understanding and Engagement elements), that should give you an idea of strengths and weaknesses within the achieved grade band, relative to the descriptor

Excellent. Among other things, these entries will probably demonstrate a complex, critical understanding of the themes of the module. They will communicate very effectively, making excellent and creative use of the possibilities of the form (including links, as well as perhaps copyright-free videos and images, linked to from Wiki Commons), and may be written with some skill and flair. They will address the assignment tasks in a thoughtful way. They will make insightful connections between original examples and relevant concepts. They will be informed by serious reading and reflection, are likely to demonstrate originality of thought, and will probably be rewarding and informative for the reader. The wiki markup formatting will be impeccable.

• Reading and research:
  • evidence of critical engagement with set materials, featuring discriminating command of a excellent range of relevant materials and analyses
  • evidence of independent reading of appropriate academic and peer-reviewed material to a wide degree
• Argument and analysis:
  • well-articulated and well-supported argument through highly original judgement relating to key issues, concepts or procedures
  • evidence of critical thinking (through taking a position in relation to key ideas from the module, and supporting this position);
  • originality in evidence of relational thinking (through making connections between key ideas from the module and wider literature, and supporting these connections);
  • significant evidence of independent critical ability

• No evidence from contributions to both editing and discussion of content (i.e. volume and breadth of activity as evidenced through contribs)
• No engagement with and learning from other Wikipedians about the task of writing/editing content for a Wikibook
• Little or no use of discussion pages

2nd Marker Comments

Content

There are many ways how this piece could have been improved as outlined in the comments by the first marker. The introduction is rather odd and the way how sources are cited is very unusual. I agree with the suggested mark.

Understanding

There is excellent evidence of critical engagement with material, independent reading and critical thinking.

Engagement

I agree with the comments suggested by the first marker: There is no engagement of learning with and from others and rarely use of the discussion pages.

1. ↑ Surowiecki, J. (2004) The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few