Mining the Generational Curriculum:

An Informative Look Back



Instructions for this Report Introduction Selection One
Selection Two Selection Three Selection Four Suggestions for the Future


Introduction

As I looked through the previous generations' reports, I was a bit overwhelmed at first. There were so many pages and so much information, so I had no idea how I was going to make sense of it all and actually decide which ones to write about. In my opinion, although some were certainly better than others, they all had something to contribute. I went through the reports in reverse chronological order so as not to get too mixed up and as I went further and further back, I noticed that the earlier pages seemed to influence the later ones. Each generation was like some kind of developmental stepping stone, with each generation learning from the ones before it. I can only hope that I learn from my historical counterparts as well. The reports that I chose were selected somewhat at random since I had a difficult time making up my mind about which ones to write about. The topics covered in these selections interested me and their presentation was nice.

Selection #1

Social Psychology of Web Design: You Can Judge a Book By its Cover

by Shaunna Mazza

I chose this report mainly for its topic. Judging a book by its cover has always been one of those things that can be discussed and debated over and over again because we are all unsure about whether appearances can really portray a person's personality. Throughout our lives, people are always telling us that appearances should be unimportant. However, it is an established fact that people use appearances to form judgments and ideas about things. For example, although your abilities, prior experience, and training should be the most important things that an employer looks for when hiring someone, it is very important for the applicant to look good and respectable in order to have a better chance of landing a job. In the case of webpages, I know that whenever I'm surfing the web and just checking things out, if the page has a cool look to it, I'm much more likely to actually bother to investigate the site further. If it's messy, confusing, or if it takes too long to load up, I am much more likely to just hit "back" or "stop," so that I can find something else to look at. This is unfortunate, though, since it's possible that I'm overlooking some really good information. However, presentation is important to most people in almost everything we do.

I didn't really take any steps to get here, since I simply went through all the past generations' reports from the Psychology 409a classes. I didn't want to get lost or confused so I surfed very methodically. The reason I stayed on it once I got there was that the page had a catchy title which piqued my interest.

The report itself discusses the past generations' attempts at constructing we pages. She sites a page by John Glover which describes how web pages can be either "sucky" or "savvy." She also gives the guidelines that Glover uses in order to let the reader know what constitutes "sucky" and "savvy." In the next section, she talks about the social psychology of home page architecture by siting Dr. James' page on this topic. She concludes the report by disclosing information on her own personal experience in designing her page, mentioning both her successes and frustrations.

I particularly enjoyed this report because it gave helpful hints in designing my own page and because it had a very personal tone to it. By adding a person's personality to a home page, it makes it seem almost human and therefore much more interesting and fun to read. This is important because people don't want to do things that aren't fun. Also, by using some of the guidelines for "savvy" pages, I was self reinforced because I was happy about how my page looked. The more reinforcement a person has with designing a web page, the more likely it is that they will try to improve and keep making them. I was very happy with the fact that she had a good balance between information and helpful links and examples and I appreciated her honesty about what she thought and felt about people's webpages. The only thing that bothered me about the page was that since she used FrontPage, it should have been easier for her to make sure her lists were aligned and all that. However, I've never tried using an HTML program, so I could be totally wrong about that. Since I am new to all this web page stuff, I figure that I don't really have any right to be judging any covers of anything.

This report compared to other reports on the same topic stands over and above because of the personal honest tone. The other reports I found on this topic were rather dull and cut and dried. This one was upbeat and informative. The others tended to have too much wordy information or too many examples. Balance is important.

Selection #2

Virtual Online Communites

by Craig Kawamura

The idea of online communities is very interesting to me because regular social situations are so dynamic. Since an online community is a social situation lacking the face to face aspect, this is definitely something new and exciting. When I found out that I had a certain medical condition, I found a community on the web known as Support-Group.com. This community is in the form of a bulletin board and there are group leaders to moderate what goes on. There is also a chat room for live discussions. Anyone can join in and write about things that they're concerned about. It's a relatively safe environment for people to express their frustrations and questions about health related issues. There are people who only post once or twice to get information, but there are quite a few people who stick around all the time. These latter people are who make up the community aspect of it. They know each other and consider each other friends or family. And yet, a lot of these people have never met each other face to face. So, because I considered myself at one time to be a part of this community, I am always interested in what people have to say about online communities. That's why I chose this report and the one following it below.

Again, I got here by just going through all the past generations in reverse chronological order. The topic interested me, so I clicked on it.

This report defines online community as a place where people with similar interests can communicate and states their purpose as a means on communication. Next, it discusses who creates them and why they are created. Then it explains how they work and how people find out about them. A short case history of the Health on the Net Foundation follows. After stating that he would become a member of a community if the topic was important to him, he comments on other generations' reports on the same topic and summarizes his report.

I liked this report because it was attractive and aesthetically well done. In addition, since I have a personal fondness for the topic, I enjoyed reading about what other people think about online communities. However, I think he could have talked more about the significance of online communities in people's lives. My experience with online communities has been very enriching and useful, and I feel compelled to state that there are a lot of people who feel the way I do about them. They're important because they give people who aren't very likely to talk to each other an opportunity to talk to one another. In this way, people can get more information from different sources and not just the few people around them. By expanding our ability to communicate, we are expanding our knowledge and understanding of other people. Human beings learn most from example, so what better way to get new examples than meeting people halfway around the world on the computer?

In comparison to other reports about online communites, this report was very well organized, but it was somewhat lacking in the personality department. I think that it's very possible to express feeling on a computer screen, although perhaps not as effectively. As I said before, the human nature of a web page makes them much more interesting to read. This report was attractive and easy to read. I was particularly thankful that it didn't go on and on like a broken record like some of the other pages I found on the topic. I think the only thing that it was really lacking, however, was more examples. It would have been helpful to see more examples of online communities since they do come in many shapes and sizes.

Selection #3

Virtual Online Communities: Do They Really Exist?

by Albert K. Ne III

If you really want to read (again) why I chose this report, go up. In addition, I liked the way the report was laid out. It has an attractive appearance without being too flashy or too dull.

Again, I got here by just going through all the past generations in reverse chronological order. The topic interested me, so I clicked on it.

This report starts off by giving links to several examples of online communites. Then, much like the previous report that I reviewed, it defines and gives the purpose of these online communities. After that, it who starts these communities and why they start them. In addition, the author lists ten consecutive steps to start your own online community. He then talks about how they work via the internet and talks about the fact that people find out about them through various ways such as links from other pages and word of mouth. (Incidently, in my opinion, this is more like word of fingers, since it's our fingers that do the talking on computers.) Next, he discusses the significance of these online communities since they are very helpful in allowing people from many different places to communicate with each other. It just occurred to me that it is probably not a coincidence that the words "community" and "communicate" are very similar. He says that he probably would not join a community because he would not feel comfortable communicating with others via such an impersonal medium. Finally, he summarizes some previous generations' reports on the same topic.

Since this report is in many ways very similar to the last one I reviewed and I am interested in the topic, I enjoyed this report very much. I particularly liked the list that he gave about how to start your own online community. This report went into a bit more depth, but it was not wordy, so I did not feel that I was reading unnecessary things. I was a bit bothered, however, with his omission of the fact that the communication between people can be very helpful for others. It seems to me that a lot of people tend to overlook the importance of interpersonal relationships, whether they are on the computer or in person. Friends, wherever they are, are very useful as support structures for people. When I e-mailed my friends about my first web report, a few of them e-mailed me back and reinforced my efforts, making me want to continue working on this kind of thing. Having people reinforce and support your efforts is very beneficial in using the internet and in all aspects of life.

In comparison to other reports on the same topic, I thought that this one was very well organized and attractive. This made it interesting and easy to read. I was also struck by the candor of the author in expressing how he felt about what he was writing about. I also liked the fact that he did not ramble on and on, filling up the pages with no apparent point or purpose.

Selection #4

Psychology of Computer Viruses: Spreading the Disease

by George Pederson

Viruses are kind of like the dark side of the web. We are all paranoid that something bad will happen to our computers because of these lethal creatures, but we are very ignorant about them. That is why I chose this report. I wanted to become more educated about viruses. I also feel that people seem to get so up in arms about computer viruses and their methods of transmission. Everyone seems to be an expert, when no one ever says the same things about them. I imagine that people tend to do this because in order to make sense of things that we don't understand, people assume a knowledgable standpoint so they can make sense of it for themselves. This report had some very informative links and good explanations. In addition, the layout was attractive and I liked the font.

Yet again, I got here by just going through all the past generations in reverse chronological order. The topic interested me, so I clicked on it. (I'm very predictable and anally logical.)

This report begins by giving an example of someone else having a problem with a virus. Then, it talks about Edupage, which talks about how virus attack tools find vulnerable servers and mess them up. The next part was the most useful to me because it was a list of online links and resources about viruses. Then the author defines computer viruses and discusses how they are spread. For example, in order to transmit a virus via e-mail, the virus must be in a file that is downloaded into the computer, not just in the e-mail message itself. Then he gives examples of famous viruses in history, such as the notorious Michaelangelo virus. He then takes the opportunity to dispel some virus myths, such as the one I just mentioned about e-mail transmission of viruses. He compares them to biological viruses, which I thought was very interesting. Next, he gives his personal reaction about virus, stating that it is important to get all of the information about a virus before jumping to conclusions and freaking out when you get an e-mail/spam about certain viruses supposedly spread by just messages. Finally, he discusses previous generations' reports on the same topic.

I really enjoyed reading this report because of the author's honesty and cynicism. Virus scares should always be researched before forwarding spam to other people. I think it would be interesting to research the effects of virus scares via e-ail. I imagine it would be much like researching the phenomena of mass panic in an auditorium when someone yells, "FIRE!" People become so afraid for their computers, that they stop thinking and just send the message to everyone they know, which makes more people panic and send it to their friends, and it goes on and on. I think one could call this phenomenon electronic mob mentality or something like that. I also liked reading this report because it was well organized and had a nice format, which made it easy to read. The information presented was informative, interesting, and relevant to all people who have computers and use e-mail. This is important.

I could not find too many other reports on viruses, but there were a few. I thought this one was the best because it was laid out well and organized the best. Because of its layout, it was the most attractive one I found. The links were very useful and the author's cynicism made the page more human and therefore more fun to read.

Suggestions for Future Generations

My only major suggestion is: DON'T PUT THIS OFF UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE! Although it seems like there isn't that much to do, this report is very work intensive. The fact that it's under the "Internet Literacy Exercises" heading doesn't make it just a quick click here and there like the first nine exercises. I am eternally grateful that I started this exercise a week ago and worked on it consistently without saving all of it for the last day. Hope this helps!

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