MADT 307

Final Course Reflection

                I believe that the most important thing that runs what new technologies that we progress further into are things related more towards trends and how to solve and overcome these obstacles so that these technologies can be greater than when they started.  Why do I believe that technologies are effected so much by trends? For me it stems from a few different experiences that have caused many problems not only in my life but also the people around me.  One is when phones first came out everyone who could afford one wanted to be able to talk to anyone at any time given the convenience of being mobile instead of stuck with a landline. Now this wasn’t a major problem since not everyone had phones or the coverage but now with our phones glued to our bodies like a third hand the risk is a lot greater.  Some states do not believe in having hands free devices and continue to have the idea that driving and texting or talking can lead to serious injury.  However, this is not the only bad experience that technologies has had with trends.

                With global warming becoming ever more prudent that change to electric cars and sustainable living that pushed technology like Telsa and Solar Panel companies a huge lift in income until the money can’t keep up with the demand and short cuts are taken and things start to go wrong. Why is that? It happens when a growth of a technology is to slow for the demand of the product wanted by consumers. So how else do companies make up for time by having things outsourced to other countries for cheaper while giving a less superior product. Even though this technologies might be cutting edge now but in a few years those designs will be outdated and replaced with something “better” but why not fix what you have and build it from there instead of junking the whole idea together. It’s because that is the type of species we are, if we can’t fix it the first time wasn’t worth fixing at all.  This all leads back to global warming because everyone is becoming self-conscious about what we are doing but sometimes it is little too late.

                Continuing with this theme of technologies and what they are capable of lies really with us and what we choose to do with it. Oil companies for years thought that nothing would damage the air we breathe but that turns out to be false and the rate at which we refine crude oil is faster than the decay rate of it in the atmosphere.  But without policy change and restructure of not only the laws but the requirements need to be rethought out and redesigned to have a safer more sustainable outcome instead of waiting for the next generation to somehow figure out their successor’s downfalls.  This has gone on for generations and I do not think it will stop by these all change the ways in which technologies grow and shape into the things we need and desire the most.

________________________________________
Week 10 FOMO

      So what is FOMO? It is the Fear of Missing Out and this has been caused from the social anxiety we induce when people stop using Social Media so they no longer can see what other people they know are doing in their lives which causes this sense of missing out on something important.  I would have to say that I do not suffer from this as much as other people. I only use my Social Media to send meme's to friends or look at glass art work I find interesting. But I don't think I could completely live without it though I did not always have all the different media formats.  Most people on my feed I do not know and have no interest in so, I enjoy their work they do and nothing else. So while some people feel like they are missing out I see things that I wish I could have so my media is more window shopping and wondering how much those things cost. 

________________________________________
Week 9 Photo Manipulation

      So in France they have a policy that requires any image that is altered or changed in anyway must have written conformation tag on the image. This is specially important when looking at models and magazines that alter the appearance of someone to make them thinner, dark skin tones and plenty of other tricks they can pull inside these software.  In the US on the other hand does not have laws like this which I think they should no one should idolize someone that actually doesn't look anything like that. But this day in age is all about how you look and what you do so its hard to get away from that culture.

      For the Getty Images which is a photo agency that has determined to no longer accept images that depict models body that have been altered. I think this is a giant step forward, no one is perfect and the fact that is what we mostly relies on whether we find that person attractive or if they are nice or bad.  If every magazine, newspaper and blog used real photos that are unedited and not scripted then you can idolize for who that person is not just what they look like.

________________________________________
Week 8 Video Game Differences

          For me I have been playing video games from when the first PlayStation came out and when there was a Saga Dream-cast and game cube so I have seen the different consoles and past ones that have come and gone. But what I do find funny that now that video games are so popular it would be almost weird if you didn't play them. However, when I was growing up I was considered a nerd because I played them and no one at that time was interest in it.  As the graphics got better and more online features started to appear the rush of players increased dramatically but those who were long time players felt like their identity was taken.  I know this because I was one of those people who use to be given the cold shoulder for having talks about games that I was playing or if some levels were harder to beat than normal. With the community more open to the "public" the actually gaming community has dwindled and has become a small minority to the mainstream players nowadays.

________________________________________
Week 7 Digital Divide

For this week we had to figure out the really difference between people who have access to the internet and those who live in rural areas that do not receive it.  For those people who do receive internet coverage and have access to it do not know what they are missing until they no longer have the immediate access to the knowledge or thing that they want.  A study was done that showed more than 40% of older adults from 35+ struggle with the understanding on how privacy and laws work within the digital world.  It should that we do not teach what is safe and sound when using the internet. However, companies do give a long list of do's and don'ts of what is acceptable on their platform that they own.  Each one is different and very lengthy but it covers everything but like most people they rather just skip through it and not wonder what is acceptable and what is considered dangerous or off the guidelines.

Though this doesn't seem to affect younger people from the age of 21-35 who have used these applications or internet since it was first constructed and used worldwide.  However, we are no perfect and still do not always know what is acceptable on the internet due to the constant change of Net Neutrality, ad targeting, and public views on delivering these to the web.

________________________________________
Research Brief Paper

In order to define what the next gen tv standard are we need to establish what the ATSC is and what lead to it being adopted. Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC) standards are a set of standards for digital television transmission over terrestrial, cable, and satellite networks. ATSC replaced the previous standard NTSC (National Television System Committee) which was in use until digital conversion which went into full effect on January 1, 2010. The NTSC was the previous standard used in north america in 1954. This standard allows color on the analog television. The color analog system allowed for color TV broadcasting on existing hardware, receivers of this era were only in black and white. This NTSC standard was dominant in most of the Americas until the digital push in the late 90s and 00s.

What is Next Gen TV and why are some companies pushing so hard for it to become the next new standard in high definition television? The reason is simple, being able to stream over the air has been a large breakthrough in how this technology would work and be able to bring it to nearly anyone around the world. This technology would be integrated into the things that you enjoy and will learn what your likes and dislikes are and work around those parameters. It does mean that your television will be more interactive and user friendly while keeping the profile of what you want always there. However, if we want to add this new technology we still need to test and rebuild old towers to be able to send out this new signal. It would also mean changing what you have inside your home to be able to receive the new signal.

Next Gen TV will no longer need to ask what you like and dislike, it will be able to determine your favorite or most watchable shows and movies while always looking for up and coming programs to continuously add to the interface. The customization of the interface will allow for easy use, quick response towards the users daily interactions and predicting the things that you are most interested in. This technology will give streaming over the air a huge chance in getting their services to everyone like the cable companies but without the intrusive dishes and satellites and extra fees hiding after.

The previous generation of this technology was ATSC 1.0 which is commonly known as HD TV. More down the line if switching does become a mandatory ordeal the cost of an external receiver will be far cheaper than a new television but the same thing happened when HDTV came out, took years before people changed over and it will be the same with this. There are people who are inventors and beta testers who get these products ready for the public market. However when it comes to the consumers the likelihood of switching is lower at first launch of the technology but overtime it will make a full switch over.

"In 2017 the FCC approved of Next Gen TV or ATSC 3.0 as a voluntary market driven basis" (Morrison, 2019) but are still required companies switching to broadcast the old ATSC 1.0 for at least 5 years. The free over the air broadcasting will allow for on demand Television without the costly monthly fee of cable companies as well as the easy of connecting without replacing everything you already own. However once it does become available consumers will need to buy a new television with ATSC 3.0 compatibility due to the fact the ATSC 1.0 is not backwards compatible. Though you'll need a new television the quality and freedom of these channels will allow for better access to the technology everywhere you go.

A small company just recently named Ark, implemented a test on Ark multitasking made a break threw in changing the standard ATSC 3.0 and would be able to keep your same television without needing anything to change. They are an IP multi channel over the internet accessible company that allows for consumers to access shows Nationwide without the cost. This also gets rid of the middle man when paying or looking for shows, they would control everything and be able to get it out to everyone instead of one user at a time. It would function smoother and more reliable like YouTube or twitch but without having to pay for the shows you want to watch.

However many people to fear that the ad targeting can be a bit scary with it always looking at what you have searched or trying to find the perfect show for you. Just like any technology it is scary at first use and over time it will be something that you will get used to just like on our phones but would be more personalized towards your experiences. This would create more things that you are interested in seeing and if you are not just click the dislike button and the likelihood of seeing something similar to that drops drastically.

This technology would lead to what we would like to develop which is a virtual room that you control with hand motions and 3D graphic models to interact with and fully immerse yourself within the virtual world or show you want. It would require for the whole room to be a screen plus the sounds that would bring everything together. We wanted to really bring the over the internet access to anywhere in the world.

________________________________________
Week 6

“We have now seen four consecutive years of growth” (Hoore 2019, p. 7) this is what really caught my eye in the beginning of the article and it shows that the world is becoming more interested in other countries music despite the language barrier that some face when listening.  With technology growing ever more and countries that lacked connectivity finally making themselves know to the world are creating giant waves in the music community.  Though there are still some struggles for artist is other countries due to copyright issues and this article focus on trying to maintain an equal field that everyone stands on and that no one is above.  This article really wants to make sure that music continues to be accessible globally as well as artist maintaining their right to their music.

                “Global recorded music revenues totaled US$19.1 billion in 2018” (2019, p. 15) as a user of an online streaming application (Sound Cloud) that focuses sole on digital music from any artist worldwide.  With physical copies of music in decline and digital at such an increase it is hard to see how much longer physical copies will last.  However, there will always be the few that want a hard copy just in case something was to happen or they couldn’t afford the streaming application anymore or the worst in my opinion the artist takes the song down.  So each have their ups and downs but I think that everything is already going towards a digital age so the logical course is that it will take over but could be replaced by something else that isn’t out yet.

                “Fostering Fair Marketplaces so Music Continues to Thrive” (2019, p. 36) during the final part of the article talks about the value, rights and freedom that artist need to be able to be successful and get their music out worldwide. During the whole article it focuses a lot of the artist and their rights and what is fair for everyone and not just one person or label that controls the music. They want to have artists to have fair deals and to have the right tools the artist need to succeed in their career without the fear of their label fighting back. 

News. (2019, April 2). Retrieved from https://ifpi.org/news/IFPI-GLOBAL-MUSIC-REPORT-2019.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Week 5

Advanced Television Systems Committee. “A/300:2019, ‘ATSC 3.0 System.’” ATSC, Sept. 2019, www.atsc.org/atsc-30-standard/a3002019-atsc-3-0-system/.

            In this document it goes over how ATSC 3.0 was found and what companies made up this technology just a few years ago.  It goes over all rations, graphs and data needed to decide whether this is worth it to big companies or not. This article focused more on the business aspect of the technology and what the technology consisted of.

Kovacs, Bob. “ATSC 3.0: New Test Gear, New Procedures.” TvTechnology, 3 Sept. 2019, www.tvtechnology.com/atsc3/atsc-3-0-new-test-gear-new-procedures.

In this article the author Kovacs discuses about the new tests and procedures needed to be done to begin the new standard that broadcasters want to push this technology further than the last.  It touched base on how ATSC 3.0 is more accurate, further reaching and better quality that this technology is to its predecessor. The only problem lies with the amount of people switching over but with new technology comes hesitation.

_____________________________________


Group Rules and Expectations

Rules:

• Make sure to do your own work in a timely manner.
• Make sure to communicate with the group.
• Don't be a tool or you will be thrown out like one.
• To simply put it, treat us you how you wanted to be treated.

Expectations:

• If you can't do the work don't expect sympathy just be prepared to get it finished.
• If you need help say something to us so we know.
• I find it better to be aware of problems then to sit in the dark.
• Work with each other
• Keep a good time frame and schedule.
• Always talk every class even if it just for a few minutes.
• If you can't make it let us know so we can reschedule.

Topic:

     For this kick-starter project I wanted the group to focus more around ATSC 3.0 or Next Gen Television. I found this technology rather interesting and to see that this could one day be the new standard rather soon and would allow for more interaction with your television as well as accessibility to thousands of new channels and stations being added daily.   Depending on when this technology will be fully implemented but I have a feeling that if it does succeed millions of users will join overnight at begin a new wave in this communication technology.

________________________________________
Computer Revolution

            For this week I wanted to focus on the communication technology computers. Now what exactly makes up a computer? We know that it is an electronic machine that requires power, storage and now internet to be able to access the technological world around us.  However, this still doesn’t explain what a computer is. Computer consist of the CPU(Central Processing Unit), memory, mass storage and an in/out device, though this is not all that can make up a computer but these are the required parts to make a computer.  The most used one today is a digital computer which is similar to our phones just not always mobile.  The other type of computers that is used is analog computer which is only used to process data and nothing else.  

           What I find so interesting about this technology is how far we have come from the giant rooms filled with one massive computer that would take days to process information.  However, to today these machines would be considered dinosaurs and old relics to people like myself who has constructed his own computer from parts I wanted.

            Is a desktop the only type of computers our there? No, there are many types but Micro Computers (desktops) are the mostly commonly used for personal use but more recently minicomputers have taken the reins and the travel computer has become more sought-after.  Though, these are the most commonly used by residence, businesses work with mainly either mainframes which are the servers that connect you to the site you want to reach. As well as super computers that are used by only the most elite companies that can afford the cost and maintenance to keep up with it.

            What I would want to learn more about is just how some of these parts are made and just what does it take to complete a super computer. What are their limits and what exactly can’t they process. Reaching those limits and being able to push this technology into more and combine it with other aspects of our lives make this communication technology something that I don’t think we could live without at this moment.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Headphones the Cord to Cordless

What were we really hearing?
https://www.davison.com/blog/lend-us-your-ears-the-history-of-headphones/

       This is the first headphones ever made in 1919 where Nathaniel Baldwin created these in his home and sold them to the US Navy during World War I.  This were just simple ear pieces that let you listen to the sounds made by Morse code and radio communications.

Advancing after WWI with increased audio capability.
https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-evolution-of-headphones-2fe27187-1523-468f-8316-b81709ccdbcb

     These headphones were made in Germany from Beyer-dynamic which created the first dynamic headphones for better sound quality. They were still only used for listening to sound signals and not music like we do today. Though these were made in 1937, many models would be made over 20 years and would lead to the creation of music headphones we use today.

Music to My Ears
https://www.koss.com/history

     The first real music headphones that were released to the public and used for radio talk shows and casual listening at home.  These were created in 1958 by John Koss and made a company to create and sell these new listening devices. These were used for well over 20 years until the Walkman and cassette players came out and the portable headphones were beginning to roll.

Motion of sound
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gallery/2017/mar/17/most-influential-headphones-in-pictures

     The Walkman created by Sony in 1979 became one of the greatest hits due to the mobility of it and the ease of being able to have it on you at all times.  Over the years they would refine and ultimately throw away it all together when digital music was becoming the future and less cassettes and CD's would sell over the years and would end most of those players.

Whats worse the cord or the charging?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bluetooth-Headphones-SAVFY-Hands-Free-Earphones-Grey/dp/B06Y3YSFB1

     Today we focus sole on bluetooth headphones unless you produce or make music in which case over the ear headphones have the best range and decibel sound to make sure to capture every note and word in songs today. Though they do come with a catch, one is the price that some headphones for professional use can range from and then the battery life if you work all day does not always last as long as they advertise.

________________________________________
About Me

     I am a senior finishing my last 2 semesters in Computer Animation & Game Development for my degree. My focus is in game design and I want to either make games or be a part of creating the map and or objects located inside the game.  I live about an hour away from Chico and commute here everyday for school and work which is also on campus.  My girlfriend and I have 2 cats together, one boy and one girl, both can be a rather pain in the neck but they have their own personalities and wouldn't have them any other way.

 

     Now that I am finishing up my last year I need to focus more on my game reel and portfolio to apply for professional jobs to get an internship and get a foot in the door for this career.  I hope to find one in Sacramento but if not I am willing to relocate and see what else is out there.  Nervous about finishing my last year but excited to get going on what I enjoy doing.


Twitter Handle @dank_quite
https://sketchfab.com/jcastro27/models