Category Archives: MDA20009 – Digital Communities

Social Gaming

When I think of gaming, I first picture the hard-core pc and console players who spend hours playing games like Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto and Final Fantasy, so their transition to online massive multiplayer games, like the ever popular World of Warcraft, seems quite natural. It’s an opportunity to expand a pastime they love, createContinue reading “Social Gaming”

Calling Dr. Google?

I’m sure most internet users have at least once experienced lying in bed feeling worse than you’ve ever felt in your life. Fever running high, coughing, sneezing, your body producing more snot and mucus than you thought humanly possible. In desperation, you reach over to your trusty mobile and start googling your symptoms, only toContinue reading “Calling Dr. Google?”

Crowdsourcing in times of crisis

Crowdsourcing can be defined as “the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people and especially from the online community rather than from traditional employees or suppliers” (Merriam Webster 2019). In relation to crowdsourcing in terms of disaster relief, Mark Riccardi’s journal article on this subjectContinue reading “Crowdsourcing in times of crisis”

Digital activism and protest

Activism: Noun “the doctrine or practice of vigorous action or involvement as a means of achieving political or other goals, sometimes by demonstrations, protests, etc” (dictionary.com) Digital activism takes the principals of the traditional definition of activism above, but uses digital tools such as smartphones, the internet, social media, blogging and online petitions sites likeContinue reading “Digital activism and protest”

Politics and Social Media: The Good, The Bad and the Petulant

“One of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”  Plato Social media has been embraced by western politicians as both a marketing tool and a way to engage with their communities. Through his 2008 and 2012 election campaigns, Barack Obama lead the way inContinue reading “Politics and Social Media: The Good, The Bad and the Petulant”

Social media platforms, their affordances, and how we make use of them

Firstly, what are affordances? Don Norman (2011) says affordance “refers to the properties of an object and the person. It’s the relationship between the person and the object and what that person can do with the object”. Udacity (2015) released the video below to illustrate how affordances and limitations affect the relationship between object andContinue reading “Social media platforms, their affordances, and how we make use of them”