Another Life Changed

As I reflect on the day and everything that has happened, I've been given a greater appreciation of life. I've always had moments like these but it's definitely greater today. When all else doesn't seem to matter, life takes on a different perspective. I will always remember this day.

At 6.00am Singapore time...

the trap door released; a life lost.

In less than 14 hours...

Melbourne man, Nguyen Tuong Van, will be executed in Singapore for possession of almost 400 grams of heroin. He agreed to transport the drugs to pay off a debt by his twin brother, but was arrested in transit at Singapore International Airport in 2002, from Cambodia to Sydney.

I'm fairly certain people back home may not be aware of this, but it's been a huge issue in Melbourne especially the past month. I'm not going into a debate whether he should or should not be hanged; I think that enough has been discussed. This entry just serves as a reminder for me.

Which should I use?

Trichromatic or Dynamic?

This is not the poster for next year's World Cyber Games. It's not even going to be held in Melbourne. It will be in Italy if I'm not wrong. I'm actually doing a media kit for my Computer Applications assignment but I'm not sure which poster should I use for submission? Any suggestions anyone? Pity I've missed the games this year in Singapore. What luck.

What Kind of Blogger Are You?

“It’s freaking addictive!” says Amira Mohamad, 19, a Malaysian Design student of RMIT. She admits that she is hooked on blogging and updates her blog at least three times a week “Maybe it’s because I always leave my laptop online so I have this tendency to blog more often. I'm sure if people don't have easy access to the internet they'd blog less. Although, when my internet connection got cut off one particular week, I found myself going to the cyber cafes to blog and update people about my life.”

A “Blog” by definition refers to a web log – An online diary. Growing populations of individuals, particularly the younger generation, have ditched the conventional diary and hopped onto the bandwagon of this evolving culture. According to Leon Gettler of The Age, “Technorati is now tracking 19.6 million blogs with one created every second and about 33,000 posts per hour. To save you getting out the calculator, that's 9 posts per second.” What then is the reason for this increasing trend of online diary writing? What do people write about? As technology advances, so does our accessibility of information. What is the difference between a blog and a website? What are the responsibilities of these bloggers and the readers?

For people like Amira, blogging is an extension to her writing skills. She has written short stories and poetry since the age of seven and had some published in the newspapers of her home country. Although she has written diaries in the past, she has found blogging to be more convenient compared to writing a traditional diary, “I started blogging last year out of curiosity, until it became addictive. It's a good alternative to diaries because it's faster to type, easier to edit, and it's nice to receive comments.” The comments that Amira receive depends on the entry she had posted “if it’s a cheerful positive one then I might get happy comments, if it’s sad then the comments will be comforting ones.”

Desmond Ng, 23, a Singaporean Business student of RMIT used to update his blog daily until he got occupied with school work. Now he only updates it once a week. He uses the blog to keep his friends updated about himself and to voice his opinion about society or the things he comes across “It is easier compared to writing into the newspapers, and I can do it as and when I please.”

Joshua Yeap, 18, a Malaysian Media and Communications student of RMIT has mixed feelings about blogging “Well, I reckon having a blog is quite fun because you’ll get feedback from other people. But I’m too busy and lazy to create one. I’m also quite a reserved person. Furthermore, not many people know how to use them because you need to know computer language.”

Howard Malkin, 50, a Computer Applications Lecturer at RMIT University, thinks that blogging is a great way to express oneself “I think it is a fantastic idea! You could be commenting on topical issues, writing out your thoughts, or venting of the spleen.”

Michael Considine, 58, is a Media Lecturer at RMIT University with 20 years experience of teaching media. Some of his area of expertises includes the construction, communication and production of media. According to him, the concept of a blog is a contemporary version of the photo album used to validate who you are in the world.

Although Amira had previously been the victim of rude remarks in a classmate’s blog entry, when confronted, that classmate apologized and the matter was quickly resolved. In Michael Considine’s opinion, anything goes as far as content is concerned; anyone can write about anything as long as they are willing to be responsible for it and accept any consequences involved. He says, “They have to operate within the laws of the land. So it means that they are not promoting things like pornography. Other than that, they have to accept responsibility of the contents and are aware of the consequences if they cross whatever laws they might break. I don’t have a particular view that creators of media have a responsibility other than the ones that would operate under the society. I support the notion of free speech. Consenting adults should be able to access whatever they want, therefore it is not a responsibility of the creator.” Michael, however, does feel that the reader has a responsibility for the content that is viewed, “You don’t go to a person’s blog site and discover that they are actively encouraging you to kidnap children or be cruel to animals. But other than that, as a responsible adult if I don’t want to continue with the site, I would turn it off. The reason why we run a media course is to try to make readers discerning viewers. And that takes skill and I don’t mean that in a sort of elitist way. I don’t mean that my viewing is any better than yours but what you would like them to do is to discern between absolute rubbish and something that has some value.”

Howard says that the main difference between a blog and a website is that, a blog is mainly about a person’s thoughts and opinions. Websites are more commercial and contains information and resources for specific purposes like advertising and businesses. He has created websites for bands and says that there are many types of software available to create a website. However these softwares require some knowledge of computer language. It is easier with blogging because there are many web services that offer free blogging facilities online: Google with Blogger and MSN with My MSN Space. All it takes is just a couple of minutes to register with the website and your service will be initiated. The functions are self-explanatory to a regular internet user. HTML coding skills would be an advantage if a user would like to decorate the blog. However the knowledge is not necessary; Pre-coded templates would be available for users to select their preferred interface.

The limits of what you can do on a blog are bounded by your own creativity and knowledge. This growing trend of blogging brings revelation to the innate nature of human beings wanting to be heard. We all want to be acknowledged of our existence, and blogging appears to provide an avenue for it. Perhaps that is why it is so seductive. Perhaps that is what that makes it so addictive.

That Intolerance is More Dangerous than Ignorance.

"We are not saying that intolerance is not dangerous, it may be. However, won't it be more dangerous if we were ignorant of someone else's intolerance?"

Finals
Competition: Media & Communication 1 VS Media & Communication 2/Design 4
Argument: Negative
Opinion: Die
Speaker: 1st
Motivation: Moderately Psyched
Preparation Time: 2 Days

Status: Owned!

Here's our team: Myself, Josh and Ash.

It is the ultimate showdown we hoped for. Two teams of Media & Communication battling for the coveted shield trophy. However the motion proved harder than we expected. We were defeated by our predecessor. Nevertheless, we were satisfied to be here with our motivation so far.

+ AUS$8.00 =
With our prize, a book voucher of $25.00, I bought this book - The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery. I did an argumentative essay recently with some research from him and the papers recommended his book as well. I'm tired from the four grueling weeks of debates. It doesn't help when our class is involved with hosting the event – It was part of our assignment. That means decorations, writing the newsletter, decorating the radio theatre, etc. With three of us involved with the actual debates also, it was quite a drag. I'm glad it's over.

That Travel Broadens the Mind.

"Travel expands and opens our minds to a new world view. Travel expands our horizons."

Semi-Finals
Competition: Media & Communication 2/Design 4 VS Science 5
Argument: Affirmative
Opinion: Slight Advantage
Speaker: 1st
Motivation: Moderate
Preparation Time: 2 Days

Status: Victory

That Technology is More Foe than Friend.

"We are not saying that technology is unbeneficial to mankind. Technology in this present day of modern society has caused harm. Perhaps even more harm than good."

Quarter-Finals
Competition: Media & Communication 2/Design 4 VS Business 3
Argument: Affirmative
Opinion: Debatable
Speaker: 1st
Motivation: Negligible
Preparation Time: 2 Days (With 1 day wasted on drinking)

Status: Victory