| | |
|
DavidKorvinSecondPaper 7 - 17 Jan 2013 - Main.DavidKorvin
|
| |
| META TOPICPARENT | name="SecondPaper" |
|---|
| | | Introduction | |
<
< | Throughout the semester, we discussed in detail the freedom problems that Facebook and Google imposes on its users. As mentioned in my first essay, I have found it rather easy to eliminate Facebook from my life completely, but I have been unable to do the same with Google. In particular, “Gmail” is the product that I still feel compelled to use on a daily basis, and it is not because of its e-mail function, but rather because of the “Gchat” function that is accessed by using a Gmail account. | >
> | Throughout the semester, we discussed in detail the multiple freedom problems and restrictions that Facebook and Google imposes on its users. As mentioned in my first essay, I have found it rather easy to eliminate Facebook from my life completely, but to this point, I have been unable to do the same with Google. In particular, “Gmail” is the product that I still feel compelled to use on a daily basis, and it is not because of its e-mail function, but rather because of the “Gchat” function that I access by using my Gmail account. | | | | |
<
< | In this essay, I will explore why I have found it much more difficult to quit Gchat than it was for me to stop using Facebook. Additionally, I will discuss some things open source programmers should for in designing an alternative to Gchat. | >
> | In this essay, I will explore why I have found it much more difficult to quit Gchat than it was for me to stop using Facebook. Additionally, I will discuss some things open source programmers should aim for in designing an alternative to Gchat. | | | Reasons Why Gchat has become a Central Part of My Social Life | |
<
< | I think there are two reasons why gChat has become a far more integral part of my online social life than Facebook ever was. The first factor being that I only have my closest friends as Gchat contacts (around 50), while I had many acquaintances and “friends-of-friends” on Facebook (around 700). As a result, my expectations while going on Gchat have always been higher because each time I log on I plan for a higher percentage of my online interactions to be with people that I truly care about; I cannot say that I ever felt the same way when I used to log on to Facebook. Therefore, because my Gchat experience is only limited to my closest friends, I find it to be a much more personal and fulfilling experience than I ever found Facebook to be. | >
> | I think there are two main reasons why Gchat has become a far more integral part of my online social life than Facebook ever was. The first factor being that I only have my closest friends as Gchat contacts (around 50), while I had many acquaintances and “friends-of-friends” on Facebook (around 700). As a result, my expectations while going on Gchat have always been higher because each time I log on I plan for a higher percentage of my online interactions to be with people that I truly care about; I cannot say that
I ever felt the same way when I used to log on to Facebook. Therefore, because my Gchat experience is only limited to my closest friends, I find it to be a much more personal and fulfilling experience than I ever found Facebook to be. | | | | |
<
< | The other reason why Gchat has become such a large part of my online social presence is that interaction with other users on this platform is immediate. As soon as I log on to Gchat, I am able to instantly see which of my friends are available and able to converse with them. Thus, as currently constituted, I feel compelled to use Gchat on a daily basis because it is the most convenient and efficient way to interact with my friends. (I even find Gchatting more convenient than texting friends because with Gchat you know the other person is available and reading your message, but when you text someone you are always somewhat unsure of when / if it has been read. | >
> | The other reason why Gchat has become such a large part of my online social presence is that my interaction with other users on this platform is immediate. As soon as I log on to Gchat, I am able to instantly see which of my friends are available and able to converse with them. Thus, as currently constituted, I feel compelled to use Gchat on a daily basis because it is the most convenient and efficient way to interact with my friends. (I even find Gchatting more convenient than texting friends because with Gchat you know the other person is available and reading your message, but when you text someone you are always somewhat unsure of when / if your message has been read.) | | | However, though I enjoy using Gchat, I have become increasingly uncomfortable using it because I only access it through a Gmail account. I think the challenge for open source programmers moving forward will be to create an online chatting platform that is as convenient and easy to use as Gchat currently is. |
|
|
|
|
This site is powered by the TWiki collaboration platform.
All material on this collaboration platform is the property of the contributing authors.
All material marked as authored by Eben Moglen is available under the license terms CC-BY-SA version 4.
|
|
| | |