Has the Tipping Point Past?

This class has made me much more aware of all of the social networking and web 2.o opportunities available and I now notice them with a new perspective and appreciation. But I was not prepared for the sheer volume of those opportunities and the plethora of areas that are implementing those strategies. Is it that we are approaching the veritable "Tipping Point" when a phenomenon, through the influence of specific people and groups, becomes a much larger part of the culture?
Part of this thought is my new perspective but it seems that all sorts of areas are now using the web 2.0 that would never had in the past. NASA just announced a Twitter feed on the current space mission, singer John Mayer is releasing his next single song on Twitter, the web is loaded with new RSS feeds, and every time you watch a local news cast there is an opportunity to get live updates.
Many of these tools have been around for a while (Facebook, Twitter etc)but were relegated to a sub group and not quite mainstream. Maybe this is my new awareness but it seems that it is becoming pervasive and ready to explode into all aspects of our culture. It will be interesting to continue to explore the technology but also it's impact on our culture.

Connecting Others

There is a lot of technology that makes our lives easier and efficient but sometimes might distract us from other important parts of life. Technology has become so ingrained in our lives that it can be taken for granted that we connect via email, use cell phones instead of the traditional land line and go weeks without using legal tender since the debit card is the choice of so many people. But sometimes we might take a step back and look at how what we take for granted, others have a different experience.
Last week I was helping an employee who wanted to find out about an old pension he might have from a previous employer. I had arranged for him to come and see me and bring in any information he might have. He showed up with a bundle of papers and envelopes and we started to try and make sense of it. I found a web address and brought it up which led me to readily available online information, account access and a menu of options. My colleague wanted to know how I did that, didn't we have to go and see someone? That was his world and personal perspective, for information and important life events you would go and see someone, the banker, the merchant or the insurance agent. I rarely have a need to actually go into a bank, many of my purchases are on line and I have never met my motorcycle insurance agent and to me it all seems normal. But to this employee it was amazing.
Not fully grasping his situation and perspective I said I would set him up with an account so he could view the information with his wife at home. As I set up the account I asked if he had an e-mail account, which he responded "How do you get one of those?" I now understood how far removed he was from the technology we take for granted. It was then that I felt so satisfied and honored to be able to show someone what the possibilities could be and how much of an effect the technology could have on an individual. I walked him through what was available and assured him we will continue working together to help him wade through all of the information that is out there and show him what he has available to plan for his and his wife's retirement. He was able to find out that he did indeed have another pension, albeit small, but real and tangible none the less to add to his retirement years and for that he was equally amazed.

Try it, you might like it

Well, for my training company I needed to get some phones, just a few, but business phones since we had outgrown using the personal accounts.My personal phone was bare bones, make and receive calls, no texting, camera, I was lucky to have a few ring tone options. But it had worked just fine, I thought. Yeah, I had seen all of the "gadget" phones and didn't see any use of texting, 'Just call them!". But I got a new phone and figured I might as well get the available features and see if it can really help to grow the business and keep in touch with customers. So I was led to purchase the new Blackberry Tour, looked neat with a keyboard and a nice screen and was told it had so many features I should take a class on how to operate it. Take a class to learn how to use a phone! What had I gotten myself into but I figured I can figure this out on my own plus a had an advantage, a college aged daughter.
After some false starts, a quick search on the "Crackberry" site I was up and running with one tenth of the phones capabilites. What has now made me re-think "Do we need all of these features?" is the ease I now can respond to people from the business, personal and work email accounts and have found why people text, it's just a quick connection, but a connection just as well. I now relish a quick text from my daughter or wife in the middle of some business heavy discussion at work to learn that the "dog has bad breath today or running to the store, do you need anything", it is a nice respite.

Eye Opening Application

I have been wondering how all of this Web 2.0 will apply to my situation and how others get real value out of it. I am cautious in following that all technology is good for our culture while it is obvious that technology has changed our culture in many ways.
On Friday, I saw a glimpse into how technology and specifically social networking can be a valuable and very human dynamic. I organized a blood drive for our school and was making my donation and chatting with the Red Cross technicians. While I was laying there one of the ladies asked another woman "Are you on facebook?", my ears perked up. The other woman said "No, my niece asked me to get on but I just don't get it." The woman said "You can get in touch with people and text them, I use it to talk with my son who is in Afghanistan. The Marines let them use the computers and he gets on every day and we talk, it makes it easier for both of us."
Well here was the valuable application of the social networking concept as a very real human interaction and not the frivolous inane texting that I had ascribed most of facebook to be. The woman went on to explain the fears her son was going through and his job responsibilities, it was fascinating to hear how they interacted via Facebook.
I was lucky to find an example that opened up the possibilities for this aspect of social networking because before I had not really been interested in becoming a member when asked by friends or acquaintances, I wasn't that interested in looking at someones pictures or their own impression of themselves. Now I could look with less of a jaded eye and find value.

Blog #1

Sometimes it seems a bit of outside looking in when it comes to the world of Web 2.0. My world is not overly tech loaded but centered in human to human interaction. So, while it's not like I am stuck on the sidewalk, not able to navigate the information super highway ( I think I am at least driving along but maybe just in the right hand lane)I need to see how this technology can supplement but not supplant the interaction part of my training world. I am, at times, excited and also apprehensive about finding a balance between connecting with the newfound tools while maintaining the human connection.
As new tools and opportunities are presented I am looking from my own perspective while trying to appreciate and learn how others apply the new methods to their situations so I might also benefit. One of the areas that I can really see benefits would be using a wiki as a way to teach and share with people who are spread out over an expansive area. I would like to jump in and transfer a group of people I am working with onto a wiki as the central repository and see if it works for that group. Some of the obstacles will be the age of the participants, socio-economic constraints, time restrictions, technology competance and resistance to change.All are obstacles but nothing that can stop the opportunity.