Do Artifacts Have Politics? Winner, L. (1986)
This article tries to persuade that some objects, no matter how big, small, old or new, are invented for political reasons. I think that there is no doubt that some things are put out into the world with the intention of spreading a political message, but to say that it is the object that wants to spread the message is hard for me to understand, It is never the object that has a political meaning, it is the person who has developed it who has the political meaning behind the object.
The bridges that the article spoke of in New York are there because one man was a racist, because he built them with the intention of what is essentially segregation. But it is only because he designed the bridges like that, that his ambitions where realised. The meaning of the bridges may have some political legacy, but it is the legacy of Robert Moses, the bridges may be used by current black people to make people aware of the extreme prejudice that American society used to have against their people, but it is still the prejudices of the society they where built in and not the prejudices of the bridges themselves.
Without people, politics wouldn't exist, without people, objects still could exist, but it is only because people exist and know of the politics behind the object that the two can be related.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Digital Natives and Immigrants
Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants By Marc Prensky
This article presents an interesting view point on the decline of education in the U.S, and how technology may be a contributing factor. It looks at it in a rather positive way however, saying that technology is not a distraction for students, more of a way of life that needs to be adapted to the educational system, and the decline is more to blame on the teachers not understanding technology, therefore leading to poor teaching.
It is and interesting read but but I think flawed from the very start, it was the so called 'digital immigrants' that have developed the technology that 'Natives' use, much the same way that older generations developed guitars that youth movements used in the 60's and 70's to separate them-selves from the norm of society.
I personally don't think it is the idea of 'Digital Immigrants' or 'Digital Natives' that is supposedly affecting education today. It is more than just a persons ability in using technology, it is the politics behind acquiring the funding for the tech to be used at schools, and in terms of the older generation 'not understanding' new software or having 'accents', I think it is just a matter of personal interest, my dad had no interest in iPads or the latest way of listening to music, however there are people the same age as him and older who have all the latest tech and understand it better than I do, and I'm supposedly a "digital native".
This article presents an interesting view point on the decline of education in the U.S, and how technology may be a contributing factor. It looks at it in a rather positive way however, saying that technology is not a distraction for students, more of a way of life that needs to be adapted to the educational system, and the decline is more to blame on the teachers not understanding technology, therefore leading to poor teaching.
It is and interesting read but but I think flawed from the very start, it was the so called 'digital immigrants' that have developed the technology that 'Natives' use, much the same way that older generations developed guitars that youth movements used in the 60's and 70's to separate them-selves from the norm of society.
I personally don't think it is the idea of 'Digital Immigrants' or 'Digital Natives' that is supposedly affecting education today. It is more than just a persons ability in using technology, it is the politics behind acquiring the funding for the tech to be used at schools, and in terms of the older generation 'not understanding' new software or having 'accents', I think it is just a matter of personal interest, my dad had no interest in iPads or the latest way of listening to music, however there are people the same age as him and older who have all the latest tech and understand it better than I do, and I'm supposedly a "digital native".
Usability Heuristics-BBC Website
1.Visibility of system status
The BBC website clearly lets people know how long ago an article was published, as underneath a main headline it may say '28 minutes ago'. There is also a live analogue clock on the page with a ticking second hand next to the current date and time zone, showing that the site is running live.
2.Match between system and the real world
The default layout of the BBC website puts the news window to the top left of the website, this could mean that the designers expect that most people who visit the website are doing so to view the news section, as people tend to scan from top left to bottom right. The language used is very clear and any user of any age should be able to navigate where they want thanks to simple titles such as 'News' 'Weather' and 'Sport'.
3. User control and freedom
The BBC website allows easy navigation and control from any page, with the main logo taking the user back to the homepage from any place in the website. If a user wants to get to a certain page on the site, such as 'iPlayer', they would have 2 options, they could either use the link on the top navigation bar or use the window in the main part of the page.
4. Consistency and standards
Although certain pages on the BBC website have 2 links on the homepage, it is clear that they both lead to the same place, one link is on the navigation bar at the top of the page, and the other can be located in the main section, such as 'News'
5. Error prevention
If a user uses the search bar incorrectly or isn't getting the results they want, there is a link that clearly offers users help with using the site, "For advice on how to use BBC Search see our Frequently Asked Questions.", .
6.Recognition rather than recall
The BBC's website works much like people would expect with symbols and options that would be familiar to anybody that had used a computer before. Such as the small 'x' that is on the top right of each window, which indicates to the user this information stream can be deleted from their homepage, or by using the small arrow the information can be minimized.
7.Flexibility and efficiency of use
The BBC offers a variety of different services and their website should act as a portal to any one of these services. Different users may only require the use of certain services, so a business man may want to have the 'Business and Money' information stream at the top of his page, which is entirely possible thanks to the websites customizable home page. If a user where to customize their home page it is a very simple task, as all that is required is to drag and drop the desired windows in the proffered location, or if a window is not wanted at all one would simply press the 'x' button on any of the windows.
8.Aesthetic and minimalist design
The design of the BBC website is professional and is aesthetically pleasing as you might expect from the website that represents one of the worlds biggest broadcasting corporations. The design does try to be as minimalist as possible but as it is the BBC there is a lot of information to display.
9. Help and documentation
The help and documentation of the BBC website can be found at the very bottom of the page, which is the standard location for any website. There are links to 'Complaints', 'Accessibility Help'. All of these links are for the help of users and it shows that the BBC wants people to have a smooth experience using their website and is also open to feedback and ways to improve the site for a wider audience of people.
The BBC website clearly lets people know how long ago an article was published, as underneath a main headline it may say '28 minutes ago'. There is also a live analogue clock on the page with a ticking second hand next to the current date and time zone, showing that the site is running live.
2.Match between system and the real world
The default layout of the BBC website puts the news window to the top left of the website, this could mean that the designers expect that most people who visit the website are doing so to view the news section, as people tend to scan from top left to bottom right. The language used is very clear and any user of any age should be able to navigate where they want thanks to simple titles such as 'News' 'Weather' and 'Sport'.
3. User control and freedom
The BBC website allows easy navigation and control from any page, with the main logo taking the user back to the homepage from any place in the website. If a user wants to get to a certain page on the site, such as 'iPlayer', they would have 2 options, they could either use the link on the top navigation bar or use the window in the main part of the page.
4. Consistency and standards
Although certain pages on the BBC website have 2 links on the homepage, it is clear that they both lead to the same place, one link is on the navigation bar at the top of the page, and the other can be located in the main section, such as 'News'
5. Error prevention
If a user uses the search bar incorrectly or isn't getting the results they want, there is a link that clearly offers users help with using the site, "For advice on how to use BBC Search see our Frequently Asked Questions.", .
6.Recognition rather than recall
The BBC's website works much like people would expect with symbols and options that would be familiar to anybody that had used a computer before. Such as the small 'x' that is on the top right of each window, which indicates to the user this information stream can be deleted from their homepage, or by using the small arrow the information can be minimized.
7.Flexibility and efficiency of use
The BBC offers a variety of different services and their website should act as a portal to any one of these services. Different users may only require the use of certain services, so a business man may want to have the 'Business and Money' information stream at the top of his page, which is entirely possible thanks to the websites customizable home page. If a user where to customize their home page it is a very simple task, as all that is required is to drag and drop the desired windows in the proffered location, or if a window is not wanted at all one would simply press the 'x' button on any of the windows.
8.Aesthetic and minimalist design
The design of the BBC website is professional and is aesthetically pleasing as you might expect from the website that represents one of the worlds biggest broadcasting corporations. The design does try to be as minimalist as possible but as it is the BBC there is a lot of information to display.
9. Help and documentation
The help and documentation of the BBC website can be found at the very bottom of the page, which is the standard location for any website. There are links to 'Complaints', 'Accessibility Help'. All of these links are for the help of users and it shows that the BBC wants people to have a smooth experience using their website and is also open to feedback and ways to improve the site for a wider audience of people.
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