New Real Player: What Does This Mean For Participatory Culture?

The new Real Player beta “gives you the power to download Web video instantly.” You can also burn the videos to CD or DVD for a little extra moolah. Essentially, with Real Player 11, you and I can “own” any video content simply by way of downloading it. Ok, sure, Real draws the line at DRM-protected content, but come on, how many people uploading to YouTube or Google Video think about “protecting” their content. How many take that extra step?

On the Camcorder Info website, Michael Perlman contends that this new player is a threat to online video creators, and I’m inclined to agree.

This type of technology is not new,
but the ease of use which Real Player imparts, coupled with its
widespread use, is likely to have a much larger effect than similar
software in the past. Those who post videos on revenue-sharing sites
like Revver may be particularly vulnerable. Real Player users can now
download Revver videos to their computer, never having to access the
site to watch that particular clip again. This, in turn, minimizes the
number of ad clicks and reduces the stream of revenue within the site.
Meta Café is in a tight spot, as well. Users who post videos on the
site are paid a fraction of ad revenue solely based on the amount of
clicks their video receives. Since almost any video clip online is
susceptible to a Real Player download, Revver and Meta Café are not the
only sites that will suffer losses.

YouTube, MySpace, and Google Video
users rely on the number of clicks their videos receive in order to
boost popularity, ultimately heightening the chance of being featured
on the front page or favorites page. Instead of throwing someone a link
or saving a clip to a list of favorites in a user profile, users now
have a few alternative options in regards to sharing and playing
videos—none of which will equate to an additional click.

Given the nascence of participatory culture, will this drive us back into a closed and shuttered medium, where content sharing is regulated by policy and law? Or will it force us to evaluate this culture, and the nature of the medium that enables it, tand drive Real Player to revamp the player to accommodate the rules of the game?

Public voice can be a driving force as evidenced by the resurgence of Jericho, a show that was canceled by the network, but revived by its fans. Perhaps it will be public voice that shapes what happens next in this instance. Either way, we live in interesting times, don’t we?

Technorati Tags: Real Player, media

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My Top 5 Movies

Last night was essentially “veg in front of the TV and add to ‘movies to see’ list night” in our home as we settled in to watch the AFI’s 100 Years 100 Movies special on CBS. Of course I had to tweet it, and sure enough, there was Julie asking me which movies made it to my top five. So here’s a quick head to head.

AFI’s top five are Citizen Kane, Casablanca, The GodFather, Gone With The Wind, and Lawrence of Arabia.

My top five are Star Wars (4, 5, 6), The Sound of Music, Breakfast At Tiffany’s, An American In Paris, and it’s a tie between The Wizard of Oz and Ben-Hur.

My criteria is simple, what movies am I likely to see over and over again without ever getting tired of them, and these made the cut.

And so now it’s your turn, what movies made it to your top 5?

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Of Students and Laptops

Results of technology surveys at the University of Virginia and Stanford sparked off some lively discussion among some of the Trinity faculty, a librarian and the instructional tech (yours truly) today. One faculty expressed fear of a future where every student has a laptop, I suspect because of the inability to blank their screens if desired, as is possible with desktops and some software today, even as he acknowledged that laptops in the classroom are changing the way faculty interact with their students.

On the flip side, another faculty member recognized that multi-tasking at a computer is inevitable today. In fact, it’s not unusual for non-Net Gens to be playing Free Cell, or shopping, or checking their email while at meetings and presentations. So why expect any less from the students when the difference is just that they are more likely to be on Facebook, MySpace,YouTube, or listening to their iPods. Her contention is that the future belongs to institutions, faculty, and developers who adapt to this changing environment. As for the laptops, “you gotta know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em,” is her contention.

What was interesting about this is that the instructional tech (yours truly) and the librarian had near identical thoughts. Here’s what he said:

We really MUST insert ourselves here.  I think it’s not just education that can become diffused or distracted by technology, but most aspects of life. We have to be the ones who find means to blend technology and education in such a way that education is still the focus.  Computer and online technology is ubiquitous for students today, and if we remove technology in order to focus on education, we stop meeting students where they are.  Too, we have to be the ones to critique technologies (and their uses) and we must encourage students to critique them as well, and they’ll need to be present to do that.

My sentiments exactly. We definitely are dealing with a new generation of learners here, but I suspect some time-tested strategies hold just as true for them, as they did for us. For instance, when my daughter needs to buckle down and get some writing done, she turns off her IM, shuts the door to her room, the music is still on, but she’s focused on what she needs to do. I suspect a lot of them work in a similar mode, we just don’t see it as often as their multi-tasking mode.

So, can we force them to listen by blanking out their computers? Maybe. Can we force them to pay attention by blanking off their computers? Perhaps. Yes, you’ve got to know when to hold them, and to that, I would say, you’ve also got to know “how” to hold them. Engagement doesn’t need PowerPoint presentations, fancy technology, or cool toys.

On the flip side however, we are also, to some degree, teaching them to think critically about what technology or tool is appropriate to the learning context at hand, or even if one is needed at all. Consequently, I would say the issue is also how does one teach them to recognize when it is essential that they turn away from their laptop or desktop and their email, Free Cell, Facebook, etc. to focus on what’s going on, to learn, to reflect. Perhaps what we the non-Net Gens, could, should, teach them, is how to disconnect and focus when the situation calls for it.

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