Facebook Usage - Comm 352

                As someone who is growing closer to deleting both his Facebook and Twitter accounts each day, I am definitely comforted by the numbers found in the charts provided.  It is not surprising to see that the majority of those individuals not using social networking sites are the elderly – some of which I’m sure just don’t care to be a part of it.  But for those who are interested but are simply technology impaired I can applaud their perseverance (especially in a time where technology is growing so rapidly).  The other surprising number came from the question relating to being scared of scams.  I figured this would be among the reasons why the elderly would not want to take the time to learn this technology, but it seems that they are moderately unaware of internet scams (which sounds about right). 
                Individuals around my age (perhaps a little older) are the largest demographic of Facebook and Twitter users in America currently according to these charts, with only 22% of individuals my age not having at least one of these accounts.  Yet when we look at the next chart, among those in the same demographic that opt not to use one of these sites do so for a smart reason: to avoid scams.  So while my demographic is the largest users of these social networking sites, those of us who do not use it are cautiously avoiding scams, viruses, and general deviant behavior that is rapidly accelerating on the web.  This is why we can safely assume that the elderly do not use these sites based on other reasons such as their general complexity or disinterest in social networking. 
                I also found it interesting that of all persons under the age of forty-four the highest demographic for not having a Facebook or Twitter is 18-24 year olds.  Considering that social networking plays a key role in relationships in high school and college, I expected this number to be higher.  I assume that with the emphasis major and local businesses have put on Facebook and Twitter as being reliable sources of information and advertising that the demographic of people who use these sites as means of obtaining information themselves has increased.  Instead of Yellow pages, newspapers, and coupons all of these deals and savings can be found through promotional Facebook and Twitter events.  All of this publicity is also free, so it is economically helpful as well. 
                Although I still don’t enjoy Facebook as much as I used to because of the general lollygagging it causes or the pictures of food in sepia tone it throws at me, it is refreshing to know that it has become a reliable websites for a mature audience to use to increase business.  I may not like the social networking aspect of Facebook much anymore, but as a means of cheaply helping small and large businesses alike thrive and improve, it is absolutely a must.

The Fighter- Comm 344

Squall, the main character from Final Fantasy 8
and his signature gunblade weapon

               The most basic and broad class, the Fighter is present in nearly every fantasy setting.  On a broad spectrum, the fighter is usually the main character of most fantasy settings because of their combat ability, their ability to take damage, and their unparalleled leadership.  Any role playing game that includes a sword using, twenty-something, heroic male is playing off of the archetype of the fighter. 
                The fighter’s weapon choice is usually a sword and shield combination, or maybe a knight themed weapon such as a lance.  Variations on the standard sword include Gunblades (as seen in Final Fantasy 8) and Bastard Swords (a large, and powerful blade that most heroes blissfully use one handed with absolutely no problems). 
                Since the fighter is more than likely the main character of the game they are present in the sword is used commonly as a weapon that everyone is familiar with.  And with the creative spins and abilities attached to these sword attacks video game developers have been keeping this archetype fresh and modern.  In Persona 4, a Japanese RPG with dating simulator elements, the main character uses swords and other long, blunt items like golf clubs.  Katanas, though not as popular, are also used by fighters in place of the standard longsword seen is Western influenced games.  In battle the sword user will initiate attacks that involve slashing the enemy in a stylized way usually unique to the fighter.  Mighty slashes, Wind-Ripping slashes, and increasing one’s own attack power or defense are just a few of the standard moves found in a fighter’s repertoire.  These abilities to power up your main character without the aid of others is another nod to the independence that the main character possesses: if you’re struggling in battle and only one character is going to survive, the fighter is more than likely going to be that person.
                The armor worn by fighters has a huge range of different materials.  Being the main character most of the time, the fighter has access to a variety of very defensive leather, steel, iron, and other metal armors.  The shields accompanied by these weapons and armor usually match, giving the player a full set of beautifully matching armor that not only looks good but provides substantial defense as well.  This allows the fighter to be labeled as a tank, or a character that can both deal and receive damage extraordinarily well.  This makes the fighter an ideal character for beginners, and illuminates why the main character in so many role playing games are fighters.  Not only can the character you’re going to use the most deal a decent amount of damage, but he (or she in rare cases) is not going to die easily, offering you plenty of time to learn fighting strategy and worry about defending and supporting other characters more. 
                As a mentioned, although the majority of fighters are male, there have been a large number of females depicted as fighters in recent games.  A number of notable males include Cloud from Final Fantasy 7, Squall from Final Fantasy 8, Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings series (although not the main character still showed substantial leadership abilities), Hiro from Lunar 2 (note his clichéd name…), and Claude from Star Ocean.  Females dominating this category include Paine from Final Fantasy X-2 (not the main character, but one of the first female sword users in Final Fantasy history), Lightning from Final Fantasy 13, Beatrix from Final Fantasy 9 (a powerful female knight that is literally impossible to beat), and Cassandra from the Soul Calibur series.  All of these females are skilled warriors, and are very rarely sexualized as this is not an archetype that is seen as weak or feminine.  These strong, capable women can be seen as the pinnacle of female empowerment in the video game universe, putting the damsel in distress mythos to rest. 
                The fighter is a well-rounded, easy to use class that is beginner friendly, and a formidable opponent in the hands of a skilled player.  They have all of the tools to fend for themselves and work smoothly in a team setting as well.  It’s no wonder that we see this class more than any other because of the flexibility that this balance of defense and offense supply.  The sense of leadership, and a strong sense of doing what is best for the rest of the team is a chivalrous and loyal attitude that comes hand in hand with the sword and armor wearing knight motif, and it is expressed through many of the classic main characters in almost every traditional RPG on the market.

Labor Abuse - Comm 352

                I find that it is hard to sit back and watch as these conditions for working are even happening in this day and age.  I was very aware of Apple’s use of labor camps to distribute its product at such low rates, but to see Samsung in this same pathway is disgusting.  It almost brings into question what the CEO’s of each of these companies define as human life.  It seems as though they view their workers as disposable, easily replaceable peons who have no value or resource to the overall being of the company.  They see these workers as materials.  Using them until they cannot work any longer and replacing them as quickly as they came.  This is a scary thought that we, as Americans, do not need to waste any time fearing that our fate could match.
                But what if we did?  What if instead of using labor unions from other countries these factories were in our back yard?  If the question is “Will I still buy this product if American workers are the ones suffering”, I would say yes.  To me, the issue is not who is suffering, but just that the fact that these unfit conditions exist in any way.  Of course with the American mentality we would never stand for such conditions, and I believe that if one of these labor unions were to exist in America there would already have been riots, marches, and strikes all over the nation.  Americans tend to not pay attention to striking issues unless they are in our own backyard, but the turnout of caring citizens would be monumental. 
                I understand fully that the products we are buying come with the price of cruel labor, but at this point I would like to be presented an alternative.  Any normal person would agree that if they just improve conditions things would be better and everyone could go on happy.  Unfortunately if any more money were to be put into these unions the prices of our merchandise would increase.  Again, this would not affect me personally but from a consumer standpoint I can see why nobody says a word.  Once the price of the product increases people won’t even care about “improving the conditions” of these workers because they will immediately see the outcome of their “help”.  If it means paying a little more for these people to be treated like humans, I would be perfectly fine with that as I usually buy one of these products every other year or so.  But these hefty American consumers would rather help their wallet than the lives of people they don’t know, it’s like pulling teeth.  Unfortunately I can see why these companies have chosen the route they have.  I hope that we as a nation can step back, view the situation neutrally and do what we know is best for strengthening the world rather than just our own persons.  I’m sure if this was happening in our country we would want the support of other countries too.

COMM 344 - Video Game Character Archetypes

                For my blog series I would like to illuminate the different types of character classes we see in video games, board games, and even in film and television.  These archetypes are present in almost any fantasy setting because of the versatility and teamwork capabilities they possess.  When many different roles are being filled by different persons a task such as defeating an antagonist or solving a puzzle becomes a project where all of the characters must work together to provide the help that only they can.  Seeing a cast of heroes that all have different strengths, weaknesses, and abilities creates diversity amongst the heroes, and when antagonists can fill these roles as well the subsequent quest can be full of surprises.
                Tracing back to the earliest versions of Dungeons & Dragons, we are aware of four main types of characters.  A fighter, usually in the form of a knight or a warrior, is your basic tank (a character that can both deal and take damage very well).  A thief is a weak but nimble class that can vary into the realms of assassins or rogues that utilize speed as their biggest asset.  The third class is the Mage who prefers magic over physical attacks to deal damage with elemental based properties (fire, water, wind, earth, etc.).  Lastly, a Cleric or a healer that provides support for the rest of the party and can use their holy-based magic to deal damage to the undead. 
                These four classes alone provide many different scenarios and traits that have shaped the stories of Role Playing Games for over a decade.  But in this day and age there are far more classes than just these four.  Through combining these classes we come up with new classes (such as combining a fighter and a healer to create a Paladin, or a holy knight) and these new classes can be customized even further in today’s games.
                 I would like to expand on not only the different classes we are presented with today, but to also give many examples of the characters in our media that fit these roles.  Even television shows that do not take place in a fantasy setting have archetypes that play off of the abilities that these fictional characters possess, and how these classes act in and out of battle are also a topic of interest for me.  The way that classes interact with each other can be fascinating in that they can cause conflict within themselves.  For example most thieves don’t like to work in groups, so often times we see them being the “loners” of the group.  The medic is usually a gentle, kind individual that devotes their efforts into making sure everyone is in fighting condition.  There are definitely exceptions to these, and researching how character developers are refreshing these classes will be something else I would like to touch on.  By the end of this semester I will be able to determine not only the history of these characters, but perhaps what designers have in store for them in the future as well.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FantasyCharacterClasses

http://www.edge-online.com/features/game-design-archetype-vs-stereotype

COMM 352 - Apple vs Samsung

                This entire case is very disappointing because I am bearing witness to just how truly power hungry Apple has become as a company.  I am not a fan of Apple products (and this does not help at all), but even from a neutral standpoint it is easy to see that Apple is trying to monopolize the electronics market in their favor.  They are literally eliminating the competition through law, and essentially creating a market where they are the only distributes of the product.  This negates any decision making on the consumer’s part.  Imagine walking into your local electronics department and being presented with one type of television, one type of gaming system, one type of phone, etc.  When we eliminate competition, we eliminate a means of bettering products through comparison. 
                Through reading the blogs provided it seems that this court decision was also extremely hasty; the entire decision made by the jury only took three days.  While this may not seem like a short amount of time for a court case, consider that most jurors take three days just to look over the terms, conditions, rules and regulations of the case before diving in to making a verdict.  There were more than 700 questions that span over 100 pages of material.  Although Apple claimed that many of the jurors were tech savvy, their hastiness caused mistakes like awarding damages for the Galaxy Tab 10.1 LTE when it did not infringe in any viable way.  This 2 million dollar mistake could have been one of many made, and it is relieving to know that more will be looked into this.
                Lastly, the biggest curiosity I have is a point brought up in the 3^rd article by Pamela Jones.  The instructions for the jury mentioned:
                 “The amount of those damages must be adequate to compensate the patent holder for the infringement. A damages award should put the patent holder in approximately the financial position it would have been in had the infringement not occurred, but in no event may the damages award be less than a reasonable royalty.”
                Apple is clearly ignoring this rule, and the 2 million dollar hasty mistake is clear evidence that Apple’s lawyers are trying to bend the rules in their favor.  According to Jones this case is not anywhere near over due to the inconsistencies made by these jurors.  It will be interesting to see how this case plays out, and for the sake of the future of technology I hope that Apple lessens its grip on a market that can only improve through trial and error from many different companies with –noticeably- different ideas.

Helvetica

     In our Motion Graphics class we viewed a documentary based around the typeface, Helvetica, which is used almost universally in basic advertising, and used for street signs, subway signs, titles of buildings, etc.  The font was praised by individuals who used it for it being "neat" and "comfortable" looking, without having any unnecessary serifs or bulges in the letter design.  Some disagreed with this and said that the typeface is overused, boring, and "safe"  because of its widespread use and success.  One woman even went as far as to (albeit, sarcastically) say that this font was used to create posters for the war, and therefore created the war itself.

     I have to agree with those who opposed the font, as I am in the exact same boat as those who think the font is too safe.  One man printed out a collection of words all in Helvetica such as 'explode' and excited', but the words do not look explosive or exciting at all.  Helvetica is a beautifully smart, and safe font to use when you are simply trying to get a helpful message across (like street signs and maps in general), but as far as actually using this font to advertise,  I feel like it would have to be used in very creative ways for this typeface to make any more of an impact than it already has.  Just simply being a common, safe, typeface already makes the thought of it less appealing,  and if anything just inspires me to use something else instead.

Opening Sequences - Comm 346

I chose a film from my childhood that came to mind during the first week of class.  When I think of motion graphics and opening credits, a lot of Pixar movies come to mind (see The Incredibles' opening sequence to see the similarities).

     This particular opening sequence uses different colors and abstract looking doors to paint the scenarios that are found in the movie - monsters going through doors to scare children.  The monsters themselves are abstract, and in various colors.  The colors used for the doors are all bright and vibrant against the black background, and the colors used on the doors heavily indicate their depth.  At 1:04, you can see a snake-like creature going from an olive color door in the background into a red color in the foreground.  This also foreshadows where the action is going to be moving in this sequence;  Without even seeing the snake move, we could probably guess he would be moving towards the red door that parallels it from across the screen amongst yellow and orange doors. 
     The designers also use the doors in creative ways.  At 0:30 we can see a column of purple and pink doors that get used as cards.  They are "shuffled" and once they are all together, the similar hues (purple and pink) become almost indistinguishable by the time the doors open. 

The second video is from a fighting game called Street Fighter 4.  This is the first installation of the series to feature three-dimensional characters, so the design crew definitely outdid themselves on the opening sequence.  The first scene shows two rival characters fighting in black and white, with their respective red clothing shown in color.  The red amongst the black and white definitely is a signifier for strength, power, and fighting with honor and pride.  The fiery rivalry between the two is illuminated by these red garments, and the paint strokes (shown throughout the entire animation)  make the action seem quick, fluid, and makes the fighting blend with the art.  In later scenes we see two women fighting with a vibrant pink background and highly saturated colors.  These two have a newfound rivalry in this series, so their animated fight sequence is bright, colorful, and new.  The pink background also seems to be a nod to the fact that female characters are fighting.  Despite fighting being a rugged, male sport, we still see women in a gentler light - even in combat apparently.  Still, the pink works well against the blue and black clothing that the women are wearing, and the paint strokes create the same feeling as before.