Did You Know 4.0 ...

    

After watching “Did You Know 4.0” (2009), an official update of the original “Shift Happens” video I noted a few trends that are undoubtedly much more entrenched than they were when the video was made.

Firstly the issue of Copyright was highlighted. The video stated that 95% of downloaded music was pirated. Music is an obvious one, but what of videos, photographs, documents and artwork? Creators deserve recognition and copyright is the law which protects this right. Librarians need to instruct students on the best use of other people’s work. We can direct them to use creative commons and guide them in protecting their own creations when using Web 2.0 technologies.

Mobile phones are now ubiquitous and their use has many implications. One prediction is that mobile phone will connect just about everyone to the internet within the next seven years. Students use mobiles primarily to send text messages. Text messages can create a wave of public action in a political context as evidenced in the recent ‘Arab Spring’ uprisings. There are benefits in whipping up public support but public hysteria is the other side of the coin. Students need to know that they have a responsibility to be accurate and refrain from defamatory remarks as there can be legal consequences.

The former speaker Peter Slipper MP would also acknowledge that posting sexist remarks on his mobile phone cost him his job. Privacy is becoming a very slippery issue (please excuse the pun). The video highlighted how a casual remark on a social networking site could be seen by an employer and compromise a worker’s position. Similarly job applicants could be vetted by an administration by viewing their social networking profiles. It pays to say only things that you would say in front of your grandmother.

 Even though the majority of adults own mobile phones, apparently many of them are reluctant to make purchases using their phones. I’m not so sure about this one as the rise in online shopping is skyrocketing. But I understand the reluctance to put one’s financial information online. The issue here is cybercrime, I guess, and also the issue of data protection. Just how safe is our personal information? What is it being used for and to whom is it being passed on? We need to make sure students are cautious about online transactions and are aware of scams and fraudsters.

Lastly the video explains that traditional forms of advertising are rapidly declining. It cites that 90% of emails sent everyday are spam. This form of advertising has been around for a long time but students need to be aware of how businesses are targeting them now on social media platforms and search engines. We need to educate students about being producers of spam too. Sending off form letters, chain letters or impersonal pleas to all their friends to 'please respond' or act on a certain purchase or post is just as annoying as receiving spam.

So, ‘Like’ this or what?