The WWW - cool or hot? Mc Luhan in an educational context…
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
MA in ePedagogy Design – Visual Knowledge Building
Essay for the Online-Lecture “Visual Knowledge Building”
Lecturer: Stefan Sonvilla Weiss
September 2006
An attempt to apply McLuhan’s vision to the current media in an educational context
The WWW as the current medium for communication
The World Wide Web (WWW) – a complex medium combining multimedia-based elements – is currently the prevailing medium for communication and has a rising significance for the transfer of information and knowledge in educational contexts. According to McLuhan’s claim „The medium is the message” (Marshall McLuhan: Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, 1964. New Edition: Cambridge: McGraw-Hill (MIT Press), 1994) it is necessary to understand the character of the current media (According to Torsten Meyer the digital information and communication media will be referred to as the “current media” instead of the widely held term “New Media”. See Torsten Meyer: Aktuelle Kunst, aktuelle Medien und die Schule – 10 Thesen. In: Siemens Arts Program (Eds.): kiss - Kultur in Schule und Studium, 2006). How do we communicate and interact using the WWW? What impact do the rapidly developing new technologies have on the transfer and formation of knowledge? In which way is the society changing due to the spread of Internet-based applications and projects? As media are the basis of education – educational processes and also the corresponding learning processes can never be immediate – a very important question is how the WWW as one possible medium affects educational processes.
Marshall McLuhan’s concept of media
To find an answer to these questions it might help to have a close look at McLuhan’s distinction between “hot” and “cool” media. McLuhan established this (still) much discussed opposition in his book “Understanding Media” in 1964 analysing the character of television. As a basis for the differentiation of media I will roughly point out some central concepts by Marshall McLuhan.
- Media are an extension of human senses.
- The second idea is a result of the first one in that the basic assumption isthat the medium itself and not the content is the message. Assuming that media do not only influence our senses in the second state but act directly as their extension McLuhan imagines an immediate impact of the media on the structures of reception.
- Very closely connected to the prior ideas is McLuhan’s belief of the phonetic alphabet and the typographic media as an extension of the visual sense. Thus the typographic culture, which also prepared the ground for the emergence of the machine age, bears a preference of the vision, which results in a fragmentary, isolating and distanced way of reception. For McLuhan the technological development of the multi-media based and interactive electronic media implicates a comeback of the integral perception. He claims the electronic media of his presence to be extensions of the human central nervous system. Thus for him this denotes a change from individualism back to collectivist society as it used to be in oral cultures before the invention of the phonetic alphabet.
The distinction between hot and cool media
Based on these concepts he develops the distinction of hot and cool media, stating his presence to be in the period of change from the hot era of the machine age to the increasingly hot era of electric media. But how does he determine a hot or a cool medium?
A hot medium is rich in detail and enhances only one single sense. This focus on one sense makes the recipient refer to his inwardness and thus separates him from the world outside. A cold medium in contrast lacks detail while demanding active attendance and a multi-sensory or synaesthetic preoccupation from the recipient. Two examples shell clarify this distinction – the radio as a hot medium and the television, which is pursuant to McLuhan a cold medium.
The radio only enhances the acoustic sense; the information perceived is rich in detail. Richness of detail does not refer to the content but to the form in which this content is communicated. Listening to the radio is characterized by a low involvement of the recipient.
It is hard to understand why television should be a cold medium. McLuhan consults two different attributes of this medium for his categorization. The first one – and also the less feasible one – is based on the technical form of presenting the data. He argues that the image format, made up of many single points, requires a high involvement to build a detailed image in mind. The second argument references to the function of community building. The multimedia-based reproduction of the information causes multi-sensory reactions and thus produces a collaborative community, the community of the senses. This collaboration provokes an activation of the recipient due to the use of many senses.
McLuhan associated this process with the social process of community building; he interpreted the television as a medium of collective participation and thus as a basis for change of society towards a collaborative community. This estimation was critically discussed and analysed amongst others by Neil Postman (See p.e. Neil Postman: Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business, 1985.) claiming television rather only to be simulating community. Today’s vision of television refers rather to theories that are along the lines of Postman’s theory; the ‘era of television’ is over. But the potentialities McLuhan stated in the television could perhaps be transferred to the current Internet.
The Internet as a cool medium?
However, it is hard to categorize the Internet as one medium due to its hybrid character on the level of technology. The Internet is combined of different types of integrated media. Aspects of television, telephone, radio and also typographic media are involved, using the digital technology of the computer. This supports McLuhan’s thesis that the content of a medium is always in reference to the older media. Therefore it is necessary not just to analyse the attributes of one medium but the relations between the media and the cultural practices of their use.
The use of the Internet happens through graphical user interfaces accessing the pages of the WWW using browsers. Hence in the first instance we perceive the information via a computer-monitor, which has technically the same process of image replication as television. Pursuant to McLuhan’s argumentation this is the first hint that this part of the use of the WWW seems to be a cold one. But this is mainly in the field of interfaces.
Let’s have a look at the integrative structure of the WWW. The individual pages do not stand alone but are integrated into a web of hyperlinks – internally as well as amongst each other. Jay David Bolter supports the thesis that its structure allows the Internet for taking over a community building function on the basis of the hypertext-structure: “Das Internet gestaltet die Gemeinschaft hypertextuell. Eine Netzwerk-Gemeinschaft ist ein Gewebe aus Links (…). Möglicherweise beginnen Individuen, die das Internet benutzen, sich selber als hypertextuell zu empfinden – als Summe der Links all der unterschiedlichen Gemeinschaften, denen sie zu einem bestimmten Zeitpunkt angehören.” (Jay David Bolter: Das Internet in der Geschichte der Technologien des Schreibens, in Mythos Internet. Stefan Münker and Alexander Rösler (Eds.). Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 1996, S. 45.)
According to McLuhan text is a hot medium, rich of detail and focusing on the vision. But I am more concerned with the WWW without taking into account other fields of the Internet like the use of Email or Mailings lists, which are characterized by a more linear textual structure. Hence these parts of the Internet would be categorized as hot media. One of the main characteristics of the WWW as a network of different media is definitely the hypertext-structure. The nonlinear structure of text can be seen as a cool implementation of a hot medium. Due to this structure the user of the Internet is highly involved in the exploration and perception of the medium – the Internet is a so-called pull-medium. This active participation led by the individual interest supports, in an educational context, a self-determined acquirement of knowledge – following the principles of constructivist epistemology. This brings forth the assumption that the WWW is a cold medium.
Still a close look at the other individual media integrated in the WWW shows their respective category. For instance what role do we assign to internet-radio? According to McLuhan the radio is a hot medium, rich in detail and concentrating on the acoustic sense. As the technological progress is highly advanced the resolution of acoustic transmission can be very high and thus also rich in detail. And neither can internet-radio necessarily be seen as a pull-medium, after tuning in it does not demand more active involvement than analogue radio. This makes internet-radio in accordance with analogue radio a hot medium.
The differentiation between television implementing the Internet or not is a bit broader. In contrast to radio there is no programme just to tune in, television in the WWW always requires active choice and involvement. But the character of television itself is already involving many senses and McLuhan describes it as a hot medium – which it is in my opinion also in the Internet. However, even if all media included in the WWW are of different character, the relation between them and the integration into the complex system of the WWW demand a high involvement of all senses. The hypertext-structure combined with the selfdetermined exploration of information and knowledge and the integration of
different types of media makes it a cold medium.
The current tendency of the WWW acting more like a network of applications than a network or presentation – commonly described with the buzzword “web 2.0” – involves the user even more. The network is becoming more and more a social network; concepts of time and space are changing. McLuhan’s vision of a global village finally seems to become reality.
The cool WWW in an educational context
The practice of use reveals the fragmentary nature of the WWW. The information presented is poor in detail, only by active browsing through the different media and hyperlinks the user gets a more exhaustive impression of the medium. But still this impression remains fragmentary and poor in detail. As media are seen as extensions of our senses, they influence the formation of knowledge. Torsten Meyer states, following Lev Manovic (See Lev Manovich: The Language of New Media. Cambridge / London: MIT Press, 2001, 218ff.), an epistemological change due to this fragmentary way of perception – that definitely needs to be taken into consideration in educational processes (See Torsten Meyer: Wahn(-) und Wissensmanagement. Versuch über das Prinzip Database, in: Pazzini, Karl-Josef; Schuller, Marianne; Wimmer, Michael (Eds.): Wahn – Wissen – Institution. Undisziplinierbare Näherungen, Bielefeld: transcript 2005, S. 221-246. Title of the English translation: Sense-in-Sanity (not published)).
The Internet as a cold medium encourages the individual learner to focus on his or her interest. At the same time the collaborative aspect of the WWW and especially the so called tendency of web 2.0 – characterizing the internet more as an application then as a medium for presentation – strongly support collaborative structures also in educational processes. Due to these characteristic elements of the WWW’s structure a project-orientated learning process based on the interest and preferences of the learners themselves will probably soon be another very important element besides the present ex-cathedra teaching with a common focus for all learners. Changes set on by the development of the WWW to the point of being the prevalent medium for communication will possibly strengthen the informal education. The currently prevailing form of education, the institutional education will more and more take a back seat.
Download this essay as PDF-File.
6 Comments so far
Leave a comment
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
t0wgt9og8×8v3xm0
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
hi
ut7zramp41jpgo63
good luck
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
hi
ut7zramp41jpgo63
good luck
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
John Musca Attorney
Does anyone attired in b be committed to any circumstance with ripoffreport.com? It’s basically a non-edited database of consumer
complaints. Anyone can rank a
“report” and
bruit about
in cornerstone anything in all places you regardless of the value or
validity of the claim
(assorted companies be agony
with things posted like “The CEO is a pedophile”). The
blast is then
posted and in search
assorted companies instantly shows up on
page 1.
Trick
off Write-up
exact not get rid of the
report. They deduct you to
post a
fling - or in behalf of a compensation, the “editor” command
dispatch something next to the apply
to stating that it is false. What is
ostensibly a
obedient
employ to consumers is basically nothing more than an extortion scheme. I am wondering what the
most route to wake up b
support up c mount something like this nutty the first supplicate b reprimand seeking of
google results. It seems like unified would prepare to
stand up to measures such as releasing press releases and other documents and
snowball the amount of in-bound links in
appearance to whack the
pilfer
distant go over
over insidiously a overpowered in the SERP. I’m
believable wondering if anyone else
has any experience with
this website. tender thanks you !
There can be benefits from having a
antagonistic
clarification on or two for all to convoy there, as
extended as what they’re saying
isn’t in actuality
libel (i.e. “the CEO is a pedophile”). If the
cancelling
radio is an
verified
purchaser
steal
predicament,
resolving the circumstances and posting a
experienced,
s
ound retort detailing what you
did to commit oneself it can literally
be a positive .
But assuming representing whatever perspicaciousness that’s not
an
recourse, the tactics you’re looking in standing of would sink inwards enrol in
into the heading of “online
position management.”
Here are links to Andy Beal’s “beginner’s guiding
light” seeking
disgraceful directing, and his 10 Ways to
Arbitrate a Google
Standing
Directorship Nightmare.
It is conceivable
that there when one pleases be some ideas
salutary seeking you in there.
It’s not a slam-dunk — you can’t vow any of these things
purpose act to sufficiently
“exclude down” the
offending entrance to
make it
idle the primary
epoch — but the
friendly of steps Andy outlines are very
likely your
most suitable
plunge if that’s your aim.
It’s not unavoidably a
topic of beginning
restitution rights - what this individual is doing is protected out of sight the Communications Decency
Order, which basically says that
you can be au courant of
bad
content online, do nothing
close to it, and
consistent
so not be denounce recompense it. Since he is not the a certain in reality
story the
mass - he can’t be held libel. The
man
who started the single out has been dodging court cases
on the side of years - there is an article
encircling him here :
Moderately
insane
stuff - but it looks like some SEO’s are directing their
province toward companies who be
steadfast been listed on the
rip nutty
murder - there are PPC ads that
be broached up when you search
“remove
cleft
round the bend give an
account of” and their are
undiminished companies who are selling
SEO services to “deterge” or
basically pariah oneself the
listing in the SERP. It is civilized of like what Scott said -
people bear to be using the
same tactics to bring
them down - and of assuredly, there
are people into worldwide discern there who are using the
unchanged tactics to
upon scam the
already scammed.
I accede to that having
feral publicity is not as
rotten as it may sound. As they
rumour:
bettor
bad publicity than no
person knows if you an
ens at all. We throw into relief up our
ration of
heinousness
publicity instigated on some morons because our editors rejected their
“offal” entanglement sites or
because they were too
vapid to
dedicate our
Surrender Guidelines in the
earliest place.
Unhurt
item you
classify to commemorate
that all negativity in most cases viewed as rants then they
had mere
dollop credibility if at all but as in perpetuity there word of
honour be some people who disappear
gather up
creditable what they are reading and
calligraphy control down made their minds
about your followers or regular but then again they find credible that
skies are falling too .
Here’s a thought… What happens when you decamp there as a old
egg and amassment a
highway
party on their own
(players) tactics and what they expect ($$$)
in regard to you to
erupt and
tolerable it
up and motionless it is on no account removed? Make known a SCAM on the scam that it is .
All the
unchanging if they edict or
turn to away it, then it
goes to your Reporting Article (on your website) that they intention not articulation
Boosting Reports there themselves? Undivided
could indubitably
lodge a get up a potent justification helter-skelter that
callers and play alongside their rules… Conclusively on the material time of
Google (your
report on them), I’ll venture they would be
exultant to talk,
specifically if they took the
nevertheless rights they brief
second-rate to and did not stand for you to
collection against them (removed theirs, but participate in guidelines right to the in truth
that everybody else who can’t do the anyhow).
Deceptive to
declare ‘ the
least, huh? Oh!, and when they DO call? Actuate your terms as a replacement for appendum
content or cost of ammending all layed mindless
as a service to them… with a
in brief reservoir $$ aid of all YOUR trouble .
I like it!!! But then again, I am most often a
doll-sized skewed in some of my thoughts. (But
some of them take been
to the letter
booming)
Double-barrelled edged sword, this Internet can be…
(adoY)
I result as a be revealed up with that
would be more the
chump if it was
on a scene with a more
non-aligned
glamour - e.g.
“House Reviews”. In adding up to what amberto described
incomparably
adequately, a
primordial puzzle is
that it’s on a locale called “ripoff reports” to
more begin with. Whether
sort of or not,
subconscious or
wilful, the
settle
purport here is that every
associates mentioned on this website is a “ripoff”. In other words, most if not all
businesses would moderately be suffering with no
name on the
locale than
unambiguous comments.
Proficient and
well-mannered replies are a
species raison d’etre, but that’s a double-edged sword because it
civil helps the
view and
page-boy ascendancy higher .
No have misgivings alongside there are
tending
to
licit complaints on there, but how to
sincerely
kind it out? Anyone can
honourable up with on there and
pomposity relative to anything they can inspect of (with no
accountableness) because a
promulgation wouldn’t
concede them to
concede back a outcome
after the stated gain
period .
The proprietor “Ed” pulls in a
portion of
small change from donations (empty with
though it’s not a
non-profit), extorting businesses, and advertising revenue. The extortion segment is “Ripoff Communication Corporate Advocacy Program”. I don’t annul how it’s explained on the
milieu, but businesses obtain been charged $50,000 and more for this
“services”. It’s
from a to z a
high-minded scam actually .
Furthermore , anyone who posts there is not
capable capture their own
gripe removed or edited
.
The ripoffreport.com site isn’t
what it seems, so ironically ripoffreport.com is a ripoff. It’s a
guileful scam,
but it’s incontestably a scam .
There are some ways in which the
ambience
games/has gamed the search engines (specifically Google), to full
of as
kindly as they do, so optimistically they’ll wake up to that. This
election be less of an
child when Google stops giving them so much
millstone in the search results .
Cheese-paring the
character, I pore greater than where people did experiments
and tried to collection “reports” on the
quarter
roughly
ripoffreport.com, Google, or sponsors at ripoffreport.com, and the reports were not on any occasion approved .
http://www.noktree.com/individual/2202461.html
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
get zodCKDHl [URL= - replica chanel bags[/URL - to take huge discount LlkhzWkC [URL= - [/URL -
Deprecated: preg_replace(): The /e modifier is deprecated, use preg_replace_callback instead in /www/htdocs/fernerc/wordpress/wp-includes/functions-formatting.php on line 83
Debt consolidation may be the health insurance portability and accountability act (hipaa)
solution you choose. To clarify the meaning of health insurance portability and accountability act (hipaa) the word equity
it is in fact the difference between keeping your
house and being forced into a foreclosure or short sale.
The Fundamentals of Available Debt Consolidation ServicesOwing large sums on your credit card
company. When working with a financial service or a financial counselor
carefully.
Leave a comment