So my research so far seems to focus' primarily on Facebook. I think this is where my interests mostly lie, in identity and online social networking. 
I started having a think about how people USE Facebook, their habits and trends. What they actually do and how people can waste so many hours on it.

Off the top of my head I came up with the following points of interest to look at:

 "Liking" things. It's like a way of acknowledging something someone has said, confirming you've read it, without replying to it. Almost like you're too busy to say anything in response but not too busy to go on FB, read and like it. A way of communicating, of showing interest, without having to get involved. It's very odd.

Status Updates: On MySpace we had things called bulletins. Personally I loved Myspace for the bulletin function, you could basically do a short blog post with a title which people could CHOOSE if they read. 
With status updates, I have no choice in whether I find out that  Rose is excited about a birthday party for someone I don't know, or whether Ali has had a nap. It's the same with twitter, we need to constantly remind the world we are still there, we have to remind ourselves we're still there. And I'm equally as guilty, I'm sure none of my friends really care if I found £25 quid this morning, but I've told them anyway.

I'm also fascinated by the constant checking up on it. Like an addiction, it has to be checked every 5 minutes. What am I looking for? Do I want someone to post something to me? Do I want to talk to someone in particular? No? Why do I keep going back and scanning the pages for something... what is it I'm looking for? Do I even know?

I left FB in 2010 for about 4 months and it was great. Only 1 of my 500 or so "friends" noticed and sent me a very angry text asking why they'd been deleted. 
I went back to it because it became so hard to contact people. Some people only seem to talk through FB or in person. Their "events" pages are the most useful thing and remain one of the reasons I like the site. It helps me organise myself and know when I'm invited to things, and now I'm back to how I was, a constant user. I even check it on my mobile phone.

Reactionary video screen shot.
Click Here for video

Take This Lollipop (2011) is a sort of Halloween prank for Facebook users. It is also a creepy commentary about how freely we allow permission to use, and how blindly we give away our information over the internet - especially via social networking sites.

I don't like disclosing any info over Facebook to any third party or whatever. So when I had a go at 'Take This Lollipop' I found these first two screens really funny. They're way more blunt and obvious than the usual "we need this info" It's sort of like WE WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING!

You are then shown a video of a dark, dirty room where a creepy filthy man is looking through all your Facebook information, through your friends and photos.
He opens a map of where you live on Google maps (if you're stupid enough to put that information on your FB account) and then get in his car with a photo of you taped to the dashboard and comes for you.

Reactions to this have been great in the Blogosphere. People saying how wrong and messed up it is.
I sent it to a friend disguised as a game and got a terrified text at 2am saying "Why is there a creepy rapist coming for me?".

Personally I think it's brilliant. It gets a great mix of reactions, it's interactive (partially) and it has a really important message. It's also creepy but quite tongue in cheek. The title referring to the idea that we're told as children not to take candy from strangers, yet we're happy to do it online where we think we're safe.


It was created by director Jason Zada (click for link to his homepage) who works for American production company Tool.
 

I think I need to treat this year like a-Level's in order to succeed. I've got one big art project and one big writing project. I need to set Monday and Tuesday as art days and Wed/Thurs as english study days. i think this will lead to success.

I also need to treat the FMP which is what this blog is mostly for, as one very long project. Some people on the course have got storyboards, animatics, scripts etc... However i think this is going to be far more research based for the first term at least. By christmas break, I intend to have a solid idea, but until then I just need to keep researching and compiling things on this blog.

I'm sort of in 2 minds right now. Do I continue looking at indentity and online persona. Or do I focus mainly on creating something interactive and fun for the sake of it being interactive??
As long as I go down both roads for now I should come to a decision... HA!

Had a great conversation last night about motion capture - especially using motion capture gloves, which could be great fun for an interactive piece of image manipulation.

Just had my second meeting with the robotics boys to have my photo taken, which is now to be put into a computer program and collaborated with their robotic software. In november I have to go back for a full test in the motion capture suit. I'm so excited!

During the plague in the Middle Ages, some doctors wore a primitive form of biohazard suit called “plague suits”. The mask included red glass eyepieces, which were thought to make the wearer impervious to evil. The beak of the mask was often filled with strongly aromatic herbs and spices to overpower the miasmas or “bad air” which was also thought to carry the plague.


LINK

This has got me thinking a bit about masks and in the digital age, we use avatars/profile pictur

In late 2007, filmmakers Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost sensed a story unfolding as they began to film the life of Ariel's brother, Nev. They had no idea that their project would lead to the most exhilarating and unsettling months of their lives. A reality thriller that is a shocking product of our times, Catfish is a riveting story of love, deception and grace within a labyrinth of online intrigue.


This film address some of my questions about online relationships, looking at social networking and love.