This course, Writing in Digital Environments (ENC 4416), was one of the first courses I encountered that directly dealt with writing online. I minor in mass communication, so I was able to take other courses involving communication, social media, and a few others. However, this class was one of a kind as we directly focused on writing in digital environments. Our texts were very insightful as they brought things to my literal attention that I never thought about before.
Attention Span in Net Smart
In Howard Rheingold’s book NetSmart: How to Thrive Online he wrote about Five Literacies: Attention, Crap Detection, Participation, Collaboration, and Network Smarts. Attention stuck out to me the most out of the five literacies. Before reading this chapter I really didn’t care too much about how long I was spending online, on social media, and what I gave attention to and what I didn’t, and for how long. Even my perception of multitasking, I wasn’t fully aware of. I did recognized after reading the book, that when it came to me reading long documents, I would skim and search (as if I was searching Google) instead of actually reading and taking in what I needed to know. I would only skim for what I needed to know instead of reading the entire document to get full knowledge. So, I’ve been thinking more about attention and what I am paying attention to. What I really need to focus on and what I spend too much time focusing on. I also learned about distractions. This really hit home as I can get distracted very easily when working, especially online. It could be the TV in the background, the radio when a song comes on, checking e-mail or phone notifications, or me browsing other sites (aside from the ones I am supposed to be on), and anything else that takes my attention away from what I need to be doing. From reading the “Attention” chapter, I thought more about how I spend my time online. I’ve started trying to limit my time online, check my e-mails a few times a day (instead of constant) and read offline more. I’m still struggling with the distractions, however, I’m more aware that I need to stay focused when there is a task at hand.
I learned about “Attention”, but I think the most significant learning experience for me was reading Content Strategy. I’ve been one to constantly think creatively about my personal ideas and projects. Fan sites and groups are a little bit easier to maintain and create. However, creating something that is your own, your brand, is another thing. I’ve been trying to establish my personal blogs for a few years now. I would open and close them each time I run out of “content”. As I had written in my Twitter analysis about content, it takes more than just jotting ideas in a notebook. Time, effort, finding your niche, web design and online skills, and even the location/place, tools you need, and finances come into play. You also need inspiration and motivation, and I just seem to lack that over the time. I even had this issue with my fan sites. For the most part, I lacked drive, especially if I didn’t see a need for something or if I was participating and giving my all, and wasn’t getting in back in return.
With Content Strategy, since it’s easy to follow and has a TON of great ideas, I got inspired about re-crating my own brand and what I want. Chapter 5 (Audit), Chapter 6 (Analysis), and Strategy: Chapter 7 (Core) helped me the most. I think I just needed a refresher with the sites that I am currently running, and which direction I need to go with them.
Overall, both books helped me to think about being a better person online and what I do with my time online. Do I just browse Twitter and look at videos all day, or do I create something that will make a difference?
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