Cellphones

The use of cellphones has changed over the years. Ten years back, the phone was used simply to call people that were not in close proximity of you. Now a days, phones are used as a GPS, as a search engine, and even for entertainment purposes such as games and music.
Pre-smart phone ages, cellphone's were a useful tool for people. It was deemed a resourceful way to communicate people virtually wherever you were. They made landlines and payphones obsolete. No a days, most people do not even have a landline and  payphone's are rarely used.
The creation of cellphones has also changed the way people behave. For instance, before people had the ability to pull up GPS on their phone, people would have had to go to the gas station or a public place and ask for directions. No a days, people find those kinds of things socially awkward and depend on their phone to help them find direction.
There is an unwritten phone etiquette that people abide by in our generation. For example, if someone is talking on their phone you generally do not interrupt them. But people have also become attached to their phone to the point where the outside world is obsolete to them. Often times you will see large gatherings of people that instead of having face to face conversation, have their heads buried into their phones.
Our generation has become accustomed to this boarder lined rude behavior and accept it. With the creation of smartphones, more and more stuff that we take for granted becomes obsolete.  

"The Medium is the Message"

Having a smart phone as the medium for a message has a different meaning five years ago from now. Phones are not only used to communicate with people through phone calls but now can be used to instantly share messages, play games, read the paper, and check into places you currently are. Phones have given people an outlet for coming up with more excuses to get out of everyday things such as reading the paper because it is too much of an effort to buy a paper from our local Walgreens instead of simply downloading an news App onto our smart phones.
What you can do on your phones has transitioned to being able to use other devices for the same application such as using a tablet or a Kindle. We have come up with a plethora of technological devises that can perform the same function.
The message is that we are becoming a society that is dependent on technology. We supply our children with cellphones at a young age and most teenagers cannot imagine a life pre-technology. We are ridding ourselves of items such as a map and instead we use the GPS on our phones. These mediums are becoming unappreciated.
I am not projecting a anti-technology view but more or less I am expressing that technology has changed dramatically in a short amount of time and is only going to progress providing users with more options in the future.

Facebook

Facebook has become an addiction for most. It is our source of news and our portal for anything a person could possibly like. Most importantly, Facebook has become a way to waste time; however, if used to its full potential, Facebook can be a resourceful tool. Facebook has become a portal for advertisement. Businesses can make a fan page. People can then like that page which shows up on their friend’s news feed which promotes that business even more. Supporting businesses tends to be something done purposely by users; however, people inadvertently advertise for movies and tv shows daily. When liking a fan page or making a status about a show you just watched, a person is creates a buzz about that show which makes advertisement for that show. Most of my friends utilize Facebook for posting statuses about television. With the transition of new media becoming the primary source of advertisement, Facebook is a resourceful tool to use, if used correctly.

New New Media

Paul Levinson’s book, New New Media is a culture shock because of its depiction of new media portals. Levinson introduces us to the concept of the consumers becoming the producer. It’s a concept that I had never considered until I read the very first chapter of his novel. With the unlimited internet access that everyone has admission to, anyone is able to become a producer. Internet users spread advertisements without even realizing it. Say you watched the finale of your favorite television show and you wanted to share what you just witnessed with everyone. You would just hop onto Facebook and make a status about it. Then you have people commenting on your status therefore advertising that show. People absentmindedly use social media as a form of advertisement on a daily basis. These portals have plat formed businesses as well as crumbled others. For example, most people hear about the news from Facebook, Imgur, or blog posts instead of tuning into the local news station or reading it online. The New Yorker is an example of a business that lost readers because most people can read the same news stories from other social media. Does that mean internet users have too much power in their hands? Not exactly. It just means that we are advancing and business need to learn how to work with the consumers. Internet popularity has spiked over the last ten years and is only going to become more progressive. With the transition towards New New Media, businesses can thrive.