Monday, August 22, 2011

From SMS to Smartphones: Tracing the Impact and Developmental Trajectory of the Mobile Phone in Asia

From SMS to Smartphones:

Tracing the Impact and Developmental Trajectory of the Mobile Phone in Asia
13-14 February 2012, National University of Singapore

Asia is widely regarded as a region that has enthusiastically embraced information technology. This observation is especially true of the region's adoption and appropriation of the mobile phone. The affordability, versatility and ubiquity of the mobile phone has had a discernible impact on Asia. Despite the significance of mobile phones in the Asian landscape, research on this topic  has been shaped by studies on the US and Scandinavia, while research on Asia is growing, but in its nascent stages. This workshop seeks to address the imbalance by bringing together researchers who are studying mobile phone trends in Asia and collectively, workshop participants will discuss and deliberate over the global implications of their research findings and the developmental trajectory of the mobile phone. The workshop will be held at the Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore from 13-14 February 2012.

The workshop aims to be multi-disciplinary, comprising up to fifteen speakers who will have the opportunity for sustained discussion and engagement over two days. Based on the quality of proposals and the availability of funds, partial or full funding is available for successful applicants. Full funding would cover air travel to Singapore by the most economical means, plus board and lodging for the duration of the workshop. Priority for funding will be accorded to applicants who are based in Asia. We invite those interested in participating in the workshop to submit original paper proposals which should include a title, an abstract of 500 words, a short biography of 250 words by 15 September 2011. Papers that have been selected will be notified by 30 September 2011. If accepted, the full paper must be submitted by 30 November 2011. Selected papers will be developed and included in a special journal issue or edited volume. Please see the workshop website<http://blog.nus.edu.s
 g/cnmblog/2011/08/16/call-for-papers-for-workshop-from-sms-to-smartphones-tracing-the-impact-and-developmental-trajectory-of-the-mobile-phone-in-asia/>   for submission details.

Set within the Asian context, the workshop seeks to address questions including, but not limited to the following:
*

does a digital divide exist in Asia with regard to mobile phone penetration and usage trends and if so, how can and should they be remedied?
*       what are the implications of the development of mobiles - especially smartphones and mobile Internet - for contemporary media in Asia?
*       how is the growing proliferation of the smartphone facilitating unprecedented forms and scales of communication?
*       how are the location based services offered by smartphones altering user behaviour?
*       how does mobile Internet use complement and possibly complicate fixed location Internet use?
*       what implications does the growth of smartphone apps have for the cultural complexion of Asian countries?
*       to what extent do smartphones and the behaviour which they enable test the boundaries of existing regulatory frameworks?
*       how does the rising ubiquity of the smartphone and by implication, that of always-on, always-available Internet access challenge prevailing theoretical frameworks relating to inter alia, technology acceptance, mobility, communication, social influence and identity?

Workshop Convenors

Associate Professor Sun Sun LIM (sunlim@nus.edu.sgsunlim@nus.edu.sg>)
Department of Communications and New Media, National University of Singapore
Prof Gerard GOGGIN (ggoggin@usyd.edu.auggoggin@usyd.edu.au>)
Department of Communications, University of Sydney

# posted by Unknown : Monday, August 22, 2011

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Inventor Colm McMullan promises football app revolution


Inventor Colm McMullan promises football app revolution

iPhone
It is being billed as the iPhone App that will change the way you watch football, and the man behind it is very much hoping it does.
Colm McMullan came up with the idea of taking all the statistics that are shown at the end of a football match and putting them into a smartphone app.
People can use it to analyse the data, track every pass, see how a player's influence changes through the game, or compare teams or players statistics.
The idea is that it will resolve those football pub fights, or be the perfect aid to anyone planning a fantasy football team.
The app market is growing fast, with new apps springing up each day promising to revolutionise the way something or other is done. But Mr McMullan has picked his business path very carefully.
Originally from Randalstown, in County Antrim, he left a high-flying job with Microsoft to go it alone and try and turn his bright idea into a reality.
Total Football was launched for the world cup in 2010, but when the company that provides the data - Opta - saw how well the app was selling they decided to get in on the act.
They worked in partnership with Colm and had a follow-up app running for the Champions League last season. Now the big-guns are joining in.
This week the next app has been launched under the banner of football magazine FourFourTwo. It's a three-way partnership between the magazine, Mr McMullan, and Opta, and they all get a split of the revenue.
"FourFourTwo provide the kind of brand recognition and audience marketing that I could only dream of", said Colm.
So while others who develop an app either work hard and try and earn a living from it, or sell it and take their cut and run, Colm has chosen a different business route.
Not only does he receive a development fee, but he still gets a cut of the revenue for his app which is now running under a much bigger logo.
According to Colm, with the right execution, a bright idea really can turn into a big business success within the rapidly developing app market.

# posted by Unknown : Sunday, August 21, 2011

Thursday, August 11, 2011

BlackBerry to help police probe Messenger looting 'role' Met police claim popular, encrypted and free Messenger service fanned riots in Tottenham and helped organise looting

Rioting in Tottenham
BlackBerry has promised to help police investigate claims its Messenger service helped fuel and organise riots and looting in Tottenham, north London. Photograph: Lewis Whyld/PA
The maker of the BlackBerry, Research in Motion, said on Monday night that it would co-operate with a police investigation into claims that its popular BlackBerry Messenger service played a key role in organising the London riots.
Scotland Yard vowed to track down and arrest protesters who posted "really inflammatory, inaccurate" messages on the service, and the social networking websites Twitter and Facebook.
Patrick Spence, the managing director regional marketing at Research In Motion (RIM), confirmed that the BlackBerry manufacturer had contacted police to assist with the investigation.
However, the statement prompted fears from some BlackBerry users that their private messages could be handed over to the police.
"We feel for those impacted by the riots in London. We have engaged with the authorities to assist in any way we can," Spence said. He added that RIM complies with UK legislation on the interception of communication and co-operates fully with the Home Office.
RIM refused to comment further or answer a series of questions on the statement.
BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) appears to be the favoured method of planning the unrest that has swept across north London since Saturday evening. Unlike text messaging or Twitter, BBM is a free, private social network where almost all messages are encrypted when they leave the sender's phone – meaning that many messages are untraceable by the authorities.
RIM can be legally ordered to hand over details to police of users suspected of unlawful activity. However, the Canadian company would be likely to resist those demands and the content of users' inflammatory messages would be encrypted. The manufacturer has previously insisted that even it cannot unscramble users' messages when sent on the devices.
Although Twitter and Facebook have played a key role in past unrest in the capital, the Tottenham riots are thought to be the first in the UK so heavily orchestrated using BlackBerry Messenger.
The "broadcasts" – which are sent instantly from one-to-many BBM users – have been reposted and amplified on Twitter and Facebook. Evidence of rioters planning where to hit next spread quickly on the networks as the police struggled to keep up.
One BBM broadcast posted on Monday evening appeared to urge protesters to go looting in Stratford, east London. "If you're down for making money, we're about to go hard in east london tonight, yes tonight!!" it said. "I don't care what ends you're from, we're personally inviting you to come and get it in. Police have taken the piss for too long and to be honest I don't know why its taken so long for us make this happen. We need a minimum of 200 hungry people. We're not broke, but who says no to free stuff. Doesn't matter if the police arrive cos we'll just chase dem out because as you've seen on the news, they are NOT ON DIS TING. Everyone meet at 7 at stratford park and let's get rich."
Another broadcast implored protesters to "unite and hit the streets" in Kilburn, north-west London. On Sunday BBM users were urged to head to Oxford Circus for "pure terror and havoc & free stuff".
Steve Kavanagh, the deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan police, said that "really inflamatory, inaccurate" messages on Twitter were mainly to blame for the disorder. "Social media and other methods have been used to organise these levels of greed and criminality," he said at a press conference on Monday afternoon.
Asked whether those behind the messages could be arrested, Kavanagh said: "Absolutely." He added: "That investigation is already under way and that is exactly the sort of thing we are looking at."
The main Facebook page set up in memory of Mark Duggan, the Tottenham resident whose death last week triggered the weekend riots, on Monday sought to distance itself from the violence.
The tribute page, which had close to 10,000 fans at the time of writing, on Saturday called for users to share videos and pictures of the torched double decker bus and police cars "to send the message out as to why this has blown into a riot".
On Monday the page struck a more conciliatory tone as unrest spread further across the capital. "If people cared about this 'Tribute' page, they will stop burning & looting. Those who encourage it, well you need to grow up. Mark's family do not need this!" those behind the page posted.

# posted by Unknown : Thursday, August 11, 2011

The competing arguments used to explain the riots

Technology and social networking

"Social media and other methods have been used to organise these levels of greed and criminality," Steve Kavanagh, the deputy assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan police, told reporters.
This is an under-explored phenomenon, suggests Prof Wilson.
"For years we've been aware of gangs and football hooligans have been using technology to get together and fight. I think the police have been quite slow to respond to this.
"But as we know, mobile phones can also be used to counteract criminality and to an extent I think that's something the police prefer to downplay."

# posted by Unknown : Thursday, August 11, 2011

Is technology to blame for the London riots?

Did social media and mobile telecommunications fuel this weekend's violence in London?
A number of politicians, media commentators and members of the police force have suggested that Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger, in particular, had a role to play.
Undoubtedly, some of those involved chose to chronicle their exploits live - from the midst of the action - using mobile phones.
A few were apparently even foolish enough to upload pictures of themselves posing proudly with their looted haul.
Others offered suggestions for where might be good to attack next, leading the Met's deputy assistant commissioner, Steve Kavanagh to say he would consider arresting Twitter users who appeared to incite violence.
But some experts fear the extent to which technology is to blame may have been overstated.
Misquoted
In its coverage, the Daily Mail quoted one tweeter, AshleysAR as follows: "Ashley AR' tweeted: 'I hear Tottenham's going coco-bananas right now. Watch me roll."
However, AshleysAR's full, unedited quote on Twitter reads: "I hear Tottenham's going coco-bananas right now. Watch me roll up with a spud gun :|".
Suddenly the tone of the message becomes markedly less sinister. Ashley later threatens to join in with a water pistol.
Despite the claim of Tottenham MP David Lammy that the riots were "organised on Twitter", there is little evidence of their orchestration on the site's public feeds.
Looking back through Saturday night's postings, DanielNothing's stream offers some promise of substantiating the theory with his comment: "Heading to Tottenham to join the riot! who's with me? #ANARCHY".
But it is followed soon after by: "Hang on, that last tweet should've read 'Curling up on the sofa with an Avengers DVD and my missus, who's with me?' What a klutz I am!"
BlackBerry smartphone BlackBerry's BBM requires users authenticate their contacts with a PIN
Another user - Official Grinz - appears to have been the first person to tweet the words "Westfield riot", referring to the west London shopping centre. Although his message seems to be tongue in cheek and there is nothing to suggest that he was more than observer, commenting on events as they unfolded on television.
The subject of a Westfield riot became widely discussed, but ultimately failed to materialise in the real world.
So why is the ratio of apparent incitement to action so low?
Freddie Benjamin, a research manager at Mobile Youth, believes that much of the online noise is just that.
"Once someone starts posting on a BBM group or Twitter, a lot of young people try to follow the trend," he told BBC News.
"They might not join the actual event, but they might talk about it or use the same hashtag which makes it sound like there is a lot more volume."
Such postings build what Mr Benjamin refers to as "social currency", elevating the messenger's sense of belonging to a group.
Private business
Away from Twitter's very visible feeds, there are perhaps more credible reports that rioters were using private communication systems to encourage others to join the disorder.
Following Saturday's trouble in Tottenham, a number of BlackBerry users reported receiving instant messages that suggested future riot locations.
BlackBerry's BBM system is known to be the preferred means of communication among many younger people.

“Start Quote

They might not join the actual event, but they might talk about it or use the same hashtag which makes it sound like there is a lot more volume”
End Quote Freddie Benjamin Mobile Youth
Users are invited to join each other's contacts list using a unique PIN, although once they have done so, messages can be distributed to large groups.
BBM is both private and secure, partly due to the phones' roots as business communication devices.
For that reason it is hard to evaluate how much information was coming out of the riots or how many people were suggesting alternative targets.
But despite the closed nature of BlackBerry Messenger, police may still have a chance to examine some of the communications that took place.
Research in Motion, which makes Blackberry phones, issued a statement in which it promised to work with the authorities.
It pointed out that, like other telecoms companies, it complies with the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) which allows law enforcement to gain access to private messages when they relate to the commission of a crime.
Recruiting tool
What will concern investigators most is the extent to which recipients acted on any messages sent out.
Dr Chris Greer, a senior lecturer in sociology and criminology at London's City University believes that smartphones will have aided those involved, but are unlikely to have persuaded reluctant recruits to join the rioting.
"I don't think it is having any impact on the motivation to protest in the first place," he said.
"But once people have mobilised themselves and decided to take to the streets it is certainly much easier to communicate with each other."
Dr Greer pointed to the example of the 2009 G20 riots in London.
A report into the police handling of the protests, produced by Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary (HMRC) found that technology had aided the rioters more than the police, he explained.
"Their methods of communicating with each other or pointing out where the police were at any given time and therefore where the protesters shouldn't be, and basically organising themselves was so much more sophisticated than the police."
It may turn out, after a more careful examination of the various messages being pinged around, that this was indeed a social networking crime spree.
The Met has indicated it is ready to act on any information it finds.
But that will take time and a more methodical study.
The extent to which investigators are able to sift out genuine rioters from the internet 'echo chamber' and then bring real world prosecutions will provide valuable lessons, both about the use and abuse of technology, and also law enforcement's capacity to deal with it.

# posted by Unknown : Thursday, August 11, 2011

النقال أثناء القيادة يسبب الحوادث

النقال أثناء القيادة يسبب الحوادث

التحدث في الهاتف أثناء القيادة يفقد السائق التركيز (الجزيرة نت)
أسامة عباس-براغ
أكدت دراسة حديثة أعدتها جامعة مدينة أولوموتس التشيكية أن أغلب طرق التحدث عبر الهاتف النقال أثناء القيادة تتسبب بحوادث سير خطيرة حتى مع استخدام جهاز السماعة عن بعد دون الإمساك بالهاتف، لانشغال المخ بالحديث في حين يبقى التركيز على تعليمات القيادة ضعيفا جدا.
ويقول معد الدراسة الطبيب النفسي راديم بادوشيك إن السائق رغم إمساكه جيدا بمقود السيارة، فإن استخدامه جهاز السماعة (هاندز فري) والتحدث مع شخص اَخر يشعره بالأمان المزيف، الأمر الذي يجعله يسترسل في الحديث وبنسبة تصل الى 60% من قلة الإدراك، مشيرا إلى أن تأثير هذه الحالة وخطرها يكاد يكون أسوأ من قيادة السيارة تحت تأثير الخمور.
وأظهرت دراسة أجريت على حوالي 25 متطوعا، تساو بالنسب تقريبا بين الأشخاص الذين تحدثوا بشكل مباشر عبر الهاتف النقال، وبين من تحدثوا عبر السماعة فقط، من حيث عدم الانتباه وضعف التركيز أثناء القيادة، كعدم تذكرهم للطرقات الفرعية ولافتات مثل انتبه-تمهل-توقف، وغيرها من الاشارات الضرورية.
وبينت الدراسة على سبيل المثال أن الذين تحدثوا عبر السماعة وكانوا يقودون السيارة بسرعة 70 كلم في الساعة استخدموا الفرامل بعد أن قطعوا مسافة 22 مترا في 1.2 ثانية، أما الذين لم يستخدموا النقال فقد استخدموا الفرامل بعد تسعة أمتار فكان الفرق بينهما 13 مترا، في حين أن الذين تحدثوا بالهاتف مباشرة دون سماعة فكان رده الفعل عندهم متأخرا بفارق 18 مترا مقارنة بمن لم يتحدثوا بالهاتف.
وقال رئيس العيادة النفسية لدائرة براغ السابعة الطبيب يرجي تيل إن حالة الوعي الكامل أثناء الاسترسال في الحديث تأخذ الحيز الأكبر من التفكير وتختلف من شخص لآخر، فالبعض يبذل الجهد ويحاول السيطرة على الحديث والقيام بأعمال أخرى، لكن تبقى النتيجة في النهاية أن انحيازهم إلى التركيز على المناقشة أكثر من القيام بالواجب العملي، لذلك يكون رد الفعل بطيئا من الحالة العادية من النشاط الذهني الكامل أثناء القيادة على سبيل المثال.
وأضاف تيل للجزيرة نت عبر الهاتف أنه يجب عدم التقليل من أهمية قيادة السيارة بشكل كامل، لأن هذه المسألة تحتاج لتركيز بنسبة لا تقل عن 90%، خاصة قراءة اللافتات والتقيد بالسرعة واستخدام الفرامل في الوقت المناسب لتجنب وقوع الحوادث.
ويشير إلى أن مسألة استخدام السائق للنقال بشكل مباشر أو عبر السماعة أو حتى التحدث مع الآخرين في السيارة أثناء القيادة، كل هذه الأمور يمكن أن تتسبب في الحوادث وبنسب متفاوتة لأن قيادة السيارة تحتاج للتفكير والاستيعاب ورد الفعل السريع والقدرة على التحكم بالسيارة بسرعة وليس العكس، لأن ذلك يساعد في إنقاذ الموقف المفاجئ والطارئ من أجل سلامة الآخرين أثناء القيادة.
ويذكر تيل أن أحد مرضاه  كان يعاني من حالة شرود الذهن فقط دون أن يتحدث بالنقال أثناء القيادة، وتسبب بعدة حوادث سير تم على إثرها سحب شهادة القيادة منه.
وقال هذا المريض إن آخر حادث وقع له كان بسبب انشغاله بالتفكير في حل بعض المشاكل، مشيرا إلى أنه لم يستعمل الفرامل نهائيا بعدما فوجئ بسيارة متوقفة أمامه وسط المدينة تريد الانعطاف نحو اليسار وتنتظر خلو الشارع المقابل من السيارات، مما جعله يصطدم بها وبسرعة 60 كلم في الساعة، ليستيقظ على إثرها في المستشفى بعد أن دخل في غيبوبة.

# posted by Unknown : Thursday, August 11, 2011

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