On Political Issues
Although early video games surfaced in a peaceful capacity, such as Pong, there have also been many violent video games as well. An old instance of violent video games include Death Race from the seventies, where the player would physically run over gremlins in their car. However, violent video games have transcended running over pixel art gremlins indistinguishable from a piece of dust on your screen. Nowadays, franchises exist such as Grand Theft Auto, Mortal Kombat, Call of Duty, and Assassins Creed which are centered around violence, whether it be through shooting, stabbing, raping, or even genocide. One can definitely say that games have been linked to sex and violence. Curiously enough, the United States army found no problem with this at first. In fact, they considered violent games as "a useful took for training children," (Owens) probably through the desensitizing of violence. However, it's video gamers like the Columbine shooters who bring massive scrutiny to violent video games. After all, both of the murders in the Columbine shooting were linked to playing a notoriously violent video game called Doom.
There are many and deep views regarding this complicated situation. Parents have taken on a certain hysteria regarding video games. Not only are many parents worried about all video games negatively impacting their children (not just violent video games), they blame the misbehavior of their children on games. Many have even gone so far as to ban all video games within their household. In fact, it is that very concern of parents that politicians and the media have manipulated. In fact, there are many who use violent video games as a scapegoat for the violence in their country. As mentioned earlier, the link between the Columbine shooters and the video game Doom has been used to blame video games for a county's violent tendencies (even in the wake of a militarized American police force and other television influences). In contrast, gamers themselves find little fault in the video games but in the parents themselves. After all, all video games have ratings (ranging from E-Everyone to M-Mature) allowing parents to get an idea for the appropriateness of a video game without having to do deep research. In addition, many video gamers blame parents for the improper supervision of their children and a failed education of morals.
It is hard to determine who is to blame and whether or not certain claims can be trusted. Considering the depth of the views above, blame is challenging to determine and that debate goes fairly unsolved. However, the effects of violent video games comes less in-determinant. In fact, there is lots of evidence that links violent games to short term aggression (Owens). This makes sense considering the psychological nature of "phases" and the way certain games glorify violence, criminality, and even suicide bombings. However, there fails to be substantial evidence in the long run. Most of this evidence is not hard, but soft, and is still widely and commonly pushed by various media outlets as if they were solid and reputable.
With the unfortunate amount of disagreement and uncertainty, there is a lot to wonder about and a lot of research to be done, regarding violent video games and video games in general.
Owens, Alisdair. "Political Issues In The Video Game Industry: Violence And Gaming". 2016. Presentation. <http://zaltys.net/uni/awoies.ppt>.
Friday, April 29, 2016
Research Post #3 - Career Paths
On Career Paths
Programmers are the archetypal bay area tech workers, but there is actually a lot more going on. Within programming, there are different branches. Common examples are of "developers," who often program for computers and other physical devices, and "web developers," who program for the internet and various websites. Though now there are many newer branches such as game development, mobile development (yes, for your phone), and enterprise development (because businesses require more efficient and durable software/programs than the common consumer). Each branch of development requires slightly different skill sets, mostly rooted in the various or specific programming languages that should be known. For example, a web developer will want to know python, java script, ruby, and maybe some PHP while a mobile developer will want to know C#, pronounced "C Sharp," and some Swift. So in order to be immersed in these markets, one will want to get familiar with various programming languages and learn about programming logic. This can be achieved a variety of ways. While some people go take programming classes in their local community college, there are also others who get degrees in Computer Science, which has the perk of reducing the professional "ceiling" when certain positions require specific majors and qualifications. However, there are also a myriad of programmers who just learn for themselves from books, via YouTube videos, or just online. Although this will not always grant a specific degree or certificate, this is a great way to get in to programming, especially if one does not have much free time as one can go at their own pace. Lastly, a theoretical knowledge will often limit how one can get a career in programming. It comes down to projects and work experience to distinguish interview candidates. For this reason, many professionals keep an online portfolio exhibiting their projects or include an additional section in their resume listing the various projects they have worked on.
Believe it or not, the tech industry consists of more than just programmers, no matter how iconic the image of a programmer coding in a hipster coffee shop may be. For example, there are certain companies that must deal with huge quantities of data in various databases. Think about the health industry and how much patient information must be kept track of. Not only must the databases stay maintained, but they must be well optimized too. This makes space for that Database Administrator. Now let's imagine that all of the hospital network's patient information is super confidential and must protected- introduce cyber security specialists. Cyber security specialists able to protect information because of their knowledge of hacking (similar to how doctors are able to both end life and save lives). It is assumed that all of that data (protected by cyber security specialists) must be stored somewhere. Specifically, these data are stored on physical servers which also must be continually updated and maintained. After all, certain pieces of hardware are expected to fail (eventually) and impact of these failures typically should be minimized. The System Administrator typically keeps the servers running smoothly (which typically do not run on Windows or Mac OS X, but another operating system called Linux). Lastly, all of the servers, devices that link with the servers, and administrators need to be able to interact and stay connected. The solution is through networking, a mixture of both private networks (inaccessible via the public internet) and connections to the Internet. The Network Engineer keeps track of all of the networks and keeps them running. This involves tampering and adjusting the settings for numerous routers and range extenders that are strategically placed throughout the physical work space as well as many other tedious tasks.
Though I may have used the word "lastly" above, there are still many new positions that are constantly being created. These include "data algorithms, machine learning, social networking, predictive analytics, big data storage and analytics (like my contact V who works with Hitachi Data Systems), mobile marketing" and many more. That being said, none of those positions even include the numerous non-technical positions that must be in any company. After all, tech companies still have payroll departments, human resources, public relations, advertising, and many other professions involved. To be quite frank, one doesn't even need to be a technological wizard to be in the tech industry. Though there are definitely numerous opportunities there.
Various Authors. "What Are Different Career Options If I Am Interested In Computers?". Career Village. N.p., 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2016. <https://www.careervillage.org/questions/1547/what-are-different-career-options-if-i-am-interested-in-computers>.
Programmers are the archetypal bay area tech workers, but there is actually a lot more going on. Within programming, there are different branches. Common examples are of "developers," who often program for computers and other physical devices, and "web developers," who program for the internet and various websites. Though now there are many newer branches such as game development, mobile development (yes, for your phone), and enterprise development (because businesses require more efficient and durable software/programs than the common consumer). Each branch of development requires slightly different skill sets, mostly rooted in the various or specific programming languages that should be known. For example, a web developer will want to know python, java script, ruby, and maybe some PHP while a mobile developer will want to know C#, pronounced "C Sharp," and some Swift. So in order to be immersed in these markets, one will want to get familiar with various programming languages and learn about programming logic. This can be achieved a variety of ways. While some people go take programming classes in their local community college, there are also others who get degrees in Computer Science, which has the perk of reducing the professional "ceiling" when certain positions require specific majors and qualifications. However, there are also a myriad of programmers who just learn for themselves from books, via YouTube videos, or just online. Although this will not always grant a specific degree or certificate, this is a great way to get in to programming, especially if one does not have much free time as one can go at their own pace. Lastly, a theoretical knowledge will often limit how one can get a career in programming. It comes down to projects and work experience to distinguish interview candidates. For this reason, many professionals keep an online portfolio exhibiting their projects or include an additional section in their resume listing the various projects they have worked on.
Believe it or not, the tech industry consists of more than just programmers, no matter how iconic the image of a programmer coding in a hipster coffee shop may be. For example, there are certain companies that must deal with huge quantities of data in various databases. Think about the health industry and how much patient information must be kept track of. Not only must the databases stay maintained, but they must be well optimized too. This makes space for that Database Administrator. Now let's imagine that all of the hospital network's patient information is super confidential and must protected- introduce cyber security specialists. Cyber security specialists able to protect information because of their knowledge of hacking (similar to how doctors are able to both end life and save lives). It is assumed that all of that data (protected by cyber security specialists) must be stored somewhere. Specifically, these data are stored on physical servers which also must be continually updated and maintained. After all, certain pieces of hardware are expected to fail (eventually) and impact of these failures typically should be minimized. The System Administrator typically keeps the servers running smoothly (which typically do not run on Windows or Mac OS X, but another operating system called Linux). Lastly, all of the servers, devices that link with the servers, and administrators need to be able to interact and stay connected. The solution is through networking, a mixture of both private networks (inaccessible via the public internet) and connections to the Internet. The Network Engineer keeps track of all of the networks and keeps them running. This involves tampering and adjusting the settings for numerous routers and range extenders that are strategically placed throughout the physical work space as well as many other tedious tasks.
Though I may have used the word "lastly" above, there are still many new positions that are constantly being created. These include "data algorithms, machine learning, social networking, predictive analytics, big data storage and analytics (like my contact V who works with Hitachi Data Systems), mobile marketing" and many more. That being said, none of those positions even include the numerous non-technical positions that must be in any company. After all, tech companies still have payroll departments, human resources, public relations, advertising, and many other professions involved. To be quite frank, one doesn't even need to be a technological wizard to be in the tech industry. Though there are definitely numerous opportunities there.
Various Authors. "What Are Different Career Options If I Am Interested In Computers?". Career Village. N.p., 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2016. <https://www.careervillage.org/questions/1547/what-are-different-career-options-if-i-am-interested-in-computers>.
Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Research Post #2 - California Bay Area Connection
On California Bay Area Connection
Technology, invention, development, and design are popular association that people make with the California Bay Area. Nicknamed Silicon Valley, there is no disputing the connection between California Bay Area and technology. After all, Silicon Valley is home to many large companies such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Salesforce, and many more.
The origins of the connection between technology and the California Bay Area actually arose out of Cold War tensions. When the Russians launched Sputnik, the first artificial man-made satellite to orbit Earth, Americans were shocked by the communist's massive scientific leap forward. It didn't help the American psyche that Russians even launched Sputnik II into orbit before the United States could. As a result of competitive Cold War interactions between the United States of America and USSR, Americans "feared that the Soviets' ability to launch satellites also translated into the capability to launch ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear weapons from Europe to the U.S." (Garber, 2007). This fear did not limit Americans; it drove many deep into scientific and technological development. This led to the invention of America's National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which required advanced conductors and semi-conductors for various technologies.
This is where Silicon Valley makes its way into our story; it was that need for powerful components that created the demand satisfied by the California Bay Area. In fact, Fairchild Semiconductor, creator of semiconductors, was the first manufacturer in the Bay Area and spurred "Silicon Valley’s innovative, risk-taking culture" (Haroun, 2014). At first it was the hardware companies that emerged. Companies such as AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel (all still thriving today) spearheaded hardware development by creating processors and graphics processing units (also known as GPUs). After hardware followed the software industry (like Adobe, Symantec, and VMWare), who specialized in programming and software engineering. Finally, the Internet industry came to Silicon Valley (often characterized by the later development of the Cloud). The result is an entrepreneurial hotbed of both well established companies and smaller start ups with room for programmers, hardware specialists, as well as hundreds of other working professionals willing to immerse themselves in the future.
Garber, Steve. "Sputnik And The Dawn Of The Space Age". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. N.p., 2010. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Haroun, Chris. "A Brief History Of Silicon Valley, The Region That Revolutionizes How We Do Everything". Entrepreneur. N.p., 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Technology, invention, development, and design are popular association that people make with the California Bay Area. Nicknamed Silicon Valley, there is no disputing the connection between California Bay Area and technology. After all, Silicon Valley is home to many large companies such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Salesforce, and many more.
The origins of the connection between technology and the California Bay Area actually arose out of Cold War tensions. When the Russians launched Sputnik, the first artificial man-made satellite to orbit Earth, Americans were shocked by the communist's massive scientific leap forward. It didn't help the American psyche that Russians even launched Sputnik II into orbit before the United States could. As a result of competitive Cold War interactions between the United States of America and USSR, Americans "feared that the Soviets' ability to launch satellites also translated into the capability to launch ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear weapons from Europe to the U.S." (Garber, 2007). This fear did not limit Americans; it drove many deep into scientific and technological development. This led to the invention of America's National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), which required advanced conductors and semi-conductors for various technologies.
This is where Silicon Valley makes its way into our story; it was that need for powerful components that created the demand satisfied by the California Bay Area. In fact, Fairchild Semiconductor, creator of semiconductors, was the first manufacturer in the Bay Area and spurred "Silicon Valley’s innovative, risk-taking culture" (Haroun, 2014). At first it was the hardware companies that emerged. Companies such as AMD, NVIDIA, and Intel (all still thriving today) spearheaded hardware development by creating processors and graphics processing units (also known as GPUs). After hardware followed the software industry (like Adobe, Symantec, and VMWare), who specialized in programming and software engineering. Finally, the Internet industry came to Silicon Valley (often characterized by the later development of the Cloud). The result is an entrepreneurial hotbed of both well established companies and smaller start ups with room for programmers, hardware specialists, as well as hundreds of other working professionals willing to immerse themselves in the future.
Garber, Steve. "Sputnik And The Dawn Of The Space Age". National Aeronautics and Space Administration. N.p., 2010. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Haroun, Chris. "A Brief History Of Silicon Valley, The Region That Revolutionizes How We Do Everything". Entrepreneur. N.p., 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Tuesday, April 26, 2016
Post #7 - April 26
So last week was pretty cool. I followed up with SH and actually got to go in to the office at Obscura Digital last Friday (at the expense of my AP Calculus class...). Let me begin by saying that while the building's exterior seemed both industrial and generally drab, the inside felt like something out of the movies. Specifically, the movies with all the super cool modern tech companies. Not only was the interior sleek and clean (void of fluorescent lighting), they also had some of their own works on display as well as some pretty cutting edge technologies (like OLEDs). Anyways, the office visit started with a brief interview with my contact SH. I talked about my interests, experience, and background to SH. From there, SH told me about how the office works, what goes on each floor, an overview of each department, an overview of the kind of work that is done, and opportunities for me in the office. After that, we talked briefly about my schedule (which is mostly up to me and my own availability). From there, he took me on a tour of the building and personally introduced me to all of the software and hardware staff that were in that day. It was actually a super exciting visit and SH has confirmed my internship starting Tuesday, May 3, 2016 at 10:00 AM.
Summary: Went to Obscura Digital to meet with SH and now my internship is official
Summary: Went to Obscura Digital to meet with SH and now my internship is official
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Post #6 - April 19
Ay! I got an internship! After leaving two messages, SH returned my call. Even though I was in Philadelphia for the White Privilege Conference, I picked up the phone immediately and talked with SH. He graciously gave me the internship so I'll get to intern with Obscura Digital! He plans on getting me to shadow someone who is a Software Engineer, which is very relevant for me. If you could not tell by my last post, I am very excited to work with Obscura Digital. At this point, I've emailed SH my contact information, available hours, available dates, and when I will be able to come in to visit(that will be explained a little later). Currently, we are discussing hours and an exact schedule. I wish my schedule was not so complicated but various AP tests have make my proposed schedule seem quite... complicated. Oh well... Not much I can do about that part.
Also, SH has requested that I come in to the office sometime soon to meet the team and get a feel for how the office works. This will only last an hour, yet I am excited to do that too. Available times were emailed to SH and hopefully I can get the office visit accomplished this week.
Summary: Internship is official, planing on visiting the office soon, waiting on exact schedule.
Also, SH has requested that I come in to the office sometime soon to meet the team and get a feel for how the office works. This will only last an hour, yet I am excited to do that too. Available times were emailed to SH and hopefully I can get the office visit accomplished this week.
Summary: Internship is official, planing on visiting the office soon, waiting on exact schedule.
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Research Post #1 - Funding
On Funding
The video game market may seem only accessible to a few people, but has developed substantially over the years. Even if one glimpses simple profit stats of the video game industry and compared them to the film industry, there is no comparison. According to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the companies that do all the ratings for film (such as G, PG, PG-13, etc.), the global box office for all released films was $35.9 billion dollars in the year 2013 (MPAA, Inc., 2013). While this is a huge amount of money, the video game industry made $70.4 billion dollars according to the Global Games Market Report of 2013 (Newzoo Corporation, 2013), more than thirty billion dollars more than the film industry. Even though video games may cater to much more niche demographics, there truly is an abundance of funding.
Curtly, funding of the video game industry comes from sales. As with most industries that rely in sales, such as the film industry, advertisements, exposure, and publicity are crucial to the release of video games and video game systems (such as those of Xbox, Playstation, and Nintendo). However, not all of the publicity is done via conventional advertisements. Online forums and popular internet video/YouTube sensations carry a lot of influence. When considering the top factors influencing decisions to purchase video games, word of mouth is the third most popular factor after price and interesting premise (ESA, 2015). The result is a culture that not only is willing to purchase the physical games, but a culture that can be profited off of by selling console systems, console accessories, extra in-game content, extra in-game currency, early pre-release orders, special edition copies, and endless merchandising. Not only is there a lot to be sold, but there a lot of willing purchasers. In fact, that very culture consists of approximately 155 million Americans who play video games (ESA, 2015). However, it should be noted that this does not include the many other gamers across the planet (especially Britain, Australia, China, and South Korea). Furthermore, that statistic doesn't even take into consideration the developing mobile market. While many are resistant to buying game consoles, the ownership of smartphones has become so typical that mobile games have increased in popularity. This is also contributed to the convenience of online mobile game marketplaces such as the App Store and Google Play). The video game industry has become more accessible to the general public and increased in size, making for a large increase in funding.
Entertainment Software Association. "The 2015 Essential Facts About The Computer And Video Game Industry". 1st ed. Washington DC: ESA Entertainment Software Association, 2015. Print. http://www.theesa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ESA-Essential-Facts-2015.pdf
Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. "Theatrical Market Statistics - 2013". Motion Picture Association of America. N.p., 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Newzoo. "2013 Global Games Market Report". Newzoo Insights. N.p., 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
The video game market may seem only accessible to a few people, but has developed substantially over the years. Even if one glimpses simple profit stats of the video game industry and compared them to the film industry, there is no comparison. According to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), the companies that do all the ratings for film (such as G, PG, PG-13, etc.), the global box office for all released films was $35.9 billion dollars in the year 2013 (MPAA, Inc., 2013). While this is a huge amount of money, the video game industry made $70.4 billion dollars according to the Global Games Market Report of 2013 (Newzoo Corporation, 2013), more than thirty billion dollars more than the film industry. Even though video games may cater to much more niche demographics, there truly is an abundance of funding.
Curtly, funding of the video game industry comes from sales. As with most industries that rely in sales, such as the film industry, advertisements, exposure, and publicity are crucial to the release of video games and video game systems (such as those of Xbox, Playstation, and Nintendo). However, not all of the publicity is done via conventional advertisements. Online forums and popular internet video/YouTube sensations carry a lot of influence. When considering the top factors influencing decisions to purchase video games, word of mouth is the third most popular factor after price and interesting premise (ESA, 2015). The result is a culture that not only is willing to purchase the physical games, but a culture that can be profited off of by selling console systems, console accessories, extra in-game content, extra in-game currency, early pre-release orders, special edition copies, and endless merchandising. Not only is there a lot to be sold, but there a lot of willing purchasers. In fact, that very culture consists of approximately 155 million Americans who play video games (ESA, 2015). However, it should be noted that this does not include the many other gamers across the planet (especially Britain, Australia, China, and South Korea). Furthermore, that statistic doesn't even take into consideration the developing mobile market. While many are resistant to buying game consoles, the ownership of smartphones has become so typical that mobile games have increased in popularity. This is also contributed to the convenience of online mobile game marketplaces such as the App Store and Google Play). The video game industry has become more accessible to the general public and increased in size, making for a large increase in funding.
Entertainment Software Association. "The 2015 Essential Facts About The Computer And Video Game Industry". 1st ed. Washington DC: ESA Entertainment Software Association, 2015. Print. http://www.theesa.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ESA-Essential-Facts-2015.pdf
Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. "Theatrical Market Statistics - 2013". Motion Picture Association of America. N.p., 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Newzoo. "2013 Global Games Market Report". Newzoo Insights. N.p., 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
Monday, April 11, 2016
Post #5 - April 12
So I have my first actual contact. For anonymity, I will refer to the contact as SH. SH works at an awesome company called Obscura Digital (link) that works in phenomenal large scale projections. If you have ever seen San Francisco's City Hall's 100 year celebration, the Exploratorium's opening on Piers 15 & 17, the Visa Superbowl projections, or the Pier 70 Super Bowl projections (linked here, here, here, and here), than you have seen their work and its grand spectacular nature. Not only would interning/shadowing for Obscura International be unbelievable, I think it would be useful. Any sort of production of theirs would require intensely close teamwork and collaboration from people in different fields. This reminds me of Tom and my own project since we will have to work closely even though we will be working different fields, his design and mine development. Anyways, I am excited to have not only this contact, but such an interesting contact. I have called him once today and left a message.
On another note, V, who connected me with SH, still plans on connecting me with more contacts until I manage to successfully secure an internship/shadowing/volunteer opportunity. I am very glad that she is tapping in to her personal and professional relationships for me. The real challenge for me will be cold calling and representing myself well. It will be quite the challenge!
With that being said, I am in a pretty good place right about now. While nothing is set yet, there's both potential and progression. The internship search is no longer stagnating.
On another note, V, who connected me with SH, still plans on connecting me with more contacts until I manage to successfully secure an internship/shadowing/volunteer opportunity. I am very glad that she is tapping in to her personal and professional relationships for me. The real challenge for me will be cold calling and representing myself well. It will be quite the challenge!
With that being said, I am in a pretty good place right about now. While nothing is set yet, there's both potential and progression. The internship search is no longer stagnating.
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