Last Blog Ever

I think my title of this last blog probably sums up how I feel about CMC at the moment very well. I did learn a lot in this class. I never actually knew about the digital divide or just how many people have and still are researching many different aspects of CMC. I think that I was rather familiar with some of the technologies that we discussed in class and I use a few CMC devices on a regular basis.

I'm not completely sure what I expected from this class. I know that I did not expect to be online as much as we actually were. I did not expect to make a wiki for a final project and I know I did not expect to be blogging every week. This brings me to my next point.

I thought I liked technology and I thought I was much more up to date than I actually am. I have, thanks to this class, realized that I am rather old-fashioned and I do not enjoy CMC as much as I thought. I often times found myself annoyed when I logged on to write a blog because I had either forgotten which password or log-in name I was supposed to use or I really did not have much to say in my blog. Furthermore, if not for this class, I would not have a blog, and as soon as this class is over, I will not keep up with this one. I do not see any need to post things about how I feel to the world. Ironically enough, I do have a Facebook and MySpace account, but I really do not keep them updated as much as I could.

I also learned that I am not comfortable with meeting people online. I actually was very annoyed while reading the story about the disabled woman's love affair, and I felt a bit "weirded out" when we learned about online communities and people meeting their spouses online. Naturally, I thought that the porn and online stalkers were disturbing.

I do not think that I am going to change very much about the way I communicate online, and I do not see myself becoming more involved in online communities. The only way I can see myself being a part of another online community will be if I take another course that requires it of me or if one day I have a job that requires me to.

The biggest "oh wow" moment that I had during the last semester was when it dawned on me that I was not as technologically advanced as I thought I was. I was sitting at my computer trying to figure out how to do something for the class and I felt like my mother. I used to think she was so behind because she did not understand how to do ANYTHING on the computer. I used to make fun of her for asking how to do litterally EVERYTHING on the computer, and here I was, confused. I now know that if the day ever comes that I have children of my own, I will be the old lady in the computer room screaming, "Little Jamie! How do I sign on to the internet?!?!" I just hope my children don't roll their eyes as much as I did.