Heim Summary

In Michael Heim's Virtual Realism he talks about the definition of virtual reality, explaining the fact that the term virtual reality has a weak meaning and a strong meaning. The weak meaning is when the term virtual reality is used to describe anything that has to do with computers while the strong meaning is when the term is used to describe the actual experience of virtual reality which is characterized by what Heim calls the three I's: Immersion, interactivity and information intensity.
Immersion is the hallmark of virtual reality. When one is immersed he feels more like a participant in the experience than a spectator. Heim describes immersion as making an individual feel as if he has been transported to another place. Immersion can be facilitated in virtual reality through devices such as 3D graphics, surround sound, and other technological devices.
Interactivity comes from the individual participating in the virtual reality experience. This can occur in different ways depending on the type of virtual reality being used. For example in a flight simulator a device that is commonly used to train pilots the individual would move the controls as if he were flying a plane thus interacting in his virtual reality experience.
Information intensity allows the individual to gather information through something called telepresence. Telepresence occurs when the individual feels transported to another place through the virtual reality experience thus allowing him to gather information about an experience that he normally would not be able to gather information about.
Telepresence can occur in different forms and at different intensities. For example when we are on the phone we are experiencing a weak form of telepresence as we are limited to voice. When we go on the computer and stimulate more of our senses then the telepresence is of a stronger form.
In conclusion, Heim explains how through the three I's: Immersion, interactivity and information intensity individual's can truly experience virtual reality. Without the three I's it is possible to have a virtual experience but not necessarily one that is truly virtual reality. In addition telepresence is a key part of virtual reality and is becoming more and more common through not only our home computers but through simulators that are used by companies to train their employees in a safe and controlled environment.

Bolter & Grusin Summary

In Introduction: The Double Logic of Remediation by Bolter & Grusin the authors explore what they call the Double Logic of Remediation which is the fact that through remediation (the expressing of the same ideas through different forms of media) we as a culture want to increase our use of media yet want the experience of media to seem free of any contrivances. For example, when we go on a website and watch streaming video, listen to audio files, and read articles the idea is for the participant (notice I didn't say user but participant as the user is immersed in the media making him feel like a participant in the media experience rather than just a spectator) to feel totally immersed in the media experience and to not be conscious of how he is viewing the media but instead to feel what he is viewing, reading, listening to etc.

Bolter & Grusin also talk about hypermediacy which is the use at the same time of different forms of media thus giving us remediation. For example when I watch the television news I can at the same time watch pictures, read text scrolling along the bottom of the screen about something else, and even listen to audio all at the same time. This is hypermediacy at it's core, different forms of media bombarding the participant at once.

In conclusion, Bolter & Grusin explain how remediation has become the focus of our media culture, as well as of our lives and how hypermediacy allows the user to become immersed in the media. In some instances such as with the internet the user can even interact with the media making the immersion experience even more powerful. Remediation has drastically changed the way the average person views and experiences media and through ever improving forms of hypermediacy this is bound to keep changing even further in the future.

Wooley Summary

In Chapter 6 of Benjamin Wooley's Virtual Worlds A Journey in Hyper and Hyperreality, he examines how cyberspace has become another reality, one that mimics our own world yet has a life of it's own as well. For example, it mimics our own reality through the development of global villages which have developed through electronic networks in cyberspace, and which allow information to be freely transmitted across the globe negating the effects of distance. However, just as in the real world, devastating viruses can develop which can destroy this global community, causing businesses to be affected and in some instances global commerce to be brought to a grinding halt. This disrupts not only the cyber world but the real world as well. Lastly, Wooley states how cyberspace has changed the world we live in by making information a commodity that has not only changed the way people interact and businesses work, but sprouted entire industries such as the telecommunications industry. In conclusion, Wooley shows us how cyberspace is not only a virtual world but a very real world as well, one that affects real people in very real ways.

Blog 1

Writing in cyberspace is different than writing as we have commonly known it due to the interactive nature of the medium and the intensity of the need for more and more information immediately if not sooner. This pressure for information and the interactive aspect of cyberspace has changed the way people write. For example, in cyberspace articles are eschewed in favor of commentaries, opinions take precedence over facts, and "good" writing is that which conveys the author's point of view as concisely as possible. In addition, in cyberspace the author's ownership of his work is not clear as the writer may be posting his ideas on a website that he does not own making it possible that the owner of the writing is not the author but the owner of the website. This can lead to confusion and disputes over ownership of an author's work. In conclusion, writing in cyberspace is significantly different than "regular" writing in that the immediacy and intensity of the medium have changed the way people read and therefore the way people write. Conveying one's thoughts in the most direct way possible even if this way is not artful is favored over less direct arty prose as the immediacy of the medium dictates that not only won't today's writing live on for posterity it won't live on past the next person's entry.