Learning is fun.

Learning is not studying. The word 'studying', personally, conjures images of a despaired student hunched over a desk frustratingly yanking his or her hair because of his or her lack of ability to memorize, and the amount of inordinate stress placed upon said person. Learning, however, is subtly different- the true acquiring of knowledge, not hard-memorizing data through repetition.

That said, what IS e-learning? e stands for electronic, so it's obvious that the word implies learning through electronic (digital) tools, such as computer interfaces. While the positives may be aplenty, such as extreme convenience, flexibility and accessibility, there are several drawbacks as well. F2F remains the richest form of communication, and who's to say an online student may be AFK or checking his or her Facebook/MSN concurrently? This is the main reason why academic certificates granted over the internet are still not as recognized as the ones from standard, tangible, brick-and-mortar institutions.

However, that's not to say that digital learning is totally useless; on the contrary in fact. It enables sharing of ideas across borders, and the amount of rich media content can truly engage an individual or a classroom. The tricky part here is balance- harnessing the power of the internet and all of its digital counterparts, together with the essential element of actually being there with your instructor and classmates, to create a truly conducive learning environment for all involved. But with holographic technology on the horizon, who's to say that you have to be there, to be there?

What is FREEDOM?

Today we had a presentation on China's commmunications regulations- more specifically, regarding the omnipotent technology that is the Internet. While many aspects and topics were covered, such as the theory that a country's governance system generally decides the extent of control and freedom, we've also concluded that political history plays a big part as well.

In the feudal era, the emperor of China decided what was good for his populace, because in his mind they did not know what's good for them. Contemporarily, the government might have taken this very same deep-rooted perspective with regards to communication control. Perhaps the authorities feel that the citizenry isn't mature enough for self-regulation, and that too much freedom might result in chaos and social instability.

We shouldn't always look at things from the perspective of a Westerner, for opinions and perspectives differ broadly across cultures and continents. That said, the Grass Mud Horse is a pretty humourous and witty attempt from the Chinese at defying their government's stern stance on internet censorship! Do you see it in the picture below? Click on the link above to find (and laugh) out more!

Social Media

No, it's not media that is sociable per se (HA!), it's media that, in this context of internet computing, "describes the online technologies and practices that people use to share opinions, insights, experiences and perspectives with one another".

Surely, you'd have thought of several ubiquitous examples by now. Friendster, Facebook, MSN, Skype, blogs... Even podcasts are considered part of this ever-evolving aspect of modern living. Most people know how to use these technologies, but how well do you really know them? These that, in a mere decade ago, seemed absurd to even conceive of?

For instance, RSS is a tool that enables users to receive updates from online publishers as and when they choose to, greatly enhancing convenience for the regular visitor, while also ensuring that the publishers get their content fed to all who want to read them as efficiently as possible. It's almost like having a dog that fetches a select piece of newspaper from the newsroom, everytime a new story is published! RSS stands for Rich Site Summary, by the way.

According to some, the prevalence of social media has caused several problems (particularly for adolescents) such as internet addiction, social isolation and invasion of privacy; in my personal opinion, while all these are valid, noteworthy problems, it is just as important to realize that the technology of social media is an incredible power that works both ways- if used the right way, many, if not all, will stand to benefit from its host of advantages. Well, thanks to the online community encyclopedia that is the Wiki, you can find out more about social media... right now.

Google Docs > MS Word/Open Office?

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As diligent undergraduates, we have numerous research papers to write on a (much too) frequent basis; Microsoft Word and the free, open-source program that is Open Office are probably the most widely used platforms on which we compose our dissertations; while they offer a host of benefits such as formatting and solid stability, they have to be downloaded and installed to be utilized.

Now, if you were to use a public computer that has limited administration rights that prevents you from installing programs, you might not be able to do your homework there and then, and by the time you get home you'll probably forget the brilliant ideas you had in your head, due to distractions such as your Playstation 3 or Xbox.

The invention of Google Docs is a fantastic solution to this problem- you can do your work online anytime, anywhere, regardless of the computer you're on, so long as you've an internet connection. The other benefits, as listed on the official page, include:

• Upload from and save to your desktop
• Edit anytime, from anywhere
• Pick who can access your documents
• Share changes in real time
• Files are stored securely online
• It's free!

In my opinion, Google Docs is an extremely useful tool for everyone to compose essays/love letters and communicate project ideas on the go. Yet another awesome service from the computing behemoth that is Google. And no, I'm not working for Google... yet. ; )