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Looking back at Topic 5

The issue of free web content is an extremely important one for us as students. Hollie made a similar point to me in terms of how frustrating publisher sites can be when researching a topic. I took a slightly different approach on how this could be changed in the long term, advocating a shift towards advertising rather than personal or institutional subscriptions. Continue reading →

Online access: positive or negative?

No such thing as a free lunch: adverts targeted at users subsidise free sites. Image: https://digitalfireflymarketing.com/why-facebook-free-use.   I was going to start with a wonderful article on the benefits of freely available web content – but I couldn’t remember my password to access it. I am, of course, joking. A great deal of web material is available for free, even if some publishers choose to charge a fee for many of their articles. Continue reading →

Looking back at Topic 4

This week’s discussion of social media ethics has raised some very important issues about morality and the place of higher powers to intervene. The general consensus appears to be that the situation is far too complex to be able to adopt a firm, stationary position. Many of the other bloggers have been re-evaluating their views throughout this topic.   I found Georgina’s post this fortnight to be very thorough and original in its examples. Continue reading →

Looking back at Topic 3

Maintaining a professional online presence is something that students really need to do – be it through one (very carefully) edited profile, or separate sites for home and work. I have never really understood employers’ reasons for monitoring the usually innocuous social media activity of their employees, but I know that they do. I am therefore aware that I must always update my profile with the expectation that future bosses are watching what I post. Continue reading →

‘I don’t care if you’re super outgoing or actually mute’ – how important is an online professional profile?

How can we create an authentic online professional profile? Can something so subjective ever be truly ‘authentic’? With the number of graduates now at its highest, competition for the best careers is fierce. Consequently, we students and professionals must be proactive in showing potential employers our skills and desire in order to stand out from the crowd. But what exactly constitutes a professional profile? It all sounds very grand and formal but it often isn’t. Continue reading →

Online identities: ‘yes, dog, you can have a profile – so long as you maintain it ethically.’

This pertinent debate links very naturally to the previous topic: digital literacy and approach towards web usage are fundamental issues in addressing the ethics, maintenance, and dangers of online identity. The arguments for having multiple identities focus on both personal and mass benefit to users. Aleks Krotoski suggested in The Guardian that psychologists advocate the freedom to explore various characters online as a means of exploring your own ‘identity’. Continue reading →