I typically don’t have much time to watch television, so I only have a few shows that I’ll watch, but to those I watch, I am very loyal: American Idol, The Bachelor (yes, I know it rarely works out, but it’s my guilty pleasure), and, even though it’s technically not a show, the World Series.

Of my three “shows,” only one of them offers viewing online, but I would rather watch them live. In my mind, this makes sense because they are all based in reality, and it’s more fun for me to experience the surprise of what happens in the moment. Plus, I love to talk about what happens during the show during the commercial breaks. Think about watching American Idol or The Bachelor. I don’t want to talk during the performance or judging or through the drama, so when commercials roll around, I get two to three minutes to share my thoughts with my roommates who are watching with me. That’s another reason why I watch television in my living room…I get to watch with friends. Usually when I watch TV online, I’m by myself, which makes my viewing experience a lot less fun.

However, if I miss an episode of the Bachelor, I am so thankful that it plays online. There are definitely positives for watching television online as well…fewer commercial breaks, for one. For some reason, the creators of The Bachelor decided to make the show 2 hours long, which at times seems dreadfully long. If I watch it online, it’s only an hour and a half. Sometimes when I’ve been busy all day with homework and need a break, I’ll go online and watch an episode of Samantha Who, which gives me a perfect 20 minute break without even getting out of my chair.

So although I would prefer to watch television in the living room with all my friends, I wouldn’t be able to fully keep up with my shows without internet TV. My question to you is, which do you prefer?

After reading an article with the statistics backing Facebook’s popularity, I found myself not at all surprised. When Facebook began, it was restricted to college students only – sort of a rite of passage. From my experience, I remember getting my Facebook page was much more exciting than when I got my MySpace page. As a matter of fact, shortly after I was on Facebook, I deactivated my MySpace account. After a few years, Facebook became so popular that it spread to high school students and now even to those well beyond their college years.

But why is Facebook so much more popular than MySpace? Curious to find this answer, I began to ask around. It seems, according to the college population with whom I spoke, Facebook is more user friendly; it looks cleaner. It’s easier to navigate to photos or friends, and you don’t have to wait that long to upload a friend’s page. Also, Facebook is more “welcoming.” When you join Facebook, it’s not only easier to network, but now friends can recommend friends, and before you know it, you’re in touch with hundreds of people, ranging from classmates and family to friends you haven’t seen in years.

In both their basic sense, Facebook and MySpace offer the same thing – social networking – but Facebook found a better, more appealing way, which is evident from the statistics.

Last week in one of my education classes, we discussed the importance of technology in our personal lives and in the classroom. As a class, we agreed that, on a scale of 1 to 10, our need for technology is a 10. We use it for communication, entertainment, research, etc. It’s hard to go one day without using some form of technology.

From an educational standpoint, the children that I’m going to have in a classroom have been at a 10 for their entire lives. Our generation lived through the experience of the days before the internet, dial-up, wireless, and now mobile internet. The generation in grade school, however, only knows a world dependent on technology.

So how will that affect my teaching when I enter the classroom? Although we do rely on technology a little too much, in my opinion, it doesn’t mean that I have to use it constantly in my classroom. Technology is a tool, and any tool used too much or without knowledge will lose its value in the classroom. I shouldn’t have to incorporate a Youtube video or a PowerPoint because I feel obligated to use technology since my students are around it all day. I can be just as effective if not more with merely a chalkboard and a piece of chalk. Technology is wonderful, and I can’t imagine my life without it, but I need to remember that it is a tool used to enhance not to overdose.

Are college textbooks expensive? Yes. Are they heavy and annoying to lug around to class everyday? Yes. Should we do away with them? I’m not sure.

Buying books is a hassle. If it’s a new edition of the textbook, then you have to pay the price for a new textbook. If it’s not, then you just have to make sure that you get the correct edition, and if you’re buying a used book, hope that the person who had the book before you was smart. Then there’s selling the book back. When you go to sell your basic history textbook (the one your professor told you that you had to get it, but also the one you never even opened), it will sell for half the price you paid, if you’re lucky.

With all that hassle, it just doesn’t seem worth it. I don’t think, however, that I’m ready to go to a web-based textbook. Yes, it will be cheaper and lighter, but I won’t get to physically touch the book. That sounds like a silly statement, but, as a mathematics education major, I learn much better by jotting notes or diagrams in the margins of my math textbooks. Since I do love working out math problems on paper rather than with technology, I’d say I’m a little more biased towards the hard copy textbook. Also, I’m really not a fan of staring at a computer screen for hours. Not that I’m a fan of staring at a textbook for hours, but if I have to stare at something for hours, I’d rather it be a textbook than a computer screen.

I’d say Chegg has a decent idea to attack this problem, by renting out textbooks. The cost would be much lower, and it’s a hard copy textbook, but there would be no opportunity to get any cash back at the end of the semester since the only options you would have are to buy the book or return it for free. It solves that financial end of the problem but not the physical effort issue. I can see why going web-based is a good idea, I just don’t know if I’m ready to go there yet.

Thank you so much for all your comments on my last post about Twitter. Clearly, I was missing a huge piece of what Twitter is. Although I understand now that Twitter has functions other than just updating status, I personally still don’t see any reason for me to adopt Twitter into my basic media routine. I am not (along with many other college students) the first person anyone should come to with questions or advice about technology. My exposure to technology and media is basic: I have a TV with a DVD player but no Tivo and a computer, which I use for Facebook, email, television shows that I watch online occasionally and I follow Ball State athletics.

I don’t keep up with the latest and the greatest gadget or application when it comes to technology, and, in the college world, I’m not alone. Before I wrote my last post, I talked to a few friends who do Twitter, and answering the question “What am I doing?” was primarily what they did (with the exceptional tweets to ESPN and the like). Those were the few friends who do Twitter; most of us stick to Facebook.

As college students, at least in my circle of friends, our lives are about school, sports, and socializing – mostly socializing. I can see all the wonderful possibilities Twitter has that you’ve mentioned, but in a student’s life at this point in time, social networking seems to be Twitter’s main function. We already have Facebook for that. For my life, Twitter isn’t something that I have time to do, and a lot of college students feel the same way. To a typical college student (not the early adopters, like David), adopting media solely because it’s the next and newest isn’t enough – it needs to benefit our lives in some new way and for now Facebook is sufficient for me.

I’m not the type to be up on the latest technologies or absolute newest trends in the media world, so it took me a while before I even heard of the most recent media “fashion”: Twitter. My first question when I heard about Twitter was: “What is it?” From my research I discovered that it is basically a series of Facebook statuses. Seriously?

I don’t even like to use my status update on Facebook, so Twitter has no purpose in my eyes. If a friend of mine really wants to know what I am doing at a certain point in time, then he or she can call me. I would much rather choose to have personal contact with a friend than have them check the web for my schedule.

Further, who cares? Frankly, I’m not interested in what someone is doing every single moment of his life, nor do I care what perfect strangers are doing at that point in time. It seems a bit weird if someone wants to spend their time reading up on what strangers are doing. To me, Twitter just seems like another excuse to lose more personal contact through technology.

Clearly others have a different opinion than mine or else Twitter wouldn’t be as popular as it is. It may even be bigger than simply knowing what people are doing, but I don’t see it. What do I seem to be missing?