No, not that avatar. I took some time on www.meez.com and created an avatar, which, in internet and computer terms, refers to a cartoon character online that you create and design in any way you want. Curious as to what the word "Avatar" means, I began to look things up to discover how it applies.
Avatar actually comes from Hinduism, and refers to the descent of a deity to the earth in some incarnate form. (Dictionary.com) Usually the avatar was something other than human, however it could still be human.
Interesting that we use this term to describe another "form" of ourselves in the digital world. But it is not necessarily how we look, but maybe how we believe we would look based on our likes, personalities, features, and wants, etc.
Then, looking at it from the view of all the "Open information" discussion we have been having in class, I wonder if, through Avatars, we will actually lose something in not being able to see the person face to face. Does it taint the information we receive from that person when all we can see is a cartoon version of, well, whoever they want to be?
P.S. You can see my Avatar at the side of this Blog Page.
Avatar actually comes from Hinduism, and refers to the descent of a deity to the earth in some incarnate form. (Dictionary.com) Usually the avatar was something other than human, however it could still be human.
Interesting that we use this term to describe another "form" of ourselves in the digital world. But it is not necessarily how we look, but maybe how we believe we would look based on our likes, personalities, features, and wants, etc.
Then, looking at it from the view of all the "Open information" discussion we have been having in class, I wonder if, through Avatars, we will actually lose something in not being able to see the person face to face. Does it taint the information we receive from that person when all we can see is a cartoon version of, well, whoever they want to be?
P.S. You can see my Avatar at the side of this Blog Page.
A couple years ago I participated in a big study using Avatars and afterwards in the debriefing we were informed that it's possible stores in the future will have a virtual environment with real-time data on available products. You would then control your avatar to purchase products and ask a virtual sales rep. avatar questions. I find it quite fascinating.
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