A Photo Worth A Thousand Words

Photographs have been said to be the windows of one's soul hence capturing the reality of that particular place, time and space. Photography encapsulates day to day experiences and expresses the photographer's ideas, visions and aspirations. The camera presents real-life images that were taken in past.

Photography by definition is the art or process of producing images of objects on photosensitive surfaces. Photography has become an essential form of information to the world and at the same time allows people to preserve memories that are important to them. Photography has become easier for one to excess in essence of doing it as a hobby. Cameras have evolved in time and it has become unproblematic for one to enjoy the simple art of taking pictures. On a totally different level photography is being used for different purposes other than those for recreational purposes, photographs are being used as sources of evidence in courts of law and are also being used to create a level of lifestyle in fashion. Photographers have the ability to capture real life situations that can be viewed over a long period of time. These forms of documentation allow the world to see how other people live and practice their culture, in such events people from across the globe have and were able to see what was going on in certain African countries at certain times. This revolutionary technology allows people that live in different countries to send their loved ones photographs of themselves in an instant via the Internet. In some cases people can place photographs of themselves on their profile in chat rooms and the recipient can see what they look like, if they are honest with the picture they put.

Photographs in this day and age along with the ever-changing technology, images can be manipulated by the photographer to what they want to see. To a certain level this has made people weary of whether what they are looking at is in actual fact the truth. Photography to a certain extent is a key ingredient to the formation of an individual's identity, in the sense that from a young age a person has photographs taken to show and represent their growth in life. At times certain rituals are documented to show the world how certain people people live. Photography enhances our perception of the world because it terms of people that rely on what the media shows them that is the idea that they will carry until they see those particular images for themselves. Photography influences our everyday experiences for example, fashion photography which has created a certain lifestyle in the sense of what is accepted in the fashion industry according to body size and shape and can to a certain degree be blamed for the cases of anorexia in young girls around the world that are inspired to model for these fashion houses.

All in all photography has made it possible for people to express themselves and at the same time document their life struggles and triumphs through this imagery. It is important to view photography has a vital part of our lives as it keeps track of the world we live in and at the same time helps us shape and document our culture and identity as individuals.

Cell phones and Marketing

Cell phones are now being used for advertising. When one sends or receives a please call me from any network a little advert is sent with sms. This creates awareness for the product being advertised and reaches many people because cell phone users often send and receive please call me’s. Advertising is also being used when one accesses the internet from their mobile phone. It is the same concept that is being used for webpage’s, business’s pay for the space that they occupy. Cell phone networks also use cell phones to advertise for their business. For example when I go on the Vodafone live website I see banners that are being displayed. It is advertising new cell phones or new contracts or any other promotion that Vodafone has. It is the same with MTN, Vodacom, Cell C and Virgin Mobile.
There are also many mobile websites where one can download ring tones, Wall papers, pictures and so on, these websites charge people for their downloads . there are also advertisements on television that tell people that if they phone a certain number they can download for free but there is always a catch and most people do not read the fine print and therefore they get scammed. People can also use their cell phones to send sms’s for competitions that are advertised and for voting on shows such as Idols. Then your cell phone number goes into a data base and is sold to other organisations for marketing purposes, then you are bombarded with useless information that most people just delete. Cell phones have had a major impact on marketing and advertising and it is on the increase.

Simone L Abraham

The downloading process

Upon hearing the wording downloading for the first time, one could imagine that is could be a daunting experience but downloading is not a difficult task. Like any other new process, one just follows the instructions directed by the pc, because computers are so advanced they can in some way think for you (and we all love it when the computer shows you, your errors). Website such as BBC radio have taken the initiative in teaching people how to download, there is a step by step process in which one can follow. This website goes to the extent in defining certain terms in which one will come across during the downloading experience. One needs to note that downloading can be done on your cellphone (you carry a downloading tool wherever you go). It’s all very well that one is able to access the latest popular music, but a burning question is who actually pays for all this magic that you have been able to get your hands on?

" My precious"

I currently have a Samsung ZV10 cell phone; to me it has been the greatest phone that I have owned. Now I need to upgrade my Vodacom Top up contract, but I cannot decide on which phone I want to take. My phone has been through two years of hard work, good times and bad times. It has been dropped several times and it even rolled down my drive way. My cell phone currently has sticky tape holding the battery to the phone, but I still cannot part with it. It has great features such as 3G and it is a Vodafone live cell phone, that means I can browse the internet for free and it the internet connection is as fast as ADSL. It also has video calling which is my favourite feature , I have a sister in Pretoria and a boyfriend in Durban while I live in Pietermaritzburg , so I want to see them I just video call them and instantly I can see and talk to them. It is fantastic. My cell phone also can multitask, meaning I can make a call and send a sms at the same time or simply switch from internet to make a call by a click of a button. I am also able to able to listen to my favourite music via the MP3 player. It has other “basic” features such as sms, mms, camera, video camera, games, internet and Bluetooth. I never thought I would become so attached to my mobile phone.

Simone L Abraham

The cell phone experience

I never thought that something small, black, and hard could be such a blessing. What I am I on about, it is my cell phone . It has changed my life and the lives of the people that are around me. Sometimes I sit back and wonder how people ever lived without one, even my mum who is in her 50’s wonders how she ever managed without one. Its original function was to make calls and now it has become a multi tasking technology. It can be used to sends short messages (sms), multimedia messages (mms), for video calling, as a camera or video camera and now people can use their phones to go onto the internet. It has changed the way people communicate; now people can contact others in an instant either by call or by message. Business people can take their work any where, parents can track their children’s where about or parents can be contacted in an emergency. People feel safe when they are driving long distance because they know they have their mobile phones in case of emergency and now with GPRS on cell phones one can find their way around the country. It has brought people closer together through technology , the phenomena of MXIT has changed young adults lives by keeping in contact with their friends from around the country and world by instant chat at a cheap rate. If it was not for cell phones then there would be no MXIT. Cell phones have become an important part of our lives.
http://www.historicaltextarchive.com/s/history-of-cell-phones.php

Simone L Abraham

The concept of Downloading

With the many different technologies which have been put in place one is able to do anything and everything with just a click of the mouse. In the last century the world has been bulldozed with the phenomena of downloading, this interesting concept allows one to acquire information, music, movies and games by a simple procedure. There are various websites one can log onto to obtain music etc. downloading has brought with it a convenience factor which has helped many people out there, instead of one going to the shops to go buy a movie or a CD, you now have the luxury of sitting in the comfort of your home or office in fort of your PC, and paying a fee to get the song or movie on the spot. Downloading can be defined as “To copy data (usually an entire file) from a main source to a peripheral device. The term is often used to describe the process of copying a file from an online service or bulletin board service (BBS) to one's own computer. Downloading can also refer to copying a file from a network file server to a computer on the network. In addition, the term is used to describe the process of loading a font into a laser printer. The font is first copied from a disk to the printer's local memory. A font that has been downloaded like this is called a soft font to distinguish it from the hard fonts that are permanently in the printer's memory.” (http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/d/download.html).

Mosidi Seleke