VIRTUAL COMMUNICATIONS: What Is It? Who’s It For? What’s Its Future? Dr. Karen LankischAndy Curran, M.Ed.
Communications Evolved With The Internet Cooperative Collaborative tools Group communication Multiple people communicate without necessarily knowing each other
How Technologies Will Change Communication In The Future Mobile Universal Converged multimedia Affordable
Virtual Communications What Is It? Modern technological phenomenon Broad spectrum of concepts, technologies, and practices central to our daily lives Communicate with others instantaneously Breaking down barriers Transmission of information and or action to remote or distant locations
Virtual Communications What Is It? Revolutionized the way we live and work Facilitates the ability to know and understand how to access and share information electronically Portal through which a world of limitless learning opportunities exist
Virtual Communications Who’s It For? Everyone Changed the way work gets done Work has shifted from individual tasks to group projects From working alone to working with others inside and outside an organization Employee’s work non-traditional times, work from home, multitask
Virtual Communications What’s Its Future? Traditional virtual communications tools – , networks, internet, telephones – Continue to increase in capacity and clarity Cost decrease Remainder of the world will connect In book The World Is Flat, Thomas Freidman – “The next generation is growing up online, rather than adapting to mid-adult years” – “The future is in their hands, though the rest of us will be taken along for the ride”
Integration of Virtual Communication Cell Phones Blogs Social Networks Microblogging VoIP
Cell Phone ChaCha – Text – Phone iPhone – Apps
Blogs Online journal Sharing information Video journal
Social Networks Private social networking site Online communities – focused Facebook LinkedIn Grouply Ning
Microblogging Broadcast short messages to your friends or "followers" Tweet What are you doing? Twitter Tweetdeck
VoIP Voice Over Internet Protocol Instant Messaging/Voice Call Tool – Immediacy – Students comfortable with tool Skype
RSS Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary Summary of web content RSS reader Google Reader