Guest Post: What is Your Digital Environmental Footprint?

Guest Post: What is Your Digital Environmental Footprint?

By Rachael Bradshaw on April 20, 2021 | Tagged with , , , ,

What is Your Digital Environmental Footprint?

by Sasha Krieger

As an environmentally conscious citizen, I make choices to recycle and consume less because I care  about the future of the planet. In an effort to combat global warming I vote for certain candidates, limit  my driving, and use reusable coffee cups and bags. While environmental awareness and activism is a  priority for many students, it is usually directed at that which we can see. As our digital lives and real  world are intricately intertwined, is it time that we start considering the impact of our digital identities  on the natural world? 

 

While our digital ecosystem seems invisible, digital infrastructures and devices are not immaterial. As  Ron Deibert explains in his 2020 Massy Lecture series, Reset: Reclaiming the Internet for Civil Society,  “for much of our day to day lives we are presented with a kind of technological mirage. Our  consumption of social media (and the communications ecosystem as a whole that support them)  generates a kind of hidden tax on the natural environment that we don’t feel, see, smell, or touch.” Online media is stored in data centers and transferred to terminals using networks, all of which require  electricity, consume resources and involve CO2 emissions. 

 

The carbon emissions associated with streaming media are particularly alarming. According to the Shift  Project, the transmitting and viewing of online video accounts for nearly one percent of global  greenhouse gas emissions. The carbon footprint of the internet is growing, and it is estimated by 2040  Information Computer Technology (ICT) systems will be responsible for 14 percent of the global  greenhouse gas emissions. This increase can be explained by what is known as the Jeeveson effect, as  resources become more efficient, consumption of them increases.

 

As more people around the world become connected to the internet, our appetite for data is increasing. As students we spend countless hours online, often streaming media on our devices. Whether binging Netflix to relax, watching video lectures, or streaming films through the Library, digital media is a major part of our personal and academic lives. Statements like “Netflix and chill” and “binge watch” have entered popular vernacular and it is easy to mindlessly consume media with little awareness that each click consumes resources and drives up emissions.  

 

The precise environmental impact of streaming media is difficult to calculate because it involves a  variety of systems and infrastructures. While network services are increasingly efficient, video streaming  produces different levels of greenhouse gas emissions depending on energy sources, technology, and  behaviour. Simon Fraser University Professor Laura Marks offers several solutions for mitigating your  carbon footprint. These include:  

  • Streaming less 
  • Watching videos at a low resolution 
  • Using physical media like DVDs whenever possible 
  • Going to the movie theatre 
  • Lobbying our governments to require that internet service providers build carbon taxes into  their business model 
  • Paying carbon offsets for streaming, as we do for air travel 
  • Resisting the urge to upgrade your old devices 

 

While changes in individual behaviour can help reduce the environmental impact of streaming media,  collective awareness and action is necessary. We can work together to help spread awareness of the  environmental impact of streaming media. While it is not realistic to abandon digital pursuits, we can shift how we interact with the digital world. As Ursula Le Guin wrote in her 2017 essay, Deep in  Admiration, “to use the world well, to be able to stop wasting it and our time in it, we need to relearn  our being in it”. By considering the materiality of digital media we can begin to move towards more  sustainable habits and work together to build a greener community.  

 

Were you previously aware of the environmental impact of your digital identity? What actions do you plan to take to reduce your digital carbon footprint?

 

Written by Sasha Krieger

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image BalticServers Data Center from WikiMedia Commons used under CC BY-SA 3.0

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Guest Post: What’s in My “Stream”?: Critical Knowledge for the Spotify User

By Rachael Bradshaw on April 7, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , ,

What’s in My “Stream”?: Critical Knowledge for the Spotify User

by Sam Davidson

With 286 million users, Spotify is the world’s most popular music streaming platform, and there’s a good chance that you use it for your music listening needs [1]. What we don’t often consider when we’re putting in our earbuds is that Spotify is a powerful company that operates at the intersection of finance, advertising, technology and music. A few of its stakeholders include small peas like Facebook, Goldman Sachs, and Coca-Cola [2]. Spotify shares user data with all the major record labels–every click, skip, blip and bloop is used to strategically generate new content just for you… and to raise their stock prices too.

 

There is an intricate web of influences happening between all of these actors. What happens, unfortunately, is something that I refer to as “The Spotify Echo Chamber”. Spotify presents data to stakeholders, stakeholders respond to data and adjust new content, users react and generate new data…you get the picture [3]. It’s the kind of vicious cycle that lands Ed Sheeran with a world-record 2.5 billion streams of a single song [1].

Graphic created by Sam Davidson, source [3].

So, we can see that when Spotify recommends you a song, it is because in some way it is valuable for them to do so. Let me put that another way–Spotify determines the value of music for their own self-interest. They want you to adopt their cleverly branded music experience, playlists, and recommendations because, as Liz Pelly puts it in her article, Discover Weakly, “…a culture dependent on playlists, is dependent on Spotify” [4].

 

Forget “discovery”; at the heart of the platform is a recommendation system that chooses what songs find you! They do it with a suite of algorithms that work in concert, balancing each other’s strengths and weaknesses: Content filtering constructs a song profile based on characteristics like tone, timbre, harmony, and tempo, in order to find similar sounding songs [6]. A proprietary software called The Echo Nest is used for this process which also includes scouring the web for song mentions on blogs and websites in order to construct a comprehensive, socio-technical profile of each song [5].

 

Collaborative filtering finds songs that your friends like or songs in other user playlists with common content in order to generate recommendations. The creepiest of all, context-aware filtering, uses location and other real-time data synergized from apps on your smartphone. Put all these things together and they’ve got a “taste profile” just for you which they can also match with similarly profiled users [5].

 

So why all the concern? Spotify is not that bad, I mean, it’s no worse than doing ALL your shopping at Walmart, right? I argue that you owe it to yourself to know just what trade-offs you are making when you surrender your taste to machines.

 

There are several problems that these algorithms perpetuate. Spotify doesn’t broaden tastes, it narrows them by finding the path of least resistance: a passive, direct-to-consumer listening experience, devoid of cultural context. It also suppresses niche subgenres that don’t have a huge audience. This privileging of only popular genres can have adverse effects on minority groups who are often the artists working in diverse subgenres [7].

 

And since I mentioned privilege, gendering in Spotify recommendations is a well-documented problem. The algorithms have a nasty bias that makes male artists more visible than female artists [4]. The rock and hip-hop genres were shown to be particularly bad at presenting any kind of gender parity [8].

Graphic created by Sam Davidson, source [8].

In 2019, country superstar Martina McBride famously took to Instagram after finding she had to refresh 14 times before a single female artist was recommended [10]! What happens is that since Spotify’s algorithms assimilate data from so many sources and interests (stakeholders, users, programmers, labels) they essentially just reconstruct social narratives that already exist, namely the male hegemony that has been so prevalent in the music industry [8]. If Spotify is going to be the vessel by which the majority access music, they need to address these issues, and we shouldn’t be complacent about them.

 

So, what can you do? Well, consider alternatives like buying from artists directly through Bandcamp, Patreon, or other artist-centred platforms. Foster the arts by engaging with your local music communities and by actively cultivating your unique musical taste. Or just be wise to the veiled motives of the big players when you do indulge. Recommendation algorithms are everywhere these days, and you’d be smart to make up your own mind some of the time; your culture and your artists will thank you for it.

 

References

  1. Iqbal, M. (2020, Oct 30). Spotify Usage and Revenue Statistics Business of Apps. https://www.businessofapps.com/data/spotify-statistics/
  2. Chodos, A. T. (2019). Solving and Dissolving Musical Affection: A Critical Study of Spotify and Automated Music Recommendation in the 21st Century, UC San Diego Dissertations and Theses. escholarship.org/uc/item/2c27z9xk.
  3. Maasø, A., & Hagen, A. (2020). Metrics and decision-making in music streaming, Popular Communication, 18:1, 18-31, DOI: 10.1080/15405702.2019.1701675
  4. Pelly, L. (4 June 2018) Discover Weakly: Sexism on Spotify. The Baffler. thebaffler.com/latest/discover-weakly-pelly
  5. Prey, R. (2018). Nothing personal: algorithmic individuation on music streaming platforms. Media, Culture & Society, 40(7), 1086–1100. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0163443717745147#articleShareContainer
  6. Ciocca, S. (10, October 2017). How Does Spotify Know You So Well? Medium. medium.com/s/story/spotifys-discover-weekly-how-machine-learning-finds-your-new-music-19a41ab76efe
  7. Lucero, M. J. (2020, January 03). Music streaming services mishandle our data-and our culture is paying for it. Quartz. https://qz.com/1773480/the-problem-with-how-the-music-streaming-industry-handles-data
  8. Eriksson, M. & Johansson, A. (2017). Tracking Gendered Streams. Culture Unbound: Journal of Current Cultural Research. 9. 163-183. 10.3384/cu.2000.1525.1792163.
  9. Watson, J. E. (1 Oct 2019). Reflecting of Spotify’s Recommendation System. SongData. https://songdata.ca/2019/10/01/reflecting-on-spotifys-recommender-system/
  10. Reuter, A. (16 Sept. 2019). Martina McBride ‘Felt Like We’d Been Erased’ When Spotify Didn’t Recommend a Single Female Country Artist. Billboard. www.billboard.com/articles/columns/country/8530121/martina-mcbride-spotify-female-country-artists-interview.

Written by Sam Davidson

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image from www.songsimian.com used under Creative Commons

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Guest Post: Password Managers: How to create and keep track of strong passwords for multiple accounts

By Rachael Bradshaw on March 24, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , , ,

Password Managers: How to create and keep track of strong passwords for multiple accounts

by Dana Svitavsky

Passwords are an important part of internet life, and you can’t successfully use the internet without them. This means that it’s important to think about how your passwords are being kept safe. A study from the Pew Research Center in 2017 found out that “39% say that they use the same (or very similar) passwords for many of their online accounts” and that “25% admit that they often use passwords that are less secure than they’d like, because simpler passwords are easier to remember than more complex ones.” [1] The number of passwords we need to keep track of makes it tempting to prioritize convenience rather than safety. However, there are solutions that help you remember all of those passwords without compromising on security. Password managers are an excellent way to create complex passwords, easily change your passwords, and decrease the amount of memory space you need to remember passwords with.

I use the password manager provided by the browser Firefox. It features the option to create a randomly generated password for you. It will alert you if passwords have been stolen from a site you use, keeps track of when you created your password, and has you create a primary password that must be entered to gain access to all of your passwords. Firefox stores the primary key locally, so you need a primary key for each device you use. [2] Most browsers will have a password manager that you can use, and all browsers mentioned here use encryption to protect your data. The Google Chrome browser has a password manager that will save your passwords to your computer if you don’t sync devices, but if you do, your passwords will be saved to your Google account. [3] Microsoft Edge’s version will automatically save them into their cloud so that they are able to be synced. [4]

1Password encrypts your data and creates a standalone vault for your passwords that you can choose whether or not to sync between devices. They also give you updates on compromised websites. [5] Lastpass uses local encryption and makes it so your master password is never sent to their servers. [6] Nordpass was created by NordVPN and encrypts the data on your local computer before storing it in their cloud. [7] This makes it so only your local computer can decrypt your data. There’s also an option like KeePass that is open source and lets you look into the code yourself and make any modifications that you like. [8]

If you choose to use a password manager, make sure you remember your primary password to ensure that all of your other passwords are safe and accessible. There are many overlapping features between these managers and many other password managers that will also help you protect and manage your passwords. For now, you should have it in good confidence that your passwords will be safely encrypted by whatever password manager you use.

 

Do you already use a password manager? Or do you have another method to keep track of your passwords? How well do you think that your method protects your privacy? You can read more about how to create secure passwords at the UBC Information Security Office website.

References

[1] 1615 L. St NW, Suite 800Washington, and DC 20036USA202-419-4300 | Main202-857-8562 | Fax202-419-4372 | Media Inquiries, “Americans and Cybersecurity,” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech (blog), January 26, 2017, https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2017/01/26/americans-and-cybersecurity/.

[2] “Use a Primary Password to protect stored logins and passwords,” Mozilla, accessed November 24, 2020, https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/use-primary-password-protect-stored-logins?redirectslug=use-master-password-protect-stored-logins&redirectlocale=en-US/.

[3] “Manage Passwords – Computer – Google Chrome Help,” accessed November 24, 2020, https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/95606?co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop&hl=en.

[4] “How to Manage Saved Passwords in Microsoft Edge,” accessed November 24, 2020, https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoftedge/forum/msedge_profile-msedge_win10/how-to-manage-saved-passwords-in-microsoft-edge/e80f5472-5e37-4053-a857-5ec1e5f4fa94.

[5] “About 1Password and Your Privacy,” 1Password, accessed November 24, 2020, https://support.1password.com/1password-privacy/.

[6] “Password Vault Software | LastPass Digital Vault,” accessed November 24, 2020, https://www.lastpass.com/password-vault.

[7] “Zero-Knowledge Encryption: Extra Password Safety,” accessed November 24, 2020, https://nordpass.com/features/zero-knowledge-architecture/.

[8] Dominik Reichl, “KeePass Password Safe,” Text, accessed November 10, 2020, https://keepass.info/.

Written by Dana Svitavsky

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Login Monitor, from geralt used under Pixaby License

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Guest Post: The Many Sides of Being Social

By Rachael Bradshaw on March 10, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , , , ,

The Many Sides of Being Social

by Alannah Berson

In 2014, several drag queens found themselves locked out of their Facebook accounts because their names weren’t “authentic”. [1] The accounts had been flagged after Facebook instituted a “Real Name” policy that limits what types of usernames are allowed on the site and seeks to tie people’s online presence with their legal names.

While this connection already feels dangerous for many people, queer people are particularly vulnerable as legal documents do not always match someone’s name and gender identity.

Limiting you to a single account also merges social groups, putting friends, family, and colleagues all in one place. This makes it hard to control what aspects of your identity you share with each group. While you might want to share photos of Halloween with your friends, do you really want your grandmother seeing the same ones? The “invisible” audience of your account can make it hard to write posts, because each social group expects something different from you.  [2] Your uncle might expect you to be quiet and have nothing to say about politics, while your peers might know you to be outspoken about issues you really care about.

The Problem of “Authenticity”

Both platform algorithms (the programs combining the social media sites) and the sites themselves assume that there is one “truer” person behind multiple accounts. [3] This is unrealistic though, as many people have multiple sides to their identity: the respectful child, the goofy friend, the fanfic loving cosplayer, and whatever else strikes your fancy. For queer people, this tension is extra toxic because not everyone can or wants to be “out” and others might want space to try out new names and pronouns or ask questions without being identified before they are ready.

Why is This Happening?

Social media companies, especially those owned by Facebook (Facebook, Instagram, etc.), are instituting these changes in the name of cutting down on misinformation, online deception, and bullying. [4] One concern is so-called “sock puppet accounts”, which are multiple fake accounts created on a single platform in order to harass another user or manipulate a discussion. [5] However, this push for online “authenticity” also makes it easier for social media sites to sell targeted  advertising and mirror governments’ interests in online surveillance. [6] This is only the latest  issue in a long history of queer identities being erased online or targeted for censorship, but instead of the traditional routes of marking queer identities as obscene, they are marked as “inauthentic”. [7, 8]

What Do Algorithms Look for?

Facebook’s real name policy does not allow users to have a name with characters in multiple languages, puns, or titles (professional or religious). [9] Users are allowed “fan pages” for non-traditional names, like drag queens who often feature puns in their names. Any additional names must be listed as “aliases”. [10] It’s hard to imagine that most people want their pen names, real names, and deadnames all listed together in one place.

Instagram looks at whether the majority of your followers are in a different country than you and for instances of “coordinated activity,” but does not explain what this means. [11] So good luck if your Instagram page is popular in Asia while you live in Canada. However, the platform does not require your username or handle to match your legal documentation, which gives you slightly more wiggle room and creative space.

Both Facebook and Instagram can require you to show copies of your legal documents if your account gets flagged as violating their rules around names and/or authentic behavior. However, Instagram will not require you to share your legal name with your followers because “pseudonymity is still an important part of Instagram”. [12]

What You Can Do:

  1. Express your different sides on different platforms not owned by Facebook. Consider Nicole Lee’s Endgadget article, where she discusses using a network of Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to express her various sides. [13] Twitter in particular does not have a real name policy and has very few rules about what can or cannot be used in an online handle. [14] For instance, you could put your family on Facebook, your artistic side on Instagram, and your goofy/sarcastic side on Twitter.
  2. When choosing usernames, if you feel comfortable, consider crafting a pen name that follows established US English naming conventions, even if it is not your legal name.

Recommendations:

  • Do your research and be deliberate about how you use a particular platform. Each platform has distinct aesthetics and conventions, so lean into them like Dolly Parton did in her famous January 2020 meme about profile photos on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Tinder [15, 16].
  • Check your privacy settings on a regular basis to make sure you are only sharing things with the people you want to be seeing them.
  • Follow the artistic tradition of using a pen name and/or pseudonyms to help distinguish between one or more accounts and what part(s) of your identity they express. [17]
  • Only choose names that you are comfortable with. Your names and identities are all real and valid parts of who you are, so don’t let this note change that.

Do you think having multiple identities online is useful or important? Why? How do you manage your identities online? If you have any tips and tricks of your own, please add them in the comments if you feel comfortable doing so.

References

[1] Kitzie, V. (2019, April 10). “That looks like me or something I can do”: Affordances and constraints in the online identity work of US LGBTQ+ millennials. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 70(2), 1340-1351. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.24217

[2] Boyd, D. (2014). It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens. New Haven; London: Yale University Press. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vm5gk [Note: this resource is not open access]

[3] Haimson, O. L., & Hoffmann, A. L. (2016). Constructing and enforcing “authentic” identity online: Facebook, real names, and non-normative identities. First Monday, 21(6). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v21i6.6791

[4, 6, 10] MacAulay, M., & Daniel Moldes, M. (2016). Queen don’t compute: reading and casting shade on Facebook’s real names policy. Critical Studies in Media Communication, 33 (1), 6-22. 10.1080/15295036.2015.1129430 [Note: this resource is not open access]

[5] Kumar, S., Cheng, J., Leskovec, J., & Subrahmanian, V.S. (2017). An army of me: Sockpuppets in online discussion communities: Proceedings of the 26th International Conference on the World Wide Web. International World Wide Web Conference Committee. https://arxiv.org/pdf/1703.07355.pdf

[7] Duguay, S. (2018, December 6). Why Tumblr’s ban on adult content is bad for LGBTQ youth. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/why-tumblrs-ban-on-adult-content-is-bad-for-lgbtq-youth-108215

[8] Brethour, P. (2007, January 23). Little Sisters closing in on legal battle. The Globe and Mail. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/little-sisters-closing-book-on-legal-battle/article17989595/ [Note: This resource is not open access, but is accessible by making a free account]

[9] Facebook. (n.d.). What names are allowed on Facebook?. Facebook Help Center. https://www.facebook.com/help/112146705538576

[11, 12] Instagram. (2020, August 13). Introducing new authenticity measures on Instagram. https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-new-authenticity-measures-on-instagram#:~:text=We%20want%20the%20content%20you,pattern%20of%20potential%20inauthentic%20behavior.

[13] Lee, N. (2016, March 4). Having multiple online identities is more normal than you think. Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2016-03-04-multiple-online-identities.html

[14] Twitter. (n.d.). Help with username registration. Twitter Help Center. https://help.twitter.com/en/managing-your-account/twitter-username-rules

[15] Grey Ellis, E. (2020, January 24). Dolly Parton’s meme exposes social media’s masquerade. Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/dolly-parton-linkedin-facebook-instagram-tinder-meme/

[16] Parton, Dolly [@DollyParton]. (2020, January 21). Get you a woman who can do it all [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/dollyparton/status/1219681321762656256?lang=en

[17] Brewer, R.L. (2020, January 14). How and when should writers use a pen name or pseudonym?. Writer’s Digest. https://www.writersdigest.com/publishing-insights/how-and-when-should-writers-use-a-pen-name-or-pseudonym#:~:text=To%20use%20or%20not%20use,similar%20to%20your%20actual%20identity)

 

Written by Alannah Berson

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image from “What do CEOs think of social media” (2014) used under Creative Commons 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication

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Guest Post: Checking our Online Behaviour for Digital Blackface

By Rachael Bradshaw on February 23, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , ,

Checking our Online Behaviour for Digital Blackface

by Estelle Frank

In today’s digital age, we have more tools at our disposal to express ourselves virtually than ever before. From memes to GIFS to emojis to Bitmojis, visual representations of the emotion we may want to convey online is easily done on messaging or social media apps. But as Jackson (2017) writes, “no digital behaviour exists in a de-racialized vacuum”. If you look at the “popular” section on WhatsApp’s GIPHY extension, you’ll find the large majority of these GIFs convey images of Black bodies and expressions. Who has agency over these images and why they are so popular? We must reflect on these questions and how our digital modes of expressions may be implicit or explicit displays of digital blackface.

 

Digital what?

While digital blackface might seem like a recent term, its practice is actually deeply rooted in 19th century minstrel blackface (Jackson, 2017), a tradition that involved white performers covering themselves in dark makeup to portray exaggerated features of Black people (Vaughan, 2005).  While you may think this is an extreme example of radical white supremacy, many scholars point out how it’s actually not much different from non-Black social media users posting memes of Black people, thus cloaking racist ideals as humour and “harmless” jokes (Sevel-Sørensen, 2019 and Matamoros-Fernandez, 2020).

 

Memes

Of course, not all non-Black people share this content with the malicious intent of making fun of Black people. Some might feel like they relate to what the image and text convey — which often derives from African American Vernacular English (Jackson, 2017). That is, after all, where the French-originating term “même”, meaning “same”, comes from (Dean, 2016). The issue with claiming “relatable!” by circulating memes that are made by and for Black people is that it disregards the struggles and inequities that many Black people face. This is a manifestation of how systemic racism works exactly how it is set up to — in a way so insidious that only those directly affected by it tend to notice its effects.

 

Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 1″Ain’t Nobody Got Time For That” by NoiseBlankers is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

GIFS

GIFS are files that put images on loop, which tends to present the subject as overemotional or unusually receptive—a depiction labelled “animatedness” by Ngai (as cited in Chua, 2007). By taking these expressions out of context and using them for our own purposes, as in the meme above, we’re appropriating them and removing agency from the creators. Take the well-known example of Kimberly Wilkins, alias Sweet Brown, and the wide-spread use of her phrase “Ain’t nobody got time for that”. The issue with this notoriety is that “[i]n much of the media content about her, Sweet Brown had little or no agency, and was the ‘object’ of social commentary and ridicule” (Dobson & Knezevic, 2018, p. 382). Why do these images become so viral, anyway? Harris (2013) has one explanation: that it’s rooted in an unconscious desire to see Black people perform, to reduce them to a caricature and dehumanize them.

 

Conclusion

This post is a brief introduction to digital blackface and its pervasiveness on social media. My hope is that it will encourage social media users to take an active approach to educating themselves about the implications of many popular memes and GIFS, thus resulting in us checking out our own digital behaviour for displays of digital blackface and holding our peers accountable when we witness this behaviour on our feeds.

 

Where have you encountered digital blackface online? What is the most effective way to address this kind of behaviour? Feel free to share your thoughts so we can work towards normalizing this much-needed conversation.

 

References

Chua, E. (2007). Review of Sianne Ngai, Ugly Feelings. Retrieved December 17, 2020, from https://repository.brynmawr.edu/bmrcl/vol6/iss2/3/

Dean, A. (2016, July 25). Poor Meme, Rich Meme. Retrieved November 9, 2020, from        https://reallifemag.com/poor-meme-rich-meme/

Dobson, K., & Knezevic, I. (2018). “Ain’t nobody got time for that!”: Framing and stereotyping in legacy and social media. Canadian Journal of Communication, 43(3), 381-397.             doi:10.22230/cjc.2018v43n3a3378

Harris, A. (2013, May 07). The Troubling Viral Trend of the “Hilarious” Black Neighbor. Retrieved November 09, 2020, from https://slate.com/culture/2013/05/charles-ramsey-amanda-berry-rescuer-becomes-internet-meme-video.html

Jackson, L. M. (2017, August 2). We Need to Talk About Digital Blackface in GIFs. Retrieved November 9, 2020, from https://www.teenvogue.com/story/digital-blackface-reaction-gifs

Matamoros-Fernández, A. (2020). ‘el negro de WhatsApp’ meme, digital blackface, and racism on social media. First Monday, doi:10.5210/fm.v25i12.10420

Noise Blankers Radio Group. (2013, January 16). Ain’t Nobody Got Time For That [Illustration]. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/92278124@N07/8385958091

Sevel-Sørensen, S. (2019). Racial Performances On Social Media – A study of the Sweet Brown        memes (Master’s Thesis). Retrieved from: https://muep.mau.se/handle/2043/30430

Vaughan, V. M. (2005). Performing blackness on English stages, 1500-1800. Cambridge, New York : Cambridge University Press.

Written by Estelle Frank

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Man in Brown Leather Jacket Sitting Beside Woman in Brown Coat from Kiera Burton used under Pexels License 

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Guest Post: Personalized Personal Lives: Students vs. Filter Bubbles

By Rachael Bradshaw on February 9, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , , ,

Personalized Personal Lives: Students vs. Filter Bubbles

by Joe Wright

We’ve all likely seen and been told about how Google’s now seamless integration into our lives sometimes results in a blurring of our lines of privacy, but another hidden tactic of Google (and many other platforms) is ‘personalizing’ the information we’re shown to appeal to our preferences.

Whether companies do this to help you find information, or simply to show you things you’re more likely to click on, we should be considering how personalization affects the information we access.

For instance, what if I told you that your age, gender, sexual/political orientation, race, and occupation are among 14 attributes that can be successfully predicted from your digital footprint [1]? Or that more than 1 in 10 of your Google Search results could be put there just for you, based on these attributes [2]?

The effect of this personalization of content brings about the risk of ‘filter bubbles,’ spheres of algorithmically imposed ignorance that mean we don’t know how the content we’re seeing might be biased to please us and protect us from information that challenges our views [3]. There are some that play down their significance, but personalization effects have been shown to exist: it’s just the opaqueness of Google and other similar companies’ algorithms that make it hard to tell the extent.

In case you need reminding, the abundance of Google-run services that most of us use include Google Search, YouTube, Google Scholar, Google run advertisements, Google Home/Assistant, Chromecast, Google News, Google Play podcasts and more! Combine this with the fact that logging into a Google service also logs you into Chrome by default [4], and your filter bubbles might be shaping your reality more than you realize.

Maybe you’ve experienced this effect yourself. Let’s say you hear about clinical psychologist ‘Jordan Peterson’ in class, and you haven’t heard of him, so you Google him then watch some of his YouTube videos. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that you’ll be recommended more videos or news stories and even see more frequent search results supporting views similar to Peterson’s, including anti-feminist agendas or claims that white privilege is “a Marxist lie” [5], since algorithms are now showing you things that they know Peterson’s fans like.

The point is, when you don’t have any background in a topic that you’re interested in, it’s easier to be misled. This is especially true if you’re given only one side of the argument everywhere you look, including in your personal life, in ads, or browsing YouTube. YouTube claims to have tried to address the issue of extremist video recommendations [6], but journalists creating a new Google account and viewing just a few conservative leaning videos still find more misleading or hateful content recommendations [7]. Misinformation and intolerance exist in liberal contexts too, and while your results may not be extreme, they might still be warping your perception of certain issues.

How can I pop my potential bubbles?

Use your awareness of personalization to consider whether the information you’re being shown is balanced and genuine, making sure to check a variety of sources and utilize the techniques listed in this Digital Tattoo post: Fake News! Who Cares!

Next, you could stop Chrome logging you in automatically, delete your browser data and activity (using this helpful guide), or start using a search engine more focused on privacy like DuckDuckGo, which is reliably personalization free [2]. For more in-depth information, you could check out this ex-Google employee’s website that shows you Google’s current autosuggestions and where YouTube’s recommendations might take you: https://algotransparency.org

How is this LEGAL?

US politicians are pushing the ‘Filter Bubble Transparency Act’ to force companies to disclose when algorithms use information to personalize results, but it’s been criticized for being vague and not actually disclosing how the information is used [8]. Canada doesn’t appear to have similar laws in place yet but watch this space. Proposed lawsuits were filed with the British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec Supreme Courts in September 2020 to prevent the collection of users’ search histories and other data for creating personal profiles without their knowledge [9].

Filter bubbles are clearly recognized as a real potential threat to the neutrality of the information we access, but the extent of their influence doesn’t yet seem to be fully understood. Have you experienced any filter bubble effects? How do you think filter bubbles and your digital identity might influence each other? Do you think the right solution is to eradicate filter bubbles, or are they just a trade-off for more efficient searches?

References

[1] Hinds, J., & Joinson, A. N. (2018). What demographic attributes do our digital footprints reveal? A systematic review. PLOS ONE, 13(11), e0207112. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0207112

[2] Hannák, A., Sapieżyński, P., Molavi Khaki, A., Lazer, D., Mislove, A., & Wilson, C. (2017). Measuring Personalization of Web Search. ArXiv, 1–29. https://arxiv.org/abs/1706.05011

[3] Pariser, E. (2011, February). Beware online “filter bubbles” [TED Talk]. TED2011, Long Beach, CA. https://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles#t-525308

[4] Cheung, J. (2018, November 6). In the News: Google Automatically Logs Users Into Chrome Browser on Google Sites. Digital Tattoo. https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2018/11/06/in-the-news-google-automatically-logs-users-into-chrome-browser-on-google-sites/

[5] Lynskey, D. (2019, July 9). How dangerous is Jordan B Peterson, the rightwing professor who “hit a hornets” nest’? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/feb/07/how-dangerous-is-jordan-b-peterson-the-rightwing-professor-who-hit-a-hornets-nest

[6] Hill, E. (2019, February 5). In the News: YouTube updates algorithm to make extremist content harder to find. Digital Tattoo. https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2019/02/05/in-the-news-youtube-updates-algorithm-to-make-extremist-content-harder-to-find/

[7] Boyd, K. (2019, August 13). YouTube and the Filter Bubble. The Prindle Post. https://www.prindlepost.org/2019/08/youtube-and-the-filter-bubble/

[8] Robertson, A. (2019, November 5). The Senate’s secret algorithms bill doesn’t actually fight secret algorithms. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/5/20943634/senate-filter-bubble-transparency-act-algorithm-personalization-targeting-bill

[9] Branch MacMaster LLP. (2020, September 3). Google Faces Class Action in Canada Alleging it Turns Canadians’ Electronics into Tracking Devices Without Their Consent [Press release]. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/google-faces-class-action-in-canada-alleging-it-turns-canadians-electronics-into-tracking-devices-without-their-consent-887865918.html

Written by Joe Wright

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Social Media Icon from geralt used under Pixaby License

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Guest Post: Tips for Students in Online Discussion Boards

By Rachael Bradshaw on January 26, 2021 | Tagged with , , ,

Tips for Students in Online Discussion Boards

by Alice Li

Before the start of our online education, some of us may not have experienced academic online discussions. Web etiquette (netiquette) is an important aspect of online communication, since following netiquette rules can encourage the sharing of diverse ideas in a respectful and engaging learning environment. [1]  Moreover, acknowledging these rules can diminish the chance of offending others and remind you that you are communicating with real people rather than just a computer screen. [2] At The University of British Columbia and The University of Toronto, Keep Learning and Dalla Lana offer advice to students on netiquette in online discussion.

 

Moving beyond netiquette, what types of content could you write on discussion boards? And how do you create a welcoming atmosphere for others to respond to your posts? Learning about content types may inspire you to effectively develop constructive posts. Furthermore, interacting with your peers can help you not only gain online participation marks but also learn diverse perspectives on a topic

 

Prior to implementing these tips, you should check whether your instructor has established the level of formality and/or has given discussion board instructions for their specific course. Make sure to follow these guidelines. For instance, check whether the course is more formal and your ideas need appropriate referencing (e.g. APA, MLA, or Chicago) or if the course is less formal and encourages the use of emoticons to express your feelings. [2]

 

Tips for Developing a Constructive Post:

  • Connect with Current/Past Events

By linking a discussion topic with current or past news articles, you could provide evidence or support for the ideas expressed in your posts. [3] To inform others of the situation, you may link to materials that are not from the course but are relevant to your post.

 

  • Share Your Own Experiences

You could share your personal experiences and insights from these experiences related to the topic of week. [4] Please do not provide personal information or details that you are uncomfortable sharing.

 

  • Synthesize Ideas from the Required Readings of your Course

Comparing concepts from the required readings is a source to discuss with your peers. [5] By doing so, you could recognize whether you have fully understood the readings as well as gain different perspectives on how your classmates understood the content.

 

  • Share Relevant Research Articles by Citation Chaining

To find scholarly works that support your idea related to a required reading, you could start with the reference list of the reading or the articles that cited the reading. Since the thesis of the reading is supported by the contributions of different researchers, you could find relevant articles on the topic by looking at the reference list or the “Cited By” link in Google Scholar for a particular article. These processes in academia are called “Backward Chaining” and “Forward Chaining”, and are used to find previous research contributions or new developments on a topic. [6]

For more resources and details on citation chaining, visit the Library of Toronto Scarborough webpage.

 

Tips for Responding Effectively to a Post:

  • Acknowledge the Posts Made by Your Classmates

Before expressing your own opinion, appreciating the posts of your peers shows that you have understood and valued their ideas. [7] Since verbal and non-verbal cues, such as expressing agreement and nodding, cannot be interpreted through computer screens, you could acknowledge their thoughts by summarizing their ideas or what their post has taught you in one or two sentence(s). [8]

 

For instance, you could say something like “Thank you Jason for sharing these insights on data privacy. The research results that you have provided influenced me to be more conscious of my privacy settings of the electronic devices that I use everyday.”

 

  • Provide Supporting or Alternative Perspectives

By acknowledging others’ posts using the tip mentioned above, you could support or provide different views. Do not feel afraid to express a different opinion on the same topic, but remember to acknowledge others’ posts first. [7] When summarizing, paraphrasing, or quoting evidence for your sources, provide a footnote citation at the end of your post for others to refer to the referenced materials. [9]

 

Tips for Inviting Participation to a Post:

  • Keep Your Posts Concise

Constructing succinct responses invites your peers to share their thoughts. Unless there is a word count requirement by your instructor, you may be tempted to write mini essays to support your claim. [10] However, keep in mind that your classmates will need to spend more effort and time reading and developing responses, which may result in fewer replies from your peers. [11] Thus, concise posts increase the chance of others responding to your posts.

 

  • Ask Questions

Asking questions helps maintain discussions within the forums. [12] You could ask questions about the responses from your classmates or inquire about the topic of the week.

 

  • Encourage Feedback

Let your classmates know that you are open to discussion by writing that you appreciate different thoughts on your post or inviting classmates by their names in a group forum. [12]  Every member in a group can create a welcoming environment by encouraging others to participate.

 

  • Do not Wait Until Near the Deadline to Post Responses

Discussion posts published earlier in the week have a higher chance of receiving engagement from your classmates than those posted later in the week. [13] Since your classmates have different studying schedules and might not check the group forums near the deadline of the discussion timeframe, do not expect to have insightful exchanges of views at the last minute. You should allocate time to develop and respond to posts on a regular basis. To manage your study time, there are several methods such as The Pomodoro Technique or The 80/20 Rule.

 

Conclusion:

In my online learning courses last semester, I noticed that asking questions about others’ posts kept the discussion active while providing a more in-depth discussion between my peers and I. Moreover, acknowledging the posts provided a respectful environment where different opinions were shared. Additionally, post acknowledgement was an effective method for me to fully understand their viewpoint before constructing a supporting or alternative position using current/past events, my own experiences, and research articles.

 

Can you think of other ways to encourage active participation in academic online discussion forums? What have you encountered so far that works for you? Let us know in the comments section.

 

References

[1] Lisa St. C., “Netiquette,” Instructional Resources, accessed December 17, 2020, https://blog.citl.mun.ca/instructionalresources/netiquette/.

[2] Virginia Shea, “Introduction,” Netiquette, accessed December 17, 2020, http://www.albion.com/netiquette/introduction.html.

[3] Athena Kennedy, “Tips for Online Students: Participating in Class Discussions,” Colorado State University, last modified February 11, 2016, http://blog.online.colostate.edu/blog/online-education/tips-for-online-students-participating-in-class-discussions/.

[4] Tracia M. Forman, “Student Perceptions of Online Learning: Discussion Board Assignments,” ERIC Database, (2018):10-11, https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED595007.pdf.

[5] Hannah Turner, “Seminar Discussion Participation,” LIBR 508: Information Practices in Contemporary Society at The University of British Columbia, Accessed November 3, 2020, https://canvas.ubc.ca.) [note: this resource is not open source]

[6] Fiona Berry and Crystal Choi, “Citation Chaining: How to Find More Information From One Source,” The University of Sydney, last modified October 11, 2012,  https://library.sydney.edu.au/help/online-training/downloads/iResearch_Print_CitationChaining.pdf.

[7] University of Leicester, “Engaging in Discussion,” Study Skills, accessed November 8, 2020, https://www.le.ac.uk/oerresources/ssds/studyskills/page_12.htm.

[8] Ainslie Ellis, “Student-Centred Collaborative Learning Via Face-To-Face and Asynchronous Online Communication: What’s the Difference?” Ascilite, (2001): 173, https://ascilite.org/conferences/melbourne01/pdf/papers/ellisa.pdf.; Elizabeth Murphy, “Graduate Students’ Experiences of Challenges in Online Asynchronous Discussions”, Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology 30, no.2 (2004), https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1073681.pdf.

[9] University of Maryland Global Campus, “Online Classroom Materials (Suggested Format),” Chicago Citation Examples, accessed November 16, 2020, https://sites.umgc.edu/library/libhow/chicago_examples.cfm#classroom.

[10] Osborne Debora M. et al., “Use of Online Asynchronous Discussion Boards to Engage Students, Enhance Critical Thinking, and Foster Staff-Student/Student-Student Collaboration: A Mixed Method Study,” Nurse Education Today 70, (2018):41, https://www-sciencedirect-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/science/article/pii/S0260691718304167. [note: this resource is not open source]

[11] Murphy, “Graduate Students’ Experiences.”; Janine Delahunty, “Connecting to Learn, Learning to Connect: Thinking Together in Asynchronous Forum Discussion,” Linguistics and Education 46, (2018):17, https://www-sciencedirect-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/science/article/pii/S0898589817303923. [note: this resource is not open source]

[12] Khe Foon Hew and Wing Sum Cheung, Student Participation in Online Discussions: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Research (New York: Springer, 2012), 83. https://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-1-4614-2370-6; Daniel Zingaro and Murat Oztok, “Interaction in an Asynchronous Online Course: A Synthesis of Quantitative Predictors,” ERIC Database, (2012):77, https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ982683.pdf. [note: this resource is not open source]

[13]Allan Jeong and Sue Frazier. “How Day of Posting Affects Level of Critical Discourse in Asynchronous Discussions and Computer-Supported Collaborative Argumentation,” British Journal of Educational Technology 39, no.5 (2008):885, https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00789.x. ; Zingaro and Oztok, “Asynchronous Online Course”, 77. [note: this resource is not open source]

Written by Alice Li

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Picture by Sara Torda used under Pixabay License

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Guest Post: Using Your Online Democratic Voice

By Rachael Bradshaw on January 13, 2021 | Tagged with , , , , ,

Using Your Online Democratic Voice

By Alexander Howes

Strengthening democracy requires us to engage in civil, informed online discourse. It is important to be conscientious about our democratic voice online. From choosing our news sources to engaging in online debate, it is important for us to be informed and engaged. This article provides strategies for using your online democratic voice.

 

Why this matters

A recent study published in Walrus Magazine, conducted in collaboration with The Samara Centre for Democracy and comprising of over 1000 participants, found that Canadians say political conversations online are angrier (48%) and less civil (50%) than offline political discussion. Further, nearly half (47%) of Canadian social media users say they stay out of political discussions out of fear of being criticized. [1]

 

The need to use your online voice to strengthen democracy during the current Covid-19 pandemic is even more urgent. A recent report from Freedom House finds that since the outbreak began, the state of democracy has grown worse and human rights violations have increased in 80 countries. [2]

 

Social media is intended to connect us and to be an extension of our offline civil discourse. If nearly half of us are unable to have these conversations, we risk undermining our democracy. The current pandemic has the potential to worsen the situation, which is why it is more important than ever to use your online democratic voice to engage with local and global discussions about policy and power.

 

Step One: Know your sources

The first step towards being informed and engaged is to know your sources.

 

The best method is to know the source of the content or reference you are sharing. Ask “where did I get this from?”, “what is the overall position of this source?”, and “what is the tone of this source?”. Think critically about what you are reading and what you may be amplifying. The Digital Tattoo Project has helpful resources for identifying fake news, including a recent guest post by Johnson Huang. [3] Take the Digital Tattoo tutorial and use the resources provided to teach yourself how to spot fake news.

 

Step Two: Explore alternative viewpoints

Perspective is everything when it comes to using your online democratic voice. That’s why it is important to observe viewpoints from a range of perspectives across the political ideological spectrum. Media Bias Fact Check is an excellent source for discovering legitimate news outlets based on their political ideology. [4] (Surprise: all news outlets have some sort of bias). Follow these outlets on social media and ensure you consume media from a diverse range of sources.

 

Step Three: Opt for fact over emotion

It can be difficult to convey tone through social media. Sharing information from reputable sources will signal to others that you have done your research and are not relying on opinion. Also, your content is less likely to be misused or re-shared out of context.

 

That being said, don’t be afraid to share your opinion. Social media is intended to foster discussion – just be sure to include facts to support your opinion. Overall, be courteous of other people’s perspectives. That leads us to the final point:

 

Step Four: Be empathetic

Now is an important moment for us to be empathetic. This involves seeing your content and references from other peoples’ perspectives. Think about how others will interpret your viewpoint and ask “whose perspectives and beliefs should I consider?”. Placing yourself in other peoples’ shoes will help create healthier democratic discourse. Remember that you can disagree with someone without resorting to personal attacks.

 

Overall, democracy requires us all to engage, particularly with those with opposing viewpoints. Use these strategies to strengthen your democratic voice and contribute to important discussions online.

 

So, how do you engage democratically online? Which sources of information do you trust, and why? How can or do you encourage your communities both on- and offline to engage responsibly in the democratic process?

 

Works Cited

[1] Staff, T. (2019, November 12). A Field Guide to Online Political Conversations. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://thewalrus.ca/democracy-a-field-guide-to-online-political-conversations/

[2] Gharib, M. (2020, November 10). Report: The Pandemic Is Not Good For Freedom And Democracy. But There Are Exceptions. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/11/10/930464419/report-the-pandemic-is-not-good-for-freedom-and-democracy-but-there-are-exceptio?utm_medium=social

[3] Huang, J. (2020). Guest Post: Fake News! Who Cares! Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://digitaltattoo.ubc.ca/2020/10/20/guest-post-fake-news-who-cares/

[4] Media Bias Fact Check. (2020). Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/

Written by Alexander Howes

Edited by Samantha Summers and Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Online Marketing Online, from Joseph Murcia used under Pixaby License

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“The Social Dilemma”: An Aftermath of Change?

By Rachael Bradshaw on December 22, 2020 | Tagged with , , , , ,

When “The Social Dilemma” came out on Netflix earlier this year, it created a tremendous reaction of shock and alarm from its viewers. Even some of the most avid social media users were stunned at the practices that tech companies were performing right under their noses, and especially at one of the movie’s main claims: if you’re not paying for the product (as is the case with most social media), you are the product. Viewers learned, some for the first time, that social media is not only a way to connect with others, but can also be used in manipulative and controlling ways.

 

Needless to say, many viewers were horrified by the things that they learned, with many people claiming (somewhat ironically) on Twitter that they planned to delete their social media accounts and reclaim their time and attention. However, in the later aftermath of this film, many people were met with a bit of a personal dilemma (sorry! I couldn’t resist). They now knew more about the darker side of social media, and yet, social media was already a huge part of their lives. It’s really hard to give up something that has become part of your routine and that you use to keep up with your friends and family.

 

This dilemma got my Digital Tattoo co-coordinator, Sam, and I thinking: many people claimed that they would delete their social media accounts, or at least change their social media habits after watching “The Social Dilemma”, but were they able to stick to this conviction? Did people keep them deleted, or did they reactivate their accounts after a few weeks? We were curious to discover if this film made any real changes in social media habits.

 

Have you ever thought about deleting your social media accounts? Source

The aftermath:

To be completely transparent, most of my “research” was done by reading through Twitter threads and asking my friends if they changed their habits. I also did my research in mid-October, a little over a month after the movie surged in popularity. Here’s what I found:

 

On Twitter, as expected, many people expressed their shock at the film’s contents and stressed the importance of watching it and showing it to young people. I think it can safely be said that this film brought awareness to privacy issues and the manipulative power of social media. However, people were using social media to discuss the problems of social media from a film that they watched on an online streaming service! I am not the only one who noticed the irony, and many people were poking fun at it in their tweets. And yet, people were still posting, regardless of the irony. While people were certainly shocked, many of them reported still being online, despite their newfound knowledge. All of my Twitter reading led me to believe that while people are now more aware of the issues with many social media companies, especially Facebook, they cannot bring themselves to care enough to delete their accounts.

 

Instead of deleting social media, this journalist recommends more intentional usage. What do you think? (Screen capture by Rachael Bradshaw, 2020: Source)

 

All that being said, I do think that some positive changes have come about because of this film. While Twitter and Instagram users may have been more reluctant to delete their accounts, the number of Facebook users in the U.S. and Canada  declined by nearly 2 million users this autumn. It seems possible that some of that decline was due to the influence of “The Social Dilemma”. And on a smaller scale, my friends and I have changed some of our habits. Some of my friends have deleted their Facebook accounts. While I have not personally deleted any of my social media accounts, I have taken another piece of advice presented in the film: I turned off many of my notifications. I have noticed since doing this that I feel less of an urge to constantly check my phone for updates, which has led to less screen time for me and more time to pursue some of my hobbies. I may not have deleted my accounts, but I feel some power and happiness in reclaiming my attention away from social media to focus on things that I care about.

 

If you haven’t seen the film, or if you want to learn more, check out our tutorial on how social media uses your data. Have you seen “The Social Dilemma”? What did you think about it? Did it encourage you to change any of your social media habits? We would love to hear from you in the comments below.

Written by Rachael Bradshaw

Edited by Samantha Summers

Featured Image: Social Media by dole777 under Unsplash License 

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Guest Post: Prepare Your Devices for Online Learning

By Rachael Bradshaw on December 8, 2020 | Tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Guest Post: Prepare Your Devices for Online Learning

By, Lina Kim

With courses now transitioned into online learning, new issues can arise regarding network speed, web browsers, security, and storage. This blog will go over how you can avoid some of these issues and ensure your device is in tip-top shape.

Please note that this blog will refer to services with varying privacy policies, terms and conditions, and locations for servers. Google services, for example, collect your name, your IP address, your activity, etc., and may store their information in American servers, which are hardware or software that store and provide resources, data, services, or programs to other computers over a network [1]. Depending on your comfort level with your personal information, opt for websites offering Canadian servers over American servers so that your data is kept within Canada and under Canadian privacy laws [2]. Read the privacy policies, usually found at the bottom of the page, and terms of service offered by the website so that you know what kind of personal information you are giving them access to and where your data will go.

Network Speed

To start, check your Internet speed. There are many websites which allow you to do this, but make sure to review the privacy policy of that website before entering any personal information. One website is TestMy.net, which only needs your IP address [3]. You can change the server to “Toronto, CA” to test your Internet speed within Canada. You can also search and try different speed tests depending on your comfort level with sharing your personal data. For most UBC learning technologies, a minimum speed of 5.0 Mbps download and 1.0 Mbps upload will work [4]. For U of T students, you can check your minimum technology requirements here.

To improve your Internet speed, close the number of applications and browser windows or tabs you have, and turn off any video sharing [5].

Secure Access to Resources

If you have data on your phone, you can use your phone as a hotspot to provide the Internet for your computer. A hotspot provides Wi-Fi to other devices and can easily be set up in the Settings of your mobile device. Mobile data is usually secure, but make sure you set a password on your hotspot so strangers will not have access to the same network as you. Read about using mobile hotspots for Apple or Android devices, and check with your phone provider to understand how this may impact data and billing [6].

For those facing issues accessing learning technologies, you can use your home Wi-Fi then connect to UBC VPN (Virtual Private Network) or U of T VPN. If you are connecting from China, the Alibaba Global Accelerator may help with connectivity. For UBC students, go to Cisco AnyConnect on your device and log in to myvpn.ubc.ca with your CWL ID and password. To connect to Alibaba’s server, log in with your CWL ID and password, but add .student.int to the end of your CWL ID [7]. The directions for Alibaba installation and use for U of T students can be found here. 

Web Browser

Different technologies have different browser requirements. To start, install the latest version of at least one of these browsers: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari [8].

Download apps and extensions for learning technologies well in advance if needed, such as LockDown Browser and Zoom. Be aware, however, that downloading software may take up a lot of space, especially for older devices. Tip: If you have an older device with limited space, consider buying an external hard drive. For more tips regarding software downloads, including the one about the hard drive, read this article on dealing with software issues and the fatigue that comes along with them.

If you are facing issues regarding browsers or learning technologies, clearing the cache, which is temporary data to help you browse your Internet faster, and/or cookies, which are text files which store your personal data to help websites recognize who you are, on your browser or mobile app can help. You can usually clear your cache and/or cookies by clicking the “History” tab and “Clear history” on your browser or Apple device, or going to your “Settings” and tapping “Storage” on your Android device.

Security

Make sure your devices are free from viruses by installing malware protection software. You can find a list of free anti-malware programs provided by UBC IT here and a list of free software from U of T Library here.

Encryption scrambles the personal information you send so that only you and the recipient can see it. Learn how to encrypt your devices and check the security settings on your mobile devices to ensure they are encrypted. 

If you are working on personal materials related to your university, you can use UBC’s or U of T’s VPNs to protect your data. When you send personal information by email, it is likely the email service already provides basic encryption. For Outlook, for example, you can click on the “Encryption” button available. If you want additional security for emails you access through your browser, you can download Mailvelope on Chrome, Firefox or Microsoft Edge. For more information about encryption, read this article about encryption with helpful resources.

For a more in-depth course on security at UBC, take the Privacy & Information Security Fundamentals Training, offered by UBC Safety & Risk Services. Although the training is geared towards UBC staff, the information can be applied to your studies and to your future workplaces. 

Cloud Services for Collaboration

With online learning, make sure to keep your files organized by course and by week. You can keep your notes across mobile devices and computers by using apps such as OneNote. 

Collaborate and share with others using cloud services, such as OneDrive. You can access these files from anywhere you log in, making it easier for you if you need to print them at the Chapman Learning Commons or Robarts Library and ensuring that you have a back-up in case your device is lost or stolen.

For group projects, Microsoft Teams is a great option to share files and search up words and documents in a conversation.

Check out Keep Learning for more tips on how to use learning technologies and devices for courses. UBC IT provides support with UBC technologies. If you have questions about UBC learning technologies, contact the Chapman Learning Commons Online Assistants live (Mon-Fri 9:00-5:00) or by email. For U of T students, please contact Information Technology Services if you need any assistance.

 

It is always a good idea to ensure your device is up-to-date to prevent data theft and malfunctioning apps. With courses now reliant on online learning technologies, we need to be more aware of how secure these services can be and what they may do with our data. How do you ensure your devices are protected and reliable? Share your suggestions for keeping your devices faster and more secure below.

 

References

[1] Server – Definition and details. Paessler. Retrieved from https://www.paessler.com/it-explained/server 

[2] Server Cloud Canada. (2017, Oct 17). When your data must stay in Canada. Retrieved from https://www.servercloudcanada.com/2017/10/privacy-law-canada 

[3] Privacy policy. Testmy.net. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://testmy.net/legal/privacy.php 

[4], [5], [6], [8] Setting up. Keep Learning. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://keeplearning.ubc.ca/setting-up 

[7] Alibaba Global Accelerator. UBC Information Technology. Retrieved November 18, 2020, from https://it.ubc.ca/services/email-voice-internet/myvpn/alibaba-global-accelerator

Written by Lina Kim

Edited by Rachael Bradshaw

Featured image Studying at UBC, from UBC Brand and Marketing on Flickr

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