Post for week 2 readings!!!

I found the reading this week to be much more interesting then what we had to read last week for class. In chapter 5 I did not understand the section on Language and Action. They used the term “MUDs” but never say what an MUD is. That I found to be very confusing. I kind of gathered that it seemed to be someplace you chat or some type of chatting that’s used. I understood the verbverbing. That all made perfect sense because I myself use that when talking through email and/or text messaging. Also in Chapter 5 page 104-105 states “When players become totally immersed in their online interactions, making a distinction between real actions and linguistic ones can become difficult”. Then it goes on to tell how in Chapter 12 it describes virtual rape in cyberspace and how some people refer to cybersex as a form of infidelity. I can go either way on this subject. I can say yes it is a form of cheating because the other partner is having a fantasy of being with someone else while pleasing themselves but on the other hand I can say that porn, phone sex and/or cyber-sex has no physical contact and in a way is a way to keep your partner faithful. Even though one is turning to listening or reading something else to get them off that doesn’t necessarily mean they are cheating, it just means that they need to spice up their sex lives because something is lacking.
I have myself have never come across anyone online that I found out to be lying to me about their sex but I do know other people that have. It says in the book that “men who are not very aggressive are called “wimps,” whereas women who are not very aggressive are called “feminine.” Men who are aggressive are called “go-getters,” though if they go to far, from the point of view of the viewer, they may be called “arrogant.”” page 107. We see this is society everyday. People are often stereotyped or labeled. And it can actually be very harmful to how one thinks of themselves. In Chapter 6 it talks more about identity, personal profiles, gender swapping, etc. I know a lot of people tend to lie when it comes to who they really are online. I have in fact met people off the internet and have found out that some or maybe even a lot of what they told me was untrue and that in fact the picture they put on the internet of themselves was either false or extremely old. When it comes to signature files I actually have a signature file on my email so I don’t have to sign my name whenever I send out emails but it is only hooked up to the email through my iPhone. I also find the avatars online or more so on yahoo to be extremely funny and fun to play with. I myself actually have my picture up as my avatar on my yahoo messenger but most of the people I talk to do not. In Chapter 7 it goes into more detail about online relationships, social use of the internet, intimate relationships and cybersex. I actually met my boyfriend off the internet. And amazingly things are working out for me and him. I have never myself been involved in cybersex but I do go into the chat rooms every now and then and get into social debates over certain things. One of my classes last session actually used the discussion board on blackboard for us to post documentation or our views on what was taught in class and personal experiences. I find that to be very useful in most classes. Though I was familiar with a lot of what was talked about in this weeks readings it did give me somewhat of a new outlook on some of the things.