Evolution of Broadway Theater wiki

Broadway Theater wiki

Edit #1
For my first edit I added to writings that someone posted about the use of "er" versus "re" in the theatre(er) world. I did some light research and came to find that there actually is a proper use for each spelling. The additional information I had added about the subject were later removed, leaving only a sentence in regards to the on-going discussion about the proper usage.

Edit #2
For my second edit I elaborated on a point made under the 'Audience' section. The section had mentioned that the 2005-2006 run of Broadway had reached a never before reached peak in attendance. I added some statistics to the post stating that that year Broadway experienced a 4.1% rise, taking them to 12 million, which was the highest attendance ever seen.

Edit #3
For my final edit I added a link under the 'Runs' section. There was a paragraph that had discussed the historical musical Cats. It was mentioned how Cats had recently been surpassed by Phantom of the Opera as the longest running Broadway musical. I had added a link to the Winter Garden Theater wiki, since that is where Cats had its run. This link was later removed as well.

The Broadway wiki gets a lot of attention. The majority of the edits are made by the same 3 key users who at times make several edits a day. Perhaps these 'hardcore broadway fans' didn't appreciate my amateur input. Broadway theatre is quite an in depth realm, therefore I was not surprised to see it get so much editing traffic each day.

Evolution of Relay For Life wiki

Relay For Life wiki



Edit #1- March 4th

The page provided a lot of information in regards to RFL in general but it did not provide any prompt for people to actually get involved which I thought would be really important. So for my first edit I added a 'Get Involved' section to the page within which I listed several ways for people to get involved with the event/cause. Someone later followed behind me and removed this section.



Edit #2 - May 1st
For my second edit I added a section dedicated to fundraising. Within this section I stressed the importance of fundraising to Relay For Life. I also included a link that included fundraising tips for RFL. This section was also removed after I had added it.




Edit #3

For my final edit I contributed to the branding section that had been added to the wiki. I further expanded on the idea of how Relay For Life, or RFL, has become a brand of the American Cancer society. Upholding this brand is of great importance to the American Cancer Society because they need to have a strong, positive brand image. As a non-profit organization it is difficult to raise capital so an important vision is needed in order to get people to support the cause.

The article proved somewhat difficult to edit because once I had gotten to it, it was already pretty thorough. I tried to get creative by adding new sections about things I deemed necessary for people to know in order to participate. They however were removed. My guess is because the page is already strung with many links to places that already include the information I was trying to put out there.

Evolution of Weird NJ wiki

Weird NJ wiki

Edit #1
In my first edit I decided to add a section entitled 'Local Legends' to the wiki that would include various "weird" happenings in NJ. I also made a contribution to this section to get it started. I added the legend of 'Devil's Tree' which is located in my area. So actually having experienced it before I figured I should tell its story.


Edit #2
I once again made an addition to the section that I had created during my first edit 'Local Legeneds'. This time I added another local legend that I had come across which was about 'Devil's Tower'. I told the story of it, how it became a legend, and the myths that surround the landmark.


Edit #3
For my 3rd and final edit I added a quote, once again to the 'Local Legends' selection. While looking in a Weird NJ book I had come across. The quote was in regards to myths: "Myth helps you to put your mind in touch with this experience of being alive." - Josesph Campbell, The Power of the Myth. I felt that it was appropriate for it to be added to this section which includes all the local legends and myths.


All of the additions and contributions I made throughout the semester have remained. Overall the wiki has not had much activity recently, but its history shows that it had once gotten a lot of editing traffic. I was hoping that the 'Local Legends' section I added would generate more edits of people sharing their knowledge of the local legends and myths that they have heard. So far, my section has not prompted increased activity.

Evolution of Bridgewater, NJ wiki

Bridgewater Township wiki

Edit #1 - February 26th
I made a contribution within the education section under the high school section. I added that BRHS is a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon school and described what that honor meant. I noticed that merely a few minutes behind me someone came along and edited what I had wrote. They extended my statement and then included a source pertaining to the post.

Edit #2 - April 23rd
For my second edit I added some information under the 'Points of Interest' section. I added 'parks and other recreational facilities' to the list since there is a terrific parks system in Bridgewater. I included a link to the town's parks department in my edit.

Edit #3-May 3rd
An interesting fact caught my eye within the 'demographics' section on the page. It was talking about how according to National Geographic there are an unusual amount of multiple births (twins, triplets etc.) in Bridgewater. I found that interesting because once I thought about it I do actually know several sets of twins from my town, in my class alone even. I found the link to the National Geographic article they were referencing and linked to it.

In general the Bridgewater wiki does not seem to get an incredible amount of attention. It actually makes sense since the only traffic it would most likely draw would be from Bridgewater residents. And out of the population, only a small portion would have enough interest, and knowledge to make contributions to the wiki. The most edits that were made within the time that I was involved in the edits were to the 'Notable Residents' section. It is exciting to see that all of my edits have remained proving that thus far they are credible and worthy enough to remain.

Comment Teammate Ben's Blog Post

I am responding to my teammate Ben's blog post about Starting your Own Business. He discusses the fact that as business students, although we gain a wealth of knowledge about various aspects about the business world, we are still lacking entrepreneurial knowledge. I agree. While various courses we have had may have touched on the subject, we are still missing an overall outline of the key building blocks needed to start your own business (i.e., how to incorporate and raise capital as Ben mentioned). It is clear that he is not alone on his thoughts about the subject because various classmates have commented on his blog and expressed their feelings about the subject. Maybe Ben is on to something...

Commenting on Laura Hoffman's Blog Post

One of my teammates, Laura, blogged about the popularity of wikipedia. She was responding to an article, that she had read on Global Neighbourhoods, entitled 'Wikipedia. Just how popular is it?'. The article discusses the validity of wikipedia articles.

I agree with Laura's viewpoint on the subject. There are both positives and negitives to the world of wikipedia. On the one hand, the fact that anyone (including a group of college kids like ourselves) has the ability to edit the articles diminishes its legitimacy. It should by no means be used as a reliable resource for research because of the high possibility of inaccurate or faulty information. However, it is a great tool to get started. It is a great free resource that provides access to thousands of articles about a diverse set of topics that appeal to a multitude of people.

final weird nj wiki edit

I have made my final edit to the Weird NJ wiki. I added a quote under the 'Local Legends' section that I had added previously. The quote is about myths : "Myth helps you to put your mind in touch with this experience of being alive." - Josesph Campbell, The Power of the Myth.

Final Broadway wiki edit

Yesterday I edited the wiki article, Broadway Theatre. I made an addition under the 'Runs' section. The article dicussed how Cats was no longer the longest running Broadway musical because it had been surpassed by Phantom of the Opera with 7,486 performances. I expanded upon Cats and added that it had showed at the Winter Garden Theater, and I also added a link to the theater's page as well.

final RFL wiki edit

Tonight I made my final edit to the Relay For Life wiki. I made a few additions under the branding section of the article. I expanded on what was already there about the RFL brand. I went into more depth about how important keeping up the RFL brand is to the American Cancer Society as a whole.

final bridgewater wiki edit

I made my last edit to the Bridgewater, NJ wiki today. Something caught my eye in the demographics section about an unusually high occurrence of twins and triplets in the town. Knowing several pairs of twins from home myself I found it interesting that this point was noted by National Geographic. I added a link in the section to the actual 2005 article which can be found here.

Broadway wiki edit #2

I just made an edit to the Broadway Theatre wiki article. Under the 'Audience' section I added some information. It was stated there that during the 2005 - 2006 total attendance reached 12 million. I added some statistics to this, noting that this was about a 4.1 percent rise from the previous year. In addition to this rise, it was also the first time ever that total Broadway attendance had ever been that high.

RFL wiki edit #2

I just made my second edit to the wiki, Relay For Life. I added a section dedicated to fundraising. Within that section I included a link to page with fundraising tips.

Google: How far is too far?

In class this past Friday we discussed an article, "Google's data-storing feature fuels privacy fears." The article voiced the concerns of privacy advocates in regards to Google's latest mission, Web History. Google Inc. is now offering a feature they call 'Web History' that tracks web surfers' every move. Web History will keep records of the websites users visit and store them on Google's servers instead of the users computers. The recent debut has caused an uproar in the privacy realm from various research groups on privacy. They feel that acquiring this information will give Google to much power, or worse yet that Google will combine this information with that of DoubleClick. They also feel as though most users aren't aware that their searches can be linked to them.

I feel however that in Google's defense Web History should be viewed as a "use at your own risk" featuer. The service is strictly voluntary and users are made aware of their policies and given the ability to choose what to do with their information. In order for Google to evolve some essential steps must be taken. This program will better assist Google in providing its users with the most efficient information and service. If users are too wary of the potential negatives that this program will stir up then they should stay away. Even in this technologically advanced world we live in, the same "buyer beware" standard applies that consumers have lived by for years.

weird nj wiki edit #2

I have just made a second wiki edit to the article, Weird NJ. I made an edit to the section 'Local Legends' which I had created during my first edit. In that section I added another legend about 'Devil's Tower' which is located in Bergen County, NJ. I described a bit about the legend and what locals claim goes on there and the reasoning behind the rumored haunted site.

bridgewater wiki edit #2

Today I edited the wikipedia article on my hometown Bridgewater, NJ. I added to the section 'Points of Interest'. I further extended this list by adding that the area has many parks and recreational areas that locals and visitors can enjoy. I also included a link to the area's park commission, Somerset County Parks.

doubleclick chooses google

I have just read an article on Scobleizer, about Doubleclick essentially blowing off Microsoft for Google. Most of us would assume that when a company is about to be bought out they would choose the company with the highest bid. However, these situtions are about much more than just money. A company takes into consideration the entire package and its presentation. The article outlined several other important considerations companies, such as Doubleclick, take into account when being fought over. All of these insights are completely logical. People can sometimes get too caught up in the whole money money money mentality but there are deeper, more long term concerns that have to be taken into account. A company wants to make sure it's in the right hands, that its reputation will prosper and that its employess will benefit as well. Unfortunately however, it has happened that companies get clouded over by big bundles of money being thrown at them and end up making the wrong decision. We will have to wait and see how Google's gain will affect them and what directions it will lead it in for the future.

dealcatcher.com

On Friday April 6th, we had a speaker come to us from dealcatcher.com . The former UD student, Tom Patton, had taken the class about 10 years ago and co-founded dealcatcher with another former UD student Dan Baxter.

Dealcatcher is one of the top ten sites for finding bargains online. The site offers coupons, sale prices and even has forums where site visitors can post their own deals. It orignated in 1999 and managed to survive the dot-com bust that plagued so many others.

I found it exciting to see the real life value behind what I am currently learning in 477. It is inspiring to not only see former UD students succeed, but to have earned that success from the skills learned in this class that I am formally enrolled in. While sitting in classes throughout the years many, including myself, often wonder how the subject material relates to the real world that we about to be thrown into. What class is worth investing time and energy into that will not provide any greater benefit down the road whether that be direct or indirect?

Broadway wiki edit #1

Tonight I have made my first wikipedia edit to my wikipedia article, Broadway Theatre . I noticed in the "Notes" section a comment about the spelling of theater or theatre. In my mind I then began to wonder what, if any, is the proper usage of each spelling? The spelling of 'theatre' is from the French language and is also used in England. In the United States however, as with many other words we have changed it to 'theater'. After some minor research I came to find that, for the most part the two are interchangeable. However, most commonly, when referring to the art form or actual company, the 're' ending is used. When referring to the building 'er' is more commonly used. It is typically suggested though to use 'er' in most publications.

April Fools

Scobleizer got me. I came across a post on Scobleizer that caught my attention, but it turns out the post was an April Fools joke. The article, Apple collaborating with Amazon, Google, and Cingular on new iReader?, discusses how Apple is continuing to develop products that most consumers will soon find it difficult to live without. It declares Apple's latest project is to develop an entire line of devices that will expand the usage of iPhone. Steve Jobs and other execs found that they could not comfortably use their iPhones in bright sunlight, and thus wanted to develop something similar to the SonyReader called the iReader.

To me, not being extremely knowledgable in the tech world, it seemed totally plausible. Although if such a product actually came about I couldn't see myself turning my back on paper books and sending them into extinction. I realized as I read further that Apple would not let such information leak out. The post told the story of how he came upon an Apple exec on the beach with the iReader prototype and got to play around with it. While the whole story was fabricated, it made me think, what does Apple actually have in the works? What are they going to amaze us with next, and how long can they manage to always be one step ahead?

stiuqxela

For class we have been given an assignment that is being done as an experiment. For this experiment I am linking the Packer's website through the word stiuqxela . This experiment will test how Google can generate results for the Packers using the nonsense word stiuqxela.

Google vs. Viacom: Money over morality?

In class we recently read and discussed an article that laid out the current scuffle between Google and Viacom. Viacom is suing Google for placing material on their YouTube site without permission and without any sort of compensation. Google is arguing however that they have the fastest response time when it comes to removing media that Viacom demands be deleted. They feel that it is the job of Viacom to monitor their material, and that they are not committing any crime. The heated case is just a small portion of the issue that has plagued the media industry for several years. The public is getting their entertainment through different means now, and those means, the internet, are difficult to regulate. An additional article I read, found here, exemplifies this fact. It states how Viacom should be more open to the postings, because it is doing wonderfully in terms of viral marketing, stating "recommendation is the new marketing".

The bottom line is that no matter if Viacom wins or loses, they, along with other media giants are going to have to figure out a way to work with the internet. It by no means is going away or becoming less influential, it is here to stay and here to make a lasting impact. This point was already made in recent years with the music industry. You can't stop the public from downloading music, but rather you have to work with them, and reinvent your industry in order to make it beneficial to you and consumers.

VALS survey

In class this past week we talked about the VALS survery, which stands for Values and Life Survey. The survey is a personality test that is used to understand the changing habits and lifestyles of consumers. It is used in the field of marketing and consulting as a tool that helps marketers worldwide to develop and execute more effective marketing strategies.

The survey segments consumers in the marketplace based on personality traits and defines these segments on the basis of those traits that affect consumer behavior in the marketplace. Consumers who take the survery are put into 1 of 8 segments based on the responses they provide. The two main dimensions of it are primary motivation and resources. The eight segments are : thinkers, believers, achievers, strivers, experiencers, makers, innovators and survivors.

I think it is fun and interesting how they go about categorizing you according to your consumer behavior patterns. I visited the site and complete the survey myself here . I was labeled as a "Striver/Experiencer" which by the descriptions seems to fit me fairly well. Here is the information the site provided for me based on my analysis:

Strivers:
Strivers are trendy and fun loving. Because they are motivated by achievement, Strivers are concerned about the opinions and approval of others. Money defines success for Strivers, who don't have enough of it to meet their desires. They favor stylish products that emulate the purchases of people with greater material wealth. Many see themselves as having a job rather than a career, and a lack of skills and focus often prevents them from moving ahead.Strivers are active consumers because shopping is both a social activity and an opportunity to demonstrate to peers their ability to buy. As consumers, they are as impulsive as their financial circumstance will allow.

Experiencers:
Experiencers are motivated by self-expression. As young, enthusiastic, and impulsive consumers, Experiencers quickly become enthusiastic about new possibilities but are equally quick to cool. They seek variety and excitement, savoring the new, the offbeat, and the risky. Their energy finds an outlet in exercise, sports, outdoor recreation, and social activities.Experiencers are avid consumers and spend a comparatively high proportion of their income on fashion, entertainment, and socializing. Their purchases reflect the emphasis they place on looking good and having "cool" stuff.

Weird NJ wiki

I have just made a wikipedia edit to Weird NJ . When reading through the article there seemed to be a lot of substance missing. It mainly concentrated on the creation of "Weird NJ" and its growth and did not seem to have any specifics. All of the "weird" stuff about local legends, unexplained phenomena, and hauntings was missing. This prompted me for my edit. I decided to add a "Local Legends" section to the page to disuss some of the actual strange sites and happenings. Under it I decided to start with an entry that discusses "The Devil's Tree" because it is a site in my home town. I figured that since I have experienced it personally Iit would be a good place to start. I discussed the tree's history and all the legends of weird and spooky incidents. Hopefully others will follow and make additions about other local legends.

gCensus

I just read a blog posting on John Battelle's Searchblog about Google's next big project. Imran Haque has developed this new innovation by combining Google Earth with Census data to form gCensus. gCensus uses Keyhole Markup Language (KML) to create different colors and shapes that combines with the census data. This program allows the user to create maps that display demographic information over the geographic information that is currently provided by Google Earth. For instance a user can generate an overlay of population, age, race, and/or family size distributions.

This steps the world of GoogleMaps and Earth up to a whole new level. Not only will this be useful for the everyday, at home user but it will prove to be beneficial in the business world as well. It will bring previously difficult to obtain information to the world's fingertips. It will allow marketers to create the appropriate promotional mix in specific areas instead of mass marketing which we have been trying to slowly step away from. For instance they will be able to segment by demographics much more efficiently by the use of this visual tool. In addition, another benefit is the cost cutting aspect. Large amounts of time and money will no longer have to be put out on marketing research.

RFL wiki edit

I just made an edit to the Relay For Life wiki. I noticed there was information missing referencing ways to help out so this is what my edit dealt with. Due to this, I added a section entitled, "Get Involved". In this I listed the different ways people can get involved with the program. I also provided a link to this portion of the American Cancer Society's website so that people could go and get more information.

Seatbelts fastened...we're approaching turbulence

I have just read a post off one of the course required blogs, "Global Neighborhoods". The article , Jet Blue: There's a Problem With Your Audio Channel , discussed Jet Blue's recent bashing concerning their poor customer service. Once promulgated as "America's favorite airline", Jet Blue has taken a nose dive in recent weeks as the case heats up. In its mere seven years of existence, Jet Blue has compiled quite a list of complaints, leading them to a guilty verdict in the case of committing the "1st lethal sin of large organizations" - not listening to customers.

Their customer service problems stem from their inability or rather lack of heed when it comes to listening to their customers. Jet Blue does not stand alone when it comes to this issue. Most companies send you on a wild goose chase to find a customer service e-mail address or number. Then once hunted down you find yourself on the phone for endless minutes...hours listening to an automated voice droning on. Helpful? I think not.

It has been suggested that Jet Blue make better use of its blog. The current set up is geared towards coroporate and does not allow comments, thus preventing much customer contact through this channel. If set up properly however, I feel a blog could be of great benefit to the company by opening up a line of communication between them and their customers.

Jet Blue had, and still does have a lot going for them. They just need to open their ears.

First Wiki Edit

I have just made my first wikipedia edit. The first article I chose to edit was Bridgewater, NJ which is my hometown and where I grew up. I decided to make an addition to the page under the education section about the high school. I added the following: "Bridgewater-Raritan High School is nationally recognized as a Blue Ribbon school by the US Department of Education. A Blue Ribbon indicates excellence in instruction and overall educational environment. The honor is the highest that a school can receive in the nation." My edits can be viewed here.

Purpose of the Blog

This blog is part of a course, BUAD477: Information Technology Applications in Marketing. The purpose is to show students how big of an impact the internet can have on the business world, specifically marketing. Information technology has the ability to affect marketing every single day and hopefully this class can help to show us how it is doing that.

Course Link

Link to UD

http://http://www.udel.edu/

1st Blog

1st blog to test it out:)