Week 4, Task 2

YouTube has a very interesting policy on content restriction; the way I understand it you can post videos about next to anything on it except advertisement videos for a product and/or service you offer (so no teleshopping channel here?) Posting copyrighted content can get your videos taken down (if the owner wishes to take action and your video is discovered) and (if you are a repeat offender) can get your Channel/Account suspended/taken down. The same happens if you post content with “18+” elements and don’t put an age restriction on the video. YouTube does not take any responsibility on the posted content beyond these means, its Terms of Service flat out state that it takes no responsibility for mental harm caused by viewing content on the site.

Privacy is another thing YouTube seems to have a hands-off approach to; beyond  a few safety videos, the option to banish people from your channel and the option to make videos private and a few (optional) instruction videos aimed mainly at teenagers it does not offer much protection to you, videos can be found using Google (unless you made them private).

Finally, while you retain copyright of your videos, once you post them on YouTube, the service gains world-wide, free publishing rights to your content. So if we rethink the Twitter example, YouTube could  produce advertisements using videos from its users even without getting their admission first.

  

Tutorial Week 4 Task 1

What kind of video games do I find most engaging and what does this say about me?

Personally I find role playing games (RPGs) most engaging, Japanese ones more so than Western ones because unlike their European and American counterparts which focus more on giving the player the highest possible amount of freedom to interact with the world, JRPGs place more importance on fully fleshed out characters and a theatrical storyline. Another reason is the design, Western RPGs tend to be realistic, gritty and colorless, while their Eastern cousins often portray very imaginative, colorful and breathtakingly beautiful worlds and creatures.

But what both of these categories have in common, which is also the reason why I enjoy them so much is the way an RPG gives you the possibility of diving into another world, another life even, filled with beautiful princesses and giant monsters and enchanted forests rather than the stresses of the ordinary world. I do not deny that I am somewhat of an escapist, I love fantasy and science fiction in all fields of my life; games, books, movies, comics etc. Even when i was a child I was enchanted by tales of magic and aliens. Unlike some people I am actively interested in maintaining a healthy social and academic life in the real world. According to the article I have found on this subject  "The Development of the Self in the Age of the Internet and Role-Playing Fantasy Games"  (2006, Allison S., von Wahlde L., Schockley T., gabbard G. American Psychiatric Association) people who fall for fantasy themed games are often sensitive individuals that are socially awkward and seek a place to escape to. Fine, that's right no problem with admitting that I am all of that, but only a small percentage takes it so far as the boy in the article.