Digital Biography

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Written by maisycut

Social Interaction:

In 2005, these toys allowed me to interact and have a meaningful connection with friends around my early years of 5-9 years old. The experience I had discovering these toys was that I am a very creative person and I enjoy girly, feminine things. I used these toys for playdates after school and on the weekends. My friends and I at school would talk about certain “fads” of toys or I would view commercials on TV about them or watch TV shows featuring these characters. In 2010, these toys allowed me to have interactions with friends after school and around the neighborhood. I was able to build relationships based on these activities and popular games. They were a reason why we can invite our friends over and enjoy our competition time. In 2015, these apps and online activities were very popular. It became that Netflix was our “toy” and that is what 15-19 year olds do when we invite our friends over is watch TV or movies. My parents are aware of the apps I download and my entire family shares a Netflix account.

Technology & Comm. Devices

2005: This is the phone I had in my household around this time and was the only phone I had to communicate with everyone I knew. I had a great experience with memorizing everyone’s “home phone” number and allowed for a more authentic communication with people. This was the Dell computer that I had in my house and was the only computer we all shared. We all took turns on using the computer to play our games and had a certain time we could play on it. My parents had to make sure I asked before I used the computer.

2010: This was around the time I received my own cell phone, the LG cosmos touch. It allowed a more intimate interaction and communication with my social group, and developed a friend group. This is when friends started up group chats and developed their social groups. We would use our cell phones on the bus and text each other. I felt more safe and secure with knowing that I can connect and communicate with my parents too. My family computer also changed to an iMac which allowed more of an interactive use, more photos, and more applications.

2015: This was the time frame when I received my first iPhone and allowed an even more open sphere of interaction and connectivity with friends. I started taking more photos, videos, using more apps, texting, calling, etc. Then, I received my first laptop where I can take my schoolwork with me to high school and can be productive on the go. I was a more focused, organized student in school and the laptop was great for me.

Platforms & Networks:

2005: These platforms, Skype, Poptropica, Hotmail were just some during my years before becoming a teenager allowed me to develop communication skills. I created profiles on these sites to be able to have extra connectivity. Hotmail was my first email platform and I used it very often to communicate with friends as a young girl. I remember sending emails to my friends during breaks, trips, etc. My parents were aware that I was using these platforms.

2010: Platforms such as Instagram, Social cam, kik and aol lifestream started when I was in middle school. It developed positive as well as negative relationships and interactions. I saw cyber bullying, statuses, updates, friends hanging out, etc. AIM Lifestream was the first real interaction social network site within my social circle of my school grade. We would update our friends and “buddies” what we were doing so everyone was in the loop.

2015: During my teenage years, snapchat, twitter, and iMessage were becoming the norm of interaction.

My first computer interaction was Freddi Fish the computer (physical) game then I would also use online computer games such as Myscene and Tygirlz. I had a very memorable and positive experience with these games. It allowed for my creativity to develop as a child and made me realize my computer savviness.

Next, the upcoming communication device for me and my social circle was Pictochat for Nintendo DS. This was used as an interaction on the school bus after school on the way home. We would all join the same chat room and communicate “silently” in our own seats. This was before cell phones and texting.

The first music streaming service was iTunes along with the first music product being the iPod. For myself, my first music device for downloading music and songs, was the iPod Nano 3rd generation in 2007. I was around 7 or 8 years old and loved how I can download music from my family’s PC to enjoy on a roadtrip.

Then in 2010, Instagram was introduced to the world and I discovered it as a photography application to allow more creativity for myself on my iPod. Soon enough, the app became a more social network sphere for friends and everyone then added people as friends that they were not directly “friends” with in real life. It allowed for more entertainment and connectivity as more features were being added on.
In 2011, I received my first mobile phone, the LG Cosmos Touch. I enjoyed the slide out keyboard and could instantly text my friends on the go, without a computer. I could take photos on my cell phone and could have more intimacy, privacy and connectivity with friends like no other. I could now call and text my family and friends.

Here, is when AIM also started up where the middle schoolers started their social network sphere as well. It allowed status updates, photos, messages, and deep integration of lots of other social networks all in one. Users can choose their own nickname as a username with their hobbies and likes.

My first iPhone was a couple years after I received my first phone. It amazed me how fast technology evolved and the amount of iPhones that everyone started to buy. This was the time when 99% of people I was around had an iPhone. It was when we had our phones and iPod touches merged together to allow more profiles on social networks to form.

Today, I own an iPhone 8+ and a Macbook Pro with Retina. I have about 30 profiles and more online across a range of platforms. I spent an average of about 12 hours per day actively connected to the internet, and 6 hour and 46 m average on my iPhone. Now, schoolwork and assignments are all focused online, posted, and worked on there.

For my future wishes, I hope for more control and privacy on my digital identity. I want to think about what I post exactly on Facebook, twitter, and Instagram because I am actively applying for jobs. I want to maintain a positive image and control my look online. I also hope to spend less time on social media and let exact limits of how much I am on certain sites. I would like to focus on my improvement and skills with certain applications such as Pinterest. On Pinterest, I can focus more on my future planning, style, creativity, and get inspired on my outlook on life.

I am gaining more inspiration and innovation, I am giving up more entertainment, retrieving a platform for creativity, and reversing a scrapbook.

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