Jenny Levine: Net Generation

Today we took the kids to see Big Fat Liar. It was totally excellent and everyone loved it, including us adults. If you have kids of any age, two thumbs up. At the beginning of the movie, Frankie Muniz's 14-year old character is late for school, so he has to climb in through a window. He needs someone to distract the teacher though, so he uses his Cybiko to contact his friend Kaylee on her Cybiko and asks her to do it. I nearly did a Danny Thomas spit take.

In visiting the Cybiko site for the first time in a while (I still need to get to the store and look at the new "Xtreme" version), I noticed that it now comes with a WAP browser and they've got the MP3 player live.

I'm so proud of myself - I'm blogging while messaging with Kate and watching the Olympics. See, 15-year olds have nothing on me!

Design Criteria for Children's Web Portals: The Users Speak Out
Andrew Large; Jamshid Beheshti; Tarjin Rahman. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology V53, 2, JAN 15, 2002, p79-94.

"Four focus groups were held with young Web users (10 to 13 years of age) to explore design criteria for Web portals. The focus group participants commented upon four existing portals designed with young users in mind: Ask Jeeves for Kids, KidsClick, Lycos Zone, and Yahooligans! This article reports their first impressions on using these portals, their likes and dislikes, and their suggestions for improvements". [ia/]

Unfortunately, this article isn't available online, but it's a perfect example of why interlibrary loan was invented. Oh, Ka-a-a-te....

One Out of Four Americans Have Downloaded MP3s, Says New Study [at MusicDish]

"Fifty million people, or almost one-quarter (23%) of the American population aged 12 and over, have downloaded a music or mp3 file from of the Net, say findings from a new study examining the influence and effects of online music distribution around the world. By comparison, Napster claimed to have around 40 million users in its heyday, says research firm Ipsos-Reid which conducted the study last November and December. Similar proportions of Americans report having listened to Internet radio (27%) and streamed audio (21%), and over one-third (37%) indicate they have listened to a pre-recorded music CD that was playing in the CD-ROM drive of their PC, Ipsos-Reid found in Tempo: Keeping Pace with Online Music Distribution."

In other words, 50 million Americans realize how inane the record companies are, are tired of being screwed over, and are going elsewhere to get the services they want.

"The firm went on that young Americans continue to lead this Internet music phenomenon, as approximately two-fifths of 12-24-year-olds have downloaded music or MP3 files off of the Internet (44% of 12-17 year-olds, and 42% in the 18-24 age group)."

No surprise there. Think of all that disposable income the record companies are losing....

"Among adults aged 25-34, one-third (35%) have also downloaded music, demonstrating that older age groups are beginning to dabble in the new digital music arena as well. Not only are these individuals trying out music downloading capabilities, they are returning for more, says Ipsos-Reid. Three-fifths of (59%) of Americans who have downloaded a music or MP3 file in the past indicated that they are somewhat, very, or extremely likely to download again in the next 30 days."

Hello, Mr. Record Company, this is your wake-up call.

Today I got an email from Matt at Audible. It went out to some kind of a list, but it included two documents, an overview of the company and its services in general, and an overview of its services for libraries. When Matt spoke at our Tech Summit in September, only the Kalamazoo and Highland Community College libraries were actively circulating Audible titles. NOLA was just getting started, but now there are four more libraries on board the program. Here's their list, which is labeled as "partial":

King County, Washington
NOLA (Northern Ohio system)
Kalamazoo, MI
Broome County, NY
Carroll County, MD
Highland County, IL Community Coll.
Rochester, NY (Henrietta Branch)

In my previous post about Audible, I was thinking of the Kalamazoo Public Library, not King County. KPL has a page devoted to their MP3 audiobook program, and it includes first and second quarter reports (both in PDF format). Their program has also been wildly successful.

Also of interest in Audible's general overview document is continued progress towards something called "AudibleWireless," which provides "customized spoken audio content based on the customer's individual selections, delivered to a wireless device or accessed with an ordinary handset."

So the next time you see an ad for a cell phone or PDA that plays MP3s and you ask yourself why on earth anyone would want that, now you know. It's another type of "heavenly jukebox" digital content coming to you wherever you are via your wireless device. I wonder if Audible can partner with satellite radio companies in order to stream content of your choosing to your car or home stereo. Hey, Matt....

Two articles about a Girl Scout report that studied girls' use of the Internet. It's interesting to see the different takes on them.

Girl Scouts Survey Net Sex [at Wired News]

"Of the girls who said they were harassed, only 7 percent reported telling their parents what had happened. Thirty percent said they 'didn't tell anyone' about the incidents, and another 21 percent said that such harassment 'happens all the time and is no big deal.' Girls were reluctant to inform their parents, said Whitney Roban, the survey's senior researcher, because the teens are "worried they'll be blamed for what happened (and) that parents will take away their Internet connection."

"Teens aren't going to accept such "blanket prohibitions" against Internet use, added Harriet Mosatche, a child and adolescent psychologist also at the event. Fifty-eight percent of the girls surveyed by the Scouts considered themselves the savviest computer user in the household."

Girls Know Way Around Net, Parents [at USA Today]

"58% of girls say they are the savviest computer user at home; 14% say Mom knows the most, while 11% say Dad does." Go moms!

"Most girls say they can get around parents' rules; 86% say they can secretly chat, 57% can read parents' e-mail, and 54% can carry on a cyber love affair. Nearly half say they're able to set up an in-person meeting with an online friend (46%) and get into a porn site (42%), while 18% say they can hack into their school's computer."

Newspapers: Don't Blow It Again "A common theme heard throughout the conference -- as told by Saffo as well as many other speakers and participants -- was that the newspaper industry has got to "think different" from now on. We haven't done a good enough job of casting aside the old metaphors..." [at Editor & Publisher, via Tomalak's Realm]

"Think different" = shift. Because I quote liberally from this article, I put my thoughts on a separate page called Everybody Has to Shift.

Background: last summer I moved my computer into the basement and made it an office/recreation area for myself. Of course, the cable Internet connection doesn't go into the basement, and I didn't want to wire the house, so I installed a wireless network in order to get Internet on my computer. I also bought a new PC, which has made me 100 times more productive due to speed alone. That freed up a PC, which went upstairs in what would normally be called "the dining room" (except that we don't dine there). So I added the PC and the laptop to the network, and suddenly everyone in the house was on the Net.

Reason for background: in the morning, I usually shower, get dressed, and go downstairs to read my email. Today I came upstairs from the basement and found 6-year old Brent on the PC in the dining room. He was on the Zoog Disney Web site because he has become obssessed with the "Cadet Kelly" game. Atari games were more sophisticated than this thing, but he loves it. Then I looked into the living room and saw 7-year old Kailee (soon to be 8-year old Kailee) on the laptop, also playing Web games and checking her email.

I just laughed and shook my head in amazement.

Zhikr.org is too interesting for me to write a one-sentence summary. Looks like good stuff on the Net Generation and on Islam. Must read tonight. [via Kottke.org]

Watch Out for a New Watchphone "Samsung's SPH-S1OO 'watchphone' accepts voice commands so it can be used hands-free. It rings in different ways for different callers and automatically keys in preprogrammed letters or numbers to make quick work of logging into online services. There's also a 'Secret Phone Book' where every saved phone number can be used only after the person keys in a 4-digit code, according to the device's 112-page user manual.... The FCC go-ahead is instead a 'proof of the technology,' the spokesman said. He declined to say when and where the watchphone would be available." [at ZDNet]

The analyst is right that it will take a long time for something like this to take off, even if Samsung starts actually making them. However, can you imagine what it would be like to be a kid growing up with this kind of device widely available and inexpensive? Always connected to a 3G network? Talk about information shifting!

Ore-Ida Puts Fun Into Funky with the Introduction of Funky Fries "Ore-Ida Funky Fries will be available to consumers this May in five 20-ounce varieties: Cinna-Stiks (cinnamon and sugar potatoes), Cocoa Crispers (cocoa-y potatoes), Kool Blue (crispy, seasoned potatoes with a radical blue color), Crunchy Rings (cylindrical potatoes that crunch as they delight), and Sour Cream & Jive (crispy potatoes seasoned with just the right amount of sour cream and chive flavoring)." [via MeFi]

So does this mean I'm officially a kid if these flavors intrigue me (especially the chocolate fries)? Brent will love each and every one of these flavors. I know this because last week he extolled the virtues of salsa mixed with white rice. Ah, six-year olds....

Thin Mints in Cyberspace. "E-mail is playing a bigger role than ever in the annual U.S. Girl Scout cookie-selling season. But scout leaders remain opposed to pitching their sugary fare on the Web." [Wired News]

We'll be using email next year to sell Girl Scout cookies. Or rather, Kailee will. She'll have no problem writing the messages herself and contacting family and friends.

John Robb thinks out loud about smart money. He's right - it's a "mini mind-bomb."

How's this for kids using the Internet. Our 7-year old has found a horse she wants to buy, and it's only $1500. (ONLY?!) She found it herself at HorsesForSale.com. Every day she goes on the Web and checks her email, looks for inexpensive horses (she still doesn't understand the concept of boarding), trolls the American Girl site to add to her wish list, plays games online, and today she discovered the Disney site. She also takes her friends online to show them all of these things, none of which they have ever seen before. She thinks all laptops are connected to the Internet using a high-speed connection. Like I said... shifted.

Have Cell Phone, Will Shoot "The carnage occurs with cellular phones, not guns -- courtesy of new technologies that allow cell phone users to locate each other to within several hundred meters.... The games rely on a cell phone technology that allows mobile operators to pinpoint users' positions within "cells" formed by their phones' locations relative to nearby transmitters...."

"The company's signature game is BotFighters, which Hålling says has attracted between 7,000 and 8,000 players in Sweden and Finland. The game will launch shortly in Ireland. In BotFighters, users role-play as robots that they pick from a community website. They can pick all kinds of extras like laser guns and missiles, using play money called 'Robucks.' "

"But once they start firing at each other in the real world, they pay real money -- about 20 cents for each move in the game. (The cell phones can "get" missions from the company's servers, "scan" for nearby enemies and, of course, "fire.") Since intense battles often involve many moves, the games can quickly add up to some big phone bills. Sweden's Taxi31, for instance, has chalked up bills as high as $4,000." [at Wired News]

I'm quoting liberally from this article because most of the adults I know don't believe that kids - let alone other adults - will want to play games on their cell phones. Granted, the U.S. will be a different market, but any kid that's grown up with Gameboys will feel right at home with something like this. I mean heck, it's interactive and you can play against anybody, not just your next door neighbor.

In my Information Shifting presentation, I note that wireless companies plan to target their advertising at kids 10 years old and younger because they are considered to be the first big wave for this market. After all, what 10 year old wouldn't want to collect zombies and play virtual paintball using their PDA/phone combo? They don't know cell phones are supposed to be for calling people. To them, it will be an information appliance, game console, and IM tool all rolled into one.

BTW, you can find out more about BotFighters and other games at the It's Alive site. It's nice to see that it still has the heartbeat along the top and the funky background sounds. The site is perfect for a cellular game company. "Pervasive gaming" is a term you'll hear a lot more of over the next few years.

Libraries trying to reach teens " 'They're the customers of the future,' said Penny Halle, a public services librarian at the Muskego Public Library. 'If we turn them off in seventh grade because they can't find anything here for them or they can't find a friendly face, what makes anyone think they're going to come back when they're 22?' " [via Library Stuff]

Excellent point! It's great that these libraries are implementing discussion groups, and I'm not putting down books or print in any way, but we have to be much faster to adopt other types of outreach to teens to prove to them we're still relevant in their lives (now and in the future). If they can't reach us in ways that are natural for them, then we won't exist in their world.

The Next Generation Customer Communication Platform "In the not-too-distant future, we will begin seeing unified customer support platforms that allow companies and their customers to communicate seamlessly via the Web, telephone, and wireless devices. In this article, we will learn how two evolutionary trends are creating a new generation of unified customer communication platforms. The lines between a phone customer and a Web customer are going to blur." [at VoiceXML Planet, via WebDeveloper.com]

This illustrates my theory that in the future, libraries will have a version of the "Wal-Mart greeter" handling incoming communications, whether via email, Instant Messaging (IM), SMS, or telephone. And for a long time, that intermediary will be a human being. Most libraries have moved to automated answering systems for incoming phone calls, but that doesn't work well in the world of electronic communications (except maybe for an email autoresponder acknowledging we got your message and will respond).

We have to shift in order to communicate with our patrons in their world, not ours. We can no longer sit behind a desk waiting for a phone call.

U.S. Web usage hits 54 percent Report: For first time, more than half of population on Net "Internet use continued to grow rapidly last year, with new government data showing that the number of Americans using the Web in 2001 passed 50 percent of the population for the first time.... Despite concerns that interest in Internet usage might cool as many dot-com businesses vanished, the government report put new users at two million per month in 2001. E-mail continues to be the nation’s favorite online activity, and 45 percent of the population now uses it regularly, up from 35 percent in 2000." [at MSNBC.com]

This isn't a surprise, is it? The Internet is becoming an integral part of people's lives, and it's crossing socio-economic boundaries to do it. But here's the most interesting part of this article. Are you sitting down? Well, I guess if you're reading this you are. Be amazed:

"The report found 174 million Americans, or 66 percent of the population, were using computers as of September, with those numbers substantially higher among children and teenagers. The data show that 48 million Americans between age five and age 17, 90 percent of that population, use computers."

And you wondered why they're called the Net Generation.

Growing Up Digital: The Rise of the Net Generation. The light bulb above my head first burned bright about the Net Generation when I was reading the book Growing Up Digital by Donald Tapscott I highly recommend this book, and I promise you many a-ha moments if you read it. In fact, I can't recommend it enough. Even though Tapscott wrote it in 1998, he hit the nail directly on the head and through the wall. The Web site gives you an excellent introduction to why I think it's so important for libraries to shift to meet these kids in their world. Daily life at home proves these points to me over and over and over.

BTW, if you're wondering why I focus so much on the Net Generation, here's why: "Eighty-eight million offspring produced by 85 million baby boomers have eclipsed their parents in size and impact. The youngest of these kids are still in their diapers, and the eldest are just turning twenty."

Professors Should Embrace Technology "But our students don't give a hoot about our history, our traditions, our culture, or our paranoias. Already, they want to know why our syllabuses aren't on the World Wide Web. In five years -- or sooner -- they're going to assume that all our courses will be online, in their entirety, complete with streaming audio and video. No, not as a substitute for face-to-face classroom interaction, but as another option in a flexible menu of ways that they can access information. They will want e-books and immediate delivery and the ability to get in touch with us 24/7, from wherever they are." [in SchoolBlogs]

Ditto. When you read this article, substitute "librarians" when you see the word "teachers." Then re-read it and figure out how your library will support these students.

The Trouble with TiVo "So if TiVo’s this terrific, why hasn’t it—or any of its competitors—taken off? Talk to people like Makely and you’ll hear nothing but accolades. But after two and a half years on the market, less than 300,000 TiVo systems have been sold. The company’s two main competitors, UltimateTV and ReplayTV, won’t even release sales figures (they’re estimated to have sold less than 100,000 units apiece)." [via Slashdot]

And of those 100,00 ReplayTVs, I own two of them. I agree with all of the owners quoted in this article. I love my Replays, and you'll take them away from me when you pry them out of my cold, dead hands. I hate watching live TV now, as does the rest of my family. Because it's so easy to "tape" programs, find them, and watch them, I tape a bajillion shows for the kids. They are growing up thinking that Batman, Between the Lions, Boy Meets World, Brady Bunch, Dragon Tales, Even Steven, Gunsmoke, Superman, and Zoom are on at any given time of the day. Even better, I can skip right through the commercials. In 3-5 years, everyone will own a piece of equipment that digitally rcords TV shows so that you can watch them whenever you want to. And I haven't even mentioned all of the shows I tape for the adults in the house. Go get yours now - I promise you won't regret it!

Project Weblogs. "My class and I spent yesterday morning creating 18 project weblogs. The students are in the process of creating their navigation links that correspond to the chapters of their projects." [in WeblogsInEducation, via CurryDotCom]

How cool is this - blogging a project on Chopin! I'll tell you... these kids today.... When I was a kid, we had to actually type our papers on a typewriter, and we walked ten miles through the snow to hand them in, and it was uphill, too. Both ways.