Dr. Neil Hair

Our debrief to our online advertising class went extremely well last night. At 6pm EST - thats 11pm local GMT time - 23 out of 29 of us logged in to talk about the highlights of our class on online advertising. Its funny how just being there gave a sense of a huge class accomplishment that we can all be proud of. It was certainly a positive experience and one that I think we all felt a sense of pride towards. And rightly so - 4 of the worlds 10 richest avatars spoke to class, 9 guest speakers in total, 6 great in world consultancy projects (believed to be the first completed as part of a college degree requirement) and evidence that already clients were implementing their findings (we were hosted by Daphne of Daphne's Delights and she was in the process of refurbishing her island on the basis of her teams recommendations). This is what an educational experience should be about. Cutting edge, world class, interactive and above all else engaging and FUN! More on this as I chew further…

Last night I attempted my first out of this world lecture on 'implementation' in Second Life. Its that time of the quarter where the facts of life - namely the importance of getting things done with our marketing/advertising plans - need to be addressed. Sue (my co-instructor) and I decided to try this as a one off to see how things went. So, from 7-8pm EST I presented a number of slides using an overhead projection system developed by guru and student Matthew Anthony. I (Neilio Negulesco) presented use of an exact replica of one of Saunders classrooms to a room of around 15 avatars (including Newsie Blessed, Sue's SL avatar). I was shocked by just how effective potentially this medium can be. Students arrived and naturally gravitated towards sitting in chairs to listen (thank you Colin for deciding to sit with your head half way through the podium desk). I took virtual questions as we progressed and used the sound system in SL to literally speak my mind through the slide transitions (jpeg versions of in class powerpoint slides). I thought it was an interesting variation in the virtual format that class was also meeting in the first life - without me - as we progressed. I consider myself a bit of a veteran in the delivery of online learning systems and for me this use of SL was different in a positive way. I could see students interacting with me and the environment - one would occasionally break into a dance for instance, and another would get up and sit in another place. What was interesting was that students in class were also interacting with each other. The result of that culminated in a feeling at the end of the lecture that something special and interesting had just ocured. I'm still mulling over the implications of this but I think they are potentially significant. I'm looking forward to getting students responses to this event and even more so - going 100% virtual in our forthcoming debrief in week 11. All of us will meet virtually in SL for conversations about our experiences online. For those of you who were part of this experience - thanks guys, I really enjoyed it.

One of the all round frustrating issues surrounding the provision of online learning is the limitations the medium places on hearing impaired students. Streaming video has to be captioned so that it is inclusive, audio bridges between students is considered discriminatory and entire classes have to adopt text based communication as the primary means of learning. The end of this conundrum may at last be in sight. Washington University has developed a system of streaming sign over limited bandwidth. This is likely to represent a paradigmatic shift in the ways in which deaf students can be part of and party to a richer forum of communication. With this technology in place deaf students will be able to request signers who can interpret in situ live conversations between students using regular tools such as breeze live or Web-ex. Of course this wont help those students who are part of the wider cultural shift towards captionists and cochlear implants as the preferred means of communicating, but it's a step in the right direction.

Susan Barnes from the School of Communication and I are currently working on an innovative class offering for 2008. Online Advertising will be offered and co-taught by both of us in a traditional format (class lectures) and in the worlds largest growing virtual community (SecondLife). We are currently pursuing efforts to gain funding for the venture and course content is expected to focus on the following deliverables: An online advertising campaign for a local organization as part of a team, a personal branding campaign for the individual student, and of course a much loved research paper exploring some of the issues of identity and self in this new world. Classes will be taught 50% in SecondLife and 50% in a traditional setting with the aim of exposing students to the developments in a land that is still experiencing exponential growth amongst the adult population. We will be working closely with online learning at RIT to help us deliver the best experience. I'm really excited about this as it helps RIT establish a name for itself in this area whilst equipping students with the tools to promote themselves and other organizations exclusively online. Students who have sat my internet marketing or b2b e-marketing classes will be right at home with this advanced class. I'm looking forward to developing and teaching it!

Take a technology aimed at annoying the hell out of youngsters to stop them congregating on street corners, flip it, and market it to them. That's whats happened to a Welsh company in the UK whose product used ultra high frequency that only younger ears can hear. The company now offers a ring tone that only younger ears can hear and now music that only younger ears can hear. An interesting spin I thought on marketing the product to a wider audience. The annoying thing is though, I have no idea if I can hear it or not. I'll probaby spend the rest of my life wondering what it would sound like, but then I realized I have a life and no bother. Innovative concept however and one that I wanted to bring to your attention.

Such is life, amusing these days that rumor remains just that until it appears in print on facebook. Rose and I have tied the knot, it's facebook official (Ive changed my status). It's also official that facebook have held out as long as they can from the onslaught of the advertising business model. Microsoft *yawn* are to start providing banner space *even bigger YAWN* and sponsored links *DEATH DEFYING YAWN*. One of the nice things about facebook is its clean looks. Myspace just doesn't do it for me in this regard and seems to be full of weirdos (whereas facebook is full of good wholesome members of the RIT community - at least in my social circle). I guess I'm just not sure that advertising space is the only way to go. There remain plenty of alternative models that might prove equally attractive (shock and horror - pay for access?!). Couple this with a healthy retail model, party organizing features and so on and we might have something to sing about. Banner ads and sponsored links. Dear oh dear. What is the world coming to? How mind numbingly boring.

It's official, we're the recipient of a $13m gift and have a new name. The building is currently open to the elements (quite literally) with workers fitting the new auditoriums and preparing for the new front door. I'm really looking forward to going back to work! Students often complained about the place lacking any real collegial feel. You come in for class, you sit class, you leave. With new break-out rooms, the odd comfy cushion, better light and new furniture the look and feel will be totally different. Importantly I think we will also start to see a change in its culture. My take on this is that everyone, staff, students and faculty work longer and happier when they have nice surroundings. Who knows, it might even start to cure rampant building envy (Gollisano).

Finally, some evidence of what I've personally believed all along… being positive, hoping for the best, being a half full and not a half empty person - helps you live longer. Of course it does'nt really take a bloody Enistein to realise that happy people die less of unexpected heart attacks then those negative buggers that surround us - but it's nice to know the facts support this assumption. Thankfully, Europes dedicated Dutch expert researchers have determined that this be the case and in time I am sure, this will no doubt be supported with a double blind refereed publication in a top tier journal. Whats next? Lonely men are more at risk from dying earlier?

Another interesting article that identifies the advances in cell tracking technology. Not that any of this is new as fans of the movie Ronin will be able to tell you. We've been able to triangulate phone signals from masts for some time now. However, just as the internet started out as a government project, marketers will have their time. Pushing text messages to willing users on deals as you pass pizza houses (or more importantly the latest two for one offering of your favourite micro brew). Tourist information (perhaps akin to the tagging spaces article I wrote recently for this blog), the ability to guide a user to a location (gps eat your heart out) and of course electronic surveillance. Its all just around the corner and another channel opens itself to us. Cant wait! www.whereonearthisneilhair.com could quickly become a cult hit! For my fiancee at least (Rose, you better purchase the domain before I do).

Just want to say thanks to my last two classes for being great. Whats great about is it seeing developments over a period of ten weeks, students ready to make some real money at the end of it one always feels the need to crack open a fine cigar and celebrate with a straight single malt over cracked ice in a 19th century Czech crystal glass - I'll let you know how that feels if and when it happens… This quarter has set a new record for me, over 180,000 words of feedback. Thats more then I wrote for my PhD thesis ! (all 300 pages of it). 27/62 students made entire grade jumps between research papers. 6 students made two grade jumps, and 2 students made three whole grade jumps. The last two sets I'm particularly proud of - you know who you are and you did the work to earn it. Of course one of the problems you face when you only teach three different classes is that you rarely get the priviledge of seeing students progress over their career at college. Once bitten… thrice shy. That said, Im ever edging closer with my goal of a 60ft yatch by the age of 40. And Im relying on you lot to provide it.