Computer-mediated communication has transformed the author's life in the following ways: 1) Early communication devices like pagers and cell phones allowed for more convenient contact compared to traditional phone calls. 2) Chat rooms, instant messaging, and social media emerged, providing new ways to connect and share information with others online. 3) As technology advanced, communication methods like texting and social networking became more popular and integral due to their ease and ability to keep the author informed on friends' activities.

1. Computer-Mediated Communication:
How my life has
been transformed
through the use of
Computer-Mediated
Communication.
http://www.englishwithjo.com/english-conversation-technology/

2. Did they get my page? I hope they call me back soon! BEEP
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Np88_support.jpg

3. The pager is the first telecommunication device I
remember thinking was the coolest thing because I didn't
have to call my best friend's house phone, I could just
beep her and she would call me back! This avoided the
possibility of me calling her house only to find out she
wasn't there.

4. Early 2000's: My Nokia Motorola
My first cell phone
I rarely used it except for
emergencies.
That could have been
due to the fact that
anything extra you
wanted to do, cost more.
For instance, I remember
I had the option of
downloading popular
songs in midi format, for a
price.
http://jumpingmushroom.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Nokia_3210_3.jpg

5. Having a cell phone meant I could be
reached easier in case of somebody
needing to get a hold of me. This made it
more convenient to have for communication.
In reality though, I don't think I was very
hard to get a hold of in the first place. I was
usually with my best friend who had the
pager and if my mom needed to get a hold
of me she would just beep her and then I
would call her back.
This method worked fine while it lasted. I
think it probably symbolized a sense of
being able to keep up with the rest of the
world. I felt a sense of importance because
at some moment in time someone will need
to contact me.

6. Chat Rooms and Instant Messaging
America Online: I'm not quite sure how I stumbled
across the use of chat rooms one day, but I
remember being instantly addicted to being able to
talk to anyone about our common interests. As a
teenager, it was an outlet where I could feel that I
could say anything that was on my mind because
these people didn't really know me. The more
people started to become obnoxious in chat rooms
the more it started to grow old really fast. I stopped
going to them as much because I remember not
wanting to waste time reading nonsense.
ICQ was the first instant messenger I used. It is interesting to
note that back then if you wanted to talk to your friends and
saw they were online, usually this was the only way that was
possible because unless they had two lines, the phone line
was already used by being on the internet!
http://www.inquisitr.com/201125/aol-pulls-advertising-dollars-from-rush-limbaugh/ http://megachatplace.com/chat-options/icq/

7. myname@yahoo.com
My first email address was through yahoo and I didn't use it
very much. It was basically just started because I needed one
to sign up for different websites. The first “networking” site I
was a part of was called Kiwibox, it was an online teen
“hangout”, I liked it because you could get points for doing
different things around the site and then you could “cash”
them in for prizes. This made a kind of goal to work towards if
you wanted to get a certain prize you needed to go to the site
regularly to be able to get the points. This caused the site to
become a kind of addiction to see how many points I was
able to attain.
http://www.thekarolina.com/kiwibox.shtml

8. “Keeping up with Joneses”
When I moved to Denver in 2004 I got a Motorola Razr
which at the time was the new “cool” phone. I had that
phone for 5 years! At the time I was more interested in
owning better musical equipment then trying to get the
latest computer or cell phone. So I became a bit “out
of the loop” with new technology for a few years.

9. Instant Messaging through cell phones:
My brother who is 7 years younger than me was text messaging on
his phone one day, he had a plan that allowed it and I will never
forget thinking
“Why would you want to text message through your phone when
you can just call them?”
My plan at the time didn't include text messaging so even though
the phone was capable of it, it was a while before I caught on to
why it became so popular.
http://www.sfamaroon.org/?p=618

10. The easier the better...
Once cell phone providers started offering
better plans with regards to text messaging, I
realized that text messaging was an awesome
way to say what I needed to say in a short
amount of time while not having to use any
minutes! This made it a logical step forward in
being able to communicate efficiently.
http://www.musicteachershelper.com/blog/make-it-easy-then-practice-hard/

11. Social Networking:
A friend of mine told me about a website called Myspace, I
thought it was interesting because you could create your own
little “site” with info about yourself and pictures. You would
also be able to connect with all your friends (once you sent
them the email to sign up!) It wasn't long before I realized you
were able to find independent bands and artists. Through the
site you were able to have a connection to the band or listen
to new music easier than if you went to their website. This
was a huge factor in getting me personally to become more
involved with the the site.
http://www.megatraxblog.com/2011/02/23/myspace-music-partners-with-songtrust/

12. Myspace vs. Facebook
When Facebook first came out I didn't think there was any point
in getting it, it seemed like I was going to be doing the same
things just on a different site. It wasn't until I realized that it was
a lot easier to use that I made the permanent switch. Myspace
was becoming difficult to get around and they kept changing the
interface. With Facebook you didn't have to do as much work to
update your status or read what other people were saying. The
site also made sharing each others information easily
attainable. I realized that being able to know what my friends
were up to all the time resulted in me wanting to stay informed
more than I thought I already was. This was making me feel not
so out of the loop, when before if something was going on that I
didn't know about I tended to feel left out.
http://www.securitypentest.com/2011/10/facebook-attach-exe-vulnerability.html

13. Tweet Tweet...
Twitter is another site that I didn't understand at first. I don't tweet as much
as I just think it's fun to read what other people are saying about hashtags
that I find interesting. I started mainly just wanting to keep up with celebrities.
It has turned out to be a lot more fun than I thought it was going to be. This
seems to be a running theme with me, if I don't think it's going to be very
interesting, sooner or later I will think that it is awesome! You can stay
informed with events that interest you and are able to interact with events
going on. In a way you are able to be a part of an idea, contest, or live
broadcast that ten years ago we would just be watching on TV. We also can
see the people we are talking to because of their picture, in this sense it
makes the communication more palpable.
http://www.newcycle.com.ar/blog/2011/05/nueva-funcion-en-twitter/

14. In conclusion:
The way technology is changing will always influence the
way we communicate. I think we want to be able to interact
with people and things that interest us in as convenient a
way as possible. Through the use of text messaging,
email, and social networking sites, I feel like I am able to
stay in touch with friends, family, and media events like I
haven't been able in the past. It is interesting to think about
how fast we are changing and what new technology will
bring to the way we communicate ten years from now!
http://closequarter.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/technology-innovation.png