|
|
|
|
Much has changed in the world of photography since I first visited the “Lost Inca City” of Machu Picchu in 1997 after my wedding in Peru. On my first trip I had a “regular” point and shoot camera with cartridge film. I had to scan the prints and host them on my own website to share photos with my friends. When I visited Machu Picchu with my parents last year, digital cameras were everywhere, and we were able to capture the sites and quickly share photos via Picasa Web Albums. Now everyone is invited to share their favorite Machu Picchu photos with the world. July 24 marks the 100th anniversary of the scientific discovery of Machu Picchu by American Hiram Bingham in 1911. PromPerú, Peru’s tourism ministry, is celebrating the anniversary with events and a Machu Picchu centennial website where they are inviting visitors to share their most amazing pictures of this historical sanctuary in the Machu Picchu vistors photo gallery. The best photos will be recognized by PromPerú and CAN-Machu Picchu (the committee in charge of the Machu Picchu 100 year celebration) and will be published on the official anniversary website.
Have you ever wanted to try out a new personality? Since we're stuck with ourselves, day-in and day-out, our own personalities might sometimes feel a little tired from time to time. So what can we do about this? There are, of course, costumes, which are probably the reason so many people look forward to Halloween -- they can be their favorite superhero for a night and revel in a little creativity. But not all of us are willing to play dress up throughout the calendar year, mainly because doing so violates generally held social norms. After all, most Web sites that offer some kind of online community allow their users to create avatars, an electronic image that represents the person controlling it. Generally, members can be as creative as they like with their avatar, either fashioning it as close to their appearance and personality as possible or creating an entirely different personality. One of these social networking services is Zwinky, a service launched in 2006 and owned by InterActiveCorp (IAC).
Zwinky lets its members create their own cartoonish, large-headed and big-eyed avatars, which they can use in several different ways. One thing to keep in mind: Zwinky is open to anyone age 13 and older. If you're younger than 13, you won't be allowed to make your own account, not even with parental permission. Zwinky profiles can also be set to "private" if you're 18 or older, but profiles of Zwinky users younger than 18 are automatically set to private. So how does Zwinky work? What can someone with a Zwinky avatar do? And what kind of place is Zwinktopia, anyway? This may be a slightly unfamiliar approach for members of other social networking sites -- most simply request that you create a username and password and fill in some personal information, including e-mail addresses and phone numbers. Zwinky, however, requires you to download a Zwinky icon onto your Web browser, which users click on to access the program's interface. When you've successfully installed the Zwinky program and opened up the program window, it's time to customize your Zwinky character.
Every Zwinky has a personal wardrobe, which users can access by clicking on the "Open Wardrobe" button near the bottom of the screen. You can manipulate a Zwinky's appearance to make it look however you want, and users choose traits including gender, skin tone, hair style and color, and more. To move a Zwinky from one place to the next in a specific area, members simply use the mouse to point and click. You can make new friends or see a list of the ones you already have by clicking on the "View/Add Friends" button at the bottom of the interface. This button allows you to either send an e-mail to a fellow Zwinky requesting friendship or to see where in Zwinky's world your friends are. If a friend is online, clicking on your friend can bring you straight to him or her, call up that person's profile or let you send that person a Znote. Of course, if another Zwinky bothers you or makes you uncomfortable, you have the option of blocking him or her from chatting with you.
|
|
