Blog 9,

Expressing one's self has become the "in thing" and the internet has made this possible. When I started to read Huffaker & Calvert's study, I thought this doesn't sound right, communication is anything but traditional via the internet and CMC networks. Women may be polite in some forums, but shy and reserved, I don't think so. One of things that I have observed from bloggers, mostly women, that we are very vocal, we have a voice and we want to be heard and in some cases seen. Also, when It comes to men using emoticons, all of the guys that I know use emoticons when blogging or texting. Also, the idea of feeling connected is felt more when someone in using IM, as opposed to blogging another individual, because the order in which the comments are received. I can see people feeling the directness of IM, texting, the messages are clearly for one person.
Another part of the study that was interesting, homosexuality is still a touchy subject. I thought the idea of being able to choose who and what a person communicates is what usually takes place on the internet.
Lately, I have started to wander about a person's identity based on their perspective on a particular subject. I don't give it too much thought, because of the diversity of the internet and its growth. I also know that some CMC communities attract a certain idea of thinking based representation so" like minds" are drawn together. That leads me to Grasmuck, Marin, and Zhao's and the study of minority groups being more expressive via Facebook. I would not say more...it's not like minorities (we) have not had a voice. I mean like everything else, technology has changed the way people express themselves and with, Facebook being one the most popular and diverse CMC community, why not join in with everyone else. People usually see themselves in a certain light and embracing their heritage, knowing who and where you come from is important to our very being. So the fact that everyone else is catching up to what other CMC communites such as Facebook have to offer, is a good thing.
Now, whether or not I have given any thought to the race or gender of the class members that are not pictured, yes, I have and it was, merely based on comments made in the chat sessions and some postings. As far as assumptions, I can't say that I made any, so no, and I can't really think of a reason.