As we spoke about in the tutorial last week, the more views or hits a page on the internet gets the higher up on google it is and therefore, more people can find it. This is all basic production and distribution online.

Adrian touched on this subject in the reading for this week, saying that the internet relies on ‘trust networks’. These validate the information, as more people will follow what you do online if they have some form of trust in you. However, isn’t this some sort of crazy blind faith when acting online? We’ve grown up with the idea that someone you’re talking to online could easily be a creepy 60 year old pedophile – a concept now that links into the new phrase – cat fishing. So how do you trust any one online?

Humans have this instinct that something is true – and given, when you’re talking to your best friend on Facebook it probably is her, however, sometimes it’s not. In the reading, the trust network is more related to legitimising information and creating a following. If more people have trusted it, then you are more likely to trust it yourself… but couldn’t we all be fooled? Or can we claim this as safety in numbers?

Getting onto the topic of numbers, copyright has been of major concern, particularly in this week’s symposium. Another thing that makes me nervous! How do we make sure we’re legally safe online?

I thought Brady came up with some great questions about this after week 2. Check it out on his blog: http://www.mediafactory.org.au/brady-harmon/