A reflection based on the prescribed readings for week 5 🙂
1. Keith Sawyer, 2007, Group Genius: The creative power of collaboration, New York: Basic Books, 2007, pp.39-57.
2. Jean Tabaka, 2006, ‘What are collaborative teams?’ Collaboration explained: Facilitation skills for software project leaders, Upper Saddle River, NJ : Addison-Wesley, pp.23-43.
3.Adam Hyde, Mike Linksvayer et al, 2012, ‘What is Collaboration Anyway?’ in The Social Media Reader, Ed. Michael Mandiberg, NYU Press
Communication is a device that allows for collaboration to be possible.
Importantly, the distinction is made between “sharing” and “collaboration”. Whilst as media practioners we may use platforms such as blogs to upload our content it does not instantly allow for others to contribute to the original work. So although we put work up there for everyone to see it remains idle unless others are able to do something else with it. The function of an “attribution” is a process whereby a media maker (like ourselves) is allowed to appropriate work under creative commons licenses by correctly attributing, that is giving credit to the orgignal author where it is necessary.
The term “collaboration” can be interpreted several different ways and sometimes that can cause conflict over who owns or has contributed to a piece of work. As it it readjusted, its original intent can become manipulated or used in away not orginally intended by the creator. To avoid this potential problem arising, the reading discusses “criteria for collaboration” in terms of “size, speed, space, and scope”.
Another, more positive aspect of working in collaboaration is “Teamwork”. When effective it allows for multiple viewpoints and opinions to converge in order to reach objectives and add additional dimensions to work.