I’m in the newspaper October 16, 2007
Posted by mwj as education, electronic arts, games, news, scholarship. 3 comments.So I got a scholarship from Electronic Arts for the Masters of Digital Media that I’m taking right now, and it has generated a little bit of press. I got my BA in Langley (and spent the last 5 years there) so the story has run twice, once in the Langley Advance and once in the Langley Times. Both of those are cached here, but you can see the online version on the canada.com network.
What then is education? I had thought it was the curriculum the individual ran through in order to catch up with himself; and anyone who does not want to go through this curriculum will be little helped by being born into the most enlightened age.
– Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling
Mastering digital media March 16, 2007
Posted by mwj as education, games, journalism, media, second life, technology, web2.0, world of warcraft. 2 comments.My Dad told me that a recent article I wrote for the TWU school paper, Mars’ Hill, went a long way in explaining why I’m pursuing the career path that I am. For those who want to know, I’ve republished the article below.
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The kingdom of Norrath has a GDP roughly equivalent to Namibia. In 2002 the average citizen made about $3.42 an hour. This is an impressive figure, considering Norrath has been in a constant state of civil war since its genesis in 1999. What makes this figure even more impressive is the fact that Norrath is a virtual kingdom, inhabited by players of the online game EverQuest.
These days, inhabitants of online worlds can earn much more. Second Life, which is more of a virtual world than a game, encourages players to buy and sell virtual goods for real money. Some citizens rake in over $50 000 a year. Of course, some are logging 70+ hours a week, as in the case of Veronica Browne of Simone! Design, a virtual fashion company. Despite the long hours, she makes over $17 an hour, well above the retail average. Even the more fantastical games like World of Warcraft, with over seven million players, have well-established economies where it is possible to make a significant income over and above the monthly cost of play.
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