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Wired contributing editor Frank Rose introduces readers to the people who are reshaping media for a two-way world--people like Will Wright (The Sims), James Cameron (Avatar), Damon Lindelof (Lost), and dozens of others whose ideas are changing how we play, how we chill, and even how we think.

Screens are ubiquitous today. They display information; present image worlds; are portable; connect to mobile networks; mesmerize. However, contemporary screen media also seek to eliminate the presence of the screen and the visibilities of its boundaries. As what is image becomes increasingly indistinguishable against the viewer’s actual surroundings, this unsettling prompts re-examination about not only what is the screen, but also how the screen demarcates and what it stands for in relation to our understanding of our realities in, outside and against images. Through case studies drawn from three media technologies – Virtual Reality; holograms; and light projections – this book develops new theories of the surfaces on and spaces in which images are displayed today, interrogating critical lines between art and life; virtuality and actuality; truth and lies. What we have today is not just the contestation of the real against illusion or the unreal, but the disappearance itself of difference and a gluttony of the unreal which both connect up to current politics of distorted truth values and corrupted terms of information. The Post-Screen Through Virtual Reality, Holograms and Light Projections: Where Screen Boundaries Lie is thus about not only where the image’s borders and demarcations are established, but also the screen boundary as the instrumentation of today’s intense virtualizations that do not tell the truth. In all this, a new imagination for images emerges, with a new space for cultures of presence and absence, definitions of object and representation, and understandings of dis- and re-placement – the post-screen.

This study examines the factors influencing visitors' attitudes and intentions to revisit virtual reality (VR) ride simulators in amusement parks, focusing on psychological aspects such as telepresence, flow, and enjoyment. Data were collected from 138 visitors using a structured questionnaire and analyzed with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings show that enjoyment significantly shapes attitudes toward VR ride simulators, which in turn drive revisit intentions. By contrast, telepresence and flow were not significant predictors, suggesting that emotional engagement plays a more critical role than cognitive absorption in shaping visitor evaluations, especially in passive, pre-scripted, short-duration VR ride simulator contexts. These results challenge established psychological theories such as presence and flow while pointing to the relevance of Mood Management Theory for understanding immersive entertainment experiences. The study also highlights the importance of developing immersive tourism standards that go beyond safety by incorporating design criteria emphasizing emotional engagement, narrative interactivity, and cognitive resonance. Conducted in the context of Indonesia's emerging VR entertainment market, this study fills a research gap in developing countries and contributes fresh insights into the psychological drivers of visitor behavior, supporting the sustainable growth of VR-based attractions in similar markets.

Blockchain has the potential to disrupt and transform the social media business space. Nitin Upadhyay in this book delves into an insightful discussion of the pertinent and potential implications of blockchain technology on the social media business model in a uniquely accessible way.

We are active with our mobile devices; we play games, watch films, listen to music, check social media, and tap screens and keyboards while we are on the move. In Mood and Mobility , Richard Coyne argues that not only do we communicate, process information, and entertain ourselves through devices and social media; we also receive, modify, intensify, and transmit moods. Designers, practitioners, educators, researchers, and users should pay more attention to the moods created around our smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Drawing on research from a range of disciplines, including experimental psychology, phenomenology, cultural theory, and architecture, Coyne shows that users of social media are not simply passive receivers of moods; they are complicit in making moods. Devoting each chapter to a particular mood -- from curiosity and pleasure to anxiety and melancholy -- Coyne shows that devices and technologies do affect people's moods, although not always directly. He shows that mood effects are transitional; different moods suit different occasions, and derive character from emotional shifts. Furthermore, moods are active; we enlist all the resources of human sociability to create moods. And finally, the discourse about mood is deeply reflexive; in a kind of meta-moodiness, we talk about our moods and have feelings about them. Mood, in Coyne's distinctive telling, provides a new way to look at the ever-changing world of ubiquitous digital technologies.

Social media channels provide a critical opportunity for sharing electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communication. eWOM has been considered a prominent factor in shaping consumer behavior. The purpose of this is to examine the effect of website quality, social support, emotional experience, and subjective norms on the attitude of eWOM. Furthermore, the personal interactivity role as moderator is examined. An online survey was conducted from 756 consumers in China. Structure equation modeling (SEM) was employed for data analysis by using AMOS 23. The results indicate that above-mentioned determinants positively influence on attitude and eWOM. Personal interactivity significantly moderates the relationship between attitude toward eWOM and eWOM. Perceived behavioral control (PBC) has a positive direct effect on eWOM. This study provides useful and valuable insights regarding potential determinants of eWOM in Chinese perspective. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

What identity means in an algorithmic age: how it works, how our lives are controlled by it, and how we can resist it Algorithms are everywhere, organizing the near limitless data that exists in our world. Derived from our every search, like, click, and purchase, algorithms determine the news we get, the ads we see, the information accessible to us and even who our friends are. These complex configurations not only form knowledge and social relationships in the digital and physical world, but also determine who we are and who we can be, both on and offline. Algorithms create and recreate us, using our data to assign and reassign our gender, race, sexuality, and citizenship status. They can recognize us as celebrities or mark us as terrorists. In this era of ubiquitous surveillance, contemporary data collection entails more than gathering information about us. Entities like Google, Facebook, and the NSA also decide what that information means, constructing our worlds and the identities we inhabit in the process. We have little control over who we algorithmically are. Our identities are made useful not for us-but for someone else. Through a series of entertaining and engaging examples, John Cheney-Lippold draws on the social constructions of identity to advance a new understanding of our algorithmic identities.We Are Datawill educate and inspire readers who want to wrest back some freedom in our increasingly surveilled and algorithmically-constructed world.

Humans are becoming increasingly reliant on interconnected technologies to go about their daily lives in the personal and professional spheres. From finding romance, to conducting businesses entirely online, receiving health services, shopping, banking, and gaming, the Internet and World Wide Web open up a world of possibilities to people across the globe. Understanding the psychological processes underlying and influencing the thinking, interpretation, and behavior associated with this online interconnectivity is the core premise of Cyberpsychology. This book explores a wide range of cyberpsychological processes and activities through the research and writings of some of the world’s leading cyberpsychology experts. The book covers a broad range of topics spanning the key areas of research interest in this emerging field of enquiry and will be of interest to those who have only recently discovered the discipline as well as more seasoned cyberpsychology researchers and teachers. The book contains eight sections, and includes contributions spanning the breadth of current academic and public interest. Topics include: online research methods, self-presentation and impression management, technology across the lifespan, interaction and interactivity, online groups and communities, social media, health and technology, video gaming, and cybercrime and cybersecurity.

From EverQuest to World of Warcraft, online games have evolved from the exclusive domain of computer geeks into an extraordinarily lucrative staple of the entertainment industry. People of all ages and from all walks of life now spend thousands of hours—and dollars—partaking in this popular new brand of escapism. But the line between fantasy and reality is starting to blur. Players have created virtual societies with governments and economies of their own whose currencies now trade against the dollar on eBay at rates higher than the yen. And the players who inhabit these synthetic worlds are starting to spend more time online than at their day jobs. In Synthetic Worlds, Edward Castronova offers the first comprehensive look at the online game industry, exploring its implications for business and culture alike. He starts with the players, giving us a revealing look into the everyday lives of the gamers—outlining what they do in their synthetic worlds and why. He then describes the economies inside these worlds to show how they might dramatically affect real world financial systems, from potential disruptions of markets to new business horizons. Ultimately, he explores the long-term social consequences of online games: If players can inhabit worlds that are more alluring and gratifying than reality, then how can the real world ever compete? Will a day ever come when we spend more time in these synthetic worlds than in our own? Or even more startling, will a day ever come when such questions no longer sound alarmist but instead seem obsolete? With more than ten million active players worldwide—and with Microsoft and Sony pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into video game development—online games have become too big to ignore. Synthetic Worlds spearheads our efforts to come to terms with this virtual reality and its concrete effects.

Today, computers are part of kids' everyday lives, used both for play and for learning. We envy children's natural affinity for computers, the ease with which they click in and out of digital worlds. Thirty years ago, however, the computer belonged almost exclusively to business, the military, and academia. In \"Engineering Play,\" Mizuko Ito describes the transformation of the computer from a tool associated with adults and work to one linked to children, learning, and play. Ito gives an account of a pivotal period in the 1980s and 1990s, which saw the rise of a new category of consumer software designed specifically for elementary school aged children. \"Edutainment\" software sought to blend various educational philosophies with interactive gaming and entertainment, and included such titles as \"Number Munchers,\" \"Oregon Trail,\" \"KidPix,\" and \"Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?\" Drawing from observations of kids' play, interviews with software developers, and advertising and industry materials, Ito identifies three educational philosophies and genres in children's software that connect players in software production, distribution, and consumption: instruction, focused on transmission of academic content; exploration, tied to open-ended play; and construction, aimed at empowering young users to create and manipulate digital media. The children's software boom (and the bust that followed), says Ito, can be seen as a microcosm of the negotiations surrounding new technology, children, and education. The story she tells is both a testimonial to the transformative power of innovation and a cautionary tale about its limitations.