Issuu

Issuu is an online too that allows users to create digital magazines. It is rather similar to a site such as Blogger or Wordpress, but it takes things one step further, allowing users to package their blogs into a format that more closely resembles a physical magazine. 

In addition to the blogging capabilities, Issuu allows users to share magazines with one another, and to recommend publications to other users based on their interests.

This seems like a viable concept that could become rather popular if enough people learn about it. It's format looks somewhat like Youtube, so I think there might be the opportunity for Google to purchase it, and combine it with Blogger and Youtube to create the ultimate in user-generated new media production and distribution.

LittleBigPlanet

LittleBigPlanet is a program that will allow novice users to create their own video game experiences. The technology comes from Will Wright, the creator of The Sims. 

Much like how Blogging created the field of citizen journalism, LittleBigPlanet will significantly lower the barriers of entry to the creation of videogames. It sounds like the potential for this technology is limited only by the content and templates available online for the programmers to use to build their games.

This might be the ultimate notion of Hypertext, as it is an extension of a videogame's embodiment of this notion. Users can utilize the existing code to play a game in which they create new code based on what they're given to work with.

PSFK Trends

PSFK Trends is a blog that discusses trends that relate to either digital technology or the future of the world. The articles range from advanced technology magazine covers using "E-ink" to Chef David Chang's predictions about a return to widespread vegetarianism based on the rising cost of meat production.

The blog has some fascinating articles, some of which appear outlandish. I decided to look bake at the archives from some of the blog's first months. The makeup of the articles and posts appears rather similar to those on the most current edition. There are some ideas that seem rather far-fetched, but also some ideas that really did take off, such as GMail, USB Memory Sticks and Zipcar, which were featured on the original blog back in 2004 as up and coming technologies.

Thoughts on the EPOC Headset

The EPOC headset, made by Emotiv, is called a Brain Computer Interface. The device is supposed to pick up on electrical signals being transmitted by the brain. This will, in theory, allow a computer to interpret brain signals and translate them into inputs for computer games. 

I will be surprised if this technology takes off. I imagine that there is a significant amount of regulation surrounding the use of devices that interact with the brain. The article also raises concerns about whether the device could be hacked and could transmit signals into people's brains. I can't think of many uses for this device that would outweigh the benefits it brings, at least based on the context of the article.

Frankly, I am surprised that this technology emerged from the gaming industry rather than, say, the medical industry. Perhaps this device could merit some further testing on animals or volunteers for medical experiments before it is allowed to be released to the public.

NAU's Cocoon

The Cocoon is a virtual-reality dome that incorporates 360 degree digital monitors as well as touch screen and motion sensing technologies. The idea is that, when inside the Cocoon, the user can experiences an infinite number of different environments, be in a museum, a library, a coral reef, ancient ruins, etc. 

This is a real-life example of the technology Tom Cruise used in The Minority Report to grab and drag different video clips around a screen with his hands.

It will be interesting to see how these machines will be rolled out. I imagine they will start at universities and science museums. Eventually we will probably see these machines replacing the current generation of virtual reality simulators at theme parks and arcades. Perhaps ten years from now we will begin to see these machines in people's homes or office. I could see this being a good tool for doctors and surgeons to perform virtual surgeries on patients. 

Reflections on Gehry's IAC building

The Frank Gehry-designed Chelsea headquarters of Barry Dillar's InterActiveCorp (IAC)  is a stark juxtaposition to the industrial warehouses that line the streets of the neighborhood just east of the Hudson river. The building would be more at home inside one of the Chelsea galleries rather an standing on its own. 

The building resembles some of Gehry's other recent works such as the Disney Concert Hall in LA and the Millenium Park theatre in Chicago, except it is made out of glass rather than Gehry's stainless steel. 

This building is the same style as the new hotel being erected on Bowery around 7th St. in the East Village. Perhaps the arrival of this type of glass tower marks the official gentrification of a neighborhood.

Doug Aiken's "Migration"

"Migration" is Doug Aiken's current work on exhibition at 303 Gallery in Chelsea. The work involves 3 large-scale Christie Digital projectors displaying high-definition widescreen video onto 3 identical replicas of roadside billboards. 

The video shows scenes of wild animals inside roadside hotels and motels. It is fascinating to watch, but doesn't make much sense at all at first. What are these animals doing in motel rooms?

A visit to the 303 Gallery Website sheds some light on exactly what we are watching in this exhibition. The title of the work is "Migration." What we are seeing is an interpretation of the travel that these animals take during their animal migration. Instead of traveling through the wild, however, they are traveling on popular interstate paths, and spending their evening in nearby motel rooms. This is a very clever piece, and I wonder whether it is Aiken making a statement about the overdevelopment of land that was previously the territory of these wild animals. Either way, this also explains why the projections are being shown on replicas of roadside billboards.

Another question I have is how a Gallery like 303 makes money. They don't charge admission, and unlike many of the galleries we visited, it would be very difficult to sell the art on display at here. 

Fair-Weather Forces at Eyebeam

Germaine Koh's "Fair-Weather Forces" is a digital new media installation at Eyebeam Gallery in Chelsea. The installation involves a series of steel stanchions and black velvet ropes. The ropes are connected to the stanchions which are suspended by bicycle chains that revolve around motors. The installation is connected to a digital box which streams, via TCP/IP data collected from a nearby water source (in this case the East River) regarding tide levels. The motors raise and lower the ropes to reflect the changing tides. At first glance, the ropes are not moving, but when one gets up close, or examines the movement over a time-lapse, it is very clear that the movement resembles the changing tides.

I see a promise for this technology to be used in tsunami-detecting devices, which could be placed hundreds of miles offshore, and could relay information to seawalls which could raise and lower based on the impending threat of a tsunami.

R. Luke DuBois at Bitforms Gallery

DuBois' current exhibition at the Bitforms Gallery in Chelsea is very thought provoking. He analyzed every Presidential State of the Union speech since George Washington, and figured out the most frequently occurring words. For each president, he put the list of words onto a paper in the same format an optometrist would use to evaluate one's eyesight. The product of this process is a snapshot of each President based on his word choice. The closer one gets to each frame, or symbolically, each President, the more he begins to understand about that Presidency. 

For example, the largest word for George W. Bush was "terror," while for Bill Clinton, it was "21st." Reagan's largest word was "deficit." Each president had many other words on the lists that revealed intricacies about that person, the way they spoke, and their other priorities as President. 

This is another piece that I would like to have for my apartment. It is a fun way to pick your favorite President and show your admiration in a much more sophisticated and unique manner than a portrait.

David Fried's SOS at Sara Tecchia

David Fried's SOS, or Self Organizing Still-life sculptures at the Sara Tecchia Gallery were some of the most refreshing pieces of art I've seen in quite some time. The pieces are essentially balls made out of different materials that are set on a granite "boxing ring." Though a proprietary technology that Fried developed (which has a patent pending, according to Sara Tecchia), the balls respond to sound cues based on some sort of leveling device inside each of the balls. 

The pieces at the gallery were relatively small, but on David's website, there are examples of many larger versions of these sculptures. 

Out of all the pieces we viewed on Thursday, this was the one I wanted the most for my own apartment. I wonder if they are for sale...

The Western Lands by Michael Zansky

Michael Zansky's current installation at the Nicholas Robinson Gallery features many mixed media pieces that utilize digital prints, 3-D diaramas, spinning motors, spotlights, toy dolls, large glass lenses, and more. While I found the idea of the installation innovative, I did not care for the substance of the actual pieces. I thought that the combination of characters and materials in the pieces, such as the diabolical clowns and chiffon material were somewhat disturbing, to be honest.

Zansky places these large, dichronic glass lenses in front of his 3-D pieces to magnify particular parts of the scene. This also has the effect of obstructing one's normal view of the pieces. When he places enough of the lenses around the display, the viewer naturally wants to look to the side of the lenses to see what it looks like to the naked eye.

I was particularly fascinated with one of the first pieces in the exhibition, just up the stairs and to the left in the main gallery room. This piece had a glass lens that covered the entire front "entrance" to the box in which the piece resided. This aroused in me a sense of curiosity to want to see what was behind the glass. 

I really didn't find this exhibition to be that special or involve much of what I would consider to be new media. There was nothing digital about any of these pieces. In fact, the only technology they used was very standard analog motors and lights. It could perhaps be considered new media though because it is not what people would consider standard art (a painting, sculpture, etc.), but rather a combination of many types of art.

Timeline

Jorge Luis Borges:

"The Garden of Forking Paths"

• 1941
• Created a story that would be the inspiration for the hypertext novel.
• Inspired "Hopscotch," the first hypertext novel, written by Julio Cortazar.
• Some people think of Borges as creating the concept of the internet

Vannevar Bush

"As We May Think"

• 1945
• Bush wrote about how the developments of the military/industrial complex of WWII created the need for a way to retain and access all sorts of information as means of preventing the abuse of powerful technologies (especially weapons).
• Invented Memex, the first desktop data storage and access/viewing system.

Alan Turing

"Computing Machinery and Intelligence"

• 1950
• Turing was a mathematician at Cambridge
• Helped create the British Colossus computers which decrypted data
• Created the Turing test, the goal of which was to see in a practical manner, whether computer could "think"
• The turing test involves a computer and a person answering another person's questions and having the questioner decide which answer comes from the machine and which from the other person.
• He concluded based on these tests that computers could outsmart humans.

Norbert Wiener

"Men, Machines, and the World About"

• 1954
• Invented the idea of "Cybernetics"
• Cybernetics involves the similarities between the human mind and the way machines/computers work
• Did a lot of work on the notion of Feedback Loops in the context of computers receiving commands (inputs) and taking actions based on those commands (outputs)
• The Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility gives out a Wiener Award based on interest in the responsible use of new technology.

J.C.R. Licklider

"Man-Computer Symbiosis"

• 1960
• Head of ARPA (Advanced Resarch Projects Agency at the DOD)
• Had a vision of using computers for more than just solving problems that humans gave to it, but rather realizing problems and solving them on their own, based on what they would think humans would be interested in
• Perhaps a precursor to the idea of predictive text and suggested searches that we use today

Allan Kaprow

"'Happenings' in the New York Scene"

• 1961
• Kaprow was a performance artist who pioneered the "Happenings" movement
• Happenings were impromptu performances in unusual spaces, not normally associated with theatre
• These were perhaps indicative of the sixties' counter-culture movement, as this is when they became quite popular

William S. Burroughs

"The Cut-Up Method of Brion Gysin"

• 1961
• Burroughs was a Beat Generation writer, most famous for "Naked Lunch"
• User of the "Cut-Up Method," whereby writers, musicians and DJS cut up their finished works, and reorganize the words and phrases to create entirely new works

Douglas Engelbart

"Augmenting Human Intellect: A Conceptual Framework"

• 1962
• Member of DARPA (formerly ARPA)
• Protege of Licklider and Bush
• Invented the theory of Intelligence Amplification
• Interested in furthering the ability for humans to use computers to simplify their lives and increase their intelligence
• Invented the Mouse, the Graphic User Interface, the Window, the Word-Processor
• Simultaneously invented the hyperlink, along with Ted Nelson (coincidence)

Ivan Sutherland

"Sketchpad: A Man-Machine Graphical Communication System"

• 1963
• One of the first Graphic User Interfaces (GUI)
• Allowed users to draw directly onto the screen, and have their drawings become part of the document
• A precursor to Ken Perlin's version from the 1980s, simply called the Pad system.

Roy Ascott

"The Construction of Change"

• 1964
• Ascott is an artist and a teacher
• Advocated artists becoming more aware of where they exist within the artistic spectrum
• Believed that artists could become more focused based on the more they know where the fit in

Theodor Nelson

"A File Structure for the Complex, the Changing, and the Indeterminate"

• 1965
• Coined the Term "Hypertext"
• Had a vision for the hyperlink and hypertext that was much more broad than how we understand the term today

The Oulipo

"Six Selections by the Oulipo"

• 1961, 1973 & 1981
• A French group of writers
• Created "potential" literature
• The user was encouraged to take the individual lines and make his own works out of it
• Similar to, yet the opposite of, the cut-up method

Marshall McLuhan

• 1962 & 1964
• Social critic and important scholar in the field of journalism
• Coined the term "The Medium is the Message"
• Distinguished between "hot" and "cold" media
• Started to explain the shift towards "electric" or "new" media after the invention of typography

E.A.T.

• 1961, 1966, 1967, 1972
• Experiments in Arts and Technology
• Founded in 1966 by Billy Kluver, Robert Rauschenberg, Robert Whitman and Fred Waldhauer
• Helped to bridge the gap between artists and engineers
• Pioneered some interesting new media art pieces involving sophisticated technology

Ted Nelson

• 1974
• Computer Lib/Dream Machines
• Two books, bound back-to-back
• Nelson railed against central computers
• Nelson advocated using computers for advancing new media
• Advocate of open-source-style architecture

Augusto Boal

• 1974
• Situationist Artist
• Highlighted injustices in Brazil with his art
• Tortured; his colleagues were murdered
• Eventually elected to office in Brazil
• Brought his fellow artists to serve as his political staff

Nicholas Negroponte

• 1975
• Wanted computers to be as responsive as possible to humans
• Not interested in just having computers to be number-crunchers
• Helped create the Graphic User Interface (GUI)

Joseph Weizenbaum

• 1976
• Concerned about the growth/potential dangers of computer technology
• Created the most famous Chatterbot, Eliza, which used a script called Doctor
• Essentially created a digital therapist
• Was concerned that people would see computers as an alternative to human interaction

Myron W. Krueger

• 1977
• Computer Scientist and Artist
• Helped to bridge the gap between science and art
• Wanted to use computers for more than just math, and wanted to use art for the response of the viewer
• "The Response is the Medium"

Alan Kay and Adele Goldberg

• 1977
• Worked at Xerox's PARC
• Created the idea for the Dynabook, the precursor to the modern notebook computer
• Created the Xerox PARC desktop computer
• They had visions for using the computer for many basic tasks such as filing and drawing

Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari

• 1980
• "A Thousand Plateaus"
• Created the notion of Rhizone, an abstract writing method similar to hypertext

Seymour Papert

• 1980
• Helped to further the penetration of computers into the mainstream market
• Involved in using computers as a method of education for children
• Created LOGO programming language
• One of the forces behind Lego Mindstorms

Richard A. Bolt

• 1980
• Wrote essay about The Media Room at MIT
• Virtual Reality immersive experience
• The Media Room helped show how accessible computers could be to ordinary people

Ted Nelson

• 1982
• Literary Machines
• Explained his vision for Xanedu, a system for accessing and editing everyone's documents
• Similar in concept to Wikipedia

Bill Viola

• 1982
• Pioneer of Video Art
• Explored the notion of private vs. public space in the digital realm

Ben Bagdikian

• 1983
• Talked about his fears of media consolidation
• Published in several editions; each time there were fewer, but larger media companies
• He was concerned that too few people controlled too much information and influence

Ben Schneiderman

• 1983
• Explored the notion of direct manipulation
• A more interactive, realistic means of working with computers
• Inspired by video and arcade games

Shelly Turkle

• 1984
• Turkle, a psychologist, explored why people played videogames
• Concluded that it was partly due to a need for people to express themselves 
• Talked about the idea of the "Second Self," decades before the game Second Life was created.

Donna Haraway

• 1985
• Cyborg Theory
• Talks about how technology can be an extension of the self

Richard Stallman

• 1985
• Created the GNU operating system
• Pioneer in the "free" software movement
• "Free" as in open-source, not necessarily monetarily

Brenda Laurel

• 1986 and 1991
• Takes a "classical" view of computing
• Saw computers and technology as a means of exploring new opportunities in theater and entertainment

Jan Bordewijk and Ben van Kaam

• 1986
• Attempted to create categories for computer-related activities
• 4 categories
• allocution
  
• conversation
  
• consultation
  
• registration
  

Langdon Winner

• 1986
• Social comentator, science writer and technology professor
• Saw computers as a tool for people to connect
• Didn't like the idea of a "computer revolution"
• Didn't like the idea of computers that weren't networked with other users

Lucy A. Suchman

• 1987
• Science and Technology Professor
• Scholar in the field of Human Computer Interaction
• She thinks that the environment in which technology is used is as important as any other element.

Michael Joyce

• 1988
• The first writer of a hypertext novel with legitimate literary merit
• Coined the notion of "Constructive Hypertexts"
• Highlighted the distinction between constructive and exploratory hypertexts

Bill Nichols

• 1988
• Talks about cybernetic systems, as they relate to new media and film
• Nichols is a film theorist

Lynn Hershman

• 1990
• Filmmaker and artist
• She created video art installation that involved interactivity (Lorna)

Pelle Ehn and Morten Kyng

• 1991
• Created mock-ups of computers, computer equipment and office furniture from cardboard
• This method of design was an easy way to simulate the final step of the design process
• One of the steps in the process of creating the Graphic User Interface

Chip Morningstar and F. Randall Farmer

• 1991
• Habitat was an internet-based video game
• 2D Role Player Game created by Lucasfilm Games in the mid 1980s
• One of the first internet-based games

J. David Bolter

• 1991
• Professor of New Media
• Helped to advance graphic space for computers
• Windows, tiles, etc.
• Furthered the notion of how one "see"s the information on the computer, and how it is displayed

Stuart Moulthrop

• 1991
• Hypertext writer and theorist
• Talks about the plusses, minuses, limitations and potential of hypertext
• From my hometown of Baltimore

Robert Coover

• 1992
• Writes about the progression and future of hypertext
• Predicts the end of the novel as it is known
• Suggests that everything will become computerized and based on hypertext

Scott McCloud

• 1993
• The "Aristotle of Comics"
• Defined comics as "sequential art"
• His work helped to pave the way for understanding other types of new media that portrayed time passing 

Philip E. Agre

• 1994
• Wrote about Privacy in the digital age
• Poses similar concerns to those of Larry Lessig in "Code 2.0"
• Many of Agre's concerns are very relevant today with the Patriot Act, etc.

Espen J. Aarseth

• 1994
• Major figure in electronic literature
• Saw video games strictly as games and not as art or hypertext, etc.

Critical Art Ensemble

• 1994
• A group of several media minds, artists, writers, theorists, and more
• Used their specialties in specific fields to work for political causes and cultural change

Tim Berners-Lee, Robert Cailliau, Ari Luotonen, Henrik Frystyk Nielsen and Arthur Secret

• 1994
• Wrote about the World Wide Web
• All major pioneers of the Internet, and various other developments in the world of computers and technology
• Outlined what the World Wide Web is, how it works, etc.
• Also talks about the future of the WWW, which was still in its infancy, and where the writers wanted it to go, and how the reader could help it get there

Reflections on "Profile of a Writer: Jorge Luis Borges"

This film is a very unique mixing together of interview, story and (I think) fantasy. It recounts the life of Jorge Luis Borges, an Argentinian writer who was born in 1899. The film was released in 2000, 14 years after Borges' death. Borges wrote "The Garden of Forking Paths," one of the first stories using the notion of hypertext. 

The film is put together in a similar, non-linear format of a hypertext novel. Truthfully, without proper preparation, it was very difficult to follow and appreciate the film. Perhaps it would have had a larger impact outside of class, and put into slightly more context. 

I'm sure there are mainstream movies I've seen that utilize a similar format. If I recall, Batman Begins has a slightly non-linear plot. However, the film that reminds me the most of this format is Memento, which essentially plays out backwards, from ending to beginning. 

These types of films are the kind that need to be seen multiple times to be fully appreciated. 

Reflections on "Microcosmos: Le peuple de l'herbe"

Microcosmos is a 1996 film that showcases animals in an incredibly up close manner. The film utilized special camera technology that took the viewer closer than even to the lives of bugs and other small animals.

The film won numerous awards, including the Technical Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1996. The new camera technology captured images that up until then could have only been imagined or achieved though animation, which is why the film falls somewhere between art, new media, and documentary film. 

Microcosmos kept me transfixed in class. I had never seen anything like it before, and I don't think I've seen anything else like it since then. I look forward to watching the film in its entirety at some point soon.

Reflections on Wiener's "Men, Machines, and the World About"

Norbert Wiener's complicated 1954 essay focuses on the notion of "Cybernetics." My understanding of cybernetics is that it involves the connections between humans and computers. More specifically, Wiener discusses how the human brain and computers operate similarly based on the notion of feedback. Feedback is the process by which computers and people respond to various stimulants, which Wiener refers to inputs.

Wiener gives an example of feedback by talking about a thermostat in a house. He explains that a thermostat reacts to the temperature of the room in which it is located (the input) by activating a circuit which activates a heating or cooling unit elsewhere in the house (the output). The idea that an input can cause an output is how feedback works. 

The problem with this example, which Wiener notes, is that the thermostat can be fooled into creating an unintended output if it is located in a room that is abnormally hot for the house, such as a room with a fireplace.

This problem relates intimately to the previous essay in the New Media Reader by Alan Turing. He wrote extensively about whether computers are smart enough to fool people into thinking they are human. Here is a case of where humans clearly possess a greater level of reason than machines.

Reflections on Turing's "Computing Machinery and Intelligence"

In this 1950 essay, Alan Turing contemplates the question of whether machines can think. Turing quickly acknowledges that this question is very difficult to answer because of the philosophical debates associated with figure out exactly what should be considered a machine, but, more importantly, what it means to be able to think. He was not as interested in conquering the philosophical challenges associated with the question, but rather the practical matter.

So Turing devised a test, now called the Turing test, which aims to determine a more concrete question: Can a computer fool a person into thinking it is a person. The test works by a person asking a series of questions to which the computer and a second person respond. The person asking a question then decides which answer it believes comes from the human and which comes from the computer. If the person guesses answers incorrectly just once, the computer wins. 

Turing then expounded on this theory, suggesting that since digital computers operate in a universal binary language, if one computer can fool one person, then all computers can think. 

My guess is that since Turing published this article in 1950, there have been significant advances in artificial technology. The test now should involve a panel of dozens of humans and one computer that needs to convince the questioner that it is the actual person. 

This is most relevant today in the form of online "customer service representatives" and automated call center "operators." For example, when I go to the Sprint website, I am frequently "approached" by a representative who initiates an online chat session with me asking if I need any assistance making a purchase or researching calling plans. Another example is when I call Amtrak to book or change tickets to travel home from New York. I always speak to Julie, Amtrak's automated assistant, who asks me basic questions that are meant to be answered in several predetermined phrases. I know that Julie is an automated computer because she "tells" me right when I call, and because her voice is so "sterile," but I never know whether these online "representatives" for various companies are real or not.

Web Serials

Web Serials, as we have discussed before, have taken off in recent years for several reasons. I think that the reasons are all somewhat related. The formula is rather simple, too. Because of the low cost of production, people can create many of these short, ongoing series that they distribute to their friends via Youtube or the like. Many of the projects are so specialized that they will only appeal to a very narrow market of viewers, which is something that cannot be done on Television for all sorts of financial reasons. My guess, though, is that the more specialized a show is, the more a person with an interest in the area will enjoy it, and pass it on to his or her friends with similar interests. As I said before, due to their low cost of production, there are hundreds of thousands of these short serials floating around the Web, each with their own cult following. I am not very interested in these, but every once in a while I will watch some short web videos when I am bored, and some of them are quite good. Perhaps I will post some later.

Reflections on Engine Room Article

"Engine Room" is a new TV show produced by MTV and HP that follows a competition of young digital designers who vie for a $400,000 prize. The show really seems like a PR stunt for HP, who is providing all of the computer equipment for the show. The designers will be broken into teams, who will then come up with various creative solutions to tasks they are given, and the winners will be determined by panels of well-known members of the arts and entertainment community.

It will be interesting to see how this show comes together and what the response will be. With the success of similar shows such as Top Chef, Shear Genius and Project Runway, this show could be bound for success, or it could never take off. 

Reflections on the Internet Documentary

I really liked this film. I already knew a decent amount about the history of the Internet's development from a previous class I'd taken. I knew about packet switching vs. circuit switching technology, I knew about Arpanet, I knew about TCP/IP protocols, etc. I'd never seen pictures, though, of any of the cast of characters behind the internet's development. I'd heard names such as Tim Berners-Lee before, but I'd never actually heard him speak, or see how down to earth he is.

What was most fascinating for me about this documentary was how dated it was. It was released 10 years ago. It was on VHS. Think about how much has changed since then. The internet moves faster and there are more websites with richer content. Most importantly, however, is that there are so many more users, and even more importantly is the fact that the internet was not a fad that died out, but that rather, it has become a way of life for so many people.

I wonder what will happen if 10 years from now a similar class watched the same tape we watched yesterday, or if the class was to watch a similar film to what we saw, but that reflected the technology of 2008. How dated will they think the films are? How many more advances will there be?

Reflections or Bingo and Ryan

"Bingo" and "Ryan" are the titles of two computer-animated shorts that were created in 1998 and 2004, respectively. They were both created by Chris Landreth, and Ryan won an Academy Award. 

The animation in the films is very impressive. What is particularly interesting is to see the difference in style of the two films. Ryan uses technology and animation techniques are appear far more "edgy" and "agressive" than those used in Bingo. It is interesting to think about how the available technology for these productions changed in the six years between their releases, and how much of an impact that had, vs. Landreth's style choices, on the final cuts of the films.

Response to Induction of The New Media Reader

The introduction to the New Media Reader is a fairly good summary of brief history of computers and new media. It provides the reader with some context in which the idea of a computer and the internet took place, and attempts to explain why computers were invented.

I liked how Murray put forth the four defining qualities of the computer. She argues that they are procedural, participatory, encyclopedic and spacial. If I read this correctly, I think she is does a good job covering the purpose and potential of the computer. Procedural probably refers to the methods by which computers can store and recall information. Participatory refers to the interactive nature of the computer, and how users can manipulate the devices to respond to their particular needs. Encyclopedic refers to the massive amounts of information a computer can store and recall, and the fact that the information can be constantly updated, unlike an actual encyclopedia. 

Lastly, spacial refers to the notion that a computer allows a user to function in a parallel "universe" online, under a different identity than who they are in real life. This notion is, in my opinion the most significant of the four qualities, and the one that could be explored in the most depth. I quick example of this notion, though, comes from our class's experience watching "The Guild." In the show, the characters have taken on second identities thought the use of their computers in order to play World of Warcraft. When the players meet in person, it is as if they are strangers who have never met before, even though their second identities have been interacting for quite some time.

Reflections on Bush's "As We May Think"

Vannevar Bush's 1945 essay discusses many of the benefits, and challenges, of science, in the context of the second world war and the development of nuclear weapons. He explains that with the power man now posesses, it is necessary to understand as completely as possible all aspects of the technology available at the time, and that only then will one be able to appreciate that promise, as well as the potential danger, of the technological capabilities at hand.

How does this relate to New Media? Essentially, Bush was examining methods of easily compiling, storing, recalling and sharing all of the available information of his time to colleagues. The drawing of the Memex goes to show just how forward thinking Bush and his counterparts were. The Memex was essentially a desk that had built in mechanisms to store all types of information on microfilm, which could be recalled at any time by pressing a series of buttons. The film would then be projected onto a screen on the top of the desk. While this contraption is very different in form than the modern laptop or desktop, the though process behind its development is essentially the same.

Even back in the mid 1940's, scientists and scholars were looking for ways to compile as much of the world's information as possible so that their contemporaries could responsibly utilize the new technology at their disposal. While Borges' essay may be more about the theory behind hypertext and random-access of information, Bush's essay really describes the need for what became the modern day PC.

Thoughts about MSNBC Article on Cheap Web Access

Here is an article about a project to provide cheap internet access to parts of Africa and the Middle East that previously never had it. Based on the information in the article, this will be a for-profit venture, but it will provide significantly reduced costs to access the internet. The company behind the project is called O3B networks, which stands for "The Other 3 Billion." The article suggests that Google is somehow involved in this project, but did not go into details as to Google's role.

This project could be an interesting sister project to the $100 laptop that people are attempting to mass produce and distribute to children in third world countries. The laptops, which I will blog about later, will allow children to learn to read, write and access other information that would otherwise be unavailable to them. One question about the project, though, was how would the computers be updated with new software as children completed the more introductory lessons. Surely, there is an opportunity for these two projects to come together to help overcome this obstacle and really make a serious impact on the lives of children, and adults, in third world countries.

Reflections on "The Guild"

The Guild is a comedic web-TV based series. The series involves a group of online friends who play World of Warcraft together decide to meet in person. Up until that point, the people only knew each other by their voices and online aliases.
So far, there have been ten episodes, averaging about 3 minutes each. The show is free to watch online, and was produced a very small amount of money. The show is supported by donations from fans.
Most significant about the show is that it symbolizes what today’s technology allows a group of creative individuals to produce without any commercial film companies, agents, etc. This show is an example of how the internet breaks down the barriers, or at least reduces the requirements for entry into creating a successful sitcom that millions of viewers can access for free.
Another benefit to a web-based show is that viewers can watch it anywhere they can access the internet, which today means many more places than where they could watch television. People can even watch the show on their smartphones. And because of the short length of each episode, The Guild, and shows like it are a great source of entertainment when people are looking to kill a few minutes, while waiting for a flight, a friend to show up for coffee, or event for a class to start.

Reflections on "The Garden of Forking Paths"

Jorge Luis Borges' short story, "The Garden of Forking Paths," provides an interesting anecdote about the development of the hypernovel. The hypernovel is essentially a short story or novel which can be read in many different ways. Readers can choose different plots and outcomes of the story by choosing to read different sections of the story in different orders. The idea is to have the story be a sort of "maze" or "labrynth" as Borges says, that the reader can explore in many different ways. 

To me, the hypernovel described in "The Garden" is almost like an ancient videogame. He talks about a story, where the text is already written, but which can be explored many different ways with different outcomes each time. This is essentially the same as a videogame today; the code is already written, but the player can make the game his own by fighting different villains, exploring different levels, using different weapons, and much more. The only real difference between the story presented in "The Garden of Forking Paths," and a modern videogame is the graphic user interface, and the fact that videogames today have many more interactive options than just choosing which page to turn to. Otherwise, though, the concepts Borges talks about are almost exactly the same.