Name: Shane
Blog: BLOG
Flickr: My Flickr
List 10 Quotes from the reading you found impactful and explain why.
1-Green Button - The concept of Green, yellow, red buttons is interesting. I can see how this would improve the work environment, but what if you never get to be a green button? That would reduce you to cog status so I am leery of this principle.
2- Local Max- I like the concept of always trying to evolve, to push harder and to know that you WILL FAIL at some point! Its not the failing that we should be concerned with, its the not trying that will doom us. Failure is just part of the path.
3- 80,000 new blogs a day- The fact that there are that many different blogs starting each day is astounding. The proliferation of people, what they have to say, and Blogs as the chosen format is interesting.
4- “We are down to buying what we want, not what we need”- I think he hit the nail on the head with this one. When we have “Ringtones” magazine, we have certainly become a society of consumers who will actively search out very specific items for our own consumption or purchase.
5- “comfort is the enemy of creativity”- Its true that creating anything worth a damn is generally hard as hell. As the saying goes, its the journey and not the destination that is important. Being comfortable in a situation or with a product generally works to the detriment of everyone and everything.
6- Seth’s Blog: (Maybe not so Dumb)- I like what he has to say here. Its a boring, poorly written sign that catches your attention. Maybe the lack of attention paid to something makes it more important.
7-Seth’s Blog: Blind Squirrels I like what he has to say here. I guess we all have good days when they should be bad and vice versa.
8- “Media Arts is a cross discipline area of study, focusing on methods of communication and expressions of the human condition though the use of traditional and converging mediums” (MPoe). Interesting take on our class and MA in general. I think its a good summary of MA, but because it changes so quickly I think that needs to be represented here as well. The changing landscape of MA is at such a point now where tomorrow will be determined and limited only by our imagination. It will ALWAYS change, and that is why it is so hard to understand. Which leads me to #9…
9- heisenberg uncertainty principle - Essentially this is how I look at Media Architecture. To grasp the concept of Heisenberg’s principle one must understand how little we know about everything that “Media Architecture” is. The more we know about how and why something started, the more accurately we can describe its future. But with something as complex, with as much flux, and something as malleable as Media Architecture, I think it is difficult to see the path that it is on with clarity. Also, its purpose is: TO CHANGE. TO EVOLVE. TO EXPOSE. Maybe we will never find out where it is going or how to classify it. Like the Supreme Court Justice said “I know it when I see it” concerning obscenity, I think it plays well with Media Architecture. I can’t really describe it, but I know it when I see it.
10- mediaarchitecture.org - Yes it exists. It is NOT a site that is terribly interesting but they do have some beautiful and grand projects that are worthy of a second look, making note of that… At any rate it is all out there. I am out there right now as I type. Is transparency good as Seth would have you believe? It would make companies more honest, certainly. Is it good for individuals? I’m still on the fence on that one.
From this list pick one quote that best represents your experience and create a desktop image/poster based on this idea.
What is free pizza?
Its the thing that you get to entice you into a place. It generally doesn’t cost much to produce. Its the decoder ring inside the package you bought. It’s ancillary. Its a harpoon in the heart of republicans who make you pay for everything. Its a thank you note from someone you NEVER expected to get a thank you note from. (like if Jess sent me a thank you note for lending her the drill, totally unnecessary BTW Jess), its looking at your gas gauge and seeing it more full than you remember, but still fill up, its buy one get 2, its buying one thing and getting MORE, its a road side attraction that pulls you in because its a road side attraction (buy yellow watermelon here), its a big wet kiss after a bad date (not all free pizza is good). It is NOT something you buy directly. It is NOT the purpose of your purchase, but the reason you are there or were drawn there in the 1st place. And of course, its always free and not always pizza.
Why is it important to be a purple cow?
I don’ think its important to be a purple cow. Really. I think lemmings are beautiful. Cogs are a necessity. Conformity WORKS. We spend the SAME money, we speak the SAME language, we drive on the SAME roads and I anticipate everyones next move because of conformity. Stale and boring as it is, I embrace conformity because if we were to ALL be purple cows at this very instance, then it would all break, disintegrate. Sure, that would lead to uniform purple cows everywhere, hence mediocrity in our conformity, and utterly not a purple cow. I’m not a socialist, communist, or a party member somewhere. I do appreciate getting the job done.
I love weirdness though. I really do. However, weirdness is the stuff of cancer, accidents, beauty, and joy. Its everything and nothing. Are you Purple? Now that’s a question!
So, is it IMPORTANT to be a purple cow? I contend that it is not. Look at COKE. IBM. CNN. NIKE. At one time they might have been PC’s. But NOT now. Being a PC is important if you are nobody. If nobody knows you, nobody cares. Novelty is embraced if it is good and can retain my interest for more than 5 seconds, a long time by most standards. Novelty is everywhere. Lemmings are novel sometimes, but rarely. Its not always being a purple cow that is important, its being a PC WHEN it is important. After that, go grayscale, blend in and make a shitload of money. If being innovative and novel really paid off then surely we would see more of it, but just like anything, if it doesn’t make money, it doesn’t get done. Why do you think the Amazon forest is being depleted? Money. Why do churches build buildings? Money. How does civilization work? Money. Once you get down to it, what keeps the lights on? Money. So is being Purple important? Maybe in the beginning it is, but not always. Look at Pepsi, they completely ripped off an existing product and made trillions. Sure they went for the “younger generation” but were they Purple? HELL NO. Its a costume party and Pepsi showed up with one more color than Coke and tried to be hip. Guess what, it worked.
So is Purple important? Does it matter? Will it make you money? That’s why you’re TRYING to be PURPLE, right: Money? If so, then I say maybe not. Maybe you’re a natural born Purple and you can’t help it. Watson & Crick didn’t know they found the roots of Purple but they did one day. Hell THEY were PURPLE. Thank god for that. Be different. Be a lemming. Work like a cog in a cog for a cog making cogs. Be purple. Be gray. Be yourself. That’s it. Be yourself. Make mistakes. Go for it. Pass it up. Whatever. We can NOT NOT be us. The odds are that if you are reading this then you are a Purple on a gray path. We’re all trying like hell to make it all work out and be more Purple than the next. Good for us. But again, is it important? I guess that is up to you. Be YOU, not purple for the sake of being purple, even if it is your favorite color. Read my favorite fable
What does it mean to twist the ones and zeros?
It means to obscure the perfect nature of digital. It is STILL digital, but in order to be creative in this life you must take everything and mix it together. Almost make it organic like analog, but keep it in 1’s and 0’s.
What are 5 major differences between print and interactive.
1- Print goes with you everywhere you want it to. It can be carried, tucked away, read in the back of a car, found on the street, or on a coffee cup.
2- Interactive can be dynamic. It can change instantly. It can be colorful, transmit copious amounts of information while simultaneously engaging the reader into a new atmosphere.
3- Print might not be around forever. I wonder what the last print publication will be? The NY Times is thinking about going digital? A sad day that will be. It is more environmentally friendly to do this, but the tactile experience would be missed.
4- Interactive is the future. It is video and print is the radio star. The future is certainly going to be interactive and the past is going to be tangible. Start buying 1st editions, it might be that last ones ever made.
5- The biggest difference now is that the baby boomers know print, and consequent generations have never known anything but online. The divide is lessening as the boomers die and gen X and on takes over.
6- Audience. Because of age and how familiar they are with technology.
List 5 – 10 videos you feel students next quarter should watch.
1- Web 2.0
2- Sand Art
3- Atomic Cafe
5- Flying dogs
From your blog and other student blogs list 5 sites you feel should be passed onto next quarter students. Describe why each is important.
1- You tube - Because it allows us to get published, seen, and it is easy to access.
2- Flickr - Because sharing photos is important to the digital medium.
3- Joost - Because this is going to be huge
4- – radioparadise - Because music should be heard, in high quality
5- Wikipedia - Because it is instrumental in sharing ideas.
After posting to a blog and flickr what is your perspective on digital publishing? Love it? Why? Hate it? Why?
For me its a love/hate relationship. Blogging and posting to Flickr everyday has been difficult to say the least. Its tedious and can be difficult to get inspiration every day.
I also found this much out from talking to my wife: It depends on who I am reaching out to. I do enjoy it for the class, but unless the subject is something I feel strongly about or am lobbying for, I do not enjoy it – but that could be just me. I think blogging is a great use of media and marketing for the younger generations and generations to come. I also think it is a great tool for women / stay-at-home moms who need a way to discuss with other adults and express their opinions without going to the office. Gaming is big in the moms/women audience, this is considered a gaming / communication tool.
What would be some ideas for theme weeks for the next quarter photo stream.
1- Things we just noticed, things that have been there a while, but we just drive by w/o any concern.
2- Patterns. Be it clothing, wallpaper, the sky, the road, trees, bricks. Anything where there is pattern.
3- Take a picture of something that can be turned into a webite, like a moist towlette.
4- Signs. They are everywhere and can be interesting.
5- Dogs. Because they are photogenic.
6- What is your favorite food. Now make a web site dedicated to it.
What are two projects would you suggest for next quarter?
1- Build a machine that works. Something like this
2- Get together and go anywhere (the park, a bar, Starbucks, an antique store) Record it. Put it on the web.
What are the core tags used to create a web page?
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Mason is a beer god with whiskers</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
</BODY>
</HTML>
What is the value of using CSS?
It makes cresting websites much easier by using style sheets. Style sheets maintain a uniform set of rules so that the entire document will have a common feel and look. Simply put, CSS makes creating web sites uniform yet flexible.
What questions should be asked for the next quarter students in the final exam? How would you answer it?
1- What is the internet going to look like in 10 years? I don’t know what will change, I do know that it will look pretty much the same as it does now. Remember how we were all supposed to be flying around in small cars? Well, that never happened. Things don’t change that quickly that fast.
2- What function does digital serve in today and tomorrow’s market? Digital is the new method of storage and delivery. Digital is clean. Digital is exact. Digital can go anywhere. So the importance of digital is not to be misunderstood, it is the future method of storage and will remain so for a long time.
Good for people to know.