Where is the original?
'The presence of the original is the prerequisite of authenticity'
Walter Benjamin
Norwegian police arrest the criminals suspected of stealing The Scream ...but the Guardian reports that Charles Hill of the Met (retired expert) recovered ANOTHER original version of the painting which was stolen in 1994. How many originals are there? And what does it all mean in the digital age - an age in which authenticity may not be anchored to time and place? In fact, where is my blog...and what is it that leaves its trace on your screen?
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Supplement
Idling I visit Boing Boing and that leads me to the zoomquilt and the world of dispersed (collaborating artists). Favaria seems to be a singleton but I like his work - particularly the graffiti. There's some interesting music and image work like Torisukoshiro and this. But somehow All Your Base Are Belong To Us (US?) captures something. The visual style reminds me of the BEP video. Like the mask?
Idling I visit Boing Boing and that leads me to the zoomquilt and the world of dispersed (collaborating artists). Favaria seems to be a singleton but I like his work - particularly the graffiti. There's some interesting music and image work like Torisukoshiro and this. But somehow All Your Base Are Belong To Us (US?) captures something. The visual style reminds me of the BEP video. Like the mask?
Monday, December 27, 2004
Mysterious footprints
We seem to like the idea of mysterious creatures that leave mysterious footprints. I used to love the Yeti story...remember the photographs? Here's more Yeti stuff! Mystery solved, the Yeti is VIRTUAL and by the time I'd finished my online session with her/him, my mouse was quite grubby: fortunately there's good advice on this too.
We seem to like the idea of mysterious creatures that leave mysterious footprints. I used to love the Yeti story...remember the photographs? Here's more Yeti stuff! Mystery solved, the Yeti is VIRTUAL and by the time I'd finished my online session with her/him, my mouse was quite grubby: fortunately there's good advice on this too.
Friday, December 24, 2004
Young people today
Roaming around I find Eyebeam with a report on the youngest videoblogger on record. Here's Dylan's blog...its a rambling affair and, I suspect, lovingly supported by a parent. More mature bloggers are to be found navel-gazing here!
Roaming around I find Eyebeam with a report on the youngest videoblogger on record. Here's Dylan's blog...its a rambling affair and, I suspect, lovingly supported by a parent. More mature bloggers are to be found navel-gazing here!
Thursday, December 23, 2004
On my feet again!
Yes, I'm on my feet again - everybody else has uggs on theirs - and there's a strange surfing connection, I believe. Uggprints in the sand? Anyway, the less said about that the better. I've been worried for some time about keyboard hygiene. Today's technology presents us with a whole new set of cleaning issues. Now this is where iklear singles come in handy. If you're not convinced invest in the super starter kit!
Yes, I'm on my feet again - everybody else has uggs on theirs - and there's a strange surfing connection, I believe. Uggprints in the sand? Anyway, the less said about that the better. I've been worried for some time about keyboard hygiene. Today's technology presents us with a whole new set of cleaning issues. Now this is where iklear singles come in handy. If you're not convinced invest in the super starter kit!
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Backchanneling: I think like it!
This is the term being used for the sorts of 'back row' multi-participant chats that happen at conferences with wireless connectivity. So, there's this from mamamusings. I also like to keep up to date with Torill Mortensen and that's how I found out about this and her latest claim to fame (courtesy of those shrewd people at Amazon).
This is the term being used for the sorts of 'back row' multi-participant chats that happen at conferences with wireless connectivity. So, there's this from mamamusings. I also like to keep up to date with Torill Mortensen and that's how I found out about this and her latest claim to fame (courtesy of those shrewd people at Amazon).
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
blogthis
Originally uploaded by edsghm.
I made this with a web-based program called typographia (now where did I put that address?)... oh no, it wasn't called typographia, it was called 'Typogenerator' and here's its address. My first attempt was all army colours - dead boring, there's no way I was going to publish that! Anyway this was a good idea, but I completely missed it.
Monday, December 20, 2004
I blog therefore I am
Day 6 of this wretched flu - I would consider trepanation if it was a) legal, b) cheap, and c) painless. But that's just silly, whereas a little functional piercing would be quite a good idea. On the other hand, if I was in full health I'd decorate the house (outside): I've got some great ideas off the internet!
Day 6 of this wretched flu - I would consider trepanation if it was a) legal, b) cheap, and c) painless. But that's just silly, whereas a little functional piercing would be quite a good idea. On the other hand, if I was in full health I'd decorate the house (outside): I've got some great ideas off the internet!
Sunday, December 19, 2004
If I dissed
If I dissed the university on my blog, would they sack me? Would they know? I think I'd best be careful though because it's tough out there, as this report shows. Anyway I'm the cautious type and I realise I'd have to be really saucy, and have a photo like this to get the chop.
If I dissed the university on my blog, would they sack me? Would they know? I think I'd best be careful though because it's tough out there, as this report shows. Anyway I'm the cautious type and I realise I'd have to be really saucy, and have a photo like this to get the chop.
Saturday, December 18, 2004
Why was I reading this?
I thought this sounded pretty cool until I realised I didn't really understand it all! I take comfort in the fact that one day soon I may be able to have something like the SCOTTeVEST - it's the new deal jacket which has flexible, removable solar panels on the back, and a power cell that recharges your gadgets through a USB connection. OK the website’s awful, but I don't care any more: I know I exist because I'm in this (I write therefore I am).
I thought this sounded pretty cool until I realised I didn't really understand it all! I take comfort in the fact that one day soon I may be able to have something like the SCOTTeVEST - it's the new deal jacket which has flexible, removable solar panels on the back, and a power cell that recharges your gadgets through a USB connection. OK the website’s awful, but I don't care any more: I know I exist because I'm in this (I write therefore I am).
Friday, December 17, 2004
I thought I saw a link...
but it was only apophenia - a chapter in Pattern Recognition but not an entry in the dictionnary. Google apophenia and you get this and Danah Boyd (with an article on blogging) and a link that takes you straight back to William Gibson. There must be a Greek word for this strange cyclical phenomenon or else it's influenza delirium (and that's Latin if you're an etymologist).
but it was only apophenia - a chapter in Pattern Recognition but not an entry in the dictionnary. Google apophenia and you get this and Danah Boyd (with an article on blogging) and a link that takes you straight back to William Gibson. There must be a Greek word for this strange cyclical phenomenon or else it's influenza delirium (and that's Latin if you're an etymologist).
Thursday, December 16, 2004
Easy fun
I'm in bed with flu, so I just need cheering up. This did it! And then more chav stuff made me chuckle (trackback), until I realised that this sort of thing is actually deeply divisive and really only recycles class prejudice. The word will from now on be regarded with deep suspicion.
I'm in bed with flu, so I just need cheering up. This did it! And then more chav stuff made me chuckle (trackback), until I realised that this sort of thing is actually deeply divisive and really only recycles class prejudice. The word will from now on be regarded with deep suspicion.
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
And who are you, Stuart?
It was wonderful to hear Stuart Hall on the radio last night, and its free-to-air right now. I particularly liked his elegant musings on identity. I've also bookmarked Hevern's interesting paper 'Threaded Identity in Cyberspace: Weblogs & Positioning in the Dialogical Self' (from a journal I learnt about in the US). Also been reading The Ludologist. The visual design of the blog is great, don't you think....pattern recognition?
It was wonderful to hear Stuart Hall on the radio last night, and its free-to-air right now. I particularly liked his elegant musings on identity. I've also bookmarked Hevern's interesting paper 'Threaded Identity in Cyberspace: Weblogs & Positioning in the Dialogical Self' (from a journal I learnt about in the US). Also been reading The Ludologist. The visual design of the blog is great, don't you think....pattern recognition?
Monday, December 13, 2004
On the blog
I read that Kris Cohen has a piece on the photoblog -"What does the photoblog want?" in Media, Culture and Society.
I read that Kris Cohen has a piece on the photoblog -"What does the photoblog want?" in Media, Culture and Society.
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Traces in the wireless city
They call it public authoring, and it picks up on the idea of leaving your mark in the environment (see previous posts on graffiti). Proboscis illustrate the concept through this and this (they're a bit slow, so you could do something else at the same time!). That leads nicely onto flaneurs and storytellers and their place in the urban tapestry. Also there's a blog and, of course, because I retell this backwards: here's the front page.
They call it public authoring, and it picks up on the idea of leaving your mark in the environment (see previous posts on graffiti). Proboscis illustrate the concept through this and this (they're a bit slow, so you could do something else at the same time!). That leads nicely onto flaneurs and storytellers and their place in the urban tapestry. Also there's a blog and, of course, because I retell this backwards: here's the front page.
Friday, December 10, 2004
Bus blog
A few years back I had the idea of sampling literacy practices along a line drawn on a map of the urban area where I live. I never got round to it, but I often think about recycling the idea as a student project. Recently a friend told me about the No 73 bus blog - check it out! This comes out of research reported a while back on the beeb. It's a great idea, you can learn more here. And if literacy in education is your bag you can read me (and my good friends) in Janet Evans book 'Literacy Moves On'.
A few years back I had the idea of sampling literacy practices along a line drawn on a map of the urban area where I live. I never got round to it, but I often think about recycling the idea as a student project. Recently a friend told me about the No 73 bus blog - check it out! This comes out of research reported a while back on the beeb. It's a great idea, you can learn more here. And if literacy in education is your bag you can read me (and my good friends) in Janet Evans book 'Literacy Moves On'.
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Hyperidentity
I haven't yet blogged my blog (like Dr Joolz) or tracked anything as awesome as this, but I've been thinking about my trajectory in the blogosphere. Am I sneaking into a heterotopia or becoming a cyber-flaneur? An answer came when I found this on Sarah's blog - the idea of hyperidentity/ies. The idea in the article is quite straightforward. I think Jim Gee would argue that meaningful learning is about taking on a new identity. Stuart McNaughton puts it slightly differently when he says: 'In the culture of the classroom, children's identities as learners are taking form.'
I haven't yet blogged my blog (like Dr Joolz) or tracked anything as awesome as this, but I've been thinking about my trajectory in the blogosphere. Am I sneaking into a heterotopia or becoming a cyber-flaneur? An answer came when I found this on Sarah's blog - the idea of hyperidentity/ies. The idea in the article is quite straightforward. I think Jim Gee would argue that meaningful learning is about taking on a new identity. Stuart McNaughton puts it slightly differently when he says: 'In the culture of the classroom, children's identities as learners are taking form.'
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Keep it clean!
People keep an asking me what I want for Christmas. Well the truth is that all I really want is the Hello Kitty desktop vac, but I don't think it's available over here, so maybe I'll have to make do with the Spherex chair (my third choice).
People keep an asking me what I want for Christmas. Well the truth is that all I really want is the Hello Kitty desktop vac, but I don't think it's available over here, so maybe I'll have to make do with the Spherex chair (my third choice).
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Play power
Texting, tagging and blogging seem to have one thing in common. They're all ways that technology has been appropriated to serve our everyday/social/playful pursuits. Yes, we all know about play and learning, but the politics of adult play are just as interesting. Maybe it's here that the affordances of technology get changed through the repurposing of tools. Googling technology and play gives fairly predictable results - except for this, which is scary!
Texting, tagging and blogging seem to have one thing in common. They're all ways that technology has been appropriated to serve our everyday/social/playful pursuits. Yes, we all know about play and learning, but the politics of adult play are just as interesting. Maybe it's here that the affordances of technology get changed through the repurposing of tools. Googling technology and play gives fairly predictable results - except for this, which is scary!
Monday, December 06, 2004
From the front to QR codes
USA Today reports on congressmen getting emails from soldier relatives that are more informative than military briefings (are we surprised?). Altogether more optimistic in flavour is the idea of deploying warplanes to drop 120 million origami cranes in Southern Thailand.
And on the shopping front, watch out for Quick Response code technology (QR), which is poised to replace the barcode. QRs carry far more information and can be scanned by mobile phones. The future is here (....or else it's in Japan).
USA Today reports on congressmen getting emails from soldier relatives that are more informative than military briefings (are we surprised?). Altogether more optimistic in flavour is the idea of deploying warplanes to drop 120 million origami cranes in Southern Thailand.
And on the shopping front, watch out for Quick Response code technology (QR), which is poised to replace the barcode. QRs carry far more information and can be scanned by mobile phones. The future is here (....or else it's in Japan).
Sunday, December 05, 2004
Bootprints
Well, I suppose that my tourist retail thing should include these, but the successor to the i-pod is pretty impressive too (although I'm not sure about the look). In fact, the Rio Carbon is so impressive that hackers are repurposing the hard drive and selling it on at a profit. Cool hunters or digital cowboys? And this is Sarah's blog.
Well, I suppose that my tourist retail thing should include these, but the successor to the i-pod is pretty impressive too (although I'm not sure about the look). In fact, the Rio Carbon is so impressive that hackers are repurposing the hard drive and selling it on at a profit. Cool hunters or digital cowboys? And this is Sarah's blog.
Saturday, December 04, 2004
And then there's Miami
Last day of the NRC conference today and I'm still thinking about what Gunther said about the relationships between the worker, the tool and the work. I think he mentioned that the work leaves its trace on the tool that's used, and illustrated this with a print text in which word meanings shifted...mmm!
Joe Tobin was great yesterday, a good late night vital issues session with Michele, Colin and Ilana, and today I heard Shelley Xu... and we're making plans for next year in Miami. That's attractive!
Last day of the NRC conference today and I'm still thinking about what Gunther said about the relationships between the worker, the tool and the work. I think he mentioned that the work leaves its trace on the tool that's used, and illustrated this with a print text in which word meanings shifted...mmm!
Joe Tobin was great yesterday, a good late night vital issues session with Michele, Colin and Ilana, and today I heard Shelley Xu... and we're making plans for next year in Miami. That's attractive!
Friday, December 03, 2004
The best of yesterday
It had to be Colin and Michele: I particularly liked the manga stuff that Michele did and the compex interweavings of social practices from Anya's work. It started to make me think that the online/offline binary that we impose may be bit off target. In the example Colin read out cyberspace and meatspace are blended.
Ilana Snyder was very good, too. I thought the way she used Gibson's Mirror World theme was really interesting. Also loved Morrel's work, that really applied Critical Discourse Analysis.
It had to be Colin and Michele: I particularly liked the manga stuff that Michele did and the compex interweavings of social practices from Anya's work. It started to make me think that the online/offline binary that we impose may be bit off target. In the example Colin read out cyberspace and meatspace are blended.
Ilana Snyder was very good, too. I thought the way she used Gibson's Mirror World theme was really interesting. Also loved Morrel's work, that really applied Critical Discourse Analysis.
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
Texas
At the NRC in San Antonio where it's sunny and pleasant. Just been to a good session on blogging with Dana Commack, Sarah Lohnes and Gus Andrews - all from Columbia University. There doing some interesting work.
Stopped and searched several times on the way over...and that shoe things funny too. Why are they so interested in my footwear? Do they think I'm, Manola the shoe-blogger?
At the NRC in San Antonio where it's sunny and pleasant. Just been to a good session on blogging with Dana Commack, Sarah Lohnes and Gus Andrews - all from Columbia University. There doing some interesting work.
Stopped and searched several times on the way over...and that shoe things funny too. Why are they so interested in my footwear? Do they think I'm, Manola the shoe-blogger?