Week 7 Lecture - Culture is Not a Crime

For the last lecture on Web 2.0 and virtual communities, Adam took the reins. He was at the helm again this week for an eye-opening lecture on Open Source software and Creative Commons licences.

The idea that 'social media' (or social social technologies) exist largely to facilitate collaboration, community and the dissemination of culture amongst like-minded individuals is at odds with and somewhat hampered by intellectual property laws... At least, as far as they can be applied to copyright and licencing laws for created works, including music, text, images and audiovisual content.

Most of us are very conscious of the stringent copyright laws that 'protect' various physical objects and intellectual ideas - we could hardly avoid this little guy - © - if we tried. It's attached to the logos, catch phrases, images and other works generated by millions of companies worldwide. It's a stamp of secrecy and exclusivity that prohibits users from downloading, trading, creating and sharing ideas, information and content without the permission of the 'original' author.

In his book, Viral Spiral (2010), David Bollier suggests that the advent of the internet, free software and the World Wide Web have been world-changing sources of empowerment for the 'commoners' of the digital age - he's referring to you and I, of course.
  
"Ordinary people went online, if only to escape the incessant blare of television and radio, the intrusive ads and the narrow spectrum of expression. People started to discover their own voices . . . and their own capabilities . . . and one another."

 Bollier's 'viral spiral' describes the 21st century shift of the attention of a growing number of everyday people (A.K.A. commoners) from commercial to homegrown media genres: the ensuing barrage of content creators (artists, 'techies', activists, scientists, et cetera) saw the need for an online commons. The result was the 'free culture' movement. Bollier's support of the Creative Commons is linked to his belief that the ability of the internet to 'virally propagate creativity' has the potential to disseminate a novel idea across physical boundaries to a person or group that can truly benefit from it (Bollier, 2010). Secondly, Bollier refers to the "messy, irregular, indeterminate, serendipitous" process of change that epitomises life and innovation online (2010): the Creative Commons not only facilitate the flow of creativity and culture that is necessary for continued development across all facets of society; CC also provides a framework far better suited to the peculiar nature of online data content and creator/user interactions.

True to form, Bollier has made a digital version of his book available on the web under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial licence.



I must admit, that I had no idea, prior to attending this lecture, what the Creative Commons are or that there had ever been an issue in applying traditional intellectual property laws to online content. The concept of making content accessible in order to serve the needs of society and fellow creators, and to foster more liberal cultural sharing amongst creators worldwide is intriguing to me. As a graphic design student several years ago, I was drilled quite comprehensively in the strict practices of using others' content and protecting my own creations. The emphasis was on ensuring one's own creations were safe from those unseen online enemies poised to pilfer, defile, and rip-off to make a tidy (and undeserved) profit. I'm now left wondering why the Creative Commons were never discussed during my studies... and whether it might have been more wise to discuss ways to generate the greatest common good through sharing, rather than 'fencing off' digital works from my fellow commoners.

Reference List
 
Bollier, D. (2010). Viral Spiral. London; New York: The New Press.

Week 6 Tutespark - Who owns online content?

Who owns the content we put on the internet on various sites?

In the wake of the Web 2.0 movement, the average prosumer has been very active in terms of producing a range of creative media, including original photos, video, audio and text.

In the physical world, empiricism rules. Intellectual property and general property laws ensure clarity of ownership of objects and (physically or verbally documented) ideas. These laws also protect the rights of the owners of those ideas and objects to profit from their creations... But how does this apply to online digital systems and codes? If an idea is documented in the form of a binary code and uploaded to the web for the viewing or listening pleasure of anyone with internet access... are all property rights forfeited? After all, the purpose of the two-way web is to facilitate the dissemination and sharing of knowledge and culture in the guise of digital bytes.

My background research for this response included signing up for a Yahoo!7 ID in order to access the kind of terms and conditions document we tend to sign without reading each and every time we join a 'social media' site or group. Article 9 from the Yahoo!7 Terms of Service explains that Yahoo!7 does not 'claim ownership' of the content you submit on the service... unless, of course, you upload that content to a 'publicly accessible area' of the service (i.e. Message Board, Photos, Briefcase)! In such cases, Yahoo!7 reserves the right to "...use, distribute, reproduce, modify, adapt, publicly perform and publicly display..." (Yahoo!7, 2010) such content, including photos, graphics, audio and video.

Similarly, Facebook's comparable terms agreement assures us that we as users retain full ownership and control over all content and information we may choose to upload or post on the site (2010). Of course, content that is covered by intellectual property rights (i.e. photos, video) is subject to Facebook's "... non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on or in connection with Facebook ("IP License") (2010).

Scott Karp of Publishing 2.0 sums up the confusion and scramble for rights in two emerging 'realities' that concern the future of the web:
1) Data is POWER; and
2. A war will be fought over control of the data (Karp, 2008).

I think it’s unlikely we will see the cycle end any time soon — with the disintegration of distribution monopolies, the new power in media is in the data. That’s how Facebook got it’s $15 billion valuation — the potential to exploit its users’ data.

Karp asks us to question the fairness of an exchange wherein users must give up control over their data for a 'free' service... I would answer that free social media services are not, in fact, free. Many users of services like Twitter, Facebook, and Yahoo!7 (myself included) have paid, and continue to pay for these services with the rights to their own private information and the data they will create and share via those service providers. This data is a powerful and underestimated digital currency.

Will you continue to pay for web services in data dollars. Or, like Robert 'Che' Scoble (Carr, 2008), are you leaning towards some kind of alternative action, be it legal or otherwise. What are the alternatives?

Reference List

Carr, N. (2008). Scoble: Freedom fighter or data thief? [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 10, 2010, from http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2008/01/scoble_freedom.php

Facebook. (2010). Statement of Rights and Responsibilities [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 10, 2010, from http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/terms.php?ref=pf

Karp, S. (2008). The Coming War Over Data on the Web [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 10, 2010, http://publishing2.com/2008/01/03/the-coming-war-over-data-on-the-web/

Yahoo!7. (2010). Yahoo!7 Terms of Service [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 10, 2010, from http://au.docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

Week 6 Lecture - Social Social Technology Technologies

The influence of the internet has reached into every major domain of our lives: business, education, social networking, romance, parenting, banking, marketing, advertising, recreation, travel, news and reporting, arts and culture, politics, information gathering… and the virtually unstoppable dissemination of culture.

The advent of ‘Web 2.0’ or Read/Write Web (Berners Lee, 1999) has seen users take control of new communication technologies and challenge the media user/producer dichotomy that epitomised web 1.0 in its heyday.

In an interview with the BBC’s Mark Lawson, Tim Berners Lee shunned the idea that debate surrounding Web 2.0 is simply a question of weighing up the advantages and disadvantages and deciding whether or not it would be better to “turn the whole thing off” (2004). Berners Lee describes this latest evolution as the progressive fulfilment of his original conception of a user-friendly web. When asked if exposure to unsolicited content and the risks of identity theft outweigh the social advantages of Web 2.0, Berners Lee suggested that the current web network simply “…allows people to do what they want to do more efficiently… in an information space which doesn't know geographical boundaries” (2005).

Just as in the ‘physical reality’, then, the onus for protecting the interests, property and safety of users is firmly on the users themselves. Enthusiastic media users crossing the divide by producing and distributing their own original material on the web may be less aware of the possible drawbacks, however.

Many users will be familiar with persistent junk mail and chain mail messages forwarded to them by supposed friends, as well as viral agencies hoping to create potential ‘viral hits’ for a range of businesses (The Oxford Dictionary, 2010). Musicians, artists, authors and filmmakers too are locked in a love-hate symbiotic relationship with ego-centric users: they both depend on and prohibit the file sharing or virtual ‘word-of-mouth’ necessary for popularity and success.

At issue here might be described as a case of content mediation catching up to technology. One outcome of the ‘virtual gold rush’ of intellectual property exchange, transfer and storage online is a growing tension between accessibility and ownership of digital content in cyberspace; between who owns content in cyberspace and who should own content in cyberspace (Bennett, 2000). The tension expands today as users, lawyers, companies and other bodies disagree over the translation of traditional intellectual property law to digital communication media.

Oliver Bennett of the Berkman Centre for Internet and Society at Harvard University proffers several alternative approaches to intellectual property protection more suited to digital works, including the various licenses of the Open Source Movement (2000). This movement has generated provisional permissions from content-authors for other users to copy, download, share, and/or modify their works and any underlying source codes. Founded on the idea that the sharing of information is a crucial part of disseminating culture amongst and across generations, there is an underlying assumption here that ‘network effects and ethics’ will encourage users to honour the relaxed approach to intellectual property rights (Bennett, 2000).

Reference List

Bennett, O. (2000). Intellectual Property in Cyberspace 2000: Alternatives to Intellectual Property.
     Retrieved September 9, 2010, from http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/property00/syllabus/

Berners Lee, T., & Fischetti, M. (1999). Weaving the Web: The Past, Present and Future of the World
     Wide Web by its Inventor. Britain: Orion Business.

Lawson, M. (2005). Berners-Lee on the read/write web. BBC News. Retrieved September 9, 2010, from
     http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4132752.stm

Oxford Dictionary. (2010). Oxford Dictionaries: Viral. Retrieved August 20, 2010, from
     http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0929700#m_en_gb0929700

Week 6 Tutorial - Very Gold Coast, Very Cheese-C

As part of the 'culture jamming' theme that we have been exploring recently, a group of fellow would-be jammers and I have been wracking our brains for a good jam that will get noticed by mainstream audiences... and preferably not result in jail time!

Early discussions included Meter Maids, the Q1, and various other Gold Coast icons which are not, in fact, strictly Australian in terms of ownership, design, or culture . From these discussions we decided that as Gold Coast citizens, we are not completely satisfied with the 'prostitution' and commodification of Gold Coast culture, especially considering the cultural losses incurred by Gold Coasters over the last few decades.

In order to achieve this, we have decided to parody the rather forgettable and now defunct Very Gold Coast, Very GC Gold Coast Tourism campaign (2008) that met with 'confused responses from Gold Coast locals as well as the tourist market (Gold Coast Business News, 2009). In fact, the majority of people that I spoke to about being involved in jamming this campaign either had not heard of it or did not remember it until their memories were jogged with video clips of the television advertisements that were supposed to reinvigorate the Gold Coast tourism industry and rejuvenate the face of the Gold Coast itself (Gold Coast Tourism, 2010). This lack of familiarity and enthusiasm (and occassionally an outright disgust) for Very Gold Coast, Very GC suggests that Gold Coast locals did not feel a sense of reality or connection reflected in the campaign.

By meeting with and interviewing well-known locals and iconic fixtures in the community (such as Captain Fat of Surfers Paradise); gathering film footage and original photos of the less marketable features of the Gold Coast (various run-down buildings, untended scrubland, litter-covered parks, et cetera) and some groups and icons interviewed Gold Coast locals perceive as truly reflective of the Gold Coast, we hope to put a new spin on this campaign that might also draw attention to community issues in need of attention.

One of the key issues we would like to address is the research that suggests that the Gold Coast has the highest rates of homelessness in Queensland. According to 2006 census data, Queensland is ranked second in terms of homelessness (69 homeless per 10 000 people), with over half of all homeless Queenslanders under 25 years of age (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). These statistics are reflective of Australia-wide findings.

By reworking the original Very GC campaign videos, and rebranding the campaign as Very Gold Cost, we hope to place a greater emphasis on this issue and appeal against the diversion of taxpayers dollars away from issues that require scrutiny, and towards one fruitless media campaign after another.

Reference List

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2008). 2050.0 Australian Census Analytic Program: Counting the Homeless, 2006 [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 8, 2010, from http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/57393A13387C425DCA2574B900162DF0/$File/20500-2008Reissue.pdf

Gold Coast Business News. (2009). Very Gold Coast campaign canned as GCT gets serious [Electronic version]. Retrieved September 10, 2010, from  http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/57393A13387C425DCA2574B900162DF0/$File/20500-2008Reissue.pdf

Week 5 Tutespark - Culture Jamming

Culture jamming is the practice of hijacking mainstream cultural institutions, products or media, and subverting them in order to communicate a new message; to make critical and often disparaging comment about the destructive nature of the product, idea, or corporation. The result can be overt or extremely subtle, requiring close scrutiny in order to differentiate it from the original. Whatever forms these activist mechanisms take, the goal of ad-busters, billboard-improvers and logo-tweakers is to make people think about what role products, media, and ideas play in our lives, and how we live them, as individuals and as a society.

First Culture Jam

The term ‘culture jam’ was first coined in by Crosley Bendix of art/rock band Negativland in 1984 (Williams, 1999). In 1991 the group released a ‘mash-up’ track that included samples from the U2 song, I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For (U2, 1987), leading to a controversial legal battle with U2’s label, Island Records. Despite the origins of the term, however, the first culture jams, as they are defined today, are often credited to the clearly subversive actions of the Billboard Liberation Front (BLF). On their website, the BLF in fact credits its existence to a 1977 event sponsored by a club entitled ‘Enter the Unknown’ (Billboard Liberation Front, 2010). During the event, attendees were encouraged to help ‘improve’ two billboards... an exploit which resulted in the apprehension of all jammers present.

Still other cultural historians point to the rise of the Dada and later Surrealist movements in the early twentieth century as the birthplace of the activist spirit that ultimately evolved into the modern culture jamming movement. A reaction against the horrors of war and fascism, the movement in art, literature, music and film was generally expressed in absurdist and illogical terms that also flouted the artistic and social conventions of that era (Oxford University Press, 2010).

Most Influential Culture Jam

Various independent commentators have claimed that this or that example of culture jamming is the most effective. It seems reasonable to conslude that any project that has come to the attention of someone who doesn’t spend much time on the web, doesn’t watch television, and has only recently been made aware of this activist movement (that would be me) must have achieved some degree of success.

I would argue that independent filmmaker Morgan Spurlock’s documentary Supersize Me (2004) has been one of the most effective culture jams to gain mainstream media attention. This work has gained exposure on a global level, and also served as a powerful catalyst for debate amongst health professionals, governments, fast-food chains, and communities. One might argue that this film not only exposed the negative impacts of McDonalds’ products on the physical and psychological health of consumers, but also led to the increased scrutiny of health organisations and the implementation of ‘healthy options’ menus in McDonalds and other food chains. Television shows such as The Biggest Loser (Broome, 2004) may well demonstrate the continuing impact of this cultural jam on society and its relationship with the fast food industry and health in general.




Most Damaging Culture Jam

In truth, a successful culture jam must inflict damage – not on the ‘innocent’ consumers of society, but rather on the productivity and profiteering of multi-national corporations, groups operating with questionable ethics, and otherwise irritating advertising campaigns unfortunate enough to come to the attention of ‘media hackers’. In opening the eyes of society to the offensive or objectionable nature of a media campaign or product, witty re-brandings and image-alterations also necessarily injure the reputation and marketability of the product.


On occasion the damage inflicted by a culture jamming project is not limited to its original target.



Reference List

Billboard Liberation Front. (2010). History and Timeline. Retrieved August 26, 2010, from
     http://www.billboardliberation.com/history.html

Oxford University Press. (2010). Oxford Dictionaries: Dada. Retrieved August 26, 2010 from
     http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/Dada?rskey=LadgIM&result=1#m_en_gb0202070

Williams, S. (1999). Culture Jamming 2.0 [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 22, 2010, from
     http://www2.inow.com/~sam/cultjam2.html

Week 5 Lecture - Media, New Media & Today

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The sequel to last week's focus on consumption, this week's lecture shifts the focus to entertainment and media production. These industries and the products they generate are traditionally presided over by the studios and media corporations that make up the dominant distribution system. More recently, new communication technologies have facilitated a shift away from this information and entertainment autocracy.

From an early age, we are taught to be critical analysts of texts: children in primary schools develop an understanding of the inescapable bias embedded in texts (Queensland Studies Authority, 2007). The dominant textual medium of this era is a multimodal one, consisting of symbols, audio, and visuals that communicate and target particular perspectives, values… and versions of ‘truth’.

The growth of independent and world cinema films and other products has provided the consumer audience with more options in terms of film: consumer choices are still limited by the dominant players in the distribution system, however, as mentioned above.

Increasing availability of user-friendly (and affordable) video- and audio-capture devices, convergent devices, editing software, and online distribution opportunities has permitted viewers to defy the consumer-producer dichotomy. Everyday consumers around the world can now be producers as well, provided they have access to the web and a recording device. ‘Bloggers’, ‘tweeters’, ‘facebookers’, subscribers to fan sites or personal news websites… All of these engage to some degree in a practice known as citizen journalism. Rather than wait for the ‘official’ take on current affairs, citizen journalists actively contribute to the gathering and distribution of news and information using the resources at their fingertips.

Although the totalitarian foundations of journalism and media production have been rocked, the bias remains. Some ‘citizens’ choose to harness the power to report on and distribute news to create interest, build a following, counter false reporting, mislead others, or to blatantly challenge the powers that be. This practice of hijacking the journalistic domain is a vague form of cultural jamming, which “…is directed against an ever more intrusive, instrumental technoculture…through the manipulation of symbols.” Film- and documentary-maker Craig Baldwin (cited in Williams, 1999) explains that effective culture jamming, like the art of jujitsu, uses the weight of the enemy against itself. From the 'golden arches' to the oval office, no institution is safe.

Reference List

Queensland Studies Authority. (2007). Queensland Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Framework:
     English Essential Learnings [Electronic version]. Retrieved July 26, 2010, from
     http://www.qsa.qld.edu.au/7284.html

Williams, S. (1999). Culture Jamming 2.0 [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 22, 2010, from
     http://www2.inow.com/~sam/cultjam2.html

Week 4 Lecture - History of the Cinema

This week’s lecture took us on a journey through time from the perspective of the cinema-goer. From evolutionary beginnings in the primordial soup that was Paris, France, in 1895, to the current burgeoning era of online film distribution, cinema trends have moved with the tide of world-changing technological convergence and globalisation.


It’s hard to believe that fifteen years have passed since the debut of computer-generated animation on the big screens of the world. I would argue that the visual aesthetic achieved by the creators of Toy Story (Lasseter, 1995) is still comparable with that of more recent computer-generated animated films. Recent feature-length offerings such as hyper-realistic Final Fantasy: the Spirits Within (Sakaguchi & Sakakibara, 2001), and James Cameron’s live action/animated film Avatar (2009) have met with mixed reviews despite the technological milestones they represent.

An interesting consideration is the ways in which this symbiotic relationship works in reverse. James Cameron’s latest cinematic brain-child was reportedly put on the back-burner for as long as fifteen years - around the same time that Toy Story was released! Heavily reliant on what will fleetingly be called ‘cutting edge’ technology, Avatar blends live-action sequences with CGI backdrops, 3D technology and ‘performance capture’. Michael Bodey of The Australian newspaper reports that final product must be seen to be believed, adding that the narrative “…barely matters given the wonder of the worlds the filmmakers have created” (2009).

While many viewers flock to the cinema to enjoy the sensory experience and be a part of the historical ‘event’ such releases signify, others are turning in droves to the internet for an alternative experience that is more focused on culturally significant stories than on technical brilliance. Not since televisions first appeared in viewers’ homes has an innovation had such a powerful impact on the cinematic experience and on film media in general.

Reference List

Bodey, M. (2009). Avatar needs to be seen to be believed [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 24,
     2010, from http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/avatar-needs-to-be-seen-to-be-believed/story-
     e6frg8n6-1225810283071

Week 4 - Online Video

1. Where and when did usable online video start?

My own research, as well as whisperings about the findings of others in this course has left me a little dubious about the efficacy of my online researching skills. The discrepancies between responses to this question may be connected to how the term ‘usable’ is understood.

My first answer considers ‘usable’ to mean video that can be uploaded (or shared), downloaded and searched, as well as viewed online by the home user…

According to Videomaker (2008), displaying media on a computer screen was the rage of the late 1980s and early 1990s. While the technology to stream media online was available from late 90s, it was not at that time possible to post or share videos online.

Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim met at eBay’s PayPal division where they each found employment. Frustrated at not being able to find a certain controversial video on the web, the threesome conceived of and created YouTube out of a garage in Menlo Park, United States. Karim posted the first video on You Tube on April 23, 2005.

Further research unearthed a claim that a company in Adelaide, Australia had been operating the same concept for users paying a monthly fee as early as 2003. The comment was posted on an online article by Nett administrator Stephen Murphy (June 23, 2009), who suggests that the sustainability of a free YouTube is in doubt due to the multi-million dollar annual losses it represents.

My second answer treats the term ‘usable’ in a more technical way, including video that can be uploaded or streamed online by broadcasting companies.

Long before YouTube stretched its legs, StreamWorks delivered the first live and on-demand video and audio streaming to broadcasting companies and their subscribers. The Xing Technology Corporation pioneered digital compression software in the late 80s and early 90s, when Xing developed and released a simple yet selective MS-DOS application - an MPEG video player.

Real Video (a RealNetworks product) marginally preceded StreamWorks in broadcasting video online. The latter, however, stole RealNetworks’ thunder by being the first to transmit live streaming video as well as pre-encoded video. Those of you who routinely back the underdog will be please to know that RealNetworks bounced back to acquire the software developer in 1999.

2. What recent innovations are being used to lure us in the movies? What are they luring us from?

At first glance, the majority of movie theatres appear not to have changed much since the beginning of the ‘noughties’, despite “widespread stagnating revenues” (Bush & Hwang, 2008). While the basic blueprint of the cinema experience is much the same, however, technological advances have impacted on the quality of the picture on the screen, the comfort and aesthetic of the physical theatre, and no doubt the foodstuffs available to satisfy the munchies.

High-definition audio-visuals, such as the DLP Cinema Electronics Platform, with over 35 trillion colours and able to illuminate screens just over 30m wide (Texas Instruments, 2010); surround-sound; the ‘Gold Class’ experience complete with fully-reclining leather chairs and ‘table service’. Together these innovations aim to exploit the nostalgic and other emotional ‘pressure points’ that draw viewers back to the sensory experience that makes them “...feel like a kid again” (Bush & Hwang, 2008).

Technological innovations are not limited to the communications sphere, however. Architectural innovations have led to the opening of a growing number of five-star cinema complexes around the globe that are on a par with world-class hotels and casinos. Lush interior décor, jaw-dropping architecture, and even instances of candy-coloured seating are used to make a trip to the movies an event to blog about.

Movie theatres today are in competition with a highly immersive home theatre experience that is the culmination of products such as High Definition Television (HDTV), surround sound systems, and Digital Set Top Boxes. The availability of popcorn machines, coffee machines and blenders adds polish to the reproduction of the traditional theatre experience in the home.

3. Are short films still being made?

Short films are still being made by amateurs, indie filmmakers, film students building portfolios, professional filmmakers showcasing ideas for big-budget films, young people, old people, and even some people in between.

The International Short Film Conference (ISFC) suggests that popularity of short film amongst filmmakers and audiences alike is on the rise (date unknown). On their website, the ISFC cites regular short film programs on television; shorts appearing in major international film festivals, and hundreds of short films festivals as indicators of this trend. Organisations including Screen Australia and the Australian Film Commission (AFC) exist to "...support and promote the development of a highly creative, innovative and commercially sustainable Australian screen production industry" (AFC, 2010).

Only after considering this question did I realise that at least one major film studio has been making short films and screening them alongside full-length feature films in theatres for years. Disney Pixar has kept up the tradition of creating clever 'shorts' to precede or follow such influential animated films as Toy Story (Lasseter, 1995) and Monsters Inc (Docter, Silverman, & Unkrich, 2001). See the advertisement below for examples of these miniature masterpieces.



Why? Who pays for them to be made?

As mentioned above, many amateurs and enthusiasts continue to create short films as a means of expression, as a response or tribute to a popular culture artefact, for the sheer enjoyment factor, and increasingly, as a medium for assessment purposes, in primary and secondary as well as tertiary institutions. Many budding filmmakers on a budget use the short medium to build up a portfolio, while in other cases, short film projects are ‘bankrolled’ by established directors, studios, or influential Hollywood actors who support the filmmaker's vision or simply wish to give the fledgling director or writer a leg up.

Focusing on the bigger picture, Bronwyn Kidd (director of the FLICKERFEST International Short Film Festival) stresses the vital role short films play in nurturing independent storytelling and building awareness and cultural tolerance (cited in Krauth, 2004). For this reason Screen Australia, the AFC and other organisations make funding available to shorts-makers to assist with the production costs associated with completing, editing and distributing ambitious short film projects. Other companies provide assistance with casting for short film projects.

4. The term viral is thrown about adhoc but what does it mean in film/movie arena?

The Oxford Dictionary (2010) has already responded to the rapid infiltration of this word trend in common-use language by including the following entry in its online repository:

noun
an image, video, advertisement, etc. that is circulated rapidly on the Internet

The Oxford Dictionary (2010) continues in the following vein:
"Most people are now happy to spread viral infections to their friends, family, by forwarding emails, images, or videos that have amused or intrigued them. The influence of this word-of-mouth publicity on brand awareness and sales is enormous, and one of the commonest compounds of viral is viral marketing. There are now entire companies, known as viral agencies, devoted to creating potential viral hits for businesses."

An example of a digital communications product that has 'gone viral' is TROOPS (Rubio, 1997) - an online mockumentary film that parodies COPS (a long-running American television documentary) while paying tribute to the Star Wars trilogy by setting the film in the universe of that epic saga.

5. Online video distribution isn't limited to the short film format. We are now starting to see television styled shows made solely for internet release (webisodes). Find an example of this style of content and discuss how viewing television content in this way can positively and negatively affect the viewer's experience.

The 7th Portal (Stag & Salim, 2000) is an early example of an animated web television series. Stan Lee Media debuted the original cast superhero series on February 29, 2000. When the first concept webisode was broadcast, millions of enthusiastic viewers succeeded in crashing the servers of Macromedia's Shockwave web site. Interestingly, the first public use of the word 'webisode' is attributed to Stan Lee Media 1998-99 in its marketing and promotion of this series.

The user-friendly advantages of engaging with this form of media are similar to those of other converging new communication technologies: immediacy and mobility; control over when and where viewing takes place; the ability to start, pause, resume, 'like', comment on, share, and replay at a whim; more control over advertising, et cetera.

From personal experience, I would suggest that the real and virtual cost of downloading webisodes might be seen as a disadvantage. Slow internet connections and 'drop outs' might also disrupt viewing and frustrate viewers. My younger brother is a dedicated fan of the Japanese 'shōnen manga' web series One Piece (Uda, Sakai, & Miyamoto, 1998-present). As with traditional television series, One Piece is released to Australian web viewers weekly: in this instance, the lack of immediacy often associated with new communication technologies remains a drawback. Certain web television distributors also restrict access to members (paying members in some cases) and disable downloading. These kinds of restrictions run against the grain of converging media trends, and may lead to decreased user loyalty.

Reference List

Bush, C., & Hwang, K. (November 23, 2008). Designs of the week: The movie theater experience
     [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 16, 2010, from
     http://www.sramanamitra.com/2008/11/23/designs-of-the-week-the-movie-theater-experience/

Check Point Software Technologies. (1996). Check Point Technologies announces secure support for Xing
     Streamworks [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 18, 2010, from
     http://www.checkpoint.com/press/1996/xing.html

International Short Film Conference. (date unknown). International Short Film Conference. Retrieved August
     18, 2010, from http://www.isfc.com.au/

Krauth, K. (2004). A profile of Australian short film festivals [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 24,
     2010, from http://afcarchive.screenaustralia.gov.au/newsandevents/afcnews/feature/shorts_fests/
     newspage_110.aspx

Murphy, S. (2009). You Tube, you lose? [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 18, 2010, from
     http://nett.com.au/blogs/youtube-you-lose/83.html
Oxford Dictionary. (2010). Oxford Dictionaries: Viral. Retrieved August 20, 2010, from
     http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0929700#m_en_gb0929700

Texas Instruments. (2010). DLP Cinema Reaches Major Milestone of DCI Compliance for 2K and
     Enhanced 4K Platforms  [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 18, 2010, from
     http://www.dlp.com/technology/dlp-press-releases/press-release.aspx?id=1384

Videomaker. (2008). History of online video and YouTube [instructional video]. Retrieved 16 August, 2010,
     from http://www.5min.com/Video/History-of-Online-Video-and-YouTube-95793661

The Growing Phenomenon of 'internet'

I stumbled across this video clip on the web today. Canadian prime time news program CBC reports optimitically at the dawning of a new era in technology and communication.

What a shame the absence of discrimination and personal attacks observed during the earliest days of the internet doesn't hold true today. New laws have arisen to combat cyberbullying, cyberstalking, and a host of increasingly familiar 'cybercrimes'. Angela Maxwell points out that alongside its advantages, the internet serves also as "...an attractive tool in committing old crimes" (2001, p5).

Maxwell, A. (2001). Cyberstalking [Electronic version]. Retreived August 21, 2010, from http://www.netsafe.org.nz/Doc_Library/cyberstalking.pdf

First Report On The Internet - CBC Prime Time News - More amazing videos are a click away

Maxwell, A. (2001). Cyberstalking [Electronic version]. Retreived August 21, 2010, from http://www.netsafe.org.nz/Doc_Library/cyberstalking.pdf

Week 3 Lecture - My MOO is your MOO

I am pleased to report that the somewhat haphazard research I have been doing since the beginning of Semester 2 is bearing fruit. The ‘brief history of computing and the internet’ was the topic of Jules’ lecture this week.

Had I not read about Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs’ out-of-a-garage business venture in the Courier Mail Q Weekend recently; had I not been trawling through (the introductory pages of) academic papers and book reviews dealing with cyberspace and cyberculture, I might have been completely overwhelmed by all the talk of ‘IP’s, ‘MUD’s, ‘MOO’s and all their close relations.

This lecture has been particularly well-timed, considering that Steve Wozniak celebrates his sixtieth birthday this week. The insider feature about the ‘two Steves’ and their journeys as co-founders of Apple Inc appeared in the Q Weekend in June of this year. Click here to download the pdf.

The lecture covered the early origins of digital computer development, beginning in the nineteenth century with big-thinker Charles Babbage and his Difference Engine, to Lady Ada Byron’s groundbreaking conception of multi-purpose machines, and later to mathematician, cryptanalyst and computer scientist Alan Turing. Of note here was the point Jules made about great ingenuity and progress being inspired, or, rather, compelled by very dark periods in our history. The example given was the birth of the first working computer (The Bombe, a device designed as a code-breaker that ultimately impacted on the outcome of the war) from the ashes of the Second World War.

The lecture then presented a timeline of commercially-produced computers, from Xerox PARC in 1975 to the Apple, IBM, Microsoft, and GNU/Linux models, which live on today in various updated, more compact guises. We like to make fun of ‘tech-nerds’, but their passion and drive has powered the progression of computing technology to the pervasive phenomena we know today.

Steve Jobs is perhaps one of the most well-known of this sub-culture. Credited with bringing the personal computer into the world, many now harbour concerns that the next decade will usher in the collapse of the Apple dynasty without its visionary; without its 'iGod' at the helm, tirelessly driving the company forwards (Brinkbaumer & Schulzphy, 2010).

The idea of cyberspace and online communities - touched on at the end of the lecture - generates fascinating debate about real and imagined worlds overlapping, combining and colliding. Various issues related to this often confusing intersection has resulted in a dichotomy of commentary. Adopting a 'Utopian' view of these phenomena, Wired contributing editor John Perry Barlow waxes enthusiastic about the internet and networking communication technologies. He describes these developments as "...the most transforming technical event since the capture of fire" (in Silver, 2000, p.3).

A more balanced perspective might be held by various LambdaMOO (a popular multi-user domain) users, whose online identities were violently abused by notorious fellow user 'Mr Bungle' (Dibbell, 1998). Interesting questions about justice, ethics, and protocols in online communities, and the phychological and emotional impacts on both virtual and 'real world' identities have been brought to the fore by damning stories like this one.

Reference List

Brinkbaumer, K., & Schulzphy, T. (2010, June 12). iGod. Qweekend, 10-14.

Dibbell, J. (1998). A Rape in Cyberspace [Electronic version]. Retrieved August 12, 2010, from http://www.juliandibbell.com/articles/a-rape-in-cyberspace/

Silver, D. (2000). Looking Backwards, Looking Forward: Cyberculture Studies. In D. Gauntlett (Ed.) Web.Studies: Rewiring media studies for the digital age. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

Week 4 Tutespark - Web Film

With the benefit of hindsight, I realise that I have watched and enjoyed several short web films over the last few years. My exposure to such offerings as The End of the World and Salad Fingers certainly never led me to consider the web as a viable distribution medium for a genuine filmic culture of such magnitude.

1.
The first web film I have included is The Outbreak, by Chris Lund. The main appeal of this film for me personally is the interactive element - I have loved choose-your-own adventure stories since I read my first Goosebumps series novel in primary school. The cinematography is actually quite good considering the restricted budget. The colour palette is more evocative than many Hollywood thrillers I have seen. Oh, and one more thing... does anyone else see an uncanny resemblance to Josh in one of the lead actors?
http://www.survivetheoutbreak.com/

http://www.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http://copycatsds.com/

I found the following two films on atom.com, an indie/mainstream media website dedicated to comedic short films.

2.
The second film to make the cut is fifteen-minute masterpiece Fluent Dysphasia directed by Daniel O'Hara. The film is about a single father who wakes up after a boozy night speaking fluent Gaelic. Only Gaelic. I was impressed first by the oxymoronic title, then by the brilliant cinematography. I was also shocked to recognise the lead actor, Stephen Rea, whose performances I have enjoyed in such films as V for Vendetta, Tara Road, and Princess Caraboo. The lesson in parenting is not clouded by the impressive multi-lingual efforts of the cast.

Existential Crisis
Tags: Atom.com,Atom Originals,Atom Blog,Upload Videos

3.
Dangle, directed by and starring Phil Traill is a brief take on the cautionary tale. To pull or not to pull the red tassel-ended cord hanging from the sky in the middle of nowhere, that is the question. Cleverly cut frames and a very funny ending, despite the complete lack of dialogue.
 

Existential Crisis
Tags: Atom.com,Atom Originals,Atom Blog,Upload Videos

Week 3 - Treasure Hunt!

1. According to an online magazine obsessed with really big machines, the world’s largest machine is the Hadron Collider. I used Bing to search ‘world’s largest machine’.

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/40463_worlds-largest-machines-ever-built

I had to continue searching to locate the following details. I searched for ‘Hadron Collider weight’ on Yahoo!. Apparently the HC weighs in at more than 38,000 tonnes and cost more than £3.5bn to build, including all infrastructure and early running expenses.
http://www.bukisa.com/articles/40463_worlds-largest-machines-ever-built#ixzz0wFpjj9fP

2. I used Bing to search 'contact Ozzy Osbourne'. A possibly unreliable website (Top Synergy – Famous and Celebrity Relationships) provides contact details for Ozzy's manager... who also happens to be his wife, Sharon Osbourne. Apparently all one has to do is pick up the phone!
http://famous-relationships.topsynergy.com/Ozzy_Osbourne/Contact.asp

3. This one was a real doozy. I used Bing to search for ‘global communication history’. About.com features several timelines of inventions and inventors, which agreed that the telegraph was invented 1831, followed by Morse code 1835. Following the links to learn more about each technology, I found that Morse Code more closely fit the description of ‘first global technology’.
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/bl_history_of_communication.htm

4. After using Yahoo! to search ‘cheapest flights Gold Coast to Melbourne’, I found that Tiger Airways tends to offer the best deals on late flights Monday to Sunday (around $59 off peak).
http://travel.webjet.com.au/webjettsa/home.aspx?flight_search_action=http%3A%2F%2Ftravel.webjet.com.au%2Fwebjettsa%2Fhome.aspx&TripType=OneWay&CityFrom=OOL&CityTo=Melbourne&DateOut=dd%2Fmm%2Fyyyy&DateBack=dd%2Fmm%2Fyyyy&NumAdult=1&NumChild=0&NumInfant=0&TravelClass=ECONOMY&EntryPoint=Flight&RequestFrom=Outside&x=26&y=7

Then I got a rare brainwave... I received a member email from Jetstar airways recently that advertised early- and mid- 2011 flights for just $49.
http://www.jetstar.com/au/en/cheap-flights/sales.aspx?utm_source=jetmail&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=48_hour_sale_20100811

But wait, there’s more. Today, my younger sister brought home a magazine from the Flight Centre that claims to beat any genuine airfare quote… or they’ll fly you there for free. Jackpot!
I used Yahoo! to navigate to the Flight Centre website and clicked the link to the Lowest Airfare Guarantee information page for terms and conditions.
http://www3.flightcentre.com.au/lowest-airfare-guarantee/?WT.seg_1=fc00001097

5. Miku Hatsune is the first product in the Vocaloid2 Character Vocal Series created by Crypton Future Media. It is considered as the most popular and well known Vocaloid. The character name means ‘the first sound from the future’. Japanese voice actress Saki Fujita’s voice was sampled to create a programmable vocal blueprint for Miku.
http://vocaloid.wikia.com/wiki/Miku_Hatsune

The release date for the Vocaloid2 Character Vocal series, August 31, 2007, is often cited by fans as Miku’s birthday.
http://www.animevice.com/miku-hatsune/18-20703/

6. Several live webcams located in Antarctica can be accessed via the Australian Antarctic Division website. I found this one by using Bing to search ‘live webcam Antarctica’.
http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=27

Like what you see? You can stay in one several research bases located on the ‘land of extremes’ – Kiwi company Adventure Travel offers commercial expeditions from 8 to 20 days to Antarctica New Zealand.
http://www.antarcticanz.govt.nz/travelling-to-antarctica/private-visits

A travel journal by a past adventurer mentions that although much of the ‘staying’ was done on board the commercial vessel (Akademik Sergei Vavilov), a brief stay at the Ukraine Verdansky base was particularly hospitable. I assume the cost was included in the expedition package (12 days from USD $4,990pp triple-share or $5,990 twin-share).
http://www.adventuretravel.co.nz/travel-journal/antarctica-by-denise-feb-2010

7. I started by searching for ‘Australian music charts 1980’ using Bing. Search results included the ARIA Charts: Australia website. Clicking through to About the Charts, I found that ARIA charts only date back as far as 1983. Another search for ‘Australian music chart history’ revealed the following gem of a website.
http://www.scu.edu.au/schools/edu/ICT/student_pages/sem1_2003/dlowe/hist2.html

It turns out that the Kent Music Report preceded ARIA, which briefly funded KMR in exchange for permission to publish the chart data under the ARIA banner…
A quick Yahoo! search for ‘Kent Music Report 1980’ led me to Top40-Charts.info, which states that for four weeks from August 4, 1980, ‘Funkytown’ by Lipps Inc reigned supreme as number one single.
http://top40-charts.info/?title=List_of_number-one_singles_in_Australia_during_the_1980s#1980_.28Kent_Music_Report.29

8. Did you know that we have an Australian Research Council Nanotechnology Network?? It’s true. I found USA’s National Nanotechnology Initiative website via my Yahoo! ‘define nanotechnology’ search, and then searched ‘nanotechnology Australia’ for kicks. Apparently Australian nanotechnologists are happy with the NNI’s definition, which is cited on the ARCNN website.

I would describe nanotechnology as the study and manipulation of particles on the nanoscale (1 to 100 nanometers or billionths of metres), or working with matter on a very, VERY small scale and across range of science disciplines. It seems that particles of matter exhibit unique properties at this scale, which, if harnessed, may allow us to do wonderful things like sniff-out skin cancer cells with nanotech-enabled sensors, or remove arsenic from water supplies at a low cost.
http://www.nano.gov/html/facts/whatIsNano.html
http://www.ausnano.net/

9. My Bing search for ‘Google street-view camera’ turned up plenty of generic results, as well as an article from About.com. The article claims that “…Immersive Media cameras were used to capture the data for Google Maps street view. IMC sells both the cameras and licensed images.”
http://google.about.com/od/experimentalgoogletools/ig/SIGGRAPH-2007/Immersive-Media-Camera.htm

A quick Bing search for ‘IMC Google street view’ returned this article by Glenn Letham from GISuser about the IMC Dodeca camera, which has the capacity to capture 360° imagery streams Latham calls ‘spherical movies’.
http://www.gisuser.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=11997

10. Buzzing around the more reputable Klingon organisation websites for a Klingon translator tool, I gleaned the following: the limited vocabulary and unique grammatical structure of Klingon mean that MTs (or machine translations) are not capable of providing accurate translations.
See http://www.mrklingon.org/ for more.

Having said that, I just searched Yahoo! for ‘Klingon dictionary’… would you believe Apple is offering a Klingon language suite iPhone application? Of course you believe it. Now I just need to get myself an iPhone….
http://www.simonandschuster.com/w/klingonApps/content.html

Week 3 Tutorial

Don't digital and electronic mean the same thing? Analogue... that's a watch with little hands and cogs, yes? Erm.... no.

digital, n. and adj. Relating to or operating with signals or information represented by discrete numeric values of a physical quantity such as voltage or magnetic polarization (commonly representing the digits 0 and 1); designating a signal or information of this kind. Opposed to analogue.

analogue, n. and adj.
B. adj. Relating to or operating with signals or information represented by a continuously variable physical quantity, such as voltage, spatial position, etc., which in the case of measuring instruments can be displayed on a dial or other fixed scale. Also: designating a signal represented in this way.

communication
b. spec. The transmission or exchange of information, knowledge, or ideas, by means of speech, writing, mechanical or electronic media, etc.; (occas.) an instance of this.

electronic
c. Using or involving the storage or transmission of information by electronic means; carried out or performed using electronic devices or computers.

Three non-electronic digital devices…

The tactile braille alphabet, international morse code, and DNA - the original digital 'blueprint' - are all examples of non-electronic gidita

Week 2 Tutorial - Blue Tooth Woes

This tutorial left me with feelings of empathy with the retired community, cruelly branded by society as 'digital immigrants'... I have now added several notches to my utility belt, however, since facing up to my stubborn ignorance of the Bluetooth phenomenon.

The task for this session was to create a stop-motion film from a rather brief brief - a film title. When those with photo-capable mobile phones had been identified, several amateur three-man film crews were let loose on the Gold Coast campus. My touch screen Samsung graduated from text-exclusive to super-shooter in the space of half an hour – a timeframe that made for a very tight shooting schedule and limited creativity.

Our film title (So Far From Home) had us shadowing our protagonist, - a lost university student desperately searching for his class - from the Griffith University Bridge to the UniBar.
Using our new-found understanding of shot framing and composition, we took the time to ensure that Peter, our disoriented hero, always occupied the left or right thirds of the frame. Several artsy shots of Peter descending a staircase gave us the opportunity to play with tilting the horizon within the frame. We even threw in a little product placement for Coke dispenser machines.
Close ups of clocks, inserts of campus maps, and wide/long shots of various locations were used to establish the setting and narrative of the film.

Although un-prepped audiences (in the unlikely event of someone other than my mother viewing our You Tube video) might miss the subtleties, and, well… the basic plot of the film, I felt that the process of making this film demonstrated the power of a well-framed image to tell a story.

The real games began when we returned to the computer lab. Several fellow Sparkies, Jules included, stepped in to assist me in setting up my phone for Bluetooth for the first time. Collaborative troubleshooting had us frantically changing settings, setting up connections, moving files, and sharing codes, until, true to form, the phone died.

Week 2 Lecture - Cine-Speak

Unfortunately, Jules was unable to deliver this week’s lecture. Josh realised every understudy’s dream with his off-the-cuff lecture on framing shots for film and television.

Another lecture, another buzzword. ‘Cine-speak’ describes a brief terminology bank of shot framing and techniques used in photography, film, and television. Admittedly, I had never considered these media to be forms of communication technology. In fact, they belong to a long-standing and constantly developing culture of artistic storytelling that is also a powerful vehicle for communicating messages concerned with politics; popular culture and celebrity clout; consumerism, current affairs, power relations, and values systems.

Perhaps the most significant element of this lecture was the argument that screen media represent a convergence of art and communication. In many cases, this convergence has given rise to a form of audiovisual storytelling that invites the viewer to leave behind his or her body – his or her world – and enter another. Marshall describes this phenomenon as using the screen (or, rather, the camera) as a transformative extension of oneself: in his study Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man, he further claims that “…the photograph and its development in the movie restored gesture to the human technology of recording experience” (1964). Interestingly, Marshall used the terms ‘new technology’ and [screen] ‘media’ interchangeably throughout this work.

The lecture provided a glimpse of the various framing techniques and ‘rules’ applied by television and film-makers to communicate a conscious message with an audience. While Marshall famously claimed that the medium itself is the message (1984), Jane Stadler’s more recent analysis of screen media stresses the equal importance and interdependence of form and content in audience interpretation of the message (2009). While neither expressly acknowledges the influence of intersubjectivity on audience interpretation in these works, Stadler does go some way towards answering Josh’s original TuteSpark question about the relationship between framing or shot size and medium type. In a nutshell, Stadler explains that the average running time, vast landscape dimensions, and budget devoted to film projects mean that long shots, two-shots and more densely detailed framing are more often used than in television.

Before signing off I thought I’d add this food for thought: just as convergence has had a major impact on the way we use new communication technology devices and operate socially, the digitalisation of both film and television (think HDTV and recent Oscar wins for films like Slumdog Millionaire, shot using digital cameras) has begun a trend of convergence between these two media. Big-budget television series such as CSI:NY (Donahue, Mendelsohn, Zuiker, et al.,2004) and Lost (Abrams, Bender, et al., 2004) are representative of this stylistic shift. between the two You may have noticed that both computer screens and plasma televisions are becoming wider as well as flatter… Could this perhaps be a reaction to the growing culture of amateur movie-making and illegal/legal downloading?

Reference List

McLuhan, M. (1964). Understanding media: The extensions of man. New York: McGraw Hill.

Stadler, J. (2009). Screen media: Analysing film and television. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.

So Far From Home - our foray into amateur film-making

Week 1 Lecture

Tutespark... just a fancy word for discussion, or a revolution in course delivery? The first lecture of the semester saw me sitting in one of the first few rows of a lecture theatre choc-full of unfamiliar faces. Two of those faces were standing behind the lecture podium plastered with anticipation over this turn-of-phrase. What do you think, bloggers?

The lecture consisted of an introductory spiel on the emergence of 'new communication technologies'. With the course expectations and assessment housekeeping out of the way, one-sided discussion turned to more intriguing matters: what constitutes 'new' and 'old' technologies, and under what circumstances does new technology become old? A brief journey through the history of communication technology development didn't answer the question, but raised several other interesting dilemmas.

I think perhaps that the student who suggested 'painting' as one of the first communication technologies developed had a point - drawing is technically a style of painting... whether it is done on a wall with sticks or in the sand with nothing but a finger. This painterly form of communication technology lives on today on public bathroom doors as well as approved public graffiti artworks.

Since the lecture, I stumbled across this interesting clip about new communication technologies on YouTube. The statistics deal with the increasingly pervasive nature of communication technologies in society. Check it out here...

Week 1 Tutorial

I was locked into the music recording wing of level 3 on my way to the week one lab. My panicked wonderings about how long a person could survive on a diet of electrical cabling, carpet fibers and lecture notes was interrupted by two Media Studies girls who let me out with a funky key card.

A few notes on the tutorial: the Macs are great – I’m glad to be back on one that doesn't look like a massive bubble and weigh roughly the same as an African elephant. I'm not much of a blogger myself, but you'd be surprised how many blogs trainee educators are expected to create in the interests of keeping up with the generations of digital natives we will encounter throughout our teaching careers. It seems that information communication technologies are a sort of twenty-first century ‘golden child’ in education practice.

Tutespark this week asks a chicken-and-egg question for the post-modern age: what constitutes 'new' and 'old' technologies, and under what circumstances do ‘new technologies’ become ‘old technologies’?
While there seems to be widespread public debate about these questions, I’m going to share my personal opinion on this possibly unimportant distinction (as the Bard pointed out, a rose by any other name does smell as sweet).
I think we can look at this question from several angles. One of these is to use the terms to mark a specific era in the history of communication technology development. This perspective raises issues that parallel those surrounding the application of the terms ‘modern’ and ‘postmodern’, as modeled facetiously above. These terms wreak similar havoc on the art world, where those of us who are not high art connoisseurs tend to become slightly confused when told that ‘modern art’ is, in fact, passé, and that we are currently in a postmodern age… What then follows the postmodern era…and who comes up with these terms? The mind boggles. If we look at this question from an historical perspective, we are tempted to demarcate a point in time whence all technologies developed up to that point are labeled ‘old’, while all communication technologies that follow constitute ‘new’ technologies. At issue here is the inherent objectivity of the terms ‘new’ and ‘old’; their meanings tend to change from one person to another, and across groups and cultures – not just across periods of time. I’m sure many of us can recall the first laptop, television, mP3 player, or mobile phone we owned – the technology would have seemed new from our perspective at the time, despite its being a hand-me-down from an older sibling or parent. Today many of us have acquired and replaced several of these technologies with newer or convergent models that claim to combine the best features of each. I would suggest that, given the rapid-fire nature of communication technology development, the use of the terms ‘new’ or ‘old’ to name such vague time periods is as impractical as it is pretentious.

Another option is to view these terms as a tool to track changes in communication technologies in specific contexts. Free email hosting is not exactly the new kid on the block; however, these communication technologies are constantly being revised and reinvented. Many of us will be aware of Griffith University’s latest technological communication innovation, using Google-hosted Gmail accounts to keep in contact with students and staff. Does this new use of the technology make it a ‘new’ technology in this context? We see this kind of innovation in many industries, including marketing, fundraising (seen a flash mob on YouTube lately?), home entertainment and appliances, and education.

My final comment comes after browsing a report by the Cultural Ministers Council (2008). I think it is interesting to see the terms ‘new technologies’, ‘interactive digital technology’, and ‘convergent technologies’ used interchangeably. The treatment of these terms in the report on Building a Creative Innovation Economy offers a third perspective – one that is strongly correlated with the recent vogue for digital and convergent communication technologies, and gives lesser importance to other kinds.

As I’ve already mentioned, I don’t see the need to make a distinction between new and old. Just like fashions and film stars, the latest ‘it’-technologies seem to come and go in frustrating blink-and-you’ll-miss-it style.