how much are you willing to do to access information? the mystique is the
"getting there"
There are other ways of consuming media than through huge networks. The
"huge network" paradigm is new and exciting and as the internet becomes
increasingly integrated into our lives, old styles of communication will
be marginalized. Because of their prevalence, we now think in terms of
computers. Old media like
Computer networks claim to support decentralization when the physical
reality is that computers become a central location for media consumption,
decentralized sources all pumped into the same outlet. It is important to
consume media in different ways (the medium is the message? mcluhan) . or
our ability to think about media stagnates.. without stepping outside
internet culture ways of thinking risk becoming homogenized. How we
access media influences how we digest it.
How we produce media influences its [[content?]]
I am not calling for a complete rejection of digital media, but a
consideration of media outside the huge network paradigm.
It is possible to use physical and digital compoitional and distribution
techniques in concert. Ex distribution: Radiohead's mp3 and then box set
release. Ex compositon: ...
Computers are good at repetitive behavior and convenient distribution of
information. The evolution from data processing machines to personal
computers is still going, and I am not against it. But I want to emphasize
the importance of the network beyond the network: computer and access to
the Internet as part of a greater network, multiple kinds of work in
concert, and the importance of physicality in media. right now I am
holding a printout on my lap of the initial draft of this text which i
look to from time to time to spur thoughts which I then type on the
computer. A setup as basic as this can make writing much easier, more
fluid. Thinking and writing inside the computer entirely can bea good way
to get down quick thoughts but when working on a set of ideas, the
mnemonics of physical play..physical text play..hmm.
WORK: computers are good at repetitive behavior and distribution, but
there are aspects of creation and consumption that are lost in the digital
world. the MYSTIQUE of zines is part HISTORY and part WORK. the historical
context ranges back to the 80's underground diy culture and beyond to the
roots of small or independent publication. the connection between zines
and the internet is there but a bit less solid. by creating a zine you are
engaging in a form of WORK that helped defie the zine community and by
distributing it taking part in the existing community. the process of both
making a zine (list process) and finding one is multi-step and tangential.
not only is it pleasurable, but it contributes to the MYSTIQUE that.
FOCUS: Zine writing can be done in isolation from computers and networks.
This can be appealing because of the overwhelming Information Overload.
OFten I write with the internet disconnected. For me, and I don't think
I'm alone on this, writing when accessible by email, IM or even the
availability of the tempting web becomes impossible. My thoughts are
refracted by the network. This is not always a bad thing, but if it were
the only way of working, I would never get anything done. The physical
document has defined edges. Interacting with a pen and piece of paper it
is fairly easy to isolate myself. However, on a computer with the
Internet, the edges dissolve. On Google Documents there are a host of
options. Since it is situated in my browser, opening a new tab to start
surfing around is easy.
Of course, not all computer composition is online, but remotely hosted
services like this is becoming more popular with the advent of web2.0
CONTROL:
I am writing this on Google Documents. I don't know where the data is, how
long it will be retained on their servers (possibly forever) or whether it
is being intercepted between my PC and the Google servers. I trade these
drawbacks for convenience: I can edit this wherever there is a PC
connected to the Internet. In this case I have made this choice conciously
but many people do not have the knowledge to consider their options.
In some cases, I want control over what information I am sending and
receiving. On the Internet, it is possible but very difficult to keep
track of the myriad connections that open and close and the information
both personally important and mundane that might be transfered in a
seemingly smooth transaction. Network gives the impression of smoothness
(especially on Windows machines) when the reality is much more complex.
(REFERENCE fucking magic chips?) physical building of a document,
distribution of a document, easier to ensure privacy and control
