Blog, week 5; Archive Fever

In this weeks readings, Derrida speaks of the great importance of Archives within society (Enzser, 2008). In reference to Archive Fever, he sees this as the different ways that archives are managed and the various impacts that archives can have on all aspects of our lives (Enzser, 2008). When actually taking some time out to think about archives, they are evident everywhere! Address books, contacts in mobile phones, photo books, book shelves, emails, ipod playlists, messages in phones, data from online social networking sites etc, etc, etc. The last few examples are more modern and display the different types of Archives available, always adapting and changing, as people get Archive fever and invest in the new mode of publishing to archive their lives.

Sharon Howard (2007) also speaks of our reinvigorated "want" to archive. She says that the web 2.0 has a great potential for organising and storing useful information that can be easily and efficiently accessed decades (if not longer) down the track (Howard, 2007). However, like Howard and Derrida, I think that because technology is constantly evolving, we are struggling somewhat to adapt, and as a result, what should be seen as archiving in its purest and most brilliant form, is just a collaboration of blogs, tags and computer codes that are seemingly impossible to manage (Ogle, 2010).

Howard stresses the need for ingenous ways to manage the web 2.0, and although I am not exactly computer literate (and in no way would suggest how), I most certainly agree (Howard, 2007). Because publishing has become a universal platform for anyone to embrace, the thought of trying to archive the trillions of publications that are constantly being uploaded makes me nautious. But if it could ever be accomplished, the information stored in the past, could prove invaluable to the future.

Now for some comical value and to enable you to draw a comparison with an organised archive like the one in the picture above...a picture taken of my own study and the books that I own:

Bibliography:

Enszer, Julie R. (2008) Julie R. Enszer (personal blog), ‘Archive Fever: A Freudian Impression by 'Jacques Derrida', November 16, 2008, <http://julierenszer.blogspot.com/2008/11/archive-fever-freudian-impression-by.html>

Howard, Sharon (2007) ‘Reposted: Archive fever (a dusty digression)’, Early Modern Notes, September 25, <http://emn.sharonhoward.org/2007/09/reposted-archive-fever-a-dusty-digression/>

Ogle, Matthew (2010) ‘Archive Fever: A love letter to the post real-time web’, mattogle.com, December 16, <http://mattogle.com/archivefever/>

Stokes, Jon (2003) ‘Reading Notes: Archive Fever’, Ars Technica, June 27, <http://arstechnica.com/old/content/2003/06/130.ars>

> image taken from my family home in Wentworth Falls, from my camera.

Blog, week 4; Assemblages

According to this week’s readings, Assemblages are a combination of elements that allow for an interaction on (in the case of publishing and publics) a social and technological level (Wikipedia, 2012). There are two particular theories of Assemblages that help us to understand the concept better. 1. The Actor Network Theory is a clearer way of looking at assemblages and proposes that a number of actants (both material and semiotic) can come together and work in a network towards a positive outcome (Wikipedia, 2012). It is a flat ontology which means that every actant is equally important (Wikipedia, 2012). 2. ANPS - also occurs in a flat ontology where every actant is of equal importance, however each actant has is composed of a number of different qualities, each with a different role. These roles include; Material, expressive, aesthetic, territorial, deterritorial and linguistic/coding (Wikipedia, 2012).

Particularly in relation to media ethnography, Assemblages and the Actor Network Theory are important tools in researching levels of society that are in between the individual (micro) and the mass public (macro).




 Image.





Using the weeks readings and some of last years blogs for inspiration, I have chosen to portray a basic diagram of my local newspaper and some of the major actants that come together to form this newspaper publication that informs much of the Blue Mountains (Blue Mountains Gazette, 2012).

Even this newspaper, relatively basic in comparison to mass produced papers throughout Australia and the world, has an online viewership, which extends the list of actants considerably (Blue Mountains Gazette, 2012).

- NOTE: It is also important to acknowledge that this is a rough diagram and the nature of assemblages is transcendent in that there are always smaller actants within actants, and so on.


Bibliography:

‘Actor Network Theory’, Wikipedia,<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actor-network_theory> (very short, very useful summary of Latour)

‘Actor Network Rochambeau’, any-space-whatever blog, <http://www.anyspacewhatever.com/actor-network-rochambeau/>   , November 14, 2010

‘A New Philosophy of Society: Assemblage Theory and Social Complexity’, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_New_Philosophy_of_Society:_Assemblage_Theory_and_Social_Complexity>


Blue Mountains Gazette (2012) About Us, Fairfax media, 16/03/2012
<http://www.bluemountainsgazette.com.au/contact.aspx>

- Image
<http://www.sixfoot.com/images/media/gazette2002_resized.jpg>

Blog, week 3; Modes of Publishing

Modes of Publishing:



Modes of publishing have drastically changed over time, with an increase of information shared with, and communicated to, a continually growing public.





ART (cave paintings)

Tablets (Chinese symbols written on Tablets to communicate)

Printing Press (Invented in ----, saw a huge increase in audiences as information could now be published in great numbers, examples include books and newspapers)

Digital (Computer - emails, social networking sites etc, incredibly important because it takes the physicality out of publishing and makes it so much faster, more convenient and simple)

Web 2.0...



Digital vs Print (Top points for each)



Print:

Physical value for money
A more concentrated stream of information on topics and more credible in general
There is more of a personal feel, as many newspapers deal with geographically specific issues and particular demographics.
Easier to navigate around print, with contents etc, whereas digital info can involve a lot of searching and the information only lingers

Digital:Better for the environment in regards to the making of paper

Has the potential to reach a wider range of audiences

News is delivered at a much faster rate

A much cheaper mode of production and cheaper for audiences who can often avoid paying altogether





This week’s readings discuss pay walls for newspapers, which have arisen due to the positive factors of digital media that can be seen above. Pay walls have arisen because of the effect that digital media has had on consumers, and as a result, print based media has had to develop online news in order to compete with the cheaper, faster and wider reach of production and distribution that digital media has to offer. Major newspapers are faced with the tough decision of whether to charge subscribers money for their online news and face a loss of subscriptions, reach and the possibility of being left behind in this digital world, or not charge and lose valuable revenue (Busfield, 2010). Whilst setting up a pay wall is not going to increase popularity with online viewers it is a necessary step that ensures the hardworking journalists remain funded. However within the World Wide Web, it would be extremely difficult to completely firewall news sites that have set up pay walls, and if viewers can’t get onto their first choice sites, they can always go to accepted free of charge sites from renowned news services such as the BBC and Sky News. Articles by Dan Gilmor (2011) and Felix Salmon (2011) illustrate the clever way that the New York Times has managed to both stay in the digital news stakes and maintain revenue. Of course the Times has to set up a pay wall, however it is a much less restricted pay wall than other newspapers have developed, and offers free perks and packages (Salmon, 2011). It is relatively inexpensive and relies on its quality reports and stellar reputation to win over viewers, and, this strategy should be considered by other major news publications as it has worked, with online subscriptions and revenues increasing (Salmon, 2011).




Bibliography:

Busfield, Steve (2010) ‘Guardian editor hits back at paywalls’, The Guardian,January 25, <http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jan/25/guardian-editor-paywalls>(The Editor of The Guardian, against paywalls).

Gillmor, Dan (2011) ‘The New York Times paywall: the faint smell of success’, The Guardian, August 3, <http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/aug/03/new-york-times-paywall> (on The New York Times decision to implement a pay wall in 2011). [note: For what it’s worth I think The New York Times and The Guardian are perhaps the two of the most interesting newspapers to engage with networked publishing]

Salmon, Felix (2011) ‘How The New York Times Paywall is Working’, Wired, August 14, <http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/08/new-york-times-paywall/>

Blog, week 2; Ereaders

ARTS 2090 – Tutorial 1


Information on EREADERS:


This week’s readings discuss the positives and negatives of a changing technological world in relation to publishing, and give us an insight into the incredible potential of EBooks. I think that a recurring theme in these readings, particularly in “Why publishers are about to go data crazy” and “EBooks in South Africa”, is the rapid increase of technology, and mankind’s attempts to keep up (Sachin, 2012). There is no doubt that Ereaders and their various platforms are wonderful technological accomplishments (Naughton, 2010). Just as DVD recorders are useful for recording our favourite television shows, the Ipad, Kindle and even smart phones allow us to bookmark important articles and come back to them at more convenient times, which is an invaluable tool in today’s fast moving society (Schonefeld, 2011). These devices are as portable as any book, and offer a much wider range of reading materials (especially if the owner uses a Torrent site to download materials) (Naughton, 2010). This wide range of materials means that minority groups and subcultures are offered reading materials that might not be available in their local libraries (National Public Radio, 2010).


However, the birth of new technologies while convenient for economically and socially adapt countries, can also create some problems in countries that aren’t so prepared (Bhaskar, 2009). “EBooks in South Africa”highlights the geographical sparseness of developing countries and the lack of bandwidth that results, as well as an unawareness of online book sites (Bhaskar, 2009). If these issues can be addressed, much of the population could be subjected to a wider range of educational and entertaining reading materials.


Whilst new technologies (particularly social network sites such as YouTube and various other blog sites) have created a new sense of openness of publishing which has resulted in much confusion in terms of censorship and copyright laws, it cannot be denied that we live in an exciting world, rich with information (Wikipedia,2012). The emergence of Ereaders has somewhat diminished the informational value and lasting effect that hardcover books hold, however their long reach and accessibility can only lead to positive outcomes for users, and contribute to the lush, informational world that we now live in (National Public Radio,2010).



Bibliography:


Bhaskar, Michael (2009) ‘E-books in Africa’, The Digitalist, May 28, <http://thedigitalist.net/?p=577>

‘Commons’,Wikipedia, 2012, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commons>‘History of Printing’, Wikipedia, 2012, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_printing>

Kamdar, Sachin (2012) ‘Why Publishers are about to go Data Crazy’, Mediashift: Your Guide to the Digital Revolution, January 17, <http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2012/01/why-publishers-are-about-to-go-data-crazy017.html>

National Public Radio (2010) ‘E-Book Boom Changes Book Selling And Publishing’, December 21, <http://www.npr.org/2010/12/21/132235154/e-book-boom-changes-book-selling-and-publishing>

Naughton, John (2010) ‘Publishers take note: the iPad is altering the very concept of a‘book’ The Guardian, December 19, <http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/dec/19/ipad-publishing-kindle-books-apple>

‘Open Publishing’, Wikipedia, 2012, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_publishing>

‘Publishing’, Wikipedia, 2012,<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Publishing>

Schonfeld, Erick (2011) ‘How the Ipad Time Shifts Online Reading’, Techcrunch, February 4, <http://techcrunch.com/2011/02/04/ipad-shifts-reading/>