I agree that with all the opportunities to connect with folks online we can get overloaded. I like using the term “analog” to describe our life in the real world. It’s important we not forget to connect with the folks in the next room.
You’re really talking me field here! I’m a Records Manager in my day life, and one of the things I train people on is the incredible information explosion we’re experience. If you’re interested a bit of information theory geekery, check out a couple resources:
I hope you had a great time here in Texas. I do not see the problem with on-line time as an analog v. digital problem, as the analog v. digital construct somehow treats “on-line time” as “other than human activity” and I think that on-line time is just another form of human activity and communication.
My viewpoint offers a different solution to the same problem which is for me more satisfying. Podcast feeds are nothing more than structured content. They are directly analogous to both magzine subscriptions and to checking out library books. If one has too many, then one cancels a subscription or stops checking out so many books. There is no “what it the internet?” issue here, but instead the basic issue is “how do I spend my time?”.
I listen to podcasts, but subscribe to no feeds. I think it’s important to manually download individual episodes, and then listen only to episodes I chose to download. This has a good mental discipline for me, as then I make a conscious decision to invest the time in
a particular podcast.
I am amused by something lately that fits with your post. My own weblog resource is a livejournal, which offers more of the advantage of an “insular community” feel at the expense of the “wider web” feel of traditional “independent URL on a server” weblog services. Yet a small number of people on my reading roll (”friends list”) there now merely export their twitter posts to Livejournal. I know their hearts are pure, but it renders the experience of reading their posts somewhat less connecting. It’s not so irritating as to cause me to “drop” anyone, but it’s analogous to the analog pre-typed christmas “here’s what we did in 2007″ card.
I notice, by the way, that your workshop is not Creative Commons. It’s a personal choice, of course, what to do with your own audiolog, but it might be more fun if it were CC. I am working, for example, on a netlabel album in which I sample CC audio material into my little somnolent weirdbient downtempo songs.
I hunt for CC material, as my point is to promote the sharing in CC.
February 12th, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Hey Will,
I agree that with all the opportunities to connect with folks online we can get overloaded. I like using the term “analog” to describe our life in the real world. It’s important we not forget to connect with the folks in the next room.
Cheers!
February 13th, 2008 at 12:01 am
Thanks for the comment, Jenn.
I think those real-world connections are going to be my new focus this year.
February 13th, 2008 at 11:06 am
Hey Will…
You’re really talking me field here! I’m a Records Manager in my day life, and one of the things I train people on is the incredible information explosion we’re experience. If you’re interested a bit of information theory geekery, check out a couple resources:
A hugely important study:
http://www2.sims.berkeley.edu/research/projects/how-much-info-2003/
A great slide show that kind of makes you go “wow”…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHWTLA8WecI
Best,
–Mongo
February 17th, 2008 at 6:25 am
Dear Will:
I hope you had a great time here in Texas. I do not see the problem with on-line time as an analog v. digital problem, as the analog v. digital construct somehow treats “on-line time” as “other than human activity” and I think that on-line time is just another form of human activity and communication.
My viewpoint offers a different solution to the same problem which is for me more satisfying. Podcast feeds are nothing more than structured content. They are directly analogous to both magzine subscriptions and to checking out library books. If one has too many, then one cancels a subscription or stops checking out so many books. There is no “what it the internet?” issue here, but instead the basic issue is “how do I spend my time?”.
I listen to podcasts, but subscribe to no feeds. I think it’s important to manually download individual episodes, and then listen only to episodes I chose to download. This has a good mental discipline for me, as then I make a conscious decision to invest the time in
a particular podcast.
I am amused by something lately that fits with your post. My own weblog resource is a livejournal, which offers more of the advantage of an “insular community” feel at the expense of the “wider web” feel of traditional “independent URL on a server” weblog services. Yet a small number of people on my reading roll (”friends list”) there now merely export their twitter posts to Livejournal. I know their hearts are pure, but it renders the experience of reading their posts somewhat less connecting. It’s not so irritating as to cause me to “drop” anyone, but it’s analogous to the analog pre-typed christmas “here’s what we did in 2007″ card.
I notice, by the way, that your workshop is not Creative Commons. It’s a personal choice, of course, what to do with your own audiolog, but it might be more fun if it were CC. I am working, for example, on a netlabel album in which I sample CC audio material into my little somnolent weirdbient downtempo songs.
I hunt for CC material, as my point is to promote the sharing in CC.
A good podcast! Thanks for shairng it.
best, robert