Re: [-empyre-] video killed the radio star

[Henry Warwick <henry.warwick@sbcglobal.net>]

On Jun 15, 2005, at 3:57 PM, Chris Ashley wrote:
> I think this is a really good point, and one worth
> acknowledging and repeating.  Don't confuse the tool's
> current application with its potential.  There was the
> early dream by some of the web's democratizing
> capability- that citizens will be more involved and
> empowered.  If that was the case George W. would not
> be president.

Indeed. I was working at Macromedia from 1995 - 1998 doing tech support 
for FreeHand, fontographer, and then Dreamweaver. When they first 
acquired the engineers for Dreamweaver and I was trained on how to 
support it, I thought it was amazing - kind of like "Quark Xpress" for 
the web. Then at a company-wide shindig at Pajaro Dunes Resort, (those 
were the days....) in between massive all night drinking binges, we 
actually got together in groups and discussed the products etc. I'll 
never forget my supervisor's look when we were talking about 
Dreamweaver - he had a great smile, as he thought "A great 
democratisation - everyone will be able to make a web page - oh the 
beauty..."

then his eyes widened, and he said

"oh, the horror...EVERYONE will make a webpage..."

and sure enough: within months a million pictures of pets were scanned, 
record collections listed, etc. Oh. The Horror.

But then, I was on a list that shut down not long ago because the topic 
of conversation for a week was "List all the crap on your desk". The 
List Owner threw a fit and killed the list. I thought it was kind of 
cool, myself...


>  The web has leveled the playing field
> for easy entry, but the discipline of practice and the
> place of the author filter out the good from the bad.

I dunno. I tend to think people find an audience or vice versa. Good or 
bad - I dunno - depends on the audience I suppose. Discipline is a 
means to an end and not an end in itself - but practice is a good thing 
as it creates consistency. I think the author gains more from a 
practice than the audience.

SVM wrote:

> > blogs m.body a perspective of elementary content
> > alteration in a melange of
> > communication dynamics driven/governed by economic
> > rationalism + blanket
> > perspectivism.....

I would like some elaboration on that, myself. It sounds intriguing, 
but has a scent of philological obscurantism + blanket reductionism...


> And Nietzsche's idea that truth depends on our
> prespective?  Yes.

Hmmm- so then solipsism is the only verifiable truth structure? 
Somehow, I don't think you'd agree with that, but it's a risk of 
relativist arguments going back to - oh jeeepers - a long way.

Besides - Nietzsche was crazy.

;-)

HW