Arranged Delirium

This Associated Press article regarding ABC News coverage of the Toyota recall should make clear the power of video on shaping our opinion and understandings. It should also prove indicative of the dangers of shoddy journalism. It a good example of what we are always talking about in New Media: how visuals shape our understanding of the world, through both intentional means and unintentional decodings. This is the very reason why it’s important to pay attention to details when crafting new media content.

It’s not enough to practice web development - you also need to keep up with the changing elements of design and the trends in the field. I read about web design every day, and I find myself frequently heading back to a couple of valuable resources:

A List Apart - I’ve been reading this one for years. Its a regular column referencing current issues in web development and it also has a number of incredibly useful and well written tutorials if you are just learning how to code. Its been around and relevant for years. Interestingly enough there is a recent article regarding the HTML 5 vs. Flash debate I’ve been discussing recently…

Smashing Magazine - This site covers a broader range of topics, but does a good job of representing a diverse range of interests. More recently, they have covered topics of interest including writing an effective cover letter and they’ve also provided a showcase of academic web sites.

Perhaps I should add to the list. There are a number of valuable sites regularly covering web design. Which one do you find most useful?

Over the years, I’ve become increasingly frustrated with Flash, it’s broader implementation on the Web, and Adobe’s business practices in general. So much so, that I’ve avoided certain sites and more recently blocked all Flash content from my browsers unless I actually want to use it. (Thank you ClickToFlash!) It’s one reason why I haven’t been a critic of Apple’s decision to forego Flash - I’m already doing it. (I’ve commented on this in earlier posts, if you really want more of my opinion.)

I’ve been arguing that we should all prepare for the advent of HTML5 and its implementation of embedded multimedia content that avoids plug-in architecture. Its a better approach that lends itself to open standards and reduces the likelihood that any particular company can dictate the direction of the technology. A lot of people disagree with me, and would suggest that Flash has a long life ahead of it. That may be - I think that this will be another arduous transition phase as we’ve seen many times before in web development and it’ll take several years. But it still doesn’t change my mind toward the inevitability of the process (unless something better comes along in the interim). In fact, we are already seeing major content providers distributing video in other formats; so I would argue that the transition is already taking place.

In any event, if you disagree with me - you may find Richard Leggett’s recent blog post to be a good read. It certainly covers the major points well. I’m not sure that I agree with his taxonomy, or the position that many in his camp would take: that you need Flash to develop interact content. I actually think that we’ll see more of that development via the manner of mobile applications, and we can do a lot of that right now with dynamic web development tools and technologies.

Now that students in New Media actually know a little something about Photoshop, you might also want to learn how to use brushes to increase the complexity of your work without doing everything manually. There are numerous sites where you can get brushes to download and incorporate into your work - but I like the iDesign brushes site because it also has a number of valuable tutorials accessible via the tabs at the top right.

As a graduate student, I promised myself that I would never be one of those professor’s that was always so busy they were always working and never seemed to have time for anyone. With practice, I’ve learned that any professor (today) that is actively doing their job will be considerably overextended. The result is that I am always running from meeting to class, or trying to fit student consultation in between various other things. But with the addition of baby #2, I find myself running late more than usual (which is saying something because I’m typically running late - that’s OK: time is cyclical, right?).

I do feel bad about being late for class though, and I usually do everything in my power to avoid it. And, I have a number of students who are similarly respectful. But I also have others that are chronically late. Anyway, The Other Dr. Fee sent me this link to a NYU professor and his response to a specific student situation. It’s funny, and I appreciate much of what he’s saying - even if he’s clearly a jerk.