Arranged Delirium

My colleague Dr. Pettegrew is blogging again at Corinthian Matters, and I’m linking here to encourage him to keep with it : )

In seriousness though, he’s got a link to an animation of the diolkos across the Isthmus of Greece. I’m not sure about all the details since they conflict with some of what I’ve understood in the past concerning how this portage road was used. But, it’s quite helpful for envisioning the overall use of the road and why it would have provided a considerable shortcut between Italy and the western Mediterranean. I’m embedding it below in its entirety, but you can find links to sections at Corinthian Matters.

You can find more information by following this link to the project page hosted by Vimeo…

I’ve been working with iOS 4.2 and I have to say - it’s a nice update. I’ve been especially pleased with multitasking and folders. The ability to print will be nice, but it’s not much of an issue for me. As for folders, well, I’ve been too lazy to cull my collection of apps, so this makes for a nice, convenient way to stay organized. But multitasking? I believe I stated earlier on this blog that I wouldn’t miss it. So, to quote Gob:

“I’ve made a huge mistake.”

Multitasking is marvelous. I was wrong to think it was not a drawback previously. In my defense, I think this is likely due to the fact that I use the tablet so much more than I’d originally anticipated - and as I get closer to ditching my laptop, I find myself wanting more functionality from the tablet.

Well, against my strict sabbatical policy to only finish tasks, I’m taking on a new project. Specifically, an edited volume on archaeology and new media. Bill is already thinking about this, and now I’m trying to collect my thoughts on it and begin a prospectus. We would value any thoughts and ideas form people, so please don’t hesitate to comment and send up emails. We are just working on this as we can around other items, so this is a 2-3 year process.

I think the format is easy for me to envision: a book that is also electronic and a corresponding web app that allows folks to access annotations, any addendum, and perhaps even formulate a sense of community via discussion boards if anyone wants to talk about it. I’d imagine there could be quite a bit of discussion on some of these topics. So, in looking at Bill’s ideas, I see it as both traditional and dynamic - and I think that’s exactly what our audience requires. I don’t think this approach will be overly problematic - O’Reilly is already releasing electronic review copies of texts I use in my classes with active links to the web. I find these very useful and carry them around on my tablet. What we’re talking about doing here is essentially similar with the addition of some web technologies which are the stuff of my development activities anyway…

But I’m still struggling a bit with the organization of the work. I can see the best practices section being a collection of case studies - that’s our last section. But how do we address the topics of concern here? Bill suggests definitions and sampling strategy, both of which make good sense. I’d probably want to add in components for interpretation and education; although they might just as well fit into a definitions section. But then I get caught up in a circular argument which underscores the conundrum I face when thinking this through: do we organize these discussions around what we are specifically doing with new media and technology, or do we focus on the archaeological research process and how the new media relates to that? I like the idea of organizing around the research process, but so many of the tool we use are becoming pervasive throughout the entire process. And it’s informing the work we do - while we are doing it - as well as the interpretations we make after the fact. So it’s not so easy to break the new media or technology away from any isolated activity since it’s often invading multiple elements of our work…

At Pompeii, they are using the Apple Tablet Device for data collection. It’s something I’ve been thinking a lot about ever since the device hit the market, and it seems that they have done a great job with it. You can find a good deal of information at the web site Apple has devoted to it:

They are using a series of pre-existing applications to get the job done. I’m interested in taking a different approach with some custom development - more on that in a later post - but their efforts have the winning attribute of working today. I’m particularly struck by the efficiencies and time-savings this brings to the data collection process in archaeology. Everyone will be doing this in future years; and I think we’ll be watching this type of technology shape the actual way in which we do archaeology.

My friend Bill has some interesting thoughts on digital workflow on his blog, and I was particularly struck by my own reflection on how little we need paper anymore. As long as the digital tool is easy enough to use (and that’s a primary prerequisite) I can ‘t think of anything I would want to keep track of on paper, that I couldn’t do electronically. I can even easily keep track of changes in my thinking as more evidence comes to light during data collection. 

Apple updated its suite of office applications this week in a move that makes then more useful by weakening the enforced bond between desktop system and the tablet device. Don’t get me wrong - I’m not trying to say that I would use my tablet as a primary work device. If I’m working on large documents, I still prefer by desktop. But this update will make is much easier to do more with my tablet. That makes is much easier for me to abandon my laptop.

There’s a concise post and the The Small Wave that does a good job of laying out the benefits to this most recent update.