Rainbows End vs In Rainbows

I was listening to Radiohead's "In Rainbows" at work today, and I was surprised why I didn't make this connection to "Rainbows End" sooner (if not just because of the name similarities).

For those of you who don't know, Radiohead released this album last Fall as an mp3 download, and offered consumers the choice of what to pay for it. Paying absolutely nothing was an option, and many fans went this route (although reports have been that Radiohead still made quite a killing).

I've been reading the responses and comments on Rainbows End by other students, and two themes that keep popping up are ownership and access to information. In Vinge's world, access to information is not an issue. Libraries are a thing of the past, and what you want is literally right in front of your eyes. To me, it seems like this kind of accessibility kills the notion of ownership. I really enjoyed the album (and threw down a couple of bucks), but since have purchased the hard CD copy. I can touch that, put the CD in my player, and enjoy the artwork that comes with it.

With the rise of electronic and digital texts, will I feel the same way about books? If authors simply put their texts online for me to read onscreen (or maybe with some sort of contact lens in the future!), will I get the same satisfaction that I do from holding a book that I paid for? If there's no value attached to it, I would feel cheated that no one had to make any finanical sacrifice for it, and thus, the product (or art?) becomes nothing more than a "tap water" commodity. The world in Rainbows End, while seemingly fantastic and accessible, really appalls me in some ways. All the information is right there, and you barely have to lift a finger to get it.

Thoughts on Vinge

I've never been a huge fan of the sci-fi genre...the plots are too loose and the characters all seem to be simpletons. I think that's what prevents me from appreciating some of the cool ideas and concepts sci-fi authors come up with. I know we're not reading this for the literary quality, but the critic in me had to comment.

HOWEVER...if Vinge is really this good at predicting the development of new technologies, I am not eagerly awaiting the arrival of "silent messaging." When I first started using text messaging on my phone, I couldn't get over how much that changed the way I interacted with friends. Texting eliminated many phone calls from my phone bill, especially the conversations that only required 2 minutes but swelled to 30. The need for vocals was eliminated, and my right thumb was all that was necessary.

After reading the first part of this book, I tried to imagine how eliminating the thumb would change things. It would be like telepathy. Four people talking to each other could carry on "sub-conversations," which would most likely influence the outcome of the actual conversation. There's an interesting part in the book when Braun, Vaz, and Mitsuri first meet the Rabbbit, and they're worried that the Rabbit might be silent messaging. Imagine the paranoia such technology would create! I feel like sitting in a bar with your friends would become a nerve-racking situation. If technologies like this do come about, I'm not sure I want to know how they will affect the way we communicate.

"read you like a book"

I really enjoyed our first night of class, and if there's one part I want to remember, it would have to be our discussion about how physical books shape us. I had never really thought that much about the phrase "read you like a book" until after Anne made that comparison. I think it was when she mentioned that we both had spines that it really clicked. Books, and the way we handle and read them, are certainly a reflection of how we interact/communicate with someone else.

That said, how are digital texts going to change things? How will we respond? If things progress to the point of Vinge's future world, what phrase will replace "read you like a book?" "Scroll you like a webpage?" We should come up with a list as a class and pick the best ones.

First ever blog post

This is the first time I've done a blog, but I have to say, I've been curious about it for some time.

Being a music nut, I read a lot of music blogs...in particular livemusicblog.com, which has an extensive list of links to other bloggers. I usually use this site as a starting point, and then just surf around until I find something interesting. It's amazing how endless the networks are, and how each time you surf around you get a personalized summary of things that are going on.

Setting up the blog was surprisingly easy...no different than signing up for something online. I have a few friends who blog as a part of their jobs, and they often complain about the time it takes to set up and maintain a blog. I suppose there's a big difference between working blogs and leisure blogs, though. I'm really looking forward to working with this more.

I chose this template because it was simple and easy on the eyes. Now that I think about it, I rarely take notice of the styles of the blogs I read. I'm much more drawn to the titles of the posts or the images.

When I write in this blog (and as I read other blogs), I think that there's quite a bit more freedom than if I were doing a freelance project or classroom assignment. To hell with parallel structure or active voice! It's a simple medium that I think people prefer to read in a more conversational style. When I write, I try to just imagine a conversation I'm having with myself. In many blogs, I think the main attraction is how interesting the writing style is.