Spreading and mutating like a virus, computer mediated communication has entered our lives. From the everyday to the expert, our means of communication continue adapting to a broad spectrum of ramifiying agencies thriving in digital media.
But, grandiose pronouncements won't take us very far toward understanding our situation(s). We must approach it through researching concrete historical manifestations of development, and—as we are designers—through making, developing critical practice(s). We will survey the field, develop our familiarity with its current forms and use our understanding to extrapolate into the future.
We will expand our understanding of these influences by reading (online and print) and discussion (online and face-to-face), by your research and my demos, by developing your digital know-how, and, of course, by writing online.
Discourse Communities : Archive
Research a community defined by shared discourse.
How are subjects constituted by their means of communication? How has your group been constituted historically? How are they now?
Extrapolate beyond your research to design possible tools for this community.
Your work will become part of a digital archive of probes.
Self-Improvement
Based on where you are now, make progress!
Develop your involvement in digital communication, make progress. You could create your first webpage; do your first scripting; start a wiki on a topic of interest; create and populate a de.licio.us account; and ... but, make it useful.
Document your progress online, in a digital sketch book.
Showing and Telling
We will identify various efficacies of digital communication and you will find interesting, innovative, amusing, disturbing, etc., examples and we will discuss them (online and f-t-f).
You will be expected to post weekly Findings (you must be logged in to our group to see this page), and comment on the findings of others. (Note: it may take awhile for your message to appear after posting. Also, I recommend that you compose your message on your computer before posting it, so you have a copy just in case the posting fails)
Every class will begin with a quick, informal sharing of stories, artefacts, items of interest that come across your path.
Readings
Readings may be assigned weekly. Active participation in discussions is required. Prepare a response ahead of time and be ready to contribute.
Expectations
Active participation in all class and online discussions. This includes critical engagement in each other's work.
Expand your online presence.
All submitted work must be presented in digital format, available online. This includes documenting your work on our program website.
As this class meets only seven times, two absences (or the equivalent in tardiness) will constitute a failing grade.
You should know the grading policy by now. If you have any questions, ask.
Parsing Digital Text
Digital text goes beyond human communication. Text has become a functional tool, a means of persuading machines to do our bidding, one readily available to the general user. We write texts that control other texts—text controls text controls text controls machines. Lectures and demos will address various forms and functions of digital text, from front to middle and back-ends.