Mystory part 2

For the family part of the mystory I chose to do something different. I created a photo essay video of pictures from my childhood. My family revolved around sports and it continues to be a theme in my family. Schedules and events were planned around the sports team's schedule. My Dad was the coach, my brothers the players, my sisters and I were always on the sidelines as either water girls, trainers or recording stats. The photo essay exhibits the narrative as mentioned by Ulmer, “When we are born into a family we enter in the middle of an ongoing narrative. We already are a character in the stories of our parents, who have plans, hopes, fears for us that they project into our care or neglect as sons or daughters” (86). Since I struggled with writing text last time I chose to not write anything and simple put up relevant quotations from Ulmer.

http://people.clemson.edu/~hwitmer/Site/Home.html

And more Ulmer

This week's readings on entertainment discourse have been rather interesting. In the middle of chapter 6 I came across the following lines, "Who is the audience? Whomever is online (the other, the stranger)" (160). I started thinking about what the Internet does to the concept of the audience and how the author relates to the audience. Is audience analysis even possible? Or do we simply send out information hoping that it reaches the right people?

I have been working on my project paper and include Bitzer and the rhetorical situation in regards to brand identity for a non-profit. Although there are some situations online where the rhetorical situation apply there are may instances it seems where the rhetorical situation in stretched in ways that change the relationship between the author and the audience. The communication models are shifted away from the typical traditional models and become a reciprocal situation where the audience is also the author.

My next question is how does this tie into Ulmer and the Mystory? How do we adapt for the changing audience? Do we consider the audience when composing each part of the Mystory or compose the Mystory separate from the audience? And is that even possible?

The house I built . . .

The house I built used square and column prims. I also added objects I had picked up from freebie places these objects included- tintable windows, a lockable door, rugs, and a TV.

Virilio part 2

Reading Virilio and working within Second Life are contradictory. Virilio takes an stance that is against the idea of 'being' in a virtual space and yet many 'live' and work in Second Life. This quotation I felt pinpointed the idea of 'being' present when a person is actually only 'telepresent.'
“In both cases[virtual space or cyberspace], we are forced to meet the same challenge, the challenge of a sudden ‘loss of reality’ of space-time-matter. Hence, the accident is no longer a local accident, precisely situated in the space of an action and in the presence of a being, there, here, and now, but a general accident which globally undermines all ‘presence’ and promotes a ‘telepresence’ without consistency and, more particularly, without a true spatial position, since the remote interaction of a being at once absent and acting (teleacting) redefines the very notion of being there” (131).
Every time I'm in SL I have a hard time talking to other avatars. I know there is a person at the other end but because I cannot know their true appearance and identity of the avatar I am always hesitant. I wonder what makes a person decide to be in SL and interact in events that take place there. The anonymity of SL isn't a freeing aspect like some might think, I am always pondering their physical location and circumstances. I thought I was fine with the idea of 'being' virtually present and not physically, but then I encounter someone I don't know in SL and I realize that I'm not. So in many cases I disagree with Virilio but in this case I agree with him.

Virilio

"Terminal – and final – sedentarization; a practical consequence of the emergence of a third and final horizon of indirect visibility (after the apparent and deep horizon): a transapparent horizon spawned by telecommunications, that opens up the incredible possibility of a ‘civilization of forgetting’, a live (live-coverage) society that has no future and no past, since it has no extension and no duration, a society intensely present here and there at once – in otherwords, telepresent to the whole world" (25). This idea of technology allowing us to be everywhere at once and basically no where at the same time is a concept to ponder. As technology has progressed, the technology has allowed us to do what we do in real life.

Telephones= talk to each other like we would face-to-face.

Television= watch events like we would if we were present.

Internet= ability to communicate in a variety of ways that simulate face-t0-face communication. i.e. Skype

Instead of viewing these technologies as imitations of simulations, they should be seen as part of real life and allow for greater communication in situations where face-to-face communication is not possible.

Virilio discusses the idea of using technology to facilitate communicate but in the extreme, "Once more we are seeing a reversal in trends: where the motorization of transport and information once caused a general mobilization of populations, swept up into the exodus of work and then of leisure, instantaneous transmission tools cause the reverse: a growing inertia; television and especially remote control action no longer requiring people to be mobile, but merely to be mobile on the spot" (20).

Cellphones and iPhones now allow for people to communicate in a variety of ways using one device from anywhere. Does communicating primarily from technology cause "a growing inertia" or the ability to accomplish more from anywhere? I feel like I bring up the idea of technological determinism a lot but I feel like this discussion goes back to the question- Does society shape technology or does technology shape society?

Second Life Avatar

I already had an avatar in Second Life from my visual class, but I decided to change it up for this class. I wish I could change the name, since Phobia was chosen for a specific theme.

Here's the old avatar from my visual class-

And my avatar after a few changes-