Part III

Housekeeping. . .Password for E-RES: dynamicBegin by visiting:

http://www.library.ucsb.edu/index.htmlRead Lanval and the excerpt from The Book

of the City of Ladies by this Thursday

MLA Format: Online Databases

Numerical RepresentationNew media objects are composed of digital code,

i.e. numerical representationsExample: Every letter of the alphabet is represented

by an eight digit number composed only of zeros and ones "R" is "01010010"

By extension, every command is represented numerically

Because of this, new media objects can be described mathematically and manipulated with algorithms.

What Does This Mean for US?Unlike old media, new media is PROGRAMMABLE.

ModularityNew media is composed of various independent

elements: pixels, images, text, sounds, frames, code

These can be modified independently without affecting the new media object as a whole

Example: Photoshop The images in Photoshop are composed of many

different layers which can be modified independently.

Example: The World Wide WebThe modular structure of the web is illustrated by

various independent sites and pagesEach can be independently modified

AutomationComputer programs that do the work for us. .

.We can create or modify new media objects

using templates or algorithmsExample:

Rather than create a new media object, we choose from pre-existing images, code, or other elements, such as filters, special effects, etc.

VariabilityOld media is somewhat set in stone

Example: BooksNew media is infinitely variable and can exist

in many different versionsExample: hypertext and Wikipedia

Can view a site in an infinite number of ways

TranscodingHow does computerization affect us???On the one hand, transcoding refers to the

way in which new media objects are translated from one format to another.

On the other, transcoding refers to the way computers influence culture and vice versa, i.e. Computers influence the we think and the way we think influences computers

Example: MySpace

But Doesn’t Old Media Incorporate at Least Some of These Principles???Manovich argues that these principles can be

found in part in older forms, such as cinemaExample:Discrete representation (modularity) in cinema

paves the way for new media Though digitally encoded media is discrete, film

stills can be seen as samples of time on celluloid.

Other examples. . .Since digital media share the same code, one

machine (computer) can display different media typesCinema can also be seen to do this by

combining images, sound, and text into one display

So is new media always better?What about degradation?

Truth vs. RealityAs Manovich states, “[. . .] the software and hardware used to

acquire, store, manipulate, and trasmit digital images rely uniformly on lossy compression—the technique of making image files smaller by deleting some information” (54).

Furthermore, “[. . .] while in theory, computer technology entails the flawless replication of data, its actual use in contemporary society is characterized by loss of data, degradation, and noise.” In terms of degradation, how does old and new media compare?

Medieval Manuscripts Books Floppy disks Memory sticks Hardrives

“Tintern Abbey”

“Tintern Abbey”The Author:

William Wordsworth (1770-1850) British poetRomantic Movement

Characterized by???

Genre?What do we know about the narrator?Diction?Rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, consonance,

assonance?Figures of speech? i.e. Similes, metaphors,

imagery?

How does the poem relate to the theme of the unit?“Thy memory be as a dwelling-place [. . .]”How does the narrator “access” information?How does he “display” this information?

Single-media display or multi-media display?How does this compare to accessing and

displaying digital media?How did we access this poem for today?Are there any earlier examples of multi-media

displays within old media? Example: Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts

How does new media affect our understanding of medieval literature and of literature in general?Access

How we accessWho has access

DisplayInteraction

For Thursday. . .Continue with Manovich

Myth of InteractivityInterface

Unit 4: The Medieval and the Modern: Issues of GenderRead Lanval and excerpt from The Book of the

City of Ladies, available through E-RES (password: dynamic)