noted on Wed, 22 Sep 2004
noted on Mon, 13 Sep 2004
noted on Fri, 13 Aug 2004
noted on Thu, 06 Nov 2003
noted on Wed, 03 Sep 2003
"Intellectual Heritage"
Tim muses briefly on how he thinks about the data on his computer. If there’s ever a time and a place to have this kind of thinking widely deployed, it is now. So I make a lazyweb request: If you’re a designer, I’d like to see a t-shirt that has something like this: On one side, we have a 2 column chart. The headings for the columns will be “You:” and “Me:”. Under the “You:” heading is the phrase “data”, or “office documents”. Under the “Me:” heading is “Intellectual heritage”. On the back, I want it to say something like “You created it. Why should the software you use own it?”
Gah, there’s a reason why I’m not in marketing. Look, if you need a clue, here’s a good one. You create something using commercial software, which you don’t own, but is licensed to you by the vendor. Odds are pretty good that the software you use isn’t the best at doing anything you might need it to be good at. Maybe you love a certain word processor’s UI, but hate the way they make you build tables in the document. If you saved your document using that software’s proprietary file format, you will have to use the crappy table layout feature. On the other hand, if you could save it in an open, publically documented and standardised format, then you can shop around for any other program that just might do tables better than the first program, and use it just for your tables. You get to do whatever you want with your creation. If that’s not freedom, I don’t know what is.
One not-very-related thought that Tim’s musings brings to mind is that this is so important, that for almost none of us to have gotten the point right away must imply that our mandatory history classes have failed to teach us some important lessons. Lessons about racial memory. Lessons about how much we can’t learn because information was truly, permanently lost to us.
I'm On a Blogroll!
Extra cool. I would just like to say I’m tickled pink over the fact that I’m on a blogroll. Please go visit Douglas Nerad’s site and have a lookabout. I must say that on the basis of the book he’s currently got listed in the ‘read more’ section, he also has excellent taste in literature. The book, which I shall mention here for posterity’s sake, is Orson Scott Card’s Characters and Viewpoint (Elements of Fiction Writing)
Line Art
I have never seen anything quite like this before. It’s gorgeous, it’s mesmerizing, you have to see it. Check out this series of prints as well.
I’m so trying to figure out how I could do something like this using Photoshop/Illustrator. I know they’re using custom software to build that, but I’m wanting to get in on that style of work for myself.
If I were to create works like that using low-tech techniques, how would I do it? Pencil crayons, chalk, or pastels won’t work; you can’t draw a lighter color on top of a darker one. Paint solves that problem, but you can’t keep the lines exactly the same width.
It would be possible to construct it with actual thread, but then the difficulty lies in figuring out how to fix the image in place.
If you’re a creative type, I’d love to hear your suggestions!
Introducing the Handbook for Primitive Living
My good friend and I are starting up a new blog :
Imagine if tomorrow you had no hydro, no running water, no fuel, no phone. How could you survive? This site is a thought experiment designed to answer that question.
Some details (like how to contact us) are still being ironed out, The site has settled down a lot recently; you’re welcome to take a peek inside!
Real Maps
Geoff Cohen apparently had things to say about the way maps are being drawn today.
Then he came up with this really cool idea about maps being more dynamic - for example, using technology, we can load up a map file, and illustrate where borders were at any time, or show border disputes, or show the location of friends.
Hmm... this sounds like a great problem to solve using SVG There are, of course, some challenges. Almost all of the good maps are copyrighted, and those copyrights are judiciously enforced. I seem to remember reading somewhere that the way they can tell you copied ‘their’ map is by deliberately introducing inaccuracies into the map in the first place!
Perhaps a good starting point would be to trace this image and get people to upload GPS coordinates for border points. Does anyone know where there’s a public-domain repository of political boundaries?