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In searching for the remix that I think is a good representation of what one is able to do to to create a different final product from a great original, I came across Obidiah Parker with a cover of Hey Ya by Outkast. I really enjoy this version of the song because it takes a rap song and turns it into a mellow “folk” swing. The ability to create an original product in a derivative way is interesting and showcases the possibility of creating new from something old. Though he is singing a song that he did not create, the two styles that the songs are in are very different and bring different feels to the table. Which is better??? Without the original, Obidiah wouldn’t be singing it but in reality I enjoy the twist that he puts on it. Sometimes I enjoy the remix better just because it is a creative way of thinking, being able to transform songs and keep certain aspects but reshape others. Sometimes I like remixes better just because it sounds better. As with the grey album, I think that it is a good representation of both and I like it because of the creativity and because I think that both of the originals sound better when mixed in the grey album. Remixes, remixes, remixes… whats coming next after audio, a video remix?!?! 😉

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Facebook, twitter, cnn.com, and every other website that I visit on a daily occasion are all part of one big picture… The internet. I decided to spend my week on break without it. Since I was staying with my grandfather, I felt that it would suit the occasion as well since it is something that he rarely uses other then to send an occasional email. I spent my time putting my feet up and just enjoying not having a book that I had to read. At first, there were the occasional “Oh I should check what’s going on on Facebook” and such. Realizing that I had made a pact, I just tucked that urge away and found many other things to do.

I strongly disagree with what was stated in the movie we watched where one of the participants said, “no computer… what am I going to do for fun?” I think that it is a sad portrayal of our generation and is actually not true for most of us. If someone were to say “no outside for a month” then I think I might say “No outside… what am I going to do for fun?”

During the week I found myself walking around outside and taking in what was in front of me more. I went on a few nature walks with my camera and took pictures. I went skiing (lucky me). I read a book that I hadn’t had time to before. I watched the nightly news instead of reading it online. I even wrote two letters to friends, which is something that I haven’t done in a long time. Not having the internet didn’t bug me very much and I actually found myself grateful to have an excuse to be banned from it.

Though I wasn’t as connected in the digital web, I think that it was a good thing. We often are too available and accessible and getting “off the grid” for a little while was nice. When I sat down to write two of my friends, I realized how much more personality there is in a letter then in a Facebook message or and email. I had to take the time to think about what to write and how to say it because there is no CMD+Z or Delete button once I put my thoughts down on the postcard. My handwriting was a part that spoke wonders about me. I cannot write in Times New Roman. As I got to the bottom of the postcard, my letters got smaller and my lines closer together because I still had a lot that I wanted to say. Everything about writing the letter felt to me as though they were going to appreciate the fact that I had taken the time and made the effort that much more. I put a “Telluride, CO” sticker in both of the letters, definitely something that is impossible with an email. Though I could have written the same exact message online that I had put down on paper, it would have been no different then any other wall post or email that they got. I took the time to look up their school addresses, went down and bought stamps, and then went to the post office to sent them out. I think that the end result is a product that is much more appreciated upon receipt. I know that somebody who writes me a letter really had to want to and had to carve out the time to gather materials and such as opposed to just clicking keys and sending a digital message into the electronic abyss by clicking send.

Back to the internet though, I don’t think that I would have been motivated to do these things if I had access to the web. When there was something that I felt like doing online, I though about what that activity stemmed from in real life and tried to go through that medium. It was very nice and put me more in touch with the tangible world in terms of activities I usually do on the internet. To tell you the truth I had NO lack of ideas of things to do that weren’t on the internet and am very glad that I was provoked into coming up with those! Though the urges were there because of the convenience and accessibility, I was able to withhold and find workarounds with maybe only 1 proxy experience during the whole week 😛

While going through my daily news online, I stumbled upon this article about Twitter at the South by Southwest conference this year. Having been announced to the digital world only around 3 years ago, it has definitely made its splash since then in many ways.

This year at the SXSW conference, being a big name that people are watching, they surprised some by using business cards made out of actual paper. As though paper went out of style and they were “bringing it back”, twitter employees used their “earthy brown” paper business cards to make their contacts. At a conference in which the point is to be able to “Bump” data from one iPhone to another or to send vCards with a persons information through a text message, it was seen that they were coming up again with a new (but oh so old) idea.

Company spokesman Sean Garrett said “This antiquated thing called ‘business cards’ is a helpful way for some of us to bridge our online and offline worlds with potential employees, partners and the thousands of developers who make Twitter applications”.

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Hope you enjoy =D

Chatroulette.

Wow… Chatroulette.  Something that I have seen people talk about on Facebook but only thought was the name of a french character on a TV show.  Before watching the video, I explored the website for a while to form my own opinion having no clue what it was.  I clicked the “Play” button which I think is kind of weird… giving it the beginning feel of a game.  Before I knew it, my face was up on the screen and that of another Australian man was right above it.  I waved, not sure whether he was real or not and he waved back at me.  I asked him what myself and he were doing.  He responded that “Chatroulette was only introduced to him today by his friend”.  I asked him where he was from and he said Australia and we talked about the time difference.  Knowing that I was going to use my first introduction as a beginning point for the thoughts I would formulate on the blog I asked what he had encountered so far.  He said “too many naked men”.  Having only chatted with this one guy so far I was surprised and hadn’t even thought about the fact that anybody with a webcam could do whatever they wanted on this site.  After saying goodbye and good luck with the rest of his military service, I hit my first next button.

I was then barraged with about 8 different screens in a row.  1 girl, 1 naked man, and about 6 guys that looked either creepy or like I was NOT what they were looking for.  For about 45 minutes total, I surfed around talking to random people.  I met 3 french girls all in the same box and ended up talking to them for about 20-25 minutes.  Who would have thought that from my dorm room, I, Hunter Nolan, would spend my evening talking with french ladies 3,000 miles across the globe.  Something that is 1. random and 2. impossible without the modern technologies we have today.

More barrages of “User disconnected, trying to find you a stranger” hit me and I too felt the same way as did the man in the posted video, almost offended by peoples quick judgements and nexts.  Not to say that I didn’t click next a bunch of times too, but when you have a 2 megapixel picture of someone, I guess you are forced to judge a book by its cover.

I think that Shirky would be a big fan of this website if it had a more organized fashion to it.  It could be better in that people could click on groups that they are interested in and they could be re routed to chatrooms or “chatpools” in which other people are talking about art or film or african animals etc… really whatever you wanted.  In reality I think that most guys on there are looking for a free show or to find someone that is just as bored as they are.  I found the facts that it is filled with about 71% boys and less then 25% girls to not be very surprising.

I myself found it very rare to come across a girl on Chatroulette, and just like most of the people that saw Genevieve, usually stopped to see if they were interested in saying hi.  I also found it weird that I was relieved by the sight of a girl, it was like finding an angel in hell.  Sometime you are not enthused by what pops up, sometime just shocked or disgusted, and sometimes excited when someone pulled together/interesting comes across.  It was also a relief when somebody on the other side had day light or even just real light as opposed to being dimly lit by their computer screen while they lay in bed.

All in all the website is a very interesting concept and I feel that it will definitely be built upon and expanded in time.  There is a draw of, this next person is going to be different or great and sometimes its true and sometimes it couldn’t be more opposite.  I hope that they clean it up a little bit and possibly turn it into more of a think tank type of experiment where collaboration and cooperation of ideas could be more of a focus.